14 thoughts on “Year in Review, 2019: “Victory at IAD” and Other Alternative Facts”

1. pgl January 1, 2020 at 1:29 pm

   Gold bug Judy Shelton took it for the May award! Maria Hasenstab had an interesting discussion of why going back to the gold standard makes no sense:

   https://www.stlouisfed.org/open-vault/2017/november/why-us-no-longer-follows-gold-standard

   “Commercial banks and Federal Reserve banks had a gold reserve requirement. They had to keep reserves of gold in their vaults equal to a fraction of the money they issued. “For every Federal Reserve dollar that was issued, the Reserve Bank had to have 40 cents worth of gold in its vault downstairs in the basement,” explained David Wheelock, vice president and deputy director of research. And then the Great Depression hit. People hoarded gold instead of depositing it in banks, which created an international gold shortage. Countries around the world basically ran out of supply and were forced off the gold standard. The U.S. came off the gold standard for domestic transactions in 1933 and ended international convertibility of the dollar to gold in 1971.”

   And why not go back some might ask?

   ‘There are significant problems with tying currency to the gold supply:

   It doesn’t guarantee financial or economic stability.
   It’s costly and environmentally damaging to mine.
   The supply of gold is not fixed.

   “The U.S. mines a lot of gold, but we’re not the biggest producer,” Wheelock said. “The bigger suppliers of gold would have more control over our monetary policy, and there’s no reason to have it because we can get the advantages of the gold standard and avoid the disadvantages without being on a gold standard.’

   It turns out that China, Russia, and Australia produce more gold than does the U.S. Of course maybe this is the Trump plan – turn monetary policy over to a couple of Communist regimes!
2. Willie January 1, 2020 at 1:52 pm

   We elected a TV reality show. I guess his supporters feel gratified to know that they are smarter than the people in power and want to keep it that way. Maybe they should brush up on their Russian language skills.
   1. Tim E. January 5, 2020 at 12:51 am

      This – YES

      And “WE” does not include me. I opt out.
3. joseph January 1, 2020 at 7:13 pm

   You overlooked the one where Trump ordered his Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to order NOAA to change the weather report after the fact because Trump had embarrassed himself in front of the entire nation.

   It is one thing when the thin-skinned orange man orders his press secretary to lie about the size of his adoring crowds but it is entirely another thing when the president has to order the weather service to lie about the weather people can see outside their own window. This kind of lying can actually get people killed.
   1. Menzie Chinn Post authorJanuary 1, 2020 at 7:42 pm

      joseph: That was worthy of mention, but I unfortunately did not do a post on that particular crime (as I recall, misstating weather information *is* a crime).
   2. Moses Herzog January 2, 2020 at 9:55 pm

      Wouldn’t cover a large part of 2018 or 2019, but for $12.08 is pretty comprehensive. Maybe Menzie can talk Miss Siskind into a “Part 2” of “The List”??
      https://www.amazon.com/List-Week-Week-Reckoning-Trumps/dp/1635572711/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=amy+siskind+the+list&qid=1578030815&s=books&sr=1-1

      Sure as hell gets my vote.
4. Moses Herzog January 2, 2020 at 9:46 pm

   Found out overhearing NBC’s little jingle while someone was watching trash TV out in the living room:
   https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jan/03/baghdad-airport-iraq-attack-deaths-iran-us-tensions

   At first glance it appears to be an appropriate move. However it’s exponentially confusing how much more this puts Americans soldiers at risk, right after we ran out like cowards on our allies the Kurds. How can a person say they’re removing troops to protect Americans, betraying an ally, then turn right around roughly 10 weeks later and make an assassination attempt on arguably one of the top 3 most powerful men in all of Iran—- along with a PMU militia lieutenant. Whether you believe it to be a good chess move or a bad one, it’s hard to imagine how it doesn’t greatly increase risks to American troops lives, and how it doesn’t get a response in one form or another. Those guys in Tehran aren’t going to sit there despondent after 2 major players are taken off the chess board in the blink of an eye.

   Again, I am not saying this is necessarily a wrong move—but that it doesn’t make sense in correlation with the abandoning of the Kurds.
   1. ilsm January 3, 2020 at 5:34 am

      Quds and PMF were instrumental in defeating ISIS/al Qaeda/al Nusra (Sunni) in Iraq and Syria, after US organized “forces” were routed. Weakening Shi’a Iraq supposedly to get at Iran makes a whole lot of sense.
      1. pgl January 3, 2020 at 12:38 pm

         If you think this weakens the Shi’a – you are dumber than I ever gave you credit for.
         1. ilsm January 3, 2020 at 8:29 pm

            Pompeo’s. same as Powell, Clinton and Kerry’s, regional “partners” are all Sunni monarchies. What happens when the Iraqis suggest the US leave?

            I think US drone strikes the past 48 hours are aimed at weakening the Shi’a in Iraq. The body count tonight is 6 more Shia/”Iran backed” militiamen. Will we begin to get the body count in the 7:00PM network news, like it was 1971?

            Make a case that the Middle East insanity that W Bush ‘sold’, and Obama enlarged into Syria, has not descended to US siding with the Sunnis in their ancient schism.
            1. pgl January 6, 2020 at 5:26 am

               “I think US drone strikes the past 48 hours are aimed at weakening the Shi’a in Iraq.”

               Seriously? When they kick us out of Iraq – the Shia will be all powerful. The loss of two people has not weakened them in the least. Come on man – we know you’re beyond dumb so you do not need to try so hard proving what is well known over and over.
   2. pgl January 3, 2020 at 12:39 pm

      3 words – WAG THE DOG!
5. Moses Herzog January 2, 2020 at 10:18 pm

   Circa Fall 2014:
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZOXyOAymh8
6. joseph January 3, 2020 at 9:16 am

   Trump: “Trade wars are good and easy to win.”

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