Ep. 66 Essential Service Stupidity and "What's Behind That BILLION DOLLAR Mask"

Welcome to another episode of the Modern Moron and we are back in our wheelhouse… no more celebrities.  Unless you consider the Senator a celebrity. He certainly does. The Senator insists that Trump mentioned the corona virus in his State of the Union address to which I say is impossible and surprise, I was wrong. We mention governor Greg Abbott who is the governor of Texas as he deals with conservative activists who claim that their right to gather for religious service is "Essential".   Apparently organized religion in Texas is as essential as professional wrestling is in Florida.  Both are true stories we will address. A couple of morons talking about a whole lot of morons. Then we really swing for the fences as the Senator finds a very interesting matter in California government where a ONE BILLION dollar contract for protective masks has been struck with a company in CHINA.  One Billion dollars to make masks for California. 200 MILLION MASKS PER MONTH in fact. What is the name of the company?  Who owns the company that California is spending ONE BILLION dollars?  The company is called BYD and is owned by a gentleman named Wang Chuanfu.  We'll get to big Wang at the end and his company's ties to a guy named Warren Buffet. Oh, and in the midst of all of this the poor Senator realizes he is incapable of pronouncing the plural of Mask… which is masks.  The "sks" part can be tricky I guess, but this guy doesn't even attempt it. At least we get to laugh, right? CLOSE Wow… what a big mess right?   A lot of questions too complicated for Morons like us to handle.  So, instead I guess politicians will do it, sound good? Here are just a few arguments that might be posed: A lot of business people would agree that the timing of a business deal is very important.  Acquiring N95 masks is difficult and Newsome may have felt he needed to move fast to get a deal for masks secured, making this an emergency procurement. Okay, maybe so… One of the reasons government is so bloated is due to the extra levels of transparency that are supposed to be in place to prevent corruption, etc.  In this case a committee was formed for such procurements and it appears Newsom went rogue and said himself in a statement that this is the "wild wild west". Maybe he had to move fast and was acting in the best interests of his citizens.  Maybe he was also lining the pockets of potential campaign contributors like Warren Buffet for his future presidential run?   Regardless, this is exactly the time you don't want to make a decision like this on your own.  That's why you appoint a committee or task force with experts and then trust them to make the call.  Because when you do so and you give ONE BILLION dollars to a company that has a reputation for faulty products AND is owned by a contributor to democratic campaigns, IT DOESN'T LOOK GOOD.  Trump banned the company from doing business, okay you're a democrat and don't trust trump, but you also have a company that's got a terrible reputation with contracts they already have IN YOUR OWN STATE according to the L.A. Times and you made a deal with them anyway.  It doesn't look good Governor gruesome, and you were doing so well!   In late 2009, his worth grew to $5.1 billion and was crowned China's richest man on the Hurun Report. This was due largely to a fivefold increase in his company's value after Berkshire Hathaway bought 225 million new shares of BYD in 2008.  Birkshire Hathaway = Warren Buffet. Does that mean anything?  Hmm… Buffet has contributed to democratic candidates in the past including Hillary Clinton.  Maybe Gavin Newsome as well? Hmm.   Links: Newsom's mask deal shows tendency for big plans, few details - AP Glorious Way Church, Texas and COVID-19: A (stupid) Statement  Trump Blacklisted This Chinese Company. Now It's Making Coronavirus Masks for U.S. Hospitals - VICE (Left-Center Bias)