TEEEEEEEEEEEEBOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!

Open Thread.

Open Thread.

Herman Cain never intended to really run for President. He was running to sell a book and to get a Fox News gig. It was bad luck for him that he became "the frontrunner" for the GOP nomination (in reality he had no chance whatsoever of being the GOP nominee despite Nate Silver's insistence otherwise.) CNN's Erick Erickson writes at Red State:

I had thought and expected that Cain would continue until Iowa. He had enough money. Dropping out after losing in Iowa would have distracted from the present issues. Dropping out now will be viewed by a great many as an admission against interests [sic] that Herman Cain did have a 13 year affair.

In any event, Cain is out [. . . a]nd soon [. . .] will be forgotten. It is a sad ending for a good man.

I forgot him already. The big question in the GOP nomination fight is who is going to show up for The Donald's Debate:

It’s officially a reality television Republican primary now. Donald Trump is pairing up with Newsmax, the conservative magazine and news Web site, to moderate a presidential debate in Des Moines on Dec. 27.

How sweet is that? Trump is toxic with the general population but the GOP crazies still like him to some extent. And The Donald will not be ignored. Damned if they do and damned if they don't for the GOP candidates and The Donald Debate. I've not watched any GOP debates yet, but I'll live blog that one if anyone shows up just for the ridicule fun.

Speaking for me only

Aspen has not been kind to Charlie Sheen's wife Brooke Mueller. She was arrested late last night at Escobar and charged with misdemeanor assault and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute . A woman claims Mueller assaulted her at the Belly Up around 11:30 pm. (Via Pitkin County Press Release)

Saturday starts tonight - my college football picks:

PAC 12 CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Autzen Stadium - Eugene, Oregon v. UCLA, Over 66 (2 units) (the win line is a zillion, too much)

MAC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Northern Illinois -3½ over Ohio (2 units)

Iowa State +10½ over Kansas State (2units), Houston -14 over Southern Mississippi (2 units), Cincinnati -9 over UConn (2 units), Baylor -3 over Texas (3 units)

SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - LSU -14 over Georgia (4 units)

ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Virginia Tech -7 over Clemson (5 units)

BEST BET - Oklahoma State -3½ over Oklahoma (10 units)

Bonus Premier League pick - Arsenal (-1) over Wigan.

Open Thread.

Open Thread.

Geithner!

It’s housing, stupid. More precisely, it’s housing finance. As the Obama administration seeks ways to revive the economy, not to mention win an election, it is becoming clear that the biggest mistake officials made when they took office nearly three years ago was to underestimate the continuing damage to the economy from the mortgage crisis.

No sh*t.

BLS reports:

The Labor Department said Friday that the nation’s employers added 120,000 jobs last month, after adding 100,000 jobs in October. The unemployment rate fell to 8.6 percent, after having been mired around 9 percent for most of 2011.

November’s jobless rate was the lowest recorded since March 2009. The rate fell partly because more workers got jobs, but also because about 315,000 workers dropped out of the labor force, and the jobless rate counts only people who are actively looking for work.

Open Thread.

Busy so light posting at best today.

Open Thread.

Open Thread.

Banksters in trouble? Have some cash:

The Federal Reserve moved Wednesday with other major central banks to buttress the financial system by increasing the availability of dollars outside the United States, reflecting growing concern about the fallout of the European debt crisis.

The banks announced that they would reduce by roughly half the cost of an existing program under which banks in foreign countries can borrow dollars from their own central banks, which in turn get those dollars from the Fed.

I support this policy, but think that spreading the free money around to the "little people" is just as important. Also too, fiscal stimulus.