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Tag: Recession

Bruce’s Ten Hot Takes for March 10, 2025

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hot takes

I find it contemptible that ten House Democrats voted to censure Rep. Al Green for disrupting Congress.

Democrats had many ways in which they could have protested President Trump’s State of the Union Speech. Outside of Rep. Al Green’s protest, Democrats did little to show/voice their displeasure.

Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have been holding rallies from coast to coast, condemning Trump’s decimation of the Federal Government. We need similar rallies everywhere.

Joe Biden blamed Donald Trump for the economy he inherited in 2021, and now Trump is blaming Biden for the current state of the economy. That’s politics. However, a few months from now, after Trump has caused a recession, the blame will be his alone.

Vladimir Putin is obsessed with returning Russia to the glory days of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Countries such as Poland rightly fear being invaded, especially now that the United States is no longer interested in helping and protecting their allies.

I predict Donald Trump will try to remove the United States from NATO.

Whatever one may think about Ukraine, we committed to help defend them from Russia’s immoral, violent assault on their sovereignty. Sadly, President Trump has abandoned the Ukrainian people.

“The Art of Making a Deal,” my ass. President Trump is not a deal maker, he’s a narcissistic bully who seems hellbent on destroying anyone and everyone he disagrees with. We can only hope, that as he rages against his alleged enemies and nuzzles up to dictators and fascists, he doesn’t drag us into a major war.

It’s doubtful the world will do much about global climate change now that the United States has abandoned renewable energy and electric vehicles. “Drill baby Drill” is our official climate policy now.

Americans should be concerned over Trump’s attacks on institutions of higher learning, professors, media companies, and journalists. His goal is to silence anyone who speaks ill of him or challenges his policies. In doing so, he is trampling under foot the constitutional rights of every American.

Bonus: I continue to ponder my political future. If, as I fear, the national Democratic Party is broken beyond repair, is it time for me to leave the party? Or, do I remain a Democrat and focus on local issues, even though there is zero chance of a Democrat beating a Republican in my lifetime? Or, do I act on that increasingly nagging feeling I have; that it is time for me to invest my time, money, and talent in a third party?

Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

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You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

Bruce’s Ten Hot Takes for August 14, 2023

9 Comments
hot takes

We’ve been watching For All Mankind — an alternate history of NASA. It saddens me that we no longer have a space program to speak of.

Retirement is not for the faint of heart. Navigating Medicare is a nightmare. Only politicians could cook up an unnecessarily complex insurance program such as Medicare.

Over the next few weeks, the hummingbirds and red headed woodpeckers that frequent our yard will begin migrating away to warmer climes. We will miss them, hoping they return next year.

Will increases to monthly rates for streaming services ever end? Of course not. There’s money to be made and share holders to pay. I vaguely remember being told “cutting the cord” would save us money. Maybe then, but not now.

Cannabis isn’t a miracle drug, but for people with chronic pain, it can be a lifesaver.

A God who can but won’t in the face of suffering is a deity unworthy of our love and worship.

We took a drive though the Michigan Amish community not from our home. Roadside vegetable stands had pumpkins for sale — yet another reminder that summer is fading.

Democrats keep telling us that we are not in an economic recession. That dog don’t hunt, manufacturing employees say. Increasing prices, stagnant wages, increased insurance costs suggest otherwise. When’s the last time we’ve had a president tell us the truth about the economy?

Toledo Edison (First Energy) doubled their electric rates. Our bill for July was the highest in our 45 years of marriage. We switched providers, but Toledo Edison has two months to make the switch.

I haven’t given up on the Cincinnati Reds. August play will determine my interest level. Once college and pro football arrive, it takes the Reds playing winning baseball for me to keep watching. I remain hopeful.

Bonus: I preached my first sermon fifty years ago. “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:20.

Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.