Homer_Rice

I've got some links lined up so we're ready to go! I'm writing for regular folks like you and me, not for the specialists If you read the articles I previously posted, note that Welsh a little, and the pdf link within, in particular, talk about tariffs in the "language" of modern, classroom-acceptable economic terms. It's as if what we know as political economy is a settled matter. And to be frank, that's pretty much the way it is taught. It's all within the framework I mentioned above. You can talk and dispute between those lines, but don't go out of them. So, virtually all modern economic thought is derived from the classical tradition, which is to say the liberal tradition. I don't want to go down that rabbit-hole here, but suffice it to say that I am asserting that the Adam Smith-Malthus-Ricardo-Bentham-Marx-et al, are all talking within those lines. It would be amusing to observe all the heated disputes between doctrines within the parameters of the classical liberal economic tradition if it were not for the fact this these squabbles gave us an entire century of war, death, and destruction. What was WWI about? WWII? The Bolshevik Revolution?" Short answer: Empire and geopolitics--oligarchical elites fighting each other for as much control of the planet as they can muster. Really dig into the causes of WWI if you want see this plainly for what it is. ...tbc...

Okay, this morning I watched the tariff YouTube that Jamie posted. I gotta say, it's not very good unless you are tied to classical-neoclassical-libertarian economics. It's kind of like both Keynes and von Mises got together and gave an old-timey 19th century American patriot a beat-down. Not many people really have an in-depth understanding of the history of the economic development of the United States, so I'm going to drop a few hints. As I said previously, I've been biased towards protectionism in general, ever since I had the opportunity to study under Ronald Shaw at Miami U. He's the author of a definitive book on the Erie Canal, "Erie Water West: A History of the Erie Canal, 1792-1854." He was my thesis advisor for a bit, but shit happened and I left Miami before getting it done. One of my big regrets in life. That exposure gave me and enduring interest in the American System of Manufactures and Clay's "American System." Two branches from the same tree. BTW, Shaw was a gentle man and a fine scholar. Rest his soul. ...tbc...

Here is the view of someone I respect. (Also, click through and read the pdf if you have time.) I don't agree with all of Welsh's conclusions, but he's makes some good points. End Of Empire: Effects & Theory Of Trump’s Tariffs BTW, I'm a protectionist at heart but this is going about it in all the wrong ways.

Is this a trick question? Yes. I think you're a decent guy, but you are clearly out of your depth when it comes to politics. I'd love for you to prove me wrong. I suppose what I think doesn't really matter because this is the off-season and I've got other things to do.

Are you all really going to spend the next 4 years beating up on the village idiot? What do you want to the world to look like? Get out there and make it happen. And quit moaning and complaining.

From Stephanie Kelton, MMTer: The Impact of 25% Tariffs on Canadian GDP The Bank of Canada vs Deepseek

Actually, a lot of judgement in that piece. It's accurate, but not neutral. I assume you are referring to Louis Farrakhan? What do you have against him? I've done some organizing with plenty of Nation of Islam members. They are pretty upstanding people once you get to know them. Same with a lot of the old-timey Black Panthers. I knew a few of them, too, and I respected them quite a bit.

Hegseth, What to Expect. Andrew Cockburn's thoughts.

Patrick Lawrence: Exeunt, the Man from Scranton

"We provide the first nationally representative long-run series (1870–2020) of incarceration rates for immigrants and the US-born. As a group, immigrants have had lower incarceration rates than the US-born for 150 years. Moreover, relative to the US-born, immigrants’ incarceration rates have declined since 1960: immigrants today are 60% less likely to be incarcerated (30% relative to US-born whites). This relative decline occurred among immigrants from all regions and cannot be explained by changes in immigrants’ observable characteristics or immigration policy. Instead, the decline is part of a broader divergence of outcomes between less-educated immigrants and their US-born counterparts." Law-Abiding Immigrants: The Incarceration Gap Between Immigrants and the US-born, 1870–2020 (.pdf)

fUCK gEORGE mASoN #%$ Signed, An old-timey UCONN fan with a long memory.😀 I personally hope that the Bengals opt for less razzle-dazzle and more thumping as a defensive philosophy. Build to a "This is what we are going to do, can you stop it?" kind of philosophy.

The Army of God Comes Out of the Shadows The Embarrassing Riffraff Of Evangelical Christianity Sees Señor T As God’s Wrecking Ball Unhumans: The Secret History of Communist Revolutions (and How to Crush Them)

“There are incentives for the DNC to keep us [members] apart,” Kapp added. “So we can’t organize, so we can’t talk to one another, so we can’t grow and learn.” Most crucially, “so we can’t organize against, or, if we wanted, in favor of whatever leadership wanted. By keeping us apart, they’re really able to organize and control these meetings from the top down.” Opening the DNC’s Black Box

Good stuff, Shebengal. I like Sherrod Brown, too. My first real in-person interaction with Dem Party "officialdom" came way back during Abscam. I was trying to get folks to give Harrison Williams a fair chance. Lol. Pretty naive in those days. All I knew was that the fucking FBI was up to it's old tricks. Still are. I've been pretty opposed to the Dem party inner circles ever since Hart (and the Third Way ) ran for office in 84. Looking for the beginning of the end for the party, that's a good place to start. Clinton was the first successful Third Way-ist and boy, did he do some bad stuff. Your insights on the housing industry are appreciated. I remember back in early in Ronnie's time that Regulation Q got dropped and that was the beginning of the end for the Savings and Loan industry. I had friends who stood outside Home Savings and Loan in Cincy trying to get their money when the run on S&L's was on. Fuck Walter Wriston, Charles Keating, McCain, and all those assholes whose greed turned one of the safest means for the working class to get a home into a speculative circus. The Dem party won't learn from this. They've never lost an election. They've only ever been let down by the voters. Bernie was the last chance in 2016 and 2020. And look what the party did to him. We'd be in a different world now had he been elected. Instead, a lot more people are going to suffer and the populist wing of the Dem party will have to be rebuilt. And even then... .

More on surveys and polls. Beware the Faux Populism of Corporate Democrats

T-Dub mentioned the Naval Service of President Carter, for which I have a great deal of respect. I know he interacted with one of my two McKee relatives who were also submariners. Go Bubbleheads!

Presidential Greatness Project Meh. I'm skeptical of any survey in which I, myself, cannot read the questions. Or know who the "experts" are. That's the case here. This is true of most polls, too. Generally, stuff like this is intended to nudge you into thinking in a particular way, as part of the crowd, instead of thinking for oneself. My advice would be to read a shit ton of history and come up with your own list. And then you can explain your thoughts better. For example, I've read a half dozen biographies on JQAdams--some better than others--So I now have what I think to be a reasonable understanding of his pros and cons. Also, I've read a ton of books diving into the circumstances of his period. Genuine knowledge requires a fair amount of work. A different kind of example: Some years ago Ron Chernow wrote a biography of U.S. Grant. Good book, but probably excessively "popularized" because of Chernow's track record, especially his bio of Hamilton. But an equally good bio of Grant is Ronald White's "American Ulysses." Indeed, White is better than Chernow on his pre-Civil War life, imo. Read 'em both (as well as his memoirs if you want to learn about Grant.) My point is, be wary of any superficial "ranking" or "survey" or "poll." Particularly if it is presented to you in a highly-charged environment. Edit to add: Plus, any outfit that has Al Gore on top of it's "Greatest Recent Vice Presidents" Survey has passed around too much Kool-Aid. Not the Jonestown kind, but the "Electric" kind. That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it!

What Is A Democrat?

My impression of you is that the deeper into the night you get, the drunker you seem to become.Nothing wrong with that. A Six Pack To Go

BREAKING NEWZ!!! Here is astonishing proof that history does indeed repeat itself. Just 4 years and 1 day since the Capitol building was stormed in 2021, it was stormed again today by uniformed soldiers carrying the American flag as well as pointy boom sticks. It definitely gave off a military vibe, especially the guy who kept saying, "Ready! Step!" over and over again. And to top it all off, they left a dead body in the foyer. People gave radical speeches and everything. What is America coming to?

I don't think I'm imagining this, but didn't Chase say earlier this season something along the lines of, "You can talk to a person but he's an adult and knows what he has to do." My memory suggests it was a locker room interview back when Burton didn't show for practice. If that's the case, then it may be that Burton has tried the patience of his peers somewhat. I trust the character of the receiver's room to know when to be helpful and when they know it's just a case of pissing in the wind.

Heavy RED rain... Happy Holidays Everyone (except for the Broncos!)

And they kept it a secret as long as they could. Some respect for the citizens of the United States. How the White House Functioned With a Diminished Biden in Charge

I can see it now, Go at the gas station:

Abre los ojos, hijo. Since when is it the point to fool the populace with some "slightest" "token" gestures? I mean, stuff like that never works, does it? E.g. Who is calling this Luigi guy a "terrorist" and who is calling him "the Adjuster"? Who is trying to fool who? And why? The point is that even if the non-Democratically selected candidate had won an election, the genocide would be ongoing in the same manner. The innocents would (AND ARE) still being murdered. And the other, newly elected person's admin will continue the same. It's genocide. The WaPo's motto is an insulting, "Democracy Dies in Darkness" when everybody with any sense knows that they are in cahoots with those who would pull the shroud. Democracy, of the kind we are talking about, was mortally wounded in 1948 and died in November 1963. Edit to name the correct year. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947, in well, 1947. Bonus reading: About Truman's famous op-ed in 1963