An Example of EPA Overreach: They Want to Shut Down Wood Stoves in the Depths of the Alaskan Winter

This is exactly why cleaning up regulations will be a big deal in 2017.

Like most people in Alaska, the residents of those frozen cities are burning wood to keep themselves warm this winter. Smoke from wood-burning stoves increases small-particle pollution, which settles in low-lying areas and can be breathed in. The EPA thinks this is a big problem. Eight years ago, the agency ruled that wide swaths of the most densely populated parts of the region were in “non-attainment” of federal air quality standards.
That prompted state and local authorities to look for ways to cut down on pollution from wood-burning stoves, including the possibility of fining residents who burn wood. After all, a declaration of noncompliance from the EPA would have enormous economic implications for the region, like the loss of federal transportation funding.

So they threatened people using wood burning stoves with "economic implications" for simply keeping themselves from dying during winter? This is exactly why people dislike the EPA and cite them for all sorts of nonsense.

The Lost City of Leng found the the Antarctic! #HPLovecraft

NASA do not investigate!

Scientists believe a massive object that could change our understanding of history is hidden beneath the Antarctic ice.
The huge and mysterious “anomaly” is thought to be lurking beneath the frozen wastes of an area called Wilkes Land. The area is 151 miles across and has a minimum depth of about 2,700 feet.
Some researchers believe it is the remains of a truly massive asteroid more than twice the size of the Chicxulub space rock that wiped out the dinosaurs.

151 miles across and 2700 feet deep! That is no asteroid! That is a City man was never meant to see! Its full of eldritch terrors, alien buildings, and ululating pipes that drive men insane. Unwholesome bodied and noisome fleshed creatures prowl its cyclopean streets and raise their thousand maws and ten-thousand eyes to uncaring Gods at the Center of the Universe. It is a place lost to time and should be lost from memory by the good people of this world. NASA beware!   

2017 Predicitons: Its Going to be a Good Year Folks

Politics

1. Donald Trump will have a whirlwind 100 days and will have one of the more successful runs in modern times. He leaves much of the heavily lifting to his talented cabinet and goes after minutiae with his Twitter account and phone. There will be a rise of the Trump Twitter-ologists like the Kremlin-ologists of old who pick over his Tweets looking for hidden meanings and such. All in all at the end of the year America would be well on the way to prosperity that it hasn't seen in more than 16 years.

2. There is a huge fight over the next Supreme Court nominee as the Dems make their stand on this issue. There is much character assassination and back-and-forth but Scalia's seat goes to another person in his same mold but far younger. This person turns out to not be as conservative as many think.

3. Black Lives matter leaves the stage as the racial animus in the country slowly recedes. By the end of the year there are less cop deaths and less deaths by violence by young African Americans. Crime levels slow go back to normal as the cops go back about their business with less fear.

4. The main stream media suffers cracks that they never had before as CNN, Fox, and MSNBC and the various newspapers become less important to the zeitgeist. Viewership is way down as American's enjoys the prosperity that the Trump era brings in. Many Americans are energized as consumer confidence and other measures are way up by the end of the year.

5. Hillary Clinton is not hear from very much but Obama seems to be everywhere as the left holds on to the last popular thing they seem to have left. Young Bernie supporters slowly remake the Democrat party as they stay involved in the process.


World

1. Russia moves back in the Great Power spotlight as they now have a man in the White House that apologizes for their misdeeds. They solidify gains in the Levant and form a partnership with the US to eliminate ISIS. Russia slowly moves their neighbors into their Sphere of Influence by undermining elections to but pro-Putin people in charge. Russia deftly plays the Great Game and looks powerful and influential by the end of the year.

2. North Korea collapses as Kim tries to hold onto power by eliminating everyone he can. It is not enough as the Red Chinese backed junta takes control of the Hermit Kingdom. The Red Chinese dominate North Korea and move their Sphere of Influence outward.

3. The Red Chinese still rattle the sabre in the South China sea and various places in the world but there is a rapprochement with the Trump White House (that is still weird to say) by the end of the year. The USA and China work on a long term trade and security deal that is unprecedented. There is no Trade War and oddly enough Trump turns out to be the best thing Red China ever got in the White House.

4. The Syrian Civil war is totally over by the end of the year as ISIS is destroyed by Russia and the USA working with Turkey. Assad stays in power and rebuilding starts in earnest as Russian petro-dollars pour into a solid place on the Mediterranean. Catherine the Greats dream is finally realized by the richest KGB agent to have ever lived.

5. Israel and the UN continue to spar but the problem seems to recede by the end of the year. Israel and the Palestinians find themselves in peace for much of the year.


Economic Predictions:

S&P 500: 2750
Dow: 22,000
NASDAQ: 5800
Russell 2000: 1510

Crude Oil: $75
Gold: $1200
EUR/Dollar: $0.98
10 Year Bond: 2.75

Sports Predictions:

NFL: Patriots
NBA: Golden State Warriors
MLB: Cleveland Indians
Premier League: Chelsea
Bundesliga: Hertha Berlin
NCAA Football: Clemson
NCAA Basketball: UCLA  

2016 Predictions a Look Back

Well here is my yearly look back at the Crystal Ball of Clairvoyance from last year. What really happened in blue.

Politics:

1. Hillary Clinton beats Donald Trump in a landslide victory. The Donald wins only the southern states but does not carry any of the key battleground states and loses Florida quite handily. He only gets about 9% of the Hispanic vote and it turns into a referendum on immigration. The rise of the Hispanic voter becomes the key issue in politics this year. The GOP barely holds onto the Senate but retains the House with only a few notable losses.  
Wow I strait up missed this one with Trump beating her fairly handily in the electoral but losing the worthless popular vote. The Hispanic vote didn't seem to matter at all with their turnout down. I did get the GOP holding the Senate and House though.

2. The GOP Congress finally gets some things done now that Paul Ryan is in charge. They send a bunch of symbolic bills that are defeated by a lame-duck Obama. The reactionary wing of the GOP calls for Ryan's ouster by the end of the year.
Some symbolic bills were sent in but it seems that they didn't do much of anything. 2017 will be a far different story.

3. Obamacare is dealt a blow from Democrats who try to alter it after hearing it from their constituents who are having trouble with high co-pays. Insurance companies mostly pull out of the exchanges and the price of health insurance does not go down by any appreciable margin.
Got this one as co-pays go sky high and health insurance companies flee the exchanges en mass.

4. Obama becomes very active at first but peters out as he takes many foreign trips. Almost all of the news will be about the Election and he quietly works well with the Ryan Congress. Trump and Hillary suck the air out of the room and Obama's ego is bruised.
Obama did take a few foreign trips but I think he will be very active in the last weeks of office as he grasps for a legacy, any legacy. Trump and Hillary did suck all the air out of the room.

5. Hillary is indited but the FBI does not pursue the case until after the election. She pretty much gets out of any blame for the illegal email server and it becomes a non-issue after the election.
She wasn't indited and it will become a non-issue after the election.

6. The US becomes slightly less partisan by the end of the year with both parties staying away from the extremes after Trump implodes.
Hmm America might become less partisan going forward but I doubt it.

World:

1. ISIS starts to collapse as recruits leave the fold and the bombing starts to get results. The Iraqi army pushes ISIS out of Iraq and regains a firm grip on their country. However, ISIS becomes even stronger outside of the remnants of the "Caliphate" as young radical Islamists fight the West from the comfort of their own homes. Several more terrorist attacks are planned and carried out but nothing as big as the Paris attacks happens in 2016.
Got this one mostly right as ISIS is almost out of Iraq. However, they are new arguably stronger because as the German attack shows it just takes a radical and a truck to cause mayhem. Luckily there was nothing as big as Paris but Nice came close.

2. The Chinese economy slows but does not enter a recession. A mix of stimulus and number fudging carries them throughout the year. The Chinese stock market gyrates wildly but ends the year down only 2% from the start of the year.
Close but the Chinese stock market got clobbered in the early part of the year and basically ended the year near where it started.

3. Oil prices stay low throughout the year but spike briefly as the Saudi/Iranian crisis looms. There is much posturing and sabre rattling but there is no outright warfare between the two. However the Sunni-Shia divide becomes the defining characteristic between the Great Powers going forward. The Sunni side is championed by the Saudis and the gulf states and Iran champions the Shiite powers. Both lead states are backed with petro-dollars and both now have a free hand due to the Iranian nuclear deal. A clandestine nuclear program is found in Saudi Arabia and an arms race begins.
Oil prices stayed low, went lower, and then spiked. Also the Saudi vs Iran thin simmers but hasn't blowen over yet. No clandestine nukes found in Saudi Arabia as of this time.


4. Russian power finally extends into the Mediterranean as Syria falls into their sphere of influence. By the end of the year the Syrian war becomes the "Russian Vietnam" with advisers training and re-arming Assads troops. Russian MIGs fly more sorties then the Western powers combined. Assad's troops push back ISIS and retake much of Syria while a massive Russian presence looms in the Levant.
Hit this one right on the head. The Russians now have a Syrian puppet after turning Aleppo into Berlin circa 1945. They also get to dictate terms in any peace talks going forward. Syrian adventurism is working out for Putin so far.


Economic Predictions:

S&P 500: 2300 2241 (close more or less)
Dow: 18100 19788 (wow way off)
Nasdaq: 5700 5385 (hmm shot too high)

Crude Oil: $65 58.57 (I bet we see $60 next year though)
Gold: $1200 $1151 (again a bit too high)
EUR/Dollar: 1.24 1.05 (big miss)
10 Yr Bond: 2.54 2.45 (close again)

Sports Predictions:
NFL: Arizona Cardinals Denver Broncos
NBA: Golden State Warriors Cleveland Cavs
MLB: San Fransisco Giants Chicago Cubs! (the end times near)
NHL: Montreal Canadiens Pittsburgh Penguins
Premier League: Arsenal Leicester City!?
Bundesliga: Borussia Dortmund (probably Bayern Munich though) yeah Bayen
NCAA Football: Alabama Crimson Tide Alabama Crimson Tide
NCAA Basketball: Kansas Villanova!

Can Trump-ism be Called Common Sense or Street-Corner Conservatism?

Hmm this is a very interesting article.

Indeed, Trump was so at variance with the mainstream of the intellectual conservative movement on these issues that he modified his political identity. “I really am a conservative,” he said last February. “But I’m also a commonsense person. I’m a commonsense conservative. We have to be commonsense conservatives. We have to be smart.” Common sense in this understanding is opposed to the theoretical and academic analysis that has led conservatives to nonsensical and unpopular positions because they are beholden to speculative conclusions or to creedal dogma.

I think common sense conservatism would have saved the GOP from shutting the government down in 2013 due to Ted Cruz being a moron. There was no way that they could have de-funded Obamacare, and even if by some miracle they did, Obama would have simply vetoed it. It was pretty much the most non-common sense thing they could have done and that's what they did. In fact every one of those repeal Obamacare votes that failed could be an example of dogmatic conservatism. This is an interesting passage.

When Donald Trump and Mike Pence arranged for Carrier to retain some of the jobs it had previously announced would move to Mexico, adherents to free market ideology roundly criticized the move as cronyism. But, as has so often been the case this year, these thinkers lacked a constituency. They found themselves defending the economic basis of Walmart rather than the livelihoods of the people who shop there. The Carrier deal was popular not only with Carrier employees but also with voters. It was a textbook example of street corner conservatism: deviation from principle in the pursuit of tangible goods. Arguments from theory or economic calculation had no purchase because the street corner conservative thinks not in terms of producers and consumers but in terms of citizens and foreigners.

Yeah it is something I like to call economic nationalism. Other countries practice it all the time and manipulate their currency, labor and capital markets in order to make the most of it. If Mexico really wanted to help their people they would increase their minimum wage by fiat to match ours. They won't because jobs and capital goods would stop flowing their way. An intellectual conservative would say cheap Mexican goods brings prices down everywhere and is good for everyone. But those cheap-assed goods come at the cost of jobs for people living in this country. A street-corner Conservative would want America first and actually do things how Mexico, China, and Japan does. They benefit their citizens first and foremost. It seems Trump might do just that. 

Even Putin is Going After the Democrats on Their Sore Loser Status #GreatGame

This new rapprochement with Putin is going to be interesting in terms of the Great Game.

"The current administration and the leadership of the Democratic Party are trying to blame all their failures on external factors," said Putin.

"(We are talking about) a party which has clearly forgotten the original meaning of its own name. They (the Democrats) are losing on all fronts and looking elsewhere for things to blame. In my view this, how shall I say it, degrades their own dignity. You have to know how to lose with dignity."

A Russia/US axis against China would be an interesting development indeed. It really smacks of the Cold War as well.

Hmm The "Trump Technique" of Increasing Competition Might be What He Does to Lower Drug Prices

Hmm he seems to be doing this for Boeing vs. Lockheed Martin but he could easily use it for drug prices.

One thing I always like to do like if I'm selling something or if I'm trying to rent something, I always like to create competition because it makes you feel better. And sometimes it's even a perceived competition. But the other side should know there's competition.

What could this mean for drug prices? I think he might either cut the patent length of a drug from 20 years to something quicker. He might also cut down the exclusivity of biotechs from the 12 years they have now. This would be a disaster for the entire drug industry because if will be hard for many drugs to recoup their development costs if they didn't have a long period of time in which to sell them. Margins will be squeezed all over the industry and most investigational stage biotechs would need to close their doors because making just one or two drugs will not be very profitable at all.

However, if this move corresponds to a quicker path to market that his new FDA chief might be into it might all might come out in the wash. If a company can bring a drug onto market with like 18 months of investigation that mostly revolved around safety then they don't need a billion dollars and nearly 12 years! to get from lab to market. The drug company will have recurring costs of investigating ongoing efficacy but that can be handled much easier as more drugs come onto market at a quicker pace.

The law of the marketplace would weed out the weak drugs and the companies that sell them. Then the more efficacious drugs will still sell very well and rise to the top. The drug industry will more reflect other industries in which competition keeps prices lower. But the result would be R&D spend would go down and margins would shrink but more drugs would be floating around for each malady. 

Hmm 1950s Style Market? Stephen Suttmeier of Bank of America Merrill Lynch Thinks So

I would love for this to be true.

Suttmeier points out that much like today, rising bond yields also corresponded to a surge in equities in the 1950s. By the time bond yields moved to 5 or 6 percent in the 1960s, the S&P 500 had rallied about 460 percent over the decade or so.

"That bull run into the mid-1960s was actually an S&P secular bull trend that was associated with a low and rising interest rate environment," Suttmeier said. "That is how we're set up right here. "

Money is certainly going to move out of bonds and into stocks as we continue to go higher.

Battle of the Billionaires: Dems Money People Move from Writing Checks to Taking over Establishment #SorryBernie

I guess just writing a big check is no longer enough.

Politico reported on December 8 that billionaire donor Tom Steyer has expressed interest in running for governor of California in 2018, billionaire donor J.B. Pritzker wants to run for governor of Illinois, and multimillionaire John Morgan may run for governor of Florida.
Billionaire Democratic donor Stephen Bittel isn’t waiting until 2018 to claim a top position within the party, but is currently using the influence his donations have provided to give himself the position of Florida Democratic Party chair. Bittel’s Machiavellian ascent to top ranks of the Florida Democratic Party incited outrage among Bernie Sanders supporters, who are pushing to remove the corrupt influence wealthy and corporate donors have on the party.

Sorry Bernie Bros your party is going to be taken over by the big money men to combat the billionaires on the Trump administration. The idea that the small Democratic Socialist rising to power in the Dems might just have been a one time deal. 

Dems Really are the Job Destroyers: Fires Entire Media Center Staff One Week Before Christmas

I guess these are the heads they decided to have roll.

With Christmas days away, nearly every member of the Senate Democratic Media Center has been fired, a senior Democratic aide confirmed to Fox News. Schumer swung the axe on Friday, according to Politico, which first obtained “goodbye” emails from staffers, including some with decades' experience.
The move comes amid plans to revamp the unit, which handles video content, in an effort to help the Senate Democratic caucus get their message out in the New Year. The party not only lost the presidential race, it failed to capture the Senate or House and lost state legislative races throughout the country.

Read, younger and hipper I should think. I'm not sure how that will break them out of the East/West Coast+ Blue City trap they have themselves in though. More celebrity videos that the rest of America seems to tune out is not something special or new.

It looks Like the Celebrities Trying to Turn the GOP Electors was Yet Another Colossal Failure

It seems that celebrities can't do anything right anymore.

But when the electors gathered across the country Monday, this plot backfired embarrassingly — more electors defected from Hillary Clinton than from Trump.

As of Monday afternoon, Clinton had lost four electors from states she won — three of whom instead cast their votes for former Secretary of State Colin Powell, while the other voted for Faith Spotted Eagle, an activist involved in protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline. 

Yes, after shooting their video and setting up an SNL skit they ended up costing Hillary 4 electoral college votes.

Oy Vay! 30% of Jews Backed Trump?

That is the highest Jewish vote for a Republican since 1988.

An estimated 30 percent of American Jews voted for Trump, the highest Jewish vote for a Republican since 1988. Among religious Jews, anecdotal evidence suggests, support for Trump was overwhelming. But most Jewish Republican leaders backed Hillary Clinton or minor candidates in the general election while opposing Trump in terms that often climbed the walls of hysteria.

I didn't know that these Jewish neocons mentioned above went after Bannon with such fervor. However, it seems that Bannon isn't an anti-Semite after all.

As it happens, I have spent some time with Steve Bannon, and I—like other Jews of his acquaintance—observe that he is exuberantly pro-Israel and as friendly to Jews as any Gentile I know. After reading Podhoretz’s accusation, I examined every article published on Bannon’s Breitbart website during the past years containing the search terms “Israel” or “Jews” and found that all were pro-Israel and friendly to Jews without a single exception. Facts are facts, and Commentary’s shrillness stems from hysteria more than outrage. 

I figured most of the Alt-Right and others in the right wing of the GOP were wildly pro-Israel and the anti-Israel people were on the far left. Almost all of the anti-Semitic nonsense coming out the US were from academics like Joy Karega and denizens of the far left on both sides of the Atlantic.

Is Big Climate Change Going to be Taken Apart with a Claw-Hammer? This Writer, Francis Menton Thinks so

I'm pretty sure the "insert nice place to visit" Round of the Climate Change Agreements will be a dismal failure but this might be true as well.

So what can we predict about where the climate scare is going?  Among members of the environmental movement, when their heads stop exploding, there are plenty of predictions that this will be terrible for the United States:  international ostracism, loss (to China!) of "leadership" in international climate matters, and, domestically, endless litigation battles stalling attempts to rescind or roll back regulations.  I see it differently.  I predict a high likelihood of substantial collapse of the global warming movement, both domestically and internationally, over the course of the next couple of years.

I think the funding will go from the government to the private sector but that legitimacy thing is going to hurt them big time. Endless funding by a willing Obama White House, that will be replaced by a tight-fisted Trump White House, will put lots of pressure on pro-Climate Change Billionaires like Tom Steyer. So the idea of "these words are backed with the full faith and credit of the United States Government" will be changed to words backed by a billionaires cashola. Just doesn't have the same amount of legitimacy as before.

2500 Year Old City Found on Top of a Greek Mountain

Hmm I wonder what strange things this city holds?

An international team of Swedish and Greek archaeologists discovered the remains of a former metropolis located 190 miles north of Athens. The 2,500-year-old lost city is buried underground, yet it is high in the sky on the Strongilovoúni hill on the great Thessalian plains.

My money is on Iron Golems.

I Know Richard Sherman is a Blowhard but I think He should be Football Commissioner After Reading This

I always knew he was a very smart, sophisticated guy (and seems like a giant asshole) but this is one interesting take on Thursday Night football.

I guess this is what happens when you have people in suits who have never played the game at this level dictating the schedule. I’d like to put Roger Goodell in pads for a late game on a Sunday, in December, in Green Bay, on the frozen tundra — then see what time he gets to the office on Monday morning, knowing that he would have to suit up again on Thursday.
Then maybe he’d understand….

I think Thursday Night games are a bad idea and no-one should be playing a physically demanding game as football on a short week. Sherman says that there should be a mandatory bi-week before a Thursday game and they should get rid of a Pre-season game to make up for it. That sounds like a great idea. Give the players the same amount of time to heal as if it was a Sunday night game. Seems like a simple fix.

Why Obamacare Failed in a Nutshell: Vox does a Great Job of Reporting it

I read Vox as one of my trips out of the echo-chamber into the liberal blogosphere and this article summed up exactly why Obamacare failed.

Oller renewed 59-year-old Ruby Atkins’s Obamacare coverage just after lunchtime on a Tuesday. Atkins and her husband received a monthly tax credit that would cover most of their premium. But they would still need to contribute $244 each month — and face a $6,000 deductible.

Atkins said she had insurance before the Affordable Care Act that was significantly more affordable, with $5 copays and no deductible at all. She said she paid only $200 or $300 each month without a subsidy.

The deductible left Atkins exasperated. “I am totally afraid to be sick,” she says. “I don’t have [that money] to pay upfront if I go to the hospital tomorrow.”

Atkins’s plan offers free preventive care, an Obamacare mandate. But she skips mammograms and colonoscopies because she doesn’t think she’d have the money to pay for any follow-up care if the doctors did detect something. 

So basically Ms. Atkins pays $244 a month for a chance to pay less than $6000 for care. She actually skips the preventive care because it might put her on the hook for $1000s of out-of-pocket costs. Everyone talks about how Obamacare increased coverage, and had subsidies to help you pay premiums, but that $6000 deductible is outrageous. Why have insurance if you are going to have to pay full freight for almost everything anyway? That is why Obamacare has been a disaster and needs to change.

Under Trumps Possible FDA Chief Developing Drugs Might Just get Way Cheaper

If this guy implements this change that $1 billion dollars and 10 year time frame to bring a drug to market just got way cheaper.

The first potential FDA chief appointee leaked by the Trump transition team is Jim O’Neill. Managing director of Peter Thiel’s Mithril Capital, O’Neill has publicly supported proposals to do away with the FDA’s requirement for phase 2 and 3 trials. Instead, he favors “progressive approval” of drugs and other medical technologies.

This will open a whole lot of innovation since the only bar they will have to pass is safety. Make sure the drug doesn't kill or maim the patient and then let it rip. The plan calls for a Phase 4 where the company must study efficacy data once the drug is on the market. This is a kind of "testing in production" model but it will get drugs to market faster than the 10 years it takes normally. When you take something breakthrough to market much faster it will strait-up save/extend lives.

The other thing it would do is break some of the stranglehold big pharma has on prices. If a company doesn't need $1 billion and 10 years to bring a biologic to market then they don't have to do profit sharing deals or whatever with big pharma. That argument that they have to charge so much because it took so much capital to develop would be moot. That big moat for big pharma will get smaller.

It will also allow targeted therapies to come to market. A company doesn't need to have a huge addressable patient population in order to make a drug. They just need to make sure it helps patients and extends there lives. So a drug for instance for Duchenne muscular dystrophy doesn't need to take years to develop and have a bunch of people afflicted with it plead with the FDA for approval. They could have had a few of them on the market and the FDA would have stopped the sales of the ones that didn't help those kids move around better.

Finally, drug prices should be put in check since you won't need $1 billion and 10 years to bring anything to market. Having ongoing efficacy studies sounds expensive though. However it won't be anything like moving something from breakthrough to approval nowadays. So overall we would get more therapies and cheaper prices but the drug companies would have lower margins. Sounds like a win for many parts of the industry and especially for the patient.

Botox for Depression? Allergan Might have Yet Another Use for It

Well it seems that Botox might help with depression for some reason or another.

Overall, though, the results are promising — Reichenberg and Magid found that depression scores dropped 42 percent in patients who received Botox, compared with only 15 percent in participants who had a placebo. As Reichenberg noted, the Botox’s effect was as good as an anti-depressant.

The article points out that some of the other depression treatments have some serious side-effects as well. I'm pretty sure no one will be killing themselves after getting a bunch of Botox treatments. Also I wonder where it will be injected to get this higher response rate?

Strait-up Hagiography by Historians on Obama's Legacy #SaintObama

I'm not sure how I got through this whole thing but it is really a case-in-point on how fervent the echo-chamber encased liberal academic sees the world.

People will see the sheer caliber of this man. The grace and poise with which he conducted himself in unbelievably difficult circumstances; the way he withstood abuse and disrespect with extraordinary calm and goodwill. He will in his post-presidency become a symbol, maybe somebody we need more than when he was president, to remind us of what it is to be dignified in public life. Especially if this hideous monster who’s succeeding him continues to despoil the public culture.
We have to remember, Obama is leaving office having been elected twice by a majority and with approval ratings that are matching Reagan’s. If he had a successor who could continue that, then he would be in the epic position to be the architect of the entire twenty-first century.
It may be, in my view, that the counterreaction is so perverse and so destructive that we will return to this figure as the cornerstone of our future. And he is young. At some point in the future, with the possible bloodshed and civil unrest in this country that we’re about to engage in, he may be a key person as a post-president—a bit like a monarch who might be able to hold us all together.

This part is what Andrew Sullivan wrote. He sounds like someone that has an Obama altar in his house or something. It's almost like he wants to see bloodshed and civil unrest (which I am almost certain will never come to pass) so that he can pine for the halcyon days of the Pax Obama. Maybe he should look into making Obama divine like they did for the former Emperors of Rome.

Jade Helm Part Deux! C-130 Seen Circling Low Above Midtown Manhattan: Coup d'état Against Trump or Routine Exercises? #LookOutDonald

Hmm "routine military exercises" you say?

A military aircraft that was seen circling midtown Manhattan in New York City on Tuesday afternoon was taking part in a routine exercise, an official for the National Guard says.

“That was a standard military training flight from the New York Air National Guard from the 106th Rescue Wing, and they are based at Gabreski Air National Guard Base in Westhampton in Long Island,” Col. Rich Goldenberg, public information officer for the New York National Guard, told Yahoo News.

A military exercise involving training flights flying this low over Manhattan is more of a “rare occurrence,” Goldenberg said, “but it does occur from time to time.”

It looks like a regular C-130 Hercules at first glance but if it was an AC-130 Spectre Gunship then we have some room for concern. I'm pretty sure they couldn't get away with it firing that Bofors gun a few times at Trump Tower and saying it was a gas leak explosion or something. But maybe there is a rogue "terrorist" at the helm (or maybe mind-controlled Project Ultra types) or even a remote controlled version. That compromised Gunship would then fire on Trump Tower when Pence is there and wipe them both out before they are sworn in. 

Then what would happen? Would Obama stay President for a few months until there was a re-vote? Would Hillary become President by default? Would Mitch McConnell become President? Or maybe it is just a surveillance flight as part of the security detail for the President-elect. That would make much more sense then a Coup d'état because Jade Helm turned out to be a nothing. I bet this is the same kind of thing but its fodder for Conspiracy nuts like me.

Wait the Electors of the Electoral College Want a Secret Intelligence Briefing?

Yeah I'm sure all of these idiots have a TS Clearance so it would be an easy sell.

Ten members of the Electoral College have signed a letter urging the Director of National Intelligence James Clapper to provide them with classified briefings on Russia’s hacking and cyber involvement in the U.S. elections.

Christine Pelosi, Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi’s daughter, who serves as an elector from California, spearheaded drafting the letter and referred to the request as a “day pass” so that electors could be fully read-in before they cast their votes next week.

I think they need day care and not a "day pass." They really think they are so important that the NSA will give them classified information so they can feel better about casting their votes for Hillary? She won California so Ms. Pelosi (nepotism much?) will cast her vote against Trump anyway. Why do they need to get a "day pass?" Is is just so they can leak whatever Top Secret findings on the hacking to the press? 

In any case there will be a Congressional committee on the hacking. They will probably find Russia backed groups hacked Hillary's email (along with like 8 other countries and the NSA,) the DNC had terrible Cyber-security, and Podesta got his email spear-fished. Then the Dems will blame the election on Russia and not do any changes to re-connect with working class voters. Then they will run some easily beatable person like Elizabeth Warren in 2020 and get walloped again. I think 8 years of Trump and a filibuster-proof margin in the Senate looks very do-able for the GOP with these idiots running things.

Climate Scientists Copying Government Data to Non-government Servers? Is that legal?

Hmm this doesn't sound like it is legal.

“Something that seemed a little paranoid to me before all of a sudden seems potentially realistic, or at least something you’d want to hedge against,” said Nick Santos, an environmental researcher at the University of California at Davis, who over the weekend began copying government climate data onto a nongovernment server, where it will remain available to the public. “Doing this can only be a good thing. Hopefully they leave everything in place. But if not, we’re planning for that.”

That data was generated by tax payer money. How are they able to just put it in the open like that? I think it is a good idea to have the data backed up for the sake of posterity but it walking off like that is a cause for concern.

Economic Outlook Skews Directly Toward Party Lines

It seems like the green-shoots are growing into a jungle if you are a GOPer.

Optimism about the six-month economic outlook rocketed to 86.6 among Republicans from 50.9 just before the election, hitting the highest level since the IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism Index was launched in 2001. Independents' view of the six-month outlook jumped 12.7 points to 58.5, highest since January 2004. But sentiment among Democrats plunged 32.1 points to 28.2, lowest since October 2008, just before Barack Obama was elected.

I guess the Dems think Trump will tank the economy for some reason or another. This rally has been great for my bottom line but I guess there isn't as much stock ownership in those Blue spots on that Red map.

Media Matters is Finally Going to do a Service: Going After Fake News and Conspiracy Theories

I guess they got tired of watching Fox News and are instead going to do something that might do some good instead.

Angelo Carusone, currently the organization's executive vice president, will take over as president. The group, known for taking on what they argue is misinformation in conservative media, particularly on Fox News, will enter a “new era,” focusing on the likes of Breitbart, the “alt-right”, conspiracy theories and fake news. 

So they can get out in front of things and vet them for veracity. It seems that the Alt-right, Facebook, or the MSM has no intention of doing this so someone has to step up.

Wait, What? Amazon is getting into the Grocery Business to the Tune of 2000 stores in a Decade?

This is a strange development indeed.

Amazon shares were up slightly after reports that the e-commerce giant envisions opening more than 2,000 of its Amazon Fresh grocery stores over the next decade. Earlier Monday, the company announced the launch of its new Amazon Go stores, which will have no registers. Instead, shoppers scan into the store with their free Amazon Go app, shop as normal, and leave the store with the items billed to their Amazon.com account.

I always thought this would be the store of the future. You just pick up what you need and walk out of the store and your account is automatically billed. However, going head-to-head against bigger grocery stores might be difficult since those stores provide more choice. Maybe if these Amazon Fresh/Go stores have a smaller footprint there would be more around. More of a bodega than an actual Kroger or Safeway.

I would love to pop into an Amazon Fresh and buy European cheeses, fresh baked bread and deli cold cuts and just walk out of the door with them and it charges my Amazon account. However, I would probably not go there to buy detergent or ingredients for a meal unless things were way cheaper then Safeway or Foodland.

Apple Watch looks Like a Dismal Failure with Shipments Down 70%: I Think the Wrist Watch is Turning into the Pocket Watch

I guess people just don't want to be Dick Tracy anymore.

Eight-five percent of the wearable technology market is comprised of "basic" devices that don't run third-party apps, according to quarterly data from the International Data Corporation (IDC). Simple wearables saw double-digit growth during the third quarter, IDC said, but when smartwatches were added to the mix, the market grew only 3.1 percent from a year ago.

That was bad news for Apple, who saw wearable shipments fall 71 percent year-over-year in the quarter, to 1.1 million units. Apple does not break out its Apple Watch sales. 

I think they might just be falling due to the trend of people are just not wearing watches. Or they are simply wearing them as jewelry and not actually using them for anything other than telling time. I know luxury watch sales seem to be dipping as well.

Further proof that the high-end market is in decline is the fact that sales of watches valued at more than 3,000.- CHF (export price) have dropped by around 20%, in the same way as low-end watches. The medium range, i.e. watches between 500.- and 3,000.- CHF have been the most resilient, with a drop in value of “only” 7.1%.

I think the cell phone time display is turning the wrist watch into the pocket watch. It won't be long before the wrist watch will just be the province of older people and collectors.

Here we go Again: Cop Shoots Unarmed Black Guy in the Back 5 Times in the back and Gets a Mistrial

This should have been a slam-dunk case because the cop is clearly shooting an unarmed man running away from him in the back.

A judge declared a mistrial Monday afternoon in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man at the hands of a South Carolina former patrolman, after the jury said they could not come to a unanimous verdict.
In a statement read by Circuit Judge Clifton Newman, the jury said "We as the jury regret to inform the court" that they were unable to come "to a unanimous decision in the case of the state versus Michael Slager" after a day of questions and deliberation. 

How was one of the jurors deadlocked in this thing? The video clearly shows the cop shooting the guy running away from him 5 times like that scene in Band of Brothers. The video evidence was clear but there was still a mistrial. There should have been at least a verdict of manslaughter. In any case this really does look like there was no justice for poor Walter Scott.

California's War on Cows to Stop Global Warming: I think They Will Achieve Their Goal Because the Dairies will Move

I guess California just doesn't want any business (other than Silicon Valley) to succeed there.

In the nation’s largest milk-producing state, the new law aims to reduce methane emissions from dairies and livestock operations to 40 percent below 2013 levels by 2030, McCarthy said. State officials are developing the regulations, which take effect in 2024.

They will probably hit those targets too because I'm sure most of those Dairy farms will simply pick up shop and move to other states. I'm sure Idaho would welcome these cows with open arms. More NIMBY nonsense by the Global Warmists.

Rosie O’Donnell goes After Barron Trump: I thought First Children were Supposed to Be Off Limits

I guess scum-bags like Rosie just can't help themselves.

It’s no secret that Rosie O’Donnell hates Donald Trump, but she insists that she wasn’t trolling the president-elect when she shared a YouTube video speculating that his 10-year-old son has autism. She has since gone public with her own daughter’s recent diagnosis with the developmental disorder and said that she reposted the clip because she found it “educational and informational.”

It is still speculating on something a minor child might have (or not have) just because Rosie is an awful bully. If the Trumps don't think Barron has autism it is their prerogative. Even if he does is it really any of Rosie's or anyone elses business? The incivility is off the charts nowadays.

I Know Americans are Living Close to the Vest but This is Nuts: 69% of Americans have less than $1,000 in their Savings Accounts!

And you wonder why people voted for their pocketbooks in this last election. These numbers are sobering though.

When it comes to saving money, Americans are falling short . According to a 2016 GOBankingRates survey, 69% of Americans have less than $1,000 in their savings accounts — and 34% have no savings at all.

You think that is bad. Millennials have it even worse.

Of "young millennials" — which GOBankingRates defines as those between 18 and 24 years old — 72% have less than $1,000 in their savings accounts and 31% have $0. A sliver (8%) have over $10,000 saved.

"Older millennials" — defined as those between 25 and 34 — aren't doing much better: 67% have less than $1,000 in their savings accounts, 33% have nothing at all, and 15% have over $10,000.

I can't imagine how hard it would be to be living with $0 to $1000 in my bank account from week to week. It would be stressful as all hell. So a tax cut, jobs programs, or talk about free trade stealing ones job hits home much harder knowing these statistics. Basically the only thing Hillary had to offer was a $15 minimum wage and some piddly tax cut that amounted to peanuts to help these 69% slice of America.

Glimmer of Hope Seen in Trump's Climate Plan

It seems that some news sources are stating the Trump administration will not be a "disaster for climate" after all. So he intends to dump the Paris accord which was a joke anyway.

Even ardent supporters acknowledge that the Paris treaty by itself will do little to rein in global warming. The United Nations estimates that if every country were to make every single promised carbon cut between 2016 and 2030 to the fullest extent and there was no cheating, carbon dioxide emissions would still be cut by only one-hundredth of what is needed to keep temperature rises below 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. The Paris treaty's 2016-2030 pledges would reduce temperature rises around 0.09 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century. If maintained throughout the rest of the century, temperature rises would be cut by 0.31 degrees Fahrenheit.

This terrible plan was to hobble our GDP by $150 billion a year so we can maybe reduce temperature by .31 degrees by the end of the century? That sounds like a huge joke. I have to agree with this point raised in this article for sure.

This would be a big change. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development analyzed almost all aid from the United States and other rich nations and found that about one-third is climate-related aid.
This is immoral when 2 billion people suffer from malnutrition, around 700 million live in extreme poverty and 2.4 billion are without clean drinking water and sanitation. These problems can be tackled effectively today, helping many more people more dramatically than “climate aid” could.

So maybe if they took that climate money and used it for cleaner water and such we could actually prevent people (mostly children) from dying in the poorer parts of the world. However some environmentalists are really against saving lives at all. They are old school Bentham-ites that would like to "reduce the surplus population." In any case a pivot from throwing money at a problem that can only get solved by 0.31 degrees in a 100 years, to actually making lives better for those 2 billion "forgotten people," might be quite a win for the Trump administration and for those poor people as well.

CNN Commentator Confuses Which of the Trump Appointees Allegedly dropped the N-bomb

I guess it is difficult for these liberals to keep them all strait.

Yet Kaiser’s allegation about Bannon’s use of the n-word follows a cold trail. Though the former executive chairman of Breitbart News surely ran a media organization where the alt-right has found a roosting spot, there’s no readily available substantiation of the hateful behavior that Kaiser attributed to Bannon.

It's kind of shocking to see this correction by a MSM source though. Maybe they are trying to tack back to the center due to lower readership.

Trump's Approval Rating Ticks Higher

It seems winning makes one more popular.

Forty-six percent of voters now have a very favorable or somewhat favorable opinion of the president-elect. Twelve percent have a somewhat unfavorable opinion and 34 percent have a very unfavorable opinion of him.

It’s a dramatic uptick since the election. Trump’s favorability has grown 9 points, 37 percent to 46 percent, compared to a Morning Consult poll right before the election -- while his unfavorability has dropped 15 points, from 61 percent to 46 percent.

That is a big turn around in just a few months.

United Airlines Races to the Bottom with "Below Steerage" AKA Basic Economy

Wow these airlines are just trying everything they can to make their passengers suffer. Well I won't ever fly United but that is because I had a terrible experience on them a few years ago.  In any case the cattle car got even even worse.

Here’s a summary of the deprivations that United’s basic economy passengers will experience:

• No overhead bin space for you. Passengers can bring a briefcase or small personal item, but it must fit under the seat in front of them. The bins are going to be saved “for our economy passengers, who value that and who are willing to pay for it,” said United’s chief commercial officer Julia Haywood.
• No upgrades. Passengers cannot upgrade to United’s Economy Plus or first class.
• Board last. Boarding group 5 it is—though perhaps that doesn’t matter if you can’t compete with others for overhead bin space anyhow. United says this will smooth the boarding process. 

500 First Hand Accounts of the Somme Given to British War Museum

Just in time for Battlefield 1 we have the stories of the real men who fought in the "War to End all Wars"

Anthony Richards, head of documents and sound at the museum, says it is "quite amazing" to have come across so much previously unseen material about a battle that ended 100 years ago this week.
What makes these testimonies "incredibly unusual" he says, is that they talk so candidly about killing in hand-to-hand fighting - and often the remorse felt afterwards.
"It's very unusual for people from World War One to talk about the actual act of killing. It's usually skirted around."
It was an "uncomfortable" subject for returning soldiers, he says, and memoirs and letters tended to avoid it.

The first day of the Somme was had the worst losses of any battle in British history with 57,470 British casualties with 19,240 killed. The worst part of the whole ordeal is the Brits and French advanced only 6 miles on a front of 16 miles and it cost 432,000 Brits and 200,000 French casualties of which 146,000 were killed. That is nearly 1.5 Wembly Stadiums full of dead men in just 3 months from July 1st to Nov 18th. Those were very brave men caught in a terrible meat-grinder.

PacketSled CEO Matt Harrigan Who Threatened to Snipe Trump Ousted from Company #TrumpDerangementDisorder

Well at least he told us how he really felt.

If there's ever been a giant list of things you definitely shouldn't do in a civilized society, threatening to murder the democratically elected leader with a sniper rifle is probably right up there at the top. Apparently nobody told Matt Harrigan, CEO — well, former CEO, anyway — of network security firm PacketSled.

It's only been a week and Trump-derangement disorder has come down on us with a vengeance. First we have GrubHub telling all their Trump voters to resign and now PacketSled's CEO wants to murder the President-elect. It's only a matter of time until the next TDD afflicted person says something stupid.

Lefties React to New Balance Supporting Trump by Destroying Shoes. Give them to Charity Instead. You Need to Help Rather than Destroy

Now it seems that New Balance is the target of the lefts hissy-fits.

Following the election last week, the athletic footwear and apparel brand became one of the first international companies to congratulate President-elect Donald Trump, it appears mainly because of what his proposed policies could mean for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. As reported in the Wall Street Journal, Matt LeBretton, the vice president of public affairs at New Balance tweeted, “The Obama admin turned a deaf ear to us & frankly w/ Pres-Elect Trump we feel things are going to move in the right direction.”

Later in the article you see all sorts of crazy people setting their shoes on fire and other nonsense. Why can't they simply give them to Goodwill, or something like that, so some other people can get some use out of them. Instead they act like children and lash out. If these folks first instinct was to help rather than destroy they might have actually have swung the election.

Yet Another Reason to not Have Facebook: People seem to be Influenced by the False News on there

For reasons like this I am so glad I don't have Facebook at all.

So: 44% of all adults look to Facebook for news; 20% of them say social media posts are capable of changing their views on a political issue; and more of the stories posted on Facebook this cycle, real and fake, came from right-wing outlets.

Taken together, it all suggests Facebook had a much larger role in the election than Mark Zuckerberg would like to admit.

I think Facebook is the swamp that needs to be drained.

Dumb-assed NFL Player Protests Trump by doing the Kaeper-knee but Admits He Didn't Vote

This is exactly why it is hard to get behind some of these players doing the Kaeper-knee.

But that didn’t stop one prominent NFL player from doing just that — protesting the results of Donald Trump becoming the president-elect — despite indicating that he did not vote in the election. According to a report from the Tampa Bay Times, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans opted not to vote as well, despite protesting Trump prior to Sunday’s game.

It says later in the article that this moron is registered to vote in Texas. He is now playing in Tampa Bay so why didn't he move his registration there? Winning Florida went a long way toward Trump winning the election. So every little bit counted. If Hillary won Florida then he would not need to take the Kaeper-knee at all (although he probably would have.) Instead he complains but did nothing to change the outcome. Just like the Kaeper-knee culprit himself.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick said he did not vote, and Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel wrote about how it was a bad look for him to take another knee on Election Day. 

In the words of Eldridge Cleaver "If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem."

TCL: The Future of Hardware? Fast Fashion for TV Sets?

Hmm very interesting article on how a company I have never heard of called TCL is at the top or near the top of all of the listings of TVs for sale on Amazon.

“TCL is almost completely vertically integrated,” Larson says. “We’re among the top five panel producers in the world. We make our own plastic. We mold our own cabinets. We make our boards. We even have a factory that makes speaker drivers. The only thing we have to buy, really, is the main processor and the memory that goes along with that.”

According to Larson, owning its supply chain allows TCL to release new sets far faster—and cheaper—than is possible at competing companies that typically have to wait for suppliers to send them samples before they can finish designing their upcoming TVs. 

It is almost fast fashion for TVs. They can pump out a TV that is cheaper and quicker than the big companies they compete with. That means they are nimble and can make changes on the fly if they need to. So if Americans want 4K TVs with a special back-light they can pump one out quite easily and undercut their competitors. I have never owned a TCL product but I might look into it if I need a smaller TV for something.

The DNC kind of Forgot About Hispanics: Not as Diverse as they Claim

I guess this is yet another reason why they lost the election.

“There was only one other Hispanic in the entire third floor,” Manriquez said of his time at the DNC. “And when I did see one I had to speak to them in Spanish so people wouldn’t try to undercut us from doing our job.”
Both Morales and Manriquez left the DNC during the presidential campaign, leaving the committee for weeks without a Spanish speaker on its media staff.
The DNC did not respond to multiple phone calls and emails requesting comment. 

I guess they figured they did not need to work for the Hispanic vote and they didn't seem to get it in the numbers that they needed to win. The Trump campaign had permanent Hispanic staff in 10 states who I assume all knew Spanish while the DNC had zero. Kind of shows you how much the DNC cares about Hispanics.

Are the Anti-Trump Protests Astroturf? There is Evidence it Might Be True

Hmm maybe this is some Soros related shenanigans.

Anti-Trump protestors in Austin today are not as organic as they seem.  Here are the busses they came in.  #fakeprotests #trump2016 #austin pic.twitter.com/VxhP7t6OUI

— erictucker (@erictucker) November 10, 2016

Even "spontaneous" protests and riots seem to be part of a larger plan.

Trump's Short-list for Cabinet: Jamie Dimon Seems to have Taken his Name Out at Treasury

This is a pretty interesting list of people he has lined up. Very different than the academics and policy wonks that Obama had in his Cabinet. These people are mostly business people that will hopefully do the People's business.

Secretary of State

Newt Gingrich, former Republican Speaker of the House

Bob Corker, chairman, United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

John Bolton, former United States Ambassador to the United Nations

Treasury Secretary

Steven Mnuchin, finance chair of Trump’s presidential campaign and one of Trump’s economic advisors

CNBC reports that Trump’s team considered JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon for this role but that he declined.

Defense Secretary

Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency

Sen. Jeff Sessions, Alabama

Attorney General

Gov. Chris Christie, New Jersey

Rudy Giuliani, former New York City mayor

Interior Secretary

Forrest Lucas, an oil industry executive, who is the co-founder of Lucas Oil Products

Robert Grady, a venture capitalist and partner at Gryphon Investors

Agriculture Secretary

Bruce Rastetter, an entrepreneur of agriculture and energy and Iowa’s biggest GOP donor

Sid Miller, Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner

Commerce Department Secretary

Sen. David Perdue, served as former chief executive officer at Reebok and Dollar General

Lew Eisenberg, Finance Chair, Republican National Committee

Wilbur Ross, billionaire investor and one of Trump’s economic advisors

Labor Secretary

Victoria Lipnic, a commissioner of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under the Obama administration since 2010

Health and Human Services Secretary

Dr. Ben Carson, a surgeon who ran in the Republican Presidential Primary

Bobby Jindal, former governor of Louisiana

Energy Secretary

Harold Hamm, an American entrepreneur and chief executive officer of Continental Resources

Education Secretary

Dr. Ben Carson, a surgeon who ran in the Republican Presidential Primary

William Evers, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution who has served as senior advisor to then-Education Secretary Margaret Spellings

Veterans Affairs Secretary

Jeff Miller, Chairman, House Committee on Veteran Affairs

Homeland Security

David Clarke, Sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin

Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican Congressman

Environmental Protection Agency administrator

Myron Ebell, director of Global Warming and International Environmental Policy at the Competitive Enterprise Institute

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is 100% Correct With this Sentiment

I have to agree with the Rock on this.

The most important thing we can do right now is be 100% committed to becoming a better country. Many Americans are heart broken and many Americans are happy. Let's let the emotions of both sides settle and focus on our future. Concentrate on things we can control... work ethic, attitude, faith etc. We all wear a lot of hats in today's crazy life we live and the one I'm most proud of is being a father to two beautiful young daughters. At this time the only thing I can do for them is to continue to try my best to lead by example. I don't know what it's like to be born into wealth, nor I do I know what it's like to be a career politician. I do know what it's like to put in the hard work every day with my own two hands and earn my success from the sweat of my brow. That's all I know and all I'll continue to do. Lead by example. I encourage all of you to do the same. We got this. We're Americans and we forever "Hold the line" - DJ 

That is why the riots suck because it makes us look like yet another nation that does not have a peaceful turnover of power. That is one of our hallmarks and sets us apart from much of the rest of the world. Maybe the Obama quote of "there is no Red America and no Blue America there are only the United States of America" will actually be correct 8 after he said it.

Election Post-Mortem: It was the Elites Talking Down to Regular Americans

I think this election is seriously the revenge of the working-class voter against the technocrats and the elite. The idea that Clinton seemed to have gotten off scott-free from FBI investigation after FBI investigation for doing something that would have gotten any other American years in prison. You add that to the sweetheart deal that Bill Clinton cut with Lynch on the parked airplane and the rules "were for you and not them."

The Great Silent majority wanted a businessman to fix the economy and not the person that was there for the last 30 years. You add to this the level of condensation that the media and the elites in America kept heaping on regular working class people and you have a the recipe for a big upset.

You saw this with the Brexit 100%. Powerful monied interests, Euro-centric technocrats, lifelong bureaucrats in Brussels and British glitterai like JK Rowlings all told regular working class Britons that they were stupid. They didn't like that and the Brexit was passed. The same exact thing happened to regular Americans.

They are scared that the world is moving against them and Hillary and Obama are doing and would do nothing to help them. Imagine a working-class guy in his 50s that is trying to take care of a family. His job gets outsourced to Mexico or Vietnam and Hillary wants him to take class coding Android apps as the only way forward for him. She didn't offer tax cuts, ways to punish that company for leaving the US, or any legitimate way for him to make ends meet for his family. This guy bitterly clung to his guns and religion and went right into the basket of deplorables. He lived in the fly-over states so the Democrat party (that he would normally support) forgot about him. It is weird to see a billionaire as the working-mans friend but the Roosevelt's are case-in-point where a very rich guy helped the poor quite a bit.

Well Nate Silver Has some Egg on His Face: Polling has Met Its Waterloo #TrumpCutMyTaxes

Well I guess it is time to totally ignore polling going forward.

That remains our outlook today in our final forecast of the year. Clinton is a 71 percent favorite to win the election according to our polls-only model and a 72 percent favorite according to our polls-plus model. (The models are essentially the same at this point, so they show about the same forecast.) This reflects a meaningful improvement for Clinton in the past 48 hours as the news cycle has taken a final half-twist in her favor. Her chances have increased from about 65 percent.

Whatever methodology he used to come up with these numbers is flawed because that is a wide miss. I think the polling method in general needs a total overhaul because they are 0 for 3 in the last few big events. Polls had Romney winning in 2012, Brexit, and now Trump winning the election. I'm not sure what the fix is but it cannot go on in its current form because it leads to a 70 to 30 call for the candidate that lost handily.

Election Post-Mortem: It Was the Economy Stupid

Well the elites had it wrong again. It seems many Americans voted pocket-book over every other concern.

The state of the economy played a heavy role. Eight years beyond the Great Recession, 62 percent of voters rated the economy’s condition negatively – rising to 85 percent of Trump voters. Twenty-seven percent said their family’s financial situation has worsened in the last four years – rising to 44 percent of Trump voters. And 34 percent said they expect life for the next generation of Americans to be worse than it is now – rising, again, to 45 percent of Trump voters.

I think many Trump supporters thought Hillary was just more of the same stagnation and the Dems did not ask the question "are you better off now than 8 years ago." Trump supporters said "Hell No!"

I have to say one thing to Trump. Now deliver. I was promised tax cuts and GDP growth and an end to regulation and stagnation. No 3AM tweeting. No going after whomever for saying whatever. Pick the best men and women for the jobs and run this country like a good CEO. If we have 4% GDP growth and I'm paying 15% Cap Gain taxes he will have succeeded in putting America back on track.

This More Moderate Glenn Beck would do Well on Fox

I would watch his show for sure if we get this guy at the helm.

“I did a lot of freaking out about Barack Obama.” But, he said, “Obama made me a better man.” He regrets calling the president a racist and counts himself a Black Lives Matter supporter. “There are things unique to the African American experience that I cannot relate to,” he said. “I had to listen to them.” ...
“So much of what I used to believe was either always a sham or has been made into a sham. There’s nothing deep.”

I think the discourse on cable news needs the voice of a person who has made this kind of transformation. He is a pretty smart guy and votes his principals so that is why he was anti-Trump. I would much rather watch his show then Trump Propaganda Minister Hannity.

How Drugs are Prices is Crazy. I think Congress needs to Check this out

Why do Pharmacy Benefit Managers take so much of the money in this transaction?

Lately, though, some people have come to wonder if PBMs serve much of a purpose at all, other than skimming off profits for themselves. That's because the PBM have an enviable position in the middle of all this. It can pay the pharmacy $110 for Pretendar but bill the insurance company for $140. It keeps $30 for itself. This is called spread pricing. But those two prices are protected by confidential contracts. So neither the pharmacy nor the insurance company knows what the other received.

So we have this middle man added in here that is taking a $30 vig off the top here by sending a bill to the insurance company? Plus the insurance company and the pharmacy don't even know what the correct price of the prescription is? Why isn't this regulated better? 

"Truth is What Serves the Party" is Right when it Comes to Sean Hannity

I have to agree with the Ex-CIA Director Hayden.

In response, Hayden told Brookings Institute senior fellow Benjamin Wittes in a statement: “Hannity has entered the pantheon of a true propagandist.” Additionally, he wrote, “Fox News has almost entirely jumped the shark. They have given up any semblance of conservatism and focused on an almost visceral hatred of all things Clinton and Obama.” The four-star general—who has served in positions under Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama—concluded that Hannity reminds him a Bulgarian political official he met in the 1980s who, when asked what truth is, told Hayden, “Truth is what serves the party.”

Hannity says he isn't a journalist as some kind of mealy-mouthed defense but his show has become unwatchable. It is just one Trump hug after another with no real substance anymore. I guess Hannity has a job lined up as propaganda minister if Trump wins the Presidency. More likely he will jump ship to the Trump News Network and be his leading talking-head.