Yes…very well said @Keaton_James
The way of the farmer has been obliterated…primarily due to the ineptitude of our scurrilous and impetuous leader who uses taunts as negotiation tools.
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The more we find out about Trump’s trade “deal,” the worse it looks…
China ramping up agricultural purchases to the level that the U.S. is demanding would be a problem and Beijing would probably only do it if the market situation warranted it, analysts said.
Their comments pour skepticism on the farm purchases that are part of the phase one trade deal recently announced by both countries.
Calling it a “crazy amount” of agricultural buying with “market distorting powers” on a global scale, Deborah Elms, executive director of the Asian Trade Centre, said: “The ramping up of scale at that speed is going to be problematic.”
She told CNBC: “I would be willing to take a bet … that we will be back at this table in relatively short order even if we get a deal, because the ability of the Chinese to actually match those purchases is going to be limited.”
U.S. and Chinese officials announced on Friday that both countries finally reached an agreement after a contentious 18-month trade war. But as part of the deal, U.S. President Donald Trump insisted that China buy more U.S. crops, saying that Beijing will purchase $50 billion worth of agriculture goods “pretty soon.” For his part, he vowed not to pursue a new round of tariffs originally set for the previous Sunday.
But Elms warned that the Chinese has been “very cautious” in saying that they would buy according to market conditions and World Trade Organization restrictions.
…
“Some of this deal rhetoric is really more about politics than reality,” said Mark Jolley, global strategist at CCB International Securities.“There’s been some people who’ve been saying the only way they would be able to meet that commitment is if they start stockpiling food — it’s going be in excess of probably what they need to buy,” he told CNBC. “It’s pretty difficult to see how they can increase the imports beyond the natural levels they have been taking.”
China has, for instance, largely turned to South America for soybeans since the trade war began. U.S. soybean exports to the country dropped off sharply in the second half of last year after Beijing retaliated to U.S. tariffs with its own duties.
While the Chinese may shift away from their current sources in order to buy from the U.S., the sheer amount of purchases required in a short time frame — from current levels to the $50 billion Trump is demanding — makes it “very challenging,” Elms said. Last year, Beijing bought only around $8.6 billion worth of farm goods.
Let’s do the math. Over the past 12 months the Chinese bought a total of only $8.6B in U.S. farm goods - an average of $0.7B/mo. Trump claims they will now buy $50B “pretty soon” – let’s call that within 4 months. So at their current purchasing levels, they would buy only $2.8B in that time frame. To boost that to Trump’s claimed $50B would require an 18-fold increase in purchases within just 4 months. No wonder the experts are skeptical.
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The Virgin Mary in handcuffs: How a viral image humanizes the immigration debate
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A federal spending deal reached in Congress Monday is set to allocate $25 million towards gun violence research at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as the National Institutes of Health.
Why it matters: Scientific reports show that a lack of data on gun violence has delayed pivotal reforms despite persistent mass shootings. The Dickey Amendment, which states that funds provided to the CDC may not be used to “advocate or promote gun control,” has complicated efforts to conduct gun violence research since 1997.
- A de facto moratorium on the provision was slipped into legislation by Democrats last year, Business Insider notes.
The big picture: Guns are a consistently divisive issue in Congress. But while the chambers often get caught up on proposals like stronger background checks or assault weapons bans, research has a more mellow appeal.
- Democrats are framing the funds as a major victory for gun control reform, despite having originally asked for $50 million.
- Congress is set to pass the legislation later this week and send it to President Trump’s desk.
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Apparently only some kids are off limits.
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And the BOOM will be no longer…but we know we heard it. It was LOUD. It was CLEAR. It was a CLARION CALL for the preservation of DEMOCRACY.
In honor of this retired BOOM - 
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Baby cannon will be missed.
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I will never celebrate violence, but I do wonder if this isn’t a sign that Putin’s reign has stretched Russians to their limits.
And then there’s this horrible thing:
New Video May Signal Dangerous Change For Neo-Nazi Terror Cell
A new propaganda video showcases Atomwaffen’s "intention to enter a new violent phase,” says an expert.
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This is what Trump’s America enables and encourages:
Iowa Woman Ran Down Teen With Car Because She Was ‘Mexican’: Police
https://news.yahoo.com/iowa-woman-ran-down-teen-174415932.html?soc_src=hl-viewer&soc_trk=tw
More for the corporate interests…and the DOJ supports this as well.
There is a battle going on for the future of American business. On one side are a handful of giant corporations that dominate their industries. On the other are the smaller companies they compete against, buy from, or sell to, and the workers they hire. And what you need to know is that under President Trump, the Justice Department is routinely weighing in on the side of the corporate giants.
We’ve already seen the big-is-better philosophy in the department’s approval of megamergers such as Aetna and CVS in health care, T-Mobile and Sprint in mobile phone service and movie giants Disney and Fox, which in some years account for half of all box office sales. The one time the department went to court to stop a megamerger (AT&T and Time-Warner), it managed to lose.
Now, antitrust chief Makan Delrahim is moving aggressively to help the giants enhance their market power in new ways.
Last month, the Justice Department asked a federal court in New York to terminate a set of 70-year-old decrees that prevented the major Hollywood studios from owning and operating movie theaters. The decrees also prevented the studios from setting minimum ticket prices or requiring independent theaters to take blocks of movies — the likely flops along with the hits — rather than choose which movies they wanted to exhibit.
The department argued that the arrival of new studios such as HBO, Netflix and Amazon Prime — along with the advent of other distribution channels such as CDs, cable TV and Internet streaming — had rendered the decrees obsolete. The brief also embraced now-discredited economic theories that mergers between producers and distributors, and business practices such as bundling and retail price maintenance, were good for competition and consumers.
Thanks to those decrees, Hollywood is enjoying a golden era, with more studios producing more movies and television programs in ways that offer consumers more choice and convenience than at any time in history.
But all this competition, it turns out, is also giving the studios financial heartburn, forcing them to pay ginormous sums to the most successful actors, directors and screenwriters and take huge financial risks every time they produce a movie. So it is with the aim of taming that risky and costly competition that the major studios have been scrambling to tie up talent with long-term contracts, buy up TV networks, cable channels and telephone companies, and create their own distribution platforms to connect directly with consumers through the Internet.
By moving to lift the old decrees, the Justice Department has given the studios a green light to push ahead with all this consolidation and re-create the old Hollywood cartel and studio system on which it was based. Independents of all kinds — from studios to creative talent to theater chains and content platforms — will be shut out or forced to hand over a hefty share of their profits to gain access to these vertically integrated giants. Price competition will disappear, entry by new players will be curtailed, and disruptive innovators will either be bought up before they pose a challenge or shut out of the marketplace.
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When someone wants to boast just how well the US economy is doing under Trump, perhaps an opening question might be “What is the economy for anyway?”
BTW That is the title of one of my favourite books by John De Graaf and David K Batker. One of the suggested replies is that the the economy exists for the greatest good, for the greatest number, over the longest run. Anyway that is the understanding I prefer to hold.
So below is a graph of world inequality of OECD countries and (well you can see who is leading in inequality). Unfortunately my own country is not far behind in 4th. Fortunately we now have a Govt that is starting to do something about it, but for many it is still too slow.
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Will check it out! Just saw a reader review with the title, “Left Leaning, Right Thinking.” I like the sound of that since I’m a cheerleader for capitalism, but at the same time, believe that the community (i.e., our government) needs to create a reasonable set of rules within which capitalism operates. I’m really, really tired of Trump’s base labeling Democrats as “socialists.” That’s such baloney. – I know many Democrats and none of them are socialists – many are, in fact, entrepreneurs and business owners – as I am myself.
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It is amusing for those of us who live and grew up in a country most Americans would call “socialist” to see the absolute horror you have for socialism. In fact our system of government is more akin to social democracy, but we are not afraid for instance of a fully funded public Health Care for all. Indeed most NZers would want our government to invest more. There are some who want to have a private Health Insurance and can afford it - but the majority do not. As for accident insurance that again is provided for all, including visitors to our country and is funded through general taxation.
The burden of tax for NZers averages 34.4% whereas for the US the burden of tax is 27.7%. However, note that NZ’ers have no requirement for Medical or Accident Insurance because that is already paid for.
Say you had - an accident and broke a leg or shoulder or suffered 80% burns to your body (as some unfortunate souls did just a fortnight ago when White Island, Whakaari exploded while they were on it) the whole hospital expenses are free, and any subsequent rehabilitation is also fully funded.
It means of course that there is a slightly larger bureaucracy, and funding is via taxation - but in fact the overall savings made (since the need for profit is removed) - means that in the end individuals pay less for essential services such as health, education, etc. And the further benefit is that services can become more standardised with the result that quality control is easer to achieve.
In 1935 following the Depression years NZ elected its first Labour Government. It remained in power for 14 years, such was the mood of the country for the programmes that it implemented.
You can see a complete list here:
Notably the incoming National Government in 1950 promised the electorate that it would not repeal any of Labours Welfare State Policies. And indeed many of the 1935 reforms remained in place until the 1984 election when the economy was turned upside down by a rogue Finance Minister Roger Douglas (later Sir) who introduced the laissez-faire economic theories of Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics. We all know now that the so called “trickle down” was in fact a Geyser, with the rich getting very much richer and the poor paying the price. After an initial burst of economic growth, the overall effect of these reforms has been a disaster. From a country which boasted a high level of social cohesion and economic equality, we have now descended to a country where there is high inequality, 23% of our children live below the poverty line after household costs are deducted from income, 1% of our people are homeless. Douglas will not go down in history as a revered politician, whereas Michael Savage, the first Labour leader is the most honoured of all Leaders.
I totally agree with you wrt the need for rules within which capital operates, and I like the Policies being promoted by Elizabeth Warren in this regard. Also I’m all for a more managed economy a la South Korea
I’m sure you will enjoy the book. A few years ago I lent a copy to Helen Kelly, at that time the President of our Council of Trade Unions.
She replied :
Dear M
Thanks for lending me this book it was most interesting and easy to read.
I have purchased my own copy as there are some very useful references in it as well…
Her early death was a great loss to us here. The link above reviews a just released documentary of her final year.
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A federal appeals court on Friday upheld former President Barack Obama’s authority to create a marine national monument 130 miles southeast of Cape Cod.
“The Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument is a spectacularly rich and vibrant marine community,” said Peter Shelley, a senior counsel for the Conservation Law Foundation, one of the groups that intervened in the case to defend the monument.
“The scientific interest was there (to create the monument) and the research done since then has confirmed over and again the wealth of marine life that treats that area as home,” Shelley said.
After extensive research by scientific groups, particularly the New England Aquarium, environmentalists asked President Obama to preserve nearly 5,000 square miles that included five deep-water canyons and four extinct volcanoes, known as seamounts, in two discrete areas bordering the southeastern edge of Georges Bank.
Its remoteness, depth and rugged terrain meant that relatively little bottom trawling had occurred there, and scientists and environmentalists touted it as one of the last pristine spots along the continental shelf. They noted that many migratory marine species, such as whales, dolphins and sharks, used that area, and they were especially interested in preserving deep-water coral, which can take thousands of years to grow and supports a variety of life but is particularly susceptible to bottom fishing.
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One constant with Trump has been his hatred of Iran and willingness to scapegoat them whenever possible. I am not saying Iran’s government are innocents, but many Trump regime accusations are suspect.
The truth is it’s a rather muddled mess. An American contractor was killed in a rocket attack from an Iraqi-state-supported militia. Many such militias also enjoy Iranian ties. US civilian contractor killed in rocket attack in Iraq on Friday - CNNPolitics
In retaliation, the U.S. launched a series of five air strikes Sunday, against the protests of the Iraqi government, targeting Kataeb Hezbollah, a splinter group related to the Lebanese Hezbollah.
Angry Mob Sets Fire To Reception Area At U.S. Embassy In Baghdad : NPR
The air strikes caused the death of 25 militia members, prompting mass protests after the funerals. Iraqi forces did nothing to stop the protestors from marching on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. There were no casualties, but the embassy was broken into and tear gas deployed to drive them back.
Protesters chanting ‘Death to America’ break into U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad
Trump, meanwhile, blames Iran for this all, though there is no evidence that Iran is directly involved with this chain of events.
In doing so, he ignores the souring of our relationship with Iraq, which could further endanger more Americans in Iraq.
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Raging wildfires trap 4,000 at Australian town’s waterfront
Wildfires burning across Australia’s two most populous states on Tuesday trapped residents of a seaside town in apocalyptic conditions, destroyed many properties and caused at least two fatalities.
About 5 million hectares (12.35 million acres) of land have burned nationwide during the wildfire crisis, with 12 people confirmed dead and more than 1,000 homes destroyed.
The annual Australian fire season, which peaks during the Southern Hemisphere summer, started early after an unusually warm and dry winter. Record-breaking heat and windy conditions triggered wildfires in New South Wales and Queensland states in September.
In the southeastern town of Mallacoota in Victoria state, around 4,000 residents fled toward the waterside as winds pushed an emergency-level wildfire toward their homes. The town was shrouded in darkness from the smoke before turning an unnerving shade of bright red.
Victoria state Premier Daniel Andrews said there were plans to evacuate the trapped people by sea. There also were grave fears for four people missing. “We can’t confirm their whereabouts,” Andrews told reporters on Tuesday.
Andrews has requested assistance from 70 firefighters from the United States and Canada.
Victoria Emergency Services Commissioner Andrew Crisp confirmed “significant” property losses across the region.
Fire conditions worsened in Victoria and New South Wales after oppressive heat Monday mixed with strong winds and lightning.
Police in New South Wales said Tuesday that two men, believed to be father and son, died in a house in the wildfire-ravaged southeast town of Cobargo, while there are fears for another man missing.
“They were obviously trying to do their best with the fire as it came through in the early hours of the morning,” New South Wales Police Deputy Commissioner Gary Worboys said. “The other person that we are trying to get to, we think that person was trying to defend their property in the early hours of the morning.”
On Monday, a firefighter was killed when extreme winds flipped his truck. Samuel McPaul, 28, was the third volunteer firefighter in New South Wales to have died in the past two weeks. He was an expectant father.
The state’s Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said a “significant” number of properties had been destroyed.
Some communities canceled New Year’s fireworks celebrations, but Sydney’s popular display over its iconic harbor front was to go ahead. The city was granted an exemption to a total fireworks ban that is in place there and elsewhere to prevent new wildfires.
Sydney’s popular celebrations were expected to attract around a million spectators and generate 130 million Australian dollars ($91 million) for New South Wales’ economy.
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And of course you knew this comparison would come up:
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U.S. to send Marines to embassy in Iraq as Trump blames Iran for attack
Trump’s latest. Trump keeps trying to make it about Iran, but it’s not.
It’s about American airstrikes on Iraqi militia the Iraq government backs, which is why they didn’t do anything to stop our embassy from being stormed.
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