"Washington has suspended it way into a $5.7 trillion increase in the public debt in just six years since October 2011. That is, during a period which supposedly constitutes the third longest business expansion in US history. At the end of the day, you can't borrow your way to prosperity. That's the oldest rule in the book of sound money and sustainable finance. And it's about ready to be learned all over again."
"Credit-rating agency Moody’s estimates state, federal and local government pensions are $7 trillion short in funding. And corporate pension funds are underfunded by $375 billion. One of the big drivers behind this is that investment returns are way too low. Today with government bonds yielding 3% or less (and in some cases bond yields are NEGATIVE), they aren’t achieving their targets. One or two years with sub-optimal investment returns is not catastrophic. But it’s been like this now for a decade. And that’s just problem #1. Problem #2 is that the ratio between workers and retirees is moving in the wrong direction."
"Thanks to Khan and Gopal, we now have statistics showing just how poor a job the military has done — and just how many civilians are paying the price."
"The EFF and ACLU are among the civil liberties groups that believe CBP and ICE are overstepping their powers through their electronic device searches. The groups recently filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of several U.S. citizens whose devices were searched and/or detained. The EFF/ACLU lawsuit regularly references the disconnect between these border searches and any evidence of a violation of immigration or customs laws."
"Few politicians are ever elected on a platform of brutality of epic proportions."
"A U.N. panel of experts found Saudi Arabia is purposefully obstructing the delivery of humanitarian aid into Yemen and called into question its public rationale for a blockade that could push millions into famine. In the assessment, made in a confidential brief and sent to diplomats on November 10, members of the Security-Council appointed panel said they had seen no evidence to support Saudi Arabia’s claims that short-range ballistic missiles have been transferred to Yemeni rebels in violation of Security Council resolutions."
"The Philippine National Police (PNP) acknowledge over 3,900 people have been killed in anti-drug operations under the Duterte administration, plus nearly 2,300 more drug-related murders and thousands still 'unexplained.' Our statement also notes the Philippines saw a roughly 50% increase in its official homicide rate, starting immediately when Duterte took office – hard to explain in the absence of an official policy of extrajudicial killing."
"When presented with a list of expenditure categories, and polled about which should be the single top priority for budgetary cuts by Congress, 'US military actions in the Middle East' was far and away their top choice. But most Americans probably have little idea how enormous those costs truly are."
"The Democrats charge that Trump obstructed justice when he fired FBI Director James Comey; that he has violated the Constitution’s emoluments clause by continuing to frequent and profit from his businesses; and that he has undermined the federal judiciary and freedom of the press."
"Congress mandated in 1990 that it be audited, but not surprisingly, the leviathan agency never complied, with no consequences to speak of."