Coronavirus COVID-19

[ignatius]

6 hours ago, hijexx said:

 

figured might as well pile on this

[hijexx]

Man some of those wipeouts look seriously painful

[ignatius]

5 minutes ago, hijexx said:

Man some of those wipeouts look seriously painful

hard to watch. there's a less brutal compilation of the RKO stuff but i couldn't find it. 

[Rubin Farr]

https://www.salon.com/2020/04/21/viewers-of-sean-hannity-more-likely-to-die-from-covid-19-than-those-of-tucker-carlson-study/

[ignatius]

26 minutes ago, Rubin Farr said:

https://www.salon.com/2020/04/21/viewers-of-sean-hannity-more-likely-to-die-from-covid-19-than-those-of-tucker-carlson-study/

https://imgur.com/dODTfBi

 

Edited April 23, 2020 by ignatius

[Hugh Mughnus]

18 minutes ago, ignatius said:

https://imgur.com/dODTfBi

 

It's funny but also scary and sad AF because that's such an accurate representation of the president of the most powerful country in the world.

dafuq =(

[EdamAnchorman]

Go, Ohio!!!

Ohio man, 60, who blasted COVID-19 lockdown as 'political ploy' and said stay-at-home orders were 'b*****t' dies after contracting coronavirus

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8239557/Ohio-man-60-blasted-COVID-19-lockdown-political-ploy-dies-contracting-coronavirus.html?fbclid=IwAR0f8Y1Q_cD1ugqAnb7JpemCCOhwZZNoe5v_Igl1BPIhAeS7RC_CQHh0mWQ

[ignatius]

7 minutes ago, randomsummer said:

Go, Ohio!!!

Ohio man, 60, who blasted COVID-19 lockdown as 'political ploy' and said stay-at-home orders were 'b*****t' dies after contracting coronavirus

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8239557/Ohio-man-60-blasted-COVID-19-lockdown-political-ploy-dies-contracting-coronavirus.html?fbclid=IwAR0f8Y1Q_cD1ugqAnb7JpemCCOhwZZNoe5v_Igl1BPIhAeS7RC_CQHh0mWQ

probably gonna see more of this in the coming weeks. wish people would listen to the experts instead of foxnews and trump. 

[marf]

I remember like 11 years ago in the beginning of YouTube there was a British guy who would blow his lid like no other. He was an Arab British guy. He was upset at the Bush admin but he was so intense they had to take his page down

[apriorion]

7 hours ago, Zephyr_Nova said:

Please give this man a TV show.

In the full video, he continues with a few more utterly reasonable points, albeit somewhat angrily stated: 

 

 

Edited April 23, 2020 by apriorion

[apriorion]

I am particularly bothered by his point about the bailouts—“rinse, lather, repeat”—and how he points out that the very wealthy and the large corporations should bear more responsibility for saving for a rainy day. It strikes me as so reasonable, I wonder if I’m missing something? 

[Nebraska]

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk

[apriorion]

Geez, what he's saying sounds so simple, and I'm afraid that there's got to be a counterargument that I'm not seeing yet. 

What would it really take for there to be reforms to ensure this sort of thing? Widening and extremely unjust economic disparities made up the thrust of Bernie's appeal on the campaign trail, but he ultimately didn't catch on, or didn't catch on enough, at least. I don't know if Bernie or any Bernie followers would have endorsed simple measurements like Ticked-off Vic here is recommending, but maybe that was the problem? Perhaps Bernie's desires were too extravaggant? Perhaps Ticked-off Vic's plans are more plausible? I don't know. I think I'm just too tired to think straight atm. 

Edit: I really need to re-learn how to proofread posts before I hit "post".

Edited April 23, 2020 by apriorion

[chenGOD]

7 minutes ago, apriorion said:

I am particularly bothered by his point about the bailouts—“rinse, lather, repeat”—and how he points out that the very wealthy and the large corporations should bear more responsibility for saving for a rainy day. It strikes me as so reasonable, I wonder if I’m missing something? 

US banks in 2018 recorded $237 Billion in profit in 2018. Which was obscene, even for banks. The problem though is that in 2018 Q4, the total for deposits in the US banking system was $13.87 Trillion. So the banks' profit is 1.7% of total deposits in the US. Banks could save that money until the cows come home, and not have enough to cover the deposits. Additionally, banks invest their profits.

The other issue with not bailing out banks is fractional reserve banking.

Basically, if a big bank collapsed, all the checks/loans written on that bank become worthless. The problem is, most of those checks and loan instruments are being used elsewhere as part of the fractional reserve banking system. So if Bank of America collapses with no bailout, the knock on effect would be staggering.

[apriorion]

Ah, there's the sober-minded detail I was hoping for! Thanks, chenGOD. 

But I would say, bank bailouts belong to one class (and T.O.ed Vic alluded to that in his angry yelling), but what about the wealthy in general? And wealthy companies, in particular? Also, even if we agree that "too big to fail" is, to some extent, and accurate description of some banks, couldn't we still insist on mitigating those obscene profits like the ones from 2018? Or am I in socialist lala-land? 

[chenGOD]

36 minutes ago, apriorion said:

Ah, there's the sober-minded detail I was hoping for! Thanks, chenGOD. 

But I would say, bank bailouts belong to one class (and T.O.ed Vic alluded to that in his angry yelling), but what about the wealthy in general? And wealthy companies, in particular? Also, even if we agree that "too big to fail" is, to some extent, and accurate description of some banks, couldn't we still insist on mitigating those obscene profits like the ones from 2018? Or am I in socialist lala-land? 

Corporations should pay much more tax than they do in the US, and the tax loopholes that exist need to be eliminated. The rich actually pay an ok share on their income (marginal taxes could be higher), but long -term capital gains taxes need to be raised. Also, offshoring practices and other tax avoidance strategies need to be eliminated.

[hijexx]

I like macroeconomics and fiscal/monetary policy stuff. Here's a great 2 minute primer of how the global economy works:

 

[ignatius]

2 hours ago, chenGOD said:

US banks in 2018 recorded $237 Billion in profit in 2018. Which was obscene, even for banks. The problem though is that in 2018 Q4, the total for deposits in the US banking system was $13.87 Trillion. So the banks' profit is 1.7% of total deposits in the US. Banks could save that money until the cows come home, and not have enough to cover the deposits. Additionally, banks invest their profits.

The other issue with not bailing out banks is fractional reserve banking.

Basically, if a big bank collapsed, all the checks/loans written on that bank become worthless. The problem is, most of those checks and loan instruments are being used elsewhere as part of the fractional reserve banking system. So if Bank of America collapses with no bailout, the knock on effect would be staggering.

i'd also add that the banks should not be allowed to bundle their mortgages as products and then sell them. they're doubling down on fees everywhere. the mortgage crisis is a good example of what happens w/lax regulation and mortgage back derivatives and essentially making morgages into junk. 

it's a huge scam. yes... i'm that guy who's seen "The Big Short" like 3 times and is still pissed off about it. banks shouldn't be allowed to do all the shit they do. the different parts of the banks should be split up. there has to be a way to have an agile financial/banking system that doesn't get too big to fail in every direction. these people can't be trusted to pass on temptation for huge profits doing sketchy shit. 

[chenGOD]

18 minutes ago, ignatius said:

I'd also add that the banks should not be allowed to bundle their mortgages as products and then sell them

Yes, that's completely ridiculous. While repealing Glass-Steagall in the Gramm-Leach Act is only one component that led to the global financial crisis, it is an important one. THat plus the continued deregulation on the derivatives market were the worst pieces of financial legislation in a long time.

[xxx]

29 minutes ago, Mesh Gear Fox said:

no incentive to give a shit about sydney residents..

When I went to Honolulu, I got asked for a "local card" at every transaction. They have like a two-tiered system: you pay a lower price for things if you're local vs. what the tourists pay. It's a shame other popular metros like Sydney don't follow a similar plan

[ignatius]

[goDel]

Long live Brexit lol

Quote

The British government is coming under fire for failing to join the EU’s procurement scheme for medical equipment, including masks, gloves, goggles, gowns, testing kits and ventilators, at a time when NHS health workers across the country are crying out for more supplies.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/22/coronavirus-what-is-eu-medical-equipment-scheme-why-did-uk-opt-out

All this nonsense about the EU being dead ... if people complaining is a sign of disaster, humanity would have stopped existing eons ago

Edited April 23, 2020 by goDel

[Limo]

7 minutes ago, goDel said:

if people complaining is a sign of disaster, humanity would have stopped existing eons ago

[Enthusiast]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/23/how-covid-19-poured-cold-water-on-netherlands-eu-romance

 

[Soloman Tump]

I remember drinking in a bar in Paris, and the bar man sat us down at a table and brought over an "English" tourist bar menu.  We had already looked at the prices the locals were paying, around 20% cheaper