Equifax

To weigh in a bit late - the Equifax data breach. Jesus. And the elites wonder why no one trusts them and why we have Trump. There are many terrible things about it, the two most egregious being, they knew about the breach for months and didn't tell anyone and major executives sold stock in advance of the public knowing. We're locking up young drug dealers instead of people like this in America and that's a travesty.

But the problem runs deeper. To buy a home, rent an apartment, get a car loan, etc...in other words, to live and function in America today, one is REQUIRED to deal with credit agencies. Let's be clear: in any practical sense, the American consumer/citizen had no choice in the matter. And all that data is stolen. Personally, we are all a tad responsible for collectively going along with the digitalization of all the world's information. I can remember a time when people were afraid to provide their information online (which turned out to be a correct instinct), nevertheless our tech overlords developed systems to give the illusion of security and coerced the joe average consumer to go along. And I say coerced because if you've ever tried to deal with customer service of nearly any company, you will notice it very difficult to find a phone number or navigate a phone system to get help. This is on purpose. They want us online to reduce labor costs and reduce rental/property costs of supplying retail consumer goods. But I digress. The larger point is that no one seems to be manning the ship in American today and so why are people surprised the public reacted with a big fuck you with the election of Trump?

You want people to respect norms, the leadership in the country needs to do the same. But if you look around everywhere, it feels like respectable leadership has gone by the wayside. I say don't piss on the people's shoes and tell them it's raining.

A Good Reading of Trump

By David Brooks.

Donald Trump came into a segmenting culture and he is further tearing apart every fissure. He has a nose for every wound in the body politic and day after day he sticks a red-hot poker in one wound or another and rips it open.

Maybe I should have a stronger opinion one way or the other, but I'm not terribly sure the meritocratic culture is worth preserving. I guess it all depends on what replaces it.

Why They Knelt

Article makes a good case for the NFL players kneeling.

In the space of less than 24 hours this weekend, the president of the United States did more to politicize sports than ESPN has done in a decade of biased, progressive programming. He singled out free speech he didn’t like, demanded that dissenters be fired, and then — when it became clear that private American citizens weren’t going to do what he demanded — he urged the economic boycott of their entire industry.

Let me be clear: I don't like what Trump did because it undermines the culture of free speech. But...

a) Trump stands to benefit from taking the position he has. Kaepernick, by his stupidity to begin kneeling, started a vague protest that allows a doofus like Trump to be the one to defend American symbols.

b) Trump stole his play/demand from the Liberals playbook to go after people's jobs when they do something they disagree with. I hate it when both sides do it, and I find it quite hypocritical for Liberals to claim "free speech" with respect to kneeling for the anthem when they are willing to censor free speech whenever it suits them.

I hope this all goes away soon, although I doubt it will. I should stop writing about it because this is a race to the bottom and a waste of time.

Chiefs-Chargers Game / Anthem Protests, Etc.

I went at the Stubhub center yesterday. Great stadium to watch a game. Tiny - roughly 25K people. All seats are great seats. I hadn't been to an NFL game in ages. Atmosphere different from other sports - much more drinking, partying, more middle class, diverse crowd. My friend commented there was a much larger range of "looks" than at other LA sporting events. By that he meant, there were a lot of ugly people and a lot of hot people.

Too much sun at the game - a bit too hot. But other than that, a quite cool experience. All the fans were saying the same. Shorter lines to get food and beer. People were really liking it.

As for protests, etc. Here's what I noticed being on the ground. The Chiefs ran out of the tunnel. About 10 or so players went to the end zone and kneeled toward the flag in advance of the national anthem and then everyone stood during the anthem itself. One SD charger knelt during the anthem. It was a funny thing to see in person - a stadium of 25K people standing. 100+ people on both sides of the field standing, and this one guy kneeling. It put things in perspective. Let the guy kneel if he wants. Who cares, right? It really felt that way - small. I think it's the TV cameras pointed on the guy and the echo chamber than expands the discussion way out of proportion.

That said, there was an annoying fan behind me yelling "Stand Up!" "Stand Up!" It was unpleasant, but again, one guy. Apparently at other stadiums there was more kneeling and more booing, and no one totally seems to understand why some are kneeling and why people are booing.

Here's a thought I have for both sides that I recognize will be unwelcome by each.

For the Protesters:

A lot of pro-protesters are saying: don't you understand, this isn't about protesting America, the flag, or the national anthem: it is about protesting police brutality. If so, maybe you are picking the wrong way to express yourself, because this is not what the audience is hearing. Also, I think you ought to talk amongst yourselves because I actually think a good number of you are protesting the USA. A good number of you are taking the Ta nehisi Coates position, which is that the country is fundamentally flawed and doomed and must be resisted. It's nihilism repackaged with a racial element. This is an incredibly unpopular and wrongheaded position and will lead to much misery on all sides.

Oh, and also, you are getting trolled by a grandmaster and falling into his traps. The best way to deal with trolls is to ignore them.

For the Anthem-Insisters:

I would suggest relaxing. If a few folks want to kneel, let them. This is not a big deal. Do not insist someone must stand - you are becoming an authoritarian and a thug if you do. Try and enjoy football and not make the choice to kneel more than it is. As for the NFL, I would try to come up with a clear rule about what is expected, run it by the players, teams, etc., and great broad sign off. This way, people know whether they are breaking the rule or not and what to expect. A lot of this stems from lack of clarity and leadership from the NFL.

Trump jumping into the fray is entirely un-Presidential, but is very Trumpian. This guy is a trolling grandmaster. I mean, he's got his opponents protesting the Nation Anthem.

Trump Has Already Won This Round

He's put himself into the position where his opponents are against the National Anthem and he gets to defend it.

I'm sure Sun Tze says something about how the battle is won or lost in the planning stage. I don't see what constitutes victory for those protesting the anthem. The Left, as David Frum has pointed out, should be draping themselves in the flag and not allowing their opponents to take the so called "patriotic" position. This is marching to Moscow in the winter.

Prediction

The NFL will be over before Kaepernick and his fellow protestors will get whatever they are asking for.

Or maybe that's the point?

Hypocrisy

Matt Damon advocates for public school, but sends his to private school.

Rich liberals are quick to criticize a variety of policies that don't affect them because they are insulated by wealth. Here are three:

1) gentrification
2) aggressive policing
3) immigration

Rich liberals live in places that were gentrified in the distant past. They live in places that via gentrification, design, and security measures are safe enough to not presently need aggressive policing. They live in places that new immigrants cannot afford, so it puts them in no competition for resources like jobs, schools, hospitals, etc. In fact, they probably enjoy the benefits of cheaper construction, gardening, and daycare wages driven down by competition.

Alex Smith

All the talk is how good he's playing and how he added the deep ball to his repertoire. He is playing well. Question: is he playing better than he has in the past? Rich Gannon thinks not. Tony Gonzales thinks so.

I've observed this guy since day 1. I wanted the Niners to move on from him at times. I've written him off as a bust. But he won me back over playing for Harbaugh and in the playoff game against the Saints.

Here is the difference between Smith this year and before: weapons. He has Hunt, Kelce, and Hill. Who is the best receiver Smith's played with in the past? Michael Crabtree (a good #2, but not a deep threat), Anquan Boldin (a possession receiver), Jeremy Maclin (a solid #2, possession guy), Dwyane Bowe (should be a #2). The real difference is Hill - a guy that puts the defense on their heels. A true threat. Smith has NEVER had a receiver of that caliber before. Let's see what he does with it.

As for Smith's so called poor play in the playoffs. His record is 2-4, but his QB rating is higher than Tom Brady and top 10 all time.

Game 1 - Win. Niners-Saints. Smith led a receiver less Niners team to two major scores in a shootout against the Saints. One of my favorite victories of the Harbaugh era.

Game 2 - Loss. Niners-Giants in the NFC Championship. This was a rough game in OT against the eventual Super Bowl champions where the punt returner botched the kick. Smith did have multiple opportunities to drive the team down to victory and failed, but we literally had no receivers against a very strong Giants defense. If Williams doesn't botch the punt, maybe the Niners win the Super Bowl that year.

Game 3 - Loss. Kansas City-Colts. 45-44. Smith played out of his mind this game. He looked exactly the same as he did in the New England game. It was the Kansas City defense that collapsed against Andrew Luck. I mean, look at the score. He lead the offense to 44 points and don't forget: they lost Jamal Charles in this game, their best offensive player at the time. Watch the tape. Arguably the best Smith has ever played.

Game 4 - Win. Kansas City-Houston. The score was 30-0. He didn't need to do anything.

Game 5 - Loss. Kansas City - New England. Smith-Reid gets out dueled by Brady and Belichick and lose by a touchdown. It's happened to everyone.

Game 6 - Loss. Kansas City - Pittsburgh. First possession, KC looked great and then their game plan seemed to disappear the rest of the game. Still, Smith lead the team down to a game tying TD / 2 pt conversion which got negated by a penalty. I think the game plan was bad in this one, but Smith played respectable, but not great.

I see his playoff record as playing two great games, one serviceable victory, and three so-so games that he kept his team in there against good teams, but lost. Hardly an embarrassing resume.

Emmys

From Deadline - "Diversity Makes History At the Emmys." Unrelated: "Emmy Awards Match All Time Low."

I Expect We'll Be Seeing More of This

"I moved from a blue state to a red state and it changed my life."

It's basic math. Lower cost of living, better, more livable communities. Not a single person in California thinks the place works despite having the best natural resources on the planet and profitable industries.

Universal Health Care A Myth

Here's why: people with good insurance don't want to give it up. And why should they?

Democrats Need Ideas, Not Colors

Yes.

It's actually a rather primitive and arguably racist way of viewing people to suggest all POC will see the world and vote the same way. Huckers in these communities try to force this upon people to their own political gain and shame POC who deviate from the tribal norms. But this is a shell game and individuals will rebel from it when better offers are on the table.

Alex Smith

Expects to be on a new team next year.

Would it surprise you if that team gets between 10-12 wins and into the playoffs? Me, either.

Give Them What They Ask For

Kaepernick can't get out of the news because the culture won't let him. I'm tired of hearing about the injustice. But since it's only football, I have a suggestion: give them what they want. I'd LOVE-LOVE-LOVE at this point to see Kap get signed on a team. Let it become the media circus it's destined to be. Let him get back on the field and start misreading defenses and throwing INTs and leading whatever team picks him up to a lousy, pathetic record. I'm hoping it'd shut people up in a relatively low stakes situation. I just wouldn't wish it on a team I personally cared about.

Chiefs

Looked like Super Bowl contenders last night, except arguably their best player Eric Berry is now lost for the season. Will be incredibly difficult to recover from that. The guy shut down Gronk last night.

Everything That's Wrong With Identity Politics

This article nails it.

It privileges culture, instead of politics. My first point is that when you fight for identity, you’re giving up politics in favor of culture. And that’s exactly where neoliberalism wants you, fighting for your culture (or what you imagine is your culture), rather than the arena of policies, where the real consequences occur. You may gain some recognition of your identity, but you may also have to pay the price of losing everything else that makes life worth living. 

In many American cities, as in mine, the fight is on for transgender bathrooms, even as local government leaders, who often fit the bill where identity politics is concerned, have worked closely with supercapitalists to gentrify the urban centers, leading to the mass eviction of working people who created the interesting cultural realities in the first place. You can have your bathrooms, but gay people can’t live where they want to. During the Obama years, a crisis of affordable housing arose all over the country, which has gotten little attention because that is a policy discussion not suited to identity politics.

Which is exactly what my last post was about.

And then there was this nice little local piece in the LA Times this weekend: Bye-bye Silver Lake, hello Pacoima: How one couple tackled L.A.'s sky-high real estate prices.

So, if you're a politically minded millennial interested in owning a home one day - be aware the choice to throw your energies into Pussy Hats and Transgender bathrooms will result in living in Pacoima (or similar type of area) unless you stand to inherit a lot of money.

Biggest Scandal in America and No One Is Talking About It

Home prices are being rigged by the government to benefit existing homeowners at the expense of buyers. We're just seeing the results: first time home ownership down by 40% since 2004.

This is an enormous scandal. And it impacts nearly everybody. It of course impacts poorer people the most, and especially poorer young people.

The government is doing this because existing homeowners enjoy policies that ensure their homes raise in value. Of course they do! Everyone will take free money if offered. But the truth is - no money is free - it comes with a cost. And the cost is that younger people are going to be less financially secure.

Here is how the scam works: limit housing demand via local zoning laws and make money to buy houses cheap to borrow via the mortgage interest deduction and low interest rates. Thus, prices go up.

This is government working for the old and wealthy at the expense of the poor and young. If you are not a home owner, it is making your life worse and more expensive every day and denying you the ability to grow wealth by capturing any gains in the real estate market. And yet, all the young people seem to be more passionate about fighting for imaginary causes, like neo-nazis and Trump. But they would be smarter and happier to instead concern themselves with the hustle on home prices that is taking their hard earned money out from their pockets every day. Everyone needs shelter and the monied are using the government to make shelter more expensive than it needs to be to benefit those already sheltered. Basic rent seeking.