Politics... US election edition (2020 almost over, read all about it!)

[Gromnir]

Jonathan Swan Describes How Lincoln Project Pence Ad Set Off Trump: He Was ‘Enraged’

“The president didn’t realize Pence had this ceremonial role — he didn’t know about it until very recently. And the way he found out about it was the Lincoln Project came up with this ad… and they ran it just in the DC market. Mostly on Trump’s favorite shows on Fox, designed for an audience of one. And the ad sort of, in an over the top ominous framing, points out to their audience of one that Pence actually plays this role and will be sort of putting the ceremonial sound of death to President Trump’s presidency. Trump sees this ad, becomes enraged ,and begins to take this up with Mike Pence privately.”

HA! Good Fun!

[Gfted1]

7 hours ago, BruceVC said:

You right, the Democrats are taking the lead in Georgia...

Aww yeah, the party is about to start!

[Guard Dog]

I wonder if Pence wishes he had retired in '16 like he was planning to. 

In other news The Democrats have total control for two years. As long as they don't try to do something stupid like expand the Supreme Court you likely won't know the difference. Really what are they going to do? Spend trillions of dollars on ineffectual government programs, military expansion, foreign aid to hostile nations? Currency devaluation, debt explosion, and down the road hyper-inflation and ultimately currency collapse? Puh-leaze. This was happening with the Republicans in control so like I said... you won't know the difference. 

Bit Coin is nothing. It is literally air. I could not hand you a bit coin. It does not actually exist. Bit it's worth $35k and going up. Gold has an actual value of around $900 US per oz. It's around $2k right now. Commodities and real assets (income generating real estate for example) are climbing in price. This is significant. These are hedges against inflation. If the government hands you a check for $2k but it's actual buying power is $1k but still incurred $2k in real debt have they really helped you? 

Anyway, I'm not terrible worried about it. I have done all I can do to protect myself and my dog from any kind of government mismanagement or economic collapse. I'll give you guys the same advice I always give and it would be the same no matter who wins:

• If you are in debt get out. 
• If you are not in debt don't go in
• Have as many credit cards as you can but use them sparingly. Pay off whatever you spend every month if you can.
•  Invest in real assets and large cap stocks. Do NOT buy bonds. If you are keeping yourself out of debt why in the world would buy someone else's? If you want to gamble buy Crypto.  
• Save money. But not cash. Do not keep your savings in a regular bank account. Hell don't even bury it in the yard. Inflation when it comes (and you better believe it IS coming) is like a tax on savings. So DO something with that saving that brings back value. Invest it. 

Edited January 6, 2021 by Guard Dog
Spelling

[the_dog_days]

56 minutes ago, Guard Dog said:

Really what are they going to do?

We'll be in a foreign war in 1.5 years.

Edited January 6, 2021 by the_dog_days

[BruceVC]

34 minutes ago, the_dog_days said:

We'll be in a foreign war in 1.5 years.

Apart from the Iran issue what war do you predict the US will be in that time period ?

[Gorth]

21 minutes ago, BruceVC said:

Apart from the Iran issue what war do you predict the US will be in that time period ?

If China keeps throwing its weight around, it will eventually get to the point where the Sudetenland isn't enough.

 

[Guard Dog]

The only thing that would bring us to blows with China is Taiwan. They have wanted to invade since the days of MaoThey just haven’t been willing to pay the price to do it. If they are willing to go to war over Taiwan then that is certainly one way it will happen. If so:

 

[BruceVC]

23 minutes ago, Gorth said:

If China keeps throwing its weight around, it will eventually get to the point where the Sudetenland isn't enough.

 

Yes China is a threat on certain levels and there contempt for human rights and general Democratic rule needs to be addressed

But that doesnt mean the USA will go to war with them, you wont see any countries that have nuclear weapons going to war because of the threat of mutually assured destruction. Thats why the USSR and the USA never went to war directly and the Cold War was about proxy wars. So their could  be  sanctions and punitive economic steps against China but there wont a  traditional war in the WW1 & 2 sense 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual_assured_destruction#:~:text=Mutually assured destruction (MAD) is a doctrine of,defender (see pre-emptive nuclear strike and second strike).

 

[BruceVC]

1 hour ago, Guard Dog said:

I wonder if Pence wishes he had retired in '16 like he was planning to. 

In other news The Democrats have total control for two years. As long as they don't try to do something stupid like expand the Supreme Court you likely won't know the difference. Really what are they going to do? Spend trillions of dollars on ineffectual government programs, military expansion, foreign aid to hostile nations? Currency devaluation, debt explosion, and down the road hyper-inflation and ultimately currency collapse? Puh-leaze. This was happening with the Republicans in control so like I said... you won't know the difference. 

Bit Coin is nothing. It is literally air. I could not hand you a bit coin. It does not actually exist. Bit it's worth $35k and going up. Gold has an actual value of around $900 US per oz. It's around $2k right now. Commodities and real assets (income generating real estate for example) are climbing in price. This is significant. These are hedges against inflation. If the government hands you a check for $2k but it's actual buying power is $1k but still incurred $2k in real debt have they really helped you? 

Anyway, I'm not terrible worried about it. I have done all I can do to protect myself and my dog from any kind of government mismanagement or economic collapse. I'll give you guys the same advice I always give and it would be the same no matter who wins:

• If you are in debt get out. 
• If you are not in debt don't go in
• Have as many credit cards as you can but use them sparingly. Pay off whatever you spend every month if you can.
•  Invest in real assets and large cap stocks. Do NOT buy bonds. If you are keeping yourself out of debt why in the world would buy someone else's? If you want to gamble buy Crypto.  
• Save money. But not cash. Do not keep your savings in a regular bank account. Hell don't even bury it in the yard. Inflation when it comes (and you better believe it IS coming) is like a tax on savings. So DO something with that saving that brings back value. Invest it. 

You wise to avoid any kind of cryptocurrency GD, stick to commodities like Gold because it has intrinsic value and there is a real understanding of what impacts the price and you have recourse when the price fluctuates 

[Guard Dog]

6 minutes ago, BruceVC said:

You wise to avoid any kind of cryptocurrency GD, stick to commodities like Gold because it has intrinsic value and there is a real understanding of what impacts the price and you have recourse when the price fluctuates 

Oh I didn’t avoid it at all. I bought one bit coin back in 2019. It was a little under $4k back then. It climbed up to around $18k then inexplicably collapsed to below $2k. I figured I had just bought a losing investment no big deal. But since then it has taken off and climb steadily. No it’s north of $32,000 and I’m getting very nervous about it. Should I keep it or sell it? Where does this ride end?

[BruceVC]

1 minute ago, Guard Dog said:

Oh I didn’t avoid it at all. I bought one bit coin back in 2019. It was a little under $4k back then. It climbed up to around $18k then inexplicably collapsed to below $2k. I figured I had just bought a losing investment no big deal. But since then it has taken off and climb steadily. No it’s north of $32,000 and I’m getting very nervous about it. Should I keep it or sell it? Where does this ride end?

There is a rise at the moment of cryptocurrency generally but the risk is exactly what happened to you earlier. You cannot predict what will happen next with any cryptocurrency and when it crashes no one takes any responsibility. Purely from a return on investment and considering you have other more stable investments you should sell but you also arent deeply committed so you could just see how it goes purely for the experience  ...its not going to hurt you financially if there is another crash.

The link below is the problem with cryptocurrency, you will never find this with any other  type of normal investment unless it based on a serious problem like 2008 where people lost  money but the markets recovered. Imagine you had invested your life savings in this type of crypto investment and you lost everything because one person died....this is the real risk with cryptocurrency  

https://news.sky.com/story/crypto-trader-boss-dies-with-password-to-clients-110m-11628106

 

[BruceVC]

2 hours ago, Guard Dog said:

I wonder if Pence wishes he had retired in '16 like he was planning to. 

 

Something else interesting you mentioned about Pence, I know he has been an obsequious  sycophant to Trump but I do like him and feel sorry for him because he is now part of this ridiculous theater where he is somehow suppose to do something he cannot really legally do 

So lets say he performs the normal ceremonial role the Trump base is going to blame him and hold him responsible for simply following the US Constitution around this electoral collogue recognition 

Does anyone else feel bad for Pence and what is going to happen today ? 

[ShadySands]

Nope

[BruceVC]

2 minutes ago, ShadySands said:

Nope

You are the undeniable master of brevity....you know that right 

[Guard Dog]

7 minutes ago, BruceVC said:

There is a rise at the moment of cryptocurrency generally but the risk is exactly what happened to you earlier. You cannot predict what will happen next with any cryptocurrency and when it crashes no one takes any responsibility. Purely from a return on investment and considering you have other more stable investments you should sell but you also arent deeply committed so you could just see how it goes purely for the experience  ...its not going to hurt you financially if there is another crash.

The link below is the problem with cryptocurrency, you will never find this with any other  type of normal investment unless it based on a serious problem like 2008 where people lost  money but the markets recovered. Imagine you had invested your life savings in this type of crypto investment and you lost everything because one person died....this is the real risk with cryptocurrency  

https://news.sky.com/story/crypto-trader-boss-dies-with-password-to-clients-110m-11628106

 

This is the best explanation of crypto I've ever seen:

 

Crypto IS money and it's value will only ever be what it's purchasing power will be. As a currency it does have some real potential. First off there is a finite amount of it that can exist. So it it practically immune from inflation. Second it is not tethered to any government or economy. It would be very difficult to manipulate. Of course those can be drawbacks too under the right circumstances. But unlike other currencies there is no exchange between platforms. You cannot convert Bitcoin to Litecoin for example. Not without a middle transaction. BTW, Litecoin is starting to climb like Bitcoin did. It's trading for around $300 US. It was $80 a year ago. Might be an opportunity.

But, based on my own looking the cost of an asset in bitcoin is out of sync with the cost of the same thing in dollars. Suppose you wanted to by concert tickets in bitcoin. If the cost $100 US in dollars they will likely cost a bit more in equivalent bitcoin. I don't know why that is.

Guys, I read one book on Blockchain that provided a 30k' overview. I an NOT an expert. So please don't dive into this without doing your own reading. 

[BruceVC]

3 minutes ago, Guard Dog said:

This is the best explanation of crypto I've ever seen:

 

 

That Simpsons cartoon is classic, really funny 

[Bartimaeus]

1 hour ago, Guard Dog said:

The only thing that would bring us to blows with China is Taiwan. They have wanted to invade since the days of MaoThey just haven’t been willing to pay the price to do it. If they are willing to go to war over Taiwan then that is certainly one way it will happen. If so:

I thought for sure China would take advantage of our extreme foreign policy weakness under Trump and put the kaibosh on Taiwan while Trump was president. Trump has been so wishy-washy in committing to the defense of any allies, and I just didn't see him giving enough of a crap about Taiwan to potentially start World War III over it if China decided to take it...when he could just decide not to. Thankfully, China has not yet pushed the issue.

[Guard Dog]

12 minutes ago, BruceVC said:

Something else interesting you mentioned about Pence, I know he has been an obsequious  sycophant to Trump but I do like him and feel sorry for him because he is now part of this ridiculous theater where he is somehow suppose to do something he cannot really legally do 

So lets say he performs the normal ceremonial role the Trump base is going to blame him and hold him responsible for simply following the US Constitution around this electoral collogue recognition 

Does anyone else feel bad for Pence and what is going to happen today ? 

This farce in the Congress that is being planned today needs to be stopped. It is pointless to "protest" by refusing to certify an election. Hey I'm all for quixotic gestures. I make one every time I vote.  But not on capital hill. Tilt at windmills on your own time. What Trump has done since Nov 4th up to and including his call to the Georgia Secretary of State is banana republic dictators BS. This is NOT worthy of a protest. It's nothing short of disgraceful. 

Like I said, I am so glad Reagan, Goldwater, Ford, Kemp, McCain, and some of the other giants of the GOP are not here to see this s--t. 

[Guard Dog]

Poor Stephen Breyer. The buzzards are circling over him now: Liberals to Breyer: Time to retire - POLITICO

[rjshae]

2 hours ago, the_dog_days said:

We'll be in a foreign war in 1.5 years.

I keep seeing that prediction being kicked around like it means something. We're already in two wars, inherited from Bush/Cheney. Do you mean a new one? Because eight years of Obama/Biden didn't see us enter a new war, unless you count Syria (which is already related to the Iraq war thanks to ISIS).

[Guard Dog]

1 minute ago, rjshae said:

I keep seeing that prediction being kicked around like it means something. We're already in two wars, inherited from Bush/Cheney. Do you mean a new one? Because eight years of Obama/Biden didn't see us enter a new war, unless you count Syria (which is already related to the Iraq war thanks to ISIS).

We have reached the point where servicemembers are deployed fighting the same war their parents fought in. 

[Malcador]

39 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

I thought for sure China would take advantage of our extreme foreign policy weakness under Trump and put the kaibosh on Taiwan while Trump was president. Trump has been so wishy-washy in committing to the defense of any allies, and I just didn't see him giving enough of a crap about Taiwan to potentially start World War III over it if China decided to take it...when he could just decide not to. Thankfully, China has not yet pushed the issue.

Don't think Trump would be so wishy washy there. Gets to prove he's a big man and fight China if they did that.

[Hurlshort]

Carter has some pretty good quotes on the idea that China is going to go to war with the US: https://www.npr.org/2019/04/15/713495558/president-trump-called-former-president-jimmy-carter-to-talk-about-china

[Gromnir]

merrick garland to be biden's pick for ag.

HA! Good Fun!

[BruceVC]

22 minutes ago, rjshae said:

I keep seeing that prediction being kicked around like it means something. We're already in two wars, inherited from Bush/Cheney. Do you mean a new one? Because eight years of Obama/Biden didn't see us enter a new war, unless you count Syria (which is already related to the Iraq war thanks to ISIS).

You cant count Syria as a war, the USA provided some military and training resources for the Free Syrian Army but it was a disaster because it actually needed more direct military intervention to help the Syrian rebels overthrown Assad. Obama refused to do that because  China and Russia vetoed any military intervention  back in 2014 . I supported Obama and he did the right thing around Syria because he refused to intervene militarily in basically any military conflict unless supported by the UNSC or there was a direct threat to the USA. Of course the outcome and carnage  of the Syrian conflict being allowed to continue  has been terrible and its still ongoing over one last remaining Syrian province, Idlib. But you cant blame Obama for that because he ultimately respected the veto of the UNSC

Iraq and Afghanistan are examples of wars the USA is involved in but not Syria, that I would define as a military intervention  like Libya 

Edited January 6, 2021 by BruceVC