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Swine fever? Congress feeds at the taxpayer trough

Posted by thekeenobserver on Friday, May 01, 2009 2:47:34 PM

Got a problem with the high cost of living? Well then, just become a member of Congress!

To get elected to Congress these days, you should have a good head of hair (a must for TV soundbites), be able speak very emotionally on the stump, and have well-connected friends. Then bingo--you're probably in luck of landing one of the most 550 coveted jobs in the entire world!

But the real payoff isn't so much the job itself, it's the probability that you'll serve comfortably in a lifestyle of the rich and famous for the rest of your days-- you'll have it made for life.

Don't think so? Well, try this for a wild and crazy hypothetical question: Would you rather hit the state lottery, or win the next available congressional seat in your district?

A lottery winner automatically has to pay 35% in taxes, and is besieged by unwanted publicity. Often times, these winners eventually become losers, especially if they've overspent their millions after having retired prematurely. Some even end up heavily in debt.

Now compare to a newly-elected congressperson:

They get paid six figure incomes, have few living expenses, and "government-paid-everything" perks...right down to free shoe shines and haircuts. They travel worldwide. They have their own limousines, privately chartered flights, and pay for little else other than a residence in DC.

Are you worried about retirement? Well again, just "become involved" and run for Congress.

Hardworking congressional members certainly don't have to worry about contributing to some 401K plan like us common folks. No sir! They can just feed from the congressional "pension honey-pot," which is kept full by the overtaxed American public.

After 20 years, a member of Congress can retire with up to 80 percent of his/her salary. Pity...just eighty percent; what's a poor Congressional retiree to do? But then again, it's not exactly a life of having to wear sackcloth and surviving on pet food either.

New House members are entitled to a personnel allowance from which they may hire up to 18 full-time staff members, and receive office expenses for travel and supplies. Yearly Senate office costs range from $3.5 million to $4 million PER member. That's an approximate $400 million in annual federal expenses, for only 100 Senators!

For House members-- although the figures aren't a matter of public record--18 staff personnel being paid 50k/year, would equal a nice round 900,000 dollars in salary costs. Now add in office, travel, etc., and that's another $200,000; so EACH representative costs us lowly taxpayers $1.1 million/year, and x 450, equals $480 million, just in annual House "support" expenses, let alone their pensions.

So adding it up, we have a combined total of nearly $1 billion/year in annual taxpayer costs, just to keep this aristocracy "functioning."

Now lets get to the real nitty-gritty, and try to compute a rough (very rough) total estimate of what a Congressional retiree will garner-- although many serve to their "expiration" date.

Figuring on a basis of .80 x 150,000 = $120,000/year annual pension, times 20 years average retirement period= $2.4 million total taxpayer cost...that's just for ONE retired congressperson! And if you consider the overall number of living congressional retirees-- plus their free lifetime medical benefits-- the total easily adds into the billions.

Hoo-wee! Is it any wonder that these people will spend several million dollars to get elected for a job that pays 150,000/year, plus "perks" from eager-beaver lobbyists? Well wonder no more. Getting elected to Congress means celebrity, status, and possibly becoming a highly-paid lobbyist yourself, if you retire "prematurely."

How about inflation? Well, fuh-getta about it. If you serve in Congress, your pay is automatically "pegged" to the increases of thousands of other high-ranking personnel in the federal government, including cabinet agency heads and federal judges.

Congress-- in their infinite wisdom-- knows there's never a good time for headlines about relatively rich public officials deciding to give themselves more taxpayer money. So it looks like automatic Congressional pay raises--first instituted in 1989-- are not going away anytime soon.

And what about the income taxes these dutiful, dedicated public servants must pay?

We're all familiar with that coveted position-- member of the congressional "Ways and Means Committee". And why is it so desirable? You can REALLY call the money shots from this perch:

Members of the House Ways and Means (and the Senate Finance Committee) are directly responsible for our insanely complex tax laws-- but they need not bother with their own returns.The IRS maintains two "customer service" centers to exclusively assist lawmakers and Capitol Hill staff in filling out their tax forms, all at a big cost to taxpayers.

Worried about rising medical insurance premiums? Congress gets free outpatient care at Bethesda and Walter Reed Hospitals. House members receive free meals and vacations from lobbyists and others.

Is gasoline burning up your budget? Well then, just consider the "good ole' boy" law allowing members of the U.S. House to lease luxury cars with taxpayer money, and with no regard for rising consumer prices for fuel. There is no price limit, and gas is included-- once again, all paid by taxpayers.

And what about parking fees, fines and tickets? No problem, once again it's part of the "free Congressional ride."

Mr. Charles B. Rangel  (D-NY) paid $1,540 in parking fines on his Chrysler PT Cruiser with campaign funds. And it was also reported that Mr. Rangel has been storing a classic 1972 Mercedes-Benz in the House of Representatives parking garage for at least the last nine years, slightly more than the 45 allotted days. His penalty? Nada. Nothing.

And for his "work car" Mr. Rangel was among the more "footloose" representatives, paying $774 a month for a  Cadillac De Ville-- courtesy of Uncle Sam, and the tax-paying public.

And if we want something done about all this extravagance, we can just write our congressperson for relief. They'll surely be concerned.
 
QUESTION: When was the last time you took an all-expenses paid vacation-- or even had the time to take one?

Congress members often travel to the great golf courses of the world, paid for by private sponsors, who often have direct interests in legislation on Capitol Hill. These trips are tagged as "official business". And members of Congress get to take along spouses and girlfriends-- it's all part of the cover.
 
House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio-- avid golfer and world-class traveler-- took 42 trips between 2000 and 2007, often with his wife Debbie. And this poor, overworked, overstressed legislator often had to fly on private, luxury-laden corporate jets, including R.J. Reynolds Tobacco's private plane.

To add insult to injury, all House Members can keep their frequent-flier miles that we taxpayers have paid for.
 
And surprise-surprise...the new congressional crackdown on lobbyists is NOT producing the outcome many had thought it would. For every ban on gifts and limitations on meals, there seems to be a new loophole around it. So despite the window dressing, there probably won't be any letup in public officials accepting lavish gifts, or all those hospitality perks from "private interests."
 
Remember Civic's class, where we all learned about the congressional 'franking privilege' of free mail?  It was founded by Benjamin Franklin with good intentions-- to keep constituents back home informed of an elected official's activities.

But today, these mass mailings are only slick incumbent re-election packages, masquerading as constituent information. And the best congressional perk of all? It's the PROLONGED vacation time, so members can come away with good, first hand information from their districts back home.

Members of Congress get endless benefits, automatic pay increases, and enjoy "featherbedded" retirements, while most Americans have suffered a generation-long period of stagnant wages, due to the over-regulation of the economy-- all brought on by guess who: Congress.

(Quote) "When the people fear their government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty"...Thomas Jefferson.

But consider today's 19% Congressional public approval rating. When people loath the government-- and the government doesn't care about the people--there is decadence.


www.keenobserver.blogtownhall.com

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Coming soon to a factory near you...the Waxman-Markey anti-stimulus

Posted by thekeenobserver on Thursday, April 23, 2009 4:53:19 PM

Pssst...wanna hear a good one? Henry Waxman (the California ultra-leftist House democrat) has stated that his new climate bill WON'T harm the U.S. economy.

Can this environmental noodlehead actually be serious?

Waxman is the type of guy who stays up late thinking of new leftist ideas to force down our throats-- his dream for an ecological nirvana-- but it's a nightmare.

Yes indeed, the benevolent Henry Waxman, who claims his bill won't hurt the economy. It's like pretending cancer is harmless. Waxman's big lie of lies is nothing more than economic carcinoma in its most virulent form, because it will metastisize insidiously from one industry to another.

And now, we must introduce his partner in crime, Edward Markey (D-Massachusetts), another leftist radical who--as chairman of the House Subcommittee on Energy &  Environment-- has been a one-man wrecking-crew to block drilling leases in Alaska in order to "save" the pristine habitat.

This lunatic claims that the current estimate of 30,00 polar bears are grounds enough to block oil exploration to avoid their extinction; so don't dare try to tell good ol' Ed that there ain't no global warming--no sir-ee--because he's having none of it.

Waxman and Markey are the Laurel & Hardy of environmentalism-- out to pass their clean air bill-- then sit back and watch it slowly leach the lifeblood out of every manufacturer, energy producer, farmer, and you guessed it...everyone else who uses energy-- all because of non-existent global warming.

And God save America if this bill passes! The cost of living, the cost of driving, and the cost of doing business for almost everyone-- all will literally go sky-high in the next decade-- or even sooner.

Their legislation requires that CO2 emissions be reduced 20 percent by the year 2020, and that all greenhouse gases be reduced by 80 percent by 2050.

That's right-- EIGHTY PERCENT!

And once our leftist Congress passes this travesty, we can expect to see life change precipitously for the worse (thanks to these two fascist fools) because it will virtually outlaw the internal combustion engine in the next decade, if "compliance" is to be reached.

We'll be forced to drive "green" cars. We can kiss goodbye to our power lawnmowers, snow-blowers and leaf-blowers. And wait till we open up our utility bills in a few years.

The Waxman- Markey clean air bill will suck so much disposable income from the average American (estimated at $3000 annually per household) that our consumer-driven economy may all but collapse under this final death blow.

And Waxman- Markey won't stop there, not by a long-shot.

This law will force us to adopt the green energy source of the future: windmills-- yes windmills-- a 16th-century, weather-dependent "technology," and forsake reliable, dependable coal-power, which generates almost 60% of our nation's electricity-- and provides it cheaply.

So think about all the coal miners that will be put out of work; think about all the steel workers and the rest of the heavy industry workers that will be forced out of their livelihoods for so-called environmental reasons, while the congressional aristocracy will continue to fly around in their privately-chartered, CO2--emitting jets, and be chauffeured around Washington sitting in the back seats of huge, gasoline-powered limousines.

Meanwhile, the Chinese will be the ones to benefit as our heavy industries either close down, or move overseas to greener pastures. This bill will only serve to indirectly subsidize our foreign competitors who could care less about green energy, and will continue to power their economies with dependable coal and fossil fuels.

But what about all the fun of driving the green cars of the future? It'll be bye-bye gasoline, and hello to battery power-- another "technological" breakthrough that was invented by Alessandro Volta in the year 1800.

And say "so long" to your sports car, "hasta-lavista" to your work truck; and bid "adios" to your SUV. The Waxman-Markey bill will eventually legislate them out of existence, much like the EPA did to Detroit's flourishing muscle car industry in the early 70's.

And to add insult to injury, the Obama administration is calling this--believe it or not-- a jobs bill--youch!

Not only will it grievously wound the private sector and drive millions of people to their local unemployment offices, just picture all the new "energy-police" positions that'll be created as an offshoot of this horrid legislation.

They'll be "energy inspectors" going everywhere, checking for "compliance." It will create an entire new layer of government workers-- a green energy Gestapo-- whose sole task will be the harassment and condemnation of any company (or any household) who refuses to comply--complete with the onerous fines to match.

It's all part of the cover: Create a bigger bureaucracy...more and more government employees; while more and more private-sector workers are forced onto the unemployment rolls, dependent upon their monthly Obama check-- or else starve.

Obama... Markey...Waxman...Congress...the EPA -- they all know what the master plan is: it's all about the tipping point-- where 50% of the people become dependent on the federal government-- which assures enough votes to keep this autocracy in Washington to "serve" the people for at least 4 more fun-filled years.

So they'll keep levying more regulations, which will beget more destruction of the economy, with 15% (or greater) unemployment-- plus a hugely expanded government work force-- as increasing political power inexorably flows to Washington, and hapless citizens with lost jobs, lost pride, facing a bleak future.

But all the while, they'll be breathing sweet, clean, fresh air.


www.keenobserver.blogtownhall.com

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Will Obama and hyperinflation destroy this nation? Yes he can!

Posted by thekeenobserver on Thursday, March 12, 2009 4:16:00 PM

Get out the wheelbarrows. Prepare for heavy lifting. Congress is setting us up for 1920's Germany, and the hyperinflation that once destabilized that country-- leading to the rise of a Austrian lad who's grandfather went by the name of Shicklegruber (Adolf Hitler).
 
In only the last five months, the U.S. overall money supply (M-I) has nearly tripled. M1 includes cash, total demand and government deposits with commercial banks, and money in all the federal reserve banks. And according to best current estimates, M2 (the current money supply in circulation) is hovering at just around 7 trillion dollars--give or take a few hundred billion.
 
But ho hum--a hundred billion here and a hundred billion there-- no big deal to a Congress bent on keeping themselves in power, while they simultaneously destroy every American wage earner's standard of living-- perhaps permanently.
 
Our hallowed 111th Congress is acting like a college freshmen who's just received his (her) first credit card, deficit spending as if they were awarded some unlimited ethereal financial prize, to be spent as one sees fit --with no accountability--and no consequences.
 
To an extent this is true.
 
Yes, long after the inevitable hyper-inflation overcomes America- perhaps ten, fifteen, or even 20 years down the road, the recklessly-spending Congressional perpetrators can choose not to run, and retire on federal pension worthy of a monarch.
 
But does anyone realize that this money the Congress is now delegating for stimulus, supplemental budget expenses, etc. isn't real money, or in fact, that it is not OUR money?

The money is not borrowed. The money is PRINTED.

Current amount of money in circulation (M2) = 7 trillion. Now add the 1 trillion anti-stimulus bill Obama signed into law recently, and every dollar American workers will now earn is worth 14.2% less-- just like that.
 
Now add the 410 billion supplemental budget federal spending bill (earmark-laden) that has just passed, and do the math again: $410 Billion divided by $7 Trillion = 5%. That's right sports fans, in just 3 weeks, your buck has just turned into little more than 6 bits...an inflation rate of almost 20% in less than a month!
 
And the wheelbarrow is getting heavier --basically amounting from more debt to pay off debt. Such fiscal brilliance! The "big money" liberals trying make the impossible possible-- printing money backed by nothing, pretending the interest is free (non-existent).
 
Nancy Pelosi wants a second anti-stimulus bill; Fed chairmen Bernacke says the first one "may not have been enough". Barney Frank is calling for more stimulus. Obama wants 600 billion for revamping (socializing) health care...a Congress running rampant with earmarks...Hillary wants almost a billion to rebuild Gaza. And always accompanied with that ad-nauseum exhortation: "We need to act now."
 
Sure: Act now-- but pay later-- and to what disastrous end?

But mysteriously this fiscal recklessness is never called into question by the media. Even Herbert Hoover would probably know that to add more debt onto an already growing $12.4 trillion existing pyramid of financial obligation would invite catastrophe.

The annual debt interest payment right now is at $600 billion--and growing--an unsustainable amount. Yet Obama and the Congress want to add another 3.4 trillion in deficit spending to fund a boundless plethora of unending federal programs--fiscal insanity on steroids!

Meanwhile, "the bearded one"- Ben Bernacke-- will be toiling away, printing all this "new money" in the fed basement.

And it matters not when Bernanke injects this newly printed money into the economy—it’s how much that counts, because all fed injections immediately act to distort the nation's production structure. The larger the injections (and the longer they continue) the larger will be the distortions. These "funny-money" injections equal more dollars chasing the same amount of goods and services-- ergo...inflation-- which exerts downward pressure on the value of the dollar.
 
With the eventual surging of prices at home, and a depreciating exchange rate, foreign holders of greenbacks might one day decide that they have had "enough"-- starting a run on the currency by dumping their dollar balances-- forcing the Fed to raise interest rates ever higher, and triggering a more devastating recession; or a scenario even worse than the original Great Depression-- a second hyperinflationary depression-- 1920's Germany revisited.
 
In a more simple analysis, let's say we've been building a debt pyramid over the last decade, and now we'll be adding huge new amounts to the base at the bottom, while all the while, the interest will be coalescing at the top. And given time and the continuation of reckless deficit spending, the debt pyramid may become distorted in shape-- growing top heavy-- and at last, it tips over.

Ergo...hyperinflation.

But our beloved anti-president, Mr. Barack Obama, will be long gone out of office when and if that occurs; and of course, living large on his ex-presidential pension.

So should the "average Joe" be mindful about WHEN and IF we do run out of the printing option? And how much of a concern should it be now for all Americans, who already have more than enough to worry about concerning the economy?

Could the world eventually become so flooded with PAPER dollars, that some of our lesser foreign creditors begin to say: "Okay Meester Bernacke...we hold enough of these flimsy dollars now, so if your foolish American Congress wants more credit, we'll need something more solid than all this paper currency in return."

So bye bye Fort Knox...hello national insolvency. And then what?

Then it'll be time to break out the Kruggerands (gold coins) hidden in the cellar, because American money won't be worth the paper it's printed on-- and the Fed won't even have enough credit left to purchase the the green ink.

And the OPEC countries and the Chinese (previously reluctant to dun their number one trading partner) will then be forced to pull their "debt  triggers", and deliver the final coupe de' gras. Then its turn out the lights America-- the party's over. We'll have descended into the financial nether existence of a third world nation, totally bereft of all liquid assets, with liabilities extending "as far as the eye can see..."

So Mexico-- prepare for a taste of your own medicine: Americans might one day be reverse-migrating into your territory, with all of them seeking a sense of survival after hyperinflation comes to the fore, and completely destroys the affluence of a once-proud and powerful nation.

www.keenobserver.blogtownhall.com

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Ask Harry Reid...Could the stimulus monstrosity actually create some prosperity?

Posted by thekeenobserver on Monday, February 16, 2009 8:34:22 PM

At last-- who'da thunk it.

Just when you thought the fine print of stimulus bill couldn't get any worse, there's been an amazing positive revelation. And it wasn't some "porky amendment" from Charles (doomer-gloomer) Schumer.

Try not to collapse from shock; it was something DEMOCRATIC that would truly stimulate the economy, and create permanent high paying jobs for any and all Americans who qualify as such.

So what's all the big deal? It was Harry Reid to the rescue, whose sneaky, last-second insertion provided for building a Disneyland-Las-Vegas high speed maglev railroad. It was little more than a barely disguised earmark championed by the Senate majority leader; but most importantly, it was done with the last minute approval of President Obama.

During all of the final negotiations of the 800 billion-dollar bill, it was the largest single item to be added -- $8 billion for building high speed rail (HSR). This cheered rail advocates everywhere, who'd been perplexed about why the original package had included relatively little for rail and mass transit.

President Obama has often stated his support for investing more in those forms of transportation as a way to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, so the item was added at his request because, as Rahm Emanuel stated succinctly..."it met the presidents 'criteria' for stimulus spending".
 
And for anyone with enough stamina to plow through all the bill's 1000-plus pages, is there anything that DOESN'T qualify as stimulus "criteria"?
 
But for once, here's a president that understands the huge economic efficiencies of high speed rail networks. Plus, the mostly flat topography of our country makes the idea all the more feasible. The really good news about all this is that Mr. Obama took a personal interest in this provision. This is indeed crucial, as building out HSR networks in such a big country will require a lot of follow-through from the Whitehouse.
 
QUESTION: Why, each day, do millions of Americans waste innumerable hours (and incredible amounts of fossil fuel) stuck in interstate traffic?

QUESTION #2: Why, each day, do Americans torture themselves in crowded airplanes, constantly wasting time (and fuel) waiting for take off and landing slots?

ANSWER: Political stupidity; especially when considering how much productivity and energy is being expended uselessly.
 
But now, can you picture the nation's travelers after completion of a nationwide HSR network?
 
Road rage on interstates, and time wasted by airline protocol would be supplanted by relaxing, socializing, text messaging, laptop work, watching a movie, enjoying the dining car, reading, or sightseeing out the windows at 200-plus mph.
 
It sure beats looking at cloud tops from a airplane window seat, or getting flipped off by some crazed, type"A" aggressor-driver in gridlocked interstate traffic.

So what in the world have we been waiting for?

Even the Chinese, our trustworthy Asian competitors, have successfully introduced a high speed rail corridor from Beijing to the new Tianjin airport. The two cities, with a total population of 30 million, are now connected with 200 mph overhead electric-powered bullet trains. The trip takes just thirty minutes, and has reduced the overcrowding at the old airport in Beijing.

China is taking the idea nationwide and is planning the construction of another 13,000 km of high-speed track. While here in The United States, we have all these metro areas, but no true high-speed rail corridors.

But take heart all ye weary travelers; there are a lot of plausible city pairs and corridor projects that could be fired as "magic bullets" to stop the current recession dead in its tracks.

bullet #1:San Francisco, to LA, to San Diego, along the west coast.
bullet #2: Chicago, to Detroit, to Cleveland, to Pittsburgh (to Philadelphia) in the midwest
bullet #3: Dallas to Houston, in the southwest.
bullet #4: Richmond, Va. to Washington D.C., to New York, to Boston, on the East coast.

High speed rail would fulfill the actual purpose of a stimulus-- an entire new industry that could eventually employ tens of millions of people throughout the entire 21st century.

So let's give senator Reid some credit. A high speed rail link between L.A. and Vegas is a splendid idea. The distance is relatively short, and much of it is basically in desolate desert with few right-of-way issues. It’s almost perfect for this kind of project.

And is there any more guaranteed money-maker than a train between Los Angeles and Las Vegas? It would probably make money even if it were a normal-speed train.

There are currently flights on Southwest Air from any of the 4 L.A. basin airports to Las Vegas. One way is usually around $60 or less. But many people refuse to fly (if they can help it), and would gladly pay $50 each way for high speed rail.

This HSR link between Anaheim-Vegas should’ve happened a long time ago. There was a plan in the mid 70s which got to the bidding phase. Then a scandal erupted from the Las Vegas side. The bids turned out to be rigged (mob involvement alleged), so the project was scrapped. And at that time, our wonderful benefactor Harry Reid was a "just" a local politician about to make a name for himself on the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

Next priority: What about developing a real HSR in the Northeast Corridor, where the demand is already quite high, and the Acela is underwhelming. Currently the trip from Boston to Washington D.C. takes 8 hours. But what If  you could make it from Boston to New York in under 2 hours? Boom!

Yes; it would be maglev to the rescue. Productivity spikes. Everyone gets a boost from all the time saved. Plus it would eliminate the necessity of having to expand I-95, the dreaded highway that takes road rage to an art form (i.e... "when are they going to widen this **#*^--**#* Interstate 95"?)

There are unlimited options, including Texas, Florida, and all the Midwest states . The plan could radiate outward from a hub-spoke network centered from Chicago.

In Europe, people love riding high speed maglev trains, and consider them vastly superior to airplanes. Even the Australian government is planning a massive new system of railways for their coastal cities. In Spain, 10,000 km of high-speed rail are already under construction
 
But in our United States, we've lagged behind for no other reason than a lack of vision. But why? What has been keeping our nation's political visionaries so blinded by the idea of a HSR network, similar to our interstate highway system? Even as far back in the 60's, high speed interstate rail would have been right for America.
 
But as the old, ho-hum saying goes..."better late than never".

Experts predict a design of this new interstate railway system would total approx 10,000 miles in length, and be in the direct service of metro areas representing 60% of the population of the United States. And it could also incorporate spurs to the population centers of Canada.

And what happens when you get off? Here's where the private sector boom comes in. There would be a whole new realm of "destination jobs" that would be created at the junction stops and cities, such as hotel-motel, car rental, restaurant, retail, and even tourist jobs.

Our great rail history could repeat itself 140 years later. A transcontinental high speed rail network would remove millions of cars, and hundreds of planes from our nation's transportation equation. The job-creation factor could lift us from recession; and it isn't some pie-in-the-sky deal like hydrogen cars, windmill farms, or growing switchgrass to replace fossil fuel.

Can any one argue the fact that we need a "circuit-breaker" between the airlines and the endangered gasoline automobile? Imagine if Delta/NWA, and Continental all went bankrupt? Who could buy these companies and maintain their huge passenger shares?

Let's not forget; crowded air corridors are just one of the angles by which we can move forward with rail, because of the fragility of our air system. But for some reason, the bias against long distance HSR seems to have been predicated on the idea that the public would prefer air travel over those distances. While this may be true in the present, there is nothing to guarantee that situation won't change.

Consider two things: Air travel may keep getting less and less convenient via increased security; and future fuel prices may make it too expensive. Imagine what would happen when the middle class gets priced out of flying? Or what might happen if businesses-- watching their bottom lines-- start sending their people on trains instead of pricey airlines.

Furthermore, a high-speed network would create strong competition between Midwestern cities located close to one another, and could help revive dying towns like the ones in rustbelt Ohio.

In his 1962 speech given at Rice University in Houston, President John F. Kennedy re-affirmed America's commitment to landing a man on the moon before the end of the 1960's. The President spoke in philosophical terms about the need to solve the mysteries of space, and also defended the enormous expense of the space program.

But if President Kennedy were around today, would he not approve of a similar expenditure-- constructing hi-speed rail corridors spanning the nation? It could be another Apollo project, with terrific economies of scale----time and fuel saved, high paying jobs created, auto and air traffic reduced, and the sheer fun and excitement of rail travel.
 
There'd be a binge of  permanent, high-paying, skilled employment. We'd have steel and manufacturing jobs; railroad and construction jobs; engineering and technology employment. Plus we'd have the one thing that's been lacking since the 1960's-- we'd be united in purpose. We'd have a national goal-- BUILD the rail network-- just like the NASA moon shot of the 60's.

So now that this highly-aspirational idea has been put forth, can we please get a little co-operation from Congress?  Can we, for once, just table all the politics and bickering, and get this underway, with no delay-prone environmental lawsuits, or eminent domain bickering?
 
So is President Obama, and America, finally on the right track?

www.keenobserver.blogtownhall.com

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"Hail Comrade Obama! Let us count your socialistic ways!"

Posted by thekeenobserver on Friday, October 24, 2008 4:19:39 PM
 
QUESTION: Who'll be next in the White house?  Just ask Wall Street. Calculate using this simple ratio: the higher the pre-election polls rise for Obama, the faster the Dow-Jones will tumble. The result? (in biblical parlance)..."and the blame shall falleth on George W. Bush". 

And in the parlance of Wall Street, the term "smart money", refers to those individuals who have the clearest crystal balls (i.e. the insiders). These are the people who "know people". And what are they telling each other?

"PSST...you know what I found out about that Obama? He's going to raise the dividend tax to 39.7% , and capital gains to 35% ! 

"WHAT?..." I'm selling BEFORE he gets in! 

Now magnify this scenario a few million more times around the world for the next few months, and it's not hard to perceive why the market will continue to churn, and then stumble ever lower until about 2011, when Obama is on the way out.

Wall Street is about creating wealth. Yes they are the capitalists. They are the people who seek to put their money where it can multiply, and create more wealth for them. They seek to invest where they see growth possibilities-- companies or industries where there is a bright future. Every investor on Wall Street , large or small,  is therefore,  a venture capitalist, seeking the creation of additional wealth.

But Obama, intentional or not , is about destroying wealth. Oppressive tax policies on the wealthy, destroy venture capital; destroy the most essential element of future economic expansion--M-O-N-E-Y! People seem to be thrown for a loop when the word 'capital' is tossed out there. That includes Barack Obama.

If Mr. Obama only could have a better grasp of the basic premise about wealth creation, he would learn ...the more you tax the wealthy, the faster capital shall flee this country, and seek fertile ground else where. EXAMPLE: Ireland has the lowest corporate tax in Europe (12.5%) and is experiencing a sizzling 7.5%  current rate of economic growth. China is growing at 8%.

But Comrade Obama is about socialism-- spreading the wealth around from a constantly shrinking source-- defying all economic logic. It is the formula for "Economic Failure 101"...seizing wealth from the producers, and giving it to the drones: attacking the growth phase of the economic base, and rewarding the stagnant segment. This implies shortages; this implies class envy.

The basic tenet of the Marx-Engels theory is class warfare..."the individual exists for The State!"...dismantling the anthill of the workers, and transferring their bounty to the do-nothing drones: encourage the people to be lax, and become a public dependent .

The basic socialist theory for retaining power is ..."tax the wealthy (the opposition) and distribute it to those who will vote for you (your base of support).  And when this dependent population ratio rises toward 45-50%, you retain power (i.e. re-election).

So now Comrade Obama's only challenge is to gain the power; so once again he refers to the time tested socialist textbook for the answer...tell the masses what will work for you, and gain their trust in you..."YES AMERICA...I'M GOING TO RAISE TAXES...BUT NOT YOURS!"

This class-warfare tenet for the ascension to power has worked unfailingly throughout any era in modern history; whether it was Lenin, Goebbels, Hitler, Stalin, Castro, Mobutu, Chavez, or Mugabe. But you must strike when the iron is hot (i.e. when times are bad, and the masses are angry).

So now everybody, we shall proceed to connect all the dots. Once again...the lower the Dow-Jones  tumbles... the madder the people will get, and the more likely they are to blame Bush, and vote for the democrats.

Is this all starting to sound familiar? Picture Obama  at one of his rock-star midwest campaign rallies..."Hello St Louis! (flashes his big Cheshire cat-grin)...Today, John McCain said he wants to give more tax cuts to Exxon and big oil...(BOO!) This is just more of the same failed policies of George Bush!  (BOOO!) But Its time we stop favoring Wall Street, and think about Main Street! (YAY!)...It's time we give the rest of America a break! (YAY!!)... I'm going to a give tax cut to the other 95 percent of America! (HOO-RAY!!)...America doesn't need another George Bush in the White house (YAY!)... That's how we will move America  forward (YAY!)... And that’s why I'm running for president of the United States! (WILD APPLAUSE) ...Thank you St Louis...and God bless America! (music plays...Obama steps off podium waving to wildly cheering crowd).

Tsk-tsk-tsk...oh well, they'll never learn. Okay now for all you nice, intelligent Obama-crats out there, it's time for your multiple choice question: What will America look like in just 4 years after the Obamunnism theory of taxation has taken hold? Just fill in the following blank:  economic______ (a) Devastation (b) Havoc (c) Destruction (d) Turmoil)
 
If Obama could only stop his vote-shopping speeches for once, and use some logic, then we could pose to him this obvious question..."Mr Obama sir...why would you think that with higher corporate taxes, companies would stay in the United States, when instead  they could save millions of dollars by opening in another country with a better deal?  (answer) "They won't."

In addition, corporations would migrate to where the labor costs are lowest. Next question: "Comrade Obama...did you ever hear of a country called China?"

Soon, Americans might be reverse-migrating into Mexico after this fanatical proponent of "being fair'', is through.

The impact on raising taxes on corporations is astounding. It drives business offshore, seeking new tax havens. It has nothing to do with not being patriotic. It's about staying competitive.This will take more jobs away from Americans, and stimulate another country's economy.

The funny thing is that 90 percent of the democrats, who pronounce Obama as their candidate, think that he will provide more jobs for the people.

The humor comes in knowing that the public doesn't understand the impact of what increasing corporate taxes really will have on the United States. But it's not funny at all. Does Obama really know what he is saying? Doesn't he understand that corporations open shop elsewhere because of the higher-priced taxes?

The most troubling aspect of all this is-- what if he DOES know this? Oh my gawd! Now we've really opened up a can of worms. Conspiracy!

Now, all of Obama's past associations begin to make sense.

No longer would it be a mystery of why he hung with characters like the honorable, most-reverend Jeremiah Wright, the despicable Billy Ayers, the odious Bernadine Dohrn, sweet Father Plager, and Louie-Louie Farrakhan. They all were cut from the same cloth...rabble rousers, and virulent anti-American radical thinkers. And, lest we not forget- ACORN!

And further coming into focus would be why he chose to launch his political campaign in Mr. & Mrs. Ayers' living room. Could it be that the fact is; Ayers and his wife chose him? They saw in Obama a man richly gifted in the skills of articulation, public oration, manipulation, and equanimity (cool under fire)...skills that would pretext someone who could change people's minds against their own best interests: A man so disarming in appearance and candor, that no one would ever suspect the devious nature within...a man who would turn America against itself.

Could this man be the anti-Christ of our democracy? He seems too intelligent, and has surrounded himself with so many economic experts, that how could he possibly NOT know the almost certain devastation it will do to our economy if he raised taxes during a downturn? Why would America even think of revisiting Herbert Hoover and 1931 again?

Haven't these democrats damaged the wealth of America enough? Look at the wealth destruction they have already wrought upon our country!

Nancy Pelosi (estimated net worth-- $25 million) as Speaker of the House, has blocked all Republican drilling bills from reaching the House floor for a vote. We have 4 trillion dollars worth of oil sitting in the ground around us. lt's liquid gold--4 TRILLION DOLLARS! Sitting wasted! For what? 

This is money that could go for investment. It's the money a deficit-plagued America needs at a most critical time. We could rebuild this country's infrastructure. We could invest in alternative energy vehicles: new money for corporate expansion; or for R&D toward high tech medical and pharmaceutical advancements; toward new inventions and hundreds of new entrepreneurial ideas; the list is endless.

But without capital, nothing can move move forward. And the democrats have chosen to stifle all this, and have declared our own resources to be illegal! And if they regain control of both the congress and the presidency, they wil keep it illegal!  And electing Obama would have a "coattails' effect-- more democrats in Congress, inviting more potential liberal devastation. Plus it would only encouraged Nazi Pelosi and her ilk, to legislate more leftist havoc upon us.

Other congressional Leftists like Senator Chuck Schumer (architect of, "we can't drill our way out") and Pelosi rant constantly against "Big Oil". They despise that hateful word, "profit". They are committed to never again permitting any additional domestic drilling, and seem quite content to export our money to OPEC. They're never questioned about this treason by our leftist media , so Americans are manipulated into political insanity, and are easily led to voting against their own best economic interests; and remain pacified by their big lie (we cant drill our way out").

So according to logic of this perfidious bunch, we should... keep our resources off-limits, buy our energy from OPEC, shrink our capital base further, which stifles economic growth; then pacify the expanding unemployed masses (i.e.unemployment benefits)...and further expand political power from those whom you have made newly dependent.

The moral of the Socialist theory? (1) Condemn the profitable (2) Make times seem worse than they really are (3) Get the masses to keep voting for you. Just ask Karl Marx: class warfare; class distinction; class envy; rich vs poor; basic manipulation; basic socialism-- convincing the people that they are getting what they should really want-- someone else's wealth. Why should they want more?

 A vote for Obama seems like irrational political exuberance to its most insane extreme.
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