Independent thinking for complex markets and current events
TRUMP: We have a ballroom that's under budget. It's going up right here. I've doubled the size of it because we obviously need that. REPORTER: The price doubled TRUMP: I doubled the size of it, you dumb person. You are not a smart person. pic.twitter.com/6f4acQshov — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 12, 2026 This vanity project …
🇮🇷 The Strait of Hormuz closure is forcing cargo ships to reroute around Africa. Journeys are now 3x longer (up to 60 days) and 4x costlier. Nearly 2,000 vessels were trapped. Only a trickle is getting through now, and Iran is charging fees and imposing security rules on… https://t.co/LpVMhHqFOP pic.twitter.com/nMcYQdXKch — Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) March …
By Peter Reagan There are a few ways economists try to measure how the economy is doing. Gross domestic product is the one you’ll hear about most often. It gets reported, revised, debated – and then repeated as shorthand for “everything is fine.” But if you’ve ever stood in a grocery aisle lately or looked …
The cost of living in America has reached a breaking point — and the numbers prove it. In this video, real Americans share what financial stress actually looks like in 2026. A household earning nearly $30,000 a month that still feels broke. An ER doctor making $2,600 every two weeks whose rent alone costs $2,200. …
Wholesale inflation is climbing faster than economists expected. Producer prices for final demand increased 0.7 percent in February, the largest monthly gain in seven months. Both goods and services contributed to the surge, pushing the overall index above forecasts and signaling that higher costs are moving through the supply chain. Prices excluding food and energy …
Spending per homeless person since 2019:NYC +187%, SF +190%, PDX +430%, LA +480%. Average: +320 Floor estimates. Homeless pop over same period: +13% Spending up ~320%. Problem up ~13%. pic.twitter.com/tW2pBan5rY — Charlie Smirkley (@charliesmirkley) March 16, 2026 Portland: ~$18K per homeless person in 2019. ~$95K in 2024. +430%. Homeless pop: essentially flat. Deaths of homeless …
Something uncomfortable is starting to show up across several economic headlines at the same time. Fuel prices are climbing again. According to data from AAA, the national average price of gasoline has surged to roughly $3.43 per gallon, after sitting around $2.97 just a week earlier. That is a jump of nearly 50 cents in …
Iran: 1,255 killed, 12,000 injured. Lebanon: 394 killed, 1,000+ injured. Israel: 13 killed, nearly 2,000 injured. Kuwait: 6 killed, dozens injured. All Americans. UAE: 4 killed, 112 injured. Saudi Arabia: 2 killed, 12 injured. Bahrain: 1 killed, 40 injured. Jordan: 14 injured. Qatar: 16 injured. Oman: 1 killed, 5 injured. Iraq: 6 killed, dozens injured. …
The Defense Department won’t say how much Operation Epic Fury might cost, but one bipartisan think tank is putting the price tag at some $891 million a day for the first four days of the attack — or $3.7 billion total. The Center for Strategic and International Studies says the eye-popping numbers are due largely …
The headlines say inflation is cooling. The official number now sits around 2.4% year over year, the slowest pace since mid-2025, and many economists are celebrating it as proof that price pressures are fading. But if you dig beneath that single number, something very different is happening. And it is not small. It is massive. …
The ongoing war with Iran could cost Israel an estimated NIS 9.4 billion (USD 3 billion approximately) per week under current restrictions on economic activities, the Israeli Finance Ministry has warned. The ongoing war with Iran could cost Israel an estimated NIS 9.4 billion (USD 3 billion approximately) per week under current restrictions on economic …
The cost of living in the United States has reached a point where millions of Americans are making a decision that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. They’re leaving. Not on vacation, not temporarily, but for good. From young couples working multiple jobs just to stay afloat, to retirees on fixed incomes …
Mac10 @SuburbanDrone Middle East analysts are saying that Iran regretted having agreed to the ceasefire last June 2025, because they feared that it would embolden Israel and the U.S. to attack again. And they were right. So in the meantime they prepared for a long-term war of attrition. And this time they have no intention …
Can they prove they didn’t pass the cost to customers????? — CV Investments (@cv_investments) February 26, 2026 Per Grok: The refunds (plus interest) go to the importers who paid the duties to U.S. Customs—they’re the legal payers entitled to relief after the SCOTUS ruling that the IEEPA tariffs were unauthorized. The process (via Court of …
That question was put directly to four major AI platforms as part of a methodological exercise on how AI models respond under pressure. The Jerusalem Post is not predicting military action. One question keeps coming up in newsrooms, on social media, and in private conversations as tensions build – when will the United States strike …
INSANE! A woman heading to New York for one night is booking a hotel stay and sharing a breakdown of the cost—including all taxes and fees—for just a single-night stay. pic.twitter.com/azoYfOP4i8 — Breaking911 (@Breaking911) February 19, 2026
EVs Become New Affordability Play: Buy Used, Three Years Old, Save 50% https://t.co/4EbHqPdtYc — zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 16, 2026 Electric car affordability remains out of reach for many consumers because these vehicles still cost more than petrol-powered cars, with average transaction prices for a new EV in August 2025 at about $57,000. Still, some buyers …
NEW: Trump is apparently planning to significantly increase deportations! DHS just bought another massive warehouse intended to expand detention capacity for illegal aliens. Local Democrats are already trying to stop the plans, but ICE is in compliance with the law. Illegals… pic.twitter.com/qkJpYnHP2x — Wall Street Mav (@WallStreetMav) February 16, 2026 Factcheck: Based on recent reports …
Government overspending has an unintended consequence that rarely gets mentioned: It quietly strips away our options. As debt grows, interest costs crowd out options – leaving fewer ways to meet obligations. This is what happens next… By Peter Reagan It never ceases to amaze me how often big decisions are judged only by their short-term …
Amazon shares sunk more than 9% on Friday after the company’s hefty spending forecast surprised investors who were already wary that the artificial intelligence boom is at risk of becoming a bubble. The e-commerce company on Thursday was the latest tech giant to announce plans for a massive increase in capital expenditures, after Google parent …
President Trump referred to Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) as a “moron” at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington on Thursday. “He’s an automatic no. No matter what,” Trump said, referencing Massie’s opposition to past legislation pushed by the president and other Republicans. “If we did welfare reform, if we did the greatest thing in the …
via Raisin Box Whistle Full Per-State Breakdown Below is a detailed breakdown for all 50 states based on 2022 data. States are classified as red or blue using the 2024 presidential election outcomes (Trump-won states = red; Harris-won states = blue). The table includes: • Population: July 1, 2022 Census estimate. • Per Capita Welfare: Nominal public …
its giving: pic.twitter.com/OPb2FNvqhs — st3ph (@st3phdoteth) January 19, 2026
2025 treated the market well. What a great year for stocks. S&P 500 +16.9%Dow +13.5%Nasdaq +20.8%Russell 2000 +11.3% The recipe for a great year for #stocks =The AI BoomResilient (higher income) consumersCost cuttingGood supply chain management to minimize tariffs… pic.twitter.com/YLMOg7Sh6m — Heather Long (@byHeatherLong) December 31, 2025 Today, both of our independent measures of inflation, …
64% of Americans are buying less food just to get by. A third are skipping meals entirely. People are refusing ambulances and avoiding doctors because they literally cannot afford to survive. This is not a fringe issue. This is the majority of the country struggling to afford the basics while being told the economy is …
Pfizer is in the midst of an aggressive, multi-year cost-cutting effort, which so far has left nearly 2,000 people jobless. Pfizer will part ways with more than 200 employees across Switzerland as part of continuing effort to slow its cash burn, according to a Wednesday report from Bloomberg. After the layoffs, the pharma expects its …
by Michael Do you remember all of those people over the years that warned us that the cost of living would eventually spiral out of control? It turns out that they were right. Our leaders flooded the system with trillions upon trillions of new dollars, and now we have a real life nightmare on our hands. …
For nearly two decades the U.S. government spent a breathtaking $145 billion on a failed plan to rebuild Afghanistan and at least $26 billion of it was lost to waste, fraud and abuse, according to the final report published by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR). The United States also left behind over …
TIM POOL SAYS SHOW MAY END ON DECEMBER 19TH AFTER HIS PROPERTY WAS SHOT UP: “THE COST IS NO LONGER JUST MONEY” Tim revealed his show may be coming to an end following escalating threats and a shooting at his West Virginia property: “One thing is clear. The violence will get worse. It is going …
JUST IN: Amazon launches its new Trainium3 AI chip to rival Nvidia and Google, and says it’s more "cost effective" than Nvidia's. The Trainium3 chip has up to 4.4× higher performance and 4× more memory bandwidth. byu/TonyLiberty inFluentInFinance Amazon stock surged after the tech giant unveiled its new in-house AI chip, Trainium3. The company claims …