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Name:
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waterph
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Subject:
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Thoughts for Today
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Date:
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1/23/2009 10:45:15 PM
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" I am the Boss - Shut up and listen"
WASHINGTON -- President Obama warned Republicans on Capitol Hill today that they need to quit listening to radio king Rush Limbaugh if they want to get along with Democrats and the new administration.
"You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done," he told top GOP leaders, whom he had invited to the White House to discuss his nearly $1 trillion stimulus package.
While discussing the stimulus package with top lawmakers in the White House's Roosevelt Room, President Obama shot down a critic with a simple message.
"I won," he said, according to aides who were briefed on the meeting. "I will trump you on that."
The response was to the objection by Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) to the president's proposal to increase benefits for low-income workers who don't owe federal income taxes.
"You know, I'm concerned about the size of the package. And I'm concerned about some of the spending that's in there, [about] ... how you can spend hundreds of millions on contraceptives," House GOP Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) later said. "How does that stimulate the economy?"
"Article from The Decatur Daily"
Why I am voting for Obama
Capital considerations
A free market is the best method devised for optimizing the condition of all citizens.
Many of the changes proposed by Sen. Barack Obama would restrain the free market.
Obama provides America with its best opportunity for preserving a free market.
I believe all three of the above sentences to be true.
The starting point in resolving the apparent inconsistencies is this: We live in a democracy that provides the rich and the poor with an equal vote. If more than 50 percent of the population concludes that capitalism does not maximize their well-being, they can choose another economic system.
Income polarization
The top 20 percent of income producers in Morgan County earn 15 times as much as the bottom 20 percent and the number of people in between is shrinking.
Between 1997 and last year, the percentage of Decatur students eligible for free or reduced lunches climbed from 34 percent to 51 percent.
In an authoritarian state, income polarization creates structural problems only when it results in violence. In a democracy, though, problems come sooner.
For the rich, Obama is a compromise. Despite his opponent’s claims, he is not a socialist. He does not advocate state control of the means of production. For those like me, who are not rich but believe a free market — within reason — benefits all segments of the population, Obama is a compromise, too. His economic policies are far more capitalism-friendly than possible alternatives.
Obama promises increased wealth redistribution in exchange for the preservation of capitalism.
Trickling up
Former President Reagan provided a great talking point for Democrats when he mentioned wealth “trickling down.”
In many respects, though, he had it right. Those who control the most capital are best able to allocate resources for universal benefit. They won the Monopoly game, and that suggests they know what they are doing.
Our current economic crisis, though, is a reminder that the system breaks if there is no wealth trickling up.
Consumers drive the economy. If they cannot make their mortgage payments, the housing market crumbles. If they are not buying merchandise, no federal bailout will persuade banks to loan money to businesses because banks know there is no demand to keep their borrowers afloat.
Obama recognized the need for the bailout of banks, even though it was contrary to his “trickle up” approach. He also understands that our economic system cannot grow with dropping real wages. If consumers can’t buy, manufacturers can’t sell their product. If manufacturers’ can’t sell, banks have no incentive to lend.
I am a free-market enthusiast, but I am convinced an unrestrained free market cannot survive in a democracy. When a politician like Obama comes along who respects the free market, but sees the need to funnel more money to the consumer, we should support him.
The greed that is toppling our system is not financial; it is political. We live in a democracy that gives a vote to those who have little income and no capital. We need to recognize their power.
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