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It’s A Bifurcated World, But That’s How The Cookie Crumbles

A report from the Real Deal. “A pair of lofts owned by New York ex-banker Henry Buhl topped the list of luxury contracts signed in Manhattan last week. The second-priciest deal was a penthouse at 95 Greene Street, last asking $11.9 million, down from $15 million when listed in February. The deal marks a loss for the seller, who bought the triplex condo for $13.55 million in late 2018.”

From Bloomberg. “A real estate firm focused on gentrifying neighborhoods is showing cracks after a group of its apartment buildings in New York’s Upper West Side and Harlem filed for bankruptcy. Buildings controlled by Emerald Equity Group owe US$203 million to LoanCore Capital, stemming from debts tied to properties on East 117th Street and West 107th Street, Dec 28 bankruptcy filings show.”

“The bankruptcies may foreshadow wider distress among multifamily properties in the coming year. The pressures are especially high in costly markets such as New York, where new regulations make it harder for landlords to raise rents and evict tenants. Emerald bought the 107th Street properties in December 2016 with the intention of converting them into condominiums, while the 117th Street properties were acquired in March 2018 with a plan to raise rents, according to a bankruptcy disclosure statement.”

The San Francisco Business Journal in California. “A subcontractor named in a multimillion dollar lawsuit filed this summer claiming negligence and unfair business practices relating to the construction of Related California’s luxury apartment tower at 1550 Mission St. is fighting back with a lawsuit of its own. The cross complaint, filed by Alliance Roofing Co. in San Francisco Superior Court in November, alleged the subcontractor performed work on the 550-unit apartment building but has not received payment from the general contractor, Build Group.”

“In its twice-amended complaint, Build is accusing Related of contracting with a list of contractors that were not qualified by Build; failing or refusing to cure what Build alleges was deficient work completed by said subcontractors; failing to approve Build’s own list of qualified subcontractors; and attempting to negotiate and settle master subcontractor agreements between Build and its subcontractors — including Alliance — among other grievances. Related bought the site of the new high-rise, previously home to a Goodwill store, in 2014 for $65 million and broke ground at the end of 2017.”

The San Mateo Daily Journal in California. “Chris Salviati, a housing economist with ApartmentList, acknowledged the depths to which the pandemic has sickened the local housing market — with San Francisco’s rents dropping by 25% from the year prior and prices in San Mateo dipping by 14%. ‘If the Bay Area is no longer as attractive to employers because of the costs and the fact that their work force is remote so they don’t necessarily need to have that centrally-located office hub, that could have some downward pressure on the market as well,’ he said.”

“Regarding cost of living, Salviati expressed some confidence that prices would recover. But until a cure is distributed broadly, Salviati acknowledged price projections are largely speculative during a uniquely challenging and unprecedented period. ‘We are in wait-and-see mode,’ he said.”

From My News 13 in Florida. “More than 4 million Floridians have applied for unemployment benefits in Florida since March, with half of those qualifying for benefits. Jeanne Tsoulas eventually became unemployed when the convention/trade show company she worked for shuttered. Leaving a dream job she hoped to retire from, Tsoulas instead was forced to look for work elsewhere while relying on unemployment assistance in the meantime.”

“Not having any luck finding a new job, Tsoulas said she too is relying on extended federal benefits to help her family make end’s meet. ‘If we lose unemployment, we’re dead, we’re screwed, I don’t know what we’re going to do,’ she said.”

The Denton Record Chronicle in Texas. “As 2020 winds down, the economic damage is already historic: Texas is on pace to lose 680,800 jobs this year, the biggest annual decline on record. The number, projected recently by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, would dwarf annual job losses in the Great Recession, in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks and during several oil-and-gas busts in the past century.”

“Texas has a much larger workforce than in the past, so everything’s bigger these days. But 2020’s decline would also be the largest percentage drop in at least 80 years — a plunge of 5.3%. The next-closest annual decline in Texas nonfarm payrolls occurred in 1945, near the end of World War II.”

“‘It’s the worst downturn that we’ve had in the post-war period,’ said Pia Orrenius, senior economist at the Dallas Fed. ‘I don’t think there’s any way around that.’ The disruptions have been concentrated in the service sector, and they’ve spilled over to schools, child care and home life — with much of the burden falling on women. ‘This is unique to this pandemic,’ Orrenius said. ‘We’ve never seen anything like it.'”

“‘It’s a bifurcated world,’ said Harvey Rosenblum, a longtime research director at the Dallas Fed. ‘Many are so much worse off, but other people are way better off than they were before. I’m not sure public policy intended that, but that’s how the cookie crumbles.'”

“In Dallas, almost 1 in 5 adults were in households that didn’t have enough to eat, according to recent surveys by the U.S. Census Bureau. Almost 40% said they had difficulty paying household expenses during the pandemic. The past year has been especially hard on women. They’re more likely to work in public-facing services that slashed jobs, including restaurants, education and health care. They’re more likely to take on additional caregiving duties for elderly relatives and children going to school remotely. ‘It’s complications every day,’ said Nicole Hardman, a 40-year-old Dallas single mom.”

“She was looking for a job, taking classes for a new career and helping two teens navigate remote high school. ‘Sometimes I can help them, sometimes I can’t, sometimes we cry,’ she said. ‘It’s really overwhelming because it’s like never-ending.'”

“‘Even if the economy does seem like it’s beginning to snap back, I don’t think it’s going to go back to the way it was,’ Rosenblum said. ‘There’s going to be enormous financial pressure on businesses to not spend money.’ He expects companies to curtail business trips, for example, and people to be cautious about personal travel: ‘It’s going to take a long time to get me back on a cruise ship,’ he said.”

The Star Advertiser in Hawaii. “More than half of Hawaii residents are struggling to pay rent, mortgages or utility bills, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are continuing to get worse, according to a study from the Bank of Hawaii Foundation. The study found that 56% struggle to pay rent, mortgage or utility bills. That’s up from 48% in May. In other findings, 63% have lost a job or experienced reduced work hours or pay, compared with 55% in May, and 53% have experienced a decline in household income since the start of the pandemic, up from 45% in May.”

“‘The impact of COVID-19 to our residents and economic well-being are eye-­opening, especially when you consider that more than $10 billion in federal aid was provided to our local economy in recent months,’ Bank of Hawaii Chairman CEO Peter Ho said in the report.”

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This Post Has 120 Comments

    1. The Mechanics Behind the Electronic Vote Steal Operation

      https://www.bitchute.com/video/OJrljwQFcIvc/

      https://twitter.com/tom2badcat/status/1325126091460268032

      https://archive.vn/KPwUa

      https://everylegalvote.com/country

      https://hereistheevidence.com/

      “Dominion-izing the Vote”

      https://www.bitchute.com/video/qlEUbPLvW98w/

      Eric Coomer Explains How To Alter Votes In The Dominion Voting System

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtB3tLaXLJE

      Eric Coomer, Dominion’s head of product and strategy, has disappeared.

      ‘Representatives from Dominion also did not attend a court hearing in Pennsylvania on November 19. Its US headquarters in Denver was also suddenly closed and moved away. Their employees deleted their names from LinkedIn.’

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oYQeeNCzZM

      https://www.theepochtimes.com/poll-watcher-describes-pennsylvania-election-irregularities-including-47-missing-usb-cards_3594549.html

      Here’s the testimony on video:

      “Baggies of USBs” – PA Witness Gives Explosive Testimony

      https://www.bitchute.com/video/AdaglXlcuqYt/

      Dem Ballot Inspector Says She Was Threatened with Violence for Speaking Up About Suspicious Activity

      “The majority inspector threatened to slap me in the face,” said Olivia Jane Winters, a registered Democrat and minority ballot inspector in Pennsylvania, testifying to Pennsylvania State Republicans Wednesday that she had been threatened and harassed by other election officials after she asked about suspicious activities during the 2020 election.’

      https://www.bitchute.com/video/_KrpyDlHTe8/

      Crowd Gasps after Finding out about Absurd Spike of Votes in Favor of Biden

      https://www.bitchute.com/video/jmNUAx8wQYdO/

      Sen. Doug Mastriano closing remarks PA state legislature meeting.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIqujobvDFI

      https://censoredbyjack.com/channel/evidence-of-widespread-election-fraud

      https://www.deepcapture.com/2020/11/election-2020-was-rigged-the-evidence/

      ”We began to look and realized how easy it is to change votes.”

      ‘Election security expert @RussRamsland
      has performed many investigations on US election machines.’

      ‘The most *shocking* thing about this interview is it took place just days BEFORE the election. Watch’

      https://twitter.com/kylenabecker/status/1327511568993701888

      Col Phil Waldron Confirms Experts Witnessed Dominion Communicating with Frankfurt on Election Day

      https://www.bitchute.com/video/n7j5lg9fYyzz/

      Dominion forensic report from Michigan (PDF):

      https://www.depernolaw.com/uploads/2/7/0/2/27029178/antrim_michigan_forensics_report_%5B121320%5D_v2_%5Bredacted%5D.pdf

      1. ‘KRAKEN is DOD cyber warfare program.’

        ‘They cheated & got caught!’

        Sidney Powell
        🇺🇸
        ‘Who knew?’

        https://twitter.com/SidneyPowell1/status/1331435411286192128?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1331435411286192128%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fheadlines360.news%2F2020%2F11%2F24%2Fsidney-powells-kraken-is-department-of-defense-cyber-warfare-program%2F

        I did some digging around and found this (WARNING) PDF:

        https://www.dacis.com/budget/budget_pdf/FY20/RDTE/F/1203110F_294.pdf

        It’s dated Feb. 2019. If you word search Kraken (‘respond’ category), you’ll find it twice on page 4. This unit 305 person is in the affidavits in Powells lawsuit.

        WARNING PDF with filing:

        https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mied.350905/gov.uscourts.mied.350905.1.15.pdf

        Zuckerberg on page 15. Obammie on page 8.

        ‘Response: Yes, our “White Hat” hackers – they have that traffic and the packets.”

        https://twitter.com/themodalice/status/1333505965857984512

        ‘Ruby Freeman Makes Video of herself Showing MOUNTAINS of GA ABSENTEE BALLOTS With NO RETURN ADDRESS’

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFYaxvxdfXY&feature=youtu.be

        Example

        Note the vote spike at the Atlanta treason:

        https://twitter.com/EricTrump/status/1334812236322381826/

        Corrupt Georgia Election Worker Seen Loading Same Ballots 3 Times into Machine

        Poll Worker Ruby Freeman Loads Up The Same Stack Of Ballots To Be Counted 3X

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiREC3Zy20E

        Ruby Freeman – “I need an attorney”

        “This is bigger than me. I need an attorney.” at 4:55.

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsU-CXcJ4Lg

        Some videos worth watching:

        https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1341948764068704256?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

        Rudy Giuliani Shuts Down Every Single Democrat And Troll In 6 Minutes

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUQqLNmap9c

        Sidney Powell On Her “Elevator Pitch” To The Supreme Court

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJg_E_u-2hM

          2. I watched the GA hearing live, and you could just feel the frustration of these wonderfully decent American patriots who are desperately begging for “the authorities” to take their stories and accounts seriously and to do a damn investigation into the obvious fraud and malfeasance. It is so frustrating and maddening to watch this happen, and so few people are willing to fight for what’s right. It’s unreal.

          3. It is so frustrating and maddening to watch this happen

            It just goes to show how rotten and corrupt most of the country is.

  2. ‘The number, projected recently by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, would dwarf annual job losses in the Great Recession, in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks and during several oil-and-gas busts in the past century’…‘It’s going to take a long time to get me back on a cruise ship’

    Let them eat cake, right Harvey?

    2. ‘If we lose unemployment, we’re dead, we’re screwed, I don’t know what we’re going to do’

      I only saved a few of these type of reports, but it’s widespread. These communists-globalists are trying to destroy this country. Better fight back.

      1. “In Dallas, almost 1 in 5 adults were in households that didn’t have enough to eat, according to recent surveys by the U.S. Census Bureau.”

        Happy 9 month anniversary of “2 weeks to flatten the curve”

          1. You can always count on the government doing the wrong thing. The quickest and easiest way to remedy all of this is to end the lockdowns and completely gut the bureaucratic red tape, fees and charges for small businesses. But that wouldn’t favor the corporate oligarchs.

      2. >>“If we lose unemployment, we’re dead, we’re screwed, I don’t know what we’re going to do”

        >“Tsoulas is now rationing her blood pressure medication and foregoing other prescriptions because they can’t afford it.”

        Chemical and financial dependency. No thanks!

  3. ‘Emerald bought the 107th Street properties in December 2016 with the intention of converting them into condominiums, while the 117th Street properties were acquired in March 2018 with a plan to raise rents, according to a bankruptcy disclosure statement’

    Yer gonna need a bigger mitt sword-catcher Larry.

      1. “youths”

        LOL@ Real Journalists who use this term to describe the feral apes that are the product of America’s urban public education system.

        “They’re not sending their best”

        1. ‘Patrick Byrne, founder and former CEO of Overstock, said that China is “taking us out from within” during an interview with Dr. Jerome Corsi on Monday. “The greatest way to fight a war, in the Chinese way of thinking, is not to have to fight at all. That’s what they’ve done here,” Byrne said.’

          ‘Byrne studied Chinese history at Beijing Normal University from 1983 to 1984. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Chinese studies from Dartmouth College. “Though we spend a trillion dollars a year between our military and our intelligence, national security circles … that trillion dollars we have and we’ve built, you know, things that can stop all their planes and their missiles and all kinds of things. But we missed the one they use, which is not a fight at all, not firing a bullet or missile at all, but taking us out from within. And that’s what’s going on.”

          ‘Byrne pointed out that the Chinese regime is engaged in “a slow coup.” “It’s a revolution. The stages of such a revolution are very well mapped out. We understand this. It’s demoralization, disorientation, crisis, then normalization: those four steps.”

          “The demoralization is what happened this year with COVID,” Byrne continued. “The disorientation is this kookiness we’ve been seeing for about six months,” Byrne said, referring to Antifa, the Black Lives Matter movement, and other things, such as buildings and police stations being lit on fire, and people being harassed for their political views while out dining. “That’s all to disorient you. It’s to tell you, ‘You are not living in the America you thought you were living in,’” he said.’

          “The crisis is, clearly an imposter president has been stood up,” Byrne added in reference to the contested election results. He asserted that Beijing only needed to secure six counties to steal the election. “Political scientists can tell you, to steal the United States you don’t need to cheat in elections everywhere. You need six counties where you cheat the heck out of those counties. And you can flip the six states that they are in and thereby flip the Electoral College and steal the country.”

          ‘The last phase is normalization, Byrne said, in which the “media is just beating it into your head.”“They’re violating every precept of journalistic integrity,” Byrne said, criticizing the media for ignoring the evidence that has been presented claiming election fraud. Byrne pointed out that thousands of people risked their lives to testify in affidavits, telling of the fraud and irregularities they witnessed. “So those are the four stages we’re going through, and it’s my assertion that the hand of China is behind this.”

          ‘Byrne made it clear that he loves Chinese people and Chinese history, but the Chinese regime “has proven to be as treacherous and ungrateful as anyone could have imagined.” “What the Chinese did is they studied us, and they saw that corruption is our weakest point. And they infiltrated us, and they corrupted exactly institutions that they needed to corrupt in order to allow what’s going on now to happen.”

          “In 10 years, there’ll be prison camps with organs being harvested just as there are in western China,” Byrne went on to say. “So we cannot bend a knee to this under any circumstance.”

          ‘Byrne studied the Constitution’s principles when he was young. He has a master’s degree from Cambridge University as a Marshall Scholar and received his doctorate in political philosophy from Stanford University. He indicated that the “core atomic concept” in the United States’ liberal tradition is the consent of the governed, which is determined by free, fair, and transparent elections. “We do not bend the knee. This is what makes us different. And all over the world, there are people looking to us, hoping we show that we are the exceptional country. This is our chance.”

          https://www.theepochtimes.com/patrick-byrne-china-is-taking-us-out-from-within_3637007.html

          1. There needs to be a culling of central bankers, corrupt politicians and oligarchs. Until these people are actually executed for their treason, nothing will change. Only fear for their lives and that of their families will affect change in the behaviors of this greedy bunch. Davos and Jackson Hole shouldn’t even exist.

          2. Just today Reuters article reported that Biden came out and said that it would take “years” for Americans to be vaccinated against COVID, at the current rate. Then the same article changed the timeline to “months,” I guess because Biden is promising to be faster than Trump.
            Meanwhile, I only expect more and more lockdowns as the populace is normalized to being paid fake money to stay home and play games.

            I’m skeptical about organ harvesting within 10 years.

          3. That was a great write-up by Patrick Byrne. I think he is 100% correct. So many of us are feeling the surreal nature of what’s been going on…the narratives that are being forced down our throats, even when our eyes and ears tell us the complete opposite of what we’re being fed. The craziest part is how so many people are going along with it.

            I think there is a very effective brainwashing program going on in our country. There has to be. Too many of us know intelligent, well-read people who are buying the propaganda hook, line, and sinker. The most interesting part, at least to me, is that when you try to show them very factual evidence to disprove what they believe, instead of showing even the slightest bit of curiosity or a desire to get a better understanding of an issue, they will physically push the evidence (news articles, videos, etc. away from their bodies. I’ve never seen anything like it before.

          4. ‘I’m skeptical about organ harvesting’

            ‘Oregon hospitals didn’t have shortages. So why were people with disabilities denied care?’

            ‘The report from Pendleton alarmed staff at Disability Rights Oregon. “We investigated and substantiated it,” Jake Cornett, executive director of Disability Rights Oregon, told NPR. A person with an intellectual disability was “being inappropriately influenced about life-sustaining treatment. And the physician in that case talked about the quote ‘low quality of life’ of a person with a disability.” Cornett made the same points, briefly, in testimony to the state Legislature’

            ‘On April 2, the 64-year-old man was running a high fever, and staff at his group home worried that he’d contracted COVID-19. They took him to the emergency room at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis.’

            ‘The man has a significant intellectual disability. He doesn’t speak words. He’s quadriplegic. He can’t swallow and is fed through a tube.’

            ‘Medical staff in the emergency room refused to test him for the coronavirus. Frazzini told the story to NPR, as well as to state lawmakers in a June hearing. It would be a “waste of valuable PPE,” or personal protective equipment, a member of the medical team said, angrily, in front of the man, according to Frazzini.’

            https://www.opb.org/article/2020/12/22/oregon-hospitals-didn-t-have-shortages-so-why-were-disabled-people-denied-care/

            Wake up and smell the mass murder. As reported on NPR no less. “Oh we’s gotta let him die cuz we’re short of mouth hankeys!”

          5. “I think there is a very effective brainwashing program going on in our country. There has to be. Too many of us know intelligent, well-read people who are buying the propaganda hook, line, and sinker. The most interesting part, at least to me, is that when you try to show them very factual evidence to disprove what they believe, instead of showing even the slightest bit of curiosity or a desire to get a better understanding of an issue, they will physically push the evidence (news articles, videos, etc. away from their bodies. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

            When the mythical Greek king Oedipus realized he’d murdered his father and married his mother, he gouged his own eyes out.

            “To stand up for truth is nothing. For truth, you must sit in jail.” —Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

          6. Austin Hospital Withheld Treatment from Disabled Man Who Contracted Coronavirus

            Michael Hickson, husband to Melissa and father of five children, died at age 46 on Thursday, June 11 at St. David’s South Austin Medical Center after the hospital withheld treatment from him, including hydration and nutrition, for six days.

            His wife was not notified of his death until the next morning after his remains had already been transported to a funeral home without her permission.

            Mr. Hickson became a quadriplegic in 2017 after a sudden cardiac arrest incident while driving his wife to work one morning. He had been in and out of hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, and home for the last three years.

          7. ‘the hospital withheld treatment from him, including hydration and nutrition, for six days’

            How many of you would survive this if you couldn’t get up and walk? “Oh, I can’t imagine we’d harvest organs!”

            Why do the globalists love China. To start with this organ harvesting has gone on for decades, and it’s done primarily to their – wait for it – political enemies!

            What’s the survival rate on organ harvesting?

            No unions, slave labor, no environmental laws, no political opposition, forced labor camps, complete command and control, with an unelected “president” for life. Now just what would people who support such wickedness not do to us? Have the deep state not openly expressed their violent hatred for years?

          8. No unions, slave labor, no environmental laws, no political opposition, forced labor camps, complete command and control, with an unelected “president” for life. Now just what would people who support such wickedness not do to us? Have the deep state not openly expressed their violent hatred for years?

            Apple, et al, LOVE this.

          9. “Austin Hospital Withheld Treatment from Disabled Man Who Contracted Coronavirus”

            “So as of right now, his quality of life — he doesn’t have much of one,” the doctor said.

            “What do you mean? Because he’s paralyzed with a brain injury, he doesn’t have quality of life?” she responded.

            “Correct,” the doctor replied.

          10. Share these two stories and the Charlie Gard case with anyone who supports Medicare4All. These are how you keep costs down in a socialized system.

          11. Hi Ben, I have no doubt that the Chinese want to harvest organs. But I am skeptical that the American people would allow it to get that far, unless it is carried out in secret. Yes, even the Dems. So far almost all the Dem comments are still pandemic and orange man bad. What’s going o happen when both are gone? I don’t have a clear prediction. But it’s a leap from there to owning nothing and being happy.

      1. You never want other people to determine quality of life, because it’s such a subjective thing. Before you know it they will determine if your 50 pounds overweight you don’t meet the model of acceptable. It’s just dangerous talk and they could keep raising the bar on what they deem quality of life. Even what they say are acceptable levels of side effects or deaths on meds or vaccines are alarming.
        We are suppose to have Constitution protections on life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
        We can’t have them being prejudiced to the disabled, or elderly, or sick ,or any group they want to have the power of life or death over.
        The “inability to thrive ” is another one of their terms for they should be terminated.
        What ever happened to lockdowns to save lives. California is threatening rationing health care, that would take lives.
        These people are so bogus and EVIL, that it’s mind-blowing.

  4. ‘Build is accusing Related of contracting with a list of contractors that were not qualified’

    So if you every wonder why planes of glass are falling out of towers and tower lean, and big cracks appear in new buildings, here ya go.

    April 19, 2018

    “‘Palm Beach is completely on fire,’ said Todd Michael Glaser, a high-end homebuilder who made his name in Miami but has lately been concentrating on Palm Beach County. ‘I’ve never seen the amount of $8M to $70M homes as in the last three and a half, four months. It’s staggering.’ It’s not just single-family homes that are hot, but a new wave of high-end condos and mutifamily apartments, especially in downtown West Palm Beach.”

    “Kolter Urban President Bob Vail, who is developing the Alexander, said that there is something of an arms race for amenities in the new supply of high-end homes. ‘You see that across the U.S. There are [apartment] buildings in Atlanta, Denver and Dallas that are nicer and more fully amenitized than condominium units, because that’s what it’s going to take to get people to choose that building,’ Vail said. ‘It’s just sort of a differential advantage. It’s really become a race in those more in-demand markets.’”

    “Though the market is healthy now, the developers agreed a slowdown is possible as new supply takes time to be absorbed, construction costs rise and actionable sites get harder to find. Low salaries in Palm Beach County mean that not many workers can afford high rents. When an audience member asked whether they were concerned with an economic downturn, Vail responded half-jokingly, ‘Condo developers, we don’t forecast those kind of things, you know what I mean? We’re just go, go go,’ he said. ‘And the faster we go, the faster we get to the closing, and then, I’m not going to say we don’t care, but … ‘ The audience chuckled as he trailed off.”

    http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/?p=10407

    1. I am reminded of that video you posted last week of the old house being built. Those guys were true craftsmen. The details mattered, and the houses were built to last. These days, the construction is so piss poor it’s embarrassing. Nobody cares, it’s just a bunch of illegals slapping a bunch of materials together and faking it.

    1. Newsom: Stay-at-home order end dates unclear as ‘challenging’ January and February await:

      “Regional stay-at-home orders in effect in Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley were slated to expire this week, but Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday the orders are all-but-certain be extended into the new year.

      The other two regions under stay-at-home orders — the Bay Area and the Greater Sacramento region — are not slated to see their orders expire until January. Newsom stated that officials will re-evaluate those two regions once the orders expire.”

      https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Newsom-Stay-at-home-order-end-dates-unclear-as-15832312.php

      Will the last taxpayer leaving California please turn out the lights?

      1. “Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision to reinstate stay-at-home orders and prohibit outdoor dining on Dec. 6 dealt a shattering blow to already-wounded restaurants like Covina’s Bread & Barley.

        In its wake, the pub grub establishment’s owner, Carlos Roman, confronted a county inspector who found customers dining outside and issued citations; a video of the encounter went viral over the weekend.

        According to CBS Los Angeles, Roman contends the customers were sitting on a public bench, but the inspector gave the restaurant a citation and two $500 fines anyway.

        Roman then parked his truck behind the health inspector’s vehicle, and the police were called.

        “He wants to come in and say, ‘No one can work.’ So, he can’t work either,” an un-masked Roman yelled in the video as officers attempted to defuse tensions.

        “I’m desperate. Who is going to pay her car payment?” he asked, gesturing to the employee filming the encounter. “Who is going to pay my cook’s rent?”

        In another video, Roman thanked patrons and promised that he would not leave until law enforcement takes him out in handcuffs.

        He said he would appeal the penalties, and continue to serve customers.

        https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/la-restaurant-confronts-states-health-inspector-after-shutdown

        1. According to CBS Los Angeles, Roman contends the customers were sitting on a public bench, but the inspector gave the restaurant a citation and two $500 fines anyway.

          Secretly behind the scenes, these anti-American Nazis are encouraging these fines to help pay the bloated salaries of the Nazis.

      3. In a small town in Southern California a gym reopened on October 8th and remains open today, greeting its members with a smile and a body temperature check. I know this because I work there as a personal trainer. The members I speak to readily express their thanks that they have a place to exercise. In the midst of all this craziness, there is the occasional oasis of sanity.

        1. Thank you for your service. More people need to keep opening their businesses. As for those citations? Can’t get blood from a stone. They can try to arrest millions of us while they let genuine criminals go free. People need to wake up!

        2. Restaurants in Carlsbad and Encinitas are staying open for dining. I’ve been meaning to go up there for a meal and support the businesses.

  8. “The second-priciest deal was a penthouse at 95 Greene Street, last asking $11.9 million, down from $15 million when listed in February. The deal marks a loss for the seller, who bought the triplex condo for $13.55 million in late 2018.”

    Still cheaper than renting

  9. “‘…It’s a bifurcated world,’ said Harvey Rosenblum, a longtime research director at the Dallas Fed. ‘Many are so much worse off, but other people are way better off than they were before. I’m not sure public policy intended that, but that’s how the cookie crumbles….’”

    The so called “K” shaped recovery.

    So what happened to the “V” shaped recovery touted by the REIConplex for the last 9 months?

    Candy gram for Lawrence Yun. Candy gram for Lawrence Yun.

    Lawrence opens Candy gram while getting his daily massage poolside.

    1. So what happened to the “V” shaped recovery touted by the REIConplex for the last 9 months?

      It was 2020’s version of “green shoots.”

    2. The so called “K” shaped recovery.

      The problem with that is that when you leave your pricey home to go anywhere, the city looks like a 3rd world hovel.

      1. Most of the oligarchs don’t even rub shoulders with “regular” folks. They remain secluded in their compounds and fly private jets to other compounds, hang out on yachts, etc. They have servants who do all of their shopping, cleaning, etc.

      2. “the city looks like a 3rd world hovel”

        I just drove by the tent encampment under the I-25 / Broadway overpass. There’s about the same number of tents but alot more garbage.

        What’s new is that one of the tents is now surrounded by about 20 bicycles. The City of Denver does *nothing* about stolen bicycles and these sidewalk chop shops.

        1. The City of Denver does *nothing*

          A very apt description of any Dem maladministered city.

          I read that Denver is trying to strong arm Aurora into creating a homeless “task force”, but the mayor of Aurora isn’t interested. He probably knows that Denver wants to dump its homeless on Aurora and other suburbs.

        2. What’s new is that one of the tents is now surrounded by about 20 bicycles. The City of Denver does *nothing* about stolen bicycles and these sidewalk chop shops.

          I went to look at new mountain bikes last year. I thought I’d buy a full suspension bike. The sticker shock left me stunned. In no way was I prepared for the prices nor would I ever pay them. This year I’m going to look for a used old bike without suspension, and I won’t be buying it from some tweaker downtown.

          2. “…This year I’m going to look for a used old bike without suspension…”

            I mountain bike myself and have found some really good deals for bikes (and accessories) on craigslist.com and nextdoor.com (via weekly ‘for sale and free’) email feed.

            Amazing the money people spend on ‘stuff’ and then toss it aside.

    3. Oddly, we know a couple of people who’ve sold houses in the 1-2 million-dollar range. Both sold for cash, and were snapped up in less than a week. I’ve heard others say they’ve seen the same. I can’t help but wonder if this is foreign money looking to park somewhere. Chinese? They were heavily invested in the REOs that resulted from the housing bubble bust. Rumor has it that they’ve been buying up agricultural land over the past decade+, too.

      If there is one thing every country should do, it’s to make sure that the only people who can buy real assets (anything related to the ground and the permanent structures on the ground) are citizens of that country. I know that a lot of rich Americans would hate this because it would preclude them from buying up beach houses in poor countries (displacing the locals there), but sovereignty means nothing if foreign entities own a significant portion of your land and assets.

      1. One possibility is that the CCP henchmen are buying up properties to increase the bubble and further destabilize the markets.

        This guy has done a lot of interesting research. Says the CCP has $35 trillion in western assets, and will use that to crash all of the markets by buying to create bubbles and then selling instantly to crash them.
        http://www.deepthroatipo.com/

        2. Shorting a bubble market at the right time is how George Soros made his money in the English Stock Market. So, people being wiped out is how he became so rich.
          The story goes he helped out the Nazis when he was young also to get some kind of advantage.
          So, he just seems like a predator type opportunist that now wants to bring down America.
          These rich Globalist talk about people like they are ants that they can spray or not. It’s disturbing how detached they actually are from humans.

          1. These rich Globalist talk about people like they are ants that they can spray or not. It’s disturbing how detached they actually are from humans.

            Most of these billionaires are malignant narcissists, and narcs don’t have any empathy at all. Worse, they actually get off on hurting people. It brings them pleasure. They’re sociopaths.

      2. I can’t help but wonder if this is foreign money looking to park somewhere.

        Keep in mind that the Fed has been on a bond buying spree, and the cash that gets injected into the economy has to go somewhere: stocks and real estate.

        1. “… stocks and real estate…”

          and Bitcoin and other crypto.

          What an absurd world we now live in.

          Dollars created out of thin air on a computer by the Fed which is then moved into Crypto created out of thin air on a computer by who knows.

      3. It might be FOMO (on a large house).

        If you have stock options – with price at all time highs, why not cash out some/all and move up in the housing market.

        I know several folks (ex co-workers) that have done something similar in the past 6 months. A good friend (although i have not seen it due to lockdown), got a new house with a large den. He works in there, plays xbox to relax and is basically the new mancave. His wife gets a bigger house with a (apparently) nice kitchen and deck. This will be their forever house – so they can justify in their minds.

      4. If there is one thing every country should do, it’s to make sure that the only people who can buy real assets (anything related to the ground and the permanent structures on the ground) are citizens of that country

        Most countries do this. The US is one of the few that doesn’t. Everything is for sale to the highest bidder, and it doesn’t matter if it’s our mortal enemy. Our corrupt politicians are the enemy, too.

        1. Agreed, rip. I think that some countries have started to weaken on this over the past few decades, though. Bad decision on their part if they care about their own citizens.

  11. I can’t get over the fact that the Covid-19 test isn’t accurate to begin with. So, I just look at how many people actually end up in the ICU .
    Than , because they aren’t accurate with how many of these ICU patients actually died of Covid-19,verses something else, it makes the death rate a lot lower.
    I have heard a number of Doctors say that giving mass Vaccines for such a low death rate isn’t justified. They say maybe target vaccines for the high risk group like the elderly. But these Doctors that are experts in this field are being suppressed and taken down as quick as they state their opinions, if it isn’t the fake news narrative.

    I have never seen such oppression of facts and counter opinion in America as what is going on now.
    People’s lives being destroyed over a narrative built on a fraudulent house of cards.
    Suppression of facts
    of election fraud , Joe Biden and Son being Traitors, Covid 19, any dispute to the fake news narratives.
    This takeover is so extreme that the blowback has to take place for something this criminal and destructive.

    1. Hi Wiz! It’s like living in a dystopian nightmare right now. Coming here to the HBB is my way of grasping for some sanity in an insane world. How are other people not seeing what should be so obvious to any thinking person? Maybe they’re used to being indoctrinated by the “experts,” and have never really questioned authority. It’s like those of us who clearly saw the housing bubble — not listening to the “experts” — are just better able to avoid being brainwashed by the overwhelming amount of propaganda.

      1. Hi Ca Renter.

        Actually, I started getting nervous 15 years ago over what they were doing. I had visions based on cause and effect of it leading to what is taking place now. I even had visions of people being taken to camps to be programmed. All the things I feared are happening in one form or another now.
        I’m a optmist usually, but cause and effect is hard to ignore.
        But, hope your doing good my friend Ca Renter.

        1. Ca, Renter,

          I lost faith in Authority figures decades ago. You have to do a lot more research to get to the bottom of what might be some truth.
          A general rule I have is if it doesn’t make sense it deserves more research.
          But, the narratives now are just so insulting that it’s mind-blowing.
          I’m just hoping that it will be so obvious that people wake up.

        2. You’re an insightful person, Wiz, and your posts have always stood out to me as coming from a place of wisdom. I’ve always shared your sense that something malevolent could easily take hold because we haven’t had any safeguards, and so many of the people who are entrusted with protecting our institutions have long been corrupted by the lust for power and wealth. The few decent people in our government never seem to gain the traction they need to turn things around. That’s by design, of course.

          It’s nice to be in good company here at the HBB, and I am ever so grateful to Ben for keeping up this site over the years. It was always a place where I could come to learn, share, and enjoy the varied interests and perspectives of the wonderful people here. I’m so glad that so many of the old gang are still around. I think we’re all feeling the same thing — that something is not right with the world right now. Let’s hope that there are enough of us who are willing to push back and fight for the last relatively free country in the world. There are many people who would like to destroy what we have. We must prevent them from doing so, or we’ll risk losing it for generations to come. Once freedom is lost, it is nearly impossible to get it back.

          Best wishes to you and yours, Wiz!

          1. Best wishes to you also Ca Renter. I didn’t post for a while, but I came back again because I like this blog the best.
            Always liked your posts years ago as well as now.

        3. I used to post back here many years ago. When I saw what a scam this thing was back in April, I tried waking so many up. Most thought I was nuts so I’ve basically stopped. Let them have their Vaxx and their WHO herd immunity. Damn sheep.

          I was so re-assured when I saw the this site has called the BS out and Ben is till going strong. I was even a Democrat 3 years ago. Never again. Trump won and Covid is the biggest global con game ever. I had it in Feb….just a stupid flu.

    2. The PCR has a 30%-40% false negative rate, and the false positive rate can easily be 90%, depending on the count threshold setting. It’s utter crap.

      Combined with the fact that there is almost no asymptomatic transmission, the lockdowns are a farce. And it could be said that wearing masks will hide those who are symptomatic, further increasing the spread.

  13. Hi Wiz! It’s like living in a dystopian nightmare right now. Coming here to the HBB is my way of grasping for some sanity in an insane world. How are other people not seeing what should be so obvious to any thinking person? Maybe they’re used to being indoctrinated by the “experts,” and have never really questioned authority. It’s like those of us who clearly saw the housing bubble — not listening to the “experts” — are just better able to avoid being brainwashed by the overwhelming amount of propaganda.

  14. I use to get pissed off 15 years ago over the Media cheerleading the housing bubble that crashed.
    Than all the lies about the fraudulent culprits “Never seeing it coming’, and just bail them out. They had the opportunity to fix what went wrong, but Politicians didn’t fix anything and bail outs instead.
    At least after the 1929 crash they enacted laws that would prevent such a crash , such as the Glass /Steagle Act, that they got rid of under Bill Clinton.
    So the moral hazard of the 2009 Bail outs has brought us to CRAZY WORLD.
    Now it’s all crazy bail outs from Gov. based on the winners and losers they choose.
    The unjustified 2009 bail outs just created more corruption , more monopoly overtake, and more money being filtered to Big Corporate Globalist by Fed Gov wrong action,. as usual.
    And who in hell in their right mind would of thought that gutting USA jobs and manufacturing to Foreign Countries , making Globalist a monopoly was in the best interest of Citizens of the US?
    Like taking away US Citizens means of survival was a good idea. And than to blame the disparity on race is really a false narrative.
    So the Commies, Foreign enemies, Corporate Globalist, Big Monopolies like Health Care all converge to even be more powerful.
    This rigged election is a criminal act of warfare against Citizens of the US.
    Looks like Biden is putting nothing but Globalist and Commies in his Cabinet.
    Good luck to Citizens with thus stacked deck of anti American interest running the Government.

  15. Ben…

    Can you repost the link of that scrawny assed bastard that let his mouth do the talking and feet do the walking and got dropped like a bad habit?

    That was some of the funniest shit I ever saw.🤣🤣🤣

  16. ClownWorld Chronicles, There Are Only Two Genders edition:

    “Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) introduced legislation to ban biological males from participating in women’s sports.

    Gabbard, a Democrat who ran for the 2020 presidential nomination for her party, is the sponsor of H.R. 8932, the “Protect Women’s Sports Act,” alongside Reps. Markwayne Mullin, (R-Okla.), Bill Flores (R-Texas), Bill Johnson (R-Ohio), Rep. Alexander Mooney (R-W.V.), and Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.).

    The legislation aims “to provide that for purposes of determining compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 in athletics, sex shall be determined on the basis of biological sex as determined at birth by a physician.”

    https://campusreform.org/?id=16497

    What does it say about our society as a whole that a law like this would even need to be passed?

    Fall of Rome, Weimar Germany, that’s what it says.

    Globalists hate the nuclear family based on traditional gender roles.

    Globalists rape kids. They want to use the court system to seize custody of your preteen children, mutilate them with hormones and surgery, and rape them.

    This is who globalists are, and this is what they do.

    1. What does it say about our society as a whole that a law like this would even need to be passed?

      It depends on who you ask. In some circles, people see the whole trans thing as merely the tip of the iceberg, and the fact that most people accept the submerged part of the iceberg as normal and acceptable to be the real problem.

      1. In Western Europe and Canada they are already taking away custody of kids from parents who refuse to allow them to LARP as another gender.

        For the globalists, it was never about what consenting adults do in the privacy of their own bedroom (which nobody on the HBB really cares about anyway).

        Behind every single promotion of social and cultural degeneracy, you will find a globalist. They profess allegiance to no nation, no culture, no heritage, no tradition.

        Globalists are the parasite that destroys the host, EVERY SINGLE TIME, and centuries of recorded history prove it.

    2. I agree with you that the Globalist and other power mongers are really perverse and corrupt. It all about them forcing their bizarre ideas on people .
      Hilter, Mao and Stalin thought killing millions of people was necessary.
      When some nut Democrats talk about punishing people who have a different political view, than it’s dangerous talk, yet they get away with it.

    3. It amazed me how quickly the deranged Trump haters in Hawaii turned on Tulsi, mainly because she wasn’t deranged like them and spitting mad over trumps every move like that mad cow Hirono.

      We got a skate park renovation, a rock climbing wall and murals painted on the bathrooms at every beach park where scores of homeless now live, all from the CARES act. There’s still a quarantine so tourism is minimal and if you violate it’s 5k fine and up to a year in jail, but there are guys trying to kill cops that are set free by judges.

      When tourists do come back they’ll find that everything they do will have a charge – go to a beach, park, anything. Cha ching. We only want rich people to come apparently, even though the deranged hate the rich. Funny thing is, many of those deranged are pretty well off and their cars are plastered with Bernie stickers.

      Leftism is a cancer.

  17. “A real estate firm focused on gentrifying neighborhoods is showing cracks after a group of its apartment buildings in New York’s Upper West Side and Harlem filed for bankruptcy.”

    Having been born and raised in NYC a phrase I never heard uttered by anyone was “Can you believe it? We’re moving up to Harlem!”

    1. Nice tape RR. Makes you think a PLAN B is in motion .
      i would like to think that there is a check and balance that can stop a overthrow such as this. She said Trump got 80 million votes.
      But, thanks for posting.

    2. “Great 20-minute summation of various things!”

      Great summary! And she’s right. He has a plan. Trump and military intelligence have had a plan for years. All the parts and personnel she mentions are chess pieces/moves. He is a strategic genius and has brilliant military patriots behind him. It all starts January 6th in DC. Amazing time to be alive. Epic show is about to commence. 1776 2.0.

  19. I can’t tell you how many times I’m hearing and seeing “Bitcoin!” now. It’s nuts. I look forward to the meltdown.

    1. I was in downtown Chicago for a wedding in 1999 partying at my cousin and her husband’s apartment and they were crowing about how you could have a $0.50 candy bar delivered at no extra charge.

      These companies were buying Souperbowl ads, most of them don’t exist now.

      $hitcoin is a fraud (P.S. so is Tesla)…

      1. At least Tesla makes something, even if they are nothing more than toys for the well to do and that Joe 6 Pack will never be able to afford one.

    2. Yeah its staggering how everyone wants to get in at the peak. Corporations buy a company at $40+ a share when it was Less then $10 just last year and nothing really has changed. Then go broke a few years later from the debt.

  20. I tuned into network news for the first time in months. What a bunch of drama queen mofos. Seriously… Who talks like that? And the video crafting is something to behold. Disney and Hollywood really need to hire abc/cbs/nbc.

  21. Antifa, and presumably its globalist bankrollers and string-pullers, are now organizing takeovers of hotels by the “unhoused” with Antifa “ready to defend if needed.” Looks like the vulture funds are planning on picking up a bunch of bankrupt hotels on the cheap.

    Over 40 Units At Port Of Tacoma Travelodge Occupied To Provide Emergency Housing

    https://itsgoingdown.org/housing-occupation-tacoma-travelodge/

    We’re on day 4 of the hotel occupation and settling in for night 4! [According to The News Tribute, “After paying for the initial night, the occupants have refused to pay or leave for four days.”] Negotiations with the hotel owner, city, and county start tomorrow, but we have 50-70 people ready to defend if needed. Housing activists from Tacoma Housing Now, Seattle (the Yellow House), and Olympia have coalesced into a broad Puget Sound coalition that will support housing actions in each other’s cities. Most of our medics on-site are veterans of the recent far-Right battles in Olympia that saw two antifascist protestors shot. We’re also in a chat with housing organizers from Philly, Ashland OR, Medford OR, El Sereno CA, and Los Angeles trading tactics and media tips — the national movement is growing.

    2. So what happens when things break? Who will fix them? The squatters? Antifa?

      Plus we all know these places will be completely trashed and uninhabitable in a few months. Unless an arsonist burns them down first.

      2021 is going to make people miss 2020.

      1. Hotels like this will just act as safe injection sites, except with no supervision. Is antifa going to administer narcan? Sweep up bodies?

  22. Are you ready for wheelbarrow money?

    Gold Heads for Best Year in a Decade With Dollar on the Ropes

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-31/gold-heads-for-best-year-in-a-decade-with-dollar-on-the-ropes?srnd=premium-middle-east&sref=ibr3A0ff

    Gold is poised to cap a tumultuous year with the biggest annual advance in a decade, with gains this month aided by the dollar’s decline to the lowest level since April 2018. Silver has surged almost 50% in 2020.

    Bullion hit a record in August as investors sought haven assets amid the pandemic. The surge was buttressed by unprecedented waves of stimulus, including from the Federal Reserve, which fanned concerns of currency debasement.

    1. Silver has surged almost 50% in 2020

      It was ten years ago that silver shot up over $35 briefly and then collapsed. If the same happens in January, some of my hoard (not the survival grocery money) will go to market. All in at $5.

      It may be wheelbarrows of paper fiat in our short term future. It may be barrows of debt donkeys off to the glue factory. I could use a nice vacation.

      1. Not at all. Gold is is a liquid asset, housing is not. The local coin shop will always buy gold, no matter if the price is up or down. Equating a liquid asset to an illiquid asset is naive.

  23. UK just approved the Astra-Zeneca Oxford vaccine. No word yet from the FDA. given their previous behavior, my guess is they will wait until Biden is sworn in before they approve.

    1. Just read that Mexican union leaders have been using their clout to move to the front of the vaccine line. They’re welcome to it, as far as I’m concerned.

  24. Georgia Senate Subcommittee Passes Motion Allowing Stanford Researcher To Audit Every Absentee Ballot In Fulton County

    by Gabriel Keane | National File
    December 30th 2020, 5:48 pm

    Potentially game-changing motion was spurred by Jovan Pulitzer’s testimony about having successfully hacked into a Fulton County voting machine

    The Georgia State Senate Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Elections unanimously passed a motion Wednesday that would allow a research team spearheaded by inventor and Stanford researcher Jovan Pulitzer to conduct an audit of every absentee ballot cast in Fulton County, which has seen widespread reports of vote tampering and election fraud.

    The motion was presented and passed after Pulitzer detailed his research into the flaws and penetrable aspects of the Fulton County voting system, and revealed that his team had successfully hacked into a Fulton County polling pad through a WiFi connection.

    Wednesday’s motion strikes a serious blow to fact-checkers and media outlets that have unsuccessfully tried to “debunk” claims of election in Georgia during the 2020 presidential election.

    https://www.infowars.com/posts/georgia-senate-subcommittee-passes-motion-allowing-stanford-researcher-to-audit-every-absentee-ballot-in-fulton-county/

  25. Wall Street Journal (12/27/20):

    “New York Police Department officials say the surge in shootings this year is greater than any rise the city has seen in years, and it has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 20, the city recorded 1,824 shooting victims, up nearly 104% from 896 during the same period a year earlier, according to NYPD data.

    The number of shootings increased to 1,493 for the year so far, compared with 754 for the same time in 2019, the data showed. A single shooting could end up with more than one victim, which accounts for the difference in totals between victims and incidents.

    An analysis of NYPD data by that office showed that 1,440 of 1,495 shooting victims between Jan. 1 to Oct. 1, or 96%, were either Black or Hispanic. During that period, 29 shooting victims were white.”

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-york-citys-shooting-surge-hit-black-and-hispanic-communities-hardest-11609074001

    LOL@ “exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic”

    Will the last taxpayer leaving New York City please turn out the lights?

    2. “This is so much more than just about the guns,” Ms. Mofield said. “It’s about the economic conditions and the social conditions that we see people in.”

      I was just about to give-up my firearms to the authorities until I read this kernel of truth. Whew!

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