Site Presented By
Wednesday, Nov 4, 2009
Why doesn't anybody challenge these guys who write this stuff?
He writes "A record number of Americans receiving food stamps. "
Great. There are a record number of Americans. The article he cites also points out that the percentage was higher in the early nineties. No depression then.
He writes " Americans filing for unemployment benefits reached its highest level in two years last week"
The number, in the article he cites, is BETTER THAN EXPECTED. What's more, this snip is a quote:
"'While this reflects a meaningful deterioration of the job market, the pace of layoffs is considerably lower than is typical of previous economic slumps,' said economists from Nomura Economics Research. "
Later, he quotes an economist I've heard little about, so I looked into his past. Mr. Roubini, among other things, has posted in favor of a single world currency. You read that correctly. Is that a good idea??
In another, Mr. Leonard notes:
"Last October, citing Internal Revenue Service data, the Wall Street Journal reported that the top 1 percent of Americans earned 21.2 percent of all income in 2005. That's the highest measure of income inequality since, you guessed it, before the Great Depression."
Yes *IF* stock sales are considered as "income". If you sold the family home for $500,000 netting $400,000, would you consider that as "income"? No. In Mr. Leonard's world, income includes the sale of assets. That's code for returning to the old days of high taxation.
So while he wrings his hands over whether this is another Great Depression, be aware that the rest of us, who keep our credit clean and prime, and don't borrow money needlessly, will go about living our lives.
One last thing: there are plenty of good paying jobs - they just aren't factory jobs. If you want to return to the days where a high school diploma was a ticket to an upper middle class factory life for the average Joe and Jane: those days are gone. Get over it.
Silenced wrote:
"Go down to the ghetto. Try to find fresh food. You'll find convenience stores where you can buy Cheetos and beer. But what if you want fresh chicken, whole wheat flour or broccoli? How do you buy those if you live in the inner city?"
This is ridiculous! I live in Brooklyn, and there is not a single neighborhood I've ever been in, no matter how poor, where you can't get "broccoli" within 4 or 5 blocks. To the extent that junk food dominates -- well, that must be because of demand, hey? If the poor really were craving steamed vegetables every day instead of Cheetos, don't you think the vegetable sellers would be working to accommodate them?
Every poor neighborhood here has at least one Chinese take-out, everyone of which is going to sell both steamed broccoli and deep-fried chicken puffs. Why don't you go survey those places and ask which dish sells better? You're living in a fantasy world where the poor would be dining everyday on tofu and sprouts if only someone -- God knows whom -- wasn't conspiring to keep those things from their waiting lips. To the extent that poverty correlates to obesity, it is a matter of the preferences of the poor.
As a percentage of the population, it is lower now than 3 years during the Clinton administration, 1993, 1994 and 1995.
Since our author has no solutions except tax everyone and have more government intervention and since so many of the posters here believe whatever they read just because it provides one statistic, I have provided some solutions. The real problem though, like all solutions, sometimes they are not fun or acceptable to everyone. After all, whining or standing still is easier:
1. Leave where you live! The majority of the people on here base there vast amounts of knowledge on economics and the state of the country on what is happening in their own backyard (sometimes literally). We have examples of people trying for months to find jobs and can’t, we have examples of inner cities not having grocery stores with fresh food (???), we have examples of people investing their life savings in housing (all in the same area I am sure) and losing it because they can’t sell them or afford to keep them. Guess what, get out more! I travel the country for work and I see good and bad everywhere, just like always. The problem is that many are in need, but also many are whiners. If you truly are in need, try this, sell whatever you have and go somewhere else.
2. Just say NO to the government. Look, if all you want to do is complain about republicans than read no further, solutions are not your goal. You and the author can go somewhere else and talk about how you hate Bush and blah blah blah. If you want to end this, do it the way we the people end anything, and get up and say no the gov’t. It works and it worked as recently as during the “amnesty” proceedings for our border. Tell the gov’t no more taxes (on anyone, read below) and it is time to cut spending. Tell them to balance the budget and make it an amendment (tell this to your state reps, make them do something). Tell them cutting the defense budget alone is not cutting spending. Tell them you are sick of them screwing things up and it is time someone else takes charge and I don’t mean someone from another stupid political party. You know, we have these state governments for a reason folks, too bad we rely on Washington for everything.
3. Quit worrying about your neighbor and take care of yourself. This is a tricky solution because so many of you don’t know how. You think when I say this I am talking anarchy or perhaps I am talking about beating your neighbor down to the welfare office. No, I mean if your neighbor falls into the category of the evil rich person, who cares! Why are so many on here so concerned about someone else’s wealth? How does that affect you, it doesn’t. You’ve allowed your political heroes and bogus “journalists” like the author throw you for a loop and get you sidetracked by blaming rich people. These are the same people that are able to blame entire industries just by applying the word “big” to them and you people fall for it and go on a rampage. Big Oil, Big Wal-Mart, Big Banking, Big Milk (I threw that one in there to see if you are paying attention, after all we all know milks rise in price is due to BIG OIL), and every other “big” (although ironically you fail to mention Big Government). If you want solutions they start with YOU (Big You if you will). If you worry about taking care of your own then you shouldn’t be concerned about what your neighbor has unless of course you are a thief, which apparently a lot of you want to become. But hey, if it is in the form of taxation it is legal thievery and that is ok, right?
4. War doesn’t last forever. I throw this in because so many of you think this is what has caused all the gov’t spending (because Bush invented gov’t spending). Do we spend too much there, yes, but it won’t last and then what will you and your comrades in the democratic party have to blame everything on? War spending still doesn’t equal what we spend on all other social programs.
5. Phase out social security and gov’t health care. Funny in the midst of all of this, the same whiners about the government are the ones who want to implement government run health care for all, go figure. Go check where our money is spent yearly in this country. Is defense spending a huge chuck? You bet and while it is arguable as to how we are being defended, still there is probably very little debate that defense actually is a mandate of the government. Unfortunately too many of you believe having the gov’t pay for your retirement and health care is a mandate as well. While SS is not technically part of the budget soon enough it will be as we have to pay what is not being collected. But check it out, the bulk of the money being spent by our gov’t doesn’t go to Iraq like all the zombies think, but it goes to the Health and Human services portion, hmmm. I agree that for those of you 50 and over, you have been promised something, but guess what, it is time to tell everyone else to forget it. Fine, come up with a phase out plan, so the poor guy 48 who didn’t plan for the future because he was depending on the gov’t doesn’t get snowed under, but hey, those of us 40 and under better start working. Folks, we act like our gov’t is in debt so bad we have no way of getting out, but we could clear up a few trillion pretty easy, it would just hurt.
Go read about liberty and what it is.
An Israeli columnist issues a scathing indictment of Israel and calls on the U.S. to apply pressure.
Even when government officials purposely subject an innocent person to brutal torture, they enjoy full immunity.
Hey, guys: Are adult films making you bad at sex?
What was once depicted as a grave act of lawlessness -- Bush's NSA program -- is now deemed a vital state secret.
The loony wing of the Republican Party prepares for a big day in Tuesday's elections
Salon headlines in your mailbox
