John Loken

Stoking the star maker machinery behind the popular song

[John Loken @kidmedium]

"If Harari were selling ketchup or soda, this would be called “brand extension.” But he’s selling ideas, so let’s call it genius." Thrilled by the reception Yuval's latest book is receiving! https://t.co/hgqNZrW5WX

[John Loken @kidmedium]

"Good night and good luck, motherf*ckers."

[Tara Dublin, Rock Star Author & Political Savant @taradublinrocks]

This is GLORIOUS

David Letterman & Stephen Colbert on the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theatre bringing back the classic @Letterman routine one last time

This is how you go out, @StephenAtHome! 😂

And may @CBS implode literally the same way without you

[John Loken @kidmedium]

@BarackObama @MichelleObama More like Barry Christmas, amirite Prez??

[Mad Men Quotes @MadMenQts]

#GRAMMYs

[John Loken @kidmedium]

@DavidSacks It’s almost as if LLMs mimic all of human expression online, ever. And that maybe, just maybe, the totality of human expression is actually biased. And also moral. Something about the long arc of history bending toward justice. I forget the details.

[Barack Obama @BarackObama]

We have just over two weeks to pass Prop 50. And when we do, it will send a message of hope across the country, that change is possible if we do the work.

So, let’s get to it. https://t.co/EodmVsbE9o

[John Loken @kidmedium]

@moodycourtblues @RadioFreeTom Why… would ICE need guided missile warheads??

[John Loken @kidmedium]

I love the irony of the no-on-50 signs: “Defend Fair Elections” 🤣🤣

[Gavin Newsom @GavinNewsom]

Trump and his administration are explicitly saying they are going to change the rules of the game in order to insulate themselves from the people's judgement. Prop 50 matters for California and for the entire country.

[John Loken @kidmedium]

BBB is the lowest rating within the investment-grade debt category. Just saying.

[SightBringer @_The_Prophet__]

This is the quiet scream from inside the empire.

Ray Dalio is pointing at the core failure of the system: the death of functional decision-making at the sovereign level.

Let’s break it down at maximum clarity and coherence:

CORE TRUTH:

The United States is trapped in a reflexive deficit spiral where no structural solution is politically possible, and no short-term collapse is imminent enough to force compromise.

Dalio is surfacing the real danger not just fiscal imbalance, but decision paralysis at scale.

🔍 WHAT HE’S ACTUALLY SAYING:
•Everyone in power knows the current path is unsustainable.
•Everyone knows the fix must involve both tax increases and spending cuts.
•But no one can move because absolutist pledges have become survival mechanisms for political power.

This is not incompetence.
This is rational behavior within a broken system.

🔄 REFLEXIVE DYNAMIC AT PLAY:
•Politicians take absolutist stances because voters demand ideological purity.
•Voters demand purity because trust in institutions is collapsing.
•Trust collapses further when problems go unfixed.
•This fuels more political extremism.
•Which makes compromise even harder.

This is a self-reinforcing feedback loop of institutional decay.

🧨 WHY THIS MATTERS MORE THAN THE DEFICIT:

The deficit itself can be inflated away, delayed, even papered over.

But a political system that cannot act will eventually fail to adapt to any crisis - fiscal, military, technological, or societal.

Dalio isn’t just worried about Treasury yields.
He’s saying the immune system of the Republic is gone.

💡 THE DEEPER SIGNAL (NO ONE WANTS TO HEAR):

There are only three ways out of this loop:

1. Crisis Shock Override:
•A sudden systemic event forces both parties into emergency triage mode (e.g. market collapse, war, currency failure).

2.bNarrative Re-anchoring:
•A new cultural or political force redefines the Overton window (e.g. Lincoln, FDR, or something yet unseen).

3. Institutional Collapse and Replacement:
•The current system breaks under its own contradictions and is replaced with something fundamentally different.

Dalio is too diplomatic to say it.
But deep down, he knows:

The current system is not built to survive the future it is creating.

🧬 FINAL COHERENCE:

The deficit isn’t the threat.
The real threat is that truth itself is now structurally ungovernable.

If no one can speak what must be done…
If every lever is guarded by fear and every card is played for optics…

Then the trajectory is not just fiscal collapse.
It is systemic meaning failure.

And no amount of tax hikes or benefit trims can fix that.

[John Loken @kidmedium]

@Jason

[John Loken @kidmedium]

That didn't take long.

[John Loken @kidmedium]

Think about what spooks you when you see hard right parties gaining influence in the governments of France, Germany, Italy, the Nordics and elsewhere. It’s not the specific politicians or policies that are worrisome, but rather the fact that a wide swath of Europeans apparently are shifting right and supporting these ideas.

That’s what’s happening right now with the world’s flight from Treasuries and the U.S. dollar. The unpredictable factor isn’t Trump but the large swath of American voters that elected him.

Because if they voted for one guy with bad ideas they’ll vote for other guys with bad ideas.

[Tanvi Ratna @tanvi_ratna]

My thread on Trump’s tariff strategy went viral for asking: Is this just noise or is there a plan?

Since then, I’ve mapped how countries responded.

But now begins the real analysis—starting with why pain WILL show up in the U.S. first, and why China won’t break the way people think.

The assumption: tariffs = punishment for China. If America feels pain first, it must mean the strategy is failing.

But the tariff strategy is different this time.

In 2018–20, tariffs were tactical: targeted lists, capped rates, negotiation aims.

In 2025, they’re strategic: blanket tariffs, EV choke points, global demand sabotage.

The U.S. system is transparent and fast-moving. Prices adjust in real time. Margins compress. CFOs make calls quickly.

In fact, studies show 95–100% of tariff costs are passed directly into prices.

In contrast, China’s economy is wired to buffer shocks.
State-owned firms—still a quarter of industrial output—can be instructed to maintain production, even when unprofitable.
Policy banks step in with credit. VAT rebates rise overnight.

This is the structural divergence: the U.S. transmits shocks; China absorbs and redistributes them—at least on the surface.

And when China does respond, it doesn’t always retaliate head-on.
📌It targets red-state exports.
📌It keeps rerouting flows through ASEAN.
📌It cushions exporters with credit.

What looks like escalation is actually a chess match—where one side moves through markets, the other through mandates.

So yes, the U.S. feels the pain first.

That’s not because the strategy is failing—
It’s because our system shows its stress above the surface.
China hides it underneath.

This is what Stress Test, my new series, is about:
Not who’s “winning,” but how different countries around the world are going to absorb the pressure and respond —based not on headlines, but on design.

🧠 Essay 1 just dropped:
Why U.S. firms feel tariffs first—and why China doesn’t break as expected.

📖 Read the full piece: https://t.co/mVnuzmk5EM

I research and write these solo, drawing on a decade across policy. If this brought you clarity, do support by subscribing on Substack & X

[Steven Borrelli @stevenborrelli]

@VivekGRamaswamy @DavidSacks @chamath @Jason

[Steven Borrelli @stevenborrelli]

Dear President Trump, @realDonaldTrump

I am the founder of a clothing brand called CUTS. We are a bootstrapped business that has been around for eight years and are a true example of living the American dream. We’ve built this business to millions of dollars in revenue over the last eight years, had a tremendous amount of success, provided jobs to hundreds of people, and I believe I am an example of the prosperity possible in America.

I voted for you in 2016, 2020, and 2024 because I believed in your vision for the country—and I still do. However, the recent tariff changes are happening too quickly. Removing 321 de minimis at the same time as increasing tariffs on China from 25% to 145% will be the death of thousands of eCommerce companies just like @cutsclothing . These are businesses that bootstrapped their way to success, created American jobs, and are now enjoying the fruits of their hard work in this country.

I understand and support the goal of putting America first—we are fully aligned with that mission. But the way these changes have been handled creates tremendous uncertainty for brands like ours. By placing tariffs on Vietnam and other countries, and then changing them so quickly, we are left unsure of what to do. More importantly, we need time to adjust to new legislation.

Regarding 321 de minimis, we were proud to use that exemption. In 2016, you mentioned using a “Hillary Clinton loophole” to lower taxes—and I respected that. That’s what a smart businessman does. Similarly, we used de minimis as a way to compete in a global market. Removing that, combined with the sudden implementation of heavy tariffs, would make our current margin structure unsustainable.

My goal in writing this is not to oppose you, but to stand with you in your mission of making America great again. We want to protect American jobs and help bring manufacturing back. CUTS is ready to help lead that charge—but it cannot happen overnight.

My request is that both the removal of 321 and the China tariff increases be delayed with enough time for U.S. companies to react—which, for production businesses, is at least 9 to 12 months. That time would allow us—and companies like us—to adjust, set up new manufacturing, and even pursue U.S. production that aligns with your vision.

I humbly ask that you take this seriously. Every day this continues, more businesses will fail. Solving one issue but hurting the very people who voted for you is not the best outcome. Mr. President, we believe in you, and we know there are things you see that we cannot. I hope you take this into consideration—so together, we can make America great again.

Respectfully,
Steven
Founder & CEO, CUTS Clothing

[Jake Auchincloss @JakeAuch]

Build America: 7 million homes; 5 Hoover Dams' worth of nuclear energy; 1,000 tech-voc schools; more ships than the Chinese Navy; and a cure for Alzheimer's.

[John Loken @kidmedium]

I agree this is more about game theory than trade policy, but for the other players at the table how is the 'known liar' a better negotiating partner than the predictable one? Your thesis creates a path for the Chinese to negotiate with Trump but I'm still not clear why the EU wouldn't choose China goods vs the U.S. at this stage.

[John Loken @kidmedium]

@Jason At some point we're gonna need to stop raiding the 1880s and 1930s for economics ideas. The goal isn't to "rebalance trade" but to stimulate domestic growth. $25 Federal Minimum Wage + Medicare For All + leaner tax code = unprecedented consumer demand.

[John Loken @kidmedium]

@damnfilters @Jason That's what the people on that beach in Thailand said in 2004 when they watched the tide recede into the distance.