WSJ: Trump wants to buy Greenland

[Sig]

Wow. That's a lot of reaction.

Sounds like you need a little vacation.

Perhaps the U.S Virgin Islands. which the Americans bought from Denmark in 1917.

Are you talking about the same U.S.Virgin Islands where Trump said he met with their President?

How did that turn out anyway? $500M for a territory that is subsidized to the tune of about a billion dollars a year now...only to have the 4th highest murder rate in the world if it was a county! Seems that early 1900s diplomatic techniques weren't a great idea then and aren't now. And thanks, but there are far more pleasant places in the Caribbean I go to relax, clearly you haven't spent a lot of time in the USVI!

 

[TreeFrogTrader]

Are you talking about the same U.S.Virgin Islands where Trump said he met with their President?

How did that turn out anyway? $500M for a territory that is subsidized to the tune of about a billion dollars a year now...only to have the 4th highest murder rate in the world if it was a county! Seems that early 1900s diplomatic techniques weren't a great idea then and aren't now. And thanks, but there are far more pleasant places in the Caribbean I go to relax, clearly you haven't spent a lot of time in the USVI!

Okay, well a big hug for you, to hold you over until you find a place where you can recover a bit.

 

[toc]

?? Any decent source for that number?? minimum salary is over twice that in every place I checked afaik, we used to pay a maid in Shenzhen, who could neither speak English nor clean properly, which is the standard for Chinese maids, from 800 to 900usd a month, depending on exchange rate, for 40 hours a week
Salaries have skyrocketed in China , although they are definitely much lower in rural China than in Shenzhen, plus for some reason, in Shenzhen at least, hopeless maids tend to get paid considerably higher than some other blue collar jobs

The source is I think CNN news line which I did not click to read.

Still you answered your own question, the economic miracle in China is only in the Shanghai and coastal areas, rural where 3/4th of population lives is still 30 years behind.

 

[toc]

A high speed rail system would be a joke across country would be a joke.

Electric planes are just around the corner, so cost of air transportation is going to further decrease. No need for coast to coast rail deals, possible air tickets for same distance might get cheaper.

 

[viruscore1]

Imagine a high speed train stopping in the little towns every 200 miles with no waiting passengers. It would only work with no intermediate stops between highly populated areas. For example DC to Manhattan 220 miles. May need to put in a stop in Philadelphia. I'm sure they did the analysis and it doesn't work.

 

[luisHK]

Still you answered your own question, the economic miracle in China is only in the Shanghai and coastal areas, rural where 3/4th of population lives is still 30 years behind.

Lol, my own answer had me think that number might not be far from the reality actually, might research the issue a bit more later on.
Fwiw, in a city like Shenzhen, part of it is very modern and extremely wealthy, but overall it still feels very much like a developing country. Medecine is quite amazing, one read regularly of world class and beyond research and experiments, yet healthcare is decades behind the West, and there are no private hospitals like in other developing asian countries where one can pay more and get decent care, just small private clinics which offer better attention following more western guidelines but are not equipped for any complex procedures.
Besides anything older than 20 years, and sometimes even younger, looks incredibly rundown, it was really not meant to last. Poor quality of life, a good instance of a place where money doesn´t buy hapiness ime, especially if you don´t buy into the patriotic chest beating.

 

[luisHK]

It would only work with no intermediate stops between highly populated areas. For example DC to Manhattan 220 miles. May need to put in a stop in Philadelphia. I'm sure they did the analysis and it doesn't work.

That´s the idea of a high speed trains, in France the busiest route is probably Paris-Lyon, a 400km/250miles stretch without stop, in a bit under 2 hours

 

[Overnight]

Electric planes are just around the corner, so cost of air transportation is going to further decrease...

NO

 

[toc]

NO

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-company-debuts-worlds-first-all-electric-plane/

It carries nine passengers and two crewmen. Its range is currently limited to around 1,000 kilometers (600 miles), but for short distances, the company hopes it can cut down operating costs to somewhere around one-fifth of current rates.

 

[toc]

Besides anything older than 20 years, and sometimes even younger, looks incredibly rundown, it was really not meant to last. Poor quality of life, a good instance of a place where money doesn´t buy hapiness ime, especially if you don´t buy into the patriotic chest beating.

Thx for the inputs, have not been to China so good information.

It makes me conclude that China is fruitlessly trying to play cold war 2.0 vrs the US or trying to do what Soviet Union did in a deceptive and self betraying manner. China making South China sea islands, trying to expand into Greenland or invest heavily into Africa is all "Cold War" type commie expansionist mindset and waste of money and resources. Just like the Soviets they will fudge the economic books until it all crashes on them.