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Pies4shaw 
pies4shaw
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
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| Great movie - you should watch it, Grinch David. |
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stui magpie 
Prepare for the worst, hope for the best.
Joined: 03 May 2005
Location: In flagrante delicto
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| Quote: | President Donald Trump is probably right: he doesn't get due credit for the volume of achievements he's stacked up during a tumultuous political year.
But to judge his presidency so far simply on bills passed, regulations slashed, executive orders signed and campaign promises kept would be to paint a skewed picture of the most divisive and controversial new administration in generations. |
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/12/26/politics/donald-trump-credit-year/index.html
Interesting article. The list of accomplishments are real and considerable, a key criticism is that he's playing to his heartland, the people who voted for him, which is only a real criticism if you expect a US president to ignore their campaign promises and suddenly morph into a world first statesman.
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Every dead body on Mt Everest was once a highly motivated person, so maybe just calm the **** down. |
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Mugwump
Joined: 28 Jul 2007
Location: Between London and Melbourne
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About the only good thing I can say for Trump is that at least he is not a hypocrite, wrapping his pursuit of American interests in pious internationalism.
Even the egregiously useless GW Bush, whose “achievements” in 8 years included the security failures of 911, the disastrous response to Katrina, Iraq, and an utter failure of banking supervision, usually pretended that he was helping the world. Though it is early days, Trump’s a complete loser in the mayhem stakes compared to GWB.
A world where states acted in line with an honest, rational appraisal of their domestic interests would probably be a good deal less mendacious and unstable than today.
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Two more flags before I die! |
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Skids 
Quitting drinking will be one of the best choices you make in your life.
Joined: 11 Sep 2007
Location: Joined 3/6/02 . Member #175
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Dow rockets past 24,000, building on incredible post-election surge
(30th of November... It's actually 24,746 today  )
The Dow soared 332 points on Thursday as investors cheered signs that the Senate is making progress on a package of tax cuts. The 1.4% surge was the Dow's best since March 1.
The latest market milestone occurred barely a month after the Dow hit 23,000.
It's yet more evidence of excitement among investors about the strengthening economy and record corporate profits that could be bolstered by the GOP plan to slash corporate taxes. The tax cut plan received critical support on Thursday from Republican Senator John McCain.
The Dow has spiked nearly 6,000 points since President Trump's election last year, notching 80 daily record highs since then.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are also near all-time highs. The latter is up a whopping 30% since the election.
The boom in the stock market is a clear reflection of improvements in the U.S. economy. New numbers published on Wednesday show the U.S. grew at a brisk 3.3% pace between July and September, the best growth since 2014 and the second-straight quarter of 3% growth.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/30/investing/dow-24000-stocks-wall-street-trump/index.html
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Don't count the days, make the days count. |
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Skids
Quitting drinking will be one of the best choices you make in your life.
Joined: 11 Sep 2007
Location: Joined 3/6/02 . Member #175
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Year One List: 81 major Trump achievements, 11 Obama legacy items repealed
With the passage of the GOP tax bill this week, the Trump administration has scored 81 major achievements in its first year, making good on campaign promises to provide significant tax cuts, boost U.S. energy production, and restore respect to the United States, according to the White House.
And along the way, President Trump even outdid his own expectations and slashed at least 11 major legacy items of former President Barack Obama, including cracking down on the open border, slowing recognition of communist Cuba and effectively killing Obamacare by ending the mandate that everyone have health insurance or face a tax.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/year-one-list-81-major-trump-achievements-11-obama-legacy-items-repealed/article/2644159
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Don't count the days, make the days count. |
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Mugwump
Joined: 28 Jul 2007
Location: Between London and Melbourne
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| Skids wrote: | Dow rockets past 24,000, building on incredible post-election surge
(30th of November... It's actually 24,746 today )
The Dow soared 332 points on Thursday as investors cheered signs that the Senate is making progress on a package of tax cuts. The 1.4% surge was the Dow's best since March 1.
The latest market milestone occurred barely a month after the Dow hit 23,000.
It's yet more evidence of excitement among investors about the strengthening economy and record corporate profits that could be bolstered by the GOP plan to slash corporate taxes. The tax cut plan received critical support on Thursday from Republican Senator John McCain.
The Dow has spiked nearly 6,000 points since President Trump's election last year, notching 80 daily record highs since then.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are also near all-time highs. The latter is up a whopping 30% since the election.
The boom in the stock market is a clear reflection of improvements in the U.S. economy. New numbers published on Wednesday show the U.S. grew at a brisk 3.3% pace between July and September, the best growth since 2014 and the second-straight quarter of 3% growth.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/30/investing/dow-24000-stocks-wall-street-trump/index.html |
If stock market surges are a sign of political success, Coolidge (1925-29 bubble) and William J Clinton (1998-2001 bubble) are giants, far greater than Lincoln or either of the Roosevelts. Teddy Roosevelt actually caused the great panic/bust of 1907 when he brought in anti-trust laws, perhaps the greatest legislative achievement in the modern history of capitalism. History shows, in other words, that what is good for the stock market is very often bad for the country.
You might as well praise presidents for the quality of their summers. A surging stock market is usually a precursor to severe sunburn.
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Two more flags before I die! |
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Skids
Quitting drinking will be one of the best choices you make in your life.
Joined: 11 Sep 2007
Location: Joined 3/6/02 . Member #175
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| Mugwump wrote: | | Skids wrote: | Dow rockets past 24,000, building on incredible post-election surge
(30th of November... It's actually 24,746 today )
The Dow soared 332 points on Thursday as investors cheered signs that the Senate is making progress on a package of tax cuts. The 1.4% surge was the Dow's best since March 1.
The latest market milestone occurred barely a month after the Dow hit 23,000.
It's yet more evidence of excitement among investors about the strengthening economy and record corporate profits that could be bolstered by the GOP plan to slash corporate taxes. The tax cut plan received critical support on Thursday from Republican Senator John McCain.
The Dow has spiked nearly 6,000 points since President Trump's election last year, notching 80 daily record highs since then.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are also near all-time highs. The latter is up a whopping 30% since the election.
The boom in the stock market is a clear reflection of improvements in the U.S. economy. New numbers published on Wednesday show the U.S. grew at a brisk 3.3% pace between July and September, the best growth since 2014 and the second-straight quarter of 3% growth.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/30/investing/dow-24000-stocks-wall-street-trump/index.html |
If stock market surges are a sign of political success, Coolidge (1925-29 bubble) and William J Clinton (1998-2001 bubble) are giants, far greater than Lincoln or either of the Roosevelts. Teddy Roosevelt actually caused the great panic/bust of 1907 when he brought in anti-trust laws, perhaps the greatest legislative achievement in the modern history of capitalism. History shows, in other words, that what is good for the stock market is very often bad for the country.
You might as well praise presidents for the quality of their summers. A surging stock market is usually a precursor to severe sunburn.
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The surging stock market is a sign of consumer confidence.
US unemployment is low, tax cuts encourage businesses, inflation is low, companies are making good profits, spending is solid and the world economic outlook has improved.
You slap on your hat and sunscreen, I've got money to make 
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Don't count the days, make the days count. |
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swoop42 
Whatcha gonna do when he comes for you?
Joined: 02 Aug 2008
Location: The 18
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Trump.
Making the divide between the rich and poor greater again.
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He's mad. He's bad. He's MaynHARD! |
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Mugwump
Joined: 28 Jul 2007
Location: Between London and Melbourne
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| Skids wrote: | | Mugwump wrote: | | Skids wrote: | Dow rockets past 24,000, building on incredible post-election surge
(30th of November... It's actually 24,746 today )
The Dow soared 332 points on Thursday as investors cheered signs that the Senate is making progress on a package of tax cuts. The 1.4% surge was the Dow's best since March 1.
The latest market milestone occurred barely a month after the Dow hit 23,000.
It's yet more evidence of excitement among investors about the strengthening economy and record corporate profits that could be bolstered by the GOP plan to slash corporate taxes. The tax cut plan received critical support on Thursday from Republican Senator John McCain.
The Dow has spiked nearly 6,000 points since President Trump's election last year, notching 80 daily record highs since then.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are also near all-time highs. The latter is up a whopping 30% since the election.
The boom in the stock market is a clear reflection of improvements in the U.S. economy. New numbers published on Wednesday show the U.S. grew at a brisk 3.3% pace between July and September, the best growth since 2014 and the second-straight quarter of 3% growth.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/30/investing/dow-24000-stocks-wall-street-trump/index.html |
If stock market surges are a sign of political success, Coolidge (1925-29 bubble) and William J Clinton (1998-2001 bubble) are giants, far greater than Lincoln or either of the Roosevelts. Teddy Roosevelt actually caused the great panic/bust of 1907 when he brought in anti-trust laws, perhaps the greatest legislative achievement in the modern history of capitalism. History shows, in other words, that what is good for the stock market is very often bad for the country.
You might as well praise presidents for the quality of their summers. A surging stock market is usually a precursor to severe sunburn.
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The surging stock market is a sign of consumer confidence.
US unemployment is low, tax cuts encourage businesses, inflation is low, companies are making good profits, spending is solid and the world economic outlook has improved.
You slap on your hat and sunscreen, I've got money to make |
The surging stock market is indeed a sign of consumer confidence, as it was in 1929 and 2001. Consumer confidence was excellent leading into the GFC. It’s clearly meaningless as a gauge of the underlying health of the economy.
That does not mean that it’s not worth being invested in equities right now. While ordinary interest rates are so suppressed, there really is nowhere else to go.
That the economy is humming along at all, ten years after a financial crisis of epic proportions, is due primarily to the courage of policy makers in recapitalizing banks in the US and UK in 2009, despite the populists’ ignorant howls about Main St vs Wall St. the heroes of this economy are Ben Bernanke, Tim Geithner, Gordon Brown and Barack Obama. Trump is the beneficiary of actions taken years ago.
Trump’s cut in the corporate tax rate should encourage many US companies to repatriate profits “trapped” abroad, and therefore boost US employment and tax revenues. I think it is justifiable. However, with US government debt load at 106% of GDP (a level last seen at the height of 1943, which should give everyone pause), cutting taxes overall seems to me a high risk strategy. So while corporate tax rates probably need to be cut to equalize rates with those in major markets abroad, US personal taxes should be rising, not falling. Trump does not know what he is doing, but in complex systems it can take a long time for effects to become manifest.
_________________
Two more flags before I die!
Last edited by Mugwump on Fri Dec 29, 2017 11:39 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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HAL
Please don't shout at me - I can't help it.
Joined: 17 Mar 2003
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| At this moment What would make it meaningful to you? |
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Mugwump
Joined: 28 Jul 2007
Location: Between London and Melbourne
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| swoop42 wrote: | Trump.
Making the divide between the rich and poor greater again. |
The divide between rich and poor - as measured by the gini coefficient published by the Us Dept of Commerce - widened more under Obama than under the tax-cutting GW Bush. The forces driving inequality are both universal and far from simple. Though I very much admire Obama and despise Trump, a visceral dislike of the latter should not stop one thinking about the facts, and the real issues and deeper causes that underlie those facts.
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Two more flags before I die! |
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Wokko 
Come and take it.
Joined: 04 Oct 2005
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| There is also no problem with inequality other than jealousy. Someone being rich doesn't make you poor. |
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Mugwump
Joined: 28 Jul 2007
Location: Between London and Melbourne
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| Wokko wrote: | | There is also no problem with inequality other than jealousy. Someone being rich doesn't make you poor. |
I get where you are coming from with this. Even the bottom 1% in Western societies lead lives that are better than the middle tier in 1890, with socialized high tech medicine, free education to 18, television and internet, age pensions etc.... but in truth inequality does matter, because politics exists in human nature, and it is human nature to compare what you have with others, and to feel resentment and anger when others have what you cannot. That creates rifts in society that break social order and civility, and ultimately open the way to tyranny.
The other way that inequality matters is when concentrated plutocratic wealth (with its very high propensity to save) crowds out demand, jobs and growth because the average Jo(e) can’t afford to buy things. That leads to a diminution of overall prosperity. We may be near that point now, but it’s hard to know. I think true Conservatism is sceptical of concentrated power, whether in the hands of coercive utopian government, or in the hands of oligarchs and plutocrats. Accepting inequality but keeping it within some reasonable bound should be the aim of sound policy.
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Two more flags before I die! |
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David 
I dare you to try
Joined: 27 Jul 2003
Location: Andromeda
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This is really quite something:
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/01/michael-wolff-fire-and-fury-book-donald-trump.html
| Quote: | Even though the numbers in a few key states had appeared to be changing to Trump’s advantage, neither Conway nor Trump himself nor his son-in-law, Jared Kushner — the effective head of the campaign — wavered in their certainty: Their unexpected adventure would soon be over. Not only would Trump not be president, almost everyone in the campaign agreed, he should probably not be. Conveniently, the former conviction meant nobody had to deal with the latter issue.
As the campaign came to an end, Trump himself was sanguine. His ultimate goal, after all, had never been to win. “I can be the most famous man in the world,” he had told his aide Sam Nunberg at the outset of the race. His longtime friend Roger Ailes, the former head of Fox News, liked to say that if you want a career in television, first run for president. Now Trump, encouraged by Ailes, was floating rumors about a Trump network. It was a great future. He would come out of this campaign, Trump assured Ailes, with a far more powerful brand and untold opportunities.
“This is bigger than I ever dreamed of,” he told Ailes a week before the election. “I don’t think about losing, because it isn’t losing. We’ve totally won.”
[...]
Once he lost, Trump would be both insanely famous and a martyr to Crooked Hillary. His daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared would be international celebrities. Steve Bannon would become the de facto head of the tea-party movement. Kellyanne Conway would be a cable-news star. Melania Trump, who had been assured by her husband that he wouldn’t become president, could return to inconspicuously lunching. Losing would work out for everybody. Losing was winning.
Shortly after 8 p.m. on Election Night, when the unexpected trend — Trump might actually win — seemed confirmed, Don Jr. told a friend that his father, or DJT, as he calls him, looked as if he had seen a ghost. Melania was in tears — and not of joy.
There was, in the space of little more than an hour, in Steve Bannon’s not unamused observation, a befuddled Trump morphing into a disbelieving Trump and then into a horrified Trump. But still to come was the final transformation: Suddenly, Donald Trump became a man who believed that he deserved to be, and was wholly capable of being, the president of the United States. |
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All watched over by machines of loving grace |
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Wokko
Come and take it.
Joined: 04 Oct 2005
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