How much truth in “Opinion from a Former Judge” … Grok?

| December 4, 2025

After reading an opinion from several years ago, but also after recent events, rising tensions and political divide in the U.S. … the same article is being passed around social media again. The writings seemed almost too spot on so I was interested in knowing how much truth there was to it — so I’m […]

Inflation. High Prices. A Currency Crisis, Not a Supply Crunch

| November 29, 2025

In the grand theater of economics, supply and demand are often cast as the star performers—shortages driving up prices, gluts pulling them down. But peel back the curtain, and you’ll find a quieter, more insidious culprit: the weakening U.S. dollar. As the world’s reserve currency, the dollar’s value doesn’t just influence trade; it permeates every […]

The Shutdown Charade: Broken Promises Demand a New Path

| November 9, 2025

Why do public schools, a college education, the social safety net and health care continue to need more money? Because government is inefficient and too heavily involved … especially at the Federal level.  Late last week I sent my right-leaning column commentary to TheHusting.news — we’ll see how it is received. No doubt those on […]

Democrats’ Cruel Calculus: “the few leverage times we have”

| October 26, 2025

Last week I passed on the request to comment on the “No Kings” protest, as requested by TheHustings editor since we were busy. This week I’m taking the initiative in sending commentary on the ridiculous Federal government shutdown (quote below) after the “leverage” comments from Democratic House Minority Whip Katherine Clark. It does seem insane […]

How Inflation Indexing Shields Taxes and Entitlements

| October 12, 2025

Inflation is like that sneaky friend who borrows your money and never pays it back—it erodes the value of your dollars over time without you even noticing. But in the world of U.S. taxes and government benefits, there’s a built-in defense mechanism called inflation indexing. This automatic adjustment ensures that tax brackets, deductions, and entitlement […]

Inflation is stubborn and most grocery prices are still too high

| September 28, 2025

Even though I follow the business news closer than most, it is tough to predict exactly why prices continue to put financial stress on most families. Brenda and I are likely not going to starve, but our grocery bill is now higher then when we had more mouths to feed. I’ve bellyached about inflation since […]

I am Charlie Kirk: A Call for Responsible Political Discourse

| September 18, 2025

Since TheHustings editor often asks me to weigh in on current topics of the political nature, it seemed appropriate to submit a few words on my political thoughts after the September 10th assassination of Charlie Kirk.  = = = I am Charlie Kirk: A Call for Responsible Political Discourse The tragic death of Charlie Kirk […]

Words cannot express my sorrow, anger and our divisive politics

| September 12, 2025

Gold and just how much is the US dollar worth these days?

| September 6, 2025

It is not as if I haven’t been watching … and whining about … inflation and what the US dollar buys these days, but until seeing comparisons that pit the US dollar against the average American’s family budget … it is harder to comprehend. Still we all know what we buy and how much everything […]

The best U.S. president in the last 50 years? A Nobel Peace prize?

| August 26, 2025

As a TheHustings regular contributor, I sometimes find myself being a little more provocative that I really am — likely because there is a lack of pro-MAGA content in the right-hand column. Part of this particular submission (posted below) is for the “shock value” … but Jerry Lanson’s left-hand column, Keep Your Eye On What […]

Commentary: When Government Becomes a Shareholder $INTC

| August 19, 2025

Noticing that my name was mentioned in TheHustings right-column today, I felt it was imperative that I at least voice my conservative concern over the Trump administration wanting taxpayers to become non-voting shareholders in Intel ($INTC).  Here are my thoughts; we’ll see if the editors include them? Intel: When Government Becomes a Shareholder The Trump […]

Testing ChatGPT assistance in coding HTML for a MDB post: Charting a Better Future for Native-Born American Workers

| August 14, 2025

Previously I added the chart below to a filler post and contemplated posting something to TheHustings.news … but instead wanted to test the “HTML coding ability” of ChatGPT. The AI was “so-so” … but required WAY too much tweaking on my part and ChatGPT adding 3-failed (404) links is unacceptable (highlight below).  Of course when […]

A saved idea photo and jobs-related graphic July 2025 leftover

| August 5, 2025

Since the previous post was  a recap of Monday’s market rebound after Friday’s stock market selloff, I’m using this post as an excuse to get a couple of saved items out of the folder where I collect ideas for MDB. The first photo one is a bit nutty if you ask me, but because it […]

After Friday’s sell-off, Monday 8/4/2025 felt better for investors

| August 5, 2025

U.S. stocks surged on Monday, August 4, 2025, with major indexes like the Dow industrials climbing over 500 points, a gain of 1% or more. From utilities to meme stocks, the rally was broad-based, catching some investors off guard after last week’s volatility. Markets faced turbulence late last week due to President Trump’s tariff announcements, […]

Very disappointed in Dow Jones and the WSJ customer service

| July 23, 2025

If you read my blog at all, you know I’m a long time Wall Street Journal subscriber and often quote or reference their content. I’m actually embarrassed to say that I’ve been reading the newspaper version from the time before the Internet and had it delivered to my place of business for years. So … […]

Lessons From Kent State: A Warning to Today’s Political Left

| July 16, 2025

After finishing the book “Kent State: An American Tragedy” by Brian VanDeMark last week, it occurred to me that the tensions in the U.S. aren’t all that different today than they were in the late 1960s and 1970s. Radicals on the political left today (we often see Antifa), just as some with like minds did […]

One Big Beautiful Bill: A Promising Step Forward and a Shortcut

| July 5, 2025

Testing an Apple Shortcut script that pulls formatted text from the Apple Notes app that I often type something in. I’m starting to use Notes more and more since it is simple, synchronizes between all Apple devices and works pretty well on Apple’s iCloud, the iPhone, iPad, my iMac or MacBook Air M2. The Hustings.news […]

Peace Through Strength — Strength, Deterrence and Iran

| June 24, 2025

It looks as if my commentary is becoming a regular righthand column thing over at TheHustings.news (based on the current news story).   Peace Through Strength — Strength, Deterrence and Iran The debate over whether to strike Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites is now behind us, as Tehran has suffered a significant setback in its pursuit […]

Hm .. the tale of two different White House celebrations

| June 14, 2025

America under Democrat President Biden vs Republican President Trump couldn’t be more different — we are clearly a divided nation when it comes to politics; even the lighting displays at the White House are different. Earlier in my life I always thought both political parties wanted the same thing, but just had different philosophies as […]

A Pro-Republican Perspective on Recent Developments

| June 11, 2025

TheHustings editor sent me a request last week and wanted my thoughts on the recent feud between President Trump and Elon Musk (my submission posted Monday on TheHustings.news). Of course it was disappointing … and in my opinion … unnecessary (at least the personal stuff), but I definitely understood Musk’s frustration after all he as […]

The End of the Penny: US Mint to Cease Production by 2026

| May 24, 2025

The U.S. penny, a staple of American currency since 1787, will no longer be minted after 2026, as announced by the Treasury Department. The decision comes as the cost of producing a penny has soared to 3.7 cents, far exceeding its face value. With 114 billion pennies in circulation, the move aims to cut losses […]

Politicians, no matter the political party, borrow and spend

| May 22, 2025

Democrats don’t want you to see what they are doing when they spend your taxdollars (and borrow more) … while Republicansl try to convince you that the Federal government needs to increase spending now and in order to cut spending later.  BTW, the U.S. House passed the Trump backed One Big Beautiful Bill today.  Key […]

More of my commentary for TheHustings.news right-column

| May 17, 2025

In order to hold up the “right-column” over at TheHustings.news website, I’ve sent my commentary regarding President Trump’s trip to the Middle East this past week to the editor — it was successful by all accounts (except perhaps the America haters). Hopefully it will be used this weekend, although suspect the other “political animals” (as […]

Rebuilding American Industry – A Look at Trump’s Tariff Strategy

| May 10, 2025

At the heart of President Donald Trump’s economic vision is a renewed commitment to American manufacturing. Central to this goal is the strategic use of tariffs—not as instruments of isolation, but as tools to encourage domestic production, protect American workers, and reestablish the United States as a global industrial leader. The Trump team views tariffs […]

A Tough Balancing Act for the Fed as Economic Clouds Gather

| May 1, 2025

The Federal Reserve finds itself walking a tightrope as new data released this week points to a troubling mix: slower economic growth and higher inflation during the first quarter of 2025. It’s a combination that could eventually force the Fed to prioritize one of its dual mandates—either keeping inflation in check or supporting employment—at the […]

An Editorial: A Call for Smaller Government and Fiscal Restraint

| April 29, 2025

Although TheHustings.news editor didn’t ask me to write anything this week (previous requests), I decided to work on something over the weekend  that has been bothering me. As a long time advocate for shrinking our Federal government (as a conservative, small government Republican) and focused on the “spending problem” Congress has had for decades —which […]

Saving more TheHustings.news right-column political nonsense

| April 23, 2025

Likely my right-column bloviating on TheHustings.news is not of interest or even worth archiving, but since I put a little effort into it, I’m saving it here. This week’s commentary was a little more challenging for me because I do understand the line between an authoritarian executive branch (ie. Jan 6 participants) and having ICE […]

Tariff talks between the U.S. and 75 countries gets a 90 day pause

| April 9, 2025

Posting a late afternoon blog addition since I would be remiss to not mention the stock market rocketing after the Trump administration announced a “pause” with 75 countries wanting to negotiate tariffs and non-tariff barriers with the U.S. The notable holdout at this point is China … but the financial markets took all of this […]

Tariffs: Rethinking my long-held views regarding global trade

| April 9, 2025

Tariffs have long been a divisive topic in economics. For decades, mainstream economists have championed free trade, arguing that tariffs—essentially a tax on imports ultimately paid by consumers—hinder economic growth by disrupting the free flow of goods across borders. For most of my life, I’ve been a proponent of free—but fair—trade. I believed in the […]

Trump’s Tariffs: A Catalyst for America’s Manufacturing Revival

| April 6, 2025

Once again the request was out from TheHustings.news for a bit of a pro-tariffs and pro-Trump right-column commentary than others could muster (text below before the editor puts his pen to it). Truth be told, I struggled after the hammering investors took last week (including me). I had to work a little harder to stay […]

It was not a comfortable week as the US tariff impact takes hold

| April 5, 2025

The Trump tariffs that have been long in the making and took hold on April 2nd, “Liberation Day”  (he first talked about them in the 1980s). Not everyone is as sure or as comfortable with them as U.S. President Donald J. Trump. Still, most of us recognize that the industry that built this country in […]

The Trump Tariffs have rattled all of the financial markets

| April 3, 2025

Although I have a personal opinion on just how trade between countries “should” function (free trade), I also realize there’s really no such thing in the real world. There are those who believe companies in the United States end up holding the short straw when exporting their products overseas … due to a variety of […]

Using the Signal app to talk about US strikes on Houthi targets

| March 29, 2025

The talk from most in the media this past week as been about several in the Trump administration’s team discussing plans to strike Houthi targets in Yemen … and that they used the encrypted app Signal to communicate with each other on a group chat titled “Houthi PC small group.” The Atlantic published a story […]

TheHustings.news, again: A Partisan Weapon In Disguise

| March 27, 2025

It is not hard to suck me in to having an opinion … and politics is one of those topics that I fortunately or unfortunately have formed semi-strong politically opinions over the years. I probably share/debate/argue them too often with my son Taylor (and he usually counters them) or in the past couple of years, […]

Rising Costs, Stagnant Results: A Crisis in Public Education

| March 26, 2025

Since 1970, the cost of K-12 education in the U.S. has skyrocketed, yet student performance has remained disappointingly flat. Data from the Cato Institute and the U.S. Department of Education highlight a troubling trend—while inflation-adjusted per-student spending has more than tripled, reading, math, and science scores have barely budged. As of 2024, the average per-student […]

Thoughts: U.S. Trade, more Tariffs and Global Retaliation

| March 18, 2025

After the January inauguration of President Trump and the confirmation of his cabinet, there was an immediate change to trade policies that included tariffs … often viewed as protectionist or at minimum leveling and reshaping the relationships with key trading partners. This month the U.S. levied 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, […]

More for TheHustings.news: A Real Economy vs a Fake Economy

| March 15, 2025

Some might say that I’m spending too much time focused on the political news coming from Washington DC these days … but so much is happening — and at a rapid pace. I’ve enjoyed spinning commentary a little more than usual this past year … and am a bit more Trumpish when posting on X.com […]

Tech Friday: Testing Gemini Deep Research Artificial Intelligence

| March 14, 2025

Since I’ve not truly committed to using artificial intelligence tools from one company, I’ve been attempting to put each of the leading AI tools through their paces. Earlier this week I tested Otter.AI to transcript from an audio recording … and now for Tech Friday this week it’s Google’s Gemini and the “Deep Research” tool […]

Excellent comments on foreign affairs by General Jack Keane

| March 12, 2025

After excellent comments by retired 4-star General Jack Keane the other day, I heard him again this past weekend with Mark Levin. No matter what your thoughts are on politics or views on foreign affairs, Jack Keane is someone with a lot of knowledge, experience and insight … and his commentary is worth listening to […]

Commentary: The President’s Joint Session of Congress Speech

| March 6, 2025

President Donald J. Trump gave a 90 minute Joint Session of Congress speech on Tuesday night and since it went a bit late, I was unable to finish my commentary for TheHustings.News “right-hand” column (a request). Being a bit late, I’m unsure the editor will now find it timely enough to include, but am adding […]

Zelenskyy commited a strategic mistake in the Oval Office

| March 1, 2025

Friday afternoon I listened to Retired Four-Star General Jack Keane talk with David Asman on Fox Business talk about the unfortunate meeting between President Donald Trump, Vice-President JD Vance and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office on Friday. It was an astute observation and worth including.      David Asman with Retired General […]

Tech media leaders are friendlier to Trump in 2025 than 2017

| February 21, 2025

Over the past year, I’ve been asked to write commentary for TheHustings.News. It isn’t really something I’ve thought about doing in the past, but I’ve enjoyed having someone “ask” me to help bolster the “right-leaning” column of their political news website (nothing earth shattering). After several columns in 2024, the editor asked if he could […]

The 2025 Daytona 500 and America is REALLY Back!

| February 18, 2025

NASCAR has always been something that I’ve taken an interest in watching. When I was a boy, I’d watch it with my brother and dad. When I was a dad, I’d watch it with my son Taylor and we collected cars and trading cars — he was a Jeff Gordon fan. These days I still […]

Excellent speech by VP JD Vance on Artificial Intelligence, etc.

| February 12, 2025

Excellent speech by US Vice President JD Vance on artificial intelligence in a summit in Paris, France. He told European and Asian leaders that the United States will dominate AI. Worth watching. NEW: JD Vance speaks at an artificial intelligence summit in Paris, France, tells European and Asian leaders that the United States will dominate […]

Downsizing Government Bloat commentary – TheHustings.news

| February 6, 2025

TheHustings.News – Commentary by Rich Corbett In a time when government spending often raises concerns about waste, fraud, abuse and inefficiency, Elon Musk and the DOGE team’s use of “read-only” access to Treasury data can be viewed as a proactive step toward enhancing accountability. The fundamental argument rests on the premise that taxpayers deserve transparency […]

Leftover political humor highlighting a U.S. postage stamp

| February 2, 2025

Although I’m sure the November 2024 election loss might still be raw for some, a leftover lampoon of the 46th president and a U.S. postage stamp “might” of had me smiling … as did “this real video” a couple months ago. It could have been tossed to the computer trash or left to humor others […]

It is not surprising, but the left continues to quietly resist

| January 30, 2025

A long time wife of a sailing friend who live in Massachusetts near her daughter,  has always been cordial and friendly, happened to included me on an email last week even though it is clear we do not share the same politics. I can’t say that I’m surprised, but was taken back at just how […]

Another opportunity for me to opine on TheHusting.news

| January 28, 2025

Getting an invite to write for the “right column” of TheHustings.news is becoming a habit. Once again the editor reached out after my January 2024 comment, “Let’s Start With a Clean Slate,” mentioning that he has a very short list of conservative writers willing to be a little more pro-Trump — a couple of his […]

Thee Ohio State Buckeyes are National Champions again

| January 21, 2025

The Ohio State Buckeyes secured a decisive victory over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the College Football Playoff National Championship game held in Atlanta. Ohio State won with a final score of 34-23, clinching their first national title since 2014. Key Highlights: First Half: – Notre Dame started strong with an 18-play, 75-yard drive […]

Is the US, and the world, ready for President Trump, again?

| January 20, 2025

On January 20, 2025, Donald J. Trump will be inaugurated as the 47th President of the United States, marking his second, non-consecutive term in office. Due to anticipated freezing temperatures and high winds, the inauguration ceremony has been relocated indoors to the United States Capitol Rotunda in Washington, D.C.  This adjustment ensures the safety and […]

Another invitation to add my two-cents to TheHustings.news

| January 16, 2025

Last year I was invited by a longtime automotive writer and friend, Todd Lassa (photo), to help with writing right column commentary for a political news site — TheHustings.news. The network of writers and journalists he taps into skew politically left for the most part … and he felt my Republican right-leaning (and pro-Trump/Vance) views […]

Mass evacuations as fires around L.A. take lives, devastate homes, businesses and displace thousands of California residents

| January 11, 2025

It is difficult to fathom the amount of devastation happening in Southern California due to the out of control wildfires fueled by the yearly dry vegetation and Santa Anna wind blowing through the canyons and mountains around Los Angeles.  Having dense population and homes in the hills around the suburbs adds to the risk when […]

Websites and social media feeds highlighting maps intrigue me

| January 9, 2025

A map by region illustrating the larger variations of temperatures than below Since I love looking at maps of all kinds, I’m always attracted to the ones that trigger intrigue me and helps me learn a little more about our world. I especially enjoy weather related maps (perhaps they often relate to aviation and sailing), […]

A New Dawn: American Optimism Flourishes Post-2024 Election

| January 2, 2025

A palpable sense of optimism has swept across America since the November 2024 elections. The nation, having navigated a period of intense political division, now looks forward with renewed hope and confidence. The election results have sparked a collective sense of relief and of possibility, with many Americans believing that the future holds great promise […]

Private sector vs Government comparison: Wages and Benefits

| December 21, 2024

Where should you work — for the government or their private counterpart? From economist Stephen Moore: According to @RealEJAntoni‘s recent analysis, the cost of state and local government employees is a staggering 41.7% higher than their private sector counterparts.  While wages are 24.4% higher, the real kicker is benefits—an astonishing 83.0% more!

Landscape ponds, Dawn dishwashing soap and FREE advertising

| December 15, 2024

Click image of landscape pond from back in 2008 when we asphalted the rear driveway. Both have aged. ☹️ My mistake this past month was when it came to scrubbing some of the waterfall area off and using Dawn dishwashing soap … whoops! Not a big deal, but it still has creating an offseason soapy […]

Women are becoming politically liberal, as men lean conservative

| December 14, 2024

Although I’m glad the 2024 presidential election is behind us in the United States (and hope Kamala Harris becomes a lost memory), there’s a lot of angst in our country and in the world over the political direction and change.  I’m cautiously, optimistic that a Trump administration will have a foreign policy that leads to […]

Left over post-election Biden vs The Press humorous #video

| November 30, 2024

Perhaps it is just me, but this leftover video of a press corp reporter begging for President Biden to make a comment on a recent trip to South America had me laughing. Rarely do I feel sorry for the media, but in this reporter’s case, I do. 😊 

My thoughts on a smaller, more efficient government in the US

| November 20, 2024

President-Elect Donald Trump is currently preparing his list of nominees for the cabinet he needs to help advise him. Along with a few controversial picks, Trump has also added a couple of high profile names, Elon Musk and the Vivek Ramaswamy to a new advisory panel … a committee that is smugly being referred to […]

Tech Friday: Politics has triggered some people to leave X.com

| November 15, 2024

It has been a challenging week and a half for a few of my more liberal Democrat friends on the social media platform X.com (previously Twitter). I’m unsure if it is anger, disbelief or a way to strike back now that President-Elect Donald Trump won the election. Trump has been rapidly nominating his cabinet (mostly […]

Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee

  1. lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
  2. digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.
My Desultory Blog