My blessings counted
Family, friends, and good health
Happy Thanksgiving
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Something for nothing
This past week the OWS in Cleveland moved some of their people out of downtown. They moved to the yard of a foreclosed house where the women was to be evicted. They got her another month living in a home that she isn't paying on any longer. There are sympathies to various degrees with OWS movement and the idea that the regs are skewed right now towards the investment bankers and Wall street. However the protesters always seem to come back to the idea of something for nothing, Forgive our student loans, living in housing we don't pay for, etc. Even the idea of taxing the rich more is just wanting someone else to pick-up the tab.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Joe Biden
Joe Biden visited Cleveland this week. He was looking to capitalize on the voting down of SB5 a bill aimed at public employee unions. The bill would have given communities more leverage in dealing with the unions by only allowing collective bargaining over wages. Biden called this a victory not for unions but the middle class. My question is what about all the middle class people who aren't in the public unions. Did they win by getting to fund much more lucrative pensions and benefit packages that are not sustainable at the current tax levels.
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Tea Party vs. OWS
A recent pew poll showed 39% favorable reaction to OWS and a 32% favorable reaction to the Tea party. In addition the Tea party was veiwed negatively at a greater percentage 44% as opposed to 35% for the OWS protesters.
I wonder why people generally are viewing the OWS protesters more favorably even if only slightly. Could it be that at least right now the OWS group is suggesting little and mostly playing to a vague sense of inequality. Where as the Tea party is equally disappointed with the government but they have made real world demands for change. Where OWS points at the 1% and the need for shared sacrifice the Tea party and it's demands for spending cuts is the true advocate for shared sacrifice.
Shared sacrifice sounds good but nobody really wants to sacrifice.
I wonder why people generally are viewing the OWS protesters more favorably even if only slightly. Could it be that at least right now the OWS group is suggesting little and mostly playing to a vague sense of inequality. Where as the Tea party is equally disappointed with the government but they have made real world demands for change. Where OWS points at the 1% and the need for shared sacrifice the Tea party and it's demands for spending cuts is the true advocate for shared sacrifice.
Shared sacrifice sounds good but nobody really wants to sacrifice.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Power
My son runs a McDonalds and they are in the process, nearly complete of tearing down and rebuilding the restaurant. So when we were out yesterday we stopped by to check out the progress. Charlie was there so we got the in side the store preview tour. There have been many headaches but they are scheduled to reopen on Thursday only a month late. It sure doesn't look at this point like they will make it without very long days by construction and clean up crews.
So where am I going with all this? While walking around the store and hearing about all the little hang ups something he said really set me off. McDonalds has templates for interior and exterior design, you get a design catalog and pick features you like. Turns out the mayor in Middleburg Hts. decided that he should pick all the design elements for the outside of the building. I'm not just talking zoning requirements like distances to the street and adjoining properties. This mayor feels he should decide brick colors and styles,and detailing on the overhangs, and what style lights should run across the front of the property. Now this is a 2.5 million dollar project and if I was spending the money I would be royally pissed to have somebody come in and dictate in such a heavy handed way how to spend my money. The mayor's lighting demand alone is adding around 50 grand.
This is power at it's worst. I told my wife on the way home it makes me want to move to Middleburg hts. so I could run for mayor. People that are that heavy handed in wielding power need to be deposed.
So where am I going with all this? While walking around the store and hearing about all the little hang ups something he said really set me off. McDonalds has templates for interior and exterior design, you get a design catalog and pick features you like. Turns out the mayor in Middleburg Hts. decided that he should pick all the design elements for the outside of the building. I'm not just talking zoning requirements like distances to the street and adjoining properties. This mayor feels he should decide brick colors and styles,and detailing on the overhangs, and what style lights should run across the front of the property. Now this is a 2.5 million dollar project and if I was spending the money I would be royally pissed to have somebody come in and dictate in such a heavy handed way how to spend my money. The mayor's lighting demand alone is adding around 50 grand.
This is power at it's worst. I told my wife on the way home it makes me want to move to Middleburg hts. so I could run for mayor. People that are that heavy handed in wielding power need to be deposed.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Public sector unions
Reading the paper this week I saw a picture in the business section accompanying a story on the Greek financial crisis. The picture showed a group of angry protester protesting austerity measures being taken to try to save the Greek's economy.
So what does the Greek situation have to do with public sector unions? They both seem to think money can be produced like magic from thin air. For years promises have been made to the Greeks and public sector unions that are impossible to keep.
It may be too late for the Greeks with the low birth rate that is common in Europe there is not enough people to come close to meeting the promises. You see these promises of early retirements and socialized medicine were fine with a rising tide of workers to pay for them but the tide quit rising.
There may still be time in the U.S. we are one of the few developed countries without a drastic fall off in births. This is why I saw similarities between the Greeks and the public sector unions they both seem to think that they are entitled to money that just isn't there.
The reality train has been rolling for the last few years let's hope we can make the right decisions to make the drastic and painful changes that are necessary for our country. I don't mean to pick solely on the unions but the government and it's workers the unions are collectively us the people of the U.S. and therefor the place to start cutting. We need to do this through across the board reduction in budgets, attrition, and revamping the budgets of our future expenses(government retirement packages).
So what does the Greek situation have to do with public sector unions? They both seem to think money can be produced like magic from thin air. For years promises have been made to the Greeks and public sector unions that are impossible to keep.
It may be too late for the Greeks with the low birth rate that is common in Europe there is not enough people to come close to meeting the promises. You see these promises of early retirements and socialized medicine were fine with a rising tide of workers to pay for them but the tide quit rising.
There may still be time in the U.S. we are one of the few developed countries without a drastic fall off in births. This is why I saw similarities between the Greeks and the public sector unions they both seem to think that they are entitled to money that just isn't there.
The reality train has been rolling for the last few years let's hope we can make the right decisions to make the drastic and painful changes that are necessary for our country. I don't mean to pick solely on the unions but the government and it's workers the unions are collectively us the people of the U.S. and therefor the place to start cutting. We need to do this through across the board reduction in budgets, attrition, and revamping the budgets of our future expenses(government retirement packages).
Sunday, September 25, 2011
The Big Lie
With all this talk of class warfare I wonder about the logic of the people who advocate taxing the rich. In some ways I understand it economically things aren't going well right now and people don't know where to turn. So the simple solution is to find fault with the other, the evil rich for of course all rich people got that way trampling on the rights of the average guy. I won't pretend I can defend all rich people but percentage wise there probably aren't any more evil rich people than there evil middle class or poor people.
There other reasons for arguing against taxing the rich when the economy is struggling. The first has to do with incentives everything has an incentive we eat foods because of the way they taste, date a girl because she's pretty or smart, work hard to earn more pay. There are also disincentives don't touch the stove it's hot, how hard do you work after a pay cut. How hard is anyone going to work if the government is going to take a bigger share. The second argument against increasing taxes is selfish who do you think pays this tax on the rich. No I'm not rich but I'll be paying for any tax increase, much of any tax increase will be passed along through higher prices. Thirdly effectiveness of any tax increase is dubious most of the Bush tax cut's went to the poor and middle class raising taxes solely on the rich would have little impact on the deficit.Plus if G.E can pay n0 federal taxes now they could pay zero with an increase as well. We need only to close loopholes as a minimum but hopefully move away from an income tax all together.
There other reasons for arguing against taxing the rich when the economy is struggling. The first has to do with incentives everything has an incentive we eat foods because of the way they taste, date a girl because she's pretty or smart, work hard to earn more pay. There are also disincentives don't touch the stove it's hot, how hard do you work after a pay cut. How hard is anyone going to work if the government is going to take a bigger share. The second argument against increasing taxes is selfish who do you think pays this tax on the rich. No I'm not rich but I'll be paying for any tax increase, much of any tax increase will be passed along through higher prices. Thirdly effectiveness of any tax increase is dubious most of the Bush tax cut's went to the poor and middle class raising taxes solely on the rich would have little impact on the deficit.Plus if G.E can pay n0 federal taxes now they could pay zero with an increase as well. We need only to close loopholes as a minimum but hopefully move away from an income tax all together.
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