David Passmore
@davidpassmore.bsky.social
Distinguished Professor, Emeritus, Penn State University (https://davidpassmore.net). Live in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Niagara Falls, New York, native. I post critical presentations & analyses of information I read.
Economics
26%
Education
12%
In Reagan's farewell address:
"I've thought a bit of the 'shining city upon a hill.' The phrase comes from John Winthrop, who wrote it to describe the America he imagined.....[H]e was an early Pilgrim....and like the other Pilgrims, he was looking for a home that would be free."
"I've thought a bit of the 'shining city upon a hill.' The phrase comes from John Winthrop, who wrote it to describe the America he imagined.....[H]e was an early Pilgrim....and like the other Pilgrims, he was looking for a home that would be free."
REAGAN CALLED FOR A "MORNING IN AMERICA".....
Is this its dark, moonless might?
Is this its dark, moonless might?
Ron, you will be a busy guy. Take care of yourself and your family, as you take care of us Yinzers.
Blunt AI talk
"I'm not trying to frighten you."
bit.ly
ROLLING WITH THE AI PUNCHES
Jim VandeHei, Axios CEO, writes, "You're living history. Ignoring it would be foolish and self-destructive. I want to urge you to plunge into understanding and using it aggressively and daily, with a mindset of curiosity, awe and clear-eyed discernment."
bit.ly/4sWleAy
Jim VandeHei, Axios CEO, writes, "You're living history. Ignoring it would be foolish and self-destructive. I want to urge you to plunge into understanding and using it aggressively and daily, with a mindset of curiosity, awe and clear-eyed discernment."
bit.ly/4sWleAy
Yes, I wonder how these approving respondents feel when the fascist focus turns on them.
“So what we have gotten out of NATO is nothing, except to protect Europe from the Soviet Union and now Russia.”
~ Donald Trump, Davos, 2026
After 9/11 NATO deployed radar aircraft over the U.S. & naval forces patrolled the Mediterranean. Allies deployed tens of thousands of troops to Afghanistan.
~ Donald Trump, Davos, 2026
After 9/11 NATO deployed radar aircraft over the U.S. & naval forces patrolled the Mediterranean. Allies deployed tens of thousands of troops to Afghanistan.
RESPONDENTS DIFFER
"The poll was conducted after the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman who was shot in Minneapolis by an ICE officer."
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/23/u...
"The poll was conducted after the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman who was shot in Minneapolis by an ICE officer."
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/23/u...
Reposted by David Passmore
Trump says he got a deal for rare earths in Greenland, but they won't come easy
You can't just grab 'em by the mine shafts - there aren't any
The US invasion of Greenland might be off the table for now, but the Trump administration won't have an easy time using the rare earth elements and critical minerals it claims it's getting access to as part of a deal with NATO. …
dlvr.it
Trump says he got a deal for rare earths in Greenland, but they won't come easy
January 21, 2026
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this morning, a visibly exhausted president of the United States of America rambled in angry free association in a speech before the world’s leaders.
bit.ly
EL PASO DETAINEE HOMICIDE
The death of an El Paso Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, was a homicide, not a suicide, as his ICE jailers claim. ICE is trying to deport two witnesses to the homicide.
The Washington Post reported that at least 30 people died in detention last year.
bit.ly/3NETfFh
The death of an El Paso Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, was a homicide, not a suicide, as his ICE jailers claim. ICE is trying to deport two witnesses to the homicide.
The Washington Post reported that at least 30 people died in detention last year.
bit.ly/3NETfFh
"There has never been a lasting international brotherhood of nationalists."
www.wsj.com/world/europe...
www.wsj.com/world/europe...
Opinion | Mr. Trump and the Davos Divide
He backtracked on using force on Greenland but still embarrassed Europe.
on.wsj.com
TRUMP'S DAVOS DISHING
Ttrumo riffed at length about Europe’s many economic dysfunctions. He questioned American support for allies. Alternative is to cozy up to China? How easily Trump can be goaded into antagonizing staunch NATO partners!
on.wsj.com/467UdQK
Ttrumo riffed at length about Europe’s many economic dysfunctions. He questioned American support for allies. Alternative is to cozy up to China? How easily Trump can be goaded into antagonizing staunch NATO partners!
on.wsj.com/467UdQK
EIN VOLK, EIN REICH, EIN FÜHRER?
Social media accounts of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the White House shared a meme and an excerpt from a song produced and popularized by a secretive white nationalist group.
Listen: youtu.be/ctpfRxvC0JQ?...
Analysis: bit.ly/3YQ0YD0
Social media accounts of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the White House shared a meme and an excerpt from a song produced and popularized by a secretive white nationalist group.
Listen: youtu.be/ctpfRxvC0JQ?...
Analysis: bit.ly/3YQ0YD0
PEACE? PUTIN? STOP SMOKIN' THAT!
Russian President Vladimir Putin is among the world leaders who have been invited to join President Trump’s “Board of Peace” formed to implement the U.S.-brokered peace plan between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
thehill.com/policy/inter...
Russian President Vladimir Putin is among the world leaders who have been invited to join President Trump’s “Board of Peace” formed to implement the U.S.-brokered peace plan between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
thehill.com/policy/inter...
GO HOME!
Trump’s suspended naturalization ceremonies for those on the verge of gaining U.S. citizenship. Critics say the pause is the Trump administration’s latest form of collective punishment for migrants.
thehill.com/homenews/adm...
Trump’s suspended naturalization ceremonies for those on the verge of gaining U.S. citizenship. Critics say the pause is the Trump administration’s latest form of collective punishment for migrants.
thehill.com/homenews/adm...
How Restrictive is U.S. Trade Policy?
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
www.nber.org
IS U.S. TRADE POLICY RESTRICTIVE?
Trade policy towards Canada and Mexico is two to three times more restrictive than average tariff rates suggest....[and] is concentrated in vehicles, machinery, and electrical equipment.
www.nber.org/papers/w34687
Trade policy towards Canada and Mexico is two to three times more restrictive than average tariff rates suggest....[and] is concentrated in vehicles, machinery, and electrical equipment.
www.nber.org/papers/w34687
SNAP Work Requirements, Administrative Burden and Procedural Denials
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
www.nber.org
WORK REQUIREMENTS FOR SNAP....
.....significantly increase procedural and overall denials of benefits. These policies deter participation through imposed administrative burdens.
www.nber.org/papers/w34698
.....significantly increase procedural and overall denials of benefits. These policies deter participation through imposed administrative burdens.
www.nber.org/papers/w34698
ANGRY BECAUSE NOT PICKED FOR A NEIGHBORHOOD BASEBALL TEAM?
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
Effects on high-capacity workers are less likely than on low-capacity workers in a regressive manner.
How Adaptable Are American Workers to AI-Induced Job Displacement?
Founded in 1920, the NBER is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to conducting economic research and to disseminating research findings among academics, public policy makers, an...
www.nber.org
U.S. WORKERS ADAPTABLE TO AI JOB LOSS?
4.2% of the U.S. workforce is employed in occupations that are either highly exposed to redundancy or have low adaptive capacity.
AI could change work, but not inevitably, & create displacement and some job loss.
www.nber.org/papers/w34705
4.2% of the U.S. workforce is employed in occupations that are either highly exposed to redundancy or have low adaptive capacity.
AI could change work, but not inevitably, & create displacement and some job loss.
www.nber.org/papers/w34705
Second US Civil War Before 2031
Metaculus is an online forecasting platform and aggregation engine working to improve human reasoning and coordination on topics of global importance.
bit.ly
2ND U.S. CIVIL WAR BEFORE 2031?
Median Metaculus forecast reveals 3% chance.
bit.ly/CWar31
Estimates vary [see the appended histogram of 789 forecasts].
An alternative, perhaps supplement, to polling.
Median Metaculus forecast reveals 3% chance.
bit.ly/CWar31
Estimates vary [see the appended histogram of 789 forecasts].
An alternative, perhaps supplement, to polling.
Yes, agree. So much to scrub and disinfect in his personal crime scene.
Will read it on my KIndle, but it is stacked in the queue. Looks very interesting.
Of interest to sailors only?
Of interest to sailors only?
“Patience, he thought. So much of this was patience - waiting, and thinking and doing things right. So much of all this, so much of all living was patience and thinking.”
—Gary Paulsen, “Hatchet”
—Gary Paulsen, “Hatchet”
Thanks, Mark, for your analysis. Your cough will not get better, I fear.
Isn't this the fundamental thread of consequence under most of these "policies"?
Cui bono.
Isn't this the fundamental thread of consequence under most of these "policies"?
Cui bono.