Congress--worse than useless

America is broke.

There is no nice way to say it.

On August 2, the US government will not be able to pay its bills. It requires the increase of a debt ceiling of trillions (!) of dollars to stay solvent through only 2013.

President Obama talks of cutting spending and "increasing revenue." Since governments only have one source of revenue, he clearly means taxes.

That is the last thing that should even be allowed in the conversation.

What he wants is more money to spend while increasing spending while not being able to pay the bills. Stupidity or madness, take your pick.

In an ear of out of control gas prices, inflation, 9.2% unemployment etc...raising taxes will not only DECREASE government revenue, it will destroy anything that might look like an economic recovery. This is how the Tea Party got started. Americans are tired of having to pay for red ink they did not want their representatives, Republican or Democrat, to vote for. But they did anyway and here we are.

People without money will not spend it and the economy will go into freefall.

American businesses are sitting on a pile of cash estimated at $1 trillion dollars. Why are they not using it to hire new workers? Part of the answer is greed but closer to the truth is that they have no idea what the tax situation will be like.

Obama rails against anyone making over $250,000 a year. Strangely, that would include himself and his biggest donors but push that off to the side for the moment.

Corporations, especially the small ones, are legally people. They make over the magic number of $250,000 and small businesses are job engines---when they are not being forced to make ends meet by high taxes.

If people in Congress got out more or had real jobs at some point in their lives, they would understand.

Cicero was right. Politicians are not born, they are excreted.

Prayers for Norway

Please pray for the people of Norway after those horrific attacks. May your peaceful, beautiful nation remain that way.

Defintion of "Useless"

Regardless of how you feel about the TSA (my feelings are pretty clear...), you have to admit that after you read this, you wonder aloud, "Why are they even there?" Story and image from CBS,

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2011/05/04/passengers-who-assault-tsa-officers-still-allowed-to-board-planes/

Turnabout is fair play

Colorado woman accused of groping TSA agent

http://news.yahoo.com/colo-woman-accused-groping-tsa-agent-ariz-215702921.html

Looks like the TSA is no more fond of having strangers touch them as the American public is. People are standing up to the Terrorist Support Agency more and more.

Let's keep doing it!

Time to nationalize oil?

Pic from fuelfix.com

Oil prices have been out of control since 2005. Every time the economy starts to tic upward, speculators increase the price, which, of course, sends everything spiraling up. There is always an excuse to send the price up. The excuses are Chinese demand, Indian demand, Libyan instability, hurricanes etc...

Back during the first Gulf War, Saddam Hussein was blowing oil wells up in Kuwait and the price of oil never budged. Now, the daily fluctuations are hard to predict. They often defy basic logic

It also has nothing to do with supply and demand.

There is no shortage of oil. China is facing inflation, the Eurozone is falling apart and the US economy is definitely nosediving. Demand is clearly dropping. The US government just released 60 million barrels of oil onto the market. And the price at the pump defies logic too. At $95 a barrel, the price of a gallon should be under $3, not halfway to $4 (See blog entry for gas price calcuations, "POTUS MIA?.", March 4, 2011).

The sad thing is that this sad state of affairs is not due to OPEC. Its our own people doing this to us.

I am not a fan of government intervention in the economy but if there was a time for it, this is it.

I believe in free market capitalism.

What we have seen since 2008 is NOT free market capitalism, this is price gouging...and it is destroying itself and the country with it.

Extreme action leads to extreme reaction.

We voted for hope and change and with gas at $3.50 and unemployment at 9.2%, it is hard to keep blaming Bush. It is hard to even tell the difference. The auto industry bailouts provide good precedents. The question is does this course of action take us down some road that leads straight to socialism or communism, two ideologies that clearly have failed.

But crony capitalism is a abject failure too. Not only does it fail, it leads to something resembling feudalism. A trip back in time is not what we or the world needs. Nor will it last.

Free markets and the rule of law is what made America great. A good dose of common sense would help--force speculators to accept deliver of what they buy and increase margin requirements.

Time to use that again or we open the door to impoverishment and destruction.

Welcome to the world, South Sudan!

The world's newest country--South Sudan! Keep the oil companies out and you will do well!

Sudan can no longer boast about being the largest country in Africa but at least they can say they no longer have the longest civil war on the continent either.

Make peace with the northern half and may you remain friends forever.

TSA gets budget slashed

The TSA got its budget cut by $270 milion dollars and the agency is shouting that it will have to lay off 5,000 screeners. Why do I have the feeling that the TSA administration will not suffer any salary cuts? This move is largely seen as a reaction against the gropefest that it taking place at the airports but I think a better reaction would be for the Senate and House to take a vote on stopping it. On the other hand, there may be more 95 year old ladies confined to wheelchairs lurking in the shadows.......

The story from the Washington Times for your consideration.....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/politics/house-votes-to-cut-tsas-budget-by-270million/2011/06/02/AGXmnaHH_story.html

Happy July 4th

Happy Canada Day!

Always a big holiday in the Haas Household!