February 15, 2013
G’Day!
I agree with Dr. Charles Krauthammer, who indicated on National TV after this week’s State of the Union address, that President Obama’s intention is to transform America into a European-style Socialist State. Many of my articles over the last two years have suggested that Obama is a “Neo-socialist” – a person who believes in government control over all aspects of the economy, including wealth redistribution, regulations, “Executive Orders,” and central planning. (Neo-socialism is different from traditional ‘Socialism,” which is based on government “Ownership” of businesses and industries.) Neo-socialists want political and economic central control over the country but not the responsibility of ownership or consequences. Unfortunately, both socialism and neo-socialism are equally destructive to economic growth and individual liberties and has historically failed or is failing in nations that have pursued it. Is this the future you want for America?
Based on the President’s “Inaugural Speech” and the “State of the Union Address”, it appears evident that Obama and the Democrats have no real intention of reducing government spending, reforming entitlements, or even seriously addressing our federal deficit and debt crises. However, they are intent on more spending, more taxes, more regulations, more debt, and less freedom for the American people. Resuming the pattern of his first term, Obama also seems to be more interested in fixing “Blame” on everyone but himself (especially Republicans) for everything wrong, when he should be exercising bipartisan leadership to resolve our problems – especially the ones he has created or aggravated. In my opinion Obama’s idea of a “Grand Bargain” is to raise taxes by every means possible, including class warfare, to fund “Bigger Government,” “Entitlements,” “Green Energy,” “Climate Control,” “Wealth Redistribution” and any other project his neo-socialist ideology deems desirable. I believe America’s best days could be ahead but “Obammunism” is not the way to solve problems and is not good for jobs, the economy, the Middle Class, or the future of our great country. We need a President who is willing to represent ALL the people fairly, exercise impartial leadership, and take responsibility for the consequences of his actions and policies.
So how has Obama really performed so far? During his first Presidential Campaign, he promised “Change” to transform our government. Unfortunately, he has been remarkably successful in moving America in the direction of European-style socialism and a culture of dependency. In only four years the size of government has increased from 20% of GDP to 25% of GDP. Our annual Federal Spending has increased from $2.9 trillion to $3.8 trillion (an increase of over 30%) and is expected to continue for Obama’s second term. Our annual Federal Deficit has increased from $0.5 trillion to over $1 trillion (an increase of 50%). Our National Debt has increased from $10 trillion to over $16 trillion (a 60% increase and now more than 100% of GDP). In the first two years Democrats passed massive new legislation for government-controlled healthcare, sweeping regulations over the financial industry, and the use of “Executive Orders” by the EPA, the Department of Energy, and the unconstitutional appointments to the NLRB to regulate personal and business use of private property and erode personal freedoms. The Democrat controlled Senate has not passed a budget in nearly four years. Welfare dependency has increased significantly and forced wealth redistribution through higher taxes on the “Rich” was recently enacted (and Obama wants more). The economic results have been the worst recovery in decades and a decline in GDP in the 4th Quarter of 2012. Clearly, Obama has delivered on his promise to “Change” our country. Are these the “Changes” for which you voted? Do you believe continuing these policies will solve our problems and advance the future for our children?
In my opinion it is not too late to correct this adverse trend toward national decline and save our nation. America can resolve its fiscal and debt crisis and restore our country to a solid foundation of responsible government and future prosperity. However, this can only occur if we return to the principles that have made America the greatest and most exceptional country in the world. These principles are: Constitutionally protected individual liberties, free markets, sound fiscal and monetary policies, economic growth, and Constitutionally limited government. The “Obammunists” are rapidly leading us away from our founding principles and toward a future of economic stagnation, shared poverty, limited personal freedom, and dependence on government for much of our survival. Under Obama, America is quickly declining into a centrally controlled overregulated neo-socialist state with increasingly limited opportunities for aspiring individuals and companies to succeed.
So what should we do? We have a republic with democratically elected representatives. It is up to us to determine and vote for the representatives that place the future of America before politics and who will stand up for the best interests of the people and the nation. The first and most vital action we can take is to become informed about the issues and vote out the “Obammunists” in the 2014 election. This one single accomplishment will at least stop the decay and give us the opportunity to correct the damage being done by Obama and the Democrats. Currently, we should demand our President and Congress concentrate on resolving our fiscal/debt crisis, get our economy back on track, and create productive private sector jobs. As I outlined in many of my 45 previous articles, this can be done and we need to do it. The American People should not be the servants of the government. Government should be the servant of the people.
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
October 17, 2012
G’Day!
First, hooray for Ryan in the Vice Presidential Debate! He withstood a frontal attack by the Democrats’ chosen “Pit Bull”, Joe Biden and Won! Biden inappropriately and disrespectfully interrupted, laughed, and expressed contempt while Ryan was discussing the serious issues facing America. Biden’s rude and comic behavior illustrated his and Obama’s disdain for the problems facing our country. Also, it is important to note that Biden misrepresented (or lied?) on major issues approximately five times in the course of the debate. (Remember, Vice President Biden is only a heartbeat from the Presidency – is he your choice as a backup?)
Congratulations to Romney for beating Obama again (& biased liberal moderator, Candy Crowley) in the second Presidential Debate with honesty, strength, new ideas, and an unbiased picture of the declining American economy. Equally important, Romney has new ideas and reiterated his 5-Part Plan to correct the Obama economic malaise – Energy Independence, Free Trade, a Balanced Budget, Improved Education, and Tax Reform to support Small Businesses. For his part, Obama merely offered a rehash of his failed policies of the last 3 ½ years, a belief that taxing the “rich” will solve the debt crisis and create wealth and prosperity, and repeated his “bumper sticker” slogans blaming everyone but himself. Obama says that the Republicans want to return us to the failed policies of past. Does he mean free market capitalism, personal freedom, and limited government? Or does he mean the failed policies of socialism, communism, and wealth redistribution, which have historically failed and are currently failing in Europe?
Romney also continues to win women voters with his focus on fairness, jobs, the economy, and bringing down the cost and improving choices in healthcare. Obama appears to believe that the important women’s healthcare issues are taxpayer funded abortions and birth control. If misinformation (deliberate lies?) and character assassination plus unsustainable deficits and potential national economic disaster are appealing to American voters, Obama will win in a landslide. Obama, Biden, and the Democrats have degenerated into employing the desperation tactics used by losers with no rational alternatives – they blame others for the problems; attack, ridicule, and misrepresent their opponents positions; attempt to change the subject; and accuse their opponents of lying! How low can they go? Fortunately, I have faith in the intelligence of the majority of Americans to think for themselves and see through the misinformation and character assassination techniques being used by Obama, the Democrats, and supported by the Liberal Media.
This election is a clear choice between individual freedoms, high growth free market capitalism, fiscally responsible limited government, and saving “The American Dream” vs. government-restricted personal and property rights, a slow growth government controlled economy, irresponsible and unsustainable growth in government, entitlements, and our National Debt, and destroying “The American Dream”. I sincerely believe that, if Obama and Biden are reelected, we are at best facing European style socialism and dependency, increasing taxes for ALL who pay them, and continued economic decline. At worse, we could face exploding National Debt and ultimately national financial collapse. Be aware and vote accordingly!
Think and remember that the freedoms, opportunities, and economic growth we have enjoyed for over 200 years were the result of hundreds of thousands of loyal and dedicated Americans who unselfishly fought and died in many wars to create and protect them. These brave men and women unselfishly served to protect our freedoms and to promote freedom and democracy not only at home but also throughout the world. Obama is deliberately or accidentally undermining and eroding these hard-won individual freedoms and our capitalist economy in order to bring centrally controlled wealth redistributed “fairness” through “Neo-socialism”. Under neo-socialism the government does not own businesses, it forces them through regulations and rules to conform to the wishes of appointed (not elected) central administrators. (Think of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), Obamacare “Death Panels”, the Dodd-Frank “Consumer Financial Protection Bureau” and “Financial Stability Oversight Council”, etc.).
As I have said before, the growth of Western Civilization and especially the United States was fuelled by the expansion of individual liberties, property rights, and a free market capitalist society. Our nation was established on the fundamental principle that government is the servant of the people, not that people are servants of government. It’s time to take back our country and return to the individual liberties, free markets, economic growth, and limited government we have long enjoyed. Vote in November!
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
September 14, 2012
G’Day!
On November 6, 2012 Americans will have the most important opportunity in our lifetimes to determine the future course for our great country. At stake is nothing less than the fiscal survival of our currency, our individual freedoms, and our nation. Obama’s $1.3 Trillion annual deficits, the $16 Trillion National Debt, and our expanding entitlement programs are totally out of control. They will eventually destroy our country if they are not corrected. For important information about President Obama’s background and possible agenda, which have not been reported in the liberal media, I recommend that all voters regardless of political affiliation see the factual and unbiased documentary, “2016: Obama’s America”. This highly successful film is based on a NY Times Bestseller by Dinesh D’Souza and co-produced by Gerald R. Molen, who produced “Schindler’s List”. Before you vote, think very seriously and very deeply about Obama’s agenda, the policy alternatives presented by both parties, and their implications for the future of our children, ourselves, and America. Never in recent history has the intelligence and participation of American citizens been more crucial to our future.
President Obama in his Acceptance Speech at the DNC said, “This election is the clearest choice between two different visions for America.” ABSOLUTELY TRUE! At that same convention former President Bill Clinton regarding fixing the National Debt said, “It’s Arithmetic!” In the 1992 campaign Clinton also said, “It’s the Economy, Stupid!” Clinton is also right (no pun intended, but appropriate)! Unfortunately for America, the mistakes are that Obama and the Democrats are wrong with their “Vision”, wrong in their ability to do “Arithmetic”, and wrong in their performance on the “Economy”. The Democrats want to make this election about personality, misinformation, & blame of others for failure. Republicans want the election to be about rational policies, truth, and solutions. Obama and the Democrats, supported by a biased liberal media, are counting on the “Middle Class” to be too stupid to realize that they are being manipulated by words not action. Michael Knox Beran, author and contributing editor of City Journal, said, “A campaign based on so little comes perilously close to being an exercise in self-pity and a study in the very nearly pathological egotism of a man afraid to lose.”
This election IS the clearest choice between two different visions for America, which I have identified as Republican (R) and Democrat (D) in the following comparisons. Ignoring personality, as we should, this election is a clear choice between sound fiscal policy (R) vs. unsustainable fiscal policy (D), less government (R) vs. more government (D), more individual and business freedom (R) vs. less individual and business freedom (D), lower taxes (R) vs. higher taxes (D), free market capitalism (R) vs. centrally controlled neo-socialism (D), stronger national defense (R) vs. weakened national defense (D), private doctor-based healthcare (R) vs. central government mandated healthcare (D), strong foreign policy (R) vs. weak and apologetic foreign policy, and, perhaps most importantly, more support for the US Constitution (R) vs. less support for the US Constitution (D). These are the real issues we will be voting for or against in November. Do not make the mistake of letting the soaring rhetoric and a prejudiced liberal media systematically brainwash and deceive you into failing to think for yourself and to vote for what is right for the country.
The Democrats have tried hard to use slogans that imply that they alone care for the American people. Really? Can anyone NOT believe that both parties want everyone to have, “a fair shot”, “get a fair share”, and “play by the same rules” (see “Obammunism-What is ‘Fair’”)? Does anyone really think that Romney & Ryan are anti-women, anti-poor, anti-elderly, or anti-immigration? Can anyone seriously believe that Republicans will “end Medicare as we know it”, “throw grandma off the cliff”, or raise taxes on the “Middle Class”, when both Romney and Ryan categorically deny this. Can any intelligent person believe that a choice to support the overwhelming success of individual freedoms and free market capitalism vs. the historical and current failures in Europe of centrally planned socialism represent a “return to the failed policies of the past”? Can any thinking person believe that Obama’s “tax the rich and spend policy” will solve unsustainable entitlements, a $1.3 Trillion annual deficit, and the $16 Trillion National Debt Crisis? Does anyone believe that Democrats (other than Clinton) can do Math? As Clint Eastwood said at the RNC, “When someone doesn’t do the job we’ve got to let them go!” We will have our chance to “let them go” in November.
I believe that both Obama and Romney are essentially good men, as are Biden and Ryan. Many of the objectives for both parties overlap. Both want job creation, economic growth, and equal opportunities for all Americans. In addition, Romney/Ryan and the Republicans support The Constitution, private property rights, a realistic job-creating energy proposal, private doctor/patient-based healthcare, and actually have a plan to fix the Federal Deficit, solve the National Debt crisis, and balance the Federal Budget. The differences are in the communications, the vision and the policies.
This election IS a National Intelligence Test for the American people. Are we wise enough to study the issues, see through the fog, and vote our own minds for what is best for our country? What do you want, a President with a charming smile and clever rhetoric dedicated to his own reelection or a President dedicated to solving America’s problems with serious policies? I have faith in the ultimate wisdom of the American people to support individual freedom, free markets, sound fiscal and monetary policy, economic growth, and limited government over the Obama alternative. For me the answer is clear – “Save America-Elect Romney & Ryan in November!”
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
August 30, 2012
G’Day!
Romney and Ryan! Hooray! The Republicans have chosen intelligent, honest, dedicated, and responsible candidates for President and Vice President of our country. Unfortunately, Obama and Biden are currently still in office. They cannot be replaced fast enough for me. The longer Obama and the Democrats continue in power, the greater the decline of America. In my opinion, a vote for Obama and the Democrats is suicidal for our exceptional nation. I trust and believe that the American people are wise enough to see through the rhetoric of deception, division, and blame and recognize the true economic and social failures of Obama’s centrally planned socialism. In November we must vote Obama and enough Democrats out of office to save our country from financial collapse under a mountain of unsustainable debt, which in the next week will reach $16 Trillion or over $50,000 for every man, woman, and child in America. This is an increase of approximately 60% since Obama was elected and is absolutely intolerable!
The team of Romney and Ryan are real Americans who personally share and support the opportunities and values inherent in “The American Dream”. They believe in the values expressed in “The Declaration of Independence” of equal opportunity for all to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. They further believe in strong national defense, individual freedom, free market capitalism, sound fiscal and monetary policy, freedom of religion, and Constitutionally limited government. Unlike Obama, Romney actually has a business-friendly five point plan to correct our fiscal and debt crisis, create millions of new private-sector jobs, save Social Security & Medicare, and get America back on a path to prosperity. Fortune Magazine summarized the five key areas in the plan as follows: “(1) Aggressively promote domestic energy development, especially fossil fuels. (2) Expand the market for U.S. goods overseas by negotiating new trade agreements and standing up to China on intellectual-property and currency issues. (3) Improve workforce skills by transferring job-training programs to the states and going after teachers’ unions, which, he says, stand in the way of school choice and better instruction. (4) Attack the deficit through budget cuts, not tax increases. And (5), reshape the regulatory climate to “encourage and promote small business” rather than swamp it. That last item covers his most consistent and passionate campaign pledge, the repeal of the Affordable Care Act — “reshaping health care reform,” he says, “by replacing Obamacare with measures that will bring down the cost of health insurance rather than, as Obamacare does, increasing it.” This plan, combined with the Romney-Ryan Budget and a proposed “Cap” on Government Spending at 20% of GDP, is an excellent start.
On the other hand, Obama has America on a suicidal path to fiscal and economic failure with no serious plan to grow the economy, create private sector jobs, and reduce the national debt and deficit. Obama’s alternative is more of the same: more government spending, more government regulations, more government taxes, more government control, and less personal and business freedom. Obama doesn’t seem to care about our national security, the US Constitution, our allies abroad, personal liberty, private property rights, economic growth, free market capitalism, or traditional American values. Apparently, Obama cares more about wealth redistribution, bigger and bigger government, labor unions, and, most importantly, personal reelection. Unlike Obama, Romney and Ryan are telling us the truth about the economic crisis we face and have logical and reasonable plans to correct the Obama debacle over the next decade. Their plans are not radical but rational and should be supported by a majority of Americans who want our country to grow and prosper.
Obama is the antithesis of nearly everything I believe about America & virtually everything that has made America exceptional. The centrally controlled “trickle up poverty” collectivist policies of dependency & unsustainable entitlements by Obama and the Democrats are not working in America, are creating crisis and potential disaster in Europe, and have failed historically. Obama has had his opportunity and he has failed as a leader. Perhaps his failure was inevitable given his serious lack of qualifications when he was elected. It is time to replace him and Vice President Biden with a truly qualified and experienced leadership team.
The growth of Western Civilization and especially the United States was fuelled by the expansion of individual liberties, private property rights, and a free market capitalist society. Our nation was established on the basic principle that government is the servant of the people, not that the people are the servants of government. It’s time to take back our country and return to the individual liberties, free markets, economic growth, and limited government we have long enjoyed. The United States of America is the greatest, most prosperous, most unselfish, and most exceptional country in history. There is still an opportunity to save The American Dream but time is rapidly running out. Vote for the real American “Hope & Change” offered by Romney and Ryan in November.
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
April 30, 2012
G’Day!
When I started this Blog in February 2011, it was not intended to be political but, after a year of following our President and Congress carefully, I believe I have no choice. My overall assessment is that Obama and the Democrats, what I call the “Obammunists”, are determined to fundamentally change the culture, prosperity, and exceptionalism of America into a huge centrally governed socialist nation where hard work, innovation, achievement, and success are penalized and indolence, obedience, and dependence are rewarded. Obama is actively pursuing a “Race to the Bottom” policy of economic wealth redistribution where the general population and industry (except the chosen “Obammunist” elite) are equally poor and dependent on government for survival. As I have said before, it sounds like communism to me. The Republicans are not perfect but at least they are trying to save our Constitution and our country from becoming Greece or perhaps Russia. If the Obama Administration’s policies are pursued, America is on a path of potential self-destruction that is unnecessary, unwise, and undesirable. I call on all freedom-loving Americans to become politically active, to get out the vote, and to defeat Obama in November.
Obama is acting like a man who would be king and is displaying the ego to believe he can accomplish it. Perhaps the clearest indicator of excessive self-image is someone who blames everyone else for bad decisions and bad results and continues to actively pursue and promote his mistakes. So far he has blamed his failures on former President Bush, the Republicans, Congress, the Tea Party, millionaires and billionaires, Wall Street, Europe, and recently launched an advance attack on The Supreme Court over Obamacare. He has been campaigning with our taxpayer dollars to divide the country by economic class, ethnicity, gender, religion, age, and entitlements. Charles Krauthammer recently predicted this could be “The dirtiest campaign you’ve ever seen.”
Obama’s ego is off the scale. He appears to believe that he is always right and anyone who doesn’t agree with him is wrong. Obama appears to believe that Americans are so naïve and gullible he can continue to be “charming” and successfully blame everyone but himself for the failures and bad policies of his administration. I believe that the American people are smart enough to see through his organized propaganda campaign of blame and misinformation. He is following other self-centered historical European kings and dictators who believed that a distortion of truth repeated often enough and combined with the use of government force will be tolerated by sufficient population to acquire and retain authoritarian power. Do you want to reelect a man who has been so wrong and made so many mistakes and still believes in his infallibility? The “Obammunists” are very dangerous to our Constitution and our culture of free market capitalism, constitutionally protected individual freedoms, entrepreneurship, and limited federal government. These are the foundations that have made America exceptional for over 200 years and, with our help will keep it strong, free, and prosperous for the future.
The “Obammunists” are counting on a silent majority of Americans to be apathetic and to believe the politics of misinformation that is being proclaimed to divide our nation. Obama is expecting freedom-loving Americans to stay at home in November and allow the organized leftwing socialist (communist?) labor unions, those receiving entitlements, and their supporters determine the election outcome. We must not let that happen! We must become passionate about saving our country for our children. The Founding Fathers established the Constitutional principle that government is the servant of the people not vice versa. We have the opportunity in November to correct the course of our country and put it back on the right track of liberty, capitalism, economic growth, and limited government. Study the issues and candidates and vote accordingly.
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
February 24, 2012
G’Day!
Tax and Spend! Spend and Tax! Spend, Spend, Spend! These are the only fiscal policies the President appears to support. They were also reflected in his populist State of the Union oration in January. President Obama’s socialist concept for our country is painfully transparent. Higher taxes, excessive federal spending, unsustainable entitlements, reductions in National Defense, and another fiscal deficit of approximately $1 trillion for 2013 are all included in his push for more and bigger central government. Obama appears to believe in “Trickle-down Government”, where a parasitic government extracts wealth created by the productive private sector, adds an administrative processing fee, and returns the residual to government selected individuals and businesses in the hope for “stimulated” economic growth. Does this concept make any sense?
The Democrat-controlled Senate has not passed a budget in over three years. In every year of the Obama Administration federal deficits have exceeded $1 trillion (in 8 years of President Bush the maximum federal deficit was $0.5 trillion). Obama claims that his new budget “saves” approximately $4 trillion over the next ten years. It actually increases the cumulative deficit and debt over this ten-year period by approximately $6 trillion. Other than National Defense, his proposed budget makes no serious attempt to reduce government discretionary spending or entitlements. It appears that the President’s rhetoric is to create class warfare intended to improve his chances for reelection and not for the future benefit of our nation. How far behind Greece are we?
In my opinion, this budget and the State of the Union speech are more of what I call “Obammunism” and is bad for our country. “Obammunism” is essentially turning America into a centrally planned, European-style, bureaucratic, welfare state. This concept is based on a socialist doctrine of forced economic equality determined by an arbitrary bureaucratic definition of “Fairness” or “Fair Share”. Obama apparently wants to establish a socialist nanny state by transferring wealth from the successful businesses and individuals above a government-determined wealth “Threshold” to those below this level. “Obammunism” penalizes hard work and achievement and rewards idleness and failure. Simultaneously, it is stifling economic growth, promoting class warfare, lowering the potential standard of living for all citizens (especially the middle class), and continuing our nation’s decline under a mountain of debt. Obama’s policies continue to undermine our Constitution, our heritage, our culture, and our fundamental principles of individual freedom, free markets, sound fiscal and monetary policy, economic growth, and limited government.
Consider this, who determines “Fair Share”? Under Capitalism, “Fair Share” is objectively determined by the choices of the people in a free market. Under “Obammunism”, bureaucrats subjectively and arbitrarily determine “Fair Share” and impose it on the people. What is to protect you from the “Bureaucratic Elite” changing the wealth “Threshold” from $1 million, to $250,000, to $100,000, to $75,000 or lower? If you support Obama’s policies, nothing can prevent the “Government” from arbitrarily changing “Fair Share” to adversely penalize more and more successful people. If you work hard and succeed in improving yourself and your family, what is to prevent the government from penalizing you for becoming “Rich”?
A society built on “Obammunism” has few incentives for anyone to create value (except bureaucrats, who subjectively divide the wealth, frequently among themselves). If value is created, it is likely to be taken away and redistributed to others. Taking from those who earn and redistributing to those who do not does not create wealth and prosperity. Margaret Thatcher said it best, “The problem with Socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money!”
The Communists put it this way, “from each according to their abilities, to each according to their need”. This did not work well for the people in the former Soviet Union. Communism’s precursor, socialism, is currently eroding the freedom, growth, and prosperity of the European Union. The path from democracy based on personal freedoms and private property rights to authoritarian wealth-sharing socialism based on central planning and control is not necessarily a long one (see “The Road to Serfdom” by Nobel Prize winner, Friedrich A. Hayek). If it is allowed to continue in America, it will further damage and perhaps destroy both the culture of constitutionally protected personal liberty and opportunity that we have enjoyed for over 200 years. Socialist societies penalize success and reduce economic growth and living standards. Capitalist societies reward success and increase economic growth and living standards. Which future do you want for yourself, your children, and our country?
The growth of Western Civilization and especially the United States was fuelled by the expansion of individual liberties, property rights, and a free market capitalist society. Our nation was established on the fundamental principle that government is the servant of the people, not that the people are the servants of the government. It’s time to take back our country and return to the individual liberties, free markets, economic growth, and limited government we have long enjoyed.
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
January 13, 2012
G’Day!
Happy New Year! I hope your holiday season was enjoyable and successful and best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2012!
This year we will face an election that will probably decide our nation’s course for many years to come. 2012 may be the most important election in our lives. Never have the choices been clearer than they are today: small government vs. big government – free market capitalism vs. centrally planned socialism – individual liberty vs. bureaucratic control of freedoms. At stake is the future of our economy, the relationship between our government and ourselves, federal fiscal and debt solvency, taxation levels, America’s role in the world, and the legacy we are endowing to our children. The key issue is which choice offers the best opportunity for economic & job growth, wealth creation, and a higher standard of living for the American people. It is critical that we each take the time and make the effort to understand the potential consequences for our culture, our opportunities, and our country from these two widely different visions of the role of government and vote accordingly.
Choice 1: Overall, the Republican Party generally supports small government, free market capitalism, and individual liberty. More specifically, they further believe in the Constitution as written by the Founding Fathers, individual & business freedoms, sound fiscal and monetary policies, tax reform for business and individuals, a government limited to protecting the legal rights of individuals, property, and the security of our nation, and equality of opportunities for all citizens. They believe that a reasonable but not unlimited social safety net is desirable for those truly in need. Republicans believe that prosperity and job growth is derived from entrepreneurial business activity free from excessive government interference and is promoted by minimizing regulations and maximizing freedoms and opportunities. Individual success is honored and rewarded. Free markets determine winners and losers and wealth is distributed based on objective “achievement”.
Choice 2: Overall, the Democrat Party supports big government, centrally planned European-style socialism, and bureaucratic control of freedoms. They support a “living” Constitution to be interpreted and modified by the judicial system as desired, regulated individual & business freedoms, unsustainable government spending and entitlements, higher taxes, and forced wealth transfer from the successful to the less successful. Democrats and especially the current President believe in regulated and even hostile control over businesses and the use of Administrative Executive Power as desired to accomplish this. They believe that economic and job growth is derived from government planning, controls, and subsidies to bureaucratically selected companies and industries. Individual success is envied and resented and should be corrected through wealth redistribution. The government determines winners and losers based on fiat and wealth is distributed based on an arbitrary determination of “fairness”.
For months we have heard impressive speeches from our President promising more “Hope and Change” supported by more government regulations, unsustainable entitlements, and higher taxes on the “Rich”. No doubt we will hear many more. But no volume of skillful oratory by the President or his eventual Republican contender can disguise the fact that the two fundamental choices above are the issues in the forthcoming election.
Do you believe that big government, centrally planned European-style socialism, and bureaucratic control of freedoms with increasing control over your lives and businesses are best for you? Do you believe that government administrators can make better decisions for us than we can make for ourselves? Do you believe that these bureaucratic decisions are the best approach to economic growth, job creation, and a higher standard of living? If you believe this, vote for Democrats.
On the other hand, do you believe in small government, free market capitalism, and individual liberty with the freedom to make our own decisions about our lives and businesses? Do you believe that we can make better decisions for ourselves than the government? Do you believe that individual decisions under free markets are the best approach to economic growth, wealth creation, and a higher standard of living? If you believe this, vote for Republicans.
President Obama’s position on the above choices is precisely clear and soon we will have a Republican Presidential Candidate to compare. Please take the time to study the choices, the potential outcomes from each on your lives, consider what is at stake for our nation and our children, and vote accordingly. The choice will be yours in November.
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
December 15, 2011
G’Day!
Yes, Free Market Capitalism IS the answer to our economic malaise. America is the country of equal opportunity (not equal income) and self-improvement through economic and social mobility, not stagnation, stratification, and redistribution of other people’s money. Capitalism is founded on growth, innovation, unlimited production, and decentralized decision-making through free market pricing. Capitalism properly allocates our economic resources as citizens’ wish (not the government), rewards creativity, and expands the wealth “Pie” for all to share based on effort and contribution. Socialism is founded on personal immobility, government control of production through central planning, and price controls. Socialism predetermines and distorts proper allocation of goods and services as the government wishes (not the citizens), restricts innovation, and redistributes the existing wealth “Pie” based on arbitrary administrative decisions of the government “elite”.
While no system is perfect in all respects, history has proven that Free Market Capitalism works best for maximizing economic growth and prosperity and improving living standards. History has also shown that Socialism does not work and over time retards economic growth and prosperity, and produces a lower standard of living. The demise of communist Russia, China under Mao, and the current European Union fiscal and debt crises are recent examples of the failures of Socialism and central planning. Our government should realize that it cannot tax and spend America into prosperity. Only growth in the private sector can create long-term prosperity and new jobs for our nation. The government should get out of the way, reduce regulations, shrink spending and entitlements, reform personal and business taxes, and let the innovative forces of Free Market Capitalism work.
Our current socialist-oriented, anti-business government has assaulted and discouraged innovative opportunities by enacting legislation and imposing regulations that restrict our ability to engage domestically in creative and profitable endeavors. These policies, including taxation, have stifled domestic investment, encouraged companies to create new jobs offshore, and suppressed the economic growth for which our nation is famous. If Obama’s policies continue and he is reelected, the “Middle Class” will suffer most from the continuing consequences of our economic stagnation. The current “Middle Class” will increasingly join America’s “Dependent Class” who rely on government handouts that sustain and maintain lower living standards. Is this the future you want for our nation and your children?
The factors that have made our country great and the envy of the world are the equal opportunities to improve ourselves through personal hard work, innovation, risk-taking, and thrift. To grow and prosper as our nation has historically done, we need to return to our foundations and encourage entrepreneurial opportunities for wealth creation based on individual freedoms, free markets, private property ownership, and limited government. We don’t need a handout; we want a hand up. Without government support and encouragement for vibrant and profitable financial and business sectors, our economy will continue to underperform. This will result in less, if any, economic growth; less, if any, wealth to redistribute; and fewer, if any, new jobs. Wealth is not created by attacking the institutions and individuals who create it. The choice for the future of our country will be ours at the 2012 election. Vote wisely.
The Old Guy PhD
Leave a Comment » | Economic Growth, Finance & Economics, Fiscal & Monetary Policy, Free Markets, Individual Freedom, International, Limited Government, Politics, United States | Tagged: Anti-business, capitalism, Democrats, dependent class, entrepreneurship, free market pricing, free markets, innovation, limited government, middle class, Obama, opportunity, President, prosperity, self-improvement, Socialism, standard-of-living, wealth pie, wealth redistribution | Permalink
Posted by generallyright
November 10, 2011
G’Day!
The bipartisan Debt Reduction Commission co-chaired by Democrat Erskine Bowles and Republican Alan Simpson completed and submitted to President Obama in February a rational and comprehensive approach to our country’s fiscal and debt crises. I posted articles praising the work of the co-chairs and the commission members on April 1, April 16, and July 22. (See “Bowles & Simpson Have it Right!”, “Obama Ignores Bowles-Simpson Debt Reduction Commission – Again!”, and “Debt Reduction: Bowles & Simpson Have it Right – Redux!”) To date, President Obama, the Democrats and the Republicans in the House and Senate have fundamentally ignored their proposal. Why their recommendations have been ignored by our government, and especially by the President, who established the commission, is a “puzzlement”?
The final Co-Chair’s proposal, “The Moment of Truth”, included both long and short-term government actions to resolve our fiscal and debt crises, contains nearly $4 trillion in debt reduction over 10 years, and was approved by eleven (61%) of the eighteen bipartisan members of the commission. As stated in Guiding Principle #2 of the draft report, “The Problem is REAL – the Solution is Painful – There’s no Easy Way Out – Everything Must Be On the Table – and Washington Must Lead”. Their proposal is comprehensive. It includes cuts and caps on discretionary spending and revenue enhancements through major tax reform to broaden the tax base, simplify the code, reduce tax rates, and cap revenue at 21% of GDP. It reduces spending for entitlements including healthcare and social security and eventually caps total spending at 21% of GDP. The proposed plan stabilizes the debt by 2014, reduces debt to 60% of GDP by 2024 and 40% by 2037. What’s not to like??
As noted above, it is a mystery to me why this proposal, developed and approved with bipartisan support, was shelved by Obama and ignored by Congress since it was formally delivered to the President nine months ago. While these are difficult and trying times, we should expect and demand that our President and Congress put partisan bickering and reelection concerns aside and act for the benefit of the American People. Time spent on campaign fundraising does not reduce our debt or improve job creation and economic growth. We deserve rational behavior from our elected representatives and should demand the compromise and cooperation necessary to correct our economic problems and return our great nation to a path of growth and prosperity. Admittedly, the Co-Chair’s proposal is controversial. It is also realistic, responsible, comprehensive, and should be receiving the immediate and serious attention of our President, Congress, and currently the “Super-Committee” (who are looking for a mere $1.2 trillion over ten years).
Every sensible citizen knows America has an unsustainable debt crisis that, if not corrected quickly, will lead to financial and economic disaster for our country. Socialism does not work. Greece is not a role model for government in America. Our current government is too large, too oppressive and is out of control. Economic growth is based on opportunities not restrictions and lower tax rates not higher regulations. Escalating government spending must be halted and its intrusion in our lives and businesses reversed. Tax reform to broaden the tax base, simplify the code, lower rates (especially corporate), and increase revenues is essential. Our government MUST be business friendly and promote the entrepreneurial spirit necessary for economic growth and global competitiveness. We need to bring back the constitutional freedoms and personal liberties that led us to be the greatest nation on earth. The Bowles-Simpson proposal is a good start.
The Old Guy PhD
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Posted by generallyright
October 31, 2011
G’Day!
I just became aware of a “letter to the editor” on the above subject written by Ken Huber of Tawas City, Michigan. This letter initially appeared in the Iosco County News Herald on June 9, 2010. While I am not in complete agreement with some of his examples, the overall question he raises is appropriate.
Ken Huber’s observations may be even more relevant today than they were a year ago. Since the letter was written, the size of our government has expanded, more regulations have been imposed, we have moved further toward socialism and wealth redistribution, and our President is using “Executive Orders” to replace our legitimate legislative process. The “Occupy Wall Street” mobs appear to support anarchy over law and order, communism over capitalism, and destruction over constructive action. All of this is very disturbing and is eroding our individual and business freedoms, stifling economic growth, and increasing the scope of government far beyond the intentions of the founders of our country. If you love our country and the freedoms it has provided, I suggest that you give consideration to the observations Ken Huber’s letter presents and their implications for our country’s current and future leadership. For those who have not seen it earlier, repeated verbatim below is Ken’s letter.
What has America become?
Editor,
Has America become the land of special interest and home of the double standard?
Lets see: if we lie to the Congress, it’s a felony and if the Congress lies to us its just politics; if we dislike a black person, we’re racist and if a black person dislikes whites, its their 1st Amendment right; the government spends millions to rehabilitate criminals and they do almost nothing for the victims; in public schools you can teach that homosexuality is OK, but you better not use the word God in the process; you can kill an unborn child, but it is wrong to execute a mass murderer; we don’t burn books in America, we now rewrite them; we got rid of communist and socialist threats by renaming them progressive; we are unable to close our border with Mexico, but have no problem protecting the 38th parallel in Korea; if you protest against President Obama’s policies you’re a terrorist, but if you burned an American flag or George Bush in effigy it was your 1st Amendment right.
You can have pornography on TV or the internet, but you better not put a nativity scene in a public park during Christmas; we have eliminated all criminals in America, they are now called sick people; we can use a human fetus for medical research, but it is wrong to use an animal.
We take money from those who work hard for it and give it to those who don’t want to work; we all support the Constitution, but only when it supports our political ideology; we still have freedom of speech, but only if we are being politically correct; parenting has been replaced with Ritalin and video games; the land of opportunity is now the land of hand outs; the similarity between Hurricane Katrina and the gulf oil spill is that neither president did anything to help.
And how do we handle a major crisis today? The government appoints a committee to determine who’s at fault, then threatens them, passes a law, raises our taxes; tells us the problem is solved so they can get back to their reelection campaign.
What has happened to the land of the free and home of the brave?
- Ken Huber
Tawas City
These are troubling trends and I also ask the same questions about what our nation is becoming and where our current government is taking us. Are we on the right or the wrong track? Is a politically correct, European-style unsustainable welfare state in the best interests of ourselves and our children? Does the transfer of wealth from those who create it to those who consume it increase or decrease our country’s economic growth and prosperity? Do you believe free market capitalism or more government regulation and control is the best solution to our fiscal and debt crises and the stagnate economy? These are some of the questions we all should consider before our next election.
I believe our government is too large, too centralized, too oppressive, and is out of touch with the desires of the American people. If you share this view, I suggest you commit yourselves to understanding the serious issues confronting our country and actively work to elect representatives who believe in our US Constitution, individual freedoms, free markets, sound fiscal and monetary policy, and limited government. Let’s correct our nation’s course in 2012!
The Old Guy PhD
Leave a Comment » | Economic Growth, Finance & Economics, Fiscal & Monetary Policy, Free Markets, Individual Freedom, Limited Government, Politics, United States | Tagged: capitalism, communism, Debt Crisis, democracy, Executive Order, fiscal crisis, Ken Huber, Occupy Wall Street, Socialism, US Constitution, wealth redistribution, What has America Become? | Permalink
Posted by generallyright
