Is Phoenix like Cairo?

In today’s AZ Republic’s letters to the editors came this beauty from Mr.  Ken Carpenter of Tempe:
“What part of the Second Amendment don’t some people understand?  I own an AK-47 because the 3rd Infantry Division is armed with M-16’s.  I pray that the U.S military would not fire on American citizens, but I am reminded of two words: Kent State.”
Wow.  I thought we had a 2nd Amendment because the founding fathers wanted states to have militias in case of another war.  When the Militia Act of 1903 was passed, the state militias became what we call today the National Guard.  Mr. Carpenter be careful and don’t shoot you’re eye out.  In the meantime I will continue to wonder when ‘Crazy As a Shithouse Rat’ became the state motto of Arizona.
Speaking of Arizona, there is an amendment to the bill that declares ‘Grand Canyon State’ as the official state nickname for Arizona by adding the 1873 Colt Peacemaker as the official state weapon.  Yep , because every state needs a state weapon. 
It’s tough being the Donald, Rumsfeld that is.  In a recent interview with The Financial Time’s Gideon Rachman, the former SecDef and walking Excel circular function was asked if we had know there were no WMD would  we have been still justified  to go to the war?  His answer: “Apparently. The Congress had passed regime change legislation in the 1990’s and it passed overwhelmingly.  Now you can’t know what you would do. What you know now helps you in what you do in the future.  It can’t help you with what’s been done in the past.”  Classic Rummy.
I think the White House’s white paper (do Green Houses submit green papers?) on winding down the Governmental Sponsored Enterprises (GSE) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is a good start.  The white paper includes reducing the GSE’s role in the mortgage industry and leaving FHA as the sole government agency offering mortgages to poorer borrowers (best option).  The other options include: the government still guaranteeing mortgages but in such a way they don’t push out the private market (worst option) and the government becoming the last-ditch insurer should the private market collapse and private insurers are wiped out (in between).  What needs to happen is an orderly withdrawal over the next 5-7 years of the GSEs from the mortgage industry.   After the Clinton and Bush administrations, Democrats and Republicans in Congress, weak regulations, and inept leadership at the GSE’s, Freddie and Fannie have to lose the implicit government backing and go it alone in the private market.  The 5-7 years are necessary due to the heavy losses still on the GSE balance sheets and because there is no viable private source of credit.
Thumbs down to the John Healy Hospital of Galveston, TX for keeping illegal immigrant Maria Sanchez (her husband is a legal US resident) in the hospital for six days for surgery to remove a banana-sized tumor from her spine only to be told to go to Mexico for the surgery.  Now the hospital doesn’t have to admit illegal immigrants, but once they did, they are obliged to provide treatment.  In the end, a hospital in Houston has agreed to treat Ms. Sanchez.
George W. Bush often spoke with pride about his lack of international travel when he took office in 2000.  Well, it doesn’t look like he will get his Passport stamped much in retirement.  43 cancelled a planned to trip to Switzerland when he found out he could be indicted for approving the torture of detainees.  There are another 146 countries that have signed onto the same 42 page petition that could be a legal template for indictment.  Well W, can always visit his buddy Dick in Wyoming…just don’t plan on making it a hunting trip.

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