tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9170596096657614637.post4776913828267454149..comments2012-12-29T08:03:38.375-08:00Comments on Take America Back: On capitalism and freedomWTLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05093753212267056321noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9170596096657614637.post-74751432340214604672009-08-16T11:39:12.557-07:002009-08-16T11:39:12.557-07:00I agree with your post. I agree that currency is ...I agree with your post. I agree that currency is not finite, but I have a problem with this. As the Federal Reserve issues more and more currency it simply stokes inflation, which means every dollar in your pocket is subject to constant devaluation. The fractional reserve system we're operating under and the fact that the Fed is a non-government entity is crushing everyone that works and earns their own living. <br /><br />By abolishing the gold standard, our money has become worthless paper and more unnervingly a conceptual entity because only 3% of the country's currency physically exists.<br /><br />Because of the Fed, we have a national debt. We also have a system where the government can spend more than it has, as it does every year.<br /><br />In true capitalism, currency should be finite and exchanged for goods and services for which the value of the currency is equal to the value of the goods or services for which they are exchanged. That's the entire concept behind laissez faire, which is what purist conservatives would like to see rule the markets.<br /><br />I do have to say, it's incredible to see what's happened since Woodrow Wilson took office. The 10th amendment has become a floormat beneath the entrance to the congressional halls.Briannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9170596096657614637.post-39346692889587971782009-08-16T08:46:02.655-07:002009-08-16T08:46:02.655-07:00I've been trying to learn about this health ca...I've been trying to learn about this health care proposal but I simply don't have the time to sit down and read it. What I have learned is that much of the crap being argued by the opposition isn't true. There will not be death panels, nor will seniors be encouraged to kill themselves. I'm not sure how mandatory this program will be, but I know there are some issues.<br /><br />Rather than simply opposing the plan, which is a long way from being forced on us, it would be much more productive to offer alternatives. It would certainly be better than the current tactics. <br /><br />Our health care system sucks. It's too expensive for 99% of the people to afford, so most of us cling to an HMO or a PPO through our employers. That, my friend, is socialized medicine. Sure, I have a choice. Go uninsured and hope I don't get randomly punched in the face and need brain surgery, develop super powers, or make sure I'm employed by a company that offers a health plan. My premium, which I pay a portion of, covers the medical costs of the entire group. Since I have never filed a claim on my current plan (and haven't filed a claim in 12 years) United Health Care calculates my premium based on the risk posed by the whole group. If the 350 pound diabetic needs her leg amputated my premiums will go up to cover the increased burden. <br /><br />I prefer the idea of a fallback plan. Something like medicare for people who have no other option. I'd also like to see medicare reformed to make it harder for people to buy those motorized carts and there is no way Viagra should be covered. I also wouldn't mind some ownership stipulations. No insulin for diabetics who don't follow a prescribed diet and exercise program. No breathing treatments for people who smoke. And no emergency medical care for people into erotic asphyxiation. <br /><br />And I stand by my statement that unregulated capitalism doesn't work. The Great Depression was a much larger issue and it was tied specifically to a lack of oversight in the securities market. <br /><br />Go back to Teddy Roosevelt and his trust-busting antics to understand where I'm coming from. Capitalism is inherently flawed in the sense that it is a competitive market but in every competition there is a winner and a loser. In capitalism the winner generally acquires the loser. Eventually the competition is crushed. Capitalism is doomed to to fail because it always results in totalitarianism. Eventually somebody controls everything. You have to have regulations in place to keep it balanced. <br /><br />When Teddy Roosevelt and William Howard Taft used their authority to break up trusts, were they not, in a sense, redistributing wealth? Taft even went so far as to impose control federal control over trusts. <br /><br />It seems to me that health care has become a massive trust that works against the interest of the people and the free market. Something needs to be done. Perhaps Obama's plan is flawed, but I challenge Republicans and Conservatives to step up with something other than the status quo as an alternative. <br /><br />By the way, now that PhRMA is backing Obama's plan it seems as though the Republicans are changing their tune. That actually worries me a little because I was hoping they'd warm up to the idea of actually working on alternatives rather than fueling the fires of idiocy.Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02481108423840882111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9170596096657614637.post-89864595343602867902009-08-14T19:23:52.617-07:002009-08-14T19:23:52.617-07:00Thanks for the comment. However, I'm compelled...Thanks for the comment. However, I'm compelled to correct a few things. First, we could have an entire, neverending debate about economics as I'm an Adam Smith kind of guy and you're in the Keynes camp ;) My discussion wasn't addressing the kind of government spending that is brought about by collective taxation. I realize people can't pay their way for everything on their own. Though I completely disagree with your assertion that minimum wage and labor laws have anything to do with making capitalism "work better". <br /><br />"Capitalism in its most simplistic form, does not work." What does that even mean? What evidence do you present to make such a wild statement? I certainly hope not the Depression! No legitimate economic historian places any significant portion of the blame on a "simplistic form" of capitalism operating at the time.<br /><br />"Buy land—they’re not making any more of it” is a statement that has been attributed to folk humorist Will Rogers (1879-1935) since the 1960s. The saying—like almost all American sayings—has also been attributed to Mark Twain (1835-1910). <br /><br />The version “ain’t nobody makin’ no more land” was used in Wyoming in 1909, so it is unlikely that Will Rogers originated the saying. Real estate companies popularized the Will Rogers authorship in real estate ads in the 1960s and 1970s. <br /><br />Now that Mr. Twain's reputation has been honorably defended, I have to stand up for, at least, Rush here as well. While I don't agree with the rather uncivil method many of the town hallers have been employing, it doesn't make their concerns or "Rush's talking points" any less valid. And I have a question for Barry Soetoro or any Congressman willing to take it... "Under what Constitutional provision do you derive the authority to enact any such mandatory health care legislation?"<br /><br />Do the Democrats assume Americans are stupid? Do they believe us incapable of running our own lives? I don't know... perhaps so. What I do know is they rely on the most ignorant and uneducated among us for the bulk of their constituency in many areas of the country. <br /><br />But it doesn't really matter what their motivation for creating a single-payer government healthcare program. They simply do not have the legal or moral authority to do so. And THAT is why people are rightly outraged.WTLhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05093753212267056321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9170596096657614637.post-91267144155129801602009-08-14T13:58:35.473-07:002009-08-14T13:58:35.473-07:00But the distribution of wealth is necessary in mac...But the distribution of wealth is necessary in macroeconomcs. It sounds great to say "everybody pays is own way" but the reality is that few actually do. Large corporations benefit from subsidies and low interest loans backed by the federal government. The exceedingly wealthy enjoy a number of tax loopholes that negate the progressive tax structure. Warren Buffet even pointed this out. <br /><br />Federal regulations were imposed after the great depression to prevent the economic stagnation that naturally occurs when mechanisms are not in place to ensure tat wealth is distributed. That's why we have labor laws and a minimum wage. Capitalism in its most simplistic form, does not work. Not at this level. We found that out in the 30s. <br /><br />Also, just to be a dick, I believe the quote about buying real estate was an adage coined by Will Rogers. <br /><br />I am also loathe to call the people speaking up at these town hall meetings patriots. Patriots are intelligent and informed. Most of what I've seen are a bunch of idiots screaming talking points issued by Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. The people opposed to Obama's health care reform package aren't dealing with reality. They're making stuff up about death panels and suicide counseling. I'm sure there are plenty of good issues to address in Obama's plan, but as an American citizen I'm offended that the opposition thinks I'm too stupid to understand reality.<br /><br />Seriously, you accuse the Democrats of assuming Americans are stupid, but what about Republicans? Aren't they doing the same thing by reducing this discussion to name calling and flat out lies?Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02481108423840882111noreply@blogger.com