22 Comments
Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

The sad part is that way too much of this country is not just willing but eager to submit to an absolute ruler IF that new king is a corporation. They're hoarding weapons and ammo to keep the jack-boot of government off their necks while happily helping their corporate masters fit the collar and chain that they will wear every day.

If socialism means not wanting to give the richest man in the world tens of billions of tax dollars to bribe him to move one of the most profitable corporations in the world to your town, then we need to start overhauling Webster's Dictionary.

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Serious question: I've read that Amazon (like, say, Uber) "has not turned a profit." Is that possible?

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Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

For years, Amazon never reported a profit despite rapid growth but since 2015, it started recording a profit and in 2018 it was as much as $10 billion.

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That makes sense. They've gotten at least 1.2 billion from us, for one thing.

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author

How so?

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By "us" I mean me, my wife, and my daughter, who lives with us. Between the books, the Opalescent tooth bleach, the var. clothes, and that case of B&G India Relish (unobtainable in California), believe me, it mounts up.

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that must be some expensive relish and tooth bleach

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sure, they can expand and reinvest. They have however, turned in a few profitable quarters -- they had 8 straight as of spring 2017

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonmarkman/2017/05/23/the-amazon-era-no-profits-no-problem/#36a42462437a

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Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

I certainly hope that this is just the first episode.

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“If Fritters, Alabama, did not exist, Bezos would have to invent it.” At least I think that’s how it went.

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Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

"If we should require your churches remove their crucifixes and in their place mount the Amazon logo, it should be done the next day..." Are there Catholics in Fritters? I think he meant to say, "If we demand you change the sign outside First Southern Baptist Church On This Block to 'Amazon is God and Bezos is His Son,' it shall be done the next day."

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author

You're right! I'll revise that in a future iteration. Meantime assume all the Baptists in Fritters converted to Catholicism because they got a free coupon in National Review signed by Russell Kirk.

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author

...and the coupon was for a baptism and a hymnal.

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(I *knew* Fritters was in Shelby County.)

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Elevated in style or manner is RIGHT. Get HIM.

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Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

“Hallowed are the Ori!”

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It's funny: I disliked those last few seasons, but was pleased to see 0.) <em>competent</em> opponents and 1.) baddies[?]-claiming-to-be-gods who do a pretty good job of making it look credible, including the benevolent stuff.

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Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

I love the shaving thread. (BTW, I'm a subscriber but I didn't actually get this one in my email today.)

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author

Don't know why that should be; if you ever miss another issue write me directly. That goes for all subscribers!

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My notification has a tendency to go to my junk email, if I go a couple of days without clicking the email notification

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Feb 18, 2019Liked by Roy Edroso

Sometimes I feel compelled to drop into polutical discussions hymns of praise to Jobs. I see the jobs system as dying, and even as jobs go away we fetichise them all the more.

…or I just affirm that nothing ever went wrong with backing a powerful man promising jobs, regardless of what else he might do.

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"Normally folks here wash with coal oil." Grayson should slope up to Flint; they drink it there and so would probably gladly shave their heads and their asses if there was a dollar in it.

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