In the national economy the word "million" is hardly ever used any more. "Billion" is the common term these days and "trillion" is starting to creep in to the terminology. Now I don't know about you, but for me, and I'm 62, a million dollars is still a large amount of money. Everyone seems to lost any concept of what dollar amounts these elected officals are tossing around. It is hard for me to even conceive what a billion dollars is and a trillion,,,, get real. My point,,, our representatives are so disconnected from what the real world has to deal with on an everyday basis, they just can't understand why we don't want to throw another $700 billion down the rathole. Term limits for all those thieves.

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95 SL500 Smoke Silver, Parchment 64K
07 E350 4matic Station Wagon White 34K
02 E320 4Matic Silver/grey 80K
05 F150 Silver 44K

I'm with you, Pete. A million bucks is STILL a lot of money in MY mind. It makes me nervous to hear the pols throw "billions," and "Trillions" around like it was fives and tens. WE're the ones who MAKE that money.

It REALLY irks me when they talk about how the government can't afford to give us a tax cut. They sound like we're a bunch of friggin' beggars standing out here with our hands out . . .

Don't get me started . . . .

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

Everett Dirkson's observation suffers from inflation.

Actually CHINA is the one who LOANS us that money.

Yeah, but we're on the hook to pay it back . . .

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

When I hear about costs in our corporation, it's always in the millions, so it comes off as petty cash.

When we're told it costs an average of 100 million dollars a month to fuel our FedEx planes, it's easy to trivialize what that amount really is!

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2009 ML350 (106K) - Family vehicle
2001 CLK430 Cabriolet (80K) - Wife's car
2005 BMW 645CI (138K) - My daily driver
2016 Mustang (32K) - Daughter's car

It makes my Exxon bill sound a lot less daunting!

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" We have nothing to fear but the main stream media itself . . . ."- Adapted from Franklin D Roosevelt for the 21st century

OBK #55

1998 Lincoln Continental - Sold
Max 1984 300TD 285,000 miles - Sold
The Dee8gonator 1987 560SEC 196,000 miles - Sold
Orgasmatron - 2006 CLS500 90,000 miles
2002 C320 Wagon 122,000 miles
2016 AMG GTS 12,000 miles

When you have 300m taxpayers $1m is chump change, quite literaly.

$1B is very cheap lunch money.
$700B is car repaint money.
$3T is a new car.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Reminds me of how some people talk in the houseing market. "Whats it selling for" "Somewhere between 1.2 and 1.4 million." Over $100,000 being thrown around just like that.

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1982 300GD Carmine Red (DB3535) Cabriolet Parting Out
1990 300SEL Smoke Silver (Parting out)
1991 350SDL Blackberry Metallic (481)

"The thing is Bob, its not that I'm lazy...its that I just don't care."

I wonder if this is what it was like before the great depression started....

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"It's normal for these things to empty your wallet and break your heart in the process."
2012 SLK 350
1987 420 SEL

Good old Ev. When pols had decency, wit and common sense.

http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_emd_quotes.htm

I am reminded of a little story that I have previously told on the Senate floor. A fellow in one of the States had a balky mule. The mule lay down on the pavement and would not budge. His owner wore out a club on the mule. It did no good. The man built a modest fire under the mule. That did not help matters. Finally, a veterinarian came along and said, "What is the matter, Joe? You having trouble with your mule?" "Yeah, Doc, I can't do a thing with it."

So the veterinarian reached into his case and got out a great big animal syringe, filled it with something, and gave the mule a squirt in the hind quarters. In a little bit the mule got up and started down the street lickety-split.

The owner looked at the disappearing mule, looked at the doc, and said, "Doc, how much does that cost?"

The veterinarian said, "That's 10 cents."

The owner said, "Here is 30 cents. Give me two shots so I can catch that mule."

The story illustrates my point. We set a limit, and then we have to catch up to that limit all over again. So we set the limit higher. Then our expenditures rise to that point. There must be a Parkinson's law that fits the situation. We had better find out what it is, because the process is alarming.

[Congressional Record, March 1?, 1962, p.3219]

How can there be any money in the Treasury, actually, when we seem to be constantly spending well beyond what is in the Treasury itself?

I often think of the lady who went to the Governor of a certain state and said to him, "Governor, I want to get my husband out of prison."

He said, "What is he in prison for?"

She said, "For stealing a ham."

The Governor asked her: "Is he a good husband?"

"No, sir."

The Governor asked her: "Is he good to the children?"

"No, sir, Governor."

Then the Governor asked her, "Well, why do you want to get him out of prison?"
She said, "Because we are out of ham again." [Laughter.]

Well, I wonder when we are going to run out of ham one of these days. I mean not only money, but confidence as well.

[Congressional Record, June 2?, 1962, p. 12156]

Go to Zimbabwe where a loaf of bread costs $3 Million dollars.

I keep thinking what it was like for my dad compared to what it is like for me.

My dad bought a 1973 dodge challenger when he was 16 for $3000 he worked for 2 summers to make that money and paid cash. When he was 23 he bought a house for himself and my mom, for 40,000 and was able to put 15,000 down, and pay off the rest while going to college, while paying for his own tuition for UC Davis.

Today for me, a car equivalent to his challenger (a base Mustang) 20,000 and a Challenger is 40,000. My house cost 162,000 and that is considered CHEAP. I'm having to rent out rooms to my friends to make the mortgage. And I'm paying my own way through community college because my dad says "I paid my own way"

Thats a MASSIVE amount of inflation, for just one generation.

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Bear in mind...not many in Washington grew up where you sometimes wondered where the next meal was going to come from.

My dad made great money in the 70's in construction, then the bottom fell out. He then became a Toolmaker and started his own company. Again, he made great money until the 90's came around. He started working for someone in the late 90's and started making great money again, then his health failed and he once again was nearly broke. It took 7 years to get full disability from the VA, and now he gets around $54000 a year. Great money for not working!

I am a tool and die maker by trade and live in the feast or famine world of manufacturing. One thing I have done different from my dad, I invest my money in government bonds and CD's. This allows me to be comfortable in knowing that what I put in will be there when it comes time to remove it.

I'd love to see those Washington folks try to survive like we did when i was growing up.

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1987 560SL
85,000 miles

I think that the current financial problems might be a "good" thing for the country. the Government has gotten away from worrying about where the money will come from because the economy has been on the up and up since the 30s. I mean yeah the 80s were rough, but not like the 30s, and then the 90s were so much better. I think the financial problems we are seeing today, while they are going to effect us the most, but maybe they will also effect the way government works, and maybe that is the good to be seen from these trying times.

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