Mushroom D with the wittle Ken doll mittens is rattling his wittle sabre:

A senior Trump adviser just confirmed Tues announcement & said “The media, the corporate elites, and political establishment has all moved in unison against Donald Trump at their own peril. It’s like they want to recreate 2015-2016. Let them. We are doing it again. Buckle up”

— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) November 10, 2022

DiabloWags said:

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calbear93 said:

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About DeSantis - unlike Trump, when you go beyond the social populism and anti-woke messaging, DeSantis is actually an effective leader and is intelligent and competent. You don't go from middle class to graduating with honors at Yale, graduating with honors from Harvard Law School, decorated service as a lawyer in the military, and lead Florida through number of disasters without being extremely competent and intelligent (more than everyone else here). People I know living in Florida who are very moderate and hate Trump love DeSantis. They voted for Biden, would never vote for Trump but would vote for DeSantis in a heartbeat. I would vote for him over Biden.

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

tequila4kapp said:

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DiabloWags said:

---

tequila4kapp said:

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BUT this billboard goes to my point. He's actually just got a lot of vague liberal "stuff" - not really concrete policies and certainly no authority to make policy change. A couple of years ago when conservatives complained about lifeguard captains making the same kind of money as a means of showing state government was bloated it was pooh-poohed. This guy does it with cop salaries and it works.

---

Anyone can look up the salaries of State and Local Employees.
It's easily accessible and you dont even have to be connected to George Soros.

Transparent California

---

That isn't the point. Billboards cost money. Comptroller candidates don't usually have money.

---

Well, Mejia raised a lot less cash than his opponent so he obviously put it to better use.

https://xtown.la/2022/11/07/city-controller-fundraising-los-angeles-kenneth-mejia-paul-koretz/

calbear93 said:

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DiabloWags said:

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calbear93 said:

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

---

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

---

Formal education has nothing to do with it.
Dont care if he has a JD from Harvard or a BA from Yale.

It's yet to be seen what DeSantis "legislates" to remove this burden.
I dont believe that I've seen anything proposed by DeSantis as relief, have you?

Youre guaranteeing that Orange County taxpayers (or Florida for that matter) wont be on the hook for the tax burden on $1 Billion in debt?

What do you base that off of?
What evidence have you seen that would allow you to make such a confident cliam?

Thus far, it appears that some Floridian's dont seem to be too concerned about their "pocket-book" being used in a national publicity stunt. - - - As you can imagine, this can be a slippery slope. Who's gonna be next after Disney?

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

---

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

---

Formal education has nothing to do with it.
Dont care if he has a JD from Harvard or a BA from Yale.

It's yet to be seen what DeSantis "legislates" to remove this burden.
I dont believe that I've seen anything proposed by DeSantis as relief, have you?

Youre guaranteeing that Orange County taxpayers (or Florida for that matter) wont be on the hook for the tax burden on $1 Billion in debt?

What do you base that off of?
What evidence have you seen that would allow you to make such a confident cliam?

Thus far, it appears that some Floridian's dont seem to be too concerned about their "pocket-book" being used in a national publicity stunt. - - - As you can imagine, this can be a slippery slope. Who's gonna be next after Disney?

---

First of all, has it been dissolved? No, it has not. Also, this creates so much burden for both parties that it will not be the end result. Finally, despite the mid-2023 deadline, it cannot dissolve until the counties affirmatively take over the debt. Have they done that and will they? No. And if they don't, the dissolution will not proceed. Finally, there will be litigation from counties, from Disney, from the creditors that this will be held up in courts for a long time.

But since then, has Disney otherwise taken on a position on a controversial political issue in Florida, using their financial might to publicly influence a legislative matter? No.

Unit2Sucks said:

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calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

---

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

---

Formal education has nothing to do with it.
Dont care if he has a JD from Harvard or a BA from Yale.

It's yet to be seen what DeSantis "legislates" to remove this burden.
I dont believe that I've seen anything proposed by DeSantis as relief, have you?

Youre guaranteeing that Orange County taxpayers (or Florida for that matter) wont be on the hook for the tax burden on $1 Billion in debt?

What do you base that off of?
What evidence have you seen that would allow you to make such a confident cliam?

Thus far, it appears that some Floridian's dont seem to be too concerned about their "pocket-book" being used in a national publicity stunt. - - - As you can imagine, this can be a slippery slope. Who's gonna be next after Disney?

---

First of all, has it been dissolved? No, it has not. Also, this creates so much burden for both parties that it will not be the end result. Finally, despite the mid-2023 deadline, it cannot dissolve until the counties affirmatively take over the debt. Have they done that and will they? No. And if they don't, the dissolution will not proceed. Finally, there will be litigation from counties, from Disney, from the creditors that this will be held up in courts for a long time.

---

Sounds like a political stunt, which is where DeSantis' core competency really lies.

---

He is a politician. It also kept Disney quiet on other matters and let the political process play out without arm twisting by the big businesses.

As I mentioned, I was not a fan of this stunt because, as you know as someone with actual practical experience, corporations are under great duress from the Blackrock, pension funds, etc. to take political positions, and companies should not be punished from both sides.

Divorced Fox News Host Laments That Democrats Are Trying ‘to Keep Women Single’ https://t.co/h695YtM27k pic.twitter.com/k7tjEgNYaO

— Jezebel (@Jezebel) November 10, 2022

tequila4kapp said:

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I'm effectively repeating a CNN report about Presidential approval rating + party in power + (I think) economic indicators...

---

Yes, I agree that those are indicators (but I think the economic portion was greatly a party narrative), but I wasn't addressing that. I was speaking to the spin and rationalization that we are hearing by many on the right. Some are looking in the mirror and analyzing reality, others are digging the hole of denial deeper.

My hope is that the GOP corrects itself and we have actual arguments on a policy level for the betterment of country, but that starts with the GOP owning what they became and decrying it. Then rebuilding the party with a consistent set of ideals and policy rather than wedge issues and no policy at all other than misinformation and being anti-liberal. Wouldn't it be great if the brightest politicians won, and the best ideas were implemented irregardless of party and that the wealthy, the religious, and the corporations were not over represented in electoral process (get money and church out of politics)? That would be truly making America greater.

Unit2Sucks said:

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calbear93 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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tequila4kapp said:

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This election is over but for some counting and Georgia's run-off.

The underlying fundamentals were so skewed toward Rs that I am suspicious there's something more fundamental at play rather than anti-trump, abortion, etc. It has to be something like Ds on the ground get out the vote game developed during the Covid shutdown were leveraged to great effect. It's the most logical explanation to me, but we will learn in time.

In the meantime, Ds get some time to rightly gloat and Rs still have a solid path to quietly capturing the House and Senate. TBD.

---

The bigger picture is that this country doesn't trust Trump or the extremists controlling the GOP. According to exit polls, Democrats won independents nationwide (49-47) which is crazy in a midterm with economic challenges and Biden's approval numbers. Dobbs can only count for so much. The GOP lost with moderates 56-41. Let that sink in. Losing the middle by 15 points in a midterm with these fundamentals should be ringing alarm bells. But for gerrymandering, the GOP would be dead in the water. This was a repudiation of the modern GOP.

I don't think this is just about ground game or get out the vote. The GOP always does a great job turning out its voters but they are fundamentally selling an unpopular product. At some point the GOP will have to reckon with the fact that the GOP has consciously decided to serve only a fraction of its potential base.

---

I have never hidden my conservative bias and disdain for liberal fiscal policies. If the party of election deniers has lost my vote and has caused someone like me who hates the failed liberal fiscal policies with a passion and believes in strong law and order to nonetheless commit never to vote for a dishonest individual who promotes election lies, the party has to move on from Trump and populism and get back to responsible governing. Hopefully this gives them the courage to get back to focusing on promoting ideas and not on tribal wars and Trump appeasement.

---

Unfortunately for this country, you and t4k hold a minority view within the GOP. Trump represents the bigger view. People like movielover may be a minority conservative view on BI (now that so many Trump nuts have been banned) but it's definitely the majority view in the party. Obviously I don't see eye to eye with either wing of the GOP (although I *used* to be pretty close to your fiscal view) but I think it's a worthwhile POV to be represented. Unfortunately it requires too much 'splaining and most of the GOP doesn't really care so the party leaders doubled own on white grievance and culture wars and that led to people no longer caring about traditional GOP values. Now all that's left is culture war and white grievance and it is what it is. The GOP will be wrecked for a while.

concordtom said:

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That's interesting because Dems typically win the popular vote in presidential elections (despite losing the electoral college count).
And sad/funny that the conclusion is a call to focus more on gerrymandering. That's actually a really bad idea, as gerrymandering needs to be stopped by all everywhere, not taken to further extreme.

---

They still aren't done counting the votes. Now a 6M vote lead isn't something I expect to evaporate but I do think it'll shrink by at least a few million votes.

I do think that this is largely a combination of both gerrymandering and the fact that more GOP senate seats were up this year than Dem seats. In a midterm, senate seats drive turnout.

---

Thanks for reminding me that every time I look at CA results it's still under 50% reporting.
That changes everything.

Quote:

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Quote:

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1st, he's the Comptroller. Since when does a candidate for that position have enough money to have a slick website, including some very smart graphical information, and the ability to have billboards all over the city? Call me conspiratorial but this smells of Soros backed nonesense.

2nd, his website DID have some smart stuff. The interactive maps that showed where affordable housing exists.

BUT this billboard goes to my point. He's actually just got a lot of vague liberal "stuff" - not really concrete policies and certainly no authority to make policy change. A couple of years ago when conservatives complained about lifeguard captains making the same kind of money as a means of showing state government was bloated it was pooh-poohed. This guy does it with cop salaries and it works.

---

Gen Z is going to run circles around the old guard

---

Yeah.
Because of their upbringing in the age of technology, they think differently. Granted, human relationships will rule in many very important high level ways, but elections are not "personal", rather very marketing, shallow, and tricky. Big data on the psyche of the electorate.

Unit2Sucks said:

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calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

---

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

---

Formal education has nothing to do with it.
Dont care if he has a JD from Harvard or a BA from Yale.

It's yet to be seen what DeSantis "legislates" to remove this burden.
I dont believe that I've seen anything proposed by DeSantis as relief, have you?

Youre guaranteeing that Orange County taxpayers (or Florida for that matter) wont be on the hook for the tax burden on $1 Billion in debt?

What do you base that off of?
What evidence have you seen that would allow you to make such a confident cliam?

Thus far, it appears that some Floridian's dont seem to be too concerned about their "pocket-book" being used in a national publicity stunt. - - - As you can imagine, this can be a slippery slope. Who's gonna be next after Disney?

---

First of all, has it been dissolved? No, it has not. Also, this creates so much burden for both parties that it will not be the end result. Finally, despite the mid-2023 deadline, it cannot dissolve until the counties affirmatively take over the debt. Have they done that and will they? No. And if they don't, the dissolution will not proceed. Finally, there will be litigation from counties, from Disney, from the creditors that this will be held up in courts for a long time.

---

Sounds like a political stunt, which is where DeSantis' core competency really lies.

---

By the way, on our respective prediction on how the Twitter / Elon Musk drama would end up, you predicted that the deal would not close or Musk would get a reduction in price and I predicted the deal would close as signed based on precedents and case law. It looked like you were going to win on the prediction but I pulled it out at the end. Just goes to show once again that you do not get out acquiring a public company using an MAE clause once you sign the merger agreement. But it was fun debating this with someone else who knows how these things work.

dimitrig said:

---

tequila4kapp said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

tequila4kapp said:

---

BUT this billboard goes to my point. He's actually just got a lot of vague liberal "stuff" - not really concrete policies and certainly no authority to make policy change. A couple of years ago when conservatives complained about lifeguard captains making the same kind of money as a means of showing state government was bloated it was pooh-poohed. This guy does it with cop salaries and it works.

---

Anyone can look up the salaries of State and Local Employees.
It's easily accessible and you dont even have to be connected to George Soros.

Transparent California

---

That isn't the point. Billboards cost money. Comptroller candidates don't usually have money.

---

Well, Mejia raised a lot less cash than his opponent so he obviously put it to better use.

https://xtown.la/2022/11/07/city-controller-fundraising-los-angeles-kenneth-mejia-paul-koretz/

---

Read the article closely. He had more donors who gave lower amounts overall but those lower donations triggered govt matching at up to $1,200 per. It reads to me like those contributions are not included in his accounting of 'contributions.' I also am unable to find anything that lists In-Kind contributions from organizations or donations from non-individuals. It isn't clear at all that his total combined campaign funds were less than, the same as or more than his opponent.

blungld said:

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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calbear93 said:

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About DeSantis - unlike Trump, when you go beyond the social populism and anti-woke messaging, DeSantis is actually an effective leader...and lead Florida through number of disasters without being extremely competent and intelligent (more than everyone else here.

---

---

I see, except for being reprehensible as a person and supporting inhumane and bigoted laws, he has really good education, and YOU (CalBear93) are able to identify his intelligence because you are intelligent while no one else here is. Got it. Do you ever make yourself gag at your own smugness? Hey, come to think of it, that makes sense why you would like DeSantis: inflated sense of intelligence, persistent smugness, and short tempers.

---

Glad you think your view on his character from so far away with you the beacon of light is the definitive viewpoint. And I am truly rebuked that you wonder whether I gag on my own smugness.

You are the least self-aware person I know and you only engage in personal attack.

So, I will do a hard pass on engaging in this tribal fight with you. You may view this as your day's highlight, but this type of nonsense with tribalist like you is my low point.

calbear93 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

---

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

---

Formal education has nothing to do with it.
Dont care if he has a JD from Harvard or a BA from Yale.

It's yet to be seen what DeSantis "legislates" to remove this burden.
I dont believe that I've seen anything proposed by DeSantis as relief, have you?

Youre guaranteeing that Orange County taxpayers (or Florida for that matter) wont be on the hook for the tax burden on $1 Billion in debt?

What do you base that off of?
What evidence have you seen that would allow you to make such a confident cliam?

Thus far, it appears that some Floridian's dont seem to be too concerned about their "pocket-book" being used in a national publicity stunt. - - - As you can imagine, this can be a slippery slope. Who's gonna be next after Disney?

---

First of all, has it been dissolved? No, it has not. Also, this creates so much burden for both parties that it will not be the end result. Finally, despite the mid-2023 deadline, it cannot dissolve until the counties affirmatively take over the debt. Have they done that and will they? No. And if they don't, the dissolution will not proceed. Finally, there will be litigation from counties, from Disney, from the creditors that this will be held up in courts for a long time.

---

Sounds like a political stunt, which is where DeSantis' core competency really lies.

---

By the way, on our respective prediction on how the Twitter / Elon Musk drama would end up, you predicted that the deal would not close or Musk would get a reduction in price and I predicted the deal would close as signed based on precedents and case law. It looked like you were going to win on the prediction but I pulled it out at the end. Just goes to show once again that you do not get out acquiring a public company using an MAE clause once you sign the merger agreement. But it was fun debating this with someone else who knows how these things work.

---

Yup, I took a digger on that one. I feel good about predicting that Musk didn't really want to own twitter but obviously got the ultimate outcome wrong. Shame that it didn't go to trial as I really would have liked to see how it played out and for Musk to have been dragged kicking and screaming into an acquisition. We didn't quite get that since he eventually "voluntarily" closed.

And yes, I also enjoyed the conversation and your perspective - which was obviously well-founded and proved to be sage.

On the bright side, we just hired another engineer out of twitter today (one who wasn't laid off but didn't want to be there) and we have an number of other prospects. The recent massive reduction in the value of public equity comp plus negative morale at big tech has definitely improved the prospects for startups looking to poach talent. Unfortunately, we're also in a bear fundraising market so all in all I preferred when it was really hard to hire but valuations were higher. Maybe we'll get back there in a few years.

concordtom said:

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tequila4kapp said:

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1st, he's the Comptroller. Since when does a candidate for that position have enough money to have a slick website, including some very smart graphical information, and the ability to have billboards all over the city? Call me conspiratorial but this smells of Soros backed nonesense.

---

You made me laugh when you connected the dots between a guy possibly being funded or aided by someone else to an effort by "George Soros".
Like, really? What do you know about either Mejia or Soros and on what grounds other than wild speculation do you have in connecting the two?
Any answer is just more wild speculation, but hey, the more it's said the more real it becomes, so go for it!!

---

Keep reading the thread. I said later that it was speculative of me to say "Soros". My instincts told me he had to have real money on hand and that instinct was right. It turns out it came at least in part from the Govt matching program. I have not seen a source that lists his total campaign funds or some other things that would help fill in the blanks.

I jumped to Soros because Mejia is Green Party and his positions read like their are from the Soros playbook.

Unit2Sucks said:

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calbear93 said:

---

Unit2Sucks said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

DiabloWags said:

---

calbear93 said:

---

I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

---

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt.

---

I can guarantee you that Florida paying a $1 billion tax burden will not be the final result.

You are into education. What is it about his education relative to those here, his accomplishments, his contribution to the country that make him relatively less intelligent? He was not some transfer to UPenn using his dad's money like Trump.

I think he would compare very well against anyone here in education, accomplishments, and service to the country.

Having said that, I am not a fan of retribution against companies who are between a rock and a hard place. Private ordering is forcing companies to take these stands, and government should not punish them for taking the only option available to them to compete for shareholders, get their directors elected, and compete for employees.

---

Formal education has nothing to do with it.
Dont care if he has a JD from Harvard or a BA from Yale.

It's yet to be seen what DeSantis "legislates" to remove this burden.
I dont believe that I've seen anything proposed by DeSantis as relief, have you?

Youre guaranteeing that Orange County taxpayers (or Florida for that matter) wont be on the hook for the tax burden on $1 Billion in debt?

What do you base that off of?
What evidence have you seen that would allow you to make such a confident cliam?

Thus far, it appears that some Floridian's dont seem to be too concerned about their "pocket-book" being used in a national publicity stunt. - - - As you can imagine, this can be a slippery slope. Who's gonna be next after Disney?

---

First of all, has it been dissolved? No, it has not. Also, this creates so much burden for both parties that it will not be the end result. Finally, despite the mid-2023 deadline, it cannot dissolve until the counties affirmatively take over the debt. Have they done that and will they? No. And if they don't, the dissolution will not proceed. Finally, there will be litigation from counties, from Disney, from the creditors that this will be held up in courts for a long time.

---

Sounds like a political stunt, which is where DeSantis' core competency really lies.

---

By the way, on our respective prediction on how the Twitter / Elon Musk drama would end up, you predicted that the deal would not close or Musk would get a reduction in price and I predicted the deal would close as signed based on precedents and case law. It looked like you were going to win on the prediction but I pulled it out at the end. Just goes to show once again that you do not get out acquiring a public company using an MAE clause once you sign the merger agreement. But it was fun debating this with someone else who knows how these things work.

---

Yup, I took a digger on that one. I feel good about predicting that Musk didn't really want to own twitter but obviously got the ultimate outcome wrong. Shame that it didn't go to trial as I really would have liked to see how it played out and for Musk to have been dragged kicking and screaming into an acquisition. We didn't quite get that since he eventually "voluntarily" closed.

And yes, I also enjoyed the conversation and your perspective - which was obviously well-founded and proved to be sage.

On the bright side, we just hired another engineer out of twitter today (one who wasn't laid off but didn't want to be there) and we have an number of other prospects. The recent massive reduction in the value of public equity comp plus negative morale at big tech has definitely improved the prospects for startups looking to poach talent. Unfortunately, we're also in a bear fundraising market so all in all I preferred when it was really hard to hire but valuations were higher. Maybe we'll get back there in a few years.

---

Twitter is going down. He will soon realize that companies do not want to advertise on a platform with hateful, unregulated speech. It has nothing to do with the First Amendment. Will be fun to watch.

dajo9 said:

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DiabloWags said:

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I would question just how "intelligent" DeSantis is.

He signed a bill into law that dissolved the special tax district known as Reedy Creek in Orange County where Disney is located (effective June 1, 2023) and it placed a $1 Billion dollar burden on the taxpayers of that county that had to assume Disney debt and pay a $163 million annual tax bill.

That anti-Woke move is gonna cost taxpayers a fortune in that county a fortune.

---

Yes, but the voters of that County will tell you it was worth every penny to own the libs

---

Actually, Orange County voters overwhelmingly voted for Charlie Crist.
They clearly dont want to shoulder the $163 million annually from a publicity "stunt".

53.11% to 46.07%

Election Results (ocfelections.gov)

dimitrig said:

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calbear93 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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calbear93 said:

---

Unit2Sucks said:

---

calbear93 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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tequila4kapp said:

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This election is over but for some counting and Georgia's run-off.

The underlying fundamentals were so skewed toward Rs that I am suspicious there's something more fundamental at play rather than anti-trump, abortion, etc. It has to be something like Ds on the ground get out the vote game developed during the Covid shutdown were leveraged to great effect. It's the most logical explanation to me, but we will learn in time.

In the meantime, Ds get some time to rightly gloat and Rs still have a solid path to quietly capturing the House and Senate. TBD.

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The bigger picture is that this country doesn't trust Trump or the extremists controlling the GOP. According to exit polls, Democrats won independents nationwide (49-47) which is crazy in a midterm with economic challenges and Biden's approval numbers. Dobbs can only count for so much. The GOP lost with moderates 56-41. Let that sink in. Losing the middle by 15 points in a midterm with these fundamentals should be ringing alarm bells. But for gerrymandering, the GOP would be dead in the water. This was a repudiation of the modern GOP.

I don't think this is just about ground game or get out the vote. The GOP always does a great job turning out its voters but they are fundamentally selling an unpopular product. At some point the GOP will have to reckon with the fact that the GOP has consciously decided to serve only a fraction of its potential base.

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I have never hidden my conservative bias and disdain for liberal fiscal policies. If the party of election deniers has lost my vote and has caused someone like me who hates the failed liberal fiscal policies with a passion and believes in strong law and order to nonetheless commit never to vote for a dishonest individual who promotes election lies, the party has to move on from Trump and populism and get back to responsible governing. Hopefully this gives them the courage to get back to focusing on promoting ideas and not on tribal wars and Trump appeasement.

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Unfortunately for this country, you and t4k hold a minority view within the GOP. Trump represents the bigger view. People like movielover may be a minority conservative view on BI (now that so many Trump nuts have been banned) but it's definitely the majority view in the party. Obviously I don't see eye to eye with either wing of the GOP (although I *used* to be pretty close to your fiscal view) but I think it's a worthwhile POV to be represented. Unfortunately it requires too much 'splaining and most of the GOP doesn't really care so the party leaders doubled own on white grievance and culture wars and that led to people no longer caring about traditional GOP values. Now all that's left is culture war and white grievance and it is what it is. The GOP will be wrecked for a while.

concordtom said:

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That's interesting because Dems typically win the popular vote in presidential elections (despite losing the electoral college count).
And sad/funny that the conclusion is a call to focus more on gerrymandering. That's actually a really bad idea, as gerrymandering needs to be stopped by all everywhere, not taken to further extreme.

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They still aren't done counting the votes. Now a 6M vote lead isn't something I expect to evaporate but I do think it'll shrink by at least a few million votes.

I do think that this is largely a combination of both gerrymandering and the fact that more GOP senate seats were up this year than Dem seats. In a midterm, senate seats drive turnout.

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If you are right, the party is done. I think there is a fairly large base that just want fighters on conservative policies but don't care for the divisiveness of Trump or election deniers. And I suspect a big portion of the former republican base left to be independent and some socially conservative democrats became Trumpian republicans. I think most Americans are moderately conservative on economic issues but I may be wrong. If we cater to those folks, I don't care if we lose the Dixiecrats.

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This is a fundamental disagreement. I think most Americans are financially irresponsible and don't expect our government to be any different. Even the traditional "fiscal conservatives" in the GOP far more about cutting taxes than they do about making smart spending decisions - see how the military is always overfunded to the point of waste, and it's never enough for the GOP.

I suspect if you ask America whether they would add $1 to the federal debt in exchange for $1 in their pockets, close to 95% would say yes.

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[...]

I know most people are not fiscally responsible. They spent above their means and they missed out on one of the greatest wealth creation period in history. Anyone who was employed during the last ten years and did not accumulate at least a few million in wealth needed some basic financial education.

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I think you need to walk this statement back.

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You think so? Maybe you are right, but there was so much asset inflation from every single asset since 2008 that anyone who took the time to own a house or invest at the start of the great recession did extremely well. One could have invested in almost anything and, with fiscal discipline and living below their means, could have built significant wealth. I didn't think writing "a few million" (which couldn't fund most retirement in California, especially if some of the wealth is embedded in their home) over ten years of investing would be controversial but I could be wrong. Even with the bear market, most people should be significantly up but my perspective is admittedly limited.

DiabloWags said:

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dimitrig said:

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calbear93 said:

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[...]

I know most people are not fiscally responsible. They spent above their means and they missed out on one of the greatest wealth creation period in history. Anyone who was employed during the last ten years and did not accumulate at least a few million in wealth needed some basic financial education.

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I think you need to walk this statement back.

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This might just be the most outrageous post in the history of Bearinsider.
Talk about living in a Ivory Tower.

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Have you seen your signature? I have a hard time believing that the person who flaunts his wealth the most is the person writing this. Self-awareness is not clearly a strong attribute among those on OT

calbear93 said:

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DiabloWags said:

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dimitrig said:

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calbear93 said:

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[...]

I know most people are not fiscally responsible. They spent above their means and they missed out on one of the greatest wealth creation period in history.

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I think you need to walk this statement back.

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This might just be the most outrageous post in the history of Bearinsider.
Talk about living in a Ivory Tower.

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Have you seen your signature? I have a hard time believing that the person who flaunts his wealth the most is the person writing this. Self-awareness is not clearly a strong attribute among those on OT

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Youre hysterical.
I dont flaunt anything here except for the Beer that I drink.
No photos of lifestyle, cars, homes, vacations, dining, etc.

But go right ahead and deflect from making one of the most IVORY TOWER posts ever on Bearinsider.
Go right ahead.
I can take it.

Talk about self-awareness.
Oh the irony.

"Anyone who was employed during the last ten years and did not accumulate at least a few million in wealth needed some basic financial education."

DiabloWags said:

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calbear93 said:

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DiabloWags said:

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dimitrig said:

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calbear93 said:

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[...]

I know most people are not fiscally responsible. They spent above their means and they missed out on one of the greatest wealth creation period in history. Anyone who was employed during the last ten years and did not accumulate at least a few million in wealth needed some basic financial education.

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I think you need to walk this statement back.

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This might just be the most outrageous post in the history of Bearinsider.
Talk about living in a Ivory Tower.

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Have you seen your signature? I have a hard time believing that the person who flaunts his wealth the most is the person writing this. Self-awareness is not clearly a strong attribute among those on OT

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Your hysterical.
dont flaunt anything here except for the Beer that I drink.
No photos of lifestyle, cars, homes, etc.

But go right ahead and deflect from making one of the most IVORY TOWER posts ever on Bearinsider.
Go right ahead.
I can take it.

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OK, the person who mocks others for their education until someone with better education is presented and then education doesn't matter.

Talks about how much money was made trading on the coattails of someone you think is everyone's idol for trading and brags about his cars to mock posters they don't like and says he is too rich to spend his time posting at night (and then spends all his time posting here) doesn't flaunt.

Again, I will admit that, despite my humble beginnings, my wealth now does sometimes put me in an ivory tower. But you are disgustingly flaunting superficial things about yourself like your college degree or your trading experience and your cars. So buy yourself some self-awareness.

Cool story.
Keep digging bro.
You're embarrassing yourself.

DiabloWags said:

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Cool story.
Keep digging bro.
You're embarrassing yourself.

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Yeah, I can picture an over the hill wanna-be surfer bragging about his porsche and his craft beers using "bro". Of course, I am the one digging.

Cool story? Don't you realize how old you are?

A person who entered the Investor class in the past 10 years should have accumulated a decent nest egg, IMO. However, I suspect the vast majority of people do not invest. And that is a big societal problem, again IMO.

calbear93 said:

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DiabloWags said:

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Cool story.
Keep digging bro.
You're embarrassing yourself.

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Yeah, I can picture an over the hill wanna-be surfer bragging about his porsche and his craft beers using "bro". Of course, I am the one digging.

Cool story? Don't you realize how old you are?

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Oh, so now I'm a wanna-be surfer now?

Are you sure that you also dont post under the name BearGoggles too?

He claimed that I was a Cal Aquatics Recruiting Insider.

Hahahahahahahahahaaaaa!

DiabloWags said:

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calbear93 said:

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DiabloWags said:

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Cool story.
Keep digging bro.
You're embarrassing yourself.

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Yeah, I can picture an over the hill wanna-be surfer bragging about his porsche and his craft beers using "bro". Of course, I am the one digging.

Cool story? Don't you realize how old you are?

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Oh, so now I'm a wanna-be surfer now?

Are you sure that you also dont post under the name BearGoggles too?

He claimed that I was a Cal Aquatics Recruiting Insider.

Hahahahahahahahahaaaaa!

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Yeah, we all use "cool story" and "bro" at our age.

Now, your retort is that I am BearGoggle?

OK, bro. Cool story.

tequila4kapp said:

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A person who entered the Investor class in the past 10 years should have accumulated a decent nest egg, IMO. However, I suspect the vast majority of people do not invest. And that is a big societal problem, again IMO.

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And to your point, only about 50% of Americans have direct investments in equities.

But I guess there are some people that live in WHITE IVORY TOWERS that think that everyone was able to buy real estate in the Bay Area ten years ago. - - - Cant want for Going4Roses to chime in on this.