Apparently PM Sunny Daze Trudeau is coming home from China without that vaunted free trade agreement in his back pocket.
According to our major media, this is a major failing.
They are aghast that he doesn't even have a timetable about when those "free trade" talks might start. We are supposed to think this is a big deal.
It ain't.
Trade between China and Canada seems pretty healthy, even without a "free trade" agreement.
They're not foregrounding this in your corporate press, but my hunch is Sunny Daze lost the room when he got onto the ancillary stuff. Ya, we'll have free trade only after you agree to write gay rights and women's rights and workers' rights into the deal.
Which was the moment when the leader of the PRC, population 1.2 billion, gave Sunny Daze, leader of a former Brit colony with a population a tiny fraction of that, a slap heard round the colonies.
That slap said "see you later, come back when you want to talk about trade. In the meantime stick your snotty "progressive agenda" where the sun don't shine"
I don't get it. They send us all the inventory for our dollar stores. We send them jobs and coal.
Looks to me like a "no-trade" deal with China might be a better idea than a "free trade" deal.
Thursday, December 7, 2017
Wednesday, December 6, 2017
Trump's tax cuts; pure (evil) genius
The Trump tax cuts represent an unprecedented transfer of wealth to the .01% in a society already suffocating under the greatest disparity of wealth in the so-called first world.
That's just for starters. Somewhere down the road it's inevitable that these cuts will lead to the shredding of what's left of America's pitiful social safety net. With less tax revenue there's lots of stuff that's gonna go over the side, and you can bet the spending cuts won't be coming out of the obscenely bloated military budget. That'll prove especially true if America manages to add another war or two to the perpetual war playlist down the road, as seems increasingly likely.
Since the owners of the corporate media are on the winning side of the Trump tax cuts you won't be seeing a groundswell of opposition coming from there. Meanwhile, the alternative media are already having their wings clipped by the googletwitterfacebook combine's voluntary and all too enthusiastic censorship of "fake news."
Let's not lose sight of the fact that pretty much all the "alternative" news sites run on platforms owned by folks who also benefit bigly from Trump's tax cuts.
Maybe America can live in denial of her downward spiral for another generation or two. Maybe America can live with tens of millions of homeless instead of hundreds of thousands. Maybe the corporate media can bamboozle the public into supporting more war, even though America's wars are seldom won and never over.
Maybe...
Maybe not.
That's just for starters. Somewhere down the road it's inevitable that these cuts will lead to the shredding of what's left of America's pitiful social safety net. With less tax revenue there's lots of stuff that's gonna go over the side, and you can bet the spending cuts won't be coming out of the obscenely bloated military budget. That'll prove especially true if America manages to add another war or two to the perpetual war playlist down the road, as seems increasingly likely.
Since the owners of the corporate media are on the winning side of the Trump tax cuts you won't be seeing a groundswell of opposition coming from there. Meanwhile, the alternative media are already having their wings clipped by the googletwitterfacebook combine's voluntary and all too enthusiastic censorship of "fake news."
Let's not lose sight of the fact that pretty much all the "alternative" news sites run on platforms owned by folks who also benefit bigly from Trump's tax cuts.
Maybe America can live in denial of her downward spiral for another generation or two. Maybe America can live with tens of millions of homeless instead of hundreds of thousands. Maybe the corporate media can bamboozle the public into supporting more war, even though America's wars are seldom won and never over.
Maybe...
Maybe not.
Trump doing God's work in Middle East
Of course he is!
Long-time Trump-watchers are unanimous that Donny J has finally found his real calling - as God's point man on earth. What, you thought that was the Pope?
The idea of recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel crosses the minds of presidential candidates with some frequency. They tend to think aloud on the matter whilst on the campaign trail. It's a handy sop to some of the bigger donors, and a big vote-getter in the right-wing "Christian Zionist" constituency.
Once they're in office they tend to stop thinking about it, aloud or otherwise. After all, why piss off some of the biggest customers of America's military-industrial ecosystem? Russian or Chinese weapon systems would suit the Saudis just as well in a pinch.
So what's different this time round? For one thing, the imbecile in the White House is desperate for some headlines that aren't about one or another of the investigations around him. The imbecile in Riyadh, now firmly in Jared Kushner's pocket, is in way over his head and is keen to throw in his lot with what he sees as the big dogs, even if it means turning his back on the Palestinians.
The third cheerleader for this march to Armageddon is the greatest leader since Moses, Mr Netanyahu. He's having his own troubles with investigations and surely welcomes this diversion.
Trump, MbS, Netanyahu... we're not talking about the three wise men here.
What could go wrong?
Long-time Trump-watchers are unanimous that Donny J has finally found his real calling - as God's point man on earth. What, you thought that was the Pope?
The idea of recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel crosses the minds of presidential candidates with some frequency. They tend to think aloud on the matter whilst on the campaign trail. It's a handy sop to some of the bigger donors, and a big vote-getter in the right-wing "Christian Zionist" constituency.
Once they're in office they tend to stop thinking about it, aloud or otherwise. After all, why piss off some of the biggest customers of America's military-industrial ecosystem? Russian or Chinese weapon systems would suit the Saudis just as well in a pinch.
So what's different this time round? For one thing, the imbecile in the White House is desperate for some headlines that aren't about one or another of the investigations around him. The imbecile in Riyadh, now firmly in Jared Kushner's pocket, is in way over his head and is keen to throw in his lot with what he sees as the big dogs, even if it means turning his back on the Palestinians.
The third cheerleader for this march to Armageddon is the greatest leader since Moses, Mr Netanyahu. He's having his own troubles with investigations and surely welcomes this diversion.
Trump, MbS, Netanyahu... we're not talking about the three wise men here.
What could go wrong?
Monday, December 4, 2017
Puppy tricks
We had to step out for a spell today and the Farm Manager was concerned about leaving the dogs alone after only a couple days getting to know one another. The Brindle in particular has been prone to bare her fangs and make ominous growly noises when little pup is getting too frisky with her.
So we devised a plan. The old girls would cosy up on the couch in front of the fireplace in the living room, per usual. New pup would be locked in the front hall, door to the living room shut and a baby gate blocking off the stairs. Seemed foolproof.
We get home a few hours later and little pup had totally laid waste to our plan. And a bank of potted plants in front of the living room window. And Uncle Henry's carpet runner, barely visible under an inch of potting soil.
The little shit had vaulted the baby gate, ran up the front stairs, down the back stairs, hopped a second baby gate between the kitchen and the living room, and then spent the afternoon partying hard with the old girls in front of the fireplace.
This put the FM in an incredibly foul mood...
My f@cking plants!
Uncle Henry's carpet runner!...
Ya, and your dog, I was tempted to add.
But I didn't. Instead I pitched in with the clean-up even before being told to. By the time we were finished I had convinced the FM that there was a silver lining.
We don't have to worry about the old girls harming the new baby. They'd just spent the afternoon together, without any human supervision whatsoever, and everything is A OK!
Well, at least dog-wise.
Next time we'll just leave them all on the couch in front of the fire.
So we devised a plan. The old girls would cosy up on the couch in front of the fireplace in the living room, per usual. New pup would be locked in the front hall, door to the living room shut and a baby gate blocking off the stairs. Seemed foolproof.
We get home a few hours later and little pup had totally laid waste to our plan. And a bank of potted plants in front of the living room window. And Uncle Henry's carpet runner, barely visible under an inch of potting soil.
The little shit had vaulted the baby gate, ran up the front stairs, down the back stairs, hopped a second baby gate between the kitchen and the living room, and then spent the afternoon partying hard with the old girls in front of the fireplace.
This put the FM in an incredibly foul mood...
My f@cking plants!
Uncle Henry's carpet runner!...
Ya, and your dog, I was tempted to add.
But I didn't. Instead I pitched in with the clean-up even before being told to. By the time we were finished I had convinced the FM that there was a silver lining.
We don't have to worry about the old girls harming the new baby. They'd just spent the afternoon together, without any human supervision whatsoever, and everything is A OK!
Well, at least dog-wise.
Next time we'll just leave them all on the couch in front of the fire.
Saturday, December 2, 2017
Engine trouble grounds Globe and Mail in Grey-Bruce
No Globe and Mail today.
Not at the Korean's place. Not anywhere else in Wiarton. Not anywhere in Owen Sound. Nor anywhere in the entirety of the Grey-Bruce Hillbilly Sanctuary and World Biosphere Preserve.
Apparently one derelict local hillbilly bears on his stooped shoulders the full responsibility for delivering the Globe to the Grey-Bruce in his dilapidated 1992 Astro van, and he had engine trouble today.
Hey, at least we're not the Maritimes!
Phil had her first full day with us. Went for a car drive to fetch the Globe and Mail. Needless to say, that led to an unanticipated odyssey of epic proportions. Three or four hours into the drive, she had a puke beyond anything you can imagine coming out of a 15 week old pup. Luckily, whoever originally bought this Subaru ordered it with the "cargo tray," a rubber mat that sits in the back. Were it not for that, the carpet under that cargo tray would have been saturated with ten quarts of puppy puke.
Unable to score a Globe and Mail, (I miss you, Doug!) I eventually settled for a Toronto Star. For some reason it maintains it's '70's era girth, even though all the papers around it are folding. So far I've only got through the first section, and in so doing was reminded of why I choose the Globe.
At the Star they strive to put the "human interest" angle out front with every story.
At the Globe they're more about the nitty-gritty.
To hell with the human interest angle; I just want the news.
Bring back my Globe and Mail!
Not at the Korean's place. Not anywhere else in Wiarton. Not anywhere in Owen Sound. Nor anywhere in the entirety of the Grey-Bruce Hillbilly Sanctuary and World Biosphere Preserve.
Apparently one derelict local hillbilly bears on his stooped shoulders the full responsibility for delivering the Globe to the Grey-Bruce in his dilapidated 1992 Astro van, and he had engine trouble today.
Hey, at least we're not the Maritimes!
Phil had her first full day with us. Went for a car drive to fetch the Globe and Mail. Needless to say, that led to an unanticipated odyssey of epic proportions. Three or four hours into the drive, she had a puke beyond anything you can imagine coming out of a 15 week old pup. Luckily, whoever originally bought this Subaru ordered it with the "cargo tray," a rubber mat that sits in the back. Were it not for that, the carpet under that cargo tray would have been saturated with ten quarts of puppy puke.
Unable to score a Globe and Mail, (I miss you, Doug!) I eventually settled for a Toronto Star. For some reason it maintains it's '70's era girth, even though all the papers around it are folding. So far I've only got through the first section, and in so doing was reminded of why I choose the Globe.
At the Star they strive to put the "human interest" angle out front with every story.
At the Globe they're more about the nitty-gritty.
To hell with the human interest angle; I just want the news.
Bring back my Globe and Mail!
Ready for winter
I see where Trumpenstein has got his tax cuts through. That will radically enhance wealth disparity in America. The rich will get richer, and you already know what it means for the rest.
Here's why this is a good thing. With a little luck, more Americans sucking on the hind teat will figure out that their "democracy" isn't working for them. Rich people need to get richer?
Get the fuck outta here!
But be that as it may, we're ready for winter here at Falling Downs. It helps that winter is at least a month late in coming.
Call it global warming.
Call it climate change.
Call it anthropocentric weather dysfunction... I don't give a shit what you call it...
But I like it!
Today I moved a couple of the garage relics into the barn, and that made room for the Mustang 50 and the Ninja. The Mustang got about five miles put on her this summer. The Ninja got about ten. I really don't know why I have this shit.
Gotta scale things down before I kick the bucket.
Junior wants the Mustang, and I'm cool with that. Not sure he can afford the insurance, but that's for him to figure out.
I haven't been able to interest any of the Juniors in the Ninja, so maybe she's gonna get buried with me. Except I'm heading for cremation rather than burial. Guess the bereft are gonna get stuck with an urn full of ash and a motorcycle.
That's OK.
That's a legacy I can live with when I'm dead.
We're ready for winter here at Falling Downs.
Here's why this is a good thing. With a little luck, more Americans sucking on the hind teat will figure out that their "democracy" isn't working for them. Rich people need to get richer?
Get the fuck outta here!
But be that as it may, we're ready for winter here at Falling Downs. It helps that winter is at least a month late in coming.
Call it global warming.
Call it climate change.
Call it anthropocentric weather dysfunction... I don't give a shit what you call it...
But I like it!
Today I moved a couple of the garage relics into the barn, and that made room for the Mustang 50 and the Ninja. The Mustang got about five miles put on her this summer. The Ninja got about ten. I really don't know why I have this shit.
Gotta scale things down before I kick the bucket.
Junior wants the Mustang, and I'm cool with that. Not sure he can afford the insurance, but that's for him to figure out.
I haven't been able to interest any of the Juniors in the Ninja, so maybe she's gonna get buried with me. Except I'm heading for cremation rather than burial. Guess the bereft are gonna get stuck with an urn full of ash and a motorcycle.
That's OK.
That's a legacy I can live with when I'm dead.
We're ready for winter here at Falling Downs.
Friday, December 1, 2017
Another reason to read Neumann's blog
Aside from getting the low-down on where my dogs shit, you get the down-low about what kind of shit the big dogs are up to.
And you know who the big dogs are.
Apparently our imaginary peace mission to the dark continent is stalled.
All the smart money was on a mission to Mali.
Then I read on Neumann's blog about how all the big gold mines were played out anyway, so what's the point?
Which is why Justin is still up in the air about where to send our "peacekeepers."
And you know who the big dogs are.
Apparently our imaginary peace mission to the dark continent is stalled.
All the smart money was on a mission to Mali.
Then I read on Neumann's blog about how all the big gold mines were played out anyway, so what's the point?
Which is why Justin is still up in the air about where to send our "peacekeepers."
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