A Guest Post.

(Note: The management here at RSR is trying out a little experiment. We have invited an acquaintance, who is known as The Grey Man, to do a guest post. We are doing this because he writes pretty well, it saves us the time of having to come up with this stuff, and because he doesn't want certian photos in our possession posted here. If this works out, he may become a regular. So without further ado...)

First, Red Stick Rant has graciously, or foolishly, asked me, "The Grey Man", to occasionally pen a bonus essay for your entertainment pleasure.

Second, we'll discuss the AIG bonus scandal.

My opinion mimics one of my favorite movie lines. "So what. Big deal". This is nothing more than a tempest in a Teapot Dome. Merely MUD (made up drama).

The new AIG boss had two Shakespearean choices. To pay or not to pay, that was the question.

He chose to pay the bonuses required by the employees' contracts, and is getting pilloried for it. We hear cries about "wasting the taxpayer's money", from the same Congress that tells us earmarks are no big deal.

It's not like this was a surprise to Congress or the administration. Senator Dodd inserted the language, at the behest of an unnamed treasury official, which means the administration left their fingerprints. And of course the Congress fully read and understood the bill before voting for it, right?

Let's say he chose option 2, and refused to pay. Then we'd be hearing about how he shorted the working man, and willfully breached contracts. Then the lawyers sue and collect. After legal fees, court costs, punitive damages, pain and suffering, in would cost more like 330 million instead of 165.

Either way, there would be scandal. But why?

That's easy. It was their turn.

We've all seen magicians on TV. And they all, even the female ones, have a very cute female assistant. Wearing a nearly NSFW outfit. No one who likes girls is watching the magician's hands.

For the rest of the audience, there are fireworks and sparklers and colored lights and streamers, so they're not watching the magician's hands either .

With no one watching the hands, we're all amazed when the magician turns an elephant into a walnut or a mostly prosperous republic into a bankrupt oligarchy.

The bonus scandal is mere razzle dazzle, mere distraction. It fits a pattern. Santelli then Limbaugh then Cramer, now AIG. It's about as mature as a boy in the schoolyard pointing and yelling "fight" so he can hop the fence and cut class. Also pretty effective.

Notice each of these lasts a week or so, then we get a new one. In a few days, we'll be dealing with a new distraction. The current favorite is White House and MSM vs. The basketball coach. Take the coach and give 2.5 points.

So what are the hands doing?

How about the Fed massively buying back bills with nonexistent cash. Holy inflation Batman! Or having a Ron Paul sticker makes you a domestic terror suspect. (Remember way back, last year, when profiling was wrong?). Or federal troops deploying on a "peacekeeping" mission. In Alabama.

I'll end by telling you a little lesson I learned while earning my DT. (Doctorate of Thinkology). Ignore the smoke and flame and lightning and thunder.

But DO pay attention to the little man behind the curtain.

The Grey Man