Bob Ballard's Page

The TARP program's Inspector General finally revealed the secret of what has been happening, and it really is quite simple. The Treasury gives money to banks to compensate them for loans (read home mortgages) that have "gone bad" (i.e., are not being repaid). This is the nice, sanitized wording they use - a "troubled asset." What these really are is our god damn homes!

What is REALLY happening here is the Treasury pays off the bad mortgages with our tax dollars (and our great grandchildren's ta… Continue

I just returned from Homeless Connect Day in San Francisco, a huge event attended by more than 2,400 homeless people searching for help. I had the opportunity to talk with some of them and hear what they had to say, what they felt and how it is to be without a home.

When I read about the economic criminals on Wall Street and their servants in our governm… Continue

We live in a world where "new" is a good thing. If something is new it is automatically better, an improvement of some type. In our consumer culture, new things are needed to encourage consumption. The tag line "new and improved" has been used in thousands of ad campaigns for almost every service and product that exists.

Why do we think that "new" is better? I guess we believe that something new must be an improvement over the old and that people wouldn't work to improve something unless it rea… Continue

Sometimes I think that intention and creation are at odds with one another. Can I intentionally create, or is creation something that just happens out of nothing? Actually, I think it is a little of both.

Take this morning for example. On Sunday mornings, I generally set up my info table and related paraphenalia on the side walk in Ojai, across the street from the Farmer's Market. That is what I did today. My general intention in being there is to inform and inspire people about what is possibl… Continue

Like many people, I was shocked by the Zeitgeist movie and have been immersed in researching the state of the world, especially its economy, ever since. I was happy to discover that the Venus Project is the solution recommended by the Zeigeist Movement. Although I found Jacque Fresco's futuristic designs brillian… Continue