Global Income Inequality Falling

Tyler Cowen takes to the Times to state, well, the obvious:

Income Inequality Is Not Rising Globally. It's Falling.

Income inequality has surged as a political and economic issue, but the numbers don’t show that inequality is rising from a global perspective. Yes, the problem has become more acute within most individual nations, yetincome inequality for the world as a whole has been falling for most of the last 20 years. It’s a fact that hasn’t been noted often enough.

The finding comes from a recent investigation by Christoph Lakner, a consultant at the World Bank, and Branko Milanovic, senior scholar at the Luxembourg Income Study Center. And while such a framing may sound startling at first, it should be intuitive upon reflection. The economic surges of China, India and some other nations have been among the most egalitarian developments in history.

I am feeling strangely (but regrettably, not uncharacteristically) smug since I had noted this as an aside three weeks ago. But enough about me.

Of course, no one should use this observation as an excuse to stop helping the less fortunate.

We have been helping the less fortunate; they just happen to be in China, India, and South America. However:

But it can help us see that higher income inequality is not always the most relevant problem, even for strict egalitarians. Policies on immigration and free trade, for example, sometimes increase inequality within a nation, yet can make the world a better place and often decrease inequality on the planet as a whole.

And some more non-surprises:

International trade has drastically reduced poverty within developing nations, as evidenced by the export-led growth of China and other countries. Yet contrary to what many economists had promised, there is now good evidence that the rise of Chinese exports has held down the wages of some parts of the American middle class. This was demonstrated in a recent paper by the economists David H. Autor of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, David Dorn of the Center for Monetary and Financial Studies in Madrid, and Gordon H. Hanson of the University of California, San Diego.

At the same time, Chinese economic growth has probably raised incomes of the top 1 percent in the United States, through exports that have increased the value of companies whose shares are often held by wealthy Americans. So while Chinese growth has added to income inequality in the United States, it has also increased prosperity and income equality globally.

The evidence also suggests that immigration of low-skilled workers to the United States has a modestly negative effect on the wages of American workers without a high school diploma, as shown, for instance, in research by George Borjas, a Harvard economics professor. Yet that same immigration greatly benefits those who move to wealthy countries like the United States. (It probably also helps top American earners, who can hire household and child-care workers at cheaper prices.) Again, income inequality within the nation may rise but global inequality probably declines, especially if the new arrivals send money back home.

It is not all gravy for the rich! Foreign oligarchs are bidding up real estate (and NBA franchises!) here in the US, which is a bit of a burden for our native .01 percenters, but I suspect few people share their pain.

Comments

[Publius of Idaho]

Whoa! TM is throwing fastballs at us. Is this fungo practice?

[daddy]

The Border is more secure than it has ever been.

[Why, on God's Green Earth, do they think this is going to help anything?]

Early Bird's over there with two tasty worms.

[Gus]

If it doesn't work, libmarxists want more of it.

[Eric in Boise]

If it doesn't work, libmarxists want more of it.

Gus, i think it was Thomas Sowell that made the observation that progressivism consists of replacing what works with what feels good.

[Laura White]

Plinko practice, certainly.

[Laura White]

Every now and then, TM, like his crew of posters, shows off a tad. Perfectly admissible.

[boatbuilder]

If you could miraculously find a way to double the incomes of the bottom 50% of Americans (by inventing the PC, for example) you would significantly worsen the alleged problem of global inequality. Is this a bad thing?

[Wondrous worming.]

Gad, rse's been at Watts Up tearing up Lewandowsky, Oreskes, and Risbey, too.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

So can we finally call Picketty's Charge bled out and dead on Cemetery Ridge?

[boatbuilder]

Just because the ideas are dead wrong doesn't mean they are dead, Iggy. 20 years from now we will be hearing Piketty cited by our betters as having conclusively proven that capitalism doesn't work, or something.

[Captain Hate]

Exactly, boatbuilder; look at all the praise that Cohan's book got that flies in the face of everything that came out about the Duke lacrosse case. Speaking of which, KC Johnson is closing down Durham in Wonderland and has a closing post from yesterday. For somebody who voted for 404 (maybe twice) he did outstanding work on sifting through all the crap of the case and never ceasing in his pursuit of the truth.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

The last Christians are driven out of Mosul.

In the world Barry has wrought the future does belong to those who slaughter Christians.

[Danube on iPad]

I have heard no prposed remedy for income inequality that doesn't involve punishing people who have done nothing wrong.

[Beasts of England]

Leftists ideas are so good, they're mandatory!

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

Earning more than whoever you happen to be standing next to is doing something wrong.

[Danube on iPad]

An alcoholic is a person you don't like who drinks about the same amount you do.

[Beasts of England]

A note about tomorrow's final round: the record for a major in relationship to par is -19, and is held by Tiger. If Rory fires another four-under round as be did today, he'll finish in the record books at -20.

I'd rather see someone make a strong charge and have him feel the heat versus a dropped record, but either would make for a noteworthy Sunday.

[jimmyk]

20 years from now we will be hearing Piketty cited by our betters as having conclusively proven that capitalism doesn't work, or something.

More likely the goalposts will shift. Just as "global warming" became "climate change" when there was no more warming. There will be some kind of inequality somewhere that is increasing and that will turn out to be the one that really matters. Or maybe inequality will be decreasing everywhere, but not as quickly for some as for others, so we will hear about unequally diminishing inequality. There will always be some injustice for those who want to control others.

[Eric in Boise]

If you decry corporate America because most of the millionaires are white, while eagerly following the NBA, where most of the millionaires are black…

…you might be a Democrat.

[(A)Nuther Bub]

An alcoholic is a person you don't like who drinks about the same amount you do.

LOL. Wonderfully pithy aphorisms tonight, DoT.

[Steve]

45 years ago today - Neil Armstrong first walks on the moon!

http://commoncts.blogspot.com/2014/07/45-years-ago-today-neil-armstrong-first.html

[Jane]

I remember where it vividly.

Nice tribute to Tom Watson.

[anonamom]

Cut and paste for Clarice's Pieces until Jane comes over and posts hers--I can't figure out why they post this way.

http://www.americanthinker.com/2014/07/jewseeking
_missiles_the_secure_border_and_other_nonsense.html

[Miss Marple]

Posted at end of previous thread:

http://nypost.com/2014/07/20/actor-james-garner-dead-at-86/

[clarice]

Good morning, JOM! Here we go MM http://www.americanthinker.com/2014/07/jewseeking_missiles_the_secure_border_and_other_nonsense.html

[boris]

This might work Jew-seeking Missiles

[windansea]

speaking of income

HOYLAKE, England – Rory McIlroy isn’t the only member of his family eyeing a big payday on Sunday at Hoylake.

McIlroy’s father, Gerry, reportedly made a bet when Rory was 15 years old that he would win the Open Championship before he turned 26. According to Brian Keogh with IrishGolfDesk.com, who confirmed the wager with the Northern Irishman’s manager, the older McIlroy pooled 400 pounds (about $680) with three friends for the bet that offered 500-to-1 odds.

Gerry McIlroy stands to win $342,000 if Rory, who leads by six strokes at Royal Liverpool, claims the claret jug.

[Jack is Back!]

Great Pieces Clarice.

When is the last time Tiger finished his last round in a major before the leaders even teed off?

[windansea]

another gutsy bet

Bobby Jones is the only player ever to have won the (pre-Masters) Grand Slam, or all four major championships, in the same calendar year (1930). Jones made a bet on himself achieving this extraordinary feat with British bookmakers early in 1930, before the first tournament of the Slam, at odds of 50–1, and collected over $60,000 when he did it.

Whats $60,000 (1930) in todays dollars?

[Miss Marple]

As we all knew:

http://m.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-aides-were-warned-of-brewing-border-crisis/2014/07/19/8b5d2282-0d1b-11e4-b8e5-d0de80767fc2_story.html

You notice they just can't bring themselves to say "OBAMA was warned." No, it was his aides.

If only Obama had known... (insert rolling my eyes icon)

[jimmyk]

Whats $60,000 (1930) in todays dollars?

I'd guess around $600,000 adjusting for inflation. But compared to what average income was back then, probably more comparable to $6 million.

[DebinNC]

"The White House was directly involved in efforts in early 2012 to care for the children when it helped negotiate a temporary shelter at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio."

San Antonio, headquarters of BCFS, the "faith based" outfit with no faith affiliation/content whatsoever, whose head made $477,777 in 2012 before the current deluge of illegals and explosion of hundreds of millions in federal "grants". I think BOzo's hatred of Perry and the stark contrast of TX success vs. IL/NY/CA partly explains the border debacle; it's purposefully designed to hurt those who've publicly dissed Prez Albacross.

[Rick B]

The faithless based grants are the Dems funding their 2014 GOTV effort. Tying the stealth pelf to Los Gorditos is a fine example of the Obama Merde Touch, given the rising anti-immigration sentiment stimulated by 'we don't need no steenkin' badges' images of the chirrun.

I wonder if NASA will use the jewseeking missile as an example of Mahometan scientific ability in their outreach program?

[Miss Marple]

It seems to me there are a LOY of non-profits who are living high on the hog, and I will include the charitable arms of my own Catholic Church, although I don't believe the head of Catholic Charities receives an exorbitant salary.

This extends no only to faith-based groups, but also includes many environmental groups, universities, arts groups, etc.

Grants to these groups are hidden within the details of the budgets for every cabinet department and are often buried in appropriation bills. I well remember that first big stimulus bill for "shovel ready jobs" for "emergency repair of infrastructure" included such things as dog parks and historic building preservation, which to my mind are not emergencies.

We really have no idea of how our tax dollars are spent until someone blows the lid off something like this. I think a case could be made of covering just ONE of these boondoggles on television every single day with prizes awarded for viewers who think of ways to get rid ofthe expense.

[Miss Marple]

Grrr.

LOY should read LOT.

[Captain Hate]

An alcoholic is a person you don't like who drinks about the same amount you do.

LOL. Wonderfully pithy aphorisms tonight, DoT.

My maternal grandmother, one of the nicest people I ever knew and loved, started the first AA chapter in my home town. Keep the laughs coming; it's very entertaining.

[narciso]

Great pieces, clarice, it does seem like some kind of viral infection, like the Strigoi of Del Toro's tale;

[Jeff Dobbs]

A person I don't like who drinks about the same amount as I do is an alcoholic.

A person I do like who drinks about the same amount as I do should probably consider cutting back a little for health reasons.

[Captain Hate]

Oh boy, Evan Bayh is on the Rove News Sunday panel; 404 must need some "measured" excuse making. Aaaaaand Lurch is on to further muddy the waters, although to his credit he's being pretty brutal on Putin and the seperatists and calling the latter "drunk", which according to DoT means he doesn't like them.

Btw why is there a UN when the Malaysian Air crash site is still being sealed off by the Rooski aligned vermin? Kick those bastards out of NYC and free up some high value property.

[DrJ]

James Garner has died. RIP.

[Captain Hate]

Wow, Chris Wallace is peppering the Winter Soldier with 404's lack of anything meaningful in support of Ukraine. The Secretariat of State is insisting that running their mouths is the strongest support possible.

[Miss Marple]

Glad to hear Wallace is asking him some tough questions. I don't think I can look at the guy.

[clarice]

Thanks, I love that NASA crack.. Priceless, Say, SCAM has been dormant lately..Isn't it time for us to establish a faith-based non profit and apply for govt grants.

[Miss Marple]

clarice, I was seriously thinking about that.

I bet I could get Elizabeth Warren to champion my cause. LOL!

It would divert money from campaign funds, too!

[Man Tran finally home, again]

Good morning. Finally home after a week of chasing the world's largest Lionel train around in circles.

Tuesday evening we were driving up I-25 to have dinner with some old HS buds when we noticed we were passing some unusual vehicles stretched out about a mile apart along the whole route. They were sparkley new 1-ton GMC crew cabs with 'camper shells' more like armored car boxes on the back. They were painted dark charcoal metallic gray and had a white dome on the top like a mini gun turret or an antenna dome. The only markings were gummint plates. There were large air vents like they had lots of electronics that needed cooling.

We must have passed at least a dozen spaced out in the 45 min. drive as they were running maybe 60 and we were doing 75 or so. Coincidently (or not) there were a few semis that were interspersed that were new looking and unmarked except for gummint plates.

The GMCs had a single driver visible and we spotted a couple coming up rural on ramps like they might have pulled off to change drivers. The whole thing was about as clandestine as you could get and I doubt most would have noticed at all.

Any thoughts? We speculated that they could be RPV command units and the semis were carrying the birds. But, if so, WTF?

[Jane]

Capt, I was making blueberry buckle with Kerry in the background. Trust me, the buckle is better.

[Jeff Dobbs]

NORAD?

[Jeff Dobbs]

Jane:
I was making blueberry buckle with Kerry

It's funnier when edited like this.

[Captain Hate]

Ted Cruz is making a lot of sense on why the illegal immigrants are coming and is putting the blame on Obama and Reid.

[Captain Hate]

I'll have to dig through the transcript later but Reporting for Doody said something like 404 isn't getting enough credit for what he's done to make the Mideast more stable. The disconnect is nearly 100%.

[Captain Hate]

Carly Fiorina just shot both barrels into 404; Evan Bayh supports doing nothing.

[matt]

I would venture to say that they are NSA triangulation or reconnaissance systems so that they can spy on "domestic terrorists". Of course, since the NSA is not legally allowed to operate within the United States it is only by executive order that they do so.

They must be looking for all of those terrorists in Wyoming instead of Johnny Potsmoker in Colorado.

The drones are all complimenting Kerry for keeping the lid on in Afghanistan this week. We'll see how that turns out.

[glasater]

ManTran-

I-25 is over in the Colorado/Wyoming/New Mexico area. Were you that far East from your normal locale rather than the I-5 area when you saw these convoys?

[Threadkiller]

Oh oh. Cruz is parroting the "kids were brutalized" story that was shared with him by a "senior official."

I wish I could say that I trust Cruz on this issue, but I can't.

[Man Tran finally home, again]

glas,

Yes, we were working in Pueblo and were driving up to Springs. Given the random timing of our trip, there could have been many dozens of rigs on the move. As it happens, our fairly knowledgable dinner companions deflected any correlation with Cheyenne Mountain. Apparently there's not a lot going on there after Stargate Command was decommissioned. ;)

BTW we waved flying over KALW yesterday. The wheat fields rolled on forever.

[Jack is Back!]

Nuclear waste escorts, up to Handford?

Chem weapon destruction security at Rocky Flats?

[Threadkiller]

SARAH PALIN: IMPEACHMENT THREAT MAKING OBAMA 'NERVOUS'

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/07/19/Sarah-Palin-Impeachment-Threat-Making-Obama-Nervous

[DebinNC]

Did someone mention Evan Bayh? NYT: 12-9-09
.............................................
Faced with Republican resistance that many Democrats saw as driven more by politics than policy disagreements, Senate Democrats in recent days gained new determination to bridge differences among themselves and prevail over the opposition.

Lawmakers who attended a private meeting between Mr. Obama and Senate Democrats at the White House on Tuesday pointed to remarks there by Senator Evan Bayh, Democrat of Indiana, as providing some new inspiration.

Mr. Bayh said that the health care measure was the kind of public policy he had come to Washington to work on, according to officials who attended the session, and that he did not want to see the satisfied looks on the faces of Republican leaders if they succeeded in blocking the measure.
.............................................
I hope someone posts that reminder every time pissant Evan Bayh thinks his pivotal part in Obamacare's passing is forgotten, and it's safe to come out of hiding.

[Miss Marple]

DebinNC, I have a little list of his transgressions while representing my state in the Senate.

I am almost positive he thought he was going to be veep when Hillary got the nomination over Obama. He got steamrollered by the Obama machine and has been hiding ever since.

FYI, when he was governor his wife told my sister that he doesn't like her to wear slacks. Don't know if he has moved into modern times on that issue or not.

[Jeff Dobbs]

ManTran:
As it happens, our fairly knowledgable dinner companions deflected any correlation with Cheyenne Mountain. Apparently there's not a lot going on there after Stargate Command was decommissioned. ;)

That's what "they" want us to think.

I think the convoy was this year's Santa Tracking Unit.

[Another Bob]

Man Tran, my guess is nuclear weapons transport.

LUN

[narciso]

that was right up there with Josh 'not so Earnest' serenity now, comment from earlier in the week, Birch is a chip off the old block, which is why Dan Quayle replaced the former,

the Donbass repo team, is quite sober, but they do have an itchy trigger finger, Flathead went completely squirrel! today, as any review of the week's events, would 'remove all doubt'

[glasater]

ManTran-

Next time you get by KALW make a stop and I'll take you on a quick photo safari :-)

YOu know how to track me down.

[Jeff Dobbs]

Miss Marple:
when he was governor his wife told my sister that he doesn't like her to wear slacks.

But...

I am almost positive he thought he was going to be veep when Hillary got the nomination over Obama.

There might be a problem here...

[narciso]

Maybe it's being a fellow St. Albans grad,' 73, to Manbearpig, that leads to poor judgement

Bayh voted against confirming United States Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito.[citation needed]

[Miss Marple]

hit,

True! I thought about that when he was running all over the state campaigning for Hillary.

I guess he has "evolved."

Snicker!

[glasater]

DebinNC

Bayh has used the phrase " smug or satisfied" looks on R senators faces for awhile.
Guess he doesn't look in a mirror when he utters those words...

[Miss Marple]

You guys had to live here to understand Bayh's success. He would run these ads and make speeches about "Hoosier values." (Of course, this did not preclude him voting for partial birth abortion, but I digress.)

His family was photogenic when younger. Don't know if the twins have porked up or how Susan looks now. They would run these ads shot through a gauze filter full of idealized scenes from small towns with Bayh and his family gazing lovingly at each other, while his voice spoke about the Heartland and Hoosier Values.

Whoever produced those ads was as good as whoever did Reagan's; in fact, they sort of reminded you of Reagan's.

All lies, of course. The first thing he did when getting elected governor was to sign an order unionizing the state employees. That stood until Mitch Daniels was elected, when he signed another order revoking it. Infuriated the unions and made my day.

[Jane]

I saw an absolutely fascinating interview last night on CSPAN with VP Cheney, Liz and Lynn. Hard to tell who among them is the most seller.

The interviewer, was that weird guy from political who can't stop waving his arms. He was an ass, but they were great. He kept asking questions like: who do you trust more, Kerry or Obama? (After a painful pause the VP said he'd have to go with Kerry at this point.)

Neither Liz or Lynn were the least bit hesitant to disagree with the VP and Liz was particularly strident on how much Obama has screwed up.

Anyway if you get a chance to see it, I highly recommend it.

[Jack is Back!]

Russia led missle attack on Malaysia plane

Ukrainian intelligence has the goods according to NY Post, Seems damn plausible to me. No wonder Vlad wants to talk peace.

[Danube on iPad]

$60K in 1930 is equivalent to $854,731 todday, according to the BLS CPI inflator calculator.

[Captain Hate]

Here's the FNS transcript:

WALLACE: But, Secretary Kerry, that last person was your spokesperson, Jen Psaki. But instead of sanctions, I is going to get $2.8 billion more in assets that we have frozen, instead of sanctions, even though there's no deal and they continue to -- their research and enrichment.

KERRY: Actually, Chris, they are reducing their enrichment. And the fact is that this is the first time in 10 years under this current deal that Iran's nuclear program is being rolled back.

And I know you and others don't ever want to give the Obama administration credit for almost anything. But the fact is this is the first administration to get a roll back in those 10 years, and right now, Israel and countries in the region and the world are safer because Iran's 20 percent enriched uranium is reduced to zero. And under this agreement to continue the negotiations for four months, Iran will further reduce the capacity of that enriched uranium to be used by turning it into fuel for the research reactor which makes it almost impossible to be used in a weapon.

In addition, we have inspectors in their facilities every single day. In addition to that, they have not been able to move forward on the Arak plutonium heavy water reactor.

WALLACE: But, sir, they can continue -- they can continue enrichment.

(CROSSTALK)

KERRY: No, no, Chris, you like to ask questions, but you don't like to get answers.

Let me finish my answer.

(CROSSTALK)

WALLACE: They are able to continue work on their centrifuges.

KERRY: Chris, I don't care how many questions you ask, I'm going to finish my answer. And I am telling you that everybody said at the beginning of this, the sanctions won't work, the sanctions regime won't hold, Iran won't do what it's supposed to -- and they are dead wrong.

Everything that Iran was supposed to do, they have done with respect to this, and we believe -- and the sanctions have held -- and we believe that it is smart to continue the negotiation as Israel even and others said don't rush to an agreement, a bad deal is worse than no deal and we agree. And so, we're trying to move but we are making some progress, Chris.

And we're not going to turn our back on that progress, we're going to try to continue for the next four months and I think what we're doing by holding their -- their nuclear program at a lower level, we've expanded the break out time, the world is safer, and this is a smart deal.

Hear that, guys; REAL PROGRESS. That's why the Middle East is such a success story that everybody keeps missing!!!

[Old Lurker]

DoT 1:03...every once in awhile I become prideful (this IS Sunday and I learned that word in church) of the net worth I have accumulated until I compare it to both my Grandfathers in 1930 using that same inflation calculator.

Then POOF, not so much pride...

Those old coots were impressive.

[Jane]

why is McElroy finishing before Sergio et al? Is it because of yesterday's weather thing?

[Jim Rhoads f/k/a vnjagvet]

The highest income tax rate in 1930 was 25%. Bobby was a shrewd character and was a very well-respected lawyer in ATL. He was still practicing law when I came to GA in 1968.

[Jane]

Oh wait, maybe that was just the path. Clearly I need to pay more attention.

[Jim Rhoads f/k/a vnjagvet]

Sergio just finished. McElroy is hitting his second shot on 18.

[Jeff Dobbs]

Jane:
Clearly I need to pay more attention.

If you weren't in the background making blueberry buckle with Kerry, it would probably help.

[clarice]

MM, the Bayhs were both something--Master manipulators.

[glasater]

Zbig Brzezinski was just on Fareed Z's show saying Bibi's the big meany on Gaza.

[Jane]

Nice job by McElroy. He really was walking thru a crowd on 17. I promise.

Hit, the buckle was definitely worth it.

[Beasts of England]

Enjoyable Open Championship. Delayed broadcast starts in about 90 minutes on ABC. That is all. ;)

[Man Tran finally home, again]

Another Bob,

I think you may have nailed it. Albuquerque northbound makes sense. The crew cabs could be spaced way apart in case of an accident, they could fan out to track any radiation. That only leaves the question of where they were headed. Don't know what would be further north, unless they were going up to Hanford per JiB.

JiB, the chem weapons are mostly destroyed NE of PUB on the way to the Lionel trains.

[Jack is Back!]

The White House is Bribing Health Insurance Companies

"Want to know what’s happening with Obamacare? Good luck finding out. The White House recently adopted a new approach for updating Americans on the country’s most consequential law. I call it the “needle in a haystack” method: Bury the announcement in hundreds of pages of regulations and hope no one finds it.

The White House tried a test run several weeks ago. Hidden in the midst of a 436 page regulatory update, and written in pure bureaucratese, the Department of Health and Human Services asked that insurance companies limit the looming premium increases for 2015 health plans. But don’t worry, HHS hinted: we’ll bail you out on the taxpayer’s dime if you lose money.

No wonder there wasn’t a press release. The White House is playing politics with Americans’ health care—and they’re bribing health insurance companies to play along.

The administration’s intention is clear: Salvage the 2014 midterm elections. Typically, insurance companies release their premium rates between summer and early fall—i.e., right before voters cast their ballots in November. If premiums skyrocket—which looks increasingly likely—then voters won’t look too kindly on Senators and Representatives who voted for Obamacare and created this problem."

[glasater]

Well, the deductibles are horrendous for people of modest means and I don't think a whole lot have that figured out.

[henry]

JiB, FWIW I was able to continue our grandfathered plan at a reduced reinsurance premium and lower expected cost (but with more mandated carp like unlimited chiropractic). Switched carriers to pull it off. Fully insured ACA compliant plans were up 40% or so compared to last year. That tells me that whatever the headline rate for exchange plans, employers will pass along a hefty reality check -- by canceling plans or jacking payroll deductions to keep up with costs. Crony firms (GE, GM) will announce after the election, but a tidal wave will announce before as open enrollment kicks off.

[Jack is Back!]

ManTran,

Not quite, Still have ex-collegues at Rocky Flats. Once you destroy the product then you have to destroy the equipment and remediate the site, Same with Handford,

BTW, watch this video and see if its the same semi and escort vehicles,

[Jane]

Glasater,

I paid $12k out of pocket last year under Romneycare - and who knows how much of that was overbilled.

I've decided not to get medical care this year. (Easy to say when you are not sick). That will save me $6k but it will also cost me $6k.

[rich@gmu]

w$s

$854,730.54

[Donald]

Don't care about nothing today.

I finally, after 30 years got to watch Phil Alvin sing. And smile. Is that what that face is Mr Hate? A smile?

He and Dave are doing a tour. Man.

[Man Tran finally home, again]

JiB,

I couldn't see the video on your and A Bob's links on my phone. Just went over to see it on my MBP. Yup, that pretty much nails it. The GMCs are obviously the latest version of the various vans, etc.

I was driving (in the rain), so I couldn't pay much attention to the semis. They were plain, pillowed aluminum trailers with gummint tags.

[clarice]

Instapundit links to the final Durham-in-Wonderland post.. which includes this sad note "The lacrosse case provided a rare opportunity to glimpse inside the mindset of an elite university—and the look was a troubling one. There is no evidence of any accountability at Duke: the university has the same leadership and the same hiring patterns it had in 2006. Several members of the Group of 88 have gone on to more prestigious positions, their efforts to exploit their students’ distress causing them no problem in the contemporary academy.”

[Jane]

Did any of you read this?

Ten Reasons Why I Am No Longer a Leftist

She refers to this near the end:

One topic thread was entitled "What do you view as disgusting about modern America?" The thread was begun in 2002. Almost eight thousand posts later, the thread was still going strong in June, 2014.

I checked on it and that thread is from the left wing site that I frequent. She is so on point about what goes on. I posted it over there and one of the lefty haters remembered her.

There are not a lot of posters there so it was a very strange coincidence. The person who started the thread is as much of an idiot today as he was in 2002.

[cathyf]

Oh oh. Cruz is parroting the "kids were brutalized" story that was shared with him by a "senior official."

I wish I could say that I trust Cruz on this issue, but I can't.

I wish it were "Obama lured the kids in to be brutalized." A lot more pointed.

[rich@gmu]

seems I late to the thread. i got nothing.

nice pieces this morning clarice.

[Jack is Back!]

Gary DeMar at Gofather Politics responds to Fauxchohontas' 11 Commandments of Progressives:)

http://godfatherpolitics.com/16346/response-native-american-elizabeth-warren-11-commandments-progressivism/

[Miss Marple]

cathyf, I am with you.

"Obama is using these children as cannon fodder for his own purpose" is what I want to see.

[rich@gmu]

and i need coffee.

[clarice]

I'm with hit--"Santa tracking unit" for sure. And I should know..think of the name of Rudolph's girlfriend.