President Obama has asked Congress for more money concerning emergency economic aid, he is attempting to counter the wide spread layoffs of public workers. In the letter he sent to Congress there was no dollar figure, but the estimates are around $50 billion. It is no surprise that this request is coming from an administration striving to increase the number of public workers, but considering how well the economic recovery package has worked so far it may very well prove to be a continuation of futile attempts to curb this economic disaster.
Since President Obama took office, trillions of dollars have been spent to offset the economic downturn that had begun during the Bush presidency. Many political and economic experts made the case of cutting taxes and letting the increased cash flow to the people eliminate the problem, but the administration explained how the American people might not spend the money in the right places, meaning we were just not smart enough to know how to spend our own money, so they took it upon themselves to borrow money and spend it the way they saw fit. Since then we have seen roads built, bridges repaired, ponds for turtles created, and power generating wind mills erected, and we have all heard the praises of how many jobs were created because of it. What they forget to mention was, the parts for the electric wind mills were made in China, and the money spent to build those roads took money away from a citizen who may have purchased goods and prevented stores from closing down. We are told of the positive aspects of spending trillions of dollars, but they seem to forget to mention the hidden victims of big government fixes.
I don’t think anyone would argue that money is the answer to getting out of a recession; I am arguing that many American jobs would have been saved if they would have used the money to cut income taxes and watch the increased income of the citizens cause the production of goods and services in this country. When the people spend money on goods, stores make money. Due to the product purchased, stores need to restock, and the supplier makes money. The supplier needs to purchase raw materials to manufacture the product so other companies make money. All of these things have to be shipped so others make money. The cycle is endless and the rewards are seen immediately. As it stands now the economic recovery package has caused, at best, a stalemate in the economy and the White house has even said we should get used to higher unemployment. I find that to be unacceptable and if they weren’t so excited about expanding government and restricting the private sector this could have been greatly avoided.
Life is full of choices that we make every day and most of us are inclined to make some poor choices throughout our lives. I think that is no more than a part of living and learning. My father used to tell me, after I made a poor choice, that it was cheap experience, implying that I should deal with my losses, learn from my mistake, and be sure not to make the same one again. Bad choices/decisions are essential for those of us not blessed with a manual that includes every possible answer to life’s problems. I don’t really think we should be critical of those who make poor personal decisions unless they result in the government/tax payers bailing them out.
When residents of New Orleans made the decision to build their homes below sea level and not purchase home owners insurance, I did not utter one word of concern. When the inevitable happened with Hurricane Katrina, many of them were underwater, demanding assistance from the federal government. That was when I became instantly disgusted that the insanely poor decisions were being remedied with tax payer money.
When a bank offers home loans to people that cannot afford the payment, I might think it is a bad decision, but I would remain silent, however; when the same bank is destine to go out of business because of that very same decision and the federal government decides to bail them out is when I become outraged. A country that is already 13 trillion in debt should not be responsible for poor decisions made by private companies. The same method applies to car companies, investment firms, insurance companies, and so on.
Those who were adamant about the healthcare bill would complain about how expensive it was to have a baby in this country and would argue that it should be free, meaning the tax payers should pick up the bill for their choice to have that baby, when in all fairness there has been a long list of decisions that would have had to have been made in order for that baby to become an expense. Ultimately, the decision would have been made for a medical professional to monitor and advise them on the process and eventually going to a hospital full of professionals and modern medical equipment to have the baby delivered. I don’t understand, and probably never will, how we expect to pay for every service we use except our medical care, the one profession that requires more training, instruction, and risk than all others. I have no issues with individuals having babies, but when they do, I expect them to be prepared to pay for the medical costs, food, day care, and education associated with that decision.
In this country it has become the norm to reward failure and punish success. When a bank or car company is failing we just hand over some money to make it all better, when a company does well, we tax them to death to do our best to level the playing field. The simple fact is that we are all created equal, but not with the same judgment or values. I believe those who display poor judgment should be able to correct their behavior and move on without the government stepping in to reward their delinquency. We should have the freedom to make our own choices, just as we should have the freedom to live with their consequences.
As we all know, or at least should know, the U.S. Constitution tells us that an enumeration shall be made of the people in order to define how many representatives each state will have. As described in the Constitution every 10 years we should expect the Government to perform a head count of every man, woman, and child in the country. Over the years the census has evolved from just counting the citizens into a major questionnaire from the federal government. After reading census forms ranging back to 1850 I came to realize the 10 questions being asked in the 2010 census were actually very unadventurous, yet still 9 questions too long.
A major push has been made by the government to encourage everyone to return their census forms so they can provide communities with the proper resources; including, a $2.5 million commercial during the Super Bowl. The commercials were so juvenile, one talked about not being able to provide enough busses unless we all turned in our census forms. Give me a break! Other census advocates worried that illegal immigrants wouldn’t return their forms out of fear of deportation, but why do they need census forms from non-citizens? Since the census is done to establish the number of representatives a state should have, and illegal immigrants aren’t represented in congress, there should be no reason for them to be counted.
From reading this report I am sure you have figured out that I did not complete my census form entirely. I of course met my Constitutional obligation and told them 2 persons lived in my house and nothing more. Our Constitution was written for the people and to limit the powers of the government. If we continue to conduct business without regard to the Constitution we will find ourselves like every other country in the world. The U.S. Constitution is the last stand for freedom, we must protect it, honor it, and above all follow it.
The American flag is one of the most recognized symbols in the United States. Not only can it be seen in front of Federal buildings, but many residences as well. Some have begun wearing the flag on t-shirts, lapel pins, and painted on car windows. Never can I remember one of these instances ever being construed as offensive, but 5 high school boys found themselves in a situation contrary to my recollection. On May 5th these boys made the conscious decision to wear t-shirts with the American flag on them and were asked by the vice-principal of their school to turn the shirts inside out because other students complained that they were offended. As many of you may already know, May 5th is a well known Mexican holiday “(Cinco de Mayo) that commemorates the Mexican Army’s unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. There is no doubt in my mind that the 5 boys wore the specified shirts on that day in order to obtain a reaction, but for the purposes of this report, I would like to refrain from trying to look inside their heads and try to understand what was done and why it was offensive.
While I am a citizen and resident of these United States, I can’t imagine a single day of the year that the American flag would be considered inappropriate to fly outside my house. No matter if it were Mexico’s Independence Day, France’s Independence Day, or China’s Independence Day. None of these holidays would halt me for a second when making the decision to display this nation’s flag. My allegiance to this country will not be infringed just because some other nation is having a holiday specific to them, nor would I expect to visit another country and expect them to refrain from displaying their flag just because I was there. The population in this country is enlightened by numerous nationalities and cultures. America has been considered the melting pot because people from countries around the world long for the American dream and have worked hard getting here and obtaining citizenship to this great nation.
The action of the 5 high school boys was simply wearing shirts with their nation’s colors on them, which resulted in offending other students, period. There is no question that the school handled the situation drastically wrong, and has since been corrected by the superintendent, but sadly it is too late. Now students are marching in the streets carrying Mexican flags, and shouting si si puede (yes it is possible.) From the appearance of their actions it is fairly clear that the allegiance of those in the street is to Mexico. I suggest to those carrying the Mexican flag in the street or those offended by our American flag should take time to determine where their loyalty lies and perhaps why they are here in the first place. I would imagine most of the students were born here, but their parents may not have been. Despite how their parents got here, more than likely it was to give their family a better life than they otherwise might have had in their former country. It is no secret that America is the land of opportunity and therefore attracts those not fortunate enough to be born here. But the blatant disrespect for this great nation must stop otherwise unity will be nothing more than a distant memory.
I can’t imagine anyone who respects the free market system every thinking to themselves “I have made enough money.” I don’t imagine business owners ever cutting prices because business is so good or denying themselves salary because they feel they have achieved their allotted amount when compared to the rest of the United States. Even if one did make the selfless decision that they had made enough, what would that number be? Our President seems to have that figure in his head for all of us. While giving a speech in Illinois President Obama said, “At some point I think you have made enough money.” He never enlightened us as to how much was enough or what he planned to do with the excess, just the one liner that makes those of us dedicated to the free market question his commitment.
Typically when you hear this from a man who made 5 million dollars last year, most of us feel we are fairly safe from reaching the capped limit, but as a business man who exceeded that figure it might not cause you to rush out there and hire new workers or open that new line of merchandise. I don’t think our country needs more radical input concerning higher taxes or income limits. Our unemployment rate seems to have stagnated right where it is, and who can blame those wealthy enough to hire us. With the Government working on Cap and Trade legislation…5%, The new healthcare bill…5%, canceling the Bush tax cuts…5%, and suddenly they are talking about a V.A.T. possibly 10%, just to cover the excessive spending by the federal government. I think at some point they have taxed enough. Perhaps it may be a good time to start making some cuts in the budget otherwise our nation’s job makers will be inclined to go elsewhere.
I view President Obama’s statement as a “Joe the Plumber” moment. While campaigning he spoke to a man about to purchase a plumbing company that would make above 250,000. When asked about his tax plan he told the man “Joe” that he didn’t want to punish his success, he just wanted to make sure everyone else behind him had a chance too, and when you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody.” I am certain there are many, including myself, who disagree with that statement. This country was not founded on trickle-up economics where the government doles out money to allow the poor to make a purchase; it was designed on free enterprise where the harder you work, the more you get because of it
