Trump has not relented on steel tariffs. What makes people feel comfortable that he doesn't want more tariffs? He thinks both parties are like sharks in the water, wanting to draw blood through tariffs.

One of your best, Marc. The insanity of getting state owned enterprises to pull out of the Chinese economy, when their participation has lifted millions of Chinese out of poverty, is pure American insanity. The US is trying to manage capacity utilization in China. That is truly invasive. Meanwhile Huawei is not permitted to sell to the west. China really should go on its own, with the rest of the world. after Trump slaps massive tariffs on Europe, that union will see who is really making trouble for the world. Us!

For Trump to want a deal he will have to go against Navarro and Lighthouser. Are you comfortable that Trump will do that?

Now, not wasting energy is just utopia? I disagree. But big biz often locates in the heart of high prices because that is where the skilled workers are, making it worse.

Phil, it is starting to look like your confidence in Trump is misplaced. But you are a diehard.

Or, you could consider that central banking has been couched in a capitalist setting. I think it is a stretch for Mises to say that central banking is communism. There is always a danger of totalitarian possibility with central banking, in such concepts as Cashlessness.

Great article. The Chinese economic miracle could have benefited the USA more, but apparently the US doesn't want good Chinese equipment that is cheaper and superior being sold into the US market. But Trump wants China to open up. What a joke.

Well, monopolies are happening and they are keeping wages down. So, Marx wasn't stupid. His solution is unworkable of course. But it isn't like he didn't understand things like the fake economy, fake assets, that drive trading and profits on Wall Street. I don't know if Marx saw that bonds are gold but I bet that was happening back then too. Debt as gold is definitely contrived, as other forms of value are diminished in comparison.

Very interesting article. The problem is that Republican trickle down can only work during certain times. It worked for Reagan. It failed for Trump, Hoover and W Bush. There is an economic reason for this, yet the Republicans push trickle down regardless of sound economics. The politics of Republican capitalism is as goof ball as the politics of far left socialism. It is all goofy. Here is the bottom line, if productivity growth is not occurring, don't practice supply side economics, period! talkmarkets.com/.../trickle-down-didnt-work-for-trump-bush-and-hoover-heres-why

I just wonder how long before a protracted recession makes Italy give up on the Eurozone or if the situation can stabilize before then.