We're taxing ourselves out of the recession.
It's to be expected with an executive and legislative branch controlled by the Democrats. You can expect to be paying significantly more to licence, title and buy new tags for your vehicle on your next trip to DMV. The company you work for is likely to pass along higher corporate taxes in the form of higher product pricing and delays in hiring adding additional workload to the existing workforce while the bottom line forces more cuts and even cost of living raises become a thing of the past. Your personal income tax would be likely to erase any increase you would have gained anyway since many of our elected people in Salem are steering a course that would increase your tax liability.
Meanwhile our legislators are still pushing for annual full sessions. They make more money when they are in session making life more difficult for the rest of us. Even Betsy Johnson tells me that while she now supports a strictly controlled abbreviated session to follow full sessions she still isn't on-board with full sessions annually. She says the business of government is too complex to stick with the traditional citizen legislature concept as much as she likes that approach. She says this is especially true with the executive branch always in Salem while the representatives of the people are not. She says that purposefully controlled even-numbered year sessions with strict controls on bills followed by full sessions in odd-numbered years makes sense now.
I might agree accept that eventually some legislator is going to challenge those short session controls on the kind of bills that can be introduced based on, if nothing else, freedom of speech.
The Oregon Constitution would need to be changed to make this annual session strategy law. That means eventually you and I will be voting on the idea. This opens the door to years of wrangling and most likely the third branch of government will get involved on a final decision.
What's happening in Salem? Business as usual.
How many examples of Gov't spending NOT improving economies do we have to study, before we learn!!! Since the Great Depression, There has been something like 12 recessions, that average 5 to 11 months, with a 6 year recovery...no matter what the Federal Govt has done...we will recover from this recession, the recovery however will be much longer, and severe!! The private sector is the way to recovery, not the Fed. We can now see, where years and years of rediculas, irresponsible spending has gotten all govt in an incredable bind, and we the tax payer must pay for it!! Pers, Oregon College accts, public pay, and other benefits, stupid programs and policies to save the suckers, frogs, non-existant salmon, flies, salamanders, have made normal human existance cost prohibative, and in some communities in this state impossible. There is an all out war against farmers that grow our food, loggers that produce the wood we need, fishermen, miners (that produce the metals we need, including the metals required to produce all the new types of green energy), petroleum, ranchers, fishermen. We have major national magazines running articals on how we could eat bugs, instead of beef, and this would lower our miniscule carbon footprint!! We have had many successful, robust recoveries, and all included allowing taxpayers to keep more of their own money, and let them decide how to spend it (People ALWAYS spend theyre own money more carefully)!!
ReplyDeleteGovenment never does with less...remember last year, all the department heads in the state government getting their 15-35% raises? Now we hear from all them the term "shared sacrifice". Although Im grateful that our county employees have stopped their cola's temperarily, thats not the case with alot of public employee organizations around the state, and state workers! And most of this stimulus money, locally and nation wide is for projects that voters would NEVER approve, if, allowed to vote on the individual projects. Here in Astoria...we're getting a lighted riverwalk...thats the most important NEED in the county? You can look at the state stimulus projects...and a whole lot of it is for really low priority, unneccesary, stuff...all the while, our kids, our saftey, the important things...suffer, because its in a portion of the state budget (general fund...1/3 of the total state budget), that is always first to get cut by the "best and brightest" (according to the govenor). You look at some of the proposed "tax" increases...cap and trade, bird seed...and on and on and on...govt will never do with less, good economy, or bad!!
ReplyDeleteIt is to be expected when an executive branch and legislative branch controlled by the Republicans that government will grow (mostly the military), taxes will be reduced (for the wealthiest 90%), the burden of deficits will be placed on the backs of the middle class, cuts to programs will mostly impact the elderly, disabled and the less fortunate.
ReplyDeleteMaybe a good question would be: Where is the happy medium? The far right and far left, the loudest of the voices, get all of the publicity. The moderates of both parties, especially the Republican Party (rapidly becoming a smaller Limbaughblican party) tend to be ostracized. There has to be a balance. The extremists still need to be heard as they do come up with great ideas, but, any ideas need to be funneled through the process and made implementable by moderates.
I would like to see a shorter second session in our Legislature under the same restrictions as you suggest Tom. I would also like to see the citizen based initiative process repealed which has cost the state mega-dollars not to mention bogging down the whole process. We elect people through a democratic process to do the business of state government. If we don’t like what they do we vote them out. That is what is great about living in a Republic.
For anonymous number one: How many examples of only tax cuts do we need to show that they don’t work by themselves? Again, there has to be a happy medium between the two extreme ideals. People do not always spend their own money more carefully. If they did, we would not need social security today and bankruptcies due to anything other than unexpected medical costs or unforeseen personal and/or business circumstances would be minimal. I’m not saying the Fed does any better though.
I don’t like taxes anymore than the next person, but, a great Republican jurist of his time, Oliver Wendell Holmes is quoted as saying: “Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society”. Lest we forget, “Love of money is the root of all evil” not money itself. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with accumulating wealth in our capitalist society. However, accumulation of wealth without good works or taking on a greater responsibility due to financial success is evidence of love of money.
The anonymous writer with issues about public employees will find that most will freeze COLAs and other wages. They have in the past. Bargaining isn’t over yet even though some have taken a hostile turn. State workers have accepted freezes several times that I am aware of during difficult times in our state. In part they did so to keep their fully paid health insurance. Nothing wrong with that. They sacrifice some things to keep one. The company I worked for and our union members just reached an agreement to freeze wages & COLAs for 30 months as well as accept 20 mandatory unpaid days (MUDs) off. Our agency is funded out of the state budget. So, we are doing our part. There will be very few, if any, workers that are directly or indirectly funded by the state’s budget that do not wind up with some type of cuts. Don’t forget, government workers also pay taxes, either payroll or income.
Tom, you have an open mind, talk and write open minded and run an open minded talk show. I respect your conservative ideals and they remind me of the GOP pre-President Nixon. I appreciate that. Although I listen to other conservative talk shows periodically, at length they are too extreme for me.
It is to be expected when an executive branch and legislative branch controlled by the Republicans that government will grow (mostly the military), taxes will be reduced (for the wealthiest 90%), the burden of deficits will be placed on the backs of the middle class, cuts to programs will mostly impact the elderly, disabled and the less fortunate.
ReplyDeleteMaybe a good question would be: Where is the happy medium? The far right and far left, the loudest of the voices, get all of the publicity. The moderates of both parties, especially the Republican Party (rapidly becoming a smaller Limbaughblican party) tend to be ostracized. There has to be a balance. The extremists still need to be heard as they do come up with great ideas, but, any ideas need to be funneled through the process and made implementable by moderates.
I would like to see a shorter second session in our Legislature under the same restrictions as you suggest Tom. I would also like to see the citizen based initiative process repealed which has cost the state mega-dollars not to mention bogging down the whole process. We elect people through a democratic process to do the business of state government. If we don’t like what they do we vote them out. That is what is great about living in a Republic.
For anonymous number one: How many examples of only tax cuts do we need to show that they don’t work by themselves? Again, there has to be a happy medium between the two extreme ideals. People do not always spend their own money more carefully. If they did, we would not need social security today and bankruptcies due to anything other than unexpected medical costs or unforeseen personal and/or business circumstances would be minimal. I’m not saying the Fed does any better though.
I don’t like taxes anymore than the next person, but, a great Republican jurist of his time, Oliver Wendell Holmes is quoted as saying: “Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society”. Lest we forget, “Love of money is the root of all evil” not money itself. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with accumulating wealth in our capitalist society. However, accumulation of wealth without good works or taking on a greater responsibility due to financial success is evidence of love of money.
The anonymous writer with issues about public employees will find that most will freeze COLAs and other wages. They have in the past. Bargaining isn’t over yet even though some have taken a hostile turn. State workers have accepted freezes several times that I am aware of during difficult times in our state. In part they did so to keep their fully paid health insurance. Nothing wrong with that. They sacrifice some things to keep one. The company I worked for and our union members just reached an agreement to freeze wages & COLAs for 30 months as well as accept 20 mandatory unpaid days (MUDs) off. Our agency is funded out of the state budget. So, we are doing our part. There will be very few, if any, workers that are directly or indirectly funded by the state’s budget that do not wind up with some type of cuts. Don’t forget, government workers also pay taxes, either payroll or income.
Tom, you have an open mind, talk and write open minded and run an open minded talk show. I respect your conservative ideals and they remind me of the GOP pre-President Nixon. I appreciate that. Although I listen to other conservative talk shows periodically, at length they are too extreme for me.
Just a contitutional refresher...congress levies taxes and spends the money...CONGRESS is in charge of the national check book...take a look at when this economy started deteriorating a rapid rate! 2006, do you know what happened in 2006? Take a look at when the sub-prime market was revived and put on "steroids"...1998...Bush attempted several times to get Freddy and Fannie under control...but was obstructed by Chris Dodd, Barnie Frank each and everytime!! what started as a 2 billion dollar HUD program in 1998, blossomed into several trillion dollars of guarentees by Freddie and fannie in less than 10 years. When Reagan took office we had had 20% interest, 12% inflation, and double digit unemployment. He cut taxes accross the board, and lowered the top marginal rate from in the 70%'s to 28%. He doubled tax revenues to the treasury in his 2 terms...the problem for him was no congress is going to allow a dollar to just sit there unspent!! Bush did wrong I believe with the original TARP...but Obama almost has spent half of that TARP, plus 400 billion plus omnibus, plus 800 billion stimulus in 60 days...more than the total spent on Iraq, Afganastan, and Katrina combined...For a Obama to campaign on the failed policies of Bush...I find it amazing that He's done the exact same only much much more. Lest you forget...we had 55 strait months of growth during Bush, and that was with a war on terror, and Katrina's expenditures! As for your example of Social Security as an example of "people" not spending their own money carfully...ITS NOT A VOLUNTARY WITHOLDING...I HAVE NOT CHOICE ABOUT IT!! And there is NO money in the "Social Security Lockbox" its full of US treasury bonds!!...And the Federal Govt. is the BANK!!
ReplyDeleteSince government is so evil, we should just get rid of it totally. I'm sure most of us could get what we need and protect ourselves via private business.
ReplyDeleteIt is to be expected when an executive branch and legislative branch controlled by the Republicans that government will grow (mostly the military), taxes will be reduced (for the wealthiest 90%) Ok, fast fingers.. I meant for the wealthiest 10% Also, let me remind you of the devastation of Reaganomics and the 2nd highest deficit ever in our country, bested only by another 2 term repub,,,, President George W. Bush.
ReplyDeletePerhaps we should put the CEO or AIG or GM or Chrysler or Bank of America in charge of government. They have certainly demonstrated a better way to help people than elected officials? But, then, the government has had to spend our money helping them, so maybe private business is not as smart as government. Just the facts.
ReplyDeleteIm sorry...you must of missed it...we have over 2 trillion dollars deficit in the first QUARTER of this year (if I apply new math...that would make this years deficit the largest eva)!!!. The devastation of Reaganomics was: the economy was going gangbusters, Interest rates, inflation, and unemployment were extremely low....tax reductions we cut ACROSS the board...everyone benefited!!! This growth benefitted Bush I, Clinton, and Bush II, and mostly Americans!
ReplyDeleteOcra
And another thing...Reagan had a DEMOCRAT congress!! So did Bush I!!
ReplyDeleteOcra
Thank god they did have a democratic congress or it would've been worse.
ReplyDeleteI agree that capitalism flourished under Reagan, as did, self indulgence and greed. Taxes were reduced mostly for the upper wage earners and always are under repub legislation. I would be ok with that, if the businesses earning the big bucks gave as much consideration to their employees as they do their CEOs and board members. Not that all of them are practicing love of monehy, but, a good percentage are.
It took years to recover from the devastation of the tax cuts you tout. We were nearly healed from them when President Bush 1 realized he had to raise taxes and President Clinton (with a repub controlled congress) managed to work our way back to a small surplus that should've gone to spending down debt.
However President Bush 2 & the repub controlled congressed entitled more tax cuts for the upper wage earners and holders of the greater wealth and started the Iraq war (he should've finished off Bin Laden first) without raising taxes to pay for the wars. So, here we sit, trying to scramble out of devastation.
Only history will tell if President Obama and a Democratic controlled congress can do any better. Without a doubt, however, I'm sure we'll see the pendulme swing again after President Obama's seceond term.
In all honesty, I don't like that the democratic party has control of both chambers in congress, but, that should be a clear message to the repubs, but, what is left of the repub party in congress are so entrenched that they'll continue to appear obstructionist even if they aren't.