Shiftless2
Well-known member
The government only has one source of revenue - it's called taxes (and even if they're somehow "disguised" (as user fees or whatever) they're still taxes.
H E A D L I N E S : 2 0 2 2 & 2 0 2 3
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Shiftless2
Well-known member
RE #159
The derailment of a Norfolk Southern train carrying 20 railcars of toxic chemicals in western Ohio has renewed scrutiny on precision scheduled railroading (P.S.R.)–a controversial management approach that prioritizes profit at the expense of all else.
Since its introduction in the early 1990s, the approach became an effortless way for rail executives and shareholders to inflate profits, while limiting the actual effort of management. At its core, P.S.R. mandates trains to transport bigger and heavier loads with fewer workers.
In practical terms, it means that trains went from 80-90 railcars supported by 5 workers, to 2 workers overseeing 150 railcars or more. This enabled management to effectively invert how much companies spent on workers and how much profit they generated for shareholders. Of course, this came at a cost: safety and reliability. Reports indicate that before it derailed, Norfolk Southern train 32N broke down due to its excessive size.
“The root causes of this wreck,” Railroad Workers United said in ...
perfectunion.us
NORFOLK SOUTHERN BOOSTED SHAREHOLDER PAYOUTS 4,500%, SLASHED WORKFORCE 33% PRIOR TO OHIO DISASTER
“They cut their workforce to barebones, and now they’re paying the price for it because the wheels are falling off the train.”The derailment of a Norfolk Southern train carrying 20 railcars of toxic chemicals in western Ohio has renewed scrutiny on precision scheduled railroading (P.S.R.)–a controversial management approach that prioritizes profit at the expense of all else.
Since its introduction in the early 1990s, the approach became an effortless way for rail executives and shareholders to inflate profits, while limiting the actual effort of management. At its core, P.S.R. mandates trains to transport bigger and heavier loads with fewer workers.
In practical terms, it means that trains went from 80-90 railcars supported by 5 workers, to 2 workers overseeing 150 railcars or more. This enabled management to effectively invert how much companies spent on workers and how much profit they generated for shareholders. Of course, this came at a cost: safety and reliability. Reports indicate that before it derailed, Norfolk Southern train 32N broke down due to its excessive size.
“The root causes of this wreck,” Railroad Workers United said in ...
Norfolk Southern Boosted Shareholder Payouts 4,500%, Slashed Workforce 33% Prior To Ohio Disaster
“They cut their workforce to barebones, and now they’re paying the price for it because the wheels are falling off the train.”
perfectunion.us
I wasn't trying to be sneaky about me using "revenue" instead of "tax". My problem with the GOP is when they're discussing philosophy (meaning non-specifics) they can be eloquent advocates for a balanced budget, fiscal responsibility. BUT !!
Once elected, they become zombified tax-cutters, even when they know it will actually INCREASE the deficit & debt.
I'm a fiscal conservative.
If they want to cut taxes, fine. BUT !! They must cut spending further first. That's the part Republicans don't do, to balance a budget.
iirc the most recent president to have consecutive balanced budgets was Clinton (D-AR). Any Republican that would pretend to this distinction would have inherited his ostensible balance from the previous Democrat president.
The following isn't gospel, merely an uncommon perspective.
<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>
In 1992 Libertarian candidate for U.S. President Andre Marrou included in his campaign stump speech:
Candidate Marrou was asked at a 1992 campaign fund©raiser how U.S. federal government could be funded if the IRS were actually abolished.
Marrou responded:
Legal liability?RE #159
NORFOLK SOUTHERN BOOSTED SHAREHOLDER PAYOUTS 4,500%, SLASHED WORKFORCE 33% PRIOR TO OHIO DISASTER
“They cut their workforce to barebones, and now they’re paying the price for it because the wheels are falling off the train.”
Norfolk Southern Boosted Shareholder Payouts 4,500%, Slashed Workforce 33% Prior To Ohio Disaster
“They cut their workforce to barebones, and now they’re paying the price for it because the wheels are falling off the train.”
Didn't BP promise to clean up the Gulf after their mega oil-spill? Did they?
'Bout time Republicans a dress this issue:
On the one year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine
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U.S.
Quartz
Tennessee is set to become the first US state to ban drag
Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill banning drag shows in public on Thursday, sending the measure to the Republican Governor Bill Lee's desk. The law would make Tennessee the first state to ban public drag, which could also affect LGBTQ+ pride celebrations and transgender people who are in shows of any kind. There are currently 20 bills in 15 US states aimed at drag queen performances.
On the one year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine
In the computing industry it's known as a dysfunctional feedback loop. Putin errs grotesquely, and tens of thousands of his countrymen die as a result.
UN tells Russia to leave Ukraine: How did your country vote?
A country breakdown of the UN General Assembly vote that demanded Moscow withdraw its troops and end the fighting.
The following two are from: https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/ukraine-war-one-year-later-and-the-years-ahead
#1
"Now, we have Biden recasting himself as a hero. Sorry, that doesn’t sell. In his surprise trip to Kyiv, Biden declared, "We will be with you as long as it takes." That statement surely rings hollow in the ears of Afghans now living in Taliban hell." FOX
- yup -
"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Joe Biden shake hands during their meeting in Kyiv on Monday, Feb. 20, 2023. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
Blank-check Biden is also apparently not concerned about spending. Little surprise. He treats the American taxpayer like his personnel ATM. Still, Ukraine support represents but a fraction of the $5 trillion deficit rung up under Biden. Most of it was wasted on pet domestic "woke" projects."
- nope -
It's not easy to find from any source, foreign or domestic. But current or former U.S. military officers have already explained: U.S. military resources forwarded to Ukraine is not charity. Defeat of Russian military conquest is not $U.S. $squander.
To the contrary if Ukraine doesn't defeat Russia in Donets'k we may have to battle Russia in Duluth. Wars are waged and won or lost with blood and treasure. Critics, opponents of U.S. or Western support for Ukraine whether knowingly or not are not ultimately offering to spare our U.S. treasure. Instead their pseudo-frugality would merely postpone the cost to the U.S. of both blood and treasure. It is a tragedy that Russia inflicts this carnage. But the U.S. & West are fortunate to benefit from the fearless defense Ukrainian blood is buying.
#1
"Now, we have Biden recasting himself as a hero. Sorry, that doesn’t sell. In his surprise trip to Kyiv, Biden declared, "We will be with you as long as it takes." That statement surely rings hollow in the ears of Afghans now living in Taliban hell." FOX
- yup -
"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Joe Biden shake hands during their meeting in Kyiv on Monday, Feb. 20, 2023. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
Blank-check Biden is also apparently not concerned about spending. Little surprise. He treats the American taxpayer like his personnel ATM. Still, Ukraine support represents but a fraction of the $5 trillion deficit rung up under Biden. Most of it was wasted on pet domestic "woke" projects."
- nope -
It's not easy to find from any source, foreign or domestic. But current or former U.S. military officers have already explained: U.S. military resources forwarded to Ukraine is not charity. Defeat of Russian military conquest is not $U.S. $squander.
To the contrary if Ukraine doesn't defeat Russia in Donets'k we may have to battle Russia in Duluth. Wars are waged and won or lost with blood and treasure. Critics, opponents of U.S. or Western support for Ukraine whether knowingly or not are not ultimately offering to spare our U.S. treasure. Instead their pseudo-frugality would merely postpone the cost to the U.S. of both blood and treasure. It is a tragedy that Russia inflicts this carnage. But the U.S. & West are fortunate to benefit from the fearless defense Ukrainian blood is buying.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Everything you didn't want to know about the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Deepwater Horizon – BP Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill | US EPA
This webpage provides information and materials on EPA’s enforcement response to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, including settlements with some of the defendants, as well as links to other related websites for additional information.
www.epa.gov
S2 #170 https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/deepwater-horizon-bp-gulf-mexico-oil-spill
A lot of info. for sure.
What I had in mind was a % clean-up. Easier said than done. I thought perhaps some scientific quantifications. There may be political / economic reasons, for example to not dissuade eating Gulf sea food.
And I suppose it varies by parameter. Residual petrochemical may be in higher concentrations in tidal marsh than open sea or sea bed.
btw
The technology they used to plug that gusher, amazing. They used precision drilling to drill down and horizontally drill into the gushing well casing, and then plug the gusher under pressure from the secondary drilling.
A lot of info. for sure.
What I had in mind was a % clean-up. Easier said than done. I thought perhaps some scientific quantifications. There may be political / economic reasons, for example to not dissuade eating Gulf sea food.
And I suppose it varies by parameter. Residual petrochemical may be in higher concentrations in tidal marsh than open sea or sea bed.
btw
The technology they used to plug that gusher, amazing. They used precision drilling to drill down and horizontally drill into the gushing well casing, and then plug the gusher under pressure from the secondary drilling.
Lilly Cuts Insulin Prices by 70% and Caps Patient Insulin Out-of-Pocket Costs at $35 Per Month
March 1, 2023The manufacturer of insulin, Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) is publicly traded. Lilly is responsible to its investors for "R.O.I." (return on investment, or stock dividends).
Though this price reduction occurred under substantial public & political pressure, it's good news to the patients that need it.
But it's bad news for Lilly shareholders, metaphorically strangling the $cash $cow.
Corporate board members aren't simply mindless $chiseling monsters. They have legal obligations to their shareholders. This Lilly price cut counters Lilly's ROI obligation.
Often, such public corporations attempt to compensate shareholders when one revenue stream is reduced, by commensurate increase in other revenue sources.
The public may not have those details yet. But don't be surprised if / when they become evident.
Fossil fuels kill more people than Covid. Why are we so blind to the harms of oil and gas?
Rebecca Solnit
Fossil fuels kill more people than Covid. Why are we so blind to the harms of oil and gas? | Rebecca Solnit
Were we able to perceive afresh the sheer scale of fossil fuel impact we might be horrified, but because this is an old problem too many don’t see it as a problem
www.theguardian.com
note:
This headline is intellectually simple. If averting the worst of anthropogenic climate change was as simple as wearing a mask, and receiving a hypodermic injection, it might well be far less of a crisis. None the less it may be a contrast worth a moment of consideration.
According to https://www.star-telegram.com/opinion/nicole-russell/article272718450.html
If not yet official, CPAC rank & file have chosen Trump as the GOP 2024 presidential candidate nominee.
The ruthless treachery many Republicans demonstrated by prioritizing partisanship ahead of citizenship is now doing commensurate harm within the Republican party itself.
Discussing CPAC 2023 New York Times columnist David Brooks 23/03/03:
"What's new is that a candidate used to be able to go to Club for Growth, or CPAC, or American Enterprise Institute, and these are all different wings in the party, but now you gotta go to one or the other. And so if you go to one you're seen as an opponent of the other wing of the party. And so that's a sign of fissures in party, that you're either sort of on the establishment team, or you're on the populist team, but you can't be both teams, which is a problem for the [Republican] party."
"... a problem for the [Republican] party" and a potential bonanza for Democrats, who will benefit enormously from such ideologically fractured dysfunctional GOP.
There may not be much unity between the Republican and Democrat parties. But there surely is bipartisan support for Trump's GOP nomination as 2024 presidential candidate.
Senator Biden beat Trump in 2020, both in the electoral college, AND popular vote.
President Trump's popularity has weakened since then.
Apparently CPAC would rather be wrong, and lose, than engage the truth, at substantial risk of political success. President Trump is a one term president. There's no indication within recent polling data it's likely to change. Trump is a one-termer.
If not yet official, CPAC rank & file have chosen Trump as the GOP 2024 presidential candidate nominee.
The ruthless treachery many Republicans demonstrated by prioritizing partisanship ahead of citizenship is now doing commensurate harm within the Republican party itself.
Discussing CPAC 2023 New York Times columnist David Brooks 23/03/03:
"What's new is that a candidate used to be able to go to Club for Growth, or CPAC, or American Enterprise Institute, and these are all different wings in the party, but now you gotta go to one or the other. And so if you go to one you're seen as an opponent of the other wing of the party. And so that's a sign of fissures in party, that you're either sort of on the establishment team, or you're on the populist team, but you can't be both teams, which is a problem for the [Republican] party."
"... a problem for the [Republican] party" and a potential bonanza for Democrats, who will benefit enormously from such ideologically fractured dysfunctional GOP.
There may not be much unity between the Republican and Democrat parties. But there surely is bipartisan support for Trump's GOP nomination as 2024 presidential candidate.
Senator Biden beat Trump in 2020, both in the electoral college, AND popular vote.
President Trump's popularity has weakened since then.
Apparently CPAC would rather be wrong, and lose, than engage the truth, at substantial risk of political success. President Trump is a one term president. There's no indication within recent polling data it's likely to change. Trump is a one-termer.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
We can only hope.
As you know apart from political parties two ostensible bastions of liberalism are the 4th estate, and academe. That's a generalization about large subsets within a population of hundreds of millions.
Trump / CPAC are NOT conservatives. They're pseudo-cons, wrong-wing reactionaries and radicals, the opposite of conservative.
If the "liberals" in this competition can't get the better of these myopic pseudo-cons, it's a stunning blow to the respect if not reverence earned in previous generations by these "liberal" groups.
If the smart & righteous ones are out-smarted by the half-wit corrupt, how smart & righteous can the "liberals" actually be?
If they actually offer the superior options, why are "liberals" not winning in the court of public opinion, the voting booth?
Trump / CPAC are NOT conservatives. They're pseudo-cons, wrong-wing reactionaries and radicals, the opposite of conservative.
If the "liberals" in this competition can't get the better of these myopic pseudo-cons, it's a stunning blow to the respect if not reverence earned in previous generations by these "liberal" groups.
If the smart & righteous ones are out-smarted by the half-wit corrupt, how smart & righteous can the "liberals" actually be?
If they actually offer the superior options, why are "liberals" not winning in the court of public opinion, the voting booth?
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Don't know how credible this source is but interesting reading
www.politicalflare.com
Jack Smith Reportedly Believes Donald Trump’s Motive for Stealing Classified Docs Involves Russia
Investigators working for the Justice Department’s Special Counsel, Jack Smith, have allegedly questioned numerous former Trump administration officials regarding the fate of a large cache of classified documents that pertain to the FBI’s investigation into Russia’s interference during the 2016...
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Why would he do that?
www.nytimes.com
Trump Asks Judge to Block Pence’s Testimony to Grand Jury
The former president’s lawyers cited executive privilege, a tactic they have used with other ex-Trump aides.
Smells reverse engineered to me. Excuse making.Don't know how credible this source is but interesting reading
Jack Smith Reportedly Believes Donald Trump’s Motive for Stealing Classified Docs Involves Russia
Investigators working for the Justice Department’s Special Counsel, Jack Smith, have allegedly questioned numerous former Trump administration officials regarding the fate of a large cache of classified documents that pertain to the FBI’s investigation into Russia’s interference during the 2016...
I haven't pieced together a fact set that makes sense of this.
If the docs illegally taken were a smoking gun, why would Trump not have had them burned, destroyed?
If it was the information he wanted why didn't Trump have a staffer photograph them, convert them to electronic format, before Biden was inaugurated?
Instead, it looks like Trump just wanted a souvenir, something to have (perhaps because even Trump can't believe he actually became president).
S2 #178
The GOP is in shambles.
- Naked woman shows up in man’s kitchen, smacks him with frying pan
Charlotte Observer
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