US families need to earn a staggering 80% more than they did in 2020 to 'comfortably afford' a home nowadays — despite the median income only going up 23% in that time

Fourteen Trillion

$14 trillion. That's what Covid + lockdown cost us. "Workplace absences, and sales lost due to the cessation of brick-and-mortar retail shopping, air travel and public gatherings, contributed the most. At the height of the pandemic, in the second quarter of 2020, our survey indicates that international and domestic airline travel fell by nearly 60%, indoor dining by 65% and in-store shopping by 43%. . . . The toll we estimate that it took on the nation’s gross domestic product is twice the size of that of the Great Recession of 2007-2009. It’s 20 times greater than the economic costs of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and 40 times greater than the toll of any other disaster to befall the U.S. in the 21st century to date." 

COVID-19’s Total Cost to the U.S. Economy Will Reach $14 Trillion by End of 2023 – USC Schaeffer 

And how do you put a price tag on stealing our young people's youth and what they might have learned in school?The mental depression. The drug use. They were the least likely to get Covid yet they may have paid the biggest price.

So much of this was unnecessary. Too many ignorant people were given an enormous amount of power. What can we do to prevent it from happening again.

The Ross Rant, Joel Ross

10/21/22:  The US economy was doing very well when Trump left office. We were energy independent, the stock market was still high, home prices were high, inflation was 1.4%, and consumers had a lot of money, and credit card use was very low. The Federal deficit was too high, but not completely out of control and unsustainable. We were still in Afghanistan holding off the terrorists and Taliban in most of the country, and the Iranians were struggling under serious sanctions. Russia was not threatening Ukraine and China was not obviously threatening Taiwan. Kim was quiescent. The US was still way ahead of the rest of the world in reducing carbon emissions and switching to gas and alternatives. In short, things in the world were OK as the pandemic was getting under control. Then Joe arrived with his band of social radicals and climate change crazies pulling the strings of the puppet. The decline of the US, and now the world, in under two years is a perfect example of how left-wing policies, and ESG, can destroy the world economy and peace in no time. How anyone can embarrass themselves and vote for Dems this election is beyond me. What is it they do not understand. The R’s will control the senate by 2-4 seats, and more governors. The wave is building again. The September inflation report was a killer for Dems. Bezos, Dimon, Bloomberg, Zandi, Interactive Brokers, and Summers all now say, the economy goes down more from here. Mortgage demand at 25 years low. The worst is yet to come. Get under the desk.

On being a conservative in 2021

When I left the liberal left (i.e., the Democrat party) in 2000 I only knew about the one issue that mattered most to me: abortion. Democrats supported it, wanted it, lusted after it, used my tax money to support it, and campaigned on it. So I left the left--the party that said they cared about the workers and the little guys, but lied about it for years.

At the time, I didn't know much about Republicans except what I'd been told by academics and the media. They were bad I was told. I had to find out about "conservative" ideas and values on my own, because Republicans were sort of . . . spineless, and weak, and weren't good at selling their ideas. So here's what I'd like to see from Republicans--perhaps the impossible dream.

Attitudes/sentiments/beliefs for Conservatism

Family (I include pro-life protections in this)
Faith (freedom of religion for all faiths)
Fair (opportunities for all)
Patriotism (respect and honor for the country's history, values, laws)
Security (strong, but not corrupt or bloated, military)
Free markets (as little gov't interference as possible)
Safety net (for the unborn, the weakest, the elderly)
Practical, prudent policies (no more 2000 page bills no one reads)
Fiscally wise, low taxes (capitalism, but not oligarchs like Bezos owning Washington Post or Big Tech controlling the presidency)
Separation of the 3 branches of government as intended
Merit, intelligence, ambition and ability rewarded
Natural and built environment protected, but not worshipped
Local control where possible, national direction where necessary

and I'll add more as I think (or sleep) on it.

He's mad at the people destroying America, and there are many

Michael Smith has a good analysis of the footsteps we're walking in.  From Facebook post.

"I've been reading and studying a number of economic collapses from history - from the crash of tulip bulbs to Venezuela - there are certain aspects, certain markers, that were easily recognizable before each of the collapses.

The US has a lot of those markers, three of of the most significant are an incautious, incestuous involvement between government and industry, a national leadership who chose to ignore the markers and an opposition party that simply stood by and did little to nothing to change direction.

The Biden administration is building upon the rotten foundation of the Obama years to create some real structural deficiencies in our economy and are building in crises for the future - and there are giant corporations who have signed on to help.

Electric car mandates are an example. The auto industry is killing the internal combustion engine at the behest of government. The fossil fuel sector is being dismantled - both at the same time when electricity generation is predicted not to be able to keep up with demand. This guarantees future shortages of electricity - and likely rolling blackouts, something more common in third world countries than in a nation that has led the world for over a century.

It's not just Biden, there are many powerful forces (foreign and domestic) that have been cheering for decades for America to fail.

The next 18 months are going to be bad, I fear.

The fall can be stealthy - you may have the same job and a paycheck, but each week that pay will buy less and less (that same theft by erosion will happen to your savings). You may be able to do most of what you used to do, but over time, more will be forbidden to you.

Look, 9/11 shut down our national transportation systems. The mortgage bubble burst and collapsed our financial systems. The reaction to Covid 19 shut down our supply chains, shut down a national economy and locked us behind closed doors. Cyber attacks and ransomware are in the news weekly for shutting down hospitals, agricultural and energy transmission businesses.

Imagine all of those happening at the same time.

I get accused of being pessimistic - and that is a fair assessment, because I am - but it isn't a violent pessimism, it is more of a resignation, a "better get ready" sort.

 
Better have enough space for a garden, better have a few critical things stocked up, better know a few basic SHTF (sh*t hits the fan) skills, better be ready to protect yourself and your family and have the equipment and supplies to do it, better transfer your investments into hard assets, better know where your loved ones are and how to communicate with them when cell phones no longer work.

I wake up every morning with a burning anger toward the people who destroyed my America and stole the good life I have had from my children and their children.

But more than that, I'm like one of those movie characters that has been shifted in time. I can see the explosion about to happen but nobody can hear me yelling at them.

My Spidey Sense is tingling, telling me there is something wrong. I can't put my finger on it, but it sure feels that something wicked this way comes.

Wall Street Journal reports economic crisis is over

The economy is set to soar, but the Biden /Democrat hysteria choir is trying to tap it down so it can grab more green goodies at your expense.

"The latest evidence arrived Monday with the Institute for Supply Management’s news that its March survey for service businesses hit 63.7. That’s an all-time high, and it signifies rapid growth and optimism. The only problem is that many businesses say they can’t find enough workers or supplies to meet their order books.

That follows Friday’s blowout employment report for March, with a net total of 1.07 million new jobs including revisions from the previous two months. Wage gains were bigger than they looked at first glance, given that many returning workers were those in lower-wage services jobs hurt by the pandemic." Wall St. Journal

Cancel the egg rolls. Hire CBS to do a hit piece on Florida's governor. Bust open the border with more infected immigrants and ship them around the country. Keep the schools closed with teachers union (which funds 99.9% Democrat candidates) cooperation. Send Fauci to all the talk shows with even more confusing information.

How is your state doing?

We live in Ohio, technically a red state if you only count the governor. However, with major cities, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Toledo, Akron, etc., all being Democrat, I can’t say we’re a shining example of freedom during the pandemic, which is now officially one year old (all Democrat run cities had riots this past summer). The growth and vitality have been in the red states.  No one really knows what the death total would have been if common sense had prevailed and only those of us over 65 had been asked to stay home and covered. In low income countries the death rate was actually lower than developed countries because they have fewer elderly. Many lives in Ohio have been ruined, and we were already the epicenter of an opioid crisis given that the cartels (black tar heroin from Mexico) moved into Ohio years ago and used us as a base to spread the products around east and west and south of us. Teachers’ unions were already powerful and they fought return to the classrooms. Ohio has so many universities and colleges which are hot-beds for every flakey idea that pops up, and every federal grant ever released, it’s really hard to tell could the pandemic fear and terror have been slowed down.

Churches, the relief bill, and PPP

I think this $1.9 trillion relief bill, 9% of which is directed at Covid, is a trial run for universal basic income which U.S. socialists have wanted for a long time. Eighty Five years ago Democrats under the leadership of FDR extended the Great Depression probably 5-6 years longer than a natural recovery, now they want to do the same with the pandemic economic slump. 

I do hope that churches will turn down the 2nd application for PPP. Churches are member supported organizations which do not pay federal income tax. If they have the trust of their membership who continue to pay their pledges, there's money to pay staff. It's legal, but not ethical, to apply for PPP. Especially since so many churches sat in their closed buildings and were willing to be "non-essential" in the eyes of their state governments.

No one gave us the chance

What if the nation had stayed open for business and only the old (>65) had restricted their activities, spaces and faces after the "2 week shutdown to save the hospitals" last spring. Would there be any difference in the infection death rate (already extremely low)? We are the boomers and the silent generation, but I think we could have saved the nation if given the chance.

"The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on education has been severe, accelerating the learning losses typically seen over summer breaks. The sad reality is that the shutdowns have had an unequal effect on students. While most students have experienced a learning decay, the impact has been more severe among disadvantaged children." (PolicyEd "Endless Summer, How Covid has reversed academic achievement")

Lockdown computer model from 14 year old's science project

Maybe someone else would have come up with the same computer model for a lockdown and social distancing as a 14 year old girl did for her science project in 2006. But as of now, she's the only culprit. It had never been tried before, and for good reason. It would destroy the world economy and kill millions more than the virus.

Social Distancing for Coronavirus Has a History - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

Also, the FB "fact checkers" still have a grey/black shield over my research on the lack of research about SKSAM and this virus (spelled backwards)

A Labor Day message from your pastor

“ This Summer of 2020 has been anything but carefree and relaxing. We have been dealing with Coronavirus all Summer and trying to avoid becoming ill. We have been living in fear, staying home, keeping our distance, isolating ourselves, wearing masks, avoiding crowds, sanitizing our hands, and trying to avoid touching anything. We have been missing ordinary human contact and the company of friends and neighbors. We missed going to our favorite vacation destinations, entertainment venues and other fun attractions. Our favorite parades and festivals and community events were cancelled. Instead of having fun and good times, we worried about contagious disease, about systemic racism, about economic hardship, about injustice and about tension, strife and violence in our cities. We worried about our jobs, our financial security and our families. I worry that the effect of all this prolonged fear and uncertainty is that many are feeling overwhelmed, despairing and hopeless.

Perhaps this Labor Day we should put this Summer behind us and set our hopes on better days to come. We can use this holiday as a time to make a break with negative thinking, to care for our own mental health, and to encourage and support one another. Prayer is a great antidote to anxiety and fear. Prayer lightens our burdens and eases our troubled minds. Prayer enables us to surrender to God, to trust in His care, and to grow in the virtue of Hope. Prayer makes things better. As this strange and distressing Summer comes to an end, I prescribe a generous dose of prayer. It is medicine for your soul and a pain reliever for your mind. And I promise you, you will feel better. “

Your pastor

President Trump helped blacks more than other presidents

“. . . Back home in the US [New Year's Eve 2019], African Americans were experiencing the best economy we have ever seen: Unemployment for our racial group was the lowest in recorded history, black wages were rapidly increasing for the first time in decades, and people who’d been out of work long-term were being hired and suddenly able to take their families on vacations for the first time in years.

The Trump policies made it possible. Tax cuts and rocketing GDP growth meant companies were feeling financially stable for the first time in a decade and public confidence in our economy had never been higher. Trump’s re-election was on cruise control. Even Democrats were willing to admit that the chances of Trump losing were slim.

No one could have predicted what would happen next."

https://nypost.com/2020/07/04/trump-not-biden-has-helped-make-black-lives-better/?

Hillary and Nancy’s talking points

Hillary Clinton (still making the rounds of the sympathetic talk shows), Nancy Pelosi and all the rest of the Democrats trying to save Obama's legacy continue to repeat erroneously that Trump is just continuing Obama's successes. That's wrong. The recession ended in June 2009 about 5 months after Obama took office. He had nothing to do with it. However, because of imposing more regulations, and taking our tax money to float his ARRA for his supporters, he did slow down the recovery, which toddled along for 7 years before gaining momentum. He did have us in war his whole 8 years, more than GW Bush.

People like me and Bill Gates--people who had investments--saw the recovery quickly because of the stock market. I'm not part of the 1%, but they did terrific under Obama. That didn't help the black teen or the former coal miner working at McDonald's or the retail clerk out of work because the consumer confidence didn't recover.

The Trump recovery is reaching down and pulling up the people who had given up, the people Obama gave up on and who were told things would never be any better than the slow gear on the old rattling truck; the people receiving the "dole" who thought they might never work again.

People are saving, investing and starting new businesses. They are hopeful under Trump--even those who don't like him. Obama never preached recovery, or pride, or happiness or joy.  Sharing public bathrooms with the opposite sex, allowing foreigners assistance for college that Americans can’t get, pushing abortions—how is that hope? Hope for Obama was a campaign slogan and nothing else.

And he was just smart enough to allow fracking because that saved his lunch, economically speaking. He never said America was the best, the greatest, because. . . he was honest and didn't believe it. I had to grit my teeth in November 2016 because Trump wasn't my choice, but I'm so glad he proved me wrong. And proved Obama wrong.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2013/02/12/president-obama-gets-it-fracking-is-awesome/#7325032d425d

Elizabeth Warren

I shopped on panic Saturday! December 21. More money was spent by Americans that day, $34.4 billion, than any day in America's history. And Elizabeth Warren is trying to make Americans fearful, that there's a terrible gap, that life's unfair so she needs to steal money from some and give it to others! The big four leading the way were Walmart, Amazon, Costco and Target. Is that where the top 1% shop? Nope. It's where we all shop. (I shopped at Macy's and Kohl's.) Why do Democrats preach doomsday? Because they don't believe in America. Not the people, not the Constitution, not the economy, and certainly not the president.

Rumors of economic downturn, again

Remember when Trump took the oath of office, and all the liberal economists were predicting disaster? I’ve looked back through the 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 predictions. It isn’t all stock market talk—it’s farmers in Tennessee, or truck drivers cross country, or realtors.  Each little blip brings out the “what are we going to do about this monster in the White House?”

The last recession ended in June 2009--before the first dollar of ARRA went out the door. They come around about every 10 years (GW Bush inherited the 2000 recession), and usually the recovery is fast unless the government interferes too much with "help." I wonder why liberals keep trying to talk us into an economic down turn? Maybe because they are desperate to see Trump fail and will damage the whole nation for that goal? The October Census report on poverty and the November report on jobs where almost mind blowing for the Democrats--they are so eager to bring down the most successful president in our life times.

Elizabeth Warren thinks the economy needs to be fixed.

True, librarians are a poorly paid group, but I'm earning more now than I did when I was employed, and many retirees say the same thing. And my 403-b is invested conservatively—about 60-40. I see hiring signs everywhere I go, and I see a number of new employees who have been put on the job floor a little soon.

Recessions come and go so I don't expect it to last, but Obama did everything wrong, and took what should have been a brief recession and extended it with clamping down on the very people who could have created the jobs. That recession was over in June 2009, but he had so flogged and discouraged American investors and businessmen we limped along in "recovery" for 7 more years while the rich came back with his bail outs. In fact, as soon as he was nominated by Democrats in summer 2008 things started to take an ugly turn.

The mega-wealthy like Bezos and Gates can withstand the crazies in Congress and the White House, but the rest of us have to wait for a Reagan or Trump.

Cheering on the next recession

When Trump got the nomination in 2016 the experts (mostly Democrats working in non-profit "think tanks") predicted economic disaster. Since early 2017, the same "experts" have been predicting a recession. Our local news channel took the time out to announce one last night. Since they come around about every 10 years, someone will eventually get this one right. OTH, it seems some in media are pushing for economic failure so Democrats can have a crisis they will resolve by taking over more of the economy. They were doing the same in 2007. Remember the ARRA? The last recession was over (June 2009) before the first dollar to pay off Obama supporters was out the door. Then like the LA homeless, the Democrats relieved themselves on every effort of Americans to rebuild. They particularly enjoy terrorizing the little guy just building her business; after all, they've got the giant corporations on their side, like big tech and big pharma, who have the bucks to finance their campaigns and lobby for more regulation (keeps the up and coming stalled).

Here’s a really safe December 2016 prediction—maybe good, maybe bad.  World economy could suffer if Trump makes America great again. https://www.moneytips.com/what-economists-are-predicting-for-2017-under-president-trump

Predictions from June 2018—things are good now, but look out. http://fortune.com/2018/06/04/recession-2020-trump-trade/

Many forget the recession of 2000. How did President Bush handle that with the 9/11 disaster? Lowered taxes. Quick recovery. Congress enacted tax cuts to families in 2001 and investors in 2003. EGTRRA saved taxpayers $1.35 trillion over a 10-year period. Democrats hated this one. Said it decreased the government's "income." Note the cons in this article. https://www.thebalance.com/economic-growth-and-tax-relief-reconciliation-act-3305764

Economic freedom

The U.S. economy is roaring like no other time in recent memory. The job market is hot, unemployment is down to record lows, and small business optimism is soaring. Wages are rising for the first time in two decades, with an overall unemployment rate of 3.8 percent, matching the lowest rate in 50 years. 

https://www.heritage.org/international-economies/commentary/under-trump-us-economic-freedom-rises-significantly

So why are the Democrats so mad? Why are all the 2020 candidates pushing socialism? Well, in my opinion, they hate Trump more than they love the American people.

More young blacks voting Republican? Suburbs flipping to Democrats?

“According to the Federal Reserve, as of 2016, median black household income was $35,400, and median black household net worth was $17,600. Contrast that with $61,200 median income and $171,000 median net worth for whites.

After all these years of government programs to help low-income Americans, African-Americans, on average, are not catching up.

Perhaps the message is sinking in to young blacks that what they need is more freedom and the kind of growing economy that goes with it.”

Star Parker https://www.dailysignal.com/2018/11/14/election-results-point-to-a-political-change-occurring-among-black-young-adults/

“The 2016 election demonstrated how working-class voters—historically devoted Democrats—found political and cultural refuge in the GOP. Rural counties provided the voting margins necessary for Trump’s win and for Republicans’ legislative gains. In response, politicos and pundits reassessed their dismissal of heartland regions. But Republicans now find themselves in a jam. While Democrats ignored the concerns of blue-collar cities and towns, Republicans took suburban voters’ support for granted. A Republican renaissance is proving illusory without this coalition. By losing suburban voters, the GOP could face a long-term obstacle in securing formerly winnable congressional seats, governorships, and state legislative chambers.

Republicans’ suburban disadvantage also indicates a class division disrupting both political parties. In suburbs outside larger cities, voters are often upwardly mobile transplants—though many have roots in struggling communities—who are financially inoculated against the concerns of working-class families. The economy of the 2010s boosted their stock portfolios, bank accounts, and home values. Development projects in their downtowns brought microbreweries, barre studios, artisanal donut shops, and Trader Joe’s. Opulent Craftsman imitations replaced post-World War II ranches along winding suburban streets. The opioid crisis was a new story, not a pandemic afflicting residential neighborhoods. Once GOP strongholds, these communities are safe and prosperous, with excellent schools—and they now trend Democratic.”

The suburban revolt https://www.city-journal.org/suburbias-electoral-realignment? 

And again it’s rich against poor, but now the Democrats are the rich and the Republicans who are poor, but the media aren’t demonizing the rich Democrats.

Democrats want to go backwards

This should be the closing argument for the election: The economy. It's the best in my lifetime. The Recession was over June 2009--before the first dollar was released from Obama to "help." Did it feel over to you? It was the slowest recovery in history, yet Democrats want to return to that!

Obama did everything he could to hold back full recovery to make us more dependent on government--from a take over our health insurance and higher taxes, to shutting down reporters (Trump didn’t jail reporters, but Obama did), to the addition of strangling regulations, to brow beating us with negativity about the country, to bailing out banks and taking over auto companies, to threatening jail if we didn't buy his insurance product, to enabling ISIS and extending the war, to confusing users of public toilets. He virtually destroyed the Democrat Party which has now been taken over by Socialists and other radicals.