The end of capitalism ?

Jump to Latest
#81
syn08 said:
One not so small issue in how China has a competitive advantages is shipping costs; it costs me $20 to bring my PCBs from Shenzhen with an almost overnight courier (2 days, actually) while the same courier in NA wants to charge me $80 for the same package (weight, size) from Denver, CO.

Word is, the Chinese govt. is subsidizing the shipping costs of exported goods, which would be unfair, but I am not entirely convinced. I suspect the couriers are overcharging obscene amounts on the NA market. And they do it because there is no real competition in NA, on the business market. Residential shippings are just collateral damage that nobody cares about. So the courier greed is helping shooting ourselves in the foot.
Click to expand...

It costs $0.35 to ship a pound of polyethylene to the US from China. It costs $0.035 to ship a pound of polyethylene from the US to China -- because the boats go back virtually empty.

China still operates on a state-driven mercantilist economic model rather than a purely capitalistic one, the curtain on that has gone up recently for all to see. What all mercantilist systems have in their final implementation is a surplus of financial assets looking for a home. In China's case it's residential construction.

With respect to the "end-game" of capitalism being feudalism -- this is just nonsense. If you want to see feudalism as currently practiced just look to the "hacienda" economic systems of Central America.
 
#82
Disco-Pete said:
A testament to your 'speed', hence the moniker?



A very pure motive here. 🙂
Click to expand...

I was a real speed demon in that Pinto.:devilr:

By the way, here is my namesake. Edward Vrdolyak - Wikipedia Looks like he's going home for the holidays. Former Ald. ‘Fast Eddie’ Vrdolyak ordered to report to federal prison by end of the month - Chicago Tribune It's the Chicago way. 😀

Very disappointed when Kumho changed the tread pattern of my favourite tire a number of years ago. Didn't last more than about 80,000 km but I could go 100kmph in 6" snow on the 401 in my full size Chev Express van. Pass everybody like they're standing still with a 10' rooster tail. The tread pattern was just knobbies like on a dirt bike.
Click to expand...

Knobbies are loud, kill gas mileage, and just politically incorrect.

But they get you through snow and mud, and they are fun.

My Subarus had pretty generic all season tires. Before that I drove fairly conventional American RWD cars, which are a nightmare in the snow.
 
#83
I had a 2000 Lexus RX300 with almost 300,000 miles on the clock. It still ran OK, but I just couldn't bear to look at it any more. The seats were ripped and lumpy, the headliner was dirty, etc. All curtesy of my teenagers that drove the car after I had put 200,000 on it. When the kids left the house I sold the car for $500. I'll bet it's still running.

BTW - it was a relatively easy car to fix if you are so inclined, and it had a very good sound system.
 
#85
The guy's 82 and he's still a hardcore chiseler. He's going to prison again in a few weeks.

This guy is not only a lawyer, he's arguably one of the most powerful lawyers in Illinois history. Even though everyone knows he's going to prison, there's still TV advertisements for his law firm - what chutzpah! I remember when the Feds raided his offices and left with all his computers - he said there's nothing on them. He said he wasn't worried at all.

I wouldn't want to play poker with him, but I'd sure hire him to contest my taxes. 😀
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom