Monthly Archives: February 2009

Economy, Media, Politics

Socialism: Yes Or No

With bailouts and ‘stimulus’ plans and a new federal budget out there, all of which are a burden on our future generations, can it be that the fix is worse than the problem?

Under the cover of economic recovery, the Obama administration has managed to legislate a blend of socialism by that or any other name. It is nothing short of socialism via fiat.

The first question should be:

Do you want to shift the United States from a free-market capitalist society to a more socialistic one, controlling your bank, your health care and your welfare? YES or NO

This necessitates one more question:

Do you believe the government can do all that to your satisfaction?  YES or NO

With only its record to go on, the Obama administration is assuming the answer to the questions would be YES. And the  media watchdog is apparently of the same opinion.

Economy, Media, Politics

Gov. Crist: Short-Term, Short-Sighted

At his address to the nation last night, President Obama put into perspective exactly what was bothering me with Gov. Crist’s support for his so-called stimulus bill that was railroaded through Congress last week.

Florida is expected to receive some $12 billion in federal aid from the package. Crist says it is his job to represent the people in Florida, so if he can get $12 billion out of our government, he’ll take it. The day before the vote, about the bill, Crist said . . .

My concern is not about what’s best for one party or the other. My concern is what’s best for the state and what’s best for the people of Florida.

His reasoning is as short-sighted as can be. Never-mind that the stimulus bill is 75% of a government stimulus rather than an economic stimulus. Also never-mind that the President once again emphatically stated that there were no earmarks in that bill. All without the slightest challenge from the media on that false statement. The rationale seems to be that, after the first few hundred billion dollars in earmarks, there are no earmarks in that bill.

If Gov. Crist wants to better represent his constituents, he would be looking at the long term consequences this stimulus bill will do to our economy instead of reaching for the proverbial golden ring.

For his panhandling politic-speak,  Obama called Crist out when he said . . .

In other words, we have lived through an era where too often, short-term gains were prized over long-term prosperity; where we failed to look beyond the next payment, the next quarter, or the next election.

Governor Crist can forget whatever presidential aspirations he may have in is future. At least as a Republican. Supporting that bill for the reason he said ended that question.

links: RAW DATA: Transcript of Obama’s Address to Joint Session of Congress |

Gov. Charlie Crist takes heat from Republicans for supporting stimulus package

Economy, Politics

Stimulus Bill Signed Into Law

The porkulus bill was signed by President Obama today. Don’t think that it is the economy he is fixing with this bill. This bill does more to reinforce a Democrat majority, or so he believes, than it does to stimulate the economy. Establishing permanent political power comes first.

Ever notice that it is never the government that makes a sacrifice, to do with less, or without?  Just lower your expectations for the country. This is how our image around the world will improve.

On the flip-side, this administration will find out that economic principles and political ones are not the same. When it becomes obvious that this bill has only made matters worse, we might see the people voting for change in Washington one more time.

link: Obama signs stimulus bill, readies homeowner plan

Economy, Media, Politics

Stimulus Day, Friday 13th

History is made today, Friday the 13th, when two houses of congress vote on a ‘stimulus’ bill that they have not read. And what they have not read, will guarantee that the next couple generations will still be paying our bill.

How’s this for ‘change?’ President Obama’s campaign promises include transparency. Does that include enough time to read what is in the 1,100 page bill? The bill that Republican input was not allowed. The ‘agreement’ was 48 hours to review the bill before voting on it. Turns out to be around 8 hours.

Today also marks the official death of the media’s role as a government watchdog. The media has so powerful a responsibility that they have the constitutional protection in the 1st Amendment to be one. That dog died today.

Democrats in Washington don’t want the people to know what is in the bill before they vote on it. A lot of what is in it this ‘stimulus’ bill  are things that, if put to a vote on their own, would not pass. So the less you know about it, the better.

It is obvious why the Democrat-controlled congress wants to rush this bill sight unseen, to the President’s desk. But what is the media’s excuse? That dog died.

Look how the watchdog AP, or make that the lapdog AP, covers the events of today. Not one mention of the fact that Democrats reneged on the deal to have 48 hours to read it. No mention of the fact that there was not enough time for anyone to read the bill. The rush to the vote is called muscling the bill through, virtually on their own. Sounds like a good thing doesn’t it. In the article, look for a mention that no one, including the media, knew what was in the bill when they voted on it. Who would have thought that the media would be satisfied with the voting and passage of a bill, the contents of which are not known?  AP doesn’t know what is in it. What is worse, AP doesn’t care to find out what is in it.

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a major victory for President Barack Obama, Democrats muscled a huge, $787 billion stimulus bill through Congress late Friday night in hopes of combating the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Republican opposition was nearly unanimous.

Quick survey here. Everyone who thinks the media would be just as lax if McCain/Palin were in The White House, please raise your hand.

link:  Democrats muscle huge stimulus through Congress

Originally posted 2/13/2009

UPDATE 2/14/2009:

Survey results from yesterday are borne out of today’s headlines. From O-AP.

Savoring win, Obama celebrates `major milestone’

Savoring his first big victory in Congress, President Barack Obama on Saturday celebrated the newly passed $787 billion economic stimulus bill as a “major milestone on our road to recovery. ” Officials said he would sign the measure on Tuesday in Denver.

Media

Casket Chasers Of Fallen Heroes

During the last administration, the media was prevented from taking pictures of the flag-draped coffins.  At President Obama’s first prime time press conference, he was asked whether he would reverse that decision and let the media take pictures of the flag-draped coffins.

I didn’t like it then, and I still don’t like it. The reason the media wants that access is obvious, and it has nothing to do with respect for the families and their spouse, father, son, daughter, mother, brother, or sister that paid the ultimate price for our country.

I have no reservation whatsoever in saying that pictures of our fallen heroes should be off limits for the media. The media’s interest should stop at the announcement of the fatality. Beyond that it is a private family matter of no business of the media.

But when asked about this, the new Commander In Chief did not have the courage to answer that question. As the Commander In Chief, he ought to have an opinion about that, and ought to be able to give it. But what he gave is, oh, we’re looking into it. Translation: This issue hasn’t been focus group tested yet, so I’ll tell you what my position is as soon as they tell me what it is.

I’m not exaggerating. Here is the transcript.

QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. President. You’ve promised to send more troops to Afghanistan. And since you’ve been very clear about a time table to withdraw our combat troops from Iraq within 16 months, I wonder what’s your time table to withdraw troops eventually from Afghanistan?

And related to that, there’s a Pentagon policy that bans media coverage of the flag-draped coffins from coming into Dover Air Force Base. And back in 2004, then-Senator Joe Biden said that it was shameful for dead soldiers to be, quote, snuck back into the country under the cover of night.

You’ve promised unprecedented transparency, openness in your government. Will you overturn that policy, so the American people can see the full human cost of war?

MR. OBAMA: Your question is timely. We got reports that four American service members have been killed in Iraq today. And you know, obviously our thoughts and prayers go out to the families.

I’ve said before that, you know, people have asked me, “When did it hit you that you are now president?” And what I told them was the most sobering moment is signing letters to the families of our fallen heroes. It reminds you of the responsibilities that you carry in this office and the consequences of decisions that you make.

Now with respect to the policy of opening up media to loved ones being brought back home, we are in the process of reviewing those policies in conversations with the Department of Defense. So I don’t want to give you an answer now, before I’ve evaluated that review and understand all the implications involved.

Upon second read, there is another possibility as to why the President did not  answer the question. The problem might be that most people, democrats included, would find it hard to make a case to again put them on display in such a way. Which leaves only the far left, his political base, to be offended if he were to say that he would not seek to overturn the current protocol. I doubt they can focus group a good reason to put the flag-draped caskets back on the newspaper’s front page. Well, I’m hoping.

But for someone who makes all his own decisions, why is he stalling on answering this one? His empty-suit is showing again.

link: Obama’s Prime-time Press Briefing

Economy, Politics

The Change We Got

Being guided by rule one, ‘Never allow a crisis to go to waste, they are opportunities to do big things,’ as explained by President Obama’s Chief of Staff Rahm Emanual, Rush Limbaugh sums up the first twenty days of the Obama administration and its cast of characters and what is actually in the Stimulus Porkulus bill. It’s no accident that Obama chose Limbaugh to be the target, instead of  ‘his’ so-called stimulus bill. To single him out, it shows how effective Limbaugh must be.

Limbaugh Video HERE

As an aside to the Porkulus Bill itself, did you hear what RINO Sen. Arlen Spector (R-PA), one of three RINO’s that voted FOR this big government spending bill, had to say about what’s in the bill? He admitted today on Fox News that he was unaware of all the health care-related items in the bill. He said too that he was a proponent for having more (try any) debate and input from Republicans because more time was needed to find out what is in the bill, and asked Obama why the rush to judgement? This, after he voted for it.

Essentially, in one sentence, the man who voted for the bill is admitting that he didn’t know himself what was in it, and needed more time to find out all of what is in the bill. I know, this doesn’t make any sense. Is it dementia,  medication, or an uncontrollable urge to be ‘loved’ that causes him to act this way? Pick one.

Media, Pensacola, Politics

Blogs, They're Out There

Article in today’s Pensacola News Journal touches on political blogs in Pensacola, and then some. The Lunch Counter got some print. Syndicated columnist Mark O’Brien said . . .

“The Lunch Counter,” https://rosscalloway.com, offers daily blasts at liberals. President Obama “doesn’t have the class to show a modicum of respect for his predecessor,” writes Calloway, who makes a living by selling excellent sandwiches at Philly’s Cheesesteaks on Creighton Road.

It is a matter of record, you know, that the cheesesteak is a non-political sandwich, which is enjoyed by the folks on both sides of the aisle. The plug for Philly’s is much appreciated.

link: Blogs offer Pensacola new views

Economy, Politics

Gingrich Video On Stimulus Bill

Newt Gingrich on the so-called stimulus bill, the video. Graciously lifted from .BlogRead.

Call your Senators today at 202-224-3121 and tell them to oppose the stimulus package. And for good measure, send them an email too.

Let’s be honest, it’s not really a stimulus bill. It’s a big government, pork-laden spending bill filled with wasteful projects.

In this new video, Newt outlines in stark terms exactly why this bill, as currently written, is not worthy of our support.

H/T Dan Kotman @ American Solutions

Uncategorized

Social Security, National Ponzi Scheme

While Madoff is freshly implanted in the news for the second largest Ponzi scheme in the nation’s history. You thought it was the largest ever.  Put to the test, I have to agree with Walter Williams, that today’s Social Security System is the largest Ponzi scheme in America.

We have a decreasing number of workers contributing to an increasing number of recipients. Time will come in the near future that the program runs out of money. And this will happen unless something dramatic happens in Washington. Another problem that won’t go away.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was set up to combat fraudulent practices. The SEC’s website explains that “Ponzi schemes are a type of illegal pyramid scheme named for Charles Ponzi, who duped thousands of New England residents into investing in a postage stamp speculation scheme back in the 1920s.” It goes on to say, “Decades later, the Ponzi scheme continues to work on the ‘rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul’ principle, as money from new investors is used to pay off earlier investors until the whole scheme collapses.” That is how the SEC described the recent Bernard Madoff $50 billion Ponzi scheme, “a stunning fraud that appears to be of epic proportions.”

A Ponzi scheme does not generate any wealth whatsoever; that is why it ultimately collapses. As Circuit Judge Anderson said in the 1922 Lowell v. Brown case, the Ponzi scheme was “simply the old fraud of paying the earlier comers out of the contributions of the later comers.” So long as the number of late comers — you might call them suckers — grows, the fraudulent scheme has life.

We have a national Ponzi scheme where Congress collects about $785 billion in Social Security taxes from about 163 million workers to send out $585 billion to 50 million Social Security recipients. Social Security’s trustees tell us that the surplus goes into a $2.2 trillion trust fund to meet future obligations. The problem is whatever difference between Social Security taxes and benefits paid out is spent by Congress. What the Treasury Department does is give the Social Security Trust Fund non-marketable “special issue government securities” that are simply bookkeeping entries that are IOUs.

According to Social Security trustee estimates, around 2016 the amount of Social Security benefits paid will exceed taxes collected. That means one of two things, or both, must happen: Congress will raise taxes and/or slash promised Social Security benefits. Each year the situation will get worse since the number of retirees is predicted to increase relative to the number in the workforce paying taxes. In 1940, there were 42 workers per retiree, in 1950 there were 16, today there are 3 and in 20 or 30 years there will be 2 or fewer workers per retiree.

Social Security is unsustainable because it is not meeting the first order condition of a Ponzi scheme, namely expanding the pool of suckers. Social Security has been one congressional lie after another since its inception. Here’s what a 1936 Social Security pamphlet said: “After the first 3 years — that is to say, beginning in 1940 — you will pay, and your employer will pay, 1.5 cents for each dollar you earn, up to $3,000 a year … beginning in 1943, you will pay 2 cents, and so will your employer, for every dollar you earn for the next 3 years. … And finally, beginning in 1949, twelve years from now, you and your employer will each pay 3 cents on each dollar you earn, up to $3,000 a year. That is the most you will ever pay.” The pamphlet also said, “Beginning November 24, 1936, the United States government will set up a Social Security account for you. … The checks will come to you as a right.”

That’s another lie. In .Flemming vs Nestor (1960), the U.S. Supreme court held that you have no “accrued property rights” to a Social Security check. That means Congress can do anything it wishes with Social Security. There is little or nothing that can be done to prevent the economic and political chaos that will result from the collapse of Social Security.

Today’s recipients of Social Security, along with their powerful AARP lobby, represent a powerful political force. Few politicians are willing to risk their careers alienating today’s senior citizens for the benefit of Americans in 2040. After all what do today’s seniors and politicians care about a 2040 calamity? They will be dead by then.

Born in Philadelphia in 1936, Walter E. Williams holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from California State University (1965) and a master’s degree (1967) and doctorate (1972) in economics from the University of California at Los Angeles.

Economy, Energy, Iran, Media, Politics, Russia, Venezuela

The Language Of Politics, Can We Talk?

Ever wondered why we haven’t already achieved energy independence? There is no one you can find in Washington, from any party, that won’t say they are for energy independence. Everyone is for energy independence. So what’s the problem?

The problem is the political language barrier. Probably first invented by President Clinton when his Lewinsky defense was, ‘it depends on what the definition of IS is.’ The political parties today are not speaking the same language and the media is speaking the dialect of the Left. It presumes that the other side is just stupid and there is no common ground to be found.

Energy Independence, the Right– The whole point of energy independence as far as conservatives and most Republicans are concerned is primarily a security issue. The fact that we are buying 70 percent of the oil what we currently use from foreign sources, most of which don’t like us very much, is a point not forgotten by those on the political right. Conservatives are reminded of the gas lines and rationing that went on here under the Carter administration after Iran started using their oil as a weapon against us. Like Russia, btw, is doing to its neighbors today and Chaves has threatened to do to us. To mitigate this concern, to become energy independent means to develop enough of our own resources to protect our own national security should the middle east one day shut off the valves. Or, if Iran blows them up.

There would be two other benefits to becoming energy independent. One would be a private sector, high paying, job creation project in states all over the country that wouldn’t increase our national debt one thin dime. It would also stop the annual flow of $700 billion to countries that would just as easily cut us off and sell to China or any other country, and keep that money right here in our own country, and putting it to work in our own economy.

Unfortunately, you will be hard pressed to find a liberal speaking to the national security aspect of oil resources in the United States.

Energy Independence, the Left– to the left it means energy replacement. That is to say, not to use fossil fuels. To be energy independent does not mean to have and use our own resources as opposed to someone else’s. It means to not use our own resources in favor of some technology of the future that has yet to be developed. The ‘green’ lobby, high on the list of political allies to Democrats, is leading the agenda to this definition of energy independence. This is fine and dandy in a perfect world. But it totally ignores the security aspect of not having enough of our own resources if, say tomorrow, OPEC or an oil producing State decides to cut production or worse, cut us off, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

A fact that can’t be ignored is the fact that fossil fuels are the fuel for the worlds’ economic engine and will stay that way unless and until some other source can be brought to market. To not exploit our own resources, as a bridge to some technology of the future and our own national security, is just as irresponsible as forcing us to limit the use of fossil fuels, no matter where they come from, to the detriment of our economy.

While developing this post, other terms and words have come to light that play a major role in inhibiting economic, social, and political progress. Here is a list of some that came out of the news in just the last 3 days. It is what we, as conservatives, are up against.

  • Spending / Investing
  • Bipartisan / the political right ignoring their principles and voting with Democrats.
  • Shovel Ready / Shovel ready in a few years
  • Economic Stimulus/ big government stimulus
  • Opening up the airways / Restricting the airways
  • Tax Cuts / Income redistribution
  • Tax Incentives / Tax Increase ($18b on Oil Companies)
  • Employee Free Choice Act / Employee No Choice Act