To Hell with You! Money is More Important than Anything Else!

Sadly it is greed that drives Americans. We want the biggest house. We want the most luxurious cars. We want the most expensive jewelry. Scrooge McDuck simply reflects that attitude.

In America’s richest town, $500,000 a year is now below average. That is the headline of a bloomberg.com article. Under Politics on the same website is an article titled Soak-the-Rich Tax Plans Take Hold in the Entire Democratic Field.

USNews.com reports that In the U.S., there are 607 billionaires, up from 586 last year and 404 in 2010, and 14 of the world’s 20 richest are from the U.S. CNN reports that Most U.S. jobs pay under $20 an hour and 18 million jobs pay $10 or less an hour. Fast food workers seem to be the lowest paid group at $8.81 per hour.

The Walton family heirs are billionaires but the average wage for a full-time, hourly worker at Walmart is $14.26 an hour. And while Jeff Bezos just purchased a home in Los Angeles for $165 million (.13% of his total wealth) the typical Amazon Warehouse Worker makes $14 per hour.

Is it any wonder that Bernie Sanders is the front runner in the Democratic Party primaries?

Swapping Michael Bloomberg for Donald Trump won’t change the fact that protection of the rich from taxes is a reality. Income from property owned and interest/dividends received are taxed at lower rates than earned income. We need a new way of enabling all Americans to live comfortably without the fear of loss of their home and accumulated wealth brought on by high medical bills and other unforeseen expenses.

Where are the ideas other than socialism? None of the Democratic Party candidates has an idea other than a wealth tax. Joe Biden’s response to the question at a town hall was we’ll find a way. Debate moderators never ask the difficult questions.

Four more years of Donald Trump seems the likely outcome in November.

Bloomberg versus Trump – Ain’t We Got Fun

Donald J. Trump is, according to Forbes, worth $3.1 Billion.
Michael Bloomberg is, according to Forbes, worth $61.8 Billion.

So what? After the first billion dollars what difference does it make?

Bloomberg seems to be inching up in the Democratic Party polls. He could become the Democratic Party candidate against Trump.

Let’s leave the name calling aside.

My question is which of these people really cares about middle class and working class Americans?

My opinion? Neither of them.

Their main objective is to preserve their wealth and the wealth of their friends.

When I bought my first home I qualified for the mortgage without including my wife’s salary. Over the years my salary raises did not keep up with inflation. Today it takes two salaries to sustain a household. Presidents during those years were both Democrats and Republicans. It made no difference. I continued to fall behind.

Which party will make a difference to middle class and working class families?

Neither Donald J. Trump nor Michael Bloomberg give a God-damn about you.

We are fucked. We have been fucked and most of us are too stupid to realize it will just keep happening!

Like the song says: “The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.”

Ain’t We Got Fun

Bill collectors gather ’round and rather
Haunt the cottage next door
Men the grocer and butcher sent
Men who call for the rent
But within a happy chappy
And his bride of only a year
Seem to be so cheerful, here’s an earful
Of the chatter you hear

Ev’ry morning, ev’ry evening
Ain’t we got fun?
Not much money, Oh, but honey
Ain’t we got fun?
The rent’s unpaid dear
We haven’t a bus
But smiles were made dear
For people like us

In the winter in the Summer
Don’t we have fun
Times are bum and getting bummer
Still we have fun
There’s nothing surer
The rich get rich and the poor get children
In the meantime, in between time
Ain’t we got fun?

Just to make their trouble nearly double
Something happened last night
To their chimney a gray bird came
Mister Stork is his name
And I’ll bet two pins, a pair of twins
Just happened in with the bird
Still they’re very gay and merry
Just at dawning I heard

Ev’ry morning, ev’ry evening
Don’t we have fun
Twins and cares, dear, come in pairs, dear
Don’t we have fun
We’ve only started
As mommer and pop
Are we downhearted
I’ll say that we’re not

Landlords mad and getting madder
Ain’t we got fun?
Times are so bad and getting badder
Still we have fun
There’s nothing surer
The rich get rich and the poor get laid off
In the meantime, in between time
Ain’t we got fun?

When the man who sold ’em carpets told ’em
He would take them away
They said, “Wonderful, here’s our chance
Take them up and we’ll dance”
And when burglars came and robbed them
Taking all their silver, they say
Hubby yelled, “We’re famous, for they’ll name us
In the peppers today

Night or daytime, it’s all playtime
Ain’t we got fun?
Hot or cold days, any old days
Ain’t we got fun
If Wifey wishes
To go to a play
Don’t wash the dishes
Just throw them away

Streetcar seats are awful narrow
Ain’t we got fun?
They won’t smash up our Pierce Arrow
We ain’t got none
They’ve cut my wages
But my income tax will be so much smaller
When I’m laid off, I’ll be paid off
Ain’t we got fun?

What Me Worry?

The choices for the Democratic Party nominee for president are mostly between flawed candidates. Could any of those appearing at the eighth debate stand up to Donald Trump and win?

Knowing that Trump will be calling his opponent names and portraying him or her as unfit and corrupt it is almost impossible for me to select the appropriate candidate that could win.

Alfred E Neuman in the guise of Pete Buttigieg is the smartest candidate, a combat veteran and a Rhodes scholar. At 38 years old he would definitely connect with younger voters. I personally have no problem with his sexual orientation but would Americans vote a gay man into the presidency? The E in Alfred E Neuman stands for Enigma. I am not alone in recognizing the similarity. For me the enigma is how do you sell this smart gay man to the American public?

Then there is former Vice President Joe Biden. This is his third time trying for the nomination. He has a long history in the Senate. He supported the invasion or Iraq and opposed busing to integration of schools. It is unclear what he stand for today but says he will bring people together. How he would bring Democrats and Republicans together in today’s fraught environment has not been explained. His appears frail. Just do not see him able to physically cope with the demands of the presidency. He would be 78 years old in a 2021 inauguration.

Bernie Sanders would be 79 years old on inauguration day. He recently had a heart attack. He is a declared socialist who calls himself a “democratic socialist.” He would try to remake American society. How many Americans want a socialist society? We all like Social Security and Medicare but the word socialist does not sit well with most Americans.

Elizabeth Warren is Bernie Sanders light and Amy Kobuchar seems to be a moderate with no specific agenda.

Michael Bloomberg represents Hillsborough, Bel-Air, Scarsdale, and Cherry Hills Village. People living there and similar communities need no help.

I have until March 3 to select my choice. As of today it is Alfred E Neuman. Oops I mean Pete Buttigieg.

In the U.S.A. – Most Common Language Spoken after English & Spanish

Diversity

Grizzlies Saved

Court Stops Trophy Hunt of Yellowstone’s Iconic Bears

Judge rules Trump administration unlawfully removed federal protections

It has been 35 years since I visited the park. It is a fabulous place and the bears have thrived. I was there three times. First I worked one summer in the park while attending college. I took my wife and children there twice.

The bears blocked the roads begging for food and people would feed then through slightly lowered windows.

The U.S. Economy is Great if your Wealthy

President Donald Trump will run on the economy. He will repeat over and over again the statistical information that says blacks are experiencing the lowest unemployment rates ever. He is already saying that more Americans are employed than ever in the nation’s economy.

So what’s not to like?

It’s an illusion. It sounds nice to say that more people are working but how much are they earning? The gap between the wealthy and the middle class and poor has grown dramatically.

In 2018 434,000 workers earned exactly the prevailing federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. About half (46.4 percent) of workers making less than $15 per hour are ages 35 and older. These are BLS statistics.

This Yahoo map of minimum wages is the eye opener.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen by 32 percent since President Donald Trump took office. But are Americans overall benefiting? What percentage of Americans own stocks? 80% of Americans own 6.7% of all shares. 84% of all shares are owned by the top 10% of the population.

Those numbers are the basis for many Democratic Party candidates campaign strategy. Their spiel is “I can fix this.”

This video is Tom Steyer’s appearance on CNN’s Smerconish is similar to what you will hear from Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.

War. Who is it good for?

Also creates jobs and employs those who can’t find a job in the military.

U.S. manufacturing activity hits worst level since 2009

This may be boring but it matters: The Institute of Supply Management‘s index of manufacturing activity released Friday hit its lowest level since the end of the Great Recession in December. 47.2 is their measurment. A number below 50 indicates a shrinking condition. It shows worsening conditions for the U.S. manufacturing sector, which has been in contraction for five straight months, and reignites concerns about the trade war’s impact on the economy.

The declining manufacturing sector is impacting states that helped Donald Trump win the presidency.

Nine states’ economies are expected to slide into contraction within six months — the most since the financial crisis ended more than a decade ago, according to the latest projections from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.

West Virginia’s economy is forecast to shrink the most, while a decline in neighboring Pennsylvania is anticipated to be the most severe since May 2009. Add to that list of shrinking states are Delaware, Montana and Oklahoma Vermont, New Jersey, Kentucky and Connecticut.

Democrats will be praying that things get worse. Republicans will be saying we are only going through a soft patch and better days are ahead.

Chaos President

Donald Trump has brought chaos to America and the world.

Since the Republican Party controls the United States senate it is unlikely that Donald Trump will be removed from office. Blind political party loyalty has been a reality of the two party system throughout America’s history.

Republicans supported Richard Nixon in the face of his obvious protection of law breakers until the evidence was overwhelming. Donald Trump’s actions are not overwhelming evidence of “Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors” in the eyes of the Republicans and many independents.

There is a long list of reasons a Democratic Party candidate can win the election next November if she or he is able to forcefully enunciate those reasons.

Democrats’ most powerful argument against Trump in their 300 page House intelligent committee report are he has abused presidential power for his own personal and political gain. He has hijacked foreign policy and obstructed justice. He has destroyed institutions and undermined alliances.

Supporting evidence is everywhere.

At the NATO conference in the UK he has argued with Canada’s prime minister and France’s president. He has threatened to abandon NATO.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has proposed new rules limit access to food stamps for households with savings and other assets, a measure that officials said would cut benefits to about 3 million people.

Gun violence continues unabated even in states like California that has some of the toughest regulations.

Obama Care, the Affordable Care Act, has become unaffordable in many areas of the country.

The immigration system has denied DACA victims permanent legal status, asylum seekers are waiting in Mexico for entry, and legal immigration has been corrupted.

Since the issues are so flagrant, all it takes is a capable campaigner to return America to its leadership role.