In Nassau County on Long Island the headlines read 265 layoffs for county workers. The layoffs certainly were not the people at the top making the big salaries but lower rung workers of the middle class who are struggling to make ends meet. This unfortunate situation is occurring all over this country. The claim is that county and state governments are broke and no longer have the resources to keep these people employed. Sales tax receipts are down due to the recession and maintaining programs is just unsustainable. But this is not the reason for the problem. Programs can be sustainable if taxes were raised temporarily!
Think about it, Bush's tax cut was temporary for a period of ten years. Obama extended it for two more years but it was still for a limited time. So if a temporary tax cut is OK with the politicians, why can't we have a temporary, limited tax increase? Not one job would be lost in Nassau County if they raised taxes slightly. If everyone paid an extra $.25 a week those jobs would be saved. Instead, 265 families will now be on the unemployment lines collecting money for doing nothing through no fault of their own. It doesn't make sense!
When times are good and the government is raking in the tax revenue we should get a tax cut, but when times are hard we need to pull together as a community to prevent job loss by paying a tax. This tax increase would be in effect until the economy turns around. The priority must be to keep everyone working because that keeps the marketplace healthy. A slight increase would hardly be felt and could easily be absorbed by those fortunate enough to have a job. People have gotten drastic increases in their health insurance payments, gas prices, and food costs without a complaint. When we go to the pump, sometimes the price of gas goes up $.05 in a day! We just pay the price and go on our way because we have just accepted this as a new normal. But if the government wants to raise taxes by a quarter percent, people are up in arms!
What if you knew that the tax increase would automatically be reduced according to the percentage of unemployment in the county? Why can't taxes be adjusted in direct correlation to the unemployment numbers? A rise in taxes doesn't have much of an effect on the economy because people will not change their spending habits because of a few cents more. However, when you put hundreds of families out of work it takes its toll on the local economy, as well as the federal budget. The psychological effects are devastating to hundreds of people's lives and their children. Cuts at the local level hurt local, small businesses, the backbone of our economy. When people are unemployed it causes a negative ripple effect throughout the community.
So raise my taxes and save people's jobs. I'll gladly take one for the team with the understanding that when times get better there will be some relief in sight. We need to pull together as a community, as a nation, and help each other in our time of need. It must be done collectively, and it must be a temporary fix. If we receive a tax cut during good times then we need to be adults about having a tax increase during bad times. Stop whining about your taxes and start to think about those less fortunate people on the unemployment lines. That is what being a patriot really means, not just waving a flag. It is called sacrificing for the greater good and that is what Americans do in times of crisis. Wake up, America!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
The Mr. Businessman Solution, Not!
People in business are placed on a pedestal in this country. They get the respect and adoration of the masses because they make money. They are looked upon as gods in this country and if they can be successful in business they can solve any problem. Their influence is sought in education even though they have no experience in the field. Their influence is sought in government even though running a business is not a democracy, perhaps it is more of a dictatorship! We seem to make this giant leap that if you can make a business work, you can make a government work. Nothing is further from the truth.
Very few business leaders have emerged to become president, and those that have were a disaster! Herbert Hoover was a business man, as well as George Bush. Both proved to be complete and utter failures running our government into the ground. Sylvio Burlesconi is a billionaire who ran Italy into bankruptcy. The list goes on and on and yet we still think business people can do a better job. When you run a business you don't have to contend with the approval of a legislature, or a Supreme Court that tells you what you can and cannot do. Policies have to be approved by the people and business people are not used to that. Reality quickly sets in and they find they can't always get their way.
Donald Trump proclaims that he can solve all the problems in our government and force the rest of the world to respect us again. His arrogance is beyond belief and that alone would be enough to cause concern. He is a school yard bully who thinks he can dictate respect around the world. The sad part is that this blowhard doesn't even know that he is a pathetic little man who gets his way because he is rich and those tactics don't work in government. The tough guy routine may work in business but in world politics there can be catastrophic consequences for such action. Let's remember the shock and awe in Iraq which helped to bring our country to the brink of financial disaster as well as causing the death of young Americans and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis.
Now I hear the pundits proclaiming that Mitt Romney is just what we need because he knows how to create jobs. Upon further investigation, we learn that as a broker of businesses he dismantled and sold off companies for profit and caused many people to join the ranks of the unemployed. We do need a more efficient government, and we do need to cut waste, but we need to do this surgically, not with an ax. Putting more people out of work right now is not a solution, in fact, it will exacerbate the problem. Public sector jobs represent a large portion of the middle class market. When you diminish the middle class market, it has a ripple effect throughout the economy. Cuts are necessary but they must be done gradually and strategically. The government can be made to run more efficiently first by cutting waste and fraud and by streamlining our military around the world.
We are in such a hole with our deficit but none of the Republican candidates are seriously willing to talk about increasing revenue. They gave us the Bush tax cuts that were not paid for, the two wars, not paid for, the prescription drug plan, not paid for, and the Homeland Security Department, not paid for. When they were in charge, deficits didn't matter. The bailout money was also not paid for but at least we got a return on our money and the government even made a profit on part of it! They painted us into a corner and now middle class public sector workers have to pay for their mistakes by losing their jobs? If that is what Romney is pitching, I'm not buying it.
Every President is advised by a team of economists. We don't need a businessman to figure out how to get out of this mess. We need a compassionate pragmatist who can slowly right this ship of state. People's livelihoods hang in the balance. Personally, I will not vote for anyone who will put people out of work. Mr. Romney is not the answer to our problems. Most polls show the American people understand that we need to get more revenue from the top one percent and corporations have to pay their fair share. That's who will get my vote! Wake up, America!
Very few business leaders have emerged to become president, and those that have were a disaster! Herbert Hoover was a business man, as well as George Bush. Both proved to be complete and utter failures running our government into the ground. Sylvio Burlesconi is a billionaire who ran Italy into bankruptcy. The list goes on and on and yet we still think business people can do a better job. When you run a business you don't have to contend with the approval of a legislature, or a Supreme Court that tells you what you can and cannot do. Policies have to be approved by the people and business people are not used to that. Reality quickly sets in and they find they can't always get their way.
Donald Trump proclaims that he can solve all the problems in our government and force the rest of the world to respect us again. His arrogance is beyond belief and that alone would be enough to cause concern. He is a school yard bully who thinks he can dictate respect around the world. The sad part is that this blowhard doesn't even know that he is a pathetic little man who gets his way because he is rich and those tactics don't work in government. The tough guy routine may work in business but in world politics there can be catastrophic consequences for such action. Let's remember the shock and awe in Iraq which helped to bring our country to the brink of financial disaster as well as causing the death of young Americans and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis.
Now I hear the pundits proclaiming that Mitt Romney is just what we need because he knows how to create jobs. Upon further investigation, we learn that as a broker of businesses he dismantled and sold off companies for profit and caused many people to join the ranks of the unemployed. We do need a more efficient government, and we do need to cut waste, but we need to do this surgically, not with an ax. Putting more people out of work right now is not a solution, in fact, it will exacerbate the problem. Public sector jobs represent a large portion of the middle class market. When you diminish the middle class market, it has a ripple effect throughout the economy. Cuts are necessary but they must be done gradually and strategically. The government can be made to run more efficiently first by cutting waste and fraud and by streamlining our military around the world.
We are in such a hole with our deficit but none of the Republican candidates are seriously willing to talk about increasing revenue. They gave us the Bush tax cuts that were not paid for, the two wars, not paid for, the prescription drug plan, not paid for, and the Homeland Security Department, not paid for. When they were in charge, deficits didn't matter. The bailout money was also not paid for but at least we got a return on our money and the government even made a profit on part of it! They painted us into a corner and now middle class public sector workers have to pay for their mistakes by losing their jobs? If that is what Romney is pitching, I'm not buying it.
Every President is advised by a team of economists. We don't need a businessman to figure out how to get out of this mess. We need a compassionate pragmatist who can slowly right this ship of state. People's livelihoods hang in the balance. Personally, I will not vote for anyone who will put people out of work. Mr. Romney is not the answer to our problems. Most polls show the American people understand that we need to get more revenue from the top one percent and corporations have to pay their fair share. That's who will get my vote! Wake up, America!
Monday, December 19, 2011
The Un-Civil War
There is a civil war going on in our country and it is starting to show up in Congress. It is a war that is fought with words and the battle field is on cable TV and talk radio. It started back in the eighties when the floodgates were opened by doing away with the Fairness Doctrine. Conservatives were tired of being kept silent, tired of being polite, and tired of watching their tongue in mixed company. They wanted to unleash their hate, venom, and true feelings in public without consequences. What they said behind closed doors about blacks, gays, the lazy poor, unions, government workers, and bleeding heart liberals in general could now be expressed in public!
Their first major victory was a takeover of talk radio. AM Radio was a dying industry that was revitalized by conservative talk show hosts. The more outrageous, the more listeners they would have. Nobody questioned what was being said because station owners were making money and main stream media thought nobody listened to the radio anymore. Quietly, they amassed millions of soldiers in their war of words. They tapped into fear, anger, prejudice, and a frustration that their listeners felt. They fed into these strong visceral emotions and got a tremendous response from a certain segment of society. Their words were divisive and mean spirited but that didn't matter, their ratings kept getting stronger and stronger, which meant more money for the radio stations. After all, it is a business, it didn't matter what they were pushing!
Next, the expansion of the cable networks was fertile ground for the conservative movement. Roger Ailes, the former head of the Republican National Committee, became the founding father of FOX News and quickly stacked the deck with right wing zealots. He cleverly marketed the news station as,"Fair and Balanced", and it quickly became a legitimate news station surpassing CNN. Republicans had their own news station in which they could enforce their talking points each day. It was a 24/7 political advertisement for their platform, it didn't cost a dime, and and it changed the political landscape forever. FOX News today is a propaganda machine for the right wing of this country!
Now that they controlled the air waves, the next step was to organize ground troops. Dick Army and the Koch brothers put their money behind the Tea Party movement and in an off-year election, made inroads into the fabric of our government, the House of Representatives. They know that the House controls the purse strings in this country, and nothing gets done without money. This was their opportunity to derail the Obama administration by denying him any legislation. After bankrupting the country for eight years under the Bush administration, they suddenly decided that the deficit was too large and no new revenue would be allowed. Even though every legitimate economist agreed that the government needed to spend our way out of this historic recession in order to avoid a worldwide depression, they refused to play ball. Even the polls favored the democratic position of taxing the top 2% to create a jobs program, but they were still playing rope-a- dope, stalling the President's agenda.
This all sets the table for the election of 2012! They know that most people are ignorant, easily swayed by bumper sticker slogans, and the President will take the blame for the "failed"economy. Their plan to to take over the country altogether is almost complete! They are almost there! All they need is the cooperation of the ignorant on election day, people who will vote against their own self interests, and their mission is complete. They will have won the un-civil war! Unless enough people see through their plan. Wake up, America!
Their first major victory was a takeover of talk radio. AM Radio was a dying industry that was revitalized by conservative talk show hosts. The more outrageous, the more listeners they would have. Nobody questioned what was being said because station owners were making money and main stream media thought nobody listened to the radio anymore. Quietly, they amassed millions of soldiers in their war of words. They tapped into fear, anger, prejudice, and a frustration that their listeners felt. They fed into these strong visceral emotions and got a tremendous response from a certain segment of society. Their words were divisive and mean spirited but that didn't matter, their ratings kept getting stronger and stronger, which meant more money for the radio stations. After all, it is a business, it didn't matter what they were pushing!
Next, the expansion of the cable networks was fertile ground for the conservative movement. Roger Ailes, the former head of the Republican National Committee, became the founding father of FOX News and quickly stacked the deck with right wing zealots. He cleverly marketed the news station as,"Fair and Balanced", and it quickly became a legitimate news station surpassing CNN. Republicans had their own news station in which they could enforce their talking points each day. It was a 24/7 political advertisement for their platform, it didn't cost a dime, and and it changed the political landscape forever. FOX News today is a propaganda machine for the right wing of this country!
Now that they controlled the air waves, the next step was to organize ground troops. Dick Army and the Koch brothers put their money behind the Tea Party movement and in an off-year election, made inroads into the fabric of our government, the House of Representatives. They know that the House controls the purse strings in this country, and nothing gets done without money. This was their opportunity to derail the Obama administration by denying him any legislation. After bankrupting the country for eight years under the Bush administration, they suddenly decided that the deficit was too large and no new revenue would be allowed. Even though every legitimate economist agreed that the government needed to spend our way out of this historic recession in order to avoid a worldwide depression, they refused to play ball. Even the polls favored the democratic position of taxing the top 2% to create a jobs program, but they were still playing rope-a- dope, stalling the President's agenda.
This all sets the table for the election of 2012! They know that most people are ignorant, easily swayed by bumper sticker slogans, and the President will take the blame for the "failed"economy. Their plan to to take over the country altogether is almost complete! They are almost there! All they need is the cooperation of the ignorant on election day, people who will vote against their own self interests, and their mission is complete. They will have won the un-civil war! Unless enough people see through their plan. Wake up, America!
Monday, December 12, 2011
Polls Ask the Wrong Questions
The polls say that most people think we are overwhelmingly on the wrong track in this country and that makes Obama look bad for the next election. It is assumed that it reflects poorly upon the President. His approval rating hovers around 41% to 44%, worse than any other President at this point in time. And yet, Obama is defeating his opponents in one of the most Republican conservative states, South Carolina! This clearly contradicts the polls, so maybe the polls are asking the wrong questions.
When people answer the question of whether the country is on the right or wrong track, why do we assume it is all about Obama? Personally, I think the country is on the wrong track but it has nothing to do with Obama and everything to do with a dysfunctional Congress and a Supreme Court that is composed of ideologues rather than legal experts. President Obama is facing an unprecedented obstructionist opposition party that will stop at nothing until he is driven out of office. Gone are the moderate Republicans that can find compromise. Compromise has become equated with weakness and arrogance is now what people respect. At no other time in our history has the media been so influential in forming the opinions of our people. A lie or half truth gets repeated 24/7 on cable news programs or talk radio and in a few days it becomes dogma. Obama is experiencing a full court press from all sides, even his own party , because he is willing to compromise for the good of the country.
When asked about approval rating, it is hard to answer in the affirmative because this President is handcuffed by a dysfunctional government. He lives in the land of no and nothing he says or does is going to change that. His opponents know that they can make him an impotent President because they control the purse strings. Included in that approval rating poll are the people on the left who think that this president is too accommodating towards his opponents. Obama, by nature, is more of a gentleman than a thug, more of a professor than politician, and more of a centrist than a liberal or conservative. Unfortunately he lives in a world of thugs, politicians, and extremists. For example, the debt ceiling crisis was a defining moment for his Presidency. If Obama had stood up to his Republican opponents and shut down the government, his poll numbers would be much higher today. If he drew the line in the sand on extending the Bush tax cuts, he would have gained more favor with the left and his approval rating would be much higher today. So maybe the question the pollsters should be asking is," Would you have a more positive view of this President if he did less compromising?"
President Obama is probably one of the most intelligent, hard working Presidents we have ever had. He has less of an ego than most and he puts the good of the country before himself. He is a different breed, thinking of those less fortunate citizens who would be harmed by shutting down the government. He thinks of those who are unemployed and puts them before his poll numbers. He is a good and decent man living in a world of slime. Some on both sides were turned off by his push for universal health care in his first two years. It either wasn't enough or it went too far. In reality, he had to make it happen at that moment simply because he had a Democratic Congress, and even at that it is not everything he wanted. Is it better than the status quo? Will it save people from personal bankruptcy, will it save lives? Will it save a middle class family a small fortune by insuring their children until the age of twenty six? Absolutely! Is it perfect? Absolutely not, but it is a start and Obama made it happen because he made it a priority.
Say what you want about this President, his heart is in the right place. His priority is the safety of our country not the poll numbers. Osama Bin Ladin along with most of the leaders of Al Qaeda were his top priority, unlike the last Republican President. And he did it without water boarding anyone. I know I sleep a little better knowing that we are much safer now from the threat of terrorism. He deserves the credit because he made it a priority. The Stock Market has nearly doubled in his time as President and about half of all Americans who have invested in the market have benefited financially. We were losing eight hundred thousand jobs a month and after Obama's economic rescue we have steadily gained jobs each month since. He stopped the hemorraging and the job numbers would have been much better if he had a cooperative Congress. Detroit is back in business because of his actions and our government has made a profit on the money that was paid back by the institutions.
So maybe the pollsters are asking the questions in the wrong way. Maybe they should restructure the wording. Instead of asking if you approve of the President's performance in the last few years, maybe we should ask if we approve of the effort this President has made since he was in office? I firmly believe he would score much higher in the polls. He is the man in the arena and he has put up a good fight. President Obama has earned a second chance in my humble opinion. He has survived a barrage of criticism from both sides and his opponents offer no feasible solutions to the very complex problems we are facing. When you compare Obama to the embarrassing selection of Republican opponents, it is no contest. We should be thankful he is willing to run again!!! Wake up, America!
When people answer the question of whether the country is on the right or wrong track, why do we assume it is all about Obama? Personally, I think the country is on the wrong track but it has nothing to do with Obama and everything to do with a dysfunctional Congress and a Supreme Court that is composed of ideologues rather than legal experts. President Obama is facing an unprecedented obstructionist opposition party that will stop at nothing until he is driven out of office. Gone are the moderate Republicans that can find compromise. Compromise has become equated with weakness and arrogance is now what people respect. At no other time in our history has the media been so influential in forming the opinions of our people. A lie or half truth gets repeated 24/7 on cable news programs or talk radio and in a few days it becomes dogma. Obama is experiencing a full court press from all sides, even his own party , because he is willing to compromise for the good of the country.
When asked about approval rating, it is hard to answer in the affirmative because this President is handcuffed by a dysfunctional government. He lives in the land of no and nothing he says or does is going to change that. His opponents know that they can make him an impotent President because they control the purse strings. Included in that approval rating poll are the people on the left who think that this president is too accommodating towards his opponents. Obama, by nature, is more of a gentleman than a thug, more of a professor than politician, and more of a centrist than a liberal or conservative. Unfortunately he lives in a world of thugs, politicians, and extremists. For example, the debt ceiling crisis was a defining moment for his Presidency. If Obama had stood up to his Republican opponents and shut down the government, his poll numbers would be much higher today. If he drew the line in the sand on extending the Bush tax cuts, he would have gained more favor with the left and his approval rating would be much higher today. So maybe the question the pollsters should be asking is," Would you have a more positive view of this President if he did less compromising?"
President Obama is probably one of the most intelligent, hard working Presidents we have ever had. He has less of an ego than most and he puts the good of the country before himself. He is a different breed, thinking of those less fortunate citizens who would be harmed by shutting down the government. He thinks of those who are unemployed and puts them before his poll numbers. He is a good and decent man living in a world of slime. Some on both sides were turned off by his push for universal health care in his first two years. It either wasn't enough or it went too far. In reality, he had to make it happen at that moment simply because he had a Democratic Congress, and even at that it is not everything he wanted. Is it better than the status quo? Will it save people from personal bankruptcy, will it save lives? Will it save a middle class family a small fortune by insuring their children until the age of twenty six? Absolutely! Is it perfect? Absolutely not, but it is a start and Obama made it happen because he made it a priority.
Say what you want about this President, his heart is in the right place. His priority is the safety of our country not the poll numbers. Osama Bin Ladin along with most of the leaders of Al Qaeda were his top priority, unlike the last Republican President. And he did it without water boarding anyone. I know I sleep a little better knowing that we are much safer now from the threat of terrorism. He deserves the credit because he made it a priority. The Stock Market has nearly doubled in his time as President and about half of all Americans who have invested in the market have benefited financially. We were losing eight hundred thousand jobs a month and after Obama's economic rescue we have steadily gained jobs each month since. He stopped the hemorraging and the job numbers would have been much better if he had a cooperative Congress. Detroit is back in business because of his actions and our government has made a profit on the money that was paid back by the institutions.
So maybe the pollsters are asking the questions in the wrong way. Maybe they should restructure the wording. Instead of asking if you approve of the President's performance in the last few years, maybe we should ask if we approve of the effort this President has made since he was in office? I firmly believe he would score much higher in the polls. He is the man in the arena and he has put up a good fight. President Obama has earned a second chance in my humble opinion. He has survived a barrage of criticism from both sides and his opponents offer no feasible solutions to the very complex problems we are facing. When you compare Obama to the embarrassing selection of Republican opponents, it is no contest. We should be thankful he is willing to run again!!! Wake up, America!
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Bipartisan Deep Dark Secrets
There are certain tweaks we can make to our government to make it functional, effective, and efficient but it will never happen because both parties benefit from the status quo. Both parties are so entrenched in a system that has forgotten that the majority rules in a democracy and it should be illegal to game the system. Eventually, if we continue to be dysfunctional it will bury us. We are being destroyed from within, we don't need to wait for terrorists to do us in!
First, we have lobbyists controlling Congress, not the people. There are certain lobbies that spend hundreds of thousands even millions per day to peddle their influence in Congress. We all know that it is legalized bribery and these lobbyists own certain Senators or Congressmen. Lobbyists are actually writing the laws on the Congressional floor that will favor their industry or position. We need to outlaw this practice once and for all and put these people out of business. Our country has been hijacked by the highest bidders. Doing away with lobbyists should be a goal that both liberals and conservatives can agree, but it will never happen because both are guilty of drinking from the well. It is like heroine for politicians and they just can't get off the juice!
Next, they need to go back to the original intent of the filibuster. Presently, nothing gets done because you now need a filibuster proof 60 votes in the Senate to get anything passed. Conservatives love to throw around the fact that Obama had a Democratic Congress for the first two years and didn't pass what he wanted. Now the Democrats did have control of the House and the Senate but didn't have the 60 votes needed in the Senate to make it filibuster proof. They never tell you that part because it doesn't suit their argument. Nothing gets done if you don't have the 60 votes in the Senate but most people don't even know that. Democracy works with a simple majority of 51 votes, but not anymore! The filibuster rule has forced our government into a coma, but both parties hide behind it and claim that the other is ineffective.
Another convenient gimmick both parties use to game the system is gerrymandering. They draw the lines of their Congressional districts in such a way that it almost virtually assures that the district will remain in their hands. So there is no need to compromise or cooperate because no matter what they do they are almost assured of reelection. Congress has a 9% approval rating but 75% of incumbents get reelected and it is all because of gerrymandering. Short of exposing yourself on the internet, politicians can do just about anything and still get reelected. Both parties do it when they are in power and it needs to stop.
Finally, both parties are guilty of insider trading, making a fortune on decisions that are made in Congress. They are privy to information on decisions reached in Congress that can affect an industry and they act on it by buying or selling stocks connected to that industry before it reaches the general public. It is not illegal to do so but it should be. Our representatives come out of Congress worth millions because they are trading on inside information. If it is illegal on Wall Street, the people who make the laws should be held to the same standard.
Campaign finance reform is at the root of many of the problems in Washington but until we can all agree that everyone plays by the same rules, nothing will change. The Citizens United decision in the Supreme Court set us back fifty years! When you give corporations equal treatment as private citizens under the first amendment you are opening up the floodgates of corruption. Once again, it is the organization with the most money that gets to control the game. Both parties feed from the trough and refuse to change the rules because money is the mother's milk of politics. As citizens we need to reform the system and hold both Democrats and Republicans responsible for the corruption that goes undetected by society. The party that makes these reforms part of their platform would certainly get my vote. Wake up, America!
First, we have lobbyists controlling Congress, not the people. There are certain lobbies that spend hundreds of thousands even millions per day to peddle their influence in Congress. We all know that it is legalized bribery and these lobbyists own certain Senators or Congressmen. Lobbyists are actually writing the laws on the Congressional floor that will favor their industry or position. We need to outlaw this practice once and for all and put these people out of business. Our country has been hijacked by the highest bidders. Doing away with lobbyists should be a goal that both liberals and conservatives can agree, but it will never happen because both are guilty of drinking from the well. It is like heroine for politicians and they just can't get off the juice!
Next, they need to go back to the original intent of the filibuster. Presently, nothing gets done because you now need a filibuster proof 60 votes in the Senate to get anything passed. Conservatives love to throw around the fact that Obama had a Democratic Congress for the first two years and didn't pass what he wanted. Now the Democrats did have control of the House and the Senate but didn't have the 60 votes needed in the Senate to make it filibuster proof. They never tell you that part because it doesn't suit their argument. Nothing gets done if you don't have the 60 votes in the Senate but most people don't even know that. Democracy works with a simple majority of 51 votes, but not anymore! The filibuster rule has forced our government into a coma, but both parties hide behind it and claim that the other is ineffective.
Another convenient gimmick both parties use to game the system is gerrymandering. They draw the lines of their Congressional districts in such a way that it almost virtually assures that the district will remain in their hands. So there is no need to compromise or cooperate because no matter what they do they are almost assured of reelection. Congress has a 9% approval rating but 75% of incumbents get reelected and it is all because of gerrymandering. Short of exposing yourself on the internet, politicians can do just about anything and still get reelected. Both parties do it when they are in power and it needs to stop.
Finally, both parties are guilty of insider trading, making a fortune on decisions that are made in Congress. They are privy to information on decisions reached in Congress that can affect an industry and they act on it by buying or selling stocks connected to that industry before it reaches the general public. It is not illegal to do so but it should be. Our representatives come out of Congress worth millions because they are trading on inside information. If it is illegal on Wall Street, the people who make the laws should be held to the same standard.
Campaign finance reform is at the root of many of the problems in Washington but until we can all agree that everyone plays by the same rules, nothing will change. The Citizens United decision in the Supreme Court set us back fifty years! When you give corporations equal treatment as private citizens under the first amendment you are opening up the floodgates of corruption. Once again, it is the organization with the most money that gets to control the game. Both parties feed from the trough and refuse to change the rules because money is the mother's milk of politics. As citizens we need to reform the system and hold both Democrats and Republicans responsible for the corruption that goes undetected by society. The party that makes these reforms part of their platform would certainly get my vote. Wake up, America!
Thursday, December 1, 2011
What If?
What if Republicans actually tried to give President Obama what he wants? The President proposed another jobs bill that would tax those who make over a million a year so that the bill would not add another penny to the deficit. Why not try it out? What are the Republicans afraid of? Success? If it succeeds, it is good for the country. How could any Congressman be against that?
Think about this. If the jobs bill fails and the country goes into a deeper recession, it finally solves the problem of the effectiveness of government spending during financial hard times. If it fails to stimulate the economy, and doesn't create jobs, they would almost be assured of a victory next year. Obama would be a complete failure and the people would finally see that government spending doesn't add up to a hill of beans! And if it does create an estimated two million jobs, Republicans can take credit for the success because their cooperation made it happen. It is a win, win for Republicans and for the country if it works!
Let's put it all on the line. Why are they so afraid? Give the President what he wants and let him hang himself if it fails. Once and for all, we will see if raising taxes on the wealthy will truly hurt the economy. Personally, if the economy takes off, wealthy people will only benefit and make even more profits than they are making with the present stagnant economy. I don't think they will be opposed to an increased market for goods because more people are working. An increased market is more desirable than a tax cut! So that is the question I would like any Republican to answer. What if they cooperate with this President?
I think we all know the answer to the question. We all know that they will not cooperate with this President for a number of reasons. First and foremost, they hide behind a pledge they took to a lobbyist, Grover Norquist. It doesn't matter that times have changed and there is a new reality because of a world wide economic crisis. They will remain faithful to a non-elected lobbyist rather than do anything that remotely raises taxes for the wealthy. They are cowards hiding behind an outdated pledge and they simply refuse to do what the majority wants them to do according to the polls.
The other major reason they won't do it is because they can't give this President a victory even if it is good for the country. They must make him look ineffective and weak in order to make him a one-term president. After all, that is their one stated goal, not to help the people that are suffering the most.
This President is not a reckless man. He wants to do the responsible thing and actually pay for any new government spending. Republicans, on the other hand, passed the Bush tax cuts without paying for them, conducted two wars without paying for them, passed a prescription drug plan without paying for it, and expanded government with the Department of Homeland Security without paying for it. It is criminal to be that irresponsible with our tax dollars. And yet, this same party now wants to make cuts to the social safety net that affects the poor and middle class rather than raise taxes on the wealthy. If hypocricy were a crime they would all be in jail. Wake up, America!
I think we all know the answer to the question. We all know that they will not cooperate with this President for a number of reasons. First and foremost, they hide behind a pledge they took to a lobbyist, Grover Norquist. It doesn't matter that times have changed and there is a new reality because of a world wide economic crisis. They will remain faithful to a non-elected lobbyist rather than do anything that remotely raises taxes for the wealthy. They are cowards hiding behind an outdated pledge and they simply refuse to do what the majority wants them to do according to the polls.
The other major reason they won't do it is because they can't give this President a victory even if it is good for the country. They must make him look ineffective and weak in order to make him a one-term president. After all, that is their one stated goal, not to help the people that are suffering the most.
This President is not a reckless man. He wants to do the responsible thing and actually pay for any new government spending. Republicans, on the other hand, passed the Bush tax cuts without paying for them, conducted two wars without paying for them, passed a prescription drug plan without paying for it, and expanded government with the Department of Homeland Security without paying for it. It is criminal to be that irresponsible with our tax dollars. And yet, this same party now wants to make cuts to the social safety net that affects the poor and middle class rather than raise taxes on the wealthy. If hypocricy were a crime they would all be in jail. Wake up, America!
Who Pays the Price?
Just think for a moment who is paying the price for the financial meltdown in this country? The Stock Market has rebounded and Wall Street is doing just fine. No one went to jail for fraudulently selling worthless derivatives, or offering mortgages to people who had no means to pay them back. The bonus money never stopped even when they were using tax payer dollars to sustain them. In fact, the rich got richer because they were too big to fail. So who really paid the price?
Our government had to spend trillions of dollars to avoid a complete financial meltdown of epic proportion. All of a sudden, deficits did matter and the Republicans who drove up those deficits for years under Bush found religion! They saw this as an opportunity to finally gut the social safety net of the New Deal and break the backs of the public sector unions all under the guise of government spending being unsustainable. Not a penny more in taxes would be added because that would hurt the wealthy who benefited the most from this Great Recession. Without revenue they were able to make cuts to teachers, social workers, law enforcement, and fire departments across this country. Basically, it was these middle class jobs that got cut first. Collective bargaining was eliminated in certain states. It was a dream come true for Republican Governors!
In the private sector, the battle cry was," Just be thankful you have a job!" This crisis was an opportunity to put off any wage increases for years, hire cheap labor, even get free labor from college interns! All the while, they were maximizing their profit margins and the CEO's were getting even larger bonuses. Once again, it was the middle class working stiff who had to be thankful for the crumbs that fell off the table. While the cost of energy, health insurance, and education increased, salaries remained stagnant, which translates to a loss. Unions made concessions and took wage freezes to prevent job loses, especially in Detroit.
Finally, services were cut for the poorest of the poor. Public transportation was cut or the fares increased dramatically. Rents increased, homes were lost, and jobs were not being created but rather exported to countries with cheap labor. The private sector increased their profit margins while laying off American workers. So the answer to the question originally stated is that those people who were least responsible for the calamity, the poor and the middle class, paid dearly for the antics of the financial industry. The Republican Party continues to protect and defend those people who caused this blight on our country. Shame on them and anyone who votes for these morally corrupt politicians. Wake up, America!
Our government had to spend trillions of dollars to avoid a complete financial meltdown of epic proportion. All of a sudden, deficits did matter and the Republicans who drove up those deficits for years under Bush found religion! They saw this as an opportunity to finally gut the social safety net of the New Deal and break the backs of the public sector unions all under the guise of government spending being unsustainable. Not a penny more in taxes would be added because that would hurt the wealthy who benefited the most from this Great Recession. Without revenue they were able to make cuts to teachers, social workers, law enforcement, and fire departments across this country. Basically, it was these middle class jobs that got cut first. Collective bargaining was eliminated in certain states. It was a dream come true for Republican Governors!
In the private sector, the battle cry was," Just be thankful you have a job!" This crisis was an opportunity to put off any wage increases for years, hire cheap labor, even get free labor from college interns! All the while, they were maximizing their profit margins and the CEO's were getting even larger bonuses. Once again, it was the middle class working stiff who had to be thankful for the crumbs that fell off the table. While the cost of energy, health insurance, and education increased, salaries remained stagnant, which translates to a loss. Unions made concessions and took wage freezes to prevent job loses, especially in Detroit.
Finally, services were cut for the poorest of the poor. Public transportation was cut or the fares increased dramatically. Rents increased, homes were lost, and jobs were not being created but rather exported to countries with cheap labor. The private sector increased their profit margins while laying off American workers. So the answer to the question originally stated is that those people who were least responsible for the calamity, the poor and the middle class, paid dearly for the antics of the financial industry. The Republican Party continues to protect and defend those people who caused this blight on our country. Shame on them and anyone who votes for these morally corrupt politicians. Wake up, America!
What an Embarrassment
What a sad commentary on the Republican Party! I have never seen such a pathetic group of candidates to be considered for the leader of the free world. We are the laughing stock of the world and late night TV is thrilled because the material writes itself. Between their brain freezes, lapses in memory, scandals, and extremist viewpoints, they would be lucky if they got elected dog catcher. They are tripping over each other to see who can be more conservative because the extremists have hijacked the party. By doing so they have driven away the moderates and the centrists needed to win the general election.
The lineup of front runners has made the Republican brand tarnished to say the least. First there was "The Donald" who was leading the pack with the support of the Birthers. Trump doubled down on President Obama's birth certificate insisting that he was not born in this country. When the state of Hawaii finally produced it, he was still skeptical which made him look even more foolish. Next was Michelle Bachmann who won the straw poll in Iowa. She makes Sara Palin look like a history scholar. She was knocked off by Rick Perry who embarrassed himself in almost every debate. His brain freeze moment will go down in history! After Rick came Mister" 999" Cain. He also had trouble thinking because there were a lot of things 'twirling in his head.' Women came out of the woodwork with all kinds of sexual harassment claims and affairs. And now Newt Gingrich has taken the lead. He has more baggage than an ocean liner. Newt was kicked out of Congress, cheated on his wife while she had cancer, and will flip flop his position to suit the audience.
Through it all, Willard Mitt Romney has been consistently at 20 to 25% which means the overwhelming majority of Republicans really don't like him. He is either not conservative enough, too Mormon, or too much of a flip-flopper. Maybe he is all three! Willard has changed his position so many times that he makes Newt look stable! Hanging over his head is the fact that his health care bill in Massachusetts is identical to ObamaCare. The Health Care Law is the number one target of Conservatives in this country and they just won't come out for Romney.
What has happened to the Republican Party? These people have made a mockery of the electoral process. The Republican brand is also leading us down the road to financial disaster because of their stubbornness concerning raising revenues on the wealthy. They completely disregard the will of the general public. Every poll shows that the people are in favor of raising taxes on those who can afford to pay more. But they won't budge because of a pledge to a lobbyist, Grover Norquist. The party that got us into this financial quagmire refuses to cooperate with our President purely for political reasons. People are suffering out there, losing their homes, their life savings, their pensions, and they still refuse to govern. They have no soul! They have sold out to extremist, right-wing Americans, and are out of step with mainstream Americans. Wake up, America!
The lineup of front runners has made the Republican brand tarnished to say the least. First there was "The Donald" who was leading the pack with the support of the Birthers. Trump doubled down on President Obama's birth certificate insisting that he was not born in this country. When the state of Hawaii finally produced it, he was still skeptical which made him look even more foolish. Next was Michelle Bachmann who won the straw poll in Iowa. She makes Sara Palin look like a history scholar. She was knocked off by Rick Perry who embarrassed himself in almost every debate. His brain freeze moment will go down in history! After Rick came Mister" 999" Cain. He also had trouble thinking because there were a lot of things 'twirling in his head.' Women came out of the woodwork with all kinds of sexual harassment claims and affairs. And now Newt Gingrich has taken the lead. He has more baggage than an ocean liner. Newt was kicked out of Congress, cheated on his wife while she had cancer, and will flip flop his position to suit the audience.
Through it all, Willard Mitt Romney has been consistently at 20 to 25% which means the overwhelming majority of Republicans really don't like him. He is either not conservative enough, too Mormon, or too much of a flip-flopper. Maybe he is all three! Willard has changed his position so many times that he makes Newt look stable! Hanging over his head is the fact that his health care bill in Massachusetts is identical to ObamaCare. The Health Care Law is the number one target of Conservatives in this country and they just won't come out for Romney.
What has happened to the Republican Party? These people have made a mockery of the electoral process. The Republican brand is also leading us down the road to financial disaster because of their stubbornness concerning raising revenues on the wealthy. They completely disregard the will of the general public. Every poll shows that the people are in favor of raising taxes on those who can afford to pay more. But they won't budge because of a pledge to a lobbyist, Grover Norquist. The party that got us into this financial quagmire refuses to cooperate with our President purely for political reasons. People are suffering out there, losing their homes, their life savings, their pensions, and they still refuse to govern. They have no soul! They have sold out to extremist, right-wing Americans, and are out of step with mainstream Americans. Wake up, America!
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