10 thoughts on “Friday Open Thread”

1. 'Tis morning, and you will need to go forth on the fourth.

   Announcement from Bureau of Labor says the US added 136,000 jobs in September — "

   Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 136,000 in September. Job growth has averaged 161,000 per month thus far in 2019, compared with an average monthly gain of 223,000 in 2018.

   Two previous months were revised upwards — but the 3 month average is still only 157,000 per month over the last 3 months.

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   1. Paul Krugman on the coming "Trump Slump"

      But unlike previous presidents, who were just unlucky to preside over slumps, Trump has done this to himself, largely by choosing to wage a trade war he insisted would be “good, and easy to win.”

      The link between the trade war and agriculture’s woes is obvious: America’s farmers are deeply dependent on export markets, China in particular. So they’re hurting badly, despite a huge financial bailout that is already more than twice as big as the Obama administration’s auto bailout. (Part of the problem may be that the bailout money is flowing disproportionately to the biggest, richest farms.)

      So the tweeter in chief has bungled his way into a Trump slump, even if it isn’t a full-blown recession, at least so far. It’s clearly going to hurt him politically, notably because of the contrast between his big talk and not-so-great reality. Also, the pain in manufacturing seems to be falling especially hard on those swing states Trump took by tiny margins in 2016, giving him the Electoral College despite losing the popular vote.

      So what is Trump doing?  He's about to open a European front of his trade war!  

      The Trump administration’s latest tariffs target large aircraft but also many typical European products such as olives, whiskey, wine, cheese and yogurt. They take effect Oct. 18 and amount to a 10% tax on EU aircraft and a steep 25% rate on everything else.

      He's holding off on tariffs on European automobiles so that he'll have something left to bludgeon the world economy with after the EU inevitably retaliates.

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      1. 1980: Are you better off than you were four years ago? 

         2020: Can you take another four years of this? 

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      2. I like the advice to follow the money
         Often knowing who benefits points to who is pusing for what

         US trade war with Canada & Mexico, Asia, now Europe: Russia
         Venezuela collapse: Russia.
         Military support: Saudi v. Everyone, but especially Yemen: Russia

         But no way that thing is a duck

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   2. So much winning!

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3. From Politico

   

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4. Looks like Tri-State is going to have to find a third arm to pull the next trick from their sleeve. This sleight of hand worked out about as well as their faux War on Rural Colorado campaign.  Fellas, could you just give it up and join the 21st century?  

   FERC rejects Tri-State's request for federal regulation

   The rural power supplier says it's not surprised.

    

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   1. 

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5. Of course they did…. we haven't even begun to see the bottom of the barrel in this election cycle.  

   PRO-TRUMP GROUP CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY FOR WOMAN'S 'EAT BABIES' SPEECH AT ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ EVENT

   An economic PAC that supports President Donald Trump claimed responsibility for a woman who told Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez people needed to start eating babies because of climate change.

   A video of the woman's comments, which she delivered at a town hall in New York, went viral on Thursday. From the outset, many questioned the validity of the video, speculating that the woman was planted there by a group or was suffering from a mental condition.

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