The US operates a series of grocery stores on military bases. For Easter, I was doing a Prime Rib. The cost per unit was about twice at the military grocery store as it was at the local butcher shop. I won't blame anyone, but the meat from the German butcher is fantastic, and so much less expensive.

"I've never heard this outside Arabia."

Maybe it's just a Military thing. Just like what used to be referred to as the middle east is now southwest Asia.

It's been the Arabian Gulf for years.

I thought it had become derisive and somewhat disrespectful to refer to it as the Persian Gulf. Like referring to black people as "colored." Something from a different era.

"If you find a statistic about race disparity, the most important thing to do is not talk about it or think about it in any way. Or even better, attack the person who brought up race in the first place. /s"

He's got a point.

70% of NBA players are black, despite the fact that black people represent about 12% of the total US population.

Racism?

#149

Young people from across the world want to leave Europe and go to the US. Maybe it's glamor of Hollywood, or the appeal of New Orleans, I don't understand it. I do know that median household income in DEU is 45,800 EUR per year. In the US it's $80,610. So it may be purely financial. I chose to live in Europe because the lifestyle is different over here. I could care less about free healthcare. There are also, surprisingly, fewer frivolous laws over here. Especially vice laws or those that tie back to the US's puritanical past.

"The US under -------- central planning is quickly becoming socialist"

Still not "socialist" in the traditional sense. The workers don't own the means of production, but certainly the most heavily regulated, centrally planned economy in centuries.

"I wonder how much joy it gave you to kill those Muslims when you allegedly flew missions between drinks over Afghanistan or Iraq?"

The Taliban I had respect for. They and I were never going to share any cultural similarities, but they were doing nothing different than they had done for thousands of years.

Ya bois in ISIS were a different story. They were trash. Just criminals and rapists. Joy would not be the word I used, but they needed to die, and I was happy to play a role. They were not quite as bad as their successors in Gaza, but close.

"Wrong dumdum. As the rich got richer, everyone else got poorer."

Not according to the economists.

According to them everyone got richer, but some got rich at a higher marginal rate than others.

The whole "rich get richer, poor get poorer" narrative is a vestigial Marxian myth. Something people cling to as a potential explanation as to why they are not as successful as others. "It's the billionaires fault!"

But you would know that if you even went so far as to Google it.

#137

Coupla things champ. First, an O-5 in in the Air Force is a Lt Col. Not an LTC. That's Army. Second, Germany is not "socialist" anymore than the US is socialist. It hasn't been since it was National Socialist, but that ended about 80 years ago. In fact, the US would be more socialist IMO. Third, I have no clue how to use TRICARE. I pay for it, but it's not even worth the time trying to figure out when compared to my Cigna Global plan. Fourth, the commissary is great if you're in the mood for Skittles, Oreos, over-priced meat, or old produce. Otherwise, most of go to Globus. The cops won't shoot you, but they will beat the ---- out of you if you mouth off. And there might not be an army of left-wing pro-bono lawyers there to defend you when they do. Avoid Christmas markets. The Muslims love to target those.

"What has happened to the middle class as the rich got richer from offshoring their jobs?"

It grew. Exponentially.

It's why there are now more middle-class people on earth than not.

"The rich would be NOTHING without labor to create and distribute their products."

The labor can always be found to work in the factories. It's economics. After WWII, the cost of labor was extremely high because everything was being manufactured in the US. As the global economy rebuilt, competition was introduced, and the world was no longer dependent on high-cost US labor.

What China did was allow global consumers to get the same products, but at lower cost.

Thanks, China!

"Yeah, we are already like #25 in health care."

Unless you're in Europe subject to the US healthcare system...then it's like #225.

Maybe #125.

My co-worker spent 30 minutes on the phone today trying to schedule an appointment. He's military, so he has to use the US system. I can use private healthcare. Normally they offer something sooner than I can accept.

But, what can you say. His is the free government healthcare.

"According to the World Happiness Report, the happiest people in the world live in socialist countries with universal health care, gun control, regulated businesses, and environmental protections."

Can you summarize for me?

Like, people are happiest in Venezuela, Vietnam, and North Korea? Maybe Cuba?

"Northern European social democracies point and laugh in your general direction."

How so?

"That same expectation holds true in Capitalism."

How so?

Is it not expected they would be paid a wage or salary?

"What other sense exists?"

I consume oxygen, but it does not have any impact on the markets. I don't pay for it. It has no impact on the economy.

#5

Not sure about the specifics here, but BLM land is free to cross. A lot of ranchers will put up fences, but they can't be locked. I mean, technically they can, but you can cut the lock. You are expected to close gates if you open them though, as many times ranchers will own the grazing rights on BLM lands. They don't want the cattle getting out, and they do spend a lot on cattle guards and fences.

"There would be no need to produce anything if there is nobody to consume anything."

Consumption in the market sense, yes. Which is why socialism has always proven to be such an abysmal failure. The expectation was that workers go to work, produce stuff, but in many cases not value from the benefit of the goods they produced.

Socialism's greatest fault is that it is based on subjugating that which others have already created, while eliminating the rewards associated with creating something new. You will never be any better off than you are the moment socialism is introduced. From there it would be all downhill.

"No economic system exists without consumers. There'd be no need for production otherwise. You're again choosing to miss the point."

Sweet, sweet Snoofy.

Under communism, as envisioned by Marx, there would be no markets. No economic system. Happy workers would work in earnest to produce, knowing that collectively all workers could provide everything that was required by society. To each according to need, to each according to ability. But any exchange of currency would have been unnecessary in a communist society, since everything was to have been available in such abundance as there would have been no difference in value between goods.

You do start to sound like a staunch Capitalist once in a while though.

"Might as well nuke China then, and destroy their factories. That would get the American people what they said want, right?"

If you want to create high paying manufacturing jobs in the US, then yes. You nuke Japan again, and add in Europe and China for good measure. Once the US is the only industrialized production economy left on earth, manufacturers will be able to charge whatever they want, meaning that labor can charge whatever they want. The cost is simply passed on to the consumers, which have no other choice but to pay or go without.

"They haven't been doing that for fifty years, so I'm not sure why you assert they will suddenly change their ways."

They won't.

I'm just not clear on why you would be suggesting they would. And if they're not, it becomes clear that progressive economic policies espoused by those who resemble Bernie Sanders would be no more successful than those promoted by Donald Trump.

"Capitalism doesn't exist for the benefit of consumers."

Capitalism doesn't exist without consumers. At least not in the market sense.

You're thinking of socialism or communism with that line of reasoning.

Systems where there are no consumers. There are just citizens whose needs are provided for by the government based on what the government determines they need.

Ask East Germany.

East Germany actually had a rather well-developed manufacturing base, intended to supply a variety of consumer goods to European markets. Just not to East Germany. The DDR determined what the people needed, and provided those needs largely based on the hard currency they were able to bring in selling electronics and clothing to West Germany.

#101

The all this discussion is just purely academic. And USans will happily pay more for the goods and services they consume because the goods and services they consumer are produced by US workers.

Again, that's what Trump is betting on. And the basis for his decisions is not unwarranted. For at least a decade USans have been told that it is best for manufacturing to come back to the US. And many support that. A 2024 Cato survey found that 80% of respondents thought that US would be better if USans were working in factory jobs. And now they have a president who is doing his best to make that happen.

Oh, and since we're talking about Venezuela, how did Bolivarian Socialism work out for that country?

"If the economic benefits of outsourcing had been shared with the people who'd lost their jobs, america would have avoided this downfall. But reaganomics was in full effect and the rich took all the gains."

That's because the rich are the ones who knowledge and investment benefitted consumers. It's why there are now more middle-class people on earth than not.

But you're another one who should be happy with Trump. Unless Trump pulls one out of his ass, which I don't think he will, there will be far less wealth in the US. And the venture capitalists and entrepreneurs will quickly figure out that they can make more money in some other place. It's nothing new really. The only big difference is that typically these sorts of negative transformations occur under a progressive banner. This situation is unique in that it is occurring under a so-called "conservative."

Like I've said before. Trump is the US's Hugo Chavez.