PLOT AGAINST AMERICA. Imagine an alternative reality where FDR loses the 1940 presidential election to Hitler sympathizer Charles Lindbergh. That’s the premise of this Max series, The Plot Against America. This is an excellent 6-episode mini-series staring Winona Ryder that depicts a Jewish family pursuing the American Dream and then suddenly finds itself in the cross hairs of Lindbergh’s anti-Jewish policies. There are many parallels to current events today in America. Highly recommended. The Man in the High Castle is another intriguing alternative history to WW2. In this Amazon Prime series, the Germans and Japanese win WW2 and claim American territory.
TRUMP AND CANADIAN SUBSIDIES. What do you think of this talk of America claiming Greenland, the Panama Canal and converting Canada into our 51st state. It’s Trump’s latest obsession. He is partly justifying claiming Canada on the basis that America is subsidizing Canada as evidenced by the massive $50 billion trade deficit between the two nations. But really, are Americans subsidizing Canada? No, of course not. Trump is either ignorant of economics or purposefully spreading misinformation. A trade deficit is not a “loss” or a “subsidy”. Trade is win-win. You trade cash for products & services that benefit your life.
TRUMP AND THE PANAMA CANAL. My wife and I toured the Panama Canal a year ago. What a spectacular, man-made achievement! We were on a cruise, had a stop on the Caribbean side of Panama, and then hopped on a ferry that traveled through 3 of the locks on the canal. Huge bucket list moment. I used to be a supporter of Jimmy Carter’s policy of giving the Panama Canal back to Panama. But now thinking it through, it makes more sense that the canal is protected for free trade for everyone. I don’t have confidence that Panama can properly defend the canal from adversaries. I don’t support Trump’s ideas of re-claiming the canal. But there should be some agreement that the canal is protected by America just as America protects trade routes all around the globe.
TRUMP AND GREENLAND. This idea of claiming Greenland with military force reeks of the same stench of Russia reclaiming Ukraine. I get the idea that Greenland is valuable for national security, but the US already has bases on Greenland. This is all just another ploy by Trump to stir the pot and create distractions.
HOW TO ELIMINATE POVERTY. The idea of privatizing Social Security is often dismissed as a non-starter. In fact, Democrats enjoy using the politically motivated scare tactics of the GOP eliminating or cutting Social Security. Personally, I don’t think the GOP has the balls to do it. But it’s still a very good idea. How often do we hear some get angry with the rich getting richer by partnering with Corporate America? Why not open up that same opportunity for the poor and middle class? If people were able to redirect their Social Security withholdings into a simple and conservative market index fund, the poor would build wealth and rise out of poverty. The poor and middle class would enjoy 3-4x greater benefits during retirement than the existing Social Security system today. The Social Security Trust Fund is going to run out in 2033. Does anyone have a good idea to solve the problem? Privatizing would not only solve the problem but be a huge win for the people that need it the most.