We are not Greece. We can print dollars and have a decent economy. Greece never produced much (aside from olive oil and tourism) and never had any fiscal responsibility at all. They are lazy, indulgent people who think the Germans should work twice as hard as they were last year to get their shit (in Greece) fixed. The US on the other hand is not quite the basket case the pundits seem to portray it. We have an ailing (due to housing ills) but huge, vibrant economy. The taxes in the US are lower than ever and business is getting a free ride on most stuff. The Congress has a built in deficit (expenditure X -(minus) inflow of revenue Y = the difference is the deficit. You can cut the X all you want but there is a catch. There were implied promises and expectations, money was taken, promises were made - you know SS taxes for 30-40-years for some. If they just do nothing and let the "temporary" tax cuts expire and raise the upper bracket to %40 we should not have this mess we are in...no more frigging debate, no more mud slinging etc. Why the fuck not? Either cut all foreign aid (including Israel, or raise the frigging taxes!) Under Reagan (whom most here worship) the upper bracket was close to 80%.... They could cut the defense budget and nobody would blink an eye. Leave the shithole Middle East and just quit. Tell them to fend for themselves. Or cut all foreign aid. Or cut MOST of the redundant, wasteful stuff - which is about 90-percent the A-holes in the House and Congress are managing. Will it happen? Unlikely. But it should. The problem is not the person sitting in the WH, it is the whole frigging corrupt system, the process of DC. That kills and stifles initiatives and makes whores of men, no matter how well intentioned they were when elected. The lawyers and lobbyist scum are the problem and they infect you as soon as you get there. This is why Ron Paul is never going to see the walls of the WH. Simply put, Jesus would have a hard time reforming that place. We do not have a fiscal problem. We are not governable as we were, democracy died and there is nothing anybody can do about it. Do you think a new president could bring about change?
Change? The only real change we'll see, will be obvious in about 10 years. The United States, will either stop being "United", or will become the "United Americas".
I tend to agree with this sentiment, however I also think the government squanders a lot of tax money on frivolous things. So as a taxpayer I feel that the less taxes I pay, the better. If the government was trustworthy, then it would be a different story. However, the government appears to be made up of 95% idiots as far as I can tell, especially in terms of fiscal policy.
The only real change we'll see, will be obvious in about 10 years. The United States, will either stop being "United" ------------------------------------------------------------------ It has already started to Happen. TX, AZ, ND, have already started to move away from playing ball with the FED GOV. UT has started to take 'Coins' in Gold, silver, plat. as a means of exchange. As the economy continues to fall apart across most of the nation, the above states and a few more will continue to push further away from the United "FED" Gov. The succession will not happen over night. Here in Texas, Gov. Perry is more show than anything else. However, he is under massive pressure to fight against the FED GOV's intrusive laws including TSA. The sheeople in the Midwest have already sold their souls to OBAMA's Socialism as key Cities like Chicago have raised taxes and key states like IL and NY havel tax rates that are higher than the Left Coast. Executive Order (One of of many that Obama has put in place to by pass Congress and the Constitution)13575 is the first move for the FED GOV to centralize "Food Sources". When you read this order, any fool can see through the smoke screen, the agenda at hand. If you look at some new FEMA rules, HOMELAND/TSA propositions and Obama's Executive Orders, you can see that the FED GOV is putting in place, procedures for "Civil Unrest" and vital Resource control upon any mass "Civil Unrest". Of course, it does not mean that civil unrest will come. IMHO, I don't think it will except in key inner city ghettos. Most American's are idiots and sleeping and much more want Socialism. So all these orders really show, is that the US GOV is prepared for disruption on a mass scale. Not one person I know, is un-armed. Here is Texas, no matter if its "City Dwelling" or Ranch Land, people are armed, stocked up on food and ammo and going about their day. Much like the FED GOV, Most Texans are prepared. So,all this preparation on both sides indicates that powers and people are nervous.
I live outside the US so please take my comments in that light. For many years, I have told the regular Americans that have asked my opinion, that their essential problem is not really financial. That can be dealt with. No, it's the continual political deadlock in Washington and no clear political winner. I also think there are too many lawyers who get paid to keep fights going and not to solve problems. As one example, Alberta actually reversed their deficit some years back by cutting spending in a three year get tough plan. I lost a great job over that effort as part of government senior management positions that were cut. Alberta got back to zero debt for a few years. It was not pretty but we did it amid terrible attacks from both sides of the country because we were making progress. There is a way out once the political will of the people is actually followed. It can be done! Then our (currently outgoing) premier who couldn't get elected as a socialist, ran inside the conservative party and got elected as everybody's second choice. He has spent us back into a small hole again abandoning the party principles and being a socialist. So our voting system is clearly flawed.
Alberta reversed its deficit by having oil go on a massive bull run. The fiscal policies had little to do with it.
Yes, oil certainly helped balance the budget much more quickly, but it was the spending control plan and the political will that setup the ability to reverse the overspending. However as our current premier shows, no controls on spending = no financial responsibility. No amount of money is enough for a socialist in sheep's clothing. Interestingly enough, when the interest payments on debt are removed, there is a lot of money left to actually spend on programs!
Wow! This is the first time I can remember seeing the words "government" and "trustworthy" used in the same sentence. In a related matter, I heard a rumor that the state of California has determined that being born causes higher taxes. They apparently are claiming that if you are born and breathing, it becomes even worse.