culture, politics, commentary, criticism

Tuesday, August 02, 2005
Jesus doesn't save, he invests. The loud and vulgar Christianization of American politics is serving as an all-purpose distraction from the larger agenda of the Bush dynasty — to siphon off as much public wealth as it can before the people revolt. Case in point is the Carlyle Group, the powerful investment group that has simultaneously included members of
both the Bush and bin Laden families.

Now, while you may be resigned to the measly 0.5 percent yield on your savings account, the Carlyle people are aiming higher, much higher, to 25 percent... (WSJ):
The $7.85 billion Carlyle Partners IV [private-equity fund from the Carlyle Group], which closed to new investors in March, raised more money from high-net-worth individuals -- some 23% -- than any of the firm's previous funds.

[...]

Carlyle, for example, told investors it was aiming for a 25% annual return for its Carlyle Partners IV fund...
Twenty-five percent is an outrageously high number these days. It's not as if the cesspool of business stagnation we're living in represents a time of high growth. The American stock markets have been flat for the past five years (as opposed to the 300+ percent increase during Clinton's two terms). How can the Carlyle Group pull off a 25 percent return?

The unsuccessful privatization of Social Security was preceded by the highly successful privatization of the Iraq invasion. The public till is the Bushies' playground, from Junior's stadium experiments with eminent domain to Cheney's no-bid Halliburton contracts. "Private equity" does have a nice ring to it, but unfortunately for the non-high-net-worth individuals among us the Carlyle Group's success is based on policies that remove money from our pockets in the form of cuckoo tax policies and wild-ass invasions of non-threatening countries. The belief of members of this administration is that anything public literally belongs to them.

What does this have to do with Jesus? Not a damn thing. I vaguely remember him mentioning something about "blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." The ownership-society Bushies are vastly more interested in the kingdom of earth, and the wealth that accompanies it — not by saving or investing, but by pirating.
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Greatest Hits · Alternatives to First Command Financial Planning · First Command, last resort, Part 3 · Part 2 · Part 1 · Stealing $50K from a widow: Wells Real Estate · Leo Wells, REITs and divine wealth · Sex-crazed Red State teenagers · What I hate: a manifesto · Spawn of Darleen Druyun · All-American high school sex party · Why is Ken Lay smiling? · Poppy's Enron birthday party · The Saudi money laundry and the president's uncle · The sentence of Enron's John Forney · The holiness of Neil Bush's marriage · The Silence of Cheney: a poem · South Park Christians · Capitalist against Bush: Warren Buffett · Fastow childen vs. Enron children · Give your prescription money to your old boss · Neil Bush, hard-working matchmaker · Republicans against fetuses and pregnant women · Emboldened Ken Lay · Faith-based jails · Please die for me so I can skip your funeral · A brief illustrated history of the Republican Party · Nancy Victory · Soldiers become accountants · Beware the Merrill Lynch mob · Darleen Druyun's $5.7 billion surprise · First responder funding · Hoovering the country · First Command fifty percent load · Ken Lay and the Atkins diet · Halliburton WMD · Leave no CEO behind · August in Crawford · Elaine Pagels · Profitable slave labor at Halliburton · Tom Hanks + Mujahideen · Sharon & Neilsie Bush · One weekend a month, or eternity · Is the US pumping Iraqi oil to Kuwait? · Cheney's war · Seth Glickenhaus: Capitalist against Bush · Martha's blow job · Mark Belnick: Tyco Catholic nut · Cheney's deferred Halliburton compensation · Jeb sucks sugar cane · Poindexter & LifeLog · American Family Association panic · Riley Bechtel and the crony economy · The Book of Sharon (Bush) · The Art of Enron · Plunder convention · Waiting in Kuwait: Jay Garner · What's an Army private worth? · Barbara Bodine, Queen of Baghdad · Sneaky bastards at Halliburton · Golf course and barbecue military strategy · Enron at large · Recent astroturf · Cracker Chic 2 · No business like war business · Big Brother · Martha Stewart vs. Thomas White · Roger Kimball, disappointed Republican poetry fan · Cheney, Lay, Afghanistan · Terry Lynn Barton, crimes of burning · Feasting at the Cheney trough · Who would Jesus indict? · Return of the Carlyle Group · Duct tape is for little people · GOP and bad medicine · Sears Tower vs Mt Rushmore · Scared Christians · Crooked playing field · John O'Neill: The man who knew · Back to the top






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