jas007

I’ll see what I can find. I saw a news story earlier today. Supposedly, they caught the guy. That was hours ago. Edit, I’m having trouble posting links. Just do a search. AZ suspect in custody. There are stories on the BBC, CNN, etc

I always knew there was a carry trade, but I never really realized the extent of it. Decades of so-called “free money” for Wall Street. Borrow Yen at zero percent and buy US Treasury bonds yielding substantially more than zero. And all the free money went to purchase US stocks. One bubble inflating another. They say the unwinding is far from over. Then again, it could all revert to business as usual to keep the party going.

Schwab International?

Didn’t they catch the guy? Or is that story not real?

If you have an Advantage policy that includes overseas coverage, that could be an option for some people. But not all Advantage policies will have that feature, so anyone choosing that option should be careful.

Nixon tried price controls in the early 70s. That didn’t work.

You miss my point. The issue is not necessarily the proximity of St. Petersburg or Moscow to Ukraine. There’s also the issue of the proximity of the Ukraine border to Russia’s strategic apparatus. Radar sites, missile sites, and so on, within Russia and close to Ukraine. That proximity and the very real possibility that those assets would be in close striking distance from Ukraine are the threat. As for any real plan to deploy offensive missiles? Such weapons could be deployed in no time. And, given the current state of hostilities, Russia must surely assume that that’s exactly what would happen.

Have you looked up the actual rule or policy? Off the top of my head, it would seem as though repatriation might provide an exception to the general rule. I’ll see what I can find. edit. I’m having trouble copying a link on my IPad. So, do this search: social security and POMS. when you get to the POMS page, go to the menu and scroll down to enroll in Medicare Part B. Then, look for a link that takes you to a page that explains when you might be entitled to a “special enrollment period.” They list a number of scenarios that would qualify a person to enroll outside the usual enrollment period, You can apply if you think it might work. There’s a form to fill out.

I bought a new IPad Pro from IStudio, but it comes with a warranty and I purchased Apple Care, so I figured if anything went wrong I’d be dealing with Apple for warranty service, one way or the other.

Google photos works well. With a Google account, you get a certain amount of free storage.

Supposedly, part of Russia’s strategic defense network is in close proximity to Ukraine. So they aren’t necessarily concerned with just the presence of nukes in Ukraine. They also feel non-nuclear missiles on their border could be a threat to their defense network. For Russia, that’s a red line,

Apple is supposed to be coming out with a totally redesigned Mac Mini sometime soon. I think I read September. That might be interesting.

That’s a problem, whether you realize it or not. Russia will, at some point, strike back at the perpetrators. It won’t end well.

It might not be so easy to change the “rules” anymore, given the recent Supreme Court case limiting Chevron. Anyway, I’m well aware of the political dynamics. Reagan started the mess back in 81. The original idea was to cut taxes so as to “starve the beast.” That didn’t really work, though, as over the years the political process was gridlocked much of the time and the politicians of both parties found it all too easy to just borrow the money needed for all the government programs. Unfortunately, the Fed enabled it all. With a 35 trillion dollar debt, the country is now in trouble. Before long, the interest alone on that debt will be enormous, Sooner or later, it won’t work anymore. I’m not optimistic that either political party will ever have the will to actually reign in spending. They often talk a good game, but then nothing happens. Instead, we get the inflation tax. They don’t call it tax, but it’s a tax just the same. And it hits the most vulnerable people.

At some point, if these attacks on Russia continue and if Russia deems them to pose a threat to their country, both Ukraine and much of the rest of Europe will find out the hard way that attacking Russia was a very bad idea. Apparently, NATO is heavily involved in the recent incursions into Russia. Anyway, it will all end badly if it doesn’t stop soon.

For what it’s worth, I just glanced over the Project 2025 page. I didn’t see anything about cutting overseas Social Security payments. I realize the Republicans have proposed raising the full retirement age for future retirees. That certainly won’t affect anyone currently receiving benefits and probably wouldn’t have much impact on those nearing retirement. Anyway, the country is 35 trillion in debt, so, one way or another, there will be a lot of cuts in the future. The current game seems to be to inflate away the debt and cheat retirees with phony CPI numbers. Just the other day I read about the decline in the value of the benefits since the year 2000 because the CPI hasn’t kept up with inflation. Housing, food, energy, insurance, medical costs, etc.

Believe what you want. My point was that it would be silly to make any retirement decision based on what “might” happen to Social Security. As I said, there isn’t much money involved and the retirees would raise too much of a stink.

I seriously doubt that the GOP would cut overseas SSA payments. Trump has said he would never touch Social Security, and, in any event, what would be the point? There isn’t that much involved, and many people would simply switch back to having a U.S. direct deposit. You read too much propaganda. Medicare? That’s another matter. There could be changes to that program at some point.

The polls? Remember how accurate the polls were in 2016? Anyway, people should know by now that the polls don’t mean much. They’re mostly a propaganda tool.

And yet these same people continue to maintain that the biological males should be allowed to fight biological females because they identify as such. So, if it’s not “woke,” call it what you want. It’s still nonsense.

Their leaders are also brainwashed. It’s a problem that’s apparently contagious. Have you seen what’s happening in Europe lately? Millions of migrants, wreaking havoc. Another symptom of the disease. I wonder when they’ll wake up? Those of us in Thailand are lucky this place is still safe. When I get back to Pattaya, it’ll be time for my 90 day report. Maybe they should try enforcing immigration laws elsewhere in the world. It seems to work.

The Olympics runs the games, to be sure, but if you ask me, there isn’t much to sort out. If they’re going to have women’s sports, then have them. But don’t pretend that’s what you’re doing if anyone can be a “woman.” That’s fantasyland.

You’re brainwashed. It’s not your fault. The propaganda machine works 24/7 and it’s very effective. And so many people automatically assume the West can’t possibly be at fault and automatically assume Putin is the culprit.

That news came out the other day. Whatever a person does in their private life is fine with me. But women’s sports were established for a reason. Biological females cannot compete with biological males. How is that so hard for some people to understand? Apparently, in the delusional world of the “woke” crowd, if a biological male decides he’s a woman, then that settles the matter. And so the biological females lose out in the sporting arena. Nonsense.

Many people seem to be brainwashed. Also, many people seem to think all of the actors orchestrating this mess will always act in a rational manner. And yet the brainwashed people don’t realize they’re brainwashed, and, if history is any guide, rationality is not always present. It’s all a recipe for disaster. Of course Russia will act in self defense. They haven’t made that a big secret, and they have the capacity to do so. And yet the brainwashed idiots in the West are proceeding as if they believe their own propaganda. Russia is evil! Putin is a madman who wants to reassemble the old Soviet Union! I could go on. Perhaps the USA should rethink its foreign policy. It’s no longer 1960 and Khrushchev didn’t just bang his shoe on the table at the UN. The world has changed. America and the influence of the West has faded. American exceptionalism? Just a slogan. We now live in a multi polar world. Pretending otherwise isn’t so smart. What has been accomplished lately? Decades of Neocon wars with nothing to show for them. Trillions wasted. And much of the world is now aligning against the West and its banking system. Militarily, they are forming alliances. How is any of that a positive development? Imagine the situation as it stands. China could invade Taiwan at any moment. The Middle East is about to ignite. And the situation in Ukraine continues to deteriorate. The West can’t fix any of these problems, and yet they’re proceeding as if they can simultaneously win a war with China, defend Israel, and defeat Russia, all with a small military. And where is the President of the United States? Lying on a beach somewhere. Who is calling the shots?