Houston, we have a problem...According to reports that I have not personally confirmed, Russia has secretly tested space missiles designed to shoot down satellites. Is this a problem? Who knows.. China has "retaliated" and ordered the US to close its Consulate in Western China. Did anyone even know we HAD a consulate in Chengdu? Obviously, it's not great to be having diplomatic fights with China. But, they have been stealing our intellectual property for decades. It has to end. After bashing her for her entire term of office I will now say, "Congratulations" to Chicago Mayor Lightfoot. Lightfoot agreed to allow Federal forces in Chicago. Of course, the "political statements" had to be made: "They are welcome so long as they don't step over the line. They will help with Gangs, guns and drugs and coordinate all action with the Chicago P.D." .. Use whatever political cover or rhetoric you need to. This is smart. This will save lives. 62% of Americans are afraid to share their REAL political views in public. 77% of Republicans, 52% of Democrats and 59% of Independents do not talk in public about their political views. (This would explain why Trump got elected when "polls" had him losing by 5-20%). The polarity is only getting worse. More than half of people that identify as "Strongly Liberal" say that if an executive at their company donated their own money to the Trump re-election campaign they should be fired. .. 33% of all surveyed said that they "self-censor" because they worry that their political views might hurt their career. (For the record. The data from this article came from Cato Institute/YouGov)... In Da Swamp: President Trump announced he will not hold a big convention in Jacksonville saying, "its just not the right time". This is certainly the most odd run-up to a Presidential vote in my lifetime. There are no "bus trips across the swing states" or rallies. Heck, one candidate is running his campaign from his basement. I keep waiting for Wayne and Garth to jump from behind Biden and start jamming. WAYNE'S WORLD. WAYNE'S WORLD .. Democratic PARTY TIME ....EXCELLENT... Joe Biden has given us a few more doozies... 1) "President Trump is the First Racist President" .. uhhh.. WOW ... Even CNN came out with a: " Joe Biden, The 12 Presidents that owned slaves would like a word..." .. and Ill throw out a "The time FDR was throwing all Japanese-Americans into internment camps" for good measure .. Biden Doozie #2 (Well #2 from THAT speech. Its number 28 million, all time) "People don't make a distinction between Chinese and other Asians" . uhh..WOW.. well..I could just give that an "OK Boomer" .. but I'll say to Joe.. Yeah, maybe the "People" you hang out with in the "75 and older Crowd" can't tell the difference. I know some people that still call any Latina, "Puerto Rican". (Because of the influx in the 1950's of Spanish speaking Puerto Ricans to New York. For many years most Spanish speaking people in NYC that looked Latin were Puerto Rican. Many New Yorkers of that generation just keep saying it.. We all know that in 2020 there are TONS of other Latinas in NY. THANK GOD!!!) ..Hey Joe .. Most people under 75 know all about the difference between China, Japan, South Korea, Viet Nam, etc... and for God's sake .. Can we end all the racial identity politics???? Everyone repeat after me: "AMERICANS" .. We are AMERICANS. If you were born here or immigrated and live here, You are AMERICAN. We need to stop the racism thing and be AMERICANS. I would say 90% of REAL America has been doing a good job of that.. over the past 50 years the progress toward ONE AMERICA has been great. The Loser Media want you to believe the few events are the norm.. There is more to do and more problems to address. But, the progress should not be ignored. ... and this means that if you consider yourself Chinese and hearing "Wuhan Virus" bothers you, GO LIVE IN CHINA. If your radical left college professor brainwashed you to believe that things like hearing "Wuhan Virus" should "trigger you" or send you the therapy, that professor has FAILED you. ... I will reiterate from Rants past.. "Borrelia Burgdorfei" .. and.. "Rickettsia rickettsii" or "Flasuviricetes Flaviviridae" ... Ever heard of them? YES, you HAVE!! They were all named after where they originated or had outbreaks. In order, those diseases are: Lyme's Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and West Nile Virus. Should we keep going? Spanish Flu, German Measles, Guinea Flu, Ebola Fever ... The Radical Left freaks have got to stop the "Everything is Racist" crap. It distracts from REAL racial issues that need to be addressed. No WORD in itself is offensive. YOU as the RECEIVER assign offense. YOU find something "offensive" to YOU!!. If "Wuhan Virus" offends you the problem is YOU. Blame your college.. Blame your therapist... then find something important to offend you.. As the "Next round of stimulus" discussions continue in The Swamp, the things that both sides agree on are: 1) There needs to be one. 2) We need to help the middle to lower income group because the most jobs lost are there. 3) The $600/week of extra Unemployment pays people more to NOT go back to work and that is not ideal. The Senate Proposal addresses all that but has not payroll tax cut (that Republicans wanted).. its $1 Trillion (Democrats wanted $3 Trillion) ... The unemployment payments are aimed to be 70% of what you made when employed to give incentive to go back to work .. and.. it does not contain a ton of extra money for State and Local Governments. Democrats WANT that money for States because they say it will avoid massive layoffs of teachers and first responders. Republicans say that money is rewarding States the were horribly mismanaged and had problems long before COVID...and... A BIG part of Senate Leader McConnell's bill is "Business Immunity from Lawsuits". In an attempt to help small businesses he wants to make sure they won't be bombarded with lawsuits if someone gets COVID in their store or restaurant. If cleaning and safety protocols are followed you won't be able to sue a Diner because you got COVID there. That's fair.. and SAD .. The SAD fact is: THAT is where we are as a society. The "Don't be an azzhole" rule has to be LEGISLATED to keep scumbag attorneys from bankrupting good small businesses... SPORTS: GOLF: Richy Werenski leads after one Round at the 3M .. and Renato Paratore is on top in England by a shot .. MLB: Famed Dr. Fauci throws out the first pitch at the Washington Nationals game. (Wearing a mask, of course) .. Not to be outdone, President Trump announces he will throw out the first pitch at the NY Yankee game August 15th.. I wonder if he'll stop by Trump Tower with it's new BLM painting in the street?? .. NFL: Because they cannot settle on a new name, the Redskins will now be: "Washington Football Team" for the 2020 season. Kinda has a ring to it.. Simple.. direct.. I might just keep it ... CELEBRIDIOTS: OHHHHHHH MYYYYYY .. ITS ON!!!! It's ON like DONKEY KONG ... This is first story in the CELEBRIDIOTS section because it could technically be in the Sports section, too. ..Ready?? Iron Mike Tyson will fight Roy Jones Jr. on September 12th. Whoooaaa Nelly!! Tyson is 54 and Jones is 51. Tyson in his prime was the most feared fighter, ever. Roy Jones Jr. is in the conversation for the BEST boxer of all time. He won titles as a Middleweight, Super Middleweight, Light Heavyweight, and Heavyweight. The fight is an 8 Round exhibition and Tyson says its for charity. .. Critics are saying it won't happen. They say California wont allow it for COVID reasons and all sorts of other stuff .. Well, Ill be Pay Per Viewing it no matter WHERE it happens.. Mel Gibson announced he had the COVID and was in the hospital for a week in April. No word if he attacked any doctors while there .. and.. Taylor Swift is dropping a new album. Ohhh.. I can't WAIT!!!! .. Let's see.. Ill guess the songs complain about: A) Ex boyfriends. B) B*tches in the music industry. C) Former Friends and D) "People that just don't understand how HARD it is to be Taylor...with all the fame and fortune" .. On Monday, one of you Rant Readers if going to have to tell me how many I got right. I couldn't name three Taylor Swift songs if you put a gun in my mouth ... and if I have to listen to this new album.... I might ask you to... Devon Windsor has a "new bikini" line and grabbed Olivia Culpo to help sell them. Why do girls that won the "Gene Pool Lottery" and have beautiful hot bodies think they can design clothes? My Girl Emily is so hot she smokes and her bikinis don't even look good on HER .. I count ONE... just ONE that looks good. The second to last white one on Devon. .. HERE ... Am I wrong?? Off to the Dentist for the first teeth cleaning since COVID. The hygienist is kinda hot .. so.. I gotta go eat a box of Oreos..It will take her HOURS .. Gotta make her WORK!!! From Seekingalpha.com Shares in Shanghai plunged nearly 4% overnight as China ordered the U.S. to close its consulate in the southwestern city of Chengdu, a day after Washington forced Beijing to leave its mission in Houston, citing alleged spying. The Chengdu consular district serves as a key U.S. listening post for developments in Tibet and China's development of strategic weapons in neighboring regions. It's the latest flashpoint between the two countries as the tit-for-tat spat clouds prospects for trade between the world's two largest economies. Escalating toward new cold war Adding to the tensions is a speech from Secretary of State Michael Pompeo that depicted China's leaders as tyrants bent on global hegemony. "If the free world doesn't change Communist China, Communist China will change us," he declared. "If we bend the knee now, our children's children may be at the mercy of the CCP, whose actions are the primary challenge to the free world." Pompeo also discussed the tech frontier. "We have stopped pretending Huawei is an innocent telecommunications company... we have called it what it is, a national security threat, and taken action accordingly." Stocks set to extend losses Tech is under more pressure today with Nasdaq futures down 1.1%, while contracts tied to the Dow and S&P 500 are off 0.4%, as tensions rise between Beijing and Washington. Another rebound of business activity across the eurozone didn't help markets there as the Euro Stoxx 50 fell 1.6%. Over in the U.S., Senate Republicans scrapped their plans to release a proposal for the next coronavirus relief bill Thursday after continued differences with the White House. Stocks have been sensitive to cues about stimulus, as well as the flurry of corporate earnings. On the calendar today, Verizon (NYSE:VZ) and Honeywell (NYSE:HON) are set to report. One of the world's greatest financial scandals Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) has agreed to a $3.9B settlement with the Malaysian government over the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal. Backdrop: Malaysian prosecutors filed charges in December 2018 against three Goldman units for misleading investors over bond sales totaling $6.5B that the bank helped raise for the sovereign wealth fund. However, Goldman has pleaded not guilty to the charges, saying that certain members of government and 1MDB lied to it about how proceeds from the bond sales would be used. GS +1.7% premarket. End of aircraft subsidies dispute Along with the governments of France and Spain, Airbus (OTCPK:EADSY) has agreed to amend so-called launch aid arrangements, a subsidy designed to help manufacturers develop new plane models. "After 16 years of litigation at the World Trade Organization, this is the final step to stop the longstanding dispute," Airbus said in a statement, after the U.S. was given the go-ahead to impose tariffs on as much as $7.5B worth of European exports annually. Back in February, Washington state lawmakers also repealed a key tax break for Boeing (NYSE:BA) to head off a parallel action by the EU at the WTO. A bid for Brooks Brothers Major U.S. mall owners have been increasingly looking for deals to salvage retailers - in many cases major tenants - that have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. The latest? A company known as Sparc, which is comprised of Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) and Authentic Brands, has been designated as the "stalking horse" for bankrupted Brooks Brothers after making a $305M bid. The offer, still subject to better and higher bids and court approval by Aug. 5, pledges to keep at least 125 of Brooks Brothers' stores open for business (it currently has 250 locations in North America). Tech antitrust hearing delay A high-profile House Antitrust hearing on Monday is likely headed for a delay due to a ceremony for the late Rep. John Lewis, Politico reports. When it does come, the hearing - set to feature Amazon's (NASDAQ:AMZN) Jeff Bezos, Facebook's (NASDAQ:FB) Mark Zuckerberg, Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) Tim Cook and Google's (GOOG, GOOGL) Sundar Pichai - will be one of the most highly anticipated such appearances in years. Not only will it be the first time the four testified at the same hearing, it will be the first congressional appearance for Bezos. In related news, Apple shares stumbled 4.5% yesterday on reports that multiple U.S. states are probing the tech giant for deceptive trade practices. Film release shakeup Just hours after Disney (NYSE:DIS) cleared the decks by delaying Mulan for the fourth time, as well as pushing back Star Wars and Avatar movies, more high-profile film releases are packing up for later dates. Paramount's (NASDAQ:VIAC) Top Gun: Maverick, a sequel to 1986 hit Top Gun, was set to bow on Dec. 23 but now heads to July 2021. The studio had previously delayed A Quiet Place Part II to Labor Day weekend, as well as Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Jackass, Under the Boardwalk and The Tiger's Apprentice. Sony (NYSE:SNE) is also moving its latest Spider-Man live-action sequel back a month. What else is happening... Fiat currency a "passing fad" - Gold closes in on all-time high. Vodafone (NASDAQ:VOD) targets Frankfurt for towers business IPO. Walmart (NYSE:WMT) turns up health moves with plans in Atlanta. Retail trading boom has E*Trade (NASDAQ:ETFC) in high cotton. Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) inks manufacturing deal for COVID-19 vaccine. Thursday's Key Earnings American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL) +3.6% with lower cash burn rate. AT&T (NYSE:T) -0.9% on double-digit WarnerMedia decline. Blackstone (NYSE:BX) -2.3% after distributable earnings miss. Dow (NYSE:DOW) -3.4% posting larger-than-expected Q2 loss. Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) -2.2% as virus has 'forever changed the way it runs.' Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) -11.1% AH delaying next-generation chips. Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT) +7.3% AH seeing growth in Barbie and games. Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) -1.5% hit by a $915M loss. Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) +4.1% reporting strong Q2 user growth. Today's Markets In Asia, Japan -0.6%. Hong Kong -2.2%. China -3.9%. India flat. In Europe, at midday, London -1%. Paris -1.3%. Frankfurt -1.6%. Futures at 6:20, Dow -0.4%. S&P -0.4%. Nasdaq -1.1%. Crude +0.7% to $41.36. Gold -0.1% to $1888.70. Ten-year Treasury Yield flat at 0.59% Today's Economic Calendar 9:45 PMI Composite Flash 10:00 New Home Sales 1:00 PM Baker-Hughes Rig Count
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