Barely bearing it...

Time to fess up. Time to face the fact that my Country is important enough to effect my emotions. As a kid, I grew up watching on TV, Walter Cronkite and David Brinkley. These were my Father's generation's thinkers and I looked and watched and very much formed my opinions

Asleep at the Wheel

In my opinion,

Our Conservative Brothers & Sisters have been asleep at the wheel for 30 - 40 years being busy building families, earning a living, watching TV and allowing their children to be inculcated into the Liberal Dream while in HS and College... meanwhile the State Senates and Federal Dems who were able to amass power during this time, quietly went about their business of appointing department heads in Federal Agencies, who then hired like-minded Liberals who have all dug-in like ticks into the Federal and State Bureaucracies with the Unions behind them and have poisoned the entire system... which were are now *all* dealing with... So in comes A President who knows what to do with this entire Apparatchik EPA, FDA etc... and we the Voting public are left to deal with the facts that no matter what we do - and no matter WHOM we elect... this evil structure will be in place for a long time until and if we get a President and Attorney General in place who will start wholesale firings come hell-or-hi-water and deal definitively with the 5th and 9th Circuit Federal Judges that try and overrule these firings... it's going to take some real Balls... in a President/AG (or Ovaries). 

Jay Rephan 6-12-2013

Citizens United, Businesses and the Corporate Mix

Sometimes we forget in the discourse of a civil political conversation that as Mitt Romney put it "Businesses or Corporations) are People too!" and I know it sounds silly but this could not be a truer statement. Corporations and Businesses are referred to and vilified much too often - in the press and in movies and elsewhere as 'evil'. They are actually just legal congregations of people trying to make a buck and to protect themselves from the taxman at the same time... Just... like... you... and... I.

Now. Here comes the impact of the Supreme Court's Ruling on, and the Impact Of "Citizens United" which supplanted the flawed (McCain-Feingold) Law... That decision and subsequent lower court decisions have led to SuperPACs, which allow corporations, unions and individuals to make unlimited contributions, pool them together, and use the money for political campaigns - Democrats definitely got their feathers ruffled when the Citizen's United Supreme Court Case came down but had no complaints when things were going their way when they crushed McCain in 2008 Using all legal tactics (PAC's) available to them. ----

However, after the 2010 Mid-Term Tea-Party disaster 'House' takeover, the rumblings started and the handwriting was on the wall and has gotten bigger and bigger and now all HELL has broken loose with the Individuals and *remember* Businesses... being able to give unlimited money to their chosen SuperPACs... But the Democrats and Biden are fearing they are going to get their butts kicked in the last four months of the 2022 Presidential campaign and all of a sudden Businesses and SuperPACs are corrupting our political system. The figures were there for anyone to look up regarding how much money "Wall Street" and The "Tech Sector" or the "Teacher's Unions" gave to the Obama campaign in 2008 (http://goo.gl/E4CWH) and nobody said a word. NOT A WORD. 

This is now true AGAIN with the current Biden administration but with a few caveats... Wal Street is currently being vilified for its' role for playing the role of a lifetime in "Inflation 101" and scared they should be... Nobody knows WHAT the hell to invest in, The US Dollar is under attack worldwide, The only economy that seems to be working is China's economy backed by Gold. Russia's Ruble is also backed by gold - but they committed the colossal mistake of cutting off their one true income source - Their oil Pipeline, trying to punish Europe for contributing to the wrong side of Ukraine Hullabaloo.

That said, there are those, including myself who believe that the secret nature of SuperPAC donor lists are a bad, rather than good thing and that Congress should modify the law so that any press outlet or individual can see who is contributing to whom as a matter of public law -if- the "Entity" is going to exceed the "Individual" limit of $2500. That will stop some contributors from giving in 'anonymity' the Million$$ checks with impunity.

the Billion Dollar question will be settled in November. Where is, or Can Money be taken out of hiding and re-invested... ?? Crypto? Gold? a CBDC Reset US Dollar? Before, During, or After a USA Long Recession?

And that is respectfully why Businesses and Corporate Donations need to be *unmodified* as long as their donations are disclosed in the future... and admittedly, why the SuperPAC's setups clearly *need modifying* I will grant you.

We (in America) Know Why There Is No Looting in Japan



Japanese Standing in line for Water - NO Police...



In quiet, candid  response to this British article which asks but does not dare answer "Why is there no looting in Japan?

I'll answer it. And maybe my answer won't be so quiet - but it will be candid. Because, regardless of race, color, creed, religion or what have you, the Japanese Culture is a culture of honor and respect.





My Culture in America has become, regardless of the above, a bunch of disrespectful, "I'll take what's mine, and you shut your damned mouth" louts.

In my city, a heated discussion between any given lower-income, under-educated beer-drinking (or other-wise high) persons (pick your race), is likely to end up with a stabbing or shooting later that same night down the street. These are your looters... These are the folks who are fully entitled to buy a gun until they murder or shoot their their first human being.

These are the folks we want to try and catch as early and possible in school to teach them right from wrong... even if their parents will not... but that's another blog.

And to you folks who would give a whining answer about the unequal incomes in America... I will answer that even those with the lowest incomes in Japan *still do not loot* during even during the worst of crisis.

I invite any comments.

Growth, Belief -- and Believing

Pro-Growth - the engines of our economy - certain things in the American spectrum of life do not necessarily lend themselves to the "you're either growing or dying" sort of philosophy. Certain kinds of businesses do not need to, or have to - keep growing their markets in order to sustain themselves.

And I understand, believe me, that if the public owns "stock" in a company - their profits and growth rates need to keep the pace which they had previously forcast to investors and/or stockholders. I *get* that...

Certain towns in America - Carmel, CA comes to mind - have managed their growth and been just fine. I live currently in Nashville, TN and there is a mentality here of growth, growth, growth! Do we want to become Atlanta, GA? Jeeze! And I hate to say it - but - many beautiful little towns in France... have been just perfect, for 500 years.

What the heck is wrong with a company or many select "entities" growing to a certain size and then just "being in business" and maintaining it's value or charm *at* that point. Like an Ice Cream company? Or a Shoe manufacturer? Or a town in North Dakota? Are there never any points of "optimum"?

What will it take, in our various environments, to achieve the agreement that some level of something is enough? At what point is there something called satisfied? And don't get me wrong, we can keep consuming and changing our environment until we are satisfied. That's what is great about America. The freedom to choose when enough is...

Anyone under a given set of circumstances can be satisfied with what they have - think of certain actors... that have disappeared from the public eye... no more fame... Could it be they are happy with what they've achieved and are now just - living?

What will it take in your life to achieve that optimum level of happy and content? Life on earth, in my opinion, should be mostly about one thing... living.

Life -- living.
Breath -- breathing.
Love -- and loving.
Belief -- and believing.

Do *you* get it? If not... when?
Tell me how *you* feel, or what you think, by clicking on "Comments" below.

A Lessening of the Worsening...

Both parties, both R and D are being less than truthful.

1. Dem's say that keeping rates frozen for another two (2) years for all tax brackets won't make any difference other than robbing the US treasury of 700 billion dollars over ten years.
2. Repub's say that extending the tax cuts to *all* brackets will create the growth we need, and stimulate job growth by freeing money that now sits on the sideline.

R wants all rates to stay down because they see that if they don't - the recession has no chance of getting better.

D wants to increase tax rates on those with incomes over $250k because they truly believe that will help the economy. Think Keynesian economics. http://bit.ly/bgOt3e

The truth for R's is that even with keeping all the Bush tax cuts unchanged, they will only get this for a maximum of two years until *guess what* happens? That's right! Obama's re-election bid will be known. Odds are always in favor of re-election... But you remember... Carter... GHW Bush? There are always exceptions. So with the possible re-election of O, most entrepreneurial money (in the +250k bracket) will stay on the sidelines until O is gone, if he gets gone. The only thing propping up the stock market now is interest rates are staying extremely, exceptionally low. If the current O's keep the Keynesian high deficit spending going - all bets are off regarding interest rates, the stock market and '70's style inflation.

The truth for D's is that they keep doggedly missing the point that the Bush year's tax cuts created 8 million jobs during his presidency even though he started out his time at bat with a recession as well. Those same style of tax cuts (across the board) created more than 20 million jobs during the Reagan years. The exact same is true for the Kennedy years. Most of the Reagan years *and* Bush years, as well as Clinton's years were spent with opposing House and Senate Majorities. Tax cuts for the upper brackets have historically created more jobs, and therefore more revenue from higher economic activity in the resulting economic boom, than their costs in lost tax revenue.

One fact is - prior to Bush Tax Cuts the top 1% (of taxpayers) paid 19% of  Federal Income Taxes (FIT) - After the Bush Tax Cuts the top 1% paid 36% of FIT.

If cutting tax rates on those making more than $250k is going to "Rob the Treasury" how was the above possible?

Here are some more facts:

• the top 2% of our citizenry represent 25% of all consumer spending
• 5% account for 37% of all consumer spending
• The top 1% of taxpayers  paid more than 40% of all Federal Income Taxes (FIT) in 2007
• 47% of households paid 0% FIT in 2009
• During 2003-2007 the Federal Deficit fell $217 billion (the Bush years)
• Currently the top 10% of taxpayers pay 68% of *all* FIT collected

IF all tax rates stay the same from the R's defeating the D's (keeping the Bush tax cuts) in this current economic debate, the main effect will be a lessening of the worsening of our economy. And, that's not such a bad thing.

Tell me how *you* feel, or what you think, by clicking on "Comments" below.

Stop the BS and let's tell the truth...

Every person running Democrat has been misrepresenting the position of most of their Republican or Tea-Party adversaries when it comes to their positions on taxes and trying like hell to revise history on the Bush years.

The Truth is that yes, the current recession began during the Bush Presidency but had nothing to do with the administrations' tax cuts as (most) all Democrats would have us believe.

Yes, the Bush administration agreed to the TARP fund for reasons that looked like were definately anti-Free Market. Yes, the Bush administration had a massive increase in the Education spending and the Prescription Drug program. Bush was/is a moderate (not a small-goverment guy) and, the then Republican-controlled House and Senate exuded no conservative "small government" controls on the growth and size of obligations to the taxpayer.

But, the current recession had nothing to do with any of that. It was the housing bubble bursting and overwhelming the banking system, pure and simple. The economy took a huge blow because the conservatives woke up too late to oppose the subtle and not so subtle changes in the lending/banking laws that also (I might add) ALL Democrats voted for.

So, lets stop all the BS about the Republicans driving the car into the ditch, shall we?

Please tell me what you think - and what you've got to say, by clicking on "Comments" below.

For more background on this subject (a lot more) see; America's Ruling Class -- And the Perils of Revolution -http://spectator.org/archives/2010/07/16/americas-ruling-class-and-the    By Angelo M. Codevilla - is professor emeritus of international relations at Boston University.