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Author Topic: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa  (Read 466333 times)

Alan Klein

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11340 on: September 13, 2021, 05:11:08 pm »

If they die before their time comes, it doesn't really matter if their assets are in cash or in stocks. Since they tend to lead a rather dull life, I'd say - put the money into stocks for more thrill.


It's sad when you get old and the most thrilling thing you can do is to decide which investments you ought to make. Now just where did I put that blue pill?  :)

digitaldog

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11341 on: September 13, 2021, 06:09:35 pm »

The “blue pill” isn't effective for mental impotence.
Best to think and then write using the big head. 🤔
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LesPalenik

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11342 on: September 14, 2021, 10:05:02 am »

In the latest stimulus proposal the Democrats want to award $4,500 check for each car to unionized automakers.
Not only they want to take this credit portion away from the non-unionized EV innovators (Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, ...), but they call this credit "Domestic Content" instead of "Payback to UAW".   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXagGPCn2pY
« Last Edit: September 14, 2021, 10:08:46 am by LesPalenik »
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Alan Klein

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11343 on: September 14, 2021, 10:42:11 am »

In the latest stimulus proposal the Democrats want to award $4,500 check for each car to unionized automakers.
Not only they want to take this credit portion away from the non-unionized EV innovators (Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, ...), but they call this credit "Domestic Content" instead of "Payback to UAW".   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXagGPCn2pY
The DC swamp at work.  Government politicians picking winners and losers in industry based on where they get their votes and campaign money from. Totally opposite a free market economy.  We should have an even playing field where companies fail or prosper competing with other companies based on buyer's preferences in the real world. 

digitaldog

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11344 on: September 14, 2021, 01:08:06 pm »

The swamp not working thankfully.

Trump: serious mental decline.
Quote
Two days after the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, President Donald Trump's top military adviser, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley, single-handedly took top-secret action to limit Trump from potentially ordering a dangerous military strike or launching nuclear weapons, according to "Peril," a new book by legendary journalist Bob Woodward and veteran Washington Post reporter Robert Costa.
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LesPalenik

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11345 on: September 14, 2021, 01:30:59 pm »

Yes, dumb and dumber.
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Peter McLennan

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11346 on: September 14, 2021, 03:55:28 pm »

My pensions and cash savings and your salary and cash savings won't be worth squat pretty soon.  We won't be able to afford food pretty soon - contaminated or not.

You'll be dead by then, especially if you keep eating steak and pizza. 
And so will I and I'm a year younger than you.

Quit worrying and lame prognosticating and get out and shoot pictures.  We'll all be happier.
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Alan Klein

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11347 on: September 14, 2021, 04:03:12 pm »

You'll be dead by then, especially if you keep eating steak and pizza. 
And so will I and I'm a year younger than you.

Quit worrying and lame prognosticating and get out and shoot pictures.  We'll all be happier.

Yes, my wife said I shouldn't worry about it that she'll take care of my money after I'm gone.   :o

PeterAit

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11348 on: September 14, 2021, 05:42:00 pm »

As I said in my last post, the greatest threat is government deficit spending and the Fed. My pensions and cash savings and your salary and cash savings won't be worth squat pretty soon.  We won't be able to afford food pretty soon - contaminated or not.

You ignore my post and, even worse, you forgot to say "printing money."
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Chris Kern

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11349 on: September 14, 2021, 06:04:10 pm »

The swamp not working thankfully.

Trump: serious mental decline.

The account in Bob Woodward's latest book of Trump's last days in office is eerily reminiscent of the final period of Richard Nixon's presidential administration, which Woodward covered as a young reporter (as, actually, did I).

Nixon, by then drinking heavily, reportedly was considered unstable by those around him.  Secretary of Defense James Schleshinger quietly informed U.S. military commanders that any presidential order to use nuclear weapons needed to be reviewed by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and himself.  (While presidential authorization is necessary before nuclear weapons can be used, that alone is not sufficient: there are various levels of procedural safeguards to ensure that the military does not carry out such an order unless it is consistent with the legal authority granted by the U.S. Constitution and statutes enacted by Congress.)

Thus also the concern about Trump.  From the New York Times account of the Woodward book:

Quote
Similar to other media reports and books released since Mr. Trump left office, the book details how Mr. Trump’s presidency essentially collapsed in his final months in office, particularly after his election loss and the start of his campaign to deny the results. Top aides — including General Milley, Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper and Attorney General William P. Barr — became convinced that they needed to take drastic measures to stop him from trampling on American democracy or setting off an international conflict, and General Milley thought that Mr. Trump had declined mentally in the aftermath of the election, according to the book. . . .

General Milley, who had become increasingly concerned about China’s growing military power and the potential for one misread move to set off combat between the world superpowers, first called General Li around that time on a secret backchannel. He wanted to assure General Li and President Xi Jinping that the United States was not planning to attack China.

On the Jan. 8 call, General Li suggested that Chinese leaders feared that the United States government was unstable. He pressed General Milley over the course of an hour and a half about whether the military was going to take action.

Despite General Milley’s reassurances, he feared that Mr. Trump might be trying to find a moment that he could seize on to remain in power, similar to Hitler’s exploitation in 1933 of an arson fire at the German Reichstag to help institute emergency powers, the book said.

But even after the call, General Milley concluded that the situation was “grave” and General Li “remained unusually rattled,” the book reports.

Mr. Trump, General Milley had concluded, did not want a war but might order the launch of some sort of military strike that would set off a chain reaction and lead to war.

“I continually reminded him,” General Milley is quoted as saying, “depending on where and what you strike, you could find yourself at war.”

Later that day, General Milley spoke to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was growing increasingly concerned Mr. Trump would lash out and use military force.

“This is bad, but who knows what he might do?” Ms. Pelosi said. “He’s crazy. You know he’s crazy. He’s been crazy for a long time. So don’t say you don’t know what his state of mind is.”

“Madam Speaker,” General Milley said, “I agree with you on everything.”

General Milley, who as the president’s top military adviser is not in the chain of command, tried to reassure Ms. Pelosi that he could stop Mr. Trump.

“The one thing I can guarantee is that as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, I want you to know that — I want you to know this in your heart of hearts, I can guarantee you 110 percent that the military, use of military power, whether it’s nuclear or a strike in a foreign country of any kind, we’re not going to do anything illegal or crazy,” he said.

Steve Bannon and other authoritarian ideologues who attached themselves to Trump railed against "the deep state"—the professional bureaucrats in the civilian agencies and military services of the government who, according to the ideologues, had their own agenda that prompted them to resist political directives.  There may have been some truth in that, but the essence of their agenda was that there are constitutional, statutory, and procedural rules that representatives of the government are obliged to follow.

 

TechTalk

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11350 on: September 14, 2021, 08:02:04 pm »

In the latest stimulus proposal the Democrats want to award $4,500 check for each car to unionized automakers.
Not only they want to take this credit portion away from the non-unionized EV innovators (Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, ...), but they call this credit "Domestic Content" instead of "Payback to UAW".   

In the latest stimulus proposal the Democrats want to award [have proposed an additional] $4,500 [or less, depending on income level,] check [tax credit to qualified buyers] for each car [of qualified electric vehicles which have a suggested retail price below an established maximum by vehicle type] to unionized automakers [to individual purchasers, if final assembly is domestic and at plants with a qualified employee collective bargaining agreement].

Not only they want to take this credit portion away from the non-unionized EV innovators (Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, ...), [The tax credit goes to individuals that purchase qualifying vehicles as outlined above.] but they call this credit "Domestic Content" [Domestic Assembly] [There is a separate $500 tax credit for "Domestic Content" which requires a minimum of 50% domestic components to be used in final assembly, including battery cells which are required to be solely manufactured in the United States.] instead of "Payback to UAW" [in support of U.S. component manufacturing and in support of U.S. policy, under law (29 U.S. Code § 151) since 1935, for it "to be the policy of the United States" to encourage "the practice and procedure of collective bargaining".]

Democrats have consistently supported and promoted the right, and the value, of collective bargaining by labor before it was established as official U.S. policy in 1935; so, it's not a surprise that they continue to do so. Current U.S. law under 29 U.S. Code § 151 concludes with the paragraph...

It is hereby declared to be the policy of the United States to eliminate the causes of certain substantial obstructions to the free flow of commerce and to mitigate and eliminate these obstructions when they have occurred by encouraging the practice and procedure of collective bargaining and by protecting the exercise by workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of their own choosing, for the purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions of their employment or other mutual aid or protection.

Both the U.S. economy and labor benefited for generations from widespread participation in labor unions as the middle class saw enormous expansion. The competition for labor saw increases in wages for nonunion workers as well. The resulting larger population base of people with increased disposable income aided in the stability and growth of the overall economy. Protection and promotion of collective bargaining has remained official U.S. government policy and law for decades.

Since the 1980s, however, unions and collective bargaining have been under continued assault at the state level, led by conservative ideologues. During this time, states which have passed laws aimed at undermining unions have simultaneously provided enormous tax breaks to manufacturers to locate facilities there. State and local subsidies to foreign-owned auto assembly plants have totaled billions of dollars. For example, the VW plant in Chattanooga Tennessee was built on a 1,350-acre industrial park given to VW at no cost as part of an incentive package of well over $500 million. VW announced in July of this year that the Chattanooga plant will become its North American hub for electric vehicle assembly.

Tesla hasn't been left out of the state tax initiatives for building facilities either. Nevada quickly pushed thru the largest tax abatement package in state history, worth $1.3 billion, to locate their battery manufacturing plant near Reno.

And should anyone think that lobbying and political contributions are limited to unions and do not include enormous money and effort by nonunion auto makers to bolster their profits thru lower wages and tax incentives, I assure you that is not the case and that their efforts are rewarded.
« Last Edit: September 14, 2021, 08:06:59 pm by TechTalk »
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Alan Klein

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11351 on: September 14, 2021, 08:45:15 pm »

The account in Bob Woodward's latest book of Trump's last days in office is eerily reminiscent of the final period of Richard Nixon's presidential administration, which Woodward covered as a young reporter (as, actually, did I).

Nixon, by then drinking heavily, reportedly was considered unstable by those around him.  Secretary of Defense James Schleshinger quietly informed U.S. military commanders that any presidential order to use nuclear weapons needed to be reviewed by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and himself.  (While presidential authorization is necessary before nuclear weapons can be used, that alone is not sufficient: there are various levels of procedural safeguards to ensure that the military does not carry out such an order unless it is consistent with the legal authority granted by the U.S. Constitution and statutes enacted by Congress.)

Thus also the concern about Trump.  From the New York Times account of the Woodward book:

Steve Bannon and other authoritarian ideologues who attached themselves to Trump railed against "the deep state"—the professional bureaucrats in the civilian agencies and military services of the government who, according to the ideologues, had their own agenda that prompted them to resist political directives.  There may have been some truth in that, but the essence of their agenda was that there are constitutional, statutory, and procedural rules that representatives of the government are obliged to follow.

 

The truth is Trump never intended to go to war and in fact reduced our war footprint during his four-year presidency.  He was the one who opposed our involvement in wars many times pushed by others.  The fact is Gen Milley ignored his oath and the constitution, not the president.  Milley should be fired by Biden or the Secretary of Defence and congress should remove one of the stars they gave him.  When Gen Haig said he was running the country when Republican President Reagan was shot, democrats were legitimately irate.  Now they are silent when "their" general takes over civilian authority just because they didn't like Trump, the legitimate president.  It's dangerous when the military rather than civilians decide these things regardless of which party is in power. 

Alan Klein

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11352 on: September 14, 2021, 08:51:45 pm »

In the latest stimulus proposal the Democrats want to award [have proposed an additional] $4,500 [or less, depending on income level,] check [tax credit to qualified buyers] for each car [of qualified electric vehicles which have a suggested retail price below an established maximum by vehicle type] to unionized automakers [to individual purchasers, if final assembly is domestic and at plants with a qualified employee collective bargaining agreement].

Not only they want to take this credit portion away from the non-unionized EV innovators (Tesla, Lucid, Rivian, ...), [The tax credit goes to individuals that purchase qualifying vehicles as outlined above.] but they call this credit "Domestic Content" [Domestic Assembly] [There is a separate $500 tax credit for "Domestic Content" which requires a minimum of 50% domestic components to be used in final assembly, including battery cells which are required to be solely manufactured in the United States.] instead of "Payback to UAW" [in support of U.S. component manufacturing and in support of U.S. policy, under law (29 U.S. Code § 151) since 1935, for it "to be the policy of the United States" to encourage "the practice and procedure of collective bargaining".]

Democrats have consistently supported and promoted the right, and the value, of collective bargaining by labor before it was established as official U.S. policy in 1935; so, it's not a surprise that they continue to do so. Current U.S. law under 29 U.S. Code § 151 concludes with the paragraph...

It is hereby declared to be the policy of the United States to eliminate the causes of certain substantial obstructions to the free flow of commerce and to mitigate and eliminate these obstructions when they have occurred by encouraging the practice and procedure of collective bargaining and by protecting the exercise by workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of their own choosing, for the purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions of their employment or other mutual aid or protection.

Both the U.S. economy and labor benefited for generations from widespread participation in labor unions as the middle class saw enormous expansion. The competition for labor saw increases in wages for nonunion workers as well. The resulting larger population base of people with increased disposable income aided in the stability and growth of the overall economy. Protection and promotion of collective bargaining has remained official U.S. government policy and law for decades.

Since the 1980s, however, unions and collective bargaining have been under continued assault at the state level, led by conservative ideologues. During this time, states which have passed laws aimed at undermining unions have simultaneously provided enormous tax breaks to manufacturers to locate facilities there. State and local subsidies to foreign-owned auto assembly plants have totaled billions of dollars. For example, the VW plant in Chattanooga Tennessee was built on a 1,350-acre industrial park given to VW at no cost as part of an incentive package of well over $500 million. VW announced in July of this year that the Chattanooga plant will become its North American hub for electric vehicle assembly.

Tesla hasn't been left out of the state tax initiatives for building facilities either. Nevada quickly pushed thru the largest tax abatement package in state history, worth $1.3 billion, to locate their battery manufacturing plant near Reno.

And should anyone think that lobbying and political contributions are limited to unions and do not include enormous money and effort by nonunion auto makers to bolster their profits thru lower wages and tax incentives, I assure you that is not the case and that their efforts are rewarded.
This was a democratic political payoff to unions for their support in votes and campaign donations to the Democrats.  Your usual use of longwinded verbiage to rewrite history doesn't change that fact. 

digitaldog

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11353 on: September 14, 2021, 08:52:09 pm »

The truth is Trump never intended to go to war and in fact reduced our war footprint during his four-year presidency. 
Like pulling out of Afghanistan... Not.
The story is about how unhinged he was and 'his generals' had to make sure it didn't start a war. But that part of the story went totally past you. 
Quote
It's dangerous when the military rather than civilians decide these things regardless of which party is in power.
Utter rubbish.
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TechTalk

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11354 on: September 14, 2021, 08:58:02 pm »

CNN has a number of excerpts from the new Woodward/Costa book Peril due for release on September 21. One episode they recount involves Mike Pence.

"Peril" also describes the tense encounter in the Oval Office on January 5 when Trump pressured Pence to overturn the results of the election. While the showdown went on inside, the two men could hear MAGA supporters cheering and chanting outside near Pennsylvania Avenue.

"If these people say you had the power, wouldn't you want to?" Trump asked.

"I wouldn't want any one person to have that authority," Pence said.

"But wouldn't it be almost cool to have that power?" Trump asked, according to Woodward and Costa.

"No," Pence said. He went on, "I've done everything I could and then some to find a way around this. It's simply not possible."

When Pence did not budge, Trump turned on him.

"No, no, no!" Trump shouted, according to the authors. "You don't understand, Mike. You can do this. I don't want to be your friend anymore if you don't do this."

Trump called Pence again the morning of January 6. "If you don't do it, I picked the wrong man four years ago," Trump said, according to the authors. "You're going to wimp out," he said, his anger visible to others in the office.

Even though Pence stood up to Trump in the end, "Peril" reveals that after four years of abject loyalty, he struggled with the decision. Woodward and Costa write that Pence reached out to Dan Quayle, who had been the vice president to George H.W. Bush, seeking his advice.

Over and over, Pence asked if there was anything he could do.

"Mike, you have no flexibility on this. None. Zero. Forget it. Put it away," Quayle told him.

Pence pressed again.

"You don't know the position I'm in," he said, according to the authors.

"I do know the position you're in," Quayle responded. "I also know what the law is. You listen to the parliamentarian. That's all you do. You have no power."
« Last Edit: September 14, 2021, 11:12:49 pm by TechTalk »
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TechTalk

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11355 on: September 14, 2021, 09:02:07 pm »

Your usual use of longwinded verbiage to rewrite history doesn't change that fact.

Your usual short attention span and affection for simple and easy bumper sticker sized thoughts is a matter of record and a fact.
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digitaldog

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11356 on: September 14, 2021, 09:07:31 pm »

Milley had to contact a Chinese general to reassure the general that Trump would not start a war with them.
Wow!
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Alan Klein

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11357 on: September 14, 2021, 09:17:12 pm »

Your usual short attention span and affection for simple and easy bumper sticker sized thoughts is a matter of record and a fact.
It's easy to tell the truth in a few words. 

TechTalk

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11358 on: September 14, 2021, 09:19:33 pm »

When Gen Haig said he was running the country when Republican President Reagan was shot

Never one to miss an opportunity to misquote; quote out of context; or simply make up statements and attribute them to others.

An accurate quote in context would be:

In 1981, following the March 30 assassination attempt on Reagan, [Secretary of State] Haig asserted before reporters, "I am in control here" as a result of Reagan's hospitalization, indicating that, while President Reagan had not "transferred the helm," Haig was in fact directing White House crisis management until Vice President George Bush arrived in Washington to assume that role.

"Constitutionally, gentlemen, you have the president, the vice president, and the secretary of state in that order, and should the president decide he wants to transfer the helm to the vice president, he will do so. He has not done that. As of now, I am in control here, in the White House, pending return of the vice president and in close touch with him. If something came up, I would check with him, of course."

— Alexander Haig, "Alexander Haig", autobiographical profile in Time magazine, April 2, 1984
« Last Edit: September 14, 2021, 09:29:01 pm by TechTalk »
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TechTalk

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Re: Bear Pit: now the sole domicile of politics at LuLa
« Reply #11359 on: September 14, 2021, 09:20:53 pm »

It's easy to tell the truth in a few words.

A habit you should consider adopting when it comes to quoting other people.
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