No,
I am not going to critique the speeches last night...plenty of pundits to do that...I thought I would release my inner Andy Rooney (probably the finest grouchy old fart of his generation) with a little stream of consciousness.
I am not going to critique the speeches last night...plenty of pundits to do that...I thought I would release my inner Andy Rooney (probably the finest grouchy old fart of his generation) with a little stream of consciousness.
- So Dems love to complain about Republican tax cuts as "trickle down economics" and "tax cuts for the wealthy". But consider this...what is the practical difference between giving those evil millionaires and billionaires tax cuts to invest in the economy and Obama's HUGE stimulus spending? I mean what was the stimulus for if not trickle down economics for those "shovel ready projects" and to keep those vital "cops, teachers, and firefighters" employed and paying public union dues? As Republicans like to point out...who is better equipped to spend your money...you or Obama? This really baffles me...Democrats talk condescendingly to nearly everyone, and sadly too many people fall for their empty promises...you're to stupid or lazy to take care of yourself, but we will..all you have to do is enter this indentured servitude agreement to pay back that $16Trillion and we will pay for everything!!! The difference between government and private investment is, as the old saying goes...billionaires invest their own money...Obama invests yours...and given his track record with GM and Solyndra...I would never give that man my 401K to manage, that's for damn sure.....So, the next time Obama or his minions preach about "investment" why shouldn't they be asked about their views on whether government trickle down economics works? Of course that might upset the Politburo and their Pravda praetorian guards...who will quickly call you a racist capitalist pig-dog and tell you to get back to work so they can tax you and build the "workers paradise."
- Here's another pretty basic idea....the whole unemployment thing. I would love to see a real analysis of what the effect of cutting the unemployment rate in half would do for the deficit, Medicare and Social Security imminent bankruptcies, and the general state of government finances. NOT that I advocate giving the guvment more money, but it seems pretty obvious to me that if you cut the unemployment rate in half, that's something like 10,000,000 more Americans back at work...paying income taxes, and FICA, and Medicare...it would appear to me that those working people could make a significant dent in the deficit on both the federal and state level. Not to mention GENUINE trickle down economics as those people now have REAL money in their pockets to spend, not guvment handouts of 99 weeks of unemployment, but real wages and real salaries. Think that might help the ol' GDP? I do...after all those people gotta eat, buy gas, pay for mortgages again, it seems that would be the REAL ripple effect our economy needs. And of course the moral effect of getting people back to work can only make America a better place.
- And going back to this whole Medicare thing...funding, deficits, and pushing Grandma off a cliff aside...has anyone noticed how freakin' hard it is to find a good doctor these days? I have a few anecdotes here. Our family has been forced to change primary care doctors TWICE in the last three years...primarily because of Medicare. Let me explain...our first doctor tried to peddle some ridiculous concierge service to us...for a mere $2,000 a year. So I asked WTF? and was told the doctor would still see me, and treat me...but wouldn't be able to spend as much "time" with me as a concierge patient. When I asked WTF again, I was told that this was due to Medicare patients. Well, I only see the doctor twice a year, unless I am bleeding (old Navy habit...nothing good ever comes from seeing a flight surgeon). So this wasn't a problem for me and I carried on smartly. Needless to say, this idea went over like a turd in a punch bowl (much like Obamacare and Chris Matthews' sense of humor) and within a year I heard nothing about this concierge nonsense and the doctor was seeing me again for a "regular" appointment. HOWEVER, my +1, significant other, spouse, squeeze (yes, all the same person) had to actually leave her doctor, who she really, really liked, because she was flat out TOLD it would cost $1600 a year out of pocket to remain a patient...payable on the easy quarterly payment plan of course. When I asked WTF, I was told, again, it was partly due to downsizing her practice, but also because of Medicare patients. Oh, and since ObamaTAX completely screwed those of us that use Financial Savings Accounts (we can only use $2,500 not $5,000 in pre-tax dollars, a big damn deal to my family), we had to leave this doctor. Now don't get me wrong, I understand how important Medicare is to Grandma...blah, blah, blah...but if doctors are this reluctant to get screwed by Medicare payments...whaddya think is gonna happen when Obamacare comes along?
- Finally, I loved Condi's speech, and I believe Americans are being very short-sighted if they completely ignore foreign policy in this election. Yes, I know the economy is THE ISSUE and rightly so, but we cannot bury our heads in the sand...or sand-trap if you're Obama on the 9th hole...for the 100+ times since his Presidency began, and ignore the very real dangers in the world. The Middle East is imploding...and I don't think many Americans understand that the conflict is Syria isn't just a civil war...it's a very real, very dangerous proxy war between Sunni and Shia Muslims for the direction of the Middle East. Forget the ol' Jew-Arab thing...this is a REAL problem. Many very smart people have postulated that when (and I sadly say when, not if) Iran gets the bomb...it is going to trigger a very, very unstable situation in the region as the Saudis and maybe even the Turks try to get their own nuclear deterrent. Yup...imagine that folks...two groups of religious fanatics (and not those pesky Christian right-wingers the DNC fear and loath, either) who really hate and fear each other with nuclear weapons pointed at a good chunk of the world's oil production fields...hey, what could go wrong? Then of course there is China, Russia, Mexico...all kinds of problems that could have a direct FINANCIAL and TRADE impact here in America...so pay attention folks, we can't retreat..as much as Obama succeeded in Iraq and is trying to do in Afghanistan. As Chris Christie said, it's better to be respected than loved. Unfortunately Obama is neither anymore.
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