Obama, economic troubles and famous last words

Posted on February 18th, 2009 by Richard Catto 1,675 views

“We need to end a culture where we ignore problems until they become full-blown crises. Today does not mark the end of our economic troubles… but it does mark the beginning of the end.” – President Barack Obama

Do these sound like famous last words to you?

This from an article where the US is contemplating nationalising their banks, their financial situation being so dire.

UPDATE:

Some of the commenters below don’t understand Economics, probably because they have no formal education in it, and the ignorant always call the educated stupid when they disagree or fail to understand how things work.

To show you that my economic arguments are sound, please refer to these two entries to gain a fuller understanding of why SPENDING is the only option for America to avoid another Great Depression.

In fairness by James Fallows
Wasting Away in Hooverville by Jonathan Chait

Here’s a quote from page 2 of Chait’s article above talking about WHY the Great Depression came to an end (bold is my emphasis):

Moreover, the classic right-wing critique fails to explain how the economy recovered at all. In one of his columns touting Shlaes, George Will observed that “the war [World War II], not the New Deal, defeated the Depression.” Why, though, did the war defeat the Depression? Because it entailed a massive expansion of government spending. The Republicans who have been endlessly making the anti-stimulus case seem not to realize that, if you believe that the war ended the Depression, then you are a Keynesian.

Tags: Barack Obama, Greenspan
Filed under Economics | 13 Comments »

An old man in a ditch – Part IV

Posted on February 16th, 2009 by Richard Catto 1,491 views

This is a short work of fiction by Richard Catto.

I woke up in the late afternoon after a troubled sleep. Tammy was sitting next to my bed when I opened my eyes. “How are you feeling now?” she asked me. “Okay, I guess”, I mumbled. She got up and came over to me and kissed me on my forehead. Then she held my hand in both of hers and looked at me with the concerned expression that lovers have for one another when the other is in pain and in need of support and comfort.

“How did you know I was here?” I asked her. “The hospital called me”, she replied, “a nurse spoke to me and told me some of what has happened.” “Oh yeah, what did they tell you?”, I asked. “The nurse told me that you’d collapsed after hearing that your father had died. I’m very sorry.” “That man”, I choked angrily, “was NOT my father!” I was almost yelling. “What? I don’t understand.” said Tammy.

“I found an old man lying in a ditch this morning. I called for an ambulance but he died. I accompanied the medics back to the County Coroner who decided to hold me while they investigated matters. They took a DNA sample from me, and apparently they deduced that the man who died was my biological father, but they must have made a terrible mistake. I’m going to phone my mother tonight and get this all straightened out.” I told her.

Tammy took a few moments to digest this information. “Do you feel well enough to come home tonight?” she asked. “I feel a bit better now. Let me get up and see if I can walk out of here under my own steam.” I pulled the blanket aside and swung my legs out. They didn’t reach to the ground – hospital beds are high off the ground. I slid down and landed unsteadily on the floor. I took a few wobbly steps forward and then had to grab the bed for support. “I don’t understand this”, I said to Tammy, “did they give me any drugs while I was out? I don’t recall feeling this unsteady earlier.” “Shall I go and ask the nurse?” said Tammy. I nodded and she stepped past me, briefly touching my back in a gesture of affection.

Tammy returned a few moments later with Nurse Angela Weston, who immediately shooed me back into bed. “It’s much too soon for you to be galavanting about.” she scolded me cheerfully. She helped me back into bed. “Was I given anything?” I asked her. “Yes,” she replied, “the doctor prescribed a sedative to calm you down. It will take a few hours to wear off. You can go home tomorrow.”

Tammy kissed me goodbye and said she’d be back in the morning to collect me. I felt like an undelivered parcel, left waiting on the shelf. Angela placed a manilla envelope on the bedstead beside me. “Those are the personal effects of your father.” she told me. I grimaced at the word “father”, but decided to let it go, she was only trying to be helpful. “Thank you.” I said “Can I get something to drink?” “This is not a hotel” replied Angela saucily, “but I’ll get you some water.” She went out.

I glanced at the plain manilla envelope wondering ruefully if I should go through a stranger’s last mortal possessions. However, they might give me some clues as to who he really was, I thought. I decided to empty it out on the bed. I opened the envelope and up ended it. Out tumbled a key, a few scraps of tatty paper with scribblings on them, a book of matches from McLarkey’s bar, a crumpled pack of Lucky Strikes and a quarter. That was it. That was all this poor man had in the world when he died. A wave of pity swept over me for this man. Deep inside of me a truth echoed: this was only the beginning of the adventure. I had to unravel the mystery of who this man was.

To be continued…

Tags: fiction, Short story, writing
Filed under fiction | 2 Comments »

Nando’s wild herb Peri-peri sauce is like crack for food

Posted on February 13th, 2009 by Richard Catto 2,697 views

One of my favourite quick simple meals is smoked peppered chicken fillets and cheese on a fresh bun and to make it interesting, adding an exciting sauce really makes the meal.

The other day, as I was browsing the sauce racks at my local SPAR supermarket, I noticed that they carried the full range of Nando’s Peri-peri sauces and I decided to get their wild herb variant and try it out.

Well, it’s a total hit. It’s so good, it’s like eating Nando’s takeout except at home for a fraction of the cost.

To make this meal yourself, here’s how you prepare it:

Ingredients

A fresh bun (or roll as we call them here in South Africa). I usually buy a french roll or a portuguese roll, but an ordinary hamburger roll will also work.

Real butter

Cheese. I use Gouda.

Smoked peppered chicken fillets

Nando’s wild herb Peri-peri sauce

Method

Slice open the roll. Slice some butter and layer it on the bottom half of the roll. Slice a smoked peppered chicken fillet and layer it over the butter slices, so that the chicken pieces overlap each other. Liberally pour on the Nando’s Peri-peri sauce. Top with cheese. Microwave it to melt the cheese.

Enjoy!

It’s a magic meal and really filling. You’ll probably want to make more than one roll at a time, because you’ll definitely want more. I love this snack so much, I could eat myself into a coma!

Tags: Nando's, Peri-peri, snack
Filed under Food | 7 Comments »