The gop doesn’t have any plans for any of the issues they bring up. The gop wants people that vote on the basis of grievance only. They can get people spun up and angry about a variety of topis without providing anything. It is disturbing how well the technique works. They blame Biden for inflation, … More Vote Blue
President Biden is calling for a three-month gas tax hiatus to help with the high price of gas. On the surface, that seems like a good way to ease some of the pressure of soaring gas costs. It probably seems like a good move politically as well, since he’s getting beat up about the cost … More Quick Thoughts: Gas Tax Holiday
You’ve probably heard, inflation is pretty high right now. You’ve probably also heard a lot of blame-throwing about whose fault it is that inflation is high. My opinion on this is not an expert opinion; it’s barely an informed opinion. I have an opinion nonetheless. First, let me point you to where I got a … More Inflated Thoughts
Spotify’s CEO recently gave a speech to employees regarding Spotify’s position on hosting the Joe Rogan Experience, especially given that many employees feel personally offended by Joe Rogan’s comments in his podcasts. Here is a link to the full text. I feel like covering a couple of elements. Selected quotes and my thoughts follow: “It … More Spotify’s Values?
New cases and deaths continue to trend downward in the US. This is good news. And while the USA is still in the top ten in the world for new cases over the last seven days, we’ve seen a 14% drop from the previous week in both new cases and deaths. Vaccinations are helping to … More COVID in the USA – 23 June 2021
First, is there a crisis at the border? That’s a hard no. There has been an increase in unaccompanied minors, the response to which has been an increase in resources at the border to safely manage the increase. There is no “open border” policy. We are not seeing an historic surge. The increase we are … More Border Crisis? Border Wall??
Arguments comparing service members’ wages to minimum wage (asserting that service members make less) continue to circulate. This is somehow meant to support arguments against raising the minimum wage, even though the arguments in favor of raising the minimum wage are not related to military pay. The use of this red herring is problematic in … More Minimum Wage vs Military Pay
Socialism has long been a boogeyman in the US, the word itself predating the Marxist use of the term to describe the transitional economic state before achieving communism. Most people don’t really understand what the word means in terms of economic theory, and it is lately used to imply communism, dredging up old cold-war era … More Quick Thoughts: US Capitalism vs “Socialism”
At nearly 27 million cases and over 450k deaths, we are still first in the world for total cases and deaths. As we continue to get people vaccinated, it’s important to remember that vaccination will take many months, and the CDC still recommends wearing masks – even double-masking – as we work to produce, deliver, … More COVID Update, 1 Feb 2021
I’m glad we have a team of responsible adults taking on the duties of the Executive Branch now. We won’t see meaningful impacts for some time, but they have hit the ground running in terms of Executive Orders to begin meaningful work to address the problems here in the US and abroad. It’s also nice … More Trump is Gone; Trumpism Remains
The View from the Armchair 