The US Debt and where it came from
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 11:50 am
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Cheney was of course misrepresenting things when he said that (though in his mind he was entirely truthful). Reagan's re-election proved that the voters would vote for anybody who promised them more Chinese bling and did not care for how they got it.Tudamorf wrote:"Reagan proved deficits don't matter" - Dick Cheney
(Except when there's a Democrat in the White House, and particularly when he isn't white.)
Politics is about getting re-elected. Making the other person look bad is slander. But slander is near impossible to prove thanks to the Supreme Court.erianaiel wrote:Wrecking the economy is and continues to be the intention of the Republican Party. Many of the senior Republicans (Including Boehner and most/all of the Tea party nuts) are on record for destroying the US economy. There philosophy is that if the economy tanks enough all Socialist programs will be forced to be cut and taxes will be slashed because Americans believe that, "If you lower taxes, it will stimulate the economy."Tudamorf wrote: Wrecking the economy was not quite the intention (at least not by the rank and file republicans, no accounting for what the Tea party thinks or does), but it more likely than not never was a consideration either. The economy was simply an issue that could not be ignored.
What they are hoping for is that the US doesn't lose its credit rating. If that happens, all bets are off that private corporations will support them in 2012. Reminds me of the Simpson episode where Lisa Simpson gets elected President but by time she does, the US economy is in shambles and the "George Burn's" of the world have already taken over. The government is nothing more than a symbol. This is the goal of the Republican/Tea Party.
They won, straight and simple. The fact that they didn't get a balanced budget amendment through the Senate was no surprise. They needed to do it for the elections of 2012 to force Democrats hands. They are setting themselves up for another round of landslide elections in 2012. The only thing that can honestly stop them/make them stumble is the US Credit score being downgraded. Too many Americans have been brainwashed by Republican/Reagan economics.For all intents and purposes {T}he republican strategy worked perfectly. They got just about everything they asked for and had to give away nothing in exchange. They showed that the president and democrats were weak and easily cowed. They got to define the whole issue in terms that benefitted them and not their opponents and they can now link this confused democrat retreat to the unemployment rate and stand an excellent change that disappointed Obama voters will punish him for being 'too republican' by voting into office .. a republican.
Racism is just another card the party is playing. They haven't been able to play it until now but I suspect we will see it more and more now that many prominent Democrats are of non-white origins. Nothing different than the gender card they played against Pelosi and Mrs. Clinton. They will play any card that will help them get votes from the South. Republicans are more than "just a shade more ruthless," its borderline treasonous.Racism is only a card being played to keep part of the republican voters with them (instead of drifting off in the extremist militia and being lost for voting). The harsh truth is that representatives are only interested in the next election (and there are enough of those that they are always more busy with raising funds and looking good to the voters than with doing the job they were elected to do). Anything and everything will be sacrificed on the alter of re-election. The republicans are just a shade more ruthless in this pursuit.
The sad thing is, I honestly don't believe everyone in the Republican Party is borderline treasonous, but the ones that are the most vocal, who grab all the press, who dictate policy are flirting with that line.
Currently, everything being played out in Washington is about the economy. The difference, is that Republicans view of "the economy" and most Americans view about "the economy" are completely different.In short, nothing in Washington is about economy.
It is all politics, dressed up in rhetorics aimed to placate the voters and make the opposition look bad.
I wouldn't go that far.erianaiel wrote:For all intents and purposes the republican strategy worked perfectly. They got just about everything they asked for and had to give away nothing in exchange. They showed that the president and democrats were weak and easily cowed.
You're wrong.Fyyr wrote:It started with the gas speculation run up, and resultant housing and credit collapse of the Summer of 2008. And is still going on by all economic accounts. Correct me if I'm wrong.
The second problem with graphs like these is that, for the USA they are heavily skewed towards stockmarket figures, which show next to nothing about the actual economy that underlies them.Fyyr wrote:Fair enough, Tudamorf. Those are rates(delta change) numbers. Not actual production numbers, of course.
But those numbers and graph is misleading(they are delta). The image projects a baseline. Those increases above the 0 are still making up the losses from 2008. We are still below the GDP of 2006 and 2007.
If I am driving a car at 60 miles an hour, and drop down 10% the second hour(to 54MPH), then drop again another 10% the next hour(to 48.6MPH). If I increase in speed 3% the next hour after that, I am only going 50MPH. The next hour increase by 3% I am going 52MPH. The next hour after that with a 3% increase I am going 53.6MPH. Even with an increase of 3% per hour, its going to take many hours of 3% increase to get back up to 60 miles per hour.
I can increase my speed for several hours, each and every hour after slowing down, and not get to 60 miles an hour.