They probably did build it. It’s possible they sourced the necessary chips through intermediaries. Sanctions aren’t going to stop them from getting their hands on small batches.
Sanctions will prevent them from being able to do this at scale. They can’t source enough high end chips to really build out the infrastructure to take advantage of AI for their economy at large.
It is the same with automotive parts. Anything imported from China has at least a 40% markup before it is resold.
China has terrible demographics, a real estate mark that is in free fall, high debt, is the target of tariffs in every major economy and a domestic market that can’t consume what they produce.
Economically they are fucked unless the US and EU throw them a life line and allow them to dump products in their market again… which is not going to happen no matter which party is in control. The best they can hope for at this point is a Japanese style lost decade. But I doubt they can manage even that outcome.
Bottom line is the CCP will do whatever is in the best interest of the CCP staying in control of China. Even if that decision is terrible for China itself.
If they are backed into a corner it doesn’t matter that Taiwan is out of reach. All that matters is that the CCP stays in control.
That is what makes this next ten years very dangerous.
Those stances aren’t mutually exclusive. Both arguments can be right at the same time.
It’s going to be fun explaining to MAGA why electricity and Natural gas prices in the US rise dramatically in the next three years.
We have extremely low prices compared to the rest of the world mostly because a lot of our gas is kept domestically. Believe me energy companies would export if they could but we don’t have enough infrastructure to service the global market and the Biden administration has dragged its feet approving that infrastructure to keep prices low and satisfy environmentalists.
By promoting our domestic gas for export and removing regulations keeping export infrastructure from being built we will be raising our own prices at home…
Dumb fucks.
We are on the tail end of the crypto grift. Getting the largest country on earth to invest in Crypto is basically the last gasp before the bubble deflates and cleans all the suckers out.
Been done in El Salvador. This is going to be a grift on the US tax payer of EPIC proportions.
The great thing is, it is a race in which everyone wins!
Thank you Microsoft after being a windows user since the 3.1 days your recent changes to Windows makes me happy to announce I bought my first MAC.
Here are the pills.
I also have a few vials of liquid iodine. But it is harder to dose properly.
Unless you are directly in the path of very recent fall out (within 8 days) as an adult those pills probably won’t do much for you. By the time you start seeing the effects of radiation you’ll be in your 70s.
If you have to ration iodine pills prioritize kids and teenagers and young adults. They would live long enough after the event to deal with cancer and its affects.
Iodine like salt is a mineral. It won’t ever “go bad” but the USDA requires that you put expiration dates on consumables.
I have several packets of iodine pills they don’t cost much and I keep them with my bug out bag.
Keep forming that circular firing squad.
I’m going to slip out and duck down over here to eat some popcorn.
Absolutely, but I’d rather deal with something that has widespread manufacturer and user support.
While I think there is lots of support for Linux, and I could figure it out. I don’t perceive that it is as wide spread as Mac OS.
Long story short I’m paying for the convenience.
Not really, Demographics is the fundamental reason why you are seeing tariff’s come back in vogue. People under 45 are the main consumers of goods as they are establishing households, raising kids etc etc. The population of Millennials and Gen Z across the globe is not large enough and is not forming households fast enough to consume and/or support the production capacity that we are capable of.
This is why China is seeking to export their way out of their current economic crisis. The population of Chinese 40 and younger is much smaller and shrinking at the fastest rate in history, even faster than Japans population in the 90’s. They don’t have enough consumers to buy the things they are making. They need foreign markets to maintain their industrial base and export their way out of the financial crisis they are facing.
Europe also has varying degree’s of the same issue. The Millennial and Gen Z populations are much smaller than older populations meaning that they also can not consume the products they are making.
The US and North America as a whole is the only major “rich” market that has a large Gen Z and Millennial population that can replace the boomers. The US (and most of the world by extension) has seen the risks of putting all of your production in one basket (China) during covid and is seeking to build out it’s industrial base in North America to home shore much of it’s production and logistical chain. The Inflation reduction act was pivotal to starting this process. It’s expensive and will take a few decades to complete. However North America can’t build out its industrial base if China and to a much lesser extent Europe dump products on our markets. Hence tariff’s and trade disputes.
I don’t think Trump is going to put sky high tariffs on Mexico, Canada, they are critical trade partners and are essential to building out our industrial capacity in North America. But I do think he is looking for concessions from them. During Trumps first term he renegotiated NAFTA, essentially putting same agreement in place with a few small tweaks and called it his own. I think he will do the same here.
Europe is a different story, the US doesn’t need them to build out our industrial base. The US wants to protect Boeing and a few key industries so I expect there to be some conflict and even a trade war to get them.
China is a different story, I don’t think anyone from either party want to do business with them. The US through two separate administrations has been kneecapping their economy since the end of the Obama era. High tariff’s from the US and Europe will essentially strangle their economy and put the final nail in their coffin. They would never make the leap to an advanced economy or get out of their current financial crisis.
At the same time I think high tariff’s on China would also increase the chances that we will see some kind of direct conflict over Taiwan in the next ten years. If China see’s that their economy and production capacity is going to nose dive over the next decade then the calculus for making a attempt at reunification becomes much different.
In the near term, prices are going up. Consumers who voted Trump looking for cheap gas and eggs are going to get fucked.
Greedflation worked because the consumer could absorb price increases to a certain extent after Covid.
While greedflation will be a factor this time around. I don’t think it will be as prominent as it was post covid. The consumer is tapped out and is just not buying anymore. People are not going to buy electronics at 60% or higher prices. They will go cheap or just do without.
Trump is either using the threat of tariffs as a negotiating tactic to get something out of our trade partners or Trump will repeat history and be like Hoover. We’ll have a stock market drop, rampant stagflation and a Recession / Depression on his watch.
No, they will learn nothing because Fox News, X and right wing propaganda they listen to is very effective at shifting blame or brushing problems under the rug.
If we want to change their minds we need to pierce their information bubble that insulates them from their decisions.
Lol, this thread is a train wreck and is the perfect example of why Republicans keep winning elections despite being on the wrong side of history and having policies that hurt the American population at large.
The left will never win as long as we form circular firing squads and argue over petty bullshit.
I’ve considered Linux. I work in IT and I know I could figure it out and adapt to it. The problem is my kids and my wife would also need to use it.
To give you some perspective on my decision making process. My wife (who is of the age where she really should be able to figure tech out.) can’t seem to figure out how to print from her phone and complained about how difficult IOS is compared to Android when we switched a few years ago. My kids run to me for all things tech and I usually have to figure out their problems. I’m always genuinely surprised my teenage son hasn’t made an effort to hack the application which restricts his time and access to his gaming computer (I would be secretly proud of him if he did).
So for my own piece of mind I’ll pay the 2x multiple for Apple hardware just so I don’t have to deal with learning a new OS while my family comes to me for basically every tech issue.
Being against the US’s oppressive imperialism doesn’t mean support for other, equally oppressive imperialist countries.
True statement but what you support and how you feel don’t mean very much on the global world stage.
You don’t seem to be able to grasp that nature and politics abhor a vacuum. As soon as the USA leaves the world stage (or more likely a few select regions that don’t fit with a multi-polar strategy) another power will move in to fill the void. Most likely Russia and/or China…
You’ve described my limited FB experience. After refusing to join FB since the 00s, I joined FB a few years ago to get better access to the Marketplace. (Craigslist has gone to shit).
I joined a few groups that interested me and then the constant political bombardment started in the more mainstream groups.
Small niche FB groups are a night and day difference compared to some of the more contemporary groups I’ve seen.
Bot algorithms definitely target large groups with lots of activity. The resulting increased activity due to algorithms just amplify it further.
I just try to stick to my smaller groups to avoid all the mess.