The stock market decided today who are the real culprits keeping us in inflation : the corporations who took advantage of the Covid downturn and subsequent recovery to keep prices high. There is no reason for the continuance of inflation now. The labor market is strong, we’re pumping out more oil and natural gas than ever before, supply chain issues have been addressed. Consumers, after two years of shortages, will spend more for things that are available again. CEOs know this.

@CJShaneArtBooks And it’s the largest county with most of the population. Will the abortion issue trump the border issue? We’ll see.

@CJShaneArtBooks Perhaps this will put Arizona in the Biden camp come November?

@LordsofHardwired 😀

I wish an interviewer would ask Trump supporters and even “undecided” voters who express their liking of Trump’s economic policies, what policies they’re referencing. His tax cuts for the super wealthy? His deregulation of industries that make the environment more toxic? The tariffs on China that would make the stuff they buy more expensive? His non-existent solutions for inflation? Tell us, please, what economic policies Trump espouses that would make your financial life better.

@walterbays On landlines!

Does anyone really pay attention to presidential election polls? I mean, when’s the last time the polls were accurate?

@ReneeVoiceBrand Oh, they’ll come up with other explanations because, as we all know, religion is not supposed to govern government policy. And they’re the Supremes, accountable to no one.

@JGNWYRK It just takes a President to waive such nuisance rules. Remember Jared Kushner?

@ReneeVoiceBrand Yes, many Protestant denominations support abortion rights, as does Islam and at least Reformed Judaism. But as you pointed out, the super majority of Roman Catholics in the Supreme Court would not look favorably on a lawsuit proposing such rights.

States that ban abortions always point to their exceptions, including rape and incest in a few to the threat of death or irreparable harm to the woman in all to show they aren’t being unreasonable. Problem is, and this has been demonstrated countless times, proving these exceptions is unworkable, making the exceptions moot. And Republicans now want to make this attitude the law of the land. Not only that, many espouse banning contraception, thereby putting more women at risk. Yikes!

@TrueBloodNet Yes, the work-permit program we have now is quite specific and would satisfy background checks, but it takes much too long to get approved. If it were liberalized in a way that could satisfy our manpower needs expeditiously while still protecting us against bad actors, the hordes now showing up at our border would slow to a trickle, I would think.

A solution that makes sense to me would be a work-permit program. Foreigners could work here while waiting for immigration visas (if they desire such). Europe already does this a little, but the oil-rich Mideast countries do it in a big way, using foreigners to do the lowly jobs no citizen would think of doing. Then the hotel owners, farmers, and construction companies wouldn’t have to worry about losing their workers if Republicans get their way.

Republicans are against raising the minimum wage and unionization. No need to address those low-paying jobs in the agriculture, hospitality, and construction industries, because those employees are plentiful and happy to be working. Sure, because many are undocumented workers and want to stay beneath the radar, and conditions in their native countries are what drove them across our border to begin with. If the border was actually shut down, and all the illegals deported, who’d do those jobs?

March Madness update: I watch a lot of college basketball, study the NET and KenPom rankings, listen carefully to what Joe Lunardi and his fellow bracketology gurus have to say. And I’m out of the running in my pool. My wife, on the other hand, doesn’t follow college basketball except as it involves the UNC Tar Heels. She knew hardly anything about the teams when making her picks for our bracket pool. And she has a chance to come in first. Go figure!

March Madness update: I’ve fallen to fifth in my pool (my Grand Canyon and James Madison upset picks didn’t survive the second round), but my Final Four is still intact. Go Heels!

Appeals court judge: “Well, how much can you do?”

Trump: “Do I have to post any bond? I’m being treated so unfairly. It’s a political witch hunt by Democrats to prevent me from being president. A total disgrace!”

Judge: “Come on, Donald, you’re in the system now. so it’s gotta look reasonable. How about we make it 200 million?”

Trump: “Oh, jeez. Okay. Make it 175 and we have a deal.”

Judge: “Done.”

@Marc_T_Benedict I hope and pray that won’t be the case, but I’m less optimistic by the day.

@cmskiera They only like it when it benefits them. Otherwise, it presents pain-in the-ass hoops for them to have to jump through with their army of attorneys leading the way.

As expected, Trump gets a break in his fraud case. Now only has to pony up 175 mil instead of 464.. Jeez. Why not make it 0, apologize for inconveniencing him, and quietly go away? After all, he shouldn’t be held accountable for any wrongdoing, because he’s Trump.