Optional soundtrack for the post below:
According to Politico, there was an incident between two of the very serious people in charge of U.S. economic policy last week:
A private dinner attended by dozens of administration officials and close advisers to President Donald Trump was temporarily marred by a dramatic clash between two of Trump’s top economic officials, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent at one point threatening to punch top housing finance official Bill Pulte “in the fucking face.”
The Wednesday evening event was supposed to be one of celebration: It was both the much-anticipated inaugural dinner at Executive Branch, the ultra-exclusive Georgetown club created by and for Trump world’s uberrich, and a birthday party for MAGA-friendly podcaster Chamath Palihapitiya.
A long table for the 30-some guests was set with top-of-the-line crystal and china. The guest list included Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler, Medicare and Medicaid chief Mehmet Oz, plus venture capitalist David Sacks, Palihapitiya’s partner on the “All In” podcast.
Let’s pause for a moment to allow the bolded text to sink in. Working stiffs are paying an ever-greater share of their stagnant wages for groceries, seeing electric bills rise precipitously as utilities scramble to accommodate the insatiable energy needs of competing planet-destroying plagiarism machines and are about to see insurance costs spike due to nearly a trillion in Medicaid cuts.
But Trump’s full employment program for worthless right-wing billionaires and centi-millionaires has been so successful that the parasites had to build themselves an exclusive Georgetown club. How’s that going?
But amid the cocktail-hour din, Bessent lashed out at Pulte in an expletive-laden diatribe. The Treasury secretary had heard from several people that the Federal Housing Finance Agency director had been badmouthing him to Trump, a person close to him said. He wasn’t about to engage in chit-chat as if nothing was amiss.
“Why the fuck are you talking to the president about me? Fuck you,” Bessent told Pulte. “I’m gonna punch you in your fucking face.”
Bessent, a blow-dried twit with a smarmy smile, has a public-facing demeanor that is described as “soothing” in the article. We know he calmly lies about the economy and tariffs, etc., on TV a lot.
But this isn’t the first time he’s tried to throw down with a rival for Trump’s affections. He and Musk allegedly exchanged shoves outside the Oval Office earlier this summer while arguing over which corrupt incompetent should run the IRS. Now it’s Pulte’s turn in the barrel.
Pulte appeared stunned, and the tense encounter prompted club co-owner and financier Omeed Malik to intervene, according to the three people. But Bessent wasn’t having it — he sought to get him kicked out, the eyewitness said.
“It’s either me or him,” Bessent said to Malik. “You tell me who’s getting the fuck out of here.”
“Or,” he added, “we could go outside.”
“To do what?” asked Pulte. “To talk?”
“No,” Bessent replied. “I’m going to fucking beat your ass.”
Bessent did not fucking beat Pulte’s ass. The club owners seated them far apart, and the fat-cat debauchery in the occupied city went on without further incident. But it’s fair to wonder why those fellas are so tense.
They are petty, shitty people, or they wouldn’t be in Trump’s orbit in the first place. But is it possible the strain of trying to hold up the house of cards that is the Trump economy is starting to take a toll?
Maybe the next event will feature a real billionaire-on-billionaire beatdown. If so, I hope there’s video.
Open thread!
zhena gogolia
Is this that thing where they’re going to weigh people in front of the Daniel Chester French statue of Lincoln?
rosalind
note: Donald Trump, Jr is also a co-owner of this club.
narya
These Pleather Tough Guys . . . sure, go ahead, I want to see them in an actual fist fight, not some shouts and swears and shoves, in a place where people are going to separate and soothe them. And I want video. And popcorn.
Ruckus
@zhena gogolia:
Seems more like a some fourth graders are trying to show influence over their classmates.
Lefthanded compliment
Longtime lurker here with a dubious contribution. ISTM that our national anthem is overdue for an update. Here’s my stab at it:
Oh, say! can you see by this dim, dreary light
What old Proud Boy assails, both our flag and our story?
In broad swipes and canards, he imperils with blight
All our freedom entails; he defaces Old Glory
And his rageful red glare, bombastic hot air
Give proof he’s not right, and our flag’s barely there
So, hey! will a tarred, mangled banner yet wave
O’er a land left unfree in the hold of a knave?
Leto
Book Banning – Librarians vs 1st Amendment Moms for Liberty
Opens in U.K. theaters September 26 and U.S. theaters October 3.
zhena gogolia
@Lefthanded compliment: Great!
Suzanne
A pity. More of these people would be improved by fast and direct consequences. The less time between FA and FO, the more effective it is.
I maintain that Please Clap Jeb! bears much responsibility for our current predicament. During one of the 2016 debates, he just stood there, shaking his head, gripping his little lectern for emotional support, and looking like a gutless coward, while FFOTUS ripped into his family. One well-deserved punch in the face at that moment could have ended this.
lowtechcyclist
Cage match!!!
Juju
@narya: It will probably be a pushing, shoving, slap, slap toddler like fight.
Mai Naem mobile
@rosalind: bUT ofcourse he is. Orange Fuckface has to get a bite out of everything. I’m pretty sure the pig and his family are directly getting part of the tariff money.
Josie
After reading the list of attendees, I think part of our revenge is knowing that these creeps actually have to spend time with each other, both at work and socially. No wonder they have hissy fits every now and then. I couldn’t spend more than 10 minutes in that group.
laura
A near slap fight between a pair of toady bitches over who daddy loves more that didn’t directly involve don jr? Yes please! Also, kudos for the most excellent Elaine Strich.
Mai Naem mobile
How come.nobody’s talking about how Pulte is obviously looking through the loans of Orange fuckface’s opponents. Nobody is just going to flag the mortgage paperwork for Lisa Cook. And then to top it off her name is Lisa Cook. There’s probably a hundred Lisa Cooks out there with mortgages. Bill Pulte went out there hunting for this paperwork.
Teresa
The dregs of humanity fighting over who kisses Trump ass the best.
I will never in a million lifetimes understand why republicans, especially the males, actually believe they are superior to anything including piles of horse shit.
Old Man Shadow
I really hate how the political press treats these people like aristocrats and delves into court gossip. I really hate how they treat billionaires as people to be in awe of instead of the hording psychopaths ruining our country that they are. Billionaire should be a fucking slur, something decent people or people who want to be a part of polite society do their best to avoid becoming.
Belafon
@Teresa: Because it’s all they got.
stacib
@Lefthanded compliment: +1. Good job!
dmsilev
Pulte, for those who don’t know, is the guy abusing his position overseeing Fannie Mae etc. to gin up phony mortgage “crime” allegations against people like Adam Schiff and Fed Board member Lisa Cook.
No matter who delivers the punch in question, he deserves to receive it.
Teresa
@Old Man Shadow:
As the Republicans and the rich have gotten worse and worse over the decades, I find myself repulsed by even thinking of having any kind of interaction with anything they are involved in. I literally avoid as many of their businesses as I can.
Matt
Cocaine’s a hell of a drug
ewrunning
They should have had National Guard troops posted around the perimeter to keep order. Maybe Pirro can get a Grand Jury to indict someone for making threats.
Suzanne
@dmsilev:
Nominated.
And for those who might accuse me of endorsing violence…. I will note that a punch in the face is a lot better than the open warfare (shootings, guillotines) these people are leading us toward.
Professor Bigfoot
@Old Man Shadow: There’s a remarkable amount of monarchism on the American right.
leeleeFL
@Lefthanded compliment: Well done! On the fly, or worked on for a bit?! Either way, I am impressed! You win the Internets today!
Gin & Tonic
All those people are evil, but David Sacks raises the combination of stupid and evil to Olympic heights. If anyone there desperately deserves a punch to the face, it is him.
leeleeFL
@Professor Bigfoot: Always has been! The Gilded Age was the closest they got, and the World Wars Linda harshed that shit up, just like you see in Downton Abbey!
dmsilev
@Suzanne: I trust you’re familiar with the lovely German word backpfeifengesicht, “a face that cries out for a fist in it”.
Gin & Tonic
To counterbalance this, as I relayed last night in Adam’s thread, my dear wife and I had a very nice personal encounter with our senior Senator, Jack Reed, yesterday. Spent a fair amount of time talking about Ukraine, as he was wearing a US/Ukraine flag lapel pin. A dedicated, caring and conscientious public servant, who’d have been an infinitely better SecDef in an alternate universe.
WaterGirl
@Lefthanded compliment: Most excellent!
Elizabelle
I want hospital-worthy injuries next time.
@Mai Naem mobile: Yes. Pulte’s behavior is terrible, and hope it is illegal. Who knows?
Suzanne
@dmsilev: Oh, I sure am. It definitely describes a condition for which we have no good way to describe in English. I am convinced that many of these sociopaths have never gotten the “feedback they deserve”, and it shows.
hueyplong
The yipping of those two ankle-biters doesn’t impress. There was a knife at every single place setting, wasn’t there?
pat
Finally something to put a smile on my face. Bessent has the most punchable face.. well there is a lot of competition for that title…
Leto
New Banksy mural appears at Royal Courts of Justice
ewrunning
Stupid callous fragile ego extra braggadocious,
Thanks to him stagflation is about to be ferocious,
His sycophantic cabinet is totally atrocious,
Stupid callous fragile ego extra braggadocious!
Leto
@hueyplong: the only way it could have been settled was for Trumpov to waddle his fat ass in there, have someone break a pool cue in half and toss one piece to the two dipshits, and for Trumpov to say there’s only 1 Cabinet position open. IYKYK.
West of the Rockies
Stunning… these greedy, heinous pigs (apologies to real pigs) have so much, but it’s never enough, and they dwell in existential misery, fear, and rage.
WereBear
I’ve looked everywhere, under the fridge and moved the couch.
Still not finding any economic policies.
Teresa
@Leto:
That should be plastered everywhere in the US with Roberts, Trump and every republican Senator and House Rep, along with republican governors.
Cheryl from Maryland
@Leto: Banksy should do a mural at the London Criminal Courts, aka the Old Bailey.
p.a.
🤬
Aaron Rupar
TAPPER: Hepatitis A, whooping cough, and chickenpox cases are rising in Florida. Before you made this decision to try to lift vaccine mandates for Florida, did your department do any data analysis of how many new cases of these diseases there will be with no vaccine mandates?
JOSEPH LADAPO: Absolutely not
TAPPER: You didn’t even do a projection?
LADAPO: It’s an issue of right and wrong
Leto
@WereBear: have you checked between the couch cushions? Bring rubber gloves…
Sure Lurkalot
I upvote Trump’s cabinet and staff toadies be the headliners in the cage matches the administration is planning for our nation’s 250th birthday next year. Would totally juice viewership!
Chief Oshkosh
@hueyplong: facebook.com/watch/?v=253822726299012
sab
“Pulte appeared stunned.” So the press is now on his side against Bessent as Pulte rummages through our mortgages. Good to know.
Teresa
@p.a.:
There is no way I would ever trust a Republican man or woman with the health of anyone, especially children. They enjoy killing and the suffering of others.
West of the Rockies
@lowtechcyclist:
A cage match? More like a high chair spaghetti fight between two unsociable toddlers.
WereBear
@Leto: Confederate pennies and all scratched up.
ewrunning
@Sure Lurkalot: “Upvote?” Makes me want to upget and outwalk before I upchuck!
p.a.
@Sure Lurkalot: Can’t wait for when the Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty, Independence Hall, Mt. Rushmore, Washington Monument etc etc are painted gold for the celebration.
sab
@pat: When respectable grown men get in stupid fights at polite social events, until proven otherwise I assume they have a drinking problem.
Peale
Its a money laundering operation all the way down. The five families owned clubs to have legit businesses to launder money, so the Trumps own clubs.
hueyplong
@Leto: Saying something about aggressive expansion IIRC.
Belafon
@p.a.:
“I have the right to kill my neighbors. They don’t have the right to force me to get vaccinated.”
Professor Bigfoot
@sab: You realize, of course, that “respectable” is doing a whole lot of work, here, right? ;^)
Miss Bianca
@Lefthanded compliment: Nicely done!
Betty
@Sure Lurkalot: Excuse me, the name has just been changed to Supercentennial. Thought you would want to know.
lowtechcyclist
@West of the Rockies:
That’s fine with me – the toddlers can be put in a cage together with lots of spaghetti to throw.
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Sure Lurkalot: That cage match thing is a joke, right? That’s not real?
Dorothy A. Winsor
Here’s good news:
Appeals court upholds $83 million judgment against Trump in Carroll case
Belafon
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Nope, it’s real, at least the plan is.
mr perfect
@Teresa:I wouldn’t trust them around farm animals. After all, them sheep have pretty mouths.
Victor Matheson
“A long table for the 30-some guests was set with top-of-the-line crystal and china. The guest list included Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler, Medicare and Medicaid chief Mehmet Oz, plus venture capitalist David Sacks, Palihapitiya’s partner on the “All In” podcast.”
Where is the out-of-control jetliner crashing into the city when you need it…
Melancholy Jaques
@Peale:
Everything that asshole’s family does is either a scam or money laundering. They don’t work, they don’t solve problems, they don’t create anything worthwhile.
Baud
When are Dems going to punch Pulte in the fucking face? #OnlineHotTakes
Gloria DryGarden
@Lefthanded compliment: excellent!
Gloria DryGarden
@Victor Matheson: Kelly loeffler, the former senator from Georgia?
Baud
@Belafon:
And it’s a real plan. Not just the concept of a plan.
Tony Jay
The kind of establishment where every fork is dipped in the secret spit-can and the clam chowder boasts the unmistakable tang of piss.
Baud
@p.a.:
I’m a little confused. As we learned, almost all vaccine mandates are done at the state level. Now a bunch of red states may follow Trump’s lead, but it’s their decision.
Scuffletuffle
@Lefthanded compliment: Bravo!!!
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
Starting to think the US should allow duelling pistols in DC – just to thin the Reichwingnut ranks.
Lefthanded compliment
@leeleeFL: Thanks! The first draft was done on the fly late one night, but I have worked on it quite a bit since then.
jonas
@Suzanne: There’s also Ted Cruz meekly agreeing to endorse and phone bank for Trump after Trump 1. implicated his father in the Kennedy assassination and 2. repeatedly called Cruz’s wife ugly.
“Dignity wraith” (h/t Josh Marshall) remains one of the greatest coinages in recent English language history and captures the phenomenon perfectly.
Teresa
@mr perfect:
Even trusting them to shovel manure is too much responsibility for them to handle properly. They would find a way to fuck that up as well or kill/harm others with it.
gene108
@Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq):
Pistol duels are how the Revolutionary War generation settled disputes of honor. It’d be interesting to see folks like Bessent and Pulte bring those back into fashion in honor of our Founders.
Betty Cracker
@Baud: From what I gather via coverage in FL dailies, Ladapo can unilaterally change health dept. policy, but eliminating public school vaccine mandates requires legislative action. I don’t know if statehouse Repubs are feckless and feral enough to do that.
Baud
Reddit title. Not obvious from the video whether it’s accurate.
p.a.
@Baud: Well I’m not in Florida, but there’s still (for now) the right of free interstate travel, even for Typhoid Bubba.
Baud
@Betty Cracker:
I didn’t recognize him as the FL guy. I thought he was an RFK flunkie. Thanks, that makes more sense.
Suzanne
@jonas: Concur. These people sell their self-respect so cheaply.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
Gotta love New Yorkers:
theguardian.com/sport/2025/sep/08/trumps-strongman-image-got-boos-at-the-us-open-and-perhaps-that-wa…
Danielx
Maybe the next event will feature a real billionaire-on-billionaire beatdown. If so, I hope there’s video.
I would pay to watch.
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
@Mai Naem mobile: Reichwingnuts muckrake for usable intelligence on their opposition. They do this because they know their own side commits all the crimes/sins/misdeeds they accuse the Left of doing and cannot imagine the other side is any better than they are.
japa21
Deleted
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
@gene108: Exactly. Let’s see these ammosexuals put their lead where their mouth is.
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
@Betty Cracker: Have you met any state-level Rethugs? Feckless and feral rotate as middle names in that bunch.
Chief Oshkosh
@comrade scotts agenda of rage: Did the word “Epstein” get shouted?
Barney
“The guest list included Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler, Medicare and Medicaid chief Mehmet Oz, plus venture capitalist David Sacks, Palihapitiya’s partner on the “All In” podcast.”
I’ve never been rooting for dangerous E coli bacteria so much in my life.
japa21
@Baud:
I’ll pay attention to the local news.
Shalimar
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Cage match on the White House lawn for Trump’s birthday next year is real. Unfortunately, it will be with professional slip-and-fall artists rather than cabinet members.
iKropoclast
Not what you meant, but when their cult leader demands it…
Heaven’s Gate would pale in comparison.
Chief Oshkosh
And now Trump is calling Tom Hanks “destructive” and “Woke.”
Tomorrow he stomps on puppies. Wednesday he declares Vegemite pie is replacing apple and cherry pies on all menus. Thursday says motherhood is evil. Friday he sells the Statue of Liberty to Jersey scrap iron mongers. Saturday he declares himself Messiah. Sunday he rests.
And the MAGAts cheer and accept him as their personal Savior.
hueyplong
@Chief Oshkosh: Those Arkansas farmers serm disinclined to become economic martyrs for their messiah
They like the smugness of their religion but want no suffering for the faith.
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Shalimar: God. Could this administration possibly humiliate the country any further?
trollhattan
@hueyplong:
Having installed Possum Queen as their governor I’m not expecting anything small or large from Arkansas farmers in opposition to Trump and his Trumpian ways. They’re all in even if chicken futures are down, or whatever.
Be interesting to see what steel and aluminum tariffs do to the price of an F150.
trollhattan
@Dorothy A. Winsor:
“On it” is their reply in unison.
brendancalling
It’s just sad that neither of those gentleman were carrying guns, because they could have dispatched each other and freed up some of the oxygen they were using.
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
@iKropoclast: I think you are closer to my meaning than you surmised.
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
@brendancalling: Not to mention the radioactive shrimp cocktail they were consuming.
Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq)
@Dorothy A. Winsor: Yes.
Wait, was that actually a question?
anotherlurker
@Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq): I agree. However I would substitute 12 G shotguns at 3 paces. Turn, aim, wait 3 seconds and then fire.
Gravenstone
@Barney: Invite listeria and salmonella to the party, too.
iKropoclast
@Smiling Happy Guy (aka boatboy_srq): I just didn’t expect such darkness from such a Smiling Happy Guy, I suppose.
piratedan
OT but for those looking to sign up for the VA meetup, please RSVP thru the meetup link on the right
trollhattan
@Gravenstone:
Raw bear and whale canapes circulating on sterling trays carried by underage models.
Ramalama
I’ve mentioned previously that Centi-millionaire Trump supporters/Trump voters have vacation homes in (among other countries) my Quebecois village. People with more than 1 passport. I have met them (and seen a red MAGA ballcap in their living room with my own eyes) but I do not interact with them – one of my friends does. Friend said that at least 2 of these millionaires (upper tiers in the MM category) are upset that they are losing money r/n. Still support #47. My friend has been nudging them with facts but it’s not enough to get them to leave the cult. Not yet.
Previously my friend stopped talking to me about how rich these people are after the first Trump tax cut went into effect that basically meant lighting barns of money on fire for kicks. Not literally. But just disgusting how much money they would literally lose, not batting a crusty eyelash at.So this stands out.
Professor Bigfoot
Except, of course, these people have no honor.
rikyrah
julie k. brown (@jkbjournalist) posted at 10:45 AM on Mon, Sep 08, 2025:
Second Epstein story by @nytimes that totally skips mentioning @MiamiHerald’s series — which is relevant here because Epstein, after my series ran in 2018, made at least two large $ transfers which led to a panic with the banks. They froze the accounts as a result. The Times is doing great work following Epstein’s money. But its omissions recognizing the Herald’s role in investigating his crimes — especially when relevant as in this case — is mind boggling. nytimes.com/2025/09/08/mag…
(x.com/jkbjournalist/status/1965079025660866773?t=02_OX5sKLdjLEndJzr7glw&s=03)
bluefoot
@Old Man Shadow: hear, hear. If reporters want to cover gossip, they should call it gossip.
A lot of the US continues to be fascinated by monarchy (see the interest in the British royals), and seems to want it. And absolute hierarchy. Which is insane and counter to what this country is supposed to be.
iKropoclast
But god forbid I or anyone in my generational cohort want avocado and bacon on their morning toast…y’know for calories and nutrients to live.
rikyrah
Jay Bookman (@jaysbookman) posted at 2:27 PM on Sun, Sep 07, 2025:
There’s a lot we don’t know yet about this raid, but the decision by ICE to film and then release a celebratory video of workers handcuffed and shackled will be seen as an act of disrespect by South Korea.
Because that’s what it is.
(https://x.com/jaysbookman/status/1964772590117118163?t=_J3EqtZluR1kmoENwyPcuQ&s=03)
iKropoclast
What it is is plagiarism. Fatal to a university career or a politician with seemingly earnest goals, but a privilege to our anointed elite.
Ruckus
@sab:
I assume they have a drinking problem.
That’s more than an assumption, often it is the only reality.
rikyrah
Global Folder (@Global_Folder) posted at 11:08 AM on Sun, Sep 07, 2025:
US Imposes Stricter Guidelines: Immigrant Visa Seekers Required to Hold Interviews in Native Country
The United States Department of State (DOS) has introduced a significant update to its policies, mandating that every applicant for an immigrant visa must complete their interview in their country of origin or, under certain circumstances, their country of citizenship. This requirement will go into effect starting November 1, 2025.
In the past, individuals had the option to select the location for their visa interviews, but this option is being eliminated. The DOS explains that this shift aligns with the Trump administration’s overall efforts to enhance immigration controls and improve monitoring processes.
The directive covers the full spectrum of immigrant visas, encompassing those sponsored by family members, visas tied to job opportunities, and entries through the Diversity Visa lottery.
The DOS has indicated that limited exemptions could be granted for urgent humanitarian or health-related situations, though specifics on the approval process remain undisclosed. In regions where American embassies are shuttered or visa operations are halted, the department has outlined substitute sites for carrying out these interviews.
This adjustment might result in extended processing periods, elevated transportation expenses, and more rigorous paperwork demands for those aiming to reunite with relatives. Employers in the US who back immigrant hires could encounter setbacks and additional financial burdens, especially when staff need to journey to other nations for the sessions.
Nevertheless, the DOS assures that “the vast majority of applicants will retain their scheduled interviews without changes or relocations.” Immigration attorneys are advising households and enterprises to plan ahead promptly to mitigate any possible interruptions.
t.co/L1GjLlckf5
(x.com/Global_Folder/status/1964722485997224402?t=MIwRilLDooVmDavceBdaJw&s=03)
Baud
6-3
dm
@Leto: “This isn’t a court of Justice, son — it’s a court of law” (Billy Bragg)
Ramalama
Does Balloon-Juice have a cookies/privacy policy that needs to be updated? Asking because I inspected the site via Browser tools to see this error twice (which might be fcking up peoples’ abilities to post stuff in the comments):
I have my web clients use Termageddon, just fyi.
rikyrah
Andrea Junker (@Strandjunker) posted at 2:32 PM on Fri, Sep 05, 2025:
Musk’s Wealth
2012: $2 billion
2025: $436.3 billion
Bezos’ Wealth
2012: $18.4 billion
2025: $244.2 billion
Zuckerberg’s Wealth
2012: $17.5 billion
2025: $257.8 billion
Federal Minimum Wage
2012: $7.25
2025: $7.25
It’s not the start of an oligarchy. — We’re in the thick of it.
(https://x.com/Strandjunker/status/1964049033401417894?t=Flnz0DodE4O4h1JdHFIArA&s=03)
Ruckus
@sab:
That’s a much bigger problem/issue than an assumption.
Ramalama
@rikyrah:
If ever given the chance, Dems should re-do obscenity laws, preventing These Wealthy Perverts from enjoying such a disparity.
Ruckus
@rikyrah:
And it’s getting thicker.
These people ass/ume that they deserve all this money and more. When I worked in professional sports I had some people working with me that had money. (They did the work as a hobby) Most of them knew people that had MONEY. I’ve met a few of those as well. To me I saw 2 groups, the ones with MONEY that earned it by doing something positive or selling a better way to accomplish something positive and who didn’t treat everyone beneath them as inhuman because they didn’t have that level of money. And those that inherited a lot of MONEY. They could be good, rational people, or they could be complete and utter ASSHOLES. That second group was a not insignificant portion of that side of MONEY.
Good times.
WaterGirl
@Baud: The time stamp for that is 22 hours ago.
Nothing on Gov. Pritzker’s bluesky account about ICE having landed.
Leto
@dm: I actually get that reference now. Thanks Dr. Tom :)
Tehanu
@Teresa:
Couldn’t agree more!
Leto
@hueyplong: you got it.
Ruckus
@rikyrah:
It’s not the start of an oligarchy. — We’re in the thick of it.
YEP. However we’ve always been in it. It just used to be a lot less obvious, and less destructive, I believe so as to not attract a lot of attention. However as the economy grew, seemingly exponentially, more and more people joined the new wealth segment. Some of them are not the world’s greatest humans, as in not even in any way close. See my comment above. And as long as we have someone on their side of the monetary aisle in charge it will likely always be like this.
JML
@Ruckus: it’s very interesting to see how people respond to inherited wealth. There are definitely some that understand it as something of a public trust that requires a responsibility to do good in the world, even as they live incredibly well. There are a LOT that have lost contact with the daily reality of people who have to go to work every day to pay their bills (let alone people who don’t get paid well enough to feed their family or put adequate shelter above them) and simply don’t have the compassion to try and care.
I dare say the latter outnumbers the former, though I have definitely encountered both in my time as a professional fundraiser.
karensky
@rosalind: so cocaine on the pasta instead of Parmesan? What a club of creeps!
TONYG
Scott Bressent is sixty three years old. He’s an obscenely wealthy Wall Street thug who probably has never done any kind of physical work in his pampered life. What kind of man in his sixties acts like this? My only question is whether he’s high on cocaine, on methamphetamines or on some other stimulant. Years ago I had an (I.T.) boss who was obviously doing coke. She never challenged me to a fight, of course, but her behavior got more and more wacked-out until she was finally fired. Just say no to drugs kids!
ColoradoGuy
@TONYG: Yeah, drugs could account for all of it. Their private “security guards” are also probably their suppliers, since a lot of those “security” types have pretty sketchy backgrounds, links to Russian Mafiya, you name it. As for the drugs themselves, there are any number of candidates for preferred “rich-asshole” drugs … the old favorite cocaine, ketamine, Adderall, etc. etc.
Remember, these rich shits never do anything themselves. They would consider flipping a light switch “work”. They’re surrounded by fixers, servants, lawyers, masseuses, personal trainers, all scrambling to curry favor with the rich dude, and get a little piece for themselves. It’s a competitive micro-economy.
Kayla Rudbek
@Suzanne: their parents never taught them that actions have consequences (or shorter, FAFO)
Paul in KY
@Lefthanded compliment: Not bad at all.
Paul in KY
@ewrunning: Like that. Kudos!
Paul in KY
@Tony Jay: I hope so.