It's Just A Show

We hear a lot about diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) these days.

Research has shown that cognitively diverse teams are better at solving problems than homogenous teams. Groups of individuals that are comprised of differing ethnic and cultural backgrounds will produce superior outcomes compared with those that have similar backgrounds. Teams of individuals from diverse economic backgrounds, academic disciplines and political persuasions are better problem solvers and innovators.

DEI has become a religion of sorts with the progressive left.

That also means it is a popular subject for the mainstream media which tilts heavily left.

For example, consider this highly visible piece on DEI on the NBC Universal website.

"We stand for including everyone. We believe that a diverse, equitable and inclusive company is a more effective company, leading us to approach diversity as a driver for business growth and innovation."

Source: https://www.nbcuniversal.com/diversity-equity-inclusion

NBC Universal also promotes the fact that it has 'Employee Resource Groups" to insure that it is welcoming to all and everyone can bring their "full and entire selves to work".

Source : https://www.nbcuniversal.com/diversity-equity-inclusion

There are employee resource groups for Blacks, Indigenous, Disabled, LBGTQ+, Hispanics, Asian Pacific's, Women, Young Professionals and even Veteran's.

NBC's MSNBC organization has an opinion piece on its website on the lessons of diversity, proximity and humanity at work.

Source: https://www.msnbc.com/know-your-value/lessons-diversity-proximity-humanity-work-n1234364

That article concludes with this paragraph,

Proximity in the workplace can be a powerful antidote to countering prejudice and recognizing our commonalities. Familiarity doesn’t breed contempt. It breeds respect, compassion, and appreciation of difference. My co-workers helped open my eyes, my mind, and my heart. Their leadership will help bring about a world of greater equity and empathy. And I will be cheering them every step of the way.

It is hard to argue with that.

Why do I bring this up?

You can see what NBC Universal says about the importance of diversity and inclusion above.

Now let's consider its actions over the past week.

It hired Ronna McDaniel, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, supposedly to bring some diversity, equity and inclusion to the opinions and views expressed on air on NBC and MSNBC.

However, you can be assured that McDaniel would probably not have even gotten that gig if she was a white male.

She was terminated after just five days.

Source: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/ronna-mcdaniel-fired-nbc-news-backlash-1234994698/

The decision by executive management at NBC Universal to be diverse and inclusive was met with a wave of outrage by the on-air "journalists" who deliver the news to us.

Consider Rachel Maddow's comments on the hiring of McDaniel as reported in The New York Post.

Maddow, MSNBC’s most popular personality, compared it to putting a mobster to work in a district attorney’s office.

“I find the decision to put her on the payroll inexplicable and I hope they will reconsider that decision,” she said on her weekly program Monday night.

Most of the journalists argued that McDaniel should not be given a platform by NBC and MSNBC to voice her views considering her past service as RNC Chairman when Donald Trump was President and the resulting claims about election integrity in the 2020 election. The argument is that she is too partisan.  They also asked how can they asked to sit besides someone who was an "election denier."

Never mind that Rachel Maddow consistently pushed the narrative that Trump was only elected in 2016 due to Russian collusion and interference. She continued that narrative his entire Presidency even though a independent counsel investigation debunked the entire allegation.

Of course, that same belief on partisanship seems also not to apply to Jen Psaki, Biden's former Press Secretary, who consistently shills for Biden and the Democrats in every appearance on-air.

It also does not apply to most every other NBC or MSNBC "journalist" who leans heavily to the left, all of which have an open animosity for Donald Trump.

I guess they do not really believe in diversity and inclusion and that proximity and familiarity might breed respect and appreciation of differences.

All of this is just another example of how the mainstream media believes it should be the sole arbiter of truth in this country.

They determine and craft the narrative and that should be the end of it.

There is only one view---any opposing views are either misinformation or disinformation.

Of course, true journalism is not supposed to have a view. 

Journalism is supposed to be reporting objective facts and the news to its viewers.

At least it used to be.

The mainstream media has become just a show.

The Ronna McDaniel hiring and firing is proof.

Do as we say, not as we do.

All of this is reflected in the views the American public has of mass media today compared to the past.

There has been a steady erosion of trust in mass media.

It is lower today than it has ever been.

Gallup surveys show that just 32% of Americans state that they have some amount of trust in the mass media. It has been declining for most of the last 25 years.

A record high number of Americans (39%) today say they don't trust the media at all today.

Source: https://www.axios.com/2023/10/24/americans-trust-in-media-plummets-to-historic-low-poll

Among Republicans it is just 11%. Independents are at 29%.

Democrats are at only at 58% despite the fact that the mass media is carrying their water every day. 

 

Source: https://www.axios.com/2023/10/24/americans-trust-in-media-plummets-to-historic-low-poll

We are supposed to be getting news from the mass media.

Instead, it is all just a show---and a bad one at that.

The Baltimore Bridge Collapse

The big news yesterday was the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore after it was struck by a container ship leaving the Port of Baltimore heading for Sri Lanka.

Source: https://www.baltimoresun.com/2024/03/26/key-bridge-collapses-into-patapsco/

Before and after pictures of the bridge.

Credit: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/map-video-francis-scott-key-bridge-collapse-baltimore/

The bridge carried vehicle traffic as part of I-695 that was a major thoroughfare to and around Baltimore including a lot of north-south traffic that travels up and down I-95 on the east coast.

A map of the location of the bridge.

Credit: https://nypost.com/2024/03/26/us-news/baltimores-key-bridge-collapses-after-being-struck-by-a-container-ship/

The ship apparently lost power in the minutes before the collision. Video of the incident shows the lights on the ship going out, coming back on briefly and then going out again before the collision with the bridge. 

Mrs, BeeLine and I had dinner one night on a cruise we were on in with a gentleman who had been a ship's engineer for some 40 years. The weather and seas were particularly rough on the Bering Sea between Alaska and Japan that night and my wife was concerned about how well the ship could withstand the pounding we were experiencing.

He assured her we had nothing to worry about---unless the lights went out which would signal we had lost power. He said that is the worst thing that can happen to any ship. At that point, you have lost all control of the ship.

This appears to be what occurred in this case. No power means that the captain had no control. It also did not matter that a local pilot was also on board. If you cannot control the rudder and the thrust of the propellers you are dependent on the current, the tides and the position of the rudder when power is lost.  All of this becomes even more dangerous in a crowded area close to land and other objects with a large, heavy and cargo-laden ship that carries a lot of forward momentum.

In my mind, the biggest question to be answered here is why was the power lost?

The ship just left port 30 minutes before and presumably all systems would have been checked thoroughly  before embarking on the long voyage ahead. 

Authorities quickly ruled out terrorism but is it possible that a bad actor somehow hacked into the computer system that controlled the power plant on the ship and had a hand in all of this?

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that a prime focus of the investigation may involve whether the ship had taken on "dirty" fuel which caused the loss of power.

Whatever the cause, the effects of this disaster are going to reverberate through Baltimore and the national economy for a long time.

The bridge was first put into service in 1977 at a cost of $141 million to build. Inflation alone would put the cost at $741 million in today's dollars but my experience is that bridge construction project costs have far outpaced general inflation over the last 50 years. It would not surprise me to see that a new bridge would cost over $1 billion.

It took five years to build the bridge in the 1970's. How long will it take today?

The immediate problem is that the bridge is in the water and all of the ships in the Baltimore shipyard are stuck there until salvage crews can clear the debris? How long will this take?

All of the ships scheduled into Baltimore also now need to be redirected to other ports. This will create compounding effects on the global ocean supply chain at the same time that there are disruptions in the Suez Canal as well.

Baltimore is the major port for auto imports and exports for much of the country. Approximately 40% of the port's $55 billion of imported goods were cars and light trucks.

It is the main port used for many imports and exports into and out of the Midwest. Agricultural products and construction material such as gypsum are also major items imported into Baltimore. A lot of sugar is also imported through the port. Much of the coal exports from the United States flow from Baltimore. Are we looking for supply chain disruptions again?

Who is going to pay for all the costs and the disruptions?

Joe Biden stated yesterday that the federal government should pay for the bridge rebuild and he was going to ask Congress for the money.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/biden-says-wants-federal-government-pay-rebuilding-baltimore-bridge-ca-rcna145138

"We’re going to work with our partners in Congress to make sure the state gets the support it needs. It’s my intention that the federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge, and I expect the Congress to support my effort," Biden said in brief remarks from the White House before he left for North Carolina.

Biden said that it will take "some time" to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which transverses the Patapsco River, but that he told Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, that he's directing the federal government to "move heaven and earth" to reopen the port and rebuild the bridge "as soon as humanly possible."

China has set the standard on building bridges in record time. Here is a great opportunity to showcase some American ingenuity and effort. Is it still in us?

The Chinese would deploy 10,000 workers and an army of robots working 24/7 to get that bridge up and running. Is anything like that even remotely possible in the United States anymore? Do we even have the materials to rebuild that bridge without relying on imports from China?

The federal government may end up fronting the cost of the bridge rebuild but it is certain there will be plenty of work for maritime and other attorneys as to who will ultimately pay for the direct and other costs associated with this bridge catastrophe.

It is likely to take years to sort all of this out in the courts but all of the parties right now (especially the ship's operator) better hope that they have very good insurance. There will be BILLIONS of dollars in liability involved with this incident before it is over. 

Of course, leave it to "good old Joe" to be confused about basic facts when he spoke about the incident.

He claimed yesterday that he had been on the Key Bridge "many, many times commuting from the state of Delaware either by train or by car."

The only problem is that no trains have ever gone over that bridge. It had no train tracks.

LINK to video https://twitter.com/stillgray/status/1772679452759150630

Baltimore and Maryland are both populated with loads and loads of true blue Democrat voters.

My humble suggestion is if they are looking for quick results in rebuilding that bridge they might want to consider a guy that spent a lifetime building things and bringing them in on budget.

HINT---That is not the guy pictured above.

Thoughts and prayers to those who lost their lives yesterday and to all who will be impacted by this disaster.

Let's hope that we can quickly determine what caused this incident so that we can learn some important lessons for the future.

Where Will The Power Come From?

Last week the Biden administration's EPA proposed new pollution control rules that would require that as many as two-thirds of all new vehicles sold in the United States by the 2032 model year (less than eight years away) to be electric or hybrids.

That would be nearly a ten-fold increase over current electric vehicle sales.

Source: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/03/20/bidens-regulators-poised-to-issue-rule-meant-to-drive-electric-car-sales-00148019

Electric vehicles made up less than 8% of new vehicle sales last year and more than half of those were Teslas.

The Biden Administration claims that this is not an electric vehicle mandate on auto consumers. However, if the auto makers are prohibited from exceeding 30% in gas-powered vehicles in their output isn't that argument just a little bit disingenuous?

Of course, I have a hard time understanding how a rule like this that would have such far reaching consequences for the American people could be instituted without legislation passed by their elected representatives in Congress.

It is hard to believe that our Founders would not be shocked at this overreach by the executive branch made up of unelected bureaucrats.

However, let's look at this from a more practical perspective---Where will the power come from to charge these electric vehicles?

Bear in mind that at the same time that the climate change lobby wants to ban gasoline powered vehicles they also want to ban coal, natural gas and oil to generate electricity. They are also averse to using nuclear power.

They also want to ban gas stoves in favor of electric stoves and gas furnaces in favor of electric heat pumps.

How does the math work?

How do you increase the number of things plugged into the electric gird while decreasing the energy sources that can be used to power the grid?

How does that work?

There have been almost no additions to nuclear generation capacity in the last 30 years.

Coal plants are being phased out.

They want to do the same with natural gas by 2050 in many states.

In the meantime, it can take years to just get the regulatory permits to build an electric generation plant or to erect high-voltage transmission lines.

Where will the power come from?

About 80% of U.S. electric generation currently comes from coal, natural gas and nuclear.

Only 20% comes from renewables.

Source: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us-generation-capacity-and-sales.php

Wind and solar have been growing as electricity generation sources over the last 20 years but there are also practical limits to the reliability of these sources of energy due to their intermittent nature. Wind and solar typically fail to operate during heatwaves, cloudy, rainy, snowy, or stormy weather conditions.

Source: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us-generation-capacity-and-sales.php

Does anyone remember what happened in Texas in the cold snap of the 2021 winter when the wind turbines froze?

In addition to all of the above we are also seeing substantial increases in the amount of electricity needed to power data centers that will only intensify in the future with the introduction of more artificial intelligence applications.

These data centers consume massive amounts of electricity. They also generate a lot of heat that requires these centers to use a lot of air conditioning to keep the hardware from overheating.

Here is how John Mauldin describes all of this in his latest "Thoughts From The Frontline" newsletter.

Running so many calculations so quickly generates heat. The disposing of it requires cooling systems which consume yet more power (and sometimes massive amounts of water—another not-cheap resource). Yet more power goes into transporting data between users and servers, that may be thousands of miles apart.

You begin to see the challenge. AI generates enormous new energy demand on top of everything else. This is pure growth, not the replacement for something that will go away—at least not yet.

It’s hard to get to Net Zero when we keep inventing new technologies that consume ever larger amounts of energy. The goalposts keep moving.

It is estimated that data center power consumption will jump by a factor of six to ten over the next decade.

Over the last 15 years electricity demand has been relatively stable in the United States. However, we are beginning to see an increase that will undoubtedly grow due to electric vehicles, data centers, AI and even crypto mining.

Notice the noticeable uptick in electricity demand since 2020.

The latest projections are that electricity demand over the next decade is going to grow at 3 times the rate at which it grew over the last decade.

If this proves true, we are going to need 15%-25% more electric generating capacity by 2040 than we have today

Below is a chart that shows the current electric generating plants under construction.

It represents less than 5% of current generating capacity.

Note the heavy preponderance of solar and wind in the numbers (76% of the total).

Source:https://www.publicpower.org/system/files/documents/Americas_Electricity_Generating_Capacity_2023_Update.pdf

These are plants that currently have obtained permits for future construction. Solar and wind are 83% of the total.

It is another 5% of current generating capacity.

Source: https://www.publicpower.org/system/files/documents/Americas_Electricity_Generating_Capacity_2023_Update.pdf

If all of these plants are completed within the next 10 years it would barely keep generating capacity up with projected demand.

However, remember that the climate change lobby wants this new capacity to REPLACE coal and natural gas generating capacity.

Where are we going to get the energy to replace the 60%+ that is currently being generated by coal and natural gas?

The math simply does not work.

Where will the power come from?

It is either going to take a gigantic new technological breakthrough, a massive move to nuclear or we are going to be using coal, natural gas and oil for a lot longer than anyone is willing to admit. 

File this blog post under HARD FACTS that are not included in the narrative about the "Green New Deal".

Feel free to forward it to someone who needs to know that the future may not be as BRIGHT due to this craziness. 

The Real Replacement Theory

Some believe that the open border policy of the Biden Administration and the Democrats is driven by what is called a "Great Replacement Theory".

Proponents of "The Great Replacement Theory" posit that the open border policy is designed to use immigrants (particularly those who are non-white) to undermine or replace the culture and political power of white people living in Western countries.

Proponents of the open border policy deride this as a fringe right-wing conspiracy theory motivated by racism.

Tucker Carlson is one who has raised the question if some of type of replacement theory is driving the current border policies we are seeing in the United States and Europe.

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/tucker-carlson-great-replacement-electoral-strategy

I don't know if this is the case. However, as I wrote in my last blog post "What Am I Missing?", it is difficult to understand the current immigration policy of Biden and the Democrats looking at the issue from any logical or factual perspective.

As I wrote in the blog post.

I wish someone could explain to me how any of this illegal immigration makes sense for American citizens and voters?

1. You flood the country with illegal immigrants

2, The illegals immediately need to be housed and fed in the communities they are transferred to straining state and local services and tax dollars.

3. The extra population puts pressure on housing costs, public services, policing, etc.

4. The extra population puts additional pressure on hospitals, health care, schools, and social service agencies as the illegals assimilate into their communities. 

5. The illegal immigration strains every aspect of our infrastructure---roads, water, sewer systems and the electric grid with people who were not supposed to be here when this infrastructure was put in place.

6. The votes of American citizens are diluted due to outright voting fraud or the census adding additional representatives in areas where the illegals are settled.

7. The illegals increase the supply of cheap labor that has the effect of putting pressure on the wages of low-skilled native born workers (in particular those that the Democrats claim to want to protect).

8. As technology advances and more low-skilled jobs are replaced, it will inevitably lead to a massive  permanent under class that will be totally dependent on government assistance to survive.

9. Does all of this benefit anyone beyond Democrat politicians attempting to hold on to their power?

10. We have not begun to see a fraction of the compounding negative impacts this misguided policy will have on the United States for years and years to come.

In many respects, we see a real replacement theory taking place in some counties across the United States in the latest data on net migration trends from the U.S. Census Bureau,

The Census Bureau data shows these ten counties as having the largest net migration or population losses  over the last year.

Note that they are all large urban counties and eight of the ten are in California or New York.

Source: https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2024/population-estimates-more-counties-population-gains-2023.html

Over the period April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023, Census Bureau data estimates that Los Angeles County has lost almost half a million in population due to net migration to other states and has added 86,992 in population due to international migration into the county.

The Census Bureau data does not break down the migration by race, income or education but you would have to assume the international migration in would be slanted towards non-white and poorer and the domestic migration out would tend to be people with jobs who paid taxes and had the resources to fund a move out of Los Angeles.

The numbers for Cook County.

A similar pattern is seen in the New York City counties of Kings (Brooklyn), Queens and the Bronx.

I also suspect that the international migration patterns into all of these counties is undercounted especially due to the large influx of illegals into New York City and Chicago over the last year in particular.

For example, it is being reported that New York City is currently housing 175,000 migrants from the Southern border. Those numbers would not be included in the numbers above.

Source: https://www.npr.org/2024/02/15/1231712535/how-nyc-is-coping-with-175-000-migrants-from-the-southern-border

What reasonable assumptions can we make in these net migration trends in places like Los Angeles, New York City and Chicago?

The people who migrated out of these cities were undoubtedly more educated, had more skills, had higher incomes, paid more in taxes, were less dependent on welfare and social services and committed fewer crimes than those that migrated in.

That is what I see as the Real Replacement Theory that is taking place in many communities across the United States.

However, it is also true that if these population losses caused by net migration away from these blue counties is not offset someway, their political influence and power will be reduced in the future 

As to whether all of this is an electoral strategy that is really about Democrats trying to hold on to political power and votes you can see Congresswoman Yvette Clark (D-Brooklyn, NY) say the quiet part out loud.

She welcomes illegals into her Brooklyn, New York congressional district as she sees the out migration going around her. She knows she needs to replace that outmigration of natives with illegals to maintain the population in her district and prevent it being redistricted away in the future.

https://twitter.com/SenatorHagerty/status/1744436574610248049

How can anyone look at what is happening in the sanctuary cities and counties around the United States and make the case that any of this is a net positive?

It has little to do with race.

It all revolves around what is required to have a functioning, self-sufficient and productive society.

For example, I don't hear any substantial complaints about the high share of foreign-born workers (many Asian born) who are now represented in science and engineering occupations in the United States.

Credit: https://twitter.com/bpmehlman/status/1768650301769163218

This expertise and prowess is going to strengthen the United States.

The same cannot be said for what we are seeing with illegal immigration and what it is going to do in these so-called sanctuary cities.

Those cities will be anything but a sanctuary for the native inhabitants who do not eventually choose to leave.

It also appears that more and more of the productive members of these cities and counties will make the decision to leave over time which will only accelerate further decline.

It will inevitably lead to hollowed out cities and counties with fewer productive inhabitants, less resources and more needs on an ever dwindling tax base.

All of this is happening in real time before our eyes right now.

The so-called replacement theory on a national basis is not a true replacement in the short--term anyway. It is a dilution theory. The power of native whites is merely being diluted in the short-term to be potentially replaced longer term with higher birth rates in the immigrant population.

However, when illegals arrive in sanctuary cities and natives more to another part of the country, it is a true replacement currently. That is a REAL replacement. It is not a theory.

In the numbers cited above in the counties with the greatest net out migration, 5,6 or 7 natives have been  leaving for every international migrant that is moving in over the last few years.

This is not a replacement THEORY.  It is replacement REALITY.

Productive people with incomes who pay taxes are leaving and being replaced by illegals with few skills who are dependent on government (and the taxes on others) for their support.

What could go wrong?

It is sad that we have to watch all of this unfold as Biden and the Democrats use illegal immigrants to protect their power while not caring one iota for the chaos and devastation that is following in its wake.

What Am I Missing?

 It is hard to not be bewildered by Biden's border policy.

Yes, I get that the Democrats are desperate for new voters.

However, do you have to break the immigration laws and also the voting laws to do it?

Has the woke Democrat agenda become so unpopular that the only way for them to attract voters is to import them?

Is this what it is all about?

Source: https://twitter.com/Liberacrat_/status/1769801903280423035

If not, what is the purpose in opening up the border and letting almost anybody in who wants to come?

This chart provides a graphic view to demonstrate just how unprecedented all of this is.

That black line represents the illegals who have entered the United States over time.

Chaos is sure to follow. It has already begun. And it is certain to get worse.

What is truly bewildering is why the Democrats seem to be "all in" on the open borders strategy despite so many voters (including Blacks and Hispanics who have traditionally been reliable Democrat votes) stating that they want to stop illegal immigration.

Why would the Democrats ignore the views of current voters in a quest for future voters?

There is a law that prohibits non-citizens voting in federal elections. However, with no voter i.d. laws in a number of states, what is to stop an illegal from voting?.

In addition, even if they do not vote, illegals are counted in the census that determines congressional seats and the electoral college votes.

Millions of illegals in states like California, Illinois and New York provide additional representation to these states compared to what they would have been if the immigration laws were enforced.

Elon Musk has been highlighting this issue in some of his recent tweets.

Let's look at some recent data. 

Last year alone the Biden administration allowed 335,000 illegal Venezuelans into the country.

For some reason they were motivated to leave Venezuela that Sean Penn and other Hollywood types claimed years ago was a revolutionary socialist wonder.

Look at the number of migrants from some other countries who have been encountered this year at the southern border of which most have been allowed into the country based on asylum claims.

Almost all of these countries had zero migrants under Trump.

The numbers in 2023 with Biden.

China 25,000.

India 50,000.

Ecuador 100,000+.

Columbia 150,000.

There are 1.4 billion people each in both China and India.

Many people in these countries have been waiting for years to legally immigrate to the United States.

Have we now made it the new policy that if you can just get to the southern border and claim you were being persecuted in your home country you can jump the line?

How do we accommodate a couple billion people who might want to follow?

Migrants at the Souther Border by Country of Origin
Credit: https://twitter.com/fentasyl/status/1767564142401953855

The word I have heard is that the Chinese who have bought farmland in the United States are paying the way for workers from China to get to the southern border. They enter as migrants seeking asylum and then  the Chinese bring them to their farms to work. Many of those farms are growing marijuana.

How is all of this possible?

An illegal entering the United States granted temporary asylum or awaiting deportation is given a work permit that allows them to legally work in the U.S. for up to five years with no questions asked. 

This is also a reason (along with the large number of native Baby Boomers retiring) why all net changes in employment since 2018 have gone to foreign born workers.

Credit: https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/1766913411487596903

Another perspective on what is happening with foreign-born vs. native born employment.

Credit: https://twitter.com/Geiger_Capital/status/1766109789266882959

I wish someone could explain to me how any of this makes sense for American citizens and voters?

1. Flood the country with illegal immigrants

2, The illegals immediately need to be housed and fed in the communities they are transferred to straining state and local services and tax dollars.

3. The extra population puts pressure on housing costs, public services, policing, etc.

4. The extra population puts additional pressure on hospitals, health care, schools, and social service agencies as the illegals assimilate into their communities. 

5. The illegal immigration strains every aspect of our infrastructure---roads, water, sewer systems and the electric grid with people who were not supposed to be here when this infrastructure was put in place.

6. The votes of American citizens are diluted due to outright voting fraud or the census adding additional representatives in areas where the illegals are settled.

7. The illegals increase the supply of cheap labor that has the effect of putting pressure on the wages of low-skilled native born workers (in particular those that the Democrats claim to want to protect).

8. As technology advances and more low-skilled jobs are replaced, it will inevitably lead to a massive  permanent under class that will be totally dependent on government assistance to survive.

9. Does all of this benefit anyone beyond Democrat politicians attempting to hold on to their power?

10. We have not begun to see a fraction of the compounding negative impacts this misguided policy will have on the United States for years and years to come.

What am I missing?

 

This and That---March 18, 2024 Edition

A few random observations, charts and factoids to provide some context on what is going on in the world.

A Threat to Democracy?

The Russian presidential election results are still being counted but with 60% of the vote in it appears that Vladimir Putin has been re-elected to a record fifth term with around 87% of the votes cast.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-presidential-election-2024-live-candidates-polls-when-results-will-be-2024-03-17/

The D.C. establishment and the Democrats like to talk about Trump being a "threat to democracy."

You are sure to hear this narrative continually between now and November.

However, consider the election total in the District of Columbia in the November, 2020 presidential election.

Source: https://www.politico.com/2020-election/results/washington-dc/

Does this look like the results you would expect to see in an open, free and democratic society?

The results are more skewed than in the authoritarian state of Russia.

Who is a greater threat to democracy?

Donald Trump or the bureaucrats and deep state inhabitants who live in and around Washington, D.C. who regulate and control almost every aspect of our daily lives?

Cash Buyers

Barron's reported last week that 68% of the homes purchased in Manhattan in the fourth quarter, 2023 were bought with cash.

The median list price for homes for sale in Manhattan is currently $1.6 million.

Source: https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/Manhattan_NY/overview

 

In the meantime, mortgage payments required for the median price home for average Americans have doubled in the last 3 years.

A graph of average 30-year fixed mortgage rates over the last three years.

No wonder those Wall Street and mainstream media liberals in Manhattan see nothing wrong with Biden.

Inflation

In June, 2021 Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen famously stated that any inflation that might occur would be "transitory". Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell echoed her comments.

Of course, at the same time I wrote a blog post ("Inflation in our Future?"), that questioned the conclusion that the inflation we were starting to see at that time would be transitory. 

A year later inflation spiked to an annual rate of 9.1%, a rate that had not been seen in four decades.

Yellen now admits she regrets making the "transitory inflation" comment.

Source: https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/us-treasury-secretary-janet-yellen-walks-back-transitory-inflation-claims-i-regret-saying-it

Joe Biden and the Democrats have recently been claiming that inflation is down and under control.

Yes, it is no longer increasing at 9%, but it is by no means going down. 

The price increases we saw are still with us. It is just that the additional inflation on top of those previous hikes has moderated.

However, prices are not returning to where they were three years ago.

Consider some of these price increases since January, 2021.

In the last four years, inflation has effectively eviscerated almost a quarter of the wealth of Americans.

Source: https://truflation.com/dashboard?feed=aggregated-us

This might suggest that who is in office for the next four years could be an important decision for you and the country.

Will It Ever Be Over?

On March 16, 2020, the "15 days to slow the spread" campaign against Covid-19 was rolled out in Washington, D.C.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/16/trumps-coronavirus-guidelines-for-next-15-days-to-slow-pandemic.html

Four years later, only 41% of Democrats believe the pandemic is over according to a recent Gallup survey.

This compares to 79% of Republicans and 63% of Independents.

Source: https://news.gallup.com/poll/612230/four-years-say-covid-pandemic.aspx

The survey also asked respondents when they had contracted Covid over the last few years.

Interestingly, 46% stated that they had Covid in 2022 compared to only 25% in 2020 and 34% in 2021.

Of course, the Covid vaccinations were available in 2021 along with boosters in 2022.  There was no vaccine protection in 2020.

When has there ever been a pandemic in history in which infections were higher after the introduction of a vaccine that was supposed to curb the pandemic?

Most troubling is the fact that 46% of Democrats, 46% of Independents and 35% of Republicans believe that their lives will never get back to the "normal" life they had before the Covid pandemic. 

  

Source: https://news.gallup.com/poll/612230/four-years-say-covid-pandemic.aspx

What more do you have to see to understand that the Covid response that began almost four years ago was one of the greatest failures of our government institutions and public health "experts" in the history of mankind?

Odds of Getting Away With Murder

It seems that it used to be very hard to get away with murder.

That is no longer the case.

In 1965, the police identified and arrested suspects in 92% of all murders.

Today the number has dropped to barely over 50%.

With the increase in better forensics, surveillance cameras, etc, you would think it would be easier to identify and arrest murder suspects today than in the past.

Balanced against this is the fact that in 1965 the police were much more likely to arrest innocent suspects, especially in minority populations. The fact that police are more cautious in arresting a suspect today is a positive development.

However, it is likely that a lot of murders go unsolved today simply because they occur in communities which do not want to cooperate with the police and/or people are afraid to do so out of a fear of retribution. This is a very negative development.

As a result, more and more people get away with murder.