So much for the failure of the bailout in Congress leading to a collapse on Wall Street. Today, the market regained 2/3 of what it lost yesterday (+485.21 / +4.68%).

I heard one person on TV the other day saying that the stock market is K-MART and there is a big “Blue Light Special” going on right now.

Or as Johnny immortally said in the movie “Airplane!”:

“There’s a sale at Penny’s!”

The polls are now closed on the 9/26/08 edition of Virginia Virtucon’s Reagan Rock Video Fights. In a shutout, the B-52’s have blown away the reigning champ Journey! Make room for the Funplex!

Be sure to be here this Friday for our next RRVF when Journey defends their title against a new challenger.

Until next time, this is your Virginia Virtucon VJ, Jim Riley, signing off…

Congressman John Murtha, most famous for falsely claiming that U.S. Marines had committed cold-blooded murder and being a part of the ABSCAM scandal, today held a fundraiser for Gerry “The Big Doofus” Connolly’s campaign for Congress.  (By the way, I love how the fundraiser is based in Maryland and not Virginia.)

RSVP

 

Susan O’Neill & Associates

301-xxx-xxxx

MurthaCampaign@xxxxxxxxx.com

 

Please Join

Congressman John Murtha

and

Congressman Jim Moran

 

for Breakfast with

 

Democratic Candidate

Gerry Connolly, VA-11

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

 

National Democratic Club

30 Ivy Street, SE

Washington, DC

 

Breakfast: 8:00 AM

Coffee service will begin at 7:00 AM

 

Suggested Contributions

SPONSOR -  $2500

PAC             -  $1000

Guest           -  $500

 

RSVP

 

Susan O’Neill & Associates

301-xxx-xxxx

MurthaCampaign@xxxxxxxxxxxx.com

 

Please make checks payable to:

 Gerry Connolly for Congress

c/o Susan O’Neill & Associates

XXXXXXXXXXX Road, Suite XXXXX

Bethesda, MD 20816

 Contributions or gifts to Connolly for Congress are not tax-deductible.  Federal law requires us to use our best efforts to collect and report the name, mailing address, occupation, and name of employer of individuals whose contributions exceed $200 in an election cycle. 

Email paid for by the DCCC and authorized by Gerry Connolly for Congress Campaign

Consumer confidence unexpectedly improves in Sept.

The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index is now at 59.8, up from a revised 58.5 in August. Economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR expected a reading of 55.5.

As of 1 p.m. the Dow Jones Industrial Avg. was up (+274.15 / +2.64%) at 10,639.60.

So much for the Armageddon scenario if the bailout package failed.

The stock market plunged 777 points yesterday (percentage-wise that is less than 1/3 the amount it plunged in one day back in 1987) following Congress killing the monstrosity of a bailout package that had emerged.  On one newscast, they reported a floor trader saying that Congress should be jailed after the bill went down in flames.

Well, some members of Congress do belong in jail, but not for killing this beast.

Other than Wachovia, please point me towards the earnings reports, financial disclosures, corporate forecasts or other hard data that led to the sell-offs of most of these stocks on an individual basis.  This was irrational panic, pure and simple, proving my theory that most people, including investment professionals, let psychology rather than sound business data drive their business decisions and thus our economy.

It needs to stop.

Take a breath.

Now take a deep breath.

Stop acting like all the imbeciles in the panic scene from the movie “Airplane!”

The bill that died in the House yesterday was a bastardized version of socialism and deserved to go down to defeat. Investors in the stock market and financial professionals need to figure out if they’re for capitalism or socialism.

I say no bailouts.  Let free-market capitalism work for a change (the current crisis arose because the government mandated that banks lend to people without the wherewithall to repay their loans so they could expand homeownership.)

We NEED a credit crunch.

We need banks to only make loans and issue credit cards to people who will have the ability to repay them.  (Please stop sending credit card applications to my 5-year old, she doesn’t want or need one.)

We need consumers who recognize what they can actually afford in terms of homes, cars, colleges, etc.  Maybe some people should get credit cards where they need to pay off their balance at the end of each month.  This is a matter of personal responsibility.

Prices of homes skyrocketed because sellers could demand higher amounts since buyers could get the financing regardless of their long-term ability to repay the loans.  This government distortion of the market was classic inflationary policy.  Now that the bubble has burst, prices of homes are back down to about where they should be.

We’ve been hearing for a while now that college must be made more affordable.  Well, colleges would have to offer lower tuition rates if students couldn’t or refused to be turned into what amounts to be indentured servants for years after they graduate just to repay student loans.

We need to end the era of “easy money,” let the free-market work, and let prices settle down to where they truly belong based upon unadulterated supply and demand.

If you are someone who pays your mortgage and your bills on time, then you should not be on the hook for people who behaved irresponsibly.  If you are someone who is having problems paying your mortgage and bills on time, but are trying to work out your problems on your own, then you should not be on the hook for others, too.  Either way, you are someone who is taking responsibility for yourself and should oppose any bailout.  But if you can’t pay your mortgage and bills and want the government to bail you out, then perhaps socialism and Barry Obama are for you.