Category: Economics

“I Am The Destroyer Of Countries”

It appears that our leader (I use the term loosely) that it is his right too destroy countries that deems unworthy.

He proved just what a complete idiot he is and his lack of knowledge of the Constitution…..this after SCOTUS slipped him a mickey on his dumbass tariffs.

Reacting to a U.S. Supreme Court decision ruling his tariffs policy unconstitutional, U.S. President Donald Trump launched into an unhinged rant on Friday confirming that he considers himself above the law as any tinpot authoritarian leader would.

The court ruled 6-3 that the U.S. Constitution makes clear that only Congress can levy tariffs, which are really taxes, on the U.S. population. Thus Trump’s extensive tariffs, imposed since January 2025, are illegal and American consumers and companies are due a refund of around $200 billion, the court said.

The ruling unleashed Trump in full psychotic mode, railing against justices as “fools and lapdogs;” the plaintiffs in the lawsuit the court ruled on as “sleazebags, major sleazebags” serving an unnamed foreign power and he announced a new 10 percent worldwide tariff “over and above our normal tariffs already being charged” in defiance of the court.

Trump argues he is still allowed to impose tariffs over the heads of Congress by the authority of the 1974 Trade Act. That act allows a president to unilaterally impose tariffs of up to 15 percent (hence the new 10 percent measures), but only for 150 days, after which Congress must continue them.

However, Friday’s ruling means he must vacate the existing tariffs, which he is so far refusing to do.

Trump tries to justify his existing tariffs as having been imposed under an emergency act. But the court struck that down, arguing in essence there is no economic or national security emergency in the United States today.

In his madness, Trump furiously claimed he had authority to impose embargoes and “destroy countries” but the Supreme Court dared rule he couldn’t even put a single dollar tariff on a nation’s imports. He exclaimed:

“I am allowed to cut off any and all trade or business with that same country. In other words, I can destroy the trade, I can destroy the country. I’m even allowed to impose a foreign country-destroying embargo. I can embargo, I can do anything I want, but I can’t charge one dollar because that’s not what it says, and that’s not the way it even reads. I can do anything I want to do to them, but I can’t charge any money. So I’m allowed to destroy the country, but I can’t charge them a little fee.

Think of that. How ridiculous is that? I’m allowed to embargo them, I’m allowed to tell them you can’t do business in the United States anymore, ‘we want you out of here,’ but I want to charge them $10. I can’t do that.

It’s incorrect, their decision is incorrect. But it doesn’t matter because we have very powerful alternatives … .”

In fact, Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution asserts Congress has the authority to “lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises,” and to regulate commerce with foreign nations.  Embargoes, such as those on Cuba, North Korea and Iran, are imposed by Congress, not the White House (unless there is an emergency).

Trump: ‘I Can Destroy Countries’

This arrogant twat needs to be chopped down a peg or two….he clearly thinks he is an absolute ruler…..time for him learn differently.

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Consumers Need To Bend Over

HAPPY MARDI GRAS!

This is just an FYI in case few are paying attention.

With Christmas behind us I have heard some say that it was not as expensive as predicted which was a good thing but now is the time to bend over for price hikes are coming.

Shoppers who enjoyed a brief pause in price hikes may want to brace themselves. After several months of relative calm—and holiday discounts—companies are again bumping up prices on everything from jeans to spices to software, the Wall Street Journal reports. The increases, often in the high-single-digit range, appear steeper than a typical January reset in prices, particularly for electronics, appliances, and other durable goods, economists say.

Levi Strauss, Columbia Sportswear, McCormick, and a host of smaller firms report they’re paying more for tariffs, wages, health insurance, materials, and shipping—and passing at least some of that along. Online data tracked by Harvard’s Alberto Cavallo and Adobe show the largest monthly jump in web prices in more than a decade, led by big-ticket categories.

Small businesses, facing thinner margins, are raising prices across the board or cutting products they don’t think customers will pay more for. A recent Vistage survey found more than half of small-business leaders plan near-term price increases, mostly in the 4% to 10% range, even as they worry higher tags could scare off buyers. Last week, economists at JPMorgan predicted that “inflation will re-accelerate for a time this year,” citing tariff-related costs being passed on to consumers and the “potential pass-through of the sustained weakening of the trade-weighted US dollar over the past year,” reports Reuters.

The president of Structural Systems Repair Group, a Cincinnati-based construction company, tells the Journal that tariffs pushed up steel prices 10% last year and healthcare costs for employees increased by around the same amount. “It’s not sustainable for us to tolerate that kind of increase without some sort of concession from our customers,” Bryan Erickson says.

Be prepared for the increases and think of ways to end this nightmare.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

FLASH! You Are Screwed!

As soon as Donny wiggled his way into the WH and announced his dumb ass idea of tariffs I have been trying to get people to see that the only loser in them are the consumers.

After his election and the talk about tariffs I had to make my feelings known…

The Real Cost Of Trump Tariffs

Well all the analysis has proven my predictions too be spot on…..

Americans, not overseas sellers, are paying almost all of President Trump’s tariff increases, according to a new analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The report finds that roughly 90% of the cost of the administration’s import duties is falling on US consumers and businesses, undercutting Trump’s frequent claim that foreign exporters are footing the bill, Reuters reports. From January through August 2025, Americans absorbed 94% of the tariff burden, the Fed economists estimate; that share slipped to 92% in September and October and 86% in November, though it remained overwhelmingly domestic.

The findings align with a separate assessment from the Congressional Budget Office, which said higher tariffs raise the price of imported goods, thereby lifting costs for American households and companies. The CBO estimates that foreign exporters are covering only about 5% of the tariff tab. In the near term, it says, US businesses are likely to eat around 30% through lower profit margins, while passing the remaining 70% on to consumers through higher prices. A study released last month by a research institute in Germany produced similar findings, putting the share paid by US consumers and importers around 96%.

Tariffs have been a central element of Trump’s economic strategy, deployed to generate revenue, pressure trading partners, and encourage manufacturers to move production back to the US, per Reuters. The data shows that foreign suppliers sometimes cut prices in response to tariffs, per the New York Times, but that it’s a less common reaction. In an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal on Jan. 30, Trump said, “the data shows that the burden, or ‘incidence,’ of the tariffs has fallen overwhelmingly on foreign producers and middlemen, including large corporations that are not from the US.”

I cannot understand the support these disasters have even today with all the rising prices…..it does not bother them only thing they seem to care about is that brown skin people are been attacked.

There is a name for that…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

“The Rich Get Richer”

How many times have you heard that in your lifetime?

As much as one may not like this slogan it is true….in the past year billionaires fortunes have shot up 81%….last year alone they shot up 16%….and it ain’t over yet.

Billionaires are entering 2026 wealthier and more numerous than ever, even as global poverty progress stalls, according to a new Oxfam report timed to the World Economic Forum in Davos. The charity says billionaire wealth hit a record $18.3 trillion last year, climbing 16% or $2.5 trillion, with more than 3,000 individuals in the club, per CNBC. Since 2020, their fortunes have grown 81%, or $8.2 trillion—enough to eliminate global poverty 26 times—while overall poverty levels have remained roughly where they stood in 2019, per the Guardian. The report, titled “Resisting the Rule of the Rich: Protecting Freedom from Billionaire Power,” argues that concentrated wealth increasingly translates into political and media influence.

It points to Elon Musk’s role in the US administration, Jeff Bezos’ ownership of the Washington Post, and French billionaire Vincent Bolloré’s control of the news outlet CNews as examples. “The outsized influence that the super-rich have over our politicians, economies and media has deepened inequality and led us far off track on tackling poverty,” said Oxfam Executive Director Amitabh Behar. Oxfam also highlights President Trump’s 2025 tax package, which it says delivered notable breaks for high earners, including an estimated 3% income boost for those making more than $1 million, while many Americans struggle to cover basic needs; about 10% lived in poverty in 2024, while a 2023 study found most can no longer afford a “minimal quality of life.”

Beyond the US, Oxfam connects economic strain to social unrest, referencing more than 140 significant anti-government protests across 68 countries last year. The organization urges governments to adopt national inequality-reduction plans, increase taxes on the ultra-wealthy, strengthen barriers between money and politics, and protect free expression. Without such moves—and with rich nations cutting foreign aid “further and faster than before,” including the shuttering of USAID—Oxfam warns that as many as 14 million additional people could die by 2030. “Being economically poor creates hunger. Being politically poor creates anger,” Behar said.

You work, right?…did your income grow by 81% in the last 5 years?  Or for that matter did it grow by 16% last year?

Look at the timeline…..the past 5 years includes Biden as well as Donny….so matters not which party sits in the WH….they are all responsible.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

On The Way To The Fed

Over a year now Donny has been doing nothing but bad mouthing the Fed and now he has his chance to modify it to his way of thinking.

President Trump has made his choice for Fed chairman. The president, who teased the announcement Thursday night, said in a Truth Social post Friday morning that he is nominating economist Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor, to replace Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May.

  • “I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best,” the president wrote in a lengthy post listing Warsh’s accomplishments. “On top of everything else, he is ‘central casting,’ and he will never let you down.”

Warsh was a finalist in 2017 but lost out to Jerome Powell, who was renominated by Joe Biden in 2021. Trump later turned on Powell and has repeatedly said he regretted not picking Warsh, the Wall Street Journal reports. “Kevin, I could have used you a little bit here. Why weren’t you more forceful when you wanted that job?” Trump said at an event in 2020. “I would have been very happy with you.” Warsh, 55, became the youngest governor in Fed history in 2006.

Warsh served as a Fed governor during the 2008-2009 financial crisis and has since become one of the institution’s sharper critics. He was long a “hawk” who pushed for higher interest rates to control inflation but has more recently changed his position and pushed for faster interest rate cuts, aligning with Trump’s position, the AP reports. Warsh, once a free-trade advocate, has also lined up with Trump on tariffs, a position that could ease tensions between the White House and the Fed if he’s confirmed. The BBC reports that Warsh has a family connection to Trump: His father-in-law is billionaire businessman Ronald Lauder, a longtime Trump donor.

Confirmation is not guaranteed, the Journal notes. The Senate must sign off, and Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican on the Banking Committee, has vowed to block Trump’s Fed nominees while the Justice Department investigates Powell’s testimony about Fed building renovations—an inquiry Powell has described as a pretext to force lower rates. Warsh emerged as Trump’s favored candidate over National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett and two other finalists, BlackRock executive Rick Rieder and current Fed governor Christopher Waller.

Do not get excited yet….he is nominated but not confirmed by Congress.

If confirmed will he be just another Trump puppet?

But he has an ever changing opinion and that tells me he will most likely do whatever Donny boy wants…I do not see him stand up against a Trump onslaught….

Do You?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Are Tariffs Still A Good Idea?

One more time for the mentally slow.

Well no but then I have never thought that they were a good idea….but there are some out there that will defend the tariffs as a good idea for raining cash for the US….but those are the least intelligent amongst us.

According to a new study, of the $200 million the United States made from President Donald Trump’s tariffs in 2025, 96% was paid by American buyers. The study drew from data covering over 25 million transactions valued at nearly $4 trillion.

A major selling point of President Trump’s series of tariffs on other countries was that they would pay the United States for their imports and, in turn, boost the American economy. However, the study, published by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in Germany, found the opposite occurred.

“The 2025 US tariffs are an own goal: American importers and consumers bear nearly the entire cost. Foreign exporters absorb only about 4% of the tariff burden—the remaining 96% is passed through to US buyers,” the report stated.

The study claims that while U.S. customs revenue surged by approximately $200 billion in 2025, trade volumes collapsed, and export prices did not fall. The study cited the tariff hikes the U.S. imposed on India in August 2025.

“We compared Indian exports to the US with shipments to Europe and Canada and identified a clear pattern,” Julian Hinz, Research Director at the Kiel Institute and one of the authors of the study, explained. “Both export value and volume to the US dropped sharply, by up to 24 percent. But unit prices—the prices Indian exporters charged—remained unchanged. They shipped less, not cheaper.”

Basically, the study found that instead of other countries paying the tariffs to the United States and growing the U.S. economy, American consumers faced higher prices as companies passed the tariffs on to them. The tariffs also reduced trade volumes, meaning Americans not only paid more, but they also had fewer options.

Study: 96% of the $200 Billion the US Made From Trump’s Tariffs in 2025 Was Paid by American Buyers

This study’s findings are exactly what I wrote about when all these useless tariffs were proposed by Donny and his band of idiots.

You are paying that cost of the tariffs….do I need to keep pointing it out or will you still embrace this idiot as some sort of magic genius that will solve all out problems?

If so then you really need to pay attention or at least learn some basic economics….it really is not that hard.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Taxation Without Representation

An old bitch but holds true today as it did in the 18th century.

What the Hell am I going on about?

Tariffs.  Remember those half ass ideas?

I have tried to get people thinking about this stupidity…..all tariffs are paid for by the consumer (that would be you)….

A new study of President Trump’s tariffs will not please the president: The research finds that Americans are footing nearly the entire cost of them, reports the Wall Street Journal. Specifically, the study from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in Germany finds that US consumers and importers are paying about 96% of the costs tied to the tariff hikes, with foreign exporters absorbing the remainder. That runs counter to Trump’s frequent assertion that tariffs function as a kind of tax paid by other countries, and it suggests Washington may have less leverage than advertised in ongoing trade tensions with Europe.

“Foreign exporters did not meaningfully reduce their prices in response to US tariff increases,” reads the report, per Bloomberg. “The $200 billion surge in customs revenue represents $200 billion extracted from American businesses and households.” The researchers examined roughly $4 trillion in shipments between January 2024 and November 2025, concluding that the tariffs have effectively operated as a consumption tax on Americans, pushing up prices over time.

“There is no such thing as foreigners transferring wealth to the US in the form of tariffs,” co-author Julian Hinz of Germany’s Bielefeld University tells the Journal. He added, however, that foreign exporters might eventually absorb more of the tariffs if American companies find other sources of products. Earlier studies from Yale’s Budget Lab and Harvard Business School reached similar conclusions, though Harvard economists found that only about 20% of the tariff costs had fully shown up in consumer prices after six months, with much of the hit initially borne by US importers and retailers.

If that is not enough info then maybe this will help….

https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-tariffs-impact-study

Why taxation with representation?

The cost of tariffs are a hidden tax that we all MUST pay…..plus it was foisted upon us without the use of Congress (our representation)…..ergo we are taxed without representation.

Do you get it now?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

The Economy Is Booming!

+++Today I return to the chemo chair so I do not know how I shall feel afterwards so this may be my only offering for today.  I apologize.+++

 

I am really sick of these bastards that push this mound of fecal matter….the media and especially Donny…the average person sees NO benefit from the economy that we are told is going great guns.

The only sector that is ‘booming’ are those financial twats that manipulate the markets…..they are making money….but Betty Jo is not and she is paying 20% more for just about everything.

Then if you want sticker shock then I suggest you try grocery shopping…..then telling that the economy is booming.

A year into President Trump’s second term, the grocery checkout line is telling a very different story than the one coming from the White House. While Trump told a Detroit crowd this week that “grocery prices are starting to go rapidly down,” federal data released the same day show the cost of food at home is still climbing—and at the fastest monthly pace in years, the New York Times reports. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, supermarket prices rose 2.4% over the past year and 0.7% in December, the sharpest monthly jump since October 2022. Dining out costs rose by about the same amount last month, the biggest monthly jump since 2022, per Axios.

Some staples have surged far more: beef is up 16.4% from a year ago, coffee nearly 20%, lettuce 7.3%, and frozen fish 8.6%. Ground beef hit a record $6.69 a pound in December; it was $5.61 a year prior. Eggs are a rare bright spot, down about 21%, and many dairy prices have slipped—but five of six major grocery categories are higher, and overall food prices are now almost 26% above where they were five years ago. NPR has tracked Walmart grocery prices at a Georgia location since 2018, and reports that on average, prices of the staples they track went up 5% over the past year.

Experts say there’s no single culprit. Weather, fertilizer, machinery, fuel, and shifting consumer tastes all play a role, while a yearslong drop in cattle herds is keeping beef prices elevated. Trump’s own policies are also in the mix: tariffs have made imported items like coffee, bananas, and some tropical produce more expensive and pushed up the cost of packaging materials such as aluminum. Immigration crackdowns have also tightened farm labor in some regions, forcing crops to rot in fields in some states.

Low-income shoppers are feeling the increases first and hardest, especially those who temporarily lost SNAP benefits during last year’s government shutdown. Grocery executives say many are trading steak for ground beef, stocking up less, shifting to store brands, and chasing promotions—and they’re now seeing similar behavior from middle-income households. With the Agriculture Department expecting roughly similar grocery inflation again next year, Democrats are leaning into affordability ahead of November’s midterms, arguing that Republicans presiding over still-rising food costs can’t credibly claim victory over inflation. As Axios reports, “broad inflation relief is little consolation for Americans if they aren’t seeing it reflected in grocery bills.”

And to make things worse that idiot that sits in the Golden Throne keeps lying his ass off about prices are dropping rapidly….would someone please tell him to STFU or provide PROOF…..which he cannot do for there is no proof for his damn lies.

If you support that man please inform me to why it is that you think he deserves your support.  (I doubt there will be any truthful answers just regurgitation from the morons in DC)

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

How About Those Savings In Energy?

Donny promised the nation that he would save us peons money by lowering energy costs….and how has that worked our after a new year of promises?

Well I am still waiting for that $2 a gallon at the pump price…..but to be fair my state has one of the lowest price for gas…..but it still is not $2…

Home energy use was suppose to get cheaper but I was informed that my power bill will be $4.44 more expensive ever month….that does not sound like the cutting of my energy bill in half that I was promised….

President Donald Trump made a bold promise that he’d slash energy prices in half within 12 months of taking office during his campaign in August 2024.

“You will never have had energy so low as you will under a certain gentleman known as Donald J. Trump,” he said at a North Carolina rally.

Nearly a year into his second term, here’s what’s happening with energy costs under Trump’s administration.

Trump recently claimed at the U.N. General Assembly in September that “energy costs are down,” but data shows costs have been rising. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), retail electricity prices have gone up since 2022 and will likely continue rising through 2026. On the other hand, as of the end of August 2025, residential electricity prices jumped 6.2% compared to the last 12 months, per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Federal Reserve data shows the average household energy cost hit $280.91 in August 2025, up from $261.57 the year before. Some regions are experiencing even sharper increases. Based on EIA data, Maine, New Jersey and the District of Columbia saw residential electricity prices spike as of August 2025. Only two states have seen a slight decline in power prices: Nevada and Rhode Island.

Multiple factors are driving electricity costs up, with the growth of artificial intelligence (AI) being a major factor. A late 2024 report from the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that data center energy usage has tripled for the past decade and could double or triple by 2028.

https://www.gobankingrates.com/money/economy/trump-promised-energy-price-cuts-here-is-where-they-are-at-today/

More promises that are just more lies….why do you people keep supporting this d/bag?

The only thing Donny is accomplishing is making your wallet lighter.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

All This Prosperity

All the manure aside the promises of a vivant economy has been all smoke and mirrors…..inflation is becoming crushing to us peons with food prices out of sight, manufacturing at an almost standstill and then there are those jobs that were suppose to come roar back thanks to those Donny tariffs…..all his promises have been crap.

Let’s look at the jobs picture….

The United States gained a decent 64,000 jobs in November, but it lost 105,000 in October as federal workers departed after cutbacks by the Trump administration, the government said in delayed reports. The unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, the highest level since 2021, per the AP. Both the October and November job creation numbers, released Tuesday by the Labor Department, came in late due to the 43-day federal government shutdown. US firms are mostly holding onto the employees they have, but they’re reluctant to hire new ones as they struggle to assess how to use AI, how to adjust to President Trump’s unpredictable policies—especially his tariffs—and how to deal with the lingering effects of the high interest rates the Federal Reserve engineered in 2022 and 2023 to rein in an inflation burst.

The uncertainty leaves job seekers struggling to find work or even land interviews. Fed policymakers are divided over whether the labor market needs more help from lower interest rates. Their deliberations are rendered more difficult because official reports on the economy’s health are coming in late and incomplete in the wake of the shutdown. The Labor Department is expected to provide at least a little clarity when it releases November numbers on hiring and unemployment on Tuesday, 11 days late.

Labor Department revisions in September showed that the economy created 911,000 fewer jobs than originally reported in the year that ended in March. That meant that employers added an average of just 71,000 new jobs a month over that period, not the 147,000 first reported. Since March, job creation has fallen farther, to an average 59,000 a month. During the 2021-2023 hiring boom that followed the end of COVID-19 lockdowns, by contrast, the economy was creating an average of 400,000 jobs a month. The unemployment rate, though still modest by historical standards, has risen since bottoming out at a 54-year low of 3.4% in April 2023.

Because of the government shutdown, the Labor Department didn’t release its jobs reports for September, October, and November on time. It finally put out the September jobs report on Nov. 20, seven weeks late. It will publish some of the October data—including a count of the jobs created that month by businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies—along with the November report on Tuesday. It won’t, however, release an unemployment rate for October, as it couldn’t calculate the number during the shutdown. More here.

The only people that are making out like bandits are those billionaires that Donny helps, a you scratch my back it’ll scratch yours, sort of thing.

The rest of the nation struggles and the Nero-esque fiddle.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”