trump’s promises

[jfish26]

and the same goes for is-re-al.

i'm conflicted where is-ra-el is comcerned. i favor the middle east blowing its'self off the earth into smithereens. and i'm not sure if us aiding them is speeding up. or slowing down that process.

(This of course is inconsistent with wanting our gas to cost half of what it does in Europe.)

[KUTradition]

Trump voters just either chose not to believe it…

^^^^

Yeah.

This is responsive to japhy also - I don't think it should be taken as a given that Trump's voters will even realize that this isn't so "great" for them. I certainly would not expect very many of them to ever admit it.

There were data-backed reasons (too many quality studies to count) to believe that the economy was (prior to and at the election), even on a personal level, stronger than people's reported perceptions of it. There have been, since the election, data-backed reasons to believe this is true (including on a personal level) also; consider the immediate flip in reported perceptions, and strong holiday season travel and spending.

I think a hard but important truth to grasp is that many Trump voters did not vote for Trump because they perceived the economy to be bad...but perceived the economy to be bad because they wanted to vote for Trump.

And that susceptibility to confirmation bias suggests that people who want to vote for Trump again will, the next time around, discredit or disregard data that shows that Trump's economy stinks. Whether that data is in the form of graphs and charts and tables, or of their own account statements.

A huge bloc in our country - possibly a plurality all on its own - wants the whole Trump/MAGA package. Even if it's worse for their personal economies.

posters here on this very board admitted as much

[MICHHAWK]

i do not desire to be worse off 1, 2, 3 years from now. and i suspect i will not be.

i work hard. say my prayers. take my vitamins. i am responsible for myself.

[twocoach]

i do not desire to be worse off 1, 2, 3 years from now. and i suspect i will not be.

i work hard. say my prayers. take my vitamins. i am responsible for myself.

Good luck with that.

[JKLivin]

we can keep sending them cash and weapons. but we gotta start keeping track. and they have to pay it back.

freeloaders and freerides gotta stop.

I say stop it now. We’ll never be paid back.

[JKLivin]

and the same goes for is-re-al.

i'm conflicted where is-ra-el is comcerned. i favor the middle east blowing its'self off the earth into smithereens. and i'm not sure if us aiding them is speeding up. or slowing down that process.

(This of course is inconsistent with wanting our gas to cost half of what it does in Europe.)

We can produce all we need here. The Middle East can screw off.

[jfish26]

and the same goes for is-re-al.

i'm conflicted where is-ra-el is comcerned. i favor the middle east blowing its'self off the earth into smithereens. and i'm not sure if us aiding them is speeding up. or slowing down that process.

(This of course is inconsistent with wanting our gas to cost half of what it does in Europe.)

We can produce all we need here. The Middle East can screw off.

But you leave something critical out: we can do that, yes.

But we cannot do it as inexpensively, for lots of reasons.

Some of those reasons are regulatory; I suspect you and I would not agree on whether environmental and workplace safety regulations that are directly and indirectly quite expensive to comply with are worth the benefit.

But other of those reasons are practical; our refineries are designed to process (into gasoline) crude oil of entirely different chemistry ("heavy sour") than the crude oil we pull out of the ground domestically ("light sweet").

You can't flip a switch on this, turning a heavy sour-based refinery into a light sweet-based refinery.

And even if you could - or even if, cutting off your nose to spite your face, you decided to build a whole bunch of gasoline refineries for light sweet crude - then you'd also need infrastructure to get the light sweet from the domestic fields to those overhauled or new refineries.

This is just one area in which the case for grunt grunt economic isolationism runs into problems when confronting reality. A reality designed, reasonably and beneficially-to-us so*, for a global economy.

* Heavy sour (which we tend to import, meaning buy) is much cheaper than light sweet (which we tend to export, meaning sell). Refining heavy sour into gasoline is very expensive, from a capital standpoint. We have already invested that capital. We have already invested in the refining capacity needed to turn heavy sour (which we can import cheaply, while exporting light sweet highly profitably) into gasoline.

This basic arbitrage is an excellent example of how the US-centric world order that we are so horny to throw in the trash, has been so profoundly favorable to us.

[japhy]

Trump voters just either chose not to believe it…

^^^^

Yeah.

This is responsive to japhy also - I don't think it should be taken as a given that Trump's voters will even realize that this isn't so "great" for them. I certainly would not expect very many of them to ever admit it.

There were data-backed reasons (too many quality studies to count) to believe that the economy was (prior to and at the election), even on a personal level, stronger than people's reported perceptions of it. There have been, since the election, data-backed reasons to believe this is true (including on a personal level) also; consider the immediate flip in reported perceptions, and strong holiday season travel and spending.

I think a hard but important truth to grasp is that many Trump voters did not vote for Trump because they perceived the economy to be bad...but perceived the economy to be bad because they wanted to vote for Trump.

And that susceptibility to confirmation bias suggests that people who want to vote for Trump again will, the next time around, discredit or disregard data that shows that Trump's economy stinks. Whether that data is in the form of graphs and charts and tables, or of their own account statements.

A huge bloc in our country - possibly a plurality all on its own - wants the whole Trump/MAGA package. Even if it's worse for their personal economies.

They won't admit it any more than they will admit that trump lost the 2020 election. It's an article of faith in their orange god.

But I think they will notice it in their checking/savings accounts. The blame will be cast on the poor, immigrants, rich liberal elites, etc.; same as now. Scapegoating is a way of life.

And I also agree that the "economy" was mostly an excuse to vote for some sort of vengeful blubbery antichrist. They have given up on everything except some semblance of revenge before they die. Sad angry fuckwits they are.

But hey, who am I to look a gift tax cut in the mouth?

[japhy]

But you leave something critical out: we can do that, yes.

But we cannot do it as inexpensively, for lots of reasons.

You can't flip a switch on this, turning a heavy sour-based refinery into a light sweet-based refinery.

Same thing with manufacturing and "Hecho En America". We could make the switch....in a decade or two....and if there were capitalists who wanted to spend trillions to make the switch with little ROI. But in general it is bad business and makes no financial sense to make that switch, so it won't happen.

The MAGA cult members will be passively, silently told to screw off. Their wet dream is dead and they don't even know it.

The MAGA understanding of business is similar to my daughter's when she was six and said, "Daddy, you are the boss of your office. You can do whatever you want to." Uhhh.....not in reality.

[jfish26]

But you leave something critical out: we can do that, yes.

But we cannot do it as inexpensively, for lots of reasons.

You can't flip a switch on this, turning a heavy sour-based refinery into a light sweet-based refinery.

Same thing with manufacturing and "Hecho En America". We could make the switch....in a decade or two....and if there were capitalists who wanted to spend trillions to make the switch with little ROI. But in general it is bad business and makes no financial sense to make that switch, so it won't happen.

The MAGA cult members will be passively, silently told to screw off. Their wet dream is dead and they don't even know it.

The MAGA understanding of business is similar to my daughter's when she was six and said, "Daddy, you are the boss of your office. You can do whatever you want to." Uhhh.....not in reality.

And the hair-pulling aspect of it is that we - America - have rigged the global economy game in our favor!

[Overlander]

But you leave something critical out: we can do that, yes.

But we cannot do it as inexpensively, for lots of reasons.

You can't flip a switch on this, turning a heavy sour-based refinery into a light sweet-based refinery.

Same thing with manufacturing and "Hecho En America". We could make the switch....in a decade or two....and if there were capitalists who wanted to spend trillions to make the switch with little ROI. But in general it is bad business and makes no financial sense to make that switch, so it won't happen.

The MAGA cult members will be passively, silently told to screw off. Their wet dream is dead and they don't even know it.

The MAGA understanding of business is similar to my daughter's when she was six and said, "Daddy, you are the boss of your office. You can do whatever you want to." Uhhh.....not in reality.

And the hair-pulling aspect of it is that we - America - have rigged the global economy game in our favor!

This.
The gravy train is about to grind to a halt, and the folks holding the biscuits voted for their own financial demise ... just to "own the Libs".

[jfish26]

Same thing with manufacturing and "Hecho En America". We could make the switch....in a decade or two....and if there were capitalists who wanted to spend trillions to make the switch with little ROI. But in general it is bad business and makes no financial sense to make that switch, so it won't happen.

The MAGA cult members will be passively, silently told to screw off. Their wet dream is dead and they don't even know it.

The MAGA understanding of business is similar to my daughter's when she was six and said, "Daddy, you are the boss of your office. You can do whatever you want to." Uhhh.....not in reality.

And the hair-pulling aspect of it is that we - America - have rigged the global economy game in our favor!

This.
The gravy train is about to grind to a halt, and the folks holding the biscuits voted for their own financial demise ... just to "own the Libs".

Exactly.

Those who would justify all that's coming on the basis of prosperity bring a zero-sum game ... should probably realize that, if that is true, it's a game we've been winning resoundingly for generations now. And that they're just too spoiled and removed from hardship to realize it.

[Overlander]

Trump is set up for success, if he only knew what success actually looks like.

Trump cultists see the gold toilets, the jets, the gaudy "TRUMP" signs on gaudy buildings...and they see that as success.

He has a GOP House, GOP Senate, and GOP Supreme Court. He could use this ungodly power to actually do GOOD things. To accomplish GREAT things.

Instead, we will see an absolute clown show, made up entirely for the 30 second attention span audience. His cabinet appointees are a who's who of TV personalities and shock figures.

This country will take a dozen steps back and the Cult will be convinced they are winning.

When Elon told them it would be REALLY hard at first, they believe him. During this hard ship time frame is when the real control will be assimilated. It will all be "necessary" to reach that golden prize. BTW, that "prize" will take just a bit over 4 years to obtain, but you can trust them...its' coming.

Trump 2028, only this time, we won't need one of those troublesome and time consuming elections.

[twocoach]

Trump is set up for success, if he only knew what success actually looks like.

Trump cultists see the gold toilets, the jets, the gaudy "TRUMP" signs on gaudy buildings...and they see that as success.

He has a GOP House, GOP Senate, and GOP Supreme Court. He could use this ungodly power to actually do GOOD things. To accomplish GREAT things.

Instead, we will see an absolute clown show, made up entirely for the 30 second attention span audience. His cabinet appointees are a who's who of TV personalities and shock figures.

This country will take a dozen steps back and the Cult will be convinced they are winning.

When Elon told them it would be REALLY hard at first, they believe him. During this hard ship time frame is when the real control will be assimilated. It will all be "necessary" to reach that golden prize. BTW, that "prize" will take just a bit over 4 years to obtain, but you can trust them...its' coming.

Trump 2028, only this time, we won't need one of those troublesome and time consuming elections.

The problem is that Trump feels that all the horrible things he wants to do ARE good and necessary things. And if his voters are even aware that Elon Musk said that, which I doubt many are, my assumption is that they feel like it will be someone else that endures those hardships and not them.

[KUTradition]

Trump cultists see the gold toilets, the jets, the gaudy "TRUMP" signs on gaudy buildings...and they see that as success.

this is something i’ve always found fascinating

i’m a child of the 80s, and remember seeing trump on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. looking back on what constituted the image of such things then (wealth, fame, success), and it all just seems so cheap and tacky

and that’s not changed hardly at all. trump is still cheap and tacky…gold plated rather than solid gold (or platinum)

[Overlander]

Trump cultists see the gold toilets, the jets, the gaudy "TRUMP" signs on gaudy buildings...and they see that as success.

this is something i’ve always found fascinating

i’m a child of the 80s, and remember seeing trump on Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. looking back on what constituted the image of such things then (wealth, fame, success), and it all just seems so cheap and tacky

and that’s not changed hardly at all. trump is still cheap and tacky…gold plated rather than solid gold (or platinum)

Throughout my post-law enforcement career, I have been amazed at the men who you are negotiating with that utilize outdated tactics and muscle leverage.

I always said to them, "Oh, you read the Art Of The Deal"! Then I told them that I did as well.

Unfortunately, for them, I was more a student of Chester Karrass, and my negotiating methods are not tactical.

[KUTradition]

china preemptively banning exports of certain minerals

[japhy]

Meh, trumpty plumpty will start producing rare minerals right here in the U.S.

[Overlander]

Meh, trumpty plumpty will start producing rare minerals right here in the U.S.

With his logo.
Make those checks out to:
America is Winning!
PO Box 9
Jarbidge, NV
89826

[jfish26]

Meh, trumpty plumpty will start producing rare minerals right here in the U.S.

Wonder how our I-can't-vote-for-Kamala-because-she's-not-lefty-enough doves will feel when - oopsie! - that cartel hideout in Mexico that we just sicced the US military on just so happens to be next to a lithium deposit.