If You Did 'Hate' America to the 9th Degree?

 Well....you probably need to leave.

So I'll make some suggestions:

1.  Belize.  Sexual assault/harrassment are pretty much normal things everyday there.  Robbery is something you contend with day in, and day out.   They have some nifty snakes and spiders.  If you pay extra for private security....you probably feel 'safe'.  

2.  Peru.  Just about everyone talks about bureaucracy in Peru....even if you lived in a 12-dog village.  Getting sexual comments from neighbors and co-workers is routine. Pro-litter is a regular habit.  Don't go expecting driving habits match up with anything you've seen in the US.

3.  Chile.  Smog is a regular and accepted thing in Chile.  Cost of living is a regular daily criticism in Chile.   While housing is reasonable, you won't get a decent education situation for your kids, unless you pay for a private school.  Petty theft is a significant issue.  Power outages....something that you need to adjust your lifestyle around.

4.  Greece.  Great healthcare if you catch your village doctor in his public clinic situation....most of the time, he disappears after 10 AM to handle his private clinic patients.  Got phone issues....don't expect a technician for at least six to eight weeks, and you'd best have some cash bribe ready to hand him.  If you were trying to add a room onto the house, you'd prepare yourself for a three-year project.  

5.  Finland.  Brutal winters, each and every year.  Alcoholism is significant and you need to get used to seeing drunks in the middle of town.  High percentage of Finns are dealing with depression.  One of the highest cost of living places in the world.

6.  Iceland.  Road maintenance practices are a joke (go and report a pothole and wait three years for the crew to arrive).  Everyone whines about tourism now.  Volcanoes are a year to year event to work around.  Sexual harassment/assaults are a regular event around urbanized areas. 

7.  France.  The TGV bullet train is fantastic....but ultra expensive and not something that the working class can afford.  Toll roads and toll bridges exist throughout the country...making long-distance travel expensive.  Sexual harassment/assault is extremely 'controlled' by laws, but don't go expecting miracles.  

8.  Scotland.  As indexes go on feeling miserable...Scots lead the world, and it's mostly about feeling unfulfilled.  Don't ever bring up the dismal weather.  Just about everyone in Scotland has some personal story to tell about friends or relatives with serious drug or alcohol abuse issues.  The majority of Scots talk about 'independence' as though it was fantasy dream where some wizard would eventually emerge from the woods and deliver it once and for all.

9.  Japan.  Don't bring up work-life balance....it just leads to a two-hour discussion from your Japanese neighbor.  Smoking in public places is condoned, so don't get all hyped-up and insult people about them smoking six feet away from you.  Just so you are prepared....the Japanese run female passenger only trains....because of the harassment on regular trains.  Mental illness is typically seen by the public as 'your' problem, and you need to resolve your own issue....professional help or clinics aren't on every corner.  

10.  New Zealand.  Whatever you pay for your life's needs.....it'll be shocking for the first month after you arrive in New Zealand.  The quality of houses there.....will make you second-guess the decision after a year.  You probably will hear a minimum of one racist comment each week, from co-workers, associates or neighbors (they expect you to just handle it).  Beyond Auckland, most people would say that urban life is uninspiring.  

I could go on, but the emphasis here is that as much as you hate the US....you probably won't find 'paradise' anywhere on Earth.  

What Would Happen If the JFK Assassination Occurred Today in the Woke-Era?

 Well...you'd be told that Oswald shot JFK, period, and you need to accept that.

Those suggesting a conspiracy exists?  They would be taken down by Twitter, Facebook and woke-enthusiasts.

They would be telling you hour-by-hour....there's no second gunman, and the killing of Oswald doesn't mean much.  

There would be just a paragraph of material to ever be discussed over Jack Ruby, and most would fail to highlight that his entire profession....for his past twenty years....was all mafia-connected.

Thats why history....injected into the woke-business.makes you pause and ponder things.

The assassination of Crown-Prince Ferdinand that started WW I?  I doubt that the nationality of the killers (Serbian) would be mentioned or allowed in a Facebook/Twitter world.

There's a list of a thousand historical events that you could weigh upon woke, and realize how crazy-stupid the concept is.   

The No-Toy Christmas Coming?

 There's a business report from yesterday (Friday) which says the big companies are now in a worried state over Christmas, and that the toy shipment business (it's supposed to be on freighters leaving China right now)....hasn't happened to the extent they'd expect.  So toys on shelves in early November, when parents would buy them?  Screwed.  Some might be there....majority won't be.

So you have Wanda and Jimmy-Jimmy standing there on the morning of the 25th of December, and explaining to them that Santa gave them a gift certificate....NOT an actual toy.

How you lay this out?  Well, you start off that Santa had Covid, and then Mrs Claus got Covid, and then the elves making the toys got Covid.  You bring up that the reindeer also had Covid.

Some kid will be told by his Uncle Marvin that Santa actually died from Covid, and that President Biden is planning to take over the job for next year.  

How will the media handle telling this story?  Well....mostly images of empty shelves, and folks who've figured a way to buy a $49 toy in numbers, and resell via Ebay at $75.  All of this....naturally runs into inflation chatter.  Uncle Joe (President Biden) may have to rig up another  stimulus package to cover the inflated prices. 

So you might want to ponder upon this for a while....it's going to be a curious problem to explain to kids.

My Problem With the 6th of January 'Insurrection'

 It's a curious thing....if you go to DC, and look at the security of the FBI building, the Pentagon, the Justice building, and so on (probably around thirty such structures)....they all have what you'd call premium security.  That means that the majority of episodes to invade the buildings...would fail miserably.

Maybe if you had a armored vehicle, or used explosives to get through the initial barrier....you might be able to get access.

The Congress building?  Unless you establish that some insider helped to get the doors open and turn off the normal practice of security....you can't tell me that a rag-tag group of unarmed individuals....mostly with flagpoles...made it in.

That would indicate to me that the Congress structure has the security level that you'd find in Tonga, Bolivia, or El Salvador.  

The more you talk about the 6th, and you bring up the way that the individuals got inside?  I think it gets to an embarrassing stage where the capital police need to be disbanded, and you need to hire up professionals.  

VP Harris and Trump

 Well....this week, some polling came out and said that VP Harris....in a head-to-head match with Trump.....can't win.  I would imagine twelve months ago....the same poll folks would have told you this as well.

Was Harris supposed to be the candidate?  I doubt it....at least if you go back to the summer of 2019 (before Covid).  I suspect the insiders had Gavin Newsom (Governor of California) figured to be the runner.  Course, his luck on the business has gone 'south' and he'll likely be recalled-out of California.

So the question is....if you suggest Joe Biden is just too old, that Harris can't win....then who comes up in the primary?  Bernie Sanders again?  I doubt it.  Governor Kelly of Kansas?  Too old.  Governor Edwards of Louisiana?  Actually a young guy, and energetic. Governor Whitmer of Michigan?  Her Covid-management skills zeroed her out.  

From the House or Senate?  Senator Warren is probably the only four-star candidate of the bunch.  

Might the party find some Hollywood type or prominent businessman to run?  Maybe.  

Leading back around to Joe Biden running another term?  Yeah, I would suggest it's a possibility.  

Top Five DOW Drops of All Time

 Typically, folks want to believe the five are all in the 1929 period, which is not true:

1.  19 October 1987: 22.6-percent drop

2.  16 March 2020: 12.9-percent drop

3.  28 October 1929: 12.8-percent drop

4.  29 October 1929: 11.7-percent drop

5.  12 March 2020: 9.9-percent drop

The chief problem with 'drops' in the DOW.....people are standing there in shock that futures crowd suddenly shifted, and in a matter of 10 minutes....your portfolio of $100,000 is suddenly valued at $90,000.  

In this modern era, over the past twenty years....people have even taken to tools to order the 'system' to sell stock in a hurry if the price drops below x-amount.  So you could have a rule in the system....put there five years ago (which you may or may not remember) that if the stock price drops below $50 (presently at $60) to automatically sell.  

This type of automatic selling creates a massive wave that the system cannot see clearly or control the flow of things....so the pain involved (like in March 2020) is more severe than you can imagine.  

What makes a major difference between now and 1929?  Two things.

1.  Banks are regularly audited and controlled....so you don't have banks standing there with fake books, and fake numbers (that was highly the case in 1929).

2.  Retirement account (IRA folks)....now present a massive part of their structure to the nation....something that didn't really exist in 1929.

'Lame Duck' Topic

 Generally, when a President gets to a point where he can't influence the passage of bill through the House or Senate, or he's reached the 7th year of his 8-year period....the guy is often referred to as a 'lame duck'. We are on the 7th month of this term, and to be honest....accomplishments via the House/Senate have been crap so far for 2021. 

Looking ahead? Well...there's a recession building up, and a serious amount of debt issue to occur in August/September. Whatever does happen by early October (to influence the debt)...is bound to handicap the Biden team for the remaining three years. 

Getting anything positive out of the migration business? Not in this administration. Getting anything positive out of the taxation business? Nope. Actions to change the pace of the recession? Not likely. 

Biden is not a 'lame duck' today, but by spring of 2022...it's likely to turn into a weekly topic, and seriously affecting the outcome of the November 2022 mid-term.