Travis Seitler: Web Designer

Neither Congress nor the Inspector General knows anything about what the Fed has done with $9 trillion in off-balance sheet transactions, or anything about the profit or loss from $2 trillion in on-balance sheet transactions. Check this out:

In the clip above, Rep. Alan Grayson (FL-8) asks the Federal Reserve Inspector General about the trillions of dollars lent or spent by the Federal Reserve and where it went, and the trillions of off balance sheet obligations. Inspector General Elizabeth Coleman responds that her office does not know and is not tracking where this money is.

The Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009 (HR 1207) would require an audit of the Federal Reserve. The map below shows which Representatives (by District) have cosponsored the bill as of June 16, 2009:

(Map created using a public domain image available at Wikimedia Commons and the Library of Congress’ list of cosponsors.)

So now I learn that the Federal Reserve is actually seeking to hire a lobbyist to fight against this (and similar) legislation. And I’m left wondering, “if you don’t have anything to hide, then what’s the problem with an impartial audit?” Our children, grandchildren and now great-grandchildren are going to be saddled with enormous debts as a result of this massive inflation (that is, an increase in the money supply). If such spending is truly justified, then it’s a painful hardship we’ll have to deal with. But if it’s not justified, then it needs to stop!

If your Congressional District isn’t lit up yet, send a message to your Representative and Senators telling them you want them to support the Audit the Fed bill (HR 1207 in the House, S 604 in the Senate). Then show your neighbors the YouTube clip above and get them to write your Representative and Senators, too.

We moved to Columbus back in November, which really isn’t the best time to move to a city in the Northern US. Cold, cloudy and usually raining or snowing, we basically wanted to stay indoors. It wasn’t bad (Nicole and I are both computer geeks), but we didn’t really acclimate to the city.

But as the weather started getting nicer, we came out of our hibernation! Memorial Day weekend in particular was beautiful, and we were all over the place. On May 21, we made our first visit to Graeter’s Ice Cream in Bexley.

Then on the 23rd, we drove out to see what they had at the Worthington Farmers Market. We didn’t really buy anything, but we browsed a lot.

The next day, we went to the 2009 Asian Festival at Franklin Park. The kids loved it:

After such a crazy weekend, Nicole needed a little “pregnant momma” time to recuperate. But after hanging out with the Grace Central crowd this past Sunday, I was able to convince her that it’d be a great idea to swing out to The North Market for lunch!

Nicole got a Greek Salad from Firdous Express, I got Lamb Curry from Flavors of India, and the kids picked off of both. Afterward, I picked up a downright amazing Buckeye Latté from A Touch of Earth! Seriously, I’m not kidding: peanut butter, chocolate and coffee all together in a single cup? YES PLEASE!

I’m going to be at WordCamp Columbus today! If you’re on Twitter, I’ve got it set to pass direct messages on to my cell phone (I’m *gasp!* not going to have a computer with me at the event). Just “D TravisSeitler” if you want to meet up… or if you notice some food between my teeth.

Last Monday, I went to return a few books to the library and our car wouldn’t start. So I jumped on the unofficial Oldsmobile Aurora forums, asked around on Twitter, and learned all about alternators on YouTube—but when we couldn’t even jump-start the thing Tuesday night, I admitted defeat and called for a tow truck.

(BTW, if you have any “in” whatsoever, get insurance coverage with USAA! They are, hands down, the absolute best when it comes to customer service.)

Anyway, on Wednesday I had the car towed to a shop that USAA recommended. The lead service tech there told me that they weren’t busy; they would have it looked at the same day, or by Thursday at the absolute latest.

When they closed for the weekend on Saturday afternoon, they still hadn’t even begun their diagnosis.

I was told that they would get back to me with a diagnosis by Monday, but I was told this by the same person who originally said Thursday… so I’m thinking it may be a while before we get our car back.

Meanwhile, food and diapers don’t replenish themselves (at least not here, and I don’t want to know if they do in your home), so I’ve found myself walking more this past week—including a 4-mile round trip to Walmart, with an ice-pack-filled backpack to keep the milk cool on the 40-minute trek back.

Then there’s some books that need to get back to the library, my very pregnant wife has an appointment with her midwife on Tuesday, and WordCamp is this weekend. There’s only so much in this city that we can accomplish by walking—or riding COTA—from this side of Whitehall.

In other words, this week is shaping up to be an interesting one.

I saw this quote today, and thought it was awesome:

“I have been picking on Christians because I am one, and see no reason to pretend we are better that we are.” — Philip Yancy #

That just says it all right there.