State of the Union?

I didn't watch the State of the Union speech tonight. I find myself unable to watch Bush for any amount of time without the urge to shout "BU__SH__" at the screen.

This morning I listened to Howard Dean on NPR. This didn't cheer me up any. The essence of that Democrat's moral argument is that they aren't in power so nobody bribed them.  I understand the argument -- I'm happy to belong to the Swedenborgian Church, because it's so small and insignificant it doesn't have the power to persecute anybody or start religious wars.  But it's not exactly the moral high ground.

I figured out I have put $21,000 into a life insurance policy over the last two decades that, due to the decline in interest rates and the increase in both insurance cost and the "policy expenses", is now worth $14,000.  Losses on insurance policies are not deductible, but I roll it over into an annuity, my basis will be $21,000 so I can "recover" the loss that way. Or, I can let it ride and let the cash value pay for the $100,000 insurance, while probably will last until roughly 2030. Will I care then? Too many scenarios to draw a plausible conclusion.

At least I HAVE savings. The Tribune reports that Americans had a negative savings rate in 2005, for the first time since 1933, at the depths of the Great Depression.

So, not a good news day.  But then my daughter Beth sent a funny story from her day of teaching, and so I will go to bed chuckling.  If Mexican 8th graders can be amusing in English class, maybe there's hope for the world yet.