Ref:Newspaper article 3/01/12(Pioneer Press)
Is greed rampant in corporations?Wall Street figures are revelatory.Total corporate profits in 2010 were 27.6 billion;bonuses were22.9 billion(80%).In 2011 profits were 13.5 billion;bonuses-19.7 billion(146%).I other words,all of corporate profits go to upper employee bonuses.Does that indicate greed?And some want to let that same sector take care of social needs.In the "olden" days,part of company profits went to employees for heathcare and pensions.Today they charge employees for healthcare and provide 401K's in place of pensions and invest in areas that they can milk for profit until it suddenly becomes worthless(derivatives) and the employees are left with no pensions.In the end the corporations have much more profit for bonuses and the employees?Well,the private sector will keep caring for them as they have since greed began to dominate.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Austerity
Austere and austerity are interesting words to use and apply in an economic context.Austere means stern,cold,somber,grave,giving little or no scope for pleasure,ascetic.Austerity means enforced or extreme economy,ascetic practice.There is nothing wrong with practicing austerity,but enforced austerity should not be selective and should be enforced equally,don't you think?Austerity for the rich:no pensions,no health insurance,no corporate welfare.That would be different and extremely unlikely.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Revolt
Is it happening?Maybe it's happening:France,Greece,austerity rejection.Austerity is a euphemism for stealing from the poor and middle class and giving to the rich,all the wealth to the wealthy.The peons pay for everything.But perhaps it's changing.Perhaps the revolt is beginning.Perhaps we can learn from Europe.In France and Greece,most of the money is concentrated in the hands of the few,too much to allow a life for everyone.It's happening here,has been for a long time,and getting progressively worse.Everyone can learn from Greece.
The rich are going to have to quit taking and give up some of their money,or it will have to be taken from them.It would be nice if we could do it through the political process.It can be done They have shown us how.That's how democracy is supposed to work.But we must do it.
The rich are going to have to quit taking and give up some of their money,or it will have to be taken from them.It would be nice if we could do it through the political process.It can be done They have shown us how.That's how democracy is supposed to work.But we must do it.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Healthcare &contraception
I think that it would be wise for catholic employers to at least pay for contraceptives for priests and other leaders.There is a definite need for safe molestation.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Campaigns
Watching the Republican debates,though entertaining,immediately triggers alarm.It quickly becomes pretty obvious that our campaign system must be drastically changed.These candidates have nothing in common with the majority of citizens.They are all rich compared to the average.Why?Because the campaign system is designed that way.The entire system must be scrapped.How can we do that?It will be very difficult because the avenue of change has to bypass the governors.They don't want change.
Any discussion must also start from scratch.We,the general public,cannot be governed by only the rich.Rich people don't want you to become rich.They want you to keep them rich and richer.Could you even have a conversation with them?a normal conversation?What do you have in common?They simply don't have the same problems or interests as you do.
Watching the rich is like watching a movie about the rich.At some point you wonder about the basics.Don't these people work?How do they have the time?Where do they get their money?Don't they get sick?Don't they have the day to day problems thatconsume most of our time?Are their worries all abstract?
How can a campaigner simply go from place to place talking to people?Could you?Think about it.Work to them is getting money from you so that they don't have to work.How can they relate to you?How can someone that doesn't have to worry about survival tell you how to survive.
If you have the time to be a member of a group,organization,other than your own family-if even that is intact-how does that function?Include your family.Narrow it down to groups of friends,associates,strangers.How do they function?Do we have rich people with nothing in common organizing our activities,telling us how to do it.Of course not.Why should it be so difficult in government?Rich people will relate to rich people and rich people's problems...and they aren't the same as ours.
Representatives should be representative.Anyone should be able to run for public office.Anyone should be able to run for president.So we must not limit that possibility to only the rich.The general campaign fund originated to allow that appearance,but that didn't last long,did it?Well,lets go back to that premiss,but limit the candidates to that amount.Any candidate will have the same amount of money and be limited to that amount.That would be a start.
Length of campaigns is another issue.The campaign length must also be limited.That can be arbitrated,but it definitely shouldn't be longer than six months.We shouldn't stop rich people from campaigning on their own,but the actual campaign would be limited to amount and length:no outside campaign funds,pacs,tax deductible contributions,etc.-an equal playing field for all.But it must be equal!
This constant,continuous campaign must be corrected and it has to start with inflexible limits.The rest of the issues can be addressed later.Money and time have become the primary issues.
How can this be done?
Any discussion must also start from scratch.We,the general public,cannot be governed by only the rich.Rich people don't want you to become rich.They want you to keep them rich and richer.Could you even have a conversation with them?a normal conversation?What do you have in common?They simply don't have the same problems or interests as you do.
Watching the rich is like watching a movie about the rich.At some point you wonder about the basics.Don't these people work?How do they have the time?Where do they get their money?Don't they get sick?Don't they have the day to day problems thatconsume most of our time?Are their worries all abstract?
How can a campaigner simply go from place to place talking to people?Could you?Think about it.Work to them is getting money from you so that they don't have to work.How can they relate to you?How can someone that doesn't have to worry about survival tell you how to survive.
If you have the time to be a member of a group,organization,other than your own family-if even that is intact-how does that function?Include your family.Narrow it down to groups of friends,associates,strangers.How do they function?Do we have rich people with nothing in common organizing our activities,telling us how to do it.Of course not.Why should it be so difficult in government?Rich people will relate to rich people and rich people's problems...and they aren't the same as ours.
Representatives should be representative.Anyone should be able to run for public office.Anyone should be able to run for president.So we must not limit that possibility to only the rich.The general campaign fund originated to allow that appearance,but that didn't last long,did it?Well,lets go back to that premiss,but limit the candidates to that amount.Any candidate will have the same amount of money and be limited to that amount.That would be a start.
Length of campaigns is another issue.The campaign length must also be limited.That can be arbitrated,but it definitely shouldn't be longer than six months.We shouldn't stop rich people from campaigning on their own,but the actual campaign would be limited to amount and length:no outside campaign funds,pacs,tax deductible contributions,etc.-an equal playing field for all.But it must be equal!
This constant,continuous campaign must be corrected and it has to start with inflexible limits.The rest of the issues can be addressed later.Money and time have become the primary issues.
How can this be done?
Monday, August 8, 2011
economy
Donald Trump is not usually a credible source for economic concerns but he can give credible comments when considering reentry into the political arena.He did that on 80811.He suggested
a tariff on Chinese imports(25%)which does warrant consideration.He also said that oil subsidies
should be eliminated.He also said that Standard & Poor's downgrade should have been more severely challengedHe said that Medicare was a good program.These are all credible commennts which will probably be revised if he does
become a candidate,but are accurate for now.
Finally ,loss of government jobs has been mentioned.Government cuts will and has increased
loss of public sector jobs.The ultra rich must be taxed to temper that loss.We need money for the middle class and it has to come from somewhere.Perhaps tax cuts to the middle class would help
(with the exception of FICA which will affect SS extensively).Without loss of public sector jobs,we would have gained 373,000 jobs in the last two months which would have been considered to have been a drastic improvement.
We should reconsider Martin Sabo's proposal to cut corporate and Big Business CEO's salaries.
Business &corporate profits increasing administrative earnings must be stopped.
Tax reform is essential.Campaign reform is essential.We can't have rich people governing us and being elected only because they have more money.Perseverance on regulations is essential.We do need decrease in some areas,but mostly more in financial and business areas.Subsidies are still necessary in beginning expansion,but more important are decreases and elimination in
businesses that no longer should have subsidies:oil,agriculture,ethanol,etc.
Sincerity at the top is also essential.Catering to the ultra-rich has to stop.When a tax increase is not a tax increase,address it as such.Don't let propaganda become part of negotiations.Call bullshit,bullshit.Be honest with the people.Csll a spade,a spade.Don't let inexperts pass as experts.Don't let the CPI be manipulated.Don't let lies about healthcare and social security
go unopposed.Tell the truth!
We've let bullshit prevail for mtoo long.Let's concentrate on truth and honesty.Eliminate the bullshit!
a tariff on Chinese imports(25%)which does warrant consideration.He also said that oil subsidies
should be eliminated.He also said that Standard & Poor's downgrade should have been more severely challengedHe said that Medicare was a good program.These are all credible commennts which will probably be revised if he does
become a candidate,but are accurate for now.
Finally ,loss of government jobs has been mentioned.Government cuts will and has increased
loss of public sector jobs.The ultra rich must be taxed to temper that loss.We need money for the middle class and it has to come from somewhere.Perhaps tax cuts to the middle class would help
(with the exception of FICA which will affect SS extensively).Without loss of public sector jobs,we would have gained 373,000 jobs in the last two months which would have been considered to have been a drastic improvement.
We should reconsider Martin Sabo's proposal to cut corporate and Big Business CEO's salaries.
Business &corporate profits increasing administrative earnings must be stopped.
Tax reform is essential.Campaign reform is essential.We can't have rich people governing us and being elected only because they have more money.Perseverance on regulations is essential.We do need decrease in some areas,but mostly more in financial and business areas.Subsidies are still necessary in beginning expansion,but more important are decreases and elimination in
businesses that no longer should have subsidies:oil,agriculture,ethanol,etc.
Sincerity at the top is also essential.Catering to the ultra-rich has to stop.When a tax increase is not a tax increase,address it as such.Don't let propaganda become part of negotiations.Call bullshit,bullshit.Be honest with the people.Csll a spade,a spade.Don't let inexperts pass as experts.Don't let the CPI be manipulated.Don't let lies about healthcare and social security
go unopposed.Tell the truth!
We've let bullshit prevail for mtoo long.Let's concentrate on truth and honesty.Eliminate the bullshit!
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Jobs
Who does provide jobs?Is it rich people?Corporations?Small business?Government?Who?How are jobs created? First there is a product or,increasingly more,a service.Usually one or two or a few people are involved with creation of a business, involving the sale of that product or service.
Demand determines whether help is needed.As demand increases,more help is needed:sales
force,more product suppliers,more office workers,etc.As the business grows,it becomes beneficial to incorporate-for various reasons.Then comes expansion,diversification,buying other
companies,etc.At some point money is needed,so the business goes public to offer and sell stock
All workers become employees of the corporation.Eventually it can become a large corporation
and provide lots of jobs.Jobs are created throughout the growth process. But essentially it is demand that determines the growth.
So,how are jobs really created?Unless a business is understaffed,extra money will rarely create jobs.Jobs are created as demand for their product or service increases.Extra money for purchasers of products can create demand because purchasers are never at the saturation point.Extra money for suppliers is more likely to decrease jobs because that money can be used to increase productivity and training.That use can increase jobs for the peripheral suppliers,but rarely more than the decrease for the peripheral buyer.The buyer will not spend more than they can gain.Usually profit will provide for streamlining anyway,and at some point productivitywill reach a benificial saturation point.
Essentially,though,jobs are created through demand. Giving more money to the suppliers will not create more jobs(other than spending on luxuries). Usually excess money is invested to make more profit(or loss),but that profit will not be used to create jobs that will increase demand for primary products.
The biggest problem with big business and corporations is administrative payThere is no justification for CEO and upper administration compensation.It appears to me that most of business profit ends up there;not reinvested or used for pensions or health insurance for employees as was the case when most business was smaller and privately owned and had more regulation.Business needs regulation or greed will prevail.Greenspan thought that the free market would regulate itself,but later had to admit that he didn't factor in greed.Short term benefits for CEO's and upper management will supercede expansion and long term reinvestment every time.And the production workers-forget about them.They become expendable.Business will take away whatever it can from the workers.They used to care,but no more.The money comes from short term investments and goes to administration-until failure and then it's bail- out.
What of government?Government can create and save jobs.Bailouts are the prime example.Bailouts saved a lot of jobs and could have created more if regulation had been strengthened,but not much was done in that areaThe problem that arises with government is the constant concentration on decreasing government jobs.All of the states are trying to eliminate government jobs.Almost every state has attempted to cut state jobs by 15%.Another problem is that government jobs must be paid for by government.
The most effective way that government can increase employment is with the creation of new industries or longer term projects that will need employees. Present concentration in that area is in energy:windpower,solar,etc.The goal is to subsidize until private enterprise can sustain it on its own.But in order to be effective,regulation must be in place.The obvious problem is monitoring subsidies.The subsidies should be stopped when no longer needed.If that happens,government can be an effective means of job creation.Agriculture,oil,and ethanol subsidies have created many jobs,but why haven't the subsidies disappeared?Government regulation is vital whether jobs are being created by demand alone or with government assistance in creating more demand.
Improved infrastructure has been a government favorite for decades but appears to be graft and waste infested(corrupt and ineffective and too temporary).Private enterprise is more effective if using it's own money,but not if using government money;then,as Greenspan discovered,greed supercedes.It doesn't have to be that way. If proper regulation is administered
and enforced,government and private enterprise together can create jobs.
Government alone can also be effective,but the same principles apply.Social Security is a good
government program.The IRS is a good institution.Medicare can be agood program.But the same principles apply with government as with private enterprise.Regulation is imperative or waste and greed interfere with effctiveness.Many more jobs can be created in regulation alone.
In summation,the biggest factor in creating jobs is demand.Second is the regulation of private
enterprise and government when government money is involved.Third:greed must be eliminated.The trickle-up must stop.More money must be provided for the purchasers,
the consumers,in order to create more jobs.
Demand determines whether help is needed.As demand increases,more help is needed:sales
force,more product suppliers,more office workers,etc.As the business grows,it becomes beneficial to incorporate-for various reasons.Then comes expansion,diversification,buying other
companies,etc.At some point money is needed,so the business goes public to offer and sell stock
All workers become employees of the corporation.Eventually it can become a large corporation
and provide lots of jobs.Jobs are created throughout the growth process. But essentially it is demand that determines the growth.
So,how are jobs really created?Unless a business is understaffed,extra money will rarely create jobs.Jobs are created as demand for their product or service increases.Extra money for purchasers of products can create demand because purchasers are never at the saturation point.Extra money for suppliers is more likely to decrease jobs because that money can be used to increase productivity and training.That use can increase jobs for the peripheral suppliers,but rarely more than the decrease for the peripheral buyer.The buyer will not spend more than they can gain.Usually profit will provide for streamlining anyway,and at some point productivitywill reach a benificial saturation point.
Essentially,though,jobs are created through demand. Giving more money to the suppliers will not create more jobs(other than spending on luxuries). Usually excess money is invested to make more profit(or loss),but that profit will not be used to create jobs that will increase demand for primary products.
The biggest problem with big business and corporations is administrative payThere is no justification for CEO and upper administration compensation.It appears to me that most of business profit ends up there;not reinvested or used for pensions or health insurance for employees as was the case when most business was smaller and privately owned and had more regulation.Business needs regulation or greed will prevail.Greenspan thought that the free market would regulate itself,but later had to admit that he didn't factor in greed.Short term benefits for CEO's and upper management will supercede expansion and long term reinvestment every time.And the production workers-forget about them.They become expendable.Business will take away whatever it can from the workers.They used to care,but no more.The money comes from short term investments and goes to administration-until failure and then it's bail- out.
What of government?Government can create and save jobs.Bailouts are the prime example.Bailouts saved a lot of jobs and could have created more if regulation had been strengthened,but not much was done in that areaThe problem that arises with government is the constant concentration on decreasing government jobs.All of the states are trying to eliminate government jobs.Almost every state has attempted to cut state jobs by 15%.Another problem is that government jobs must be paid for by government.
The most effective way that government can increase employment is with the creation of new industries or longer term projects that will need employees. Present concentration in that area is in energy:windpower,solar,etc.The goal is to subsidize until private enterprise can sustain it on its own.But in order to be effective,regulation must be in place.The obvious problem is monitoring subsidies.The subsidies should be stopped when no longer needed.If that happens,government can be an effective means of job creation.Agriculture,oil,and ethanol subsidies have created many jobs,but why haven't the subsidies disappeared?Government regulation is vital whether jobs are being created by demand alone or with government assistance in creating more demand.
Improved infrastructure has been a government favorite for decades but appears to be graft and waste infested(corrupt and ineffective and too temporary).Private enterprise is more effective if using it's own money,but not if using government money;then,as Greenspan discovered,greed supercedes.It doesn't have to be that way. If proper regulation is administered
and enforced,government and private enterprise together can create jobs.
Government alone can also be effective,but the same principles apply.Social Security is a good
government program.The IRS is a good institution.Medicare can be agood program.But the same principles apply with government as with private enterprise.Regulation is imperative or waste and greed interfere with effctiveness.Many more jobs can be created in regulation alone.
In summation,the biggest factor in creating jobs is demand.Second is the regulation of private
enterprise and government when government money is involved.Third:greed must be eliminated.The trickle-up must stop.More money must be provided for the purchasers,
the consumers,in order to create more jobs.
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