Our Drug Scourge

Deaths from drug overdoses in the United States are far outpacing those from guns or auto accidents ... see: Breitbart Article. Isn't it interesting that President Obama is only obsessed with one of these societal scourges ... firearms ... which are protected by the Second Amendment of our Constitution ... and skipping illicit drug abuse... which isn't.

I could be wrong but I don't recall his highness ever focusing his steely gaze on our devastating and growing drug problems. Could this be because he himself once was also a major enjoyer of such illegal pharmaceuticals? Matter of fact, this administration is now hell-bent on releasing 6,000 three-time drug crime losers from prison ... I suspect this is politically motivated ... and a move that we might all come to regret ... see: New York Times Article. (And, as it turns out, the vast majority of these "drug user" prisoners were often violent drug dealers who plea-bargained down their sentences.)

How come our president so very often seems to be ignoring harsh realities and leading us, Pied Piper like, to remedy issues which are only high on his own political agenda? Is he so misguided and ideological that he can't emphasize our country's real scourges?

The Punch Bowl Saga

Federal Reserve Bank Chairman, Ben Bernanke, is testifying in front of Congress again today ... very likely for the last time.  And he is telling both houses and the stock markets exactly what they want to hear ... that monetary tightening will not be started by the Federal Reserve Bank "for the foreseeable future" (see: CNBC Story). This is in stark contrast to what he said one month ago when he suggested that the Fed's tapering-off of its quantitative easing ($85 billion of money printing per month) would begin later this year and would likely be done by mid-year next (see: How Many Angels). Predictably these previous Bernanke remarks caused interest rates to soar and the stock market to swoon.

So the candy-man, Ben has appeared to reversed himself and promised to keep pumping money into the financial markets ... an action that is now being frequently compared to providing a dope-fix to drug-users. In the past, the Fed's job has been rather compared to taking away the punch bowl just as the party is getting a "glow-on and singing fills the air."  Only this time, Bernanke has seemingly lost his nerve and is refilling the punch bowl with grain alcohol ... probably not the long-term smartest thing to do for the U.S. economy.

But then how many smart things is this country doing these days anyway?