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Ben A.@pcjr.bsky.social |
63 followers 249 following 570 posts
A little economics, a little politics, little art, and a little weiner (dog).
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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That's because there's a difference between evangelical (lowercase e) and Evangelicals (uppercase E). One is a religious sect, the other is identity politics. It makes perfect sense evangelicals wouldn't have a consistent dogma. They barely have morals.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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OMG, I hadn't even heard that one. Marital rape wasn't outlawed in a lot of places until the 1990's, but sure, the 70's were a great time to be a woman.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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This ranks up there with 'medieval serfs had more free time than modern Americans" for weird leftist misinformation efforts. Like, I get it. Billionaires suck. But there's a lot of real things for us to focus on.
1 replies 0 reposts 29 likes
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Looking forward to a too small fine as limited by law and a short probationary period after which they'll just do their crimes slightly more quietly.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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It really feels like Microsoft spent $100b on gaming studios and then decided they hated computer games.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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To be fair, "encherining" could've just been a weird British word, like chinwag or knackered.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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At this stage, they should just buy Rivian. The company's worth abt $10b, so for a slight premium they get a solid product with new mass market models in design and most of the infrastructure/manufacturing operations already established.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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In an universe where moisture farming is a thing, OF COURSE dry skin is a problem.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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To be fair, it's The Economist. Work until you die, subjects.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Yeah, I'm probably not staying in an AirBnB room rented by a single guy. But it just goes to show you how what seems a harmless act can have externalities that impact everyone. As someone whose used AirBnBs, I'm part of the problem. I am using them less these days though.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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You also have an amazingly large amount of 'starter' homes being bought by private equity companies for use as rentals. As much as 20% in my local market. Add in all those AirBnBs and restrictive building ordinances and you have yourself a housing crisis.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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I was more referring to how people never think they're part of the problem. Home prices are caused by supply and demand, but when you have people bidding way over asking prices...there's an element of price gouging, but those sellers might not view themselves that way. Landlords are similar.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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It's going to be funny when the people who got lucky (and I'm one of them) realize they're stuck living with their adult children who now can't afford a house because of all those OTHER greedy homeowners. Not me though. I earned my home's value.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Oh yeah, and inflation affects some people more than others. The middle aged White guys screaming about Biden's inflation have fixed mortgages where they're paying 2000 prices for housing versus younger people paying paying 2024 prices. Perception is everything.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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New homes have inferior materials and craftsmanship, but better engineering. So, it's a trade off. I love old homes, but I like my electric bill in my newer home. Also hardiplank is wonderful. You mean I don't have to paint my house or replace my siding every 10 years? WOW...
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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You can buy an old manor house in Scotland for cheap, but no one does because those any big beautiful old home has upkeep that’d bankrupt most anyone. Those places were money pits when they were new.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Tech has been in a jobs recession for over a year. It's a weird outlier in an otherwise smoking hot labor market. I guess suggesting they learn coding wouldn't work. :(
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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I think you're right. I needed to get my granddad or dad to sign up for an account and THEN get one. The exclusivity of USAA does make it more valuable. Members pass down that access like it's a solid gold watch.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Anyone with stuff is going to be a target. You got solar panels? Nope, not anymore you don't. Ah, you underground? That a 1 foot thick bunker door? Lemme just go find your air intake vents. There's no 'winning' an apocalypse.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Dang...I have State Farm, whose business model appears to be paying for 3/4th of a roof and no more than 3/4ths. And even with that, they lost 13 BILLION last year. Well oiled machine that State Farm is.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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I looked a while back and they were pretty strick on the requirements. I'll give it another gander though. Maybe there's a loophole. Your uncle was probably your in, though. I don't need the checking accounts, but man I'd do things to get USAA homeowners insurance.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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My biggest regret in life is not getting an USAA account while my veteran dad was still alive. In other news, I apparently don't have a lot of regrets. (more banks should have LoCs attached to checking accounts. Schwab used to but they got rid of them dammit)
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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A lot of banks make overdrafts optional now. I even saw an option so you could overdraft with a check, but not with a debit card. Banks still suck though (best ones are Credit Unions or weirdly enough Charles Schwab).
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Banking guy here. Without reading the article I'm guessing they're saying banks won't pay as many NSFs and poor people will bounce important checks like rent. But also every bank gets caught gaming the system every couple of years to charge more fees soooo...maybe banks don't operate in good faith.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Texas is a weird one though. You literally had a sitting Governor thinking Obama was going to Jade Helm all conservatives and that was back when the GOP was still kinda sorta normal. They absolutely want Fort Sumter 2.0 here.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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It's like people saying homes in the past were built better because the only homes from the past left are the really well built ones. Nostalgia is a hell of a drug.
4 replies 0 reposts 30 likes
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Not me, calling in B-52 strikes on neutral Camboia in Sid Meiers' Conflict in Vietnam (1986).
www.lemon64.com/game/conflic...
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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I dunno, I've heard rumors some people have lives.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Sounds like she just found out. By virtue of us being on a site called BlueSky, we are all VERY ONLINE people. Most of the world isn't. She probably was told only after she arrived. In the end, she's the product. She's the talent. She's the one with agency.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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She's an union member herself. Solidarity strikes are completely appropriate in this case.
1 replies 2 reposts 136 likes
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Ah, my apologies then. I misunderstood your reply. It's a difficult subject for a lot of people, especially considering how aggressively evil our economy can be to low earners. But labor markets have finally tilted in workers' favors at least.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Aw man, I just love citing economic journals too much afterall, so here...I found this after exactly 3 seconds of searching.
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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"Given that you're on Bluesky"? So you trust the Nazi site more? Interesting... I see you want me to cite my sources, but I'm going to let you Google your own shit.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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"What if we made search engines worthless?" - Google exec (probably)
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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On the plus side, Trump has been arguing pretty passionately that Biden doesn't have to accept a loss. Not saying I want a Biden dynasty, but Lord Protector Hunter Biden is going to rock.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Economics, like beauty, is pain.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Unless you're a Boomer, wages have increased faster than at any point in our lifetimes. And yeah, so has inflation. But wages have still moved faster. The 'real' minimum wage is now closer to $15, even in states where the official rate is still $7.25.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Net pay has still increased for the bottom 3rd, even with inflation. Most of the worst problems (housing, wages, healthcare costs) have existed for the last 20 years. The last 3 years have been better, but it's hard to convince people who've lived through the last 2 decades.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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During the 2020 GA Senate races, the Republican refused to debate the Dem (afraid his COVID insider trading would be brought up). The network instead gave a hour to the Dem to debate unopposed. That is what needs to happen here. Schedule a debate, whoever shows up gets the airtime.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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That's how we got Trump. A lot of people who didn't usually vote and who'd been forgotten by both parties found a voice with a fake billionaire ex-reality TV gameshow host. A cautionary tale if there ever was one about ignoring people's pain.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Ghost jobs, sure. Lots of companies post jobs w/no intention on filling those spots. And while the hiring market is strong, some industries, like tech, are in a jobs recession. But overall it's a remarkably strong labor market. The # of new jobs created each month are real and quantifiable.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Sure. Knowing you are a broken arm or extended illness from not affording rent is a form of PTSD in and of itself. Europe is not great for corporate profits or economic growth, but their people sure seem happy.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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I agree with you there. I'd rather my taxes go up than my government actively hurt people who Republicans don't like. But Presidents in bad economies don't get reelected. And it's not a bad economy, but people seem to think it is. Which is frustrating.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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I was unemployed for 3 years during the Great Recession. Back when you'd do a job search and literally nothing would come up. So I feel you there. And yeah, the economy has problems. But the worst of those problems have been percolating for 20+ years. The last 3 years have been net positives.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Sure, there was a book awhile back about people voting against their own self interests (What's the Matter with Kansas). I generally vote for higher taxes, but I have a background in economics. Maybe I should give the average electorate more credit, but also 2016 kinda ruined that for me.
1 replies 0 reposts 3 likes
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Eh. I didn’t vote for Trump even though I was still nominally a Republican at that point and I benefited from his tax cuts. But most people do vote for what benefits them. It’s not a hard concept.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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The last recession that started with a Democrat President was in the 1970's! Every recession since then has been with a Republican (Bush 1, Bush 2, Trump). Hell, Bush 2 had TWO recessions alone! Dems have a terrible messaging problem with the economy. Always have, always will.
4 replies 2 reposts 33 likes
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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In the end though, you vote your pocketbook, not someone else's. It is bonkers how poorly the literal best economy in the world is perceived. What happens when a real recession finally arrives.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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The Culture War antics did get him on Fox News a lot and made him a viable 2024 candidate. He just couldn't pivot from the inevitable realization he was a fucking freak.
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Ben A.
@pcjr.bsky.social
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Wait, is that all that’s left? What happened to the crypto bro? I miss Christie. He sucks and deserved to get COVID for telling Trump to go after Biden’s stutter, but he was at least marginally entertaining to watch.
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