DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Palus Politicus Liberation Day

You seem to think that matters to him.

According to his post if a president doesn't rant all the time, call his opponents names and institute global tariffs he doesn't have any balls. You know, MAGA thinking.

Some of you all can go and post all the stuff about all these projects and all this money coming and how great the tariffs are-

but this is more and more of what I am seeing and it is really ramping up-I had a Saturday morning discussion with my wife in mid February about pulling back on our investments and the 401k after I had a meeting with an owners rep that said they were putting a 350 million new facility in southwest Pa on hold-the reason was that the Department of Energy is pulling back their grant money (it was in the millions) and the project will be on hold and may have to be shelved due to cuts in fed funding



Then I heard this week about a power plant conversion and a new very very large data center in Pa that is being put on hold-I was told "current market conditions and uncertainty" My guess that the total project was in the couple billion range plus.

And then this morning i see this-and this project was also on our radar at work-




IRG cancels plans for $300 million Erie recycling facility
by: Tyler Gallagher, Drew Miller

Posted: Apr 3, 2025 / 06:42 PM EDT

Updated: Apr 3, 2025 / 06:42 PM EDT

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(WJET/WFXP)– International Recycling Group has canceled its plans to build a plastics recycling plant in Erie, citing the financial uncertainty brought on by federal funding cuts among other reasons.

International Recycling Group (IRG) made the announcement Thursday they’ve canceled their plans for the $300 million facility which was going to receive a $192 million loan from the Environmental Protection Agency and would’ve been housed in the former Hammermill Paper Property.

In addition to the federal funding cuts, IRG stated the tariffs announced by President Trump for materials and equipment needed at the plant would’ve driven up the cost of development than they planned for along with trouble securing long-term purchase agreements for recycled materials from plastics manufacturers and consumer product groups.


The project would’ve brought an estimated 250 manufacturing jobs to Erie.

“Over four years ago, we brought the IRG project to Erie with the intention of creating high-paying, family-sustaining jobs and turning Erie into a leader in environmental sustainability by replacing new plastic production with reused and recycled materials gathered from homes across the region. I am personally devastated after 18 years of working to bring this vision to a reality that we have failed to overcome these challenges,” said Mitch Hecht, the company’s founder and Chief Executive Officer.

The CEO of the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership (ERCGP) expressed his frustrations at the canceled project.


“The Erie Regional Chamber is frustrated by the financial pressure building due to economic uncertainty at the federal level, which IRG cited as the reason to cancel plans for its Erie plastics recycling plant project. We recognize the significant economic opportunities it could have brought to Erie,” said Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership CEO Brandon Mendoza, “this project had significant support at the state and local level, across public and private sectors, and to see it pulled is a significant loss.

Along with the canceled project, IRG has also suspended their newBin collection service and will be selling off the plastics they’ve collected and will send it to landfill if they can’t find a buyer.

To go with the $192 million EPA loan, the facility received a $300,000 grant from Erie County Redevelopment Authority to pay for the former Hammermill facility which they said will be repaid in full and any additional grants they’ve received from the state have not been touched.

The ERCGP said they’re going to contact Governor Josh Shapiro’s office about keeping the $5 million grant IRG received for the facility for other projects around the area.


The new facility would’ve turned an estimated 160,000 tons of plastic waste into 100,000 tons of recycled plastics to be used instead of new plastics along with lowering emissions in the steelmaking process.

https://www.wkbn.com/news/pennsylvania/irg-cancels-plans-for-300-million-erie-recycling-facility/

One thing I’m worried about with the tariffs is another area where China has the potential to step into our shoes in terms of world influence. They already have locked arms with Japan and South Korea, both of whom we heavily rely geopolitically to keep them in check.

China has talked before about moving from an export based economy to a consumption based economy, but they previously failed in that attempt.

This might open the window for them to be more of a “stable” trading partner and leave us on the outside looking in.

The admin has made an effort to say that this is a leverage point to get others to come to the table and try to negotiate more favorable trade deals. That he consistently been Trump’s negotiation tactic. Blitzkrieg on a pressure point of leverage in attempts to force leverage on a better deal. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it can colossally blow up in your face. Especially if other nations see a BATNA that involves another primary trading partner. Then you’re left holding the bag.

The issue now is that Trump is not seen as stable. He has had his own people on one hand say “It’s good to be seen as ‘crazy’ in negotiations, and that is what Trump is going for” whereas other people say “This isn’t crazy. This is planned.” Direct contravention of each other. That, at a minimum, shows me this wasn’t cohesive or well thought out. When you look to the executive for guidance on the matter, he flies down to Florida to play golf.

Throw on top of that the fact the math isn’t mathing… Throw yet another layer on top of that the fact Trump has ripped up his own previous agreements in order to get another one.

This runs the risk of other nations seeking stability. Same with corporations. Predictability goes a long way in helping public corporations project out for their shareholders, which is priority número uno this day and age.

Who knows, maybe he is some evil genius and is the only one who can make sense out of this issue, against all conventional wisdom. All I know is that right now, I’ve seen some people on this forum who were supporters of his turn in the other direction. Also had some conversations with friends of mine who voted for him (one is a wealth manager) who have completely turned on him. I still don’t think the Dems are close to having their own act together, but he and his “heirs” better hope that this gamble pays off.

If one looks hard enough they can find a silver lining no matter how thin that lining is.....

Oil Prices Tumble on Trump Tariffs and OPEC+ Production Hike

A combination of Trump's tariffs and the OPEC+ decision to accelerate production hikes has sent oil prices crashing.

Both WTI and Brent have shed more than $10 since their Wednesday highs.

The oil majors are seeing their stock prices drop dramatically as demand doubts grow.

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-...mp-Tariffs-and-OPEC-Production-Hike.html

I wasn’t even trying to make the post about him or get into a pissing match whatsoever.

Just doing a comparison point of reciprocal tariffs vs the kind of tariffs that were just implemented on the second. They aren’t even reciprocal. It’s apples and oranges. Yes, they are both fruit, but one was reciprocal and this was…I don’t even know.

If these were targeted, reciprocal tariffs, then I think it’s a discussion point. There are people all over the spectrum looking at this, though, and shaking their heads.

Well, I guess another silver lining there is that it’s another roundabout blast at Russia’s effort to fund their war with oil prices droppi and OPEC increasing their market share.

Apples to oranges seems to be the flavor of the day.

Thankfully Powell has Trump on his ignore list. As long as the economy is doing fine he see's no reason to touch rates. Yes Powell is in a tough spot.

More inflation on the way with these tariffs so why add fuel to the fire with cuts. We need amo if economy goes into deep recession.

We have inflation data out next week. CPI on Thursday, PPI Friday.

IF markets tank another 10-15% I think there's a chance the Fed will step in to do something.

J.P.Morgan ratcheted up its odds for a U.S. and global recession to 60%, as brokerages scrambled to revise their forecast models with tariff distress threatening to sap business confidence and slow down global growth.

https://www.reuters.com/markets/jpm...ds-60-us-tariffs-stoke-fears-2025-04-04/

Well we should all just trust in Trump… I wonder how much the DOW will free-fall next week? I expect to see it dip below 30K this year.

Wow! I never knew winning could feel so desperate.

He has remained remarkably stoic, which is great for his position.

Jon Stewart had another podcast discussion with Michael Lewis this past week. Michael Lewis authored The Big Short and Moneyball. It was actually my favorite I’ve heard, but I’m biased because they touched on the importance of federal employees. I recommend it to anyone.

Lewis brought up the importance of depoliticizing certain segments of Government, something that was an OG conservative approach. He cited examples of how those Departments erode significantly once brought within the political umbrella. One example being how the CDC was the gold standard in the 50s, 60s and 70s. Once it was brought with the sphere of the President, though, it declined significantly.

The Fed seems to be one of the last holdouts of the old model. I hope it stays that way. Based on his own rhetoric, I do feel the current executive would love nothing more than to exert control over it though.

When a man is so obsessed with total power over everything that he felt the need to install board members to The Kennedy Center that in turn named him as Kennedy Center Board Chair what won't he do to control something, anything and everything?

Top Trump Official So Freaked Out by Tariffs, He Wants to Quit

https://newrepublic.com/post/193634/donald-trump-treasury-scott-bessent-tariffs-quit

j/c:



Haven't watched this yet, but thought to share in case some might find it informative (whether one agrees or not) to hone in on their particular position when hearing from Bessent. I hope people can refrain from spazzing out because they see Tucker, but I doubt it.

My summary:

1. Bessent comes across as very smart, experienced, reasoned, and frankly, a good human.

2. After listening to him, there is CLEARLY a plan with the tariffs. Whether they actually work out in the end is TBD.

3. Many of the questions from Tucker were pretty broad and would not have been surprised if Bessent was given them in advance. Also, there wasn't any serious pushback. Yes, there was some follow-ups, but Bessent was in ally territory, so to speak.

4. At first I liked Bessent's reply to (paraphrasing) a question about responding to countries that pushback on their tariffs.... he said it was it's more important to "focus on companies than countries". I get that and, fundamentally, that makes sense for the US, but you'll still have to deal with the countries no matter what. That seemed more like a buzz phrase the more I digested it.

5. Bessent's breakdown of the Chinese overall economic model and their current situation was very interesting.

6. He dodged the question about whether the average American would see tax cuts as a result of the tariffs.

7. I like how he framed that he cannot say 100% that this plan will work, but conveyed (accurately) that this old model is not working and something new needs to be done.

8. Agreed with him on his take the upper class is completely out of touch.

9. Also agreed that the media has vilified Musk and DOGE and time will eventually show their worth and contribution.

10. Very interesting insight on his trip to Kyiv to visit Zelensky as a prelude to the event that happened at the White House.

Minimum wage is a starting wage. The wage you made working some job in HS.

We do have programs people can receive who can't make it on their wages. I suppose if we set the minimum wage at a living rate we could nearly eliminate food stamps, health care programs and subsidized housing. Something tells me that wouldn't fly.

I have said this before Pit....people need to quit thinking in terms of minimum wage and start thinking about the maximum wage they can make.

I would be glad to watch the video and I appreciate your insight and thoughts. My question back to you before doing so, however, is whether you would be willing to ally discuss it with me? I don’t want to just talk into the void.

I actually would be fine negotiating a reduction in things like those benefits if the wage rose. I think that’s fair.

As a traditionally financial conservative, I agree on people needing to think about maximizing wage vs raising the floor too high. But I still think there needs to be a floor, or at least a temporary guardrail. People do experience hard times, injuries and whatnot.

I do view handouts to the underachieving or malcontent to be two prong. You see it happening at the bottom and also at the top (corporate) level. I think mitigating it from both ends is something to strive for.

I don’t know of a single business still ONLY paying minimum wage to it’s employees; 15-20 bucks seems to be the new starting point. And if you make $25 an hour, you can almost live on that.

How about a maximum profits for pharmaceutical companies who get money from the government to develop drugs than make unfair profits. and how about maximum CEO salaries based on company profits.

I doubt you will get a response you are looking for. I don’t know Memphis and I can’t and won’t speak for him. Speaking for myself I have no desire anymore to try and discuss or debate things on here. It is a cesspool of hate and ignorance. I will say that you, Obber, Fate, Peen and Mgh generally try and be respectful, and apologize when not. Others not so much.

At one time I used to be very active in here and it wasn’t as bad. I think Trump is to blame for a lot of it. However, I was called a racist for the simple fact I was voting for a Republican. I believe it was Romney. They had commercials by Democrats of Republicans pushing old people over cliffs and other ridiculousness. That stuff never got condemned then and it’s far worse now. I know that kind of talk has ran off others as well as me. Now we have people like Eve who trolls from the right using language I won’t repeat because I think it’s derogatory. Peen was calling everything communist for awhile and the pushback was insane imo. He of course was wrong, most of what he was saying was Marxists. .

I think Fate had a very good point in the Liberation thread. The amount of time those on the right are called racists, white supremacists, sexiest and all the other names we hear should be rebuked. Seriously, how would you feel being called a racist? I take it very personal because it is a heinous thing. It just doesn’t compare to what Eve says, not that she should get a pass. Oh well, I’ve gone on enough. I hope you keep on being one of the adults in the room.

Another reason why a minimum wage is nearly non important. Market conditions dictate entry wages. Not to say there doesn't need to be a bottom, but if you own a business and are determined to keep your wages at minimum and everybody else on the street is paying way more than minimum, you are going to get some really crappy employees or none at all.

You are one of the people in this forum or any forum who I will always take seriously no matter what. You know that you have my utmost respect. I do also miss our game day banter as well. Always a great way to punctuate the week, despite the frequent losses.

Your post as always was very thoughtful and on point. I do think that rhetoric from the Left has left many alienated and will need to be a part of their rebuilding process, should they ever decide to actually work toward one, earnestly.

At the same time, like you said, I miss a lot of the company in here. Michelle popped her head in here not so long ago, and it made me nostalgic for the days of yore. Perhaps I also need to invite her out to Kings Table

The one area I would push back, though, is I think it is perfectly acceptable to be called “sexiest.” In fact, I think I should be readily identified as the sexiest poster in this forum.

I had to have fun where I saw the opportunity. I hope you are well, my friend.

I'm way too modest to let people call me the sexiest. Damn spellchecker! I miss the GameDay chats as well.

But the Penguins look happy

I have always looked up to Pdawg myself.


Of course at 5"7 I look up to most adults in this country

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c93gq72n7y1o.amp

An explanation as to the weird and unique Way the numbers on trump's chart were calculated.

The benefits people draw is based on their income. As your income goes up your benefits go down. Once you reach a certain income level you no longer qualify for benefits. What we have now is a system where employers pay so little that the American taxpayer in turn subsidizes business by helping pay for their workers food, housing and healthcare for their children. The scenario you suggested is the one which is currently being used. A situation Peen seems fine with.


Mitigating it would require those at the bottom making more money. Almost 50% of American live paycheck to paycheck while those at the top keep getting billions upon billions in tax cuts. If they stopped doing the very jobs Peen claims doesn't deserve to make a living, who is going to do them?

Elon slamming Navarro over tariffs:

https://nypost.com/2025/04/06/us-ne...mp-admin-on-tariffs-slams-peter-navarro/

Didn’t see that coming.

You seem not to understand that's exactly the way it works now. The more you make the less benefits you qualify for. Those benefits are set based on the poverty line. It's already "flying".

And those programs you mentioned? Let me explain to you exactly what much of the money spent on those programs accomplish. It takes American tax dollars and subsidizes workers food, their housing and healthcare for their children because their employers won't and don't. I understand the theme that prices will rise if wages rise. But at the same time people such as you seem fine with your tax dollars paying corporate welfare. Because that's what it is.


Who is it you believe isn't thinking about maximum wage? The only difference is those making maximum wage aren't in the position low wage workers are. Simply thinking about those at the top and dreams of better wages won't solve the problem.

You seem fine under the current condition where our tax dollars subsidize workers because their wages are so low. I however do not. It's not our job to subsidize their benefits which their employers refuse to.

Black Monday is trending

I didn't take the time to listen to those videos,, ,But this much I'm sure of. There is a time and Place for Tariffs. It really doesn't take a genius to figure that out. But Trumps actions arn't the actions of a man with Balls, it is the actions of a man with no common sense and no thought process.

I mean, seriously, he put tariffs on an island inhabited by only Penguins. PENGUINS! And another island with only a US Military Base as it's residents.

He's an idiot, I swear, some AI program picked where the Tariffs were to be placed.. I feel this because anyone with a brain would have known these two would not have tariffs on them.

Worse yet, damn near everyone that he's picked for key positions is no better. They didn't stop him from picking those locations. IDIOTS

It doesn't take balls to be an idiot.... Trump proves that every day

With that window-licker of a POTUS crashing the economy, we’ll probably have to drop the minimum wage to 10 cents an hour before long. Great Depression 2.0 On Purpose will not end well.

I just realized my typo by the way and the fact I said “ally” instead of “actually.” The invitation still stands.

Edit - this is not a reply to P so much as the fact it’s a reply to Memphis to see if he is being genuine in his ask.

omg....even with tariffs, the chinese equipment is better and MUCH cheaper. if you're a DIYer, you can't even afford to buy "American made", because the American corporations are overcharging consumers while providing an inferior product.

that has nothing to do with talent - or lack thereof - and everything to do with a garbage American business model that's actively being promoted by MAGA.


and remember: your American corporations don't even want you to actually OWN the products. ya know, 'right to repair' and all that.

I agree we are a throw away society. It probably started in the 60's.

Pit gets upset when I talk about a Wal Mart mentality. To me it is a way of thinking and not so much about people who shop at Wal Mart. I shop at Walmart for various items. Everybody does to varying degrees.

To stay on your point, I usually go there when I need or want a new laptop. That is all I use anymore. I kind of laugh when they ask if I want the extended warranty. Why spend the money to fix something what wasn't that expensive in the first place?

You're right. Before, our business model used to be that we would competitively provide the best quality product. However, competition started dropping with the emphasis on M&A's and the priority shifted from customers and qualities to shareholders. Do whatever you need just to keep the stock price up. Quality didn't matter. Product didn't matter. Competition was no longer a concern.

Now the chickens are coming home to roost on that front. See Boeing as a glaring example.

j/c:

Sadly trump claims it's about tariffs when the reality is the trade deficit is also cooked into it. As he lies about it the lemmings aren't even aware of that.

I see there may be a 90 day pause on all tariffs with the exception of China -- and that the markets have recovered the loses from today (still down from the chaos of last week).

If this is true - I'll give a little kudos to Trump. Yes it was a mess of his own creation but it also takes something to walk back a huge blunder. Sure I don't expect an admission of the giant F up and the walk back wil be wrapped up as Win and how countries are pandering to him ... but I'll take any momentry piece of sanity and be happy.