kerrin - we cannot sustain this debt for very much longer - have you got your garden in?

The debt was 41 per cent of GDP at the end of 1988, President Ronald Reagan's last year in office, the same as at the end of 2008, President George W. Bush's last year in office.

How much was it at the beginning of Bushy's term?

I find it very very very amusing that NOW that a Dem is running the show all of a sudden the outcry from the right over deficit spending has hit shrill levels.

NANC...don't get me started!LOL.

Garden and several acres planted!
My freelance has slowed so thought I would indulge my passion.
I would rather farm than most anything in the whole world.
Farmers market has been a very successful outlet form me so I have EXPANDED this year!
We have been slowly buying up parcels of the original farmstead that has been divided over generations. My hobby...LOL...is to make it pay...and have fun.

We logged off a lot of it ... now reclaiming arable acres.
Also added a bunch of feeders this year..to sell as grassland beef.
One thing leads to another ...so I ended up hiring another helper. DH says not to let it get out of hand...may be too late for that.

But...I am outdoors a lot and in heaven...soooooooooo much fun!

#2 | Posted by 726

Bush chart

Credit: The Washington Post

#3 | Posted by kerrin57

i cannot wait to start canning - i plan to can at least 40 cases of food this year - great thing - last year nearly EVERYONE we gave homecanned goods to returned the jars and rings - one lady even bought me a new case of jars!

we're getting busy on the venison jerky also - one of our neighbors keeps us in supply.

we've also been planting bee and butterfly friendly plants in our bird sanctuary as we're hoping to get a couple of hives soon.

"a new case of jars!"

I also scour the Salvation Army and Habitat stores...nice and cheap!
I agree on the canning...nothing like looking at shelves full of colorful preserves to give you a feeling of pride and self sufficiency.

LOL....I bought a fancy jerky maker from Cabela's 3 years ago...have yet to give it a shot. Let me know how yours turns out.

i get loads of jars at yard sales - a couple of years ago bought two cases of old mason jars - some of them had colored pink and some green with age - beautiful, yet functional - THREE BUCKS!

as for the jerky, when time allows we do it on the big brinkman smoker, but have gotten lazy and use one of the tiered food dryers - tasty, but does lose something minus the hickory smoke we like to put to it.

the secret's in the brine and we allow ours to brine for up to a week for maximum taste. perhaps if they put up a food thread i'll share the recipe...

"perhaps if they put up a food thread i'll share the recipe..."

I would love that recipe, Nanc. Please share it.

Briwo shared a recipe for his beer chicken that I tried and it was outstanding!

HE'S HAD 4 MONTHS, DAMMIT! ALL OUR PROBLEMS SHOULD BE SOLVED BY NOW!!

#9

Not at all. But why make them worse ?

#8 | Posted by Lisa

someone was going to do an ongoing friday "dirt cheap" food thread - it's a great idea to bring people together for an evening even if we can't always get along the rest of the time!

#9 | Posted by LetUsPrey

doesn't understand compounding.

But why make them worse ?

Maybe, because the alternative was another Depression?

So because Bush spent us into a hole...it excuses Obama?
I think not.

#4 | Posted by kerrin57 at 2009-05-27 10:59 AM |

Of course it does not.

I just find the sudden interest in criticizing deficit spending by the righties awfully amusing.

How the daylillies?

Maybe, because the alternative was another Depression?

#12 | Posted by silver_ironist

Hoover did nothing during a recession and what was the result?

Hoover did nothing during a recession and what was the result?
#14 | Posted by 726

They teach that myth in government schools. Up to Hoover, when presidents actually did nothing, recessions lasted no more than two years, five years in one case. The reason is that markets need to rebalance their excesses. Government interference prevents the market from correcting itself.

Hoover was running massive deficts and jawboning businesses to keep wages up. Roosevelt continued what Hoover started only on a bigger scale. The economy didn't recover until after Roosevelt died, yet people give him undue credit for "saving capitalism."

"The economy didn't recover until after Roosevelt died, yet people give him undue credit for "saving capitalism."

He had a little war during the latter years of his life but unemployment was very low at that time.
Prosperity didn't return until after the war....surprise.

I've got 103 tomatoes out.

25 Roma, 50 Celebrity, 28 Marion. The marions we planted because some of the first Celebrity we planted died from either wind burn or someone hit them with round up when spraying for weeds along the fence.

Interesting fact about the Marion tomato. A distant relative developed it at Clemson University.

other than that, we've got 3 rows of top crop, 3 rows of dixie lees and half a row of cucumber and crooked neck squash.

Gonna can the tomatoes,blanch and freeze the beans and pease and dehydrate the squash. Cucumber...well...those pretty much get eaten before they go bad or they get added to the compost heap. I like them with balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.

AXIOM

Heckuva nice tomato patch. My wife planted a couple traditional plants that now have only 2 tomatoes each (which the wildlife have their eyes on), and one of those hanging upside down tomato planters that hasn't sprouted a single tomato. Pitiful LOL

Nice going. One of these years around here ....

He had a little war during the latter years of his life but unemployment was very low at that time.
Prosperity didn't return until after the war....surprise.

#16 | Posted by danni

Danni spin. Unemployed men were shipped off to war and the women put to work making weapons. Rationing kept consumer consumption low. The recovery didn't begin until after the war. So the economy was in a depression from 1930 to 1945, 15 years, 12 were during Roosevelt's terms. I would say the economy recovered in spite of Roosevelt, not because of him.

As I watch Obama copy Roosevelt's modus operandi with high taxes, arbitrary laws, massive deficits, breaking up contracts, inflating the dollar and strengthening unions, I can see why the depression was so long and bad. This time we won't be so lucky.

Heckuva nice tomato patch. My wife planted a couple traditional plants that now have only 2 tomatoes each (which the wildlife have their eyes on), and one of those hanging upside down tomato planters that hasn't sprouted a single tomato. Pitiful LOL

My mother has made a good bit of progress with her garden since her practice garden last year. It took a lot of work, and I wish I owned the place I live in now because the side yard would be perfect for raised bed gardening.

Mom brought tomatoes up from seed as well as transplating some. The ones she brought up from seed were huge the last time I was up. The main stalk was twice as thick as my thumb. Try looking into some red, tinted plastic to put around the base of the tomatoes. Supposedly they aid in the growth of the plant by keeping the soil warm and they also ward off some of the nastier pests.

My tomato patch is being worked by 3 people because of the size. 1.5 acres for just the tomato, bean, peas, squash and cucumber. Then another 1 acre for silver queen sweet corn.

It's hard work, and I spend all day in the heat of the summer, but the reward will be that I don't have to buy a lot of canned or frozen goods and what frozen goods I do buy can be thawed and dehydrated then stored in mason cars with oxygen absorbers.

The main reason I wanted to do this though was after reading a study someone had done about the lack of nutrition in the mass produced food available in stores. Farmers, in an effort to produce more, are forced to either use pesticides, hormones and herbicides to stay competitive or go out of business. In reality, who knows what you're ingesting.

So I might loose a few plants to blight or bugs or animals. All party of the cycle of nature, because when hunting season comes around, I'm sure going to be eating them.

The study I mentioned above.

note to kerrin:

#17 | Posted by Axiom

are y'all canning? i made a mean green tomato relish and pickles last year - great atop any sort of pasta. all you do is use a bread and butter pickle brine and process 5-10 minutes longer - they charge $5-6 per pint in the grocery for them.

I'll be making sauce, dicing and crushing mine and canning them. I might also attempt dehydrating some of the sauce to take backpacking.

The recovery didn't begin until after the war. So the economy was in a depression from 1930 to 1945, 15 years, 12 were during Roosevelt's terms. I would say the economy recovered in spite of Roosevelt, not because of him.

#19 | Posted by Ray

#24 | Posted by Axiom

ruh? dehydrating the sauce? that'll take alot of time!

"This situation is of your own creation. When you berate your representatives or senators or presidents for the mess we are in, you are really berating yourself. You elect them," he(Oxford-educated Mr Fisher,) said."

Nanc....I thought I saw a figure of 83% incumbents reelected...we are screwed!

#27 | Posted by nanc

Dehydrate those Brandywines til crisp...top with gorgonzola!

MMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmm!

....I thought I saw a figure of 83% incumbents reelected...we are screwed!

#28 | Posted by kerrin57 at 2009-05-28 10:04 AM

It is the old "Congress sucks, but my representatives and senators are great" syndrome.

How else can you explain a governing body that gets 18% approval yet 80% of them get another shot?

ruh? dehydrating the sauce? that'll take alot of time!

works just like making jerky or fruit roll-ups.

Put down wax paper or the special liners that come with the dehydrator, spread the sauce out as thin as possible and let it go.

You'll get what amounts to thick, squishy sheet that you can roll up in wax paper and store long-term or, as I do, trim down to smaller sizes, then roll in paper and freeze. When I'm ready to go backpacking, I take a few out with some dehydrated hamburger, mushrooms and noodles, put it all in a bag and head out.

Spaghetti on the trail is awesome.

Neat idea Ax. I have made fruit roll ups . I will have to give it a try...looks like it is going to be a bumper fruit year here.

Never occurred to me to do it with a marinera sauce!

It would be a great idea on our trail rides.

How else can you explain a governing body that gets 18% approval yet 80% of them get another shot?

#30 | Posted by 726

What can we do?
I disliked Lid Dole VERY much but the alternative evil was Kay Hagan.

I held my nose and voted what I saw as the lesser evil...Dole!

ax - ANYTHING with a homecooked flavor is good when out camping - i've never thought to fix pasta, however!

"The economy didn't recover until after Roosevelt died, yet people give him undue credit for "saving capitalism."

He had a little war during the latter years of his life but unemployment was very low at that time.
Prosperity didn't return until after the war....surprise.

#16 | Posted by danni

Bush had a war from the beginning of his term until the end of that term. The war is still going on.

726, the only reason Roosevelt experienced growth was thanks to XXI which was ratified in 1933. Once that product became legal - the market boomed.

I wonder if the President is thinking about legalizing something else for a boost (ahem, financially).

#35 | Posted by Petrous

he's already reinstituted slavery for the next hundred or so years - paybacks are a mother bear!

kerrin - we cannot sustain this debt for very much longer - have you got your garden in?

#1 | Posted by nanc at 2009-05-27 10:35 AM

I wonder if the President is thinking about legalizing something else for a boost (ahem, financially).

#35 | Posted by Petrous at 2009-05-28 11:48 AM

#37 | Posted by donnerboy

Quite an interesting crop of..... poinsettias you have there.

ax - ANYTHING with a homecooked flavor is good when out camping - i've never thought to fix pasta, however!

Check out a website called freezerbagcooking.com

The lady who runs the website collects recipes from others, as well as making her own. Most are either potato, pasta or rice based. They're maybe not the best for you in terms of fat or cholesterol, but if you're distance hiking or working in camp, you need the calories for energy and warmth.

She has a book out that I just ordered to keep from having to bounce back and forth from computer to kitchen where I do my prep work.

I don't cook in the freezer bag though. All of the recipes can be done in an insulated mug or right in the pot.

Quite an interesting crop of..... poinsettias you have there.

#38 | Posted by STIRSUMUP at 2009-05-28 02:01 PM

yup! I expect to be completely out of debt by this time next year. I love Humboldt County!

What can we do?

Not much. Until the $$$$ is removed from the election cycle we will continue to get candidates that are more concerned about getting campaign funding rather than doing work for the people that elect them.

Private money needs to be removed from the equation totally. That would ensure everyone has an equal voice.

Until that happens, only the biggest donors get heard.... and they have an agenda 180 degrees from the best ineterests of the public and the nation.

#36 | Posted by nanc at 2009-05-28 12:40 PM | Reply | Flag: Conveniently ignoring the $10 trillion in debt created prior to Obama's election.

#40 | Posted by donnerboy

I had a photo of the Greenville NC police station taken back in 89'. They had a very interesting landscaper. The front door was framed by two groups of plants about six feet high.

#42 | Posted by 726 at 2009-05-28 02:37 PM | Reply | Flag: unable or unwilling to check the facts

here's a national debt clock for you, 726 - check it daily:

WOW - it went up $18,000 in two clicks - less than one second!

here's one that changes instantly right before your eyes and you don't even have to do a thing:

From the politifact link.

The federal government creates a budget every year. When it spends more money than it takes in, it runs a deficit. When tax revenues run higher than expenses, that's a budget surplus. At the end of the Clinton administration, there were several years of budget surpluses.

The Dubya touch sure put a quick stop those infernal budget surpluses. Heckuva job Chimpy.

at least they're keeping the chimps in the white house where they belong!

The federal government creates a budget every year. When it spends more money than it takes in, it runs a deficit. When tax revenues run higher than expenses, that's a budget surplus. At the end of the Clinton administration, there were several years of budget surpluses.

Budget surpluses that were insufficient to even pay down the National Debt. The ND still went up after payments applied.

Nice gesture, but still worthless.

Credit card debt $10,000.
Payment this month $300.
Payment made $25
Interest accrued $50.

$25 nice gesture. Benefit?

Hoover did nothing during a recession and what was the result?

#14 | Posted by 726 at 2009-05-27 02:41 PM

let's try the nothing scenario and see what happens?

" If you believe deficits are good in bad times, then the responsible policy is to try to balance the budget in good times."

Something the prior occupant of the WH would have been wise to realize.

My tomato patch is being worked by 3 people because of the size. 1.5 acres for just the tomato, bean, peas, squash and cucumber. Then another 1 acre for silver queen sweet corn.

AXIOM

Man, that sounds like a great garden! Dad grew about 3/4 of an acre of corn, tomatoes, and other vegetables when I was growing up. Mom did canning. Nothing like home grown fresh fruit and vegetables. I hit our Farmer's Market here because the plastic tasting vegetables they sell at Kroger's suck.

I don't know if you've ever tried it, but mom used to slice home grown tomatoes and put mayo and brown sugar on top. Delicious.

#55 | Posted by AMERICANUNITY

now why would you ruin a good homegrown tomato like that! HA! we like ours with a dash of lemon pepper...

NANC

I'll give that a try.

I wouldn't have thought mayo and brown sugar on home growns would be good either but it's really tasty.

We're not talking about trying sardine with banana sandwiches. LOL