Some of you may have been concerned when “The Things I Think” was not updated last week. Some of you were probably thinking, “Has he given up…has President Obama and the Socialist march of the Left finally caused him to give up?"
Have no fear, I was simply in Disney World. The great thing about Disney World is that the resort is its own community. I have no idea how big it actually is, but it has to be in the hundreds of thousands of acres. It has its own roads, its own restaurants, its own shopping areas. It even has several of its own TV channels available to watch. In other words, it is easy to forget that the rest of the world is still operating as usual while you enjoy your fantasy vacation…
Apparently, President Obama and his staff are also vacationing in the new part of Disney called Socialist Land. For weeks the President warned us about the perils of the economic woes of the country, using words like “disastrous”, “catastrophic”, “depression”, and phrases such as: “The worst economy in decades.” Suddenly, this week, comes a flurry of optimism from the President and his financial henchmen about the sound fundamentals of the economy. No longer are we headed on a downward spiral toward total economic collapse, instead we should all now be confident that the worst is behind us and the only thing we have to fear is the fear (the Obama team has been spreading since last September) itself.
On Meet the Press, Christina Romer replied to a question on whether the fundamentals of the economy were sound with, “Of course they are sound”. President Obama this week made a comment about the sound fundamentals of the economy, including workers, companies, innovators…say isn’t that the exact same thing John McCain (R-AZ) during the campaign and was lambasted by President Obama for being “out of touch”.
Now, to be fair, I have blasted President Obama in the past for talking so negatively about the economy. Anyone who knows anything about economics knows that economics is 75% mental…if people think things are going well, then they will spend and the economy will do well; if they think things are headed down the toilet, they will batten down the hatches, put all their money into their savings and try to ride out the storm—which makes the economy sour. Prophecies on the economy are almost always self-fulfilling. And the Prophet Obama’s words have been no different.
The fact of the matter is this: President Obama used the economic recession in this country for political gain. He needed to create a State of Fear in order to pass a so-called stimulus bill which was just a massive, veiled, wasteful, Liberal spending bill. He knew that a bill totaling $780 billion containing so much pork for Liberal-Socialist programs would never garner enough support unless it was perceived as being the only way to prevent total, utter destruction. Now that the bill has been passed, the Democrats passed another $400 billion omnibus spending bill, and the Socialist path has been set, President Obama can begin to talk up the economy in hopes that his words now will have a calming effect on an unconfident market. The hope is that the economy will recover and President Obama will be seen as the Economic Messiah.
So, while the President was playing political chess, 600,000 people lost their jobs, the banking sector is about to lose $1-$3 trillion more in losses tied to the housing market, and the stock market lost another 8.5%, causing more Americans to lose more money in their retirement plans. There are two Americans most deserving of losing his/her job over the way this economy crises has been handled (not handled), the ones who have been in-charge since the beginning of the crises (2006)…Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. If President Obama is not careful, he too will be on the unemployment line in 4 years.
The economy will recover, and I hope it does soon, for the sake of all the people who have lost or are endanger of losing their jobs. I fear, however, that the Election-cycle rhetoric, coupled with the continued negative rhetoric accompanying passage of the Economic Stimulus Package has created an economic atmosphere that will cause millions of more Americans to lose their jobs, houses, and pensions. And, so too will follow more idiotic intrusions by the government that we will pay for down the road. Mr. President, while you are on your fantasy vacation in Socialist Land, please say "hi" to Mickey for us…and please, come home from vacation soon.
Showing posts with label Economic stimulus package. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Economic stimulus package. Show all posts
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Voodoo Economics
President Reagan had a theory about economics. The theory went something like this: cut taxes on business and wealthy individuals and they will reinvest those savings into businesses and the economy and the effects will “trickle down” to the middle class and those living in poverty. The theory was called “Trickle-Down Economics”; by Democrats it was called “Voodoo Economics”. The implication, of course, is that this theory is the workings of a raving lunatic—it would only work in Magic World.
Well, here in the Obama Nation this week the President announced a new budget that includes the promise that he will cut the national budget deficit in half by the end of the first term. How does he plan to do this?
DREAM and SPEND, of course.
Well, here in the Obama Nation this week the President announced a new budget that includes the promise that he will cut the national budget deficit in half by the end of the first term. How does he plan to do this?
DREAM and SPEND, of course.
First, the plan relies on GDP growth figures that are unrealistic, inflated by close to 2% by some estimates. Second, it relies on more heavily taxing the people who have money to stimulate the economy. Third, the plan calls for massive increases in spending for such things as climate change and alternative energies, and other government programs. Of course, this is on top of the recently passed stimulus bill that will cost American taxpayers $787 billion and a little-talked-about spending bill this week that cost us another $400 some odd billion (but whose counting). This total is comes to about $1.2 trillion in deficit spending. Just $1 billion less than the deficit President Obama said he “inherited”. President Bush- 8 years to $1.3 trillion; President Obama- 8 weeks.
Okay, let me put this is microeconomic terms. Let’s say you owed $25,000 in credit card debt. Following President Obama’s plan you would take the following action to eliminate that debt:
STEP 1: Go out and spend your entire paycheck on several new pairs of shoes, the complete third season of "Will and Grace" boxed DVD set, a new 52” plasma screen TV, and new rims for your SUV. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT use any of that money to pay off your credit card debt.
STEP 2: Despite the fact your employer says you are getting a 2% pay raise for the next three years, assume that figure will be more like 5% and budget the extra 3% to pay off some of your debt-- spend the rest.
STEP 3: When your children earn money for say mowing lawns, shoveling snow, or simply getting a birthday card from grandma, increase the amount you take from them to about 40%.
STEP 4: Chant : “I do believe in Obama, I do believe in Obama. Yes we can! Si, se pueda!”
POOF!
The debt is paid off. Like Magic. Like Voodoo.
Okay, let me put this is microeconomic terms. Let’s say you owed $25,000 in credit card debt. Following President Obama’s plan you would take the following action to eliminate that debt:
STEP 1: Go out and spend your entire paycheck on several new pairs of shoes, the complete third season of "Will and Grace" boxed DVD set, a new 52” plasma screen TV, and new rims for your SUV. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT use any of that money to pay off your credit card debt.
STEP 2: Despite the fact your employer says you are getting a 2% pay raise for the next three years, assume that figure will be more like 5% and budget the extra 3% to pay off some of your debt-- spend the rest.
STEP 3: When your children earn money for say mowing lawns, shoveling snow, or simply getting a birthday card from grandma, increase the amount you take from them to about 40%.
STEP 4: Chant : “I do believe in Obama, I do believe in Obama. Yes we can! Si, se pueda!”
POOF!
The debt is paid off. Like Magic. Like Voodoo.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
McCarthy Vindicated!
McCarthy Was Ahead of His Time
Looks like Joe McCarthy was right after all, the government is full of Communists…he was just ahead of his time. The United States continued its precipitous slide toward Socialism this week with seemingly every bill passed, Executive Order issued, or policy proposed. President Obama and the Left are driving us closer to a Socialist state, one in which every citizen is dependent on the government.
Many were delighted to see that President Obama put limits on CEO pay for companies who received federal money. You should be appalled. I too view some of the salaries paid to CEOs of failing companies as being exorbitant. But, I see Tom Cruise getting paid $20 million to act in a film that tanks as being ridiculous too…and A-Rod getting paid $25 million to play a game is just as absurd. The problem with President Obama’s mandate is that the Federal government is now, effectively, setting salaries for companies that were once private. Who is to say that the next step is not to mandate salaries of the workers? That, my friends, is Communism.
This should be a good lesson to us all that when the government giveth, it will surely taketh away. Our Founding Fathers believed that we had certain rights, unalienable rights, given to us by God and only to be taken away by God. Socialists, present government included, believe that the Government provides you with your rights…therefore, whenever they deem necessary, they can take those away.
TVs for Terrorists
There is nothing “fresh” about National Propaganda Radio’s "Fresh Air". It stinks. This week an interview was held with Jane Mayer who wrote an article for the New Yorker entitled “Hard Cases”. While being interviewed about the article by the host of "Fresh Air", Mayer began to speak of the case of Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, an al-Qaeda sleeper agent being held in solitary confinement in a military brig off the coast of Charleston, SC. The entire interview essentially painted the United States as an inherently evil country with a Hitler-like dictator at the helm for the last eight years.
Hardly any of the interview was directed toward the overwhelming evidence that al-Marri was sent into the US in the days before the 9-11 attacks with the sole intention of carrying out more attacks on US citizens, including the use of poisonous gasses. In typical Lib fashion, Mayer blasted the United States for use of “torture” on al-Marri that included sticking him in a dark room…and such grievous, horrible things like…not providing al-Marri with a television for five years. She even insinuated at one point that he was “probably subjected to waterboarding.” Of course she has no evidence of that, but why not give the benefit of the doubt to a terrorist instead of the President? Of course, now that President Obama has been elected terrorists can rest assured that they will be treated nicely.
What was most appalling about the interview was to listen to the two laugh haughtily about how al-Marri loved to watch Jon Stewart from the TV that was just recently given to him. Oh, how amusing…ha…ha…ha…I am so happy that someone plotting the murder of Americans enjoys his Comedy Central.
“Make Sure you Find at Least One Republican with Tax Issues…”
Thankfully, the Clinton News Network has jumped on the Sarah Palin tax story and is holding government officials responsible for paying their taxes. On Wednesday, every 15 minutes, CNN was sure to report on the Alaskan governor owing taxes. These tax questions stem from reimbursements paid to her for her children’s travel expenses on official trips. There is no indication that she tried to dodge paying them, nor has there even been (until recently) agreement on whether that should be considered taxable income. CNN, however, is right on the ball…well…there were those Obama Administration officials…you know ones who owed thousands of dollars from years ago…the ones who knew they owed back taxes for years and still didn’t pay…where was CNN then? And, this was a story that broke in October. Why is CNN running this now? Just to show that not all the tax cheats in America are in the Obama Administration…at least one is not…kind of.
Oh, Canada!…We’re So Sorry for Being Greedy
One thing the Economic Stimulus Package did get right was the provision in the bill that required US-made steel to be used in projects funded by the package. Of course, once the Canucks started complaining “aboout” that provision the Obama Administration immediately began to backtrack. Why?!? The purpose of the bill, other than to overtly advance a Liberal-Socialist Agenda, is to stimulate the US economy…not the Canadian economy, not the Chinese economy, not the World economy. It is funded by US taxpayers. By definition it cannot be a stimulus package if the raw materials used in the numerous projects, or the goods bought using this money are not "Made in the USA".
In fact, more provisions should have been added to the bill to ensure US-made products were being bought using US taxpayer money. For instance, part of the bill calls for the US government to replace its fleet of vehicles with more fuel efficient, “greener” vehicles. Wanna’ know how to “bail out” the US automaker? Buy your hybrids from them instead of just giving them money. Oh, oops, that would resemble some form of Capitalism. That might make our Socialist friends to the north mad…we wouldn’t want them to stop shipping us things like…oh…I don’t know…ice or maple syrup.
What's that Smell?
Is it just me or does the stink of Illinois politics keep growing stronger and stronger. Roland Burris (D-IL) reminds me of a middle school student in trouble in the Principal’s office: if his mouth is open, he is lying. Of course, Burris is the Senator who was appointed by former Governor Blagojevich to replace Barack Obama. Ever since the days of the Daly Administration, and the “Vote Early, Vote Often” tactic of the Kennedy Campaign in 1960, Illinois politics has been some of the most corrupt in the nation. I find it hard to believe that President Obama and Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel somehow rose through the ranks of Illinois politics without collecting some of that corrupt stink…oh that’s right, Tony Rezko, Bill Ayers….
Transcript of Pelosi and the Pope
“The Things I Think” recently obtained this transcript of Nancy Pelosi’s meeting with the Pope.
Holy Father: Buongiorno, Madame Speaker.
Pelosi: Oh, hi, “Pope”. [snide snicker before kissing the Pope’s ring].
Holy Father: Thank you, as a faithful Catholic, for coming to see me.
Pelosi: Huh?!?…oh yeah…faithful.
Holy Father: What seems to be the problem, Ms. Pelosi?
Pelosi: Oh…well…meeting you seems a little underrated. I mean, I already speak with the Messiah on a regular basis you know.
Holy Father: Well, we all pray to Jesus, Nancy.
Pelosi: Right…Jesus. I was talking about Barack.
Holy Father: Oh… in that case stop supporting laws that allow people in your country to kill babies...
Looks like Joe McCarthy was right after all, the government is full of Communists…he was just ahead of his time. The United States continued its precipitous slide toward Socialism this week with seemingly every bill passed, Executive Order issued, or policy proposed. President Obama and the Left are driving us closer to a Socialist state, one in which every citizen is dependent on the government.
Many were delighted to see that President Obama put limits on CEO pay for companies who received federal money. You should be appalled. I too view some of the salaries paid to CEOs of failing companies as being exorbitant. But, I see Tom Cruise getting paid $20 million to act in a film that tanks as being ridiculous too…and A-Rod getting paid $25 million to play a game is just as absurd. The problem with President Obama’s mandate is that the Federal government is now, effectively, setting salaries for companies that were once private. Who is to say that the next step is not to mandate salaries of the workers? That, my friends, is Communism.
This should be a good lesson to us all that when the government giveth, it will surely taketh away. Our Founding Fathers believed that we had certain rights, unalienable rights, given to us by God and only to be taken away by God. Socialists, present government included, believe that the Government provides you with your rights…therefore, whenever they deem necessary, they can take those away.
TVs for Terrorists
There is nothing “fresh” about National Propaganda Radio’s "Fresh Air". It stinks. This week an interview was held with Jane Mayer who wrote an article for the New Yorker entitled “Hard Cases”. While being interviewed about the article by the host of "Fresh Air", Mayer began to speak of the case of Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri, an al-Qaeda sleeper agent being held in solitary confinement in a military brig off the coast of Charleston, SC. The entire interview essentially painted the United States as an inherently evil country with a Hitler-like dictator at the helm for the last eight years.
Hardly any of the interview was directed toward the overwhelming evidence that al-Marri was sent into the US in the days before the 9-11 attacks with the sole intention of carrying out more attacks on US citizens, including the use of poisonous gasses. In typical Lib fashion, Mayer blasted the United States for use of “torture” on al-Marri that included sticking him in a dark room…and such grievous, horrible things like…not providing al-Marri with a television for five years. She even insinuated at one point that he was “probably subjected to waterboarding.” Of course she has no evidence of that, but why not give the benefit of the doubt to a terrorist instead of the President? Of course, now that President Obama has been elected terrorists can rest assured that they will be treated nicely.
What was most appalling about the interview was to listen to the two laugh haughtily about how al-Marri loved to watch Jon Stewart from the TV that was just recently given to him. Oh, how amusing…ha…ha…ha…I am so happy that someone plotting the murder of Americans enjoys his Comedy Central.
“Make Sure you Find at Least One Republican with Tax Issues…”
Thankfully, the Clinton News Network has jumped on the Sarah Palin tax story and is holding government officials responsible for paying their taxes. On Wednesday, every 15 minutes, CNN was sure to report on the Alaskan governor owing taxes. These tax questions stem from reimbursements paid to her for her children’s travel expenses on official trips. There is no indication that she tried to dodge paying them, nor has there even been (until recently) agreement on whether that should be considered taxable income. CNN, however, is right on the ball…well…there were those Obama Administration officials…you know ones who owed thousands of dollars from years ago…the ones who knew they owed back taxes for years and still didn’t pay…where was CNN then? And, this was a story that broke in October. Why is CNN running this now? Just to show that not all the tax cheats in America are in the Obama Administration…at least one is not…kind of.
Oh, Canada!…We’re So Sorry for Being Greedy
One thing the Economic Stimulus Package did get right was the provision in the bill that required US-made steel to be used in projects funded by the package. Of course, once the Canucks started complaining “aboout” that provision the Obama Administration immediately began to backtrack. Why?!? The purpose of the bill, other than to overtly advance a Liberal-Socialist Agenda, is to stimulate the US economy…not the Canadian economy, not the Chinese economy, not the World economy. It is funded by US taxpayers. By definition it cannot be a stimulus package if the raw materials used in the numerous projects, or the goods bought using this money are not "Made in the USA".
In fact, more provisions should have been added to the bill to ensure US-made products were being bought using US taxpayer money. For instance, part of the bill calls for the US government to replace its fleet of vehicles with more fuel efficient, “greener” vehicles. Wanna’ know how to “bail out” the US automaker? Buy your hybrids from them instead of just giving them money. Oh, oops, that would resemble some form of Capitalism. That might make our Socialist friends to the north mad…we wouldn’t want them to stop shipping us things like…oh…I don’t know…ice or maple syrup.
What's that Smell?
Is it just me or does the stink of Illinois politics keep growing stronger and stronger. Roland Burris (D-IL) reminds me of a middle school student in trouble in the Principal’s office: if his mouth is open, he is lying. Of course, Burris is the Senator who was appointed by former Governor Blagojevich to replace Barack Obama. Ever since the days of the Daly Administration, and the “Vote Early, Vote Often” tactic of the Kennedy Campaign in 1960, Illinois politics has been some of the most corrupt in the nation. I find it hard to believe that President Obama and Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel somehow rose through the ranks of Illinois politics without collecting some of that corrupt stink…oh that’s right, Tony Rezko, Bill Ayers….
Transcript of Pelosi and the Pope
“The Things I Think” recently obtained this transcript of Nancy Pelosi’s meeting with the Pope.
Holy Father: Buongiorno, Madame Speaker.
Pelosi: Oh, hi, “Pope”. [snide snicker before kissing the Pope’s ring].
Holy Father: Thank you, as a faithful Catholic, for coming to see me.
Pelosi: Huh?!?…oh yeah…faithful.
Holy Father: What seems to be the problem, Ms. Pelosi?
Pelosi: Oh…well…meeting you seems a little underrated. I mean, I already speak with the Messiah on a regular basis you know.
Holy Father: Well, we all pray to Jesus, Nancy.
Pelosi: Right…Jesus. I was talking about Barack.
Holy Father: Oh… in that case stop supporting laws that allow people in your country to kill babies...
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Yes! We (only the Democrats and those smart enough to agree with us)! Can (spend us into oblivion)!
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
“This is it,” Regis says with excitement in his voice, “You get this question right and you are America’s next millionaire.” The tension is the crowd is palpable: will it be a hard question, or an easy one? Regis reads the question:
In passing a bill in Congress, which of the following would be considered ‘bi-partisan’?
A. The Democrats, on their own, write a “Economic Stimulus” bill full of Liberal agenda spending then call the Republicans in for a meeting to present the bill and say, “We won, get on board.”
B. When a bill like the “Economic Stimulus” package passes the House and Senate and goes to Conference Committee, the Republicans are literally locked out of the meeting room and not even given the opportunity to see and scrutinize the bill until less than 24 hours before the final vote.
C. The vote tally on a bill like the “Economic Stimulus” has a total of 3 members (out of 219) of the other party vote in favor of a bill. Let’s really call it 2: Judas was more of a friend to Jesus than Arlen Specter is a Republican.
D. When both parties work together through the entire process to write, debate, revise, and pass a bill in Congress with ideas from both parties included.
For most of us, this would be an easy million bucks….Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid would be jumping up and down screaming, “Regis this is a trick question: A, B, and C are all correct!!!!!”
“And you left out ‘A bill is bipartisan when we and the Messiah say it is--even as we call the other party unpatriotic!’”
“Did Limbaugh make this question up!?!?!?"
Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS)
If you ask most semi-knowledgeable Americans what were President Bush’s Top 5 Mistakes in office were they would tell you:
1. No Child Left Behind
2. the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan
3. the Iraq War
4. the response to Hurricane Katrina
5. the Economic Stimulus Checks/ Bank bailout
Okay…
#1- The Federal government sticking its nose where it did not belong.
#2- Massive increase in another entitlement program…that we can’t pay for
#3- In case anyone missed it, we did win this war.
#4- I will grant you this one if you grant me
“This is it,” Regis says with excitement in his voice, “You get this question right and you are America’s next millionaire.” The tension is the crowd is palpable: will it be a hard question, or an easy one? Regis reads the question:
In passing a bill in Congress, which of the following would be considered ‘bi-partisan’?
A. The Democrats, on their own, write a “Economic Stimulus” bill full of Liberal agenda spending then call the Republicans in for a meeting to present the bill and say, “We won, get on board.”
B. When a bill like the “Economic Stimulus” package passes the House and Senate and goes to Conference Committee, the Republicans are literally locked out of the meeting room and not even given the opportunity to see and scrutinize the bill until less than 24 hours before the final vote.
C. The vote tally on a bill like the “Economic Stimulus” has a total of 3 members (out of 219) of the other party vote in favor of a bill. Let’s really call it 2: Judas was more of a friend to Jesus than Arlen Specter is a Republican.
D. When both parties work together through the entire process to write, debate, revise, and pass a bill in Congress with ideas from both parties included.
For most of us, this would be an easy million bucks….Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid would be jumping up and down screaming, “Regis this is a trick question: A, B, and C are all correct!!!!!”
“And you left out ‘A bill is bipartisan when we and the Messiah say it is--even as we call the other party unpatriotic!’”
“Did Limbaugh make this question up!?!?!?"
Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS)
If you ask most semi-knowledgeable Americans what were President Bush’s Top 5 Mistakes in office were they would tell you:
1. No Child Left Behind
2. the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan
3. the Iraq War
4. the response to Hurricane Katrina
5. the Economic Stimulus Checks/ Bank bailout
Okay…
#1- The Federal government sticking its nose where it did not belong.
#2- Massive increase in another entitlement program…that we can’t pay for
#3- In case anyone missed it, we did win this war.
#4- I will grant you this one if you grant me
(a) the response by the City of New Orleans and its Democratic Mayor was criminal at best
(b) the Democratic governor of LA did jack-crap,
(c)maybe you should listen when they say get out of the city, a big stinking storm is coming.
#5- The definition of Socialism
So on 3 of the 5 things, President Bush failed because he went Socialist. For those of you with BDS, including you President Obama, get over yourselves already. Bush's "failed policies" were failed because he went Left on us.
#5- The definition of Socialism
So on 3 of the 5 things, President Bush failed because he went Socialist. For those of you with BDS, including you President Obama, get over yourselves already. Bush's "failed policies" were failed because he went Left on us.
In his first prime time press conference the President, on several occasions, took covert swipes at the Bush Administration. One time, he very overtly lied, “My administration…inherited the most profound economic emergency since the Great Depression.”
First of all, that statement is simply not true—unemployment in 1981, following the Carter debacle, was 12%...the US just bumped over 8% this week. I thought we were going to deal with scientific truths and the facts here Mr. President?
Second of all, get over the Bush-bashing and start leading already! A capitalist economy is based on confident people spending money, if they keep hearing how much the economy sucks, they won’t ever spend. How about some confidence…how about some hope…how about some “Yes, We Can” when it really matters?
"I’m Good Enough, I’m Smart Enough, and Dog On it, People Like Me"…and If Enough People Don’t Like Me, I’ll Just Rig the Recount
I am not sure what is more disgusting: that Al Franken and his Democratic cronies in Minnesota clearly rigged the recount in Minnesota, or that enough Minnesotans voted for this moron to be their Senator to even make a recount necessary.
For all you Libs out there saying, “This is just like Bush in 2000 in Florida”, you’re wrong…and possibly a moron also (though I won’t pass that type of judgment on all Democrats).
1. President Bush was ahead on election night (about 2,000 votes), and still ahead after the recount (537: more, by the way, than was Gore’s margin of victory in New Mexico). Franken was losing by 215 votes. In the subsequent recount votes went missing, magically reappeared again, were counted twice and suddenly Senator Coleman found himself losing.
2. The USA Today later did an independent recount which found that IF the ballots had been counted EXACTLY as Gore wanted…he still lost…by even more.
Someone wise once told me, “In a democracy it is not who votes that counts, its who counts the votes that matters.” This is the biggest heist in the Midwest since John Dillinger went down in a hail of bullets.
Comrade Obama Directive #10: Sigmund Freud Should be Banned from All Public Discussion
Could anyone else believe long-time White House Correspondent and self-proclaimed Lib, Helen Thomas’s first question to President Obama? You know, the one where she referred to the Taliban and al-Qaeda as “so-called terrorists”. SO-CALLED?!?!?!
Statements like this, and President Obama’s statement to "Joe-the-Plumber", are what psychologists call “Freudian Slips”. Despite best efforts to hide one’s true thoughts and feelings, those thoughts and feelings will subconsciously leak out of one’s mouth.
--President Obama IS a Socialist who believes in redistribution of wealth.
--Helen Thomas, and many on the Left, don’t see the perpetrators of 9/11 as terrorists, they see them as the victims of US aggression.
--Iranian President Ahmadinejad would destroy the US and Israel if he had a nuke.
Oh wait, that last one was not Freudian, he doesn’t try to hide the fact he believes in the destruction of the US and Israel…of course, no one in the Obama Administration is listening anyway. And they won’t until the sound of a nuke detonating in Tel Aviv or NYC reaches the West Wing.
A-Roid, the Mother of 16, and my Momentary Love for President Obama
Alex Rodriguez took steroids…who cares…taking steroids does not make you a better hitter. Most of you, if you juiced up for thirty-three years, still couldn’t hit a baseball, let alone as many HRs as this guy hit. And beside, the pitchers were juicing too…doesn’t that even it out? Don’t we have more important things to worry about like…
…That lady who looks like Angelina Jolie and has 16 kids? It amazes me that some of the same Libs who would argue she has the right to choose to kill her baby in the womb argue that she should not have been given the choice to have more babies. Doesn’t make sense? Of course it doesn’t, a lack of common sense is one of the first casualties of Far-lefties like…
…President Obama, who I have to admit, for a moment a few Sundays ago, I actually was a big fan of. The President said he was cheering for the Steelers in the Super Bowl. So, for that Sunday, me and the Pres were on the same side…of course, that day, he was “Right.”
Change, all that is left in your pockets to count…on.
I am going to give you a number that will absolutely, positively, blow your mind…9,700,000,000,000…
9.7 trillion. That is the amount of money the US government will have committed after passing this latest “stimulus” package to “solving” the country’s financial crisis and it is equal to 2/3 of the value of everything that was produced last year in the USA (Bloomberg.com). $9.7 trillion of YOUR tax money. And President Obama has promised that this is just one leg of the stool…which means there is more to come!
This amount is outrageous. Look, I know people in this country are hurting, I am not callous to that. But, how is this type of out of control spending going to help anyone?!?! One of three things will be done to pay for all of this:
(1) higher taxes—in other words, less money in your pocket
(2) print more money, inflation skyrockets and things you buy everyday will cost more—in other words, less money in your pocket
Barack Obama was right when he campaigned that we can count on change in his administration…that’s all any of us working Americans will have left in our pockets.
And what has all this spending gotten us so far…
January 2008: Unemployment= 4.9%; GDP Growth=1% in 1st Q; about 4.5% in 2 of 4 Q in 2007
$168 billion in tax cuts and rebates in 2008…the “Chinese Economic Stimulus Checks” that went out under the Bush Administration were nothing short of the most Socialist thing a government could do…just give its people money. And, since most people either paid off debt, put it in savings or bought things Made in China, it did little to help the US economy…Beijing sure appreciated it though.
August 2008: Unemployment= 6.2%; GDP Growth= 3% in 2Q
Election season politics take over, we all hear how bad the economy is…so we believe it and stop spending. People can’t pay the loans they never should have signed up for in the first place, banks collapse, and instead of letting them and allowing new banks to take over, we spend….
$700 billion in the “Bank Bailout”, which the CEOs of the banks proceed to blow. This does not include the $2.3 trillion lent by the Fed that we never heard about.
December 2008: Unemployment= 7.2%; GDP= -3.8% in 4Q
As you can see, nothing was solved by throwing all that money at the problem. In fact, things got worse. The fact of the matter is that the economy was not that bad to begin with. Since recovering from the economic blow of 9/11, the economy expanded EVERY quarter except for one. Unemployment hovered around 4.5% for all of 2006 and 2007. In fact, the worst if got in the last 10 years was during the Congressional election cycles of 2002 and 2004 when the Dems were trying to scare the bejeezus out of everyone to convince us how horrible President Bush and the Republican Congress was doing.
And now…despite all the preponderance of evidence that none of this been successful so far the Democrats in Congress just passed another massively bloated spending bill…at least $780 billion. This is serious…things will only continue to get worse if the government continues to spend like this.
9.7 trillion. That is the amount of money the US government will have committed after passing this latest “stimulus” package to “solving” the country’s financial crisis and it is equal to 2/3 of the value of everything that was produced last year in the USA (Bloomberg.com). $9.7 trillion of YOUR tax money. And President Obama has promised that this is just one leg of the stool…which means there is more to come!
This amount is outrageous. Look, I know people in this country are hurting, I am not callous to that. But, how is this type of out of control spending going to help anyone?!?! One of three things will be done to pay for all of this:
(1) higher taxes—in other words, less money in your pocket
(2) print more money, inflation skyrockets and things you buy everyday will cost more—in other words, less money in your pocket
Barack Obama was right when he campaigned that we can count on change in his administration…that’s all any of us working Americans will have left in our pockets.
And what has all this spending gotten us so far…
January 2008: Unemployment= 4.9%; GDP Growth=1% in 1st Q; about 4.5% in 2 of 4 Q in 2007
$168 billion in tax cuts and rebates in 2008…the “Chinese Economic Stimulus Checks” that went out under the Bush Administration were nothing short of the most Socialist thing a government could do…just give its people money. And, since most people either paid off debt, put it in savings or bought things Made in China, it did little to help the US economy…Beijing sure appreciated it though.
August 2008: Unemployment= 6.2%; GDP Growth= 3% in 2Q
Election season politics take over, we all hear how bad the economy is…so we believe it and stop spending. People can’t pay the loans they never should have signed up for in the first place, banks collapse, and instead of letting them and allowing new banks to take over, we spend….
$700 billion in the “Bank Bailout”, which the CEOs of the banks proceed to blow. This does not include the $2.3 trillion lent by the Fed that we never heard about.
December 2008: Unemployment= 7.2%; GDP= -3.8% in 4Q
As you can see, nothing was solved by throwing all that money at the problem. In fact, things got worse. The fact of the matter is that the economy was not that bad to begin with. Since recovering from the economic blow of 9/11, the economy expanded EVERY quarter except for one. Unemployment hovered around 4.5% for all of 2006 and 2007. In fact, the worst if got in the last 10 years was during the Congressional election cycles of 2002 and 2004 when the Dems were trying to scare the bejeezus out of everyone to convince us how horrible President Bush and the Republican Congress was doing.
And now…despite all the preponderance of evidence that none of this been successful so far the Democrats in Congress just passed another massively bloated spending bill…at least $780 billion. This is serious…things will only continue to get worse if the government continues to spend like this.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Don’t Go Left, Young Man
The Slow Road to Socialism
There are some who say that Conservative commentators are overreacting when they say that President Obama and the Left are pushing America toward a Socialist state. Well, Comrade, I am here to tell you it is happening right in front of your eyes. What is most discouraging is that this policy is considered “Progressive” despite the fact that Socialism has NEVER worked. It did not work in the Soviet Union; China only became a world financial player when it privatized business and began running on Capitalistic principles; and Cuba…well, now there is a shining example of the efficacy of Socialism.
"Oh, you crazy Conservative, the reason why those systems never worked is because the people in those countries were oppressed." Wrong! In fact, I would argue that the only time Socialist societies were productive is when the people were most oppressed. Follow me on this one…
Socialism creates a society in which people are dependent on the government for all of their needs. Health care…free. Cost of a higher education or training…free. Everyone makes the same amount of money so there is no gap between rich and poor...redistribution of wealth. All homes are similar and provided by the government…free. Food…free. Sounds great, right?
If you got all this stuff from the government, no matter what you did or didn't do, why would you get up and go to work every morning? Why would you try to invent new things or come up with new ideas? There would be no incentive to do such Capitalistic things...unless of course Uncle Joe would have you shot or sent to the Gulag for not doing those things.
Then, Stalin died, Mao and his successors realized there were not enough places to hide the bodies, and Castro went soft—Socialism around the world collapses. The only incentive for people in these countries was the fear instilled by their government. Once that fear was gone there was no longer incentive to work, invent, or to strive for greater things.
Liberals point to European nations as “model” examples of a progressive society…a place where Socialism thrives. Unemployment rates in France and Italy are above 12% and consistently stay there-- the unemployment rate in Spain is 23%. European leaders realize that the reason their respective economies cannot create jobs is because of the demands of the welfare states that have been created. And yet, Liberals in this country are still under the deluded idea that Socialism can still work…because they are smarter than anyone else who has tried.
Was She With Michael Phelps?
The other day Nancy Pelosi said that every day the economic stimulus package was not passed 500 million Americans lost their jobs…hmmm…if the population of the United Sates is 300 million, then…oh, never mind. I am sure it was a slip of the tongue…
Perhaps, it was just another shot in the hyper-fear campaign that President Obama and the Left are conducting to get their Economic Stimulus package passed without scrutiny. Do we need an economic stimulus…probably. But not this one and never without the scrutiny any spending bill deserves.
Nationalization of Banks and Business
Talk this week also escalated about the creation of a National Bank with the sole purpose of purchasing bad loans. Rumors such as these have not been heard in these parts since the Jackson Administration. Why? Because a National Bank is a bad idea. Banks are businesses that create revenue and stimulate economic growth by loaning money to entrepreneurs and people who need money to purchase items such as automobiles and homes. This transfer of capital creates growth in the economy. By centralizing this capital the government now becomes not only the entity that creates monetary policy, but also an entity which trades massive amounts of capital based on this monetary policy. The opportunity for corruption and/or incompetence is exponential. Additionally, such a bank is funded by the taxpayers, which means your hard earned money would be used to pay off bad loans and bed debt. Your wealth redistributed to others.
This week President Obama announced, in a most righteous tone, that executives from companies that received federal bailout money would have a cap placed on their salaries. So apparently now the government is determining how much people are allowed to earn. This should be a good lesson to all Americans…there is no such thing as a free lunch. If the government provides you with money, they can (and will) mandate how you use that money. Essentially, then, the government has exerted an inescapable control and influence over you…or your company. Remember, what the government giveth, the government will taketh away.
Fairness Doctrine
Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) said recently on Bill Press’s morning radio show that she believes the Fairness Doctrine should be passed into law again. For those of you who don’t know, the Fairness Doctrine was a law passed in the 1940s as a way to guarantee that opposing viewpoints were heard by the public on public airwaves. The law was deemed unconstitutional by the FCC 1987.
Talk about grabbing the First Amendment by the neck and slapping it silly. If passed, this law would require radio stations that air shows such as the Sean Hannity Show or the Rush Limbaugh Show to air Liberal viewpoints an equal amount of the time. Essentially, the opposition would be silenced (or at least drowned out by the Left’s propaganda).
There is a reason why Air America, the Liberal talk radio station started by Senator* Al Franken, failed…because nobody wanted to listen to it!!! Liberal newspapers around the country such as the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer are failing because everybody is tired of reading the news as presented by the state-run Leftist media outlets. Fox News continually outpaces the Clinton News Network (CNN), and the Messianic Savior Named Barack Channel (MSNBC) because the American people don’t want to listen to the Liberal message. Frustrated by that, Comrade Stabenow and others are recommending a law to force Americans to hear their socialist message.
Make no mistake about it, the Left will not call this new bill the Fairness Doctrine. In the same manner as Mao, Lenin, and Chavez they will cloak the bill with a noble sounding name like: “The Media Accountability Measure” or “The Radio Transparency Bill”…or maybe they’ll just call it the “Shut Rush Up Bill”. Explain to me how such a measure is essentially any different from Iran or other totalitarian governments shutting down opposition newspapers. You can’t…at least not without being disingenuous.
Barack Obama Starring as Harvey Dent
No, I am not calling President Obama “Two-Face”…yet. Harvey Dent, of course, is a character in the Batman franchise. He is a politician who promises change and results in a city that has lost all hope in its politicians and policymakers. The problem with Harvey Dent is that things don’t go exactly the way he planned, he goes berserk, and betrays the faith the people have in him. President Obama is well on his way to becoming Harvey Dent.
He has promised the people change:
No lobbyists in his government: Failure
A better sort of politician in his administration (no tax cheats): Failure
Bi-partisanship…including Congress: Failure
Transparency: Failure
Making the country safer: Failure (see the “Be Nice to Terrorists Executive Orders”)
In all fairness, it is still very early in President Obama’s administration. And also to be fair, some of the things the President promised on the campaign trail he is finding impossible to do when actual governance is required. However, Mr. Obama, the country cannot afford a failure of faith. The United States needs a leader who understands the severity of the economic crisis we are in and the willingness to fight anyone who wants to pass spending bills that will worsen it…even if that means fighting your own party. The United States needs a leader who will not shy away from the threats that continue to mount around the world in the name of a peace that cannot be achieved…some people just like to watch the world burn…there is no negotiating with people like this. The United States needs a leader who has strong moral backbone and is willing to protect the Constitution as it is written, not as it has been interpreted by Liberal judges.
Make no mistake about it, the people of the United States did not elect President Obama because they supported a liberal agenda (multiple polls show overwhelming resistance to Liberal policies and Socialistic tendencies). The people elected President Obama because they wanted something new from their politicians. They wanted Harvey Dent to save them. They wanted to have faith again in their government. How can President Obama be successful and avoid becoming “Two-Face”?
Don’t go LEFT young man!
Footnote: Since Senator Franken clearly stole the election in Minnesota, an * will always be placed beside his title.
There are some who say that Conservative commentators are overreacting when they say that President Obama and the Left are pushing America toward a Socialist state. Well, Comrade, I am here to tell you it is happening right in front of your eyes. What is most discouraging is that this policy is considered “Progressive” despite the fact that Socialism has NEVER worked. It did not work in the Soviet Union; China only became a world financial player when it privatized business and began running on Capitalistic principles; and Cuba…well, now there is a shining example of the efficacy of Socialism.
"Oh, you crazy Conservative, the reason why those systems never worked is because the people in those countries were oppressed." Wrong! In fact, I would argue that the only time Socialist societies were productive is when the people were most oppressed. Follow me on this one…
Socialism creates a society in which people are dependent on the government for all of their needs. Health care…free. Cost of a higher education or training…free. Everyone makes the same amount of money so there is no gap between rich and poor...redistribution of wealth. All homes are similar and provided by the government…free. Food…free. Sounds great, right?
If you got all this stuff from the government, no matter what you did or didn't do, why would you get up and go to work every morning? Why would you try to invent new things or come up with new ideas? There would be no incentive to do such Capitalistic things...unless of course Uncle Joe would have you shot or sent to the Gulag for not doing those things.
Then, Stalin died, Mao and his successors realized there were not enough places to hide the bodies, and Castro went soft—Socialism around the world collapses. The only incentive for people in these countries was the fear instilled by their government. Once that fear was gone there was no longer incentive to work, invent, or to strive for greater things.
Liberals point to European nations as “model” examples of a progressive society…a place where Socialism thrives. Unemployment rates in France and Italy are above 12% and consistently stay there-- the unemployment rate in Spain is 23%. European leaders realize that the reason their respective economies cannot create jobs is because of the demands of the welfare states that have been created. And yet, Liberals in this country are still under the deluded idea that Socialism can still work…because they are smarter than anyone else who has tried.
Was She With Michael Phelps?
The other day Nancy Pelosi said that every day the economic stimulus package was not passed 500 million Americans lost their jobs…hmmm…if the population of the United Sates is 300 million, then…oh, never mind. I am sure it was a slip of the tongue…
Perhaps, it was just another shot in the hyper-fear campaign that President Obama and the Left are conducting to get their Economic Stimulus package passed without scrutiny. Do we need an economic stimulus…probably. But not this one and never without the scrutiny any spending bill deserves.
Nationalization of Banks and Business
Talk this week also escalated about the creation of a National Bank with the sole purpose of purchasing bad loans. Rumors such as these have not been heard in these parts since the Jackson Administration. Why? Because a National Bank is a bad idea. Banks are businesses that create revenue and stimulate economic growth by loaning money to entrepreneurs and people who need money to purchase items such as automobiles and homes. This transfer of capital creates growth in the economy. By centralizing this capital the government now becomes not only the entity that creates monetary policy, but also an entity which trades massive amounts of capital based on this monetary policy. The opportunity for corruption and/or incompetence is exponential. Additionally, such a bank is funded by the taxpayers, which means your hard earned money would be used to pay off bad loans and bed debt. Your wealth redistributed to others.
This week President Obama announced, in a most righteous tone, that executives from companies that received federal bailout money would have a cap placed on their salaries. So apparently now the government is determining how much people are allowed to earn. This should be a good lesson to all Americans…there is no such thing as a free lunch. If the government provides you with money, they can (and will) mandate how you use that money. Essentially, then, the government has exerted an inescapable control and influence over you…or your company. Remember, what the government giveth, the government will taketh away.
Fairness Doctrine
Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) said recently on Bill Press’s morning radio show that she believes the Fairness Doctrine should be passed into law again. For those of you who don’t know, the Fairness Doctrine was a law passed in the 1940s as a way to guarantee that opposing viewpoints were heard by the public on public airwaves. The law was deemed unconstitutional by the FCC 1987.
Talk about grabbing the First Amendment by the neck and slapping it silly. If passed, this law would require radio stations that air shows such as the Sean Hannity Show or the Rush Limbaugh Show to air Liberal viewpoints an equal amount of the time. Essentially, the opposition would be silenced (or at least drowned out by the Left’s propaganda).
There is a reason why Air America, the Liberal talk radio station started by Senator* Al Franken, failed…because nobody wanted to listen to it!!! Liberal newspapers around the country such as the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer are failing because everybody is tired of reading the news as presented by the state-run Leftist media outlets. Fox News continually outpaces the Clinton News Network (CNN), and the Messianic Savior Named Barack Channel (MSNBC) because the American people don’t want to listen to the Liberal message. Frustrated by that, Comrade Stabenow and others are recommending a law to force Americans to hear their socialist message.
Make no mistake about it, the Left will not call this new bill the Fairness Doctrine. In the same manner as Mao, Lenin, and Chavez they will cloak the bill with a noble sounding name like: “The Media Accountability Measure” or “The Radio Transparency Bill”…or maybe they’ll just call it the “Shut Rush Up Bill”. Explain to me how such a measure is essentially any different from Iran or other totalitarian governments shutting down opposition newspapers. You can’t…at least not without being disingenuous.
Barack Obama Starring as Harvey Dent
No, I am not calling President Obama “Two-Face”…yet. Harvey Dent, of course, is a character in the Batman franchise. He is a politician who promises change and results in a city that has lost all hope in its politicians and policymakers. The problem with Harvey Dent is that things don’t go exactly the way he planned, he goes berserk, and betrays the faith the people have in him. President Obama is well on his way to becoming Harvey Dent.
He has promised the people change:
No lobbyists in his government: Failure
A better sort of politician in his administration (no tax cheats): Failure
Bi-partisanship…including Congress: Failure
Transparency: Failure
Making the country safer: Failure (see the “Be Nice to Terrorists Executive Orders”)
In all fairness, it is still very early in President Obama’s administration. And also to be fair, some of the things the President promised on the campaign trail he is finding impossible to do when actual governance is required. However, Mr. Obama, the country cannot afford a failure of faith. The United States needs a leader who understands the severity of the economic crisis we are in and the willingness to fight anyone who wants to pass spending bills that will worsen it…even if that means fighting your own party. The United States needs a leader who will not shy away from the threats that continue to mount around the world in the name of a peace that cannot be achieved…some people just like to watch the world burn…there is no negotiating with people like this. The United States needs a leader who has strong moral backbone and is willing to protect the Constitution as it is written, not as it has been interpreted by Liberal judges.
Make no mistake about it, the people of the United States did not elect President Obama because they supported a liberal agenda (multiple polls show overwhelming resistance to Liberal policies and Socialistic tendencies). The people elected President Obama because they wanted something new from their politicians. They wanted Harvey Dent to save them. They wanted to have faith again in their government. How can President Obama be successful and avoid becoming “Two-Face”?
Don’t go LEFT young man!
Footnote: Since Senator Franken clearly stole the election in Minnesota, an * will always be placed beside his title.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
“Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem.”
Let me paraphrase another quote by Ronald Reagan to describe the Left’s current economic policy: “If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.” This economic policy is evident in the stimulus bill recently passed by the House of Representatives. Estimated costs of the House bill, including interest will exceed $1 trillion…that’s right TRILLION with a “T”.
How exactly does $200 million to rehabilitate the National Mall bring jobs back to America? How is the National Endowment for the Arts going to use its $50 million to stop home foreclosures? $600 million for the Federal government to update its fleet of cars to alternative fuel vehicles (with no requirement that such a contract go to US automakers)? $300 million dollars for Global Warming Research will hardly instill more confidence in the American consumer. Speaker of the House Pelosi even tried to get hundreds of millions of dollars earmarked for contraceptives. And now we learn that $1.8 billion has been given to the National Park Service, whose chief lobbyist is the son of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s chief sponsor David Obey (D-WI). Make no mistake about it. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (H.R. 1) passed in the House of Representatives is neither economically stimulating nor will it quicken the end to the current recession the United States has found itself in. In reality, if the law as it is written is passed in the Senate, it will be the final nail in the economic coffin of the United States.
Most concerning with this Bill is the way in which it was shoved through the House with such speed. Such haste suggests that the authors of the bill and the Democratically-controlled Congress did not want time for the American people to see what was really in the Bill. The Bill, in actuality, is not a stimulus package, but a veiled attempt by the Left to permanently impose upon the American people its Liberal agenda. This Bill is a hodgepodge of spending meant to implement or increase entitlement programs that the Left had been unable to do until they had control. There are no longer checks and balances left in the Federal government and thus, there was no attempt at bi-partisan cooperation. Essentially, Speaker Pelosi and President Obama went to the House Republicans and said, “Come along or reap the consequences of denying the Messiah’s demands.”
Naysayers are being called “unpatriotic”, “un-American”, and are being derided by Democratic Congressional leadership as being obstructionist. To the Republicans in Congress I say, “Let the Democrats own this.” This will be the second stimulus package passed by a Democratically controlled Congress that wasted taxpayer money. This time, there is no Bush to kick around and blame. When it fails to produce jobs, or an economic turnaround, they will have no one to blame but themselves.
Why am I so confident it will fail? Because the Bill does not diagnose the problem and then create solutions to those problems, it simply throws money at the entitlement-dependent voting blocs the Democrats wish to appease for the next election. This bill is heavy in spending and light on tax cuts. That formula has never worked. More government spending will eventually result in higher taxes for someone, which means less money being spent in the market, which is the basic definition of a recession. There is a certain amount of money (call it XY) available to be spent; if you take X amount of money from one group and give X amount to another you have not injected more money into the market, you have simply redistributed (now YX). Ah, yes, Mr. Obama told Mr. “the Plumber” that was exactly what he intended to do.
Any economic stimulus package needs to inject money into the market to encourage people to buy products, companies to hire (or stop laying off) workers, and to restore confidence of the American consumer. How is that done? Look to North Dakota. That state has a Republican governor and a Republican legislature. They have cut spending and cut taxes and this year, they have a surplus…that’s right a surplus.
Cut the Federal budget and the Federal government: This is counterintuitive to most politicians…especially those on the Left. STOP SPENDING and STOP MANDATING!!!! Some states and businesses are in dire economic straits because of federal mandates such as Emissions Standards and No Child Left Behind. The Republican Congress of the 1990s forced President Clinton to do this (cut the Federal government) and allowed the 1990s to be a boom period…President Bush should have continued this. Unfortunately, his government spent money like he had a (D-TX) behind his name.
Tax breaks: The majority of the stimulus package should be in the form of payroll tax breaks for working Americans (not rebate checks, especially for those who never paid any taxes to begin with) and tax breaks for businesses—ALL businesses. Part of the reason why businesses are trimming payroll and moving overseas is because of the ridiculously high 35% business tax. Cut that rate by 10%-15%, save companies like Ford and Microsoft millions of dollars, and they will hire more people. Here is a fact: EVERYTIME the tax rate has been cut, government revenue has gone up! Imagine what you would do with an extra $100-$500 in your paycheck every month…you’d spend it. It is hard to argue, and not be disingenuous, that lower taxes result in the injection of more money into the consumer market.
Mortgage Assistance: Another major part of the stimulus needs to be direct assistance to mortgage holders. Guaranteed government loans should be implemented so that people could, despite lower home values, refinance into more affordable mortgages. This program should be open to ALL mortgage holders…even those who are paying their mortgages on time. Add this to your tax cut and you are looking at maybe $1000 extra per month to spend.
Fund Private Infrastructure Improvement Programs: This is one part of the economic stimulus package I agree with (kind of). Give money to private companies to be used for improving the power grid, expanding telecommunications, improving roads and bridges, etc. The government does not have to lead these projects.
Bailout States: Give states the money they need to counteract budget shortfalls for this year only. The stipulation: each state has to pass a law saying that the state budget cannot be increased by more than the inflation rate + 2% per year for the next 10 years (or longer). In other words, force the states to cut spending also.
Cut the Capital Gains Tax: I know, some of you are saying, “Why help out Wall Street?” Because cutting the Capital Gains Tax doesn’t just help Wall Street, it helps all investors and Americans. It encourages investment in companies which in turn gives companies money to spend on things like hiring more workers.
Pay off Americans’ Credit: I only offer this idea because if you are going to spend $1 trillion you might as well give it directly to the people. Pay off the debt that American’s owe on credit cards. “They will just go out and spend more,” you say. Exactly.
Check out this article on Keynesian Economic Theory (what the stimulus package is based on). http://www.cato.org/pubs/tbb/tbb_0109-52.pdf
How exactly does $200 million to rehabilitate the National Mall bring jobs back to America? How is the National Endowment for the Arts going to use its $50 million to stop home foreclosures? $600 million for the Federal government to update its fleet of cars to alternative fuel vehicles (with no requirement that such a contract go to US automakers)? $300 million dollars for Global Warming Research will hardly instill more confidence in the American consumer. Speaker of the House Pelosi even tried to get hundreds of millions of dollars earmarked for contraceptives. And now we learn that $1.8 billion has been given to the National Park Service, whose chief lobbyist is the son of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s chief sponsor David Obey (D-WI). Make no mistake about it. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (H.R. 1) passed in the House of Representatives is neither economically stimulating nor will it quicken the end to the current recession the United States has found itself in. In reality, if the law as it is written is passed in the Senate, it will be the final nail in the economic coffin of the United States.
Most concerning with this Bill is the way in which it was shoved through the House with such speed. Such haste suggests that the authors of the bill and the Democratically-controlled Congress did not want time for the American people to see what was really in the Bill. The Bill, in actuality, is not a stimulus package, but a veiled attempt by the Left to permanently impose upon the American people its Liberal agenda. This Bill is a hodgepodge of spending meant to implement or increase entitlement programs that the Left had been unable to do until they had control. There are no longer checks and balances left in the Federal government and thus, there was no attempt at bi-partisan cooperation. Essentially, Speaker Pelosi and President Obama went to the House Republicans and said, “Come along or reap the consequences of denying the Messiah’s demands.”
Naysayers are being called “unpatriotic”, “un-American”, and are being derided by Democratic Congressional leadership as being obstructionist. To the Republicans in Congress I say, “Let the Democrats own this.” This will be the second stimulus package passed by a Democratically controlled Congress that wasted taxpayer money. This time, there is no Bush to kick around and blame. When it fails to produce jobs, or an economic turnaround, they will have no one to blame but themselves.
Why am I so confident it will fail? Because the Bill does not diagnose the problem and then create solutions to those problems, it simply throws money at the entitlement-dependent voting blocs the Democrats wish to appease for the next election. This bill is heavy in spending and light on tax cuts. That formula has never worked. More government spending will eventually result in higher taxes for someone, which means less money being spent in the market, which is the basic definition of a recession. There is a certain amount of money (call it XY) available to be spent; if you take X amount of money from one group and give X amount to another you have not injected more money into the market, you have simply redistributed (now YX). Ah, yes, Mr. Obama told Mr. “the Plumber” that was exactly what he intended to do.
Any economic stimulus package needs to inject money into the market to encourage people to buy products, companies to hire (or stop laying off) workers, and to restore confidence of the American consumer. How is that done? Look to North Dakota. That state has a Republican governor and a Republican legislature. They have cut spending and cut taxes and this year, they have a surplus…that’s right a surplus.
Cut the Federal budget and the Federal government: This is counterintuitive to most politicians…especially those on the Left. STOP SPENDING and STOP MANDATING!!!! Some states and businesses are in dire economic straits because of federal mandates such as Emissions Standards and No Child Left Behind. The Republican Congress of the 1990s forced President Clinton to do this (cut the Federal government) and allowed the 1990s to be a boom period…President Bush should have continued this. Unfortunately, his government spent money like he had a (D-TX) behind his name.
Tax breaks: The majority of the stimulus package should be in the form of payroll tax breaks for working Americans (not rebate checks, especially for those who never paid any taxes to begin with) and tax breaks for businesses—ALL businesses. Part of the reason why businesses are trimming payroll and moving overseas is because of the ridiculously high 35% business tax. Cut that rate by 10%-15%, save companies like Ford and Microsoft millions of dollars, and they will hire more people. Here is a fact: EVERYTIME the tax rate has been cut, government revenue has gone up! Imagine what you would do with an extra $100-$500 in your paycheck every month…you’d spend it. It is hard to argue, and not be disingenuous, that lower taxes result in the injection of more money into the consumer market.
Mortgage Assistance: Another major part of the stimulus needs to be direct assistance to mortgage holders. Guaranteed government loans should be implemented so that people could, despite lower home values, refinance into more affordable mortgages. This program should be open to ALL mortgage holders…even those who are paying their mortgages on time. Add this to your tax cut and you are looking at maybe $1000 extra per month to spend.
Fund Private Infrastructure Improvement Programs: This is one part of the economic stimulus package I agree with (kind of). Give money to private companies to be used for improving the power grid, expanding telecommunications, improving roads and bridges, etc. The government does not have to lead these projects.
Bailout States: Give states the money they need to counteract budget shortfalls for this year only. The stipulation: each state has to pass a law saying that the state budget cannot be increased by more than the inflation rate + 2% per year for the next 10 years (or longer). In other words, force the states to cut spending also.
Cut the Capital Gains Tax: I know, some of you are saying, “Why help out Wall Street?” Because cutting the Capital Gains Tax doesn’t just help Wall Street, it helps all investors and Americans. It encourages investment in companies which in turn gives companies money to spend on things like hiring more workers.
Pay off Americans’ Credit: I only offer this idea because if you are going to spend $1 trillion you might as well give it directly to the people. Pay off the debt that American’s owe on credit cards. “They will just go out and spend more,” you say. Exactly.
Check out this article on Keynesian Economic Theory (what the stimulus package is based on). http://www.cato.org/pubs/tbb/tbb_0109-52.pdf
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