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Sunday, June 24, 2012 | 2 a.m.
It was interesting to read Kevin Alexander’s recent letter blaming President Barack Obama for the slow recovery. He says that businesses “are sitting on plenty of cash” because they are afraid to invest it pending the outcome of Obamacare and the election. Really? It’s the Republican-controlled House and the unprecedented rate of filibustering in the Senate that prevent adoption of many of the president’s policies.
How did these businesses get all this cash if the Obama administration’s policies have been so anti-business? Got a problem with your mortgage? Per Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, bankruptcy and the market bottoming out will solve this problem. Democrats want to improve the economy by increasing government spending with job programs that would enhance income for teachers, firefighters, police officers and more. More income increases tax revenues, stabilizes home ownership and encourages consumer purchasing.
Has anyone pressed our governor to put in place policies to help solve these issues? Is the only solution laying off more workers and complaining that the jobless rate is going up?
The letter writer asked, “How and when are we going to pay this back?” referring to the debt. The answer is not by putting back in control the party that started it in the first place, Republicans. You know, the same ones who shut the government down and cheered at the lowering of the U.S. credit rating.
The Democrats have become experts in generating excuses and avoiding respondibility.
Obama's WH stated that the "stimulus" would bring unemployment below 7% by now.
Were they incompentent?
Obama stated that he would get the "job" done in 3 years and if he didn't get the "job" done that it would be a one term presidency.
That is one point that I can agree with Obama.
Hopefully one day you people on the far right will understand it's the middle class that creates jobs. It's the purchasing power of the middle class that boosts the economy not the so-called "job creators" and their tax cuts. As long as working class people are in disparity our economy will only provide more wealth for the wealthiest and eventually the middle class will be no more.
Letter writer's view of current events and the political facts and circumstances is as twisted as his thinking. When the Supremes strike down President Obama's Health Care law/individual mandate, the letter writer, Pelosi, Reid, and President Obama can blame Bush2 and Cheney, like they usually do. Think Americans are still buying that overused alibi?
CarmineD
The writer makes a good point. If the Obama Administration is supposedly anti-business, how come all these corporations are awash with cash? They aren't investing it because they're unsure about the financial health of their customers. Meanwhile, the stock market bottomed about six weeks after President Obama took office and most major averages have doubled since.
I just love all the whining about uncertainty. There is always uncertainty and business executives get paid big bucks to deal with it. If everything in the world was certain, I could run a Fortune 500 company.
It's never the uncertainties that trip you up in business, it's the certainties. Take, for example, the certainty that the value of housing would always increase because it always has. Oh wait! Betting on that as a sure thing is what got us in this mess in the first place.
Who in their right mind would propose that the nation should proceed under the failed policies of the past three plus years under Obama. The left is stuck on concerns that the leadership will revert to the failed policies that existed under the Bush administration. The left is critical of using low taxes as a means of stimulating the economy. Lower taxes not only eases the burden on businesses but also leaves more in the coffers of consumers to spend on goods and services. Business is responding to current demand levels in a highly successful way. The problem is that demand levels are below the levels needed to sustain a recovery. One of the significant sources of demand is the perception by businesses that their investments will allow them to recover costs and earn a profit from which they will both survive and create a pool for more investment. This is a process the left does not grasp. The left is preoccupied with grabbing more wealth by taxation,increasing government's size and spending unbounded sums raised from private citizens. This is a policy walk that is destined to fail and the reason that Obama's policies are not working for America.
Government can create jobs FDR make millions of them. It seems to me the only way for we poor. Tax cuts are job destroyers. The rich just give us economic collapse and war. Lets get wise to these low lifes !
The left correctly observes that many existing businesses are flush in cash. The left then plunges to the mistaken notion that businesses should run out and invest this cash in creating new jobs. This not the theory of the firm iunder a free market brand of capitalism. A business plans its next move by assessing what the result will be on a marginal or incremental basis. He or she asks the simple question " what will I be able to receive from the next incremental investment that I make"?" it is at this point that the left becomes lost. The left would wish that a business person would say " I have money to spend,let's hire another person". This is not the way it works. This is the reason that the climate for business must be conducive to motivating a business to invest that incremental dollar in the economy. This rational thinking frequently escapes the left who adheres to the mantra " if it feels good,do it!"
Grose claims part of the "problem" on "unprecedented filibustering of the Senate" by Republicrats. Where was he during W's term? Asleep? Did he not notice the wrench thrown into the machinery to stop just about every proposal, nomination and program that W offered? And the wrench was wielded by none other than Harry "the Red" Reid. The filibuster is nothing new and is regularly used by the "loyal" opposition as a weapon of last resort. As for Kelly's assertion that FDR "created jobs" that did any good: baloney! FDR's policies prolonged the Great Depression and it was WWII that eventually broke its back. BTW Kelly: your grammar is pretty bad; makes your comments nearly unintelligible.
I have a question for President Obama and all those that support him. How much money do we need to borrow, print and spend, before it's enough?
You cannot argue that if government borrowed, printed and spent alot more money raising the salaries and benefits of current government workers, hiring more, offering more tax dollars for infrastructure projects that the people benefitting from all this would spend more and help expand the economy.
The problem is that the money needed is not available from current tax receipts, so it has to be printed and borrowed. We've already printed and borrowed 16 trillion dollars and the world looks at our financial situation with worry.
I worry that if we follow the approach the President, Paul Krugman and others favor, by the time our economy improves, we will be so far in debt, it will be generations before we are able to pay it off.... and our economy will be stunted for a very long time.
Michael
Jim Weber,
You and the letter writer don't have to wonder why successful companies are sitting on alot of cash. It's the economy. Our economy is slow, not dead. The wise stewarts of successful companies saw the slowdown, reduced their labor force, reduced spending, became more efficient and just kept on truckin. They put away more of their profit and are waiting for better days to expand and spend what they saved. It's economics 101 and there is nothing sinister there.
We'd all be alot better off if more Americans understood basic economics. The fact that they don't allows them to be bamboozled by politicians.
Michael
Vernos,
Without people being successful in business and making lots of money, there are no jobs for the middle class...except government jobs. We've spent over a trillion dollars trying to stimulate the economy, added 5 trillion to our debt, reduced spending little if any and we are still bumping along economically. We are 16 trillion dollars in debt. How much more do you suggest we print, borrow and spend?
Michael
Mr. Casler my sentiments exactly. I've asked my left leaning friends when and how much money is needed to be spent until we can hear the current administration say they don't need anymore. Never do I get an answer. Why? Because thats all they understand. Spend, spend, and spend some more and thier thinking is that the debt will go away and everyone will have a job.
@ Dipstick: When will you and others that believe like you stop living in the past? True, Bush made huge mistakes. Its been 3.5 years. When does the Dems take responsibilty? Just put a date on it. They never will. Why? Because they don't have a clue what to do. Heck Reid STILL has no Budget. Its his job to produce one and hasn't. Again why? Because he like his Democratic Senate do not have a clue what to do. He's to busy seeing that boxing gets refereed correctly.
Is the letter writer asking HIS taxes be increased to pay for the Government spending he wants that is supposed to stimulate or is he asking the Government to go after the cash the corporations have saved up to weather the economic turn-down?
Wayne Grose, thank you for a very objective letter.
Michael,
I don't think I suggested that there was anything sinister in corporations holding cash, only that they have regained a great deal of profitability during an allegedly hostile Obama Administration.
I understand why they are not investing that cash. It's because there is still a lot of pain being felt on Main Street and unused capacity out there doesn't cry out for new investment.
Jim
Polls consistently show that voters blame Bush and the GOP for this economic disaster. Romney's only shot at beating President Obama is to convince voters that only he, a republican, is capable of fixing the mess left behind by the last republican president. That's a tough sell.
On the other hand, Mitt Romney is probably the perfect snake oil peddler for the snow job.
Those that are interested in the truth of what the damage done to America by the so-called republicans and their corrupt corporate cronies should just type in:
"The state of poverty in America"
"Middle class would face higher taxes under republican plan"
"How policy has contributed to the great economic divide."
"The stimulus worked" by Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Bank. "Without the stimulus the unemployment rate would probably be closer to 11%, and the economy might not have grown at all...
"How the Stimulus is changing America" Time.
"The impact of the recovery act, in a few easy charts."
"One more time: The stimulus worked" by New Republic.
The number of experts who agreed with the conservative republican line=Zero!
The Republican crowd have been wrong about every major economic policy for at least a generation.
They cannot find anyone that would endorse the view of Cato, Heritage, NRO, and the GOP view.
Jim,
Thanks for clarifying. You do seem to understand, but many do not. Anyone that advocates raising taxes on business, as Obama has is going to be viewed as hostle by the business community. Well run businesses are profitable because they cut back and got more efficient during the downturn. Obama had little to do with that, negatively or positively.
Michael
Vidi,
Once again thank you so much for presenting the facts, which is an unfamiliar concept to most of the conservatives. How can you put up with this outlandish gibberish and propaganda every day from these right-wing /teabagger crazies.
OBAMA/BIDEN 2012
kepi, Most of the sycophant wingnut supporters of the miserable failure so-called republicans get paid to post the misinformation that comes to them from their despicable masters.
They really don't care, it is just a job for them. They do not seem to have any principles, values, integrity, and certainly no honor.
Wait a minute, corporations got bail out right before Bozo slinked off to texas.
The Fascist Criminal Enterprise of covert president cheney and his puppet "duh" bush told 935 lies to justify their illegal invasion of Iraq.
That is a prime example of the use of Hitler and Goebbel's Big Lie--tell lies, even preposterous lies and repeat them over and over to convince, fool and even brainwash the citizens.
Sixty seven percent of the republican electorate are totally brainwashed and will not admit they are wrong, even when they are shown the cold, hard facts.
The so-called republicans aren't interested in compromise they are interested in obstruction and extortion.
TEA:
Willful ignorance and/or self imposed delusion is neither contagious nor transferable, Ms. Poppins.
Now are you referring to me again???? Okay, you told me I was dismissed and I took you at your word. HUM ..... Okay, first Snow White then Julia; and I did see the Mary Poppins reference awhile ago. I am glad we are back on a first name basis again. I am Snow White and you are Dopey, one of my seven dwarfs :) Instead of Dopey, would you prefer Grumpy?
For those of you that do not know about Fascism just type in---
"14 points of Fascism."
"Fascism then and Now."
"Propaganda techniques of Fascism"
"Institute for Propaqanda Analysis"
"Fascist America, are we there yet?"
"Propaganda...does not have to seek objectively for the truth so far as it favors an opponent...but exclusively has to serve our interests. It must adopt every device of slander that ingenuity can suggest. Whenever our propaganda permits for a single moment the shimmer of an appearance of right on the other side, it has laid a foundation for doubt in the right of our cause..."
The above is what the so-called republicans and their enablers use 24/7 and have done so for years.
Who wrote that paragraph?
Wayne the letter writer and the anti-business Obama don't grasp the important role private investment plays in economic growth and neither do Occupiers and Union posters on LVS. Enclosed is a graph showing the correlation between private investment and unemployment(third graph on page). This third graph shows that higher private investment leads to lower unemployment and, conversely, lower private investment leads to higher unemployment. A President should understand economics, business and the important role private investment plays in growing our economy. A President with pro-growth business policies will spur private investment, create jobs and grow our economy again. The anti-business Obama, unions and Occupiers do not understand private investment and the role it plays in creating jobs and expanding our economy. With 17% fewer tax filers compared to 2008 and with 12 to 14 million jobless Americans it is easy to see the need to grow the economic pie, not create larger pieces of the pie for those who remain employed as Obama, unions and Occupiers want to do. Businesses want a more fiscally responsible government and a stable tax environment for everyone. These temporary tax deals which many expire at the end of this year are not the environment which you make long-term business investments.
http://johnbtaylorsblog.blogspot.com/201...
Dipstick,
I asked him if he would like to be Dopey and he declined so I thought the next best choice would be Grumpy so I see where he would fit between Grumpy and Sleepy.
Thank you for the insight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Republicans only believe in spending when they're in charge! Remember when Cheney said "Deficits don't matter!" ? LOL
The results of the 'Housing Fraud Bubble" bursting that led to the "almost financial market collapse" that led to Great Depression II:
The loss of $34,000,000,000,000 of America's wealth that took over 200 years to create and will take decades to recover.
Millions of homes foreclosed upon, more millions to follow, and millions more owing more on their home than what they are worth.
The average loss of $100,000 in home owners equity.
Over 5,000,000 jobs lost.
Over 400,000 families being pushed into poverty.
The above is from a Sun editorial on 7-19-11
Decline in wages of approximately 10%.
The middle class lost over 40% of their wealth.
Those responsible are the Housing and Financial Fraudsters and the fiscally irresponsible so-called republicans with their narrow minded ideology of totally unregulated capitalism they turned into policy.
To fully recover from the economic Depression will take decades not years.
So, you sycophant wingnuts try to prove that you are smarter than anybody else, so tell your fellow NV citizens how long it will take to make back that $34 Trillion at any interest rate from 1-10%. You need the GDP figure, which is approximately $14.7 Trillion.
Clue-use the exponent function on your calculator.
Medicare for all , Social security and Obama for ever !!!
Mr. Weber:
There are two certainties in life: Death and taxes. After them, everything else falls into 2 categories: Risks and uncertainties. Risks can be measured. Uncertainties can't. That's the reason they are called uncertainties. There are always risks. The higher the risk, the greater the rewards. But they are humanly measurable. Not so with uncertainties. Don't know. They are called "too risky." That's where we as a nation and a people are right now. In the "too risky" zone. What happens? People and businesses sit on the sidelines and wait and see.
CarmineD
Taxes:
Corporate taxes as a percentage of Fed. Revenue:
1955----27.3%
2010-----8.9%
Corporate taxes as a percentage of GDP:
1955-----4.3%
2010-----1.3%
Individual incomes as a percentage of Federal revenue:
1955-----58%
2010-----81.5%
The richest 400 Americans have average incomes of $354,000,000 yearly and their tax rate is 16.6%
Billionaire Warren Buffet's tax rate is 17.7%.
His secretary's tax rate is 32.9%
Just type in the following titles:
Guest Post: Do the parasite elite pay any taxes?
32 corporations spent more on compensation for top executives in 2010 than they paid in income taxes.
Job destroying taxes? Ask pols, which ones are
those?
Forget about Libya: Let's invade the Caymans and get the offshore U.S. corporate loot back.
Not only are U.S. corporations not overtaxed, some of the biggest are paying a negative tax rate.
The tax burden of the very rich.
Five tax fallacies invented by the one percent. They are entirely false.
Middle class would pay higher taxes under republican plan.
Same old.....same old crap coming from the right-wingers!
Despite everything that the Republicans have attempted to do to keep the economy from coming around, the economy is slowly improving........
Right-wingers hate to hear that and they are quick to deny that but we all knows it's true!
I don't believe we've had a president since FDR who has had as many rocks thrown at him as President Obama has...
Of course 98% of the rocks are coming from the right!
From the very second that Obama's election become official, the GOP and their brain-dead followers have dedicated themselves to the task of seeing Obama defeated in his bid for re-election...
The GOP controlled House & the GOP members of the Senate have worked 24/7 to block/sabotage any
thing and everything that Obama & the Democrats have done or tried to do to get this country moving again...
A recent poll pointed out that some 68% of the people ask about our current economic situation blamed not Obama for our problems, but the previous president, George 'clueless' Bush....
Slowly but surely, the voters in this country are seeing what the GOP is up to, and guess what? They don't like it!
Look for Obama to win re-election come November.
Mitt, "I love to fire people" Romney will be heading back to his job with Bain Capital on Monday, following the election on Tuesday....
"Great Democratic Party Accomplishments"
GI Bill----1945---FDR
NATO-------1949---Truman
Marshall Plan-1947---Truman
Peace Corps---1960/61--JFK
First manned moon mission---1969--Lyndon Johnson
First American to orbit the Earth---John Glenn under President JFK
40 hour workweek-----------------1938---Roosevelt
Minimum wage law-----------------1938---Roosevelt
Overtime-------------------------1938---Roosevelt
Social Security Act--------------1935---Roosevelt
Unemployment Comp.---------------1935---Roosevelt
Rural Electrification------------1936---Roosevelt
Federal Deposit Insurance--------1933---Roosevelt
Federal Home Loan Program--------1934---Roosevelt
Securities and Exchange Act------1934---Roosevelt
Guaranteed student loan program--1965---Johnson
School Lunch Program-------------1946---Truman
Operation Head Start-------------1965---Johnson
Medicare-------------------------1965---Johnson
Medicaid-------------------------1965---Johnson
Family and Medical Leave Act---- 1993--Clinton
Women's suffrage amendment-------
civil Rights Act-----------------1965---Johnson
Voting Rights Act----------------1965---Johnson
Motor Voter Act------------------1993---Clinton
Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act-------------Obama
Wall St. reform-------------------------Obama
Student Loan reform---------------------Obama
Credit Card Regulations-----------------Obama
Tobacco Regulations---------------------Obama
National Service Bill-------------------Obama
Stem Cell Research----------------------Obama
Hate Crimes Prevention Act--------------Obama
Land Protection Act---------------------Obama
Can any of you Brownshirt sycophant supporters of the miserable failure republicans tell the American citizens the accomplishments of the so-called republican party?
We will all be waiting!
Vidi,
Your cheer-leading here on LVS for the party you favor is admiring however, poll after poll show Americans are concerned about jobs, the economy and debt/deficit spending which Obama hasn't resolved. Currently only 31% of Americans feel the country is on the right track and 61% feel we're on the wrong track which is an indicator of how Americans are feeling right now about Obama. Americans want their top concerns addressed Vidi.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/...
Wayne.....GREAT LETTER, THE TRUTH.
Here's what is certain....
PRESIDENT OBAMA ALREADY SAVED US FROM THE
BUSH/REPUBLICAN DEPRESSION!!!!
That's right.
President Obama has already proven to be the
greatest president in our lifetime.
And the proof seen across the country is he has
turned republicans into babbling lunatics.
These republican idiots CAN'T STOP CRYING.
These republicans are a bunch of big babies.
Are they going to keep crying when President
Obama gets re-elected in November?
FOUR MORE YEARS FOR PRESIDENT OBAMA!!!
RefNV.......
Poll after poll have PRESIDENT OBAMA AHEAD of
old man willard.
Get used to it.
Do you need your crying towel now or later?
Teamster,
Obama declaring that the private sector was "doing fine" spoke volumes as to how out-of-touch he is with our economy and jobs picture. 12 to 14 million Americans are jobless and private investment is not at expansion levels. Business is still in risk-avert mode due to regulatory, tax and government fiscal uncertainty. Americans top three concerns are jobs, the economy and debt/deficit spending and Obama has failed to address these concerns during his four year term. It's time for someone else to address our concerns.
RefNV.......
Jobs are being added every month under President
Obama.
And President Obama already saved GM AND CHRYSLER,
OVER A MILLION JOBS, RIGHT THERE.
Your republican party sent millions of our jobs
TO COMMUNIST CHINA AND OTHER COUNTRIES.
REPUBLICAN GREED DESTROYED OUR JOBS.
But President Obama is already fixing the
republican screw-up.
Only idiots, morons and lunatics would put
greedy, heartless republicans back in power after
they created the WORST DEPRESSION IN 80 YEARS!
WE'RE NOT STUPID!!!
Boiling Point: Democrats, Republicans, and the Decline of Middle-Class Prosperity by Kevin Phillips
Age of Greed: The Triumph of Finance and the Decline of America, 1970 to the Present by Jeff Madrick
"Falling From Grace: The Experience of Downward Mobility in the American Middle Class" (1989) Katherine S. Newman
"Upward Dreams, Downward Mobility: The Economic Decline of the American Middle Class" (1993) Frederick R. Strobel
"Silent Depression: The Fate of the American Dream" (1994) Wallace C. Peterson
"The Fragile Middle Class: Americans in Debt" (2001) Teresa A. Sullivan
"War on the Middle Class: How the Government, Big Business, and Special Interest Groups Are Waging War on the American Dream and How to Fight Back" (2006) Lou Dobbs
President Khardasian is presiding over the most anemic post-recession recovery since WW2. Connect the dots, bankrupting coal, making electrcity costs "necessarily skyrocket", and backdooring cap&trade is a recipe for a good ole duoble-dip ression.
RedRocky - "It is just that 'your guy' on the radical left has shown himself a complete failure, intentionally so."
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/magazin...
rusty57 - "President Khardasian is presiding over the most anemic post-recession recovery since WW2"
Still no original thoughts? Mimicking Fox is not the way to self educate.
TEA......
You can't campare this depression to any other
because this is the first depression caused by
republican CEO'S sending millions of our jobs to
COMMUNIST CHINA.
THOSE JOBS ARE STILL IN COMMUNIST CHINA.
This is why it will take more time to bring our
economy back to where it should be.
And with republicans blocking Obama at every step,
what do you expect?
WE'LL FIX THAT IN NOVEMBER WHEN WE DEMOCRATS
TAKE BACK THE HOUSE AND ADD SEATS TO THE SENATE.
NO PROBLEM.