Trumpian by Ken Melvin
Let’s take a look at the ‘Greatest’ Trump Economy. The first graph shows the BLS Civilian Unemployment rate from 2000 t0 2020. Use the link for a better look Civilian unemployment rate
If you look really close, no you have to look a little closer yet, you can see the Trump effect.
The second graph is the FRED Gross Domestic Product Gross Domestic Product . By clicking on the link you can shorten the period to 2000-2020. It might help find the Trump Effect (the graph, not an abstract of the graph, too).
The third graph is of the FRED Gross National Product Gross National Product. By clicking on the link you can shorten the period to 2000-2020. Again, it might help you find the Trump Effect.
I couldn’t find it either. All three curves continue in an almost perfectly straight line from 2010. Wasn’t it in War and Peace that Tolstoy told us that Napoleon only thought he was driving the train of history; in truth, they were just letting him blow the train’s whistle. What will history make of Trump? The only thing the man is any good at is blowing his own horn. On for the ride, none of it his doing.
How important is this election? The time to head up the pandemic was back in January-February while the numbers were still low. The Trump Administration dawdled away January, February, and March; three critical months. Now, we are in a hell of a mess. We have millions infected all across the Nation. Going to be hard to head this up now. Trump doesn’t understand the dynamics of the pandemic, is too lazy and ignorant to learn, and he won’t listen to the experts. 300,000? 600,000? … he doesn’t care to be bothered about how many die.
There is no cure for racism or stupid. That is the reason the moron in chief has a chance to get re-elected. I still think the chance is very small but it is not nonexistent. His cult is going door to door in central Pennsylvania and I think that is going to be the tipping point state. On the other hand if enough of his supporters get sick maybe his strategy of pretending the pandemic is over will backfire.
Spent a lot of years in Central PA. If you exclude State College, it is simply a horrible place with horrible people that is a trip back to the ’50s. With the exception that it has lost many of the young people to cities.
“There is no cure for racism or stupid…”
[Conditions that are not mutually exclusive. Like the way Terry thinks though.]
Pennsylvania voters are completely polarized on the coronavirus
via @phillyinquirer – July 31
… Pollster G. Terry Madonna delved into the partisan split, finding that most conservatives (78%) and moderates (63%) don’t expect to contract COVID-19, while 45% of liberals see it as possible.
Overall, Madonna found that 26% of voters said it is very or somewhat likely they will catch the virus in the next three months, sentiment he attributes to a surge of infections across the country.
Just 1% of the 667 registered voters in the poll — 324 Democrats, 271 Republicans and 72 independents — said they had been diagnosed with the coronavirus, while 22% said an intimate family member or close friend had contracted the virus. Seven percent said a family member or friend had died from it.
About two in five (43%) said it was extremely important to stay home to avoid the virus.
Gov. Tom Wolf, cast as a tyrant by those elected officials and residents who don’t like wearing masks or avoiding large gatherings, received high marks for his job performance from liberals (90%) and moderates (65%), but flunked with conservatives at 13%.
Former Vice President Joe Biden … leads Trump 50% to 41% in the poll, in which the pandemic ranked as the most pressing issue in the state.
Voters were not impressed with Trump’s handling of the crisis — 49% said he was failing, and 8% ranked him as below average. Just 29% said he was doing an excellent or very good job …
Trump is bungling the coronavirus pandemic
In 2016 the US electoral college elected Donald Trump bungler in chief of the USA.
jethro tull – bungle in the jungle
“Tolstoy told us that Napoleon only thought he was driving the train of history; in truth, they were just letting him blow the train’s whistle.”
Tim Taylor has a similar tale. Seeing a parade, running up to the front of end, and then pretending to lead it.
BTW – I love Tull’s Bungle in the Jungle!
Pgl, Dude. Glad that you are still around. You know how this ol’ dog lives to be kicked. BTW – I love Tolstoy. Ian Anderson wrote a lot of great song lyrics exhibiting astute sociopolitical consciousness, but Tolstoy wrote the whole book on that, so to speak.
I am in PA and I support President Trump. I am not a hick or yokel. I have been to >60 countries and speak three languages. Would you rather vote for Trump or a party that condones abortion, violence (but I repeat myself) and spits on the Constitution? I wouldn’t. I don’t think creepy Joe (the hair sniffer) will be on the Ballot – that is probably the plan so the Deep State can steal the votes (he who counts the votes matters not those who vote) – so you can have communism and watch the US die or you can stop whining and get in the trenches and make America Great Again, Lastly I am an immigrant and will be voting for the first time. I want it to count so it will be a straight Trump Ticket – in person. And Covid is a program not a Virus – unless it happens to be weaponized flu. And yes I am a member of the NRA so you can diss me all you want to now and if you don’t like PA go and live in California which is a failed State. Every failed City and State in the USA is run by Democrats – QED.
Peter:
I know of no true Dem who sponsors violence, violence against minorities, wholesale discrimination against immigrants, women, gender identification, the handicapped in the manner this president and his follower do. How about as a pledge of allegiance to the US, you enlist?
You have no fear of Covid? get out there an mingle. Leave the mask at home. Let people know you are not afraid. I hope you have healthcare insurance. The US is not as generous as the UK.
@Peter,
“… a party that condones abortion, violence (but I repeat myself) and spits on the Constitution?…”
[LOL! Which party would that be? Well sign me up :<) I especially like the violence part. We have a lot of that down here in central VA. Come on down. ]
“Thinking is difficult. That’s why most people judge” ~ C.G. Jung
@Ken,
Thanks for all the great thread topics. “Why Democracy” may have run off the rails in comments, but it is an open question with a vast spread of slants to it.
Toodles.
I do still miss Owen Paine though.
Ron:
From EV? I remember him if if that is the one you are talking about.
Peter,
Thanks for verifying my thoughts on the “tucky” part of “Pennsyltucky”.
@Run,
Yep. Owen Paine went by Paine and OP variously over the years. He brought great references into the discussion (e.g., functional finance, Michał Kalecki, Abba Lerner, William Vickrey) along with irreverent lively humor and a devout socialist’s value system. Also, he reminded me of an old friend, an Irish poet and ardent commie, from the early 70’s, which was a major factor in why I began to frequent EV. In both cases, I often disagreed with the mechanics of technocratic socialism while respecting the motives. Another part of EV’s attraction was its open format. Echo chambers are boring and uninformative.
Authoritarian communism fails to accomplish with its sticks what capitalist republics more easily accomplish with carrots.
My mom was a great baker and potty trainer. She rewarded success with a cookie rather than scolding failure. Perhaps her lack of formal education left her more self aware than other moms or maybe her black nanny taught her when mom was still just a child to bake better cookies.
Ron
your mom was way smarter than most people. we (i mean me) tend to react to things we don’t like by “punishing” it. my daughter is way smarter than i am in the carrots and sticks matter. i am glad i stuck aroumd long enough to see how well it works.
but i don’t see any hope that the world at large is going to catch on. “capitalist republics” tend to turn rewards into sticks.
Oh, the Trump economic miracle”
you can’t see it. but if they keep saying it, you will think it was true.
and will be again as soon as we beat back this china virus hoax and open up the economy.
meanwhile the only way the R’s and D’s can imagine dealing with the recession is to “stimulate” the economy (when there is no economy to stimulate) by throwing a few pennies to the people while giving trilllions to the very rich.
i haven’t seen anyone proposing the people still working just pay a higher unemployment premium so the not working can get by (and “stimulate” the economy by buying groceries and stuff).
this is exactly what people did in the days before money made us all rich.
@Coberly,
The big problem with language is words :<)
I am not particularly a fan of either capitalism or republicanism. OTOH, I am only a fan of state owned production in the incidences of natural monopolies, mostly utilities, which should be utilitarian rather than rent sumps for private owners. Worker owned production is more to my liking. The world will do what the world will do, often that taking extraordinary measures to learn obvious lessons. So, no we ain't going to see any great changes in our time. More terrible things than we are want to imagine will happen eventually which will be far more convincing that the most well meaning words.
The entire FIRE sector is a utility and would serve best as publicly operated and owned.
Ron
words and acronyms (what is FIRE)?.
hard to keep up with conversations over time and internet. i agree with you about a lot, but could find a lot to disagree about if it would get us anywhere. which it won’t.
what is the difference between state owned and worker owned? i haven’t seen that “workers” are any smarter than bosses or even politicians, though they are usually more honest.
i am okay with profit making ownership of consumer-wants-making enterprises. life-essential goods (health, retirement, unemployment, water …) need to be publically owned. but the public needs to have honest representatives (congress, president, courts) which we have not got.
no way to get there from here anyway. privatizing water is criminally insane. we have a lot of that going around anymore.