We begin the week with a short lecture to antifa. Hopelessly misguided as events in the socialist city-state of Portland this weekend revealed (again). Please take the time to read how “Bear spray, bloody brawls at Patriot Prayer ‘law and order’ march in Portland” worked out.
In particular, we find the sham police of Portland abdicating their law and order mandate as the report noted “Police said they made no arrests Saturday night, but will continue to investigate…” reprehensible.
Around here, we consider it a safe bet that nothing will come of it. This is due to the data which argues Portland (and much of Oregon) has gone semi-socialist along the Republik of Kalifornia model already.
This is all so “totally Thirties” to us. Radicals in the woods are nothing new up yonder. I know, having lived in (and reported on) the PNW for decades ion the news and business world.
Maybe it’s something sin the water. Radicalism is enshrined as “good.” Seattle TV station KCTS has a piece over here (“9 things about Seattle During the Great Depression“) that casts socialist/communists in a favorable light:
“6) We had a successful socialist-communist workers union. A national organization run by socialists and communists, the Workers Alliance, served as a union for employees of the Works in Progress Administration (WPA). The Workers Alliance was very successful in Washington State. It organized a walkout of 5,000 employees and eventually carried out successful bargains between WPA workers and management..”
“We?”: You can see why Elaine and I find Texas more to our temperament. We have actually read about how “successful” socialism and communism are (left unopposed) in places like Russia and Venezuela…
Point is, anarchists and lefties are nothing new…it’s been going around Oregon ever since the Wobblies movement.
We see – in the antifa or today – the re-fried version of the cold commie/socialist Wobbly “Direct Action or Political Action” question:
“In 1908 a group led by Daniel DeLeon argued that political action through DeLeon’s Socialist Labor Party (SLP) was the best way to attain the IWW’s goals. The other faction, led by Vincent Saint John, William Trautmann, and Big Bill Haywood, believed that direct action in the form of strikes, propaganda, and boycotts was more likely to accomplish sustainable gains for working people; they were opposed to arbitration and to political affiliation. Haywood’s faction prevailed, and De Leon and his supporters left the organization, forming their own version of the IWW. The SLP’s “Yellow IWW” eventually took the name Workers’ International Industrial Union, which was disbanded in 1924. “
This past week’s antifa antics seem a third-rate-echo of the Wobblies. It shows horrific ignorance on two fronts.
First, direction action pisses off a lot of people – which is why the right-minded people assembled in Portland. Antifa could have just let is go and kept building on their obvious control the streets movement. But no, they got suckers into a “hard” response and frankly, that’s stepping on the “tail of the beast.” They’re going to get national conventions cancelled and other economic poison pills down, if they don’t wise up.
The second level of stupid (and why we liberally use the term idiolutionaries) is they don’t seem to comprehend that the Trump Base and a lot of pseudoliberals (people who voted for Obama once) is totally intolerant of public disruption. Free speech is not freedom to impede anyone else.
Middle America does not endorse feces on the streets and they don’t endorse breakaway states like Oregon.
In fact, antifa would do well to go back to school (but someplace besides Berkeley, where they could learn the law of reaction in Physics.
f-ma. Force equals mass times acceleration.
Antifa applied (f) [force] and now we see the resultant acceleration of the masses…which is one of the reasons why the previous PNW commie/socialist movements petered out. People really do want peace and prosperity.
Rest assured, however, we are not done with hearing from this series of barricades in the Pacific Nutwest.
It’s going to get worse before it gets better because “Oregon’s sanctuary state policies could be repealed in November.”
The radicals in the wannabe secessionist state have dug in their heels by making claims like “Hate groups want to repeal Oregon’s 30 year old sanctuary state law. NO on 105. Donate Online. Join Our Campaign….” The idea of uniform laws (and real borders) are beyond their comprehension.
All in all, it proves to the discerning UrbanSurvival reader three aspects of ONE THING Oregon does well: Recycle.
- Oregon is recycling bankrupt socialist/communist ideologies.
- Oregon is recycling a rhyme of the secessionist state movement of pre-Civil War times.
- And Oregon is recycling the Old Style Political Model – where consensus losers – unable to lead by way of vision or accomplishments – lets the Digital Mob Rule spread without regard for law and order, hoping things will “just work out.”
Such delusion is amusing. Given there’s been no “Russian collusion” shown yet, we chuckle at the lack of imaginative and useful reporting by the MainStreamMedia. We ought to head the Oregon lovefest ramping up shortly.
The MSM COULD be helping to put America together again. But instead, we are likely to be drowning in left-wing Oregon politics because it supported the Soros-backed open borders attack of America.
Proof to us again: Social Media causes brain damage.
Retail Sails
Oh look! The world didn’t end!
Retail trade sales were up 0.4 percent (±0.5 percent)* from August 2018, and 4.4 percent (±0.5 percent) above last year. Gasoline Stations were up 11.4 percent (±1.6 percent) from September 2017, while nonstore Retailers were also up 11.4 percent (±1.4 percent) from last year.
Even worse for the Hate Brigades: Here soime the NY Fed with another reason why we expected the markets would rally into options expiration this week:
“Business activity continued to grow strongly in New York State, according to firms responding to the October 2018 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index rose two points to 21.1, pointing to a slightly faster pace of growth than in September. New orders and shipments both picked up noticeably. Delivery times continued to lengthen, while inventories held steady. Labor market indicators pointed to a modest increase in employment levels and no change in hours worked. Price indexes edged down but remained elevated, suggesting ongoing significant increases in both input prices and selling prices. Looking ahead, firms generally remained optimistic about the six-month outlook…”
Kind of hard to talk “end of the world” against this background. Unless you’re blinded by Trump hate, in which case, thanks for being on the other side of our present trade.
Dow futures are down 24 at click time, but we sense an up close today and/or tomorrow, but we shall see. Oil Shock II, anyone? Stock futures drop as Saudi tensions add to growing worries.
But, The Bump goes on as Bank of America profit beats estimates on cost cuts, loan growth.
Doesn’t slow The Bash, though: President Trump, in contentious ’60 Minutes’ interview, defends relationships with Putin and Kim; reminds Stahl ‘I’m president….
Still, clicks beat bricks as Sears Becomes the Latest Retail Giant to File for Bankruptcy, Suffering From Massive Debt.
Snips, Quips, Snivel, Drivel
Elizabeth Warren Just Shared a DNA Test Showing She Has Native American Ancestry, but we have a “chain of custody question, or three…l”
Billion dollar free product idea of the day: “Ure’s Spit-Mixer…” Be all that you can be?
Principal who asked student to remove Trump jersey replaced.
Pro-Independence Student Activists in Hong Kong Call on U.S. to Protect the City’s Freedoms. (Can’t protect ’em in Portland, so why Hong Kong, but I must be exceptionally stupid and missing something…)
Drivel: Fleetwood Mac disputes lawsuit filed by Lindsey Buckingham for kicking him off tour.
And from “Being an Actor doesn’t make you a Thinker” file: Alec Baldwin Urges Voters to ‘Overthrow’ the Trump Government in Midterm Elections.
Sheesh…
Around the Ranch: My buddy the Major wrapped up his visit to the ranch on Sunday…new high-performance antenna we ginned-up works great…and a cold snap is rolling into East Texas. Zeus the Cat is lobbying for an electric blanket this year…
Moron on the ‘morrow….
The Democrats real problem against President Trump is that HE TELLS THE TRUTH & WON’T FOLD IN A CRISIS. The Dems strategies is to LIE & ACT INCREDULOUS WHEN CHALLENGED. Look at the Clinton’s, Schumer, Feinstein, & Gore if you need examples
The liberals don’t believe Trump won the election fairly, since he won by the electoral count and not the popular (that’s what’s at the base of the left’s hatred of Trump, but the issue is deeper than that. The far left libs believe anybody who doesn’t see the world as they do are Nazi’s, and believe they’re doing the world a service by exposing anybody they label that awful comparison. When you challenge them on their hypocrisy’s, they can’t defend them with a legitimate counter argument and then you get called a racist too.) … That being said, I live in the city noted above as under siege by antifa. The inner city is filled with virtue signaling phony liberals who claim to care so much about the poor and oppressed people of color, as long as they don’t have to rub elbows with them in their own neighborhoods. The city is overrun with homeless camps that sprout up like mushrooms, overnite. Whenever a homeless camp is setup, burglaries become rampant in the affected neighborhood, until the city makes the campers move to a new area. Rinse and repeat.
The reason the police back down is because they want to keep their jobs, as that directive is coming from the new (recently recruited) Chief from the San Fransisco bay area, and the spineless mayor. The police have their hands tied. Also, the city atty’s are liberals and will not press or pursue charges against antifas unless public/private property is damaged and the culprit can be identified (the antifa’s wear mask) or if a gun is discharged..and then only if the public’s outcry is loud enough to force them to. Police in the surrounding suburbs are very firm in their intolerance for these hooligans and its well known within the homeless and antifa’s to stay away from those towns. Portland is a cesspool now and the police union’s spokesperson, who said that a few months back, was demonized for having that publicly expressed opinion. He should run for mayor, is what many would like to see.
The reason the antifa’s are disrupting the city this time, is related to a police shooting a few weeks back when a known gang member, shot 2 people downtown. The police responded and shot him dead, after a chase at which some point the perp threw his gun down, but it wasn’t known till afterwards, that he disarmed himself and didn’t have another weapon. Of course, the family of the gang member has painted the perp as the victim of overreach by the police and the usual theme of he was turning his life around, is the liberal narrative. (yup, that’s why he shot two people). The perp himself, was the victim of a gang shooting 2 years ago and had an extensive police record, although the liberals don’t think that should matter.
The elderly man whose car was damaged by the antifas and their takeover of the streets downtown, that was allowed by the police, should sue the city for failing to protect him, as the cops had a stand down order.
I hope to leave this town in the next year. You can’t have a public opinion that isn’t PC here, and if you dare to not follow that unwritten requirement, you risk having your car damaged and your reputation smeared. I fear even worse outcomes as the antifas become more entitled by the lack of law and order, that our police chief and mayor are enabling.
Many people in this town are disgusted by this, but its very hard to publicly make that statement and not be threatened or have fear of retaliation instilled, as that elderly male driver has been.
Good points Reluctant from a person who has to live in the flith & can give an accurate account. Not like a Mark who would visit, stay at a 4 star hotel in the suburbs, & then say “Everything looks OK to me”.
why the marching why the violence.. if it is a subject that anyone is truly wanting to see change.. don’t march.. that only causes intimidation and those that are prone to violence a reason to be violent..
if any group really wants to see a subject change.. go about it in a non violent way .. a simple letter.. one each day for every member of congress. not just your states.. that won’t do a thing.. if you had fifty thousand that truly wanted to see a change then alternate.. ten thousand this week send a letter a day.. ten thousand next week,, etc.. a simple to the point letter in an envelope not an email.. the sheer mass of mail will get attention.. hundreds of truckloads of mail.. it would even get the congressman to come back to dc to work on it.. and believe me he won’t give two cents over how many billions the puppeteers are donating to get that issue stopped.. it would create jobs be non violent simple and to the point and most of all … GET RESULTS..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jagJeaLXRRQ
When has President Trump ever told the truth about anything? He lies about his own lies and tells more lies to cover the lies he lied about. And folding is his middle name. He has basically folded on North Korea…Is losing and is about to fold on China…He will probably cave on Saudi Arabia for personal reasons, has folded on his wall (He will never get that done) and is owned and operated by Putin. Big deal…he opted out of the Paris Accord and the TPP. How is that working out? And all he did was re-brand the same agreement with Mexico and Canada. Oh yeah…we get better access to milk. Wooohooo.
And stop mentioning the Clintons when calling out the other side. They are history…gone…kaput…no longer relevant…Good riddance too. That’s one positive that came out of the election. She didn’t win!!! I just wish another Republican did.
Hi Mark, must be the start of a bad week for you with two posts from our favorite commie.
The big picture is what matters. President Trump has done much of what he said he would – much more than others who became president. Sadly, congress did little to help, though I have been encouraged by Mitch McConnell’s ability to get the SCOTUS judges approved. In the face of such bullying from the left, it’s amazing that President Trump was able to accomplish anything.
I had no liking for any of the candidates approved by the two large parties. I still think that party affiliation should never be listed on voting machines, and the candidates should be randomized across the rows, being reshuffled for each voter. This is easily done on an electronic machine and with open and public source, the code could easily be verified.
@mark
Have you really checked your research info before you make your triad against President Trump….and ALL the trade deals this country has made since nixon have been anti USA….’that’s a fact jack’……imo
How did he fold on North Korea? He got three prisoners released and brought Kim to the table for talks. All without concessions. Moreover, he is refusing to go along with NK wanting us to give them something first before they will looking at shutting down their nuke program. The NK prisoners and the release of the pastor by Turkey point to a past performance that does not support your thesis that he will cave to the Saudis. And if he is a Putin pawn, why is Russia’s economy still being hamstrung by sanctions? As for the Paris Climate Accords, it’s working out by the US not having to fork over $2 Trillion of American wealth to other countries. Finally, Hillary is not home. Last week she got all kinds of press coverage with her statements about Dems not having to be civil. This week The Hill has a piece about how she can win in 2020. You may be done with her, but the media is not.
I am not sure.. I don’t think Trump is folding..
If my wife wants something at the store that we cannot afford at retail she’ll say see if you can get it cheaper..
I’ll start out by researching high low and actual cost for a retailer to obtain it. Most retailers offer an employee discount you know you can get it for that discount.
Then I’ll start out to negotiate with a price in mind but start way lower..usually I can land a deal pretty easy..sometimes I’ve been shocked like this year and our new grill..they accepted first offer then I wonder should I have offered less..
Trumps not set on a given figure he’s negotiating he will ask for the moon nut has a settling spot someplace in the middle. With the hope he can get closer to his original offer.
” (Can’t protect ’em in Portland, so why Hong Kong, but I must be exceptionally stupid and missing something…)”
I don’t know George.. Just take a gander at a city or countryside where the puppeteers wanted something and we destroyed it.. Then rebuilt it… Now take a look at any of our industrial cities that have been ravaged by poverty after outsourcing industry. The difference is phenomenal..so I can see it
Mark: Based on this thread of posts, you rantings have been exposed as a master of the Democrat strategy of LIE, LIE, LIE, DEFLECT, DEFLECT, DEFLECT, & then lie some more. Looks like you are are on the run.
Except, I am not a Democrat…I am a proud Republican…And, because I am a proud Republican, I detest Trump and his Lies, Lies Lies, Deflect, Deflect Deflect….
De bear thinks you were “cherry picking” the Sept Retail Sales Report. Expectations for September Retail Sales was 0.6%, and were up 0.01% Month over Month. SO control group (Retail Sales MoM) beat expectations – rising 0.5% vs 0.4% expectation, Retail Sales ex-Autos retail sales actually dropped in Sept. 0.1% – biggest drop since May 2017.
Last weeks technical damage was wicked, rising wedge breaks, rejection of new highs. Negative Divergences($TNX/$SPX and weakness underneath on new highs produced a major breakdown from new market highs. I think rising yields are Critical now, as they are about to break above the long term $TNX trend line. The SPX just fell out of a Bear Flag pattern, looks to test 2009 trend line.
All of these indicators/warning signs going off, Brutal Resistance from broken down 50day MA,a double top and Volatility has just broken out HARD.
Watching the opening hour, SPY Butterfly Put Spread suggested last week will be “ripe for picking” one way or the other!
E. Warren, just another slippery,lying Democrat. In the wifes’ family(Plains Indian Tribe), Father and 2 brothers get annual checks from US Govt for land use- mineral rights or some such.Wife and brothers are 1/16th = Dept Interior Checks, the father gets Govt checks as well as quarterly $ from tribe – casino revs and the like. 2 simple truths in life..1)Liers Lie and as my sainted granny used to say “the more U lie, the more U lie.
What the cabal does to the young:
http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/forum.cgi?read=109197
You did..”Portland (and much of Oregon) has gone semi-socialist along the Republik of Kalifornia model already.”
Not so fast with the accusations. Socialists usually are anti-business…spread the wealth types. Last time I looked, California is the 5th largest economy in the world with hundreds of the worlds top valued companies. The economy here is still booming and building is almost out of control…Plus…The wealth gap has never been more pronounced…and if we are so socialist…why are there people living day to day…paycheck to paycheck…and why are there homeless people here?
My wife and I took a trip to Seattle and Vancouver,CA this past summer and one thing really stood out. Seattle had homeless encampments everywhere and Vancouver did not have any. In fact, I never saw one homeless person in beautiful Vancouver. The reason? Canada is more socialist and have taken their highly taxed dollars and provided housing for their less fortunate citizenry. Now…that type of entitlement can go both ways…but I will say the cleaner streets, the lack of beggars, the dearth off loaded to the gills shopping carts was kind of nice. Would I want my hard earned dollars taxed at a higher rate to subsidize this? I guess if I lived in the heart of Vancouver, I might…it’s a standard of living issue…but if I lived in a farming community, then no…same sort of thing here exists. Does San Francisco, L.A., San Diego etc want this subsidized? Maybe…It’s not by the way….but the 10 million or so that live in the California rural farm towns would definitely say hell no.
California is a far cry from being socialist. Being the headquarters fro Apple, Alphabet, McKesson, Chevron, Wells Fargo, Intel, Disney, Hewlett Packard, Cisco, Oracle, Qualcomm, Facebook, Amgen, VISA, Gap, Pay-Pal, EBay, Netflix, Salesforce, Nvidia, Adobe, Mattel, Robert Half, Clorox, Applied Materials and about 300 more companies that have brand awareness with everyone that plays the stock market…We are more of a corporatocracy than anything else.
In 2018, more than 2,100 people live on the streets of Vancouver, Canada — a record number for the city.
Over the past three years, homelessness in the Greater Vancouver area has also increased by 30%, a figure that’s on-par with other major North American metro areas struggling with their own growing homelessness crises, like New York City, San Francisco, and Seattle.
Didn’t I mention earlier that the Democrats LIE & then act incredulous when challenged. Maybe it is time for Republican leadership in these cities.
Mark, you must have visited the sanitized areas of Vancouver,CA reserved for the rich tourists. Wouldn’t want to spoil your vacation with you having to step over poop on the sidewalk.
I was add the usual long-winded comment on how Reps & Dems are all the same anyway so it matters not who holds power but, honestly, I give up. I conclude that America is screwed. Maybe not today, but down the line you will all end up fighting for survival, in the streets, and that’s where Urbansurvival comes in I guess :-)
Trump supporters like to throw out numbers and fake facts that seemingly sound bad…until you do your research and the fear mongering isn’t as fearful as Trump made it sound.
2,100 homeless in Vancouver is a very low number..
There are 21,000 in Seattle. 7,000 in San Francisco, over 5,600 in Chicago, 62,000 in New York, 4,177 in Portland, …oh I could go on…If San Francisco had Vancouver’s amount of homeless, they would just blend in…you wouldn’t even notice them….which is why I never saw them in Vancouver….
The typical visitor to Vancouver does not encounter the main homeless enclaves because they are slightly off the beaten track. The last direct Canadian federal contribution to public housing that I am aware of was in about 1992. The issue has been offloaded entirely to provinces and charities since then.
Here is the link to an intelligent Vancouver blogger who blends into his surroundings. He is homeless.
https://sqwabb.wordpress.com/about
The 2019 survey by The Tax Foundation ranks California 49th out go 50 for most business friendly states.
NAZIs and fascists are socialists who are wildly pro-business…
Nazis and fascists are those who don’t bother to own the means of production. They simply regulate the hell out of them and tax any remaining profits. Either way, unless you’re an insider, authoritarian systems leave little to no compensation for the risk of “owning” any business. Best to be the short grass that won’t get cut down.
Sheesh… all the benefits of Democracy ;-(
I mean to say that the ‘majority’ of Americans get what they really desire, politically; Ther’ll always be some dissatifying situations, and that’s how some of us use that as Business model.
All BS dispensed by big names from Hollywierd is an everyday example of the Dunning–Kruger effect, which explains why incompetents think they’re competent. Competence in one field (acting) does not automatically extend to another.
And Canada has a socialist medical system, the rest of the country is partially socialistic as is the US (Social security, Medicare, unemployment benefits, etc) And Canada’s health system has lots of disadvantages that are not shown by mainstream media(of course). A young person needing a knee replacement waits a few months for the operation. An elderly person waits YEARS as they have fewer years left to live therefore the operation isn’t regarded as as valuable to them as compared to a person who has a longer expected remaining lifespan. Triage and rationing for everyone are standard in socialized medicine.
James Johnson, ex-nuke
The cold snap hit here last night after wonderful weeks of 70’s. Today it won’t go above freezing and will stay cold for three days. Then back to reasonable weather again. All the work I put into creating a thermally layered house is paying off, with an occasional small fire maintaining 70 degrees inside.
I moved here for the climate and really enjoy it most of the time. We have hot and cold – neither of which is ideal, but there’s nowhere else I found that’s better. The politics of NM are odd, with lots of whacko lefties and a few whacko righties, both of which I ignore. The majority of folks just want to enjoy life and leave others alone. Unfortunately, the lefties are pushing for the governorship this year. The biggest problem of living an idyllic rural life is that you get no social life. Texas and Aridzona have something to be desired politically, but both have more money and more ability to intrude into your life. Both have benefits and problems, but IMHO, both are net more expensive to reside in.
George,
1. Socialism is the ownership of the means of production. Don’t see Portland moving to takeover ownership of Boeing.
2. Nor is it socialism to prevent insurers from imposing preexisting conditions. Nor is giving old ladies healthcare and subsidence money so they don’t have to eat cat food and live on the street. Nor to have red lights at intersections, for that matter.
3. George, another lead story lost to disinformation. Trump’s older angry white base, and the white working class, are the two groups most hurt by this illiterate ‘socialism’ misbranding. Why not use your lead story to explain how the R’s just substantially debased our currency, again, by adding another 10% to the national debt? You KNOW that tax revenues have fallen off a cliff since the tax cuts were passed, and that the fed’s shortfalls are the biggest since 2012, and yet say nothing. Best, Mike
I was in PDX on 9/30 getting ready to board a flight for home. As I approached my gate, I observed a large crowd including several uniformed security officers. My first thought was, “Oh no, what happened?” As it turned out the crowd was there to greet a group of veterans, many in wheelchairs, who were returning from a trip to Washington DC (courtesy of Alaska Airlines) where they had marched in a parade. The welcome included a bagpipe team in full (fancy) uniforms who “piped them home” as they entered the terminal. The whole crowd applauded & I was in tears. The sad thing?…I bet it didn’t make the press.
The same brand of wine for two years, now. Label reads,”Snowflake Mark, IF I repeat it enough, they will drink” God, STFU already!
Tisk tisk…Mark is welcome to speak and often offers good insights. He’s a compuslive Calif defender and if I were making $8 zillion a year there, I would be too.
As Forbes put it a while back
“However, the “Governator” was dealing with the economic train-wreck that was the Great Recession, whereas Brown is the rare California governor to experience an economic recovery that spanned his two terms in office.”
When the money’s rolling in, hard to be a loser. Brown has the good sense to get while the getting’s good.
Success has many fathers *(mostly democrats, lol). They don’t read the financial pages well.
Jeez George, all your yammering about the ‘evils of Oregon’!
Reminds me of something that happened almost fifty years ago – in Portland – as I was waiting for the bus – at a crowded spot – in the normal Oregon rain. Yes, it was cold and wet . . . but most everyone was putting up with it.
Except for this one guy, who was wearing a ‘cowboy hat’ and duds more suited for west Texas, and complaining loudly to the assembled throng. (Don’t you know in Texas it don’t rain like this. And that buses come quicker . . .) Someone ventured that you had to dress for the weather or you’ll get wet . . . Mr. Texas ignored her comment and launched into a rant about the food ‘around here’, and other topics including how small downtown Portland was . . .
Finally, someone (and apparently most everyone) had enough and said, “Then why don’t you go back to Texas!’
You’re right, Portland has had a long history of being a labor town – with riots and marches – ineffective politicians and even more ineffective cops. But my grandpa was a damn good lineman for the local electric company, for decades, and fought the KKK (being Catholic). My other grandpa was a Marine and later in the Merchant Marine during the war. Both were members of unions – yes Portland can be a ‘tough town’ but we will figure it out, and we don’t need outside agitators like “Proud Babies” to stoke people!
I will send you the next paid demonstrator ad I catch up your way…
Panic speaks for itself.
Gold – you can fill your pockets but it’s a long swim to safety.
Treasuries – China can’t afford U.S. treasuries after a $3 trillion market loss.
The Dollar’s high value translates into oil shortages at the pump.
The stock market has proven vulnerable to manipulation by foreign investors, who blame the 2008 crash on Wall St.
Financials again have overextended seeking profits in risky markets, via easy money.
Diversion now until the elections! lol
With the Iran oil embargo. Saudi Arabia will be calling the shots!
It’s called a rock and a hard place, politics.
d,
You can’t say that the trade deals were anti-American, unless you call American Corporations, anti-American…because that’s who pushed these trade deals through…in the name of Corporate profits!
Ironically, it was a rural Midwestern company that championed all of the Asian trade deals in the first place. Wal-Mart’s fake made in America Campaign in the 80’s and 90’s was a cover for their behind the scenes deals to mainly source in China so that they could expand their real estate holdings through the country. That set up them up to justify their expansion plans to give Americans what they really desired… and created the campaign…Low, Low prices everyday.
I know…back in my advertising days…before real estate career, my biggest client used to be Wal-Mart. They used to brag internally how a majority of their merchandise was sourced in China, Taiwan, Mexico, Philippines and Indonesia.
If you want to find blame for the loss of jobs to Mexico and China, don’t blame just the politicians…blame the corporations that funded the politicians campaigns to get their way on trade. Blame the consumers who WANT low prices. Blame greed that is inherent in all of us.
We are stuck in a pricing conundrum now. Americans are so used to the pricing structures of foreign sourced products, we will have an impossible time going back and paying more to re-source them back here in our own country. I can guarantee it will never happen unless we want to find ourselves in a hyper inflationary economy…and that’s not good for anyone…
Mark,
You are absolutely correct.In the early 80’s RCA began outsourcing TV manufacturing to Mexico.It was all in the name of profits. The right winger hero Ronnie Raygun turned a blind eye to it all, and now it has come full circle.
CJ, Trump is one of those people that does just enough to give his base the impression that he is an achiever, but never follows through with the actual achievement. As for your Paris Accord statement…So the actual cost to the economy depends on how the U.S. would go about meeting its target emissions reduction. Trump’s claim that the cost “at this time would be close to $3 trillion in lost GDP” leaves out the fact that it’s an estimate for the year 2040 and that another scenario in that same study estimated a much lower impact.
As for NK…He had a media circus with NK…Since then, NK is back to doing the same thing it has always done. From Asia News…
“This issue (between NK and the US) also divides allies Seoul and Washington. South Korean President Moon Jae-in is a liberal, which in his context means he is relatively soft on North Korea and relatively less appreciative of the alliance with the US compared with his conservative predecessors Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye. Moon apparently agrees with Kim that a “peace regime” agreement should precede denuclearisation. The two Korean leaders are reportedly coordinating to announce a shared commitment to this idea, possibly at the UN General Assembly next month.
Can North Korea cover up its brutal regime with lipstick diplomacy?
The US domestic political situation works to Pyongyang’s advantage. Trump said in June he might turn back to a tough approach towards North Korea if he did not see satisfactory progress in six months’ time. Yet Trump would undoubtedly value the perception of a major foreign policy win with congressional elections approaching and Trump himself under investigation for conspiracy and obstruction of justice in connection with Russian interference in the 2016 election. This helps explain why Trump so clearly oversold the results of the Singapore Summit. Kim’s advisers no doubt took notice.
There remains a possibility that the “peace regime” issue is the only major remaining barrier to a real breakthrough, and that Kim would be willing to move towards some reasonable form of denuclearisation if accommodated on this point. Based on past experience, however, it seems more likely that the North Koreans will be content to enjoy their winnings, sustain but stall the negotiations process, avoid getting too far into actual denuclearisation, and wait out the Trump administration.”
The layman’s quick & dirty guide to protesters in the 21st Century
Definitions, first:
Simple assault – threat
Felony assault – threat of bodily harm, with ability to carry out
Simple battery – anything from an aggressive touch to a grab or smack
Felony battery – any battery which can do bodily harm
Assault & battery – making the threat, then following through, can be either a misdemeanor or felony, depending on the amount of damage done to the victim. Generally speaking, if it leaves a bruise, it’s a misdemeanor, if it breaks the skin, or damages a bone or organ, it’s a felony
Battery with intent or A&B with intent – “intent” means “intent to do great (or grievous, in some jurisdictions) bodily harm” and uprates felony battery by 1-3 incarceration levels
Battery with a deadly weapon – “Deadly weapon” means sticks, stones, bottles, and machines, not just guns & knives. Literally, ANYTHING which gives an attacker a significant advantage over their victim
Intimidation – Behavior of a person or group which causes normal people to fear harm to themselves, their families, or their property. Intimidation is a felony, and in the State of Oregon is also A PARALLEL CIVIL INFRACTION, meaning once a person is convicted of intimidation in, oh, say Portland, for instance, they may then be forced to make punitive restitution whilst behind bars, for their misdeeds.
Arson – burning property for which one hasn’t complete and unattached ownership
Trespass – Entering upon any privately-owned land, without permission
Vandalism – damaging, defacing, or breaking stuff for which one hasn’t complete and unattached ownership, or doing it to one’s own unattached property in such a manner as to cause damage to the property of somebody else
Unauthorized or unwarranted interruption of traffic flow on any roadway on which there is a residence or business which receives mail, is technically a Federal felony, although “judicial interpretation” has watered it down
“The Right to peaceably assemble” means just that. When any of the above are in-play, an assembly becomes no-longer peaceful, but “unlawful.” It is incumbent upon the local policing authority that an unlawful assembly be disbanded and the elements which make it “unlawful,” be arrested.
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George Soros funds AntiFa and as part of his funding, sends the wannabee thugs to school. At Soros’ thuggery school, they learn the exact meaning of every law they could be accused of breaking, the “local interpretation” of these laws (how far they’re likely to be able to “push” the system before they’re arrested), and how to skirt the laws to be reasonably assured a local prosecutor won’t pursue any felony charges. They also, of course, learn how to dress, act, and speak, once they’re “in the system.”
The “protester education” is nothing new. “Liberal legal activists” have been doing it since (at least) the 1950s. What IS new, and insidious, is TSG (The Soros Group) has organized protestor-minions into “marchers” and “thugs,” historical mirrors of the “Leninists” and “Bolsheviks” of the Russian Revolution, and made these groups, professional, or “paid full-time,” complete with extensive medical, dental, and legal bennies. There are relatively few because as a society, we’re stupid and easily-led, and there’s never a shortage of slackers who’ll join in for the heck of it.
Thug protests will eventually lead to vigilantism. Someone will be set-upon, then shoot or “whup” the people who’re beating him(her), then be arrested for “committing self-defense.” This will cause both the thugs and the citizenry to “arm up” and the radical under-50 (AntiFa) crowd has neither the common sense nor the restraint to carry firearms in a mob. AntiFa must be quashed before this occurs, and pusillanimous politicians need to “grow a set” soon, or be ousted from office, replaced by folks who don’t intimidate, and who take their job seriously. Perhaps the civilized solution is to eliminate the Soros-funded SPLC and “Hungarianize” both Soros and his organizations…?
d and CJ good post today. Thanks
Care to comment about the Portland Police finding PP guns on the roof, in August? Didn’t mention it until today.
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2018/10/armed_protesters_were_on_portl.html
Reading the comments here, I notice a trend where one side tends to label the other side as “You Trump Guys”. One side speaks of ideas and right and wrong, the other only thinks of adoration of strong men. Who’d a thunk socialists like strong men better than actual ideas.
For those of you who don’t live here: Homeless people are here because drugs (heroin, meth) are legal, thanks Gov. Brown! They are here because they can make $20-50 in the can deposit economy each day. They are here because they MOVED HERE. They are here because snowflakes get confused when dealing with a multi-faceted problem and just pretend it’s the rent prices, when it’s drugs, free stuff, and mental health that is filling our alleys with human trash.
The mayor calls it the “houslessness crisis”. Here is what they want you to believe:
“My rent just went up! I have a few choices, let’s see which one I will take…
1. Get a better job
2. Get roomates
3. Move to where the rent is cheaper
4. Move into a cardboard box and start shooting up heroin, permanently”
Turns out all the people who pick #4 get a free lunch and drugs every day, because the snowflakes around here support the problem statement “my rent just went up”, because they are stupid and easily led to hate anyone with money.
The snowflakes then proceed to make it as easy as possible to live life in a box, eating scraps, getting diseases, shooting drugs, thinking they are “helping” someone.
HOW IS IT HELPFUL TO ENSURE SOMEONE STAYS IN A BOX, AND IS HOPELESSLY ADDICTED TO DRUGS?
That is not help. You are helping someone destroy what’s left of their life along with everything around them.
Baltimore ranks #1 for heroin problem (1 in 10 use)
https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=92699&page=1
San Francisco ranks 6th for having worst drug problem:
http://www.drug-rehabs.com/addiction/san-francisco-substance-abuse-capital/
Philly’s got the largest open air heroin market:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/10/magazine/kensington-heroin-opioid-philadelphia.html