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Forum Post: Calm Before The Next Storm

Posted 12 years ago on Feb. 11, 2012, 8:41 p.m. EST by arealpolitik (154)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement

Mari - Dogwalk Musings has contributed 124 articles.

Ah, CPAC. The two one time leading candidates are struggling mightily to reinvent themselves. Another isn’t even there and the last is now the first.

It will be fun to watch next week to see how it all shakes out. I feel more calm than usual today because I read where Jeb Bush’s name is already being bandied about in case of a brokered convention.

He too, however, has baggage. I won’t list it all because the press will when and if. The worst is obvious. He’s a Bush. Are we ready to accept that he’s not his brother? On the other hand it might be poetic justice of a sort. Obama and his administration keep telling us all our problems are because of brother George’s administration. Who better to fix them than another Bush? I’m not holding my breath.

Rick Santorum continues to look good to the devout conservative. One thing about the man whether or not you agree with him, like Paul, he really believes in the positions he’s taken. Maybe we shouldn’t be too quick to write them off.

Now is the time to look at other aspects of the elections. All the promises are for naught if the Congress isn’t squarely behind the President no matter who he is. Obama is finding that to be true.

Whether or not the dynamic of the House and Senate changes sits squarely upon our shoulders and all the speech making and blogging in the world won’t change that. Each state and district within will elect those of their own personal choice. Each has control whether or not they will be ideologues, obstructionists, liberal or conservative. Hopefully there will be some moderates in the mix so the field is more level than it has been. It’s definitely buyer beware.

There will be no budget, again, from the Senate. Harry Reid has already said so. The deficit is to go up another trillion or so. The President has already said so. That should be an indicator that compromise is unlikely.

Will the tea party types mellow? Probably not. Things have gotten so bad in Washington that Democrats and Republicans won’t even patronize the same restaurants for fear of running into one another. How much more sophomoric and petulant can you get?

And so it goes. I’m beginning to worry about myself. I find myself laughing at so many of the headlines yet they are far from funny. It really is more than just jobs and the economy you see. People in Syria are being slaughtered daily by the dozens and Ahmajinedad is getting ready to dog and pony show Iran’s nuclear accomplishments to date. Israel will be watching, if not acting. It is imperative that we pay attention.

Meanwhile we worry about the finger flashed at the Super Bowl and whether or not Gisele is detrimental to Tom’s performance on the field. And the President is busy shooting marshmallows across his office.

Why not? A bit of levity may be all that’s keeping us sane.

Read more political thought: http://www.thejeffersontree.com/calm-before-the-next-storm/

27 Comments

27 Comments


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[-] 2 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

The biggest news story right now is about contraception while the Greek police union has taken a courageous stand. The national news on tv tonight mentioned the Greeks were protesting, but nothing about the police union agreeing with the people that the austerity measures are too harsh.

[-] 1 points by Quark (236) 12 years ago

And that Whitney Houston is dead at 48.

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

Austerity measures are too harsh??? What world do you live in. There is no money genie who is going to provide for them and give them food. You people are nuts. You think that all you have to do is be born and you have the right to food, shelter, healthcare, and promiscuity.

This is amazing. Who will work in Greece? The Germans won't do it and they shouldn't because they work hard.

[-] 3 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

I live in a world that is suffering more now than in the past. Until recently, I believed it was mostly because some individuals were slacking, and they simply wanted to accept the safety net the rest of us provided. I was wrong, the suffering is real.

What if the Greek people are being asked to accept these austerity measures while bankers and others refuse to even accept less profits?

If there were a world where food, shelter, and healthcare were not such a stress on people, many would prosper and be productive.

[-] 0 points by FriendlyObserverB (1871) 12 years ago

A world where there is a cap on profits you mean !

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

I don't believe in any cap on profits, but taxation needs altering.

[-] 1 points by FriendlyObserverB (1871) 12 years ago

Not even on the bankers ?

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

I really believe that if equality is used in taxation, profits would be good for all.

[-] 1 points by FriendlyObserverB (1871) 12 years ago

Profits would be good for all, unfortunately a few take everything and there is no cap preventing them.

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

Yep, they won't accept that to who much is given, much will be required. Their only suffering is being less rich. They can live with that.

[-] 1 points by FriendlyObserverB (1871) 12 years ago

What if it's not given , but taken ?

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

Then they should be considered criminals.

[-] 1 points by FriendlyObserverB (1871) 12 years ago

You got that right !

[-] -1 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

What, the bankers are at fault??? All they did was lend them money and aske for it to be paid back. Greece could default on all of their bonds tomorrow and they still would run a budget deficit.

This is nuts, you people think that goods and services just appear out of thin air. Greece has a very large social services infratsructure that they have to fund and there is not enough revenue to cover it. There are to many takers and not enough producers.

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

Some of the so called producers are actually takers. They are pretending to be producers.

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

So you got a problem. You need more producers and much less takers. How do you solve it?

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

Those pretending to be producers, but are actually takers, should be exposed. We may find that these pretend producers are causing all of us significant problems.

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

But you still have to many takers and not enough producers. So how are you going to solve it. You are the Premier of Greece, what would you do?

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

We both agree that producers should be rewarded somehow simply because they're producers and not takers. Acknowledging that there has always been takers, there are different types of takers. There should be more focus on those who take by cheating, with Equality condemning them.

If I were the "Premier of Greece", I would immediately plead for complete transparency and media coverage to inform as many Greeks as possible to the options as they are. Maybe there's an option that instead of pay cuts and layoffs, profits from banks and bondholders could be reduced. That's not a comparable suffering. That would be great, right?

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

You could eliminate the profits from the banks and cancel all payments on the bonds right now and you still have a deficit. Again, you have to many people getting handouts from the government and not enough tax revenue, so what do you do? How about taxing eveybody at 100%?

[-] 1 points by alterorabolish1 (569) 12 years ago

Taxation should be a calculation. Determine the point of diminishing returns on productivity and apply equality. Shouldn't be difficult.

The more serious problem is tax revenue from people that are aware that their previously paid taxes have been diverted to individuals. These aware people now feel justified in avoiding taxes through forms of bartering. Governments that are unjust eventually have a problem collecting taxes.

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

It's very difficult to determine the point of diminishing returns and it is not applied equally.

I agree they know the government is corrupt and they will avoid taxes.

[-] 1 points by lithosere (65) 12 years ago

Where do YOU think wealth comes from? Do you think the US is wealthy because we're just such goddarn hard-workin folks? Please. There is wealth here because this country is an empire and siphons wealth off from other hard-working populations who continue to live in squalor in the global south.

Maybe the nightmare in Greece was because of trying to build a way of life more like the imperial nuclei but without the capacity to extract the 3rd world's wealth like those nuclei do. This latter part is just a vague hypothesis by the way. I don't know enough about the situation there to give a good hard theory.

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

Greece spent more money that they had coming in. They have built up their transfer payments over the past decade so there are more expenses. That coupled with less people paying taxes causes a deficit which they covered by borrowing form foreigners. It's pretty simple.

One of the reasons the US is wealthy compared to other counties is due to the Anglo Saxon work ethic. Mnay of the countries who comment about in the global south didn't have this work ethic. Can you name a country that has either French of Spanish heritage that has perfomed well? Our English roots have served us well.There have been many studies done on this. Of course, it's not the only reason. The US is nowhere near an empire in the traditional terms. I don't see us taking from others so I am not sure what you mean.

[-] 1 points by lithosere (65) 12 years ago

you are a moron. sorry. If you want to see former British colonies living in squalor, try Nigeria, Sudan, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Jamaica... I see no need to continue. Former colonies of other nations that are doing pretty well? Brazil? I have no idea how to show you that this country steals from everybody else on earth. If you don't see it your eyes are closed. Look up Structural Adjustment Programs and the IMF/World Bank. Think about who made your tennis shoes and how much they were payed to make them. Think about why they are making tennis shoes instead of farming. Think about who makes the extra money when the cost of production is 1/100th of the retail price. I suppose all those laborers in mega-slums are just lazy and thank goodness Europeans slaughtered their ancestors and enslaved them via imperialism because otherwise they'd still be unemployed right?

[-] 0 points by Jflynn1964 (-206) 12 years ago

The effect of the Anglo-Saxon work ethic is not the only reason, just one of the factors in global success. You point out Africa and there is even more examples there with the impact and success of Rhodesia and South Africa.

The people making my tennis shoes or my Apple computer are better off today than they were previously. Just look at the employee roles at Hon Hai/Foxconn. Those employees are earning more than they ever have had and sending that money back to their relatives. Why are they doing this instead of farming, because it is easier and they make more money from it.

There is no white man who is forcing those people to work in the factories.

Thank for the name calling, by the way, it makes your argument so much powerful.