Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa

[Alan Klein]

You have called social media "utilities" for several postings now. Did you think no one noticed?

Stop the propaganda, please, or at least do it better.

Well, that's the question, isn't it?  Do companies like Facebook reach a level of monopoly that requires their breakup like they did with AT&T years ago into the smaller Bells or what happen to Standard oil under Rockefeller 100 years ago in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust laws?  Does Facebook have such monopoly on modern communications that it impedes access of people to express their political and other views freely?  Does it restrain trade of competitors? 

I don't use Facebook or Twitter.  So I'm not familiar with the goings-on there.  But I don't understand why corporate management needs to get involved with what people say to each other.  After all, the phone company gives service to anyone want wants it.  They don't monitor or comment on the conversations that people have among themselves. They don;t deny service based on the organization that wants service.  They could be Nazis, KKK, or the Communist Party.  Why should these other companies like FB get into the censorship game?  They should stay neutral.  If they suspect, as the phone company would do, some criminal activities, then report it to the FBI or police and let the authorities deal with it.  If it doesn't reach the level of criminal activity, just lies or politics or BS, then it's just none of their business what I say to you.

At a minimum, Congress should remove protection against lawsuits and let them deal with their decisions as newspapers and other media do.   

[Robert Roaldi]

Americs's broke.  There are no good times any more. ...

Then you should stop giving Amazon relocation subsidies. They have money, they might have all the money, make them pay their own way. While you're at it, maybe you should get Apple and Amazon to pay their taxes, that might help a bit. It might at least offset some of those relocation grants/subsidies/whatever-you-call-them.

Just sayin'.

[James Clark]

I presume that the assumption is that if there is bamboo present then it must have come from Asia. What about soya sauce, did they check for soya sauce?

Yep.  Personally I say they should look for stray Panda hair, but I wasn't consulted...

It's embarrassing reading this crap.

Indeed.

Edit: I just realized that I have a sample pack of Hahnemuhle Natural Fiber photographic paper sitting here.  I should print out a "Ballot" and send it to the "Cyber Ninjas" 

[Robert Roaldi]

Well, that's the question, isn't it?  Do companies like Facebook reach a level of monopoly that requires their breakup like they did with AT&T years ago into the smaller Bells or what happen to Standard oil under Rockefeller 100 years ago in violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust laws?  Does Facebook have such monopoly on modern communications that it impedes access of people to express their political and other views freely?  Does it restrain trade of competitors? 

I don't use Facebook or Twitter.  So I'm not familiar with the goings-on there.  But I don't understand why corporate management needs to get involved with what people say to each other.  After all, the phone company gives service to anyone want wants it.  They don't monitor or comment on the conversations that people have among themselves. They don;t deny service based on the organization that wants service.  They could be Nazis, KKK, or the Communist Party.  Why should these other companies like FB get into the censorship game?  They should stay neutral.  If they suspect, as the phone company would do, some criminal activities, then report it to the FBI or police and let the authorities deal with it.  If it doesn't reach the level of criminal activity, just lies or politics or BS, then it's just none of their business what I say to you.

At a minimum, Congress should remove protection against lawsuits and let them deal with their decisions as newspapers and other media do.

Couldn't it be argued that those companies are just expressing their political views? Didn't "citizens united" more or less give them the green light to do that? Or is it just that you're against them expressing political views that you don't agree with.

[Alan Klein]

Then you should stop giving Amazon relocation subsidies. They have money, they might have all the money, make them pay their own way. While you're at it, maybe you should get Apple and Amazon to pay their taxes, that might help a bit. It might at least offset some of those relocation grants/subsidies/whatever-you-call-them.

Just sayin'.

The problem isn't taxes. It's spending that's gotten out of control.  Only 45% of the current spending comes from taxes. The rest has to be borrowed or printed.  The government is never satisfied,  No matter how much taxes they collect, they spend more. 

You're still conflating deals states make with companies to get them to move into their states.  That has nothing to do with Federal income taxes.  We're a federal republic.  State taxes, if there are any, are separate and distinct from taxes we pay to the national government. 

[Robert Roaldi]

The problem isn't taxes. It's spending that's gotten out of control.  Only 45% of the current spending comes from taxes. The rest has to be borrowed or printed.  The government is never satisfied,  No matter how much taxes they collect, they spend more. 

You're still conflating deals states make with companies to get them to move into their states.  That has nothing to do with Federal income taxes.  We're a federal republic.  State taxes, if there are any, are separate and distinct from taxes we pay to the national government.

There is only one taxpayer. You're playing word games.

[Alan Klein]

Couldn't it be argued that those companies are just expressing their political views? Didn't "citizens united" more or less give them the green light to do that? Or is it just that you're against them expressing political views that you don't agree with.

You're conflating monopolies with the right of a corporation to give political contributions.  They're separate. 

Additionally, expressing their political views is one thing.  But shutting down political and commercial speech and competition due to their monopoly of public communication is another.  Like the example of the phone company.  Let's say they decide that Communists are bad.  So they refuse to install telephone lines to their offices so they can't communicate.  In the modern age, you can't exist without phones, can't get the word out, or do business.  Your speech is silenced.  It's the same with politicians or other commercial enterprises.  What if Google decides they don't like that cake company that won't make cakes for gays.  So they refuse them service.  So the cake company has little way to advertise their store and how to get to their address in Google maps.  The cake company goes out of business.  IN my opinion, Google is too powerful.  Just give them service as the phone company does.  If they start doing that, they should be broken up.

Well, my opinion is that FB and others may have reached the same monopoly positions.  By shutting off service to Trump or anyone else they disagree with, that power has grown into a monopoly that effectively ships people to a gulag so their speech cannot be heard at all.  Today it's Trump.  Tomorrow it could be you. 

[Alan Klein]

There is only one taxpayer. You're playing word games.

I don't understand there's only one taxpayer.  Could you explain?

[LesPalenik]

The problem isn't taxes. It's spending that's gotten out of control.  Only 45% of the current spending comes from taxes. The rest has to be borrowed or printed.  The government is never satisfied,  No matter how much taxes they collect, they spend more. 

You're still conflating deals states make with companies to get them to move into their states.  That has nothing to do with Federal income taxes.  We're a federal republic.  State taxes, if there are any, are separate and distinct from taxes we pay to the national government.

The US government got too big over the years while the US manufacturing sector shrank. Facebook, Bitcoin or hedge funds won't save America. Trump had a chance to do something about it and he completely squandered that chance. Yesterday, there was a good interview with Peter Schiff, who presents a realistic picture about US current state and future outlook.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L0jy8B1KLY

[Robert Roaldi]

I don't understand there's only one taxpayer.  Could you explain?

Your separation of government into a hated federal version and states that compete with each other (and presumably other levels, municipal, country, etc.), I consider largely irrelevant. The government is one big black box that handles public affairs. Think of it as a big conglomerate where the different levels, federal, state, etc., are separate departments. Each taxpayer pays into that black box, sometimes directly to the various departments, sometimes to the top entity, but it's always the same taxpayer.

Your argument that the federal government wastes money, whereas when state governments spend wisely when "competing" with each other to acquire an Amazon factory is a delusion.

[Alan Klein]

The US government got too big over the years while the US manufacturing sector shrank. Facebook, Bitcoin or hedge funds won't save America. Trump had a chance to do something about it and he completely squandered that chance. Yesterday, there was a good interview with Peter Schiff, who presents a realistic picture about US current state and future outlook.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L0jy8B1KLY

We went off the gold standard in 1971 and now have a fiat currency, one of the major complaints of Peter Schiff.  It allows the government to print and print.  I follow him all the time. He's an Austrian economist and a gold bug.   He predicts a debasement of the dollar as the Fed keeps printing to pay for the government's debts and deficits.  They can;t raise interest rates because that would raise interest rates on the government's own debt, something it can;lt afford.  So they'll just keep printing -  a disaster.  Kevin's, the interviewer, I watch also,  a smart guy too who's running for governor of California should the current governor get re-called.    Trump couldn't have saved America's economy although his deficit spending did it no favors.  Biden is quintupling down. The problem is the people all want something for nothing and politicians give it to them for the vote.  Europe's no better. I think your Canada is in a better position. 

[Peter McLennan]

Continually equating the phone company with Facebook is lame, Alan.  They’re not even remotely the same, as well you know.

[Alan Klein]

Your separation of government into a hated federal version and states that compete with each other (and presumably other levels, municipal, country, etc.), I consider largely irrelevant. The government is one big black box that handles public affairs. Think of it as a big conglomerate where the different levels, federal, state, etc., are separate departments. Each taxpayer pays into that black box, sometimes directly to the various departments, sometimes to the top entity, but it's always the same taxpayer.

Your argument that the federal government wastes money, whereas when state governments spend wisely when "competing" with each other to acquire an Amazon factory is a delusion.

I never said the state governments spend wisely although some do better than others. You should see my New Jersey property and state income taxes!!  But it all doesn't go into the same box. Some go to Federal coffers, the rest go to respective states' coffers. It does come from the same wallet, however.   Florida and Texas have no state income tax while California's goes up to 13% above what the Federal government collects in their taxes.  That's why people are leaving California for Texas and New Yorkers and New Jerseyans to Florida. 

[Alan Klein]

Continually equating the phone company with Facebook is lame, Alan.  They’re not even remotely the same, as well you know.

Well, AT&T is not the same as Standard Oil either.  But both were broken up as monopolies. 

[LesPalenik]

We went off the gold standard in 1971 and now have a fiat currency, one of the major complaints of Peter Schiff.  It allows the government to print and print.  I follow him all the time. He's an Austrian economist and a gold bug.   He predicts a debasement of the dollar as the Fed keeps printing to pay for the government's debts and deficits.  They can;t raise interest rates because that would raise interest rates on the government's own debt, something it can;lt afford.  So they'll just keep printing -  a disaster.  Kevin's, the interviewer, I watch also,  a smart guy too who's running for governor of California should the current governor get re-called.    Trump couldn't have saved America's economy although his deficit spending did it no favors.  Biden is quintupling down. The problem is the people all want something for nothing and politicians give it to them for the vote.  Europe's no better. I think your Canada is in a better position.

I'm glad you are also following Peter Schiff and Kevin Paffrath. Kevin is indeed one smart cookie. If he'll change his mind about running for the governor, he'll have a bright future in the investment field.

[Alan Klein]

Continually equating the phone company with Facebook is lame, Alan.  They’re not even remotely the same, as well you know.

Even in your own industry, the Paramount case broke up Hollywood's power due to their monopoly over theaters and actors.

An interesting screenplay.

The day the Supreme Court killed Hollywood’s studio system

Hollywood’s greatest drama took place over two decades in a fight that featured movie barons, President Franklin Roosevelt, Walt Disney, Charlie Chaplin, and the United States Supreme Court.

In the end, the Court ruled in United States v. Paramount on May 4, 1948, finding that the studios had violated anti-trust laws, in a devastating blow to five major studios and three smaller ones. The case had roots dating back to 1921, when concerns first arose about the studios and the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

The major studios had a near-monopoly on the movie business in the United States. Each studio had exclusive contracts with actors and directors; owned the theaters where their movies played; worked with each other to control how movies were shown in independent theaters; and, in some cases, owned the companies that processed the film.
https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/the-day-the-supreme-court-killed-hollywoods-studio-system

[Alan Klein]

I'm glad you are also following Peter Schiff and Kevin Paffrath. Kevin is indeed one smart cookie. If he'll change his mind about running for the governor, he'll have a bright future in the investment field.

I'll tell you a funny story about Schiff.  I went to see him give a talk once somewhere in NYC about ten years ago.  It may have been at a gold convention, I forget.  In any case, after he was done, I went up to the desk where he had a number of his economic books on The Crash or whatever.  For some reason I only had ten dollars cash and the book was $15.  So I introduced myself, told him what a great job his speech was, and offered him ten dollars for his book.  He looked at me in my eyes for about a second, then said OK and took the ten dollars.  I walked away with the book figuring it was nice to have made a deal with Peter Schiff. 

[LesPalenik]

I'll tell you a funny story about Schiff.  I went to see him give a talk once somewhere in NYC about ten years ago.  It may have been at a gold convention, I forget.  In any case, after he was done, I went up to the desk where he had a number of his economic books on The Crash or whatever.  For some reason I only had ten dollars cash and the book was $15.  So I introduced myself, told him what a great job his speech was, and offered him ten dollars for his book.  He looked at me in my eyes for about a second, then said OK and took the ten dollars.  I walked away with the book figuring it was nice to have made a deal with Peter Schiff. 

That's a good story about Schiff and your book. Did he autograph it for you?
I have a somewhat similar book story. Many years ago, I attended in Toronto the annual Canoe Wilderness Association Conference where various presenters described their canoe expeditions in Canadian North. I registered late and didn't get tickets for the lunch or dinner. After one presenter concluded his talk, he mentioned that he won't be using his lunch ticket and he can give it someone without the ticket. So I came to him and asked for that ticket which had a value of $10-$15. I was running also low on cash that day, so I ran to my car, a picked up one of panoramic photobooks which included a number of canoeing and motor boat scenes around Georgian Bay and gave it to him instead of money. He was quite pleased and mentioned that he was also thinking about making a similar book. I was also happy and said that if he needed any book making advice, he can call me. 

To my surprise, he called me the same evening, and said that he was invited to a dinner at his brother in law and when he showed them the book, the couple recognized themselves on the deck of their yacht in one of the scenes in the book. They liked it and ordered two more books at full price.

[Alan Klein]

That's great story. What's the links to buy your books?

[LesPalenik]

That's great story. What's the links to buy your books?

Below is the link to view the books.
https://advantica.wordpress.com/97-2/

They are available for purchase from the link below or you can order them directly from me by email.
http://www.yarnela.citymax.com/panorama-books.html