Evil Rich People

[japhy]

Things I wouldn't want to be in the shiny new "live within your means" economy, on Day One.

I would not want to be a professor without tenure.

Part of austerity will mean huge cut backs in student loans, or elimination. As well as government subsidies for schools. When the student enrollment drops by half, or more, the schools will be dumping non-tenured faculty like dirty dishwater. Those jobs will not be coming back for some time.

If I were in my 50's or older in this position, I would start planning for my next career and how to stay financially afloat while I figure out how to sell my house and where to move next. Maybe one of those small weird towns out in the desert or the plains where they have a large private prison and become a guard? I have a feeling Dollar General will be expanding, retail will be down but the low end retailers will be growing their business selling tariff priced Chinese goods.

The stock market is gonna take a big nose dive. It seems like no biggie to those who aren't investors. But the stock market represents a lot more than big investors. It decides what happens in a lot of other seemingly unrelated systems.

I know there is great concern for the welfare of job creators, but rest assured, they will rebound.

In the "every man for themselves - live within your means" economy your guns won't save your family's ass. Cash will. You might get 33 cents on the dollar for that gun though.

[Overlander]

Things I wouldn't want to be in the shiny new "live within your means" economy, on Day One.

I would not want to be a professor without tenure.

Part of austerity will mean huge cut backs in student loans, or elimination. As well as government subsidies for schools. When the student enrollment drops by half, or more, the schools will be dumping non-tenured faculty like dirty dishwater. Those jobs will not be coming back for some time.

If I were in my 50's or older in this position, I would start planning for my next career and how to stay financially afloat while I figure out how to sell my house and where to move next. Maybe one of those small weird towns out in the desert or the plains where they have a large private prison and become a guard? I have a feeling Dollar General will be expanding, retail will be down but the low end retailers will be growing their business selling tariff priced Chinese goods.

The stock market is gonna take a big nose dive. It seems like no biggie to those who aren't investors. But the stock market represents a lot more than big investors. It decides what happens in a lot of other seemingly unrelated systems.

I know there is great concern for the welfare of job creators, but rest assured, they will rebound.

In the "every man for themselves - live within your means" economy your guns won't save your family's ass. Cash will. You might get 33 cents on the dollar for that gun though.

And guess what? The high end boat buyer will STILL be buying boats. Probably more than 1.

[japhy]

Things I wouldn't want to be in the shiny new "live within your means" economy, on Day One.

I would not want to be a professor without tenure.

Part of austerity will mean huge cut backs in student loans, or elimination. As well as government subsidies for schools. When the student enrollment drops by half, or more, the schools will be dumping non-tenured faculty like dirty dishwater. Those jobs will not be coming back for some time.

If I were in my 50's or older in this position, I would start planning for my next career and how to stay financially afloat while I figure out how to sell my house and where to move next. Maybe one of those small weird towns out in the desert or the plains where they have a large private prison and become a guard? I have a feeling Dollar General will be expanding, retail will be down but the low end retailers will be growing their business selling tariff priced Chinese goods.

The stock market is gonna take a big nose dive. It seems like no biggie to those who aren't investors. But the stock market represents a lot more than big investors. It decides what happens in a lot of other seemingly unrelated systems.

I know there is great concern for the welfare of job creators, but rest assured, they will rebound.

In the "every man for themselves - live within your means" economy your guns won't save your family's ass. Cash will. You might get 33 cents on the dollar for that gun though.

And guess what? The high end boat buyer will STILL be buying boats. Probably more than 1.

I checked on tax status of that 10 acres you coveted at one point in the Empire. The owner may be absent, but they are paying their taxes. The place near me that I have coveted, not so much. Having a storage building when I move out there full time would be useful.

The sell off is already starting. A lot of small colleges got "Covid money" and spent it on expensive but temporarily useful equipment. Since we use porta-potties for our events we need a hand warshin' station.

We used to get one whenever we needed it from Denver when Bill had access to one at his old job. Now we would have to rent one in the Springs or buy one for future events for both us and the town. Turns out a small Christian college in IL needed to make room for other surplus goods in their warehouse and they need the money, any money, their enrollment is down. We helped them out and bought a $4000 deluxe hand warshin' station for $300. I had to fill the gas tank on the truck for that drive but didn't really bat an eye about it. The town now has a permanent hand washing station when needed.

I should work on getting that storage building.

[Shirley]

Trump has suggested that he might withhold federal funding to police departments that refuse to participate in his immigrant relocation plan.

[Sparko]

Trump has suggested that he might withhold federal funding to police departments that refuse to participate in his immigrant relocation plan.

The plan that will shock the GNP into -10 percent territory and cost almost a trillion dollars. Genius

[jfish26]

And what, pray tell, will happen in communities that lose federal funding for law enforcement?

[Overlander]

Trump has suggested that he might withhold federal funding to police departments that refuse to participate in his immigrant relocation plan.

Am I spelling Gestapo correctly?

[Overlander]

Things I wouldn't want to be in the shiny new "live within your means" economy, on Day One.

I would not want to be a professor without tenure.

Part of austerity will mean huge cut backs in student loans, or elimination. As well as government subsidies for schools. When the student enrollment drops by half, or more, the schools will be dumping non-tenured faculty like dirty dishwater. Those jobs will not be coming back for some time.

If I were in my 50's or older in this position, I would start planning for my next career and how to stay financially afloat while I figure out how to sell my house and where to move next. Maybe one of those small weird towns out in the desert or the plains where they have a large private prison and become a guard? I have a feeling Dollar General will be expanding, retail will be down but the low end retailers will be growing their business selling tariff priced Chinese goods.

The stock market is gonna take a big nose dive. It seems like no biggie to those who aren't investors. But the stock market represents a lot more than big investors. It decides what happens in a lot of other seemingly unrelated systems.

I know there is great concern for the welfare of job creators, but rest assured, they will rebound.

In the "every man for themselves - live within your means" economy your guns won't save your family's ass. Cash will. You might get 33 cents on the dollar for that gun though.

And guess what? The high end boat buyer will STILL be buying boats. Probably more than 1.

I checked on tax status of that 10 acres you coveted at one point in the Empire. The owner may be absent, but they are paying their taxes. The place near me that I have coveted, not so much. Having a storage building when I move out there full time would be useful.

12 acres.
Yeah, if they hadn't been paying taxes, it would have been pretty easy to aquire.

As you probably remember, we negotiated a good price to purchase. The issue became that the cool storage company in California that owns it has changed hands 6 times since they purchased the land in the 80s. We could not find a clear route to who actually could process title as the "owner".

In the end, I went with the Overlander creed "if it becomes too difficult, take it as a sign".

I still have love for the Valley though.

[japhy]

12 acres.
Yeah, if they hadn't been paying taxes, it would have been pretty easy to aquire.

As you probably remember, we negotiated a good price to purchase. The issue became that the cool storage company in California that owns it has changed hands 6 times since they purchased the land in the 80s. We could not find a clear route to who actually could process title as the "owner".

In the end, I went with the Overlander creed "if it becomes too difficult, take it as a sign".

I still have love for the Valley though.

I feel you. We were putting in an all cash bid for a condo in WI a decade or so ago. Upper floor, view of Lake Michigan. Taxes were high but the purchase price was cheap so what the hell. Annie grew up on the Great Lakes and it was her desire to retire with a view of the one of the Lakes.

Twice Fannie Mae turned down our offer for a local of slightly less money. The second offer was for less than the first. Twice the potential buyers couldn't get a loan and had to drop their contract. After the second time, Fannie Mae contacted us directly and said we could buy it without a bid process four our second, lower bid. We told them "no thanks". We just determined that it was a sign that this wasn't our place. It was just a few years later that I drove into the Empire and met the oracle.

The gods had spoken.

Annie has a view of Pikes Peak or Mount Blanca instead from our living rooms and we can visit the Great Lakes every summer.

You know where the annual party is, and you and the missus are welcome any time.

Solstice 5 is June 20-21, 2025.

[Overlander]

12 acres.
Yeah, if they hadn't been paying taxes, it would have been pretty easy to aquire.

As you probably remember, we negotiated a good price to purchase. The issue became that the cool storage company in California that owns it has changed hands 6 times since they purchased the land in the 80s. We could not find a clear route to who actually could process title as the "owner".

In the end, I went with the Overlander creed "if it becomes too difficult, take it as a sign".

I still have love for the Valley though.

I feel you. We were putting in an all cash bid for a condo in WI a decade or so ago. Upper floor, view of Lake Michigan. Taxes were high but the purchase price was cheap so what the hell. Annie grew up on the Great Lakes and it was her desire to retire with a view of the one of the Lakes.

Twice Fannie Mae turned down our offer for a local of slightly less money. The second offer was for less than the first. Twice the potential buyers couldn't get a loan and had to drop their contract. After the second time, Fannie Mae contacted us directly and said we could buy it without a bid process four our second, lower bid. We told them "no thanks". We just determined that it was a sign that this wasn't our place. It was just a few years later that I drove into the Empire and met the oracle.

The gods had spoken.

Annie has a view of Pikes Peak or Mount Blanca instead from our living rooms and we can visit the Great Lakes every summer.

You know where the annual party is, and you and the missus are welcome any time.

Solstice 5 is June 20-21, 2025.

Man, we are doing an Oregon / Northern California Overlanding trip with 3 other couples the weekend after. I don't think I can make both work.

Put me down in ink for the following year. We want to do a summer Colorado Overland trip then as well, and I will work it around those dates.

[japhy]

Things that make you go, hmmmm.....

SpaceX just launched some reportedly "next-gen" spy satellites on behalf of the US government — and it sounds like certain officials at the Pentagon are anxious about it.

In interviews with the New York Times, Pentagon officials and consultants who work with the space industry say that there are those within the Department of Defense concerned about the secretive spy crafts, especially in the wake of revelations that Elon Musk has been having cozy phone chats with Vladimir Putin.

Last week, the Wall Street Journal revealed that these Musk-Putin tête-à-têtes have been going on "regularly" since all the way back in 2022. During one such call, Putin asked the multi-hyphenate CEO not to provide Starlink satellite internet to Taiwan as a "favor" to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Given that Taiwan does indeed lack Starlink coverage, it would appear that Musk acquiesced.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson has publicly voiced concern about the alleged exchanges, and he's not the only one: officials at the DoD have apparently been worried privately that, as critics have long pointed out, the US government may have erred by putting all its eggs in Musk's increasingly conspiratorial and far-right basket.

Three Pentagon officials interviewed by the NYT anonymously so they could speak freely said that if nothing else, there's growing apprehension about the appearance of a SpaceX monopoly if both NASA and the DoD are using it near-exclusively for space contracts.

Indeed, in a report issued earlier this year, the Pentagon's Defense Science Board warned that the "emergence of vendor lock, or dependence upon a sole vendor, has the potential to negate the strengths of the market by stifling innovation and inflating prices."

"This can culminate in a de facto monopoly," the report continued, "cementing a stagnant and wasteful anticompetitive paradigm."

Mandy Vaughn, a member of that DOD board and the CEO of the space consultancy GXO, took the criticism a step further.

"There isn’t a launch or a spacecraft competition that SpaceX can’t walk into and completely warp and run the table," Vaughn explained to the NYT. "That’s a problem."

At the end of the day, it's a massive issue that the person who controls so much of the US government's space contracts has been chatting on the regular with one of our country's biggest rivals — and now, he's in charge of sending out new spy satellites.

but tik tok is a problem

[japhy]

Man, we are doing an Oregon / Northern California Overlanding trip with 3 other couples the weekend after. I don't think I can make both work.

Put me down in ink for the following year. We want to do a summer Colorado Overland trip then as well, and I will work it around those dates.

Solstice 6 will be June 19-20, 2026.

For your overlanding trip, look at the Upper Sagauche Creek basin. It takes some work figuring out how to get back in there. But the panoramic scenery is incredible and every trip we have made back there we had the place all to ourselves. One of the few places I have had a golden eagle fly up to us to check us out.

My second suggestion would be Cinnamon Pass. Spend the night in American Basin, maybe the most spectacular view in Colorado. Take time to check out the mines. You can look for "cinnamon" quartz crystals on the Pass.

[jfish26]

We Need To Talk About Elon Musk's Role In The Trump Campaign

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/p ... ationship/

Move fast and break things" used to be the motto of Facebook. It later became the title of a book by Jonathan Taplin, a shrewd and prescient polemic that skeptically assessed the effect of that motto on society at large. One of the book's most important elements is its study of how the accumulated political power of the tech bro masters of the universe was going to be a serious threat to the American political order. Taplin emphasized the importance of the radical libertarian policy views of this new and wealthy claque. Which, naturally, brings us to Elon Musk.

Musk's outsized role on behalf of the Republican presidential ticket is one of the primary differences between the former president's 2024 campaign and his previous two. Musk has become omnipresent, acting like a trained seal on stage, and a reckless puppet master off it. Lately, he and the former president* seem to have come to an agreement that Musk will play a prominent role in the lunatic proposed economic policies of the next Trump administration. Which, as The New Republic points out, brings us back to that original Facebook motto again. TNR points out that Musk replied "sounds about right" to an Xweet full of predictions for another Trump administration, from some right-wing "influencer" who goes by FischerKing64.

(A quick perusal of FischerKing64's Xwitter presence makes one wonder if becoming an "influencer" is as easy as, say, declaring yourself "Man Of The Year" in Michigan. The timeline is a sewer of racism and insufferable bro-ism lined with tinpot erudition. FischerKing64 praises the former president*'s gifts as a historian, especially as regards the McKinley tariffs and the genius of Robert E. Lee, the latter of which is surely a tell.)

FischerKing64 and the world's richest man agree that Trump's combination of mass deportations and a tariff-based national economy will probably blow up the current economic order, ushering in a couple of years of financial devastation for anyone not named Musk or Thiel, but that a new dawn will then arrive for us all. In response, the former president* gleefully has doubled down.

In an interview with Sean Hannity on Tuesday night, Trump lauded Musk as a “very exceptional guy” and a “great cost-cutter” when asked about a potential role for the billionaire CEO in his Cabinet. But even more unbelievably, the Republican candidate said with confidence that the American people wouldn’t “feel” the economic impacts of cutting trillions from the budget. Musk has proposed heading a “Department of Government Efficiency” under a Trump Cabinet—and the former president has clearly taken him up on it.

At Trump’s hate-filled Madison Square Garden rally over the weekend, Musk announced that the target is $2 trillion in cuts. Trimming the budget to the level would have to include cuts to essential government services like Medicare and Social Security—and could result in an initial huge economic crash. But Musk admitted Tuesday that that’s all a part of the plan, agreeing with a far-right troll on X that crashing the economy would lead to “sounder footing” in two years.

Reading this bilge is like reading the paeans to deregulating derivatives in the 1990s, and also reading about how that had led to a housing boom that juiced the economy for the foreseeable future. Then the teaser rate on history ran out, and millions suffered, and the people who wrecked the economy got fat selling off the ruins. This is the same thing, except run at the instantaneous relays of a computer. Before we hand over the national fisc to the King of Bankruptcy and the Exploding Car guy, let's give Jonathan Taplin the last word.

“They created a world dominated by tech elites, with a set of rules that we are now condemned to live by. Peter Thiel declared that “competition is for losers,” and the following decade would prove just who the losers would be.”

If you look around the table and you can't figure out who the sucker is...etc.

[japhy]

We Need To Talk About Elon Musk's Role In The Trump Campaign

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/p ... ationship/

Move fast and break things" used to be the motto of Facebook. It later became the title of a book by Jonathan Taplin, a shrewd and prescient polemic that skeptically assessed the effect of that motto on society at large. One of the book's most important elements is its study of how the accumulated political power of the tech bro masters of the universe was going to be a serious threat to the American political order. Taplin emphasized the importance of the radical libertarian policy views of this new and wealthy claque. Which, naturally, brings us to Elon Musk.

Musk's outsized role on behalf of the Republican presidential ticket is one of the primary differences between the former president's 2024 campaign and his previous two. Musk has become omnipresent, acting like a trained seal on stage, and a reckless puppet master off it. Lately, he and the former president* seem to have come to an agreement that Musk will play a prominent role in the lunatic proposed economic policies of the next Trump administration. Which, as The New Republic points out, brings us back to that original Facebook motto again. TNR points out that Musk replied "sounds about right" to an Xweet full of predictions for another Trump administration, from some right-wing "influencer" who goes by FischerKing64.

(A quick perusal of FischerKing64's Xwitter presence makes one wonder if becoming an "influencer" is as easy as, say, declaring yourself "Man Of The Year" in Michigan. The timeline is a sewer of racism and insufferable bro-ism lined with tinpot erudition. FischerKing64 praises the former president*'s gifts as a historian, especially as regards the McKinley tariffs and the genius of Robert E. Lee, the latter of which is surely a tell.)

FischerKing64 and the world's richest man agree that Trump's combination of mass deportations and a tariff-based national economy will probably blow up the current economic order, ushering in a couple of years of financial devastation for anyone not named Musk or Thiel, but that a new dawn will then arrive for us all. In response, the former president* gleefully has doubled down.

In an interview with Sean Hannity on Tuesday night, Trump lauded Musk as a “very exceptional guy” and a “great cost-cutter” when asked about a potential role for the billionaire CEO in his Cabinet. But even more unbelievably, the Republican candidate said with confidence that the American people wouldn’t “feel” the economic impacts of cutting trillions from the budget. Musk has proposed heading a “Department of Government Efficiency” under a Trump Cabinet—and the former president has clearly taken him up on it.

At Trump’s hate-filled Madison Square Garden rally over the weekend, Musk announced that the target is $2 trillion in cuts. Trimming the budget to the level would have to include cuts to essential government services like Medicare and Social Security—and could result in an initial huge economic crash. But Musk admitted Tuesday that that’s all a part of the plan, agreeing with a far-right troll on X that crashing the economy would lead to “sounder footing” in two years.

Reading this bilge is like reading the paeans to deregulating derivatives in the 1990s, and also reading about how that had led to a housing boom that juiced the economy for the foreseeable future. Then the teaser rate on history ran out, and millions suffered, and the people who wrecked the economy got fat selling off the ruins. This is the same thing, except run at the instantaneous relays of a computer. Before we hand over the national fisc to the King of Bankruptcy and the Exploding Car guy, let's give Jonathan Taplin the last word.

“They created a world dominated by tech elites, with a set of rules that we are now condemned to live by. Peter Thiel declared that “competition is for losers,” and the following decade would prove just who the losers would be.”

If you look around the table and you can't figure out who the sucker is...etc.

Sounds about right....Let's do this!

How bad could it be?

[twocoach]

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/07/investin ... index.html

Such an awesome start towards making life better for everyday Americans!

"Wednesday wasn’t just a good day for Donald Trump. The wealth of the world’s 10 richest people also soared by a record amount, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index.

The biggest gainer was Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and one of Trump’s most outspoken and dedicated supporters, whose wealth jumped $26.5 billion to $290 billion Wednesday, according to Bloomberg. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ wealth grew $7.1 billion a week after defending his decision to withhold the Washington Post’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris. Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, another Trump supporter, saw his net worth rose $5.5 billion Wednesday.

Other gainers include former Microsoft executives Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, former Google executives Larry Page and Sergey Brin and Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett. Although none of those billionaires endorsed a candidate this year, they have spoken in favor of Democratic candidates and causes in the past."

[DeletedUser]

My 401k liked it too


My EV stocks, not so much.

[MICHHAWK]

MICHHAWKS 401k grew yesterday.

MICHHAWK is an everyday American.

feel better.

[Sparko]

Mich didn't care about sustained growth over the last four years. And will care when the house of card collapses. Underlying value not fantasies are what sustain growth. Tariffs and deportations do not a GDP help. Investment class folks are currently all-in on the inevitable outsourcing.

[Overlander]

I am so glad that I don't have to stare at a 401k report to figure out how much money I have or will have.

[MICHHAWK]

you don't have a 401k. it's never too late to start saving for the future.