1. With the election of Joe Manchin to the U.S. Senate, the political “kabuki dance” to succeed him will now begin. It should be fun to watch. There is a veritable phone book of interested candidates: John Perdue, Rick Thompson, Jeff Kessler, Brooks McCabe along with “unannounced” possibilities such as Natalie Tenant and Betty Ireland. And the race hasn’t yet begun.
2. On a national front, are we witnessing the agonizing death throes of the two party system? It appears that registered independents now equal registered Democrats or Republicans. The Republican gains appear to be because of dissatisfaction with some Democrats not enchantment or necessarily support for Republicans. I anticipate a third party or independent candidate for the White House in 2012 or 2016 and the appearance of a third yet small national party garnering around 10 or 15 percent of the vote.
3. Why does no one bemoan the low interest rates in terms of how that affects those on fixed incomes primarily the elderly? For the retired person who relies on earnings from his or her savings, the last two years have been basically a “no return” environment on bank CD’s, savings account and similar no risk investments that folks usually make.
