Under Trump, tax giveaways to the wealthy and soaring debt replaced economic stability and sacrificed the nation’s future for short-term political gain…
The fall of economic power, bankrupting of America is the only thing that is going to save us and democracy.
Trump's superpower is American consumption, that consumption is powered by debt, all debt, public and private, it is why the worlds leaders come crawling on their knees when Trump says tariffs. It is why the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, met with Trump and caved on Greenland. It is why Trump ignores the Constitution and law and is dragging us into an irreversible fascist state..
Trump is using the money that our consumption generates to create an authoritarian rule, and make himself King of the World.
Don't diminish his Board of Peace as an attempt to supplant the UN, it is only a baby step, he has three more years to finish the job on America and the world. look what he has done in just 12 months.
I was at Costco. A vendor employee said she supported Trump. I was shocked. Then she said her two grandsons were Capitol police officers at Jan 6th! Now that spells STUPID.
“Ellen” has a colorful personality. It always brightened my day chatting with her. But this broke our relationship. I don’t associate with people who support our destruction.
It is about choices. You choose to educate yourself or take the easy way. This woman, as have many in his “cult,” were lured with the false premise that Trump is rich, believing ‘he’ll make me rich’ without any research. They believe “The Apprentice” TV show is real.
It is a pattern of her life. She didn’t educate herself, chose to marry an alcoholic who abused her and is having to work as a vendor handing out samples at Costco. She refuses to allow me to educate her. She wishes to remain in her ignorant world.
Hope is passive, depends on a miracle or a champion. Young girl crawls into a 55 gal drum because she has hope. Man digs his own grave because he has hope.The Jew climbed into the box car headed to Auschwitz because he had hope.
My message has been the opposite of giving up, my message has been active resistance, your message is giving up by passive submission.
Get that straight
And as far as who prevailed, it wasn't the Jews shuttled to Auschwitz, it was a world, in particular the United States that fought back with active resistance.
You only win, if you fight, complaining is not fighting.
Well then again… The Soviet experiment died with Lenin. I don’t know of any countries that actually tried Communism for any sustained time —.you undoubtedly know more on that than me - but in retrospect I would rather be Red than dead: there is a certain finality to being dead that being Red avoids. I grew up surrounded by Birchers. Dead seemed good until I was old enough to weigh the options; that happened when I was about 14. Oppressive as Hell until they collapsed. Change is possible with governments, death not so much. Besides, I really like Prokofiev.
Value is not the issue. The issue is consumption. So long as Americans consume the worlds products and resources, regardless of the price, then Trump has power over the world. The American appetite is insatiable,and apparently the demand is inelastic.
Years ago I had a conversation with someone at the vending machine. I had returned from overseas, and was aghast to find that candy bars were now $.25. it was $.05 in 1970. I told him that I would not pay such a price, he said "I will pay whatever I have to" The $.05 candy bar now costs 1.50 and Americans still pay the price.
Value is like beauty it is in the eye of the beholder.
I appreciate the candy bar example, but we ain't seen nothing yet. Countries are dumping our treasuries, China just sold over $860 Billion in US debt. If the bond market crashes, mortgage rates are projected to rise to 9% which in turn will exacerbate a housing crisis and lead to a recession. This is worth a watch.
Unfortunately, these people only care about their bank accounts of today, not what history says about them. And right now, this regime is writing the history books to flatter and/or lie about themselves because of their fragile 'masculinity', evidently.
2. Most of us care. According to any sources most CEOs are saying much the same as we do about murder in Minneapolis was we are. See NYT Dealbook yesterday. We need to harness the anger.
3. I'm hoping that history will say this was a phase - much like the civil war, the red scare, like the worst year for many of us - 1968.
Can there be an emergency court order arresting Patel, Gabbard & Bondi for taking these records UNLAWFULLY? And a demand to give them up (although they are probably copied)?
There should be a federal law allowing:
mail-in/absentee voting and convenient ballot boxes within a reasonable distance from someone’s house.
Voter’s registrations should not be allowed to be purged.
TRump sees the world through only one lens.....MONEY
This sick psychopathic President does not care one damn bit about this nation. Anything he says about our financial positions is part of his fake America First shtick. Whatever he does to manipulate the dollar will be to directly benefit HIM.
In TRump's addled mind, he IS "the world", and we are just pawns to be used.
Then you have the Tech Bros and Crypto Creeps trying to break not just the United States but also the European Union. They want NO RESTRICTIONS on AI and the sick futuristic plans that the Europeans will regulate.
It is money over We the People and our "general welfare". That's the plot---don't lose sight of it. See you in the streets.
Could this administration’s aim be a slow devaluation of the US currency have anything to do with attempting to show his crypto BS as a reasonably stable or a viable trading vehicle? After all, why would Americans buy crypto, much less the international market, unless the most stable currency in the world seemed shaky?
BTW I am blocked from comments on the Greg Palast paper.
I have posted this several times. I have asked Thom to interview the affiiant and asked him to show it to Palast.
“In December 2024, I was personally involved in an NSA‑authorized forensic audit of the 2024 election. Kamala Harris and Tim Walz won—by a wide margin. Trump lost dramatically. There are multiple layers of complexity to this cover‑up, including transnational organized crime syndicates that extend far beyond the United States and our elections. To that point, I work in the human trafficking sector, which intersects with the stolen election(s) and has ties to Trump and Epstein—not to President Biden, Vice President Harris, or Governor Walz, but to the Democrats and other allied interests responsible for burying the audit.”
— Adam Zarnowski, ex-CIA agent and author of Jörmungandr
Alis,do you have a list of CEO who spoke out?Thank you for your comment about AI. They know the massive #of people who will lose their jobs as a result. What happens to the poor sols who lose their jobs so that little fucking South Korean,Jensen Huang(Nvidia) can become a trillionaire.
To repeat " What happens to all those who lose their jobs becaue of AI. Do you think for 1 sec they will ever get unemployment,there is not enough money in the US Gov't for that to happen. They will unfortunately die.
I recently was speaking with a friend of mine. We are cancer travellers together at 78 years old. I mention that not to garner sympathy but to explain why I haven't "torn my trump supporting friend a new ass". She has a different type of cancer that appears to be a "worse" form. Mine is chronic so thus far is being maintained hers is more severe so given the fact that we've be friends for over 60 years & her cancer seems to be more advanced I have not pushed her about trump. But, my patience is fading with all that's going on. She told me that she voted for trump the last time because he had done some good things. I did not query her on what they were/are. She also told me that she couldn't vote for Kamala because she was a flawed candidate. Again, out of deference to her condition I did not ask what those flaws are. But I am so ready to!! With your permission I'm going to list those "flaws" here so that I can get them off my chest.
I'd like to tell her: "Flaws, you mean like not denigrating vets, not lying every time a word is spoken, not running our economy into the ground, not endangering everyone with a desire to rule the world, not siding with Putin against NATO, NATO & all of our allies, not send federal agents to murder protesters exercising their 1st amendment rights, not putting a charlatan in charge of our health, not pulling the US out of international agencies & groups that have helped keep us safe, not set up her own crypto coins for herself & her husband, not insulted & slandered every type of immigrant that makes our country great, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera! As you are well aware I could go on for hours & hours listing more flaws she has but you more than get the idea.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to save my friendship & get some of my pent up frustration aired & off my chest.
You folks have a nice day, if that's even possible any longer.
Trump's only understanding of economics is extortion: "Accept my deal or I will fuck you up."
Likewise, his only motivation is money. "You want my help? What is in it for me?"
This same philosophy explains his tough-guy leader image: "If you fail to deliver, you're fired!" There is no coaching, no leading by example, no building teamwork, and no making decisions based upon consensus.
So, why do we not use Trump's worldview against him? "You're fired. and headed for prison."
Excellent piece Thom. You captured the gist of Kenneth Rogoff's book, "Our Dollar Your Problem". A book by Rick Wilson, "Everything Trump Touches Dies", is an accurate title I believe. It's hard not to wonder when not if Trump and his dangerous erratic behavior will set off the debt bomb. That is, a loss of faith in America and our currency.
What point is there to the science of economics when so much money is completely wasted on aimless war and conflict and feathering the many nests of fascist billionaires? Well, the answer is contained in the question--capitalism merely codifies and normalizes the acts of plunder associated with empire-building.
His sycophants say we have initiated a "war" against China over AI. We are amassing proportionally more of our assets than we did to fight WWI and WWII combined.
Eric Trump publicly stated Trump “wouldn’t hire anyone smarter than him.” That sets a low bar. (He doesn’t read & is too embarrassed to release his school records).
The responsibility for this American self-suicide lies with the American electorate. This is what they chose, and this is what they get. The greatest danger to any democracy is the electorate.
One of the allegations about our incursion into Venezuela is that the Batistianos convinced hin that Maduro could substantiate his claims about election fraud.
The "Venezuelan Connection": Convicted felon Sidney Powell and others claimed that voting machine companies like Smartmatic and Dominion had ties to the Venezuelan government and were designed to switch votes electronically.
The Alleged Source: These claims were supposedly based on an affidavit from an unnamed "Venezuelan military official" who claimed the 2020 U.S. election was "eerily reminiscent" of the 2013 Venezuelan election, where similar fraud was alleged to have occurred.
Disinformation: These claims were thoroughly debunked by U.S. election officials, cybersecurity experts, and judges as entirely unfounded. News organizations that repeated the claims later paid hundreds of millions of dollars in defamation lawsuits.
I would like to see the word "guard rails" retired for it is useless in today's world.
Agreed upon principles that were beneficial to all parties is the reality and calling it a guardrail, in this or the many instances it is now used, does not convey this meaning.
Trump, those who put him in power and are working to keep him there are not interested in anything but benefit for themselves. They laugh at the rule of law and the constitution; we must be clear in our language and intent to expose them and fight against the disappearance of truth in word and action.
This is not relevant to today's post but I had to get it out there. In Cobb Cty,Georgia,the Cobb Cty School District has threatened kids who are members of abolish.ice.georgia that they face suspension,loss of parking privilges,sports, and make this a permanent part of the record encouraging college admission offices and future employers to take notice. These protests have been nonviolent. PLaese any and all of you who post here,use your email contacts to let them know what is happenig,contact you local media,your pols if you have Dem reps. This is far more that a Fascist takeover.
Thom, "What you're worried about has already happened." Capitalism and the culture it created have failed. The wealth in America has moved offshore. 80% of America's wealth is intangible, marks on a ledger. The corporate bond market has become a rollover debt market. The shadow economy and the commercial banks are funding each other.
Fiat is a noun meaning a formal authorization or arbitrary order, often used to describe a decree or command. Its origin comes from Latin, meaning 'let it be done.'
Adam Smith, Marx, and JMK have all been thrown in a barditch, used and abused. We are a fragmented culture and a fragmented economy, and that's the language you need to speak. We are a minnow caught in a tidal wave, and that's the language you need to speak. GDP is a tool used to placate the minions. Democrats can't fix this problem. You know that. They may fix the equality problem with a wealth tax, but we will all have less, and the SYSTEM requires MORE to survive. Everything you said today is correct, but you said it in a language that will not be heard. You need to speak in the language of "The Great Leveler." It's a book you read and want to forget. It explains what's happened time and again. We need to create a new illusion. This one has ended. YOU KNOW THAT!!!
"Trump’s own economic illiteracy and impulse-driven tariff policies, in other words, have damaged the value of our currency and may have put the status of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency at risk."
You read that right; one man, one blithering idiot has undermined our security and our standing in the world. However, he was enabled by innumerable people, many economists and others who might have had a better understanding of all this if they were not so gullible and ignorant about him, about human behavior, about science, and about history. Our collective ignorance is the problem. Our collective ignorance is in part because we have been the victims of our own hubris and imagined superiority. Maybe a readjustment leading to greater equality between nations will turn out to be the best thing for everyone. But do not thank Trump and do not think that this cannot end in WWIII. I, for one have never understood or thought much about learning about national and international finance and economics. But more people will need to get up to speed (with the help of mini-courses such as today's rant) if we are going to come out of this without major trauma. The first order of business though should be putting Trump and his minions behind bars. Let's refresh ourselves on how many times Trump is mentioned in the Epstein files and how undeniable the direct connections between those two pedophiles truly are.
Okay, try again. If the economy tanks - and I don’t see that it won’t - it’s going to take the majority of us, and a good part of the rest of the world, with us. This isn’t going to be a recession, more like 1929 but way worse. Countries that have decoupled have the greatest likelihood of staving off the worst but so much of the world’s productive base passes through the United States. My guess is that we will become increasingly irrelevant, that the New World Order that we have heard so much about will not include us. We will become essentially bankrupt. All but the richest who I darkly believe will set up fiefdoms, complete with their own private armies fighting over the tatters of our remaining resources. On the matter of a few decades, other than our own bloated military our only use will be to remind the rest of the world of the dangers over overweening hubris.
The fall of economic power, bankrupting of America is the only thing that is going to save us and democracy.
Trump's superpower is American consumption, that consumption is powered by debt, all debt, public and private, it is why the worlds leaders come crawling on their knees when Trump says tariffs. It is why the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, met with Trump and caved on Greenland. It is why Trump ignores the Constitution and law and is dragging us into an irreversible fascist state..
Trump is using the money that our consumption generates to create an authoritarian rule, and make himself King of the World.
Don't diminish his Board of Peace as an attempt to supplant the UN, it is only a baby step, he has three more years to finish the job on America and the world. look what he has done in just 12 months.
Why would America think Trump would do anything but BANKRUPT our economy after his SIX BANKRUPTCIES?
Attorney Tristan Snell (prosecuted Trump University) Townhall tonight 6 - 7 PM
https://open.substack.com/pub/tristansnell/p/ps-town-hall-tonight-live-6-7-pm?r=24p296&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay
Beats ,me, but that they do is prima facie evidence that the average IQ of America is just a shade above moron.
I was at Costco. A vendor employee said she supported Trump. I was shocked. Then she said her two grandsons were Capitol police officers at Jan 6th! Now that spells STUPID.
Thanks for the validation, That employee has millions of brothers and sisters.
“Ellen” has a colorful personality. It always brightened my day chatting with her. But this broke our relationship. I don’t associate with people who support our destruction.
It is about choices. You choose to educate yourself or take the easy way. This woman, as have many in his “cult,” were lured with the false premise that Trump is rich, believing ‘he’ll make me rich’ without any research. They believe “The Apprentice” TV show is real.
It is a pattern of her life. She didn’t educate herself, chose to marry an alcoholic who abused her and is having to work as a vendor handing out samples at Costco. She refuses to allow me to educate her. She wishes to remain in her ignorant world.
Ellen's are legion.
Does she know that Trump hates dogs?
Marlo,I agree with you 100%. Why have anything to do with these disgusting people. There is no changing them,facts mean nothing.
35% +/_ 5% still equals about 100 million US adults who approve of thugs murdering citizens in the streets.
Yep, and this are our neighbors, they live next door, go to the same house of worship, shop at the same stores and will turn on you like a dime
Beware pf Neighborhood Watch.
UNTIL it is THEIR loved one.
Oy. I wasn't issued a hair shirt.
Yeh Daniel, better red than dead heh?
No pain, no gain!
Baloney. Still have hope.
Hope is passive, depends on a miracle or a champion. Young girl crawls into a 55 gal drum because she has hope. Man digs his own grave because he has hope.The Jew climbed into the box car headed to Auschwitz because he had hope.
Hope is a killer, be proactive do something.
You are twisted. Doesn't mean give up.
Guess who eventually prevailed?
My message has been the opposite of giving up, my message has been active resistance, your message is giving up by passive submission.
Get that straight
And as far as who prevailed, it wasn't the Jews shuttled to Auschwitz, it was a world, in particular the United States that fought back with active resistance.
You only win, if you fight, complaining is not fighting.
Well then again… The Soviet experiment died with Lenin. I don’t know of any countries that actually tried Communism for any sustained time —.you undoubtedly know more on that than me - but in retrospect I would rather be Red than dead: there is a certain finality to being dead that being Red avoids. I grew up surrounded by Birchers. Dead seemed good until I was old enough to weigh the options; that happened when I was about 14. Oppressive as Hell until they collapsed. Change is possible with governments, death not so much. Besides, I really like Prokofiev.
American consumption power is losing value. The economy of the European Union is the same size as the US, other countries are moving on.
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/the-world-files-for-economic-divorce?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=277517&post_id=186130591&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=2g7cs&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
Value is not the issue. The issue is consumption. So long as Americans consume the worlds products and resources, regardless of the price, then Trump has power over the world. The American appetite is insatiable,and apparently the demand is inelastic.
Years ago I had a conversation with someone at the vending machine. I had returned from overseas, and was aghast to find that candy bars were now $.25. it was $.05 in 1970. I told him that I would not pay such a price, he said "I will pay whatever I have to" The $.05 candy bar now costs 1.50 and Americans still pay the price.
Value is like beauty it is in the eye of the beholder.
I appreciate the candy bar example, but we ain't seen nothing yet. Countries are dumping our treasuries, China just sold over $860 Billion in US debt. If the bond market crashes, mortgage rates are projected to rise to 9% which in turn will exacerbate a housing crisis and lead to a recession. This is worth a watch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi8BV6bWsWg
Unfortunately, these people only care about their bank accounts of today, not what history says about them. And right now, this regime is writing the history books to flatter and/or lie about themselves because of their fragile 'masculinity', evidently.
1. We need unity. Jan. 30 — ♦️NATIONAL SHUTDOWN, 2nd General Strike - Protest ICE invasions & killings Plus other Vigils …
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/news/national-shutdown-over-ice-killings-in-minnesota-planned-across-us-including-in-ct-on-friday/ar-AA1V7aZP
2. Most of us care. According to any sources most CEOs are saying much the same as we do about murder in Minneapolis was we are. See NYT Dealbook yesterday. We need to harness the anger.
3. I'm hoping that history will say this was a phase - much like the civil war, the red scare, like the worst year for many of us - 1968.
Can there be an emergency court order arresting Patel, Gabbard & Bondi for taking these records UNLAWFULLY? And a demand to give them up (although they are probably copied)?
There should be a federal law allowing:
mail-in/absentee voting and convenient ballot boxes within a reasonable distance from someone’s house.
Voter’s registrations should not be allowed to be purged.
Possible. Contempt of Congress. They'd have to follow procedure.
TRump sees the world through only one lens.....MONEY
This sick psychopathic President does not care one damn bit about this nation. Anything he says about our financial positions is part of his fake America First shtick. Whatever he does to manipulate the dollar will be to directly benefit HIM.
In TRump's addled mind, he IS "the world", and we are just pawns to be used.
Then you have the Tech Bros and Crypto Creeps trying to break not just the United States but also the European Union. They want NO RESTRICTIONS on AI and the sick futuristic plans that the Europeans will regulate.
It is money over We the People and our "general welfare". That's the plot---don't lose sight of it. See you in the streets.
Yeah but there is another window of opportunity to get many of them to take Trump on.....
The tariff issue awaits.....
Many CEOs protest immigration policy and especially murder in Minneapolis....
Beautiful thing that the CEOs and sports world figured out they need customers and fans.
I also kinda love much of the rest of the world told him FU about the tariffs. If only SCOTUS will do the same!
Greenland's favorite sign now: YES NATO/NO PEDOS.
It's Epstein Epstein Epstein along with Russia Russia Russia.
Could this administration’s aim be a slow devaluation of the US currency have anything to do with attempting to show his crypto BS as a reasonably stable or a viable trading vehicle? After all, why would Americans buy crypto, much less the international market, unless the most stable currency in the world seemed shaky?
BTW I am blocked from comments on the Greg Palast paper.
I have posted this several times. I have asked Thom to interview the affiiant and asked him to show it to Palast.
“In December 2024, I was personally involved in an NSA‑authorized forensic audit of the 2024 election. Kamala Harris and Tim Walz won—by a wide margin. Trump lost dramatically. There are multiple layers of complexity to this cover‑up, including transnational organized crime syndicates that extend far beyond the United States and our elections. To that point, I work in the human trafficking sector, which intersects with the stolen election(s) and has ties to Trump and Epstein—not to President Biden, Vice President Harris, or Governor Walz, but to the Democrats and other allied interests responsible for burying the audit.”
— Adam Zarnowski, ex-CIA agent and author of Jörmungandr
https://thiswillhold.substack.com/p/ex-cia-whistleblower-the-nsa-audited
I do not know whether this is credibile, but if it is....
I also posted the link to the Pa lawsuit, elsewhere.
Daniel,what other Dems?
Alis,do you have a list of CEO who spoke out?Thank you for your comment about AI. They know the massive #of people who will lose their jobs as a result. What happens to the poor sols who lose their jobs so that little fucking South Korean,Jensen Huang(Nvidia) can become a trillionaire.
To repeat " What happens to all those who lose their jobs becaue of AI. Do you think for 1 sec they will ever get unemployment,there is not enough money in the US Gov't for that to happen. They will unfortunately die.
More billionaires will be made in Techland.
I recently was speaking with a friend of mine. We are cancer travellers together at 78 years old. I mention that not to garner sympathy but to explain why I haven't "torn my trump supporting friend a new ass". She has a different type of cancer that appears to be a "worse" form. Mine is chronic so thus far is being maintained hers is more severe so given the fact that we've be friends for over 60 years & her cancer seems to be more advanced I have not pushed her about trump. But, my patience is fading with all that's going on. She told me that she voted for trump the last time because he had done some good things. I did not query her on what they were/are. She also told me that she couldn't vote for Kamala because she was a flawed candidate. Again, out of deference to her condition I did not ask what those flaws are. But I am so ready to!! With your permission I'm going to list those "flaws" here so that I can get them off my chest.
I'd like to tell her: "Flaws, you mean like not denigrating vets, not lying every time a word is spoken, not running our economy into the ground, not endangering everyone with a desire to rule the world, not siding with Putin against NATO, NATO & all of our allies, not send federal agents to murder protesters exercising their 1st amendment rights, not putting a charlatan in charge of our health, not pulling the US out of international agencies & groups that have helped keep us safe, not set up her own crypto coins for herself & her husband, not insulted & slandered every type of immigrant that makes our country great, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera! As you are well aware I could go on for hours & hours listing more flaws she has but you more than get the idea.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to save my friendship & get some of my pent up frustration aired & off my chest.
You folks have a nice day, if that's even possible any longer.
Trump's Worldview is killing America.
Trump's only understanding of economics is extortion: "Accept my deal or I will fuck you up."
Likewise, his only motivation is money. "You want my help? What is in it for me?"
This same philosophy explains his tough-guy leader image: "If you fail to deliver, you're fired!" There is no coaching, no leading by example, no building teamwork, and no making decisions based upon consensus.
So, why do we not use Trump's worldview against him? "You're fired. and headed for prison."
Excellent piece Thom. You captured the gist of Kenneth Rogoff's book, "Our Dollar Your Problem". A book by Rick Wilson, "Everything Trump Touches Dies", is an accurate title I believe. It's hard not to wonder when not if Trump and his dangerous erratic behavior will set off the debt bomb. That is, a loss of faith in America and our currency.
What point is there to the science of economics when so much money is completely wasted on aimless war and conflict and feathering the many nests of fascist billionaires? Well, the answer is contained in the question--capitalism merely codifies and normalizes the acts of plunder associated with empire-building.
His sycophants say we have initiated a "war" against China over AI. We are amassing proportionally more of our assets than we did to fight WWI and WWII combined.
Sorta like the cold war on steroids.
China is winning that AI war.
Lesson about the 2025 USA inside occupation: Screen and hire competent people.
Trump screened and hired INcompetent people.
One theory is "rope a dope." If the administration is incompetent, it will self destruct.
Eric Trump publicly stated Trump “wouldn’t hire anyone smarter than him.” That sets a low bar. (He doesn’t read & is too embarrassed to release his school records).
The responsibility for this American self-suicide lies with the American electorate. This is what they chose, and this is what they get. The greatest danger to any democracy is the electorate.
with what has just happened in GA.....tRUMP is now moving quickly toward his goal of no free and fair elections.....if even any elections at all.
One of the allegations about our incursion into Venezuela is that the Batistianos convinced hin that Maduro could substantiate his claims about election fraud.
The "Venezuelan Connection": Convicted felon Sidney Powell and others claimed that voting machine companies like Smartmatic and Dominion had ties to the Venezuelan government and were designed to switch votes electronically.
The Alleged Source: These claims were supposedly based on an affidavit from an unnamed "Venezuelan military official" who claimed the 2020 U.S. election was "eerily reminiscent" of the 2013 Venezuelan election, where similar fraud was alleged to have occurred.
Disinformation: These claims were thoroughly debunked by U.S. election officials, cybersecurity experts, and judges as entirely unfounded. News organizations that repeated the claims later paid hundreds of millions of dollars in defamation lawsuits.
Trump doessn't take "NO" as an answer.
I would like to see the word "guard rails" retired for it is useless in today's world.
Agreed upon principles that were beneficial to all parties is the reality and calling it a guardrail, in this or the many instances it is now used, does not convey this meaning.
Trump, those who put him in power and are working to keep him there are not interested in anything but benefit for themselves. They laugh at the rule of law and the constitution; we must be clear in our language and intent to expose them and fight against the disappearance of truth in word and action.
I want them re-installed.
This is not relevant to today's post but I had to get it out there. In Cobb Cty,Georgia,the Cobb Cty School District has threatened kids who are members of abolish.ice.georgia that they face suspension,loss of parking privilges,sports, and make this a permanent part of the record encouraging college admission offices and future employers to take notice. These protests have been nonviolent. PLaese any and all of you who post here,use your email contacts to let them know what is happenig,contact you local media,your pols if you have Dem reps. This is far more that a Fascist takeover.
Thom, "What you're worried about has already happened." Capitalism and the culture it created have failed. The wealth in America has moved offshore. 80% of America's wealth is intangible, marks on a ledger. The corporate bond market has become a rollover debt market. The shadow economy and the commercial banks are funding each other.
Fiat is a noun meaning a formal authorization or arbitrary order, often used to describe a decree or command. Its origin comes from Latin, meaning 'let it be done.'
Adam Smith, Marx, and JMK have all been thrown in a barditch, used and abused. We are a fragmented culture and a fragmented economy, and that's the language you need to speak. We are a minnow caught in a tidal wave, and that's the language you need to speak. GDP is a tool used to placate the minions. Democrats can't fix this problem. You know that. They may fix the equality problem with a wealth tax, but we will all have less, and the SYSTEM requires MORE to survive. Everything you said today is correct, but you said it in a language that will not be heard. You need to speak in the language of "The Great Leveler." It's a book you read and want to forget. It explains what's happened time and again. We need to create a new illusion. This one has ended. YOU KNOW THAT!!!
"Trump’s own economic illiteracy and impulse-driven tariff policies, in other words, have damaged the value of our currency and may have put the status of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency at risk."
You read that right; one man, one blithering idiot has undermined our security and our standing in the world. However, he was enabled by innumerable people, many economists and others who might have had a better understanding of all this if they were not so gullible and ignorant about him, about human behavior, about science, and about history. Our collective ignorance is the problem. Our collective ignorance is in part because we have been the victims of our own hubris and imagined superiority. Maybe a readjustment leading to greater equality between nations will turn out to be the best thing for everyone. But do not thank Trump and do not think that this cannot end in WWIII. I, for one have never understood or thought much about learning about national and international finance and economics. But more people will need to get up to speed (with the help of mini-courses such as today's rant) if we are going to come out of this without major trauma. The first order of business though should be putting Trump and his minions behind bars. Let's refresh ourselves on how many times Trump is mentioned in the Epstein files and how undeniable the direct connections between those two pedophiles truly are.
Thom, I think you've made a very strong case for the "turning point" being Reagan. In that context trump is, I fear, the point of no return.
Our collapse isn’t a sure thing but its lole
Okay, try again. If the economy tanks - and I don’t see that it won’t - it’s going to take the majority of us, and a good part of the rest of the world, with us. This isn’t going to be a recession, more like 1929 but way worse. Countries that have decoupled have the greatest likelihood of staving off the worst but so much of the world’s productive base passes through the United States. My guess is that we will become increasingly irrelevant, that the New World Order that we have heard so much about will not include us. We will become essentially bankrupt. All but the richest who I darkly believe will set up fiefdoms, complete with their own private armies fighting over the tatters of our remaining resources. On the matter of a few decades, other than our own bloated military our only use will be to remind the rest of the world of the dangers over overweening hubris.