The Biden administration (was: The NEW 2020 Election Thread)

[PermissionToLand]

This is an interesting story:

Dave Chappelle said he's 'not bluffing' as he threatens to pull investments from the city if an affordable housing development is built

https://www.yahoo.com/news/dave-chappelle-said-hes-not-020420971.html

He's throwing his financial weight around to influence the decisions of others, just like Neil Young did with Joe Rogan. Will we see the same outrage from the same people over "cancel culture" here?

I gotta say, I used to be a huge fan of Dave, but he's become everything he used to criticize. He fled to Africa because he didn't like that white people were laughing at his racial jokes for the wrong reasons. And then he comes back and gets offended when other minorities don't like how his jokes about them are being laughed at the wrong way? He sold out, plain and simple. And now apparently he's a NIMBY who is against affordable housing during a housing crisis, no less. Just shameful.

[pilferk]

"The ADP (Automated Data Processing) employment report saw private payrolls shrink by 301,000. That was the first monthly decline since December 2020.4,5

More encouragingly, initial jobless claims declined, while continuing jobless claims reached their lowest level since 1973. A strong January employment report showed 467,000 jobs added during the month, with upward revisions to previously released November and December."

What does that mean?

The ADP decline was from early January, and was directly attributed to the COVID spike (along with the expected end of seasonal employment).  Reduced demand for things like restaurants, bars, and entertainment options led to short term labor reductions in those industries.  The expectation is that, as the spike ends (aka about now), that will right itself.  These weren't layoffs.  There were just less checks issued.

It's important to note that ADP doesn't reflect all actual payroll numbers....they don't issue EVERY check in the US.  And they do tend to concentrate in specific industries/sectors.

The unemployment numbers are very, very good.  And the upward revisions for previous month put a damper on some of the complaints by Republicans that the economy isn't recovering fast enough.  In fact, the economic indicators are all pretty positive coming out of the pandemic.  We have to get the supply chain issues sorted, now....which will ease inflation quite a bit.

[cineater]

"The ADP (Automated Data Processing) employment report saw private payrolls shrink by 301,000. That was the first monthly decline since December 2020.4,5

More encouragingly, initial jobless claims declined, while continuing jobless claims reached their lowest level since 1973. A strong January employment report showed 467,000 jobs added during the month, with upward revisions to previously released November and December."

What does that mean?

The ADP decline was from early January, and was directly attributed to the COVID spike (along with the expected end of seasonal employment).  Reduced demand for things like restaurants, bars, and entertainment options led to short term labor reductions in those industries.  The expectation is that, as the spike ends (aka about now), that will right itself.  These weren't layoffs.  There were just less checks issued.

It's important to note that ADP doesn't reflect all actual payroll numbers....they don't issue EVERY check in the US.  And they do tend to concentrate in specific industries/sectors.

The unemployment numbers are very, very good.  And the upward revisions for previous month put a damper on some of the complaints by Republicans that the economy isn't recovering fast enough.  In fact, the economic indicators are all pretty positive coming out of the pandemic.  We have to get the supply chain issues sorted, now....which will ease inflation quite a bit.

That make sense.  I have an issue with all these restaurant jobs.  The are low paying and no benefits to begin with.  But my main beef is they are contributing to the obesity rate in the US.  I look at the calorie count on those meals and freak.  In my opinion, people get restaurant food way too often.  Not to mention the expense.  Of course, if they aren't eating out they make poor choices at the grocery store.   

[PermissionToLand]

Gas prices — they're lower than you think

Indexed cost of unleaded fuel is nowhere near the ‘all-time high’ of hysterical headlines

https://www.autoblog.com/2022/02/11/gas-prices-lower-than-you-think/

"By the end of 2021, unleaded had marched up to $3.48, which is right about where it stands as of today, according to AAA. In other words, it’s still less than if gas prices had merely matched the march of inflation for the past 40 years."0



It really does speak to how craven the mainstream media is, that all it takes to see through their hysterical narrative about gas prices is adjusting for inflation.

[PermissionToLand]

"I always vote for the more corrupt candidate over the idealist. Always. The person who will just like be happy taking payoffs from developers and leave me alone. This is like a meaningful decision in my life. Every four years, there's some guy who's like, "I'm going to make your life better!" I vote against that person every single time. You know what I mean? It's usually some progressive candidate who's got big plans for me, and so, I just vote for the status quo, corrupt criminal operation that runs the city and I'm really happy with that. "

 - Tucker Carlson

[PermissionToLand]

Beau has a great response for the right wingers claiming "this wouldn't have happened under Trump":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xXgP8XDG0Y

[ITARocker]

Beau has a great response for the right wingers claiming "this wouldn't have happened under Trump":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xXgP8XDG0Y

Well, to be honest it all started with the stupid obama administration (which was trying to destroy the relationship between Russia and Europe... Imagine Europe + Russia, which is europe indeed, but US wanted the old "dividi et impera")... Bush Berlusconi (say whatever u want about this guy, but he's the only 1 who understood what it was going to happen with Russia) & Putin  went along pretty well , knowing damn well that Putin had a "different" sense of reality: you have to show him friendship or power, if you show him weakness or all out hostility you're done. Now Putin is just an old guy consumed by power and hatred mainly because he's been unheard by the west for years, and now we clearly see even the change of his eyes, of his face... the guy became pretty scary... I don't care what trump say, because putin's grudge comes from far. Maybe trump would have delayed this a little bit, but that's it.
In any case, as usual, USA made their "mistakes" in another country  . I just hope putin dosnt press the red button, casue he won't win this war, he miscalculated that fighting europeans is not like fighting Arab shepherds. We built our peace on bloody wars which lasted thousands years...

[cineater]

Beau has a great response for the right wingers claiming "this wouldn't have happened under Trump":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xXgP8XDG0Y

Well, to be honest it all started with the stupid obama administration (which was trying to destroy the relationship between Russia and Europe... Imagine Europe + Russia, which is europe indeed, but US wanted the old "dividi et impera")... Bush Berlusconi (say whatever u want about this guy, but he's the only 1 who understood what it was going to happen with Russia) & Putin  went along pretty well , knowing damn well that Putin had a "different" sense of reality: you have to show him friendship or power, if you show him weakness or all out hostility you're done. Now Putin is just an old guy consumed by power and hatred mainly because he's been unheard by the west for years, and now we clearly see even the change of his eyes, of his face... the guy became pretty scary... I don't care what trump say, because putin's grudge comes from far. Maybe trump would have delayed this a little bit, but that's it.
In any case, as usual, USA made their "mistakes" in another country  . I just hope putin dosnt press the red button, casue he won't win this war, he miscalculated that fighting europeans is not like fighting Arab shepherds. We built our peace on bloody wars which lasted thousands years...

I'm scared.  He joins with China and North Korea, the world is fucked.

[ITARocker]

Beau has a great response for the right wingers claiming "this wouldn't have happened under Trump":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xXgP8XDG0Y

Well, to be honest it all started with the stupid obama administration (which was trying to destroy the relationship between Russia and Europe... Imagine Europe + Russia, which is europe indeed, but US wanted the old "dividi et impera")... Bush Berlusconi (say whatever u want about this guy, but he's the only 1 who understood what it was going to happen with Russia) & Putin  went along pretty well , knowing damn well that Putin had a "different" sense of reality: you have to show him friendship or power, if you show him weakness or all out hostility you're done. Now Putin is just an old guy consumed by power and hatred mainly because he's been unheard by the west for years, and now we clearly see even the change of his eyes, of his face... the guy became pretty scary... I don't care what trump say, because putin's grudge comes from far. Maybe trump would have delayed this a little bit, but that's it.
In any case, as usual, USA made their "mistakes" in another country  . I just hope putin dosnt press the red button, casue he won't win this war, he miscalculated that fighting europeans is not like fighting Arab shepherds. We built our peace on bloody wars which lasted thousands years...

I'm scared.  He joins with China and North Korea, the world is fucked.

I don't think it will ever happen... China is not that kind of country, it loves internal repression but not aggression... I think china sniffed out an opportunity and now it is waiting for Putin's fall in order to "buy" half of east Russia. As u can see, half of Russia Partners are little by little already turning their back to Putin, i think they know something is going to happen... Putin is strangely showing more weakness than power. It's very strange, at the least.

[cineater]

Beau has a great response for the right wingers claiming "this wouldn't have happened under Trump":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xXgP8XDG0Y

Well, to be honest it all started with the stupid obama administration (which was trying to destroy the relationship between Russia and Europe... Imagine Europe + Russia, which is europe indeed, but US wanted the old "dividi et impera")... Bush Berlusconi (say whatever u want about this guy, but he's the only 1 who understood what it was going to happen with Russia) & Putin  went along pretty well , knowing damn well that Putin had a "different" sense of reality: you have to show him friendship or power, if you show him weakness or all out hostility you're done. Now Putin is just an old guy consumed by power and hatred mainly because he's been unheard by the west for years, and now we clearly see even the change of his eyes, of his face... the guy became pretty scary... I don't care what trump say, because putin's grudge comes from far. Maybe trump would have delayed this a little bit, but that's it.
In any case, as usual, USA made their "mistakes" in another country  . I just hope putin dosnt press the red button, casue he won't win this war, he miscalculated that fighting europeans is not like fighting Arab shepherds. We built our peace on bloody wars which lasted thousands years...

I'm scared.  He joins with China and North Korea, the world is fucked.

I don't think it will ever happen... China is not that kind of country, it loves internal repression but not aggression... I think china sniffed out an opportunity and now it is waiting for Putin's fall in order to "buy" half of east Russia. As u can see, half of Russia Partners are little by little already turning their back to Putin, i think they know something is going to happen... Putin is strangely showing more weakness than power. It's very strange, at the least.

I'm clueless as usual.  And I'd like to go to that.   

[PermissionToLand]

Well, to be honest it all started with the stupid obama administration (which was trying to destroy the relationship between Russia and Europe... Imagine Europe + Russia, which is europe indeed, but US wanted the old "dividi et impera")... Bush Berlusconi (say whatever u want about this guy, but he's the only 1 who understood what it was going to happen with Russia) & Putin  went along pretty well , knowing damn well that Putin had a "different" sense of reality: you have to show him friendship or power, if you show him weakness or all out hostility you're done. Now Putin is just an old guy consumed by power and hatred mainly because he's been unheard by the west for years, and now we clearly see even the change of his eyes, of his face... the guy became pretty scary... I don't care what trump say, because putin's grudge comes from far. Maybe trump would have delayed this a little bit, but that's it.
In any case, as usual, USA made their "mistakes" in another country  . I just hope putin dosnt press the red button, casue he won't win this war, he miscalculated that fighting europeans is not like fighting Arab shepherds. We built our peace on bloody wars which lasted thousands years...

Oh Lord, here we go... everything is somehow Obama's fault. It really is amazing that conservatives actually believe that international relations operate on childish "weakness vs. strength" appearances.

Never mind that when a democrat shows friendship, it's called "weakness" and when they show strength it's called "hostility", with the inverse applied to the right. I'd like to hear your explanation of the distinction between strength and hostility, and how that applied to Obama.

[ITARocker]

Well, to be honest it all started with the stupid obama administration (which was trying to destroy the relationship between Russia and Europe... Imagine Europe + Russia, which is europe indeed, but US wanted the old "dividi et impera")... Bush Berlusconi (say whatever u want about this guy, but he's the only 1 who understood what it was going to happen with Russia) & Putin  went along pretty well , knowing damn well that Putin had a "different" sense of reality: you have to show him friendship or power, if you show him weakness or all out hostility you're done. Now Putin is just an old guy consumed by power and hatred mainly because he's been unheard by the west for years, and now we clearly see even the change of his eyes, of his face... the guy became pretty scary... I don't care what trump say, because putin's grudge comes from far. Maybe trump would have delayed this a little bit, but that's it.
In any case, as usual, USA made their "mistakes" in another country  . I just hope putin dosnt press the red button, casue he won't win this war, he miscalculated that fighting europeans is not like fighting Arab shepherds. We built our peace on bloody wars which lasted thousands years...

Oh Lord, here we go... everything is somehow Obama's fault. It really is amazing that conservatives actually believe that international relations operate on childish "weakness vs. strength" appearances.

Never mind that when a democrat shows friendship, it's called "weakness" and when they show strength it's called "hostility", with the inverse applied to the right. I'd like to hear your explanation of the distinction between strength and hostility, and how that applied to Obama.

Oh no I won't go there. Won't waste on more second for the guy, i've written a lot about him here and about the fact that he was a disaster for europe because of his actions in north africa, middle east, east europe (yanukovich)... But apart from Obama thing from Putin's perspective Ukraine is the downhill:




Nato was born as a defensive thing, now it looks like an offensive thing (from Putin's perspective which looks paranoid as well as the usa are paranoid about russia)

Best time to attack? After Weak USA retires badly from afghanistan and after 2 years of pandemic... Pretty simple...

[PermissionToLand]

Best time to attack? After Weak USA retires badly from afghanistan and after 2 years of pandemic... Pretty simple...

Except it's not simple. Of course it isn't.

Putin has been planning this for years. And how is the USA weaker having pulled out of an unwinnable war? Not being distracted with Afghanistan means we can focus on him more, if anything.

There really is nothing more vapid than analyzing international relations by subjective appearances of power. Our military spending is as obscene as ever. Biden has not cut it at all. So you can make meaningless subjective claims of "weak" appearance, but Putin isn't stupid. He knows to judge us by our actual capability, not frivolous nonsense like subjective aesthetics, from the perspective of politically motivated partisans.

And of course, none of that matters anyway because he isn't engaging with the USA, he's engaging with Ukraine, and he knows NATO is weaker than ever thanks to Trump doing his bidding.

[PermissionToLand]

Putin's Savagery Leaves His Right Wing Fans Squirming

"For years, a global choir of right-wing politicians has sung the praises of Vladimir Putin. They looked up to the Russian strongman as a defender of closed borders, Christian conservatism and bare-chested machismo in an era of liberal identity politics and Western globalization. Fawning over him was a core part of the populist playbook.

But Putin’s savaging of Ukraine, which many of his right-wing supporters had said he would never do, has recast the Russian president more clearly as a global menace and boogeyman with ambitions of empire who is threatening nuclear war and European instability."

https://www.yahoo.com/news/putins-aggression-leaves-wing-fan-155759071.html

Except for one right wing fan, apparently... Trump.

[cineater]

Putin's Savagery Leaves His Right Wing Fans Squirming

"For years, a global choir of right-wing politicians has sung the praises of Vladimir Putin. They looked up to the Russian strongman as a defender of closed borders, Christian conservatism and bare-chested machismo in an era of liberal identity politics and Western globalization. Fawning over him was a core part of the populist playbook.

But Putin’s savaging of Ukraine, which many of his right-wing supporters had said he would never do, has recast the Russian president more clearly as a global menace and boogeyman with ambitions of empire who is threatening nuclear war and European instability."

https://www.yahoo.com/news/putins-aggression-leaves-wing-fan-155759071.html

Except for one right wing fan, apparently... Trump.

I think Trump is gearing up to be president again and wants to maintain some kind of power relationship with Putin.  Both those guys scare me.  My mother says this reminds her of how WW II started.  I guess we'll know here pretty soon.  I can't believe Putin has got away with this, he's gone too far.  I don't see him backing down either.  I don't see any way to stop it unless he backs out.

[cineater]

I thought I had forgotten WWII.  Sothern California from LA down to San Diego became a massive military establishment.  Always on alert waiting to be the next Pearl Harbor.  Mom was a girl during that and I came along 20 years later.  Mom lived with the practice drills for taking cover, the rationing, the big war ships going up and down the coast, all that stuff.  I saw what was left of it.  We use to go to Seal Beach.  To get there you had to drive by rows and rows of racks of left over military equipment.  Those racks where taller than houses and if you looked down the rows, they went on forever.  Both sides of the streets, down any street you turned.  They were still there in the 60's, gone by the late 80's, early 90's.  So much it seemed strange to me that area was really just sand and tall grasses.  You know, you don't see those fall out shelter signs any more and they use to be on every government building.  Feel very fortunate I don't live in a country with war on the doorstep.

[cineater]

You have to wonder what the Russian people think.  He's controlling their news but they have to see him threatening the world with WWIII.  They may try to kill him.

[PermissionToLand]

So, Trumpers, is NATO still "obsolete"?

[PermissionToLand]

Apparently JK Rowling has a powerful new ally in her crusade: Vladimir Putin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIoBV5MxGho

This really does go to show how the spectre of "cancel culture" is weaponized by the absolute worst kinds of people to avoid accountability and shift attention to the person calling them out.

[cineater]

You think it was a mistake to let Putin cross Ukraine's border?  I'm scared to death of WWIII.  I don't know anything about these two countries history.  I don't think the Ukraine did anything for Russian to declare war on them.  I see it as Putin thinking he's big enough to take what isn't his.  Are we really going to stand by and let him take this country for fear of WWIII?  Do we stand for freedom or stand by and let bullies rule?