Evening Edition is an Open Thread

1 Bomb hits police in Pakistani city of Karachi, kills 18

by Hasan Mansoor, AFP

10 mins ago

In middle school I was a member of the Fencing Club.

Bank of America Allegedly Foreclosing Fraudulently in Kentucky

Yves Smith, Naked Capitalism

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Many foreclosures show this process was not observed on a widespread basis: the notes were assigned (as in transferred) to the trust right before closing, a violation of the PSA, the New York trust statutes that govern virtually all mortgage securitization trusts, and IRS rules for these trusts (REMIC). When foreclosure defense attorneys started contesting these assignments, suddenly a new ruse started to show up: allonges, which are sheets of paper that contained the needed endorsements, would magically appear out of nowhere. The problem is that an allonge is supposed to be used only when there is no space left on the note for endorsements, including margins and the reverse side, and when it is used, it is supposed to be so firmly attached to the original as to be inseparable. But these “ta da” allonges were always somehow discovered at the custodian, quite separate from the note.

…

This means the odds are awfully high that Bank of America committed multiple frauds on the court, first on the state court in the foreclosures process, and now on the Federal bankruptcy court.

…

This sort of abuse is far more serious than robo signing. As much as the likely misconduct here and robo signing would both be considered frauds on the court, the robo signing is arguably cost cutting gone mad and riding roughshod over proper legal procedures. By contrast, this practice has all the appearances of multiple coverups of the fact that Countrywide trust did not have standing to foreclose on the house. The steps undertaken here look to be a deliberate, concerted effort for the bank to get its way, the law be damned. And this clearly took more parties and more thought than the robo signing abuses.

At a minimum, the attorneys at the law firm and the parties at the servicer had to be aware of this device. And if our reading of this document is correct, this is fraud, pure and simple. It’s high time we see some attorneys disbarred and some law firms go out of business as a result of foreclosure chicanery, as well as serious investigations of the people involved in foreclosure litigation at the servicers and the banks’ general counsel’s office.

(h/t lambert @ Corrente)

Also-

Alan Greenspan: “Fraud, fraud is a fact.” And the banksters are doubling down, with the help of the Obama administration

Thu, 11/11/2010 – 10:51am – lambert

UK Guardian Releases British Torture Tape

By: Jeff Kaye (valtin), Wednesday November 10, 2010 7:08 pm

The UK Guardian yesterday released a videotape of a 2007 interrogation of a suspected Iraqi insurgent, one of 1,253 tapes made by interrogators at a secret British military center near Basra, run by the Joint Forces Interrogation Team (JFIT). The release came only days before the U.S. Justice Department investigation into the CIA’s destruction of videotapes of the torture of three high-value detainees at secret black site prisons was closed, with no charges brought. The news about torture was not a complete surprise as revelations last month showed torture techniques were taught to British interrogators in secret training manuals.

The release of the British torture tapes was the result of a lawsuit brought before the British high court by 220 former Iraqi prisoners. The Guardian warns that the video embedded here “contains material that viewers may find disturbing.” Having watched it, I can vouch it is difficult material to watch. Amazingly, the U.S. press, and much of the British press, have totally ignored this material. The truth is going to be difficult to stomach, but this is a taste of what might have occurred had U.S. tapes found their way to public viewing.

…

Watch the video posted here, and then ponder what role we all play in this monstrous enterprise. If we do not speak out, if we do not demand that all torture stop, and that the entire secret archives be opened so we can know once and for all what has been and is going on, then we put our own futures into dire jeopardy, and will surely earn the scorn of future generations. The Wikileaks Iraqi war logs already have plenty of evidence of torture and war crimes by the United States. Where are the investigations? The prosecutions? The outcry?

So, just a single week after a sound electoral thumping because they pissed off their base (CBS Exit Polling, Independents, Unions, and Gays- More Exit Polls), the Very Serious Leaders of the Democratic Party shot themselves in the foot again yesterday, not once, not twice, but three times!

Genius.  I’ll start with the Korean Free Trade Agreement since that’s the one you’ve probably heard least about-

Korea Free Trade, Here We Come

By: Jane Hamsher Wednesday November 10, 2010 9:46 pm

According to pollsters, opposing NAFTA-style trade agreements and defending Social Security were the two strongest issues Democrats had in 2010. There were 220 television ads run by Democrats in competitive races in 2010 opposing the outsourcing of jobs and “free trade” agreements…

…

The trade deal is seen as a sop to Korea so the US can maintain a military presence in the region. … (O)nce again, more middle class jobs would be sacrificed for the sake of militarism and interventionism.

It would be a truly horrific blow to whatever is left of American manufacturing at a time when unemployment is rampant.  But from a political standpoint, fighting for another so-called “free trade” agreement right now has got to represent some kind of death wish for the Democratic party.  I don’t have any other way to explain it.

Then there is Obama’s cave on Tax Cuts for the Rich-

David Axelrod’s Quaint Idea of Middle Class "Security"

By: emptywheel Wednesday November 10, 2010 11:52 pm

Axe is defining “security for the middle class” as tax cuts. Not “jobs.” Not “access to health care, not just insurance.” Not “a guarantee a bankster can’t just foreclose on their house with a trumped up piece of paper.” Not “some basic safety net for retirement.” But “tax cuts.”

According to Axe, we have to shovel even more money on the already rich so as to ensure the “security” of the middle class by giving them a tax cut.

And while I agree that raising middle class tax cuts at this point would be bad for the economy, it’s not the worst thing that could happen to the economy.

In fact, the worst thing that could happen to this economy may well be passing legislation that continues to hollow out of the middle class and with it increasing the massive income inequality that continues to subject the American people to the craven demands of a few very rich people. That is, precisely what Axe and Obama have now agreed to do.

These men either don’t know or don’t give a damn about the security of the middle class.

And then there is Obama’s Cat Food Commission recommending drastic cuts to Social Security WHILE ALSO Cutting Taxes for the Rich and Corporations-

Cutting Social Security Would Prove Disastrous for Democrats at Polls

By: Jon Walker Wednesday November 10, 2010 6:56 pm

In this last election, Democrats performed terribly with senior citizen voters. National House exit polling shows only 38 percent of those over 65 voted for Democrats while 59 percent votes for Republicans. This is the worst showing for Democrats among seniors in decades and a big part of why Dems lost so many House seats.

…

The Republicans absolutely hammered Democrats with what the GOP labeled as a $500 billion cut in Medicare as part of the new health care law. The fairly misleading message clearly resonated with seniors who really don’t want their entitlements cut.

…

Cutting Social Security will be dramatically worse for Democrats

With that in mind, a Democratic plan to cut Social Security would likely be even more politically destructive to Democrats among senior citizens. Unlike with Medicare, there is no real waste or overpayments to private insurance companies in Social Security to trim. Any cost saving reforms to Social Security must actually be straight-up cuts in benefits.

…

Social Security is called the third rail of politics for a reason. If Obama touches it, he will destroy the Democratic party in 2012.

After looking at the senior vote in 2010, one can only conclude that any attempt by President Obama or Democrats to reduce Social Security benefits would be a political disaster. Polling indicates that a majority of Americans strong oppose (.pdf) raising the retirement age, and I can only assume the idea is even less popular among those about to retire.

Democrats attempted to simply reduce waste in Medicare as part of health care reform, and it caused voters over 65 to reject them en masse because it was framed by Republicans as a cut in Medicare benefits. If Democrats promote actually cutting people’s Social Security benefits, I have every reason to believe their losses among seniors citizens in 2012 will make their historically poor performance in 2010 look small in comparison.

What I will point out about these arguments is that they’re NOT based on some namby pamby kumbayah theory of Social Justice and Compassion-

They are based on hard nosed realpolitik facts about how to win elections.

Anyone who claims to care about “electoral victory” is a LIAR!

And anyone still buying into the “11 Dimensional Chess” Theory of Barack Hussein Obama and his Administration is a member of a cult of personality–

The Obama Movement

Posted on November 10, 2010 by myiq2xu, The Confluence

Remember those stories about the “Cult of Obama?” They started because of something called “Camp Obama.”

…

A summer camp for young adults where they sat around campfires sipping Kool-aid and chanting “Fired up! Ready to go!” and “O-bama! O-bama! O-bama!”

Okay, there were no campfires because the “camps” were held in office buildings and auditoriums, but the principle is the same. Read up on Camp Obama and you might notice a dearth of policy discussions.

It was all about the O

That “telling stories” stuff? The Christian fundamentalists call it “witnessing.”

…

Obama gets $99 million dollars in 2007 from Wall Street, health insurance executives and oil companies. He uses that money to organize Cult Camp Obama. He wins in the red states and caucus states but loses almost all of the big states and swing states.

…

Then once he’s in office he immediately starts dismantling the very organizations that helped him get there. and co-opts or “vertically integrates” all the left-wing activist groups within the Democratic party.

He even arranges for the Democratic party headquarters to be relocated to Chicago.

It sounds to me like he knew his followers were gonna be really disappointed and he didn’t want to leave them anywhere else to go. I guess it never occurred to him they might just stay home.

(h/t lambert @ Corrente)

This is primarily a political post about why this is bad politics.  I’ll explain why it’s bad policy later.

Broadcast Premiers.  Country Music Awards.  A good night to nap.

• AMC– Red Planet
• Bravo– Top Chef (premier)
• Discovery– Track Me If You Can (Series Premier), Mythbusters, Storm Chasers (premiers)
• ESPN– Hoopies, Jazz @ Magic, Clippers @ Spurs
• ESPN2– College Throwball, Miami (Ohio) @ Bowling Green
• Food– Tailgate Warriors With Guy Fieri (premier)
• FX– What Happens in Vegas, Terriers x 3 (premier)
• History– WW II in HD (Air War premier)
• Lifetime– The Lake House
• Sci Fi– Hollywood Treasure x 2 (premiers)
• Turner Classic– The Immigrant (Chaplin), Yankee Doodle in Berlin (shhhhh)
• Travel– Man v. Food marathon (thank goodness, with premier)
• USA– Psych (premier)

Later-

• Oxygen– Bandidas
• Turner Classic– The Poor Little Rich Girl, The Coward (shhhhh)
• USA– Burn Notice x 2

Dave hosts Russell Crowe, Quincy Jones, and Snoop Dogg.  Jon has Mick Foley (could be fun), Stephen Martha Stewart (maybe she’ll make something).  Conan has Jon Hamm, Charlyne Yi, and Fistful of Mercy.

Boondocks– Or Die Trying.

Zap2it TV Listings, Yahoo TV Listings

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

1 Student protesters storm British PM’s party HQ

by Robin Millard, AFP

1 hr 27 mins ago

Now some of you may think I watch waaaaay too much TV and you’re absolutely right.  Since the 60s I’ve always had my choice of at least 2 of every network including PBS and a handful of independents.  My TV is constantly on, even when I’m napping, and I’m sure I absorb it osmotically (yes I do know that means movement of a solvent through a semi-permeable membrane and I deliberately chose it instead of ‘subliminally’ which is not only less felicitous but also hypnotic hocus pocus and not what I mean at all).

Now that we have vocabulary covered and a proper understanding of how marinated in media I am, I’d like to draw your attention to Greenwald on O’Donnell discussing the Democratic Party that you might have missed but through the miracle of the tubz you can experience at your leisure and convenience.

If Larry is a Socialist, I’m the freaking King of Siam.

The perniciousness of Blue Dogs

By Glenn Greenwald, Salon.com

Wednesday, Nov 10, 2010 07:11 ET

I thought the West Wing clip at the end was simply masturbatory self indulgence.  You’re no Socialist Larry, you’re just another delusional Versailles Villager pretending to be a ‘Real American’ like Marie Antoinette pretended to be a milk maid on her play farm.

For context, the setup.

Am I becoming a Video Blogger?  No.  Frankly it’s a pain in the ass, much harder than real words.

So Keith is back.  I’m tempted not to watch for fear he’ll do something stupid like apologize.  Broadcast premiers.

Greenwald on O’Donnell (definitely).

• ABC Family– What a Girl Wants
• ESPN2– College Throwball, Toledo at Northern Illinois
• Discovery– Dirty Jobs, Auction Kings x 2 (premiers)
• Food– Private Chefs of Beverly Hills (premier)
• FX– Jumper
• Sci Fi– Stargate Universe (premier)
• Speed– Monster Jam!
• Turner Classic– Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Local Hero
• Toon– Small Soldiers, Tower Prep (premier)
• Vs.– Caps @ Rangers

Later-

• Sci Fi– Instapeat
• Turner Classic– The Parallax View
• USA– Psych marathon

Dave hosts Denzel Washington and Bon Jovi.  Jon has Harrison Ford (cool), Stephen Cee Lo Green.  Conan Tom Hanks, Jack McBrayer, and Soundgarden.

Boondocks– The Story of Thugnificent

You know when fluoridation first began?

I… no, no. I don’t, Jack.

Nineteen hundred and forty-six. 1946, Mandrake. How does that coincide with your post-war Commie conspiracy, huh? It’s incredibly obvious, isn’t it? A foreign substance is introduced into our precious bodily fluids without the knowledge of the individual. Certainly without any choice. That’s the way your hard-core Commie works.

Uh, Jack, Jack, listen… tell me, tell me, Jack. When did you first… become… well, develop this theory?

Well, I, uh… I… I… first became aware of it, Mandrake, during the physical act of love.

Hmm.

Yes, a uh, a profound sense of fatigue… a feeling of emptiness followed. Luckily I… I was able to interpret these feelings correctly. Loss of essence.

Hmm.

I can assure you it has not recurred, Mandrake. Women uh… women sense my power and they seek the life essence. I, uh… I do not avoid women, Mandrake.

No.

But I… I do deny them my essence.

Zap2it TV Listings, Yahoo TV Listings

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

1 Gulf oil firms need ‘top to bottom reforms:’ US panel

by Karin Zeitvogel, AFP

36 mins ago