Avl Tao

Asheville Citizen-Times

Reality in budget picture: painful but necessary

Again, it's amazing how ACT editorials can crow about having seen federal budget-makers 100s of miles away digging themselves into a mess in years past...but never saw that the ACT did the same thing here locally, for years, when they over-reached during the real estate bubble, refused to editorialize against the bubble, promoted huge increases in RE ads, and then drop-kicked staff and shuttered facilities when the bubbles burst and ads dried up, while shamelessly exclaiming, 'Who Could've Known We Were In A Bubble? “ ACT, ur better off expressly admitting how mis-steps in DC reflect mis-steps in ur own offices, and how it was not-so-easy to realize what was happening while it was happening. Yes, we already know the feds screwed up our economy, and even tho we don’t disagree with ur comments, your editorials implying "we're better budget managers than our govt" simply sound bizarre coming from you. Frighteningly so.  (Feb 25, 2009 | post #2)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Stimulus will preserve jobs, companies say

It's still a dumb idea to repave, fix, or expand roads in NC that simply support wasteful sprawl...and then 10 years later spend money to try and implement Smart Growth plans that stop sprawl and allow for density and public transit.  (Feb 25, 2009 | post #2)

Asheville Citizen-Times

City's cuts may be deeper

Problems of efficiency plague all government. federal, state, county or city. This is the time for Asheville’s govt to improve their efficiency at the work they do. Allow staff to STOP producing worthless reports that no one uses. Eliminate time-wasting reviews by certain persons with big egos but who have nothing to contribute to the review process. Expedite paperwork, processing, and execution. Kill off the "hurry up, then wait" govt culture Kill off the "There's Never Enuff Time To Do It Right, But Always Enuff Time To Do It Over" govt mentality. Out-source services and work to free eneterprise that’s not encumbered by all the above...and have clear goals and measures for them.  (Feb 25, 2009 | post #6)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Shuler defends stimulus 'no' vote

I voted for Obama and I happily admit that Shuler's right and Obama's wrong. Before that Stimulus vote, recall that between March and Nov 2008, the federal government picked up the $8 TRILLION tab in loans, bailouts, obligations and guarantees, for the financial industry, depositors, AIG, FNMA, FDMC. We averaged $1 Trillion/month in new obligations for 8 mos under the GOP. Bush/Paulson have handed that ugly baton to Obama/Geithner who are simply picking up the pace in this race of madness to avoid taking our harsh medicine. Do you really think this all end with "just" higher taxes for ur kids/grandkids? At least this guys spoke up LOUDLY! http://www.youtube .com/watch?v=bEZB4 taSEoA&eurl=ht tp://thehousingtim ebomb.blogspot.com /  (Feb 20, 2009 | post #4)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Regional tourism hopes for a spring revival

Whine, pout, scream, cry all ya want, Zero. The economic truths must really be whipping your financial hide. Tough! Much more to come. Keep readem em and weep.  (Feb 14, 2009 | post #16)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Shuler knocks stimulus share

Those are great points, Sandie. But didn’t the Jan vote by Congress to release TARP 2 mean that there's no more voting on what Geithner intends to do...that his is not a bill; it's a plan not requiring voting? I still think calling & registering opposition, as uve said, is a good idea.  (Feb 10, 2009 | post #14)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Regional tourism hopes for a spring revival

Bang bang...another 'truth bullet' pierces the gluttonous hide of a fat juicy target who yelps & howls in response on his keyboard. Stay tuned..more to come..the year is young.  (Feb 10, 2009 | post #12)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Home sales rise in U.S., fall in WNC

Take ur meds....with bleach next time. Have a good day!  (Feb 8, 2009 | post #24)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Regional tourism hopes for a spring revival

Affordable tourism will have a place anywhere that’s inviting. The sun is setting, however, on business models promoted by local tourism boards/Chambers Commerce to wring $ xxx from every visitor. Asheville & Biltmore tourism can use Starbucks as a lesson; people still drink coffee, they're simply cutting back, en masse, from excesses like $5 uber-duper lattes. Even $2/cup coffee is becoming a dinosaur when more reasonable priced coffee is available down the street. Folks in hospitality who grasp that will be the survivors. It will be good to see more simple low-cost fun in tourism and say good-riddance to glossy-brochure over-hyped ‘lifestyle’ tourism.  (Feb 8, 2009 | post #9)

Asheville Citizen-Times

If county offices exit, will downtown suffer?

I'm paid to elevate literacy levels...did u get every word, pimp?  (Jan 28, 2009 | post #119)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Home sales rise in U.S., fall in WNC

Haha, wow, one of my bullets definitely hit you. Are you yet another bitter bedraggled (ex)-realtor or (ex)-developer? Who knows how u conjured up the goofy idea that I’m trying to sale some house? Well I don’t care cuz it probably came from a bizarre recess in ur addled head. Get a real job, dude, and stop crying about today's new reality. Stop taking the meds, wipe the drool off ur face, look in ur mirror and get a grip!  (Jan 28, 2009 | post #22)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Carl M's take on the stimulas fantasy

Very well said. And it bears repeating. With Britain edging closer to a declared sovereign default, I wonder whether more Americans will question the 'EZ free lunch' mythos behind Keynesian solutions to spend money you neither possess nor likely can borrow. Again, if only the price to be paid for such foolery was simply 'higher taxes'. [hint: Pay attention to Britain's fate]. I believe most Americans actually could grasp the larger implications of this crisis. They understand DEFLATION (my gawd, look how less gas costs...and our house is worth!). They understand you can't forever spend money you dont have (my gawd, my credit card balance is how high!?). They understand insolvency. So why do some many politicians, old & new, still get away with spewing such nonsense? Why do they still get elected?  (Jan 28, 2009 | post #2)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Developers plan slender, green downtown condos

Of course this will never get built, so no need to add to that chorus. Somewhat interestingly is this: those who ‘know’ developers, nationally, know their personality and character profiles bear great resemblance to chronic Las Vegas gamblers; the difference being that many Vegas hi-rollers don’t covet lots of newspaper coverage of their antics (e.g. a bong-fueled grandiose condo proposal in collapsing markets). Much more interesting is that the AC-T printed an article that chose to relatively quickly debunk the financial feasibility of a proposal. And did so without hiding behind the mealy-mouthed phrase, " 'some sources' say that the market may have difficulty supporting such a project." Wow...the ACT is finally sprouting a tiny pair of cojones. So what happens when a newspaper loses all its Real Estate ad revenues, and is forced to dump staff & shut ots local printing press, due to that lost ad revenue? Why, you realize it is 'OK' to tell some developers they are quite quite delusional. 'Green', perhaps, but delusional for sure when it comes to markets, finance, and credit.  (Jan 28, 2009 | post #23)

Asheville Citizen-Times

Home sales rise in U.S., fall in WNC

So what is happening to economies and workforces that are dependent on using EZ credit and EZ debt to grease the speculative flipping of land and of real estate development? Let's ask the makers of buggy whips and school mimeograph machines. Oh...I forgot. They're as extinct as the dinosaur. But my, just like dinosaurs, the hordes of smiling realtors and speculative developers sure put a scare in many folks when they roared collectively before their (permanent) demise. Permanent? Yes. In the post-Depression, unlike most other cities, Metro Asheville never had a single real estate growth cycle other than this single one cycle and it required fuel from the mother-of-all-glob al-credit-bubbles, something that everyone has vowed to prevent again. Hmmm.  (Jan 27, 2009 | post #20)

Asheville Citizen-Times

City eyes $122 million stimulus request

(Isn’t the $358 M that passed committee, as mentioned in the article, just the 2nd half of TARP funds and not a new spending bill?) Mumpower can only wish that spending $1 Trillion we dont have and can't borrow will only lead to simple higher taxes for this & future generations. If only we were so lucky. Long story short: as of Nov, the US was already $8 Trillion closer to a sovereign default on its global debt that likely will never be declared but will be defacto based on monstrous global market realities. Obama's pkg puts us at $9 Trillion closer to that fateful day. True, by then when it happens, 1 more deadbeat nation on this planet of (to-be) deadbeat nations wont matter but admit it anyway, Carl, cuz claiming the problem will be merely higher taxes for our kids (or even inflation) just feeds a false sense of order-and-control to Americans watching this global disaster unfold daily. Just like dying cancer patients don’t worry about their clothes being out-dated, we will not be worried about taxes by then cuz there will not be a working taxing system after the domino-falling of major nations defaulting on their global debt. We and our kids will instead be focused on frantically installing a replacement 'working' banking and global finance system and resurrecting some economic order. Just higher taxes? We'll wish for the day.  (Jan 27, 2009 | post #5)