Xi Jin Ping Doesn't like Economists

       Hmmmmmm. Who said that? Who said what? Who said we can't trust the economic data put out by the Chinese government? It was an economist. Not just any economist, but a respected Chinese economist who mentioned at an international meeting that the numbers put out by Beijing didn't add up or make sense. Something was not quite right. The date was not only confusing, but also contradicted other recorde mdata sets. Hmmmm.

Then what happened? well the economist was then subjected to discipline. He was detained. He is now regretting what and where he spoke. He will have to answer for making that error in judgement. Oh, to be able to speak freely. Not in Chhina sir. Speak only when told to speak and only say what Beijing wants you to say. Whatever, don't speak the truth if it contradicts Communist Party "truths". Don't make dictator Xi look like a fool.

      Spread the word: top economist speaks bad words. Now disciplined. Numbers will add up or else. Don't doubt the Party numbers. If you do, bad things will happen.

Ahhh, China. So much potential but the country can't shake the aParty, yet.

Orange Bowl: Winner Goes to Big Game

       It was close: Penn State V. Notre Dame. Even matchup. It would come down to 1 mistake with less than a minute to go. After posting 10 points, Penn St. looked like they were ready to advance. The running game was working and the Irish couldn't figure out the right defensive posture to hold the Lions. With seconds to go in the 1st half, ND scored 3 points on a field goal to get on the board. 10-3 at the halfway mark.

       A revitalized team came out of the Irish locker room and put a quick 7 spot on the board to tie the score. 10-10. It didn't take long before thery added another TD to go ahead 17-10. Then the lions came roaring back, adding another TD to tie, 17-17. Then another TD to take a commanding 24-17 lead. But the Irish were not finished either. They found the end zone to make it another tie at 24-24. But, they copuldn't get into field goal range and they had to punt with under 2 minutes to play. Penn State had the advantage: time was on their side and they started to move. And then DISASTER: the Nittany Lion QB threw an interception, a remarkable catch in Lion territory. After a review, it was ND ball on the Lion 45 with 3 time outs and excellent field position. As the clock ticked away, Notre Dame moved the ball to within easy field goal range. With 8 seconds left, kicker jeter put a kick through the uprights to lead 27-24.   8 seconds remained.

       Penn State threw one pass incomplete. Then a lateral or two and the game ended. A good game for all involved. Noter Dame team has a new school record of 14 wins. See you in the National Vhampionship game against the winner of the Cotton Bowl next week.

California on Fire

    The pictures of the raging wildland fires in Los Angeles County tell a grim story: Santa Ana winds carry embers a long way in a very short time.  Whole neighborhoods were affected by the flames in Malibu, Pacific Palisades, and in several other locations including Pasadena, Altadena, and Sylmar.These citiesare not in the middle of a forest, they are suburban communities: low rise ranch-style homes, separated by side and back yards. Some vegetation obviously existed in the various locations and all were served by fire protection services with fire hydrants well placed.

      Nobody seemed to envision this situation despite other fire that roared down the canyons with similar results. A rethinking of fire protection efforts is necessary and with it, the expenses that go along with those improvements.

    Over 100 years ago, the San Francisco earthquake which spawned the fire that destroyed the downtown section of the City, gave rise to efforts to protect the inhabitants and their property. A well designed and engineered water system was the result. The key to the system was the design of a separate firefighting water system that served the high value district(downtown) with high pressure pipes fed by static reservoirs and tanks strategically placed so gravity could provide the pressure. The entire system was inter-connected and available only for fire department usage. Almost 2 million gallons of fresh water is available. Additionally, two standby pump house were constructed to make SF bay water available. These 2 stations are on the edge of SF Bay and can provided unlimited amounts of salt water which works as well as fresh.

      Looking at the scenes in SoCAl, one wonders why nobody wanted to provide access to the Pacific Ocean, the obvious source of unlimited supply that could have thwarted the worst fires. Next time.

 Sad to think that it could have been different if only. If only politicians looked ahead as this situation was easily foreseen.

Mar-A-Wacko Hotel

      President -Elect DJT gave a speech in Florida at his home at Mar-A-Lago, aka Mar-A-Wacko. As he talked randomly about all kinds of weird and wacky topics, his equally weird son, Donald Jr., appeared in video on the coast of GREENLAND.

     Can you imagine? Even Elon wouldn't show up for that Foto OP. Too cold for X-Man. Meanwhile, at Mar-A-Wacko, DJT expounds on crazy stuff, again. This is a prelude to what's coming in a couple of weeks. In Congress, Kamala Harris certified the election results of 2024 making them official. No problems were in evidence: no rioting mobs with buffalo horned helmets or MAGA sweatshirts and outfits. The `1000+ felons sentenced for their criminal acts in 2021 are now awaiting pardons which may or may not happen.

     On the legal front, Judge Juan Merchan will impose a sentence on DJT this Friday, but indicated he will not impose jail time for the incoming president, especially in light of the inauguration day.  DJT will most likely to have continued legal issues throughout his 2nd term in office. For Trump businesses, they will continue as always.

Former Mayor Held in Contempt

      The former mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, was held in contempt of court by a federal judge for repeated obstruction and failure to provide personal property details necessary to pay the $148 millions owded to two poll workers that he defamed after thge results of the 2020 election when DJT claimed he won and Joe Biden lost. Judge Liman stated that he will decide the appropriate action which could include jail time unless the 80 year old former chief executive of NYC.

      There are few mfolks who have any sympathy for this former federal prosecutor who knows the law. He has gone "rogue' in his attempt to curry favor with president elect DJT. As his former legal counsel, Mr. Giuliani has felt that he is untouchable. However, the courts have not agreed. His world is crashing down around him but the poor sap won't acknowledge the situation in any manner that makes good sense. He is obviously deranged; he lives in a fantasy world of his own creation that he cannot escape from on hios own. Sad. ? No, not really; he is the same as he has always been: sleaze bag extraordinaire; lawyer who thinks the law and its mandates is for chumps, not him. Get ready for a 10'X 10' cell, Rudy. Maybe it won't be as cold as Siberia, but it won't be Florida.

   Too bad for you, Rudy. At 80 years old, a very sad case indeed.

2024 Election to be Certified Today

    And who  will do the certifying: the 2nd best candidate for the presidency: Kamala Harris, Vice President of the United States. This time, as opposed to last time, will not be the same: there will not be a mob in place ready to prevent the certification of the Electoral College voting results. The Biden Administration will pass the baton to the incoming Clown and his circus of wackos who were elected in November 2024 by a very slim margin which was provided by the $250 million dollars of donations by Elon Musk who could safely claim he owns the White House along with X and a few other properties.

What a country. High jinx, low jinx, get ready for the jinx administration. How about chief anti-vaxxer: Robert F. Kennedy(why does he continue to apply junior after his name?) MOst juniors drop off the Jr. when the senior dies. The poor old sap struggled all his life trying to live up to that famous senior without success. The pathetic candidate found a following as a crank funded by money he didn't have but others were willing to provide to support his far out positions.

       How about Kash Patel? Head of the FBI? Ha, ha,ha,ha,ha. First thing he'll do is fire all the agents and hire trump's family members. Maybe Barron will want to be an agent. Or, better yet, Melania will want to carry a badge and carry a 9mm in her underware. HHmmmm.

     Tulsi Gabbard. Really?

Mt. Lutnick? Come on, you must be joking.

Steve Bannon? Oh, please. My sides are already aching with laughter. 

Detroit Lions Win Over the Minnesota Vikings

      The last regular season contest pitted two teams with equal records:14-and 3. It was expected to be a good one despite not really affecting the playoffs. The winner would have home field advantage and the loser would be playing on the road to start.

    Veteran QB for the Lions, Jared Goff of California, would face Sam Darnald, the rookie. The first half was tied after 30 minutes and neither team dominated the other. Dropped passes, fumbles, sacks, and missed opportunities characterized the play. The Lions defensive unit showed some success in the red zone, thwarting the Vikes efforts to score a TD. QB Darnald missed open receivers several times. Field goals seemed to be each team's answer to failure to score. 

     The second half seemed to indicate more of the same: fumbles, dropped passes, missed opportunities. Then, things changed: the Lions started to run the ball successfully against the Vikes spread defense. Goff now had an advantage: sure I can pass against the blitz and aggressive rushers, but I can challenge the Norsemen and keep them honest with a running game. With a mix of runs and passes, the most successful strategy, worked quite well as the Vikes fumbled and stumbled as the clock wound down. The Lions completed the most successful season in their history with 15 regular season games in the win column. The home town crowd were duly impressed and expressed satisfaction following a nice victory at Ford Field.

Inflation Racks /Rocks Putin's Economy

       The Western reaches of the largest country in the world is in the grip of winter, 2025. History records the various difficulties faced by the Rus peoples when winter descends on the Steppes: Baby, it's cold outside. Frigid temperatures not only drive the locals indoors, but also drives them to drink-as in vodka. Rus peoples like their vodka, in varying amounts depending on ones personal feelings of safety and security.

    Meanwhile, down south, in Ukraine where the "Special Operation" continues after more than 1000 days, the drain on the Rus economy continues unabated. Moskva and the Kremlin continue to pump more worthless rubles into the economy. They pay a death bonus to families who have lost loved ones in the war. There are lots of them and the numbers continue to go up. recently, North Korean mercenaries have added their bodies to the count. Is Kim Il eligible for a death bonus for each of the North Koreans who die on Ukrainian soil? Probably, since Kim Il knows that some foreign exchange helps his economy and his bank account. Will the families see any of it, if paid? Hardly, they are North Koreans.

     So, what is to be done? Putin's answer: raise the interest rates. That will nullify the effect of sending more worthless rubles into the marketplace. How about 21% interest rates? Sounds like Paul Volcker in the '80's: when in doubt, raise interest rates. How about a mortgage of 18 1/2%, as was common in the US in '80's.  Hmmmm, Mad Vlad has  his hands full; and those hands include the Murderous Bashar al-Assad and his family, now living in Moskva. The Old Syrian dentist arrived at the end of the road just before Christmas when rebels took over the country and all support for Bashar the Bastard evaporated even before he fled.

      So, Bashar will now have to pay rent to the Kremlin. His Swiss bank accounts will suffer withdrawals and few if any deposits. MAd Vlad will probably raise his rent soon, especially if he wants a dacha in a nice 'hood. What's a guy to do?

     21%-it's not fair; the poor Rus who makes about $800/month will hardly have enough left to pay for state-controlled vodka. The Rus like their vodka neat, right out of the freezer when it has the consistency of syrup-ahhhhhhh vodka, nectar of the gods or soon to be dead Rus.

Rep. Mike Johnson(R-Louisiana) was Voted as House Speaker today

    In a close call for his survival, Mike Johnson overcame opposition to his Speakership by convincing 2 party members to change their votes as a second ballot appeared necessary. The 2 conferred separately with other party members who made the decision to vote for his election. DJT had offered support and it appears that was all that was needed.

Mike Johnson: Speaker of the House of Representatives-2025. Sad but true.

US Surgeon General Speaks of Alcohol Consumption

   In a long awaited declaration the US Surgeon General spoke out to the public realm about the health effects of consuming alcohol. He declared that ALL alcohol consumption has significant health risks and is responsible for over 100,000 cases of cancer diagnoses from all types. He asks that Congress overcome the considerable efforts of the industrial production of familiar products that contain alcohol, including but not limited to beer, wine, whiskey, and white spirits(vodka, rums, gins, etc.).

      She suggests at minimum: warning labels attached to all products to at least advise consumers that there are health effects when consumed, not unlike those on cigarettes that have warned smokers for years. This will be a major effort to reduce alcohol-related deaths in Us.