John Robert's is a conservative Judge. He has only served in Republican administrations. He was appointed to the bench by Republican Presidents.
Yet, he makes one objective decision regarding the Constitution that is harmful to a GOP belief and here are a selection of GOP statements.
Mike Spence Republican Congressman: "The Supreme Court decision on health care is the legislative equivalent of the 9/11 terrorist attacks."
Making a decision on the Constitution that you don't like is the equivalent of the death of over 3000 Americans in one violent act?
Senator Paul Rand, Republican: "Just because a couple of people on Supreme Court declare something to be 'consitutional' does not make it so."
What is the role of the Supreme Court then in Senator Rand's view of government? Only something that he agrees with?
Glen Beck GOP Media Mogul: "Roberts is a coward"
Once again, everything is fine when Citizens United is decided but not when Health Care is decided.
Michael Savage GOP Media Mogul: "Robert's has epilepsy and his medication made him vote this way." "Neurologists will tell you that medication used for seizure disorders, such as epilepsy, can introduce mental slowing, forgetfulness and other cognitive problems. And if you look at Robert's writing, you can see cognitive dissociation in what he is saying."
Funny, he didn't believe this when Citizens United was decided or affirmed this year. Perhaps, he would like Judge Roberts to resign this year and let President Obama appointed a new Chief Justice?
My point in all this is my original motivation for starting this blog. You need to respect the other side and bring policy back to the middle when changing it. There needs to be respect for where the country is coming from and you should not have radical change. Progress is made incrementally. Taxes are not unpatriotic. Government has a role, it should be run as efficiently as possible and it must be paid for. Denigrating the opposition or your own when they disagree with you has put the Country in a position of not making progress on serious problems that the country faces.
Who wants to have a discussion with someone who doesn't listen, respond thoughtfully, and acknowledge that politics are the art of the possible, not the rigidity following one radical path or the other. We can only solve problems by balancing the Democrats belief that government works and is part of the solution with the Republican belief that government should be run in a fiscally sound manner and be as limited as possible. This is why there are 2 parties and election results vary from time to time and place to place.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Proving I Have Conservative Biases
One of the things that conservatives are taking heart in the aftermath of the Supreme Court's decision on the ACA is the limitation on Congress's use of the Interstate Commerce clause. I agree with this.
The issue on Health Care is that it is a national problem and there exist national solutions. However, the fact remains that for anyone not on Medicare or in the Veterans Administration, heath care is a state regulated reality and nothing beyond the Taxing Power or legislative power allows the Federal Government the right to penalize people who do not buy health insurance and cast expenses upon the rest of us. While there is commerce involved in this, the only means of compelling people to do something is the Tax Code.
Health care is different from Broccoli, but I don't want anyone compelling me to do something that I don't want to do provided I do not impose an ancillary cost upon society. Thus, I am in favor of decriminalizing drugs and taking the crime out of the supply chain so violence does down where ever that supply chain goes. Most of the crime inflicted upon society from drug use is driven by the illegality and the profits that arise from it. The government is regulating interstate commerce and should not be doing so when such regulation creates harm for society. I frankly don't understand why the Ohio farmer was not allowed to grow wheat for his own consumption in the middle of a depression and the start of WWII. That just seems wrong to me. But there is a big difference between growing some grain and not buying health insurance and then receiving medical treatment which society has to pay for when you cannot. And everyone needs health care sooner or later, and in an unpredictable manner. That is what insurance is for, to cover unpredictable catastrophic expenses so one does not go bankrupt for what cannot be afforded. This is the reason car insurance is mandatory in every state of the union.
The issue on Health Care is that it is a national problem and there exist national solutions. However, the fact remains that for anyone not on Medicare or in the Veterans Administration, heath care is a state regulated reality and nothing beyond the Taxing Power or legislative power allows the Federal Government the right to penalize people who do not buy health insurance and cast expenses upon the rest of us. While there is commerce involved in this, the only means of compelling people to do something is the Tax Code.
Health care is different from Broccoli, but I don't want anyone compelling me to do something that I don't want to do provided I do not impose an ancillary cost upon society. Thus, I am in favor of decriminalizing drugs and taking the crime out of the supply chain so violence does down where ever that supply chain goes. Most of the crime inflicted upon society from drug use is driven by the illegality and the profits that arise from it. The government is regulating interstate commerce and should not be doing so when such regulation creates harm for society. I frankly don't understand why the Ohio farmer was not allowed to grow wheat for his own consumption in the middle of a depression and the start of WWII. That just seems wrong to me. But there is a big difference between growing some grain and not buying health insurance and then receiving medical treatment which society has to pay for when you cannot. And everyone needs health care sooner or later, and in an unpredictable manner. That is what insurance is for, to cover unpredictable catastrophic expenses so one does not go bankrupt for what cannot be afforded. This is the reason car insurance is mandatory in every state of the union.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Gov. Romney continues his incoherence
I just saw Governor Romney's statement about the Supreme Court upholding the ACA which is virtually identical to Massachusetts health care design implemented under Governor Romney. He blasted the ACA and then said any replacement would have incorporate most of the features of the ACA except the individual mandate. But how will he prevent cherry picking by the suddenly sick without health insurance and cover pre-existing conditions? This is not the 1st time, Governor Romney has obfuscated what he stands for. See the following.
Thanks to Nicholas Kristoff for assembling this list of Governor Romney statements.
Thanks to Nicholas Kristoff for assembling this list of Governor Romney statements.
1. On abortion: “I will preserve and protect a woman’s right to choose and am devoted and dedicated to honoring my word in that regard.”
2. “I am fighting for an overturning of Roe v. Wade.”
3. On gay rights: “As we seek to establish full equality for America’s gay and lesbian citizens, I will provide more effective leadership than my opponent.”
4. On the 2009 economic stimulus: “No time, nowhere, no how.”
5. “There is need for economic stimulus. Americans have lost about $11 trillion in net worth. That translates into about $400 billion a year less spending that they’ll be doing. ... Government can help make that up in a very difficult time. And that’s one of the reasons why I think a stimulus program is needed.”
6. On climate science: “I believe that climate change is occurring — the reduction in the size of global ice caps is hard to ignore. I also believe that human activity is a contributing factor.”
7. “Do I think the world’s getting hotter? Yeah, I don’t know that, but I think that it is. ... I don’t know if it’s mostly caused by humans. ... What I’m not willing to do is spend trillions of dollars on something I don’t know the answer to.”
8. On health care: “It’s critical to insure more people in this country. It doesn’t make sense to have 45 million people without insurance. It’s not good for them because they don’t get good preventative care ... but it’s not good for the rest of the citizens either, because if people aren’t insured, they go to the emergency room for their care when they get very sick. That’s expensive. They don’t have any insurance to cover it. So guess who pays? Everybody else.”
9. On financial bailouts: “The idea of trying to bail out an institution to protect the shareholders or to protect a certain interest group, that’s a terrible idea. And that shouldn’t happen.”
10. “TARP got paid back, and it kept the financial system from collapsing. ... Well, it was the right thing to do.”
Governor Romney, please clarify what you will do if you become President!!!
I believe this is a first
Chief Justice Roberts aligns with the more liberal wing of the court to uphold the ACA, while Justice Kennedy does not. I think in all previous instances of this Kennedy and Roberts have moved together.
And thank you Mr. Roberts as the dissenters would have ruled the entire act invalid and left everyone exposed to cessation of coverage if one gets sick, no transparency in the individual market and millions of people without health insurance getting their expenses covered by those of us with heath insurance.
And thank you Mr. Roberts as the dissenters would have ruled the entire act invalid and left everyone exposed to cessation of coverage if one gets sick, no transparency in the individual market and millions of people without health insurance getting their expenses covered by those of us with heath insurance.
More Irony
218,000 people (and probably going to exceed 400,000 people) are now on scotusblog.com to know the Supreme Court Decision on the Affordable Health Care Act, otherwise known as Obama Cares and all this to know the decision 15 to 60 seconds before they would find out in a more normal form of media.
I know why supporters of the ACA are watching because they are passionately in favor of everyone having access to health care and see it as a driver to controlling the cost of health care for everyone. I am less sure about opponents because their passion is seemingly in favor of individual rights (not to buy health care until they need it or are able to foster the cost upon others without paying for it) but they confuse this passion by being in favor of components of the ACA like "allowing coverage with pre-existing conditions", keeping kids on parents policies until they find a job, being in favor of health insurance exchanges, being in favor of not allowing insurance companies to end your coverage when you get sick, being in favor of no-life-time coverage limits, being in favor of limiting profits on Health Insurance Companies (like other regulated utilities) and closing the doughnut hole for seniors (this qualifies as fostering the cost upon others without paying for it, but don't tell that to any senior citizen who says "I don't want government messing with my Medicare!")
I know why supporters of the ACA are watching because they are passionately in favor of everyone having access to health care and see it as a driver to controlling the cost of health care for everyone. I am less sure about opponents because their passion is seemingly in favor of individual rights (not to buy health care until they need it or are able to foster the cost upon others without paying for it) but they confuse this passion by being in favor of components of the ACA like "allowing coverage with pre-existing conditions", keeping kids on parents policies until they find a job, being in favor of health insurance exchanges, being in favor of not allowing insurance companies to end your coverage when you get sick, being in favor of no-life-time coverage limits, being in favor of limiting profits on Health Insurance Companies (like other regulated utilities) and closing the doughnut hole for seniors (this qualifies as fostering the cost upon others without paying for it, but don't tell that to any senior citizen who says "I don't want government messing with my Medicare!")
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Fast & Furious & the NRA
How ironic it is that the NRA is pushing Congress People to hold the Attorney General in contempt of court.
1st, if the NRA allowed Gun Registration, the Mexican cartels would not have been buying guns in the U.S.
2nd, would the NRA be pushing for this if the GOP were in charge because Fast & Furious started under Bush II in 2008.
3rd, just what is the NRA point?
1st, if the NRA allowed Gun Registration, the Mexican cartels would not have been buying guns in the U.S.
2nd, would the NRA be pushing for this if the GOP were in charge because Fast & Furious started under Bush II in 2008.
3rd, just what is the NRA point?
Monday, June 25, 2012
I Don't Understand the Supreme Court's Belief
that legislatures cannot regulate campaign finance as they see fit. It is a political issue. Money corrupts and corrupt politicians are harmful to society. I wonder if the Conservatives on the Supreme Court are as clean as a whistle or have their hand in some till.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Sunday Musings on Health Care
I was struck by two stories this weekend on how broken our health care system is and how the Affordable Health Care Act is a step in the right direction, but needs improvement. Yet the GOP fails to describe what they will do to fix it beyond simply saying the private sector can do it if people are free to choose. Of course, it is precisely that part of the health care system that is most dysfunctional.
High deductible plans are good because they force the individual to pay attention to costs. Yet, it is very difficult for even a intelligent person to know if costs are accurate and what or where alternatives might be in non-crisis events. This Saturday article describes the problems and what are the broad spectrum of undereducated to do when the educated have such problems.
Hospital billing errors and difficulty discovering and correcting
Here is an article on how the uninsured costs enter the system and introduces us to how a failure to be able to obtain health insurance due to pre-existing conditions is a direct cause of higher insurance premiums for everyone who has health insurance. We pay for their care with our insurance premiums.
Uninsured Get Treated in ER and more
So what would I do? Well I for one would just as soon have a single payer plan with premiums means tested and allow for those who can afford it to buy supplemental policies. But we don't have that and will not with whatever the Supreme Court decides this week. We need for the GOP to put forth some actual health care policies that consider how we will cover the uninsured's costs in a non-ER setting.
High deductible plans are good because they force the individual to pay attention to costs. Yet, it is very difficult for even a intelligent person to know if costs are accurate and what or where alternatives might be in non-crisis events. This Saturday article describes the problems and what are the broad spectrum of undereducated to do when the educated have such problems.
Hospital billing errors and difficulty discovering and correcting
Here is an article on how the uninsured costs enter the system and introduces us to how a failure to be able to obtain health insurance due to pre-existing conditions is a direct cause of higher insurance premiums for everyone who has health insurance. We pay for their care with our insurance premiums.
Uninsured Get Treated in ER and more
So what would I do? Well I for one would just as soon have a single payer plan with premiums means tested and allow for those who can afford it to buy supplemental policies. But we don't have that and will not with whatever the Supreme Court decides this week. We need for the GOP to put forth some actual health care policies that consider how we will cover the uninsured's costs in a non-ER setting.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
This is why Sound Economic Policy Does Not Fit Sound Bites
I don't always agree with Professor Stiglitz but I have always found his point of view interesting to hear and contemplate. I have met him and heard him in person on several occasions over the last 20 years. In this case, I do agree with him on why the tax cuts contained in the 2009 economic stimulus were wasted and should have been spent on infrastructure spending. We should still do that with savings from reduced defense spending while we balance the budget with revenue increases to pay for the Borrowed War on Terror and reform entitlements in a responsible manner.
The one thing Prof. Stiglitz forgets is by forcing down US wage rates to levels that can compete with China, we will eventually bring jobs back to the U.S. starting in 5 to 10 years where previously I had thought that would take 20 to 30 years. Unfortunately, wage rates that are comparable to China afford a living wage only in the rural parts of the country where you can buy a house for $20,000 and the whole economy will have to adjust to that which is extremely deflationary and will wreck economic havoc on anyone with outstanding debt. It is all very complicated.
Prof. Stiglitz on income inequality and economic growth
The one thing Prof. Stiglitz forgets is by forcing down US wage rates to levels that can compete with China, we will eventually bring jobs back to the U.S. starting in 5 to 10 years where previously I had thought that would take 20 to 30 years. Unfortunately, wage rates that are comparable to China afford a living wage only in the rural parts of the country where you can buy a house for $20,000 and the whole economy will have to adjust to that which is extremely deflationary and will wreck economic havoc on anyone with outstanding debt. It is all very complicated.
Prof. Stiglitz on income inequality and economic growth
Friday, June 22, 2012
The GOP is on the Verge of Repeating the McCarthy Era
I am now reading a book about some people who were on the periphery of the McCarthy investigation in the late 1940"s early 1950's. These people were investigated and questioned because they were somehow associated with other people who were being investigated for being communist sympathizers.
While the current GOP is not accusing anybody on the other side of being pro-terrorist or communist, they are unrelenting in their accusations and use of half (to zero) truths which is similar to the McCarthy tactics. Witness the Birther people who are not criticized by anyone in the GOP. Witness the campaign theme that tax cuts can be made and the budget balanced. Witness Grover Norquist forcing anyone in the GOP who does not want a Tea Party challenger to sign the no-tax-increase pledge. Witness the GOP insisting that the Affordable Health Care Act can be repealed and something else found that will reduce health care costs without death panels (which by the way are NOT in the Affordable Health Care Act). Witness the GOP believing that people who do not have health insurance do not impose a cost upon the health care system.
I am very afraid of what will happen if we have a GOP Congress and a President Romney. How can you govern honestly when you campaign with secret donations and are not open to belief in the truth at all times? The country will get what it deserves if this happens.
While the current GOP is not accusing anybody on the other side of being pro-terrorist or communist, they are unrelenting in their accusations and use of half (to zero) truths which is similar to the McCarthy tactics. Witness the Birther people who are not criticized by anyone in the GOP. Witness the campaign theme that tax cuts can be made and the budget balanced. Witness Grover Norquist forcing anyone in the GOP who does not want a Tea Party challenger to sign the no-tax-increase pledge. Witness the GOP insisting that the Affordable Health Care Act can be repealed and something else found that will reduce health care costs without death panels (which by the way are NOT in the Affordable Health Care Act). Witness the GOP believing that people who do not have health insurance do not impose a cost upon the health care system.
I am very afraid of what will happen if we have a GOP Congress and a President Romney. How can you govern honestly when you campaign with secret donations and are not open to belief in the truth at all times? The country will get what it deserves if this happens.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Republican Lies Get Caught by Truth
From a Bloomberg Story this a.m. by Michael Bender
"Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign asked Florida Governor Rick Scott to tone down his statements heralding improvements in the state’s economy because they clash with the presumptive Republican nominee’s message that the nation is suffering under President Barack Obama, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Scott, a Republican, was asked to say that the state’s jobless rate could improve faster under a Romney presidency, according to the people, who asked not to be named.
What’s unfolding in Florida highlights a dilemma for the Romney campaign: how to allow Republican governors to take credit for economic improvements in their states while faulting Obama’s stewardship of the national economy. Republican governors inOhio, Virginia, Michigan and Wisconsin also have highlighted improving economies.
Scott should follow the advice of the Romney campaign and it won’t undermine his own message, said Mac Stipanovich, a political strategist and lobbyist in Florida."
End of quote
We wouldn't want anyone to know that fiscal stimulus actually works, but what do you bet that if Romney wins he will continue to follow the same policies that President Bush is attempting to pursue but the GOP in the Congress will not let him.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Saturday Musings in mid-June
I am basically bored and ready to vote and get on with this, but a few things were worthy of comment today.
1st, unless I get a job I am officially in poverty as I will have no taxable income due to the combination of tax sheltered savings, high property taxes, paying for my medical insurance myself with deductibles and long term care contributions, low yields on fixed income investments, low tax rates on dividend income and boat loads of capital loss carry forwards. Please oh economy recovery so interest rates rise and I get some income and capital gains to offset those capital loss carry forwards and can pay some taxes.
2nd, the Greek Mayor of Thessaloniki is trying to do the right thing. Worth reading to see how far Greece at least has to go before it even remotely look like the U.S. The U.S. is not going to be Greece as no workers have protections like they do.
Thessaloniki Mayor
3rd, Gail Collins highlights the difference between hard core Democrats and hard core Tea Party Republicans and why we do not understand each other regardless of what ever similarities we might have economically. After reading this, it is easy to understand why compromise is so hard to find and why we will have grid lock until either one party dominates politically or we reach a precipice which must be turned back from or it run the economy into the ground and the moneyed side of the GOP will be scared to sh*t like they were in the fall of 2008 along with the Democrats.
Gail Collins
4th, it is amazing to see some of these young baseball players in the majors. They love to play the game and do it very well for a being barely out of high school. If you can catch any games with the Nationals or the Angels and watch Bryce Harper or Mike Trout, you will see what I mean. I only wish Pedro Alvarez of the Pirates, who my son regularly played against for 5 years, could figure out how to hit for a higher average than 200 after hitting over 300 in the minors and college. Although my son did strike Pedro out the one time he pitched to him and that is one of Pedro's big problems. He cannot hit slow pitches that move.
5th, does anybody over 40 care about the NBA playoffs?
6th, I am glad that no one invites me to play courses that the U.S. Open is competed on.
1st, unless I get a job I am officially in poverty as I will have no taxable income due to the combination of tax sheltered savings, high property taxes, paying for my medical insurance myself with deductibles and long term care contributions, low yields on fixed income investments, low tax rates on dividend income and boat loads of capital loss carry forwards. Please oh economy recovery so interest rates rise and I get some income and capital gains to offset those capital loss carry forwards and can pay some taxes.
2nd, the Greek Mayor of Thessaloniki is trying to do the right thing. Worth reading to see how far Greece at least has to go before it even remotely look like the U.S. The U.S. is not going to be Greece as no workers have protections like they do.
Thessaloniki Mayor
3rd, Gail Collins highlights the difference between hard core Democrats and hard core Tea Party Republicans and why we do not understand each other regardless of what ever similarities we might have economically. After reading this, it is easy to understand why compromise is so hard to find and why we will have grid lock until either one party dominates politically or we reach a precipice which must be turned back from or it run the economy into the ground and the moneyed side of the GOP will be scared to sh*t like they were in the fall of 2008 along with the Democrats.
Gail Collins
4th, it is amazing to see some of these young baseball players in the majors. They love to play the game and do it very well for a being barely out of high school. If you can catch any games with the Nationals or the Angels and watch Bryce Harper or Mike Trout, you will see what I mean. I only wish Pedro Alvarez of the Pirates, who my son regularly played against for 5 years, could figure out how to hit for a higher average than 200 after hitting over 300 in the minors and college. Although my son did strike Pedro out the one time he pitched to him and that is one of Pedro's big problems. He cannot hit slow pitches that move.
5th, does anybody over 40 care about the NBA playoffs?
6th, I am glad that no one invites me to play courses that the U.S. Open is competed on.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Modern Media Doesn't Replace Political Discussion
Thomas Friedman writes today about the disappointment of Egyptian activists in their choice to vote for their next leader: Either the Brotherhood or a Mubarek official. They are disappointed that Facebook and Twitter did not allow them to find someone who is in the middle.
Well, you cannot replace organization and face-to-face meetings with a mechanism that "readers" are free to ignore. While I try to convince readers of this blog, I have no way of knowing what explicit success I have as I have no way of knowing how open minded my readers are. You can only get that feedback from a face-to-face meeting.
There are two take-aways from this for the U.S. campaign. The first is the campaign must focus on meeting people, social media is only good for communicating with supporters and raising money from them. The second is that once you are in the government, if the other side has a blocking minority and you want to accomplish something, you have meet with them and find a compromise in the middle.
The Tea Party does not view compromise as acceptable but Simpson-Bowles is the path forward and President Obama should start supporting it with all his efforts to force such discussion.
But I digress from the main point of the value of face-to-face discussion. Anyone who reads my blog and RedStateVT's blog know that in the current environment we are like oil and water politically. But when we are socializing we enjoy each other's company and have a good time. What are the commonalities that allow that. Well, certainly sense of humor plays an important role in that but so does a common sense of values centered on the need for individuals to be responsible for their own lot in life and to make the best of it living within their means. It is probably at that point we diverge because where do you draw the line on what the government should do for the individual and reasonable people can differ on that. But only if you are having a discussion with someone who opposes that point of view can you have a debate about the specifics of where you end up drawing the line.
RedStateVT does not want people dying in the streets uncared for but he does not want the government socializing medical care. Well we have what we have today and we know we need to get somewhere else and how do we get there? Only by discussing that face-to-face can you find a middle ground and get something done. Thus, the name of this blog.
And maybe the next time RedStateVT and I are on the golf course we can have this discussion but not when he is trying to make a 10' putt for a par.
Well, you cannot replace organization and face-to-face meetings with a mechanism that "readers" are free to ignore. While I try to convince readers of this blog, I have no way of knowing what explicit success I have as I have no way of knowing how open minded my readers are. You can only get that feedback from a face-to-face meeting.
There are two take-aways from this for the U.S. campaign. The first is the campaign must focus on meeting people, social media is only good for communicating with supporters and raising money from them. The second is that once you are in the government, if the other side has a blocking minority and you want to accomplish something, you have meet with them and find a compromise in the middle.
The Tea Party does not view compromise as acceptable but Simpson-Bowles is the path forward and President Obama should start supporting it with all his efforts to force such discussion.
But I digress from the main point of the value of face-to-face discussion. Anyone who reads my blog and RedStateVT's blog know that in the current environment we are like oil and water politically. But when we are socializing we enjoy each other's company and have a good time. What are the commonalities that allow that. Well, certainly sense of humor plays an important role in that but so does a common sense of values centered on the need for individuals to be responsible for their own lot in life and to make the best of it living within their means. It is probably at that point we diverge because where do you draw the line on what the government should do for the individual and reasonable people can differ on that. But only if you are having a discussion with someone who opposes that point of view can you have a debate about the specifics of where you end up drawing the line.
RedStateVT does not want people dying in the streets uncared for but he does not want the government socializing medical care. Well we have what we have today and we know we need to get somewhere else and how do we get there? Only by discussing that face-to-face can you find a middle ground and get something done. Thus, the name of this blog.
And maybe the next time RedStateVT and I are on the golf course we can have this discussion but not when he is trying to make a 10' putt for a par.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
The Things You Don't Know but find out about on the Internet
My home town has traditionally been a place where children get a good education and people enjoy being around each other. Yes, there were members of both political parties and many church goers, but people kept this to themselves and respected what everybody did without getting in each other's face about anything.
Now, doing an innocent search of what might exist about Sidney, NY I found the following thing that brought them into the news in 2010. I must emphasize that this is the Town of Sidney, not the Village of Sidney where I grew up. Since it is rural, there can be some squirrelly people out there in the hills but I didn't expect that one of them would be Head of the Town government. How wrong I was.
See this link and watch the 1st 4 minutes and you will see what Mr. Bob McCarthy is scared about.
Steven Colbert learns where Sidney is
Now, doing an innocent search of what might exist about Sidney, NY I found the following thing that brought them into the news in 2010. I must emphasize that this is the Town of Sidney, not the Village of Sidney where I grew up. Since it is rural, there can be some squirrelly people out there in the hills but I didn't expect that one of them would be Head of the Town government. How wrong I was.
See this link and watch the 1st 4 minutes and you will see what Mr. Bob McCarthy is scared about.
Steven Colbert learns where Sidney is
The Message to the Democrats from Wisconsin
This will sound familiar to my long time readers as the pollsters surveyed the independent voters in Wisconsin and other states and found they think like me.
Independent voters want Simpson-Bowles implemented. End fiscal stimulus gradually and balance the budget with 2/3's spending cuts and 1/3 revenue increases. Reform entitlements in a responsible manner without ending them as we know it. Implement the Affordable Health Care Act and Tort Reform. If the Democrats ran like this and simply told their liberal base that it's this way or the highway, that the GOP will not reform entitlements in a responsible manner; the democrats will win.
Also, public sector unions need to start thinking like the private sector unions. Something like 30% of the latter voted for Governor Walker because they understand that the public sector pensions need reform so that there is still money for social services and routine things in the state and local budgets. Property taxes are high enough and cannot be raised at a rate faster than inflation and even that is too fast for retirees.
There was a distressing story on Type 2 diabetes in kids. I don't know the solution but Diabetes is a crippling expense for the health care system and short of death panels for fat people, the only viable solution is education starting very early on in a comprehensive manner. I remember being taught health in grade school and it seems like that should be a focus for all ages.
Finally, the NewsHour did a 3 day set on teachers and tests. They did focus on the High Performing schools that show up on tests are Charter schools that admit high performing kids and went on to say that you still need a way to see how teachers perform when they teach lower performing kids. There needs to be a focus on improving kids ability to think rather then memorize (which is what the current tests do) and how this changes over the course of a year in measuring the effectiveness of any specific teacher. When they talked to the teachers, my takeaway was kids are still being passed when they should fail and what happens at home is still the most important thing. I was shocked at the statistic that 30% of High School students drop out before graduating. Clearly, neither No Child Left Behind or the Race to the Top are addressing that awful reality.
These posts may become infrequent as I thinking about taking a job that will keep me busy much of the time starting very soon.
Independent voters want Simpson-Bowles implemented. End fiscal stimulus gradually and balance the budget with 2/3's spending cuts and 1/3 revenue increases. Reform entitlements in a responsible manner without ending them as we know it. Implement the Affordable Health Care Act and Tort Reform. If the Democrats ran like this and simply told their liberal base that it's this way or the highway, that the GOP will not reform entitlements in a responsible manner; the democrats will win.
Also, public sector unions need to start thinking like the private sector unions. Something like 30% of the latter voted for Governor Walker because they understand that the public sector pensions need reform so that there is still money for social services and routine things in the state and local budgets. Property taxes are high enough and cannot be raised at a rate faster than inflation and even that is too fast for retirees.
There was a distressing story on Type 2 diabetes in kids. I don't know the solution but Diabetes is a crippling expense for the health care system and short of death panels for fat people, the only viable solution is education starting very early on in a comprehensive manner. I remember being taught health in grade school and it seems like that should be a focus for all ages.
Finally, the NewsHour did a 3 day set on teachers and tests. They did focus on the High Performing schools that show up on tests are Charter schools that admit high performing kids and went on to say that you still need a way to see how teachers perform when they teach lower performing kids. There needs to be a focus on improving kids ability to think rather then memorize (which is what the current tests do) and how this changes over the course of a year in measuring the effectiveness of any specific teacher. When they talked to the teachers, my takeaway was kids are still being passed when they should fail and what happens at home is still the most important thing. I was shocked at the statistic that 30% of High School students drop out before graduating. Clearly, neither No Child Left Behind or the Race to the Top are addressing that awful reality.
These posts may become infrequent as I thinking about taking a job that will keep me busy much of the time starting very soon.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Mitt Doesn't Understand the Jobs Report
After the jobs report yesterday, Mitt said it was example of how President Obama's policies have failed to work. I disagree. The data shows that Mitt's proposed policies will lead to increased unemployment.
Now 1st of all, the policies that Mr. Romney is criticizing were put in place during the last 3 quarters of 2009 and led to all the jobs that were created in 2010 and 2011.
2nd, you need to look at the detail of the jobs report to see that the private sector created 82,000 jobs in May. The public sector declined 13,000 jobs to generate the disappointing headline number of 69,000 jobs. This pattern has been consistent for the past year or two as the private sector has created jobs in response to the policy stimulation while the public sector has been cutting employment as revenues at the state and local level have declined.
This is why Mitt's proposed policy will lead to higher unemployment. Cutting spending at the Federal Level quickly will reduce government staffing leading to more unemployed. His tax cuts, if they are to result in a balanced budget, will lead to more cuts in employment. I don't believe trickle down economics works anymore because anyone who receives these tax cuts will save the funds while those who do not have jobs anymore will be consuming less. Now, Mitt's counter theory is that the rich folks savings will be invested in business and provide jobs. But before anyone gets hired by those new businesses, there must be demand for the services provided which requires people to have jobs. This can only work with a serious delay between time of tax cut and increase in employment. Unemployment will go up as government workers lose their jobs until such time as the private sector develop needs for more workers.
I am also ignoring the difficulty in matching skills between the public and private sector. In fact, there are many mismatches in skills between those the unemployed possess and those the private sector desires. Look at the long term unemployed and the early retirees who cannot find a new position despite pounding the pavement of the private sector.
Now 1st of all, the policies that Mr. Romney is criticizing were put in place during the last 3 quarters of 2009 and led to all the jobs that were created in 2010 and 2011.
2nd, you need to look at the detail of the jobs report to see that the private sector created 82,000 jobs in May. The public sector declined 13,000 jobs to generate the disappointing headline number of 69,000 jobs. This pattern has been consistent for the past year or two as the private sector has created jobs in response to the policy stimulation while the public sector has been cutting employment as revenues at the state and local level have declined.
This is why Mitt's proposed policy will lead to higher unemployment. Cutting spending at the Federal Level quickly will reduce government staffing leading to more unemployed. His tax cuts, if they are to result in a balanced budget, will lead to more cuts in employment. I don't believe trickle down economics works anymore because anyone who receives these tax cuts will save the funds while those who do not have jobs anymore will be consuming less. Now, Mitt's counter theory is that the rich folks savings will be invested in business and provide jobs. But before anyone gets hired by those new businesses, there must be demand for the services provided which requires people to have jobs. This can only work with a serious delay between time of tax cut and increase in employment. Unemployment will go up as government workers lose their jobs until such time as the private sector develop needs for more workers.
I am also ignoring the difficulty in matching skills between the public and private sector. In fact, there are many mismatches in skills between those the unemployed possess and those the private sector desires. Look at the long term unemployed and the early retirees who cannot find a new position despite pounding the pavement of the private sector.
A Wise Man Comments on Syria
I hope Mitt reads this. We cannot send the military everywhere no matter what the current tragedy is. There must be a plan for success and exit, as well as a moral justification, for entering a war.
Henry Kissenger's Comments
Henry Kissenger's Comments
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