https://x.com/kevinolearytv/status/1960018613038883254
Of course the sentiment that we actually live in a capitalist society that allows big businesses (and otherwise zombie corporations) to fail is patently absurd, but whatever. It's not like I expected him to say two smart things in a row in any case.
It's always somewhat comical to watch both the republicans and democrats completely sellout their voter-base as they toe the line while serving the corporate overlords. Obviously it is not appropriate for the "conservative" party to throw money they don't have into a floundering business. What could possibly be the justification for such an action? If only we could ask them and get a truthful answer; not gonna happen.
He announced on Friday that the federal government is acquiring a 10% stake in Intel, the Fortune 500 company that is one of the largest American manufacturers of semiconductors. And he hinted that the US might not be done adding to its stock portfolio.
So not only will we be propping up Intel but also a slew of other companies when it suits the administration? Okay then!
While Trump says the US paid "zero" for the roughly $9bn in non-voting Intel shares, the transaction was far from a gift. The US converted unpaid construction grants designated in the 2023 Chips Act – legislation intended to promote domestic semiconductor manufacturing - into Intel stock.
So, Trump promised time and time again that we would "Make America Great Again" by bringing manufacturing jobs to the USA. They even setup grants that would promote said manufacturing, and now he cannibalizes the grants into socialism and claims we are "paying zero" for it. Perhaps he is a much better politician that the left gives credit. What an absolute bullshitter.
While the Trump administration explains the Intel move as one taken to protect an industry that is vital to national security
I can only assume that this move is the tip of the iceberg in terms of the dark foreshadowing I see on the horizon. When we peer at the macro geopolitical landscape and our conflicts with China... a move like this bodes most ominous. This is potentially a precursor to a play on Taiwan, a country which creates the best semiconductors in the world, at scale. Taiwan's relationship with China is a quagmire of complex history that the USA should stay out of, but we just can't help ourselves. Money money money. Power power power.
To be honest I had no idea Intel was even struggling and just assumed they were doing great along with all the other big tech companies. Turns out everyone seems to have been eating their lunch in recent years. That's honestly something I'm happy to hear, as the last time I checked in on the competition AMD was struggling against Intel. I'll almost certainly be buying an AMD chip for my next computer, which can't come soon enough at this point, as the toaster I'm on right now was pieced together by yours truly in 2016.
In recent years, Intel has faced increasing competition, leading the company to fall from grace. Rival x86 chipmaker AMD has been aggressively challenging Intel's share with its performance gains. Alternative chip architectures, including Arm, have become increasingly popular leading to further erosion of Intel's dominance. GPU maker Nvidia has outpaced Intel in the AI space leading to even further losses.
Intel has potentially reached the end of its lifecycle, but rather than let it die, the Trump Administration seeks to do what so many administrations before it have done: transform it into a socialized zombie corporation that can't die because it's being subsidized by taxpayers. Very cool. Such capitalism.
And let's not mix words, this is not a republican problem. If anything it's the democrats that are famous for pulling this nonsense, but really history shows that both sides do it whenever it suits them, be it the banks or the airlines or the housing market or anything else deemed "too big to fail". Don't worry about it. Business as usual. Those closest to the money printer benefit the most, with the general public is sheared for harvest to foot the bill.
We live in a world where everyone wants instant gratification and nobody wants to experience pain in the short term in order to reap a long term reward. Moves like this are easy to spin because people are lazy and soft. At the risk of sounding like an Avocado Toast Boomer we have to be willing to accept some discomfort today or risk complete systemic collapse later, and this advice extends into many walks of life, from getting exercise to running a global economy.
The Trump Admin is rolling back their promises in the most comical of ways. It's a dark comedy but it's still pretty funny. I guarantee we would not be in a better position with Harris on this front. In fact I imagine it would somehow be even worse in terms of socializing zombie corps. The left and the right are two sides of the same coin, and are much more similar and aligned than they would ever admit to the voter base. That's why I don't vote. I'm done with those chuckleheads. The system is rigged.
