Author Archives: Sean Patrick Hazlett

About Sean Patrick Hazlett

Finance executive, engineer, former military officer, and science fiction and horror writer. Editor of the Weird World War III anthology.

Spanking Disagreement Leads to Assault Rifle Ambush: Stay Classy, Philadelphia

Posted on Saturday, August 6, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

It’s good to see that Philadelphia’s permit requirements to carry concealed firearms are working. Also, a word of advice: avoid giving random strangers parenting lectures, or threatening to report them, in the absence of clear child endangerment. It’s just not worth getting … Continue reading →

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Posted in Crime, Media, Politics | Tagged AK-47, Assault rifles, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, SEPTA | 14 Comments

Sic Transit Gloria Mundi: S&P Lowers America’s Credit Rating

Posted on Saturday, August 6, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Sic transit gloria mundi How doth the busy bee Dum vivimus vivamus I stay my enemy! — Emily Dickinson opening to a poem she published in the Springfield Daily Republican in 1852, a newspaper associated with the founding of the Republican … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Finance and Economics, Media, Policy, Politics, Predictions, Taxes | Tagged Downgrade of U.S. Debt, Emily Dickinson, Mortgage rates, Risk free rate, S&P, S&P Downgrade, Sic Transit Gloria Mundi, Sovereign debt, U.S. Treasuries | 14 Comments

Bush vs. Obama: Unemployment (July 2011 Jobs Data)

Posted on Friday, August 5, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Update: Click here for the most recent jobs statistics. As is customary on this site, on the first Friday of every month, I update the unemployment numbers so that I can compare the unemployment rate under President George W. Bush with the unemployment … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Finance and Economics, Media, Policy, Politics | Tagged President Bush, President Obama, Unemployment | 45 Comments

Obama’s Fiftieth Birthday: Plenty of Celebration, No Results

Posted on Friday, August 5, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Last Wednesday, President Obama attended a gala celebration in Chicago to celebrate his fiftieth birthday one day early. Attendees paid $35,800 a ticket to bask in the light of their Messiah, and to mingle with musical stars Herbie Hancock and OK … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, International Security, Media, Policy, Politics | Tagged Bank failures, Bankruptcies, Budget deficit, Crude oil prices, Federal debt, Gasoline prices, GDP, Housing starts, Labor Force Participation, President Obama, Unemployment | Leave a comment

Damn It Feels Good to Be a “Goatsta”

Posted on Wednesday, August 3, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Attention! California citizens: Be advised that you can now sleep safely in your government-provided containment units. The valiant forces of the Los Angeles Police Department, with assistance from the FDA and the CDC, verily smote the perfidious criminal conspirators, whose dastardly manufacturing and … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, California, Crime, Food Security, Humor, Media, Policy, Politics, Taxes | Tagged California, CDC, Damn It Feels Good to Be a Gangsta, Ebola, Geto Boys, Goatsta, Hantavirus, Hippies, Kermit the Frog, LAPD, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Police Department, Oompa-Loompas, Organic food, Permits, Raw dairy, Raw goat milk, Raw milk, Rawesome, Red tape, Regulations, SWAT, Willy Wonka | Leave a comment

Medicaid and the Irish Republican Army

Posted on Tuesday, August 2, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

About two weeks ago, I posted a video I discovered via Breitbart TV, that was both hilarious and disturbing. In that video, James O’Keefe and another member of Project Veritas posed as two Russian drug smugglers applying for Medicaid in Ohio. … Continue reading →

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Posted in Crime, Finance and Economics, Healthcare, Humor, Media, Policy, Politics, Taxes | Tagged Abortions, Irish Republican Army, James O'Keefe, Medicaid, Project Veritas, South Carolina | 4 Comments

The Debt Deal: Pros and Cons

Posted on Monday, August 1, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Now that the House “approved a budget agreement intended to head off a potential government default” 269 to 161, and that the Senate will likely pass the bill tomorrow, the crisis has ended exactly how the bond market predicted it would: … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Defense, Finance and Economics, Healthcare, Media, Policy, Politics, Social Security, Taxes | Tagged Bicameral, Bipartisan, Congress, debt ceiling, Debt ceiling agreement, Debt Crisis, Democrats, House of Representatives, Medicaid, President Obama, Republicans, Senate, Social Security | 10 Comments

The Beatings Will Continue Until Morale Improves

Posted on Sunday, July 31, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Below is an interesting chart from The Economist that compares America’s current anemic economic recovery from the 2007-09 recession with those of the 1973-75, 1981-82, and the 1990-91 recessions. The bottom line is that the current recovery is lagging both in … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Finance and Economics, Media, Policy, Politics | Tagged Employment, GDP, Recessions, Recovery, The Economist | 11 Comments

New Fuel Economy Standards a Good Thing

Posted on Sunday, July 31, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

This past Friday, President Obama announced new corporate average fuel economy or CAFE standards that would require the average vehicle sold in the United States to provide 54.5 miles per gallon. The White House estimates the program will save consumers … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, California, Clean Energy, Clean Tech, Climate Change, Energy Security, Finance and Economics, International Security, Media, Middle East, Peak Oil, Policy, Politics, Taxes, Technology, Unions | Tagged CAFE standards, Detroit, Free markets, Fuel efficiency standards, President Obama, Saudi Arabia, The Boston Consulting Group, The White House, Venezuela | 12 Comments

Not Paying Military If There Is No Debt Deal Is a Bad Idea

Posted on Saturday, July 30, 2011 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

I’m getting a sense of deja vu reading Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen’s comments on whether or not military servicemembers will receive their paychecks in the event that Congress cannot reach a deal to raise the country’s debt … Continue reading →