The value of the dollar is poised to decrease
Hudson, N.Y.: The BRICS economic alliance led by Russia and China is aggressively pursuing the development of its own currency to replace the American dollar as the dominant global currency. They are now asking members of the alliance to invest in gold instead of dollars.
Foreign investment in the dollar and the U.S. has permitted our country to operate with an out-of-control deficit for the past few decades. Without this, the U.S. will face inflation at a rate never before experienced in our country. People who have invested in their retirement will be impacted as the value of the dollar diminishes. People on fixed incomes will fair far worse. Am I being fatalistic? I think not. In just a few short years, the world’s financial reserves in American dollars — once 75% — has been reduced to less than 50%.
The global economy has lost confidence in the dollar because of the Biden administration’s decision to not only freeze Russian assets but also American dollars in Russia while imposing sanctions. Countries now worry about what will happen to their investment in dollars when their policies differ from ours.
Many OPEC countries have joined BRICS in the past two years. Nearly all oil produced and exported from these countries were paid for in American dollars since the early 1970s. This will change dramatically. Can you imagine the U.S. being required to purchase oil in a different currency? To survive as a global economic and military power, the U.S. will need to produce and consume its own oil and gas. This at a time when some politicians and academia are calling for a move away from our natural resources. Tom Fisher
Name that policy
Larchmont, N.Y.: To Voicer Tom Scott: What exactly did President Biden do to cause the inflation problem? Exactly what legislative initiative did he institute to cause it? Was it the pandemic (not Joe)? Was it all the PPP money that flooded the economy (not Joe)? Was it supply chain issues due to the pandemic (not him)? Was it oil prices increased by the oil companies (not Joe)? Was it Putin’s war (not Joe, unless you think Trump could have prevented it)? Was it the Federal Reserve raising interest rates, which prevented a recession? If you think Trump being in office would have prevented the problem, you’re as delusional as he is. Unemployment is at an all-time low. Wages are increasing greater than the current inflation rate. The markets are at all-time highs. We are better off today than we were when Trump was in office because Trump is not in office! Steve Michaud
Drop the hammer
Richmond Hill: Since The Donald has dared the judge to jail him for his violation of the gag order, lock him up! Making America great again means first respecting its legal processes. I am sure that a couple of weeks on Rikers Island, bunking with a dozen guys named Bubba and living on prison grub, will prod Trump to cop to everything he is charged with as well as the murder of Cock Robin and the Lindbergh baby. I am sure all are tired of this endless delay. Robert Clolery
Proudly deplorable
Yonkers: To Voicer Bill McConnell: Yes, I wear the “deplorable” moniker with pride and distinction. Just to set the record straight, Billy, it was Voicer Regina Rossi who started the quip in referring to Donald Trump and her anxious wait for the day he (Trump) will be “gone from this Earth.” Ergo, one would assume that you, Rossi and this treasonous Democratic Party are so inanely ignorant that there is no number low enough on the IQ scale to define your intelligence level. Ralph A. Manente
Dramatic descriptor
Suffern, N.Y.: “The path of totality” is one of those great phrases, like “the cone of silence” in “Get Smart.” Rick Sinclair
Underwhelmed
Shaftesbury, Vt.: It was a twilight eclipse here in Bennington, Vt. The well-advertised eclipse was a dud! At the time forecast for the total eclipse of the sun, we got a twilight-looking, almost sunset effect, but no total eclipse. So much for that! Tom King
Saw that
Manalapan, N.J.: To Voicers Shirley Watts and Judith Cabral: I also remember that 1963 eclipse. I was at a charity luncheon in Midtown Manhattan and I went outside and saw the sky get very dark. It was a cloudy day. I remember it fondly. Linda Selip
Well-played
New Hyde Park, L.I.: To Voicer Shirley Watts: My brother and I were visiting our friend at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. We were outside in the quad area, and when the eclipse was over, someone played “Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles from one of the dorm rooms. I will always remember that day. Mike Dooley
Reality check
Brooklyn: To Voicer Paul Falabella: You stated that it wasn’t an earthquake the other day, it was the sound of the Republican Party running away from reality. My man, you need a reality check. Luckily, no one was killed in the earthquake, but let’s talk about the Democratic bail reform where you can chop up body parts, commit violent felonies and be released the next or same day just to do it again, or even commit murder. John Rico
Public accounting
Ocala, Fla.: The MTA has been grabbing money from everyone for years. However, I have yet to see an actual accounting of where the money goes. Instead of always granting them more money for tolls, congestion pricing and the like, I would like the Daily News to broadcast every item in their budget, line by line, on the front page. My guess is that the bigwigs get millions that they do not deserve and the commuters get the shaft every single time. P.S.: The State Liquor Authority gets limos, perks and huge salaries and no one checks them out either. Lynn Miller
Peering poorly
Danbury, Conn.: Every time I see a picture of Chuck Schumer looking over his glasses, I wonder why such a wealthy politician can’t afford bifocals. Bob Bergin
Reroute aid
Bedford, N.Y.: Re the devastation left by the Israeli invasion of Gaza (it isn’t a “war,” it’s an invasion): Maybe the $3.9 billion Israel receives from the U.S. to “defend” itself should now be used for the reconstruction of Gaza. Céline Secada
Regime change
Jersey City: Those of us who genuinely support our traditional friend Israel, but who know that blind support is not true friendship, also know that opposing the Likud Party is not opposing Israel. Nor is it antisemitism, as Benjamin Netanyahu and his apologists would have us believe. We stand with the tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrating in ever-increasing numbers against the disproportionate actions of the prime minister and his government, which are doing more to recruit the next generations of anti-Israel terrorists than all the Hamas operatives put together. For any hope of a lasting peace to advance, the world must hold all terrorists to account — Hamas and Likud. Bibi must go, and the Israelis must do that themselves. John Esche
What is it good for?
Maspeth: I can’t help but remember an original “Star Trek” episode where inhabitants fought wars against each other for hundreds of years by computer (people identified as targets of an area “destroyed,” reported for “elimination,” but the land and dwellings remained intact). Captain Kirk forces them to anticipate real bombings by disabling the computers with wise words of warning: When the people face real horrors in the destruction of life and property, they will have an incentive to forge a peace treaty. After seeing the destroyed buildings in the Middle East and Ukraine and hearing of the deaths on both sides, one wonders why wars are still being fought. Why hasn’t man learned lessons from past wars and managed to avoid future ones? How sad! Veronica Kwiecinski
Lively advertising
Middle Village: After seeing the deceased Billy Mays commercial, let’s give a shoutout to Anthony Sullivan, who’s still alive and kicking! Robert Chirieleison
