Bigly jobs! Bigly stock market! Woo hoo!

I'm not "making excuses" for something I have nothing to do with and have no control over. That's a dumb phrase to use. What I'm saying is that gas prices actually aren't all that high, historically, and people are reacting now because those prices dropped artificially lower during the pandemic.

We have to trade with the world, with countries that like us and countries that don't, whether we like it or not, and there is in fact no way to be anything "independent," nor would we want to be. And as far as "countries that would do us harm" are concerned, a) there aren't many such countries, and b) trading with them is one of the best ways to dissuade them from being our enemies. Do you know the saying, "When goods cross borders, armies do not?" We're a mercantile nation. Isolationism and paranoia will only hurt us.

You're partially right in that the 2020 election was more about voting against one candidate than voting for the other. However, a LOT more people voted for Biden because they loathed Trump than the other way around. There simply wasn't, and isn't, all that much to like or dislike about Biden. I called him "Joe Vanilla" during the primaries because he was the "safe choice." The Democrats ultimately chose him because there wasn't any Republican dog whistle attack that could be deployed against him, unlike Sanders (SOOOOOOOCIALISM!!!), Warren (an uppity bitch, just like Hillary), Buttigieg (gay, unnatural, pervert), Yang (COMMIE!), or Bloomberg (New York! We hate New York!!!).

The social and structural problem that remains is that we still have 75 million (+) people who were and still are taken in by a con man who was no more fit to be President than he was to fly the space shuttle. They observed his abhorrent, nasty, and often childish behavior and voted for him anyway. That suggests that we as a nation and culture are completely screwed.

So, how are things looking from under the grandstand?

LOL, sorry, couldn't resist.

Candy

I have no problem with people who disagree about policy...but there are some things that have factual causes and effects.    There seems to be this fake argument going around that the President has some kind of dial in his office that increases or decreases the oil production in our country...and that's true to the extent he can draw upon the national reserve which is largely an insignificant factor.  Otherwise that's a false narrative...and usually purposefully so.    

here's the real truth for people interested in it....

our private sector domestic oil companies dialed down production during the pandemic because people weren't traveling and demand collapsed.    You might remember paying $2 gasoline at the beginning of the pandemic...that was good for you and incredible awful for oil companies.

  Now that the economy has largely opened up the demand is back...but it takes time for the oil companies to get their fields back online...and in some cases they don't even want to.    Why would they?   They're raking in massive profits with the current prices.   Little by little they will start opening up more production as they succumb to greed, political pressure, and avoiding an oil induced recession,   That last one is historically the biggest motivator.    If gas prices get too high a recession ensues and demand collapses which they absolutely don't want.      

Long story short we'll have normalized production by Summer.   And that won't be due to the President,,,,,but you can bet the people who blame the president for increasing prices now will not applaud the present for decreasing prices then.    See you in 6 months.

Oh yes, the people calling Biden every name in the book because their tank of gas costs $5 more won't utter a peep when prices drop back down. Remember, as I said about the RepubliQ playbook: bad thing: Biden's fault. Good thing: don't give Biden credit.

Biden's done a LOT of mundane fixes that don't make for good political theater but have nonetheless been very beneficial. And the RepubliQ will never give him one iota of credit, even though often, it's those evil pigs who benefit the most.

PJ - appreciate the comment and hope that gasoline prices come back to some sort of normal next year.  I agree with the statement that when things go bad everyone gets worked up and when things are good it tends to get ignored.  Lets see how things are 6 months from now.

Again - why do we need the insults?  I could start screaming 'MAGA' and 'Let's Go Brandon', but it doesn't help with the discussion and it all feels juvenile. 

Gas prices are high.  I don't want to hear the excuses.  As a percentage year over year it is way up.  If you think trading for oil with Russia is a great way to leverage them, I beg to differ.  Same goes for consumer goods.  You can't sugar coat it.  The shelves aren't full and the prices are elevated.  As far as China is concerned, I am all for the tariffs.  Yep - I'll pay more.  That country is a scourge and I feel like we should be doing everything we can to avoid sending dollars their way.  We could also talk about where this virus/pandemic came from but I will not go there.

To the discussion of the alternative candidates as you mentioned, I find many of your descriptions offensive.  Apparently you are trying to interpret what all of the crazed Republicans think?  Well get this.  There are many voters out there that are independent/in the middle that make voting decisions and evaluate candidates at face value.  The 'Dog Whistle' comment is something I have heard ad nauseum.  That didn't seem to work too well in those elections last week (i.e. VA).

To the comment regarding the people that voted for someone other than Biden, what did you expect?  Again - many voters 'holding their nose' for one versus the other.  Many voted against Trump.  Many voted against Biden.  The choices were poor.  Period.

Dude, you're a victim of conservitard propaganda. You're all too willing to swallow whatever Fox News et al. feeds you, because that conforms to your preconceived notions.

Obviously, gas prices have increased. And I told you why, and why those increases aren't as apocalyptic as you claim. So you can ignore reality if you wish. Maybe it's more fun that way for you.

Take that "empty shelves" horseshit. Did you know that Fox News used file footage shot in another country several years ago to "illustrate" their bleat about shortages? Pretty sad if you have to lie all the time, but Fox and its allies know that there are 75 million suckers out there to lap it up.

We can shake our fists and thump our chests all we want at China, and at the end of the day, we'll still have to deal with them. I don't think the American consumer should have to pay the costs of Trump's posturing. Apparently you do. And because of that posturing rather than trying to make our industries competitive globally, China is eating our lunch. Did you know that 80% of electric vehicle batteries are now made in China? They built factories. We imposed tariffs. You'd better start learning Chinese!

And referring specifically to the Virginia elections--do you really not realize that the reason for the Republican victories was their highly effective use of the CRT dog whistle? And dude...no sane, impartial person voted for Youngkin on his merits as a potential governor. His entire campaign was a one-note song: "CRT! CRT! CRT! I won't let schools teach it!!!"---a lie about a manufactured "threat." And it worked!

Conservatism is, by definition, based on fear (of change, primarily). And the RepubliQ party is highly skilled at stirring up and exploiting that fear. Youngkin won by getting white people to fear that "THEY" would be indoctrinating their children. Yeah, always be afraid of "THEM." They'll be teaching your kids about slavery and the awful history of race relations in this country. But not if your hero, Youngkin, rides forth on his white horse and stops it!!!!!!!

What utter horseshit the RepubliQ party feeds their lackeys! But I gotta hand it to them--it works. The Democrats are losing because they think that the majority of citizens have a moral center and a modicum of intelligence. The Republicans are winning because they know that the majority of citizens are dumb as rocks and have no morality or ethics whatsoever. They are very good at blowing the dog whistles to make those people do their bidding. Nice doggies! Stop the steal! Critical Race Theory! Bark bark bark!

You don't think Youngkin might have won based on what happened in Loudon country with the school board?  Add to that the comments made at the debate regarding parents not having a right to decide or be involved what their children are taught in schools?  You don't think that riled folks up and mobilized them to the polls?  Add to that McAuliffe is a swamp creature.  Oh wait - it was racism.  Sure.  That seems to be the answer to everything these days.

Terms like 'Conservitard' and whatever garbage you spew exemplifies how completely off the rocker you are.  I could call you a liberal hack - but what's the point?  It's quite apparent.

Much of your arguments stems from shame from being a Trumper. Many of the 75 million are well aware of the harm they did to this country by voting for the Orange Turd and the moral and ethical bankruptcy they displayed by doing so. Those people are the ones who bark the loudest. I sense your shame in every self-justifying statement you post.

"What happened in Loudon country":  Loudoun county--I assume that's what you meant--shouldn't have mattered to anyone's vote. It was a sexual assault case involving a 15-year-old boy. That had NOTHING to do with the present governor, and such an issue, should it recur, would have nothing to do with the future governor. It was, for sure, used successfully as a dog whistle by Youngkin, employing some extremely questionable logic. But the RepubliQ has shown itself quite willing to make irrational appeals to the "base."

While McAuliffe's comment at the debate was terrible strategy, it was correct. Our communities have school boards, school administrators, and of course, teachers, who in fact DO "tell schools what they should teach"--as in, NOT the parents. That's because teaching is a professional endeavor and as it critically influences children's development, it should be done by and at the direction of professionals. If you want a comparison, do you think parents should decide what kind of medical care--treatments, medications--their children receive? A doctor prescribes a medication--the parents should do that instead???

Think about and rationally consider what I just said for a moment (if you're capable of that). Rather than responding to the dog whistle as so many Virginia voters did, ask yourself: do any of us really want close and constant parental supervision of school curricula? That would be a nightmare; there would never be any consensus. Every day, I would have to wait to start my classes until I received feedback from each student's parents on what I planned to teach that day. And that feedback might be politically motivated--from either side--and disrupt what I was actually planning on teaching.

The really sad part is that this was all about a phantom. CRT is in fact NOT "taught" in ANY school, in Virginia or anywhere else. It is MENTIONED as a social theory in some college-level curricula. A theory. NOT fact, as the RepubliQ claim.

Good grief, you're a teacher?   God help us.

Do I think parents should decide what kind of medical care and treatments should be administered to their child?  Damn right they should.  Nothing wrong with a second opinion or alternate therapy.  They ultimately make the decision to proceed or seek additional advice.  

'I sense your shame in every self-justifying statement you post'.  That's laughable.  You really are something else.

Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope! Suppose, for example, a doctor prescribes insulin for a diabetic child. Should parents be allowed to decide that rather than be given insulin, the child should be given daily doses of prune juice and popcorn, and forced to listen to The Grateful Dead for two hours a day? Should the parents' preferences and beliefs override the professional doctor's recommendations for their child's health?

Similarly, if a school district and/or a school administration decides that a given curriculum should be taught, parents of schoolchildren shouldn't be allowed to override that. To zero in on a very topical issue as an example, parents should NOT be able to demand that their children not be taught about our country's history of slavery. Nor, if you like, should they be taught that they've inherited some kind of unspecified burden or obligation because their ancestors owned slaves.

There's a LOT wrong with an uninformed second opinion or "alternate therapy." The greatest potential harm is that proper care may be postponed or eliminated altogether. I wonder just how many kids are abused because they receive medical care based on their parents' belief systems rather than medical science. The largest group that does that is, of course, religious wackos, but we now also have Fox News-slurping no-vaxxers who aren't going to get their kids immunized. Withholding proper medical care from one's children because of personal belief is criminal irresponsibility.

I don't teach kids based on my beliefs, and I shouldn't be told to teach or not teach anything based on anyone else's beliefs, including those of the parents of the kids I teach. That seems blindingly obvious to me, but perhaps it isn't to you. What can I say--you think Trump was a bigly wonderful leader. That tends to cast a cloud of suspicion on your overall judgment.