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According to NBC News, “Francis, who died Monday at age 88, was keen to flex his muscles as supreme pontiff. He angered some Catholic Church traditionalists by reaching out to gay and marginalized people, demanding justice for the poor and the dispossessed and railing against unbridled capitalism and climate change.”

Half of my prediction has already come true. As I said, when Pope Francis was in the hospital, he would not survive the year. Of course, it does not take a genius to claim this small bit of clairvoyance safely. Duh! I said in a previous post that the Pope would pass and the Church would lurch back to the right. Again, this is also not a big leap given the tendency for the Chruch, like any other political institution, to zig-zag or ping-pong between liberal and conservative ideologies. God forbid a person or humanity, for that matter, should pick the correct direction in which to move and stick with it; heaven forbid humanity should possibly want to row in the same direction long enough to actually fix the world’s problems — climate change, the poor, world hunger, and other assorted injustices and evils. So, to predict that the next Pope will be more unlike Pope Francis than like him requires no great matter of divine intervention. But I will make this prediction: The next Pope will be Italian, not a European, but from Italy. And the new Pope will not only be a conservative in the traditionalist mode, but an uber-conservative in the model of Pope John Paul II. The Chruch will not merely drift away from Pope Francis’ liberal legacy, but it will run hard and fast away from liberalism as soon as humanly possible. Moreover, I also predict that the new pontiff will be relatively young compared to previous Popes. While Pope Francis was 76 at the time of his elevation, I think the next pontiff will be younger still.

So, why do I make these specific pronouncements? Because I think the Vatican will — as I have said before — follow the worldwide trend of eschewing liberalism and embracing “traditional” values. In short, the Church will regress, like the rest of the world, because that’s what humans do. Two steps forward, one step back on a good day. (Sometimes I think it’s more like one step forward, two steps back.) How many times and how often have I tried to convey to you people that this conservative movement in Europe and the MAGA moron movement here in America are, in fact, all part of the same movement away from liberal democracy. The Catholic Chruch is far less the leader of movements than you may want to believe; it is, indeed, more of a follower. (Or, perhaps, Pope Francis was an aberration and the Church is simply continuing in its long tradition of being less Christ-like and more fire-and-brimstone, for the old and new covenants really do operate on two vastly different plains.) Nonetheless, the new Pope will reverse all progressive advances. Once more, the LGBTQ community will be demonized and ostracized. Migrants will be given no second thought. Climate change? What climate change? Hoax! Of course, God approves of humanity treating the planet he created as one gigantic open sewer and trash dump. You name it. All the worst bigotry and hatred of the universal Church will come back into vogue and on full display for the world to relish because there is no greater hate than Christian love! It will be the return of the culture wars — on steroids! This has been the worldwide trend in the last 10-15 years, and it has come to fruition and become more manifest with the rising power of fascist leaders in Europe and the Americas — from the likes of Hungary and Italy itself to the U.S. to El Salvador.

So the Catholic Church pulling hard to the right is merely a reflection of the rest of the world as people sleepwalk into a future of fewer freedoms for everyone and a world dominated by leaders who hate more than they love; and the Pope will be yet one more leader added to the mix who will either look the other way when injustice ravages the world or, worse still, provides his tacit approval in the name of returning to a time of religious Christian dominance, which translates to religious exclusionism and a blessing of worldwide Christian theocratic rule. The Church is itching to reassert its religious and political hegemony on the world stage, and it can’t do that with “weak” liberal beliefs and policies a la Pope Francis. The Church beckons for a return to a Papal Prince, not another Papal pauper. The next Pope will be a titanic shift! If you truly want to understand the character and essence of the Catholic Chruch, then witness how fast it moves away from a humble Pope Francis toward a Pope who is more Princely — in all the trappings of pomp and circumstance — than the pastor. Mark my words, f***tards. Mark them well! I promise you!

“DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, ET AL. v. J. G. G., ET AL.

“ON APPLICATION TO VACATE THE ORDERS ISSUED BY THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

“[April 7, 2025]

“JUSTICE JACKSON, dissenting.

“I join JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR’s dissent in full and would deny the application for all the reasons she explains. I write separately to question the majority’s choice to intervene on the eve of the District Court’s preliminary-injunction hearing without scheduling argument or receiving merits briefing. This fly-by-night approach to the work of the Supreme Court is not only misguided. It is also dangerous.

“The President of the United States has invoked a centuries-old wartime statute to whisk people away to a notoriously brutal, foreign-run prison. For lovers of liberty, this should be quite concerning. Surely, the question whether such Government action is consistent with our Constitution and laws warrants considerable thought and attention from the Judiciary. That was why the District Court issued a temporary restraining order to prevent immediate harm to the targeted individuals while the court considered the lawfulness of the Government’s conduct. But this Court now sees fit to intervene, hastily dashing off a four-paragraph per curiam opinion discarding the District Court’s order based solely on a new legal pronouncement that, one might have thought, would require significant deliberation.

“When this Court decides complex and monumental issues, it typically allows the lower courts to address those TRUMP v. J. G. G. JACKSON, J., dissenting matters first; it then receives full briefing, hears oral argument, deliberates internally, and, finally, issues a reasoned opinion. Those standard processes may not always yield correct results. But when we deviate from them, the risk of error always substantially increases. Today’s rushed conclusion—that those challenging the Government’s action can only pursue their claims through habeas—is Exhibit A.

“I lament that the Court appears to have embarked on a new era of procedural variability, and that it has done so in such a casual, inequitable, and, in my view, inappropriate manner. See Department of Education v. California, 604 U. S. __ , __ (2025) (J ACKSON, J., dissenting) (slip op., at 1–2). At least when the Court went off base in the past, it left a record so posterity could see how it went wrong. See, e.g., Korematsu v. United States, 323 U. S. 214 (1944). With more and more of our most significant rulings taking place in the shadows of our emergency docket, today’s Court leaves less and less of a trace. But make no mistake: We are just as wrong now as we have been in the past, with similarly devastating consequences. It just seems we are now less willing to face it.”

From The Hill, “Days before his troops overthrew the regime of Bashar Assad, Ahmad al-Sharaa declared that Syria deserves a system in which no ‘single ruler makes arbitrary decisions.’ Sharaa, once a feared jihadist and founder of al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch, now vows to abandon vengeance and lead Syria’s reconstruction with moderation and inclusivity. But as interim president, he has seized control of every pillar of government, stacking sensitive posts with loyalists and family. This culminated in mid-March with the imposition of an interim constitution granting him executive, legislative and judicial authority for five years.”

Pick your cliche: “Meet the new boss, same as the old boss,” or “I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!” The situation in Syria is hardly worth commenting on because in the Middle East, nothing changes, not even the Arab Spring changed much, as ultimately all those protests culminated in nothing — just a return to the tried and true dictatorial tendencies of the Islamic faith. No Islamic state in the Middle East is a democracy; they’re all some form of autocracy, so it is no surprise that Syria should trade one dictator for another one in the making. And guess what? The people love it! They really, genuinely do. They love to be lorded over; they just want there to be a peaceful dictator so long as they can all practice their sh*tty religion, which is based on oppressing everyone except the patriarch of the family. So whatever! I have no idea why people should be surprised that democracy is not taking root in Syria despite Sharaa’s “promises.” Dare I say that Syria may actually wind up being closer to a Caliphate than a secular state with a strongman at the head of the government. But, again, this is what the people want — to be ruled, not led. But I digress.

The reason I brought up the situation in Syria is that it’s, once again, yet another example of a global trend everyone in the MSM is refusing to address, and Americans at large are clueless to apprehend. That trend is this: Democracies across the globe are dying. Now, now! I can hear you complaining already: A budding dictatorship in a part of the Islamic world that has never had a democracy is no indication or has no bearing on the rest of the world backsliding; it’s merely the Middle East doing what the Middle East does best: Propagating uber-conservative religious states that limit people’s rights and freedoms. They’ve constantly been regressing. This is true. But it should call to our attention that what we see in the Middle East is not contained — near has been, I suppose. If anything, it should be a warning that nascent dictatorships are alive and well, and, indeed, sprouting up everywhere. As Syrians celebrate peace despite trading in one dictator for another, Americans should understand our apparent willingness to welcome the first dictator if it brings peace to the economy — turmoil that Dictator Don brought on himself. But that’s the whole point. Welcome to stupid America!

According to J.P. Morgan, “In light of heightened trade policy uncertainty, J.P. Morgan Research has raised the probability of a global recession to 40%. Both business sentiment and consumer confidence have slumped in the U.S., and a slowdown here could weigh on global growth. Against this rapidly evolving economic backdrop, J.P. Morgan Research still expects to see two more rate cuts this year.”

Once again, the “smart” money is completely missing the point and refuses to state the obvious. J.P. Morgan, one of the largest banks in the world, can’t bring themselves to declare the obvious: We’ll be in a recession immediately! Obviously, we won’t know officially until the National Bureau of Economic Research’s Business Cycle Dating Committee declares one after two quarters of contracting economic growth. Maybe they’ll declare one earlier if the crash is significant enough. Oh, wait. Who am I kidding? I forget who controls the NBER. It’s the executive branch, i.e., The Don! Thus, expect them never to declare a recession — ever. No matter how bad things get, they will never officially declare a recession. Mark my words! Other non-government institutions may unofficially “declare” a recession, but do not expect the government to tell citizens the truth. The truth will be dead in rough times!

Nonetheless, for the “braintrust” at J.P. Morgan to still forecast a less than 50/50 — at the time of this writing that is — chance of a recession is somewhat incomprehensible. As Reuters reported about Fitch Ratings, “The U.S. tariff rate on all imports has rocketed to 22% from just 2.5% in 2024 under the new global levies imposed by President Donald Trump, Fitch Ratings’ U.S. economic research chief said on Wednesday. ‘That rate was last seen around 1910,’ Olu Sonola, Fitch’s head of U.S. economic research, said in a statement after Trump’s announcement for a global baseline import tax of 10%, but much higher rates for many trading partners.” While many analysts will have many opinions and predictions, I think the warning from Fitch about returning to a time early in the last century should be a wake-up call for the markets and businesses. J.P. Morgan’s rather optimistic forecast really does speak to the fact that the big banks don’t want to poke the bear — Dictator Don. They still hold out hope that these tariffs will be less catastrophic than is apparent to everyone else. Whatever! After 10 years of the Dictator Don reality show, people are still — still to this very day — shell-shocked by everything he says and does to the point that they can’t think straight. Welcome to stupid America! Proving dumber one day at a time.

For all those f***tard “experts” out there who kept trying to convince Americans and themselves that Dictator Don is merely bluffing on tariffs, that this is just the start of negotiations, that tariffs are just a tactic, do you believe reality now? Or are you still delusional? I especially love how the “wisdom” of the markets could not be bothered to read the writing on the wall until it reached out and slapped them on the face. I’ve been trying to warn all you morons that The Don! means business when it comes to tariffs. (I will only concede that these tariffs are worse than I expected. So much so that I may have to reconsider my midterm election predictions.) Unlike just about every other aspect of his economic and political ethos, he actually believes in the “virtues” of tariffs. It is probably the one true conviction he has other than believing that the 2020 election was stolen from him. But whatever. This is precisely what Americans voted for. Oh well, f***tards. You deserve this!

Oh, oh. Before I forget, I finally heard it. Finally, finally, finally! I finally heard a MSM economist state the obvious — yet inexplicably never stated — consequence of tariffs on the price of domestic goods. Steve Rattner, Morning Joe‘s resident economist (yes, yes, I’ve returned to watch Morning Joe just this week), actually stated out loud that domestic prices would also increase because of these tariffs, as he said, “Why wouldn’t they?” Indeed! As I had just written in an earlier post, Tariffs for Dummies, I argued that there is no reason why domestic producers would not increase their prices to a level similar to the cost of like, tariffed goods. Duh! Finally, one other person gets it. Not sure why everyone else keeps missing this point.

And if I have to hear one more CNN segment talk about car prices, then I’m going to lose my ever-loving f***ing mind. While reporting on car prices is “sexy,” it is far from representative of the larger looming tariff crisis, which is essentially a 10 percent tax on everything — everything (see paragraph immediately above). People can put off buying a car or spread out the increased cost by extending loan terms, which now you can expect to see 10-year car loans. Mark my words, morons! (When I bought my car a couple of years ago, they offered a 7-year loan term, which astonished me. I had never seen that before. I remember when 6-year loans were considered a sign of lacking creditworthiness. But I digress.) Nonetheless, other discretionary expenses and certainly non-discretionary items like groceries and medication will hit hard and immediately. Again, whatever. People voted for this. This sh*t-for-brains country wanted a president to “shake things up” and destroy the economy, and now they’re getting it. Morons get the government they deserve and desire. Welcome to stupid America!

From Politico, “It’s one thing to hit Harley-Davidson motorbikes and bourbon whiskey. It’s another to go after Silicon Valley or Wall Street. The European Union is considering opening up a new battlefront as President Donald Trump prepares to impose so-called reciprocal tariffs on all of America’s trading partners on Wednesday. Brussels has so far played by the traditional trade-war rulebook, matching Trump’s broader tariffs on the industrial metals with equivalent levies on iconic American brands like Harley-Davidson. The tit-for-tat response is intended to match, or ‘mirror,’ the administration’s moves — but not to escalate. … As a last resort the EU can deploy its trade ‘bazooka’ — the Anti-Coercion Instrument. As the name suggests, it would enable a broad-spectrum response, including targeting services, if Brussels concludes that U.S. actions are excessive. … And even as it signals its willingness to escalate, Brussels also hopes to bring Washington to the negotiating table. Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič is hoping his U.S. counterparts can settle on a ‘term sheet’ that sets out a framework for talks — when the next round of tariffs takes effect [emphasis added].”

Shoulda, woulda, coulda. What is it with this sh*t-for-brain world? Seriously! When did the world as a whole become so f***ing stupid? I truly want to know at what point the resistance to Dictator Don completely evaporated. At what point will the world start to take The Don! both seriously and literally? After all this time, Europeans are still grappling with how to respond. Dictator Don has been telegraphing his intentions for months, and the E.U. is still weighing its tariff response. They should have their counter tariffs ready to go and be communicating them just as Dictator Don has. If the U.S. does ABC, then the E.U. will do XYZ — no ifs, ands, or buts. And “hope,” as the article quoted above states, is not a f***ing strategy. If I had a f***ing half cent for every time I heard the resistance to Dictator Don claim they hope he will not do what he says, then I would be richer than Elonna Musk!

This is how The Don! keeps getting away with everything! No one is willing to stand up to him, and he knows it. He knows no individual or country will push back with the political ruthlessness or courage required to blunt his force. Facing no resistance, he keeps pushing harder. Moreover, anti-Trump politicians and world leaders enable his worst impulses because they all unwarrantedly fear him. Now is the time for the E.U. to push back hard and take a page from the Dictator Don playbook: If he hits them, they hit back 10 times harder. Oh, who the f*** am I kidding? The E.U. response will be feckless. I promise you. Mark my words! The Don! will get away with it again, as usual. Welcome to stupid America!

According to Newsweek, “Democrat Cory Booker is holding a marathon Senate floor speech, largely criticizing Trump administration policies and spending cuts. The U.S. Senator from New Jersey has held the floor since about 7 a.m. ET on Monday, pausing only to take questions—and a breath—from Democrat allies. … The 55-year-old has vowed to keep going ‘as long as I am physically able.’ … Booker’s speech is not a filibuster because it is not blocking legislation or a nomination.”

Wow! Dumbass Democrats continue to prove their worthlessness and misguided political “acumen.” First of all, I think the Democratic base is f***ing sick and tired of dumbass Democrats’ speeches — less empty talking and more fruitful action is desirable. Endlessly yammering on is not the action for which we’re looking. This is not the type of enthusiasm (or lack thereof) that fires up the base’s passion. How f***ing pathetic! It is more embarrassing than anything else. Second, Booker’s stunt doesn’t even amount to a filibuster, so it is literally a speech of sound and fury, signifying absolutely f***ing nothing. Truly! These Democrats are so f***ing stupid that they can’t even engage in “good trouble” effectively. Why not wait for a piece of legislation to block to make his political point, because as his “protest” stands now, it is utterly meaningless. No one f***ing cares about Democrats’ empty gestures. It is nothing more than Booker talking for hours just to hear himself talk. And what’s worse? Booker’s speech is actually holding up an anticipated bipartisan Senate vote to rebuke Dictator Don’s tariffs on Canada. What a f***ing disaster. I swear to f***ing God, dumbass Democrats have just lost it. Welcome to stupid America. Democrats are leaderless and becoming more irrelevant every hour Booker speaks.

According to NBC News, “Moving at a rapid-fire clip, Donald Trump has been concentrating power in his hands, pushing the bounds of executive authority while effectively muzzling an array of voices that pose threats to his agenda. Trump is using the multiple levers that a president commands both to neuter institutions he has scorned and reward others that align with his worldview. One by one, he is bending ostensibly independent actors under the weight of his power. So far, Trump has targeted the legal community, universities, the arts, career government employees and the press and brought them to heel in some measure, willingly or not. Law firms with even indirect ties to past investigations of Trump now face punitive measures that could put them out of business.”

This article pretty much summed up succinctly the state of affairs in this sh*t-for-brains country. But allow me to read between the lines and tell you about the real consequences of Dictator Don’s actions, which no MSM will dare write. In short, America’s democracy is collapsing right now as we speak, right before our eyes. You are witnessing the end of our 250-year experiment in real time. And guess what? No one f***ing cares. Not a single f***ing American cares. Oh sure, there are a handful of protesters here and there. Indeed, small groups of disgruntled constituents are showing up to town hall meetings. But a general uprising of concerned citizens, by and large, is nowhere to be seen. More people were concerned about the Muslim ban during Dictator Don’s first term. How bizarre is that? Eight years ago, there were protests, en masse, against banning Muslims from coming to America. Yet, today, when America’s democracy and rule of law are coming to an end, the public response is complete and utter apathy. Un-f***ing-believable! People, for the most part, remain in their homes, cowering and unwilling to face the facts of America. This is what a dying country looks like. Mark my words, f***tards! Welcome to stupid Ameirca! The end is here as I’ve been warning for years! Oh, well.

I found this comic nailed it perfectly. There is one not-so-subtle aspect of tariffs that I have not heard the MSM address, including so-called “expert” reports and analysts covering the economy and markets. That aspect is this: Tariffs cause all prices on like products and substitutes to increase. I have discussed this before, but it is never fully explained in the MSM. I assume because the average American is too stupid to comprehend the finer facets of tariffs.

You know, this is not a matter of simply avoiding tariffed products by switching to items made in America instead. That’s not how economics works, as the comic above evinces. Of course, a firm would raise its price to just below what a like product would be under tariffs. That’s a no-brainer. If you have to buy a widget, domestic or foreign, and the imported widget price is $15.00, then why won’t a domestic producer charge a price higher than pre-tariff but less than post-tariff? Firms are rent-seekers, and this is risk-free profit in the short term. If American-made firms can get away with raising prices by any amount, knowing that demand for their widget will shift from foreign to domestic producers, then why not? Yes, yes. You may ask what about producers selling less of a product at a higher price, which might induce them to keep prices low. That is a fair point, and that’s where the intricacies of economics become very complicated; indeed, what is the sweet spot between higher profits and production? Bottom line is this: Tariffs equal restricted supply, which leads to higher prices. Nonetheless, Dictator Don thinks all this will lead to deflation (or disinflation), and that’s what idiots of America also seem to believe. That’s why they voted for him — allegedly. If The Don! says it, then it must be true! Welcome to stupid America!

No truer headline has ever been written. At least one “news” source understands dumbass Democrats. Now, if only the Democratic Party would get the hint! Welcome to stupid America! Can’t wait for the next missed opportunity!