Dodd Done

He Should Resign Immediately.



Connecticut's worthless and corrupt U.S. Senator Chris Dodd looks even worse, if that's possible, as testimony leaks from the ethics committee investigating his cozy relationship with crooked banks.

Two powerful Senate Democrats said Tuesday that they knew they got low mortgage-rate deals in a lender's VIP program but thought the special treatment was a "courtesy" or the same as "frequent flier" discounts.

Both vehemently denied any wrongdoing or ethical lapse in the mortgage deals, which came to light a year ago and triggered investigations by the Senate Select Committee on Ethics and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

"I thought this was like a frequent-flier program," Sen. Kent Conrad, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said of the special benefits. "I thought nothing of it."



Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, chairman of the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, said an account executive at Countrywide Financial Corp. told him that the VIP status was "nothing more than ... courtesy stuff."

A Countrywide official who handled the loans had said that both senators knew they got preferential treatment in the form of waived fees and points that likely saved them tens of thousands of dollars.

Robert Feinberg, who formerly worked in the mortgage giant's VIP section, said in testimony to congressional investigators last month that the senators were made aware of their status as VIPs or "Friends of Angelo," referring to Countrywide Chief Executive Officer Angelo Mozilo. The CEO played a central role in the subprime-mortgage meltdown, which included the downfall of Countrywide last year.

"It was always instilled in them to let them know their sense of importance of where they were. And that you ... were a friend of Angelo's. You were referred by Angelo. You were approved by Angelo," Mr. Feinberg told Republican investigators for the House oversight committee.

Taxpayers lost billions while these guys cashed-in? Even if they were somehow "unaware" of the freebies they were receiving, the fact that they thought it was normal shows the entitlement mentality of privilege they have. It is time for Senator Dodd and Senator Conrad to submit their resignations and leave the political scene in disgrace.

Yesterday

I didn't post anything yesterday because I had to attend to some things that were important but not really much fun. In the morning I went to the Doctor's for my annual check-up. He told me that I was in excellent health for someone my age and with my background of self-destructive behavior. That's a Devine for ya - none too pretty but built to last.

In the afternoon I had to take the bus to Easthampton to pay a visit to the dreaded registry. There used to be a registry in Hadley but they stupidly shut it down. Before I got the bus I went to the Haymarket Cafe in downtown Hamp for some coffee. Outside people were playing with a pet mouse.



Inside they were playing with computers.



Finally the bus came by and I got on. I got off at Eastworks, which is where the registry is located.



I groaned when I saw all the people waiting for service, but it actually only took about 45 minutes to get in and out, which is not bad by government standards.



In Easthampton itself I couldn't help but notice that there are all these bears on display. Bear footprints are painted on the sidewalks.



A psychedelic bear with band-aids.



One of the bears was stolen, resulting in this shrine pleading for it to be returned.



For more information about Easthampton bears go here.

Rides

Speaking of the Registry of Motor Vehicles, here's some cool transpo I've stumbled upon in my ramblings. This car parked in Easthampton defines cool.



Here's an unusual van in the Dunkin' Donuts parking lot on King Street in Northampton. Dig the triple headlights.



This rariety was parked in front of Packard's in downtown Hamp.



Today's Video

The Cave Bears weird-out at Mystery Train Records in Amherst.

Saturday Videos

Feeling frazzled? May this beautiful video from Nashawanuck Lake in Easthampton put you at peace.



Or you might go out and get some ice cream. When really stressed I used to be partial to Darvons, Percocets, Valiums and my two good buds - marijuana and Budweiser, all to counteract the paranoic jitters of crack. But now I like vanilla chocolate chip ice cream.


My drug of choice.

I'm much better off, as you can see from this photo taken last year just a few weeks before I went into rehab. Yikes, I'm so skinny and burnt out!



I never want to be like that again!

The media says these are stressful times because of the economy. Really? Unless you are some rich fat cat who did stupid things out of greed, or someone who foolishly took out a mortgage you can't afford, I don't see anybody hurting. Everybody's too busy spending all the money they're saving on low gas prices.

Or thinking of buying a new home with all the bargains to be had thanks to falling prices. Who were these simpleton investors who thought real estate prices would go up forever? The next pleasant surprise is that when housing prices drop, eventually rents do too.

There will be bad side effects from the stupid bailout plan, but again most people won't notice them and hopefully those that do will finally learn the lesson of not giving the government too much power.

In the meantime, how about nostalgia as a mood lifter? It's nice to look back on the good old days, but through most of history people had nothing but their memories to do so. That's not so anymore, especially if you had a camcorder in the 80's and your parents let you play with it all the time. That's was the case with Robert, shown here on the left in 2001 at Northampton's former eatery the 591.



Robert made this video that is almost like walking around downtown Northampton in 1988, showing the old Bran-Win, whose existence I had completely forgotten about, and the late lamented Main Street Records, back when big bulky vinyl still ruled over the then new format called the compact disc. I know you'll enjoy watching this, provided you can still do so with your eyes all blurry from tears of nostalgia.

July 1988 - Bran-Win and Main St. Records

Who?

All in a name.



Alcoholics Anonymous (or Drugs Anonymous as it may as well be called) is a great group that has saved millions of lives over the decades. I know I'm one of them. It does however pose some challenges because of the practice of using only first names in order to preserve the anonymity of the membership.

Actually, most members of AA couldn't give a damn about who knows that they are a member. Certainly most of the people in the lives of stoners already know they had a problem with getting high, so who is it they need to be anonymous from? Yet a stigma of sorts still exists against people who get too high too often and many stoners in denial pretend to themselves that other people don't know they have a problem. Therefore in order not to discourage any newcomers from joining AA the concept of anonymity is rigorously preserved.

As a member of AA I have come to know a lot of people only by their first name, which can cause me to have conversations like this:

AA member: Tom, did you hear about Mike?

Me: Mike? What Mike? I know a dozen people named Mike!

AA member: You know, the one from the Haydenville meeting.

Me: You mean the one that also goes to the Newman Center?

AA member: No, the one that also goes to the Looney Nooner.

Me: I'm not sure who you mean. What does he look like?

AA member: He wears a baseball hat.

Me: That doesn't tell me anything, every male in America has a baseball cap! It's practically the national hat!

AA member: It was a Red Sox cap.

Me: Aaargh! Nevermind, what is it about this Mike guy anyway?

AA member: He died.

Me: Well, I'm sure I'll miss him if I ever figure out who you mean.

In Northampton a truck with a McCain/Palin sticker was parked outside the aptly named skateboard shop The Boardroom.



Did you watch the Vice-presidential debate last night? I didn't intend to, but all the hype convinced me I should. I usually don't like what passes for political debates these days. The candidates are generally over-rehearsed, the questions are mostly softballs and the answers are just soundbites from their campaign speeches. Generally you end up looking for gaffes just to make it interesting.

Neither candidate made much of a gaffe last night. Joe Biden was knowledgeable but wonkish, burying his points in a sea of dull details. Sarah Palin often ignored the questions altogether to focus on topics she considers her strengths, but in general she came across as more likable than Biden. If Biden won on substance, Palin won on personality. The media's verdict seems to be that since Palin's expectations were lower, and she did better than expected, that means she "won" the debate. Actually I suspect that the debate moved few votes in either direction.

Vice Presidential candidates generally have limited influence on the presidential race, with even bad picks having little effect. The first President Bush was elected despite choosing the hapless Dan Quayle, and John F. Kennedy preserved his idealistic image despite choosing the evil Lyndon Johnson. If the past is any guide, on November 4th the voters will choose the next president based on what they think of Barack Obama and John McCain, not by who their running mates are.

This morning my sister and I were at a lawyer's office in Easthampton which is located in the Eastworks building. It was the first time I'd been inside.



I was impressed. It was early, so most of the shops were not open, but I could see that they've done a pretty good job in transforming an abandoned factory into a mall.



I was also surprised to see that TurnItUp has a store there. I hadn't realized that they have any other shop than the one in downtown Northampton.



Virtually every town in the Valley has one or more abandoned factory buildings, and if Eastworks proves to be a success than it might be a model for other communities.

Finally, here's a video made last week of the whole motley crew from the Fright Night reunion tour, with actor/pornstar Stephen Geoffreys doing his famous laugh.