That's a data point in isolation. You haven't heard the alternate explanation for those things so it's natural that you would see those as justifying your worldview - that is exactly how good propaganda works.

Look up Russian military tactics, going back 80 years. They use the attrition model of combat. They send overwhelming numbers (using their most expendable soldiers and equipment) knowing that statistically an opponent of even half the population cannot win against those tactics (this is well established military doctrine in the US as well, btw). In the West we don't consider such tactics ethical but they do in Russia.

If you don't believe me go look up Russian losses in WW2, Afghanistan, Syria, etc. They all used the same tactics.

I want you to keep this conversation in the back of your mind for a few months from now. You will be confused how Ukraine "suddenly" lost. The MSM will have an explanation for it that you will likely buy into. Think about how I know all this before it's happened.

Couldn't agree more. Government being a necessary evil that needs to be as impotent as possible seems to be the only valid take.

That is the exact propaganda I am talking about. It's not actually true. But that very propaganda helps feed the narrative needed to keep supporting Ukraine financially.

If you don't believe me then set a reminder for yourself a year from now when Russia mysteriously emerges as the victor.

All currencies are highly manipulated speculative assets (George Soros famously got rich by playing the GBP).

The only difference right now is that cryptocurrencies aren't treated as currencies...yet.

The US military hegemony is only as strong as its ability to fund that. Just printing an extra trillion dollars or so in a year has nearly broke the entire domestic economy, there's no way the US could mount a multi-front war at the moment.

Not to mention that such a conflict would rapidly increase the speed of adoption of US-alternate currency options.

Europe was never the threat to the USD, it's moreso players interested in subverting the petrodollar (some of the BRICS countries and players in the Middle East). Without the petrodollar the inherent faith that props up the USD as a global reserve vanishes.

Russia is far from crushed, be mindful of propaganda. The real variable is whether or not China chooses to ally with them as part of an anti-Western axis or chooses to betray them while they're vulnerable.

> You are getting engineers, doctors, professors

Tell me you know nothing about US immigration without telling me you know nothing about US immigration.

> the "unproductive people" are the privileged white demographic

The Left sure does a great job proving they are anti-racist people who care about the little guy....oh wait

>you are exactly the lazy, privileged, misinformed idiot

You got literally everything wrong. You are a white guy who has enough disposable income to mess with options trading.

The amount of irony here is palpable.

It's worth reminding everyone that inflation is a YOY rate of change metric. If everything goes up 10% in year one and then another 5% year two, the reported inflation rate will be 5% despite everything having gone up 15.5% in two years.

With enough time inflation will eventually "come down" so a decreasing number is misleading with regards to how much stuff increased in cost.

> for now, USA can still fill it with immigration, and then the right-wing nuts lose their minds without seeing the bigger picture

There's a touch of irony here. There's an even bigger picture you're not considering here that the "right wing nuts" are in the right about; longer term downward pressures on wages due to infinite labor supply, elimination of whole sectors of industry, as well as strain placed on social systems by importing net unproductive people. The immigration system in the US does not select for the best and brightest globally, unlike immigration systems in most other countries.

Comparative advantage needs to be held up against localized losses. It doesn't matter to the unemployed that everything is 10% cheaper when their jobs are eliminated and there's no path to retraining.

People worried about the longterm survival of the USD. It's status as the global reserve currency has never been threatened to the degree it's at today.