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A Practical way to Help the Homeless – Right Now

By: Motormensch

Believe me, I’m not the social conscious of Trash Vent… I think even Stiffler (our head honcho/writer) could picture me laughing at most misfortune. Yup, indeed I do. Alas, that’s what writing affords people like me – a chance to be the bastard they always wanted to be.

Truth be told, practicality is usually my mantra. When I was growing up in Los Angeles, I saw many homeless living out of their cars. I had little pity for car dwellers and had no idea that they were towed often (it was like a joke for the local constabulary – it still is). Once the vehicle was towed, the homeless became shelter-less.

When I started working at my family’s wrecking yards, several cars came in (daily) that once belonged to homeless people and homeless families. It was practical I thought: cars left unlicensed, unused and creating an eyesore are now easy revenue for the city and my family. I mean, you don’t want a nasty old van cluttering up your neighborhood – right?

This sucked and I knew it…

In time, I wore blinders to the problem and became so callus that I looked at homelessness as a plight on society. Honestly, I had no idea I could be such a cold-hearted putz. In time, and with maturity and my sweet socially conscious wife, I began to see homeless people as humans rather than objects and remembered the multitude of vehicles we crushed at my family’s business.

Those vehicles used to be people’s homes.     

My pain-in-the-ass sister-in-law did something remarkable. She began working for a group that provides mobile shelters for the homeless. This is a quick, practical solution. Basically, it’s kind of like a shopping cart that transforms into a comfortable, secure sleeping place/shelter for one person.

Think of it as a tent on wheels. There are external storage compartments and a locking system for security. Plastic windows and a door are part of this simple and elegant system. The robust skin of the EDAR tent protects the occupant in foul weather and is quite spacious.

To me, it addresses an issue immediately that others (read: fat-head politicians) would drag through the mud – slowly. This is to say that people who need help (like: right now) get something quickly. I’ve seen several mass group shelters, they are not ideal for many homeless who (for one reason or another) are transient.    

The people from EDAR (Everyone Deserves a Roof) say: “Each year, more than 3 million people experience homelessness in the United States, including 1.3 million children.” That statistic always gets me… and it is a sad truth.

This is by no means a permanent solution for the homeless in our country. Still, this is a great way to immediately make a dent into their misfortune and start the preverbal wheels turning in the right direction. Word of mouth can truly help.

So, if you have a moment, drop by the website or check out one of the links below. I think simply mentioning this idea to a few people can help. If nothing else, there’s always some pain-in-the-ass sister-in-law (or the equivalent) that one of us has who means well and wants a good cause to volunteer for. Take it from me and MY pain-in-the-ass sister-in-law; this is a damn good, practical cause.

Happy holidays!

 Photos via EDAR.org

XO Motormensch

www.edar.org

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=6549327

http://www.latimes.com/video/?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=3219562

http://www.ktla.com/pages/video/?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=3221047

Current market conditions have dropped to record lows and investor moral has been destroyed. The message we see from the media seems to stay the same “sell everything and run for the hills”. We are being robbed of what little money is left circulating and left barefoot and cold standing in the streets. This has become a self fulfilling prophecy with the media as a ring leader in now what looks to be a bottomless pit.

The stock market is a funny place and I will be the first to admit that I am no expert. However I can tell you one thing. Shares and prices revolve around one basic concept “Supply and DEMAND”! How can it possibly help any of us right now by flooding the market with paper that nobody wants. We are all adding to the pandemonium. The media is only helping to add fear in all our minds by fueling the fire with messages of doom and gloom.

We all need to unite and hold our shares and money in the market till it stabalizes. Stock does not drop unless we sell into a market with no bids. THAT SIMPLE. Any RICH person with money is scooping up companies of value at this point in time.

For any investors out there dont fall prey to the brainwashing machine known as the media. Think logically before making rash decisions that will cause mass grief for you in the future. How does selling your shares in a company that has positive cash flow and revenue for a fraction of what you purchased it for make any sense?!?!?

President elect Barrack Obama looks to start a youtube channel? Is he for real?? I guess it does sound cool to know the next president knows more than traditional smear campaigns using TV and radio. Whats next a blog that he can monetize with CPM ad money. Hey times are tough and people need to get paid. This might not be that bad of an idea after all.

When the newly elected president takes office in January it will be interesting to see how well he keeps in touch with the youth of today. During his run for president Obama did a great job using the internet for various viral messages and encompassing that around his celebrity following to push record number of voters to the poll.

Lets just hope that when he gets in there he sticks to his word and really does do what he has promised.

I cant help to think about part 3 in the movie when we are looking at todays economy. To anyone who has not seen this movie yet. I strongly advise that you watch it.

Here is a link.

How the hell did we get into this mess and what the hell is going to happen?

If you were a kid growing up in the early 80’s chances are you or someone you knew owned a cabbage patch kid. They were some crazy phenomenon parents use to rush out to the toy stores and line up just to try and get their kids one of these dolls. The craze seems to be making its way back some 20 plus years later. However the dolls are now more exclusive than ever. There will be only four special collectors dolls available to the public all of which will be sold on EBAY.

The dolls will be modeled after Barrack Obama, Joe Bidden, John McCain and Sara Palin. I know its crazy and I have no idea who would want one of these things but I am sure there is some looney out there who will be spending a large sum of money to buy these things.   All proceeds from the auction, which takes place on November 4th, will go to the US Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots foundation. No word on what bidding will start at.

Barrels of crude fell today below $70 USD. There was a energy analyst named John Markman who wrote an article back in August stating that we might see $65 barrels in the near future. This was when gas was still well over $110 per barrel. Now to call Mr Markman the next Nostradamus would be gross over statement. But the guy did have valid points. New drilling, efficient new vehicles, alternative energy sources, a rising dollar and a global recession just to name a few.

I still believe alot of the prices we saw at the pump were due to BS speculators in the market and greedy oil execs looking to pump their stock options and performance packages. We have been consuming more oil then ever and the Middle East as well as Canada seem to be the 2 largest exporters. All of a sudden there is some form of a shortage??? Right… Or maybe its the fact that Toyota and GM have been creating new hybrids to the market place??? Dont see that as a likely story.

The whole issue of lack of oil and foreign dependancy is the same old garbage that is bundled and sold to the general public…..its called…FEAR! This is the major motivating force that drives us to make irrational descsions and allows big oil companies and government to heard us like cattle. The reality is these fat pigs with sitkcy hands are looking to squeeze as much money as they can from all of us. Where is OPEC in all of this?

Ok a while back my good friend Mr.T posted an article about Hustler making a new movie with a Sarah Palin look alike. When it was posted I thought this had to be some sort of twisted joke. Turns out its the real deal. The video is fast tracked and should be coming out sometime before the election. There are some that think Larry Flynt is a sick old bastard. But you have to give the guy some credit….he is a true opportunist at heart.

The video will star Lisa Ann playing Sarah Palin and Nina Hartley playing Hillary Clinton. The movie is said to have some sort or crazy three way between these two characters and an unknown look alike playing Condoleezza Rice. One can only hope that they find some one ALOT better looking then the real Condoleeza, otherwise this movie is going to be a flop…hahaha.

There was an interview that Matt Damon gave basically down playing Sarah Palins experience. He mentioned something along the lines “it would be scary to see a soccer mom deal with Vladimir Putin and the Russians. ” Well I guess Larry Flynt figured out how to get foreign policy taken care of.

Who is Lisa An anyway?
Well… we’ll let her speak for herself:

Lisa Ann: Candid Talk
This is a candid interview with the beautiful Lisa Ann

Lisa Ann: Talking about her career

Nalin Paylin Photos and Pictures

Well fight fans get ready for the last and final round of debates this evening. Tonight’s main event will be taking place in Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. As millions of eager viewers tune into CNN to watch the debate. The number one question on everyone’s mind….HOW DO YOU FIX THE ECONOMY???

According to Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll 56% of registered voters from Oct 10-13 favored Obama’s approach. But what does that really say? Does this mean the other 44% favor McCain? With an allocated 2-4% margin or error this years election will come down to the wire. All polls seem to have Obama leading with almost a 9 point lead over John McCain. The last presidential candidate to be able to close the gap and win the election was Ronald Regan. Does McCain have what it takes?

Watch the 3rd debate live in NY at 6pm PST and 9pm EST:

For what Obama lacks in the experience he seems to make up with charisma. John McCain has a long way to go in order to secure that luxury suite in the whitehouse. By pure observation the 2008 elections look to be weighing in the favor of the young democrat. We all know that each state has its roots grown deep in their ideologies and political debate. However these elections seem to be a little different.

My two cents for what its worth. For the first time in history we are seeing a young black presidential candidate that has the ability to swing the vote based on the following demographs: latino vote, voters between the ages of 18-30 and the african american vote. All three of these groups do have the ability to create the edge necessary to push McCain into a nursing home. Lets all be honest here for a minute. What possible way is there for anyone in these three voting categories being able to relate to John McCain??? NONE WHAT SO EVER!!!

Whether the polls are right and if the democrats smack the republicans with the finger still remains to be seen. But the campaign machine behind Obama looks to have done everything right. From the alliance with Hollywood and music stars to the retarded family commercials. The democrats even covered their bases by getting Joe Biden as a running partner. Someone who has deep family roots and what the general population will see as a strong, honest, hard working single father that has left his mark on the system. The message is clear…and it says “no matter who you are we represent you”. Come November we will all find out if the masses bought the message in bulk.

Well word is out Treasury secretary Henry Paulson has said the first batch of money to be released from the 700 Billion bail out, will go towards major financial institutions. Although at first glance this may seem like an ideal situation we need to really question the governments involvement in free markets. Facing what seems to be the onslaught of a disastrous recession banks and financial institutions have been more reluctant to lend money between each other for fear one or the other may go the way of the dinosaurs. As an investor the thought of having the government diluting share price is not exactly ideal. Under the current Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) banks are not forced to sell any stock to the government. In order for the banks to sell bad mortgages debt back to the government, grants the right to the government to purchase some amount of stock.

Bill Seidman, former chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp has been quoted as saying “The only reason they’re putting money in those banks and the banks are accepting is that the banks will go broke without it. They’re not taking this because they love the government. They’re taking it because the regulator is saying, ‘You don’t have enough capital. If you don’t get more capital, we’re going to close you down”.

Government regulations has forced banks and financial institutions to write down the value of investments back by mortgages. By doing so assets held are now based on falling house prices, not necessarily condusive of what the assets are really worth. Looks like the relief fund and Paulson’s plan is only going to make the select few happy.