A sad state of affairs has taken over not only the U.S. but the entire world. Even China, the second largest economy and emerging giant is dealing with unemployment caused by a lack of U.S. consumer demand. Some cry, "low here," while others cry, "low there," all wishing to convince us that they have the answers. But they don't!
While the 99%ers lament what they surely see as the next lost decade, a generation of youth deprived of entry level jobs, the 1%ers scream over raising taxes. Corporations and their lobbyists scream about excessive regulation and uncertainty while sitting on record levels of cash. No large business needs to borrow. Having what they need they are holding on for signs of improvement, signs which may never come. And greed as measured by chief executive salaries abounds. The Executive Branch argues with Congress not only over cutting spending to ease the deficit, a move sure to increase unemployment, for ultimately all government spending ends up in someone's pocket, mostly as wages, but also over raising taxes to increase spending, for that does create jobs, at least for a while.
Ronald Reagan's chief campaign economics advisor and initial chairman of his advisory council made his mark in the field by doing cost-benefit analysis for the Pentagon. He found that the Convair/General Dynamics new Air Force B-57, a supersonic bomber capable of penetrating Russian air space below radar at near mach two speed, was not cost effective. Some were built, but wholesale production never materialized and West Fort Worth and Carswell Air Force Base practically disintegrated. Both my father and my oldest brother had to find new work. I know firsthand that government spending, even wise spending, or the lack thereof, does have an impact. The question is "Do some sorts of government spending make more sense than do others?" My economics professor, Murray Weidenbaum thought so.
As a nation, we are either going to come together on some sort of plan, or we are not. And regardless of whether or not we do, we are either going to see a revived economy or we are not. Only time will tell. But let's stop kidding ourselves. We are all in it together, the U.S., China, India, Germany, France, England, Russia, etc., some not positioned as perilously as others. But all must sacrifice, otherwise in these hard times all will surely lose.
Dale Whiting
CHANDLER
Leon Ceniceros posted at 1:50 pm on Thu, Dec 8, 2011.
The Western World as we knew it is now collapsing in front of us. Whole European Nations are bankrupt or are going bankrupt. America is $15 Trillion Dollars in debt and if Obama and the Democrats have their way...it will be $17 Trillion Dollars...next year. Obama-Care that the Democrats forced through Congress will be taking effect in 2013 and there isn't one "penny" in the till to pay for it. We are seeing towns, cities, counties and maybe even a State or two (California, Oregon, Washington, Michigan, Delaware, Massachuesetts, etc) going into...Bankruptcy. The US Postal Service is downsizing because of it's crushing...."Pension Costs". American Airlines just went into bankruptcy because of it high-salaries "Union" members.
We see School District Superintendents retiring at $200,000.00 a year for the next 20-30 years. We see Public Service Sector (local government workers, firemen and law enforcement) retiring at age 50years old... with "Cadillac Health-Care benefits" and liberal pensions that are twice as generous as the Private sector. Our Low-Income citizens expect and demand more and more generous "Entitlements".
If you were a bank would you be loaning money out in this Economy while being answerable to your stockholders and depositors....heck no..you wouldn't.
Same goes for Business...would you be building factories and hiring people to make products that no one has the money to buy....heck no...you wouldn't.
If you have some savings to tide you over for a "rainy day" would you as the head of a family be buying appliances, new cars, toys or clothes with the Recession/Depression news ..."ping-ponging back and forth every other day"....heck no...you wouldn't.
Rich posted at 6:09 pm on Thu, Dec 8, 2011.
Leon, there is a a universe of things to do, discover, change. As children we misplace most of our energy, as old men, we relive the best of yesterday, forget the horror, and think it was better. A few hit something that changes the world, because they are exceptional, or deranged, take your pick. The best were 'deranged' until they died, and are now 'exceptional'. Nothing we have done so far, has worked. And we would rather fight than switch. Quite probably one of the spoiled brats in the 'Occupied" movement will change that, though by the time they do, they will be too old, too tired or too long dead to enjoy it. The world 'collapses' with each new generation, with each new way of looking at things, born of being raised in a new world that has never existed before. Yeah, things are entirely (add an adjective of your choice)ed up. But the plain fact is, they always were. We've only been civilized about 6000 years, we aren't half good at it yet.
Dale Whiting posted at 8:20 am on Fri, Dec 9, 2011.
Rich,
Notice how Leon blames others and avoids accepting blame himself! At least you give us an historical perspective.
May I quote [likely a paraphrase]. "There are no Red States and no Blue States, just one United States." Ultimately we are all in it together. We either survive together or we all hang together. To "h e double tooth picks" with those Neo-cons now running the House and obstructing things in the Senate. Us moderates wish the likes of John Danforth would return.
Cerulean posted at 9:46 am on Fri, Dec 9, 2011.
“America is $15 Trillion Dollars in debt and if Obama and the Democrats have their way...it will be $17 Trillion Dollars...next year.”
Explain, if you will, why did the House not pass the $4 trillion deficit-reduction package proposed by Barrack Obama? House speaker Boehner was ready to go with it. Was it because the Know-Nothing tea partiers used a filibuster to stop this improvement simply because they resent this President and his perceived success? I think so!
“Obama-Care that the Democrats forced through Congress will be taking effect in 2013 “
Health care reform could REDUCE THE DEFICIT by $1 TRILLION over the next 20 years. PLUS, more people are covered!!! If we bring the cost of medical care down, the US could save even more.
Rich posted at 9:59 pm on Fri, Dec 9, 2011.
Nope Cerulean, about all the government being involved with health care will do is raise the cost and lower the quality. I'll give you a diagnosis and a treatment that is really given about 95% of the time you go to a doctor: "Change your lifestyle and take these pills." Frankly about 90% of those who get this diagnosis would be better off with heroin as the pills. In fact so far 1/2 an ounce of Fernet Branca after dinner works better than the pills my GI specialist proscribed, and I got that from an old Italian guy in Brooklyn at a discount of about thirty grand, and I can still eat garlic.
As to $15 trillion? They print it. And you still need the Parker Brother's version to buy Boardwalk. The problem is not the amount, it is the fact they use it to invade our lives. A good government simply wouldn't do all that governing.
Dale Whiting posted at 7:07 am on Sat, Dec 10, 2011.
Rich,
You may be correct. Government is not efficient. But in theory it can be. Our former system, the one in place before 2009, was an excellent example of huge waste and inefficiency. Many more conprehensive government run systems delivered more and better health care for less than did ours. We have inefficient, even wasteful systems being taken advantage of by physicians. We have a healthcare insurance industry wasting a full 20% of our premiums on overhead aimed at denying coverage, often when it ought not to have been questioned, and drug companies whose costs far outweigh the expenses consumed in development. We have a medical malpractice system that although costing less that 1% as measured by damage awards, stimulates perhaps 25% of what is called over-practice, overdiagnosis and overtreatment designed to avoid that 1%. For docs make money in over-practicing!
So what do we do? We either take the next steps to wring out of our system this waste, or we retreat to having doctors make house calls and Cuba having better medicine that do we.
Rich posted at 8:34 am on Sat, Dec 10, 2011.
So what do we do? Outlaw health insurance, make doctors justify their bills by being successful in curing people. Force them into competition and the normal business avenues of marketing. Let the market, and competition make them better and cheaper. And Cuba doesn't have better care than we do, the have a type of factory care, medicine only works well as a personal service. Factory care kills.
Accuracy posted at 11:03 am on Sat, Dec 10, 2011.
So what do we do?
The U.S. Supreme Court announced that it will hear arguments over the Obama administration's controversial health care law (called the Affordable Care Act) next March, and months before the 2012 election. The ObamaCare is an improper exercise of federal authority, and the largest and broadest legal challenge comes from a joint filing by 26 states.
The Supreme Court decision will not end the debate on health care, because it will largely remain, debate on the role of government.
So what do we do? Voters in the November presidential election should insist on the one who will make the right decisions to overturn or severely trim the ObamaCare law. And not require (by law) that nearly all Americans must buy health insurance by 2014.
Dale Whiting posted at 2:21 pm on Sat, Dec 10, 2011.
Rich and Accuracy,
I expect mandating participation in healthcare insurance programs will be ruled unconstitutional. States can makes such mandates, but not the Feds. The commerce clause is stretched too thinly to get away with that. So the Feds can encourage the states to legislate the options they would choose, single payor, government option, mandated participation, whatever. It worked with 55 mph. It can work with healthcare coverage, too.
But none of you have really addressed the problems which have existed in our pre-2009 healthcare system. Do we retreat to the stone age, or do we tackle those after fixing federally mandated participation? Heck, some of you refuse to acknowledge the existence of those problems. Are you blind?
VofReason posted at 1:37 pm on Tue, Dec 13, 2011.
What does sacrifice actually mean here. Those who planned ahead and did not overspend should now sacrifice for those who did not plan ahead and got themselves underwater. That sounds to me like a recipe for more people not planning ahead and overspending- not making better decisions and living within their means. The said fact is that no one wants to hear that they messed up, got too big of a mortgage and not enough education in life and they need to play the hand their dealt. That is called looking reality in the face. The new life starts tomorrow and is your responsibility first and foremost. Don't blame someone else and don't wat for the government to save you.