China WTO

When China was allowed entry to the WTO in 2000, it immediately declared itself to be a developing nation which gave it special privileges. It then proceeded to disregard some of the basic conditions. One of the most egregious actions was the dumping of cheap products on the world market. Adding to this they used currency manipulation to lower the cost of their exports. A prime example is steel production. The government would subsidize the companies which would then sell steel at below production costs. Once the competition was eliminated the price would be raised. Bethlehem Steel was one of the western countries that fell victim to this

NY City

Republicans often refer to democrats as tax and spend and there is good evidence to support this and the latest example is NY City. The city has a population of 8.4 million and a budget of $127 billion while Florida with a population of 23.3 million has a budget of $117 billion. The Mayor of NY is facing a $5 billion deficit and is recommending an increase in property tax of 9%. He is cutting the police budget from $6.4 billion to $5.4 billion and placing a hiring freeze on police. Then he is proposing the city pay for free childcare.

MN fraud

Property taxes primarily fund local government services, with the largest portion typically going to public school districts (40 to 42%). These taxes support essential services, including police and fire departments, road maintenance, public libraries, parks, and sanitation. They also fund local infrastructure, community development, and administrative costs for county and municipal governments. The key phrase is community development. Ramsey County in MN collects $428 million in property taxes and they are asking for a 9% increase for this year. A citizens group using freedom of information ask for the expenditures on community development projects and found the county spent $34 million on 213 NGO’s. Some examples are Catholic charities, Regions hospital, Model Cities of St Paul and American Indian Family Center. The county was then asked how were these accounts audited and was told the state did that but when the state was contacted, they denied doing any audits saying that was the counties responsibility. This means that $34 million is being handed out to 213 organizations and there is no follow up to find out how the money is being spent. This is seen by many as an invitation to fraud. MN is currently being investigated for Medicaid fraud and brings up the question as to how these agencies are being audited.

Ukraine war talks

Nuke power

The US has started the Artemis program which is to set up a station on the moon by 2030. This station will require a steady source of power and small nuclear reactors are the only option. The lunar night lasts for two weeks so solar power is out and there is no atmosphere so wind is out. This is just one more reason why nuclear power should be the future.

West

Western Culture is a term that has come under attack by certain groups like the far right and far left. To begin with what are the main points of Western Culture. Individualism as opposed to collective identity. Rule of law and democracy. Critical thinking and science. Christian heritage. Capitalism and free markets. Human rights and equality Western culture was responsible for the industrial revolution which brought the world into the modern age. Most of modernity is the result of Western cultural ideas and innovations. The big complaint against Western Culture is that it is dominated by white males but this is slowly changing. Many people today are upset with living in the US and would like to make changes. They do understand that it still ranks as one of the better places to live. The best course of action for these people is to point out areas where the culture is need of improvement and then suggest ways to improve.

EU

Europe is dying from self-inflicted wounds and they need to make some serious changes. Starting at the end of the cold war in 1991 they embarked on a going green economy, excessive regulations and a laxed immigration system. This combined with an aging population has put pressure on social services, particularly retirement benefits. Energy costs are three times higher than in the US and the war is forcing them to spend more in defense. In general, the EU is deindustrializing because of high energy cost as they move important manufacturing businesses, like chemical and automotive to China and the US. In the past few years’ voters have demanded that they do away with net zero and start deporting immigrants. These are the policies that the US is following and the country is reindustrializing with low energy prices, reduced regulations and deporting illegal immigrants. The US has sent VP Vance to Davos to tell the Europeans that they must take on more responsibility for their own national defense The EU's share of global GDP is declining, falling from roughly 27-30% in 1980 to approximately 14-17% in 2025-2026, with projections suggesting further declines to around 12.9% by 2030