Uncle Joe

[MICHHAWK]

uncle joe was going to do something about it. but he fell asleep at the meeting. woke up and stumbled off in the wrong direction.

[RainbowsandUnicorns]

The Biden shit is so sugar coated I am getting diabetes just reading it.
For me and my life, Biden sucks. Period. End of story.

Hopefully the view out the window of your high-rise apartment of Lake Michigan will remind you that your life doesn't actually suck. Millions of people would kill for your situation.

Sucks if/when I enjoy it and no longer can/will due to current economic situations in this country - that some on here are actually trying to play off as being good - and they are not.
Sure, maybe it's better than...... _______________ . But it still sucks in some/many regards.

[KUTradition]

The Biden shit is so sugar coated I am getting diabetes just reading it.
For me and my life, Biden sucks. Period. End of story.

Hopefully the view out the window of your high-rise apartment of Lake Michigan will remind you that your life doesn't actually suck. Millions of people would kill for your situation.

Sucks if/when I enjoy it and no longer can/will due to the current economic situation/s in this country - that some on here are actually trying to play off as being good - and it's not.
Sure, maybe it's better than...... _______________ . But it still sucks.

as i think is generally the case, it’s good for some but not for others

it absolutely should be a situation that’s good for everyone, but that seems to be a fleeting possibility

i’ve never been in a better economic situation, but am still looking for an exit strategy

[RainbowsandUnicorns]

Hopefully the view out the window of your high-rise apartment of Lake Michigan will remind you that your life doesn't actually suck. Millions of people would kill for your situation.

Sucks if/when I enjoy it and no longer can/will due to the current economic situation/s in this country - that some on here are actually trying to play off as being good - and it's not.
Sure, maybe it's better than...... _______________ . But it still sucks.

as i think is generally the case, it’s good for some but not for others

it absolutely should be a situation that’s good for everyone, but that seems to be a fleeting possibility

i’ve never been in a better economic situation, but am still looking for an exit strategy

Well said and I'm sincerely happy for you.
Of course I am being extreme and need to put things in perspective. I am very fortunate - despite what I feel is my current misfortune.

[twocoach]

The Biden shit is so sugar coated I am getting diabetes just reading it.
For me and my life, Biden sucks. Period. End of story.

Hopefully the view out the window of your high-rise apartment of Lake Michigan will remind you that your life doesn't actually suck. Millions of people would kill for your situation.

Sucks if/when I enjoy it and no longer can/will due to current economic situations in this country - that some on here are actually trying to play off as being good - and they are not.
Sure, maybe it's better than...... _______________ . But it still sucks in some/many regards.

I agree that everyone's situation is different. Some are doing awesome, some are better in certain areas but struggling in other areas and some are being hit hard. Every point in history has that variety to it. It stinks if you're feeling the brunt more than those around you; I recognize that and empathize for your personal situation.

I hope you find more ways to enjoy what you have. It's hard not to worry about losing it down the line in the near future. I fight that anxiety and worry daily so I get it. Hang in there.

[Sparko]

The incredible thing is how Trump managed to game the system as long as he did. Wall St should have kept crashing after his election. Other than weakening our financial system and allowing massive new pollution adjacent coal and oil fields, what did he accomplish? He added trillions to the debt. Weakened NATO and precipitated the invasion of Ukraine. He messed up COVID-19 response such that we led the world in deaths. His China policy was getting patents for he and his family there. His immigration fiasco imprisoned kids and was terrible and did not seek solutions other than cruelty. And Biden made you sad.

Trump was a house of cards. Any stability we have and gains made is a miracle.

[MICHHAWK]

prior to china whipping up their fungus and shipping it around the world. the economy was an all time great. and the country was chugging along like nobodies business.

[Sparko]

prior to china whipping up their fungus and shipping it around the world. the economy was an all time great. and the country was chugging along like nobodies business.

That is not true. Come back with debt indices and explain zero percent interest loans that mysteriously went away when Biden came onto office.

[MICHHAWK]

you were probably living in your parents basement at the time.

[Sparko]

No. Trump destabilized the country as was his special gift. See Trump Casino. Trump Steaks. Trump University. Putin. The economic recovery act post Republican economic disaster 2007-8 did the heavy lifting. Trump pressured to keep the incentives in place long after they should have been removed. Flim flam. The interest rate holiday pushed us into another housing bubble and even got Blackrock excited about buying up "assets."

[Shirley]

Since this is the "Politics" forum.

A few Friday afternoon musings, especially for younger people to consider:

If you ever want the super-rich to pay their fair share and by doing so lift all boats, it's clear which party the not already super-rich, you, should vote for.

One can only imagine the difference it could make if...

There was no cap on the annual earnings subject to Social Security taxes. For 2023, that maximum is set at $160,200. Why aren't all earnings taxed? Having Soc Sec there when you're no longer making an income isn't everything, but it's a lot. Why not make this small change to prolong the life of the program? The already rich can afford it, and adjustments have been made before.

Which party is in favor of that?

What are the two largest tax deductions? Capital gains and mortgage interest.

Imagine if "capital gains" were taxed at the same rate as regular income. Why should people who sweat for their income pay a higher income tax rate than those whose income comes from investments?
(Full disclosure: My income comes from investments.)

Why should home owners be able to deduct the interest on their mortgage loans while renters get nothing similar for their "shelter" expenses? Taxpayers cannot deduct residential rent payments on their federal income taxes.

There might have been good reasons for incentivizing people to invest their money in businesses (stocks) and to buy homes at one point in our nation's history, but both of these deductions deserve to be reviewed to see what impact they're having on the ever-increasing transfer of money and assets to the already well off.

"Transfer of money to the already well off", you say?
The top 10%'s share of all income has risen by 6 points since 1963. That might not sound like much, but it is. And, much of that income is taxed at a lower rate than income made by working, because it's in the form of capital gains from stock investments. Does that seem fair to you?

Which political party is not at all likely to change that, and which one is already trying to?

Who owns homes and has investments that earn capital gains? Older people.

Who shows up and votes? Older people. Why? See above.

I lost ~ 50% of my savings, twice. First in the .com stock market decline in 2000, and again in the GFC of 2008. Since then, and frankly, much to my relief, businesses haven't been allowed to fail like before. While there may have been good reasons for zirp, zero interest rate policy, there were also downsides. Businesses that would have failed or been sold for pennies on the dollar, haven't. Houses that would have been repossessed and sold at a huge discount by the banks and mortgage co.s, giving younger people an opportunity, (the opportunity of a lifetime?), to buy-in at very low cost to then watch the stock and housing markets do what they do over time, go up, have been robbed of that opportunity to potentially get rich, or at least feather their beds nicely, in potentially life-changing ways.

Taxing the rich won't solve all our societies problems, and I'm not calling for a return to the 90% marginal income tax rate of the late 1950s, but if young people don't show up and look out for their own economic interests, someone else will and young people will have to wait to inherit their parent's money when they die, if there's anything left.

It's not magic. Politicians, will listen to you if you force them to.

Which of the political parties is more likely to help young people get a piece of the pie? See above.

Once you start showing up, voting, and changing things, get the $ out of our elections. Having the best congress and supreme court, (the ___ing supreme court!), money can buy, doesn't serve those who aren't buying it. One of the parties has been trying to advance campaign reform for a long time, with no luck. And, if you don't get the $ out of politics, don't blame the player when they're forced to play the game...

Or, short of having the "perfect" candidate who makes all your dreams come true, keep your precious, too good to waste vote pure, and vote for someone who doesn't have a chance but allows you to make a statement and feel good, instead.

I could go on...

[MICHHAWK]

too much propaganda for me to read in one sitting. it will take me all weekend to get through that.

[defixione]

You read slower than you type?

[KUTradition]

You read slower than you type?

in his defense, the complexity of what he’d be reading is light years ahead of what he types

[Overlander]

You read slower than you type?

in his defense, the complexity of what he’d be reading is light years ahead of what he types

Proper grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure is Mich’s kryptonite.

[Sparko]

Mich is a victim of his own Sock Sophistry. Which means it is Biden's fault.

[twocoach]

prior to china whipping up their fungus and shipping it around the world. the economy was an all time great. and the country was chugging along like nobodies business.

By what measure was the economy an "all time great"?

[zsn]

Because Mich’s handlers said so, on OAN and he read it doing his own research at the mall, from a guy who heard it on Truth Social

[Shirley]

Thanks, Joe:

President Joe Biden’s economic policies drove an unexpected economic surge that has forced Morgan Stanley to make a “sizable upward revision” in its GDP forecasts.

Biden’s 2021 infrastructure bill has created “a boom in large-scale infrastructure,” wrote MS analysts, while domestic business investment “is rebounding, led by manufacturing.”

WASHINGTON — Morgan Stanley
is crediting President Joe Biden’s economic policies with driving an unexpected surge in the U.S. economy that is so significant that the bank was forced to make a “sizable upward revision” to its estimates for U.S. gross domestic product.

Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is “driving a boom in large-scale infrastructure,” wrote Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist for Morgan Stanley, in a research note released Thursday. In addition to infrastructure, “manufacturing construction has shown broad strength,” she wrote.

As a result of these unexpected swells, Morgan Stanley now projects 1.9% GDP growth for the first half of this year. That’s nearly four times higher than the bank’s previous forecast of 0.5%.

“The economy in the first half of the year is growing much stronger than we had anticipated, putting a more comfortable cushion under our long-held soft landing view,” Zentner wrote.

The analysts also doubled their original estimate for GDP growth in the fourth quarter, to 1.3% from 0.6%. Looking into next year, they raised their forecast for real GDP in 2024 by a tenth of a percent, to 1.4%.

“The narrative behind the numbers tells the story of industrial strength in the U.S,” Zentner wrote.

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status ... wsrc%5Etfw

[KUTradition]

unemployment at record lows in 17 states

https://www.axios.com/2023/07/24/states ... yment-rate#