Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Friday, March 01, 2019
View From The Brextanic / Politics / BrExit
By: Raul_I_Meijer
Longtime Automatic Earth friend Alexander Aston talks about finding himself at Oxford at a point in time when the British themselves appear overcome by a combo of utter confusion and deadly lethargy, and one can only imagine what it must be like for ‘foreigners’ residing in Albion, who face large potential changes to their lives and know there’s not a thing they can do about it, not even vote.
I like the observation that the entire British political system, the place where decisions are made, is the size of a small village. That’s a visual we can all relate to. It’s a physical limit as well as a mental one. I’m all for sovereignty and self-determination, but how’s that going to work if you can’t even see the boundaries of your own territory?
Guys, it’s 4 weeks to D-Day today. How about we call off the landing, get a few pints instead, and talk? First round’s on me.
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Friday, March 01, 2019
US House of Representatives Hits A New Low / Politics / US Politics
By: Raul_I_Meijer
Perhaps against better judgment, I just can’t keep silent about the Michael Cohen’s in da House show performed on February 27. I was watching it and increasingly fearing for the future of America. We had all been able to read his prepared statement before he opened the party with it, and therefore we all knew there was nothing there. So why did this thing take place, and why were all the cameras and reporters there? Do we live in split realities these days?
Both before and after the gruelling -for the viewer- session, words like ‘explosive’ and bombshell’ were all over, so I thought I’d watch, since I might have missed something, but no, there was nothing, there wasn’t even a there there. Apparently, US House members are by now immune to being revealed as nutcases frantically phishing for evidence of accusations they formerly made but could never prove.
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Thursday, February 28, 2019
The US Constitution Myth / Politics / US Politics
By: Antonius_Aquinas
One reason for the failure of the modern conservative and libertarian movements to scale back, in even a miniscule way, the now gargantuan US welfare/warfare state has been the misinterpretation of the US Constitution. Many conservatives have a slavish devotion to the document, placing it on a par with the Ten Commandments and New Testament.
A typical misunderstanding of the Constitution’s history and content appeared in this recent op-ed:
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Thursday, February 28, 2019
Pakistan India Conflict over Kashmir Risks Nuclear Winter, but Gold Goes Down / Politics / Nuclear Weapons
By: Arkadiusz_Sieron
Many important things happened yesterday. Cohen testified before the Congress, the US-North Korea Summit took place, while tensions between India and Pakistan escalated. Will these developments boost gold?
India and Pakistan Engage in Another Conflict over Kashmir
India and Pakistan are once again squaring off over the disputed region of Kashmir. It began with the suicide attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which killed more than 40 people. As the Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for the bombing, India retaliated and launched air strikes inside Pakistan, the first aerial attacks across the Line of Control dividing both countries since 1971. The results of these strikes are not confirmed. However, we know that two Indian jets were shot down and Pakistan army captured one pilot.
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Wednesday, February 27, 2019
The Green New Art of the Deal / Politics / US Politics
By: Raul_I_Meijer
There are lots of people talking about how they much disagree with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, how silly she is, how dumb and impossible and irresponsible her Green New Deal is, but I think they’re missing a point or two. First of all: what’s the alternative? Who would you trade her for? Hillary? Feinstein? Pelosi? Bernie Sanders? Cory Booker?
Would you rather things stay the same? I can see that from the Hillary Pelosi camp, but not from any other Democrats – nor, obviously, Republicans. Three quarters of America must be dead sick of that cabal, the 50% that are GOP, plus the half of Democrats that would also prefer to vote for someone below 75 years old because 90% are themselves younger than that.
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Monday, February 25, 2019
Winter Of Our Discontent Meets Fyre Festival / Politics / Social Issues
By: James_Quinn
“When a condition or a problem becomes too great, humans have the protection of not thinking about it. But it goes inward and minces up with a lot of other things already there and what comes out is discontent and uneasiness, guilt and a compulsion to get something–anything–before it is all gone.” ― John Steinbeck, The Winter of Our Discontent
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Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Here’s Why The Left’s New Economic Policies Are Just Stupid / Politics / Economic Theory
By: Jared_Dillian
Somewhere in the last 30–40 years, we have become economically illiterate.Elizabeth Warren wants wealth taxes that would impose asset forfeitures of 2–3% on households with more than $50 million in assets.
There are practical and legal problems with their implementation. But she wants to implement them anyway.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wants a 70% income tax rate on incomes over $10 million. This would be the highest income tax rate in the OECD. And yet, it would affect only 16,000 households and only return marginal rates to historical levels, anyway.
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Sunday, February 17, 2019
Iran's Death Spiral -- 40 Years And Counting / Politics / Iran
By: Steve_H_Hanke
Today, Supreme Leader Khamenei and the mullahs celebrated the 40th year of Iran’s Islamic Revolution. With the exception of the Revolutionary Guard and “the beards,” as the hard core have been dubbed, few in Iran have much to celebrate. In the economic sphere alone, Iranians have been in a forty-year death spiral. And, let us not forget the estimated 750,000 Iranians who were slaughtered in the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988).
Like the slaughter in that bloody war, the Iranian rial has been slaughtered, too. At the time of the Revolution, the rial fetched 70.5 per U.S. dollar. Today, it takes 122,500 rials to get a greenback. Thanks to the Revolution, the value of the rial has been decimated. The recent picture of the rial’s black market (read: free market) plunge is shown in the chart below.
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Sunday, February 17, 2019
Venezuela's Opposition Is Playing With Fire / Politics / Venezuela
By: Steve_H_Hanke
The Maduro government has put Venezuela in Satan’s record books. That hellish distinction is because Venezuela is in the grip of one of the world’s 58 episodes of hyperinflation. Hyperinflation occurs when the monthly inflation rate exceeds 50%/mo. for at least 30 consecutive days. Of the 58 episodes of hyperinflation, Venezuela’s inflation rate is middling: it ranks as the 23rd most severe episode. Today, I measured Venezuela’s annual rate of inflation at 132,743%/yr. (see the chart below). This contrasts sharply with the National Assembly’s lying statistic of 1,698,488%/yr. for December 2018 and the IMF’s absurd forecast of 10,000,000%/yr. for December 2019.
Saturday, February 16, 2019
Schumer & Sanders Want One Thing: Your Money / Politics / US Politics
By: Rodney_Johnson
Senators Bernie Sanders and Chuck Schumer have proposed legislation that would stop public companies from paying dividends or buying back their shares unless they first meet certain conditions.The senators aren’t worried about viability (companies are financially stable before they send cash back to their shareholders). Instead, they want to verify that companies have done enough to support employees before they give anything back to investors.
That’s not so subtle code for, “Make sure you redistribute wealth before giving anything back.”
The senators make their case by pointing to last year’s tax reform and how much of the corporate windfall was spent on stock buybacks (almost $1 trillion), even as companies refused to invest, closed locations, and fired employees.
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Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Earth Overshoot Day Illustrates We are the Lemmings / Politics / Climate Change
By: Richard_Mills
What were you doing on August 1, 2018? Likely it was just like any other day, with your thoughts on work, your spouse, your kids, money, what to make for dinner, etc. What you should have been thinking about though, was the Earth.
August 1 was Earth Overshoot Day. What does that mean? Well, Earth Overshoot Day is the day of the year when humanity has used more resources from nature than can renew in that entire year. The date is moving closer to January, meaning every year we use up more natural resources, faster.
That’s a problem, because without a way to replace all the resources we consume - harvested food, fertilizers, energy, metals, etc. - we are gradually depleting nature’s bounty, at a rate that is unsustainable, long-term. If we keep going, and economies keep growing, we’re eventually going to run out. The problem is made worse by the global population increasing, along with the continuing wants of people in the developed world (“the West”) and in less-developed countries (who are demanding houses, cars, fridges, cell phones, etc.), putting more pressure on our finite resources.
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Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Theresa May Running Down the BrExit Clock So MP's are FORCED to Vote for Her Deal / Politics / BrExit
By: N_Walayat
Here we stand with just 6 weeks to go until BrExit day and Theresa May is continuing to repeat like a broken record that she is going to go to Brussels to negotiate a change to her withdrawal agreement. Despite the EU consistently repeating that the withdrawal agreement cannot be renegotiated.
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Tuesday, February 12, 2019
Socialist “Green New Deal” Points the Way to Hyperinflation / Politics / Government Intervention
By: MoneyMetals
Socialist Venezuela’s economic collapse and hyperinflationary spiral serves as a warning for American investors. It’s what can happen when a government spends perpetually beyond its means and refuses to face reality.
Despite a U.S. economy that appears relatively strong and stable on the surface, its foundation is beginning to crack under the pressure of a $22 trillion (and growing) debt load.
Both Republicans and Democrats are to blame for that. But rising pro-socialist sentiment within the Democrat Party could turn our current debt danger into a clear and present disaster.
Friday, February 08, 2019
The Wealthy Should Prepare to Be Soaked / Politics / Taxes
By: Patrick_Watson
Taxes are a touchy subject. Nobody likes paying them, but (unless you’re an anarchist) we all realize at least some taxation is necessary. We just want it to be fair and reasonable. Exactly what that means is a never-ending debate.
A newly elected member of Congress stoked up the debate last month. She may have opened a box some folks would like to keep closed.
Friday, February 08, 2019
Science Says Protectionism Won’t Work / Politics / Protectionism
By: Patrick_Watson
The simmering trade war is still... well, simmering. Markets rise and fall with each new rumor.
That’s an important change. It took months for investors to realize this wasn’t just another Trump threat. In fact, trade policies he thinks unfair have long been one of his sore spots. Now he can do something about them, and he’s surrounded himself with hardline advisors.
Unfortunately, victory is not at hand. More like the opposite:
Friday, February 08, 2019
The Venezuela Myth Keeping Us From Transforming Our Economy / Politics / Venezuela
By: Ellen_Brown
Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) is getting significant media attention these days, after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview that it should “be a larger part of our conversation” when it comes to funding the “Green New Deal.” According to MMT, the government can spend what it needs without worrying about deficits. MMT expert and Bernie Sanders adviser professor Stephanie Kelton says the government actually creates money when it spends. The real limit on spending is not an artificially imposed debt ceiling but a lack of labor and materials to do the work, leading to generalized price inflation. Only when that real ceiling is hit does the money need to be taxed back, but even then it’s not to fund government spending. Instead, it’s needed to shrink the money supply in an economy that has run out of resources to put the extra money to work.
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Thursday, February 07, 2019
Eat Less Meat and Save the Planet / Politics / Climate Change
By: Raul_I_Meijer
It’s been quite a while since we last heard from Dr. D. He was probably busy growing stuff. But he’s back now, and with something dear to my heart: the craziness of our food production systems. Answers to which are not always what most people think, to put it mildly.
Dr. D:
Eat less meat to save the planet – report (1)
The new diet that could save the planet (2)
What to eat to save the planet: Report urges ‘radical changes’ to world’s diet – less meat, more veggies (3)
Wednesday, February 06, 2019
Global Debt: This Time Will Be Different / Politics / Global Debt Crisis 2019
By: John_Mauldin
For almost 40 years, we’ve lived in an era of low rates and easy money. It let governments and businesses worldwide run up piles of debt.
Global debt could easily reach $500 trillion in a few years. And yet everyone acts like that is normal and can continue.
Just like subprime mortgage debt triggered the last recession, corporate debt will trigger the next one. This will start a liquidity crisis and create havoc in all sorts of “unrelated” markets.
Wednesday, February 06, 2019
A Cold War with China Spells Trouble for Stocks / Politics / China US Conflict
By: John_Mauldin
Last week, George Soros said that we are in a cold war with China that could turn into a hot war. While Soros and I don’t often agree on politics, I did find my head nodding at times in his latest CNBC interview.Then Luke Gromen of Forest for the Trees wrote about change in the geopolitical climate, which is not his usual beat.
Gromen argues that US national security may be more important than risk asset performance for the first time in decades.
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Wednesday, February 06, 2019
Donald Tusk States " There is a Special Place in Hell for Brexit Campaigners" FULL Video / Politics / BrExit
By: N_Walayat
In a shocking statement, European Commission President Donald Tusk today in a press conference effectively stated that "there was a special place in hell for Brexit campaigners" as the following video of the FULL statement illustrates. The EU effectively declaring war on the people of Northern Ireland (Ulster), as it is now to be known as the Island of Ireland with no distinction between Northern Ireland and Eire.
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