A Brookings study says the cost of $310,000 to raise a child. You could spend a lot more — just send your children to private schools and expensive colleges. But you could also spend a lot less.
Written by someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Yes there are surely women(and men) who are not(were not) temperamentally cut out to raise children, but anyone who thinks that a corporate career is more fulfilling than family life and children is either ingnorant or a fool.
I totally agree … I’ve also noticed on many occasions that whatever a career woman achieves financially in life ends up in the hands of her sister who decided to raise a family instead of pursing a career - fulfilment and prosperity.
“A Brookings study came up with a total cost of $310,000 to raise a child to adulthood”. 🤔 This number is for our depleted middle class. Doesn’t include the taxes we pay to support the other half of the American population that produce nothing towards our economy nor society, other then reproducing more unproductive members of the democratic cult…
Anyway, Wishing all a safe and happy Independence Day! I may not be happy with the current insanity happening in our country, but God knows I love her so!
Be thankful for what you have, and appreciate America for the wonderful life she has bestowed upon us all. Such a gift being born in this God Blessed country! So please Lord, continue blessing us, and give us the strength to fight the evil, and support the good, and continue to bless us with your love and guidance.
God Bless America, and those who fight for her!!!!
Steve. Your comment reminded me of a Dennis Prager remark: You may not always like your children but you’ll always love them. On a macro level, that sentiment also applies to the nation. Happy 4th! KJ
I spend a lot more, sending my daughter to private nursery school to high school graduation, then private university. She graduated with a dual masters (she's smart but they kind of hand these out like popcorn today). What did my tenants receive for working so hard to foot the bill? She got married a year out of college, never worked in the field education provided. Instead she married at age 21 and produced 4 wonderful grandchildren. Her husband graduated MBA from the same university struggled to pay his college debt, working for others.
Dad stepped in and bought them a fixer upper house for cash, directing the two to cash him out in 6 months as the title was being conveyed to them free and clear.
Thankfully he went on to build out a franchise business, I was a 60% equity investor with a SBA loan.
My son attended the very same private nursery to high school educator. However, he did not take to rules and regulations and chose to enter the local blue ribbon public school. This created and interesting comparison. He did not want me to buy him a house, he has a lot more street smarts than both my daughter and her husband. I spent probably twice more on him through various sports endeavors. Currently he runs the sports program in a well heeled community to our north. They are both happy, and neither has move back home, nor would either be welcome to unless the world was ending. I'm a workaholic retirement was never in the cards, I will retire from contracting but only to have more time for other pursuits.
From my perspective college is a complete waste of time, I believe this is true for even the sciences.
My brother in law is a self taught (no college degree) in computer sciences and engineering. Currently his commercial automation business a one man endeavor grosses 10 million a year. Not bad for a very smart fellow who grew up on a farm.
I believe the economy has much to do with lower-than-normal birth rates, not to mention social pressure. I also believe women work so couples can afford a home, buy food, send Jake and Cindy to sports teams, take care of their elderly parents, or in our case pay for a disabled child’s enormous needs.
It is rarely to butt into a ‘man’s world’ just for the helluvit.
I remember as a kid in the 50s and 60s, the predominate idea was that as we became more and more productive, we would be able to work less and less while still improving our standard of living. Massive government intervention in our economy (mostly from regulations and taxes) put a stop to our progress. So, yes, more women had to go to work to maintain a standard of living. Of course, some women don't want children, some want careers, some want both. It is all good. They have a right to decide what they want to do. But the government has had an influence on these decisions by its involvement in the economy.
The population demographics are dismal for the planet. The only above replacement rate growth is the Mideast and Africa and furthermore in Muslim countries where the vast majority of those populations are brainwashed to kill all us infidels. Deep trouble for the next generations
True. But to paraphrase George Carlin." The planet will be fine. The planet doesn't give a f*** about us.We're just something that lives on it temporarily."...For those unfamiliar with it. Go to YouTube and check it out. Is george Carlin. Global warming and climate change were not the vernacular yet. Spot on and Is funny too.
Great article. Perhaps a chart graphing abortions, the formation of two income households and the closing of the gold window against birth rates is in order: Then we can blame Nixon and continue on our merry way.
No raging feminist here and certainly well aware of the Madison Avenue/ Hollywood driven campaign, now into a third generation, to affect a diminution of the role males play in our culture - but what of the current role of men today?
A well written and bravely submitted article Bill, but I sense the problem with low birth rates is not just one of women assuming the roles historically filled by men, but also of men assuming the role traditionally serve by women.
Like the all-male cast of an Elizabethan play, they even dress the part at times, with "manbuns" and "skinny-jeans", even as they desperately send counter signals with well coifed facial scruff and a sleeve of tattoos - but can they fix a leaky pipe? Hang in a relationship when the inevitable bad times arrive?
More importantly, are they capable of raising a child who can?
Let me be the first to offer up a solution. Give Mike Rowe a Cabinet level position in the next iteration of our Federal government, reinstate Shop class in our public schools and give real consideration to the ancillary benefits of bringing back the Draft.
"women are drawn to the White House like zombies to live flesh." Ouch. Apocalyptic metaphors aside, the rise and fall of civilizations and empires must occur like the endless formation and destruction of waves. As we advance we are fooled that the causes are new or more 'complex'. But it's the same old factors that lead to the demise or partial extinction event: hubris, greed, lust, power, cowardliness, tribalism, ignorance and lack of empathy. We all have the potential to be so much better. Thanks for the essay. Happy 4th.
Could the fact that the constant and wide spread of "bad news" available to almost everyone everywhere has discouraged many people from bringing a baby into this messy world? And yes, without a doubt so many women working outside the home has to be having a huge effect.
True, Mr. Frank. It was/is a PLAN with multiple areas of attack - the "Overpopulation" myth, the "Global Cooling/Global Warming/Climate Change" myths, the "Resource Scarcity" myth, the Homo/Trans myth, the "Feminism" myth, etc., etc.
All designed to discourage reproduction and more importantly, the Traditional Family unit.
That was good, wondering about an actuality. Trying to decipher human intentions and results.
A declining population is to my liking. It is not something I ever wanted to personally participate in.
When I yearned to settle down, around 32, I needed a wife, a partner. Everyone wanted a career. Marriage is a wonderful mystery, how two become one. Then there are those exasperating moments, just when you think it is all settled… you will argue over something trivial.
I remember going to a lecture, in 1971, by a woman, that said, “When women take their rightful place in politics they will create a better world.”
I just read Solzhenitsyn, he, like Voltaire, decided it was best to hoe your own little garden.
Solzhenitsyn postulates that the worst thing is all those postulating utopias.
It is an aberration of the human nature or else we got this looking for the Promised Land from the Jews.
I can attest, there is a wisdom to living, and it brings abundant happiness. Just contemplate life without an overtaxed mind, complete freedom from anxiety and fear; itfrees up space for the profound and beautiful.
I really can't imagine Kamala Harris being promoted to the democratic presidential nominee. She is more unlikable than Joe is demented... She would have a harder time getting votes than Joe. The most logical candidate is as been suggested Barack Obama running as Joe's VP. Kamala would take one for the team and step aside and allow Obama to be the VP on Joe's ticket. The democrats would sell it as the "democratic team" of Biden-Obama. This would all be sold as Obama being the back stop for Joe into his second term. It appears Obama can be appointed president for a 3rd term from VP to President but not elected for a 3rd term. This makes the most sense for the democrats to win the voters back after the abominable debate result last Thursday.
Barack Obama is not constitutionally qualified to be vice-president under Biden or any other President since he has already served 2 full terms as President. See the last sentence of the 12th Amendment.
Clever. If I'm hearing you correctly, that's because he was actually born in Kenya and we have yet to see definitive proof that is not true. Indeed, there are mounds of proof (videos and news reports) that he WAS born in Kenya, all published long before he made his Presidential aspirations known. The fact that he is a native African was TOUTED during the run-up to his Senatorial campaign...
Too many people on this planet as it is. And we're a murderous lot too
We are the first species on this planet to have attained the unilateral power to eradicate all other species at will. It's bad enough that hunters among us exult in killing for sport all manner of animals
But, foremost, we delight in killing each other. There has never been a time in recorded human history when one group of us hasn't waged war on another group.
Even now, we have a warrior king named Putin who is committed to take by force property belonging to another tribe
With the advent of AI and its merger with humanoid robots, they'll be a progressively diminishing need for humans.
Our species will endure but in vastly smaller numbers and only in zoos for the entertainment of our robot successors
The great turning point for humanity will occur when our robot warriors befriend our enemies robot warriors
Unfortunately, Putin isn't the problem. The overwhelming cause of the wars since Korea falls squarely on the U.S. Government and its military industrial complex. The U.S. has become an evil empire with corruption running wild. While the Government and Media try to paint the U.S. as the one's with white hats the exact opposite is true. There were NO WMD in Iraq, the U.S. overthrew the elected government in Ukraine in 2015 to put an ignore puppet in charge. And, the cost to us proles has been tremendous besides losing so many in these made-up wars. And, as they say - payback is a bitch and it is coming.
Want to or not.....it is coming. Mark Twain noted - "It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled." Ol' Samuel had a way with words
You didn't go back far enough. Our history dating to the first European immigrants is a history of murder, property theft and displacement of indigenous peoples.
It is estimated there were 3 to 18 million Native Americans when Jamestown and the Plymouth settlements were established.
What depredations we eventually employed did not kill Indians in the ensuing two centuries, the diseases we brought to North America did.
Recall, "The only good Indian is a dead Indian." For more evidence of our inherent disposition to hate and harm -- which makes us no different that any other thieving despot -- take a peak at USMC history, especially in the 19th century.
When doing so, keep in mind our elected officials authorized their activities. My point: We are a mean and murderous species
Jimm, you got to the nub of it with your last sentence. Previous sentences might have been lifted from Howard Zinn's execrable "history" book "A Peoples' History of the U.S." Native Americans were every bit as sadistic and vicious as any settlers. They also caused ecological mayhem by over fishing and harvesting, to say nothing of human sacrifice. Man's history is one of conquest. There are no "pure" societies.
"It's bad enough that hunters among us exult in killing for sport all manner of animals."
Give it a rest, Jimm. As I've pointed out in the past, you know absolutely nothing about wildlife management. Hunting is a crucial management tool, and without those hunters you would have an ecological nightmare in many places.
For your consideration, here is a recent story regarding the necessity of hunting.
In the last century, I was a crack shot with rifle and pistol. Have medals to prove it. I even had my pistol pull tweaked to make it hair trigger.
Last time I held a weapon was some years ago. It was a genuine musket. Always wanted to load and fire one. To my chagrin, my marksmanship was piss poor.
The only weapon I own is one that came with Lafayette when he first came to the US. It's a French musket made circa 1770 (certified). It saw service. Paid a pretty penny for it too.
Good sarcasm! I believe the hideous wildebeest, Angela Merkel, during a prank call she thought was real, admitted the agreement was to let Uraine re-arm.
Too many OLD people on the planet Jimm - and before long I predict that younger leaders will start seriously questioning why that is. Japan now has a 2:1 ratio of tax-payers to old age beneficiaries, from, I believe, 4:1 twenty odd years ago. That's not a sustainable trend. Actually, I think the narrative might already be getting shaped by the media. Have a listen to how often "he's too old" is getting kicked around with regard to Biden - and Trump to a lesser extent - compared to a few weeks ago. I'm not an ageist, well, I shouldn't be given my age, I'm just suggesting one of the possibilities when it comes to a dangerously out of whack demographic pyramid and having to watch JB prove it won't help
Good observation. It's one of the reasons Social Security is nearly exhausted.
When SS was created 85 years ago, it was intended to give dignity to the elderly in their last few years of life. No one expected life spans to increase
Foremost, when SS commenced, something like 24 workers effectively supported every elderly SS recipient. Today, the ratio is nearly one for one.
If I was a young person, then it wouldn't take much for me to realize SS is a giant Ponzi scheme that I don't want to fund
It's also tied up with the rather modern notion of retirement. Not that many years ago nobody retired expecting to live another 25-30 years; five/ten tops. Previous to that I think it was probably like: you were born, you worked in some capacity as soon as you were able, then you died. Not charming but that's how it was.
We can agree to disagree. It is clear you think you KNOW, but do you? Do you think Lee Harvey shot JFK? Do you believe the US had to intervene in Vietnam or the US was going to go communist? Do you believe Biden is sharp as a tack and ready for a 2nd term?
It may be clear to you that it is clear to Me. But i disagree. It does not matter what I think ,but what is ! This is what matters, even if You and I were not there.
‘The Price of Motherhood’
Written by someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.
Yes there are surely women(and men) who are not(were not) temperamentally cut out to raise children, but anyone who thinks that a corporate career is more fulfilling than family life and children is either ingnorant or a fool.
I totally agree … I’ve also noticed on many occasions that whatever a career woman achieves financially in life ends up in the hands of her sister who decided to raise a family instead of pursing a career - fulfilment and prosperity.
“A Brookings study came up with a total cost of $310,000 to raise a child to adulthood”. 🤔 This number is for our depleted middle class. Doesn’t include the taxes we pay to support the other half of the American population that produce nothing towards our economy nor society, other then reproducing more unproductive members of the democratic cult…
Hey now -
dey be voters, too...
Brother Starboard!!! Miss you bro! Where have you been? Hope all is well and welcome back!!!! Happy Independence Day Brother:)
Thanks for the sentiments my friend! All is well and God is Good!!
Hope you had a great holiday...
Mr. Star. I’ve not heard from you in quite some time. Nice to hear you are doing well!
Thanks Mr. Farmer!
Many women who forgo motherhood regret it later in life, as will the rest of us:
https://jdbreen.substack.com/p/the-birth-dearth?utm_source=publication-search
Thanks again, Bill. You’re essays are a highlight of my day.
Thank you JD! Always enjoy your brilliant, insightful, informative and honest writings! 🙏
Thank you, Steve. That’s very kind of you to say.
I read that, great!
Thank you very much.
Anyway, Wishing all a safe and happy Independence Day! I may not be happy with the current insanity happening in our country, but God knows I love her so!
Be thankful for what you have, and appreciate America for the wonderful life she has bestowed upon us all. Such a gift being born in this God Blessed country! So please Lord, continue blessing us, and give us the strength to fight the evil, and support the good, and continue to bless us with your love and guidance.
God Bless America, and those who fight for her!!!!
Steve. Your comment reminded me of a Dennis Prager remark: You may not always like your children but you’ll always love them. On a macro level, that sentiment also applies to the nation. Happy 4th! KJ
🙏🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Amen 🙏
I spend a lot more, sending my daughter to private nursery school to high school graduation, then private university. She graduated with a dual masters (she's smart but they kind of hand these out like popcorn today). What did my tenants receive for working so hard to foot the bill? She got married a year out of college, never worked in the field education provided. Instead she married at age 21 and produced 4 wonderful grandchildren. Her husband graduated MBA from the same university struggled to pay his college debt, working for others.
Dad stepped in and bought them a fixer upper house for cash, directing the two to cash him out in 6 months as the title was being conveyed to them free and clear.
Thankfully he went on to build out a franchise business, I was a 60% equity investor with a SBA loan.
My son attended the very same private nursery to high school educator. However, he did not take to rules and regulations and chose to enter the local blue ribbon public school. This created and interesting comparison. He did not want me to buy him a house, he has a lot more street smarts than both my daughter and her husband. I spent probably twice more on him through various sports endeavors. Currently he runs the sports program in a well heeled community to our north. They are both happy, and neither has move back home, nor would either be welcome to unless the world was ending. I'm a workaholic retirement was never in the cards, I will retire from contracting but only to have more time for other pursuits.
From my perspective college is a complete waste of time, I believe this is true for even the sciences.
My brother in law is a self taught (no college degree) in computer sciences and engineering. Currently his commercial automation business a one man endeavor grosses 10 million a year. Not bad for a very smart fellow who grew up on a farm.
I believe the economy has much to do with lower-than-normal birth rates, not to mention social pressure. I also believe women work so couples can afford a home, buy food, send Jake and Cindy to sports teams, take care of their elderly parents, or in our case pay for a disabled child’s enormous needs.
It is rarely to butt into a ‘man’s world’ just for the helluvit.
I remember as a kid in the 50s and 60s, the predominate idea was that as we became more and more productive, we would be able to work less and less while still improving our standard of living. Massive government intervention in our economy (mostly from regulations and taxes) put a stop to our progress. So, yes, more women had to go to work to maintain a standard of living. Of course, some women don't want children, some want careers, some want both. It is all good. They have a right to decide what they want to do. But the government has had an influence on these decisions by its involvement in the economy.
The population demographics are dismal for the planet. The only above replacement rate growth is the Mideast and Africa and furthermore in Muslim countries where the vast majority of those populations are brainwashed to kill all us infidels. Deep trouble for the next generations
True. But to paraphrase George Carlin." The planet will be fine. The planet doesn't give a f*** about us.We're just something that lives on it temporarily."...For those unfamiliar with it. Go to YouTube and check it out. Is george Carlin. Global warming and climate change were not the vernacular yet. Spot on and Is funny too.
Love that George Carlin bit about Earth not giving an F about us…:)
Great article. Perhaps a chart graphing abortions, the formation of two income households and the closing of the gold window against birth rates is in order: Then we can blame Nixon and continue on our merry way.
As long as one axis is the "normalization of relations with China"... :)
No raging feminist here and certainly well aware of the Madison Avenue/ Hollywood driven campaign, now into a third generation, to affect a diminution of the role males play in our culture - but what of the current role of men today?
A well written and bravely submitted article Bill, but I sense the problem with low birth rates is not just one of women assuming the roles historically filled by men, but also of men assuming the role traditionally serve by women.
Like the all-male cast of an Elizabethan play, they even dress the part at times, with "manbuns" and "skinny-jeans", even as they desperately send counter signals with well coifed facial scruff and a sleeve of tattoos - but can they fix a leaky pipe? Hang in a relationship when the inevitable bad times arrive?
More importantly, are they capable of raising a child who can?
Let me be the first to offer up a solution. Give Mike Rowe a Cabinet level position in the next iteration of our Federal government, reinstate Shop class in our public schools and give real consideration to the ancillary benefits of bringing back the Draft.
"women are drawn to the White House like zombies to live flesh." Ouch. Apocalyptic metaphors aside, the rise and fall of civilizations and empires must occur like the endless formation and destruction of waves. As we advance we are fooled that the causes are new or more 'complex'. But it's the same old factors that lead to the demise or partial extinction event: hubris, greed, lust, power, cowardliness, tribalism, ignorance and lack of empathy. We all have the potential to be so much better. Thanks for the essay. Happy 4th.
Finally, the truth on the matter, without politics, religion, or fear.
Thanks
Could the fact that the constant and wide spread of "bad news" available to almost everyone everywhere has discouraged many people from bringing a baby into this messy world? And yes, without a doubt so many women working outside the home has to be having a huge effect.
True, Mr. Frank. It was/is a PLAN with multiple areas of attack - the "Overpopulation" myth, the "Global Cooling/Global Warming/Climate Change" myths, the "Resource Scarcity" myth, the Homo/Trans myth, the "Feminism" myth, etc., etc.
All designed to discourage reproduction and more importantly, the Traditional Family unit.
Thanks Lefty scum and the RINOS who assist...
We are too busy spending ghost money to have children! Don't forget to vote!
That was good, wondering about an actuality. Trying to decipher human intentions and results.
A declining population is to my liking. It is not something I ever wanted to personally participate in.
When I yearned to settle down, around 32, I needed a wife, a partner. Everyone wanted a career. Marriage is a wonderful mystery, how two become one. Then there are those exasperating moments, just when you think it is all settled… you will argue over something trivial.
I remember going to a lecture, in 1971, by a woman, that said, “When women take their rightful place in politics they will create a better world.”
I just read Solzhenitsyn, he, like Voltaire, decided it was best to hoe your own little garden.
Solzhenitsyn postulates that the worst thing is all those postulating utopias.
It is an aberration of the human nature or else we got this looking for the Promised Land from the Jews.
I can attest, there is a wisdom to living, and it brings abundant happiness. Just contemplate life without an overtaxed mind, complete freedom from anxiety and fear; itfrees up space for the profound and beautiful.
I really can't imagine Kamala Harris being promoted to the democratic presidential nominee. She is more unlikable than Joe is demented... She would have a harder time getting votes than Joe. The most logical candidate is as been suggested Barack Obama running as Joe's VP. Kamala would take one for the team and step aside and allow Obama to be the VP on Joe's ticket. The democrats would sell it as the "democratic team" of Biden-Obama. This would all be sold as Obama being the back stop for Joe into his second term. It appears Obama can be appointed president for a 3rd term from VP to President but not elected for a 3rd term. This makes the most sense for the democrats to win the voters back after the abominable debate result last Thursday.
Barack Obama is not constitutionally qualified to be vice-president under Biden or any other President since he has already served 2 full terms as President. See the last sentence of the 12th Amendment.
Clever. If I'm hearing you correctly, that's because he was actually born in Kenya and we have yet to see definitive proof that is not true. Indeed, there are mounds of proof (videos and news reports) that he WAS born in Kenya, all published long before he made his Presidential aspirations known. The fact that he is a native African was TOUTED during the run-up to his Senatorial campaign...
Look! A Squirrel!!!
https://www.businessinsider.com/breitbartcom-1991-promotional-document-says-obama-was-born-in-kenya-2012-5
https://citizenwells.com/2009/10/16/obama-kenyan-born-june-27-2004-article-in-kenya-sunday-standard-newspaper-internet-scrubbing-ap-article-way-back-machine-internet-archives-obama-born-in-kenya-obama-not-natural-born-citizen/
https://www.scribd.com/document/21141411/Standard-Kenyan-Born-Obama-All-Set-for-US-Senate-6-27-04
Too many people on this planet as it is. And we're a murderous lot too
We are the first species on this planet to have attained the unilateral power to eradicate all other species at will. It's bad enough that hunters among us exult in killing for sport all manner of animals
But, foremost, we delight in killing each other. There has never been a time in recorded human history when one group of us hasn't waged war on another group.
Even now, we have a warrior king named Putin who is committed to take by force property belonging to another tribe
With the advent of AI and its merger with humanoid robots, they'll be a progressively diminishing need for humans.
Our species will endure but in vastly smaller numbers and only in zoos for the entertainment of our robot successors
The great turning point for humanity will occur when our robot warriors befriend our enemies robot warriors
Unfortunately, Putin isn't the problem. The overwhelming cause of the wars since Korea falls squarely on the U.S. Government and its military industrial complex. The U.S. has become an evil empire with corruption running wild. While the Government and Media try to paint the U.S. as the one's with white hats the exact opposite is true. There were NO WMD in Iraq, the U.S. overthrew the elected government in Ukraine in 2015 to put an ignore puppet in charge. And, the cost to us proles has been tremendous besides losing so many in these made-up wars. And, as they say - payback is a bitch and it is coming.
🤫 an Ol, most don’t want to hear the truth 🤔
Want to or not.....it is coming. Mark Twain noted - "It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled." Ol' Samuel had a way with words
You didn't go back far enough. Our history dating to the first European immigrants is a history of murder, property theft and displacement of indigenous peoples.
It is estimated there were 3 to 18 million Native Americans when Jamestown and the Plymouth settlements were established.
What depredations we eventually employed did not kill Indians in the ensuing two centuries, the diseases we brought to North America did.
Recall, "The only good Indian is a dead Indian." For more evidence of our inherent disposition to hate and harm -- which makes us no different that any other thieving despot -- take a peak at USMC history, especially in the 19th century.
When doing so, keep in mind our elected officials authorized their activities. My point: We are a mean and murderous species
Jimm, you got to the nub of it with your last sentence. Previous sentences might have been lifted from Howard Zinn's execrable "history" book "A Peoples' History of the U.S." Native Americans were every bit as sadistic and vicious as any settlers. They also caused ecological mayhem by over fishing and harvesting, to say nothing of human sacrifice. Man's history is one of conquest. There are no "pure" societies.
Cry harderer, Jimmy...
"It's bad enough that hunters among us exult in killing for sport all manner of animals."
Give it a rest, Jimm. As I've pointed out in the past, you know absolutely nothing about wildlife management. Hunting is a crucial management tool, and without those hunters you would have an ecological nightmare in many places.
For your consideration, here is a recent story regarding the necessity of hunting.
https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/michigan-officials-propose-new-hunting-regulations-residents-grapple-deer-overpopulation
How's this: ".... most hunters ...."
Still too broad. "A few hunters" would be more accurate.
I'll accept that only a few hunters are treading into the woods at considerable expense to perform public services by killing animals.
My point is our innate proclivity to kill. After all, everything we eat must first be killed
That may have been your point, but as usual you had to toss in a jab at hunting. I'm curious, Jimm, do you personally know anyone who hunts?
Jimmmm is a certified liberal. He knows everything about nothing…except things that really matter. He understands nothing about that🤔
Me, but long, long ago
In the last century, I was a crack shot with rifle and pistol. Have medals to prove it. I even had my pistol pull tweaked to make it hair trigger.
Last time I held a weapon was some years ago. It was a genuine musket. Always wanted to load and fire one. To my chagrin, my marksmanship was piss poor.
The only weapon I own is one that came with Lafayette when he first came to the US. It's a French musket made circa 1770 (certified). It saw service. Paid a pretty penny for it too.
If only Putin had stuck to the Minsk Agreements we'd all be a lot safer.
Putin stuck with the Minsk Agreements a lot longer than Ukraine did.
I totally agree. I was hoping that some others might realize it. Thanks for giving me hope!
Good sarcasm! I believe the hideous wildebeest, Angela Merkel, during a prank call she thought was real, admitted the agreement was to let Uraine re-arm.
Hi Tim -
You forgot the /s tag...
Too many OLD people on the planet Jimm - and before long I predict that younger leaders will start seriously questioning why that is. Japan now has a 2:1 ratio of tax-payers to old age beneficiaries, from, I believe, 4:1 twenty odd years ago. That's not a sustainable trend. Actually, I think the narrative might already be getting shaped by the media. Have a listen to how often "he's too old" is getting kicked around with regard to Biden - and Trump to a lesser extent - compared to a few weeks ago. I'm not an ageist, well, I shouldn't be given my age, I'm just suggesting one of the possibilities when it comes to a dangerously out of whack demographic pyramid and having to watch JB prove it won't help
Good observation. It's one of the reasons Social Security is nearly exhausted.
When SS was created 85 years ago, it was intended to give dignity to the elderly in their last few years of life. No one expected life spans to increase
Foremost, when SS commenced, something like 24 workers effectively supported every elderly SS recipient. Today, the ratio is nearly one for one.
If I was a young person, then it wouldn't take much for me to realize SS is a giant Ponzi scheme that I don't want to fund
It's also tied up with the rather modern notion of retirement. Not that many years ago nobody retired expecting to live another 25-30 years; five/ten tops. Previous to that I think it was probably like: you were born, you worked in some capacity as soon as you were able, then you died. Not charming but that's how it was.
I think You had better read more truthful history books, Not the one sided, but both sides.
We can agree to disagree. It is clear you think you KNOW, but do you? Do you think Lee Harvey shot JFK? Do you believe the US had to intervene in Vietnam or the US was going to go communist? Do you believe Biden is sharp as a tack and ready for a 2nd term?
It may be clear to you that it is clear to Me. But i disagree. It does not matter what I think ,but what is ! This is what matters, even if You and I were not there.