Record Year for Amazon?

How interesting. Retailers are talking about this being the biggest holiday season sales drop in forty years, down 4% from last year. At the same time, Amazon had the best year in their history.

Sure, books are going to be popular gift items when people are trying to spend less.

Maybe something else is happening too. Shopping online is catching on, demographics that had previously resisted are now comfortable with it.

Through The Coming Years

More Brand Nubian. Why don't these guys get recognized as the classic NYC rappers? They paved the way for so much that came after them, and still perform around town.

Poor Enforcement Costs Billions

Bernard Madoff stole $50 billion from investors through his crooked hedge fund. There are certainly more cases like this out there.

The Madoff scheme cost the government about $17 billion in lost taxes. The auto manufacturers are asking for $14 billion, and the government is still deliberating about how to pay it.

Maybe better enforcement of regulatory laws would actually be a good source of revenue for the government, in a time when we need all the cash we can get.

Economic predictions are fun.

I like annual predictions as a form of information modeling.


2009
Government spending will increase early 2009
Dollar will fall mid-2009
Oil will rise mid-2009
Home values will decrease throughout 2009

2010
Government spending will peak early 2010
Unemployment will bottom out early 2010
Internet technology/access will improve early 2010
Hiring will begin to increase late 2010
Stock market turbulence will continue throughout 2010

2011
Hiring will continue to rise in early 2011
Home values will begin to rise early 2011

We get down for ours, we get down no doubt.

Grand Puba, from Brand Nubian, has some great solo stuff. NYC has flows that people don't even know.


I Like It video:

Obama, Build More Bandwidth!

What a rare time this is in the history of our economy. The whole world is waiting to hear what one man has to say. Ten years ago, who would have thought that at the end of 2008, a black man named Barack Obama would have so much power over the planet's wealth?

So far I think the public has been pleasantly surprised at how well he's handling this economic crisis. He's surrounding himself with some serious people, and really sounds like he understands their advice. It's good to have a qualified president for a change.

Personally, I take it as a very positive sign that he's talking about investing in America's infrastructure. That's the best thing to do to create jobs, and we need a major upgrade anyhow.

One thing that we should consider is to increase our bandwidth infrastructure. The internet is becoming much more video oriented, and that uses a lot more bandwidth, but is going to revolutionize international commerce in the next ten years. Widespread access to high capacity, high speed internet connections is going to be a major advantage.

God Bless The Dead

Tupac gets respect too. Without him, would Biggie have sounded like that?

THE NBER has spoken.

It’s official, we are in a recession. And we have been since December 2007.

Most people think that a recession is two quarters of negative growth. In the United States, at least, that’s not technically true. We are in a recession when the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) says we are.

A nongovernmental, nonprofit research consortium, the NBER uses a broad set of indicators to measure the health of the national economy. Their website is a great resource, with links to the data sets they use.

http://www.nber.org/releases/

Notorious Movie: January 16 2009!

I am so excited about this movie! January 16th, the Notorious movie is released! The life of Biggie Smalls, depicted in a feature length film? Sign me the fuck up! I don't care how you measure it, he was one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century.

Golden Temple, Amritsar

The Golden Temple in Amritar is the most holy temple in the Sikh religion.

The devotion Sikh people show when they visit is seriously inspirational. I want to go there just to see that in person.

Bauls

For centuries, musicians called bauls have wandered throughout the Bengal region, entertaining locals with their distinctive musical performances, and smoking ganja. Named for the word for wind, bauls practice a form of musical mysticism which emphasizes individual enlightenment, personal freedom, and a lack of personal possessions. They borrow beliefs from Hinduism and Islam. Baul instruments include a small drum called a dugi, ankle bells called gungar, a single-stringed harp called the extara, and a multiple-stringed instrument called the dotara.

Tigerstyle

Does anyone want to doubt that outstanding bhangra music comes out of Scotland? Tigerstyle, man, give it a listen.

I am afraid of Aghoris

I can't get over these Agori sadhus, Aghoris live in the cremation grounds, eat the flesh of the dead, and use funeral pyres to worship Shiva. I have to say, they scare me.

The sound is a little messed up in these videos, but they are very much worth watching. Aghoris! Holy crap they scare me, but the guy in these videos turns out to be very sweet.

Shopping with Dharma Boutique

This guy has some excellent videos about buying textiles, crafts, and antiques in India. What a great way for him to advertise his business.

Indian used furniture



Banjara textiles



Tapestries

Varanasi silk trade

Varanasi is famous for its silk markets. This is an interesting interview with a guy in a silk shop. These are expensive though.



Maybe someone ought to just go right to the weavers. They're looking a bit broke these days.

Chomsky on 9/11 conspiracy theories

So these videos are a little shaky, but it's good to hear Noam respond to 9/11 conspiracy theories.

History is better with idiots and beer.

You know, sometimes it's just good to check in with drunken idiots to see what they think about a major historical event.

Good idea or bad idea?

Hmm. Israel wants to build a tolerance museum. What a nice idea.

Wait a minute. They're building it on a Muslim cemetery. Uh, that might make people mad...

Sarah Palin prank call

Oh my god. This is a prank phone call to Sarah Palin. It is from two Montreal Radio DJs. She thinks it is the president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy.

Has she ever talked to a person from another country? It's scary how naive our future vice president could be.

How about next time they pick a woman for vice president, it's not the female Dan Quayle.

Sarah Palin for president!

Being Republican means you never have to worry if what you say is true! What a lucky break.

Rajasthani music's got next

So by now all you desinauts out there know how good bhangra music is. It's becoming a phenomenon in America. Who knows that there is good music developing in Rajasthan though?

Check out some of these videos, then keep an ear out for the emerging Rajasthani sound. I think there's something here that's going to blow up big. And don't even make fun of how ridiculous there videos are. Have you seen Daler Mehndi lately?

Darra, Pakistan

This is a great video about the gun markets in Darra, Pakistan. This is like Pakistan's wild west.

Bomb Iran? Uh, how about not.

Imagine the nightmare of a war with Iran. Consider how fragile our economy is now. Add the extra burden of paying for another war, hundreds of billions of dollars a year. Then think about what would happen when the price of oil goes up to $200 a barrel, which is realistically could if we further destabilize the region. Going to war with Iran would seriously- and perhaps permanently- damage our economy.

We're actually considering war with Iran because they are developing nuclear power facilities? We just sold nuclear technology to India, and seem to have no problem with Israel and Pakistan having nuclear weapons. No wonder the world thinks we're a country full of hypocrites.

McCain expressed a serious, dangerous lack of judgment when he joked about bombing Iran. We can't afford to have a president who is apparently eager to get us into a war with Iran.

Udaipur looks nice.

I've sort of always wanted to go to Udaipur. It looks nice.

Here are some videos that make this place look pretty.

Drunk Skinheads for Obama

So crazy people threaten to kill the president all the time. It's kind of not that big of a deal.

Basically, these young skinhead guys talked about some ridiculous, racist violence online. They were drunk. I'm pretty sure. That's what happens when crazy people drink and chat with fellow skinheads.

But what great press for Obama!

For some reason, everyone who wants to vote for Obama on November 4th is convinced that something bad is going to happen.

Is it that he's a black man in an America filled with drunk skinheads and guns? Is it the memory of the past two elections getting snatched away at the last minute? Do people actually care this time maybe?

Mitt Romney for president!

Wow. Now I want to vote for Mitt Romney. This is about as lucid as those meth heads. Better visuals though.

John McCain for President! Several Powerful Arguments.

Oh my god the racism. Here's footage of an Obama monkey doll at a Palin rally. You've got to be kidding me.



Evidently old racist people are really convinced that Obama is Muslim, which is the scariest thing next to black.



Oh. Good. Political insights from racist meth heads. Now the issues are crystal clear.

TED Spread

This is an important indicator right now. The TED spread is the difference between interest rates for euros and dollars. When credit is healthy, it is low (like 1 or 2). It was at a 5 but is now down to like 2.7.

Here's a link to what the TED spread is:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TED_spread

You can check it on Bloomberg:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=.TEDSP:IND

The credit market is abating. That ends the surreal part of this crisis. Now we still have a lot of credit default swaps and mortgaged based derivatives out there, so there's going to be more turmoil on Wall Street for a little while. That could still be sort of weird.

After that, it's just a recession. We have them. It's not the end of the world.

The thing to be afraid of in all of this is that our entire economy is just based on a series of bad idea. There are plenty more problems that could through us into future recessions. Unregulated free market capitalism is dangerous in the long run. Investors know this, but got greedy with deregulation.

I am hopeful about the economy in the long run if the next government is smart about regulating some of these dangerous financial products. Otherwise, we have bad problems.

Good thing Obama's going to win! Who knows, but he's much more likely to stand up to the Wall Street lobbyists and update the regulatory framework.

I take great comfort in the fact that Warren Buffett has been giving council to Obama. For real. At least we know that someone is giving him an elite education in the issues.

Truer words were never spoken.

What a movie!

AK-47 Clip from Lord of War.

step away with those fistfight ways

Another difference between Dick Cheney's cartel and us? When they feel like it, they can send lots of people with guns to do what they want. Dick Cheney doesn't get in fistfights.

Power always rests on violence, and the ability to threaten violence.

Here's a little Biggie Smalls tribute to Dick Cheney's infinite wisdom.

Things Done Changed video.

gangsterized players think deep

So here I am, thinking about Dick Cheney again, meditating on the Prince of Greed, trying to figure out what makes him so successful.

Dick Cheney and his cartel, they are different from you and me in an important way. They plan ahead, in a coordinated way, and execute their plans systematically. We all react, alone, haphazard and isolated. Of course they win and we lose. That won't change until we change the way we do our thing.

Here's some old school props to Dick Cheney. Geto Boys, ancient, edited, but still so fly.

Damn it Feels Good to be a Gangster video.

Regulation: The Missing Word

You know what word we're not hearing enough when people talk about this economic crisis? Regulation.

This is not like the Great Depression. Everyone keeps making the comparison, but there is one fundamental difference. Our real economy, however you want to measure that, is pretty okay. It's not great, but not terrible. Oil prices are still too high, and we're paying way too much for the war that's keeping it that way. There was some crop destruction from the floods in the Midwest this summer. There are other little things, and it adds up. But more or less, the real economy is not so terrible.

We're in this mess because economic speculators- what we call Wall Street- invested lots of money in a few financial products that aren't properly regulated.

By now, everyone knows that banks were giving out too many iffy loans. Credit was too cheap and available. People got subprime mortgages they couldn’t actually afford, because the banks relaxed their lending policies.

One big reason the banks were so eager to give out questionable mortgages is that they could resell them. Mortgages, bad and good, were bundled together to create securities. With the suspiciously enthusiastic cooperation of bond-rating agencies, these securities were approved as safe to trade. Since they were based in part on inappropriate loans, these securities were actually much less safe than anyone would admit. In fact, they were downright dangerous. These securities should have been properly regulated from the start- and so should the commercial bond-rating companies that said they were safe to trade.

Or consider another example of a financial product that needs regulating, credit default swaps (CDS). Credit default swaps started out as a form of insurance for bond investors. People holding bonds would pay a small percentage of the bonds’ value each year to a company that would guarantee to pay the full price of the bonds if the original issuing corporation failed. In this sense, credit default swaps were just another kind of insurance.

Trading these things proved to be very lucrative for a while. People got into trading credit default swaps without even owning the actual bonds in the first place, to the point that this speculative approach became the norm in the CDS market.

The problem is that when the companies that originally issued the bonds actually started to fail, all these other firms that traded in credit default swaps were left owing huge amounts of money to each other. No one actually had the cash on hand to cover these debt obligations, or knew what debts other firms owed, and that led to a meltdown of the big investment banks.

Despite the fact that prominent investors such as Warren Buffet warned that credit default swaps should be regulated just like other forms of insurance, they weren’t. Investment banks successfully argued that since the traders involved with the CDS market were ‘sophisticated investors’, they didn’t need government oversight. In retrospect, it is painfully clear that they did need regulation.

Whoever the next president is (Obama!), he needs to make sure that the regulatory system is reformed to match modern markets. Otherwise, we’ll just end up in this kind of mess over and over again.

Captain Bhangra Da

So you know that anything ridiculous enough to be called Captain Bhangra is going to be great. Plus, added bonus, tv dance contest footage. This is the future of dance, America. Buy the clothes.


Ravinder Singh Captain Bhangra De video.

Manak-E

You just have to appreciate all the energy Manak-E puts into his music. Manic energy, even...

Aaja video.


Boliyan video.


Ik Hor Glassi video- Death Row beat!

Meditations on Dick Cheney

I have to admit, I spend a fair amount of time thinking about Dick Cheney. It's not because I care all that much about him as a person, it's what he represents. Dick Cheney, Dark Prince of Greed, embodies all the powers and ambitions of the gangsters who run our country. And in a really twisted way, that's a beautiful thing. Well, at least there's something to learn from him.

Mostly, I wonder what makes us different than Dick Cheney. How is it that people like him have so much control over the lives of people like us? What makes them so special? More importantly, how can we achieve some kind of freedom from crooks like him?

One big difference between people like Dick Cheney and people like us is their ability to take advantage of this economic collapse. When a recession (or depression or whatever we'll end up calling it) hits, people like Dick Cheney have a huge advantage. They have access to such large amounts of cash that they can go bargain shopping. They buy all the companies, real estate, goods, stocks, and etcetera that they please. A recession is a great opportunity for guys like Dick. It allows them to perpetuate and expand their wealth and power.

How do people like us get to that point? What do we do so that next time there is an economic crisis, we can profit from it instead of being destroyed by it? There must be a way.

Punjabi MC

Punjabi MC rocks.

Mundain To Bachke video.


Jogi video.


Hogeya Sharabi video.

Miracle Berry

Miracle berry (Synsepalum dulcificum) is a small red berry from West Africa, where it is traditionally used as a flavor enhancer. It is similar in appearance to a cranberry.

It has no real taste, but an amazing ability to make sour foods taste sweet. The effects last about an hour.

After eating a miracle berry, sour fruits like limes and lemons taste extremely sweet, strawberries taste like they are dipped in sugar, tequila tastes like it is mixed with lemonade, and stouts taste like chocolate milk.

Miracle berry has an amazing political history in America. Check out this video from Democracy Now.

Sarah Silverman video

Oh my god is this funny. Yeah, Florida, get down with Obama!

Brand Nubian

This is another NY hip hop group people don't know enough about. Brand Nubian has been together since 1989, and they still perform on a regular basis. Check in with SOB's on Varick Street, they play there pretty often.

They are 5 Percenters, a Harlem offshoot of Islam. Brand Nubian combines an incredible old school flow with lyrics that reflect their religious beliefs.

Allah U Akbar video.


Wake Up video.


Slow Down video.


All For One video.


Punks Jump Up video.

Big L

It's too bad people don't know about Big L. He was one of the most talented rappers in NY, from Harlem. He was shot to death in 1999 before he really got the fame he deserved.

Put it on video.

Biggie Smalls at 17

This is the earliest video of Biggie Smalls rapping I've ever seen. I think it's from 1989. Holy shit was he talented.

Victory in Iraq?

One of the most annoying things about this presidential race is that everyone feels compelled to say that we're winning in Iraq. What? Winning?

We have a massive troop presence there. The surge tactic was an okay way to temporarily keep the civil war from raging too openly. That's not really winning though. It's more like wasting time, postponing the inevitable.

We're going to be leaving sometime, right? Hopefully? Then the civil war will just start back up again. And there's no way the central government is going to win. The government is so corrupt, so fractured, so lacking in anything like morale, that it will never be viable. Everyone knows that.

The Shiite majority is definitely going to win the civil war. Under Saddam, the Sunni minority oppressed the Shiites. They're not going to take it now that he's gone.

Muqtada al-Sadr, the young Shiite cleric, leader of the Mahdi Army, is probably going to come out in a leadership role. If we were to leave Iraq right now and let them fight it out, that's probably what would happen.

And you know what? That's fine with me.

Muqtada al-Sadr could be the key to lasting peace in the entire region. As a Shiite cleric, he is extremely close to the Shiite clerics in Iran. And his cousin is Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah in Lebanon. These guys are close and natural allies. Together they form an important Shiite counterweight to Saudi Arabia, Al Qaeda, and the other Sunni extremists who currently control the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia has dominated the Middle East since we put the Al Saud family on the throne fifty years ago. Look where that's gotten us. To me, it's a good thing to let the Shiites assert themselves in the region. We will be safer if the balance of power doesn't stay with Saudi Arabia.

What would happen if we left Iraq? Would we lose? Would we be in danger? No. Muqtada al-Sadr, Iran, and Hezbollah would step up. Saudi and Al Qaeda influence would be diminished. And that would make us far safer in the long run.

Heart Sutra

Have you ever heard the Heart Sutra? To me, it expresses the strength of Buddhist philosophy. There is a place in the mind of absolute will, absolute still, cognition of the universal oneness.

That's a pretty useful place, a revolutionary place.

See what I mean? Here's a video of the Heart Sutra.



Read the words too.

Here's a translation from Sanskrit to English by the Dharma Realm Buddhist Association:

When Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara was practicing the profound Prajna Paramita, he illuminated the Five Skandhas and saw that they are all empty, and he crossed beyond all suffering and difficulty.

Shariputra, form does not differ from emptiness; emptiness does not differ from form. Form itself is emptiness; emptiness itself is form. So too are feeling, cognition, formation, and consciousness.

Shariputra, all Dharmas are empty of characteristics. They are not produced, not destroyed, not defiled, not pure; and they neither increase nor diminish. Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, feeling, cognition, formation, or consciousness; no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind; no sights, sounds, smells, tastes, objects of touch, or Dharmas; no field of the eyes up to and including no field of mind consciousness; and no ignorance or ending of ignorance, up to and including no old age and death or ending of old age and death. There is no suffering, no accumulating, no extinction, and no Way, and no understanding and no attaining.

Because nothing is attained, the Bodhisattva through reliance on Prajna Paramita is unimpeded in his mind. Because there is no impediment, he is not afraid, and he leaves distorted dream-thinking far behind. Ultimately Nirvana! All Buddhas of the three periods of time attain Anuttara-samyak-sambodhi through reliance on Prajna Paramita. Therefore know that Prajna Paramita is a Great Spiritual Mantra, a Great Bright Mantra, a Supreme Mantra, an Unequalled Mantra. It can remove all suffering; it is genuine and not false. That is why the Mantra of Prajna Paramita was spoken. Recite it like this:

Gaté Gaté Paragaté Parasamgaté
Bodhi Svaha!

End of The Heart of Prajna Paramita Sutra

No Bailout? Or a better one?

Okay. The Paulson bailout was a total giveaway to the people who made up those dangerous mortgage-based securities in the first place. It probably wasn't the best idea. Economically, and morally, it sort of just didn't make sense.

But here's the thing. Paulson and Bush hyped the bailout so much that the world markets expected it. Paulson and Bush basically said that our economy will be ruined if the bailout didn't pass. So, naturally, investors everywhere were totally shocked when the House voted against it. Investor confidence is shattered, and that's dangerous.

It might be for the best that this version of the bailout didn't go through. The thing is, that doesn't mean the government should step away from the economy and pray that the free market corrects itself. We need to do something, the world markets are going to drop until the government intervenes in some major way.

Now would be a great time for a New Deal style investment in our country. Spend the $700 billion to fix what's actually wrong with our real economy. It might be the only way to avert a depression.

Tinariwen

Check out Tinariwen, a Tuareg band from Mali, producing some of the best music in the world right now.

Cler Achel video.


Chet Boghassa video.



Toumast video.


Amassakoul'n'Tenere video.

Army unit to deploy in U.S.

Oh wow. What a good sign this is! What do they expect to happen?

Wait. This is illegal.

Democracy Now excerpt.

Bikram Singh

Where is the best bhangra in the world coming from right now? New York. Oh yeah. Bikram Singh, Queens NY, baby!

Kawan video.


Sada Dil video.


American Jugni video.

Dahler Mendhi

Dahler Mendhi, proving once and for all that corny as hell and so hot it hurts are not mutually exclusive categories when it comes to bhangra music!

Tunak Tunak Tun video.


Koi Dheere video.


Saade Dil Te Churiyan Chaliyan video.

M.I.A.

Who knows about M.I.A.? Her real name is Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam. She's from the UK, and is of Sri Lankan Tamil decent. Her mom is the activist Arul Pragasam, of Eelam Revolutionary Organization of Students fame. You can hear that militancy in MIA's music.

In a loose sense, this is Desi music. In a strict sense, this is hot as fuck, and everyone needs to get down with this phenomenal Sri Lankan sound. Check out these M.I.A. videos. I dare you to tell me this isn't some of the hottest Desi music out there.

Paper Planes video.


Sunshowers video.


World Town video.


Bucky Done Gone video.



Jimmy video.


Pull up the People video.

What else could we do with $700 billion?

So let me get this straight...

The banks gave out irresponsible mortgages. They knew these loans were too risky. Why did they allow them? They did because then they could sell the mortgages to companies that turned them into securities and traded them. The banks and trading companies knew these mortgages were way too risky. But because the banks were profiting from everyone buying and selling them as securities, they ignored the reality of the situation.

Now big investors realize that the loans are bunk, the securities created from them were bunk, and as a result the investment bankers that specialized in them are taking a huge loss. High level financial analysts are calling it the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression. Because the losses from these banks could mess up the whole credit industry, the government is going to spend an enormous fortune of taxpayer money to pay off these bad loans. They are talking about $700 billion.

That's about $2,000 from every person in America, roughly equal to a whole year's worth of taxpayer revenue.

Why are we doing this? I'm sure that there is an appropriate time for the government to spend money to stimulate the economy, everyone can agree about that. But why are we rewarding the exact same people who got us into this mess through their irresponsible gambling? That just doesn't make sense.

Imagine what else we could do with all that money. Think about the alternatives. There are other ways for the government to invest that would actually benefit America.

We have bridges that we know are going to fail all over this country. Remember Minneapolis? There are hundreds more out there, just waiting to happen. The federal government is going to have to spend money on this in the near future.

Or how about retooling Detroit to make hybrids, biodiesel, and electric cars and trucks? Make it so attractive to invest in hybrid and electric cars and trucks that every automaker in the country pumps them out. Make it so they could produce them quickly and cheaply enough to replace the entire fleet of cars and trucks in America within five years. We'd all save so much money that the $2,000 per person would be an excellent household investment. Hey Detroit, here's $200 billion to retool. If you think that wouldn't change the automotive industry, think again.

There is so much potential for alternative energy in this country, but it will take a huge amount of capital to start producing on a large scale. Now would be a great time for the government to make that investment. Think about how much we could save not having to go to war. Ideology and rationalizations aside, Iraq and Afghanistan are at the most basic level oil wars. Forget oil. Forget the ongoing financial and moral expense of having to attack people to control the oil supply. Let's kick that habit. No more war, no more worrying that the price of oil fluctuates. It will be so expensive to get off our oil addiction that only the US government can make it happen. Maybe it would cost $300 billion. But if we need to spend money somewhere right now, what better cause is there?

Everyone knows that we are facing a health care crisis. Bankruptcy due to medical expenses is a big drain on our economy. Our health insurance policy is an embarrassment. We spend more per person on health care than any other nation per capita, but have far worse access to medical care. That needs to change, or we'll have a whole new economic crisis on our hands. Sooner or later, the US government is going to need to intervene. Do it now. The price tag is $200 billion? We're spending it anyhow.

There are so many investments the US government will have to make in the next few years. You want an economic stimulus? Spend that money now. Forget the gamblers who screwed up our economy. Spend that money on something that matters. We will have to pay up in a few years anyhow, and we might now have enough money then.

$770 billion of taxpayer money going into the national economy will create jobs, attract bond investors, strengthen the US dollar, and make America a good long term investment. Bailing out the investment banks will just encourage more gamblers, more dependency upon credit, and more irresponsible speculation.

Forget those gamblers. They are parasites on our national economy. Stand up for America, as a nation, and as a good long-term investment. Spend that $700 billion on us, not the speculators who are messing up our economy. Seriously, we're better off without short-term investors. Let them flake off our otherwise robust economy.

America is the wealthiest nation in the world. That's true by almost any measure, in terms of natural resources, capital, talent, or creativity. Let's keep it that way. Show the world that we also have the strength of will and economic discipline to spend our government’s money responsibly.