Lacessit

When State Government is imposing mandatory upgrades which may cost more than 50% of the property's value, it's a form of financial suicide to be buying a condo in Florida. Which can be encumbered with said upgrades, at the stroke of a pen by a faceless bureaucrat. Florida's coastal counties are exceptionally vulnerable to storm surges, which are only going to get worse with climate change. Not much point to being 20 floors up, if the basement generators are flooded. Unless one is an exercise junkie. "Condominium" by John D MacDonald was published in 1977. It predicts most of what is happening now, except compulsory upgrades.

Good idea. Seal off America from all visitors, so you can eat yourselves to death behind your walls. Measles apparently had zoonotic origins in bison and other hoofed animals, I guess you need to cull them out of existence too. Sterilize any import with UV. You have an anti-vaxxer as your head of health. Viruses don't give a damn about national borders. What could possibly go wrong?

You got me, my first spelling mistake in a long time. Woe is me. The main reason for vaccine resistance in Afghanistan and Pakistan is the mullahs. Anything Western is anathema to them.

After getting slapped with 25% tariffs when we have spent our blood and treasure in wars with you that started in Korea, I'd say Australians like me think you are not an ally worth having now. In common? You guys have elected a felon as your President. Your Big Pharma wants Australians to pay what Americans pay. Example: A course of medication which cost me $100 with our PBS would have cost me $70,000 in America. <deleted> off.

83 people died of measles in Samoa in 2019. Only 31% of people there were vaccinated. Most of the deaths were unvaccinated children. So you don't want vaccinations for polio, tetanus and diptheria? Please visit Afghanistan or Pakistan, where wild polio is still endemic. Maybe inhabiting an iron lung will prevent you from posting dangerous rubbish.

Based on my observations of the American steel industry, I would say it is more like 40 years. I visited the research laboratories of US Steel in the early 80's. It employed 3000 scientists and engineers. By the early 90's, that number was 300, and more cuts were on the way. You could also ask what it says about a nation, when it historically has the highest number of gated communities in the world. It's a pretty good measure of wealth inequality and paranoia.

Most jeans are fashion statements. The best farm clothing I have seen are moleskin trousers made by Morrison's of Euroa. I understand they were originally developed for gold miners, which is even tougher on clothing than general farming. A dense weave of cotton, they have a soft suede feel.

You stopped going to a free gym because its TV offended you? Obviously your health insurance does not cover mental illnesses.

He's British. The USA is only one of half a dozen major grain exporters. Russia, Australia, Canada, France, and Ukraine.

I wouldn't know, I don't drink the stuff. A recipe for tooth decay.

The Luddite movement lasted 5 years, textile workers protesting automatic machinery. You want to try to repeat history?

Certainly, the US could take over Canada militarily, but at what cost? Trump has made America a pariah already, as far as the free world goes. So what happens if the whole free world decides to boycott American products completely?

You do not seem to realize most of the products you mention are not made in America. iPhone final assembly is primarily in China, India and Vietnam. Ditto Nike. BYD is surpassing Tesla as the most preferred brand of EV. Musk's politics have caused sales to plummet. Most sensible humans don't eat McDonald's or KFC. They know the food there is a recipe for obesity, diabetes and heart attacks. You have just under a million homeless people. 40% of Americans are obese. You have the world's highest prison population. Thanks to the Second Amendment, mass shootings have become routine. Why on earth would anyone covet your lifestyle?

Canada supplies 50% of America's oil. 100% of the electricity to the north-eastern seaboard, including New York City. If you think that's irrelevant, you are seriously delusional.

Trump supporters are not educated in logic and critical thinking. If Trump says it, therefore it is true. For them, Trump holds out the hope American manufacturing will be restored to dominance. They don't realize the world has moved on to AI and robots. It's a no-brainer tariffs will raise living costs. It's a no-brainer firing thousands of Federal employees will result in chaos, in social services and Medicare. All Americans are in for a rough ride, irrespective of their politics. Trump doesn't care. Unless they are rich, which does not apply to most MAGA adherents.

Spent about 20 minutes researching some of the terms I was not familiar with, thanks. IMO Brandolini's Law covers most of the MAGA postings.

That is called begging the question, or arguing in a circle. Now you are reminding me of the Dilbert aphorism: " Never argue with an idiot, they will drag you down to their level, and beat you with experience". Bye bye.

You said " That's not true". Without a single fact to support your statement. My post was a quote of Hitchens' Razor. Named after Christopher Hitchens, who probably has 150 points above you in terms of IQ.

"Trump is trying to return the country back to the law abiding people." A felon? Who encouraged an insurrection? Who illegally took top secret files? Who was adjudged a rapist? You aren't even capable of understanding the stupidity of your post.

What is asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence.

Disagree. Communism demands complete control of the means of production via a centralized government. Socialism can coexist with a market economy, and frequently does.

What you are quoting sounds more like Communism to me.

Go ahead.

I suppose I could be called leftist or socialist, take your pick. I admire Jews as pretty smart people. It's only dumb people who want to kill them, and they are on both sides of the political fence. IIRC Oswald Mosley was anti-semitic, not what I would call a leftist.

Australia, Norway, Denmark. I sure as hell would not want to live with America's health system. Clusterf##K is too kind a description.