Politics

[Tbitty]

Fifties are the new Twenties. Many restaurants in our small towns charge extra for using credit cards because of the fees. Seriously, when going out to eat fifties seem to spend like twenties did just 4 years ago.

I'm from rural Kansas, and still prefer to spend my time in small towns whenever possible. I'm a dinosaur in my generation, as there is always cash in my wallet. As you say, it is much preferred in small towns, but also just a concept in my relic mind that a person should always have "just in case" cash on hand.

 

[freefall]

I used to carry a $100 bill folded in an obscure corner of my billfold for "just-in-case".
Now I carry 3.

 

[Altitude sickness]

If past is prologue. And I have no reason to believe our empire will end any differently than the dozens of others that collapsed in the past.


“While external threats like invasions certainly played a role in the fall of great empires, most historians agree that internal political-instability and economic issues were usually the primary factors that weakened empires from within, making them more vulnerable to external forces;
therefore, the answer is largely "internal politics."

Key points to consider:

Power struggles, corruption within the ruling class, and civil wars often eroded central authority, leaving an empire weak and unable to respond effectively to
external threats.

Example: The fall of the Western Roman Empire is often attributed to a combination of internal political turmoil, economic problems, and military weakness, which allowed barbarian tribes to successfully invade and dismantle the empire.”

So in the long run. We will crumble internally not from an external threat as is the usual concern of politicians. The political class has also used distraction as a way to humble and quiet the peasants.

Today they use division (racial, ethnic, economic class, and the newest, sexual orientation) instead of the Roman Circus.

But the results will be the same. Internal, self inflicted wounds will be the end of our empire. Not Russia. Not China, no one but ourselves.

 

[Tbitty]

I went through my Amazon purchases for the last 8 years. 24 3oz can of cat food was $35.76 on Jan. 2017, $35.76 on Jan. 2021 and $37.99 today. Price on a lot of items have not changed much over the yeyears.

I did a similar Amazon purchase audit and found Iams dog food was purchased price of $28.96 for 30# in March 2018. In August 2021 it was $31.64.

Today it's $46.98! Price on most items have skyrocketed over the past 3.5 years.

 

[Altitude sickness]

If you haven’t seen the first solo Harris interview.
It exposes exactly what many of us fear.

This video is very hard to find. Social media has all but scrubbed it completely.

You will need to get to 3/4 of the way through the Jesse Waters video to watch her explaining her plan to lower prices. “People are proud of their lawns”

I picture our enemies watching this. Or her in negotiations with Iran, North Korea, Russia, the Taliban. Hamas

Harris dodges question on lowering prices by describing 'middle-class' roots: Neighbors 'proud of their lawn' | Fox News

Critics accused the vice president of sharing the same 'canned' answer from the ABC News debate

www.foxnews.com

 

[Altitude sickness]

I grew up in a community of hard-working people, you know, construction workers and nurses and teachers. And I try to explain to some people who may not have had the same experience. You know, a lot of people will relate to this.

Vice President Kamala Harris and her response to a question about how she'd bring down prices in an interview

"You know, I grew up in a neighborhood of folks who were very proud of their lawn," she continued. "And I was raised to believe and to know that all people deserve dignity, and that we as Americans have a beautiful character. You know, we have ambitions and aspirations and dreams, but not everyone necessarily has access to the resources that can help them fuel those dreams and ambitions.

 

[ActionBob]

No one I know in Texas is planning to leave the Union.

There are T Shirts that say something to the effect of "I'm a Patriotic American, until Texas seceeds from the Union. "

But it will not happen. And Texas is not the Red stronghold I would like it to be. Places like Oklahoma, Wyoming and the Dakota's are much more firmly Conservative.

 

[Tbitty]

There are T Shirts that say something to the effect of "I'm a Patriotic American, until Texas seceeds from the Union. "

But it will not happen. And Texas is not the Red stronghold I would like it to be. Places like Oklahoma, Wyoming and the Dakota's are much more firmly Conservative.

Remove Austin, Houston, and Dallas to find an extremely red state. But those huge population hubs swing it to maroon and working on purple.

Kinda like this:

 

[Altitude sickness]

Unfortunately Texas is similar to many previously Red states. It attracts businesses and citizens with them. Transplants. Transplanted cultures and political beliefs.

If I had to bet. At the speed Texas urban areas are growing. You can’t extrapolate today’s growth numbers 10 years out. It’s more like exponential in political growth.

The more liberals in Austin pitching free stuff begets more internal Texas born liberals.

I would wager Texas will be firmly Blue in 10 years. I hope I’m wrong.

I’m betting Wyoming and North Dakota will be the last holdouts. The Teton Region is chiefly non residents and vacation homes.

 

[Saul]

I used to carry a $100 bill folded in an obscure corner of my billfold for "just-in-case".
Now I carry 3.

a former teacher of mine gave every boy in our class a money clip upon graduation. I have always liked having cash at hand.

 

[Red Leg]

Remove Austin, Houston, and Dallas to find an extremely red state. But those huge population hubs swing it to maroon and working on purple.

Kinda like this:
View attachment 634080

Well yes. But that is the problem with this whole separation nonsense. States, even red ones, don't have pure voter rolls or results - blue or red. They are a mixture of urban, suburban, and rural voters. From a population perspective, most voters are geographically concentrated regardless of party affiliation.

This is the typical red/blue map that republicans like to point to when talking about the left and right coasts and "red America." However it gives a really false impression from an actual population perspective.

This is red and blue America based upon population. It is important to remember that land does not vote - people do. This map still only shows winning vote totals. Were this map further divided by a purple color, the blending would be even more dramatic.

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

There are T Shirts that say something to the effect of "I'm a Patriotic American, until Texas seceeds from the Union. "

But it will not happen. And Texas is not the Red stronghold I would like it to be. Places like Oklahoma, Wyoming and the Dakota's are much more firmly Conservative.

I’m going to make the unpleasant prediction that Oklahoma will be purple in 5-10 years. Emigration of blue state refugees that are fiscally conservative but liberal on social issues, along with all the marijuana related emigration since it’s legalization for “medicinal” purposes a while back have changed things pretty drastically.

I’d also say that Oklahoma has been much more libertarian than strictly conservative. I imagine pot will be made legal for recreational use in the next 4-5 years. This will only serve to exacerbate the breakdown in society and speed the march to purple-hood.

 

[ActionBob]

Unfortunately Texas is similar to many previously Red states. It attracts businesses and citizens with them. Transplants. Transplanted cultures and political beliefs.

If I had to bet. At the speed Texas urban areas are growing. You can’t extrapolate today’s growth numbers 10 years out. It’s more like exponential in political growth.

The more liberals in Austin pitching free stuff begets more internal Texas born liberals.

I would wager Texas will be firmly Blue in 10 years. I hope I’m wrong.

I’m betting Wyoming and North Dakota will be the last holdouts. The Teton Region is chiefly non residents and vacation homes.

We made a trip into the San Antonio yesterday. San Antonio is the small city in that area of exponential growth. I believe it grows by over 100 people per day. It's not keeping up with roads I can tell you that! Just getting into and out of Costco and a restaurant took forever. In a year and a half we have been here.... Here being theoretically 45 minutes from the NW edge of San Antonio (it takes more like an hour and fifteen minutes due to traffic). I think that was our 3rd time actually going there on purpose, we have driven through as many times going elsewhere. I am not made to deal with big cities.

Destroy your cities but leave our farms and your cities will spring back up as if by magic. But Destroy our farms and your cities will wither and die.

The Biden/Harris administration and their policies have netted very high prices for our milk (stock up on cheese and butter now, the latest price increases have not hit store shelves yet!) and meat. But they are systematically destroying our farms by covering the ground with solar panels and now huge in ground batteries. I'm sure it's a major payday to those leasing ground to it and to the Engineers designing these monstrosities. But it is destroying prime farmland and forests. My brother is a logger and has been hired to clear forests to make way for solar farms.

Tell me again how this is good for the environment?

 

[Red Leg]

We made a trip into the San Antonio yesterday. San Antonio is the small city in that area of exponential growth. I believe it grows by over 100 people per day. It's not keeping up with roads I can tell you that! Just getting into and out of Costco and a restaurant took forever. In a year and a half we have been here.... Here being theoretically 45 minutes from the NW edge of San Antonio (it takes more like an hour and fifteen minutes due to traffic). I think that was our 3rd time actually going there on purpose, we have driven through as many times going elsewhere. I am not made to deal with big cities.

Destroy your cities but leave our farms and your cities will spring back up as if by magic. But Destroy our farms and your cities will wither and die.

The Biden/Harris administration and their policies have netted very high prices for our milk (stock up on cheese and butter now, the latest price increases have not hit store shelves yet!) and meat. But they are systematically destroying our farms by covering the ground with solar panels and now huge in ground batteries. I'm sure it's a major payday to those leasing ground to it and to the Engineers designing these monstrosities. But it is destroying prime farmland and forests. My brother is a logger and has been hired to clear forests to make way for solar farms.

Tell me again how this is good for the environment?

Apparently Georgetown, TX is the fastest growing town in the nation. It is essentially now a suburb of Austin which is also growing exponentially. People are moving here for jobs and other economic benefits such as no state income tax. Most of them come from solidly blue cities and states What is perplexing to me is that though economic reasons play a huge role in the decision to move, those same forces seem to play no role in voting. There, cultural and group values seem to prevail which are clearly no longer geographic.

 

[deewayne2003]

I’m going to make the unpleasant prediction that Oklahoma will be purple in 5-10 years. Emigration of blue state refugees that are fiscally conservative but liberal on social issues, along with all the marijuana related emigration since it’s legalization for “medicinal” purposes a while back have changed things pretty drastically.

Don’t forget LOTS of old school democrats in Oklahoma that have drank the Kool-aid for generations.

I heard the local baby boomer & trailer park Democrats discussing the election back in 2008 and the topic of conversation would have been shocking to those who are not familiar with the true sentiment of most Democrats…..

“Now I don’t like it anymore than you do, but we got to vote for that N*%*#R in November; remember you was BORN’D a Democrat!”

 

[Altitude sickness]

Hence the “ Don’t California our Texas” sentiment

But Marxism is a malignant growth. And the only cure is a complete collapse before it dawns on people. Hey maybe this Karl Marx guy wasn’t right and this has never worked in the history of ever.

 

[Saul]

Apparently Georgetown, TX is the fastest growing town in the nation. It is essentially now a suburb of Austin which is also growing exponentially. People are moving here for jobs and other economic benefits such as no state income tax. Most of them come from solidly blue cities and states What is perplexing to me is that though economic reasons play a huge role in the decision to move, those same forces seem to play no role in voting. There, cultural and group values seem to prevail which are clearly no longer geographic.

It is unfortunate that local politics has been increasingly subsumed by national politics and candidates feel yoked to their party’s platform.

 

[Altitude sickness]

It’s still very important to be aware and vote locally. You can hold back the madness a little longer that way.

Plus local politicians, become state politicians, become federal politicians. So locally grow and wean your own

 

[ActionBob]

It is unfortunate that local politics has been increasingly subsumed by national politics and candidates feel yoked to their party’s platform.

I have a small amount of hope that may be changing. Whether local Democrats going back to more Blue Dog Democrat thinking or flat out switching to Republican.

 

[ActionBob]

What is perplexing to me is that though economic reasons play a huge role in the decision to move, those same forces seem to play no role in voting. There, cultural and group values seem to prevail which are clearly no longer geographic.

It's like a pandemic with no acceptable vaccine available.