The Creeping Fascism of American Politics

Poo says:

Seems to me that this is a side show compared to the very real possibility of financial collapse. Some radical interpretation of an unpassed bill may pass as creeping something but you have galloping ruin on your doorstep. The U.S., as large as it’s markets may be, is within inches of becoming Greece. You cannot spend your way into a savings. Does borrowing more money to “act” , and I do mean “act,” as a stimulous not strike you as a meaningless gesture? It is a blip until the bill arrives on the next generation or in the case of the U.S., on the next, next generation. After the U.S. election there are, in December, several tax increases and borrowing issues that will need addressing. All will impact heavily on the U.S. economy and must not be hung up in congress. By raising the debt ceiling yet again you will have increased the debt under one president by a greater amount than all previous presidents combined. Duh! Meanwhile you guys yammer about abortion and gay marriage, more side shows! For the record, both are legal in Canada and though I oppose both, I couldn’t care less. Neither are my business and I would never get off my couch to vote for or against either one of them. Like most Canadians, I see social issues as a matter of personal conscience. But try to bankrupt the country, drive unemployment through the roof and worse, create punitive an envious tax laws and I’m off to the polls! Here in Ontario, the next to be ex-Liberal (it’s a party here) government placed another tax, the 4th, on incomes over $500,000. This was done in order to get the vote of the NDP, our Socialist Party. The Liberals are a minority government and will do anything, and I do mean anything, to cling to power. Naturally, the once rich and powerful “engine of Confederation” now has the greatest debt in history and, like the U.S., was downgraded for the 1st time. The next government will repeal the ludicrous tax but the damage is done. There are not enough rich people anywhere to make up the loss. Money is fluid and never so much as today. Ask the Swiss banks where you cannot get an appointment so busy are they with French and Greek money flowing in. The French are also gobbling up real estate in London. My point being, sideshows are entertaining, cocktail chatter at best but they won’t pay the bills. As I’ve repeatedly said in the past, fix your tax code. Europe should fix itself. It has the means. Unfortunately, a union that separates fiscal and monetary policy is doomed, if not today then tomorrow. I’m guessing that if the Germans knew they could conquer Europe through their own economy, industry and efficiency, 2 World Wars would never have happened! Happily, our Federal Government is prudent. It has told the IMF there will be no more funds for Europe. You cannot blame Wall Street and/or Bush for 50 years of largesse. Our Finance Minister also poked the hole in that other sideshow, the auto industry. The bailout lost the Canadian taxpayers over $800 M on Chrysler and, all bills not yet in, probably 3 times that on GM. Google Flaherty, Chrylser, $800 M. And now the unions control them, I can hear the time bomb ticking. They waited too long to bankrupt themselves but I suppose that was the plan. Pity we had to follow it. My very long point is, if you/we, allow ourselves to be distracted during elections (a very easy thing to do what with all the provocative advertising) we will find the world in a deeper depression than in the 20s. It won’t affect me. I’m old and retired. It’s the next and the next generations I’m thinking about. I shouldn’t let sideshows and unpassed bills take my eye off the ball lest I drop it. It’s not my ball anymore; it’s theirs.