Everyone needs to watch “The Weekend Show” on YouTube from yesterday. Professor Reich and Anthony spent almost an hour explaining what the Democrats have in front of them going forward and what all of us need to prepare for over the next four years. Thank you Robert.
I just finished watching the video. Reich's call for significant change resonated. He rightly pointed out that a Harris presidency, while promising, wouldn't have been enough to fix our rigged economy. So, what's the game plan? Could breaking up monopolies be the key to a brighter future? Or are we headed for another Great Depression?
A constraint on Trump is his cognitive decline. Someone is directing the show at present, probably through the ways Trump is easily manipulated, flattery, and worship-like behaviors.
You are so right, Gloria! The orange man is just the "face" of the republican party. There are so many behind the scenes calling all the shots! I hope they begin to turn on each other and can't get as much crap done as they want!
We need to stress economic empowerment and strengthen the economy for all, including those who were deliberately left out of their fair share. I think attacks on DEI and the structural bigotry in this country are stupid. We should know our history and move forward with it to learn from it and not repeat the same mistakes.
I agree, Kathy! I said in an earlier post, I am working with different organizations recommended to me on this substack. I have thought about how great it would be if all of these different organizations that were working for the same thing - fighting for our country - would host some type of summit or convention where each organization sent representatives to collaborate and bring them together under one huge umbrella. That could be the start of the type of party that many of us want and need. There is such a huge amount of Americans right now that refuse to join either the republicans or the Democrats and in this election did not exercise their right to vote simply because they are fed up, frustrated and disgusted with the paths these two parties are taking. Many Americans do not feel they are being heard. These organizations could establish a third party that absolutely hears them and will work for them. I know many will say a third party is not the answer, but I believe it is and I also believe there are enough Americans that would get behind a party like that.
Here is the fly in the ointment. Regardless of Bessent. Trump's regime and cabinet will so disrupt,dismantle and demoralize America that Sovereign Funds and foreign bond holders will be unloading government securities as fast as they can.
The U.S. Dollar has value only because it is backed by the full faith of the U.S. Government, and under Trump the U.S. Government will hit rock bottom as he kills off initiative, incentive, morale as he proceeds with his regime of persecution, revenge, patriarchal theocracy.
The male dominated Christian right may get their Republic of Gilead, but it will be an Amish society writ large. Agrian, conformist, backward and stultifying.
Musk and his great Occupy Mars fantasy, won't be able to launch a Roman Candle when he and Trump get done.
Musk is supposed to be a genius. A genius would realize that you can't uproot a society and keep it as wealthy and productive as it was.
Musk’s incredibly sticky fingers only illustrate the nearly invisible line between genius and madness. Being the wealthiest man in the world does not give him license to destroy that world. I’ve said it before, but it must be repeated: Elon Musk and Trump‘s cabal of warped donors must be reigned in. They must be systematically prosecuted,imprisoned,stripped of their assets, and their companies nationalized for the common good. If these scoundrels imagined that their fortunes will be safe in the near future, they are seriously deluding themselves. Trump may appear demented, but like a fox, he will surely usurp their fortunes and thenthrow them all away like used toilet paper.
Yes, William,"Uproot anything and it dies is a basic truth which we ignore at our peril. Musk himself, along with millions of others have been uprooted, and that is the cause of our current world wide cultural crisis. Technological "progress" and economic growth have destroyed communities, customs and traditions. Some of the uprooted are dying of drug overdoses; others have succumbed to greed and amorality; still others try to find meaning and security in religious prophesies and dogmas. Musk evidently belongs to the class of immature billionaires who have succumbed to greed and amorality. Their inevitable internal rivalries will give us a chance to mitigate the harms they are inflicting on the country.
I'm with you, Peggy, on this. I changed my registration to independent after the election because I am fed up with the Democratic Party. It is just a money scrubbing centrist mess and I won't have anything to do with it anymore. It is a time for more parties to appear that represent something besides donors with big pockets!
Amen, Margaret! By unifying under one party that absolutely has the welfare and voices of 'We the people', we would be strong enough to wrest our country back from these crazies!
A dream that is shared by many. But one that nearly always fails, and is generally the seeds of ruin for any hope we have that any party can break through. The reason is: we keep diluting the party that has the big tent. We are a diverse public society, not given to the uniformity needed to take the path of, say, an Israel, or a North Korea. We should thank our lucky stars. And actually appreciate our diversity rather than attempt to channel it into a uniformity that is weak, vulnerable, and destructive.
Thanks, Tom. Obviously, not many agree with a third party, but I feel we need to generate ideas for solutions to help the Democratic party understand what so many Americans are upset about. Both parties pander to the ultra wealthy and monopolistic corporations and they are exactly the ones that need to be dealt with! The monopolistic corporations have a strangle hold on consumers and the ultra wealthy are using us as pieces in their little power chess game! This is a major concern for me. I have read and heard a lot of finger pointing and blaming but not very many ideas and suggestions for how to correct it.
How will you fund raise for this, or will people just be volunteers and work for free? What will be your priorities, as in issues you want to promote? Will civil rights be a part of it, as the public today has just shown they’re really not interested in that and chided the Dems for paying too much attention to woke? How will you get people to vote for you en masse to prevent someone like trump winning, as the diluted vote helped trump to win? Or does that matter to you that some one like trump could win?
I fear not. The foxes are already in the henhouse and won't turn on one another until all chickens have been consumed. Then.......a Depression greater than 1929. Perhaps it's a vale we have to traverse every century.
Yes, Michael, and the economic collapse could happen very soon. Much of the existing "wealth" is virtual, and it collapse in a matter of hours. Also, if China, Japan, and other countries were to dump US bonds much of the country's wealth would be wiped out. Much of it would depend on the mood of one man, the president of the US.
I read once that there is only so much actual CASH available that is shared by the whole world. The figure was in the low billions. All the rest of the world's wealth is on paper. If everyone started demanding their share of the pie in actual MONEY, the world's worth would collapse.
I agree, Carsten. We must follow those news sources we can count on to provide us with the truth. I go to 1440 news, Scribbs, Daily Kos and several substacks I subscribe to.
We have seen this play before, and here's the plot: Powerful septuagenerian politician s in rapid senile decline. Cynical subalterns hide his decline from the public while usurping the power of his office for their own devices. Hmmm . . . now, when was that? Oh, yes, the president last time was named "Reagan".
Look, folks: we have to stop electing these old coots to the most powerful and demanding office in the land. A person that old needs a regular schedule and time to recharge. Bur this It isn't a nine-to-five job with regular nappy times and warm milk and cookies . I am more than a decade older than these guys and I am in better shape. But I still need my warm milk and cookies !
Right now, Mr. Palmer, we could all use milk and cookies! Or how about a morning cup of coffee with a shot of "Especial" strength Kahlua? That's a warmth and mood booster if ever there was one!"
There should be an age limit without discrimination for running for Potus - 70 years of age sounds about reasonable. And a cognitive test to be taken ensuring that person is able to run on all "8 cylinders"... this should also apply to any members of Congress and Senate and Scotus and ......
Or, as Timothy Snyder pointed out, this scenario is very similar to when the aged Boris Yeltsin was in office... He found himself losing power, and surrounded with oligarchs.
Gloria--Donald Trump Jr. persuaded his father into inserting JD Vance into the VP position. He had his reasons behind what he did and in time I'm sure his purpose will become apparent. Most likely it will involve the 25th amendment at some point. Then even the cat women will have cause to worry.
Jr. is now working for 1789 Capital - "Trump Jr. will be a partner at the firm, which invests in companies that champion a right-wing worldview. On its website, the business states it is “anti-ESG,” or investments in environmental, social and governance issues that critics would doubtless describe as “woke.” https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-jr-white-house-venture-capital_n_6733a6f8e4b0d36d5d63cf63
Does anyone take Jr seriously? He’s coked up most of the time and can barely function. Unless he goes to rehab he’ll probably become so incapacitated he’ll just be another burnout. Zombie
@Gloria. I watched it and Robert is WRONG. We had the right message. We lost to psy ops, which is highly effective and which is the same method WE have used dozens of times successfully. At this time, the Russians are obviopusly at war -- not only with us but NATO. Doing the same stuff to our European allies.
The question that should be put by the talking heads is what we should do about it? How about the unitary executive!
At last! People are FINALLY getting the picture. It IS class war. Now what do the working and middle classes do about it? The Dems don't seem to care (and I'm talking about the leadership here, not necessarily rank and filers). If they did, they wouldn't be treating a crisis like "business as usual and mouthing platitudes about "the peaceful transfer of power".
Yep. At one time, a Russian asset such as Tulsi would be rejected and possibly wind up in prison. But the Dems did nothing about her. Their mistake. And no I am not a ReTHUG.
Personally, I think it’s too late to rely on breaking up monopolies to solve the greatest problems. Since the Reagan administration we have ( up until Biden ) turned a blind eye to the merger mania that has resulted in too much monopoly power. The power to restrain trade by blocking entry into the market, fix prices , control labor relationships and bribe politicians to do their will is not something that can easily be taken away . It should never been allowed in the first place . But here we are .
Progress will only be made when the average voter “ gets it “ that an unbridled market isn’t going to work in his/ her favor . Acting boldly in the public interest to free us from the Kleptocracy we now have , along with steps to reduce inequality and save our environment
Yes! This is "The Reagan Show" redux. How many times do we have to put septuagenarians in the most powerful office in the land only to watch them decline and fall under the sway of their subalterns?
The Great Depression was caused by our banking system not Tariffs. Some tariffs will be good, by the time trumpets 🎺 finished they could be bad ; but we know from experience Clinton’s Free Trade Policy only benefited Bill Clinton and Family …
I’m no fan of trumpet but let’s see what happens maybe a revival of our manufacturing abilities.
Putin will be addressed but how will determine the path of democracy in the world…
Spot on. The Human (Orange Stain) hasn’t been seen in public since the election. Think about this a moment: Our President-Elect mimicked a blow job during one of his masturbation rallies. Let that sink in a moment…This is George Orwell meets Aldous Huxley on steroids, with a dash of Kurt Vonnegut.
He’s definitely being manipulated, he’s not as smart in politics, he only understands the business behind it, and with no heart either. Too bad it’s not in a way where some good would come out of him…
I predict a lot of anger and an armed rebellion. Once people realize they have been conned, they will try to blame everyone but themselves. They will be unbridled in their anger. But they voted for Trump and his MAGA trolls. I knew better.
True. The devil’s bargain with the far right and Putin was to keep Trump out of prison by the election and in return he will bend to their will. Trump really does not have a core belief in anything but himself, so he will do whatever feels good for him or enriches him. However this makes him an unreliable puppet, so JD Vance is there to ensure Putin, Thiel, The Heritage Fdn and Musk get what they want.
Of course, breaking up monopolies is essential. Economic consolidation is a cancer on democracy and on the market economy. Much as the right wing rails against the USSR and its centralized command and control economy. Very large corporations are no different. They have the same organizational structure and operate exactly the same way.
Sector oligopolies are not market-based sectors.
Monopoly are not going to be broken up by conservative government not how that dog hunts, not unless they are political flows in which point the simply going to be forced into the hands of political allies.
Keith, people are presupposing that we can come back after the next four years.
What part of Kevin Roberts "this is the 2nd American Revolution, and it will be bloodless if the left allows it" does no one understand.
Project 2025 is already in motion with Trumps cabinet picks and his non transition, and privately funded vetting. There isn't going to be a chance to redo this in four years.
1933 Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor, Aug 1934 Hindenburg died. Hitler then assumed the role of President and called for a plebscite, a national referendum, to gain approval for Adolf Hitler's assumption of supreme power. The referendum was associated with widespread intimidation of voters and significant electoral fraud.
There were no more elections after that.
Steve Bannon , now released from prison, is keeping a low profile, but he is the architect of deconstructing the administrative state, and expect him to play a role as an advisor to Trump.
Meanwhile we are like crows, chasing bright shiny objects and thus are distracted from what is really going on.
In my humble opinion, distraction, lack of education, algorithms and money controlling the national discussion are some of the bigger issues - leading to these issues that are similar to the 1930’s (although not caused in exactly the same way- the emotional reaction by a number of the population is the same). Anything out of control: greed, power, propaganda, etc. is typically not good for humanity. Even if you THINK you’re the victor- eventually even that has a downfall.
The only thing I can think of to add to your excellent comment is the magnitude of self-serving entitlement within society. It pervades society from the top-down. We have become victims of our country's immense prosperity and enormous resources.
A lot of so called Christians in the United States harp on things like pornography as the root of evil in this country. A Quick Look at facts, reveal it is actually something else that is causing evil things to happen. GREED has caused more problems in the United States than anything else. Funny, greed never seems to be addressed by the Christian population of the United States.
Yes this is it. It’s laughable democrats talking about midterms and 2028. This was our last actual election. Future “elections” will be for show. Trump and his dynasty are going to reign terror for many years to come. Listen to his words. He’s told us his plan.
I agree, but the numbers of professionals in politics is legion. I am getting a news letter from one that claims to have ousted Gaetz, and they want a donation.
It is their livelihood, their social status HRm, they have to keep the myth alive, What else can they do? Lead the counter revolution? Too much risk in that. They are buggy whip manufacturers in the dawning age of automobiles.
Sudebaker made wagons, but saw the future and started making cars. They saw too far into the future though, I think the 1953 Studebaker Commando is the prettiest car ever made, but America was not ready for the future, it still isn't, they are addicted to the box like the KIA Soul.
Prepare yourself for the future to be. Be prepared to submit, to resist passively or aggressively, or get a passport, be ready to liquidate your assets and remove to a more friendly location.
Most of us will not have any problem especially if they are white Christians and will submit and obey, or pretend to be good obedient Church going Christians.
That portion of the population that are in the sights of the Christian Nationalists, should be getting their passports, and making plans to liquidate their assets.
An offshore account almost mandatory.
AS regards resistance, go analog, and I mean paper, pen, messenger because the NSA has the worlds largest data center in Bluffdale, UT which monitors and screens all electronic transmissions, even this comment.
William I refuse to take their abuse. I’m up for a revolution to take them out of power. This May likely be the secession of states like California to start with. The current business model of the 50 states is no longer viable. Time to charter a new constitution where the tide rises ALL boats.
I am fortunate enough to live in a state with a govenor that has balls and foresight, Jay Inslee, he has been replaced by another kick ass Democrat.
Right now there are three states with governors with balls, Washington,California and Illinois. Oregon is iffy, my hope is in secession, I am cautioned by the fact that Washington and California have military installations, and the President is the CIC, and he will replace the Generals in the Pentagon with toadies.
Be warned that the NSA Data Center in Bluffdale ,AZ listens in on and analyzes every bit of electronic communication.
Fair warning, William, but many of these "Christians" are not true believers. JD Vance is an example. They are 100% venal and are using Christians to gain and secure power. Putin's Russia is their model.
Well said, William. I am curious to see what happens in two years when the midterm elections come up. If there isn't any midterm elections, he will have won as supreme commander.
Peggy, being more the optimist than my comments usually reflect, if the damage caused by the Clown Car in two years is followed by the absence of a mid-term, perhaps that is what we need to unite against the evil clowns?
Who can say, Marge? I don't know what will happen in two years. Some comments I have read leave me with a feeling of dread, disappointment and despair! It would seem it does not matter what we attempt to do, we are doomed to either be sheep that are herded according to the supreme power or we will be jailed because we fight for our Democracy. It seems it is a damned if you do and damned if you don't scenario.
It will take more than two years to fully deconstruct our democratic republic and it's constitutional guarantees.
I can see the charade of a mid term., by that time the Democratic party will have been reconstituted with MAGAts.
Trump has promised revenge, I believe him, everyone else should as well. He will have rebuilt the administrative state with true believers and sycophants which will not only enable him but do so enthusiastically.
The judiciary will be his, even now they are jumping ship, like Merchan, to save their own skins, LEO has always been conservative and much of it, Federal, State and Local are already Trump Humpers. Those that aren't want to survive and if possible prosper.
The Military (Pentagon) will be decapitated and in it's place sycophants like Gen Charles Flynn, Mike Flynns broher and a Jan 6 co conspirator that wasn't even investigated.
There will be two types of Democrats, those that stand up and are persecuted or jailed or worse, and those that cave, and play at the loyal opposition, but not too seriously.
The average IQ of Americans is 98, then factor in ADD, low attention span, lack of interest and propensity for gullibility (religious belief and superstition is a factor)
While you're on the subject of YT posts, Keith, our fellow Substacker, Heather Cox Richardson's recent chat with the youngish technocratic looking (but quite street smart) Brian Cohen Taylor is also an absolute cracker, while readers should check that out.
Keith, what was the title of the program? I’m looking but the one I see that most closely matches the timeframe to which you refer is about Musk. Is that it?
Trump is a threat to the stability of this country. There is absolutely no evidence of a concerted effort to alter our future, for the better. Trump is a disaster with no indication of a plan that will change what we have in favor of what he wants. In essence, time is moving us from good to something unimageable. Trump is surrounding himself with individuals who can do little besides utter the word "Yes." For the moment we are stuck holding our breath while we witness what Trump plans on doing with our country.
Putin put him in office. Russians, their agents and willing idiots committed election crimes, national security offenses, which should be the top priority.
Unfortunately, Biden and Garland didn't agree. Trump and his cabal of kleptocrats have been a freight train barreling down on us for over a decade, but the Dimocrats apparently just couldn't see it coming.
Good article, but there is no mention of an emergency in the article.
Congress gets sworn in on Jan 3rd, Trump on Jan 21st, Trump will have a compliant congress at his service, he will need a trigger and it will start with
an event that gives him the excuse to declare martial law.
And for those that think the military will hold. I have two words, Charles Flynn
Charles is Mike Flynn's brother. Charles sat at the desk in the Pentagon on Jan 6th, when the phones were ringing off the hook,with calls from a panicked Nancy and Congress.
Two weeks before Jan 6 Trump had fired the Secretary of Defense, Esper, and the Secretary of the Army, and replaced them with Acting SecDEf Christopher Miller and Acting Sec of the Army Ryan Mahoney.
It was part of the plan, and only the Sec of Defense has the authority to release he National Guard.
Pence knew that, but when he heard Hang Mike Pence, he called the Acting Sec of the Army, who, though he didn't have the authority, released the National Guard.
For Charles service the Pentagon promoted him to Commander Pacific Forces and Biden later promoted him to 4 star general.
He will make the perfect Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,this brother of the treasonous Lt Gen Michael Flynn
That is what I have been saying for the longest time. SCOTUS gave Joe the power to save the country, but he won't lift a finger. Either he is blithely unaware (and the question of his mental faculties is legitimately raised) and he is being manipulated like a puppet by his staff or someone on his staff,or he just doesn't care and wants to stay above it all and slip away into a peaceful retirement.
Ali Velshi spent a whole week going through Project 2025 chapter by chapter.
It is no secret what the future looks like, the only thing I don't understand is why no one is paying attention, and continue to act like this is a temporary situation.
Time for resistance and the Democratic Party is not the organ for resistance. It is part of the problem.
Ayn Rand, once the darling of libertarians, declared that racists conservatives are the worst enemies of capitalism. They are now in power and intent on destroying the country's constitution. Hopefully, there are still some wise capitalists willing to stop them.
I know it is part of leftist orthodoxy that capitalism is bad, but Marx said that capitalism was the engine of progress.
Were it not for markets, a medium of exchange and the ability to pull resources and invest in an enterprise with the expectation of reaping a reward, we would all be living in a Tudor world,
Capitalism per se is not the problem, the problem is unregulated, undiscipline capitalism, just like government is the problem, the problem is run away government.
The absence of, as John Kenneth Galbraith put it, a counter valing power,
Everything in the eco sphere,including man, needs a counter vailing power. The counter vailing power to the fecundity of Thompson Gazelles is the Cheetah. The park rangers at Yosemite discovered that the herds of elk and deer needed a countervailing power, so they imported wolves. Run a populations of herbivores were destroying the very eco system that sustained them.
Thus it is with capitalists. An economy is an eco system, too many capitalists with unrestrained power will inevitably destroy the eco system upon which they feed.
True,William. The horror is that the crypto currency gamblers are in collusion with the fossil fuels industry, because their trades require an enormous amount of energy. Already, they are pushing to go nuclear, even though we have no way to dispose of nuclear waste..
Here is what frosts me about crypto. The very people that rant and rail about "fiat money" not being backed by anything want us to buy crypto.
The US Dollar is backed by the full faith and credit of the nation, Crypto is based on a myth, it is an intangible created by someone's computer.
As regards destruction of nuclear waste. Browns Gas, generator will sublimate nuclear waste at the atomic level., It has been proven, but is a threat to the powers that be and is thus squashed.
Yes, William, an economy is an ecosystem. Yet much of economic theory is based on the Adam Smith model, based in turn on Newton's mechanistic model of the universe. Real economics should be probabilistic and organic, and it must incorporate possible Black Swans, as Nassim Taleb has argued.
I have Taleb's book, did you know that Taleb is an alternate spelling of Talib, which means student.
My undergraduate is in economics, yet today I am skeptical of economics as a discipline.. There are some truisms to economics like supply and demand and marginal utility, but "economists" make pretense that their "discipline" is scientific because things like economic order quantity, supply and demand and marginal utility can be quantified and predicted by application of algebra and regression analysis. And it can't, because of, as you say, probabilistic uncertainty.
Human taste is unpredictable and unquantifiable. My MIL has thousands of dollars of Beanie Babies. My mother, who was on social security, waste her heard earned money in worthless paper money from all over the world because some scuzzbag, hawked it and answered her letters.
Many a retailer has excess inventory which they in turn sold at a lost to that right wing overstock.com, because they relied on a computer program and economic order quantity.
The thing about ecosystems is that they depend on a balance between predator and prey, a counter vailing power. I harken back to my Yellowstone and wolves analogy.
In human society there has always been and will be predators, and we are in essence prey. The problem is that the ecosystem is out of balance, the predators have too much power and are in control of the ecosystem.
When you walk into a car dealership, you are prey entering the predators den, and most prey are ill equipped to deal with the predator and thus defend against him.
Law enforcement are predators, in fact if you re-imagine most relationships including pastor/priest/rabbi/imam as predators and people as prey your perspective, your political, economic relationship even romantic instantly changes.
Not all relationships are predator prey, there are many that are cooperative and mutual, and in the best and longest lasting personal relationships are mutual and cooperative.
"The best and longest lasting personal relationships are mutual and cooperative," is the message we must send to those addicted to Trump and Fox News. I admire your wisdom, William!
I've been sayin that it's old wine in new bottles. Will work now that SCOTUS granted the presidency extraordinary powers. Trump tried a lof of it previously.
When are people going to wake up and either remake the Democratic party (an exercise in frustration imo) or start a party that can/will act as a vanguard for the working class and a party of, for, and by the working class? We need to do something to counter the Trump BS and the Dems are busy twiddling their thumbs and mouthing platitudes about "the peaceful transfer of power, seemingly not caring that this is NOT business as usual.
After I parachuted into Thrace,with my team, we exfiled via a bus, we stopped and bought bottles of wine, these were old bottles, probably recycled from WWI, filled with new wine and it tasted like it's previous contents, kerosene.
I'd like your opinion if you have time to answer. Due to the fact that Trump had court tomorrow #Nov262024 enwhich he could've & should've been sentenced to at the minimum of #34yrs @ #RikersIsland #JurorsSpoke #JudgeMerchan should NEVER have continued DJT's case. Donald should still have court tomorrow morning.
Trump was facing up to #126yrs in prison tomorrow for 34 Felonies. 1-4yrs per felony could have been his sentence.
It is absurd to think Democrats are legally allowing a Dictator who hacked our elections via #Starlink and to take over #wtp #WhiteHouse! #YouDoTheCrime #YouDoTheTime
Trump is NOT above the Law. Any law. Trump is a Convicted Felon.
As an Insurrectionist Donald Trump was not eligible to run for ANY public office legally. Who allowed for him to even run for a position let alone the highest level in our land?? Why was he permitted to do this?? Trump was disqualified PRIOR to the election; legally being an insurrectionist.
The #14thAmendment Section 3 clearly states this is illegal. How is the #Biden Administration letting this occur?? Why are we not yet protesting??? @POTUS @FLOTUS @VP @KamalaHarris
Whose attention does this need to be brought up to; to END this chaos??? Kamala Harris was the ONLY "ELIGIBLE " "Elect-table" candidate in #Election2024 for #POTUS besides the others of a 3rd party. Donald Trump was DISQUALIFIED due to the 14th Amendment Section 3.
We are running out of time. This is beyond terrifying. Yet we as a Democracy MUST STAND UP AGAINST the evil law breaking Felons and take a stand. NOW. We rightfully know that DJT could NEVER run for "public office; legally." DJT was ineligible to be a candidate in #Election2024.
Fortunately, we have seen 4 years of his experience leading a country with no wars, virtually no unemployment or inflation, and low number of illegal aliens in spite of relentless false Russia collusion from democrats and a worldwide pandemic.
And everyone bitches at what is going on in China, but cannot change a thing in the USA. Hmmmm.....the land of the free......don't think so. Sad and stupid. I just hope you don't bring Europe down with you as has happened in the UK already!
Professor Reich: if only we could figure out how to reign trump in so the everyday worker doesn't starve to death or go bankrupt from healthcare costs. surely these two likelihoods will also damage wall street?
i also am confused why musk was so determined to come to america illegally if he wants to blow the place up, causing mass starvation, homelessness, and death due to violent crime? okay, maybe not so cinfused, since "follow the money" seems to be his sole mantra.
GrrlScientist, it is my belief that the muskrat simply enjoys seeing how much chaos, hurt and ruination he can cause and delight in others' misery! I believe he is a sick individual. I absolutely wish President Biden had taken away his government contracts.
I think Musk shares Trump’s sociopathy and narcissism, but I think that could be a big problem for him with Trump, as Trump will never allow someone to publicly compete with himself for the spotlight. They could very well clash. Also, who in the hell gave Musk and Ramaswamy the right to introduce policies that would undermine government functions and destroy our civil service system.
Perhaps the everyday MAGA worker and voter should have stayed home from rallies and stopped buying Trump momentous trash! They are unlike us Democrats who went to college, worked hard our whole lives, rarely went out to eat, fed, housed, and clothed our children, saved for their education and our retirement only for the MAGA brainwashed idiots or the greedy wealthy who want to steal our savings by not paying, their fair share of taxes , and stealing our social security and Medicare! I will not feel sorry for any of those MAGAS that caused this destruction of our Democratic Republic but only survive ourselves! To hell with! Let them pray to their false GOD trump!
Not only the college graduates. I've graduated high school and have been working class my entire adult life (though I've always sought to educate myself further and stay politically aware). Never taken welfare, though I have had to access state disability and unemployment, though I don't consider that welfare. It's not only the middle classes that will be hurt by the Trumpist crap, but the working class as well (I survived by working overtime, which he wants to get rid of, because a CNA's pay isn't all that great). The problem with the Dems is that they've ignored the working class. The only reason I voted for them is that I knew Trump will be actively anti-working class and I consider third parties little more than spoilers.
You sound as if there is something wrong about being on disability. That is victim blaming and masking this as a welfare mother accusation. There are a lot of disabled people in the country. Being on disability is not really an answer. The restrictions on how much you can make and save in a bank account keeps disabled people not only in poverty but in institutions where they are often left in inhumane treatment. People who receive disability now had to jump through humiliating hoops. Many people on disability have their social media apps under surveillance. Medicare doesn’t cover as much as it used to. Disabled people will have whatever they made taken away. They are the most vulnerable among us. No, being disabled is not a crime. Being on disability if you need it is a positive guardrail. By the grace of God go you.
Oh, really? WTF? I said I do not consider disability or unemployment to be welfare. And I never said I didn't like welfare. I have never taken welfare because I didn't need it.
And I've been down and out and homeless, so don't preach to me about "There but for the Grace of God go you". I always defended those on various assistance programs because I know that safety nets are necessary and keep people alive. Go do your second-guessing and nitpicking elsewhere. Don't presume to tell me what I'm saying or thinking.
Chaos almost always benefits the wealthy. Elon and Donnie want to deconstruct government enough to create chaos and then reap the benefits of companies selling off assets, banks taking over peoples homes (so companies can buy them up and rent them out at obscene prices or as Air B 'n' B's. Corruption and chicanery is much less noticeable during times of upheaval.
Thank you, Robert, for the thinnest of silver linings in a dark future. But it really makes sense, seeing that despite all his bluster Trump can’t afford to alienate his CEO and billionaire buddies.
Their loyalty is only to get their tax cuts back, and then after that, he only represents a liability because of his mental volatility.
They wouldn’t mind pivoting to Vance who is controlled by billionaire Peter Thiel. One false move by #DonaldDuce and the rumblings of power brokers considering a more predictable future through regime change might leak out onto the congressional floor.
I think you may be misunderstanding what rich modern 'investors' want. They are gamblers. They don't want high and solid share and asset prices, they want volatility that will make shares and assets plunge and soar so they can short on the way down and buy on the way up, sometimes swapping from buy to sell in milliseconds.
But most of all they want insider information. They want a corrupted system that gives them the heads up about what will happen next. I think THAT is what Trump has promised them - a crash timed to order, and insight into his announcements and policies that'll allow them to pick up an entire American economy off the floor. The gambler's dreamscape!
Most of the wealthy capitalize on finding weakness and exploiting the vulnerable. I doubt many want corrupted systems and volatility. They need things to be predictable, and very few consider themselves as gamblers. They like to place educated bets.
Human extinction seems the only answer at times like this. Watching Biden be so PROUD of his economic policies and completely unable to respond to the US being overtaken first by oligarchy and now fascism. He never was any kind of great statesman. He is proving that .
I just read that in 2022 on Planet Earth, this lost place, every ten minutes a woman is KILLED. I am certain it is more frequent now, having watched the white men POUR into the polls to vote for RICH EVIL WHITE MAN. Don't wanna change those nasty, rotten behaviors, do we, balls & cock!!
Vance is more disgusting than Trump! His wife is nothing but a hand maid! How disgusting for a smart Indian woman! Why didn’t she just stay in India where she was a third class citizen!
Vance lacks the “charisma” and “conman” qualities that brought Trump his power and perceived fame. If Vance moves into slot #1 maybe there’s a slim chance of salvaging what’s crumbs are left.
People will say I’m crazy, so be it. The only way out of this mess is a freakin revolution. Thinking our “states” can all live in harmony is delusional. Ain’t gonna happen. Time to consider a different type of country split into 2 or 3 smaller countries.
Yes, but one call by diaper donnyboy to Vladimir Vladimirovich and these power brokers would find themselves indignitassed if they're too close to an upper storey window, receiving tea from someone unknown, or receiving cologne from a strange source.
Maybe the "enemy within" needs to step up and save the country from a brutal authoritarian regime of kleptocratic thugs drunk on power. It is obvious the Fourth Estate isn't going to do its job. And, Dimocrats are locked into doing the same things over and over and expecting a different result.
And they're locked into doing the same things over and over again and expecting a different result by their donor class who will defund them if they start doing something completely different.
Trump is a stupid felon, rapist and a major crook. He needs to be locked up. The rest of worlds leaders despise him except for a few. He has destroyed everthing he touches.. the Supreme Court sucks.
Wonderful article as it made me think. First and foremost no one party should control both branches of congress as this is suppose to reassure that compromises are reached in governance of the country. Suppose the Affordable Care Act is deleted and orange man’s minions wake up and smell the coffee. The working man and woman need affordable health care not only for themselves but also to raise a family. Belief in making the world a better place and to pay taxes is a great and valid endeavor. However it needs to be fair and just.
Bessent was a leading member of the team whose bet on the Black Wednesday collapse of the British pound garnered over $1 billion for the firm. His bet against the Japanese yen in 2013 brought additional profit. He propses a three-point economic plan for Trump modeled on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's "Three Arrows" economic policy. Bessent praised Trump's proposal to implement broad tariffs. Regarding Trump's pledge to impose blanket 20% tariffs on all imports, Bessent argued that these "were maximalist positions that would probably be watered down in talks with trading partners."
On other sites I've been discussing arbitrage of at least part of the national debt. Borrow at low rates in Switzerland, Scandinavia, Japan, etc. and retire high interest debt.
IMHO Trump wants to become as rich as Putin and the Treasury is his pot of gold. I expect DOGE to be the culmination of the privitization started by Reagan and GWB. Sale of government assets in real estate, sale of intellectual property, like "naming rights," etc.
Contracts often went to incompetent companies. I expect Trump to try to take a piece of all that action.
In healthcare, many Republicans have repeatedly voted to completely privatize Medicare. Many want to kill chidren's disability benefits, return SSI to the states, etc. They've tried several times to force the SSA trust funds into default.
Imagine "Trump House" painted red. Sale of the national highway system. Musk NASA. Bezos postal service.
They want to kill off many of us by depriving us of affordable food and medical care. Cryptocurrency has the potential of causing Great Depression 2.0.
DOGE: Department of Government Efficiency. But it can't be a department without legislation. The Senate has shown it has a spine, made of jelly, but still something. Hope the worst will be blocked, slowed at least, until maybe in the midterms folks will have seen enough to vote out the worst MAGA types...
DOME department of market efficiency - which is what the FTC et al are about with their antitrust actions, though the inefficeincies are bigger than that.
I agree, minus the word efficiency. The word is in "the eye of the beholder." The market is by its nature inefficient, but very effective at resolving demand and supply in a highly specialized economy. Governments also by nature is inefficient but very effective. Government is God, just not the almighty one.
The "Three Arrows" is a set of economic policies that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe introduced in 2012 and 2013 to revitalize the Japanese economy:
*Aggressive monetary policy: To end deflation and achieve stable 2% inflation
*Flexible fiscal policy: To support a strong recovery and mitigate external risks
*Growth strategy: To boost corporate competitiveness, promote innovation, and develop new growth industries
The idea behind the "Three Arrows" was that these policies would complement each other to create a more dynamic Japan with higher growth and lower risk of fiscal crisis.
@Daniel. Japan has been fighting deflation for decades. Not a problem here (for now). So what takes the place of that first "arrow" in Trump's world? I believe it will be a British-style shrinking of the administrative state (up to 25% of the economy) leading to a massive recession, leading to actual deflation... So it's the opposite of Abe's plan.
I've been at this a long time....I think we could fund our goverment in large part by being recouped for price fixing, price gouging, collecting from deadbeats, and damage litigation for stuff like fraud and pollution. 11 states are currently suing big oil.
I know I sound overly cynical but many tax avoidance strategies are fraudulent but IRS is underfunded or bought off. Where I live, many of the most wealthy do not pay taxes -- mainy borrow from themselves. If equity increases say 5% per year, they borrow that amount.....
Consider Trump. How is it that middle class folks paid more in tax most years than he did. He was convicted of 34 state counts of tax fraud....that has to ripple into federal liability,,,,,, What would the penalty be for someone who claims to have more than 10 billion?
@Daniel. Their whole plan is to de-construct the administrative state so that government can't do anything to limit how moneyed interests use their money, or to restrict the ways they contrive to remove ours from us. The big problem is that breaking down regulation, anti-monopoly measures and social services gets the rich guys more money, which they then use to do more of that. As you know...
The Federalist Society identified my position as one that could be displaced and Trump eliminated "merit selection" in an executive order in 2017. After the recent SCOTUS term, it will be a lot easier to reinstate the spoils system and eliminate civil service, which we've had since 1887. I retired in 2018. My colleagues are the equivalents of dodo birds and mastedons, extict, as Hamburger's proteges have waged war on judicial independence and due process in adminstrative law.
Shinzo Abe's "three arrow" economic policies, known as Abenomics, were introduced in 2012 to revive Japan's stagnant economy. The three arrows are:
Aggressive monetary policy: Increasing the money supply to combat deflation.
Flexible fiscal policy: Boosting government spending to stimulate economic growth.
Structural reforms: Implementing changes to increase competitiveness, such as labor market reforms and deregulation.
The impact of Abenomics has been mixed. While it initially led to moderate economic growth and a boost in corporate profits, the long-term effects have been less impressive2. Inflation targets were not consistently met, and concerns about Japan's high public debt remain. However, it did help Japan avoid a deeper recession and brought some positive changes to the economy3.
PS. Mr AI is picking my brain for somebodys big database in the sky. It asks me questions as part of its response to my questions.
A great run down of past and current events as it goes over the average working person’s head; maybe it’s too hard to believe as such aberrations are on-going. In any event billionaires are attempting to buy America a slice at a time. The ultimate outcome is pretty obvious. A kingdom populated by serfs.
The government default is for the private sector to meet societal needs. But the private sector did not step up to provide Medicare type coverage for the public. Not profitable.
That's kinda why the government stepped in with Medicare.
So what has changed to think the private sector can do the job?
Nothing. Except that the GOP will now be in charge.
The private sector gains profits by cherry picking customers.
The point of government is a collective guarantee to cover those who are a bad risk for profit makers.
Such thinking is totally anathema to Republicans. At least it seems to be based on their actions.
Starting with GWB Medicare has been undermined so that a lot of it has been privatized. "Medicare advantage" is not Medicare and the advantage gores to the insurance industry.
Republicans historically opposed all Medicare....and Social Security, every other "benefit." Rick Scott publicly said that all benefits should be "sunsetted." Came up to votes for the budget many times and when Dems had Congress, virtually every Republican voted to privatize virtually everything.
Trump is a grifter. His primary goal is to steal as much as he can. All the other stuff is inconsequential to him.
The ideologues are throwbacks. We had antiFederalists like Patrick Henry who wanted a national religion. Lots of "Confederates" who valued property before civil rights.
Yes, the economy is rigged, and the tariff move is a bluff, but not one without substance, after all he did do it during his first term. The one thing we all must remember from trump (who does not deserve capitalization - forget "Bridge") is that he wants attention, and the power resulting from that attention. If we refuse to give it to him, that causes his mistakes. The entire cabinet, including Musk's 2 trillion figure, is a bluff designed mostly to move attention away from real problems and enable big orange to maintain everyone's eyeballs.
Still, fact is he stole this election. His support was diminishing, not growing. This is plain in-your-face Hitler-like theft by a Hitler-like group of domestic terrorists. It's time for Democrats to stop being doormats, and stop this fascist from taking power even if it means being perceived as fascist ourselves. Why wait for Trump to walk through that door, take that oath he intends to break, and declare a State of Emergency so he can start harming people? Biden needs to call a state of emergency instead, postpone the results of this election until it has been thoroughly investigated along with 2016 and 2020 to uncover and expose Trump's successful and unsuccessful theft of those elections. Cheaters cheat. High turnout is good for Democrats. The only time it wasn't in my lifetime was right after 9/11. We haven't had such an event, unless you count Trump's allowing thousands to die needlessly from COVID and crashing the economy. Those who voted for him did so because of his fraudulent statements and promises, so their votes were also stolen from them. Hitler took power because no one stopped him. Biden can stop him and that's what needs to happen now.
I don’t think voting was tampered with. It was more of a conglomeration of feeding people lies via Fox, and also the states who were empowered to strip voters from the rolls, as well as making it more difficult for people to register and to provide proper ID. If they are going to require ID, they need to make it affordable and easy to get, and it isn’t always easy to do so.
Even knowing what a cheater Trump is, that he had copies of the computer software, you still think he wouldn't do this? People should be able to tell when someone is lying whether on TV or in person, and he's an obvious liar. Most know that Fox is biased. Plus Trump's support was visibly diminishing, with many former supporters even campaigning for Harris. These results are just very unlikely.
Plus any votes Trump obtained at all was via fraud, by scaring people with his false scenarios and claiming to be the solution. Like a Mafia protection racket running for office. Musk created a database with his illegal sweepstakes intended to buy votes. So none of his votes should count, and anyone who voted for him should not vote again. They are mentally incompetent to make this important of a decision.
His support was visibly diminishing ever since 2016, and even that election was suspect. With top cyber experts warning us that there was probable interference, it's likely there was. Trump's bogus stop the steal group even gained access to voting machines and copied the software. Trump is all about fakery and illusions and part of that was to create an impression of immense support that he doesn't really have. High turnout is good for Democrats, not Republicans, so that alone makes this highly suspicious.
I hadn't read that, but knew there was such a letter. I read Stephen Spoonamore's Duty to Warn letter. Snopes made a lame attempt to debunk it, but they actually didn't. They questioned the data he looked at, but didn't mention anything about Trump getting access to voting machines and software. That's a big fat red flag.
The people who signed this letter are incredibly respected. I am going to try to send it to Harris through her comment section 1000 times. It can’t hurt to do paper ballot recount. And Trump sued 60 times with no justification at all in 2020.
And that's how he gained access to the voting machines and software. But I am convinced he cheated in 2016 and 2020 as well. So he's robbed us of our first woman president twice just to put his incompetent psychotic ass in a position to steal federal funds.
Because it is not who he is... literally it is that simple. Why doesn't he stop the slaughter in Gaza or Ukraine? Because it is not what he wants to do...again... it is just that simple. When we accept this reality...we can make some sense out of our present situation. Where we go from here is up to us. Judge people by all there actions not just a few...then and only then can you assess the situation. It takes a lot of time that most people don't have to spend between work, family and needed down time...they know that.
At least Prof. Reich has a sharp eye on what's happening in DC. Me and many others at this point have already had our fill of T's shenanigans and are trying to live our lives, as precarious as they may be, with courage and kindness.
Our current situation, the downfall of our society and the middle class, is a sad commentary on capitalism and its consequences. Capitalism breeds lust for wealth and power, driven by greed. The lack of interest (and availability) to the working class of the arts, education, and culture, leave us with angry, exhausted, and empty individuals, and they were excited, once again by the orange puppet master. So…here we are. I try not to care and to only hope that I and my loved ones are not TOO impacted by what the new administration will destroy. Constraints on Trump? He fires those who constrain him.
In other news -Elon Musk said Bezo's ex wife, Mackenzie Scott, is destroying western civilization by donating billions to charities for women, minorities, and marginalized groups.
I think you give Trump too much credit. I doubt that he truly understands the economy or Wall Street. He’s just a silver spooned brat who can pay advisors to think for him, just so he can ignore their advice and file for bankruptcy constantly.
What economic geniuses like Musk and Ramaswamy, who advocate cutting government spending—especially aid to the poor—fail to understand is that government spending, particularly on the poor, doesn’t just vanish. From an economic perspective, these expenditures act as a powerful stimulus. They not only support those in need but also funnel money into the pockets of the middle class. How? The poor spend nearly every dollar they receive on essentials like rent, food, and clothing. This spending ripples through the economy, circulating each dollar 5-7 times. Every dollar Musk aims to cut effectively generates $5-7 of economic activity. Eliminating $2 trillion from such spending wouldn’t save much; instead, it would strip the economy of a potential multiplier effect, causing far more harm than good. This does not mean that there is not plenty of waste in the Government and making the intitutions more efficient is neccessary.
I'm less concerned about what DOGE may recommend. Their recommendations will gore too many ox and there will be GOP and corporate pushback to alot of it, though not the privatizing parts.
On a comment about China trade hurting the US assembly workers:
His comment, although showing bitter resentment, illustrates why the con man Trump won the election. But, it was Nixon who opened China to US corporate overseas production. It is the ultra rich many of whom got that way from owning large shares of corporate wealth, who funnel money to the Republicans. It is the Republicans who most support and are supported by the fossil fuel interests.
Now Trump is using Tariffs as his main tool to support the US assembly labor who have been left behind by the corporate use of cheap foreign labor. But I read that international trade is very complex, and his mindless actions are tearing apart the complex trade agreements. American manufacturing companies are being damaged by retaliatory tariffs, raising costs for raw materials, and prices on their goods being sold abroad. Everyone suffers when trade is blocked.
So, the question is, how do you support the left behind low skill US labor, without hurting everyone in the world? Perhaps Biden had a clue. He offered incentives to US production of raw materials and goods. Instead of dumping sand into the gears of production, he dumped oil into the gears. And, his idea is to get the rich to pay their fair share of taxes to provide that lubrication.
Watch out, your privilege is showing…low expertise? That’s what you think of Essentials? I think not- open your eyes Ted- I guarantee you couldn’t do their jobs- you’re an amateur in that milieu- and that attitude is what kicked butt in the election and helped create this mess…
I'd like to see all these high-earners, high-expertise types, to work an assembly-line or work as a nurse's aide for a day or two. They would hate it 5 minutes in. It is the working class that keeps things afloat. It is our labour (that so many look down upon) which makes money for the doctors, lawyers, etc. We make money for the rich by putting out the goods and services that make them wealthy. Maybe if the upper classes were paid what they are actually worth rather than what they siphon off, there would be more respect for the working class.
You don't know me. I grew up in poverty, and a broken family with a alcololic wife beating father. I've worked many jobs all my life. I'm 81 now and am doing manual labor re-building houses, and installing solar. I studied hard and became an Electrical Engineer. I also am a Vietnam era vet, but managed to get kicked out of the army for revolting against the war. I also have one sister who has not worked over 1 year in her life. Another sister sits and complains constantly, although once upon a time she had a good job. I see a lot of poor people who for one reason or another have no ambition. And often they prefer Trump in their ignorance. I also work alongside immigrant labor on houses now and then.
Robert, I can't take credit for the poetic thought expressed by a long deceased family member who authored so much more. However, knowing your background I thought you might enjoy some of the words my grandfather wrote all those years ago. Thanks for all you do.
Everyone needs to watch “The Weekend Show” on YouTube from yesterday. Professor Reich and Anthony spent almost an hour explaining what the Democrats have in front of them going forward and what all of us need to prepare for over the next four years. Thank you Robert.
I just finished watching the video. Reich's call for significant change resonated. He rightly pointed out that a Harris presidency, while promising, wouldn't have been enough to fix our rigged economy. So, what's the game plan? Could breaking up monopolies be the key to a brighter future? Or are we headed for another Great Depression?
A constraint on Trump is his cognitive decline. Someone is directing the show at present, probably through the ways Trump is easily manipulated, flattery, and worship-like behaviors.
You are so right, Gloria! The orange man is just the "face" of the republican party. There are so many behind the scenes calling all the shots! I hope they begin to turn on each other and can't get as much crap done as they want!
We need to stress economic empowerment and strengthen the economy for all, including those who were deliberately left out of their fair share. I think attacks on DEI and the structural bigotry in this country are stupid. We should know our history and move forward with it to learn from it and not repeat the same mistakes.
I agree, Kathy! I said in an earlier post, I am working with different organizations recommended to me on this substack. I have thought about how great it would be if all of these different organizations that were working for the same thing - fighting for our country - would host some type of summit or convention where each organization sent representatives to collaborate and bring them together under one huge umbrella. That could be the start of the type of party that many of us want and need. There is such a huge amount of Americans right now that refuse to join either the republicans or the Democrats and in this election did not exercise their right to vote simply because they are fed up, frustrated and disgusted with the paths these two parties are taking. Many Americans do not feel they are being heard. These organizations could establish a third party that absolutely hears them and will work for them. I know many will say a third party is not the answer, but I believe it is and I also believe there are enough Americans that would get behind a party like that.
Here is the fly in the ointment. Regardless of Bessent. Trump's regime and cabinet will so disrupt,dismantle and demoralize America that Sovereign Funds and foreign bond holders will be unloading government securities as fast as they can.
The U.S. Dollar has value only because it is backed by the full faith of the U.S. Government, and under Trump the U.S. Government will hit rock bottom as he kills off initiative, incentive, morale as he proceeds with his regime of persecution, revenge, patriarchal theocracy.
The male dominated Christian right may get their Republic of Gilead, but it will be an Amish society writ large. Agrian, conformist, backward and stultifying.
Musk and his great Occupy Mars fantasy, won't be able to launch a Roman Candle when he and Trump get done.
Musk is supposed to be a genius. A genius would realize that you can't uproot a society and keep it as wealthy and productive as it was.
Uproot anything and it dies.
Musk is not a genius.
Musk’s incredibly sticky fingers only illustrate the nearly invisible line between genius and madness. Being the wealthiest man in the world does not give him license to destroy that world. I’ve said it before, but it must be repeated: Elon Musk and Trump‘s cabal of warped donors must be reigned in. They must be systematically prosecuted,imprisoned,stripped of their assets, and their companies nationalized for the common good. If these scoundrels imagined that their fortunes will be safe in the near future, they are seriously deluding themselves. Trump may appear demented, but like a fox, he will surely usurp their fortunes and thenthrow them all away like used toilet paper.
Yes, William,"Uproot anything and it dies is a basic truth which we ignore at our peril. Musk himself, along with millions of others have been uprooted, and that is the cause of our current world wide cultural crisis. Technological "progress" and economic growth have destroyed communities, customs and traditions. Some of the uprooted are dying of drug overdoses; others have succumbed to greed and amorality; still others try to find meaning and security in religious prophesies and dogmas. Musk evidently belongs to the class of immature billionaires who have succumbed to greed and amorality. Their inevitable internal rivalries will give us a chance to mitigate the harms they are inflicting on the country.
One thing. How could it be agrarian if all the agricultural workers were deported? It could end with a potato famine and starvation. Hmm?
I'm with you, Peggy, on this. I changed my registration to independent after the election because I am fed up with the Democratic Party. It is just a money scrubbing centrist mess and I won't have anything to do with it anymore. It is a time for more parties to appear that represent something besides donors with big pockets!
Amen, Margaret! By unifying under one party that absolutely has the welfare and voices of 'We the people', we would be strong enough to wrest our country back from these crazies!
i don't think that is the answer.
Totally agree. I missed my chance to change my registration from Democrat to Independent at the last primary. I won't miss it at the next one.
A dream that is shared by many. But one that nearly always fails, and is generally the seeds of ruin for any hope we have that any party can break through. The reason is: we keep diluting the party that has the big tent. We are a diverse public society, not given to the uniformity needed to take the path of, say, an Israel, or a North Korea. We should thank our lucky stars. And actually appreciate our diversity rather than attempt to channel it into a uniformity that is weak, vulnerable, and destructive.
Thanks, Tom. Obviously, not many agree with a third party, but I feel we need to generate ideas for solutions to help the Democratic party understand what so many Americans are upset about. Both parties pander to the ultra wealthy and monopolistic corporations and they are exactly the ones that need to be dealt with! The monopolistic corporations have a strangle hold on consumers and the ultra wealthy are using us as pieces in their little power chess game! This is a major concern for me. I have read and heard a lot of finger pointing and blaming but not very many ideas and suggestions for how to correct it.
Beautifully said, Tom. After Trump, America will never be great again.
How will you fund raise for this, or will people just be volunteers and work for free? What will be your priorities, as in issues you want to promote? Will civil rights be a part of it, as the public today has just shown they’re really not interested in that and chided the Dems for paying too much attention to woke? How will you get people to vote for you en masse to prevent someone like trump winning, as the diluted vote helped trump to win? Or does that matter to you that some one like trump could win?
I fear not. The foxes are already in the henhouse and won't turn on one another until all chickens have been consumed. Then.......a Depression greater than 1929. Perhaps it's a vale we have to traverse every century.
Yes, Michael, and the economic collapse could happen very soon. Much of the existing "wealth" is virtual, and it collapse in a matter of hours. Also, if China, Japan, and other countries were to dump US bonds much of the country's wealth would be wiped out. Much of it would depend on the mood of one man, the president of the US.
I read once that there is only so much actual CASH available that is shared by the whole world. The figure was in the low billions. All the rest of the world's wealth is on paper. If everyone started demanding their share of the pie in actual MONEY, the world's worth would collapse.
Again, Jane? If it’s in my food, I don’t need to get my shots. Hallelujah!
Funny!
One may hope they get at each others throats quickly, resulting in each others demise.
The problem will be the indane sane-washing done by MSM with the truth never making it out through those channels.
I agree, Carsten. We must follow those news sources we can count on to provide us with the truth. I go to 1440 news, Scribbs, Daily Kos and several substacks I subscribe to.
It won’t be long before the 💩 hits the Fan! As soon as they start ignoring Trump or going against him.
We have seen this play before, and here's the plot: Powerful septuagenerian politician s in rapid senile decline. Cynical subalterns hide his decline from the public while usurping the power of his office for their own devices. Hmmm . . . now, when was that? Oh, yes, the president last time was named "Reagan".
Look, folks: we have to stop electing these old coots to the most powerful and demanding office in the land. A person that old needs a regular schedule and time to recharge. Bur this It isn't a nine-to-five job with regular nappy times and warm milk and cookies . I am more than a decade older than these guys and I am in better shape. But I still need my warm milk and cookies !
Have to say I didn’t vote for him for obvious reasons. There was definitely something sketchy about the election.
Right now, Mr. Palmer, we could all use milk and cookies! Or how about a morning cup of coffee with a shot of "Especial" strength Kahlua? That's a warmth and mood booster if ever there was one!"
There should be an age limit without discrimination for running for Potus - 70 years of age sounds about reasonable. And a cognitive test to be taken ensuring that person is able to run on all "8 cylinders"... this should also apply to any members of Congress and Senate and Scotus and ......
Or, as Timothy Snyder pointed out, this scenario is very similar to when the aged Boris Yeltsin was in office... He found himself losing power, and surrounded with oligarchs.
Gloria--Donald Trump Jr. persuaded his father into inserting JD Vance into the VP position. He had his reasons behind what he did and in time I'm sure his purpose will become apparent. Most likely it will involve the 25th amendment at some point. Then even the cat women will have cause to worry.
Jr. is now working for 1789 Capital - "Trump Jr. will be a partner at the firm, which invests in companies that champion a right-wing worldview. On its website, the business states it is “anti-ESG,” or investments in environmental, social and governance issues that critics would doubtless describe as “woke.” https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-jr-white-house-venture-capital_n_6733a6f8e4b0d36d5d63cf63
Does anyone take Jr seriously? He’s coked up most of the time and can barely function. Unless he goes to rehab he’ll probably become so incapacitated he’ll just be another burnout. Zombie
Marsha, thank you for this valuable piece of information.
It’s more about crypto regulations and devaluation of the dollar (Thiel & Musk benefit from this plan)
@Gloria. I watched it and Robert is WRONG. We had the right message. We lost to psy ops, which is highly effective and which is the same method WE have used dozens of times successfully. At this time, the Russians are obviopusly at war -- not only with us but NATO. Doing the same stuff to our European allies.
The question that should be put by the talking heads is what we should do about it? How about the unitary executive!
You are joking, right?
Fight fire with fire.
Exactly, dems fight fire with fire, exploit all the loop holes.
Out oligarchs have declared class war on us.
At last! People are FINALLY getting the picture. It IS class war. Now what do the working and middle classes do about it? The Dems don't seem to care (and I'm talking about the leadership here, not necessarily rank and filers). If they did, they wouldn't be treating a crisis like "business as usual and mouthing platitudes about "the peaceful transfer of power".
Bret, yes, they are fighting a class war with lots of dirty tricks.
Joking about what specifically?
Yes, Daniel!
Thank you Daniel for bringing it back to basic. Our government over the past decade or so failed to defend us from this internet spy ops?
Obviously allied with agents, willing idiots. Tulsi Gabbard is Trump's thank you gift to Putin.
Yep. At one time, a Russian asset such as Tulsi would be rejected and possibly wind up in prison. But the Dems did nothing about her. Their mistake. And no I am not a ReTHUG.
We must find out who in the US is promoting and financing t. Gabard.
Rich People Don’t Go To jail
You can get away with anything if your a celebrity.
Felony Convictions Means Nothing if Your Rich Thank Lawyers Of America and let Not Forget The Judges And Prosecutors that are complicit..,
Justice Delayed IS Justice Denied…
Yes, the DOJ has betrayed us. The message to the entire world is loud and clear. Now Trump can do whatever he pleases.
Gloria ,
Personally, I think it’s too late to rely on breaking up monopolies to solve the greatest problems. Since the Reagan administration we have ( up until Biden ) turned a blind eye to the merger mania that has resulted in too much monopoly power. The power to restrain trade by blocking entry into the market, fix prices , control labor relationships and bribe politicians to do their will is not something that can easily be taken away . It should never been allowed in the first place . But here we are .
Progress will only be made when the average voter “ gets it “ that an unbridled market isn’t going to work in his/ her favor . Acting boldly in the public interest to free us from the Kleptocracy we now have , along with steps to reduce inequality and save our environment
is a necessary step to ensure our survival.
Will it be sufficient? ?
Yes! This is "The Reagan Show" redux. How many times do we have to put septuagenarians in the most powerful office in the land only to watch them decline and fall under the sway of their subalterns?
Ronnie Raygun was under the sway of Nancy’s astrologer his last two years in office.
The Great Depression was caused by our banking system not Tariffs. Some tariffs will be good, by the time trumpets 🎺 finished they could be bad ; but we know from experience Clinton’s Free Trade Policy only benefited Bill Clinton and Family …
I’m no fan of trumpet but let’s see what happens maybe a revival of our manufacturing abilities.
Putin will be addressed but how will determine the path of democracy in the world…
Spot on. The Human (Orange Stain) hasn’t been seen in public since the election. Think about this a moment: Our President-Elect mimicked a blow job during one of his masturbation rallies. Let that sink in a moment…This is George Orwell meets Aldous Huxley on steroids, with a dash of Kurt Vonnegut.
Trump is only the nosecone.
https://www.americanprogress.org/series/project-2025-exposing-the-far-right-assault-on-america/
And that person is his chief of staff, Susie Wiles.
He’s definitely being manipulated, he’s not as smart in politics, he only understands the business behind it, and with no heart either. Too bad it’s not in a way where some good would come out of him…
I predict a lot of anger and an armed rebellion. Once people realize they have been conned, they will try to blame everyone but themselves. They will be unbridled in their anger. But they voted for Trump and his MAGA trolls. I knew better.
True. The devil’s bargain with the far right and Putin was to keep Trump out of prison by the election and in return he will bend to their will. Trump really does not have a core belief in anything but himself, so he will do whatever feels good for him or enriches him. However this makes him an unreliable puppet, so JD Vance is there to ensure Putin, Thiel, The Heritage Fdn and Musk get what they want.
Of course, breaking up monopolies is essential. Economic consolidation is a cancer on democracy and on the market economy. Much as the right wing rails against the USSR and its centralized command and control economy. Very large corporations are no different. They have the same organizational structure and operate exactly the same way.
Sector oligopolies are not market-based sectors.
Monopoly are not going to be broken up by conservative government not how that dog hunts, not unless they are political flows in which point the simply going to be forced into the hands of political allies.
Keith, people are presupposing that we can come back after the next four years.
What part of Kevin Roberts "this is the 2nd American Revolution, and it will be bloodless if the left allows it" does no one understand.
Project 2025 is already in motion with Trumps cabinet picks and his non transition, and privately funded vetting. There isn't going to be a chance to redo this in four years.
1933 Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor, Aug 1934 Hindenburg died. Hitler then assumed the role of President and called for a plebscite, a national referendum, to gain approval for Adolf Hitler's assumption of supreme power. The referendum was associated with widespread intimidation of voters and significant electoral fraud.
There were no more elections after that.
Steve Bannon , now released from prison, is keeping a low profile, but he is the architect of deconstructing the administrative state, and expect him to play a role as an advisor to Trump.
Meanwhile we are like crows, chasing bright shiny objects and thus are distracted from what is really going on.
Exactly!
In my humble opinion, distraction, lack of education, algorithms and money controlling the national discussion are some of the bigger issues - leading to these issues that are similar to the 1930’s (although not caused in exactly the same way- the emotional reaction by a number of the population is the same). Anything out of control: greed, power, propaganda, etc. is typically not good for humanity. Even if you THINK you’re the victor- eventually even that has a downfall.
The only thing I can think of to add to your excellent comment is the magnitude of self-serving entitlement within society. It pervades society from the top-down. We have become victims of our country's immense prosperity and enormous resources.
Oh, yes! You’re absolutely right- thank you! That’s a really insidious addition…
A lot of so called Christians in the United States harp on things like pornography as the root of evil in this country. A Quick Look at facts, reveal it is actually something else that is causing evil things to happen. GREED has caused more problems in the United States than anything else. Funny, greed never seems to be addressed by the Christian population of the United States.
Yes this is it. It’s laughable democrats talking about midterms and 2028. This was our last actual election. Future “elections” will be for show. Trump and his dynasty are going to reign terror for many years to come. Listen to his words. He’s told us his plan.
I agree, but the numbers of professionals in politics is legion. I am getting a news letter from one that claims to have ousted Gaetz, and they want a donation.
It is their livelihood, their social status HRm, they have to keep the myth alive, What else can they do? Lead the counter revolution? Too much risk in that. They are buggy whip manufacturers in the dawning age of automobiles.
Sudebaker made wagons, but saw the future and started making cars. They saw too far into the future though, I think the 1953 Studebaker Commando is the prettiest car ever made, but America was not ready for the future, it still isn't, they are addicted to the box like the KIA Soul.
And where I live in NC they are trying to prove that even if a democrat wins that they will just try to invalidate 60k votes
Wll said!💯💯💯💯💯💯
William: and if are not distracted and understand what's happening, what should our game plan be?
Prepare yourself for the future to be. Be prepared to submit, to resist passively or aggressively, or get a passport, be ready to liquidate your assets and remove to a more friendly location.
Most of us will not have any problem especially if they are white Christians and will submit and obey, or pretend to be good obedient Church going Christians.
That portion of the population that are in the sights of the Christian Nationalists, should be getting their passports, and making plans to liquidate their assets.
An offshore account almost mandatory.
AS regards resistance, go analog, and I mean paper, pen, messenger because the NSA has the worlds largest data center in Bluffdale, UT which monitors and screens all electronic transmissions, even this comment.
William I refuse to take their abuse. I’m up for a revolution to take them out of power. This May likely be the secession of states like California to start with. The current business model of the 50 states is no longer viable. Time to charter a new constitution where the tide rises ALL boats.
I am fortunate enough to live in a state with a govenor that has balls and foresight, Jay Inslee, he has been replaced by another kick ass Democrat.
Right now there are three states with governors with balls, Washington,California and Illinois. Oregon is iffy, my hope is in secession, I am cautioned by the fact that Washington and California have military installations, and the President is the CIC, and he will replace the Generals in the Pentagon with toadies.
Be warned that the NSA Data Center in Bluffdale ,AZ listens in on and analyzes every bit of electronic communication.
Fair warning, William, but many of these "Christians" are not true believers. JD Vance is an example. They are 100% venal and are using Christians to gain and secure power. Putin's Russia is their model.
Well said, William. I am curious to see what happens in two years when the midterm elections come up. If there isn't any midterm elections, he will have won as supreme commander.
Peggy, being more the optimist than my comments usually reflect, if the damage caused by the Clown Car in two years is followed by the absence of a mid-term, perhaps that is what we need to unite against the evil clowns?
Who can say, Marge? I don't know what will happen in two years. Some comments I have read leave me with a feeling of dread, disappointment and despair! It would seem it does not matter what we attempt to do, we are doomed to either be sheep that are herded according to the supreme power or we will be jailed because we fight for our Democracy. It seems it is a damned if you do and damned if you don't scenario.
It will take more than two years to fully deconstruct our democratic republic and it's constitutional guarantees.
I can see the charade of a mid term., by that time the Democratic party will have been reconstituted with MAGAts.
Trump has promised revenge, I believe him, everyone else should as well. He will have rebuilt the administrative state with true believers and sycophants which will not only enable him but do so enthusiastically.
The judiciary will be his, even now they are jumping ship, like Merchan, to save their own skins, LEO has always been conservative and much of it, Federal, State and Local are already Trump Humpers. Those that aren't want to survive and if possible prosper.
The Military (Pentagon) will be decapitated and in it's place sycophants like Gen Charles Flynn, Mike Flynns broher and a Jan 6 co conspirator that wasn't even investigated.
There will be two types of Democrats, those that stand up and are persecuted or jailed or worse, and those that cave, and play at the loyal opposition, but not too seriously.
But first Trump will have his pound of flesh.
1933 Germany knocking on the door. The USA doir that is. 91 years later. Who would have ever - ever - thought that?
The US of Amnesia - and to at least 50% non-critical thinking (wanting or being capable of) populace.
America. The beautiful.
Plenty of diversion initiated to take away the focus from what really matters....
The average IQ of Americans is 98, then factor in ADD, low attention span, lack of interest and propensity for gullibility (religious belief and superstition is a factor)
Keith--Perhaps all we have to look forward to are the words; "We told you so."
"You broke it you own it."
Not much consolation. Many won't even understand.
The problem is everyone else will be "broke" too!
So true!
Thank you, Keith Olson, for telling us about this.
Thanks for this heads up, KO - and especially in my capacity as a non-American.
OK.
Also, check this out:
"I Watched Orbán Destroy Hungary’s Democracy. Here’s My Advice for the Trump Era.
To dismantle the machinery of autocracy, you first need to understand how it works." https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2024/11/23/trump-autocrat-elections-00191281
Yes, Maryk,this is a good article.
Oddly, I can no longer open many links in comments. Is it just me? My burnt offerings to the e-gods must have been rejected!
While you're on the subject of YT posts, Keith, our fellow Substacker, Heather Cox Richardson's recent chat with the youngish technocratic looking (but quite street smart) Brian Cohen Taylor is also an absolute cracker, while readers should check that out.
Keith ... Thanks for the excellent link. Most helpful!
Keith, what was the title of the program? I’m looking but the one I see that most closely matches the timeframe to which you refer is about Musk. Is that it?
I will
Thanks for this recommendation —I didn't know about the show. Will watch!
Keith Olson: could you give a link please?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OBxs1ocN68
Thanks Keith. Appreciate the info.
Trump is a threat to the stability of this country. There is absolutely no evidence of a concerted effort to alter our future, for the better. Trump is a disaster with no indication of a plan that will change what we have in favor of what he wants. In essence, time is moving us from good to something unimageable. Trump is surrounding himself with individuals who can do little besides utter the word "Yes." For the moment we are stuck holding our breath while we witness what Trump plans on doing with our country.
Putin put him in office. Russians, their agents and willing idiots committed election crimes, national security offenses, which should be the top priority.
Unfortunately, Biden and Garland didn't agree. Trump and his cabal of kleptocrats have been a freight train barreling down on us for over a decade, but the Dimocrats apparently just couldn't see it coming.
They are therefore complicit, are they not?
That Biden not as aggressive as necessary pursue to have T indicted after he took his office is .... (fill in the blanks).
Agreed Daniel, but we have only one month to do something about it. One month, actually less, Chanukah and Xmas cut it short.
Is this the emergency that invokes the unitary executive?
https://www.thoughtco.com/unitary-executive-theory-the-imperial-presidency-721716
Good article, but there is no mention of an emergency in the article.
Congress gets sworn in on Jan 3rd, Trump on Jan 21st, Trump will have a compliant congress at his service, he will need a trigger and it will start with
an event that gives him the excuse to declare martial law.
And for those that think the military will hold. I have two words, Charles Flynn
Charles is Mike Flynn's brother. Charles sat at the desk in the Pentagon on Jan 6th, when the phones were ringing off the hook,with calls from a panicked Nancy and Congress.
Two weeks before Jan 6 Trump had fired the Secretary of Defense, Esper, and the Secretary of the Army, and replaced them with Acting SecDEf Christopher Miller and Acting Sec of the Army Ryan Mahoney.
It was part of the plan, and only the Sec of Defense has the authority to release he National Guard.
Pence knew that, but when he heard Hang Mike Pence, he called the Acting Sec of the Army, who, though he didn't have the authority, released the National Guard.
For Charles service the Pentagon promoted him to Commander Pacific Forces and Biden later promoted him to 4 star general.
He will make the perfect Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,this brother of the treasonous Lt Gen Michael Flynn
Biden would have to delcare that the crimes created the emergency. Lincoln suspended habeus corpus, extrordinary writs.
That is what I have been saying for the longest time. SCOTUS gave Joe the power to save the country, but he won't lift a finger. Either he is blithely unaware (and the question of his mental faculties is legitimately raised) and he is being manipulated like a puppet by his staff or someone on his staff,or he just doesn't care and wants to stay above it all and slip away into a peaceful retirement.
It is an either or situation with Joe, Daniel.
Daniel, you better have evidence to document your case. Time is running out.
Ali Velshi spent a whole week going through Project 2025 chapter by chapter.
It is no secret what the future looks like, the only thing I don't understand is why no one is paying attention, and continue to act like this is a temporary situation.
Time for resistance and the Democratic Party is not the organ for resistance. It is part of the problem.
Ayn Rand, once the darling of libertarians, declared that racists conservatives are the worst enemies of capitalism. They are now in power and intent on destroying the country's constitution. Hopefully, there are still some wise capitalists willing to stop them.
I know it is part of leftist orthodoxy that capitalism is bad, but Marx said that capitalism was the engine of progress.
Were it not for markets, a medium of exchange and the ability to pull resources and invest in an enterprise with the expectation of reaping a reward, we would all be living in a Tudor world,
Capitalism per se is not the problem, the problem is unregulated, undiscipline capitalism, just like government is the problem, the problem is run away government.
The absence of, as John Kenneth Galbraith put it, a counter valing power,
Everything in the eco sphere,including man, needs a counter vailing power. The counter vailing power to the fecundity of Thompson Gazelles is the Cheetah. The park rangers at Yosemite discovered that the herds of elk and deer needed a countervailing power, so they imported wolves. Run a populations of herbivores were destroying the very eco system that sustained them.
Thus it is with capitalists. An economy is an eco system, too many capitalists with unrestrained power will inevitably destroy the eco system upon which they feed.
Natural laws Vic.
True,William. The horror is that the crypto currency gamblers are in collusion with the fossil fuels industry, because their trades require an enormous amount of energy. Already, they are pushing to go nuclear, even though we have no way to dispose of nuclear waste..
Here is what frosts me about crypto. The very people that rant and rail about "fiat money" not being backed by anything want us to buy crypto.
The US Dollar is backed by the full faith and credit of the nation, Crypto is based on a myth, it is an intangible created by someone's computer.
As regards destruction of nuclear waste. Browns Gas, generator will sublimate nuclear waste at the atomic level., It has been proven, but is a threat to the powers that be and is thus squashed.
Yes, William, an economy is an ecosystem. Yet much of economic theory is based on the Adam Smith model, based in turn on Newton's mechanistic model of the universe. Real economics should be probabilistic and organic, and it must incorporate possible Black Swans, as Nassim Taleb has argued.
I have Taleb's book, did you know that Taleb is an alternate spelling of Talib, which means student.
My undergraduate is in economics, yet today I am skeptical of economics as a discipline.. There are some truisms to economics like supply and demand and marginal utility, but "economists" make pretense that their "discipline" is scientific because things like economic order quantity, supply and demand and marginal utility can be quantified and predicted by application of algebra and regression analysis. And it can't, because of, as you say, probabilistic uncertainty.
Human taste is unpredictable and unquantifiable. My MIL has thousands of dollars of Beanie Babies. My mother, who was on social security, waste her heard earned money in worthless paper money from all over the world because some scuzzbag, hawked it and answered her letters.
Many a retailer has excess inventory which they in turn sold at a lost to that right wing overstock.com, because they relied on a computer program and economic order quantity.
The thing about ecosystems is that they depend on a balance between predator and prey, a counter vailing power. I harken back to my Yellowstone and wolves analogy.
In human society there has always been and will be predators, and we are in essence prey. The problem is that the ecosystem is out of balance, the predators have too much power and are in control of the ecosystem.
When you walk into a car dealership, you are prey entering the predators den, and most prey are ill equipped to deal with the predator and thus defend against him.
Law enforcement are predators, in fact if you re-imagine most relationships including pastor/priest/rabbi/imam as predators and people as prey your perspective, your political, economic relationship even romantic instantly changes.
Not all relationships are predator prey, there are many that are cooperative and mutual, and in the best and longest lasting personal relationships are mutual and cooperative.
T
"The best and longest lasting personal relationships are mutual and cooperative," is the message we must send to those addicted to Trump and Fox News. I admire your wisdom, William!
I've been sayin that it's old wine in new bottles. Will work now that SCOTUS granted the presidency extraordinary powers. Trump tried a lof of it previously.
When are people going to wake up and either remake the Democratic party (an exercise in frustration imo) or start a party that can/will act as a vanguard for the working class and a party of, for, and by the working class? We need to do something to counter the Trump BS and the Dems are busy twiddling their thumbs and mouthing platitudes about "the peaceful transfer of power, seemingly not caring that this is NOT business as usual.
After I parachuted into Thrace,with my team, we exfiled via a bus, we stopped and bought bottles of wine, these were old bottles, probably recycled from WWI, filled with new wine and it tasted like it's previous contents, kerosene.
Donald Hodgins:
I'd like your opinion if you have time to answer. Due to the fact that Trump had court tomorrow #Nov262024 enwhich he could've & should've been sentenced to at the minimum of #34yrs @ #RikersIsland #JurorsSpoke #JudgeMerchan should NEVER have continued DJT's case. Donald should still have court tomorrow morning.
Trump was facing up to #126yrs in prison tomorrow for 34 Felonies. 1-4yrs per felony could have been his sentence.
It is absurd to think Democrats are legally allowing a Dictator who hacked our elections via #Starlink and to take over #wtp #WhiteHouse! #YouDoTheCrime #YouDoTheTime
Trump is NOT above the Law. Any law. Trump is a Convicted Felon.
As an Insurrectionist Donald Trump was not eligible to run for ANY public office legally. Who allowed for him to even run for a position let alone the highest level in our land?? Why was he permitted to do this?? Trump was disqualified PRIOR to the election; legally being an insurrectionist.
The #14thAmendment Section 3 clearly states this is illegal. How is the #Biden Administration letting this occur?? Why are we not yet protesting??? @POTUS @FLOTUS @VP @KamalaHarris
Whose attention does this need to be brought up to; to END this chaos??? Kamala Harris was the ONLY "ELIGIBLE " "Elect-table" candidate in #Election2024 for #POTUS besides the others of a 3rd party. Donald Trump was DISQUALIFIED due to the 14th Amendment Section 3.
We are running out of time. This is beyond terrifying. Yet we as a Democracy MUST STAND UP AGAINST the evil law breaking Felons and take a stand. NOW. We rightfully know that DJT could NEVER run for "public office; legally." DJT was ineligible to be a candidate in #Election2024.
True. The DOJ has betrayed us.
It is frightening what he can do to our lives!
Fortunately, we have seen 4 years of his experience leading a country with no wars, virtually no unemployment or inflation, and low number of illegal aliens in spite of relentless false Russia collusion from democrats and a worldwide pandemic.
You are still in denial
And everyone bitches at what is going on in China, but cannot change a thing in the USA. Hmmmm.....the land of the free......don't think so. Sad and stupid. I just hope you don't bring Europe down with you as has happened in the UK already!
*Planet Earth!
Professor Reich: if only we could figure out how to reign trump in so the everyday worker doesn't starve to death or go bankrupt from healthcare costs. surely these two likelihoods will also damage wall street?
i also am confused why musk was so determined to come to america illegally if he wants to blow the place up, causing mass starvation, homelessness, and death due to violent crime? okay, maybe not so cinfused, since "follow the money" seems to be his sole mantra.
GrrlScientist, it is my belief that the muskrat simply enjoys seeing how much chaos, hurt and ruination he can cause and delight in others' misery! I believe he is a sick individual. I absolutely wish President Biden had taken away his government contracts.
I think Musk shares Trump’s sociopathy and narcissism, but I think that could be a big problem for him with Trump, as Trump will never allow someone to publicly compete with himself for the spotlight. They could very well clash. Also, who in the hell gave Musk and Ramaswamy the right to introduce policies that would undermine government functions and destroy our civil service system.
The orange man has given the muskrat and ramie free rein to do what they want.
I agree that they will clash. Their egos will require it.
Me too!
He should have been deported when they had the chance
Perhaps the everyday MAGA worker and voter should have stayed home from rallies and stopped buying Trump momentous trash! They are unlike us Democrats who went to college, worked hard our whole lives, rarely went out to eat, fed, housed, and clothed our children, saved for their education and our retirement only for the MAGA brainwashed idiots or the greedy wealthy who want to steal our savings by not paying, their fair share of taxes , and stealing our social security and Medicare! I will not feel sorry for any of those MAGAS that caused this destruction of our Democratic Republic but only survive ourselves! To hell with! Let them pray to their false GOD trump!
Not only the college graduates. I've graduated high school and have been working class my entire adult life (though I've always sought to educate myself further and stay politically aware). Never taken welfare, though I have had to access state disability and unemployment, though I don't consider that welfare. It's not only the middle classes that will be hurt by the Trumpist crap, but the working class as well (I survived by working overtime, which he wants to get rid of, because a CNA's pay isn't all that great). The problem with the Dems is that they've ignored the working class. The only reason I voted for them is that I knew Trump will be actively anti-working class and I consider third parties little more than spoilers.
You sound as if there is something wrong about being on disability. That is victim blaming and masking this as a welfare mother accusation. There are a lot of disabled people in the country. Being on disability is not really an answer. The restrictions on how much you can make and save in a bank account keeps disabled people not only in poverty but in institutions where they are often left in inhumane treatment. People who receive disability now had to jump through humiliating hoops. Many people on disability have their social media apps under surveillance. Medicare doesn’t cover as much as it used to. Disabled people will have whatever they made taken away. They are the most vulnerable among us. No, being disabled is not a crime. Being on disability if you need it is a positive guardrail. By the grace of God go you.
Oh, really? WTF? I said I do not consider disability or unemployment to be welfare. And I never said I didn't like welfare. I have never taken welfare because I didn't need it.
And I've been down and out and homeless, so don't preach to me about "There but for the Grace of God go you". I always defended those on various assistance programs because I know that safety nets are necessary and keep people alive. Go do your second-guessing and nitpicking elsewhere. Don't presume to tell me what I'm saying or thinking.
Chaos almost always benefits the wealthy. Elon and Donnie want to deconstruct government enough to create chaos and then reap the benefits of companies selling off assets, banks taking over peoples homes (so companies can buy them up and rent them out at obscene prices or as Air B 'n' B's. Corruption and chicanery is much less noticeable during times of upheaval.
Thank you, Robert, for the thinnest of silver linings in a dark future. But it really makes sense, seeing that despite all his bluster Trump can’t afford to alienate his CEO and billionaire buddies.
Their loyalty is only to get their tax cuts back, and then after that, he only represents a liability because of his mental volatility.
They wouldn’t mind pivoting to Vance who is controlled by billionaire Peter Thiel. One false move by #DonaldDuce and the rumblings of power brokers considering a more predictable future through regime change might leak out onto the congressional floor.
I think you may be misunderstanding what rich modern 'investors' want. They are gamblers. They don't want high and solid share and asset prices, they want volatility that will make shares and assets plunge and soar so they can short on the way down and buy on the way up, sometimes swapping from buy to sell in milliseconds.
But most of all they want insider information. They want a corrupted system that gives them the heads up about what will happen next. I think THAT is what Trump has promised them - a crash timed to order, and insight into his announcements and policies that'll allow them to pick up an entire American economy off the floor. The gambler's dreamscape!
Most of the wealthy capitalize on finding weakness and exploiting the vulnerable. I doubt many want corrupted systems and volatility. They need things to be predictable, and very few consider themselves as gamblers. They like to place educated bets.
Human extinction seems the only answer at times like this. Watching Biden be so PROUD of his economic policies and completely unable to respond to the US being overtaken first by oligarchy and now fascism. He never was any kind of great statesman. He is proving that .
I suspect humans somewhere will survive. But I do expect WESTERN humans to go extinct though. A failed Darwinian experiment in sustainable life.
I just read that in 2022 on Planet Earth, this lost place, every ten minutes a woman is KILLED. I am certain it is more frequent now, having watched the white men POUR into the polls to vote for RICH EVIL WHITE MAN. Don't wanna change those nasty, rotten behaviors, do we, balls & cock!!
So sinister, but very likely
So clear’
I think Trump will not stay in power long. They really want Vance to do their bidding. He is more stable mentally supposedly.
Vance is more disgusting than Trump! His wife is nothing but a hand maid! How disgusting for a smart Indian woman! Why didn’t she just stay in India where she was a third class citizen!
Vance lacks the “charisma” and “conman” qualities that brought Trump his power and perceived fame. If Vance moves into slot #1 maybe there’s a slim chance of salvaging what’s crumbs are left.
People will say I’m crazy, so be it. The only way out of this mess is a freakin revolution. Thinking our “states” can all live in harmony is delusional. Ain’t gonna happen. Time to consider a different type of country split into 2 or 3 smaller countries.
East Indians appear to migrate to Southern states- slavery resembles the caste system in which their egos take comfort.
Yes, but one call by diaper donnyboy to Vladimir Vladimirovich and these power brokers would find themselves indignitassed if they're too close to an upper storey window, receiving tea from someone unknown, or receiving cologne from a strange source.
Exactly what they deserve for trying to destroy our Democratic Republic!
Maybe the "enemy within" needs to step up and save the country from a brutal authoritarian regime of kleptocratic thugs drunk on power. It is obvious the Fourth Estate isn't going to do its job. And, Dimocrats are locked into doing the same things over and over and expecting a different result.
And they're locked into doing the same things over and over again and expecting a different result by their donor class who will defund them if they start doing something completely different.
A play book mob move...
Trump is a stupid felon, rapist and a major crook. He needs to be locked up. The rest of worlds leaders despise him except for a few. He has destroyed everthing he touches.. the Supreme Court sucks.
the Supreme Court is captured by a capitalist ideology that places what the market values above all else. Including the Constitution.
Wonderful article as it made me think. First and foremost no one party should control both branches of congress as this is suppose to reassure that compromises are reached in governance of the country. Suppose the Affordable Care Act is deleted and orange man’s minions wake up and smell the coffee. The working man and woman need affordable health care not only for themselves but also to raise a family. Belief in making the world a better place and to pay taxes is a great and valid endeavor. However it needs to be fair and just.
Bessent was a leading member of the team whose bet on the Black Wednesday collapse of the British pound garnered over $1 billion for the firm. His bet against the Japanese yen in 2013 brought additional profit. He propses a three-point economic plan for Trump modeled on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's "Three Arrows" economic policy. Bessent praised Trump's proposal to implement broad tariffs. Regarding Trump's pledge to impose blanket 20% tariffs on all imports, Bessent argued that these "were maximalist positions that would probably be watered down in talks with trading partners."
On other sites I've been discussing arbitrage of at least part of the national debt. Borrow at low rates in Switzerland, Scandinavia, Japan, etc. and retire high interest debt.
IMHO Trump wants to become as rich as Putin and the Treasury is his pot of gold. I expect DOGE to be the culmination of the privitization started by Reagan and GWB. Sale of government assets in real estate, sale of intellectual property, like "naming rights," etc.
Contracts often went to incompetent companies. I expect Trump to try to take a piece of all that action.
In healthcare, many Republicans have repeatedly voted to completely privatize Medicare. Many want to kill chidren's disability benefits, return SSI to the states, etc. They've tried several times to force the SSA trust funds into default.
Imagine "Trump House" painted red. Sale of the national highway system. Musk NASA. Bezos postal service.
They want to kill off many of us by depriving us of affordable food and medical care. Cryptocurrency has the potential of causing Great Depression 2.0.
DOGE: Department of Government Efficiency. But it can't be a department without legislation. The Senate has shown it has a spine, made of jelly, but still something. Hope the worst will be blocked, slowed at least, until maybe in the midterms folks will have seen enough to vote out the worst MAGA types...
DOGE is a DINO---- department in name only.
What we need is a
DOME department of market efficiency - which is what the FTC et al are about with their antitrust actions, though the inefficeincies are bigger than that.
I agree, minus the word efficiency. The word is in "the eye of the beholder." The market is by its nature inefficient, but very effective at resolving demand and supply in a highly specialized economy. Governments also by nature is inefficient but very effective. Government is God, just not the almighty one.
You missed "reinventing government" in the 1990's Same thing.
and there was WR Grace- Reagan in the 80's.
That’s my hope as well Benjamin 😕
The "Three Arrows" is a set of economic policies that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe introduced in 2012 and 2013 to revitalize the Japanese economy:
*Aggressive monetary policy: To end deflation and achieve stable 2% inflation
*Flexible fiscal policy: To support a strong recovery and mitigate external risks
*Growth strategy: To boost corporate competitiveness, promote innovation, and develop new growth industries
The idea behind the "Three Arrows" was that these policies would complement each other to create a more dynamic Japan with higher growth and lower risk of fiscal crisis.
@Daniel. Japan has been fighting deflation for decades. Not a problem here (for now). So what takes the place of that first "arrow" in Trump's world? I believe it will be a British-style shrinking of the administrative state (up to 25% of the economy) leading to a massive recession, leading to actual deflation... So it's the opposite of Abe's plan.
Just reporting....
I've been at this a long time....I think we could fund our goverment in large part by being recouped for price fixing, price gouging, collecting from deadbeats, and damage litigation for stuff like fraud and pollution. 11 states are currently suing big oil.
I know I sound overly cynical but many tax avoidance strategies are fraudulent but IRS is underfunded or bought off. Where I live, many of the most wealthy do not pay taxes -- mainy borrow from themselves. If equity increases say 5% per year, they borrow that amount.....
Consider Trump. How is it that middle class folks paid more in tax most years than he did. He was convicted of 34 state counts of tax fraud....that has to ripple into federal liability,,,,,, What would the penalty be for someone who claims to have more than 10 billion?
@Daniel. Their whole plan is to de-construct the administrative state so that government can't do anything to limit how moneyed interests use their money, or to restrict the ways they contrive to remove ours from us. The big problem is that breaking down regulation, anti-monopoly measures and social services gets the rich guys more money, which they then use to do more of that. As you know...
If you follow this stuff, a lot can be traced to Hamburger, Is Administrative Law Unlawful? https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/I/bo17436684.html
The Federalist Society identified my position as one that could be displaced and Trump eliminated "merit selection" in an executive order in 2017. After the recent SCOTUS term, it will be a lot easier to reinstate the spoils system and eliminate civil service, which we've had since 1887. I retired in 2018. My colleagues are the equivalents of dodo birds and mastedons, extict, as Hamburger's proteges have waged war on judicial independence and due process in adminstrative law.
The success of these policies requires a stable international and domestic environment.
Here is what Mr AI has to say
Shinzo Abe's "three arrow" economic policies, known as Abenomics, were introduced in 2012 to revive Japan's stagnant economy. The three arrows are:
Aggressive monetary policy: Increasing the money supply to combat deflation.
Flexible fiscal policy: Boosting government spending to stimulate economic growth.
Structural reforms: Implementing changes to increase competitiveness, such as labor market reforms and deregulation.
The impact of Abenomics has been mixed. While it initially led to moderate economic growth and a boost in corporate profits, the long-term effects have been less impressive2. Inflation targets were not consistently met, and concerns about Japan's high public debt remain. However, it did help Japan avoid a deeper recession and brought some positive changes to the economy3.
PS. Mr AI is picking my brain for somebodys big database in the sky. It asks me questions as part of its response to my questions.
Yes, Daniel. They intend to plunder us and their own grandchildren.
A great run down of past and current events as it goes over the average working person’s head; maybe it’s too hard to believe as such aberrations are on-going. In any event billionaires are attempting to buy America a slice at a time. The ultimate outcome is pretty obvious. A kingdom populated by serfs.
The government default is for the private sector to meet societal needs. But the private sector did not step up to provide Medicare type coverage for the public. Not profitable.
That's kinda why the government stepped in with Medicare.
So what has changed to think the private sector can do the job?
Nothing. Except that the GOP will now be in charge.
The private sector gains profits by cherry picking customers.
The point of government is a collective guarantee to cover those who are a bad risk for profit makers.
Such thinking is totally anathema to Republicans. At least it seems to be based on their actions.
Starting with GWB Medicare has been undermined so that a lot of it has been privatized. "Medicare advantage" is not Medicare and the advantage gores to the insurance industry.
Republicans historically opposed all Medicare....and Social Security, every other "benefit." Rick Scott publicly said that all benefits should be "sunsetted." Came up to votes for the budget many times and when Dems had Congress, virtually every Republican voted to privatize virtually everything.
Whoever decided that only 2 parties should have any power is at fault for where we are today!
At this particular moment my feeling says it would serve trump voters goddamn right.
But my head says this is not the thing we want.
Honestly, it may take some real pain for the Trump voters to understand what they have enabled so we can move beyond trump.
Will voters still matter? Do they matter in Russia? In Hungary? In Venezuela?
Trump is a grifter. His primary goal is to steal as much as he can. All the other stuff is inconsequential to him.
The ideologues are throwbacks. We had antiFederalists like Patrick Henry who wanted a national religion. Lots of "Confederates" who valued property before civil rights.
Putin is a throwback. Fascism is a throwback.
Yes, the economy is rigged, and the tariff move is a bluff, but not one without substance, after all he did do it during his first term. The one thing we all must remember from trump (who does not deserve capitalization - forget "Bridge") is that he wants attention, and the power resulting from that attention. If we refuse to give it to him, that causes his mistakes. The entire cabinet, including Musk's 2 trillion figure, is a bluff designed mostly to move attention away from real problems and enable big orange to maintain everyone's eyeballs.
Still, fact is he stole this election. His support was diminishing, not growing. This is plain in-your-face Hitler-like theft by a Hitler-like group of domestic terrorists. It's time for Democrats to stop being doormats, and stop this fascist from taking power even if it means being perceived as fascist ourselves. Why wait for Trump to walk through that door, take that oath he intends to break, and declare a State of Emergency so he can start harming people? Biden needs to call a state of emergency instead, postpone the results of this election until it has been thoroughly investigated along with 2016 and 2020 to uncover and expose Trump's successful and unsuccessful theft of those elections. Cheaters cheat. High turnout is good for Democrats. The only time it wasn't in my lifetime was right after 9/11. We haven't had such an event, unless you count Trump's allowing thousands to die needlessly from COVID and crashing the economy. Those who voted for him did so because of his fraudulent statements and promises, so their votes were also stolen from them. Hitler took power because no one stopped him. Biden can stop him and that's what needs to happen now.
Stolen via Russian psy ops.
I don’t think voting was tampered with. It was more of a conglomeration of feeding people lies via Fox, and also the states who were empowered to strip voters from the rolls, as well as making it more difficult for people to register and to provide proper ID. If they are going to require ID, they need to make it affordable and easy to get, and it isn’t always easy to do so.
The electorate is awash in BS from many sources. Many are unable to distinguish truth from falshood. Fairytale from reality.
The fourth estate in the US has become the Tower of MAGA Babel
Even knowing what a cheater Trump is, that he had copies of the computer software, you still think he wouldn't do this? People should be able to tell when someone is lying whether on TV or in person, and he's an obvious liar. Most know that Fox is biased. Plus Trump's support was visibly diminishing, with many former supporters even campaigning for Harris. These results are just very unlikely.
This whole election stinks like a Mt. Everest of rotting fish. And I agree with all that you have said in your post above.
Plus any votes Trump obtained at all was via fraud, by scaring people with his false scenarios and claiming to be the solution. Like a Mafia protection racket running for office. Musk created a database with his illegal sweepstakes intended to buy votes. So none of his votes should count, and anyone who voted for him should not vote again. They are mentally incompetent to make this important of a decision.
Well-said!
I don't agree. many don't even care that trump is a liar. There are no solid reasons to think the voters on the whole did not choose trump over harris
His support was visibly diminishing ever since 2016, and even that election was suspect. With top cyber experts warning us that there was probable interference, it's likely there was. Trump's bogus stop the steal group even gained access to voting machines and copied the software. Trump is all about fakery and illusions and part of that was to create an impression of immense support that he doesn't really have. High turnout is good for Democrats, not Republicans, so that alone makes this highly suspicious.
Did you read this?https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/s9sie3a5h83tr86xs62wo/letter-to-vp-harris-by-computer-scientists-on-breaches-111324-1.pdf?rlkey=hqbfrrgzz22m1islibc3umuel&st=0f5xm0uy&dl=0
I hadn't read that, but knew there was such a letter. I read Stephen Spoonamore's Duty to Warn letter. Snopes made a lame attempt to debunk it, but they actually didn't. They questioned the data he looked at, but didn't mention anything about Trump getting access to voting machines and software. That's a big fat red flag.
The people who signed this letter are incredibly respected. I am going to try to send it to Harris through her comment section 1000 times. It can’t hurt to do paper ballot recount. And Trump sued 60 times with no justification at all in 2020.
And that's how he gained access to the voting machines and software. But I am convinced he cheated in 2016 and 2020 as well. So he's robbed us of our first woman president twice just to put his incompetent psychotic ass in a position to steal federal funds.
Pretty much!
Yes, and why doesn't Biden sign the Equal Rights bill?
Because it is not who he is... literally it is that simple. Why doesn't he stop the slaughter in Gaza or Ukraine? Because it is not what he wants to do...again... it is just that simple. When we accept this reality...we can make some sense out of our present situation. Where we go from here is up to us. Judge people by all there actions not just a few...then and only then can you assess the situation. It takes a lot of time that most people don't have to spend between work, family and needed down time...they know that.
Biden should be pulling out every presidential mandate he can…yet the words out of his mouth are to have a “peaceful transfer of power” 😡 WHY?
Coward, other than his self pride of knowing economics from credit card companies, most of whom seat in his ole Delaware
At least Prof. Reich has a sharp eye on what's happening in DC. Me and many others at this point have already had our fill of T's shenanigans and are trying to live our lives, as precarious as they may be, with courage and kindness.
Our current situation, the downfall of our society and the middle class, is a sad commentary on capitalism and its consequences. Capitalism breeds lust for wealth and power, driven by greed. The lack of interest (and availability) to the working class of the arts, education, and culture, leave us with angry, exhausted, and empty individuals, and they were excited, once again by the orange puppet master. So…here we are. I try not to care and to only hope that I and my loved ones are not TOO impacted by what the new administration will destroy. Constraints on Trump? He fires those who constrain him.
For Trump, constraints are to be mocked and broken.
In other news -Elon Musk said Bezo's ex wife, Mackenzie Scott, is destroying western civilization by donating billions to charities for women, minorities, and marginalized groups.
So in response, she doubled her donations.
LOL!!
Elon Musk's comment suggests that he is a Social Darwinist, not unusual in the billionaire class.
I think you give Trump too much credit. I doubt that he truly understands the economy or Wall Street. He’s just a silver spooned brat who can pay advisors to think for him, just so he can ignore their advice and file for bankruptcy constantly.
What economic geniuses like Musk and Ramaswamy, who advocate cutting government spending—especially aid to the poor—fail to understand is that government spending, particularly on the poor, doesn’t just vanish. From an economic perspective, these expenditures act as a powerful stimulus. They not only support those in need but also funnel money into the pockets of the middle class. How? The poor spend nearly every dollar they receive on essentials like rent, food, and clothing. This spending ripples through the economy, circulating each dollar 5-7 times. Every dollar Musk aims to cut effectively generates $5-7 of economic activity. Eliminating $2 trillion from such spending wouldn’t save much; instead, it would strip the economy of a potential multiplier effect, causing far more harm than good. This does not mean that there is not plenty of waste in the Government and making the intitutions more efficient is neccessary.
I'm less concerned about what DOGE may recommend. Their recommendations will gore too many ox and there will be GOP and corporate pushback to alot of it, though not the privatizing parts.
Marginal rate of consumption!
On a comment about China trade hurting the US assembly workers:
His comment, although showing bitter resentment, illustrates why the con man Trump won the election. But, it was Nixon who opened China to US corporate overseas production. It is the ultra rich many of whom got that way from owning large shares of corporate wealth, who funnel money to the Republicans. It is the Republicans who most support and are supported by the fossil fuel interests.
Now Trump is using Tariffs as his main tool to support the US assembly labor who have been left behind by the corporate use of cheap foreign labor. But I read that international trade is very complex, and his mindless actions are tearing apart the complex trade agreements. American manufacturing companies are being damaged by retaliatory tariffs, raising costs for raw materials, and prices on their goods being sold abroad. Everyone suffers when trade is blocked.
So, the question is, how do you support the left behind low skill US labor, without hurting everyone in the world? Perhaps Biden had a clue. He offered incentives to US production of raw materials and goods. Instead of dumping sand into the gears of production, he dumped oil into the gears. And, his idea is to get the rich to pay their fair share of taxes to provide that lubrication.
I think it's a misnomer to characterize US Labor as 'low skill', don't you?
Yes, what is the correct word? They are not doctors, lawyers, engineers, programmers, or other high earners due to expertise. low expertise?
Watch out, your privilege is showing…low expertise? That’s what you think of Essentials? I think not- open your eyes Ted- I guarantee you couldn’t do their jobs- you’re an amateur in that milieu- and that attitude is what kicked butt in the election and helped create this mess…
I'd like to see all these high-earners, high-expertise types, to work an assembly-line or work as a nurse's aide for a day or two. They would hate it 5 minutes in. It is the working class that keeps things afloat. It is our labour (that so many look down upon) which makes money for the doctors, lawyers, etc. We make money for the rich by putting out the goods and services that make them wealthy. Maybe if the upper classes were paid what they are actually worth rather than what they siphon off, there would be more respect for the working class.
I've had my days as a high earner. I've had my days as a low earner. I now have days with no pay. Don't make assumptions about people.
I'm not making assumptions but the majority of them could not do heavy labour.
You don't know me. I grew up in poverty, and a broken family with a alcololic wife beating father. I've worked many jobs all my life. I'm 81 now and am doing manual labor re-building houses, and installing solar. I studied hard and became an Electrical Engineer. I also am a Vietnam era vet, but managed to get kicked out of the army for revolting against the war. I also have one sister who has not worked over 1 year in her life. Another sister sits and complains constantly, although once upon a time she had a good job. I see a lot of poor people who for one reason or another have no ambition. And often they prefer Trump in their ignorance. I also work alongside immigrant labor on houses now and then.
You earned respect, Ted.
"Skilled labor" fits most.
10 of 3,729
Wake up, America--
Donald Hodgins <silencenotbad@gmail.com>
Sun, Nov 24, 6:43 PM (12 hours ago)
to Robert
The hour is late, but is it yet too late
To shape us to the sturdy, rugged mold
Our Fathers forged, as challenge to the fate
That dared oppress them in the days of old?
They asked no odds nor did they bow to fear
When menace loomed, or when disaster grew,
But, buoyed by faith, united and austere,
They gave their all the nation's work to do.
Now class and creed unsheath the swords of hate;
Depart the self reliance we have known;
Corruption stalks and fear knocks at our gate,
And hearts once bold have faint and timid grown.
Oh God, too long have we supinely lain;
Lend us Thine aid our birthright to regain.
Robert, I can't take credit for the poetic thought expressed by a long deceased family member who authored so much more. However, knowing your background I thought you might enjoy some of the words my grandfather wrote all those years ago. Thanks for all you do.