The Frankish Reich

So now more talking about the tax and spend provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. Biden was just a cheerleader with a pen! I just said I thought Ryan-Trump was more good than bad. And that the "bad" had more to do with no related component reducing federal spending. Good for you on your tax bracket. Now please send that EV tax credit back to the Treasury.

I am old enough to remember when "ring around the collar" was a bad thing that you needed a better detergent to eliminate. And surely Trump (if compos mentis?) too. So not only stupid plan, but also stupid metaphor.

You mean he doesn't write the tax code anymore. Because he was all-in on Paul Ryan's tax bill when Republicans held the House, the Senate, and the White House. So yeah, it's like how Biden didn't "write" the so-called Inflation Reduction Act. (The jury's still out on the Ryan-Trump legislation. Believe it or not, I believe it was more good than bad. But it needed to be countered with spending reductions. It wasn't, not even under Trump. And obviously exacerbated under Biden)

Wrong. Biden has allowed Trump's China tariffs to remain in place. I've criticized him for doing so. And I just said the IRA was bad legislation. Don't get so used to people here being 100% supportive of one side or the other that you assume everyone is like that. I'm not. Well, the China tariff is already in place. He was quite clear - he's contemplating a 10 percent across the board tariff on all goods/all countries. Regardless of what one thinks of Biden's approach, this is probably the single worst economic/trade proposal to come from a leading presidential candidate in my lifetime. Really, it is that bad. (and that's not even talking about how it would violate various treaties). Think about Buffalo with a huge diminution in U.S.-Canada trade for starters. And if he doesn't mean Canada or Mexico (or the EU, or Japan, or whatever), well, it wouldn't have been hard to say so. He said it: across the board.

I agree. The so-called IRA was bad legislation. I don't know what any of that has to do with Trump saying he's going to raise taxes. And yes, he said it - the suggested 10 percent tariff is indeed a "tax" -- “When companies come in and they dump their products in the United States, they should pay, automatically, let’s say a 10 percent tax,” Trump said on Fox Business. “I do like the 10 percent for everybody.” A tax that every American will pay when the buy pretty much anything, as it would pervade the entire manufacturing supply chain. Trump is searching (just like Vivek) for a new "build the wall" that sounds good to low information voters but that is either insane and insanely counterproductive (if implemented), or insane and certain to be conveniently forgotten or made to apply only to a narrow category of imports/countries if he is elected.

See what I just did? I "liked" a comment you made!

Well, then say what you mean. As it stands, we have a member of the capitalist/investor class calling out his colleagues for doing something he doesn't like, and saying he'll put a stop to all of that. How? To whom? With what limitations? Like I said: sounds oh-so-good and tough to low information voters.

OK, go ahead, defend this new special piece of idiocy: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/08/22/trump-trade-tariffs/ I've seen conservative lawyer John Hinderaker's comments posted here about other matters, arguing against the various prosecutions of Trump, etc. Here's what he has to say about this: I don’t suppose many people care, but Donald Trump’s latest venture into trade policy is idiotic. Trump’s tariff plan is so dumb that for once, the Washington Post is actually right: “Trump vows massive new tariffs if elected, risking global economic war.” Putting WaPo in the right isn’t easy, but Trump managed to accomplish it: Among the ideas [Trump and his advisers] discussed was Trump’s plan to enact a “universal baseline tariff” on virtually all imports to the United States, the people said. This idea, which Trump has taken to describing as the creation of a “ring around the U.S. economy,” could represent a massive escalation of global economic chaos, surpassing the international trade discord that marked much of his first administration. Trump advisers have for months discussed various potential levels to set the tariff rate, and they said the plan remains a work in progress with major questions left unresolved, the people said. But that didn’t stop the politician from breaking some news: On Fox Business on Thursday, the former president called for setting this tariff at 10 percent “automatically” for all countries, a move that experts warn could lead to higher prices for consumers throughout the economy and could likely lead to a global trade war. This is a Worldwide Depression Act. And he's running on it. And they say Biden has lost it.

I agree. I'm old enough now to have seen the changing of the guards many times over. It was a big deal when the very young (and highly annoying) Jane Pauley took over the NBC Today show, leapfrogging lots of older women. Then in time when she was pushed aside for a younger woman it was just all so unfair ...

I'm not sure what those terms mean. "Balanced and equitable" sounds vaguely ... redistributive? As in economic equity? Many economists have noted that we have moved toward much more of a winner-takes-all society. And yes, I agree that this, in a vacuum, is not a good thing. I find something disturbing and probably unsustainable in those stats that compare CEO compensation to average worker in the CEO's company's compensation. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren would tax the hell out of those big compensation packages (and accumulated wealth) and redistribute it. I'm skeptical that that would have the desired effect. I have mentioned that I think unions played an important role in the building of the American middle class and that this is one of the big changes in the last 4 decades or so -- the decline of unions. So that may play a part in evening things out a bit. Other than that, I have to admit I don't have any great ideas since the proposed cure (huge redistributive taxes, creation of massive tariff protections) is usually worse than the disease.

Yeah. That was an incredibly stupid comment. Joe has always let his mouth run in that embarrassing stream of consciousness way.

The jobs created are certainly not all minimum wage jobs. Many that are minimum wage - or higher - go unfilled for long periods of time. Revision or not, we still have a surplus of job openings to available workers.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/return-of-high-interest-rates-central-banking-federal-reserve-u-s-economy-290da4d0?mod=hp_opin_pos_1 In one sense the rise in rates is healthy and long overdue. The Federal Reserve sat on the long end of the yield curve for years after the financial crisis. The goal was to stimulate growth, which didn’t work, but a side effect was to distort signals from the bond market. The Fed is now selling off its bond portfolio at a rate of $900 billion a year, and the market can better navigate its own way. It’s no tragedy if the bond market is sending truer economic signals. Higher rates force investors and businesses to screen potential investments more carefully. Non-economic choices, like cryptocurrency and many SPACs, go by the wayside. The result will be fewer investment duds and in the long run faster growth. Some market sages think faster growth now helps to explain the higher long-term rates, with the Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow estimate that third quarter GDP will be 5.8%. I'm glad to see the return of a more normal interest rate environment. Yes, high mortgage and credit card rates and auto loan rates hurt borrowers. But I've watched older Americans who've saved prudently get driven into investments that I consider too risky since they couldn't live with savings account returns of 0.1 percent. They can now supplement social security and (for those that have it) pension income with a decent return on savings. My mother is in this situation, and I just helped her ladder CDs and treasuries to ensure a good, steady 5 percent return - enough to maintain her standard of living without risking loss, which makes a lot of sense at her age. And as I approach retirement age I'm starting to do the same thing for myself. Income investing. What a quaint, old-fashioned notion.

What does that mean?

He won an NFC championship in his 6th year. This is McD's 7th year.

Hey, Jack Poso, please tell me why God is now taking aim at Florida and Texas? Must be their un-Christian anti-LGBT legislation, right?

A reminder: YOU are the one who posted Pizzagate Jack's tweet saying God flooded Dodgers Stadium as retribution for the Dodgers' LGBTQ day. YOU are the one who apparently believes that a vengeful God singles out various communities for offending him and visits tragedy upon them.

The stats agree. Broken tackles on rushes? 5 all year. So he's not that guy. You never know when a RB has lost it until his performance declines. But I'm guessing he's more or less the same effective power runner he was last year with a pathetic Broncos offense. I hope I'm right.

A long time ago, on what I guess was his first tour of America, Billy Bragg played a tiny club gig I went to. Really nice, funny guy. Actually hung out with the small "crowd" (maybe 50?) after the show. Yes, a committed leftist and I certainly didn't then (and really don't now) agree with some of his politics. But a damn good songwriter and a man of integrity.

I think you're right. It was the era of urban redevelopment and a lot of those mega projects really had no concern for the fate of the existing neighborhoods, etc. As the documentary shows, O'Malley was more of an opportunist when LA politicians came calling, promising a brighter future on the west coast.

There's a really good documentary about how the Dodgers, with government support, essentially forcibly displaced a hispanic community that used to live there in order to build their stadium and it surrounding parking lots. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chavez_Ravine This after screwing over the people of Brooklyn. I will always hate the Dodgers ...

Actually, Jack Posobiec may have a theory of why God Hated Maui. Maybe one of our posters who follows him can fill us in.

I guess that's a reference to a different/related wacko conspiracy theory. The classic deflection. "What about the black Israelites?" Well they didn't kill a woman for the sin of flying the Pride Flag. We'll talk about them if/when they do. He was DR's enabler. His toady. His sidekick. Robin to his Batman. He renamed himself in honor of his exiled prophet. I'm sorry the 600 page colossus of stupidity that was the "Q Analysis" thread was taken down, depriving me of the chance to confront some people here with their support of his vile nonsense. You may still find some headnodding in the secondary Deep State War thread if you care to peruse that cesspool.

The point about Spencer Brown is a fair one. I appreciate the folks who watch the tape closely and report on what really happened. But before joining the Spencer Brown Fan Club, I will note that he has been consistently ... what's the word I'm searching for? ... oh, I know ... awful. Ever since taking over at RT in his rookie year. So any new confidence in him is based on the hope that he will be better this year because (1) he isn't playing hurt; (2) he's now more experienced; and/or (3) he'll be playing next to a more competent RG. As a realist, I will hope for modest, incremental improvement. Kind of "below league average, but no longer a huge liability."

It is well documented that there are crimes - nutty, preposterous crimes - committed by people who have been persuaded by QAnon and its mega-conspiracy ilk. From the guy who went in to Comet Pizza to find the children kept in the basement (there was no basement; there were no children) to this guy killing the lady over the Pride Flag. I don't know when some of you [turns his gaze in the general direction of North Carolina] decided that the new rhetorical approach would be "QAnon? That's a liberal media hoax! Some of you are the same fawning supporters of the guy who posted - in all seriousness - 600 pages of "Q Analysis" before he was sent packing to his own little playground. Where some of you still gather to share in his in-depth analysis of how the Clintons, the Jesuits, child sex traffickers, and, of course, The Jews run the world. People have been killed over such stupidity. Your flippant denials are in poor taste.