Watch here.

I give him an A- so far in these negotiations. Doing quite well imo.

I thought President Obama was A+ in this presser today.

It's that time of year again, what to do in the face of Republican threats to push the country into default! Oh, and this time, Republicans have a primer on How To Stop Worrying And Love Default:

Q: [T]he Treasury Department came out with [a report] that said that if the US does not raise the debt ceiling in time that there would be a catastrophic effect on the economy[.]

[Sen. RON JOHNSON (Tea Party Republican Wiscosin]: I think that’s – I think that’s highly irresponsible for the Treasury Department to be issuing those kinds of, I mean scare-mongering reports. The Treasury Department, I think the Secretary of the Treasury, I think the President of the United States ought to be trying to calm the markets, rather than scare them. The President really ought to be leading here. [. . .] There is absolutely no reason at all for this type of government to default even if we don’t increase the debt ceiling. So I think it’s highly irresponsible of this Administration to be doing the type of scare-mongering they’re doing on this issue.

Wall Street is sanguine and thinks the absurdities of Ron Johnson and Ted Yoho do not matter, but I think they may be wrong, and I worry that President Obama is not setting the stage for the actions he may have to take in response.

The issues are practical, default would be catastrophic for the nation, and constitutional, the 14th Amendment prohibits federal government default. But the President's men have taken the unusual (and imo, wrong) position that his hands are tied. I'l explain why they are wrong on the flip.

It's another week of moving preparations for me, as well as getting all my tax info to the accountant and my regular work.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Amato (J) and Armando (A) Show NFL picks (disagreements in bold): Miami Dolphins -3(J, A) over Baltimore Ravens, St. Louis Rams -11½ (J, A) over Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions +7 (J,A) over Green Bay Packers, New York Jets +10 (A), Atlanta Falcons (-10) ((J), Arizona Cardinals +1½ (A), Carolina Panthers -11/2 (J), Oakland Raiders +5 (A), San Diego Chargers -5 (J), Tennessee Titans +3 (A), Kansas City Chiefs -3 (J), Denver Broncos -8 over Dallas Cowboys (J, A), Indianapolis Colts +3 (A), Seattle Seahawks -3 (J), Chicago Bears +1 (A), New Orleans Saints -1 (J),San Francisco 49ers -7 (J, A) over Houston Texans, Philadelphia Eagles +3 (J, A) over New York Giants.

The video of an embattled Amato and Armando Show recorded October 5, I was in a hotel in Burlington Vermont so not our best effort:

Open Thread.

I'm even more swamped than I thought I'd be. For every project I finish, there are another three waiting.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

The picks (2 units unless otherwise indicated): Kentucky +21, Competitor: South Carolina, Baylor -28, Competitor: West Virginia, Florida Atlantic +4, Competitor: Ala Birmingham, Notre Dame +6, Competitor: Arizona State, Fresno State -27½, Competitor: Idaho, Washington +8, Competitor: Stanford, Tulsa -3, Competitor: Rice, Ohio State -7, Competitor: Northwestern, Virginia Tech -7 (4 units), Competitor: North Carolina, Texas Tech -16, Competitor: Kansas, Georgia Tech +6, Competitor: Miami (Florida), Michigan State +1, Competitor: Iowa, Minnesota +19, Competitor: Michigan, Clemson -14, Competitor: Syracuse, Oklahoma State -14, Competitor: Kansas State, TCU +10, Competitor: Oklahoma, Maryland +17 (4 units) , Competitor: Florida State, Mississippi State +10, Competitor: LSU, Washington State -1½, Competitor: California, Georgia -11 (5 units), Competitor: Tennessee, Navy -12, Competitor: Air Force, Army +12 (3 units), Competitor: Boston College, Middle Tenn State +7½, Competitor: East Carolina, Illinois +9, Competitor: Nebraska.

For the season - 36-32-2 ATS, + 18 units.

UPDATE for the day - 15-9 ATS, +8 units. For the season - 51-40-2 ATS, +26 units.

Go Gators!

Open Thread.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Another busy day here, including court. And then the snow is expected to fall by Friday. I'm trying all sorts of moving Apps from Apple's App Store to make the moving process go easier, but none so far have been a great help. Room planners, which a bunch of furniture stores provide for free, are just as good, but eat up too many hours of my time.

I did finally pick a storage unit. This company seems head and shoulders above the rest. The building is new, the units are as clean as a house, plentiful staff, and indoor, climate controlled units. When you sign up, they give you two hours of movers with a van, to move your stuff into storage. That's a huge help. Hardly cheap though.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's lawyers have filed a motion to end the SAMS restrictions on Tsarnaev and his legal team.

The SAMS imposed on Tsarnaev are attached to the motion as an exhibit. Take a minute to read them. But for all the alphabet references to federal agencies, I would have thought the jail was in Russia. The motion is here.

The documents also contain some interesting Government theories about Dzhokhar, some of which are at odds with other information released by the Government (the motion discusses this aspect.)

The travails of Silk Road owner Dread Pirate Roberts is an interesting tale. Bitcoins, internet drug sales and now contract hits are alleged.

As many have been saying for years, the Global war on drugs has been an epic failure:

The International Centre for Science in Drug Policy said its report suggested the war on drugs had failed. The report, published in the British Medical Journal Open, looked at data from seven international government-funded drug surveillance systems.

More here and here.

I think I'll be very happy with the view of my new home -- the patio is 445 sq ft and has views of south, west and east. Now I just have to do the hard part: Moving.

I should be moving the 17 to 19 (no way can this be done in a day.)

Since I havn't see the news, here's an open thread, all topics welcome.