Personal Income, ECI, and Bowman

by

Three “lead items” on the list today:  Which we will cover in turn:

Personal Income

Hmm…

Personal income increased $92.0 billion (0.4 percent at a monthly rate) in December, according to estimates released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Disposable personal income (DPI)—personal income less personal current taxes—increased $79.7 billion (0.4 percent) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $133.6 billion (0.7 percent). Personal outlays—the sum of PCE, personal interest payments, and personal current transfer payments—increased $129.5 billion in December. Personal saving was $843.2 billion in December and the personal saving rate—personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income—was 3.8 percent

Black lines matter (?)

Employment Cost Index

“Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 0.9 percent, seasonally adjusted, for the 3-month period ending in December 2024, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wages and salaries increased 0.9 percent and benefit costs increased 0.8 percent from September 2024.”

This all comes on the heels of the GDP report Thursday: US GDP growth slows in Q4, but economy still ‘remains strong’.  But they do count it in dollars, so, there is that…

Michelle Bowman remarks 

I know, why put a Fed Head up near the top of the “thinking pile?”  Well, the answer is clear: She’s been as good (and usually far better) than her regional Fed boss colleagues.  Really one of those “When she talks, we listen…”

“At our FOMC meeting this week, my colleagues and I voted to hold the federal funds rate target range at 4-1/4 to 4?1/2 percent and to continue to reduce the Federal Reserve’s securities holdings. I supported this action because, after recalibrating the level of the policy rate towards the end of last year to reflect the progress made since 2023 on lowering inflation and cooling the labor market, I think that policy is now in a good place to position the Committee to pay closer attention to the inflation data as it evolves.”

Another decent pop at the open is expected in markets.  But with tariffs this weekend…

Bounce to the Ounce

The market ought to be finishing up it’s Wave 3, minor 2 rally today:

As you can see, we have a ways to go before a new “all-time high” and if one doesn’t show up?  Well, things could get dicey in a few weeks.

Bitcoin is still laboring in the $105,000 area – and MIGHT be trying to finish off a similar wave count to the equities side.

Not that it matters for most Americans.  For us, the name of the game now is “living inside the personal cash flow limits” no matter how much the Personal Income report tries to make it seem like it’s higher than it is.  When you’re young, a little “living above cash flow” makes sense (with the odds on your side). You need to buy an education or get a working trade (read: meal ticket) punched.  And the first home purchase should be the last major debt pit.  After that, transitioning to net positive cash flow every month is the only thing that makes sense.  Unless you figure a way to beat Chinese A.I. programmers…

On the meal ticket side:“According to the latest updates from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the projected employment growth from 2023 to 2033 is expected to be 4.0%, with a total of 6.7 million new jobs added, primarily driven by the healthcare and social assistance sector, along with professional, scientific, and technical services; the retail trade sector is projected to see job losses during this period.”

Always (if you can) lay down in the street where the money can run over you!

Understanding Inflation is the Key to Wealth

We’re Big Fans of well-paced inflation.  Because of where we are (global competition between econo0mci systems) any slowdown in inflation means bankruptcy for a lot of countries.  In fact, that’s a big chunk of why the PGM group is higher: Silver’s almost to the $33 handle and gold’s flirting with $2,850 and we think going north of $3,000 in short order.

As we have explained (for years), there’s an internal and external aspect to inflation, that many people miss. Ceteris paribus (all things equal) if the Internal price of domestic goods is going up, the price (to foreigners) is going down.  If there is inflation in China their external prices (paid by us) tend down.

So this international money valuation game is Big Business, especially this weekend as Trump rolls with big tariffs: Trump Slaps 25% Tariff on Mexico and Canada, Eyes China Next.

One factor in stocks holding up this week (after the DeepSeek news) is that if the U.S. demand drops (due to higher external prices – the net effect of tariffs), then countries elsewhere will have lower exports and you can see how that ripples.  What’s going now, is BRICS is trying to come up with a path to Dollar replacement as the international settlement currency.  Which drives headlines like Donald Trump Warns BRICS Over Dollar Move: ‘Go Find Another Sucker Nation’. No sign of peace on this front, either as BREAKING: Trump Goes To War For USD, Threatens 100% Tariffs On BRICS Nations.  Payback’s a what? (bee…..)

Greenland acquisition makes sense, too: If the US has more money coming in (tariffs, effectively a sales tax on imported goods only), we could begin to eat-back that horrible National Debt problem.  And back to our cash flow discussion, what did economist Henry George remind us?  The Land is the base.

Trump, ever the Developer mindset, looks at Greenland like a “rental property” with a non-paying tenant.  The place has almost no GDP.

“According to available data, Greenland’s non-government GDP, which refers to the economic output generated by private businesses and individuals excluding government activities, is estimated to be around $2.7 billion USD in 2021, representing a significant portion of the country’s total GDP of $3.24 billion USD. “

OK, let’s compare that GDP with, oh, Texas for example: As of 2023, Texas’s gross domestic product (GDP) was $2.694 trillion dollars.  So Greenland is what, a little over 1/10th of one percent of Texas?

We’re pretty sure the scale of how small Greenland  is hard to take. in.  So let’s compare it with a smaller state (in GDP terms).  How about Wyoming: in 2023 was their GDP was $40.2 billion.  So 2 point 64 into that and it takes more than twelve Wyoming to create the GDP of Greenland.  Which would be closer to zero without our massive defense spending there…

Circling around back to inflation (and how the international valuations are such a hosed-up game) Euro Set for Deeper Decline as Market Sees More ECB Rate Cuts. Some of which may be forced by the US getting back into (real) energy independence (not “No barbecuing and sit in the dark when the solar’s off” Biden plan).  Trump’s point man for drilling agenda confirmed by Senate.

Trump’s plan looks to us like a guy who owns a Bank – and decides to rob it for himself instead of funding the international cartel of lazy Marxists…

Oh, speaking of the CCP: China-linked influence operation tried to overthrow Spain’s government, report says, That’s some chess board, huh?

Rippin Down Wires

STILL can’t believe COVID was a planned-demic? Moderna CEO Admits Covid ‘Vaccines’ Were Developed ‘in 2019’ Because He Knew ‘Pandemic’ Was Coming.

Grilling on the Hill: Trump’s FBI chief pick, Kash Patel, insists he has no ‘enemies list’ and won’t seek retribution. We would really like to see Patel call out the lefties who are asking those “Have you stopped beating your wife yet?” kinds of questions.  The dems persist with their conspiracy theories.  Reminding us the “Way to tell a conspiracy theory” on the Left is where you read it.  If it’s in the New York Times or the Washington Post…..   But, if it’s in the free press, on the web, it may be true, but you could have to wait a while for it all to come out…  Won’t happen with the left-controlled media.

Digging deeper Massive J6 Bombshell: Kash Patel Just Told The World That Democrats Pelosi, Schumer and DC Mayor Bowser All Refused 20K National Guard Troops Mobilized By Trump Days Before The Capitol Riot. Which somehow didn’dt make the Thursday crawlers we had up…Trump FBI Pick Kash Patel Made More Than $2.6 Million Last Year. Is that news?  Really?  Guy’s got to eat…

On the side burner: Alex Marlow: Tulsi Gabbard Is a Threat to the War Machine Because She Wants a Safer and More Peaceful World. Democrats remain, as we have told you, the War Party.

Are we being too tough on the Fools on the Hill? Democrat’s strategy during confirmation hearings: Ask a question. Immediately interrupt by yelling. Ask another question. Immediately interrupt again. Accuse the nominee of evading questions.

And what’s this?  Alex is back?  Thursday War Room Live! Highlights from Kash Patel and Tulsi Gabbard Hearing As President Trump Addresses Nation on Plane Crash. Might not be totally wrong…

Covering for Biden?

The plane-helicopter crash this week has been a PR disaster for the ex-prez, Joe.  You can tell when the NYT turns tragedy into Fact-Checking Trump’s D.C. Plane Crash News Conference and Remarks on D.E.I..  Early hints suggest the tower failed to communicate aircraft actions correctly: US Army Black Hawk reportedly failed to respond to warnings before DC crash, and who was running (including training) of the Tower folks) until two weeks ago?  Yep, that party.

Oh, this was interesting, too: Treasury Official to Exit After Rift with Elon Musk.

On the Wires

Here come the claims: FAIR Plan gets 4,400 insurance claims from LA County wildfire victims. Go ahead and get back to us when the checks are cut and people are happily back in their homes.  We are half-expecting mudslide stories next week as Sound The Alarms: California Braces for 100 Inches of Snow.

Personality Problems? We noticed the story Palestine hails Egyptian president’s rejection to displace Gazans. No doubt, countries like Egypt can look at how they were peace-loving, non-violent, well-integrated members of the community in Israel and made a judgment call.  This will play well with Egyptians (who don’t like ’em) and it will have the look of moral high-grounding…so sure, roll out the “victim banner” for the NE liberal media to pander…

Still Waiting? Long Awaited JFK Files Could Be Released Soon. (Strums fingers, rolls eyes./  Wonder “Must be really bad shit if it’s taken how…“)

At the Ranch: New Toy Day

I’ve had a hell of a time finding a cheap, 4-cycle leaf blower.  So I splurged on one of these and it should land today.  Elaine hates noise, I hate yard waste.  In fact today I will be out with the mini-electric chain saw walking the yard and filling the wagon with wood stove feed.  Another category change to electric – mini chain saws…

More and more, I keep moving toward electrics for all but the biggest outdoor work projects. Mixing two-cycle fuel isn’t making as much sense, as once upon a time.

Been doing a lot of “personal self-discovery” this week (more in ShopTalk Sunday this weekend).  But it seems there’s two ways to live life.  One is absolute (Bear Grylls) minimalism. Give me a knife and I’ll show uyyou the world, kinda thing.

The other is line up a power tool for every occasion… Even in the kitchen going from the big stove to the microwave, to the steam oven, to the air fryer… Mighty choice choices…

{Time line shift noted?  Am I the only one who thought it was Bo Grylls? Or, is this a Mandela Effect marker?)

Daylight savings time is 37-days away…but that wouldn’t…er…uh…

Last but not least:  The perfect gift for our retired broadcast engineer Hank out on the Big Island:  Broadcast Digital UHF TV Transmitter 3000 Watts (Channel 39) | eBay

Write when you get rich,

George@Ure.net

97 thoughts on “Personal Income, ECI, and Bowman”

  1. (“Hmm…
    Personal income increased $92.0 billion (0.4 percent at a monthly rate) in December, according to estimates released today by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Disposable personal income (DPI)—personal income less personal current taxes—increased $79.7 billion (0.4 percent) “)

    OMG… so we are living the …DREAM… lol lol lol
    I would raise tariffs to.. give breaks to industry that hires citizens and manufactures here.. as far as prices increasing due to tariffs… what number do the retailers increase on..the face mask for winter cold weather.. at the sports store..they sell for 15.95….. I buy a whole case for five bucks.. use to be free shipping now you pay shipping..the empty cans a pallet for 12.00 last winter..they sell from wellscan.CA for 209.00 a case..so would that tariff be on the 1.00 a case or the 209.00 ..
    somehow I am suspecting retailer or wholesaler that imports will pick the 209..increase profits..

    • “hires citizens and manufactures here”

      I know that response is with good intention. I posted links to heavy Chinese manufacturing and it’s been automated. The few things that haven’t been automated are painting of Christmas and Halloween decoration.

      The days of one man leveraging a machine are gone. Overseas it’s a team of 10 or 12 managing the floor.

      U.S. tax law –

      “capital is a financial asset used to fund a company’s operations and growth, while an expense is a cost that reduces a company’s net income”

      There’s really no hope for the worker. Look to see what’s happened over the last decades. Going back in an illusion.

      • (“There’s really no hope for the worker. Look to see what’s happened over the last decades. Going back in an illusion.”)

        exactly the days of the USA being the industrial giant we once was is long gone…
        cost of living.. for an American to live in. China or most other countries is like a king for less than a grand a month..their cost of living is what ours was in the sixties.. we cannot compete.. the transition has been made.

    • Everyone has access to the same marketplace in the United States. Choosing one item over another is a personal choice.

      China offers the $12.00 dress.

      The truth behind your $12 dress: Inside the Chinese factories fuelling Shein’s success

      https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdrylgvr77jo

      Vs a local U.S. seamstress.

      “How much does a seamstress cost? The national average cost to hire a professional seamstress to construct new clothing and garments is $333, according the Thumbtack data. However, seamstress prices can range anywhere $174-$636.”

      – Jan 10, 2025

      Decide, right.

      • There was a show on the going green network years ago.. three people were sent to the sweat shops in India I believe..they had to work in the factory rent a place .. they made two dollars.. gave it to another worker..
        I met and would work with a guy and his dog in trade for an industrial sewing machine..he designed the pattern for a popular clothing line jeans that in the late 80s was selling for almost a hundred a pair.. he ended up taking them to court because they were reducing the amount made in the USA to have them made in china where they delivered to the country the total cost was a nickel a pair..he won and the clothing line drifted off into history..
        the cost of living in the USA is so much more here than there..
        they push education..in the USA its party time and the cost prohibits the youth from success.. school loans meant to keep the poorer students in their Proper place in society..

  2. I picked up a pretty dandy AC powered B&D blower for the shop since I now have floor space seemingly equal to a 40 acre pasture and TGOPB (the good ole push broom) won’t get it anymore, Not that I’m complaining. It has db levels approaching a 757 at full power requiring hearing protection. Now every time I fire it up the dogs run up to the patio and start howling. I was doing an extra detailed blow out of the shop yesterday when I suddenly was kicked in the backside. After I started breathing again and recovered from the shock I turned around to find Diana standing there with her hands over her ears screaming something. I shut off the screaming Mimi blower and removed my headgear. She advised in no uncertain terms that I would have to find another cleaning method because it was upsetting “her boys”. I thought about asking what about “her girls” in the goat pens but thought better of it. But then I got a big wet kiss then she said “I love our new home” and went back to her castle. I guess she would not be interested using screaming Mimi for some of her housework.
    Stay Safe.73

    • You know, no matter how many square feet a home is, once you are living within your means, there’s always some what to fill it all up. And no time to get to everything…Funny how that works. When Elaine’s castle (ebntrances_) get skwetchy, she called George’s Exterior Castle Detailing. “Then, the noise no longer matters” is our marketing slogan… You just gotta sell the benefit…

      • That’s why you need a basement.. everyone has their own thing..a friend of mine it was computers.. I am a tool slut.. when doing a project I would get three bids..high low and medium. then would calculate the cost of materials and tools and what my wage was..if it was lower than low bid.. I would get the tools..
        now its kitchen gadgets..I do have a few of those..

        • Having moved a few times in life I think Basements are a GREAT THING!!

          That is where you can stuff stuff you will never look at or use again …. so you can cart it up the stairs to move to your next abode where you can carry it down the stairs so it can reside there unused until the next move.

          MARVELOUS invention … that basement.

        • That’s why I never downsized! Without a basement, stuff has to go somewhere, and what better space than the entire house.

          No bothers with buying and selling, and it’s still cheaper at the margin than renting a storage unit!

        • (“That is where you can stuff stuff you will never look at or use again …. “)

          lol lol lol when the daughter moved out she had a thing for shoes… I took over to her house several boxes of shoes..put them in her basement..they are still right where I sat them lol

        • (“But after the basement, was full, the garage was next. And then the storage unit rental…”)

          we had a guy a few years ago sleeping on our couch..he retired from the Army thirty years service..only to discover that over ten of those years his company was outsourced to the alphabet agency. he lost his home couldn’t get his retirement.. said the congressman’s best man ever was working on it.. I told him he needed to move into that dam best man ever office..or invite him to take a seat in his car until the best man ever could get his lazy ass working..
          he was living in a storage shed until he couldn’t afford it anymore..then Wal-Mart let him live in his car in their parking lot..
          sad to..he ended up having a stroke..went into a nursing home until his thirty days was up from whatever he had for insurance.. died from complications from the stroke and they found him a couple weeks later.. he was here on the couch for more than a month.. I tried to get a social worker friend to help get him some sort of VA help..which they got him medical. they couldn’t get the records fixed and that best man ever still has his job..

  4. (“the U.S. demand drops (due to higher external prices – the net effect of tariffs), then countries elsewhere will have lower exports and you can see how that ripples. What’s going now, is BRICS is trying to come up with a path to Dollar replacement as the international settlement currency”)

    the sad part is cost of living!
    What’s your cost of living..in San Fran poverty is just at two hundred grand..houses that sell for millions there use to sell for thirty grand here..
    A US manufacturer pays wages to meet the local economy. ( which is why the industries seek refugees) they work for less.. one guy that works at Wal-Mart here is a green card.. in his home he has an uncle his wife his two kids and their wives all making an income.. the money goes into one kitty.
    the cost of an American product made in the USA with all the components manufactured in china is.. 248O.00 just shy three grand plus shipping and install.
    https://www.abt.com/Cove-ADA-Height-Built-In-Dishwasher-24-Inch-Panel-Ready-DW2451ADA/p/215537.html

    A dishwasher made in another country 399.00 plus shipping and install..

    https://www.gerhardsappliance.com/product/beko-24-white-front-control-built-in-dishwasher-os-dut25401w-41904-1591245?srsltid=AfmBOopGaBL-NoSz7czzCZsNa1d8glk25rvfb2o8NZypbldk0kxn25JhBfA&gQT=1

    here low income housing is more than low income … that’s why manufacturers seek products made in another country..its how young women are tricked into human trafficking schemes.. if an hours wages here is equal to a months there..the dishwasher I bought cost four hundred in the country it was manufactured the retail cost 4.50 the annual income 12.00 you would have to be rich to afford one there.. all the parts similar to most of them manufactured in china…
    how does the usa compete when our cost of living is so much higher.

    • I read a quote about this yesterday – and considered it a BS-Piece.., completely hate propaganda. I had no idea so many news agencies were covering this – sans the U.S. media.
      If this proves to be true – damn ! The fall-out and backlash is going to be monumental.
      .., and – a lot of “Trump was right” will be yelled from the roof tops.

      • I knew there had to be a glitch in this story, ‘somewhere’.., it was all just too convenient. Thanks for finding that.

      • After Giuliani lost that lawsuit with the Georgia election workers you would think people would be more cautious about NAMING SPECIFIC People about their supposed WRONG DOING until there was actual solid evidence. (dim memory says same thing happened in Arizona wrt the election to somebody)

        Something was in play since the military would NOT name the one pilot immediately, but from here we don’t know why but until then it is risky to your personal bank account to put a specific name and start making, OR REPEATING such accusations.

        Lawsuits incoming??

      • truth : I’d prefer little was said as to blame game while those in mourning settle affairs of the fallen. Probably the current fight back is connected to the way after every tragic shooting one side leaps to the microphones to whing about legal weapons in the US of A. Nah, that couldn’t be it.

        I’m willing to wait for proper investigations in any event.
        Egor

        ps – raining on the ice cake here. Hope it leaves a mirror …

      • Yeah liars lie always – right truth ? That is why Ure handle, no ?

        disinformation huh, coming from the most misinformed group in USA – priceless.

        The following is TRUTH – truth about the _____s WAR on humanity-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-X-IGLkeADc

      • What is fairly well confirmed is that whoever was flying that chopper broke altitude and went 100 feet into the approach path of the incoming airliner. That pilot was definitely at fault, and perhaps others will share the blame. We’ll see.

      • (“jeesh, repeating russian disinformation”)

        I often wondered why as soon as something odd happens its Russian disinformation…..

  6. (“Still Waiting? Long Awaited JFK Files Could Be Released Soon. (Strums fingers, rolls eyes./ Wonder “Must be really bad shit if it’s taken how…“)

    Are there still any question???
    after the release of the LBJ phone conversation.. pretty much sums it all up.. that fits in with the biography in the book double crossed..

  7. (“But it seems there’s two ways to live life. One is absolute (Bear Grylls) minimalism. Give me a knife and I’ll show you the world, kinda thing.”)

    lol lol I am acquainted with a few of the contestants on naked and afraid..one of them from Nevada once asked what tool I would take..I laughter and said a fully stocked Winnebago.. lol lol
    I watched a great movie last night.. Outback.. about two kids that get lost in Austrailia.. now I have had a few trials and it brought back memories of my best and worst christmas.. I can say I doubt I could survive that.. not without a fully stocked Winnebago..

    • JC : the lesser metal is catching up to it’s golden cousin. That was the legit breakout of a declining channel. Elliot fans should adore the AG charts. But … I’m not selling either ounce. FWIW, watch Copper. I’m a fan along with (“widow maker”) NG. NFA, Egor

  9. BRICS ………… as so reported on various wires:

    “Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said BRICS, of which Russia is a member, was not talking about setting up its own currency, but merely about creating joint investment platforms”

    so there you go, nothing to see here …. LOL

    Trump has warned BRICS many times …….. so why again?? … hummmm

    • (“Trump has warned BRICS many times …….. so why again?? … hummmm)

      hmm..just a wild guess…..
      the USA use to be the land of prosperity and education the land of golden opportunity..
      https://youtu.be/ujTbiN7e2PM?si=mad5r5OiN2hXeDZ4

      https://youtu.be/w1ESTXX2w_I?si=AYZXsDVw0JJzY9By

      https://youtu.be/uNB4VLu6IaI?si=VAxcKl9GBbdgsg5n

      https://youtu.be/9iSkKkzabnM?si=ouGcuy2KBWDUXl3E

      https://youtu.be/3GbcWOGyuq0?si=i5qI8atwORDknsTM

      https://youtu.be/3kxrpJQCUoE?si=WcIi3RUM_rlsjS9W

      I could go on..most Of this is not seen..we see it yet we don’t.. what we see is our local community or neighborhood.
      there use to be a regular comment or on urban that lived at the top..in one of those cities..he would say Bull Sheet..that doesn’t exist …and he is right..it doesn’t in his social status in the community..
      I have personally skirted the very bottom a few times.. and to dam close for comfort of being homeless.. there are some that think oh bull how could that happen to you.. it happens to god dam fast.. a one two punch of fate.. its more common than most know of. if it doesn’t involve your life or life it doesn’t exist..
      What I see trump doing..He has to regain the image of where we use to be..the big boy on the block we need that image or we become a multi polar planet. If he fails then everyone suffers all the fiat currencies not backed be anything even a raunchy chili fart will be lost. people with millions will be worthless overnight just like the Weimar and Zimbabwe. not the realistic image that we had morons running the country..we outsourced our industry threw pride in community to the four winds of fate. He has a tough job.. the Bric’s has us by the balls and they know it.. The greed and opulence of the oligarchs has destroyed the country.. he has to get industry working in the USA ..bring back pride and reduce the deficit all while keeping the noodle moving.
      this is extremely tough after taking the reins of power back from a moron that’s whole life has been at the troughs of the beltway. real life has never been an issue.
      my fear is..we are upside down in the deficit. the last administration did so much damage in my opinion and opened the borders to millions. gave away our strategic reserves and pushed wars in several areas..
      from what I see.. the interest on the deficit is more than tax intake so..what would I do seeing this situation..similar to people spending to prepare using credit cards to prepare with.. he will build up the USA with printed numbers ..then..
      dump the dollar and start a new currency.. the unsustainable debt gone the USA gets a new start..JFK tried that by gold backed currency..

      https://newpatriotsblog.com/eight-presidents-who-opposed-a-central-bank-federal-reserve

  10. tariffs are a tax on american consumers that will hit low and middle income folks the most. it’s to fund trump tax cuts. the deficit will not be lower when trump leaves office than when he entered. make no mistake this is a transfer of wealth by trump from workers to the unearned income class.

    • “transfer of wealth from workers to the unearned income class”
      you just now figuring this out,… when it started, not by Trump, but by controlled members of CONgress back in 1913.
      maybe some of them were blackmailed pedos,,, also, as our current batch seems to be CONtrolled,,, sure is a lot of shreeking coming from certain members during the ‘questions and answers’ stage of the game.
      there is a new tarriff in town,,,

      “”Kash, will you commit to not prosecuting any members of government that have commited crimes and forgotten by joe’s pardon spree””, this is my parody of some members,

      • Maybe ???????????????????????????????????????????

        AYFKM ???????????????????????????????????????????

        Woodrow got his name from all the “WOOD” he [admin redact to maintain decorum, avoid litigation, and maintain a PG site ranking…]

        aint that the truth?

        • Folks,

          One imagines the Biden Administration pre-emptively pardoned Turkeys and their birds of a feather representatives before taking leave of Washington.

    • Tariffs are applied to the WHOLESALE cost of the product coming in … which LOOB pointed out above is just a fraction of the retail price

      The mark up for manufactured goods runs from 3x – 4x for most more expensive items to 40x for less expensive items – why the Dollar Store can sell a USB charging cable for $1.25, and they are making money at that price, and the same cable sells for $19.95 – in better packaging – at the Truck Stop or Lowes. (autos are in a different markup sphere, but remember the actual manufacturing costs for a car are about 20%, or less, of it’s selling price – lots of “middle costs” get added onto that car’s actual manufacturing cost including all those EXPENSIVE ads that you see on TV and the dealer’s operating costs and profits)

      Except for the retail supply chain trying to scam the consumer the actual cost increase for consumers of 25% tariffs would probably work out to less than a RETAIL price increase of 2% to 3%, OR LESS, for most items. Obviously food, energy, insurance, and medical expenses “SHOULD” be little affected by any tariffs which are large parts of most families budgets.

        • The mail order vehicles are great as long as you don’t want to go fast or far, don’t need to show up anywhere on time or schedule, and are really good at working on unsupported mechanisms with no parts stocked on this continent. It would be helpful to read and speak multiple Chinese dialects. But other than that, mail order vehicles are awesome.

        • (“with no parts stocked on this continent”)

          lol lol.. that reminds me of my suburu… god I loved that car..had a seal go out..no one could work on it..then no parts had to order one from japan.. then the mechanic damaged it going into the car.. luckily a next door neighbor worked selling Japanese tools. his boss from japan.. he got them to run to an automotive shop and get one and fly it to the us..

          my daughter just went through that..she had bought a mini Cooper lol lol lol..
          same thing no one in the wastelands works on them..can’t get parts…closest place a couple hundred miles away no parts available.. she junked it instead..lol lol lol..

        • (“The mail order vehicles are great as long as you don’t want to go fast”)
          lol the kids won’t let me drive if they are to ride in the car..my older mini me said one time you know the speed limits 80… I said it could say 120 I won’t drive that fast.. it doesn’t make sense to..if your driving across the country then yes you save a couple hours if your driving lets say fifty miles than its just a few minutes shorter distance and your wasting gas.. we pulled in and his parents were just pulling into the parking space..
          the guy doing a report on the one he bought. he paid 1700.00 for his..I believe he said he was getting about 120 miles and he never drove it above 60 mph.. but that was his choice.. like the wife’s car he was excited about what it had to offer..

        • @n____

          “The mail order vehicles are great as long as you don’t want to go fast or far”

          I had my 1953 Ford tractor in the shop a few years ago for a power steering retrofit. They had a few Chinesium tractors in the shop, so I asked. The boss-man told me that the Chinese tractors were marvels of functional, and engineering excellence…

          …Until something broke.

          Which would begin happening about 20-25 hours into farm use.

          According to him, parts were completely unobtanium, because the Chinese would do flying modifications and upgrades many times per year. Old parts were unfixable, because the (usually) steel was so impure it couldn’t be welded. He said it was like trying to weld pot-metal (If you’ve ever tried to weld the wing back on a hood ornament from a ’55 Studebaker, you know what he meant.) He said they’d epoxy the broken part back together, then send it off and have it duped by a 3-D printing service, and after 3-4 broken parts, the tractor’s owner would have enough money invested to have bought a Deere or Kubota.

      • Food and medical.. one look at the labor of origin on pharmaceutical products says we need to make some of this stuff at home..
        Its the same with food..

        https://www.good.is/this-infographic-shows-how-only-10-companies-own-all-the-worlds-food-brands

        I bought mp3 players that sold in a city near me for a hundred dollars for 1 cent.. twenty five percent of a penny heck double it make it 2 cents..
        the dishwasher..that retails for 4.50 in its home country.. the store had to buy a bunch of them .. the sales clerk makes 30% commission the store is making money on it..shipping what is shipping normal cost is 1.50 a mile per hundred pounds..to get a break on that you have to get more.. what was shipping from another country across the oceans.. that’s why the company sent me a whole pallet..shipping was the same as a pallet or per box since I buy from them and their normal retail cost is less than a us dollar per case they just upped the order since I’m a customer..
        my fear is there’s really three ways this can go.. the deficit interest is more than we take in.. 1. raise taxes on the affluent 2. go to war like Lindsay Graham said on face the nation ..to the victor goes the spoils 3 . toss the federal reserve to the curb create a new currency .. the issues with that are cataclysmic at best.. Trump and Musk want to maintain their status so they would try to create one where the exchange would keep them on top.. as for the rest of the oligarchs.. they did everything to destroy him..
        I don’t think there would be any love lost there..
        I fear what I see coming.. the engineer..he was the man..on top of the pile..one two punch of fate he lost his home on the hill everything black balled and homeless.. I wouldn’t have ever met him if he hadn’t had a car break down and had a heart attack.. he couldn’t adapt to the loss and ended up in our spare room.. bitter and alone everyone he thought would stand beside him..left..

      • I take my grandson …his doctor makes a good wage… besides what the patient pays she gets a government wage.. large six figure..
        anyway it was a beautiful day yesterday and in casual conversation she said yes its nice today yesterday wasn’t so good..what..it was beautiful yesterday to..
        what made the day before so tense..was they hadn’t gotten the funding for the clinic.. her whole life is set up to the income she makes..everyone at the clinic was afraid that the funding wouldn’t materialize.. that lifestyle of high six digits was in jeopardy.. the million dollar house fancy car .. school loans..just like my engineer..
        For me to adjust its nothing..budget out the little extra things I enjoy..
        for someone in that class of society..its a major event.. and no one is immune to it..

        • If you’re alone, you can live well on 10-20K a year. If you have a conventional wife or family or desire one, that cost goes up 10X.

          Status matters to most, and DIY stuff is available all over the place for cheap!
          Of course, with a big enough health problem, comfortably living alone may not be an option.

        • (“If you’re alone, you can live well on 10-20K a year.”)

          OTFLMAO….yes you can….in a cardboard box and sheeting on the sidewalk..lol lol
          low income housing 12000.00 A year in a nicer apartment double that… the lowest our water bill is here is 1300.00 a year car insurance.. liability alone another grand… almost double that ..I knocked one car off of insurance and raised the deductibles on everything our home and auto insurance combined was five hundred and change a month.. it lowered the policy two hundred … that was last month.. this month they did the yearly budgeted increase renewal and it shot bac up to 400.. so a single man at twenty grand couldn’t be able to own a car or afford to drive one. A single man wouldn’t qualify for low income housing if he made twenty grand .. what we were told the year we went without an income is 750.00 is considered a living wage you have to make less than that for two to qualify for any of the good Samaritan programs.. then they only give you assistance up to the seven fifty..
          I know I have heard there are states where a woman made a hundred grand a year off of federal assistance programs.. no collateral or income.. I use to think that was bunk..then my wife worked for a company that the owner got over two billion in bank loans with crappy credit a history of not paying any of his bills or wages of his employees..he bought a bunch of medical facilities across the usa with that money..didn’t pay his utilities or supplies employees were bringing in supplies to keep the residents fed and their laundry clean etc. he didn’t pay the health insurance policies the employees thought they had ..( we were in that group policy too )and he wasn’t paying wages.. I believe seventeen facilities around here had to close.. big news .. then the USA just handed him thirty million more not even considering what he had done..to make it even more interesting was I had heard he went again to the bank even after the nation wide issues he had and failure to pay on anything..just collect the cash and run.. got more money to buy more facilities and hospitals And was doing the same thing all over again..
          so yes Virginia there are states that don’t have any requirements to get loans or credit they just give it to you..in the wastelands you have to have collateral and at least a half decent credit rating..

    • truth : guess we’ll see. Some tariffs begin on the morrow. Personally, though well suited to puzzle it out, I choose to simply wait and see. This nation might be better served by taxes other than those on income. Tariffs funded this nation before we _had_ an income tax.

      People get over hyped about simplistic notions when the economy is a vast mechanism. There are many pieces on the puzzle to fashion various outcomes. Of late, if King Dollar continues it’s rise, we can afford many things imported at discount. Instead of tariffs, if passed through to consumers, then say rather “consumption” tax.

      Ahem, most consumption (in addition to being voluntary) will be paid, voluntarily, by those same wealthy who receive tax cuts, if any. Note: everyone got a tax cut last go and on a percentage basis the cuts for middle class were slightly larger than for the hated wealthy.

      It would be easy to have “carve outs” so the poor, especially the working poor, wouldn’t have to pay a consumption tax on necessities. Food, energy, etc. could be exempted in toto or just for a class of people. Shazam, we can do this! It’s not rocket surgery.

      Or we can whine and whing about things which haven’t happened or may not happen at all. Think leverage. Use the power of we the people consumers to advantage. Columbia won’t allow repatriation flights? Fine. Boycott Columbian coffee (*) for a few months. Buy from Africa or other suppliers.

      (*) coffee is about all we buy of significance unless counting cocaine.

      Higher dollar helps support the Treasury market (for offshore buyers) which keeps the Buck as premier trading currency. And that allows JayPow to sell through Treasury at lower nominal rates which allows lower interest cost.

      Tis a puzzlement hey?
      Nope.
      E

      • Tariffs funded the nation when we had a lot less revenuers to fund. I figure that Trump is just using the tariffs as a bargaining tool, and they will be deemphasized when he gets whatever trade concessions he is really after. I expect the tariffs to remain, but probably at more like sales tax levels, just so the infrastructure stays in place, and we will be able to retaliate effectively on short notice without calling in the B52’s. It will be a method to extend diplomacy by other means, with reduced bloodshed and destruction, and will be less the economic savior.

        • I Thought He Was Bluffing… A good poker playing maneuver..
          the idea of Looking bigger to a preditor …

          https://youtube.com/shorts/T3VaaZ3U9qc?si=hz1JsQdtleG8IOnK

          just to avoid and keep the country safe and in a position of power.. what is it they say you should do if A bear approaches.. you try and look bigger than you are..make a lot of noise.. when I dicker for an item you don’t give in..offer low but have a realistic price your willing to settle For..
          if they refuse and you truly want the item.. then send somebody else to get it..
          car lot negotiating… they will give you the lowest price for your car.. then sell it at retail slum lord low credit car dealers will get the auto at a car auction and sell it at many times retail. the daughter bought a car..they told her that it just came off of a lease. it had been totalled not once but twice.. unless you were a mechanic you wouldn’t know.. what I learned is the damage disclosure law isn’t for the customer its for the car dealers to obtain a car cheaper..they get a car in one area for nothing then sell it in another where they don’t have to disclose it..they paid fifty dollars for the car and five hundred for shipping and a paint job.. they sold it for new price..
          Trump is being a sales negotiator trying to make the us appear bigger and as a new car even though its been victimized by its own legislators and used to obtain wealth for a few of the oligarchs that are not willing to negotiate for what they desire..
          if he fails then he only has one other action..to turn the titanic USA to safety he has to make some extremely bold and big moves..of course that’s just my opinion from what I see..
          his problem is he’s one of the wealthy..figuring out how to reboot the stalled plane in a freefall and still keep his position in society. In history people like Marie Antoinette she thought screw the people let them eat cake if they don’t like it..instead of attempting to help the people she thought if she hide the jewels somewhere then when it turned around she would still have her position in society.. the victims of France ad other ideas.. where if she had opened a soup kitchen..
          Adolph he appealed to the victims of the Weimar depression and bolstered them against the social class that They opposed. (“Stephan Malinowski tells Rob Attar how a cocktail of naked opportunism and misplaced arrogance among Germany’s most powerful men facilitated the rise of the Third Reich.”)
          https://www.historyextra.com/period/second-world-war/hitler-millionaire-backers-how-german-elite-facilitated-rise-nazis-third-reich/
          even though it was the members of the social class that helped him gain.
          Al Capone..he started soup kitchens and my father told me a story that the homes that had families and children the elderly.. his men brought a truck around once a week and the men would drop a big box of food off at their homes.. no one wanted to turn him in.. he was their savior..
          around d the usa you hear buy gold gold will secure you place .. silver diamonds jewels.. Money is nothing more than a database for the exchange of goods and services not real wealth. Real wealth is that guy making your burger at burger wkrld..the guy painting a picture or the littered making you a cup..the farmer and the truck driver the delivery boy and the guy working the line..each has their place in society. in their world they are a genius.
          we are taught that money is essential for survival try to survive without it and you will fail in a community. We grow up believing in its value, striving to earn it, save it, and spend it. Money drives economies, influences politics, and defines social hierarchies. But beneath its surface, money is not a real, tangible entity in reality it is only a concept..

      • When tariffs supported the country we didn’t have 2mm fed employees, huge standing army employed all over the world, and had a much lower population. We were growing industry, harvesting resources, and building the country out of what was there.
        Now all we do is consume and to cut that back, shit just needs to cost a bit more… make best choices only.
        There’s lots in the blender right now. We may get a nice smoothie or maybe a shit shake.
        Meanwhile, democrats are calling for fighting in the streets and it’s only been 11 days. Why didn’t they have enough juice to stop him before we all voted. Might there not be as many of them as would be believed?
        So glad to be 4K miles away in a quiet bay, prepared to live without assistance for many months if necessary.
        Quietly existing and hoping for the best for my offspring who are still in the Matrix.
        Stiks

        • Even if we brought all our military back home..to two hundred miles like Ron Paul suggested.. stopped throwing bags of cash off at people.. we don’t have the cash to pay the interest on what we owe..like my one care credit.. even making the payment on it that all goes for interest only.. and not enough in fact a portion of the interest is increasing the debt.. by about a hundred a month..I have to turn that..if I fail then I have just a couple of options.
          Trump..well..
          Trump said in August 2015:
          “I have used the laws of this country just like the greatest people that you read about every day in business have used the laws of this country, the chapter laws, to do a great job for my company, my employees, myself and my family.”
          in an economy where the income wasn’t coming in to pay off his upside down expenses he had only a couple of options for self survival.
          now he’s facing the same situation but as a nation ..
          I read yesterday the plans for cutting the good Samaritan programs.. this would upset the Apple cart but put us back to the sixties.. today like the one employer said..you would qualify for food stamps.. its not a benefit ..the food stamp program was to help during a cataclysmic event. today employers use that as a wage adjustment. let the community pay for them and give bonuses to the executives for keeping their profit margins up.
          its all going to be horrendous upset of the apple cart..then that’s just my opinion and who in the hell am i..just some moron at the bottom of the pile with no formal edjumification… real people with more brains and papers than me know way more than some glorified ass wiper..

    • truth,
      History books advise that the famed American-Norwegian economist Thorstein Veblen left this realm at a crest of capitalist measure in 1929. Apparently one of his PhD students, Stephen Leacock, was the eventual head of Montreal McGill’s economics department. His tome “Arcane Adventures with the Idle Rich” published in 1914 allegedly became a 20th century bestseller in the former Soviet Union and East Germany.

      • re: Viking Sword
        feat: a “Great Heathen Army”

        Folks,
        Earlier this week President Zelensky’s Telegram channel daily post count fell to a couple. Today has seen 48.

        By 820 ad, a grandson of Charlemagne had sanctioned the trade of swords to Vikings. President Zelensky informs today with accompanying images of a direct Russian missile strike on an Honorary Consulate of the Kingdom of Norway in ‘Odessa’ (” = app spelling). Thankfully although there were injuries, no fatalities ensued.

        The consulate is situated on Mechnykova Street, Odessa. It’s namesake Dr. Élie Metchnikov (ru. “sword”) was born of noble birth in what is current-day Ukraine. His legacy is claimed by 5 nations and 2 religions. Regrettably he chose a third path of atheism.

        Dr. Metchnikov is described in “Wikipedia” as a Father of Innate Immunology and Gerontology. Life extension advocates apparently celebrate Metchnikov Day on May 15th.

    • The unearned income class you speak of is mostly old people, and a few billionaires. That is, most of the unearned income class is people of limited income, with health problems. Most billionaires find a way to pay themselves a salary, so they qualify for Company health benefits. I found in the past many healthcare practitioners won’t touch Obamacare patients, so arranging for medical procedures with personnel who aren’t going to come back with their hand out becomes challenging. It has been reported to me that Medicare Advantage is easier to live with.

      • (“I found in the past many healthcare practitioners won’t touch Obamacare patients, so arranging for medical procedures with personnel who aren’t going to come back with their hand out becomes challenging.”)

        Amen…. exactly… like the race horse breeder and groomer..I worked with his wife a nurse.. she got cancer.. they usually dump sick off of the insurance.. then take everything they have.. or the guy that had cancer..they send a nice letter asking for your deposit ..he of course didn’t have the huge deposit so when I took him to the clinic they booted his butt out..he started crying..what about me now.. well social worker was able to get him back into the office several months later..
        you of course have care credit at 39% interest..
        A friend of my daughters had cancer they told her when you drop the deposit off we will begin ..her sister took another mortgage on her home..
        67% of employees were not insured or under insured the minute you get sick its like the home owners insurance in a cataclysmic event..oops sorry charlie..they cover for the minor expenses but heaven help you if something major happens..then the what if wage continuation insurance..I had it on everything then when the what if happened.. you find out just how good it is..
        there’s enough taken in to fix it..but would change the insurance industry that has millions of people living on their wages..our govt hands out about a hundred billion in research grants a year only so our citizens have to pay out tens of thousands percent more on medications.
        its the business model.. insurance industry makes huge profits out of not paying..they send out insurance adjusters to tell you your personal items has no value..the adjuster gets his pay by how much he can save the insurance industry..
        because of the business model..is why Remote Medical makes the majority of their emergency medical clinics in the USA ..third world countries have better medical care for their people than the usa.
        to fix it is possible but would negatively effect the good people worming in the insurance industry.. two of my kids are in those positions even though they know how I feel about insurance industry..over half of our monthly income goes to these companies.
        the one daughter because they did so good this year the company had their Christmas party in Cancun two weeks her whole family and grandkids their spouses at no cost with pay.
        the elderly head for the borders to get their medical treatments and medications..the savings pays for their winter trip..
        Hospitals nursing homes etc. all work short shifts..the tag your it job..if I had a dollar for every hour it was just me.. I would be rich..lol
        hard to believe but its how the business model works.
        one bed down nothing two to three beds down you lose a half hour of pay.. four beds down you lose an hours pay five beds and more someone’s going home early if it keeps up for more than a month then they let you go..no unemployment compensation. every fall the annual witch hunt.. get rid of higher paid employees replace them with newer lower paid or part time without benefits..
        I was a department head of a maintenance in a retail chain the rule was they hired low income disadvantaged where the state paid half of their wages for ninety days..the rule we were told is ninety days and its time for them to leave.. it of course destroyed the stores here..this is a rural area and not like a big city..the news goes out and people wouldn’t shop there..

      • (“I found in the past many healthcare practitioners won’t touch Obamacare patients, so arranging for medical procedures with personnel who aren’t going to come back with their hand out becomes challenging.”)

        while we paid just for my wife’s insurance health insurance..they didn’t pay a dime until you paid in ten grand and to go to the doctor the copay was fifty dollars..
        we paid in a little more than three hundred grand through the years just for her health insurance..if we had been able to put that in a fund or savings bonds we would have about a million now.. but like everyone knows you have to have it..if you don’t have insurance they won’t even see you..they send your butt to the ER at ten times the cost..
        I tried to get on Samaritan policy butt I ama Mormon.. they required that you quit the church get into a Christian faith they covered and become a member for a year..
        nursing homes refuse to take people that can’t pay the close to quarter million a year plus medical expenses unless you can be self pay..they are required to have so many..but on what the federal assistance home pay is.. it takes two of those residents to make one employee eight hour shift a month just to pay their minimum wage position..no building or utilities or food etc. the federal guidelines and requirements keep them broke..which is why the place my wife worked at is sold every three to five years. the state money comes in waves so even though your not making a dime you see big numbers..
        it took me several months to realize I was paying the. newspaper to deliver newspapers lol..
        I have three years left on.my bet with the old grocer for dollar general.. I bet ten years before it c!oses.. the same with the local gas station..I got a good look at the books. he’s not making anything there..

  11. MicroStrategy Inc (NASDAQ: MSTR) is in focus today after the Norwegian central bank revealed it holds a sizable stake in the business intelligence company turned BitCoin proxy.

    In total, the Norwegian Central Bank Fund owns about $500 million of MSTR shares, according to its 13-F filing on Thursday.

    The Norwegian Central Bank does not legally recognize BitCoin as a legal tender, but regulations for money service businesses dealing in crypto and crypto wallet providers are in place. And, the Norwegian Central Bank is currently exploring a national digital currency. So., the bank can not legally purchase BitCoin., but can legally buy foreign stock – ergo: MicroStrategy. [ Part of MicroStrategy business plan ? You can’t legally buy BitCoin., but you can buy stock.]

    MicroStrategy’s stock jumped 1.5% when the news hit the wires.
    [ $345.79 ]
    Last reported net earnings was a negative $340.2M., with a negative 129.2% growth. So., it safe to assume that all of the recent run-up in stock price has been due solely to BitCoin purchases.

    Yesterday, MicroStrategy announced that they have raised another $530 million towards the purchase of more BitCoin.

    In this case.., is it a wiser investment strategy to buy the corporate proxy MicroStrategy, or the real thing – BitCoin ??

    • re: The Golden Fleece
      feat: Humpty Dumpty

      dLynn,

      My understanding is that the price of an egg tripled during the Yukon Klondike gold rush. It looks to my armchair view like Microstrategy is laying golden eggs by the pump and dump. As long as its board members continue to shear the wool off their share holdings so to speak at their every opportunity, I’d be content to browse the fool’s gold offerings until a fire sale shows up. But then the eggs may be stale?

    • The Casino Enters “Peak Complexity”

      Options on Bitcoin futures to begin trading Feb. 24
      New ETFs that combine bitcoin exposure and options are coming in 2025

      This Is Not a Criticism of Cryptos or Blockchains

      It’s a criticism of hyper-complexity and our weakness for smart-but-unwise people offering higher returns and/or lower risks if we just trust them. The derivatives bust of 2008 nearly wiped out the global financial system. And compared to the “peak complexity” world that’s clearly coming, those were much simpler (read: less-risky) days.

      https://www.howestreet.com/2025/01/the-casino-enters-peak-complexity/

  12. In the face of “Trump-ism” Goldman Sacs said today: “Go long Gold.”

    That should help fuel the fire a bit.

    Go Gold !

  13. Elliott Wave Theory
    Complexity: It requires a deep understanding of wave patterns and accurate labeling, which can be very challenging and time consuming. The multiple different, intricate ‘waves’ is often too confusing for most traders to implement.

    Subjectivity: Different analysts may interpret the exact same market data completely different, leading to varying predictions and different, even opposing actionable predictions.

    With course-work in Elliott Wave., then a refresher course a couple of years after that – I felt like I understood and could ‘use’ it properly. So.., I built my own chart of my favorite index., the S&P 500 with Elliott Wave. I was very careful and danced on my T.I. Scientific., a lot.
    My chart looked great ! [ after nearly a month of work..,] ., and it made perfect sense. [ to me ]
    I then went on-line and compared my chart, side-by-side, with Robert Prechter’s on the S&P., I had reframed from doing so., so as not to be influence by his work. Yikes !!
    Outside of a few small areas., we were extremely different in our wave placements/labels. It did NOT add up. One of us was very wrong in their data interpretations and wave labeling.
    Though I loathed to do it., I had to assume that this grievous error was my doing. But., I’m a math-guy.., how can this be so different/wrong !?? [ Ego talking – “My math is better than your math ! ” ]

    To date, I have not answered that question. I still puzzle about it. So.., I am not the one to expound the virtues of Elliott Wave. I do still use it., but only as an ‘over-all’ view on the specific chart I am studying. Not a guide, nor a predictor., or lagging indicator. There are just too many subsets within the waves for me to place hard fought for cash on a trade based on Elliott Wave.

  17. watching crash no. 2 on Fox right now.
    said small G5 with 2 pilots, 2 Doctors, patient and next of kin.
    Crash into a shopping mall in Philadelphia.
    RIP.

  18. “The perfect gift for our retired broadcast engineer Hank out on the Big Island:”

    [Choke!]. 3kw off-brand at $16.6 bux per watt…. And It’s not even in the ham bands?! I’m stunned they offer to ship it USPS Ground Advantage, too! Ummm…. No thank you. Send me the cash, instead. I still have a Larcan 1.5kw module from Channel 4 that has 20 dB gain on Six meters that I might get around to building out yet… probably about the time the solar cycle bottoms out, so it will be useless when complete.

    Hopefully I scared off the ‘bidding kiddies’ with my warning at the bottom of my description of the stroked out IC-910H. Have a Central/South American showing interest and asked if his secure mail drop in Miami was OK for shipping. Sure. He asked if the radio was complete or if repairs had been attempted yet. Nope. Intact & no attempted repairs. So he left a bid. Dunno how high he will go, but at least it will sell. So there’s your competition, George. I have this vision of you attempting repairs on crowded Japanese solid-state gear with your bad eyes and microscope, and inventing new language to describe your (former) friend Hank. LOL
    https://www.ebay.com/itm/196978257337

      • The KH6HME (sk) beacons at 8k ft. on Mauna Loa hold about a half dozen world records for Tropo Ducting in the V/U bands. But it’s about a 2-1/2 hr trip up there on the lava to get to the site if one gets a call that it’s being received in California.

  20. If anyone is interested in Amtrak train travel as a ” soft ” adventure travel option I am looking at a possible short trip over the western part of the Trans Continental Route. About a day and a half from the Oakland area to Denver. I will keep you appraised.

  21. “Covering for Biden?
    The plane-helicopter crash this week has been a PR disaster for the ex-prez, Joe…

    and who was running (including training of the Tower folks) until two weeks ago? Yep, that party.”

    Still is running it. Until every Trump appointee whose Department can hold sway (or even have influence) over an aircraft incident (not just FAA, but NTSB, NHTSA, DNR, Coast Guard, and a dozen other alphabet agencies), Joe owns this puppy — Joe, and the South Bend carpetbagger (whom I hope Michiganders will be smart enough to not elect, but have no real faith that such will be the case…) Sean Duffy has been Transportation Secretary for 3 days, and has more fatal air incidents to deal with than do-nothing Pete Buttjudge had in four years. He’s also done more in that three days than “Mayor Pete” did in over two years, for the folks in Palestine, Ohio. At least Duffy didn’t wait weeks to acknowledge the accidents.

    • At least former Sec. Transportation Pete Buttmuncher knew how to set his priorities straight and right.
      Sneaky Pete was always busy [admin redaction for PG13 and allergy to libel and slander suits] – he couldnt help self.

      Everyone in DC TAKES THE MONEY, EVERYONE! -lhttps://open.substack.com/pub/bioclandestine/p/rfk-jr-says-the-quiet-part-out-loud?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=web&utm_content=embedded-post

  22. re: zip code 1 911 1
    feat: Jeremiah 4:29 Bowman

    Folks,

    The Castor Gardens Middle School spent its existence between 1927 and 2022 being known as Woodrow Wilson School, named after the 28th President. If turkeys did not suffer the blight of redacted speech, they might have told us the anti-women’s suffrage holdout introduced the Revenue Act of 1913 (income tax) as well as The Federal Reserve Act.

    Sadly a short distance away tragedy struck this evening. A medivac jet crashed narrowly missing perhaps an aimed-for lone parcel of green park space. The incident area was bounded by the Roosevelt’s Blvd., Inn, and Mall.

    An image by the Andalou Agency via Getty Images is published by the “Daily Mail” depicting first responders attending a street scene of carnage. (Andalou Agency began in 1920 during the Turkish War of Independence as a revolutionary media outlet against the Allied Occupiers.) Their Philadelphia devastation street scene image depicts an IBX blue billboard in the background.

    IBX, not to be confused with the explosive or the goat, is the Philadelphia-headquartered Independence Blue Cross, a private not-for-profit health insurer. According to “Wikipedia”, IBX started up in 1938 and the first work group to buy their coverage was Philadelphia’s Independence Hall. Signing of the American Constitution famously took place at Independence Hall on Monday, September 17, 1787.

    • Folks,

      Mexico’s Aztec TV published a Facebook image posted by the late copilot to his account. The picture named North Philadelphia Airport along with corresponding coordinates. The latter coincide to a pin identifying a whirlybird tour enterprise led by a Cassandra. Its building address companion is an aviation services company scooped up in 2021 by a New York investment colossus founded by a trio from Bear Stearns.

      Interestingly Aztec TV is a subsidiary of a Mexican holding company that has previously invested in the London-headquartered European leo satellite constellation OneWeb. Curiously European military-industrial complex OneWeb satellites are no strangers to rides into orbit atop SpaceX boosters, owned by the Canadian traitor Elon Musk and gofer boy to a President.

      Cassandra appears in the Greek legends as a partner of Apollo. She foretold the fall of Troy, but the Trojans wouldn’t listen. C’est la vie.

  23. As of tonight, NTSB is taking the lead on the Philly plane crash.

    They are investigating to eliminate the possibility that the plane was sabotaged which, I’m sure is SOP, but it seems odd to me that this query would be at the top of the list.

    I’m not familiar with plane crash investigations. Is this a normal path of inquiry or is my mind starting to see conspiracy ghosts…?

    • Normal after a highly suspicious crash 2 days earlier. Trump knows more details about the DC incident then what officialdom has put out, certainly explains the level of pissed off he was Thursday AM.
      My gut says it was an attack involving the helo and or someone on the jet. Problem is I don’t trust a fking thing from officials, could just be a good old accident.

    • Of all possible causes, many can be made low priority due to the circumstances of the crash… which brings ‘unlikely’ ones higher up. The Medevac jet in question was highly maintained, and had just within hours made the flight from Florida to Philly without incident. So mechanical failure would be low on the investigative priority list. Obvious power failure on takeoff would be an ‘unusual’ occurrence, suggesting possible sabotage.

      • I guess…

        Philly was pretty foggy. I suppose it’s possible they could’ve lost instruments (or cabin power) and in their disorientation, done a Kobe Bryant.

        That made me have an interesting thought:

        I’ve never piloted an aircraft. I’ve heard tell that it’s easy to become disoriented in fog, especially if you lose your instruments — you can’t trust your senses or instincts.

        It seems to me a really easy hack for this would be to have a bubble-level in the cockpit, or a bag of marbles. Fog isn’t forever, and as long as one is flying straight, and at a SLIGHT gain in altitude, their chances of a midair are extremely slim, and their chances of stalling out are zero. Even if the “fog” is surface clouds, I should think a modest bird like a Piper Cub would fly out of, and above the cloud bank before it hit its service ceiling. Ergo, the only important things to do to save one’s ass would be to fly straight and gain altitude SLOWLY until they could get a visual. The bubble level would indicate both pitch and yaw, and if it weren’t available, one could just drop a marble on a flat surface which should be parallel to the ground, and see which direction it rolled.

        • Dopn’t plenty of takeoffs in marginal conditions. Before you take off (depending on a/c)) the fklight director/autopilot is set and the plane almost takes off and trims itself.
          The back and forth? Loss of power on one engine, flipping to other to avoid yawing right, for example, by putting in opposite rudder, then over correcting or losing second engine…
          Or a crime, of course

        • Non pilots don’t know, but the basic, basic flight instruments are not dependent upon power, but are air pressure and gravity operated. Compass… magnetic. There IS a ‘level bubble’ in the turn-coordinator ball. Gravity operated. Altimeter… air pressure operated… reads altitude, rate of climb or descent. A pilot can fly an airplane with these alone during a total loss of power.

          Friends of mine had a generator & power failure as they took off from the Oshkosh air show years ago. They deemed it unsafe to turn back into dense traffic with no radio coms, so they proceeded to fly into the sunset across Wisconsin in the dark, occasionally lighting a match to check the instruments. They flew 100 miles in the dark until they spotted the airport beacon at Central Wisconsin airport. Per procedure, they buzzed the tower until they got a green ‘OK to Land’ beacon from the tower, and landed safely in the dark.

        • Every 9 months back to the Flight Training center for check ride and certification for auto-lands. The Captains had to take off in 600 ft visibility with a engine failure at rotation. The Copilots 1000 ft vis and an engine failure. No turns before 1500 feet for runway climb out protection from obstacles. Circle around downwind, read emergency checklists, brief approach, and a single engine go-around at published minimums, and back for a 2nd landing attempt. Then the other pilot performs same maneuver.

          Most of the airplanes I’ve flown cruise with a 1 to 2 degree pitch up, 5 degrees up for cruise climb. 15 degrees up for initial takeoff, and 3 degrees nose down for approach. We also had a back up attitude indicator that was powered by essential battery power that’s supposed to last for 30 minutes with a loss of electrical power. Double and triple back up for essential systems such as instruments, electrics, hydraulics, and flight controls.

          A Learjet is a unforgiving airplane if you do the wrong control inputs.

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