Upstate NY Banter and General Discussion..

[BuffaloWeather]

I wouldn't put it past China that they created this virus in a lab. I can see it. What is a better way to stop riots and protests then to create a virus in which keeps everyone home for months. The people there want a democracy. The Chinese leaders want nothing of the sort.

[BuffaloWeather]

Please watch. Very thankful we live here over there.

 

[Buckeyes_Suck]

11 minutes ago, BuffaloWeather said:

I wouldn't put it past China that they created this virus in a lab. I can see it. What is a better way to stop riots and protests then to create a virus in which keeps everyone home for months. The people there want a democracy. The Chinese leaders want nothing of the sort.

When they invade Taiwan next month we’ll know for sure...

[MJO812]

Gov of California  told his residents don't expect any big gatherings or back to normal  this summer.

[MJO812]

USA

2443 deaths today. Passed yesterday's death toll .

[BuffaloWeather]

I don't like or agree with what Michigan citizens did today, but I do enjoy that we have the right to protests things we see as unfair without the fear of being killed. (In most instances)

[BuffaloWeather]

14 minutes ago, MJO812 said:

Gov of California  told his residents don't expect any big gatherings or back to normal  this summer.

How do they enforce things like this? What if I decide to have a BBQ in my backyard with a few friends? On any given Saturday there is likely hundreds/thousands of people having outdoor parties in the Western NY region.

[cleetussnow]

59 minutes ago, BuffaloWeather said:

I wouldn't put it past China that they created this virus in a lab. I can see it. What is a better way to stop riots and protests then to create a virus in which keeps everyone home for months. The people there want a democracy. The Chinese leaders want nothing of the sort.

What they want is transparency in government, which they know to be antithetical for communist government.  Communism can’t exist without controlling information.  

China has been self governing for 6000 years and they never once sniffed it. 

I don’t think China ‘grew’ it in a lab, but they might have been irresponsible at the lab, and then lied about it.  The first lie was they said it wasn’t transmittable human to human.  The WHO went along with that for some reason, and that’s why they will be broke. 

[rochesterdave]

19 hours ago, Syrmax said:

RUSSIA RUSSIA RUSSIA. Still? 

Biden is being maligned somewhat unfairly (IMO), but the Dems spent the last 3 years in an unprecedented frenzy on Rump. Real whack job stuff and never let up. You had to know this was coming. Especially with Biden, who's shaky and got skeletons...I mean face it, he's a really bizarre dude in his own way.

Dems better get Cuomo going somehow...or else.  I'll vote for Cuomo at this point but not the other two turds. Its NY though, so one's individual POTUS vote doesn't actually matter.

Do you not believe that Russia aids Trump? Maybe Trump didn’t full-on collude,  but obviously the Russians have provided material support and they’ll do the same against Biden.

As for Biden, he has about as good a record as any career politician I’ve seen. The guy has said a few things I wish he didn’t. But his heart and policies have always been for the betterment of the working class. He’s been on the right side of history with most social issues (in my book).

We live in a bicameral government system. I honestly believe it’s a cop out not to choose. It’s like: a megalomaniac or a reasonable centrist. Come on. Lol

[DeltaT13]

1 hour ago, BuffaloWeather said:

How do they enforce things like this? What if I decide to have a BBQ in my backyard with a few friends? On any given Saturday there is likely hundreds/thousands of people having outdoor parties in the Western NY region.

He said large gatherings, like baseball games and concerts with 10,000-50,000+ people.  They will advise you to not gather in large groups if possible at home, but it will just be a recommendation.  Things will be weird, it will probably be advisable to know who in your group is vulnerable, who has gotten it and who hasnt, who is feeling sickly, who just has allergies, etc.  Weird times ahead.  We need to get our immunity cards!

[cleetussnow]

33 minutes ago, rochesterdave said:

Do you not believe that Russia aids Trump? Maybe Trump didn’t full-on collude,  but obviously the Russians have provided material support and they’ll do the same against Biden.

As for Biden, he has about as good a record as any career politician I’ve seen. The guy has said a few things I wish he didn’t. But his heart and policies have always been for the betterment of the working class. He’s been on the right side of history with most social issues (in my book).

We live in a bicameral government system. I honestly believe it’s a cop out not to choose. It’s like: a megalomaniac or a reasonable centrist. Come on. Lol

Russia gate needs a dirt nap.  It’s over.  Did the Russian f@#$ with our heads?  Why yes they did.  They have been doing that since Stalin.  Notably financing the anti war movement in the 60s and the global anti nuclear weapons movement in the 70s and 80s.  Even green peace got their money. Old fashioned f$ckery.  When the kremlin archives were opened in the 90s all this stuff was exposed.  Joe McCarthy was an ass but he turned out to be right.  More recently, in 2016 they financed pro trump AND pro Clinton rallies on the same day in NYC to stir things up.  Their strategy is fomenting civil war in this country, and the plan has met with success at every turn.  Sun Tsu would be proud.

However, NONE of their other efforts to date has been as successful as Russiagate, which ironically they had nothing to do with.  They want us to beat ourselves to death and we are doing it. We are bickering on a weather board about it, in a thread about a virus.  Amazing success for them, and we didn’t even need Russia’s help!  

Now, did Russian pay Trump?  No.  Did they pay other politicians?  YES.  The one who trump ran against, and beat.  When Clinton approved the sale of nuclear fuel to Russia as Secretary of State, the Clinton foundation got a fat check.  25 million I think?  Also, billy (the husband) got $500,000 for a speech in Russia.  Yes it all happened.  It could be, and appears to me, that Russia has got the entire situation firmly in hand and we do not.  I do not wonder why Putin is so popular.

[DeltaT13]

5 minutes ago, cleetussnow said:

Russia gate needs a dirt nap.  It’s over.  Did the Russian f@#$ with our heads?  Why yes they did.  They have been doing that since Stalin.  Notably financing the anti war movement in the 60s and the global anti nuclear weapons movement in the 70s and 80s.  Even green peace got their money. Old fashioned f$ckery.  When the kremlin archives were opened in the 90s all this stuff was exposed.  Joe McCarthy was an ass but he turned out to be right.  More recently, in 2016 they financed pro trump AND pro Clinton rallies on the same day in NYC to stir things up.  Their strategy is fomenting civil war in this country, and the plan has met with success at every turn.  Sun Tsu would be proud.

However, NONE of their other efforts to date has been as successful as Russiagate, which ironically they had nothing to do with.  They want us to beat ourselves to death and we are doing it. We are bickering on a weather board about it, in a thread about a virus.  Amazing success for them, and we didn’t even need Russia’s help!  

Now, did Russian pay Trump?  No.  Did they pay other politicians?  YES.  The one who trump ran against, and beat.  When Clinton approved the sale of nuclear fuel to Russia as Secretary of State, the Clinton foundation got a fat check.  25 million I think?  Also, billy (the husband) got $500,000 for a speech in Russia.  Yes it all happened.  It could be, and appears to me, that Russia has got the entire situation firmly in hand and we do not.  I do not wonder why Putin is so popular.

We wouldnt be bickering if Trump or even one Republican would act like they care or chastise Russia instead of taking their side.  Trump ****ing loves Putin and it's a disgrace

You blatantly acknowledge it happened, thats all I ask of them at least.  Just own up to it.  It's the denial that is maddening to us libs.

[MJO812]

[winter_rules]

Dumb question:  Can someone explain, in layman’s terms, how the government can just create several trillion dollars seemingly out of thin air?  I live in a simple world where a dollar is a bartering measure, just like a bushel of corn was back in the day.  If you think your product/service is worth 2 dollars/bushels of corn and I agree, then I give you the corn/dollar in exchange for the product/service.  I always assumed the nation’s debt was in the form of actual debt to bond holders/investors/other governments.  Does the debt really even exist if we can just create massive sums of money with the passage of a bill?  It’s not like someone just stepped in and offered TRILLIONS of dollars that we can now pay back with interest, right?  Any good links to reputable sources that can explain this?  

[BuffaloWeather]

14 minutes ago, winter_rules said:

Dumb question:  Can someone explain, in layman’s terms, how the government can just create several trillion dollars seemingly out of thin air?  I live in a simple world where a dollar is a bartering measure, just like a bushel of corn was back in the day.  If you think your product/service is worth 2 dollars/bushels of corn and I agree, then I give you the corn/dollar in exchange for the product/service.  I always assumed the nation’s debt was in the form of actual debt to bond holders/investors/other governments.  Does the debt really even exist if we can just create massive sums of money with the passage of a bill?  It’s not like someone just stepped in and offered TRILLIONS of dollars that we can now pay back with interest, right?  Any good links to reputable sources that can explain this?  

This is an extremely complicated question. But basically there is a LOT of power that comes from being the most powerful country on the planet. Even more comes from being the highest producing GDP country on the planet. (Although we are not the highest per citizen) Countries and individuals around the world view US Debt as VERY safe, because if we go down as the most powerful and richest country on the planet...Then we have entered a very, very dark place. As a result of this US debt(bonds) are an extremely attractive investment in a volatile market. The amount of debt the US has doesn't really matter because of how powerful we are. There is a lot of truth to what Luke says in how powerful capitalism is, despite at times how brutal it is. It's what has made us so powerful. Other countries don't have the luxury we do... IE. Greece. Countries and people around the world don't really want to invest in debt in Greece, because who knows how they will rebound...

The federal government offers three categories of fixed income securities to consumers and investors to fund its operations: Treasury bonds, Treasury notes, and Treasury bills. Bills are the shortest duration, notes 2nd and bonds are usually 20-30 years+

Each security has a different rate at which it matures, and each pays interest in a different way.

One thing they all have in common, though, is their reputation of being based on the full faith and credit of the United States government. Investors can expect a high degree of safety and a steady, but unspectacular profit from each of these securities. Upon maturity, these bonds, notes, and bills return their face value.

Here is a brief overview that talks about it in more detail. There is some concern into how things are now vs how they were a few decades ago... The debt is increasing substantially year over year. Corporate taxes as a percentage of tax revenue is a huge sticking point for me as the trickle down theory just does not work. If you keep giving the rich more and more money they will spend it on themselves, not on others who actually make them the money.

https://www.investopedia.com/updates/usa-national-debt/

[Thinksnow18]

2 minutes ago, BuffaloWeather said:

This is an extremely complicated question. But basically there is a LOT of power that comes from being the most powerful country on the planet. Even more comes from being the highest producing GDP country on the planet. (Although we are not the highest per citizen) Countries and individuals around the world view US Debt as VERY safe, because if we go down as the most powerful and richest country on the planet...Then we have entered a very, very dark place. As a result of this US debt(bonds) are an extremely attractive investment in a volatile market. The amount of debt the US has doesn't really matter because of how powerful we are. There is a lot of truth to what Luke says in how powerful capitalism is, despite at times how brutal it is. It's what has made us so powerful. Other countries don't have the luxury we do... IE. Greece. Countries and people around the world don't really want to invest in debt in Greece, because who knows how they will rebound...

Here is a brief overview that talks about it in more detail. There is some concern into how things are now vs how they were a few decades ago... The debt is increasing substantially year over year. Corporate taxes as a percentage of tax revenue is a huge sticking point for me as the trickle down theory just does not work.

https://www.investopedia.com/updates/usa-national-debt/

It is complex. Treasury bonds being purchased by the public, borrowing from other countries (I believe believewe actually owe China some 1+ trillion making them our largest debt load) the bonds are eventually bought back by the US and we get our cut, or those that purchased bonds to fund the loans.

[cleetussnow]

1 hour ago, DeltaT13 said:

We wouldnt be bickering if Trump or even one Republican would act like they care or chastise Russia instead of taking their side.  Trump ****ing loves Putin and it's a disgrace

You blatantly acknowledge it happened, thats all I ask of them at least.  Just own up to it.  It's the denial that is maddening to us libs.

 

7 minutes ago, winter_rules said:

Dumb question:  Can someone explain, in layman’s terms, how the government can just create several trillion dollars seemingly out of thin air?  I live in a simple world where a dollar is a bartering measure, just like a bushel of corn was back in the day.  If you think your product/service is worth 2 dollars/bushels of corn and I agree, then I give you the corn/dollar in exchange for the product/service.  I always assumed the nation’s debt was in the form of actual debt to bond holders/investors/other governments.  Does the debt really even exist if we can just create massive sums of money with the passage of a bill?  It’s not like someone just stepped in and offered TRILLIONS of dollars that we can now pay back with interest, right?  Any good links to reputable sources that can explain this?  

They are selling treasuries. The government will have to pay it back.  Interest rates are very low, so it’s actually it’s a good time to borrow, but it’s a lot money.  This is how the government ads cash to the money supply.  Printing money and paying itself with it is a no go.  It will kill the currency and we will be crushed with inflation.  That’s when you need a wheel barrow of 100 dollar bills to buy a loaf of bread.   Venezuela printed money to pay debt and starved its people to death as a side effect.  

 

[cleetussnow]

6 minutes ago, BuffaloWeather said:

This is an extremely complicated question. But basically there is a LOT of power that comes from being the most powerful country on the planet. Even more comes from being the highest producing GDP country on the planet. (Although we are not the highest per citizen) Countries and individuals around the world view US Debt as VERY safe, because if we go down as the most powerful and richest country on the planet...Then we have entered a very, very dark place. As a result of this US debt(bonds) are an extremely attractive investment in a volatile market. The amount of debt the US has doesn't really matter because of how powerful we are. There is a lot of truth to what Luke says in how powerful capitalism is, despite at times how brutal it is. It's what has made us so powerful. Other countries don't have the luxury we do... IE. Greece. Countries and people around the world don't really want to invest in debt in Greece, because who knows how they will rebound...

The federal government offers three categories of fixed income securities to consumers and investors to fund its operations: Treasury bonds, Treasury notes, and Treasury bills. Bills are the shortest duration, notes 2nd and bonds are usually 20-30 years+

Each security has a different rate at which it matures, and each pays interest in a different way.

One thing they all have in common, though, is their reputation of being based on the full faith and credit of the United States government. Investors can expect a high degree of safety and a steady, but unspectacular profit from each of these securities. Upon maturity, these bonds, notes, and bills return their face value.

Here is a brief overview that talks about it in more detail. There is some concern into how things are now vs how they were a few decades ago... The debt is increasing substantially year over year. Corporate taxes as a percentage of tax revenue is a huge sticking point for me as the trickle down theory just does not work. If you keep giving the rich more and more money they will spend it on themselves, not on others who actually make them the money.

https://www.investopedia.com/updates/usa-national-debt/

What he said.  

[BuffaloWeather]

I've been studying this the last 2 months for my series 65 test. They keep postponing my test. I am ready and getting good quiz scores. My buddy failed it 4 times which made me nervous. But the more time goes by the harder it will be to retain it all.

[BuffaloWeather]

I'll add to that I don't think we have to worry about a Greece or Venezuela situation occurring here. The reason being as I stated above if our country does bad economically, so does the rest of the world and as a result our debt instruments will always be more attractive then those of smaller/poor countries. If you had to choose a country in the world in which you would want to invest in that would be the safest which would you choose? Most would pick the USA.

[Syrmax]

2 hours ago, rochesterdave said:

Do you not believe that Russia aids Trump? Maybe Trump didn’t full-on collude,  but obviously the Russians have provided material support and they’ll do the same against Biden.

As for Biden, he has about as good a record as any career politician I’ve seen. The guy has said a few things I wish he didn’t. But his heart and policies have always been for the betterment of the working class. He’s been on the right side of history with most social issues (in my book).

We live in a bicameral government system. I honestly believe it’s a cop out not to choose. It’s like: a megalomaniac or a reasonable centrist. Come on. Lol

Well, the beauty of Democracy is right to choose.  And not just from two criminal enterprises.  The fact that we have a bicameral govt doesn't mean we have to have just 2 main political parties.  It's worked out that way but frankly both are failing in ways too numerous to get into here.

From my perspective, I don't think they're fixable and frankly both have lost touch with the Center. I'd love to see a 3rd centrist party emerge with the GOP and Democrats now fully hijacked by their lunatic bases...its getting a bit more likely.

A lot of people are fed up with their HS games that pass for policy.  Crises have a nasty way of shedding light on failure.  Of course anybreal change will be hard because the GOP and Dems have ensconced themselves into engrained corruption via lack of term limits and...money.  They aren't about to easily allow themselves to be muscled out either...so enjoy the stupidity!

[cleetussnow]

1 hour ago, DeltaT13 said:

We wouldnt be bickering if Trump or even one Republican would act like they care or chastise Russia instead of taking their side.  Trump ****ing loves Putin and it's a disgrace

You blatantly acknowledge it happened, thats all I ask of them at least.  Just own up to it.  It's the denial that is maddening to us libs.

Actually, trump has placed more sanctions on Russia than any president since Gorbechev was their dictator.  It’s amazing no one knows this.  

The days of Yore... in the 90s Clinton actually gave Yeltsin money to pay the collapsed Russian pension system...we were their best hope as a partner for a bright future, you remember glasnost and all.  Relations between Russia and the US...seemed like world peace was at hand!   Gorby, the beloved Nobel peace prize winner (who prosecuted the Soviet war in Afghanistan with bloodlust - he even threatened to nuke Pakistan if they didn’t close the Khyber pass to arms smuggling), was made into a international hero.  What a turnabout!  It really seemed like flowers and sunshine everywhere.

Now that’s all ****ed up.  It’s known as the new Cold War, and it’s totally contrived, and we started it up again like an old habit. Russiagate just gave it more nourishment.   We should be friends with Russia , and we will be soon enough.  We have a common foe, and you know, the enemy of my enemy...is my friend.  The global power struggle will align Russia and the US, damn the politics of it.  But it won’t be trump.  

There is a much much bigger picture here than some fleeting contrived conspiracy.  You don’t have to like Putin, but For my money I’d rather work with him than some of the other options out there (namely Ji). Putin is the most impressive (I mean successfull) statesmen of this century.  

[Syrmax]

47 minutes ago, winter_rules said:

Dumb question:  Can someone explain, in layman’s terms, how the government can just create several trillion dollars seemingly out of thin air?  I live in a simple world where a dollar is a bartering measure, just like a bushel of corn was back in the day.  If you think your product/service is worth 2 dollars/bushels of corn and I agree, then I give you the corn/dollar in exchange for the product/service.  I always assumed the nation’s debt was in the form of actual debt to bond holders/investors/other governments.  Does the debt really even exist if we can just create massive sums of money with the passage of a bill?  It’s not like someone just stepped in and offered TRILLIONS of dollars that we can now pay back with interest, right?  Any good links to reputable sources that can explain this?  

To amplify on what Buffalo said...one of the alternative ways the Fed can create "money" is by essentially swapping assets from Banks and providing them "cash" in return.  All done electronically of course via balance sheet swaps. It does get hideously complicated but that's the essence of Quantitative Easing.  So, the Fed has done this to the tune of $2+Trillion in the past two weeks. It's a staggering amount and they plan more. 

Some of the more objectionable parts are giving an institution money for their bonds at par value when they are under par in the open market. NO losses incurred by banks...the Fed keeps possession of these bonds on their balance sheet and can hold them indefinately, ala 2008/09, QE etc. If losses are incurred in unloading them back into the market later, guess who's on the hook for it? The US Treasury, which is us. It's highly inflationary long term although short term deflationary pressures are immense (economy in tank, noone spending).  

It is also estimated that based on current trajectories, the Fed will own something like 75% of the entire US Bond market soon...not unlike the Bank of Japan. What you have then is no longer really a free market. But hell, since 2009 that's been the case. Why do you think interest rates are so low? One word: Fed

 

[cleetussnow]

15 minutes ago, BuffaloWeather said:

I'll add to that I don't think we have to worry about a Greece or Venezuela situation occurring here. The reason being as I stated above if our country does bad economically, so does the rest of the world and as a result our debt instruments will always be more attractive then those of smaller/poor countries. If you had to choose a country in the world in which you would want to invest in that would be the safest which would you choose? Most would pick the USA.

Agree.  And PS we aren’t the only developed economy doing this, which kind of makes the relative value of major currencies stable, so we aren’t getting ‘devalued’ if that makes sense.  We stay on top, even if the bar is moving lower for everyone. We kind of have loaded dice too which helps.  

[TugHillMatt]

19 minutes ago, Syrmax said:

Well, the beauty of Democracy is right to choose.  And not just from two criminal enterprises.  The fact that we have a bicameral govt doesn't mean we have to have just 2 main political parties.  It's worked out that way but frankly both are failing in ways too numerous to get into here.

From my perspective, I don't think they're fixable and frankly both have lost touch with the Center. I'd love to see a 3rd centrist party emerge with the GOP and Democrats now fully hijacked by their lunatic bases...its getting a bit more likely.

A lot of people are fed up with their HS games that pass for policy.  Crises have a nasty way of shedding light on failure.  Of course anybreal change will be hard because the GOP and Dems have ensconced themselves into engrained corruption via lack of term limits and...money.  They aren't about to easily allow themselves to be muscled out either...so enjoy the stupidity!

This.

[BuffaloWeather]

1 minute ago, cleetussnow said:

Agree.  And PS we aren’t the only developed economy doing this, which kind of makes the relative value of major currencies stable, so we aren’t getting ‘devalued’ if that makes sense.  We stay on top, even if the bar is moving lower for everyone. We kind of have loaded dice too which helps.  

Yeah it has a cyclical effect usually. When we do well, the global economy does well and vice versa. The only economy I can see having an impact on us as they export so much is China.

[cleetussnow]

20 minutes ago, Syrmax said:

Well, the beauty of Democracy is right to choose.  And not just from two criminal enterprises.  The fact that we have a bicameral govt doesn't mean we have to have just 2 main political parties.  It's worked out that way but frankly both are failing in ways too numerous to get into here.

From my perspective, I don't think they're fixable and frankly both have lost touch with the Center. I'd love to see a 3rd centrist party emerge with the GOP and Democrats now fully hijacked by their lunatic bases...its getting a bit more likely.

A lot of people are fed up with their HS games that pass for policy.  Crises have a nasty way of shedding light on failure.  Of course anybreal change will be hard because the GOP and Dems have ensconced themselves into engrained corruption via lack of term limits and...money.  They aren't about to easily allow themselves to be muscled out either...so enjoy the stupidity!

Plus 1.  Politics has been this ‘base’ before, but like in the 1800s.  There were new parties formed all the time. 

 

 

 

[cleetussnow]

2 minutes ago, BuffaloWeather said:

Yeah it has a cyclical effect usually. When we do well, the global economy does well and vice versa. The only economy I can see having an impact on us as they export so much is China.

Well, I say the European collective is a close third, but China and the US are tightly connected.

Now back to the regularly scheduled covid virus programming, the US and China are not getting along, and the virus is going to alter the economic dynamics going forward. Something will change and it might be painful for awhile!  

[Syrmax]

1 hour ago, DeltaT13 said:

We wouldnt be bickering if Trump or even one Republican would act like they care or chastise Russia instead of taking their side.  Trump ****ing loves Putin and it's a disgrace

You blatantly acknowledge it happened, thats all I ask of them at least.  Just own up to it.  It's the denial that is maddening to us libs.

The Russkys have been f*cking with US politics since long before either of us were born.  If you really want to see Russian interference, look at what went on post WWII and into the 1960s with the spying and funding of radical seditionist groups in the US and Western Europe.

I don't doubt that Putin was trying to help Trump get elected but the evidence is scant and the cited smoking gun of something like $10M spent on Facebook ads is absolutely laughable as evidence of anything but a waste of money in a campaign that spent $1T. 

The US Govt (nor anyone else) has yet to provide a speck of hard evidence that the hacker groups that humiliated the DNC and Clinton campaign were actually tied to Moscow. It's speculated, and likely true IMO, but completely unproven and circumstantial - not unlike most of the Right Wing dot-connecting  conspiracies floating around since Trump started campaigning.

Russiagate was an excuse cooked up by Robbie Mook and the Clintonistas in the DNC to deflect blame for running a sh!try campaign (not unlike what trump is doing with China now). Its an old trick and frankly, transparent. 

This isn't that hard.

[DeltaT13]

12 minutes ago, Syrmax said:

The Russkys have been f*cking with US politics since long before either of us were born.  If you really want to see Russian interference, look at what went on post WWII and into the 1960s with the spying and funding of radical seditionist groups in the US and Western Europe.

I don't doubt that Putin was trying to help Trump get elected but the evidence is scant and the cited smoking gun of something like $10M spent on Facebook ads is absolutely laughable as evidence of anything but a waste of money in a campaign that spent $1T. 

The US Govt (nor anyone else) has yet to provide a speck of hard evidence that the hacker groups that humiliated the DNC and Clinton campaign were actually tied to Moscow. It's speculated, and likely true IMO, but completely unproven and circumstantial - not unlike most of the Right Wing dot-connecting  conspiracies floating around since Trump started campaigning.

Russiagate was an excuse cooked up by Robbie Mook and the Clintonistas in the DNC to deflect blame for running a sh!try campaign (not unlike what trump is doing with China now). Its an old trick and frankly, transparent. 

This isn't that hard.

That is all true. But Trump is just way to “buddy buddy” with a piece of shit commie dictator. It’s really not a good look.