In a poorly conceived and monumentally stupid plan, the US Treasury has decided to inject $6 billion into GMAC. If bailing out GM wasn't stupid enough for most peoples' taste, then this plan takes the madness to a whole new level. See, the government will loan GM's lending arm billions (GMAC) in order that it may make SUBPRIME loans to potential buyers.
GM began offering zero-percent financing on some models, and GMAC resumed lending to a wider range of potential customers, after the government said it will inject billions of dollars to help ensure that both survive.
Through January 5, GM will offer zero percent to 4.9 percent financing on loans of up to five years on some 2008 model-year vehicles, and 3.9 to 5.9 percent on some 2009 vehicles. Many of the vehicles also carry cash discounts of $500 to $4,250.
GMAC, meanwhile, will extend loans to retail buyers with credit scores, known as FICO, of 621 or higher. In October, it had restricted loans to borrowers with scores of 700 or higher.
Many analysts consider borrowers with credit scores of 620 or lower to be "subprime." The median U.S. credit score is 723, according to Fair Isaac Corp's myFICO unit.
"The bottom line is much better access to funding," said Mark LaNeve, GM's vice president for North American sales, on a conference call with reporters. He said GMAC may now be able to fund 75 to 80 percent of new vehicle purchases, up from 40 percent since October.
What we have here is a prime example of muddled bureaucratic thinking. Subprime lending got us into this mess so it can sure as hell can get us out of it, right? That's essentially the message D.C. is sending us by even entertaining such fucking idiocy. That's great and all that GMAC might now be able to fund a higher number of defaults loans, but if the juice is running on this $6 billion at over 8%, just how the fuck are you making money on 0% loans?
Bill Ryan of Portales Partners adds the following:
“We would like to sputter in shock and disbelief. General Motors Acceptance Corp. (GMAC) lost $5B in the 9 months ending September 2008 (on an operating basis). It has $100B in subprime and nonconforming mortgages through its ResCap subsidiary, and the government just lent them $5B at an 8% interest rate.
In addition, General Motors (GM) just announced a 0% financing option to car buyers.
So it turns out that we are now subsidizing a globally uncompetitive carmaker that does not understand what qualifies as a subprime FICO score and is offering 0% loans financed by a government (taxpayer) investment that costs 8%.
We guess they are hoping to make it up on volume.”
The following are excerpts taken from a Yahoo article:
Detroit-based GM said it was offering zero-percent or low-interest financing on some slower-selling 2008 and 2009 models over the next week — a promotion made possible by the billions provided to GMAC. (They're slower-selling models for a reason--they look like shit, run like shit, and apparently, sell like shit. Stop fucking making them!!)
Michael Martin, who owns Chevrolet and Saturn brand dealerships in Manassas, Va., said he thinks the loans will be key to turning around the auto industry, adding that GMAC's lifting of credit restrictions sets an example for banks that have yet to use their bailout funding to free up consumer loans. (Yeah, this is what's going to turn the the auto industry around--more defaults, repossessed USED cars and scarred credit ratings. Let's not work on fuel efficiency, reliability or design/ergonomics--oh no, let's just throw more subprime TAXPAYER dollars at the problem and see if that helps. And yes, it's a great model for the banks, except for one thing, dickhead: they already tried this model and it failed miserably, hence the HUGE drop in auto sales.)
"I think these things really spur consumer confidence too," said Martin, who had already seen customer traffic pickup at his dealerships on Tuesday. "People are saying it's good to see GMAC back in the marketplace. Whether it's just a euphoric feeling or not, at least it's a positive." (What deadbeat wouldn't be euphoric knowing he can secure 0% financing on a Yukon with his 621 credit score and drive the thing for free until it's repoed.)
Marc Cannon, a spokesman for AutoNation Inc., a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based auto retailer that encompasses 264 dealerships including 73 GM franchises, noted that consumers can faithfully pay their bills for years, but if they miss one or two payments along the way, their credit score can drop into the 600s.
"They're not lowering standards, they're bringing more people into the game," Cannon said of GMAC. "These people are still customers and they're still good people you want to help get into the right vehicle." (A graduate of the Hank Paulson School of Double Speak, I see. I'm sure most people are disqualified because they missed a gas or electric bill. And even so, isn't that the point: miss payments and your credit score drops? Nope, dropping the minimum requirement from 700 to 621 is most definitely not lowering the standard. And accepting kids with 600 SAT scores into Yale isn't lowering standards either.)
This story's been out for a few days, but my little corner of the blogosphere was blissfully unaware of such goings on, it would seem. Had I picked up on it earlier, it would have been assigned priority lampoon status 1, but you know what they say: better late than never. Anyway, for those of you who are NOT in the know, like yours truly, Chrysler apparently determined that the best possible use of their newly acquired largesse was to dump over $600,000 on ads thanking the American public for (temporarily) keeping their nuts off the chopping block.
Chrysler's ads, and the misplaced sentiment that inspired them, are so utterly stupid and indefensible that it's hard to know where to begin lambasting. There are so many directions one could go with this, but let's start with the obvious:
Just what was Mr. Nardelli thinking when he took out several VERY expensive ads, with recently appropriated taxpayer money mind you, to thank America for contributing to a company widely seen as being wasteful and irresponsible?
I've always said there's no better way to restore confidence than frittering away $600K during the worst economic slump since the Great Depression. I'm sure hard-up Americans were proud and thankful that their tax dollars were "volunteered" to the terminal auto makers by Senatorial nincompoops Pelosi, Frank and Reid. But make no mistake, this money will be repaid, with interest, just as soon as Chrysler fires every last one of its design engineers, basically reinvents the engine and finds a way to compete with Japanese and German automakers who are decades ahead in fuel efficiency, design and reliability. Not too tall an order for the prodigies at Chrysler . . .
And way to show the American public that you aim to curb your wasteful spending practices and put the company back on the right track. Nothing says fresh and innovative thinking like falling back on the very bad habits that got you into this bind in the first place. I'm sure everyone is impressed with Chrysler's newfound respect, (read: clumsy and feigned appreciation) for the spineless American people, but improved gas mileage, dependability and styling that don't leave us wanting to scratch our eyes out would suffice.
Mr. Nardelli, this is not the way to go about proving to the American people that you aren't every bit the buffoon and low-idling thinker we suspect you are. We'll see you in a few months when the money's been siphoned off by greedy union bosses & spoiled employees and just generally pissed away on unrelated PR stunts. Keep up the good work!
My money's on the former. Of course we haven't become a nation of savers overnight, and the rampant cult of material acquisition is still a national imperative, but is it possible that Americans are slowly waking up to the fact that quality of life is not inextricably linked with conspicuous consumption? It would indeed be a quantum shift in the collective mindset of a nation that, for 25 years, did little else than mindlessly consume in hopes of giving their relatively empty lives meaning.
Americans are, for the most part, emotionally retarded and spiritually comatose, and compensating for such shortcomings is hard work. It's mostly achieved through filling all remaining storage space in closets, attics and garages with as much junk as humanly possible. During this time of year, that consists of bum rushing malls and factory outlets minutes after the Thanksgiving turkey is digested and continuing to shop right up until the new year. I don't understand why we don't just extend the fun right up to Valentines Day. That way, there's really no break between the two crassest consumer holidays.
Dec. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Retailers counting on post-Christmas sales to spruce up the sluggish holiday season may be disappointed as tapped-out shoppers turn their noses up at discounts of 70 percent or more.
“This week isn’t going to do it,” Burt Flickinger, managing director of Strategic Resource Group, a retail-industry consulting firm in New York, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “Consumers are more cash- and credit-constrained than ever before. After a 25-year spending tsunami, they’ve shifted from spending to savings.”
Macy’s Inc. slashed prices for diamond earrings in 14-carat white gold by 64 percent, while Circuit City Stores Inc. took $500 off a 40-inch high-definition television from Samsung Electronics Co. The discounts come as the International Council of Shopping Centers has projected the worst holiday sales decline in at least four decades.
Mariel DeBernard was ready to be wowed by the sales when she turned up Dec. 26 at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City mall in Arlington, Virginia.
“Normally I’d be loaded down with things, but there just aren’t that many deals, particularly for clothing,” said DeBernard, a 40-year-old homemaker. “For most things, the prices aren’t that different than before Christmas.”
Oh, who the fuck am I kidding. Americans are degenerate credit junkies who are completely devoid of common sense, self control and any of the other redeeming values that compel people to buy only what they genuinely need and can afford. Consumption is down primarily because Americans are out of work, have had their credit lines slashed and can no longer rely on their homes as their last line of credit. Once the hot cash starts flowing from the Obama stimulus spigot, Americans will be back in the saddle again and riding high on their newly reinstated credit limits.
Still, I can't help but be somewhat hopeful that spirit-crushing debt loads and menial, meaningless jobs (or as the case may be, no job at all) will finally put an end to America's dangerous love affair with credit and cheaply produced foreign crap.
After an absolutely abysmal holiday shopping season, retailers are beseeching president elect Barry for whatever TARP crumbs can be swept from the table and onto their plates. Fuck the bridges, roads and schools--I think we should be bailing out American Eagle and Banana Republic. After all, isn't frivolous consumerism more important than improved infrastructure and asbestos-free schools? On a related note, America's public schools have been so neglected that it has resulted in the mass production of some of the dumbest kids on earth--many of whom will be needed to operate a shovel and pick axe for Obama's infrastructure stimulus package. One can only wonder if this little mishap won't be a recurring theme after it's been discovered that state and local governments were using inferior grade concrete, or even inferior grade architects and engineers in order to shave a few bucks off the top save money.
But what to do about retail? Merely contemplating the failure of even ONE "Hot Topic" outlet should send you into a panic. Wherever will America's *ahem* "fashion forward" dirtbags meet their Slipknot apparel needs? And what horrors await thus country after the fall of the House of GAP? This simply cannot be allowed to go on. Here's a quote from a National Retail Federation spokesperson:
"The situation is critical," the National Retail Federation (NRF) wrote in a letter to Obama. "In October, consumer confidence was at its lowest level in the 41 years. We urge you to act quickly on legislation to help stimulate consumer spending as one of the first priorities of your new administration," the NRF said.
Oh no--I can't think of a better way to move the economy forward than by stimulating consumer spending among the world's most heavily indebted degenerate shopaholics. Saving for a rainy day was, like, so 1950 and stuff. But printing trillions of dollars so that the ultra-leveraged American consumer can once again get his shop on is sheer genius. I think I've got a better idea though:
Let's immediately divert $4 trillion dollars from the Treasury to the following stimuli packages (and enough with this silly roads, bridges and schools bullshit):
$1 trillion for a flat screen stimulus package. Every household in American shall possess at least 8 42" LCD/Plasma TVs but no less than 2 per person. TV must remain the centerpiece of our collective effort to brainwash, mindscrub and generally distract the general populace from, oh-let's say a $750 billion bait and switch bailout heist.
$1 trillion subsidy to defray the cost of purchasing iPhones, Blackberry Storms and G1s. When each and every American has a touchscreen phone in their hands, the road to recovery can't be far behind. Besides, what good is a new economy without mobile access to Facebook and Amazon?
$1 trillion stimulus package for high-end big box clothiers like Nordstrom & Saks. Retailers that market exclusive haute couture, but NEVER - not under any circumstance - offer meaningful discounts are starting to feel the pinch. America's top 5% may find their clothing options limited if such a slack economy persists, and that simply cannot happen. We have an obligation to see that these people are dressed in the manner to which they've grown accustomed.
$1 trillion for Nike, Reebok and any retailer that carries their products. Wannabe NBAers and inner city thugs must not be deprived of expensive shoes and jersies, even during a severe economic downturn.
It's Saturday night, and while I should be out celebrating dismal holiday retail sales figures with other like-minded cynics and permabulls, I'm at home watching a CSI Las Vegas marathon on Spike TV. If ever there was a lamer way to spend a Saturday night, it doesn't immediately spring to mind. Anyway, enough about my pitiful condition.
The CSI Franchise - is it the last stop along the Hollywood trail of tears? Actually, no--CSI is just one of several dumping grounds where floundering actors are afforded one last opportunity to cash in on the tattered remnants of their celebrity before being featured in Entertainment Tonight's "Where Are They Now?" segment. I have been able to firmly establish the existence of several other FRPs or "final resting places": NYPD Blue, ER and Law & Order to name a few. Rick Schroeder anyone??
Like many formulaic programs, CSI does have its moments, albeit it far fewer than in years past. Everyone knows the forensics side of the show is unmitigated bullshit, but Marg Helgenberger still has a great ass for her age and she bends over a lot!! Laurence Fishburne has apparently burned through his Matrix earnings and joined (temporarily I'm sure) the CSI Las Vegas cast to pay the bills. This works out nicely from a PC diversity standpoint as the only regular black character was killed off last season. Kim Delaney (also great ass) didn't last long on CSI Miami or Law & Order SVU but did have a longer stint on NYPD Blue. TV dramas are rife with actors who get booted to the curb once the novelty of seeing them as gumshoe or surgeon wears off.
Is CSI the worst you can do if your acting career is flatlining? Certainly not! If you're a washed up B-lister, then you're most likely headed to ER for career defibrillation - STAT! Almost every Hollywood drifter and vagabond has passed through Chicago General at one time or another. Some, like Clooney and Bello, moved on to bigger and better things, but most were just swallowed up by the earth never to be heard from again. And if ER isn't what the doctor ordered, you can always follow SUV 1-2-3 and find a home for an episode or two.
1. Find mutilated victim and make crass, insensitive comments intended to convey to the audience just how bitter, jaded and cynical you've been rendered after years of investigating gruesome homicides committed by the bottom 1% of humanity.
2. Interrogate suspects who are, amazingly, always available and willing to share the most intimate details of their life while painting, gardening, walking the dog, getting the kids off to school, etc. Intersperse the otherwise courteous and affable questionings with snide and condescending remarks when slimy pimp or abusive boyfriend creates opening.
3. Use your superior interrogation skills to make perp crack under pressure despite a complete and total lack of compelling evidence.
And finally, you can try your hand at carpet fibers and blood spatter if the medical and legal professions aren't doing it for you. With state of the art lazer spectrum whatchamacallits and computer mapping thingamajigs, anyone can solve a murder with as little as a speck of dust that once rested on the brim of someone's hat three states over. And those neo-tech glass brick and terrazo tile labs? Wunderbar!
That's right folks!! Back by popular demand, I give you "Weapons That Will Soon Be Turned Against Us" Version 2.0. Because supplying weapons & tactics training to the Afghani Mujahideen proved to be such a stellar idea in a previous (proxy) Cold War conflagration, the US has deemed it wise to arm the very people who previously showed no compunction whatsoever when murdering innocent people who happened to disagree with their archaic religious views. Who knows--if we provide them with even more destructive weapons and better training this time, they may succeed in bringing down the entire Lower Manhattan skyline, or worse.
Relax, there's absolutely no chance that this 'carefully' crafted plan will get out of hand, resulting in one hellacious case of blowback. Pakistani warlords will never seize weapons from the unsteady hands of frightened 16-year-olds and turn them back on coalition soldiers attempting to restore order to the country. Nope, I don't see how this well-intentioned plan could possibly result in one of those "just what in the hell were you thinking, Secretary Gates?" C-Span moments.
In a strange turnabout, the US has seemingly come to favor such a plan after intially deriding the Brits for suggesting an identical tactic nearly a year ago.
The US general in charge of training the Afghan police has criticised British-backed plans to arm local militias in an attempt to defeat the Taliban. The remarks by Maj-Gen Robert Cone, the second most senior US soldier in Afghanistan, are likely to deepen the row between London and Washington over how to counter the insurgency.
The British and American plans came on the heels of an even more ingenious plan: Arming Pakistani tribes as a buffer against al Qaeda. And the hits just keep coming . . .
WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 — A new and classified American military proposal outlines an intensified effort to enlist tribal leaders in the frontier areas of Pakistan in the fight against Al Qaeda and the Taliban, as part of a broader effort to bolster Pakistani forces against an expanding militancy, American military officials said.
Does anyone get the feeling that our elected officials and military leaders are grasping at straws at this point? Does the Pentagon resemble the primate house at the zoo? Are these guys spinning around in circles on their chairs, howling at each other and flinging their feces against the wall? Sure seems that way.
The pundits can't seem to decide which it's going to be. Can you? Will commercial real estate collapse and bring banks back to the brink of insolvency (like they're not there already)? Sure would be a shame if those tasteless strip malls were abruptly abandoned. I'm gonna miss the Applebee's, A&W/KFC, Office Depot, Best Buy, Petsmart, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Verizon lineup. Where else can I get several shitty meals, buy gold fish and a toaster oven and get new cellular service all in one stop?
Will consumer debt (primarily credit card debt) put the final nail in the coffin? At $14 trillion and counting, it seems highly unlikely that US consumers will miraculously summon up the equivalent of the nation's entire economic output and settle their debts. Most Americans are struggling to meet minimum payments on the approximately $10,000 credit card debt averaged by each family. Ours is a nation of deadbeats and this mess shows no sign of abating soon. I can guarantee that within two years (probably less) the government will announce a credit card debtor bailout.
Many seem to think a new wave of Alt-A resets will really seal the deal and slam the lid shut on the cookie jar. Ironically, I'm still thinking that "worked out" foreclosures may be the next leg down.
New in this report are re-default rates on modified loans. The number of loans modified in the first quarter that were 30 or more days delinquent was 37 percent after three months and 55 percent after six months. The number of loans modified in the first quarter that were 60 or more days delinquent was 19 percent at three months and nearly 37 percent after six months.
“One very troubling point is that, whether measured using 30-day or 60-day delinquencies, re-default rates increased each month and showed no signs of leveling off after six months and even eight months,” said Comptroller of the Currency John C. Dugan. “This trend of increasing delinquencies underscores the need to understand why these modifications have not been more sustainable.”
Either way you slice it, we're in deep shit. The only solution to this rapidly expanding conundrum is reinflation of the housing bubble, which is precisely what got us into this mess in the first place. The problem confronting Uncle Sam is complicated: not only must foreclosures be halted, but home values must rebound to 2007 levels lest homeowners continue walking away from underwater debt. Who the hell will continue sinking money into a home that is not gaining in value, and possibly, depreciating? Watching the Obama administration devise new and clever ways of artificially inflating home values and stemming the tide of unemployment while the value of the dollar erodes and inflation begins chipping away at ever stagnating wages will be good for a few chuckles though. Oh, and that's if they don't prick the bond bubble first and send the global economy into the dark ages.
How is it possible that Americans have managed to fuck up nearly every sector of the economy? I'm hard pressed to think of one area that could be called healthy. To blame this on a credit crunch would be foolhardy. If companies (as well as individuals) are so reliant on credit that day to day operations are severely impeded, then one must call into question the soundness of their business practices. No, seems to me that all this is a systemic problem bourne out of avarice and pride. A cursory run down of the major economic sectors doesn't turn up much to be hopeful for.
Automotive industry? Life support; get the paddles and set at maximum
Financial sector? Practically insolvent; one major bank failure or Madoff incident away from total collapse
Construction? DOA - will not be resuscitated for another 3-4 years
Retail? Bankruptcies galore to follow bleak holiday sales
Tech? Breathing is labored and shallow but perhaps salvageable
Pharma? Weathering the storm but latest drugs will soon begin killing people as understaffed and underfunded FDA looks the other way.....then look out below!
Nope! Not one healthy, thriving sector to mention.
According to Huffpo, an internal investigation has concluded that Rahm Emanuel is innocent of any wrongdoing in the BlagoGate scandal. Of course you can imagine my surprise when it was announced that Obama's own staffers concluded that their immediate boss (Emanuel) was innocent. And here I was expecting the investigation to point out Emanuel's rather unorthodox and perhaps unethical involvement in the senatorial appointment process. And if the Obama investigation didn't convince you, then perhaps US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald's rigorous investigation did.
Let's give these guys the benefit of the doubt, shall we? After all, we're talking about squeaky clean Chicago politics here. And besides, everyone knows that Attorneys General are above reproach. Let's see, there's former New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer, Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann and US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to name a few. That should put to rest speculation that Emanuel was in any way involved, and more importantly, that perhaps an Attorney General could be convinced to prevaricate when the truth could imperil the most historic presidency these United States have ever witnessed.
Hmmm, I wonder--where have we seen this kind of mindless patronage before? I will say this much, Obama's getting quite a bit of mileage out of his $600 million electoral war chest. With it, he crafted a rather bland but potent brand name, mass marketed it to feeble-minded Americans and then promptly took his budding presidency center right if his cabinet picks and v iews on Afghanistan, Pakistan and Israel are any indicator. He literally bought a nation, and apparently, converted his corporate lucre into political capital which allowed him to purchase the hearts and minds of the country with nary a question. Much remains to be seen, but the Obama apologists are coming out in force to defend their political godhead's wrongheaded views on issues like the aforementioned plus Iran, Gay Marriage and the economy. His decision to invoke the oratorial skills of the "esteemed" Rev. Warren calls into question his judgment and certainly clarifies his intention to pander to America's Christian right--just what America needs by the way.
I despise Huffington Post right down to its shrill namesake and her slouch-ish minions, but they are useful idiots when it comes to getting a cheap laugh. Huffpo fancies itself something of a bastion of progressive thinking when in all reality, it's a liberal echo chamber cum romper room where the more brainwashed of the Democratic party come to toe the line day in, day out. This is a little off topic, but to prove a point, I'll include a link to another extremely timely story that's near and dear to the hearts of America's progressive movement here. Honestly, is this what the progressive blogosphere busies itself with?
Now that you've got an idea what kind of garbage passes for journalism over at Huffpo, let me delve into this Warren thing. I gave this whole issue some thought and concluded that had McPalin triumphed and invited Warren to give the invocation at their inauguration, the left would be howling with righteous indignation over a bigot and homophobe on par with Hitler. His views on homosexuality, while in keeping with the knuckle dragging beliefs of his bible thumping followers, are in direct contravention of basic civil rights.
I would agree with Reigan's assessment. Obama should not be rewarding this guy's intolerance by including him in an inauguration that is widely held as a "unifying moment" for this divided nation. Personally, I don't think religion should play a part in any official government observance--you know, that pesky matter of separation of church and state, but so be it. We've got to satisfy the archaic yearnings of America's "faithful". Here's what some of the typical Huffpo posters had to say in defense of Obama's Warren decision. These are the same posters, mind you, who would be decrying Warren as a monster if the tables were turned and McCain had won. We can imagine how the posts would read: McCain and his loony Christian Coalition supporters have shown just how intolerant they truly are by offering a platform for his vitriol.
Isn't it obvious that Obama is trying to get the religious right to warm to him. It's time that Obama's hardcore supporters lighten up a little and cut Obama the slack he needs to reach across party lines. It's not like he's making Warren the Secretary of Religion. It's simply symbolic of Obama's uniter position, and a savvy political move, too.
In this instance, I guess appealing to the religious right means appealing to their irrational hatred of homosexuals. Just the kind of move I'd expect from a "unfier". It would have been pretty easy to find a local minister who hasn't made dozens of inflammatory statements on national TV one would think. Seems like the most expedient manner in which to appeal to a hardcore conservatives is to drape yourself in a flag, insist on American exceptionalism and let the Toby Keith blast.
Warren--who cares? This nation is facing an existential crises and I'm glad Obama is trying to rally everybody to his side. Warren will make a banal prayer to his supernatural friends and the marriage issue will not be moved one way or another by this gesture. So chill out and get over yourselves because I'd rather have my feelings hurt by a pallid portly preacher than starve to death unemployed. Can I get an amen?
Who cares? Well, gays and lesbians, apprently. I think calling this an existential crisis might be a bit hyperbolic. Most Americans aren't sufficiently introspective to question the meaning of life--unless of course shopping is the only thing that gives meaning to their lives in which case I guess the poster is correct. Now, about preferring hurt feelings over starving to death unemployed. . . I'm not quite sure wtf you're trying to say, but it sounds stupid. Are you implying that our only choice is to listen to a bigoted 19th century throwback or perish from starvation? Interesting.
If you can't handle this, how can you handle the strains of marriage? One disagreement and you wanna take your ball and go home? LOL..you are too thinned-skinned. Good thing you were not born Black..you can't hide that!
I'm really not quite sure what to say about this comment. So one cannot disagree with Obama's decision lest it reflect poorly on their ability to navigate a marriage? Behold Huffpo logic. Just FYI, I haven't met too many gays or lesbians who hid their homosexuality, and for what it's worth, Obama has done an excellent job hiding his "blackness".
It's no secret that I harbor nothing but ill-will and contempt for Sean Combs--the single biggest douchebag to ever walk the face of the earth, but when I saw this ego-fueled piece of horseshit, I nearly choked on my dinner.
Again, here's the slickly produced and packaged Diddy:
And here's the uber douchebag being his normal mentally deficient, low-brow self:
The media portrayal of Diddy is funny to the point of absurdity. I can't think of a person with less cultural refinement than this knuckle dragging mouth breather who struggles to stringing together complete sentences. Yachts, fine wine and expensive clothes are simply wasted on a thug who wouldn't know the difference between stale Asti Spumane and a Lafitte Rothschild '66. Sophisticated women possessing even a modicum of self-respect wouldn't be caught dead with this pinhead, unless it was to pick up an 8 Ball. Fortunately for him, he possesses enough wealth to create his own brands because I cannot, for the life of me, imagine why any business would intentionally contract this dickhead as a spokesperson.
The unquestioning admiration this dolt and others like him have garnered from millions of little hip hop derelicts is no longer surprising. Only Americans take distinct pleasure in being ignorant, uneducated and completely devoid of any understanding of the world they inhabit. Diddy embodies the kind of vapidness and self-absorption that is admired in this country better than any one celebrity I can think of.
