Charlie Chaplin

 

Christmas 2020

 

Christmas Eve -- Christmas Music

 

Life Is Life

There is one undeniable certainty about life and that fact is IT HAPPENS TO ALL OF US ONCE WE ARE BORN INTO IT...

1. Whites have life
2. Blacks have life
3. Latinos & Hispanics have life
4. Asians have life
5. Alaskans, Hawaiians, & Native Americans

note:  list in rank order as their percentage of the population

AND...  while that life is hardly ever EQUAL in all aspects of EQUALITY, it is nonetheless life that can only be taken away by the hands of death knowing that those hands of death could be manipulated by a "live" person.

WHOEVER gave us LIFE, did not promise nor did they guarantee WEALTHY, STATUS, POWER, CONTROL, or HATRED...  we got these items on our own of course they are could have been inherited as well.

BUT...  natural talents, natural skills, natural abilities ARE NOT GIVEN to everyone...  and, the ones that receive that extra little gift get it through their DNA...

Government can never be held responsible nor can it be tasked with the authority to regulate the DNA or human beings in an effort to make us all equal.

The life we are given whether rich or poor or somewhere in between is precious even though some of us will NEVER EXPERIENCE what so many others take for granted...  and in that notion is the GREAT FLAW of the HUMAN BEING EXPERIMENT...  even in God's eyes we will never be completely equal because HE gave us DNA...  and, it is this DNA that gives us some of our unique characteristics and differences.

But, in LIFE as in DEATH we are equal in that we are all born and we all die...  and this happens regardless of our DNA.

What is it about life that makes it SO SPECIAL in that people either want to keep it or take it away from others?

• We eat, sleep, defecate, feel, smell, procreate, protect, and survive...
• We earn money, build houses, have children, and thrive...
• We worship or not, giving back to our community or not as well...
• AND...  in many ways what we do is a celebration of the life we have been given

LIFE GIVEN...  is the correct word to use here...  and while life comes from the seeds of our parents, the first set of parents had to be given this gift from somewhere otherwise we would be walking around like animals with no concept of being alive...  

That spark of AWARENESS is given...  it does not evolve...

With LIFE comes the desire to SURVIVE and with the desire to survive comes the need to CONTROL so that survival can happen.  Power shifts from one people to another and then back again.  Sometimes, we are on the top, sometimes we are on the bottom.  But, regardless of the outcomes, one group WILL ALWAYS CONTROL until resentment from the other group(s) grows...

AND...  the interesting thing about control is that the group under control is ALWAYS LARGER than the group doing the CONTROLLING...

The End of 2020

We are rapidly approaching the end of 2020 which incidentally marks the end of a decade as well...  A decade for me that marked retirement, being diagnosed with two cancers, having a heart attack, 3 heart surgeries, cardia rehab, numerous biopsies, hernia surgery, cancer surgery, radiation treatments, chemo treatments, immunotherapy treatments, and hundreds of doctor visits.

It was also a decade of 10 Cruises, including Hawaii, Alaska, and the Mediterranean, domestic trips to Vegas, Denver, Los Angeles, Dallas, San Antonio, New Orleans, New York City, Chicago, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Gulf Coast, Boston, Martha's Vineyard, Seattle, Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Jupiter Island, Daytona, Washington DC, Williamsburg, Baltimore...  and international trips to London, Paris, Lisbon, Rome, Madrid. Geneva, Athens, and Istanbul.

All-in-all, our trips were always too brief but we always stayed just long enough to feel like it was time to return home.  Traveling, I suppose was fun, but I would not want to do it again...  and, it was not because of the leg room of air flights because I always had plenty of that...  but, there is always something different about sleeping in someone's else's bed all the time or eating different kinds of foods that may or may not taste good...  and having one's routine disturbed on a daily basis...  or, always having some place to be...

The decade almost over represents at least 3 week long trips to Myrtle Beach, SC each year regardless of wherever else we went and while the beach is always crowded and driving at night is horrendous, MB offers a sense of familiarity and certain expectations that always seem to be fulfilled, unlike other beaches we have visited like:  The Outer Banks, Hilton Head, Destin, Hobe Sound, Gulf Port...  etc.  The only beach outside of Myrtle like we both like is Daytona.

An aspect of life that some of never consider and others always seem to overlook, is the religious aspect of having a blessed life.  And, while that may seem a bit over the top, it is nonetheless a truthful observation.  My life continues to take place above ground and the only reason that this is happening the way it is... is because God has been watching over me in some way form or fashion overwise I would have already been dead and buried.

Coming Back From Knoxville

My wife and I live the valley of Eastern Tennessee about 30 minutes northeast of Knoxville, and about 60 miles southwest of Bristol...  the home to a NASCAR racetrack.  To our right (no more than 45 minutes) are the Great Smokey Mountains where some of the best moonshine is made and the best marijuana is grown and for the most part law enforcement simply ignores or tries to ignore what is going on.

What makes our location so perfect is that we are less than 10 miles from the interstate  and about twice that distance located in between 2 lakes;  Douglas and Cherokee, on which we used to go kayaking on the weekends.  There is no entrance fee for either lake unless you want to camp or park a camper, trailer, or whatever...  then there is a small daily or weekly rental.

In those Great Smokey Mountains are the homes and resorts of Gatlinburg and DOLLYWOOD which is quite an adventure all its own but too expensive for my tastes and what it offers.  We used to get season tickets just to have something to do but after a few years of going once or twice a month, there simply isn't anything really new to see.

Just about everywhere one drives and parks the car, a scenic view of the Great Smokey can be found except in my driveway...  however, if I walk through the open field, past a few not so reluctant deer, and to my neighbor's house up on the hill, I would have this view of which I speak.

In 1990, when I first relocated to East TN, I lived in Greeneville and every morning before going to work, I would stop by the local Hardees for a couple of cups of coffee (maybe more) and pick a table by the front windows where the amazing view of the Great Smokey Mountains was crystal clear.

Where we are living now is not too far from Morristown where COPPER HEAD ROAD can be found as it winds its way down to Knoxville....

Copperhead Road by Stevie Earle

Well my name's John Lee Pettimore
Same as my daddy and his daddy before
You hardly ever saw Grandaddy down here
He only come to town about twice a year

He'd buy a hundred pounds of yeast and some copper line
Everybody knew that he made moonshine
Now the revenue man wanted Grandaddy bad
Headed up the holler with everything he had
'Fore my time but I've been told
He never come back from Copperhead Road

Now Daddy ran whiskey in a big block Dodge
Bought it at an auction at the Mason's Lodge
Johnson County Sheriff painted on the side
Just shot a coat of primer then he looked inside

Well him and my uncle tore that engine down
I still remember that rumblin' sound
When the Sheriff came around in the middle of the night
Heard mama cryin', knew something wasn't right
He was headed down to Knoxville with the weekly load
You could smell the whiskey burnin' down Copperhead Road

I volunteered for the Army on my birthday
They draft the white trash first, 'round here anyway
I done two tours of duty in Vietnam
I came home with a brand new plan
I take the seed from Columbia and Mexico
I just plant it up the holler down Copperhead Road
And now the D.E.A.'s got a chopper in the air
I wake up screaming like I'm back over there
I learned a thing or two from Charlie don't you know
You'd better stay away from Copperhead Road...

While Knoxville is not considered to be the big city that Atlanta or Nashville is, it does have it fair share of traffic, especially in the mornings and afternoons during rush hour...  although, if you hit it just right, you can breeze through the city in no time at all...  but, that breezing does not happen very often...  and, there is usually an accident at least once or twice a week, mainly because people ain't paying attention due to running late.

Anyway...  on my way back from Knoxville, regardless of the time-of-day, I pass a Weigle's Convenience Store and Gas Station about a mile from the house and ALWYS STOP for a couple of large cups of French Vanilla Cappuccino.  Your first cup costs $1.89 (largest) but if you bring back your cup, refills are less than a dollar...  and two are $1.95 including tax.  I keep two empty cups in the car just for this purpose.

I reinforce the sides of cup with clear box packing tape so the cups lasts longer than Weigle's expected but thy say nothing at all when I sit my refills on the counter to pay.

I can serve myself French Vanilla Fat Free, French Vanilla Alert, or French Vanilla Supreme...  and, because I have tried all 3 and cannot decide which I like better, I fill up each cup a third of the way with each.  Every once in a while, there are people behind me waiting but I never turn around to see their expressions.

As soon as I get home, I pour the contents of both cups into a larger plastic pitcher, rinse out the Weigle's paper cups and sit them upside down on the counter to dry, putting them in the car later for my next visit.

Who I Fear

WHO I FEAR THE MOST BUT NOT NECESSARILY IN RANK ORDER...

Black People

BLM 

ANTIFA

Religious Zealots

Loss of Freedom

Medicare Denials

Greedy Americans

Law Enforcement

Mainstream Media

Wealthy

Powerful People in Charge

Lawyers

Time Share Sales People

City Traffic

Telemarketers

Russians

Chinese

Terrorists

Politicians

Democrats

Liberals

Socialists

Northerners

New Yorkers

Californians

Criminals

Drug Dealers

Mexican Gangs

Communists

Incompetent Physicians

White Supremacists

Born Again Christians

US of AMERICA: The Nation of Inequalities

When most of us think of INEQUALITY, we think of:

• Race
• Gender
• Justice

Basically because, this is how MAINSTREAM MEDIA has phrased it to the public...  and the public being gullible have swallowed the bait...  hook, line, and sinker.

BUT, INEQUALITY permeates every single fabric and layer of our society long before we ended WWI and WWII and I am being gracious with the time frame.

At the beginning of our INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION, there is large scale inequality between:  MANAGEMENT and labor.

When the TITANS of INDUSTRY were sowing their wild oats, they were also creating large scale inequality between the:  WEALTHY and poor...  or, what some may call the HAVES and the HAVE NOTS.

BUT...  INEQUALITY in AMERICA extends much much deeper into the ROOTS of our SOCIETY, and can be found in:

1. Those who are educated and those who are not
2. Those who are religious and those who are not
3. Those who are Catholic and those who are not
4. Those who are Jewish and those who are not
5. Those who are athletic and those who are not
6. Those who are musical and those who are not
7. Those who are married and those who are not (wages & taxes)
8. Those who have political connections and those who do not
9. Those who live in California and those who do not
10. Those who live in NYC and those who do not
11. Those who are disabled and those who are not
12. Those who are CEO's and those who are not
13. Those who are clergy and those who are not
14. Those who are legal immigrants and those who are illegal immigrants
15. Those who can have children and those who cannot
16. Those who graduated high school and those who did not
17. Those who are Democrats and those who are not
18. Those who are Republicans and those who are not
19. Those who are Socialists and those who are not
20. Those who are veterans and those who are not
21. Those who are cigarette smokers and those who are not
22. Those who drink alcohol and those who do not
23. Those who smoke marijuana and those who do not
24. Those who are retired and those who are not
25. Those who teach and those who do not
26. Those who have good grammar and those who do not
27. Those who like music and those who do not
28. Those who talk loudly and those who do not
29. Those who want to be with people and those who do not
30. Those who pay their taxes and those who hide their money
31. Males/Females that are attractive and Male/Females who are not
32. Males/Females who are in law enforcement and Males/Females who are not

NOTATIONS:  

1.  After reading through these 30+ points, I am sure you have a good idea where I am going with this...  Americans  are more unequal than equal and yet some people want to make a big deal out of all this inequality...   like it is all of sudden part of the landscape of society.

2.  America needs inequalities at all levels of our society, if we are to grow and prosper as a nation.  We have to have the wealthy and we have to have management and we have to have labor...   and, if everyone had a COLLEGE DEGREE and each student had made straight "A's" we would find some other way to have the Wealthy, management, and labor....  perhaps retention of knowledge or achieved outputs or some kind of competency exam...  The point is that not everyone can be on top and not everyone can be in the middle.

3.  INEQUALITY forces people to try and become better and the more that people strive, the stronger our economy becomes and grows...   and the people on the bottom will always suffer to some degree...   but, everyone else does not care, as long as it is not them.

Political Cartoons

 

Komic Korner Kartoons

 

Not Motivated By Greed

I am not a billionaire

I am not a millionaire

Over my lifetime, I saved $500,000

I have no money invested in the Markets

My wife and I earn $3,000 from Social Security

Our house is paid for

Our vehicles are paid for

We have no debt

Until the COVID pandemic, my wife and I went on 4-6 vacations each year for a week and our vehicles have never been purchased new but rented for a year by a business with mileage between 5,000 to 10,000...

We have more than enough clothes, for all seasons, to last us for the next 20 plus years and if we were more wealthy I am not sure what we would do with that extra money.

We don't want or need a bigger house and lawn nor do we have any desire to pay someone to maintain and clean.

We don't need more expensive vehicles or than the two we already have nor do we need to take more vacations because both of us are getting to the point, where we do not like to sleep for too many days somewhere else.

I suppose that we could fly places instead of driving which has its advantages...  no doubt...  or, even fly in private jets if our monies were sufficient enough...  but, we have done that with members of our family and it is very convenient but not something that we need to do.

We have a basement full of items that we thought we needed and purchased and played with them for a few years then lost interest...  so, that game need not be played again.

We have been to the big cities of Atlanta, Washington DC,  Dallas, San Antonio, Las Vegas, New York City, Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Miami, Ft Lauderdale, New Orleans, Denver, Baltimore, Charleston, and Myrtle Beach and believe me...  we much prefer our small town, rural city life here in East TN.

My wife and I have just enough money (and then some) to pay our monthly bills and for the most part do whatever it is that we want to do and in so doing, at least so far, we want for nothing and are not envious at all of those who have money and spend their hours doing much, much more.  

While I was working, we installed a pool and a fairly large deck around it and almost against the house we poured concrete and located a 6 person hot tub with numerous jets to massage my back and shoulders.  Our acre lot keeps our neighbors close but not that close...  and, in the summer time, there are very few people in this community who spend any time at all outside.

We are 40 minutes from Gatlinburg and the Great Smokey Mountains and 90 minutes from Cherokee and Native American Gambling.  We are 40 minutes away from a 30 minute flight to Atlanta.  The University of TN Medical Center is a 30 minute drive from our front door and like all good University Medical Centers uses the latest in FDA approved research.

Their doctors come from the MAYO Clinic, MD Anderson, Sloan Kettering and their education has been received from Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Duke just to name a few.

Retirement and Beyond

When will you retire...  if ever?

My father retired at age 62 with a pension from the Federal Government (that now is no longer) and a pension from the US Military with the pay of Naval Caption just under an Admiral...  not bad for being in the Reserves for 26 years.  His retirement was more than I ever made annually...  

I retired at age 67 with about $500,000 in the bank...  no pension from any company...  only Social Security...  however, my wife and I combined our Social Security which helped a lot and we had eliminated our debt over a decade ago...  However, we had a small investment that paid us about $1,000 each month +/- so we never had to pull any money out of our savings...  plus I taught about 6 night classes for a local university...

The odds are that if you can retire at all, it will be at the age of 70...  and, no doubt 75 for your children and their children as retirement age creeps up to 80.

Social Security will be gradually reduced over the years but it will still be available possible in the neighborhood of 50-75% of what it is today.  The average social security check is about $1,500.

Advances in medical technology will enable people to live longer and longer so one will either need to keep working or make sure that they have enough in savings or income coming to them from other sources.

It would not surprise me at all that by the year 2050, our life span will increase from right around 80 to right around 100... and, by the year 3000, it will be 120 to 150...

However, by the year 3000, there is also a good possibility that we will not longer be living on this planet we call earth...  which is difficult for some of us who care to comprehend.

• How much money will you need in retirement?
• Will you be debt free?
• How much money will you have saved or invested?
• How many jobs will you have had?
• How many homes and vehicles?
• How is your health...  do you eat healthy and exercise?
• How do you manage stress outside of drinking alcohol?
• How will you compensate for inflation?
• How long will it take for prices to double?

Back in the 1960's, I paid $.18/gallon for gasoline and cigarettes were $.25/pack and a hamburger was $.15 and wages were $.75/hour...  that was over 50 years ago...  and, you know what the prices of things are today...  can you imagine what they will be like in 50 years from today?  I was 23 years of age 50 years ago...

A COUNTRY OF RACES not Americans

The WHITE RACE DOMINATES the United States of America, even though there are 13% blacks and 18% Hispanics living here.

Why would anyone want to live in a country where the MAJORITY POPULATION controls the direction of America.

America's future should be TOTALLY in the hands of the Blacks and Hispanics so that EQUALITY will reign supreme in America.

Ever since the 1500 has THE WHITE RACE dominated America...   this is 500 years...  it is time for a change.

ALL white Americans should begin behaving as if they are Black Americans.

AMERICANS should no longer see themselves as AMERICANS...  

AMERICANS should see themselves as a country of UNITED RACES...  exactly as they perceived our United States...

Races will control this country

Not Democrats or Republicans

Not Libertarians or Socialists

BUT RACES...

We are a country of RACES OF PEOPLE and it is time that this be acknowledged...

Good Versus Evil

GOOD... In most contexts, the concept of good denotes the conduct that should be preferred when posed with a choice between possible actions. Good is generally considered to be the opposite of evil, and is of interest in the study of morality, ethics, religion and philosophy.

EVIL... in a general sense, is the opposite or absence of good. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage is often used more narrowly to talk about profound wickedness.

WICKEDNESS... When used as nouns, evil means moral badness, whereas wicked means people who are wicked. When used as adjectives, evil means intending to harm, whereas wicked means evil or mischievous by nature. Wicked is also adverb with the meaning: very, extremely.

• Can there be only good without evil?
• Can there be only evil without good?

They both must occur together in order for either one to exist... and, we can easily see that this is BIBLICAL in nature as we look back to THE GARDEN OF EDEN for our explanation. Adam and Eve were given FREE WILL... and yet, what is FREE WILL if there is no choice to be made. The Garden of Eden was full of nothing but good... therefore, Adam and Eve could only choose GOOD or they could choose GOOD... those were there only choices.

Darkness like EVIL takes place only when there is an EMPTINESS of LIGHT and we cannot have complete darkness if there is any light at all... however, we can have partial darkness and in so doing can have various degrees of darkness as light begins to disappear... the converse is also true...

SO... without evil in the world, we can have no good... and, without good in the world we can have no evil.

• Can we say that the more good in the world the more evil there is as well?
• Can we say that the more evil in the world the more good there is as well?

SO...

Good is our preferred conduct whereas Evil is our non-preferred conduct...

SO...
Darkness and Light are not the same since both of these have nothing to do with our choices of conduct.
BUT...
are not choices of conduct (good versus evil) influenced geographical locations, customs, morals, and traditions?
AND...
what might be considered EVIL to a CHRISTIAN might not seem so EVIL to a Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, or Atheist...
SO...
how would that be reconciled among most Christians... or, non-Christian Americans?

Systemic Racism

Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of racism that is embedded as normal practice within society or an organization. It can lead to such issues as discrimination in criminal justice, employment, housing, health care, political power, and education, among other issues.

The term institutional racism was first coined in 1967 by Stokely Carmichael and Charles V. Hamilton in Black Power: The Politics of Liberation. Carmichael and Hamilton wrote that while individual racism is often identifiable because of its overt nature, institutional racism is less perceptible because of its "less overt, far more subtle" nature. Institutional racism "originates in the operation of established and respected forces in the society, and thus receives far less public condemnation than [individual racism]".

Institutional racism was defined by Sir William Macpherson in the UK's Lawrence report (1999) as: "The collective failure of an organization to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture, or ethnic origin. It can be seen or detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour that amount to discrimination through prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness, and racist stereotyping which disadvantage minority ethnic people."  Source:  Wikipedia

* * * * * * * * * * 

White People Have a Race, Too
BY JANET E. HELMS, Augustus Long Professor at the Lynch School; Director of BC’s Institute for the Study and Promotion of Race and Culture...

In this article, the author states the following:  “Being oblivious to your Whiteness contributes to racism, but by becoming aware of how you benefit from racism, you can advocate for change that will make you feel better and society a better place."

Here is what I do not really understand...

Because  I am oblivious to my whiteness as a race of people,  black people are forced to write song lyrics that encourage  black people to kill whites.

Because I am oblivious to my whiteness as a race, black people are afraid of attending white churches and praying together.

Because I am oblivious to my whiteness as a race, i refuse to create a White American Cultural Center that promotes my white race as being different from everyone else.

According to Wikipedia's definition of "institutional racism," racism (primarily against blacks because all other minorities are not complaining) exists in the (not limited to) following areas:

1. criminal justice
2. housing
3. employment
4. healthcare
5. political power
6. education

So...  let's suppose that White Americans get in touch with their WHITENESS and for lack of a better word, FORCE themselves to eliminate racism in each one of those 6 areas, so that:

• blacks receive equal justice in our court system
• blacks can buy/rent any damn house/apt they want to in any neighborhood
• blacks will be employed equally as a demographic percentage
• blacks will receive the same level of healthcare as whites
• blacks will receive political power in same demographic percentage as employment
• blacks will receive the exact same level of education as whites

NOTE:  WHITES will not try to receive demographic percentage employment on professional basketball, football, or baseball teams as a form of compensation and in the spirit of equality...

WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN?

1. Racism will not go away
2. White people will still not see blacks in the same light as they see other minorities
3. Blacks will still discriminate against other blacks who are lighter or darker
4. Blacks will still sell more illegal drugs because of the easy money
5. Whites will still make better grades even with a ROBOT teacher
6. Blacks will still be better athletes than whites

AMERICA: Split Down the Middle Like a Hog

Half of America is very happy 

Biden won the election

Half of America is not happy 

Biden won the election

As a retired Vietnam Era Veteran, I really don't care one way or the other nor do I really care if it is Democrats or Republicans who are in control because as I have mentioned before nothing ever changes...

BUT...

what I do care about is the fact that DEMOCRATS are asking the rest of AMERICA to overlook and forget all the bad shit they did to President Trump for 4 years...  and, that just does not seem very fair to me...  nor does it seem fair to a lot of other Americans...

The Bible says:  AN EYE FOR AN EYE

Common sense says:  WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND

REGARDLESS,

as to how we are going to play the game in 2021, the fact remains that AMERICA IS DIVIDED...

And...

America is divided like a dead hog ready to be butchered...  gutted right down the middle...

SO...

In order for something to change, one side has to give in or give up that in which they believe...  at least for another four years...  

BUT...

What will happen to America in the meantime???

LUCKY AMERICANS: America's National Debt Is Increasing

As of July 20th, 2020, debt held by the public was $20.57 trillion and intragovernmental holdings were $5.94 trillion, for a total of $26.51 trillion. 

Debt held by the public was approximately 77% of GDP in 2017, ranked 43rd highest out of 207 countries.

The USA is one of the GLOBAL LEADERS

 in being in DEBT...

The United States federal government has continuously had a fluctuating public debt since its formation in 1789, except for about a year during 1835–1836, a period in which the nation, during the presidency of Andrew Jackson, completely paid the national debt. To allow comparisons over the years, public debt is often expressed as a ratio to gross domestic product (GDP).

The United States public debt as a percentage of GDP reached its highest level during Harry Truman's first presidential term, during and after World War II. Public debt as a percentage of GDP fell rapidly in the post-World War II period, and reached a low in 1974 under Richard Nixon. Debt as a share of GDP has consistently increased since then, except during the presidencies of Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton.

Public debt rose sharply during the 1980s, as Ronald Reagan negotiated with Congress to cut tax rates and increased military spending. It fell during the 1990s, due to decreased military spending, increased taxes and the 1990s boom. Public debt rose sharply during George W Bush's presidency and in the wake of the 2007–2008 financial crisis, with resulting significant tax revenue declines and spending increases, such as the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

In their September 2018 monthly report published on October 5 and based on data from the Treasury Department's "Daily Treasury Statements" (DTS), the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) wrote that the federal budget deficit was c.$782 billion for the fiscal year 2018—which runs from October 2017 through September 2018. This is $116 billion more than in FY2017.  1 The Treasury statements as summarized by in the CBO report that corporate taxes for 2017 and 2018 declined by $92 billion representing a drop of 31%. The CBO added that "about half of the decline ... occurred since June" when some of the provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 took effect, which included the "new lower corporate tax rate and the expanded ability to immediately deduct the full value of equipment purchases"

US Auto Manufacturing

DATA COMES FROM:

Center for Automotive Research

International Trade Association

Top 10 Countries Shipping Auto Parts to USA in 2015

1. Mexico
2. China
3. Canada
4. Japan
5. Germany 
6. South Korea
7. Taiwan
8. Thailand
9. Italy 
10. Austria

Engines and Engine Parts 2015

Mexico

Japan

Canada

Germany

South Korea

Transmissions and Powertrains 2015

Mexico

Japan

Canada

German

South Korea

Electrical Equipment 2015

Mexico

Japan

China

Philippines

TIRES
All-American brands are the those created in the USA and not purchased by foreign companies or merged with them. For example, BFGoodrich was bought by the French manufacturer Michelin, and Firestone is now part of the Japanese brand Bridgestone. Although such brands can still be called American, they now belong to foreign companies.


AUTO GLASS
Most auto class for American Cars are purchased from companies outside the continental United States, even though there are a couple of American Auto Class Companies... it is cheaper to buy overseas because of the cost of American Labor.


SEATING & UPHOLSTERY
Of the 5 major global supplies to the auto industry, there is only 1 American Company.

We are Being Controlled by the Wealthy and the Powerful

In 2018, the national middle-income range was about $48,500 to $145,500 annually for a household of three. 

Lower-income households had incomes less than $48,500 and 

upper-income households had incomes greater than $145,500 (incomes in 2018 dollars).

PEW RESEARCH CENTER

Are you in the American middle class? 

BY JESSE BENNETT, RICHARD FRY AND RAKESH KOCHHAR

About half of U.S. adults (52%) lived in middle-income households in 2018, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of government data. Roughly three-in-ten (29%) were in lower-income households and 19% were in upper-income households.

My wife and I are retired and have been retired for 5 years now...  which means we both retired in 2015 before the end of the Obama Presidency and the beginning of the Trump Presidency.

We receive in our Social Security combined checks less than $36,000 a year, so we are considered to be in AMERICA'S LOWER CLASS...  and therefore are not entitled to the best of what America has to offer but we are entitled the LIBERTY and our PURSUITS of happiness...

Who is to blame for our situation?

WE, my wife and I, are the only ones to blame...  we could have lived our lives differently but we consciously made the choice not to by remaining in the South where wages are typically and traditionally lower and the services available are less as well.

There are thousands of people like us all over America that the WEALTHY and the POWERFUL are taking advantage of on a daily basis and are keenly aware that there is not a frigging thing that we can do about.

Even though I have a MASTERS DEGREE IN BUSINESS, the wealthy and the powerful decide what is best for me and my future.  They don't give a rat's ass what I think or what I believe because those two topics are irrelevant to them because neither has an impact on their RETURNS ON INVESTMENTS, their POWER and CONTROL, and how they had decided OUR FUTURE should be...

If you think you are free because you are an American...  think again...  only the WEALTHY and the POWERFUL Americans are the ones that are truly free...  but, they will never admit this to anyone...  because it would not be proper...  everyone must think they have a chance at whatever they want...  even if for 80-90% of us, that will NEVER HAPPEN.

Made In America Is A JOKE...

According to AmericanManufacturing.Org,  70-80% of all products sold by WALMART come from CHINA, leaving only 25% or so to be supplied by AMERICANS...

WHY IS THAT?

Americans DEMAND lower prices and they don't really care where those items come from as long as they are cheap...  Unfortunately, the more WALMART sell items to Americans, the more it actually BENEFITS THE CHINESE...

It's nothing personal...  just business...

According to MGTRADING.Com, about 21% of all imported goods into America comes from CHINA....  that represents ONE FIFTH of all imports...  closer to ONE FOURTH than ever before and that number keeps increasing.

DID YOU KNOW THIS???

China Ocean Shipping Company, Limited, formerly China Ocean Shipping (Group) Corporation, commonly known for its abbreviated name COSCO Group, or simply, COSCO, is a former Chinese Government owned shipping and logistics services supplier company. ... In 2012, it was among China's top 15 brands.

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According to Wikipedia,

A Made in USA mark is a country of origin label that indicates the product is "all or virtually all" made in the United States. The label is regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

In general, goods imported into the United States must have a country of origin label unless excepted, but goods manufactured in the United States can be sold with no origin label unless explicitly required. U.S.-made goods that must bear an origin label include automobiles, textiles, wool, and fur products. Any voluntary claims about the amount of U.S. content in other products must comply with the FTC's Made in USA policy.

A Made in USA claim can be expressed (for example, "American-made") or implied. In identifying implied claims, the Commission focuses on the overall impression of the advertising, label, or promotional material. Depending on the context, U.S. symbols or geographic references (for example, U.S. flags, outlines of U.S. maps, or references to U.S. locations of headquarters or factories) may convey a claim of U.S. origin either by themselves or in conjunction with other phrases or images