7 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

I think you might be onto something. It does feel like an all too convenient way to create massive consolidation, at bargain prices. I am a small business owner in the US. I cannot get assistance of any kind, even though I am paying full rent on my commercial space, and all the expenses, and we have been closed (the inane lockdown) for months now. Nothing. Only payroll assistance which does not really apply to our operation. Erase the low income folks too. Make their lives infinitely more miserable than they already were. That sounds like America. It has already been happening for 30 plus years now. But, why would all the other major economies of the world, (except for the genius and rebel minds in South Korea and Sweden) go along with this grand experiment in insanity? 

While I sympathise with your plight, and that of many other people, I can't help thinking when the world abandoned Micawberian economics in favor of a massive credit binge, it sowed the seeds for the current destruction.

There's a lot of marginal farming land in Australia. The rule of thumb is one really good year in seven where the farmer can make megabucks, maybe one reasonable year of profit, the rest are break even or a dead loss.

I've observed the families who acquire adjoining properties during the desperate years are those who did not go on a buying spree in the bumper year, then battened down the hatches to ride out the bad times. I was on a 44,000 acre property in 1983 that did not have a single blade of live grass. That's what drought does.

Pardon me for asking, but how much battening of the hatches have you done?

 

 

2 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

and the children as yet unborn. Seems a bit strange to me that it was so important to save those with few years to live and penalise those that have entire lives in front of them.

BTW I'm one of those with few years remaining and no one asked me if I wanted to be saved. I don't at the expense of the young generation.

Given that democracy has been suspended, no one is getting a say. It's all being dictated by a very few people.

Yet, ironically, we get accused by the "righteous" of not having respect for life, and thinking just about the economy, when it should be obvious to anyone that everything is connected.

If they were on a sinking ship, they would fight each other for a place on the lifeboats, and let the children go down with the ship.

I have no words left to express my disgust.

16 hours ago, Lacessit said:

While I sympathise with your plight, and that of many other people, I can't help thinking when the world abandoned Micawberian economics in favor of a massive credit binge, it sowed the seeds for the current destruction.

There's a lot of marginal farming land in Australia. The rule of thumb is one really good year in seven where the farmer can make megabucks, maybe one reasonable year of profit, the rest are break even or a dead loss.

I've observed the families who acquire adjoining properties during the desperate years are those who did not go on a buying spree in the bumper year, then battened down the hatches to ride out the bad times. I was on a 44,000 acre property in 1983 that did not have a single blade of live grass. That's what drought does.

Pardon me for asking, but how much battening of the hatches have you done?

 

 

A bit here and there. Nothing major. But other than the business in the US, my overhead is quite low here. Working on some things. Shaving a bit. And some online sales have helped. The lockdown seems to be easing a bit in the US, so that may help quite alot. Reason is coming to the fore, and replacing panic induced insanity, it would appear. 

On 5/16/2020 at 1:45 PM, Lacessit said:

We have climate change. Politicians ignore and decry the scientists who are sounding the alarm.

Climate change is a scam.Planet is greener now than 25 years ago.

On 5/16/2020 at 11:34 PM, Lacessit said:

While I sympathise with your plight, and that of many other people, I can't help thinking when the world abandoned Micawberian economics in favor of a massive credit binge, it sowed the seeds for the current destruction.

There's a lot of marginal farming land in Australia. The rule of thumb is one really good year in seven where the farmer can make megabucks, maybe one reasonable year of profit, the rest are break even or a dead loss.

I've observed the families who acquire adjoining properties during the desperate years are those who did not go on a buying spree in the bumper year, then battened down the hatches to ride out the bad times. I was on a 44,000 acre property in 1983 that did not have a single blade of live grass. That's what drought does.

Pardon me for asking, but how much battening of the hatches have you done?

 

 

IMO the Chinese had a good idea when they used to send the city folk to work in the country. I don't know if that still happens.

https://www.oecd.org/china/42607972.pdf

Parallel to the third line policy, the government embarked on a large scale programme of relocating urban youth to rural areas to ease job, housing and commodity shortages in Chinese cities.

 

I'd like to see all children after they finish school sent to the country for a year to gain an appreciation that life is not easy, where food comes from, and that playing computer games in the bedroom is not life.

After Singapore gained independence they made everyone do national service. Before, they had terrible race riots but after working with other races they seem to have stopped that.

BTW, Singapore doesn't really have "country" to send people to.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_service_in_Singapore

Secondly, national service is supposed to support racial harmony among the Chinese, Malay and Indian communities.