Ms Michelle Obama Will Be Our Next President If Trump Is In Prison -- August 11, 2023

 

Updates

Later, 12:22 p.m. CDT: the original post was posted about two hours ago. The point of that post: to start looking at what must be done to move Biden out of the way. 

Less than two hours later, it happens.

In "strategic planning" one puts down the "end state" or the "goal" one wants. In this case, the end state is Michelle Obama to be the first women president. Walking backwards from that, the first thing that needs to be done: move Biden out of the way. Hold that thought.

Breaking: links everywhere.

The last step before the convention? The announcement from Michelle herself that she will run and intends to be the Democratic presidential nominee. The venue for that announcement: on Oprah's show. Does Oprah even have a show any more. Nope. How does Hollywood solve that problem: "an Oprah special." Watch for rumors to begin after the strike ends that Oprah will have a television special.

Original Post

Link here. Great story.

If Trump is in prison, and Biden hands the torch to Michelle, the latter will win in a landslide. Can you imagine the energy of the crowd when a past president and her husband nominates her at the convention?

Is this the correct spelling of pandemonium?

It's a given that Biden is a puppet of Obama, that 75% of the White House staff are former Obama people, and that Biden is aging before our eyes, or at least that's the meme.

The "tell": how quickly the Obamas said adios to their Martha's Vineyard mansion after the drowning of their chef. 

Intel Ericsson -- July 28, 2023

 The link.

Do you remember when you were a kid and spent hours looking at "Can You Find It" in the "Hidden Objects" or whatever it was called in "Highlights Magazine"?

Fast forward.

Do the same thing with this headline:

How many "things" can you find concerning with that announcement?

************************

One. Two failing companies partnering.

My dad always used to tell me, when two companies "merge" one is likely failing.

Two.

5G. "We're" moving onto 6G. Yes, of course, 6G won't be here for awhile, but when talking to your investors, you don't talk about a "mature" industry" or an old technology. One talks about "the next big thing."

Three.

The cloud. LOL. When you think "Cloud" do you think of either INTC (Intel) or Ericcson. LOL. Not me.

Three-b.

Here are just some of the big "Cloud" players with very deep pockets: Amazon, Apple, Google (Alphabet), Meta (Facebook). I'm sure I've missed a few.

Four.

Look at their "ticker-symbol" graphs. Not exactly promising. Except as trading stocks.

Five.

I know nothing about Ericcson except that it's "telephone."

"Telephones" are now a mature industry; no growth. The big companies? Samsung, Apple. Phones are simply their bread and butter now. They all have deep pockets and deep penetration. When was the last time you bought an Ericsson phone?

Six.

On the other hand, Ericsson pays almost 5%. Intel pays 1.4%.

Seven.

On a day the NASDAQ surges, Ericsson is likely to go negative. On a day the NASDAQ surges, INTC goes up over 5%. A great trading stock.

Cleaning Out The In - In Box —July 17, 2023

Ukraine: 

• road / rail bridge to Crimean Peninsula taken out?
• Zelensky changes strategy — taking counteroffensive “slow” — minimizing losses of men.

Apple: 

• changing marketing strategy.
• 3nm chip ready to be marketed in new laptop / surface computers.

Investing:

• not a bubble
• nothing like the dot.com bubble in the 1990s.

Property Taxes -- Rocket Mortgage -- The US: The Greatest Country In The World -- July 8, 2023

July 14, 2023: Everything for TEXAS needs to be updated with this new development. 

The TEXAS package puts $12.6 billion of the state’s historic budget surplus toward making cuts to school taxes for all property owners, dropping property taxes an average of more than 40% for some 5.7 million Texas homeowners, and offering brand-new tax savings for smaller businesses and other commercial and non-homesteaded properties. The voters would need to approve the package in November for the cuts to take effect this year.

Using the table below: at a 40% cut --

• the TEXAS real estate tax would go to 1.08% -- #30 on the list below, and about par with that of North Dakota;
• the TEXAS average of $3,907 would go to an average of $2,344 -- again, about par with that of North Dakota.

North Dakota has also just passed new legislation cutting taxes. Link here.

• North Dakota's $500 credit = $40 / month savings.
• at the current $2,138 for North Dakota, a credit of $500 drops that to $1,638 to #15 between Tennessee and California.
  

Original Post

Link here.

Comments:

• top to bottom, removing the first two, which were obviously outliers; and the last one, also an outlier;
• range:  $1,113 - $4,942
• a difference of $3,829 = $319 / month (coffee and parking in the big city on a daily basis)
• the folks in the highest-property-tax states need to forgo Starbucks and start taking public transportation, start carpooling, or ask for free parking from their employer.
  
• three groupings
  
• 23 states: $1,000 - $2,000
• 11 states: $2,001 - $3,000
• 14 states: $3,001 - $5,000

In the fourteen "high-property states," there are two outliers, Nebraska ($3,754) and Texas ($3,907)

• $3,907 / 12 = $325 (compare to the low-property tax states, average, $319
• OMG: Texas -- $325 / month vs $319 / month in the low-property tax states

In the low-property tax states, there are three definite outliers:

• DC ($1,221)
• Delaware ($1,240)
• California ($1,644)
• throw out DC and Delaware, and we're left with California
• we have to eliminate California, also, due to property taxes being artificially low due to Proposition 13, perhaps one of the worst tax laws to befall any state.

Back to Texas: one can also argue we need to throw out Texas due to artificially low house prices reported by Rocket Mortgage because of the really, really low how prices in almost all of Texas, outside the five major urban areas, and especially, along the Mexican border, and out west (except in oil country -- Odessa, Midland).

But that brings me to my second argument with regard to this discussion regarding property taxes.

****************
Other Links

At this link, add the property tax paid and the income tax paid in dollars.

*******************
Three Arguments

1. People have no idea what they pay in property taxes; they know exactly how much they pay in state incomes.

2. People buy the house they can afford; property taxes are just part of the mortgage payment.

3. People can cut their state income tax by reducing their income; folks can cut their property taxes by moving into an abode which has lower property taxes (dollars, not rate).

***************
Other Comments

1. The difference in annual property taxes on a monthly basis is almost inconsequential among all states.

2. Property taxes are quietly paid on a monthly basis -- folks are completely unaware.

3. Whether enough state income taxes are withheld or not, state income taxees must be filed at which time one sees immediately how much one is paying in state income taxes. 

4. Most folks paying property taxes consider that a small fee / tax for the privilege of owning one's own home.

5. Majority of folks paying state income tax seeing no value added considering ten states do not have state income tax, and that as many as 50% of residents in a state don't pay taxes in the first event. 

Global Commodities Rout Will Lead To Global Economic Disaster -- CNBC Talking Head -- July 5, 2023

Updates

August 10, 2023: update.

Backstory

This was posted over at the main blog, July 5, 2023. When I saw the CNBC story below, Exhibit A, I did a double take. Not one thing in the past two weeks remotely suggests that a commodities rout will lead to a global recession.

I may be wrong. So I will post this over here at "MDW Backstory" and wait through the end of June, 2024, through the end of 1H24. 

Original Post

Locator: 45902ECON.

Exhibit A

Link here. 

Exhibit B

WTI, LNG, NG:

 

GOP -- Tone Deaf -- May 3, 2023

The GOP has a BUD problem.

Link here.

Bud -- May 2, 2023

Locator: 10001BUD. 

Updates

May 14, 2023: Ron DeSantis or Bud Lite? I'm with Bud Lite. Donald Trump, via twitter, has telegraphed whose side he is on regarding this issue. His decisions did not surprise, for several reasons.

May 14, 2023: University of Winnipeg.

The acronyms and words used to describe 2SLGBTQ+ people and communities continue to evolve, reflecting the complex nature of all members of the LGBT2SQQIA* and other communities.

Often, the terms gender and sexuality diversity (GSD) or sexual and gender minority (SGM) persons can be used to describe 2SLGBTQ+ issues and persons (for instance, variations of the acronym exist that include lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, Two Spirit, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, and sometimes an asterisk or plus to indicate that other sexual or gender minority identities can be read in).

While many of these terms/acronyms are provisional and can be used by different persons in different contexts, it is always important to remember that individuals identify themselves in different ways using different terms, some of which may be unfamiliar or possibly indicate emerging gender and sexually diverse identities. If you are unsure, you may also ask an individual, for instance, how they refer to themselves or what pronoun they prefer.

We have decided to adopt the practice of placing “2S” for “Two Spirit” at the beginning of “LGBTQ” to acknowledge that Two Spirit Indigenous people were the first sexual and gender minority people in North America, and also to demonstrate solidarity with them in this period of truth and reconciliation in Canada.

We have also added the plus sign to the end of “LGBTQ” to acknowledge the many sexual and gender minority people who don't see themselves in the umbrella acronym and prefer other identity terms such as pansexual, gender-free, or intersex.

May 14, 2023: one of the better articles on the subject and it comes from Texas. Link to El Paso Times.

May 14, 2023: the Canadian can for 2019 -- link here. Some have not read the small print and thought these were for 2023.

May 14, 2023: link to Fast Company.

May 14, 2023: five companies that support the LGBTQ community.

May 14, 2023: my original note below was posted before I ran across this headline:

Original Post

A reader noted that sales of Budweiser continue to fall, and fall fast. My not-ready-for-prime-time reply:

BUD CEO pissed off both sides of the aisle with his half-hearted "apology."

25% of people between the ages of 18 and 25 (prime BUD drinking group) are LGBQT or "exploring/questioning" -- another huge percent support the LGBQT movement.

Exhibit A: our college granddaughter and high school granddaughter are very, very supportive of LGBQT; have many LGBQT friends; and our granddaughters are mainstream, raised in Texas. Imagine the support the LGBQT crowd gets in California (beer drinking on the beach) and up in Boston (Harvard) where Samuel Adams and all the other craft beers do so well.

So, BUD lost both demographics: the rednecks and the LGBQT crowd. Interestingly enough the LGBQT crowd are huge beer drinkers -- these are the folks one sees holding bottles of beer at concerts. You can bet that concert promoters won't even think of bringing BUD to the concert venues.

BUD has no moat.No beer company has a moat.

Miller is taking a huge advantage of this.

Neither has dropped their prices.

BUD's only response: more ads.

As much as folks like horses, ads aren't going to work.

I now get BUD ads on my twitter; never saw that before.

Unfortunately, BUD Lite is called "BUD" which will tarnish the entire brand.

BUD is headquartered in Belgium. Belgium was the country where all the Germans go on beer tours. Top 19 beer-drinking countries are in Europe, or near Europe, or Europe-like; US is #20 (wiki).

Europe is a whole lot more tolerant of LGBQT than the US.

The irony is that BUD as a company did not seriously go out to "grab" the LGBQT demographic. An "influencer" not part of the BUD company had 10 million followers and promoted BUD, with/without (I don't kow) BUD's involvement. A BUD marketing executive sent cans with the face of the "influencer" on it -- as a "thank you." The "influencer" showed it on his/her site and the rest is history.