Voodoo Economics

We do need tax reform in America. We need to lower the tax burden on our small businesses, manufacturers and exporters. We need to flatten the income tax and make sure capital gains are taxed the same as earned income. We even need to consider a national sales tax to make sure that prostitutes, pimps and drug peddlers are made to contribute. What we don't need is the Republican Lie that one sided tax reductions that benefit Wall St's Super-Elite will "pay for themselves."

Banks aren't bad people.

You're right that banks aren't bad people. Banks and multinational corporations aren't human beings. Do banks cook food? Do banks drive? Do banks fall in love and make love? I didn't think so.

Furthermore, we have millions of Americans that are drowning in their own homes. We need to begin thinking about methods to reduce foreclosure rates and to make home ownership more affordable for the middle class. Yes, I know that would mean less of a bonus for people like you. 

I'm not a radical socialist. I don't think we need to kill the banks with a special tax like some people believe we should. I even supported TARP during the financial crisis. However, I do believe we should allow home owners to refinance at lower rates and I do believe banks should be looking at different methods for reducing the foreclosure rate. Middle Class America is hard working and Middle Class America has earned the American Dream.

Baking Your Way to the Goldilocks Economy

In a distorted republican world in some parallel universe, you can bake your way to economic growth, innovation and job creation. In this universe, all you need is a degree in home economics and you are more than equipped to solve the world's financial woes. 

Indeed, to them, it's as simple as baking an Apple Pie. 

Yum Yum for the tummy tum. 

Republican Candidate taking on the world with home economics.

Until Thursday, David Spence (R), a Missouri Gubernatorial Candidate, had claimed on his campaign website that he “earned a degree in Economics” from the University of Missouri. But on Tuesday, Jake Wagman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch pointed out that this was a bit of a stretch — Spence’s degree was in home economics."

A New Deal Coalition for a New America

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, we're going to need to begin investing $3 trillion dollars during this decade to rebuild and maintain our existing infrastructure. We've neglected our infrastructure for far too long. Instead of maintaining our roads, highways, bridges and pipelines, we've lavished massive windfalls on the super-rich and on big "defence" companies like Lockheed. 

During a time when there are millions and millions of Americans that would like a full-time job and can't find one, wouldn't it make sense to launch a New Deal "Public Works Administration" to make these much needed investments in our nation's infrastructural well-being? 

In Western-Europe and Asia, men and women are boarding high-speed trains which link different countries to one another. In America, we don't even have high-speed rails connecting our states. In Germany, the Autobahn is in much better condition than Interstate 95. We need to be following these examples. 

We need another New Deal Coalition to lead this nation to greatness. We need "leadership" that has a plan for dealing with today by preparing us for tomorrow. We need a national high-speed rail system. We need to repair our Interstate Highway System. We need to make sure we have modern pipelines in our urban centres instead of rusted and leaking pipes that breed water contamination and waste.

Furthermore, given the water shortages which we are now facing, I believe the time has come for us to reconsider the North American Water and Power Alliance. The North American Water and Power Alliance was first conceived as an idea for providing America with a guaranteed source of water and energy.

Infrastructure and construction spending yields a big bang for each invested dollar. Each $1 billion we appropriate for infrastructure will yield an estimated 18,000 jobs for hard-working middle class Americans. A broad-based "Rebuild America" New Deal would create millions of new jobs and would ensure that we remain at the cutting edge of economic, social and technological progress.

Mitt-Romney: Making Money By Sucking You Dry

On the one hand, the video is one sided. I am sure that Romney's Capital Firm did contribute to the creation of a few jobs here and there. On the other hand, he is a man that made a killing and sucked the lifeblood from thousands of hard working Americans. He is your typical Wall St. Corporate Raider. A trail of closed factories, closed stores, joblessness, poverty, foreclosures and homelessness have followed Mitt-Romney's Capital Firm.  

You have to watch this video from the begging to the end!

I believe the information surrounding this video provides us with one more reason to reinstate New Deal Regulation on the financial sector. 

"Free" Trade Is Ruining Us.

I am a lifelong fan of internationalism and trade. I believe economic integration will lead to political integration when it's conducted in a manner which will benefit all sides of the equation. The problem today is that "free" trade isn't free at all and is skewed toward foreigners in Asia.

As a nation, we're running massive and unsustainable trade imbalances which have transformed us from the world's leading creditor to the world's leading debtor. During that transformation, we've witnessed millions of once high-paying middle class jobs being outsourced and exported to China, Japan and Korea.

All of those Asian Countries have a record of using Mercantile Policies and techniques to undermine our nation's manufacturers and exporters. Mainstream economists have estimated that undervalued currencies in those countries are harming us. The Chinese Yuan and Japanese Yen have been undervalued for decades and we're witnessing a ballooning trade deficit with both of them.

Meanwhile, the Chinese, Japanese and Koreans are benefiting from booming economies that are producing millions of new manufacturing jobs. We are a nation which once led the world in industrial production and now we're falling further and further behind in sector after sector. 

In 2010, America registered a $275 billion imbalance with China. Go to the store and you'll see "Made in China" on every corner. China's undervalued cash has allowed Chinese manufacturers and exporters to screw us here in America and in China and there is nothing we can do.

Japan and Korea also use China's Mercantile Policies to harm us. In 2010, we ran a $60 billion trade imbalance with the Japanese. The Japanese have been undermining us since Reagan was in the White House and we now owe around a trillion dollars to Tokyo's Bank of Japan. 

Furthermore, the Chinese and Japanese aren't even willing to debate the issue. China believes it deserves to have an undervalued currency even with their booming economy and high inflation rate and the Japanese are banking on exportation and cheap cash. 

According to the World Trade Organization, we are well within our position to institute Anti-Dumping Tariffs on Japanese Auto-mobiles, Korean Steel and Chinese Auto Tires. You know that America is being screwed when a global institution, such as the World Trade Organization, is recommending protectionism for us. 

Unfair Trade Isn't Free Trade: Read Here.

The problem is that our Congressmen and women haven't been willing to take charge on the matter. Warren Buffet, a multi-billion dollar world renowned corporate executive, offered us his Balanced Trade Act, which was introduced in 2006 for Congressional consideration. Warren's Trading Bill, had it passed, would have eliminated our trade imbalance and would have spurred serious high-paying job creation.

I believe all Americans should make trade a serious matter in this election and should Write Editorials, Call their Congressman and Endorse Warren Buffet's Plan for getting us back on track and saving the American Business and the American Worker from a corrupted trade regime which is undermining us in favour of foreign and multinational special interests. 

American Fascism

Republican Candidates are looking more and more like fascists. 

All of the "Front-Line Republicans" call for oppressing homosexuals because "homosexuality is a psychological illness."

According to Psychology Today, researchers have discovered that men suffering from homophobia, a diagnosed mental condition, are more likely to respond to Gay Pornography than open-minded men. 

Homophobia And Closeted Homosexuality

"I'm a bigot because I believe what the Bible teaches." 

No, you're a bigot because you advocate second class citizenship for millions of Americans based on your own personal lifestyle choice. 

It's the economy, stupid.

Those that know me know I'm not the conservationist type. I'm all for preserving the world if it doesn't interfere with human life. If, however, the "world" is going to interfere with a hot-shower or the toilet-paper roll, I will and intend to dominate. 

Nonetheless, I think the debate has transcended "global-warming" and conservation. I believe we've progressed toward a strong economic case for clean energy, hybrid auto-mobiles and mass transportation.

As a nation, we're spending hundreds of billions of dollars each and every year to create jobs for the Saudis, Kuwaitis and Venezuelans when we should be spending that dough to create American Jobs for American Workers.

We should be investing more in ethanol production. We can and should be focusing on solar and wind energy like the Germans and Spaniards have been doing and which the Chinese are now doing en masse. 

I believe we're embarking on a common sense win-win scenario. We have 9 million Americans working in clean energy and conservation and there's room for that number to balloon between now and 2030.

In a world with more energy consumption and dwindling reserves, oil, coal and natural gas will continue to become pricier and pricier. You don't have to be a mathematician to see the trend. Renewable energy is no longer the alternative. 

The War on Middle Class America

The Republicans would have us believe there is something wrong with Social-Security because they would like to dismantle Social Security and leave the elderly to sleep on park benches. The Republicans view Social-Security as a "socialist" redistribution program which favours the middle class more than millionaires and billionaires. 

Furthermore, the Republicans would rather us to entrust our life savings with Wall St. Banks like Goldman Sachs instead of in a guaranteed Social Security Trust Fund. Social-Security is, after all, a pay-as-you-go system which doesn't accrue profits for the super-rich.

The truth be told, there is nothing wrong with Social-Security's Financial Position. The "Trust Fund" has been running a surplus for decades and now claims trillions of dollars worth of governmental treasury bonds which will be repaid to the American People.

The "imagined" scenario of Social-Security's so-called problem is that conservatives are predicting the economy will grow much slower in the future than it has before.  A slower growing economy would mean a slower growing revenue base, which in turn would mean a financial problem for Social-Security.

Nonetheless, there's no reason to believe that the economy will grow much slower between now and 2075 than it has grown for over two centuries. Should the economy continue growing in line with the historical average, the entire "projected" imbalance will disappear off the books and Social-Security will continue mailing uninterrupted checks.

Instead of raiding Social-Security or privatizing Social-Security, we need to examine sensible methods for transforming Social-Security into an even better program. We could, for instance, lift the payroll tax ceiling to make sure that the super-rich contribute a fair share. We could eliminate the payroll tax on small businesses to revive job creation and grow the overall taxable base. We can and should introduce a Guaranteed Minimum Benefit to make sure all of our elderly men and women receive a humane income.

The Debate on Social-Security should never include calls for making people work more before being able to collect what they've paid into the system. Social-Security was designed to be an insurance program where you contribute into the system while you're working and then you receive a guaranteed fixed income in your old-age. Forcing people to pay more in exchange for less in return would be unfair and would contradict the entire purpose and intention of the program. 

All Americans should stand behind Bernie Sanders, a man who has taken a progressive leadership role on this matter and a man who is fighting in the Halls of Congress to preserve Social-Security for America's hard working middle class families. 

Bombs, Bombs, Bombs

In 1961, Eisenhower, a Republican, warned this nation against allowing a long-term arms business to flourish on the back of the American Taxpayer.

Both the Democrats and the Republicans have supported a booming arms business, one which claims such corporate behemoths as Boeing, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics.

As a nation, we're spending cash we can't afford to be spending in order to manufacture arms and weapons that we don't need for wars we shouldn't even be fighting in countries that don't even concern us.

Meanwhile, millions of hard working Americans can't afford a college education and those Americans which are attending college are becoming saddled with large and unsustainable loan obligations to rich bankers.

A Progressive Idea for Spurring Job Creation in America.

Small businesses create over 60% of America's new jobs.

We can't stimulate the economy and create jobs without including our nation's small manufacturers, lumber yards and mum and pop stores.

We can't grow the economy without small business.

With that said, we wouldn't have to grow our fiscal imbalance to provide savings to our small businesses and to make hiring more affordable for them.

The Payroll (I.e. Social Security and Medicare) Tax is collected from both the employer and the associate.

For some odd reason, American businesses and individuals are exempted from Payroll Taxation on earnings above the $106,800 ceiling.

In other words, Manhattan's finance-based millionaires and billionaires and our nation's super-rich corporate executives aren't made to make the same contribution that is expected from teachers and registered nurses. 

According to economists and statisticians, lifting the payroll tax ceiling would generate billions and billions of dollars in additional revenue which could then be used to provide an exemption for our job-creating small businesses.

In the process, a small business payroll exemption would make labour more affordable and would induce our small businesses to hire more workers.

Furthermore, since the payroll tax is collected on payroll instead of earnings, lifting the tax on new and small businesses would increase the small business success rate and would lead to fewer failed businesses.

It'd be a Win-Win for both the American Economy and the American Worker.

Golden Shower Economics: Reagan and Bush's America.