Frank Rich, in a New York Times opinion piece (is the NYT even bothering to get the news right at all anymore?) raises an interesting notion: that nearly every American can argue about security, terrorism, underwear bombers, and whatnot, but few if any are remotely aware of what caused the economic meltdown of 2008 that has cost our country billions and billions of dollars.

But then, he goes on and lists all the nasty, evil things big business has done and continues to do to America. To be fair, he mentions all the politicians that marched or continue to march in lockstep with some of these nastier entities.

However, he puts the blame squarely on the businesses themselves. Where is his outrage over the Democratic party’s hip-deep involvement in all these scandals? You will notice that he rarely mentions which party nearly every one of these politicians is with.

Nauseatingly absent from his discussion of politicians who shoved the economy down the tubes in welcome cooperation with business? Barney Frank. When in the distant future the history of economics in the very early 21st Century is written, Frank’s name will be so evident that later students will wonder why no one was stopping this guy. A question that should be asked today, really.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.