Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

Trump Policies Endanger Farmers as Countries Stop Buying Farm Products Due to Trade War

The challenge facing American farmers was unprecedented trade war with China. Almost immediately, China stopped buying soybeans altogether. This action was in retaliation, following the launch of the Trump administration’s unprecedented trade war. Previously, China was purchasing more than $12 billion worth of American soybean products in 2024. This represented approximately half the value of soybeans grown in the […]

Factors Contributing to U.S. Healthcare Spend

Briefly, just a quick and simple look as what contributes to total US healthcare spending. This is part of a much larger report: “How Has U.S. Health Care Spending Changed Over Time?” I find this part of the report to be interesting. But then, I was a consultant who was looking at throughput analysis. Very […]

Automotive Manufacturing in Mexico

Since I worked in Mexico for about 26 weeks, I learned quite a bit about what was going on in automotive manufacturing. Some things to understand. The pay is less in Mexico. However, there are benefits for Labor which are covered by government programs.1 “Employee Benefits in Mexico: All You Need To Know.” It is […]

Milan Protests the Presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Milan? at the Olympics? Their presence at the Olympics in Milan is a distraction from the event. Italy’s civilian population is angrily protesting their presence. I can not imagine how the Immigration and Customs employees could get past detection. It is not going to take much (a faux pas) […]

A lot of BS Before You Get to the Actual Lie

John Amato at Crooks and Liars The “18 Trillion Dollar Lie Should Have Trump Kicked Out of Office” During Pres. Biden’s administration, any mispronunciation or slip up was cause for a meltdown in the right-wing media that transitioned and bubbled up into the mainstream media on almost a weekly basis. However, President Biden never exaggerated, […]

“ICE in My Latte, Not in Our Communities”

What is happening down in Arizona? These businesses will be giving up Friday’s revenue by shutting down a day in protest of the government’s actions and the killing of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by Federal authorities. ~~~~~~~ “Local businesses closing Friday (January 31, 2026) to protest ICE raids,” The Copper Courier Fair Trade Cafe in […]

Back to the future

What is going on within companies when they find their sales decreasing??? Some graphics, occurrences, and facts to explain what may be going on today. Layoff numbers . . . Graphics taken from “intellizence.” Additional numeric can be found at the “intellizence” site. Click on the link in the company name. There is a broader […]

Manufacturing Headcount has Been Decreasing in the US for Years

It is no surprise to see it still decreasing. It would still be decreasing with a different president too. Much of my experience has been spent in helping companies with the use of flow through analysis of manufacturing and materials. When I read this short piece, it was no surprise that it has not improved. […]