The End of Supply Side Economics

[Braised Cod]

Each in our own way are coming to the realization that Reaganomics was indeed, Voodoo economics. The concept that greed is good coexisting with the self regulating discipline of the marketplace only served to reveal and amplify the worst of human nature. From the ashes of supply side economics rises the phoenix of Wall Street Socialism, whereby profit is for the top 1% and the risk is distributed to the taxpayers. The new meme thrust upon us is that, in the words of Animal Farm, some pigs are more equal than others, meaning some business are too large to fail and thus worthy of taxpayer redemption regardless of their transgressions. No one has made the case for this drift from democracy to fascism more succinctly than author William Greider. I invite my fellow whiners to watch him interviewed by Bill Moyers: http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07182008/watch2.html
When Reagan quipped, "The most terrifying words in the English language are: "I'm from the government and I'm here to help you," surely he didn't mean the Federal Reserve.

[Braised Cod]

ROTFLOL! Jonah Goldberg! The idiot son of one of Nixon's dirty tricksters is hardly an authority on economics and Atlas Shrugged was a work of FICTION. The Federal Reserve is government agency headed by political appointees and captains of industry to prop up private institutions (the banks) with public funds. Thanks to deregulation, there is over a quadrillion in uncollateralized debt in the banking system. That is a 1 and 15 zeros my friend and it looks like this: $1,000,000,000,000,000. The only way to fix it is to print more money and devalue the dollar, which makes both you and me poorer. Or did Jonah explain that to you yet?

[Braised Cod]

Oh please, you folks killed the Great Society long ago. Cadillac driving Welfare queens have long been replaced by big Pharma, Exxon-Mobil and the Military Industrial Complex. When I came into this world, the dollar was on the gold standard and a "conservative" Nixon turned it into worthless paper. It was "conservatives" Reagan / Bush that quadrupled the national debt in twelve years. But the grand prize winner is Dubya, who has doubled it yet again. Yes, the "conservative" Bush 43 and a Republican congress increased discretionary spending at triple the rate of the Clinton term and that doesn't even count the almost $1 trillion on the "War on Terra." Forget who's spin you buy, just consider the mathematics.
Oil in 2000 = $20. / bbl. - Now oil = $130.
Gold in 2000 = $250 - Now gold = $965.
Euro in 2001 = $1.00 - Now Euro = $1.58
Bush, Greenspan and Bernanke will tell you "inflation is under control." Are you going to believe them or your lying eyes? And if you are going to tell me Clinton did this, then save your bandwidth. Instead, consider why you pay more in Federal income taxes that GE, Microsoft and Cisco systems combined. That is what is called Wall Street Socialism, not the Great Society. Watch the video and debate it on it's merits or continue to get your economic theory from fiction.

[Braised Cod]

Not so fast Mao, Reagan had a Republican Senate for the first six of his eight years (81 -86). CHECK YOUR HISTORY. So don't watch the video. Stick your fingers in your ears and go LA LA LA. As far as labels are concerned, I'm more fiscally conservative than any Republican President since Eisenhower. I carry no mortgage, no consumer debt, spend less than I make and pay my taxes. So my reward for being a good citizen is to watch Wall St. Socialists devalue the dollars I save. Forgive me, but with the exception of 1992 - 94, supply side lunacy has been in full control since 81. Those with the golden parachutes get the brass ring and guy's like me who play by the rules get screwed. There is plenty of blame to go around, but if you close your eyes to what's going on here, add yourself on the blame list.

[Robert R. Frump]

I love the debate and exchanges. Particularly the phrase, Not so fast, Mao.....I mean, you don't get that a lot anywhere.

[Braised Cod]

HAD Mao actually watched the video, he would have seen that Greider blames Democrats as much as Republicans. Both sides have been bought by the same corporate lobbyists. BUT, the last major entitlement program in this country was not written by LBJ, but but the corporate drug lobby. The Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit was written by Pharma lobbyists. The "author," Republican congressman Billy Tauzin, left congress at the end of the term when Medicare Part D was passed and immediately got a multi-million dollar job with Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). The Medicare actuary Richard Foster was threatened with termination if he revealed the true cost of the bill before it was voted on. In addition, the "free market" was short circuited when buying drugs from Canada was outlawed. Congress no longer represents it's citizens, it represents corporate interests because all of them suck from the same corporate tit. Blaming LBJ and the welfare state is just a sad cop out.

[Braised Cod]

Oh, and I suppose Jonah Goldberg has no agenda? Benito Mussolini, the father of fascism, defined it thus: "Fascism should more properly be called corporatism, since it is the merger of state and corporate power." It is precisely what Liberals oppose. The title of his book, Liberal Fascism" is an oxymoron and a pure propaganda hit piece. As to Hillary's health care plan, why is it that every other industrial democracy can do what we cannot? It is because we have to pay for United Health Group CEO Bill McGuire's $100 million compensation and $1.6 Billion stock option package. But, then I know your solution. Please see my post on How Libertarians Do Health Care. Democrats and liberals are well aware of the failures of the Great Society, but the pendulum has swung so far off the other side, we are about to tip over. But I'm not canonizing anyone, not Moyers and not Obama. If this is all schmaltz to you, then I'm wasting my time. See ya in Hooverville.

[Maggie]

"Every tyrant and oppressor is an enemy of Allah unless he repents and gives up oppression. Remember, Maalik! that there is nothing in this world more effective to turn His Blessings into His Wrath quicker than to insist upon oppression over His creatures because the Merciful Allah will always hear the prayers of those who have been oppressed and He will give no chance to oppressors." - Ali ibn Abi Taleb, the first Imam of Shia Islam.

For the entire letter which will teach you all a great deal about economics, politics and the duties of State Administration, go here:

http://carmenisacat.blogspot.com/2006/10/letter-sent-by-first-imam-of-islam-on.html

I know it is long. But trust me, it is worth it. It comes from a book known only as The Peak of Eloquence.