Cameroni

Can you imagine what would have happened if, say, Trump had been photographed doing that to his wife? Or Boris Johnson face palming his wife? World outrage. But Macron gets a face palm and everyone nervously laughs it off. Totally normal if your wife is 25 years older. I am telling you those two, there is something very not normal about them.

But did you not hear what he said right afterwards, that "default" would be nothing new, that a lot of countries have defaulted on debt before? He's just concerned about the world economy, what would happen to the rest of the world if a default happens. A lot of his talk is based on a misreading. For instance he castigates the presidents for accumulating the deficit. But then when Trump cuts spending he's "Sheriff of Nottingham" because he's cutting medicare and food stamps. Sorry, didn't you JUST say, that the deficit was a bad thing. But cutting it also a bad thing. He also fails to understand that the tariffs on China were a tool to get China to the negotiation table to give the US a better deal on trade, which is happening now. Obviously the issue is that other countries have gotten stronger. China has become a military and economic power house, so it's natural that it wouild flex its muscle in the South China sea, it's not a symptom of American decline, but rather of Chinese ascent. Similarly Russia was revitalized and is flexing its military muscle. By the way it's also a misreading that Ukraine happened because Russia thought America was weak. That was never an issue. Since Russia knew the US could not unleash or risk a nuclear war with Russia. Rather the Ukraine war was caused precisely by the imperial ambitions of Biden and Johnson who killed off a peace deal Ukraine could have signed and seduced them to fight. Not to mention imperial misreadings of their predecessors who thought they could ignore Russia because she was finished now and enlarge NATO. It was too much imperialism by the US that was the problem, not too little. As for the reserve currency status it is absolutely safe, there is no other contender whatsoever. And Niall Ferguson has been wrong more times than I can remember. His paper was just designed to get the US spending more on the military and making the world safer for capitalism. Read what Ferguson wrote previously "‘Let me come clean,’ he wrote in the New York Times Magazine in April 2003, a few weeks after the shock-and-awe campaign began in Iraq, ‘I am a fully paid-up member of the neoimperialist gang.’ https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v33/n21/pankaj-mishra/watch-this-man What Ferguson wants is for the US to spend more on its military and to get more involved in world affairs to make the world safe for the hedge funds which pay Ferguson for his services now.

Even after taking on China in a full on trade war only 2 of the 3 rating agencies changed the ratings. One from AAA to Aa1. Do you seriously think US based rating agencies, owned by Americans, who make their money disproportionately from US investment banks would issue ratings that are absolutely terrible? I somehow doubt it. And even if that happens it would just make interest somewhat higher, sure. But nobody is going to storm Washington to demand any money back. It's not like if an individual owes money where someone comes to collect your furniture. Plus the US can radically reduce its expenditure on unemployment benefits, medicare, and government operations, as indeed has started already.

So? The US assets, value of all companies, real estate, GDP which comes in each year, dwarves it. The US could pass a tax a wipe out the deficit in a few years. But there is no need because the deficit is not like a private individual owing money, nobody is going to knock on America's door and demand money back.

They have been calling out the end of the American Empire since the 1980s. Francis Fukuyama claimed the end of history. They were all wrong. How can it possibly be the end of America when America is rich beyond belief, has a military that is stronger than ever and its culture is more dominant than ever?

I don;'t think it did him justice. Trump the Movie would have to be a court room drama, a gangster movie, a war movie perhaps, a political drama of course, and obviously a love story with super models.

I think even in the days of Jesus, Elvis, the Beatles and Muhammad Ali, not every single thing was reduced to one person. It's really extraordinary how magnetic and compelling Trump is as a pro or con, that everything ends up about him. Maybe the only other person who managed this was Adolf Hitler, but of course I was not alive then. I can imagine he's the only one who possibly topped Trump in this regard. Charlie Chaplin made a movie about Hitler, maybe Sasha Baron-Cohen will make one about Trump.

It's understandable, not everyone has a Virgin Upper Class toiletry bag.

I think Nietzsche explains this best. People take pleasure in hurting and torturing others. He was talking about women, but it applies across the board. There is a certain pleasure for those who inflict pain. It's just the way it is.

It seems those who "hate" Trump like spoiled children seem to have trouble controlling their feelings, they are a somewhat feminised men, note the comment of the person who served for years handling sensitive information. He said he worked for decades on secret data and it would never have occurred to him to put his nation's interests in danger because of his feelings. However, this traitor, like so many Trump haters clearly let their feelings take them over. They are like spoiled children. No emotional self control. Now he can ponder how much he dislikes Trump for ten years in a prison cell. Poor emotional self control is always dangerous.

Don't joke about that, there are many users of Aseannow who have such a serious medical issue. No picnic, I'm sure.

Yah, it may well have passed, it was late 1998.

I always fly wearing a suit on long distance. When they pick people to fill first class attire matters. I bagged a first class flight to Miami with Vrigin this way once. I still have the Upper class toilet bag.

Yes, if you go by bus. If you fly only if it is in a can or such like.

Yes.

I am sure it is. It is purely transactional. The IO is in on the transaction.

It is a very traumatic experience. But if you use the safe entry agent you will be fine and get a visa waiver.

At least they get some attention, my gf was palmed off to her grandmother and hardly saw her mother most of her childhood.

On the plus side some of the feminist activists from Russia will now be returned to their homeland.

I think the can trace 99% of bitcoin now. For the kind of mony they have, is that really an option?

Exactly. Thank you.

Of course it does, the most popular figures in women's novels are billionaires.

In the 80s I would wear suits as well to go out. But times have changed. I blame house music. It all went downhill from there.

I think the Tate's problem is that they are so rich. They have so much money that they know they can't hide it. IF they were to do a runner, his accounts and assets would be frozen. If he wants to keep his riches he has to go through the courts.

I hope Tate is reading this.