I can top that. I got a Subaru Solterra EV on the 25th of February. So I am sniggering at all of the people with Ford F250s and Dodge RAM 3500 trucks that are going to be paying close to a dollar a mile to drive those lumbering dinosaur-burning hunks of metal to the post office.
What makes me *really* insufferable is that I have an 8kw rooftop solar array so basically I am running on free electricity here.
And I can even top that. I live in the Netherlands and take the train everyday. Our trains run 100% on wind power (which, contrary to popular US-coal-company propganda seen in my home state of PA, doesn't stop when the wind doesn't blow).
I hadn't thought of the trucks using all that gas. Utah is lousy with 'em so I'm going to be happy whenever Im driving around in my little car. Thanks for the heads up and Happy Schadenfreude!
Haha I just was going to post the same thing about Utah. I will seriously snark to a big truck owner filling up gas and remind them that "Trump did this"
I have a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid bought in 2024. I drove only 5,075 miles in 2025 (in Phoenix) and my MPG was 37 for the year. Total gas used only about 137 gallons, so no real impact on me. When I was working full time, I typically drove 20,000 miles per year and my vehicles usually averaged about 20 MPG. Not missing that. Lots of trucks and large SUVs in Phoenix metro and gas is up over $1 per gallon in last 3 weeks.
I’ve been wanting a hybrid for a few years, but I don’t feel like I can justify purchasing a new vehicle when I don’t drive very much. Besides, my 2014 (that I bought in 2013) Subaru Outback with about 60,000 miles is still in great shape.
My last car--a Kia Sportage--was the biggest lemon I've ever had the misfortune of bumping into. I would have crushed it into a cube myself with pleasure.
I’m right there with you. I have a nearly 10-year-old car that’s fully paid for and drives like a champ. I would love a hybrid. I just can’t justify the expense.
I’m hoping that there will be a hybrid Outback in the future. It’s too difficult for me to get my 80-90 pound Rottweiler with neuroaxonal dystrophy into my husband’s Forester. I’m not sure if a Crosstrek would be big enough—especially when I have to load 2 Rottweilers.
Yea, but even electricity prices are going up now on account of the increased demand for kWhs from the AI data center buildout vs limited supply because of this admin's refusal to expand solar/wind production.
I have thought about a plug in hybrid and having a solar powered charging station installed in my garage. I have no idea how much my charging station would cost, but it seems like it would add value to the house.
my recommendation to you is to buy a used EV if cost is a consideration. I'm no fan of plug ins as they offer the headaches of an ICE car with limited EV range. As far as a charging station the box can be purchased on line for a few hundred dollars with the added cost of installation by an electrician. Some dealers offer installation as a perk (if you are buying new) EVs are a cost saver in the long run due to minimal maintenance. If you already have roof top solar the juice is already free to you! But my main advice is to research the subject and see what is out there.
I don’t want an EV—I want a hybrid, some of which are plug-ins. I’m not necessarily concerned about the price of the vehicle, but I do feel that I must prioritize my needs over my wants. The Outback replaced a 1985 Cutlass—I tend to keep cars for a very long time.
Maribeth, I'm unapologetically pro EV. I bought a Bolt 6 years ago and plan to keep it forever. I would encourage you to have an open mind about pure EVs but if I can't persuade you then I will let it go. For myself, climate change is my main concern and I make no bones about it. It turns out that running our lives on clean energy is now cheaper but that's another reason to go electric.
Driving my Ioniq 5 this morning and listening to NPR, learning that there would be $4/gal gas this week, I thought, "Huh. My price didn't go up at all."
I can't top that partly because we have a rule to always buy a used car with cash and drive it into the ground before replacing it. When getting our latest car a few years ago, we decided that a hybrid would be both cheaper and more practical for our semi-rural region where finding chargers isn't always easy. So we got a Prius V; it's fairly roomy but more aerodynamic than the RAV4, so a bit better gas mileage.
I have a 2015 Toyota Prius that I bought in 2016 with about 15,000 miles on it. It has 100,000 miles on it now. The last time I had it in for service at the dealership, the mechanic said I finally needed to replace brakes and a couple of other things that would add up to about $1,200. I asked him to tell me honestly if it was worth it to spend this much money on fixing this car. He looked at me like I was crazy and said, "This car will run for at least 300,000 miles, absolutely it's worth it." So I did the repairs. He said the electric battery will be expensive when it finally goes at about 300,000 miles! So I guess I will keep this car for another decade or so. I bought a slightly used Toyota Corolla in 1995 and it was passed down in the family as grandchildren needed a car until it finally died after running for about 20 years. Needless to say, I love me those Toyotas.
At the time I wondered if the sales staff at the dealership would have appreciated the honesty of the mechanic.
Is there still and us? I don’t think those of us who don’t support the criming matter to them now I can see how it must have felt to not support Hitler during the Third Reich.
Right there with you. He's an embarrassment. I just watch what's happening and can't help thinking all that stuff I learned in 5th grade Civics was all bullshit. We traded the country for cheap eggs.
How can any decent person watch those explosions and fires in Tehran and not feel for those people? Their leadership is awful -- granted -- but outside looking in, it appears the goal is to destroy Iran *and its people*.
Which brings up one of my frequent rants. Yes, Trump got 49.8% of people who voted for president, Harris got slightly less, but about a third of the electorate didn't cast a vote for either--they just didn't vote. This makes steam come out of my ears, eyes, and nose.
No, the Israelis are laughing their asses off at how they conned the IDIOT CONMAN. This was after they helped con the IDIOT AMERICAN VOTER. America looks immensely stupid around the world right now. The Eureka! lights have all gone on.
That man will never stop bombing…he has been out of control since Gaza. He , sadly, is almost as bad as Trump, but smarter, in coning Trump into this war. While settlers are killing Palestinians in the West Bank. Our world is filled with insanity and ruthlessness.
Watching the chicken hawks have erections for an entire week has been fascinating. The Mark Levins and Laura Loomers of the world could never be bothered to serve America during her longest war and even now as they bang the drums of war, they aren’t willing to raise their hands. I have offered so many people rides to the local recruiting center and NO ONE has taken me up on my offer. Cowards, the lot of them. And to add to the point that Andrew made, the new Ayatollah is man whose father, mother, and wife we have killed in this war? How likely is that guy going to be to make a deal without exacting some sort of blood vengeance in return?
Yes, and why would Iranians or anyone make a deal with Trump at all. Reneging on deals is and has been Trump's business model--or 'MO," as law enforcement would have it, for decades.
When Trump had reneged on a BoA loan and had filed for bankruptcy multiple times, he still was able to swing a loan of several hundred million dollars from BoA. It's unbelievable, really, unless Russians, who favored BoA for money laundering at the time, put their thumbs on the scale, maybe by co-signing.
Not everybody. Bibi caters to a couple of small, far right wing, political parties that he needs to maintain his governing coalition. In return for giving support to Bibi, those parties demand exemptions from military service for ultra-orthodox Jewish men who spend their days studying the Torah.
This exemption is causing increasing amounts of hard feelings in Israel as others have to serve in their place.
Not aware of any legislation. The issue of their service still seems to be up in the air though. There was an article in The Economist several months ago, but I didn't save it.
"Hey, tough guy, put on that mask. Strap on that AK. Go stand next to that drop box and make sure everyone's legal. You got the "balls to 4" tonight. Hope everything works out. And remember: wear your uniform with pride."
No matter who you are, to lose your father, mother, and wife so suddenly and violently would create only two reactions: unmitigated grief and purposeful vengeance.
I just hope the vengeance is directed at the mofos who got us into this mess (i.e. not at an innocent group of people enjoying a sporting event, concert, etc.).
I used to think that about old man Rumsfeld too every time he would speak about Iraq (el yucko). But when Rumsfeld was asked about the reality about the lack of armor, it was almost a witness of "going flacid". When Hegseth was asked about the reality of our casualties, he got really angry. It's all gross but it then occurred to me that, in my days of high school parking, the guys that got "really mad" were the ones that were usually violent. That seems to tie back to Hegseth's propensity for sexual assault when refused. He is a sick MFer. Disgusting.
Blood vengeance, indeed. This Iranian regime is one of the strongest and most stoic of any group of people in the world. Khamanei Jr. is gonna be on nasty MF.
Reading about Israeli/American attacks on infrastructure in Tehran and its effects on civilians, I cannot help but think of the campaign of total destruction that Netanyahu unleashed on Gaza. I hate Hamas. I hate the Iranian regime. Both deserve being called evil. But this campaign, too, deliberately unleashing so much suffering on the Iranian people, is beginning to resemble the evil hearts of Netanyahu and Trump.
“Not since Adolf Hitler blew his brains out in a bunker beneath the garden of the German Reich Chancellery on April 30, 1945, have the lives of so many people around the world been so buffeted by the psychosis of a single man.”
Some neuropsychiatric scientists actually believe that Hitler in his times of failure was less dangerous by putting the gun in his mouth. For Trump and even Bibi? They are identified as such nihilistic lying narcissists, they will burn the whole world down with them while destroying themselves. We all know Putin would too. This is scary shit and when my dear friend who is so smart and sensitive looked this up, we've had to comfort her the rest of the week about end times. Can someone please help to lighten this up? I'm scared too.
Energy Sec said we have plenty of oil in US so no worries. Admin didn't seem to understand that cutting off 20% of world crude supply would raise oil $ in US. That's really worrying, isn't it? Besides all the other stuff.
Chris Wright may have the education and job experience to deliver the actual domestic and world market driven facts, but he certainly failed in his Sunday news show appearances. His talking points came straight from Dunning Kruger segment of The White House.
Here are three questions for him:
What is the current domestic crude oil production vs refining capacity in the US? Answer: 13.4 million barrels per day crude / 18.5 million barrels per day refining capacity. About a 5 million bbl/day shortfall, not counting refining capabilities. The export market exists because of the world market and for profit taking. (Natural gas is another factor, but again the industry has taken the lead with ethylene, ammonia, methanol, and hydrogen production).
How long does it take to increase crude oil production and what is the historical record of such an increase? Months to years of pre-production planning. The current production has held (+/- 0.3 million bbl/day) for over a decade. There is a reason it has stayed where it is, production and refining companies like the stable business conditions and shareholder friendly profitability reports.
Explain asymmetric price transmission. I will let you look it up, the short term is "rockets and feathers".
And the US refining capacity keeps decreasing. No refinery has been built in the US in the last 50 years, since 1976. Every time a refinery starts to breakdown, instead of fixing it, the oil companies shut it down. Like the large Philadelphia refinery, once the largest on the East Coast, which was shut down in 2019 following a series of explosions. This refinery provided 2% of all refined oil products in the US, and then it was gone.
No new refinery will ever be built in the US by Big Oil. They're not willing to spend the billions of dollars in construction costs and the decade it will take to finish the project. Instead they outsource to India and other third world countries. And let them deal with the pollution and the exploding plants.
I am concerned that the US military leadership has gone morally and constitutionally MIA. They are still murdering people in small boats in this hemisphere, and this whole enterprise in the Middle East is not only borderline crazy, but grossly violative of international law and the Constitution. Maybe Ben and Mark H can discuss this tomorrow.
Have you seen the reports about military commanders framing this war as part of a divine plan when addressing soldiers, quoting sections of the biblical book of Revelations, etc? There’ve been more than 200 complaints from soldiers.
If it’s true, it makes perfect sense. They start a war that is extremely unpopular with the American people, so they call in the Evangelicals who got him there to reassure everybody that God WANTS him to do all this. To complain is therefore not just unpatriotic but anti-God. King me.
I hear you; I did the same thing. But the Guardian is reporting it. And there is a response from the Pentagon - not a very satisfying one but a response.
I don't think these dipshits understand the Book of Revelations and other related scripture that ties it in. The battle of Armmegedon is the LAST event before the Second Coming according to most Christian religions. Depending on your Church, there are a number of things that need to happen first. So I'm not sure what they think they are "ringing in" with this war on Iran
Yet another war started with the idea that we'll be home before the leaves fall.
You'd think we'd learn.
It's not just oil that's being cut-off. Fertilizer and sulfate can't move either. Sulfuric acid is needed in many, many industrial processes. The whole world's economies are about to collapse.
Thank goodness we elected the "low prices" president.
It'd be nice if some of the impacts of this were felt in some Red states, wouldn't it?
I've thought, since this whole Trump horror show started that there is no level of personal financial pain or ruin sufficient to convince any Trump supporter that his vote was a mistake. They can lose their farms, their businesses, their healthcare, their own health, their childrens' health, their retirement savings, everything ... and they will still fly that Trump flag from their pick-up trucks, say he's the greatest President of their lifetimes and call anyone who doesn't agree with them a libtard.
That's my hypothesis. Let's test it.
Gas prices are up. Food prices are up. Rents and mortgages are up. Try to buy a used car these days. Insane prices. Insurance? Up. Go try to replace a busted dishwasher. Sticker shock. Oh, and your kid's going to get measles. Hope that works out okay. The whole country's gone to hell. What say you, MAGA?
Nope. That doesn't fit with the horse and buggy days views of how the world works. Even back then there was trade on a world wide level but the current administration doesn't know that probably and continues to think that all products are produced and consumed within the US.
I could hardly believe it when Hegseth the other day was asserting that there were 'stupid" rules of engagement that exist in order to insure that the fight would be 'fair." This is the kind of thing drunks tell their buddies at the end of the bar. Reasonable minds can disagree about what the rules should be, but there is no ROE that is not to avoid friendly fire accidents or war crimes.
Should is a little bit strong given the way we have treated them. I hope they have extracted a pound of Trump’s flabby flesh. That along with Trump now allowing the Russians to sell oil and their involvement in supplying intelligence to Iran indicates none of this is happening based on strategic calculations about what benefits the US. The Europeans should do everything they can to support Ukraine and invest in their arms industry as that is their quickest way to military independence and renewed relevance.
I'd say there would not be an independent nation "Ukraine" right now if it were not for Joe Biden. It would be a Russian client state if not a (phony) autonomous region or an oblast.
My worry is that they've made the same calculation so many Administration officials have. (Noem is the most recent.) If they just play nice with him, he'll reciprocate. But he doesn't do reciprocation. You do for him and that's the end of the project.
So the Ukrainians help us, hoping we'll help them, but that help never comes. And Trump and Hegseth treat the Ukrainians like crap again.
Here's what I really think: BRICS, which began as an economic consortium, has blossomed into a geopolitical reality similar to NATO. Trump believes that he's earned a seat at that table by screwing NATO, when in fact he and us are "what's for dinner." It reminds me of "The Sting."
One hopes it means that they know Trump won't be around forever, and will get neutered in the midterms. Some goodwill from the US rank and file could go a long way in the next administration.
Perhaps, but I think it would still be beneficial for our erstwhile allies to see firsthand that anything they share with the United States will end up with the Russians.
In the before times we would have had observers all over Ukraine learning all we could about this new type of warfare, but I fear we have become complacent as the ground has shifted beneath us this last four years.
Trump thinks this is all some video game where he can attack a country and immediately take their resources. He obviously thought he could steal Venezuela’s oil. He still wants to steal Iraq’s oil to make up for the war. And now Iran’s turn.
Now he finds himself seeing how war is the exact opposite. It’s easy to strike a country. It’s sometimes easy to replace the leader. It’s never easy to keep that country’s instability from having a destabilizing effect far beyond its own borders.
When Trump was first elected in 2016, many of my friends were afraid that he would get us into a needless war. My feeling was that yes, he is belligerent and careless, but he is also fundamentally lazy, and being a wartime President is work, and therefore I thought he was unlikely to start one. The success in Venezuela, at least in his terms, led him to think that war is easy.
What did the nutjobs and incompetents (not to say pedophiles) who make up this administration, think they were going to get from a war in Iran? Well, they had no flippin’ idea militarily; they were just looking for another distraction from… EPSTEIN! And how do I think this war will end? Well, badly for us, one way or the other, but ultimately, with a return to that from which they sought to distract: EPSTEIN!
The mindless braggadocio of the orange narcissist-felon is not a plan of any kind, Hegseth's '60 Minutes' glib laundering of the truth notwithstanding.
Yes, both choices--do nothing and let the Iranian people suffer and die, or start a war that will affect the lives of nations worldwide--were impossibly difficult. It was a matter of the lesser of two evils. The unleashing of the U.S. war machine, with its terrifying capabilities, should only be done with a careful plan, debated and approved by the supine 'congress.'
Now the entire world suffers, and the inglorious end is not in sight, or even guessed.
Even my toddler, many years ago, could suss out consequences of her actions. This nation is in deep trouble, as it is 'governed' by toddlers who are incapable and/or completely unwilling to think. Period.
It's OK Andrew. I bought a Chevy Bolt last summer and am currently insufferable.
I can top that. I got a Subaru Solterra EV on the 25th of February. So I am sniggering at all of the people with Ford F250s and Dodge RAM 3500 trucks that are going to be paying close to a dollar a mile to drive those lumbering dinosaur-burning hunks of metal to the post office.
What makes me *really* insufferable is that I have an 8kw rooftop solar array so basically I am running on free electricity here.
And I can even top that. I live in the Netherlands and take the train everyday. Our trains run 100% on wind power (which, contrary to popular US-coal-company propganda seen in my home state of PA, doesn't stop when the wind doesn't blow).
... but I have been told reliably that all the whiring causes cancer... /s
LOL! And yet somehow the Dutch have survived for centuries using them. Hmm...
And the Dutch love their bicycles...more of them than the entire population.
True. Although the Dutch still love their cars. They just tend to be electric. And not used in the city centers.
But how do they pedal in those wooden shoes? /s
I hadn't thought of the trucks using all that gas. Utah is lousy with 'em so I'm going to be happy whenever Im driving around in my little car. Thanks for the heads up and Happy Schadenfreude!
Haha I just was going to post the same thing about Utah. I will seriously snark to a big truck owner filling up gas and remind them that "Trump did this"
Nice!
Wow, hopefully, the future of cars.
I bought a new Toyota RAV4 hybrid in June. Happy about that decision.
Same here!
I have a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid bought in 2024. I drove only 5,075 miles in 2025 (in Phoenix) and my MPG was 37 for the year. Total gas used only about 137 gallons, so no real impact on me. When I was working full time, I typically drove 20,000 miles per year and my vehicles usually averaged about 20 MPG. Not missing that. Lots of trucks and large SUVs in Phoenix metro and gas is up over $1 per gallon in last 3 weeks.
I’ve been wanting a hybrid for a few years, but I don’t feel like I can justify purchasing a new vehicle when I don’t drive very much. Besides, my 2014 (that I bought in 2013) Subaru Outback with about 60,000 miles is still in great shape.
My last car--a Kia Sportage--was the biggest lemon I've ever had the misfortune of bumping into. I would have crushed it into a cube myself with pleasure.
As Packard used to say, "Ask the man who owns one."
Good to know!
I 100% am with you, my 2015 Subaru Forrester is still in great shape and I can’t justify a car loan right now.
You'll be driving that for decades at that rate.
I’m right there with you. I have a nearly 10-year-old car that’s fully paid for and drives like a champ. I would love a hybrid. I just can’t justify the expense.
All sane logic for now. But when the time comes, which it more than likely will, think about it.
I’m hoping that there will be a hybrid Outback in the future. It’s too difficult for me to get my 80-90 pound Rottweiler with neuroaxonal dystrophy into my husband’s Forester. I’m not sure if a Crosstrek would be big enough—especially when I have to load 2 Rottweilers.
Same.
Yea, but even electricity prices are going up now on account of the increased demand for kWhs from the AI data center buildout vs limited supply because of this admin's refusal to expand solar/wind production.
Though I hear that some are giving new consideration to solar power as it's much cheaper and not subject to making us hostage to foreign powers
I have thought about a plug in hybrid and having a solar powered charging station installed in my garage. I have no idea how much my charging station would cost, but it seems like it would add value to the house.
my recommendation to you is to buy a used EV if cost is a consideration. I'm no fan of plug ins as they offer the headaches of an ICE car with limited EV range. As far as a charging station the box can be purchased on line for a few hundred dollars with the added cost of installation by an electrician. Some dealers offer installation as a perk (if you are buying new) EVs are a cost saver in the long run due to minimal maintenance. If you already have roof top solar the juice is already free to you! But my main advice is to research the subject and see what is out there.
I don’t want an EV—I want a hybrid, some of which are plug-ins. I’m not necessarily concerned about the price of the vehicle, but I do feel that I must prioritize my needs over my wants. The Outback replaced a 1985 Cutlass—I tend to keep cars for a very long time.
Maribeth, I'm unapologetically pro EV. I bought a Bolt 6 years ago and plan to keep it forever. I would encourage you to have an open mind about pure EVs but if I can't persuade you then I will let it go. For myself, climate change is my main concern and I make no bones about it. It turns out that running our lives on clean energy is now cheaper but that's another reason to go electric.
I bought a Bolt 6 years ago and have never looked back. I love driving by gas stations and watching the prices.
Especially as a woman, not having to visit gas stations is a perk.
Ouu I bought an EV 2 years ago. So I can be insufferable too!
Driving my Ioniq 5 this morning and listening to NPR, learning that there would be $4/gal gas this week, I thought, "Huh. My price didn't go up at all."
I can't top that partly because we have a rule to always buy a used car with cash and drive it into the ground before replacing it. When getting our latest car a few years ago, we decided that a hybrid would be both cheaper and more practical for our semi-rural region where finding chargers isn't always easy. So we got a Prius V; it's fairly roomy but more aerodynamic than the RAV4, so a bit better gas mileage.
I have a 2015 Toyota Prius that I bought in 2016 with about 15,000 miles on it. It has 100,000 miles on it now. The last time I had it in for service at the dealership, the mechanic said I finally needed to replace brakes and a couple of other things that would add up to about $1,200. I asked him to tell me honestly if it was worth it to spend this much money on fixing this car. He looked at me like I was crazy and said, "This car will run for at least 300,000 miles, absolutely it's worth it." So I did the repairs. He said the electric battery will be expensive when it finally goes at about 300,000 miles! So I guess I will keep this car for another decade or so. I bought a slightly used Toyota Corolla in 1995 and it was passed down in the family as grandchildren needed a car until it finally died after running for about 20 years. Needless to say, I love me those Toyotas.
At the time I wondered if the sales staff at the dealership would have appreciated the honesty of the mechanic.
Went out last night after watching Tim & JVL on the rising oil prices, and filled up the Kia Niro. Hope it lasts a while.
An illegal war fomented by a lawless regime led by the stoopidest, most arrogant group of losers the world has ever seen. #ettd
Yeah, that sums it up, but I would add that the ultimate blame rests with us, the people.
Is there still and us? I don’t think those of us who don’t support the criming matter to them now I can see how it must have felt to not support Hitler during the Third Reich.
That's right. We -- the majority of us -- voted for exactly this.
And I don't know about you, dcicero, but I feel dread and I feel shame, and I voted against that motherfucker and his party.
Right there with you. He's an embarrassment. I just watch what's happening and can't help thinking all that stuff I learned in 5th grade Civics was all bullshit. We traded the country for cheap eggs.
You must be old (like me) if you remember being taught civics in school, before the Republicans slashed it.
Same here Tim
That's where I'm at.
How can any decent person watch those explosions and fires in Tehran and not feel for those people? Their leadership is awful -- granted -- but outside looking in, it appears the goal is to destroy Iran *and its people*.
I think it diverts attention from the Epstein files.
I don't see how we come out of this without almost every Iranian living there hating the U.S. for real.
Ditto.
Trump won pluralities, not majorities. Blame James Comey to start.
He won the popular vote, sad to say.
49.8%, but who's counting.
Which brings up one of my frequent rants. Yes, Trump got 49.8% of people who voted for president, Harris got slightly less, but about a third of the electorate didn't cast a vote for either--they just didn't vote. This makes steam come out of my ears, eyes, and nose.
Wrong!
Hey. Bibi Netanyahu is not stupid!!
😉
No, the Israelis are laughing their asses off at how they conned the IDIOT CONMAN. This was after they helped con the IDIOT AMERICAN VOTER. America looks immensely stupid around the world right now. The Eureka! lights have all gone on.
That man will never stop bombing…he has been out of control since Gaza. He , sadly, is almost as bad as Trump, but smarter, in coning Trump into this war. While settlers are killing Palestinians in the West Bank. Our world is filled with insanity and ruthlessness.
Watching the chicken hawks have erections for an entire week has been fascinating. The Mark Levins and Laura Loomers of the world could never be bothered to serve America during her longest war and even now as they bang the drums of war, they aren’t willing to raise their hands. I have offered so many people rides to the local recruiting center and NO ONE has taken me up on my offer. Cowards, the lot of them. And to add to the point that Andrew made, the new Ayatollah is man whose father, mother, and wife we have killed in this war? How likely is that guy going to be to make a deal without exacting some sort of blood vengeance in return?
Yes, and why would Iranians or anyone make a deal with Trump at all. Reneging on deals is and has been Trump's business model--or 'MO," as law enforcement would have it, for decades.
For sure -- not sure why there are so many suckers who keep letting him kick them down over and over.
When Trump had reneged on a BoA loan and had filed for bankruptcy multiple times, he still was able to swing a loan of several hundred million dollars from BoA. It's unbelievable, really, unless Russians, who favored BoA for money laundering at the time, put their thumbs on the scale, maybe by co-signing.
Truly unbelievable. What chance would anyone else have with far less minuses against them?
Remember when Marjorie Taylor Greene made the Battered Wife analogy? There have always been Battered Husbands; who knew so many were in Congress?
lol
I've really enjoyed the calls for Barron and all the ICE agents to be deployed to Iran.
The ICE guys wouldn't even need new uniforms or weapons. We could do this on the cheap. And they're really badasses, I hear.
Don't forget, Bibi's son is sunning himself on a beach in Miami while everyone else in Israel is forced to report for military duty.
Not everybody. Bibi caters to a couple of small, far right wing, political parties that he needs to maintain his governing coalition. In return for giving support to Bibi, those parties demand exemptions from military service for ultra-orthodox Jewish men who spend their days studying the Torah.
This exemption is causing increasing amounts of hard feelings in Israel as others have to serve in their place.
As places to study the Torah go, Miami Beach is not chopped liver.
The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that they do have to serve. https://www.npr.org/2024/06/25/g-s1-6116/israeli-supreme-court-rules-that-the-military-must-begin-drafting-ultra-orthodox-men Has there been legislation since then, saying otherwise?
Not aware of any legislation. The issue of their service still seems to be up in the air though. There was an article in The Economist several months ago, but I didn't save it.
Grr. And where are all the t brats?
Maybe ICE can go secure the elections for new leadership in Iran? Now, that's a plan I could get behind!
Oh, yeah. That's a plan I can get 100% behind.
"Hey, tough guy, put on that mask. Strap on that AK. Go stand next to that drop box and make sure everyone's legal. You got the "balls to 4" tonight. Hope everything works out. And remember: wear your uniform with pride."
No matter who you are, to lose your father, mother, and wife so suddenly and violently would create only two reactions: unmitigated grief and purposeful vengeance.
I just hope the vengeance is directed at the mofos who got us into this mess (i.e. not at an innocent group of people enjoying a sporting event, concert, etc.).
This is the problem. I am wondering if the Iranian regime views the people of the U.S. to blame for allowing trump and crew to be voted into office.
Watching Hegseth's interview on 60 minutes, I thought the guy was going to have a big "O".
He believe he was actually aroused. That's a sick MF'er
I used to think that about old man Rumsfeld too every time he would speak about Iraq (el yucko). But when Rumsfeld was asked about the reality about the lack of armor, it was almost a witness of "going flacid". When Hegseth was asked about the reality of our casualties, he got really angry. It's all gross but it then occurred to me that, in my days of high school parking, the guys that got "really mad" were the ones that were usually violent. That seems to tie back to Hegseth's propensity for sexual assault when refused. He is a sick MFer. Disgusting.
Blood vengeance, indeed. This Iranian regime is one of the strongest and most stoic of any group of people in the world. Khamanei Jr. is gonna be on nasty MF.
Reading about Israeli/American attacks on infrastructure in Tehran and its effects on civilians, I cannot help but think of the campaign of total destruction that Netanyahu unleashed on Gaza. I hate Hamas. I hate the Iranian regime. Both deserve being called evil. But this campaign, too, deliberately unleashing so much suffering on the Iranian people, is beginning to resemble the evil hearts of Netanyahu and Trump.
“Not since Adolf Hitler blew his brains out in a bunker beneath the garden of the German Reich Chancellery on April 30, 1945, have the lives of so many people around the world been so buffeted by the psychosis of a single man.”
Some neuropsychiatric scientists actually believe that Hitler in his times of failure was less dangerous by putting the gun in his mouth. For Trump and even Bibi? They are identified as such nihilistic lying narcissists, they will burn the whole world down with them while destroying themselves. We all know Putin would too. This is scary shit and when my dear friend who is so smart and sensitive looked this up, we've had to comfort her the rest of the week about end times. Can someone please help to lighten this up? I'm scared too.
sigh
Plans are for cucks. As Hegseth said, Trump is a man of action. And the point of destruction is destruction.
splosionmaxxing
And the point of the Department of War is...
WAR!
Hey. Bibi Netanyahu is not a cuck!
😉
Energy Sec said we have plenty of oil in US so no worries. Admin didn't seem to understand that cutting off 20% of world crude supply would raise oil $ in US. That's really worrying, isn't it? Besides all the other stuff.
Chris Wright may have the education and job experience to deliver the actual domestic and world market driven facts, but he certainly failed in his Sunday news show appearances. His talking points came straight from Dunning Kruger segment of The White House.
Here are three questions for him:
What is the current domestic crude oil production vs refining capacity in the US? Answer: 13.4 million barrels per day crude / 18.5 million barrels per day refining capacity. About a 5 million bbl/day shortfall, not counting refining capabilities. The export market exists because of the world market and for profit taking. (Natural gas is another factor, but again the industry has taken the lead with ethylene, ammonia, methanol, and hydrogen production).
How long does it take to increase crude oil production and what is the historical record of such an increase? Months to years of pre-production planning. The current production has held (+/- 0.3 million bbl/day) for over a decade. There is a reason it has stayed where it is, production and refining companies like the stable business conditions and shareholder friendly profitability reports.
Explain asymmetric price transmission. I will let you look it up, the short term is "rockets and feathers".
" 18.5 million barrels per day refining capacity"
And the US refining capacity keeps decreasing. No refinery has been built in the US in the last 50 years, since 1976. Every time a refinery starts to breakdown, instead of fixing it, the oil companies shut it down. Like the large Philadelphia refinery, once the largest on the East Coast, which was shut down in 2019 following a series of explosions. This refinery provided 2% of all refined oil products in the US, and then it was gone.
No new refinery will ever be built in the US by Big Oil. They're not willing to spend the billions of dollars in construction costs and the decade it will take to finish the project. Instead they outsource to India and other third world countries. And let them deal with the pollution and the exploding plants.
I am concerned that the US military leadership has gone morally and constitutionally MIA. They are still murdering people in small boats in this hemisphere, and this whole enterprise in the Middle East is not only borderline crazy, but grossly violative of international law and the Constitution. Maybe Ben and Mark H can discuss this tomorrow.
Have you seen the reports about military commanders framing this war as part of a divine plan when addressing soldiers, quoting sections of the biblical book of Revelations, etc? There’ve been more than 200 complaints from soldiers.
If it’s true, it makes perfect sense. They start a war that is extremely unpopular with the American people, so they call in the Evangelicals who got him there to reassure everybody that God WANTS him to do all this. To complain is therefore not just unpatriotic but anti-God. King me.
I chalked that up to internet rumor when I heard it. Sounded like one of those "too good to check" stories, but if it's true, it's horrifying.
There's a sect of xtianity who WANT to live in the biblical end times, and are actively trying to make it happen. That sect has Trump on a leash.
Sect? More like death cult.
I hear you; I did the same thing. But the Guardian is reporting it. And there is a response from the Pentagon - not a very satisfying one but a response.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/03/us-israel-iran-war-christian-rhetoric
Sadly, it's true. https://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/2026/03/mrff-inundated-with-complaints-of-gleeful-commanders-telling-troops-iran-war-is-part-of-gods-divine-plan-to-usher-in-the-return-of-jesus-christ/
I don't think these dipshits understand the Book of Revelations and other related scripture that ties it in. The battle of Armmegedon is the LAST event before the Second Coming according to most Christian religions. Depending on your Church, there are a number of things that need to happen first. So I'm not sure what they think they are "ringing in" with this war on Iran
Yet another war started with the idea that we'll be home before the leaves fall.
You'd think we'd learn.
It's not just oil that's being cut-off. Fertilizer and sulfate can't move either. Sulfuric acid is needed in many, many industrial processes. The whole world's economies are about to collapse.
Thank goodness we elected the "low prices" president.
It'd be nice if some of the impacts of this were felt in some Red states, wouldn't it?
I've thought, since this whole Trump horror show started that there is no level of personal financial pain or ruin sufficient to convince any Trump supporter that his vote was a mistake. They can lose their farms, their businesses, their healthcare, their own health, their childrens' health, their retirement savings, everything ... and they will still fly that Trump flag from their pick-up trucks, say he's the greatest President of their lifetimes and call anyone who doesn't agree with them a libtard.
That's my hypothesis. Let's test it.
Gas prices are up. Food prices are up. Rents and mortgages are up. Try to buy a used car these days. Insane prices. Insurance? Up. Go try to replace a busted dishwasher. Sticker shock. Oh, and your kid's going to get measles. Hope that works out okay. The whole country's gone to hell. What say you, MAGA?
Don't worry, no matter how bad the suffering, they'll always find a way to blame the liberals.
"It's Biden's fault!"
I saw something on Facebook this morning asking what MAGA will say when gas hits $4.00 per gallon. The responses were pretty funny.
My favorite: "It's actually $1.79."
Instead of focusing on the beauties of groceries our dear leader maybe should have graduated to two words: supply chains.
Nope. That doesn't fit with the horse and buggy days views of how the world works. Even back then there was trade on a world wide level but the current administration doesn't know that probably and continues to think that all products are produced and consumed within the US.
Think we would learn? Not DJT. He never does.
Old rule: we break it, we own it.
New rule: we break it —with lethality! — and it’s not our problem, dude.
I could hardly believe it when Hegseth the other day was asserting that there were 'stupid" rules of engagement that exist in order to insure that the fight would be 'fair." This is the kind of thing drunks tell their buddies at the end of the bar. Reasonable minds can disagree about what the rules should be, but there is no ROE that is not to avoid friendly fire accidents or war crimes.
Well, he is a drunk so...
DJT….Drunk Jackass Trump…Drunk on his own power
He doesn't believe in war crimes. Or does, as in believes we should commit them freely.
As for friendly fire accidents…. I'm suddenly realizing that all his talk about maximum lethality has never specified to whom.
Like Boris Badenoff used to say, "You want to make an omelet, you got to break a couple of eggs."
That's been Trump's rule since he entered business. Probably since he emerged from the womb.
Yes, Ukraine should help us. But, sadly, they should not tell us anything they would not want Putin and Russia to know too.
Should is a little bit strong given the way we have treated them. I hope they have extracted a pound of Trump’s flabby flesh. That along with Trump now allowing the Russians to sell oil and their involvement in supplying intelligence to Iran indicates none of this is happening based on strategic calculations about what benefits the US. The Europeans should do everything they can to support Ukraine and invest in their arms industry as that is their quickest way to military independence and renewed relevance.
I'd say there would not be an independent nation "Ukraine" right now if it were not for Joe Biden. It would be a Russian client state if not a (phony) autonomous region or an oblast.
Yes, to some degree, but I would argue overly cautious and articulated end to the war. And DJT has screwed them over and this war in Iran is his war.
My hope is that the people of Ukraine distinguish Trump from the American people, like we distinguish Putin from the Russian people.
My worry is that they've made the same calculation so many Administration officials have. (Noem is the most recent.) If they just play nice with him, he'll reciprocate. But he doesn't do reciprocation. You do for him and that's the end of the project.
So the Ukrainians help us, hoping we'll help them, but that help never comes. And Trump and Hegseth treat the Ukrainians like crap again.
Exactly which is why I hope they’ve extracted their pound of flesh.
Here's what I really think: BRICS, which began as an economic consortium, has blossomed into a geopolitical reality similar to NATO. Trump believes that he's earned a seat at that table by screwing NATO, when in fact he and us are "what's for dinner." It reminds me of "The Sting."
One hopes it means that they know Trump won't be around forever, and will get neutered in the midterms. Some goodwill from the US rank and file could go a long way in the next administration.
Or maybe they should? What better way to prove the administration is in bed with Russia.
That's been proven, in my opinion.
Perhaps, but I think it would still be beneficial for our erstwhile allies to see firsthand that anything they share with the United States will end up with the Russians.
Oh, they know. It's good that the people who vote for them can now see it, too.
In the before times we would have had observers all over Ukraine learning all we could about this new type of warfare, but I fear we have become complacent as the ground has shifted beneath us this last four years.
Trump and Kegsbreath like the "things go boom!" war strategy. Targeted, surgical strikes are not near as exciting.
It would have been a good idea as long as the observers favored a loafer, or a nice tennis shoe. "Boots" on the ground are a no no.
Slipper in, slipper out.
Trump thinks this is all some video game where he can attack a country and immediately take their resources. He obviously thought he could steal Venezuela’s oil. He still wants to steal Iraq’s oil to make up for the war. And now Iran’s turn.
Now he finds himself seeing how war is the exact opposite. It’s easy to strike a country. It’s sometimes easy to replace the leader. It’s never easy to keep that country’s instability from having a destabilizing effect far beyond its own borders.
Did you see the Pentagon is splicing in gameplay footage from Call of Duty into the videos they're releasing?
When Trump was first elected in 2016, many of my friends were afraid that he would get us into a needless war. My feeling was that yes, he is belligerent and careless, but he is also fundamentally lazy, and being a wartime President is work, and therefore I thought he was unlikely to start one. The success in Venezuela, at least in his terms, led him to think that war is easy.
He went golfing this weekend. War may be hard work, but this guy isn't really into that.
Is he into anything but himself?
He doesn't care about dead Iranian kids, because none of them are him.
He doesn't care about dead Americans as long as it's not him.
Nope.
The only good bug is a DEAD bug!!
😉
What did the nutjobs and incompetents (not to say pedophiles) who make up this administration, think they were going to get from a war in Iran? Well, they had no flippin’ idea militarily; they were just looking for another distraction from… EPSTEIN! And how do I think this war will end? Well, badly for us, one way or the other, but ultimately, with a return to that from which they sought to distract: EPSTEIN!
Everything Trump does is to distract from everything else Trump does.
The mindless braggadocio of the orange narcissist-felon is not a plan of any kind, Hegseth's '60 Minutes' glib laundering of the truth notwithstanding.
Yes, both choices--do nothing and let the Iranian people suffer and die, or start a war that will affect the lives of nations worldwide--were impossibly difficult. It was a matter of the lesser of two evils. The unleashing of the U.S. war machine, with its terrifying capabilities, should only be done with a careful plan, debated and approved by the supine 'congress.'
Now the entire world suffers, and the inglorious end is not in sight, or even guessed.
Ukraine’s expertise in drone warfare sounds like…cards.
Even my toddler, many years ago, could suss out consequences of her actions. This nation is in deep trouble, as it is 'governed' by toddlers who are incapable and/or completely unwilling to think. Period.