First and foremost: Happy Birthday to my very special wife, Julie. If only she took better pictures. On to less wonderful subjects. My typical disclaimer on days like today: no, I am not returning to my news and social media-fueled hair-on-fire and angst-ridden blog style. Nobody wants that.
Or mass shootings in your community (or anywhere), for that matter.
But nobody wants fake news either, or a default by the world's most trusted financial entity. So I must comment on this whole natural methane gas thing, and touch on the United States not paying its debts.
Natural Methane Gas For the record, the only thing that's "natural" about what is properly called methane gas is that it is not man-made; however, the Climate Change caused by what we do with it most certainly is. What Big Oil & Gas so cleverly brand as natural gas is typically 90% methane, as bad as it gets in terms of greenhouse gases. I mention that in light of the hysteria ginned up by some recently over discussions about eventually winding down the use of methane gas in consumer appliances like stoves. Well, the fake news flywheel started and it was much like the panic over Biden restricting the number of burgers American's can shove in their faces. Which was fake news, as is the "Biden wants to take your gas stove" story.
Folks, we're going to have to curb this Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death mania if we hope to even begin addressing our real problems. And having to cook on an induction stove is not a real problem, nor a gross intrusion on your liberty and freedom as an American.
No, an actual problem is something like Climate Change. Or America not honoring its debts.
Kevin's Friends Oh, for the halcyon days when man of principle Kevin McCarthy was teamed with fellow Young Guns and the serious, real Americans Paul Ryan and Eric Cantor! They'd never allow some crackpots in their own party to threaten the very foundation upon which this country stands (that being money).
Oh. Wait. Oops. But it doesn't matter if you forget these fucks and others like them pulled the same bullshit in 1995, 1996, 2011, and 2013. Because here we go again! It's Debt Ceiling time!
And now, good ol' Kevin McCarthy is Speaker of The House and riding herd. Thank God we've got smart people like Lauren Boebert, Matt Gaetz, and Marge Greene keeping Kevie Kev honest. What. Possibly. Could. Go. Wrong? 10 Seconds of Seriousness: we can debate how much our government should be spending and on what. And how we pay for it. In fact, we must have that debate. I'll start: let's spend less on defense, and more on our people. Maybe you think cutting taxes on the wealthy and ending welfare is the smart approach. Fine and I crave active, productive dialog on this and so many other things.
But that is different than holding our country's credibility - financial and otherwise - hostage over paying for SPENDING CONGRESS HAS ALREADY APPROVED. From The Economist magazine:
Republicans, who have newly taken control of the House of Representatives, say that they cannot abide runaway spending and must rein it in. This deep concern appears episodic. When Donald Trump was president, the debt ceiling was increased three times with Republican support, and the national debt rose by $8trn over his term ($3.2trn of which came before Covid-induced spending began in 2020). Those increases were not particularly contentious, and the White House wishes the same for this one.
Aren't a lot of Republicans also Conservatives? As in conserve the status quo? Maybe these fools will come to their senses and conserve America's financial standing?
I'd love to hear from my right-leaning friends if there's another side to this. Again, I am NOT saying getting America's finances on a more sustainable trajectory isn't a necessity. It is, and must include lowering entitlements for some, and raising taxes on others, at least in this man's opinion.
But defaulting on our debt? That's their negotiating tactic? Please tell me again how the biggest threat to America is the "radical left"?
Or put another way: wouldn't less greenhouse gas emissions (or fewer guns) be better than a default by the US Government on its debts?
FROM THE UNWASHED MASSES
Here's to my great and rock star friend, Andy Jones. I had Zoom drinks with him last night and let's just say he's got a whole bunch of new and exciting things going on. In the words of the late, great Bill Clough:
May the most you want in life be the least that you receive.
Thank you to any one that is reading this newsletter.
KLUF
For my beloved bride, here is a Diamond Certified selection of the best songs by Boston's (and probably America's) finest rock band, Aerosmith. And here it is on TIDAL - for you, sweetie. And one more, my personal favorite. The pic isn't bad, either.
