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US GDP growth annualized for the 1st quarter is reported to be 1.6% and inflation at about 2.8%. The prospects of continued strong growth and higher inflation suggests the Fed's Powell will not make any interest rate cuts in coming months.

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Over 50% of respondents in a Pew Research center survey conducted in December 2014 view with disapproval president Obama's handling of race relations, only 40% approve. This includes a steep drop among African-Americans of 16 points since the previous polling in summer 2014. Obama's statement that change is "hard and incremental" comes up short for many Americans who look for leadership in race relations. A cautious presidency fails to speak up for ideals it espoused, for human rights overseas and building a better future for minorities at home, losing precious opportunities at every turn.

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The Turkish lira drops sharply on November 23, by 18%. This is likely to worsen inflation that is already at 20% in 2021. This also makes it harder for businesses to pay off foreign currency debt. President Erdogan is following an unconventional policy of cutting interest rates when the currency value is declining. The Turkish central bank is cutting its key policy interest rate. Growth and investment are expected to be affected as foreign investors move away from Turkey. 

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Abortion messaging is a big part of Jacky Rosen's campaign for the Senate seat in Nevada in 2024. She leads Brown by a margin exceeding 10 points. And this is from July 25- Aug 2. Since then the Harris campaign has visited Nevada with Tim Walz and the unions in Nevada including Culinary Workers Union have endorsed Harris.

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Francois Hollande, Socialist candidate for president in France, has led the Socialist party for many years. He started his career as a junior politician in the Mitterand government, and regards Mitterand his mentor. Another mentor is Jacques Delours, who was president of the European Commission. He has many years of training, and has persevered thorughout with a certain sense of humility in the midst of colleagues and politicians in France with larger egos. That inner strength and courage has emerged in the recent campaign appearances and the final debate with Sarkozy in April 2012. He has shown this in the recent campaign by not overstating expectations as he looks at the long term, and at the same time not understating when courage demanded a stronger statement. He has taken timely and effective positions in the current debate of austerity vs growth, or growth coupled with restraint in fiscal spending vs austerity, that is raging in Europe. He was quick to call the situation in Greece, a failure of governance in Europe, as well as a failure of governance in Greece. With the new voices of Premier Monti in Italy and ECB president Draghi from Italy, pushing for growth coupled with fiscal responsibility, a president Hollande in France, would add another voice to European aspirations for growth in the debate with Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats in Germany. ...

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Barrack Obama made a memorable speech on March 18, 2008 in Philadelphia, on the whole race question and his relationship with Reverend Wright and the Trinity Church.

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The UK is open to American proposals for a global minimum tax rate given that it includes a fairer split of the taxes from US tech companies. Discussions are taking place under the umbrella of the OECD, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. This is intended to prevent tax escape by large companies which choose the lowest tax jurisdictions that are set up just for that purpose. The result has been that Europe and the US have suffered from decades of underinvestment and neglect of essential infrastructure and weakened the health and education systems leaving essentials of quality of living underfunded in cities and towns across Europe and the US. The pandemic has brought the lesson home in many ways. The UK has already increased the corporate tax rate to 25% in March to help pay for pandemic related help packages. The US Biden administration has proposed a 28% tax rate, and Treasury Secretary Yellen has suggested 21% as the minimum corporate tax rate. ...

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The European Central Bank raises the key interest rate to 4% a 10th increases in a row. This takes the euro to $1.07 for a dollar in September 2023.

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Rare pictures of "ring of fire" solar eclipse seen from Asian countries in 2019.

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On again off again talks with China. Yet the facts about the losses in the US from fentanyl remain a major impediment to trade and other relations and reflect a separate tariff. The magnitude of the losses in the US to its young people remain a major impediment. DJT seeks to calm financial markets with sudden announcements of results such as this for soyabeans, as financial markets fail to reflect this aspect of relations of losses to the young people in the US from fentanyl sourced from China that exceed the lives lost in the Vietnam war, Korean war and the First World War combined. Today in 2025 a strange situation exists beyond issues of rare earths and soyabeans.

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A 2007 video of Obama speaking at Hampton University in Virginia on race relations, on the slow relief sent to Hurricane Katrina affected residents of New Orleans because they were black, praising pastor Wright, and presenting a different view on race relations than President Obama has made in public appearances. The video has surfaced again in the final weeks of the 2012 presidential campaign, especially as polarization has increased in the last four years.

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A rice importer from Britain talks about the difficulties in importing rice. Contracts that lasted 12 months are now for 2 months and prices are up by about 15% for rice imports. Vietnamese rice is replacing Italian long grain varieties, yet there is only a limited supply of Vietnamese rice to meet world needs.

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The difference between the 21% tax rate down form 35% put in place in 2017 and the proposed tax rate of 28% by Democrats is $1 trillion over 10 years. The corporate tax rate generates only 8% of government revenues and Lael Brainard thinks this is too low for investment that the government needs to make in climate change action, infrastructure, manufacturing, healthcare, childcare, education and other priorities neglected by different administrations over the last three decades, that are vital to rebuilding America.

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Trump's tax plan sets a 15% tax rate for owner operated companies,on so-called pass-through businesses. A tax break is planned for child care.

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It seems like good common sense -surely studies come later that masks can cut coronavirus cases by 40%- as Texas is learning the hard way. As coronavirus cases jump in Texas the governor makes wearing face coverings or masks mandatory in the state. Texas recorded over 8000 cases in a single day on July 3, 2020. "wearing a face covering will help us to keep Texas open for business." As a grim warning to Texans he said "we are now at a point where the virus is spreading so fast there is little margin for error." As the virus cases surged Mr. Abbott, the governor of Texas, ordered all bars shut and cut restaurant capacity by 75% last week and reversed step taken to open the economy. Another lesson learned the hard way when it seems like common sense- consider that on June 20 as reported in the WSJ a staggering 500,000 people went to bars in Los Angeles county the day after bars reopened. It is this type of activity that makes Dr. Fauci, say cases could reach 100,000 a day in the U.S. Infection rates are now increasing in 40 of 50 states with the southern states, western states doing badly.  A lot of it was plain common sense. A German study shows a 40% reduction of coronavirus cases when masks or face coverings are worn. For those arguing for the reopening so that economic hurt is mitigated there is even more reason to wear masks as it makes it possible to get back to work by following strict social distancing and mask guidelines. Everything in life is about adapting and making small changes for the larger good. Younger people have badly failed to show fellow feeling with lack of following social distancing guidelines on beaches and gatherings leading to the numbers now showing that people 18-34 are now equally at risk. ...

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US president Biden's effort to appeal to all American families and workers in the $2 trillion plan for investment in child care, paid leave, healthcare and education, and the importance of staying away from the divisive and polarizing effect of the Clinton years on Republicans, is part of the new approach of the Biden administration as it tackles America's most important problems with hopes for bipartisan support.