Now that the details are starting to be released (Why is it that we have to pass this thing to know what’s really in it? Sound familiar?), I wanted to give my commentary on a few things I already disagree with. Before you shrug your shoulders and say “it’s just a right wing reaction by a right wing blog” hear me out.
This is a truly unprecedented situation. The leisure, restaurant, casino, and airline industries are on the verge of collapse. The stock market has given up all of the Trump gains since his election. The news media has whipped everyone into frenzy. Schools have closed indefinitely, restaurants have closed all dine-in operations, and movie theatres have closed. While I still feel this is a huge overreaction, as William has told me “once you ring the bell, how do you un-ring it?”
Now on to the Trump plan, it involves two $1,200 checks per person, for 2 months, with an extra $500 for children. The goal is that these checks to be out in a little over 2 weeks. My question is how? The Treasury/IRS has to have files upon files upon files, no chance this gets done in just a few months. (Last time the government did such payments under George W Bush, it took 3 months.) I have a feeling this will be left up to the individual states because at the end of the day, the federal government can’t move fast enough to be effective. (I’m assuming they want to be effective.) Instead, I think you may see the states distributing funds with the Treasury reimbursing. This means the $$$ will be going to non-citizens and likely people making far more than the intended income levels. Sorry folks, but we have voter registration roles that are out of whack, what makes you think they will get this right?
CEOs trolling for $$$
I also question bailing out corporations in return for equity, this I liken to a real life game of Shark Tank. I almost envision the CEO going into the smoke filled room asking for so many million/billion/trillion/gazillion in exchange for so much equity. It would literally be must see TV, almost the Apprentice in disguise! I guess if they like your pitch, equity stake can be negotiated. If they don’t like your pitch, well, you go the way of Lehman Brothers. I do not like this idea one bit, I understand the need for a lifeline, not a bailout. Even an equity stake doesn’t give the government enough downside protection, especially with the political risk of an election year!
In conclusion, the worst part is that I feel the GOP has once again been goaded by the Democrats into thinking this is a good idea. I see this ending horribly in November. All this talk of playing nice, ends with the Dems running TV ad, after TV ad of the party of the rich only gave you folks $1,200 X 2, we want to give you a living wage paid for by Uncle Sam each month! Shades of George W. Bush in 2007ish, it ended badly. They will have us over the barrel.
George W Bush signing legislation for tax rebate checks in 2008
These guys might all shake hands and bump fists in public, but they all know there is a lot at stake in November. All are trying to insure the re-election of themselves and their “fellow congressmen” while trying to pick off as many of the other side as possible. There is a reason we have 2 parties, I don’t think Pelosi and Schumer will be cutting re-election ads for Trump, and the GOP in November…..Just saying. Remember the last time things were TOO BIG TO FAIL!
Folks, it is amazing how a virus originating in China can literally put people’s minds into a pretzel. 90 day guy came into the office today, you guessed it, Lysol Wipes, hand sanitizer and rubbing alcohol in hand. He said his wife forced him to bring all this to the office….I called BS. He said we should buy surgical masks, and discuss our interactions with the public, keep in mind we may get 12 people a month in the office. This is a typical overreaction from a cable watcher.
To be clear the views expressed on this blog in regard to cable are not entirely bad, frankly if you wish to pay to consume it each month, by all means. We just warn here that the job of cable (including Fox News BTW) is to gin up emotions and get people to react irrationally. Look at the events of the past 72 hours in our local city. Elk Grove Unified cancelled all classes and athletics, keep in mind nary a student had tested positive for this virus! Keep in mind the teachers were upset, but the only parental dissatisfaction were parents of the Sheldon High Men’s Basketball team scheduled to play tonight in the playoffs! I’m not bagging on the parents at all, actually they are the most rational people in this situation. Funny thing is, I saw many students of Laguna Creek High congregating and mingling with the public near my office at a local Target today! The horror! Yep can’t attend class, but they are out and about doing what kids do!
The sad thing is at the time of the editorial deadline for this article only 22 people have died in the US from this virus. I say only because the media and local educators are making this thing sound like the Spanish Flu (originating in China too BTW). Of the 22 dead, 15 occurred in the same nursing home in Washington State. We have had 2 cases in Sacramento County, 1 in Elk Grove, there has been 1 death in Placer County….an older man, just like the others who have passed away. Yet we cancelled classes for a week. Santa Clara County cancelled events with attendance over 1000, so the San Jose Sharks will play 3 games with no attendance? The Ivy League has cancelled their basketball tournament. MLB, NBA, and NCAA are considering what to do about their respective sporting events, with MLB and NBA kicking the press out of the locker rooms.
This type of overreaction is befuddling to me. However I have come to expect it. I call it “Hurricane Katrina Risk” meaning you cannot under deliver so you must over react. Why are we cancelling school, when we had 0 positive tests? Telling people not to go to games? Stockpiling food, water, toilet paper, and sanitizer? Come on man! Yet you all wonder why the stocks have been crashing?
Here is some straight talk on this; Corona is very similar to a cold, most likely you are going to contract it. My advice, stay vigilant, maintain good hygiene, and keep your immune system strong. The reality is; I work in a building with a bunch of dentists, its business as usual for them. Ditto at my bank, the restaurant I went to dinner at, the gym, and church. You are far more likely to die from the common cold or the flu, than this virus. Here we are wanting everyone to batten down the hatches and not go outside, and at this time there is nothing to be scared of unless you are elderly, or have health issues. Over reacting is not going to solve our fears here, it just makes it worse. How will you react if this virus kills more people?
Just to give you more anxiety, I heard today the Corona Virus can live in toilet paper, and I heard its transferrable in packages delivered by Amazon. No word on if UPS, USPS, and FedEx are in on the conspiracy.
Johnnie Does
BTW 90 day guy hit the golf links the past 2 days…..with the public. If he is so scared of catching this, I would think a controlled environment is far better than an uncontrolled one. Oh well.
Editor’s Note: This article was submitted yesterday, before Sheldon High School won their playoff game. Also, after this article was submitted, a report was published that an elderly person living in a senior facility in Elk Grove had died from Corona. The elderly woman was over 90 years old and had underlying health conditions.
Folks, parts of our cable television watching society are stocking up on antibacterial soap and toilet paper and looking for fallout shelter plans on eBay while the rest of us have purposed just to live our lives. I’m in the latter category.
So, on the first day of a stupid government school shutdown in my community, I’m going on record with a claim that Corona triggers unnecessary panic? Heck yeh! But the market is down 2K just today. So what?
Here’s a few thoughts on the unforced error of cancelling all classes this week in the Elk Grove School District.
In the Saturday release, the Elk Grove School Superintendent claimed he was moving Spring Break to this week, sorry, not happening. Look for the regularly scheduled Spring Break to happen next month in the second week of April. Both parents and teachers are taking off that week regardless of what was claimed in the press release issued on Saturday—much of which was a lie debunked by the Sacramento Bee which I will get to shortly.
You see, many parents scheduled time-off from work just to coordinate with the District’s schedule, buying airline tickets, making hotel reservations, and such long ago. These people will be out the money if they don’t go now. Also, there is that pesky union contract with the District’s teachers stating that the second week in April is the time off for those on both Traditional and Modified Traditional schedules. A reasonable suggestion that I heard from a teacher in the District was that Spring Break will happen as scheduled and a few extra days will be tacked onto the end of the school year. We’ll see if that prediction pans out.
As I’m writing this, a claim has surfaced that one child in the District tested positive. If that’s true, then please tell me what is the metric that children will ever be allowed to return to school? By being arbitrary, this Superintendent has opened a can of worms that he may never get back in the bottle. Just by being in school a child might give an illness to another, this is reality. If this is his metric, how can he ever risk that classes convene again?
The grilling given to the Elk Grove Superintendent by the Sacramento Bee’s Marcos Bretón is priceless.
More shocking. Saturday’s announcement, with such widespread implications, including the possibility of triggering public anxiety and panic, was rolled out with little or no coordination between the county’s public health department or key elected officials in Sacramento, even though a letter to parents Saturday said “this complex decision involved close collaboration and coordination with our Board of Trustees, labor groups, the Sacramento County Office of Education and the Sacramento County Public Health Department.”
If county health officials were communicating with the Elk Grove district all along then that message didn’t get out to county elected officials.
They were all caught flat-footed: Sacramento County Supervisor Phil Serna, the chair of the board this year, learned about the Elk Grove announcement when word of the district closure caused his phone to “blow up.”
Serna was at a campaign event for a colleague in the Arden Arcade area Saturday afternoon when he learned. With him was Sacramento Democratic state Sen. Richard Pan, a doctor, who has spent weeks trying to calm public fears about the coronavirus. With them was Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg and Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento.
All of them learned at the same time and without warning.
Serna, Pan, Steinberg and McCarty all huddled together after learning about the Elk Grove announcement from The Bee. Together, they have planned a 1 p.m. news conference on Sunday at the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors offices at 700 H St.
The first question that should be answered there must be this: How could the largest school district in Northern California announce it was shutting its doors in a complete vacuum of information and leadership?
Why is a serious step such as closing a school district trotted out via letter to Elk Grove parents as if the contents of the letter referred to a bake sale and not an issue with serious health and policy implications?
And here is another question: Why would EGUSD, apparently with the OK of county health officials, shut down the entire district when such a drastic step is not recommended by state health officials? By late Saturday, the California Department of Public Health released its guidelines for schools, colleges and large public events to protect against the spread of COVID-19.
Nowhere in those recommendations do state officials call for the closure of a district without a single student or staff member testing positive for COVID-19. And up until now, there hasn’t been an EGUSD student or staff member who has tested positive. State health officials only contemplate closing an entire district if there have been students, teachers or staff members who have tested positive at multiple schools in a district.
But entities such as EGUSD can’t simply act without consideration for how the decision will affect a general public already jittery about the coronavirus.
As Steinberg said, Sacramento County must have a coordinated message. They need protocols. Stories of this import cannot simply be dropped like a stink bomb in the dark.
But maybe if it hadn’t been made in such a vacuum someone could have helped the Elk Grove educators make this call in a way that didn’t seem premature and haphazard.
Panic is what happens when a health crisis is mismanaged and when people who should be in the loop are not. This is not the way it should be done.
Marcus is right on this issue. (As always, I’ve quoted him extensively because this article will soon find its way behind McClatchy’s pay firewall.) Marcus, “stink bomb” is a much politer term than the ones I’m thinking of right now.
Since this opinion piece was posted, the high school boys’ basketball game is rumored to get an exemption, while the high school prom last Saturday night was killed five hours before it was scheduled to begin; off district property I might add.
Perhaps educators should try staying in their lane and let public health officials do their job. That might actually be refreshing. A coordinated response is needed not arbitrary nonsense. Panicking and then telling others that you didn’t is disingenuous and harmful; especially when your actions affect thousands of people and millions of dollars. Elk Grove’s Superintendent needs to be fired, but it won’t happen until summer just so he and the District can save face.
Folks, the Corona virus fears will blow over and the stock market will recover. These issues are just distractions to keep folks on the 24-hour news channels employed. Both of these issues will be in the country’s rearview mirror before long and they’ll go on to some other story while we that live in Elk Grove deal with the aftermath of this out of control bureaucrat.
Rick Santelli is a commentator on CNBC who specializes in the bond/treasury markets. He usually contributes throughout the day as he reports on the swings in the market. Thursday, he made a complete and utter fool of himself and backed it up today with a halfhearted apology regarding the coronavirus.
Here is what he said Thursday:
“People are getting nervous, listen, I’m not a doctor. I’m not a doctor. All I know is, think about how the world would be if you tried to quarantine everybody over the generic-type flu. Now I’m not saying this is the generic-type flu, but maybe we’d just be better off if we just gave (the coronavirus) to everybody and then in a month it would be over, because the mortality rate of this probably wouldn’t be any different if we did it that way than the long-term picture,” Santelli said, “But the difference is we’re wreaking havoc on domestic and global economies.”
Maybe someone should check themselves in to the doctor for a foot in mouth disease exam?
Here is his apology, if you can call it that:
“Yesterday, during a segment on ‘The Exchange, ‘I said ‘maybe it would be a good idea to expose everybody to the coronavirus, maybe it would be better off for the economy, the global economy or the markets in general,’” Santelli said of his comment that sparked outrage and calls for CNBC to fire him. “It was the dumbest, most ignorant, stupid thing anybody could have ever said.”
“It was just a stupid thing to say,” he said. “It’s not appropriate in this instance and we are resilient, both in the United States and in the globe. That resilience will get us through. The idea of something so absurd, I apologize, and I apologize to everybody on the segment and all my peers at CNBC.”
So ok, a lot to unpack here but here we go. First off Santelli is your typical 90 day calendar guy, when the market is up all is well, when the market is down, he incites panic. He knows no other lot in life. He is paid to comment on the news and react to market swings but how can any sane human being spout off the vomit he did on live TV and think they got away with one? Give coronavirus to everyone….nice pal…how about those of us who lack a gold plated $0 out of pocket healthcare plan Rickster? How do you expect us to come up with the money for that? Or should the government just pay for it…since in some ways it sounds like a science project to you? As far as your comment about mortality….this virus is wreaking havoc in nursing homes, and hospitals, targeting mostly the elderly and those with weak respiratory/immune systems. So it sounds like your goal is to create a stronger human race….nice. As far as his apology goes, Santelli was obviously sat down by someone far higher on the pay grade chart than him, because what he said in his apology made even less sense. He tried comparing corona virus to smallpox saying you were encouraged to expose others to it, so they could get it, and get the vaccine.
In closing I will say this, Rick is not sorry, those are his true beliefs. He saw the market get very choppy and decided to white knight and declare “we need to get this virus over with because….my retirement!” His comments that this virus is affecting both the domestic and foreign economies is somewhat correct, but the reason people are panicking is because of idiots like you Rick. There could not be more misinformation spread about this virus, both in print, online and TV media. It’s being made out to be an instant killer, with the infected quarantined off and cut out of civilization. While there is no known cure or vaccine, it seems like quarantine and maybe some medicines are aiding in people surviving. Think about that for a minute, this bozo wants to infect everyone with this, knowing there is no cure, which will overload our hospitals and health care system, because again…his stock account. To make matters worse for Rickster, today the jobs report came out….and unemployment dropped yet again. Folks the underlying economy is doing just fine. We are in a small, cable ratings fueled drop in the stock market, that’s all. Go out to lunch, dinner, or go to a gym, church, etc. People are packing these places, yet the talking heads are talking about this virus 24/7. The NBA and MLB are warning people not to go to games, and to essentially shelter in place. Rick, you are not helping.
Rick, stocks go up, and down, the overall economy is not based on whether the “Dow is up or down.” I’m actually not surprised you blew your smoking hot take for all to see, you like to rile people up, you succeeded, now more people will sell off, because they don’t want to get burned. I am however disappointed in a fellow CNBC employee, Kelly Evans. She didn’t challenge your BS at all.
The Chief
PS Santelli is a Tea Party guy, no real shock there.
I recently had a friend of mine who reads this blog ask if I “ever have any fun in my life, and what my future looks like?” This person referenced that the blog here hates debt, and apparently no one on the editorial staff will spend a dollar, on anything. This is complete and utter malarkey. What we are doing on this blog isn’t pointing out you should be eating a diet of ramen every day, we are pointing out that life should be lived within your means, but also with an eye toward the future. No one on this blog is a financial advisor who believes in telling clients not to take trips or have fun, while they live the good life. I’ll explain further below.
Sadly today we live in a world of illusion where style is far more important than substance. We as a society tell people to splurge on unneeded things constantly. We no longer view a pay check as revenues earned, we view it as a means to pay our monthly bills, and that is the wrong approach. We run everything through the credit card under the guise of a 1% cash back, or the 30 day terms. We see a red tag that proclaims “sale” and feel compelled to buy. The blog posts on this site have nothing to do with hoarding your money, buying gold, or locking yourself in your house and refusing to part with it. It is about planning for a very uncertain future, no one has a crystal ball, and things can change very rapidly as we have learned with the Coronavirus and its direct impact on the stock market, and global/domestic travel.
Case number 1: The former girlfriend who works 3 hours a day, takes 2 classes a semester at a local junior college. She is always broke well prior to the end of the month. After a little uncovering, the main culprit was marijuana. In a close second, credit card debt, and late car payment fees. All of this is a result of a general lack of drive and care towards her future, keep in mind she is 30. Her most important and immediate goal is getting stoned. Her intermediate goal is getting married and having kids, sounds like career advancement is on hold indefinitely.
Case number 2: The alcoholic guy we detailed some time ago. Never has any money, and is subletting a bedroom in the house he rents so he can make ends get close to meeting. While he never has money to buy food, or pay his debts, he has an endless supply of wine that would make a winery jealous. This person is on his 4th DUI in his 80 years on this earth and has recently been banned from drinking at church functions from 2 church groups. Most folks dream of their golden years traveling or relaxing, he lives his stumbling and stammering.
Case number 3: The guy who is 75k in credit card debt, in addition to his other bills as detailed here. He has champagne taste on a beer budget and wants a bailout. He is very desperate now and likely to lose both cars, and his house, and possibly his marriage. Keep in mind he has 2 young children to boot. His life is very similar to a bad car wreck, you know you shouldn’t look, yet you can’t take your eyes off of it.
Case number 4: A guy I have known since college, he got his now wife pregnant, and their kid is very special needs. He just recently wrapped up his degree, they got married, they have no income as she must stay home with child, and he is an intern…at age 33. Credit card debt? You guessed it, and they live in a bedroom at his parent’s house.
Case number 5: A person I’ve also known since college. Student loan and credit card debt, a 33% vehicle loan, every add-on imaginable, because well you only live once, and works a zillion hours a week at a theatre. I call her “red tag lady” because she needs to buy something everywhere she goes, and the only concept of a budget she has is when her card is declined, that means she needs to pay toward it. Case in point. We went out to dinner and keep in mind our coupon included enough food for 2, she decided to add on an appetizer and order take-out bacon fried rice on top of what amounts to a pretty large meal to begin with. A $45 coupon quickly turned into an $85 meal, with no alcohol included by the way. The most important thing in her life is finding a boyfriend right now, or as I call it a bailout.
Case number 6: A fellow church goer. Major health issues, all of them self-induced, fast food is a staple of the families diet, as in three times a day every day. He refuses to work, forcing his wife to labor almost all hours of the day. Credit cards? Check. High Interest loans? Check. A massive drug addiction? Check, he blames it on opioids. He is a hopeless case.
Now contrast that to myself.
I worked very hard at my job, a boutique office with just 1 colleague. Drove a 14 year old car until it finally decided to cry uncle, saving me a pant load on car insurance and car payments. I learned to cook, and budget at a very early age, and had to bite the bullet and live at home for about 3 years after college while I found my career and learned a budget. While I may have hit the bottle a bit (a habit I’ve since kicked) I learned quite a bit during my time at home. I banked money, and invested in myself. I learned everything about the industry I worked in, almost obsessively. By year 3, I was going to take the test to start my own business with this industry, I passed, becoming the youngest ever. 2 years later I applied for and was accepted to take over someone’s office who was retiring, I was elated, maybe a bit scared but elated. My office partner (boss) took me out to lunch and said I can’t believe I’m going to lose you, but I’m going to make you an offer you can’t refuse. He made me partner and my cut is 49% of the business after tax income, he is still the owner, and a majority one at that. I agreed, and my life has changed big time since that date. I bought my house 5 years ago, and am making double payments to reduce my mortgage (I don’t call a mortgage debt) and while I had to buy a new car, I chose to lease and the terms are 0%. I have no debt and never had any. I may pay with credit cards but I pay in full each month. I started my Roth IRA at 25, and at present its value is about $75,000. I also have a stock “mad money” account valued around $75,000. This is in addition to about $15,000 in emergency savings which will only be tapped to pay bills. Keep in mind I’m 34. I have traveled to a bunch of different states and take several trips a year.
Conclusion: Contrast me to the 6 cases named above, it’s not an exercise in tooting one’s horn. It’s about knowing a need versus a want, and being meticulous and sticking to a budget. Make yourself indispensable and you will reap the rewards. Praying over decisions and not making rash one’s helps a ton as well. I work in an industry and in a field that is going the way of the dodo bird, hint it’s similar to a travel agent. I know this job will not be there for me… I’m preparing…just like you should be doing for the next recession/political risk. Trust me, banks play fast and loose with credit/financing during boom years, when things go bust they do not play nice. To tie this all together, the 6 cases named above? One claims to be a Republican, the other 5….they all support Bernie, hoping that you and I will be bailing them out. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
Johnnie Does
PS. The new boat/car/jet ski’s etc. that you had to have fresh off the dealer’s lot; someone else will be buying those off you for a song if a recession hits as hard as I think it will. That someone is likely to be a guy like me who has saved up money during the good times. In the end, that boat/jet ski/car you just had to have but only took out a handful of times will be forfeited and given to another.
Folks, I’m sick (no pun intended) and tired of hearing about the Corona virus. A month ago, the Corona virus was caused by someone drinking too much cheap Mexican beer but now it’s the bogeyman that will end civilization as we know it. Folk, Ebola scares that crap out of me but, by comparison, this is not such a big deal.
For consumers of the mainstream media (and Fox News), this illness is being blown way out of proportion. Rush Limbaugh is correct that this illness is being weaponized as a political club to hit Trump with because when it comes to accomplishments, the Dems have no candidate that can lay a glove on him.
Folks, you’d think all the doom and gloom of Y2K was happening now or we just got hit by an EMP blast that left only the media to run the infrastructure of the country.
Original Corona hurt
Due to the media’s impact on low information voters, Corona beer sales are reportedly down 38 percent in recent days. (No word if there is a corresponding slowdown in the sale of lime slices.)
Another case in point: 38% of American beer drinkers surveyed this week said they wouldn’t buy Corona “under any circumstances” at the moment.
Now we have word that a new infection vector for Corona virus has been found. Besides, bats, reptiles, and other exotic food you might eat from your local market, now your good ole family pet may be to blame. Yep, little fluffy may give you the plague.
THE PET dog of a coronavirus patient in Hong Kong has tested positive for the deadly disease.
The owner of the dog, Yvonne Chow Hau Yee, who lives with her beloved Pomeranian, tested her pet pooch after being diagnosed with COVID-19.
The dog has been quarantined by officials, suggesting they have concerns that the pet could pass on the disease.
If confirmed, the Pomeranian would mark the first case of coronavirus in a pet animal…
While all this is going on, parents at my son’s school received a letter earlier today that reads in part:
Clean hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub
Cover nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing with a tissue or flexed elbow. (Our school trains students to cough and sneeze into their elbow.)
Avoid close contact with anyone with cold or flu-like symptoms
Thoroughly cook meat and eggs
Avoid unprotected contact with live wild or farm animals
Part of school letter to parents 02/28/2020
Folks, the stuff listed is what used to be called common sense. Wash your hands when they’re dirty and have protected interaction with farm animals.
Stock Market decline
In response to the feeding frenzy created by the media, this week the Stock Market is down significantly ~ 3,500 points.
Dow Jones week of Feb 24, 2020
Trump is the biggest winner of the week. Need proof I’m right? Where does Wall Street get their news? It’s not Fox or Limbaugh but the Liberal Media—NY Times, ABC, CNBC, etc. Amazingly, the Market is way overdue for a correction and Trump will not get the blame.
In my opinion, Trump dodged a bullet that I didn’t think he could. He is now able to take credit when The Market is up and Corona (and China) gets the blame for the decline. This correction was created by the very same media that has been trying to crucify him since he won the Republican nomination four years ago. The Corona narrative crafted by the media makes it plain that Trump is not at fault for the market correction. Can you say irony?
Conclusion
Shut off your television.
Buy a Corona from your local market and use a lime to prevent Corona virus—acid in lime kills the germs.
Pull out your favorite Clive Cussler book—he died earlier this week—drink your Corona, thoroughly barbeque your favorite farm animal, and enjoy our unseasonably warm weather.
Those of you that paid attention in Sunday School might recall the following passage about a poor woman that offered her all to God:
And she sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people contributing money into the campaign. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor woman came and put in three small silver coins. And she called her supporters to her and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor woman has put in more than all those who are contributing to the campaign. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.” MarkPocahontas 12:41-44
Here is the Washington Times version:
“A young woman came up by herself [in a selfie-line tonight] and she said, ‘I’m a broke college student with a lot of student loan debt,’” she said. “And she said, ‘I checked and I have six dollars in the bank. So, I just gave three dollars to keep you in this fight.’ That’s what we gotta do. We gotta stay in this fight with people who are counting on us.”
Not satisfied with the offering from the young woman who was in debt up to her eyebrows and drowning is student loan debt, millionaire candidate, Elizabeth Warren, then shared a video of the encounter with her 3.7 million Twitter followers—most who hail from Russia, China, and Ukraine (if they really exist at all)— so her supporters know that they are expected to give her their all.
If elected, Warren has repeatedly promised to forgive economically ignorant young people that blindly follow the dictates of society and magically forgive all their trespasses. Note that Warren has never actually drafted and introduced any legislation to make this happen while serving in the US Senate—our same criticism of Ted Cruz in 2016—because only at some indeterminate time in the future (like her 2nd term) would she be comfortable enough to make this a reality. However, she has no problem promising to screw all of us that played by the rules and paid off our student loans. “Damn the bad luck’” she said.
As I write from the news desk at reallyright.com this weekend, I came across an article that featured a football player. Of course, I figured he is dumb because well…like Democrats, they say athletes are dumb. “I was tuld so whil in skool.”
Back in the day, I attended Jesuit High School. I know the athlete stereotype first-hand. As a freshman and sophomore (which means “wise fool” in Latin by the way), I was viewed as a great scholar. I played no sports, I was focused on school. As a junior and senior, I played football, (NOT A BIG DEAL) and suddenly I was viewed as a dumb jock. BRAG ALERT, BRAG ALERT!!!!! We went undefeated my junior year, only team to ever do that by the way (AGAIN NOT A BIG DEAL).
Humble brag over for now, let’s share the story. A player on my favorite football team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, also known as the team that completely embarrassed the Oakland/Los Angles/Las Vegas/wherever Raiders, made news this week. Shaq Barrett signed with Tampa in last offseason for 4 million dollars. He had a great year and most folks figured he would go to a true professional team, as Tampa is the worst team in football history. My spies tell me he will be back in Tampa after leading the league in quarterback sacks last year, but in case you were wondering, he won’t be going to Los Angeles.
“If [other teams] offer me more than Tampa, I’m going to look at the places, if they offer me more than Tampa, I’m going to look at what their taxes is compared to Tampa’s.Because I ain’t going to live in L.A. and get taxed crazy,” Shaq said.
“I’m not going to take drastically less but I am open to doing what I think is best for my career, and I think that would be staying in Tampa.”
But he’s a dumb jock right????? Just like me in High School as most on the left would say we “don’t cum to play skool.” They could not be more wrong about most of us. We are normal people some just with gifts from God, me being tall and fast. However, it’s funny. My first two years at Jesuit, I barely achieved, and I could care less about school. I had a 2.3 GPA; however, I was viewed as a scholar. I was loved by my teachers, then I became a “dumb jock” and it’s funny my GPA at graduation from Jesuit, regarded as a top institution of higher learning, was 3.75. Funny because when I enrolled I took elementary algebra, and other classes I could care less about, my junior year I took calculus, and took care of business. My point being we aren’t dumb jocks, we prefer you guys thinking we are.
Gavin you have it smoking in California…keep it up. Your state stinks so bad even the Raiders are leaving. It’s ironic actually, your voters are much like fans of the 49ers, Raiders, Rams, and Chargers, they haven’t been relevant in decades.
Folks, I’m including several different articles today as well as personal observations of the ongoing collapse of the once golden state. I also want to recommend one article in particular that is worth sharing to everyone. I will give you some highlights just in case it ends up behind a pay firewall someday.
Retail Apocalypse
First, the retail apocalypse continues. January 1, 2020 saw an economic bloodbath. Especially hit hard are restaurants. Reasons are increasing regulations like AB-5 and minimum wages/benefits, rent increases, and in at least one case, I suspect failure to keep up on payroll taxes. Here’s a partial list:
Not only are jobs leaving California but one online job website based in San Francisco, is banning any employment listing after March first anywhere in the State of California.
Fast-growing Wonolo, which helps connect thousands of businesses with tens of thousands of contract workers, plans to halt its gig worker job postings for California on March 31.
It is all because of the new California state legislation known as AB-5, which went into effect Jan. 1 and requires companies to reclassify a wide category of California contract workers as employees.
“Given the limitations of AB-5, we anticipate that we may not be able to allow businesses to post jobs in California as of March 31, 2020. This means you will see significantly fewer jobs on Wonolo in California. We have not made this decision lightly but have done so in order to protect businesses from any unnecessary risks associated with the new legislation,” Wonolo co-founder and CEO Yong Kim stated in an email sent Dec. 17 to its gig workers and viewed by the San Francisco Business Times.
I find it ironic that a decade ago, the best political consultants on the conservative/Republican side based in California quit working California campaigns, instead spending their time in out of state elections. Now for much the same reasons, California businesses are concentrating on out of state markets to stay alive while ignoring their own backyard. I’m sure this is just coincidence.
High-Tech Feudalism
OK, as promised here’s portions of the article that I implore you to read in its entirety. It’s long but worth it.
In truth, the Golden State is becoming a semi-feudal kingdom, with the nation’s widest gap between middle and upper incomes—72 percent, compared with the U.S. average of 57 percent—and its highest poverty rate. Roughly half of America’s homeless live in Los Angeles or San Francisco, which now has the highest property crime rate among major cities. California hasn’t yet become a full-scale dystopia, of course, but it’s heading in a troubling direction.
In the last two decades, the state has adopted policies that undermine the basis for middle-class growth. State energy policies, for example, have made California’s gas and electricity prices among the steepest in the country. Since 2011, electricity prices have risen five times faster than the national average. Meantime, strict land-use controls have raised housing costs to the nation’s highest, while taxes—once average, considering California’s urban scale—now exceed those of virtually every state. At the same time, California’s economy has shed industrial diversity in favor of dependence on one industry: Big Tech. Just a decade before, the state’s largest firms included those in the aerospace, finance, energy, and service industries. Today’s 11 largest companies hail from the tech sector, while energy firms—excluding Chevron, which has moved much of its operations to Houston—have disappeared. Not a single top aerospace firm—the iconic industry of twentieth-century California—retains its headquarters here.
Though lionized in the press, this tech-oriented economy hasn’t resulted in that many middle- and high-paying job opportunities for Californians, particularly outside the Bay Area. Since 2008, notes Chapman University’s Marshall Toplansky, the state has created five times the number of low-paying, as opposed to high-wage, jobs.A remarkable 86 percent of new jobs paid below the median income, while almost half paid under $40,000. Moreover, California, including Silicon Valley, created fewer high-paying positions than the national average, and far less than prime competitors like Salt Lake City, Seattle, or Austin. Los Angeles County features the lowest pay of any of the nation’s 50 largest counties.
Perhaps the biggest demographic disaster is generational. For decades, California incubated youth culture, creating trends like beatniks, hippies, surfers, and Latino and Asian art, music, and cuisine. The state is a fountainhead of youthful wokeness and rebellion, but that may prove short-lived as millennials leave. From 2014 to 2018, notes demographer Wendell Cox, net domestic out-migration grew from 46,000 to 156,000. The exiles are increasingly in their family-formation years. In the 2010s, California suffered higher net declines in virtually every age category under 54, with the biggest rate of loss coming among the 35-to-44 cohort.
As families with children leave, and international migration slows to one-third of Texas’s level, the remaining population is rapidly aging. Since 2010, California’s fertility rate has dropped 60 percent, more than the national average; the state is now aging 50 percent more rapidly than the rest of the country. A growing number of tech firms and millennials have headed to the Intermountain West. Low rates of homeownership among younger people play a big role in this trend, with California millennials forced to rent, with little chance of buying their own home, while many of the state’s biggest metros lead the nation in long-term owners. California is increasingly a greying refuge for those who bought property when housing was affordable.
The state, nevertheless, continues its pursuit of policies that would eliminate all fossil fuels and nuclear power—outpacing national or even Paris Accord levels and guaranteeing ever-rising energy prices. Mandating everything from electric cars to electric homes will only drive more working-class Californians into “energy poverty.” High energy prices also directly affect the manufacturing and logistics firms that employ blue-collar workers at decent wages. Business relocation expert Joe Vranich notes that industrial firms account for many of the 2,000 employers that left the state this decade. California’s industrial growth has fallen to the bottom tier of states; last year, it ranked 44th, with a rate of growth one-third to one-quarter that of prime competitors like Texas, Virginia, Arizona, Nevada, and Florida.
Reality is asserting itself, though. Tech firms already show signs of restlessness with the current regulatory regime and appear to be shifting employment to other states, notably Texas, Tennessee, Nevada, Colorado, and Arizona. Economic-modeling firm Emsi estimates that several states—Idaho, Tennessee, Washington, and Utah—are growing their tech employment faster than California. The state is losing momentum in professional and technical services—the largest high-wage sector—and now stands roughly in the middle of the pack behind other western states such as Texas, Tennessee, and Florida.
On its current course, California increasingly resembles a model of what the late Taichi Sakaiya called “high-tech feudalism,” with a small population of wealthy residents and a growing mass of modern-day serfs.
Folks, as we often say at the editorial board meetings, California hasn’t hit bottom yet. I predicted that if Trump won in 2016 that he would bring prosperity to the nation and the benefit that California enjoyed would just enable them to dig a deeper hole. That is what is happening now. The financial solvency of the state’s government is built on Silicon Valley and Hollywood. When our economy catches a cold, California will suffer a fatal case of pneumonia. Too bad there’s no viable alternative offered by the minority political party.
My 15-year-old Ford with over 178k miles on it finally took a dive. We had a great run, but the prognosis was terminal, in the sense that the repair needed would likely result in a bill north of $3,000, and quite frankly, the car really isn’t worth that much.
I was in a bad spot, I knew this day was coming and I had money saved up, but like they say, the worst time to buy a car is when you are desperate. Of course, advice was given by any and everyone. People suggested “best time to buy is year-end” and “Go to CarMax.” The suggestions were good, but I really needed wheels that day, it was October. I had always driven an SUV and thought I may have wanted something different. Problem is, I did not have time on my hands, I work, I own part of a business. I took some advice and was looking at Toyota Tacoma pickup trucks. They hold their value very well and are far less expensive than their “American” counterparts.
I filled out an online form and instantly it was sent to every dealership within an hour radius from my house. Within about 10 minutes, the emails and calls were coming in like crazy. Merced, Lodi, Elk Grove, Sacramento, Vallejo, Roseville, you name it. I was literally whacking away car salesmen from all corners of the area. It was mentally draining, but in a sense, I was prepared. I knew what I wanted and was able to stick to my guns. This was a key, I wanted a 2018 Tacoma, SR5 double cab, super white color.
2018 Tacoma, SR5 double cab
It is very similar to an SUV, keep in mind I had done some homework and unless my terms were met, I was walking. The salespeople at Vallejo and Merced were by far the most accommodating, but the locations were too far away for my liking. The Lodi guy won me over because he told me, find the best offer and he would match it. So, I went to Elk Grove and puttered around the lot. The sales guy tried talking me into something else, the access cab, which has a single side door for the backseat, in essence a typical truck, a cab, and a bed. I didn’t want it, but he knew best, he was trying to buffalo me, and I said I would go check out the Ford and Chevy lot, both conveniently located across the street. Just to give you an idea of how expensive cars are; the Tacoma ran around $33k sticker price, F-150 and the Silverado ran about 50k sticker, one F-150 Raptor edition ran about 100k, yes for a pickup truck.
I got my best offer from Merced and called down in Lodi. The guy told me, we had a deal and to see him tomorrow at 7pm. I was going to lease the truck, which if you aren’t aware, is similar to renting, you pay virtually no interest since you are taking the depreciation hit. I have a 3-year lease for 12k miles a year, if I decide not to keep the truck in 3 years and the mileage is over 36K, I pay a $.25 a mile overage penalty. Yikes, but it won’t be an issue. You also know the price you will pay at the end of the 3-year lease, and they take care of all the maintenance free of charge. If you so choose, you can be driving a new car every 3 years, the downside is you do have a car payment, which I have never had before. I had gotten counsel from people I knew who had leased and was about to head to Lodi. He called and said we have a problem, no 2018 in Super white, deal was in peril. He said he would get back to me, but they had other colors, I wanted white, not sandstorm or electric blue, or fire engine red. Great! I was desperate for a car and was going to get screwed.
Not so fast, he called back and said they have a 2019 in the aforementioned white, and had all I wanted, he even said he would honor the price, but deal was needed asap. I sped down there, and it had some cool extra features, snakeskin pattern on the seats, some tan upholstery, back up camera and more. I test drove it and shook his hand! Deal! Then the real fun began. I then had to visit the finance department, which promptly greeted me saying only the best buyers get your deal, and it was all subject to a credit check. I felt I would have no issue and I didn’t. The lady remarked that I had an 811-credit score and even knocked a few bucks off the payment. It was done, I left the dealer in my new truck.
The lesson learned is this, I had perfect credit history so in a sense I made the rules. They wanted me; others are not so fortunate. I was in a bad spot, but I came prepared. I knew what I wanted and had the salespeople compete over me. Most get credit terms unfavorable to them, I was lucky. I got what I wanted and my terms, it was a long time coming and I love my truck My advice, I would go through the same online channels I did; that way you deal with an internet sales guy not a typical car sales guy. I feel very blessed as I was in a horrible spot.
