Washington, D. C. , September 18, 2009  (Commentary by eGrumps)

When eGrumps was young, sometime in the Middle Ages, his Mother used to say to him when he exaggerated, or(gasp!) even lied to her, that he was full of prunes. I don’t know the derivation of that phrase, I can only guess what it means, and it certainly isn’t used today – except by we old Geezers. – but it seems appropriate to apply it to the comments of President Obama, ex-President Carter and Speaker Pelosi .

President Obama has said that those opposed to ObamaCare  have “misinformation,” their concerns are “false” and are based upon “demagoguery,”    (more…)

In response to my previous post concerning outrageous pay to actors, actresses and sports figures who do not deliver that for which they have been paid (up front – I might add), I have received several threatening letters. Out of concern for their safety from my outraged readers, I will not disclose the names of the responding organizations. The thrust of their comments to me were 1) they are not overpaid, America loves them, and performance is secondary. 2) their past contributions to the mental health of Americans fully justifies their more than reasonable salaries, and 3) mind your own frigging business – or else. Curiously, all of the letters mentioned the same representative who would “visit” me if I continued to pursue this issue. It seems his nickname is “The Fireplug.” I took that to refer to his physical stature, not the fact that dogs have been peeing on his legs.

One of the organizations offered to bribe me, I think, by offering me a free mouse pad containing an autographed picture of President Obama if I found other things to write about. It was a temptation, believe me, to take the signed Obama mouse pad and go on to other things, but I have my standards, low as they may be.  I decided to refer the entire matter to the Department of Justice attorneys who prosecuted Senator Stevens of Alaska. They proved to me, and the whole world, that they know how to win a case – probably resulting in the  defeat of an incumbent Senator’s bid for reelection. That kind of experience is very difficult to find. The fact that they are being investigated for misconduct only proves to me that they are my kind of lawyers – win at any cost. If they can’t defend eGrumps, no one can. I hope we can agree on a retainer, like about $10.00. I need high-priced attorneys. Besides, I wondered if President Obama had really signed the mouse pad.

The Obama Administration has stated that they feel many in business are overpaid because of their poor performance. The Big Guys draw Big Salaries, regardless of their performance, and, they say this is not fair to the Little Guys who draw Little Salaries. . They want to control salaries for all businesses, even if they take no government money.

They are now asking for such standards to be applied to the entertainment and sports industries. Too often, they say, a movie star gets paid millions and millions of dollars, and the movie stinks. It bombs out at the box office. Professional athletes, similarly, are paid millions of dollars and they have a lousy year. “The government must stop this inequality. No performance, no big payout, and we don’t care how good the last movie or last season was.They were already paid for that performance.” The Administration spokesman said. He continued “That was then, this is now. There’s a new sheriff in town.”

He went on to say “For example, Movie Star XXX (name withheld because of privacy concerns) was paid $20,000,000 for her last film, and the movie was not good, to put it charitably, and it lost money. Someone earning the Big Salary with that result is totally unacceptable. Professional basketball player YYY (name also withheld because of privacy concerns) was paid $15,000,000 for this season, and his team is dead last in the league. He’s playing about 6 minutes a game. They bring him in as a substitute because the star has to go to the bathroom. That is also totally unacceptable. It is a fraud on the public. They pay big money to see the movie or the basketball game, and do they get their money’s worth? No! Does the star care – no, he or she has her money, but the poor schnook fan is out of luck. That is not the American way.” He said further. “If this situation is not corrected, and I mean right now, the government will step in and take over and nationalize the studios or the team.  We will insure that the American people are not cheated by this business practice of inducing customers to pay for their tickets, and then not giving them what they paid for, a winning product. We don’t care that the salary arrangement was negotiated in good faith. The contracts must be revised. This fraudulent business practice will not be permitted under the rules of the present Administration. We are prepared to act to see that the fans and customers are protected.”