Zeek's End of Year Ruminations
Well kids, yet another 12 months has come and gone. Never in the history of makind have has your old pal Zeek been happier to see the arbitrarily chosen signpost to mark the passage of time than now. The going consensus among most of the Grand Conspiracy, TGS Warriors, and the South Side Samurai is that once the book is closed on 2008, that book should be burned and the ashes scattered across every volcano in the realm. As bad as the year was in many aspects, there was still room for learning. And I thought I’d share a few thoughts.
First of All, the highlight of the year was the homecoming of my youngest brother who returned from his tour in Iraq alive and with all of his extremities in place. Unfortunately, not everyone who’s been deployed has been so lucky, so I’m grateful for the miracle the universe granted him. Hearing first hand accounts of the war zone remind me though, you can’t get an accurate picture of what’s happening on the other side of the world from a newsmedia with its own agenda. CNN, Fox News, and any outlet from World News Daily to Democracy Now are all pushing viewpoints in their daily broadcasts that cherry pick from the facts available. So this is just a reminder to think critically of anyone claiming to inform you, even if (especially if) that person seemingly supports your own point of view. No one ever died from too much critical thinking.
This year had points where oil was expected to hit $200 a barrel and gas was expected to hit $5 a gallon here in the midwest. Today a gallon of gas cost me $1.37 and February futures traded near $40 a barrel. If ever there was a wake up call to try and cure ourselves of our dependence on the spice, it was the 2008 oil market. This kind of volatility in price makes future planning damn near impossible for everyone from traders to taxi drivers. The American public seems to have begun to change their attitudes about driving though. We’ll see if that continues into 2009.
Of course, part of the problem may be that people just don’t have a reason to drive. 2008 did a great job of destroying retirement dreams for a lot of people. Whether it was natural market contraction, the result of speculation, or total loss of consumer confidence, the stock market took a handful of sleeping pills and drank a bottle of vodka as a chaser this year. It didn’t die, but it’s been a bipolar psychotic ever since. Price movements motivated by caprice and whim rather than the usual market factors made IRAs, 401(k) plans, and every other investment vehicle people have placed their trust in over the last decade lose nearly every gain on the books.
The American automotive industry, the staggering behemoth that has long viewed change with antipathy finally hit the skids. With gas prices as a major factor, Americans stopped buying the anachronisms churned out by the Detroit cartel, actually opting for vehicles with better fuel economy and other features. Then a complete drying up of the consumer credit market pushed the big three automakers into a downward spiral. Showing their complete lack of common sense, the heads of these corporate entities flew to DC in their luxury jets and were carted by limosine to capital hill where they asked the American taxpayer to bankroll them despite being some of the worst businessmen in the history of businessmen. The American taxpayer said no. Twice. Unfortunately for us the American president (with the apparent support of the American president-elect…Hope-Progress-Change!) didn’t agree and loaned these bozos a few billion dollars. If these companies had FICO scores to report (well…they do actually…I guess), they wouldn’t qualify for a secured Visa with a $300 limit, but we just gave them an American Express Black card. Go us. Let’s see if they can meet the covenants that come with that debt in 2009.
Speaking of industries full of people who deserve to fail but won’t because they donate enough money to people in power who guarantee that any risky behavior has the most limited consequences…2008 is the year that the American banking system’s chickens came home to roost. Years of making risky loans, playing fast and lose with invested funds, and designing derivatives and options that required an engineering degree to begin to understand them paid off this year in some of the biggest losses the banks have seen since the depression. Add to that the stress from Americans defaulting on their mortgages and credit cards and banks started folding faster than you could count. This caused the remaining banks to freeze new lending and stop bankrolling any economic growth people had hoped for. Never fear though, the American taxpayer came to the rescue and loaned these failed titans of finance $700 billion. That’s right, these men who failed to show any restraint at all in their business dealings are being loaned your money to help carry on business as usual. Once again, go us.
A word more about that…The banking bailout does absolutely nothing to help the American citizen. Your bank acted in a way that makes it a bigger credit risk than you’ll ever be. They’ve been rewarded with sweetheart terms on new financing to cover some terrible investments. Nowhere in this process are you guaranteed any assistance if you default on your mortgage. No…these banks will use the money loaned to them by you to forclose on you and resell your home to someone else. It just goes to show that political contributions are still the best way to better your odds in any type of gambling.
We elected a black president here in the U.S. That’s pretty cool. Of course, he seems to play the political game just as well as our white president and his administration is starting to look a lot like the white president we had before this white president. So, we get further proof that our country has come a long way in racial equality and further demonstration that we’re all a lot more alike than we thought. Obama is smart, savvy, and seems like his heart’s in the right place though. So let’s see how much damage he can do. If anything, it’s funny to hear the apocalypse heads talk about how he’s probably the antichrist. That’s pretty much why I voted for him in the first place…well…that and the fact the Republican party threw in a VP candidate who only appealed to the very fringe of their own party. I would have voted Libertarian, but Bob Barr scares me when he speaks. If only Badnarak were running. There was a Libertarian you could point to and go “That guy? That guy’s a Libertarian.”
Okay…lightning round….
The Earth is still more than 10,000 years old. Evolution is still the best theory available for the development of Earth’s lifeforms and God still has not descended from heaven to prove his existence. Glenn Beck, Michael Moore, and Sean Hannity still don’t deserve to have soapboxes. I’m mad that Jericho was canceled. I’m more angry about the Battlestar Galactica mid-season hiatus. Chuck Lohr is brilliant. I wrecked a car and bought a Scion XD…Japan for the win. I really liked both the new Metallica and GnR albums. Metallica seems like they’ve found their balls again and the only flaw with the GnR album is that Mr. Rose really should give the band a new name. I made the switch to satellite radio and I love it. I solidified my plan to retire in Mexico. Two publications pending for short stories with more on the way. Oh! And fair market valuation for assets and liabilities for the win. Why? Cuz historic value is useless when trying to determine a business’s true value. Suckaz.
Anyway…So long 2008. I think I speak for a lot of people when I say…”Suck it.” 2009 is going to be a great one. I can feel it already.
South Side Samurai forever!
