How Government Spending Fuels Inflation - WSJ Opinion

Inflation is where “dreams of costless fiscal expansion, flooding the country with borrowed money to address every perceived problem, hit a hard brick wall of reality.”

Fed Officials Lean Against Expectations of Half-Point Increase in March - WSJ

“There’s really no kind of compelling argument that you have to be faster right in the beginning” with rate increases, Mr. Williams told reporters on Friday.

Just the fastest rate in 40 years and the Fed spending the last three quarters making it worse.

Mr. Williams and several of his colleagues in recent days have suggested the Fed could raise rates in more measured, quarter-point increments unless inflation doesn’t diminish later this year as forecasters expect.

So let’s all just wait another 9 months and see what happens!

Some Apple Store Employees in U.S. Reportedly Working to Unionize - MacRumors

A key concern among Apple retail employees looking to unionize is that wages have not kept up with the rate of inflation.

Ever heard of a wage-price spiral? Or quitting or getting a better paying job? You do know that unions charge dues, right?

The report claims that Apple recently gave raises to some of its retail employees, but due to rising inflation, some of the employees said they are effectively making less money than when they were first hired.

Well, that’s what happens when you vote for president based on the candidates’ Twitter history.

Frackers Hold Back Production as Oil Nears $100 a Barrel - WSJ

The companies said they collected record amounts of extra cash by hanging on to the money they earn selling oil and natural gas and reinvesting only what they needed to keep output roughly flat. All three said they would continue to limit production growth this year.

I wonder why the leadership in this boom-and-bust industry are sitting on the sidelines during this boom?

Those dynamics have alarmed the White House, which has asked U.S. producers to drill more as it confronts soaring gasoline prices and broad inflation.

See, now I’m just confused. Didn’t the Administration cancel Keystone XL and nominate a Fed Governor who said we should stop providing capital to oil and gas and pass massive new subsidies for green energy and…

If your coffee place is called the Bru Bar, and it doesn’t have heavy whipping cream or half and half, you don’t really have a coffee place.

☕️

Man Donates To Truck Convoy Under Name ‘Hunter Biden’ So Washington Post Won’t Dox Him - The Babylon Bee

According to experts, pretending to be Hunter Biden is the most effective way to make sure Big Tech pulls out all the stops to protect your privacy. If anyone tries to share leaked information about someone named “Hunter Biden” The Washington Post will squash the story and work with Big Tech to ensure anyone who shares non-public information about that person is permanently suspended from their platform.

Shelling Escalates Along Front Line Separating Ukraine and Pro-Russia Separatists - WSJ

Viktor Pris, a representative of the Donetsk people’s republic, said on Telegram messenger that “the situation on the line of contact has sharply escalated,” with more shelling than had been recorded since April 2021. “The enemy is making attempts to unleash active hostilities,” he said.

Yup, now that Russia has massed 150k troops on all four sides of Ukraine, after eight years of low-intensity conflict, Kyiv has chosen this moment to attack.

Mortgage Rates Close In on 4%, Making Home Affordability Tougher - WSJ

Higher rates, coupled with continued growth in prices, are pushing some would-be home buyers to the sidelines.

No mention of how higher prices balances supply and demand and stabilizes the market. Just another woe is me story.

Maybe purchasing a six-figure asset should be harder than buying groceries at Walmart. The stability of the economy, as well as families, depends on the ability to fulfill mortgage obligations on a monthly basis over the long term.

What’s worse, not being able to buy a house, or buying a house and losing everything in foreclosure?

Snowy afternoon on the mountain.

View from the summit. Overcast and flurries in the vicinity.

On the slopes. Well, practicing anyway.

Quiet morning in the cottage as I completed the final edits on Issue No. 01.

FAA Administrator Steve Dickson to Resign From Post, Agency Says - WSJ

Mr. Dickson was appointed to a five-year term in 2019. He took over the agency after two Boeing Co. 737 MAX jets crashed. The FAA was facing criticism from U.S. lawmakers on its oversight of the aircraft’s development and on its failure to take drastic action after the initial accident.

This is a big loss. Steve was a steady hand during the MAX crisis and pandemic. It certainly helped that he was a line 737 pilot, steeped in the culture of aviation safety.

Google Plans to Curtail Cross-App Tracking on Android Phones - WSJ

The Alphabet Inc. unit said it plans to keep supporting current smartphone identifiers for at least the next two years and to give the industry substantial notice before any changes.

Lord, grant me privacy, but not now.

A quiet moment.

Benedict’s LEGO snow globe.

Snowy start.