In between's blog

 Colin Powell was right. "You will be the proud owner of 25 million people. You will own all their hopes, aspirations, and problems. You'll own it all. You break it, you own it."

U.S. Fears Iraqis Will Not Keep Up Rebuilt Projects - NYTimes.com

 So, how in the world did our country get into a mess that it is in today?

I guess we can go back to when Clinton and Gingrich left office. At that time, they left with a yearly surplus. While we still had a debt and other problems, they seem to be manageable at that time. Enter Bush and it was an 8 year disaster. 

Normally to get out of recession, you have tax cuts and have the federal reserve lower interest rates. And this can be done in a span of 2 to 3 years. And when the economy is good, you cut spending.

We are not in a normal recession today. And these are the problems we are up against.

*Under Bush you had tax cuts for 8 years. It was borrowed money, it was spent, and it was for the here and now. Since spending was not cut, we saw deficits and debt. So today, we cannot do the normal tax cuts as it would just be more borrowed money. It is like crying wolf too many times. It was the roaring twenties.

*The fed has had lower interest rates for a long time now, this creates a low dollar and possible inflation. At some point the fed will have to raise interest rates. And the fear is that this could slow the economy down at a time we need to create economic growth. Deflation/inflation anyone? 

*Tax cuts today may not do as good as before if people buy goods. Half the goods sold in this country come from China or some other country.

*Jobs continually go to China and other countries. While this was minimal under Clinton, it certainly gained momentum under Bush. Globalization has not been addressed. All we heard is that "free trade is good" and anything else was ignored.

*We have not invested in our country. You cannot have jobs go overseas, money going to Iraq, and neglect ones country. And yet, that is what we saw for 8 years.

*We had a financial crisis, a housing crisis, and an auto crisis at the same time.

*And I ask. What widgets can be made here and not in China if you want to create jobs?

*Trickle down does not get down to the last 20% to 30% of the population. 

So since we cannot normally reduce taxes and lower interest rates and expect the same kind of recovery as in the past, the only answer is to invest in your country, in your people, and in the future.

1. Invest in your country: That is energy independence. You do everything from drilling to nuclear plants, to alternative energy for security and for jobs. A new air traffic control system would give airlines to fly more direct routes, which means fuel savings. The money saved would go for new aircraft and that would create jobs. 

2. Invest in your people: Mandatory vocational training. Everyone should have a skill by the time he graduates. Or at least have a consoler direct the student to the right direction. You will need an educated society to deal with globalization.

Hudson Institute > Promoting U.S. Worker Competitiveness in a Globalized Economy

3. Invest in the future. That is in all sciences and stop using religion to stop embryonic stem cell research. You do all the innovation you can. You also can maximize federal research grants and invest money into universities and businesses to create new researches and jobs. Right now there is no "new" jobs to go to.

Is America Losing Its Mojo? | Print Article | Newsweek.com

Now, I have heard all this crap about the constitution, trickle down, and cutting spending. Some of it well and good. However, none of that manages the problems of the day. Republicans want to sit on ideology. I am pragmatic. You have to fix the country and recognize problems and not sit on laissez-faire. The republican party sits on a right run by the Limbaughs and Hannitys and they say the same thing over and over again. We see it on this website. That is cut taxes. But that is not enough. Ideology is not enough. You see Palin saying we need tax cuts. DeMint saying the same thing. Does anyone in the party have a brain? I saw jobs lost in my town while we had 8 years of tax cuts. Where was the republican party? Oh, that's right, you were stuck in Iraq and neglected Afghanistan and your own country. 

We know that democrats will go to welfare policies. And at this point, that is the only straws that cities and states can grasp. We cannot compete with 2 to 3 billion cheap laborers in the world. We have seen our jobs lost, and if you keep one or go to another one, then it is for less money and benefits. So now we resort to bailouts of cities and states, extension of unemployment benefits, cash for clunkers, and casinos for every state. Well, this is a fine state of affairs. While you can sight the constitution in not doing anything, you will turn around and spend money in other countries. So you can blame democrats all you want, but you turn your back on the American people. 

We have seen the glorification of ideologies by Bush. "Stay the course" and run the country into the ground. And he got his answers from a "higher authority." Hollywood could not do any better painting a picture like this.  A delusional president caught up in the wrong war, answers to God, has failed ideology, and runs our country into the ground. 

And guess what? Republicans just go on repeating the same o thing. 

So we are caught up with deficits and debt, war, and failed ideologies.

China is investing in Africa. They are buying raw materials. They have made contracts for oil. Their growth is at 8% or more. They are taking our jobs. They have money. They are building whole cities, high speed rail, and has the worlds largest airport. 

Now, guess who is winning? 

As it is now. We will have a jobless recovery. And to do the things I have said will have results 10 to 20 years from now. There is no other choice and little time to succeed.

 Yesterday I went round and round with RBIII. He had talked of core principles. I do believe everything has its place, however, these core principles and/or ideologies do not solve problems. We have day to day problems to address. And certainly fiscal prudence and other things that have been said needs to take place.

However, there has to be a place for progressives. (I don't like any of these terms.) I would like the best for our country. I have laid out my side of the story on globalization.

 Okay, we are not connecting.

And this is where ignorance and arrogance comes into play. Since there is people that think they know it all. How are you going to solve the destruction of the middle class and the cities and states due to loss jobs? And the one answer I get is to diversify. So there are hundreds of small towns and they are supposed to diversify. Now that is a brilliant answer. And just what are we to diversify to? And if you talk of making a widget, any widget can be made in China.

But see that does not matter. It does not matter in the globalized world that we are up against 2 to 3 billion cheap laborers around the world. The only answer from the republican right is to fend for yourself. So the cities and states have to find ways to compete with the world, while Washington ignores the whole problem. Is it any wonder this country is falling apart with an attitude like this.

While Bush presented some social/liberal ideas, he basically was laissez-faire in fixing the problems of the day. Bush repeatedly said "free trade is good" as we lost our jobs. And to me, economics comes first. It is not some ideology or some article of the constitution. China does not care about our constitution. If we are talking about the constitution then we are fighting with ourselves and the states. The cities and states are not causing the problem. The problem is that we have to keep up with the rest of the world. The constitution and ideologies do not give us management abilities. This come from the gut. This comes from economics to preserve your country, to advance, and to have economic growth.

True economic growth can come from tax cuts. It can come from the fed in lowering interest rates, but you need to recognize the world. And all we do is sit by and let other countries take our middle class jobs. By listening to others on this site, I get the feeling that republicans don't care about the middle class, the cities, and the states. I get the feeling that they are oblivious to what is going on. (Bushism)

There is no perfect economics. Not one ideology, and not one faction of any one party that has a grip on how to run a country. It is a combination of many factors. 

You can sit back and show me something on black and white, but that is not management and economics. If one thing happens in economics, then you have to balance it with something else. So, at this point, not one republican with the exception of Newt Gingrich has come close to what we have to do. At least Newt comes up with plans-even though he comes with baggage. So tax cuts and the "on your own philosophy" fails to address the problems.

This ignorance and arrogance is what I have seen over the years. It is people who think they know and they don't know. They leave people hanging and they either don't realize the damage or they are so caught up with their ideals that they ignore the situation. In short, the republican party has abandoned the middle class and America.

 Here is some a video with interviews from Colin Powell, James Baker, and Brent Scrowcroft on why they did not finish the job in Iraq. I can understand some people blaming Bush 41, but they had their reasons. I think in the end they were right. Although this stirred up Osama Bin Laden for fighting on Muslim soil and Osama Bin Laden left Saudi Arabia for Afghanistan to plan for his attack on 9/11.

The video is some 3 hours long and it counts down. With 50 minutes left you will have those interviews. This part runs 10 to 15 minutes.

The Presidents: George H.W. Bush | American Experience | PBS Video

Before I talk about the Republican party, let me say that the democrats are not perfect. Raising taxes in time will only hurt the middle class and poor. And raising taxes or more government spending will in time crowd out the private sector. The democrats policies in a lot of ways create more government and less individualism. And so I get it. However, I need to talk what we are doing today and how we got here. The Next Right wants some answers for the future of their party, and I will attempt to give my view.

Again, just as bad as the democrats are with their policies, the republicans do the same. It is inherent in their policies that will destroy or ignore the middle class and the poor. Oh, they may not think so, but really, that is the end result.

I do agree that a good starting point is tax cuts and cuts in government spending. In every aspect of our lives (credit cards, mortgage, and car payments) we have to cut back and the government has to too. And if not the consequences is deficits, debt, inflation, high interest rates, higher unemployment, or maybe a country like China will dictate what we can or can't do. Having said that, we have not cut spending, for the most part, in the history of our country. The latest budget is at 3.5 trillion dollars and it continues its upward trend. So this has to be worked on.

But here is the part that Republicans do not get. At least for the past 8 years. And while I will give the example of the last 8 years and George Bush, it could have been Joe Schmo from Kokomo for that matter. I use Bush because he is a clear example of having no idea on what he was doing. He lived and ruled by ideology. He stayed the course and ran the country in the ground. He ignored many problems. And when problems became too bad, then he spent the money. Example: Medicare Part D.

What we have to do (and this is always the case) is invest in your people, your country, and in the future. Okay, so there are people that say this is central planning or that this is Marxist. Well, I don't know of any CEO that sits around with laissez-faire and says he does not have to do anything or that everything is alright. Because, not everything is alright. You don't let chuck holes in the street get worse. You don't have rotted wood on your house and expect it to get better by itself. You fix the roof leaks and your foundation. 

1. You invest in your people. You don't say that free trade is good, when factories close. In the MIdwest (mostly manufacturing) people are losing their jobs, healthcare insurance, and pensions. Cities and states are losing revenue. No president can say that "free trade is good, as people lose their jobs." I find that as an insult. You do not throw away the middle class and their jobs. 

Whether or not we have papers signed on free trade probably makes no difference. What we have is globalization and we are going to lose our jobs. It is obvious that middle class wages have to come down to the level of third world countries. The free trade proponents never talk about the consequences of this. And they are no where to be found, or at least they ignore what has happened. The world is changing with the internet, free trade, and globalization and we need to keep up with that. Especially so that we have so much to lose.

Investing in your people means you have to compensate for the unintended consequences. And that is mandatory vocational training or trade school. We have to be an educated society.

2. You invest in your country. You have to invest in your infrastructure. We are some 2.2 trillion dollars behind in our infrastructure. Show me a country with a poor infrastructure and you have a poor country.

3. You invest in the future. That is in energy independence, science, innovation, and research and development. This will create the jobs for the future. Spending the needed billions would be far less than what we spent in Iraq. Other countries subsidize on science and facilities. I think there should be some sort of collaboration with business and government on this. Even if government just supplies the money for research is better than nothing. 

I would also say, it won't only be manufacturing jobs leaving the country, but other jobs as well as white collar jobs are vulnerable too. 

However, I don't think the Republican party will ever get this. They are ruled by ideology. That trickle down will trickle down and you do little else. That religion needs to be in government. That we don't talk with our enemies. And even Bob Gates and James Bakers has always said, "you talk to your enemies." 

In the end, as always, the Republican party forgets the middle class. It is ideology and policy that is first no matter what happens to everyone else. This happens time and time again. It is inherent in the Republican party to do this. It is the way they are structured. 

So therefore, I almost doubt if I would vote Republican again. I have seen too much damage by arrogance and ignorance. It never fails. The Democrats are not much better. But they are a smidgin better, even with failed policies, to at least deal with middle class issues. We may go broke in the end, but the way the two parties are, I guess there is little choice. 

As we watch the G20 meeting in London, we see the protests. The world is going downhill. Millukov had been articulate in what he posted on another thread. And I would like to repeat it here. yes but no

ABC news ran a piece last night from Japan, Australia, India, Kenya, Mexico, and Hungary. Australia struck a cord as the clothing manufacturer, Pacific Brands, closed all plants in Australia and set up shop in China. World News - ABC News

The world is in a total mess. Plenty of blame to go around. Besides the financial crisis, globalization (as I have talked about many times) is for real. There are only so many jobs to go around. Companies will leave the country for cheap labor. And the only thing you can do is the old tried and true methods of investing in people (education), the country (infrastructure), and the future (energy independence, science, mandatory vocational training, embryonic stem cell research, innovation, and research and development).

We have seen China and India open up with 1 billion people each and they want to be middle class. At some time they will buy from each other, but at the moment they are taking our middle class jobs. This means people lose their jobs or are forced to work with less pay, the loss of healthcare insurance, the loss of pensions, cities and states going broke, will not help the housing crisis, the loss of revenue for the federal government and the possibility of more welfare. It means the fight for protectionism around the world. It will take time to invest in the country and I am afraid it will take a long time to get back to where we were. We need to be a more pragmatic country dealing with real problems instead of failed ideologies. We are where we are and we need to move forward with answers to todays problems.

Well that was the battle cry from McCain, Gingrich, Larry Kudlow, and others. According to Boone Pickens who was on C-Span yesterday, you can drill all of ANWR, the coasts, and the gulf and you would come up with 2 million barrels a day. We consume 12 million barrels a day. This statistic I did not know, and while I favor drilling, we also need alternative methods.

http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=WJE-A-15755

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/e310cbf6-fd4e-11dd-a103-000077b07658,dwp_uuid=c5...

 Dick Armey was on CNBC today. Joe Kernan asked Dick Armey on the failure of trickle down economics and Dick Armey said the following:

"Trickle down and supply side worked very well until you got to the banking crisis."

I don't know what the banking crisis has to do with a failed policy. Reagan had deficits and Bush 41 raised taxes to fix it. Bush 43 had huge deficits and debt and we saw that 5 years ago. 

(Just keeping them honest)

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1028790361&play=1

Michael Steele was on "This week with George Stephanopolus" and said "the jobs will come back." Is the guy living on Mars? Actually, I understand what he is saying that "recessionary" jobs will come back. But Steele and others still do not understand that the other jobs are lost due to globalization. And those jobs are not coming back. The GOP is still clueless. They either have no answer for this or don't know what is going on. The GOP lost the middle class, and they still do not understand why.