Thursday morning links

Unlike state and local governments and private citizens, the federal government cannot run out of money. They can print as much as they want. Of course the purchasing value of each new dollar decreases until it becomes worthless. Just a matter of time. Are you prepared?

#1 Stargazer on 2019-11-07 08:09 (Reply)

Iran is doing just fine? From the article:

"The country’s oil exports plummeted from 2.4 million barrels per day in April 2018 to fewer than 500,000 in September 2019. The economy entered a recession, inflation soared, and the currency lost 60 percent of its value against the dollar."

Hey, they survived U.S. sanctions! What else?

"Unemployment remains a persistent problem, the banking system is chronically weak and undercapitalized, and the private sector is anemic."

Sounds great! Any more?

"The International Monetary Fund and World Bank predict that Iran’s economy will rebound from a recession to near zero percent growth in 2020. The IMF further forecasts that Iran’s inflation will fall from 35.7 percent in 2019 to 31 percent in 2020."

Wow, zero percent growth and 31% annual inflation! Happy days are here again, the Ayatollah is Making Iran Great Again!!

#2 peacelovewoodstock on 2019-11-07 08:17 (Reply)

Agreed, peacelovewoodstock.

This article has a very pro-Iranian spin put on it.

I would clarify this, "Iran’s economy will rebound from a recession to near zero percent growth".

"Near zero percent" would still be negative growth, yes?

What's to like about that?

And of course the final dart,"Trump may be bulking up defenses, but he doesn’t have the stomach for a fight."

That's either a taunt, or the author clearly doesn't understand Trump.

#2.1 feeblemind on 2019-11-07 09:26 (Reply)

Still Defiant, Iran Doubles Uranium Centrifuges

http://noisyroom.net/blog/2019/11/04/still-defiant-iran-doubles-uranium-centrifuges/comment-page-1/

#2.1.1 feeblemind on 2019-11-07 09:39 (Reply)

Does anyone believe that Iran quit centrifuging uranium under Obama's flawed agreement with them? Does anyone think that Iran didn't always plan to dramatically increase centrifuge capacity regardless of the fake treaty? This story has only one value and that is to make Trump look bad.

#2.1.1.1 Anon on 2019-11-07 11:02 (Reply)

Don't you love how those brainiacs at the IMF can predict Iran's future growth and inflation? I mean, you've got to be good to predict inflation to fall from 35.7% to 31%. Maybe they just rounded up to 31% from a decline of 5% (31.7%) so as not to appear to brag about their ability to predict to within 0.1% accuracy.

I also like how they say Iran's exports are diversified because only 43% is oil. They at least admit that figure came before we got out of the nuke deal and started to impose sanctions. Any bets on the proportion of exports oil is now? I'm surprised they didn't "estimate" last year's oil exports (to their usual precision) and claim that Iran is responding to the sanctions by further diversifying its exports since oil is now much less a percentage of their total exports!

That article is just another "Trump (or Americans) are not able to see the complexities and intricacies of this or any situation."

#2.2 mudbug on 2019-11-07 11:23 (Reply)

He's not a "whistleblower", he's a seditionist.

QUOTE:

18 U.S.C. § 2384 Sedition:... it is a crime for two or more people within the jurisdiction of the United States:

To conspire to overthrow or destroy by force the government of the United States or to level war against them;
To oppose by force the authority of the United States government; to prevent, hinder, or delay by force the execution of any law of the United States; or
To take, seize, or possess by force any property of the United States contrary to the authority thereof.

You might object that Ciarmella and Zaid and all the others didn't use force but, let me remind you that fraud is a version of force.

#3 snopercod on 2019-11-07 09:00 (Reply)

It is well established in law that "force" can mean either physical force or legal compulsion.

Russiagate coup plotters planned to use legal compulsion to overthrow the government (Trump).

"Legal compulsion" doesn't mean licit compulsion, it means compulsion through the use of legal force.

I can use legal force to take your home away, but if I have faked evidence, committed perjury, etc. to obtain that legal force, I have not used force legally.

#3.1 peacelovewoodstock on 2019-11-08 06:56 (Reply)

Nick DiPaolo says what most people think about Bill Nye the Science Fraud.

https://youtu.be/vdfRAP-plNc

#4 Rusty on 2019-11-07 09:26 (Reply)

re Environmentalists: If You Want To Save The World, Skip Thanksgiving

When will they make the same argument for Christmas? When one figures in the carbon footprint of acquiring/shipping all those presents, it's much worse than Thanksgiving.

One wonders why they don't call for the abolition of both holidays, 'to save the planet'?

Perhaps the environmentalists should fast on Thanksgiving to provide carbon offsets for those of us who travel and feast? . . . For the planet of course. What could be more noble?

#5 feeblemind on 2019-11-07 09:35 (Reply)

I doubt it is entirely conscious on their part, but I do not consider it coincidental that gratitude to something other than government is central to Thanksgiving, and families getting together for mutual support and encouragement is a source of solidarity, personal definition, and pleasure not under the control of the government.

Those who want power over us are ever-suspicious of families, churches, local control, voluntary associations of any kind. When conservatives bemoan that liberal (as well as too many conservatives) policies are destructive to the family, they fail to consider that for some, this is a feature, not a bug. The destruction of the black family has been very helpful in creating a dependence on government, for example.

#5.1 Assistant Village Idiot on 2019-11-07 12:00 (Reply)

Biden describes Elizabeth Warren’s elitism: “If you were only as smart as I am you would agree with me”

That has been a Democrat theme for quite a long time.Quotes By Adlai Stevenson.

QUOTE:

Known for his good nature, Stevenson was once approached by a young woman supporter, the first time that he decided to run for the president’s post. She said, “Governor, every thinking person would be voting for you”. He retorted, “Madam, that is not enough. I need a majority.”

#6 Gringo on 2019-11-07 10:09 (Reply)

What a bunch of Pakleds these scientists are. So smart, but incapable of making things go. Of course, they won't go into the chipper themselves, because it is all their idea. But it is always the people who make things run who have to oblige the Betters' Gaian wishes.
Has anyone noticed that their pachamamas are all pregnant?

#7 Jewel (Link) on 2019-11-07 10:22 (Reply)

What are "pakleds" and "pachamamas"?

#7.1 Sam L. on 2019-11-07 14:32 (Reply)

I had to Google them. I don't watch a lot of movies.

#7.1.1 mary on 2019-11-07 15:35 (Reply)

The problem with the population growth is that the lowest IQ, least trained, and most violent sector of the world is pushing out babies at an unsustainable rate. While the highest IQ, the cultures capable of creating and maintaining 21st century technology and the most peaceful and compassionate sector of the world is not even producing offspring in sustainable numbers. What this means is an inevitable WW/revolutions/civil wars which will result in massive body counts. I mean massive as in 10 times the total of people killed by war and despotic regimes in the entire 20th century. Also, and not coincidently it is highly probable that in addition to that risk/inevitability that there will be a "great plague" epidemic of some horrendous disease due to our large and mobile world population.

#8 OneGuy on 2019-11-07 12:46 (Reply)

Have you seen Idiocracy? It is a BRILLIANT movie, though it is not safe for young kids. I can't say it is strictly true in my experience, though. Some of the families who homeschool locally have a lot of kids and they are some of most polite and well-adjusted kids you will ever find.

#8.1 Dangerous Dean on 2019-11-07 16:17 (Reply)

Marx was wrong, Malthus was wrong, Freud was wrong.
All of these statements have been proven empirically thousands of times over. Period. End of story.
Why do people keep dragging them out of their well-deserved graves?

#9 Another guy named Dan on 2019-11-07 13:10 (Reply)

The talk about Trump reminds me of when Pres. Lincoln was approached to get rid of General Grant because of his supposed personal failings. His reply? "I can't spare this man; he fights!"

#10 RonF on 2019-11-07 13:11 (Reply)

According to the story, when some one accused Gen. Grant of drinking too much liquor, Mr. Lincoln said that if he could find out what brand of whisky Grant drank, he would send a barrel of it to all of his commanders.

#11 Ray on 2019-11-07 13:24 (Reply)

"The Scientists Are Muttering About Population Control Again"

Scientists not in the sense of science but rather scientism.

The two are entirely different things.

#12 JJM on 2019-11-07 13:29 (Reply)

I rarely think of Bill Nye, but when I do, "idiot" is the first word to come to mind.

#13 Sam L. on 2019-11-07 14:24 (Reply)

Then clear your palate with a different http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51959 Bill Nye http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51959

#13.1 James the lesser (Link) on 2019-11-07 19:07 (Reply)

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Thursday, November 7. 2019

Thursday morning links