Common sense is not common at all.

Today's Tids Issue 4.521

Free Trade Rocks:

Economists have trouble placing a value on intrinsic satisfactions. That means that data often pushes decisions towards money rather than emotional comforts.

Tis a beautiful, icily cold day outside this fine morn; the air is fresh and crystal clear. And millions of Americans will be snuggled inside by the TV. Unless there is more than has been leaked or revealed, it appears it could be boring viewing. (This not a comment on guilt or innocence, this is a comment on theatrical performance.)  And maybe all the Dems want is theater, to set the stage for the coming election year.

Necks are basally wrists for our heads.

The Libs just seem to hate American holidays. It appears now they are going after the most docile and lovely of them all, Thanksgiving. Yes, that American day of Thanks. I guess the left sees one way of beating down a successful society is by eliminating proud traditions. How can you hate Thanks? But the haters will always find a way to bolster their intolerance.

How can you not like Kelly Clarkson? She makes me chuckle, makes me smile; makes me feel the world is good.

CNN has a guide out – “How to watch the hearings”. My suggestion: Don’t tune in to CNN for fair-minded opinions.

The Four-day work week proposal under the guise of giving people more time for their families is more than likely an economic strategy to give more people more time to to consume things – the essence of the USA economy.

The Question:

Who said: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.” a. Mark Twain   b. Aristotle   c. Ben Franklin   d. Abe Lincoln   Bonus: There will be many an old Disney film to choose from with the debut of the Micky Mouse streaming channel. Name four of classical music pieces used in Fantasia. Extra Bonus: Who was Fantasia’s music director, conductor, and to whom was he married?

The Headlines:

--It’s I-Day On TV.

--Dow Pops After Powell Testimony; Trumps Trade Remarks Yesterday Failed To Move The Needle; Wealthy Investors Hoarding Cash.

--Newly Tested China Submarine Missiles Capable Of Reaching USA; US Sub Missile Range Still Superior, But…

--Amazon Beefs Up Mainstream Grocery Assets, Ramping Up For Delivery Wars.

--Condoleezza Rice Says Giuliani’s Ukraine Involvement Troubling; US Rep Connelly Says Dems Have Smoking Gun.

--Early Indicators Say SC Likely To End DACA.

The Voice went live Monday and among my favorites were without question Katie Kadan, Max Boyle, Joana Martinez, Hello Sunday and Jake Hoot. Of those who I’d like to see continue but a fell short are Gracee Shriver and Jake HaldenVang.  Also talented are Rose Short, Kat Hammock, Mary Beth Byrd, Alex Guthrie and Khalea Lynee. Shane Q, probably a judge favorite didn’t live up to his earlier efforts, ditto Cali Wilson. Obviously, there were other good singers, but I sometimes become disillusioned by monotonous song choice.

So how did things shake out in the big cutdown results show last north. Well, my big disappointment was the voter elimination of Hello Sunday, who I just enjoy watching and would like to see continue just for entertainment sake. Hey wait, New Flash: Hello Sunday got the Instant Voter save!, After a sing off with Alex Guthrie, Jake HaldenVang and Gracee Shriver. So, I lost Gracee, who I also enjoyed. The voters saved Ricky Duran, Kat Hammock, Rise Short, Joana Martinez, Max Boyle, Jake Hoot, Katie Kadan and Marybeth Byrd. Blake saved Cali Wilson, Gwen - Myracle Holloway, Kelly -Shane Q and John - Will Breman. To me, Kelly Has the Best team. The top vote getters were Katie, Max and Marybeth.

I was reminded of one of my favorite food treats of yore this icy morn. Cinnamon rollups. Yup ole Mom used to take scraps of pie crusts and roll them back into a flat sheet, slather it with butter, and top that with a mix of sugar and cinnamon (4 tbs Sug, 1 ¼ tsp Cin), then cut it into inch and half strip snag roll them up. She baked them for 8-10 mins at 375.

Slather is a great word.

As we have heard often we have a trade deficit. Really, that’s not all bad as consumers generally get more from imports than exports. What worries me about the trade imbalance is that t e strongest sector of US exports is services. Services and not produced goods. Services typically have a lower cost of entry and can be more easily replicated in customer countries. And with the rate of digital innovation, perhaps replicate faster than ever.

Economists agree that Americans get more from Imports than exports. And it is certainly better for lower income families who will a broad array of lower cost goods. I agree. A good example is that here in RI we export our shoreline to tourists and the residents lose easy access to their own beaches.

Sean Spicer lost out on DWTS this week. The judges can go back into their general all-around annoying mode without worrying about how a guy they viscerally hate got so far.

Foreign trade helps poor countries get rich fast, that is, if they put in good rules to prevent corruption.

I have said her that I at one point would have enjoyed being an economist. I like the idea of creating theories that can go one way or another. A smart economist always establishes a hedge edge. So, I like what Harry Truman once said: “Give me a One-armed economist”. He was referring to economists known for saying, “On one had we have this and on the other hand we have that.”

A local Dem former US Congress person from all dem all the time Rhode Island said this morning that unless the Dems can get a handful of Repubs to join their crusade, this impeachment is going nowhere

The tombstone for Washington Irving’s napper reads, R.I.P. Van Winkle.

I think ending DACA could be a mess. It’s the hold toothpaste out of the tube thing. It’s about good people who have done well under a law that perhaps should never have been. So, now what?

The Answer:

I’m sure you all picked (c.) – Ben Franklin. Bonus: Beethoven’s Symphony #6 was my favorite. The nutcracker suite was prominent as was Bach’s Toccata and Fugue. Night on bald Mountain was scary, but was softened by Schubert’s Ave Maria. And the Sorcerers Apprentice was Micky at his finest. Extra Bonus: Conductor and music orchestrator Leopold Stokowski was married to the Mom of CNN’s Anderson Cooper – Gloria Vanderbilt.

I wonder what it would be like to be the guy who actually did forget how to ride a bike.