A Socio-Political Blog
The Republican economic plan has been the same since 1980. It is derived from neoliberal (not to be confused with social liberalism) economics, once called laissez-faire economic liberalism, and has evolved from supply-side to “trickle-down” (inspired by the Laffer Curve) or Reaganomics. Convoluted by titles, perhaps, but the common threads have always followed these principles: 1) Lower income taxes for the highest…
CNBC, along with several business analysts, including the National Association of Manufacturers and the Council on Competitiveness, have ranked the state of Iowa #11 in terms of Top States for Doing Business. That is down two places over the past two years. Although, ranking #11 is not bad, we aren’t going in the right direction. It…
Today, I read two things in the “Opinion” section of the Waterloo Courier that reinforced a concern that I’ve had for quite awhile now. That concern regards a fundamental misunderstanding that many Americans have as to the nature of our Republic (a representative democracy), and that misunderstanding is corroding our nation. A columnist wrote: “People are…
If you’re a political speechwriter the easiest thing to write for your candidate to say is, “I don’t like the direction America is heading.” It’s a chestnut we hear every election cycle because a lot of people never seem to like the way we’re heading. It’s what candidates generally say when they’re running against a…
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: “I don’t hate oil. I don’t hate Big Oil and the contribution that industry has made to our economy, and for the jobs that continue to be created. What I don’t like are dangerous emissions and hazards from the procurement, processing and burning of oil.” The…
I’ve been running for office for 9 days now. What have I learned….? I’ve learned that everyone knows what you need to do to win. I’ve learned that county central committees don’t call each other to determine if they overlap. I’ve learned that being a candidate means that, sadly, you can no longer write a…
My father was a child of the Great Depression. He grew up in a family with 7 children in an abandoned caboose with no electricity or plumbing. He had only had one pair of overalls and ratty old shoes to wear to school every day. It was, after all, the Depression and everyone was poor in…
Republicans have voted against Obama’s jobs bill…voted against a Consumer Financial Protection Agency to curb the fraudulent practices that contributed to the recession…voted against a bi-partisan budget…voted against ending tax breaks that did nothing but line the pockets of Big Oil…they voted against the “Buffet Rule” that would essentially lower marginal tax rates but also…
It’s not easy to find the truth. Even when you do research by looking for unbiased views to form a clearer perspective, the information available, although vast, can be based on conflicting analysis, points of view and political influence. The other day someone mentioned to me as we talked about the financial situation in…
Shortcuts. We all take them. If there is a shorter, faster way to get to our destination why wouldn’t we take it? We don’t get into a car to maximize the time we spend in cars; we want to minimize our time getting to the destination. Even when our cars are comfortable and have the…