Are you better off today, than you were 4 years ago when Trump was POTUS?

Both Russian and Chinese state-controlled media circulated baseless claims that the US was operating a network of 200 clandestine bio-laboratories engaged in developing biological weapons, giving an pet topic of pro-Kremlin disinformation new international prominence. As the infodemic highlighted China as an emerging disinformation actor, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute warned that “the CCP’s (China Communist Party’s) propaganda apparatus has been learning from the strategies and effects of Russian disinformation campaigns”.

Kindbud421 said:

To be honest, I don’t want to vote for either party leader. One is too old, the other is a pompous ass and both are starting to lose their marbles!

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pompous ass? How about Führer wannabe? You neglect to mention his profound and relentless evil.

As for too old, the President sure seems to be firing on all eight and routinely outmaneuvering the obstruction caucus in Congress. There’s a cruel faction that falsely derides Biden’s aphasia as incompetence.

cannabineer said:

pompous ass? How about Führer wannabe? You neglect to mention his profound and relentless evil.

As for too old, the President sure seems to be firing on all eight and routinely outmaneuvering the obstruction caucus in Congress. There’s a cruel faction that falsely derides Biden’s aphasia as incompetence.

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I agree. Just didn’t wanna start a “war” and for the fact of biden’s presumed loss of faculties, that is exclusively what a VP is for… to occupy the position of the acting pres cannot. Also his cabinet, press people, etc. just wish we could have someone a little younger… that doesn’t “residually” see the world and its workings from 50 yrs ago. Yes, the values and ideals were better back then but the world moves on. I live in ny and hate Hochul! She would suck the life and energy from the northern part of the state to further her agenda. Many friends have lost jobs due to prison closings… one is ex military who became a CO. Now he buys cars, fixes them and sells them. Cuz ther is no job in his field around here now. Would have to relocate down south or wwwaaayyy up north.

Kindbud421 said:

I agree. Just didn’t wanna start a “war” and for the fact of biden’s presumed loss of faculties, that is exclusively what a VP is for… to occupy the position of the acting pres cannot. Also his cabinet, press people, etc. just wish we could have someone a little younger… that doesn’t “residually” see the world and its workings from 50 yrs ago. Yes, the values and ideals were better back then but the world moves on. I live in ny and hate Hochul! She would suck the life and energy from the northern part of the state to further her agenda. Many friends have lost jobs due to prison closings… one is ex military who became a CO. Now he buys cars, fixes them and sells them. Cuz ther is no job in his field around here now. Would have to relocate down south or wwwaaayyy up north.

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What makes you think he sees it as from 50 years ago and not how it has developed over the last 50 years?

Don't get me wrong, I would hire him as a trail guide, or to build a new deck on my house if he was not just the owner of the company, but I can't find a fault in the people he has appointed to do the heavy lifting that we need to get done as a nation.

4 years ago little girls would not have been forced to have their rapists babies because they were not born into privileged enough families to travel out of their states for an abortion.

Kindbud421 said:

I agree. Just didn’t wanna start a “war” and for the fact of biden’s presumed loss of faculties, that is exclusively what a VP is for… to occupy the position of the acting pres cannot. Also his cabinet, press people, etc. just wish we could have someone a little younger… that doesn’t “residually” see the world and its workings from 50 yrs ago. Yes, the values and ideals were better back then but the world moves on. I live in ny and hate Hochul! She would suck the life and energy from the northern part of the state to further her agenda. Many friends have lost jobs due to prison closings… one is ex military who became a CO. Now he buys cars, fixes them and sells them. Cuz ther is no job in his field around here now. Would have to relocate down south or wwwaaayyy up north.

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In this instance, I’m grateful to have a President whose values are rooted in the time of Eisenhower, our last honest Republican to hold the oval office. The other one’s values are rooted in the time of Capone or perhaps Gambino.

As for the world moving on, I see more bad than good in that. Kids these days (anyone born after Watergate) seem to be really hurtin’ for critical thinking skills and good information hygiene.

For that I blame the culture war whose foundation was laid and described by the Powell memo, of which a major objective was to stop the school system from teaching those skills.

Therein lies the demonization of “wokeness” i. e. having and using the tools of knowledge and analytical process to notice when policy makers are shoveling bs.

So a younger player would need to possess historical and economic literacy. (Add an ability to use the word “moral” without it meaning “toxic evangelical.”)
Trouble is, the majority of today’s younger voters have not formed the habit of valuing those virtues.

Look at how defenseless most are against subversive ideas whose origin usually is Moscow, Beijing or Tehran — and now Riyadh.

How many young or GOP-inclined voters do you imagine will correctly recognize the collusion to spike gas prices as a selective assault on Democrat candidates? When you hear that “gas was cheaper under (a Republican)” you’re witnessing exactly the response the enemies of our republic are promoting.

/denture-smacking rant

hanimmal said:

What makes you think he sees it as from 50 years ago and not how it has developed over the last 50 years?

Don't get me wrong, I would hire him as a trail guide, or to build a new deck on my house if he was not just the owner of the company, but I can't find a fault in the people he has appointed to do the heavy lifting that we need to get done as a nation.

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Not pigeon holing Biden, or trump… all people of a certain generation, whether it be the 50’s 60’s 70’s, etc think like the majority of that generation. Local politics vote in the same person that has held office for multiple terms and nothing changes… ever. Young minds have ideas that work as well. Not just seeing white hair and believing that person is “wise enough” to benefit all.

Kindbud421 said:

Not pigeon holing Biden, or trump… all people of a certain generation, whether it be the 50’s 60’s 70’s, etc think like the majority of that generation. Local politics vote in the same person that has held office for multiple terms and nothing changes… ever. Young minds have ideas that work as well. Not just seeing white hair and believing that person is “wise enough” to benefit all.

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The bolded is contradictory. It’s also very much pigeonholing.

Usually, holding office for a long time means repeatedly winning elections. It’s good to have a pool of elders who ideally teach the freshmen how sht works in the bigs.

Imagine a legislature made entirely of Gyms and Greenes and Pedobears and Boebies and Santoses. it would be Rome in the third century.

cannabineer said:

The bolded is contradictory. It’s also very much pigeonholing.

Usually, holding office for a long time means repeatedly winning elections. It’s good to have a pool of elders who ideally teach the freshmen how sht works in the bigs.

Imagine a legislature made entirely of Gyms and Greenes and Pedobears and Boebies and Santoses. it would be Rome in the third century.

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Agreed

For me that is a BIG NO. Food and Gas prices are ridiculous. $50 per month Socal Security raise doesn't help at all.

Things were much better for me when Trump was President.

Blue_Focus said:

For me that is a BIG NO. Food and Gas prices are ridiculous. $50 per month Socal Security raise doesn't help at all.

Things were much better for me when Trump was President.

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That’s because we were coasting on Obama’s governance, and that man who followed hadn’t had time to really wreck things.

Democrats are working hard to reestablish a working republic, but the GOP has gone all in on the politics of obstruction. They’d rather make Democrats look bad than do anything positive for the nation. They proved it when they meekly obeyed il capo when he told them to reject a border/aid bill that gave them exactly what they demanded, but it would be bad for il capo’s master in Moscow because it would arm Ukraine.

Now Moscow and Riyadh are executing on a plan to assrape the oil market and drive fuel costs smartly up in time to interfere with the upcoming election. The smart folk are asking why, and coming up with the obvious answer that the Republican program of killing the republic is aligned with the interests of those autocrats. It’s not complicated.

Kindbud421 said:

Not pigeon holing Biden, or trump… all people of a certain generation, whether it be the 50’s 60’s 70’s, etc think like the majority of that generation.

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I am not sure, I really think it was around this time that we started to actually have the worlds first actual attempt at a all inclusive society, and there was a whole lot of change happening during that period that has a lot of people who have been working their entire lives towards the goals that a lot of the newer generations are being sold the 'nobody gets me' mindset because of Republicans obstructing any actual changes in it their entire lives.

Kindbud421 said:

Local politics vote in the same person that has held office for multiple terms and nothing changes… ever.

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I used to think this too, and there is truth in it mostly. What I think is important to figure out is how gerrymandering and voter suppression had impacted the power to change anything in a lot of areas that are in most need. We got lucky here in Michigan, we passed a law that allows us to circumvent the pain in the ass it is to vote for most people here and we gave Democrats power to actually pass legislation for the first time in about 50 years.

Kindbud421 said:

Young minds have ideas that work as well. Not just seeing white hair and believing that person is “wise enough” to benefit all.

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Sure ideas are great, and there is something to be said about having someone who is great at speeches and does everything in public perfectly in the face of trolling (like mayor Pete).

But for me, I want someone who has proven themselves to not be a Russian puppet and is clean af. Biden actually showing a lot of wisdom during his term as president has been a bonus, and being so squeaky clean that they have to make shit up to come at him is where he has earned my vote.

Blue_Focus said:

For me that is a BIG NO. Food and Gas prices are ridiculous. $50 per month Socal Security raise doesn't help at all.

Things were much better for me when Trump was President.

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Im kind of curious, because I really don't have much of a gauge on it, how much driving are you actually doing that the price increase in gas or buying food that the cost of living increase is not helping? Also is that figuring in the increase from last year (or 2 I would guess) too?

I do wish Trump wouldn't have cut the deal with the Saudi's to screw us in gas prices though. Im worried that is going to bite us in the butt again this election.

Depends on who you ask. It seems people in the 30-70k income bracket are really struggling.

credit card debt and delinquencies are at extreme highs and the cost of insurance, energy, and food has increased on average between 10-30%


March-April-May of 2020 I made substantial contributions into both individual equities and several index funds. I’ve more than doubled my portfolio since then and have been dollar cost averaging long before COVID. I bought property when rates were sub 3% then another in 2022 when rates started ticking up. Years before in 2016 a few weeks before the election I moved my entire retirement port into one banks stock that was at $60 a share late october and nearly doubled just a few months into Trumps presidency. I rebalanced but looking back I wish I hadn’t as now they’re triple. 2022 I made a few mistakes as it was an anomaly in that both equities and fixed income had negative returns (fed rate hikes and a few major factors contributed to this) but I don’t sell so I’ve recovered and some since. I say all this not to boast more to encourage everyone to participate in the market and real estate investment no matter what headlines tell you.

I wish stimulus checks had never happened - especially the 2021 “American Rescue Plan” as printing all that money came back to harm a lot of lower-middle income households. Most financially stable households just put them in to savings, and because of inflation if they didn’t invest it in some way those “free” dollars are worth even less. It also incentivized many to continue to stay out of the workforce (federal unemployment benefit extension) long after enough data was available to see only certain segments of the population were truly at risk of COVID causing severe illness. Continuing to isolate people - especially children may have longstanding effects on society as a whole.

This section of the forum throws me off a bit, yet draws me in to read because it’s eye opening to see other growers so emotionally invested in things going one way or another. I do not share the same concern for either candidate holding office, and have more concern with foreign actors harming our nation and economy. I also think truly combating fentanyl and every hand (cartel or country) that is part of its distribution should be prioritized more than anything

lemondroptrichomes said:

I wish stimulus checks had never happened - especially the 2021 “American Rescue Plan” as printing all that money came back to harm a lot of lower-middle income households

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Yet it prevented millions from falling into poverty and resulted in faster recovery of certain sectors. Economists do not agree on the net results because it's very hard to measure and compare to the results to what would/could have been. There'd still be inflation from supply chain disruptions and labor shortages and there are many indirect and hidden costs to people falling into poverty.

lemondroptrichomes said:

This section of the forum throws me off a bit, yet draws me in to read because it’s eye opening to see other growers so emotionally invested in things going one way or another.

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Despite or perhaps even thanks to the general topic of this site, this is imho one of the best places to discuss politics and get honest, thoughtful, and pertinent replies from real people - generally speaking that is. Thanks to both Sunni and other mods as well as the regulars this isn't a cesspool like some major social media sites.

cannabineer said:

My rent increases alone more than wiped the SS increases out, so my real earnings are rather less.
As for Covid, that played a weird number on me too. So, all told, the last three years have been a strange trip. Sorry to hear about your grandma.

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Ya man it sucks I'm trying to buy a house and I'm not sure if I'm ever going to be able to! Shits getting really expensive!

big bud man 413 said:

Ya man it sucks I'm trying to buy a house and I'm not sure if I'm ever going to be able to! Shits getting really expensive!

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I can’t even buy a house on Baltic Avenue.

cannabineer said:

I can’t even buy a house on Baltic Avenue.

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Same here I hope things improve soon.

big bud man 413 said:

Same here I hope things improve soon.

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Well, he just said it was going to get better! …. That was pathetic.

DoubleAtotheRON said:

Well, he just said it was going to get better! …. That was pathetic.

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Ya man things definitely are not getting better!

DoubleAtotheRON said:

Well, he just said it was going to get better! …. That was pathetic.

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At least he is being honest, unlike the other leading brand.

He’s also right. Things will get better, barring a dinosaur killer. It’s only a matter of time.