Blind faith = economic rubble maybe?

I have at least one friend who will withdraw from my writing immediately once I even allude to politics. I have become wary of making these references. A fool's errand, perhaps? Made by a fool? I did vote for Kamala Harris. But then I learned after the election that she had publicly said she favors the government paying for sex change operations for prison inmates. So I would not have voted for her. Leaving me where, then? 

Are we in a vast wilderness now where we can no longer navigate, to find our way out? Our way out to where? Maybe to a place where the "president of the U.S." does not need to dominate the "news" every day. A place where that individual can just do the job satisfactorily for a period of time, no sensational reactions? 

A headline this morning (Tuesday) on this very gray early-winter day is about how unions want the Democratic Party to change. Not surprising. Whatever, we need a Democratic Party that can command a little more basic respect from more people. 

I try to pass the time on a miserable weather day like this by listening to some AM radio. Sorry, Morris radio does not interest me. I've heard all the old pop song hits before. I seek some edification from WDAY Fargo sometimes. But you can count on the program host to just assume these "Democrats" do not warrant any respect. "Kamala" is merely the target for putdown fodder. Snarky little references. And these radio personalities just assume they are not stepping on toes by doing this. 

Houston, we have a problem. The weird Republicans are gaining power with a vise-like grip now. Not sober and serious Republicans but an element that in the old days would be described as the "fringe." These people could be amusing in their day. They'd get their thoughts out in "pamphlets." They'd have booths at the State Fair. Shouldn't we have all been worried about whether/when all these people would get power? It has happened. 

Matt Gaetz and RFK Jr. with reins in government? And with a whole major political party empowering them? 

I have written before that I have always been receptive to the Republican Party ideas, the longstanding philosophy. Keep an eye on government to minimize waste and keep it from limiting our liberties. Make sure the power of the free market is unfettered up to a point. I'll say with a wink that capitalism is our best friend. It really truly is. But all this must be done with a heart and with empathy for those who can be left behind. 

Given the very real specter of inflation now, those under threat are surely growing in number. Republicans are supposed to be smart people. The best ones are best when they do not grab the headlines. We have Republican leadership now that really seems fine with f--king around with the Federal Reserve. That's the most sensitive tool out there, the Fed which controls the money supply. Hyper-inflation sent Germany into a tailspin in the mid-20th Century. 

Republicans should know all the "facts of life" about how our economy works. But they now seem to want to stand aside as our national leader, initials DJT, presents his track record of wanting influence with the Fed and even to push for "negative interest rates." 

Don't treat this as just another passing story, please. Lost in all the noise that is so partisan-based. You will regret voting the way you did if we start seeing (more) consequences of what I'm talking about. "Always lower interest rates." Another heroin injection please. Let's just push up the "stock market" as if its success is by magic or something. 

I assume that  "magic" does not create economic prosperity. 

It blows my mind because when I was young, I had the notion pounded into my head that the stock market is risky. "You could lose everything." My parents experienced the Great Depression. They learned attitudes that stayed with them. 

Today the stock market seems "the only place to be." I am 69 years old and do not care to "sock away" money in the stock market. You're just supposed to "leave it there." Let it grow. Frankly I prefer seeing my money appreciate in a way where I can spend the immediate gains basically now. And I'm nuts for thinking that? An eccentric? 

I look around now and I see people out here on the windswept prairie nodding their head at everything DJT does and says. Our congressperson just grates at me because she so automatically subscribes to MAGA. And so she demonizes "Democrats." 

Is the Democratic Party really worthy of being assailed so endlessly? In such a knee-jerk way? The way the on-air hosts on WDAY do? Just scorn Kamala? Out of hand? Will society wake up at a certain point to realize that the new would-be dictatorship might not be in our interests out here in "flatlands" in western Minnesota? 

Really, should we have a Democratic Party that is worthy of basic respect? We associate the Democratic Party now with America's "big cities" which we have been learning quickly are going to hell. But the big cities are where the people are! If they are truly dying, might that be a "firebell in the night" for the whole country? 

 

Vocabulary expands

The next wave of inflation is what concerns me most right now. Ten years ago hardly anyone knew the term "shrinkflation." Now everybody knows it. Businesses of all kinds are under pressure. They have higher costs. That's one tier of inflation and a pretty important one. But then the businesses must decide: Do we want to increase prices with our customers or do we want to cut corners in order to try to keep our prices where they are? 

Kemosabe, that's a tough one. 

I have begun asking around Morris for a complimentary calendar for 2025, something that is normally routinely provided. I went to a bank where I know in the past they have had them. An employee said "not this year." Huh? "Not this year?" A simple calendar as a courtesy to customers? But this is what happens. Is this a canary in the coal mine? 

But the chairman of the Federal Reserve has promised more "rate cuts." It's very odd that he would make a promise about future moves in the first place. But I did not notice any surprised reaction in the media. 

Politicians need "quick fixes" from the Fed as a way of staying in power, getting re-elected. At the fore of this charge is our next president who has said he wants "influence" with the Fed. But we all know the truth: DJT wants to command the Fed. 

Don't look for WDAY Radio to show any skepticism. Or Glenn Beck. Or Dana Lasch et al. It's a storm that is taking over. The columnist David Brooks has probed how all of this has come to be. I will write more on his theory in the near future. My friends won't read it.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com