Economics 101: Lesson 2

The president has now spent or committed hundreds of billions of dollars in "stimulus" money. What you will here in the media and from the White House is that it has created or saved 160,000 jobs to date. That's true and many of those jobs are within our own government which is not a good thing. What you won't here is that the economy has shed 1,600,000 jobs for a net loss of 1,440,000 jobs. Unemployment went past 8% like a Toyota Prius goes by a gas station and the Obama administration is now admitting that unemployment will make double digits. You see, you can't spend your way out of crisis and debt and neither can the government. Bad companies need to fail to be replaced by more agile, well run companies that meet an actual need. Propping up the lousy automobile industry only prolongs their and our misery. Interfering in the banking and insurance industry only guarantees a less efficient system that can then be exploited by overseas competition.

Campaigning vs. Reality

With President Obama signing an Executive Order to allow "enemy combatants" to be detained indefinitely he has completed his affirmation of the Bush policies. You see, while campaigning he could say what the world wanted to hear, that indefinite detention was a violation of basic human rights. Now that he is President and the reality of situation sets in, he understands that he has no choice. The people we have detained at Guantanamo Bay are dangerous and if released would immediately return there ways of seeking ways to maim and kill our citizens. Many of his own party and many of his followers are upset with his apparent change in position. These people don't get the reality of the situation because they don't get the daily intelligence briefings that the President receives and they don't understand the reality of this world. Our president has altered course in two areas. First, he has limited the use of interrogation techniques allowed by the previous administration. This will be fine until the next significant terrorist attack. If it comes on Obama's watch, many will then be asking if it could have been prevented had we utilized those interrogation techniques that many have said prevented significant terrorist attacks in the past. Second, he has set in plan of removing our troops from Iraq. A major step in that plan, the removal of troops from cities, will take place in the next few days. If the deaths in those cities at the hands of insurgents accelerates in the coming weeks and months it will be a major setback as it would demonstrate the the Iraqi military/police force is not yet capable of maintaining the peace. I personally hope it works. I would like nothing more than for our boys to be brought home but I don't want it done before the job is done.

Communism - A Follow Up

Apparently Pravda and I aren't the only ones who see the US on a path to communism. Check out the cover article in this week's Newsweek.

Sotomayor - Really?

I have to weigh in on this and I must admit that some of these thoughts come from Thomas Sowell. If you don't know who he is you might want to check him out as his writing is very good.
Nominee Sotomayor has on many occasions said that it is okay for her to consider race in her ruling and has even on many occasions said that because of her race she would make better decisions. Her actions support what she has said. A group of firefighters took an exam to determine who would be promoted. According to nominee Sotomayor, the results should be thrown out because too many caucasion firefighters did better than the other races and therefore the results were not diverse enough. Does this really make any sense? Which firefighter to you want leading the fire team when they respond to your house on fire, the one who did the best on the exam or the one who ensures the mix of the group makes the whole group diverse enough for a judge? Which paramedic do you want responding when your loved one is having a heart attack? The one who performed the best on the test or the one who makes the the group of paramedics diverse enough to satisfy a judge. You see, when you put logic and realism into the mix, the answer is clear. The trouble is, nominee Sotomayor sees it just the opposite. She seems to think that we need to make up for the wrongs of times gone by. I agree with Mr. Sowell on this in that there are two problems with this thinking. First, you are punishing people who by and large have not committed a wrong. The people who did wrong are long since dead and buried. Second, if it's okay to discriminate against a group now who have committed no wrong, why wasn't it okay to discriminate against another group who committed no wrong 100 years ago. The answer is, neither is acceptable and discriminating now does not correct the earlier wrong nor does it punish the offender. I personally think there is a reason the lady holding the scales of justice is blindfolded. She isn't supposed to be able to see the race of the parties or anything else. She is supposed to provide equal protection under the law for all. Our President and nominee Sotomayor think that empathy has a place in a judge's ruling. I think there is no place for this in the application of the law by a judge. If we want empathy in our laws, that's a different matter and it is one for those who we have elected to make our laws, our legislators. Legislators create laws and judges should apply the law and neither should get involved in the others business.

Gitmo to USA: Direct Flight

President Obama has refused to rule out the release of some detainees at Guantanamo Bay directly into the gool ol' US of A. I am going to reserve any judgment on that until it actually happens. I just don't see how that could actually be allowed. Imagine the backlash if a detainee were released in this country and then that person committed a crime of almost any kind much less an act of terrorism.

Economics 101

The next time you read that the economy is starting to recover or you can expect a recovery in 2010 be skeptical. If history has any lessons for us, it just isn't going to happen. The policies and actions of the Obama administration are very similar to the actions and policies of the FDR administration. It didn't work in the 1930's and it won't work here in the 21st century. Until the government stops meddling in the business of business, it's not going to improve. Bad companies have to fail. If there is a need for their product or service, somebody, somewhere, more capable than them will meet that need. FDR and his meddling prolonged the Great Depression by many years. Even economics professors in this country's most liberal institutions of higher learning agree on that fact. I challenge you to name one thing that got better and cheaper when the government got involved. Didn't think so. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

Communism

I read an interesting article in Pravda the other day. The topic was how fast the United States is moving towards communism. Now when you read these things in the media of other countries you don't have to wonder whether or not your getting the liberal or the conservative slant. You are actually getting a fairly objective view of the situation. Think about it. If the government runs the health care system, that's more akin to socialism. Our government is taking over banks and auto companies. Our government is firing CEOs and making decisions about compensation. I believe the insurance industry is next. The government is already working on a bill that would "limit insurance company profits." Folks, that's not socialism. That's communism and you should be very afraid.

Illegal Immigration

I'm not like everybody else; I don't have the solution to our illegal immigration problem. I do know this. It's damn hot here in Arizona in the summer and any person who would attempt to walk across our southern desert has to be very desperate. I doubt that building a fence or any other artificial deterrent is going to solve the problem. The fact of the matter is, it sucks in Mexico. Until we/they do something about the corruption in their government, make their economy viable, and give those people some form of hope that they can have a better life in Mexico, they are going to keep coming here. The other option is to destroy our own ecomony and hope. That's seems to be the tack Obama is taking.

Riddle Me This

I don't understand how liberals, including our fearless leader, can justify the killing of an innocent child in the womb but won't allow a man who raped and murdered a child to be put to death. Is it just me or does that seem backwards?

First Attempt

This is my first attempt at a blog. My goal is not to change you. My goal is to get you to think.