I’m a Democrat who thinks that President Obama deserves a second term. When he took office the nation was hemorrhaging jobs at the rate of 750,000 layoffs each month, while currently, including July, we’ve had 22 straight months of job gains. I’m proud that he wrestled control of the nation’s mean-spirited health insurance system, and that he bailed out General Motors and Chrysler, saving an estimated half-million jobs. Both have repaid the loans and returned to profitability.
But in spite of my bias, I love a good political tug-of-war, so I followed the Republican convention on TV, radio, on-line and in the papers. I thought Ann and Mitt Romney presented themselves well, but I was enormously disappointed when vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan laced his speech with untruths. After all, he’ll be a heartbeat from the presidency if Mr. Romney wins.
Rep. Ryan blamed Mr. Obama for a GM plant closing in his Wisconsin hometown, though the plant was shuttered while George W. Bush was president; and he said the U.S. credit rating was downgraded last year because of spending under Mr. Obama—though Standard & Poor’s said they downgraded the rating because Republicans threatened not to raise the debt ceiling.
Rep. Ryan’s most brazen accusation, however, was that President Obama is taking $716 billion out of Medicare. In fact, that money is being saved by reducing Medicare reimbursement rates, and it’s going instead to Medicare recipients for out-of-pocket prescription and other costs. The other part of the truth is that it’s a change Rep. Ryan supports. He included it in his own budget proposal.
Incidentally, Rep. Ryan’s budget, which Mitt Romney has embraced, would raise taxes on 95% of Americans while giving wealthy folks big breaks. It would slash the VA budget by 20%, and reduce aid to low income Americans. What’s more, according to Fox News and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, it will increase the deficit.
Let’s keep watching, listening and reading about what the candidates have to say, between now and November. It’s our job to keep these folks honest—or at least to recognize when they’re not.
Margie Elsberg
Chestertown
Carla Massoni says
Thank you Margie.
Melinda Bookwalter says
Thank you, Margie, for such a good letter with an unbiased tone of “nuthin but the facts, Ma’am” We so need this kind of info w/o the ranting, posturing and untruths.
mary wood says
Thanks to Margie Elsberg for pointing out so clearly the false statements Representative Ryan made in his speech at the GOP convention. I watched most of it, enjoying the energy and enthusiasm . After listening, however, to the politicians telling us how discouraged with the present Americans are, I was cheered yesterday to note the number of cars trailing boats, or with bikes strapped to the roof going through Chestertown. People were heading out to enjoy the Labor Day weekend, and will presumably be spending a little money.
Kaye Salverda says
Thank you Margie Elsberg, I could not agree with you more !! Your comment that, if elected, Paul Ryan would be a heartbeat away from the presidency
should send chills up the spine of every American. Much of what I saw and heard, during the Republican convention, sounded as though Mr. Ryan thinks that he is running for the presidency, parroting the policies, that Mitt Romney is afraid to speak up about, because many of them are flat out lies. We need to be afraid, very afraid.
Stephan Sonn says
Simply put and well done.
Martha Holland says
Thanks Margie for a fair and factual letter. Well said.
Gren Whitman says
Bravo, Ms. Elsberg!!
VP hopeful Paul Ryan faults Mr. Obama for failing to implement Simpson-Bowles without mentioning that he, as a commission member, voted to kill it.
Ryan faults Obama for proposing $716 billion in Medicare spending cuts, a proposal that mirrors his own budget proposal.
And Ryan faults Obama for USA’s reduced credit rating, that’s largely a result of his party’s intransigence during last year’s congressional deficit reduction impasse.
So, as the Eagles so presciently sang years ago, “I thought by now you’d realize / There ain’t no way to hide your Ryan lies!”
Janice Dickson says
Excellent comments.
Most important in getting President Obama reelected is to get out the vote. If we are complacent and stay home, we give the Rom-yan ticket an advantage they do not deserve. Call your friends in every state and call your neighbors and encourage them to vote — early, absentee, on election day. VOTE. The consequences of not voting are too horrible to contemplate.
Cynthia McGinnes says
Surprised to see you left out the usual entreaty that goes with this plea…vote often:-)
Gw Piper says
President Obama seems to get a pass on most of his promises. He said that if he did not half the deficit, he deserved to be a one term president. He has doubled it. The American Motors plant produced trucks into the Obama era, and President Obama promised to re-open it. Medicare,as we know it, will be broke in less than 6 years. And President Obama will raise all of your taxes. Sorry.
Jill Drischler says
You are right, Margie, it is our job to keep folks honest, So let’s start with your letter.
Surely you are not implying that GM and Chrysler have totally repaid their loans
In his speech Paul Ryan did not blame President Obama for closing a GM factory in Janesville. He did, however, reference a campaign promise that candidate Obama made in 2008 to keep the plant open. He noted that Obama had failed to keep that promise.
The US credit rating was downgraded under President Obama. Nowhere did S&P say that they downgraded because of Republicans. They referenced over-spending and the contentious process in the raising of the debt ceiling. There was, of course, two sides in this controversary. S&P laid the blame at the feet of both the White House and the Congress, not just Republicans.
“We lowered our long-term rating on the U.S. because we believe that the prolonged controversy over raising the statutory debt ceiling and the related fiscal policy debate indicate that further near-term progress containing the growth in public spending, especially on entitlements, or on reaching an agreement on raising revenues is less likely than we previously assumed and will remain a contentious and fitful process. We also believe that the fiscal consolidation plan that Congress and the Administration agreed to this week falls short of the amount that we believe is necessary to stabilize the general government debt burden by the middle of the decade.”
Let’s talk about the $716 billion in cuts to Medicare. This cut has been scored as a cost savings by the CBO to help pay for Obamacare. Surely, you are not counting it twice?
Ryan does include the $716 billion cut to Medicare in his budget, this is no way implies support. As you know, Ryan chairs The House Budget Committee. Under The 1974 Budget Act when drawing up a budget for future years the committee is required to have current law as the baseline. Ryan had to include the cut because it is current law . Also keep in mind that he voted against Obamacare.
I am all for a good political tug-of- war. Vigorous, factual discussions help to improve the policy process.
Tink Blakeney says
Jill, You are right, GM has not paid their loan back, and just recently have stopped production of the Volt. Chrysler has paid if not all but close to it. GM, still owes more than 21 billion, form a second loan from the taxpayers. If I’m wrong some please fill me in.
Steve Payne says
Another lie you hear on Fox news and elsewhere is that “spending is out of control”. The truth is that spending increases are at 50= year low.
https://articles.marketwatch.com/2012-05-22/commentary/31802270_1_spending-federal-budget-drunken-sailor
The increases in the deficit is due to the continuation of the wars and the Bush tax cuts which remain on the books.
MB Troup says
Steve – I addressed Mr Nutting’s nonsense some time ago. That spending grows at all with a baseline that includes TARP, wars, and stimulus should be enough to say that it’s out of control. If you max out a $20k credit card, then max out your next one at $5k, can you really say that spending is under control? I mean, you slashed its growth by 75%, right?
Steve Payne says
“If you max out a $20k credit card, then max out your next one at $5k, can you really say that spending is under control? I mean, you slashed its growth by 75%, right?”
Right, but under Obama spending has increased by somewhere between 0.4 to 0.8 % under anybody’s study. Not 25% as in your example (which assumes the 20K and the 5K were all increases).
Joe Fick says
Three cheers for Jill! And a vote for Romney/Ryan.
Mary Lou Pagella says
Thanks, Jill for telling the other side of the story. Can anyone say 16 Trillion!
Sandy Terpeluk says
Thank you to Jill Drischler for giving us the facts about the government bailouts, Medicare, Congressman Ryan, etc.
And to Ms. Elsberg’s desire to see Barack Hussein Obama and Joe Biden re-elected for another term I say why in God’s name would anyone in their right mind re-elect two politicians who have no business experience but lots of “lets make government bigger and bigger” experience when the economy is faltering, their so-called stimulus measures have not worked, all of us have less in our pocket books, gas and fuel prices are skyrocketing and the best health care system in the world is ruined.
Why would I want to re-elect someone who “has never even run a lemonade stand” as Senator Kelly Ayotte candidly declared at the Republican Convention. Senator Ayotte goes on to say, “”Under this administration, the regulations are up and the job creation is down. President Obama’s view is clear — he actually believes that as a small business grows, the federal government should take a larger and larger share of its earnings. … I call it a success tax.”
Why would I want to re-elect someone that is threatening my religious liberty and the liberty of religious organizations?
Why would I want to re-elect someone who is “an empty chair” as Clint Eastwood so eloquently stated. “And when somebody does not do the job, we got to let them go.”
It is time to elect a President who believes America is EXCEPTIONAL.
It is time to elect candidates who respect our military, do not reveal timetables for withdrawals, safeguard our military secrets and does not personally take credit for military successes!
It is PAST TIME to change course. Let us hope it is not too late. Vote Republican.
Cynthia McGinnes says
I recently received a copy of the valedictorian speech from The Madeira School, a private girls’ high school in Fairfax County Va, where the young lady said that her most valuable “discovery was that truth is relative,multi-dimensional, and individual”…..this statement is,in fact, the exact definition of political spin! How sad that this is what we are teaching our youth. Ms. Elsberg’s comments in the Spy, and subsequent bravo letters from fellow liberals, are very heartfelt in their belief in their “individual truths”, but, as a matter of actual facts, everything she said was incorrect.
In the matter of the GM bailouts……GM is not currently running at a profit…the only reason they showed a “profit” in the last quarter is that the government bought a large number of vehicles, and the truck inventory shipped to dealers was increased by 40% (all trucks are counted as sold when shipped to dealers for accounting purposes.) The stock price has to reach $53 for GM stock to be worth to the taxpayers what they “paid” for it in the bailouts…it is now at about $23. In addition, all secured bond holders, whose bonds were rendered virtually worthless in the “bailout”, come at the bottom of the list and have yet to be paid, and all non-union auto workers lost their pensions, as well. If you bought your children the lemons, sugar,glasses and lumber to make a lemonade stand, and then bought most of the lemonade they were selling, would this be a profitable enterprise? Such is GM at the moment.
In the matter of Paul Ryan’s speech……..what he ACTUALLY SAID was that Obama promised the workers at the Janesville plant that it would not close “for a hundred years” if he was elected President. The actual facts are that the plant closed its SUV division in December 2008, but didn’t close its doors until April 2009, 3 months after Obama had been inaugurated. It is ACTUALLY in a state of suspension, and can be reopened at any time…waiting on GM, under the Obama bailout, to make that decision. What Paul Ryan was pointing out was Obama’s broken promise to keep the plant open, not the actual timing of the closing of the plant.
As for the Simpson-Bowles vote…Ryan voted against the final plan for only one reason..it did not address the problem of entitlements at all. In his speech, he said that Obama did nothing with the plan..he was correct! Obama made no use of any of the ideas in the S-B plan, he ignored the whole thing.
Finally, as for Medicare, it is indisputable that Obama took $716 billion out of Medicare funding to pay for Obamacare. He says this will not be “paid for” by the recipients of Medicare, but will be paid for by reducing payments to hospitals and providers. So, if your doctor was previously being paid $50 for every Medicare visit, and that doctor is now going to be paid only $25 for each visit…how long do you think it is going to take doctors before they just stop taking Medicare patients? Did you know that hospitals are now going to be fined for readmitting patients? If you are released from the hospital and have a setback, perhaps developing an infection that needs intravenous antibiotics, the hospital will be fined if they readmit you, so they will just give you a bottle of pills and hope for the best. If you die, that’s one less patient for Medicare to pay for. Ask you doctors and hospitals how they feel about these reduced payments and fines!
In the Ryan budget that was submitted to Congress, he HAD to include the $716 billion cut from Medicare for Obamacare because it was CURRENT LAW! He has to base his budget on the law as it stands at the time. He can’t just make up his dream budget and submit it to the Congress…he has to work with figures that are currently legal, folks.
I think we now have to agree that Paul Ryan did not “lie” about anything in his speech….it is just the liberal interpretation of ” truth as relative and individual” that comes to this conclusion.
Finally, I must comment on Ms. Elsberg’s referring to the insurance industry as “mean-spirited”. Capitalism , which runs the free enterprise system that has created America’s prosperity since its founding, is an economic theory…it has no emotions! Businesses are run for one reason, to make a profit…..if they don’t make a profit, they “go out of business”! Entrepreneurs seek capital(money) from investors to begin the business if the investors think the business plan has the potential to return to them their original money,plus a profit for the use of it. Most insurance companies are publically traded on the stock exchange and are owned by thousands of shareholders who expect the companies to make a profit. They do not raise rates in order to be mean-spirited…if you have mulitple car accidents, your auto insurance will go up because you have become a bigger risk…not because they are being mean-spirited!
Obama’s administration has no money to spend except what he gets in taxes from a failing economy and printing by the Federal Reserve. He has already increased the debt by $5 trillion in 4 years. In less than a year, the entire debt will be 100% of the Gross Domestic Product (that is the amount that the entire country produces in one year). We won’t be able to print more money because that causes inflation (how about $25 for a loaf of bread?) The actual truth is that the poor and those dependent on the safety net will be the ones hurt the most when the govt runs out of money.
There is only one choice in this election…to return to a free market economy and grow, or continue down the path we are on and crash. And THAT”S the Truth!.
Steve Payne says
“”As for the Simpson-Bowles vote…Ryan voted against the final plan for only one reason..it did not address the problem of entitlements at all. “”
No,
Ryan praised the commissions proposal on Social Security and also commend them on their healthcare plan. He objected to the revenue increases and offered up his own plan on healthcare instead . The entitlements that were in the plan were his main point of interest.
https://www.fiscalcommission.gov/sites/fiscalcommission.gov/files/documents/MemberStatements.pdf
“”In the Ryan budget that was submitted to Congress, he HAD to include the $716 billion cut from Medicare for Obamacare because it was CURRENT LAW! He has to base his budget on the law as it stands at the time.””
No,
He can put whatever he wants in a proposed bill. It’s his budget bill seeking to replace the existing law. Almost nothing in it is in accordance with current law. That’s the whole point of a bill.
Rand Paul put a personhood provision in the homeowners flood insurance bill!
Also your correct about the fee for readmissions but the fee is only charged on excessive readmissions. Readmissions are one of the big costs in healthcare and Obamacare does attempt to reduce them.
Cynthia McGinnes says
Paul Ryan is on video on youtube stating that his only objection to the Simpson_Bowles plan was the failure to reduce entitlements. I have to take the man at his own words. Secondly,I believe you are incorrect when you state that Ryan could ignore the Obamacare law in his budget, as his proposed budget has to be scored by the CBO and the CBO has to always consider current law when it scores a budget proposal. I don’t mean to get in the weeds here, but the Obamacare fines for hospital admissions does say that hospital will be fined for excessive admissions, but it is Washington bureaucrats who decide what is excessive, and hospitals will try to limit ALL readmissions to try to avoid anywhere close to excessive. It would seem to put hospitals on the “hot seat” to decide what may come back to bite them (to mix metaphors) where readmissions are concerned. It might be that the need for intravenous IVs of antibiotics might not qualify if pills could be tried first.
Again, ask your doctors and the hospitals if they like the reduced remunertaions and threatened fines. This can only lead to reduced and rationed care any way you look at it.
Steve Payne says
CBO does their own baselines and they use them to compare proposed legislation to the baseline under current law. A bill doesn’t need to include any current law numbers in the bill itself. That’s what CBO and GAO do.
Ryan himself does not make this claim.
Cynthia McGinnes says
Have you asked Paul Ryan personally? Don’t always believe what you read 🙂
Bill Parks says
Although the national debt is the direct result of Congress failing in its constitutional duties, neither party is dealing with the debt. Very few people, in or out of government, understand the nature and operation of privatized fractional reserve currencies.
U.S. currency is issued by the Federal Reserve System, a privately owned cartel consisting of the Federal Reserve Central Bank in Washington, D.C., the twelve regional reserve banks, all commercial banks with national charters and some commercial banks with state charters opting to purchase stock in the regional reserve banks. This system creates 99.92% of all U.S. currency.
Aside from coins minted by the federal government, all U.S. currency is created as the principal of loans made by the Federal Reserve monetary and banking system. Almost every dollar in the economy is borrowed from the banking system by somebody. Whenever governments, corporations, institutions, and individuals borrow money from the banking system, new money is created using self-issued bank credit that is extended into the economy as the principal of those loans. On the other hand, whenever borrowers repay these loans, currency is destroyed. If all loans were to be repaid, there would be no currency in the economy at all. But some of the debt always remains because money required to pay the interest on loans must also be borrowed. Like compounding interest, the total amount of debt in the economy must constantly increase to keep currency flowing in the economy. Borrowers always owe the banking system more money than the banking system created with their loans in the first place.
Debt must double periodically, about every twenty years, just to pay the interest. For example, the total debt in the economy now stands at about $57 trillion, with annual interest of $3.66 trillion. The interest will consume the entire $57 trillion in fewer than 16 years (57 /3.66 = 15.57 years). To keep the currency from collapsing, the U.S. must increase its total debt to $114 trillion in the next twenty years.
On the other hand, Congress can exercise its enumerated constitutional authority to issue the nation’s currency directly without creating debt, cutting programs or rasing taxes.
Carol Mylander says
Thank you, Margie.
Missy Carroll says
A recent letter to your paper claimed that the 716 billion in Medicare cuts by the Obama administration were being used to reduce Medicare rates and going to Medicare recipients for out of pocket reimbursements. A couple of points: when Medicare rates are reduced Medicare recipients suffer. Physicians whose rates are cut have less and less reason to take on Medicare patients. How does this help the seniors who are stuck on the Medicare plantation? It makes it harder for them to get appointments and increases their waiting time to see a doctor or even get a doctor .
As far as creating savings, this is another mis-representation: Obamacare takes the money taken out of Medicare and uses it to fund yet more entitlement programs mandated by Obamacare. These so-called savings are not put into saving Medicare but will contribute to making it more difficult for seniors to access care.
The Obama administration is playing a shell game with the American public: the same “savings” cannot be used to help save Medicare while at the same time funding new programs.
Steve Payne says
The rate reductions were not from doctors. The doctors still get the same as before under the “Doc fix” bill.
It came from hospitals and Medicare Advantage insurance companies who were overcharging. Obamacare prohibits insurance companies from overcharging customers and in this case the gov was the customer (Medicare)
The hospitals were happy to do it because they would start getting paid from people who have insurance under Obamacare now. They weren’t getting anything before.
GW Piper says
Sorry Steve, doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, and diagnostic labs all get paid less under Medicare cuts. Everyone in health care.
Steve Payne says
See docfix link below. I can give you more information if you need it. Its HR3630.
Cynthia McGinnes says
There is not one single hospital administrator who would agree with this! None of them want to fined for excessive readmissions that are decided by Washington bureaucrats. Who are you to say that “hospitals are overcharging Medicare”…have you looked at Medicare reimbursement rates lately? And you say the Doc fix will pay the physicians…first of all, the doc fix has not yet been renewed, and the doc fix will have to be paid with money that comes from where? The $716 billion stolen from Medicare for Obamacare does not leave any extra for the doc fix!
Finally, the Supreme Court said that states do not have to honor Obamacare exchanges, even though businesses have to pay the fines. What happens to people who lose their health insurance from their job who live in a state where there are no Obamacare exchanges? The hospitals will not get money from Obamacare insurance in these states and will still have to cover the charges of patients who cannot pay. This is going to be a BIG MESS, and will result in many who are presently happy with their health care losing it and finding nothing to replace it, as they will still make too much money to qualify for Medicaid and yet have no state exchanges to buy from.
Steve Payne says
Your right that most hospitals want to have to pay a fee for excessive readmissions. I said the agreed to the reduction in charges to the medicare system because the would start getting paid more once currently uninsured get insurance under Obamacare.
I said that INSURANCE companies were overcharging the gov.
The doc fix was approved in Feb.
https://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/daily-reports/2012/february/17/sgr-doc-fix.aspx
As to Ryans claim that there wasn’t any entitlements addressed in the Simpson Bowles plan. I included a link above to read his letter to the commission.
Stephan Sonn says
Did you ever wish Virginia that you got the facts correct instead of convenient?
Gren Whitman says
Pondering Clint Eastwood’s “debate” with that empty chair … funny thing … turns out poor old Clint lost … to dignified silence.
Cynthia McGinnes says
Did you miss National Empty Chair Day, Gren? It was a hoot…and Clint has earned the respect of all Americans who realize that underneath his humor was the absolute, not relative or individual or multi-dimensional, but ABSOLUTE truth. If someone has not done the job, it is all right to LET HIM GO!
Keith Thompson says
In a three wey race, I’d be voting for the chair.
John LaFerla says
Well said, Margie. It is interesting to read the subsequent comments your letter has generated.
Having watched the Republican convention and listened to the major speakers, it seems to me that they were great on presentation style but short on content. The candidates seemed like well-intentioned and kindly people, but in my opinion lack concern for those among us who were not lucky enough to be born into wealthy, capable families. In their zeal to promote individualism I’m reminded of Garrison Keilor’s comments about the children of fictional Lake Wobegon who are “all above average.” Although it feels good to think that if government simply “got out of our way” that anyone could be the next millionaire, it is simply not mathematically possible for most people to ever get there. So what about the idea that “we’re all in this together” and the related idea that we will be known for how we treat the least among us?
In any event, we should all stay tuned to what comes up in Charlotte this coming week and then compare the two. Thanks again for your contribution.
Cynthia McGinnes says
To me, the most disappointing thing is that a well-educated doctor should be able to see how much of Ms. Eslberg’s letter is spin. I know I would never be able to go to Dr La Ferla for medical services now as I could not trust his ability to make good judgments. In medicine, there must be clear thinking, no room for spin, in my opinion.
Ron Jordan says
That is one of the most idiotic things I have heard from someone I thought was a somewhat intelligent person. Whoa, the good doctor despite his politics is and always has been a “good doctor.” Before he entered politics he was considered a good doctor, don’t it get twisted. My doctor, who is local, and I don’t see eye to eye on most political issues, he’s a republican and I am democrat, but I trust his medical judgement because when I chose his practice I chose him because I thought he would give me straight medical advice, he did and I accept he will always.
Aside, from the stupidity of that arguement, rethink your physical and health choices, they should be based on sound medical advise, not whether you agree or disagree with his or her politics. That is one of the more appalling statements I have read here locally. Boggles my mind………….ummm
dlamotte says
Disagree Cynthia. Oh, and by the way Madeira
does not rank their graduating seniors.
The speaker was voted such by the class
and was not a valedictorian.
What has happened to a once
vital Party is a disgrace. As I have
said before, R. Reagan would not
have a chance with these social-
issue obsessed activist. You bunch
just keep on believing. The rest of
us will keep on evolving.
Sandy Terpeluk says
Deidre,
I do not think Ronald Reagan would think the Republican Party is a disgrace. In fact I think he would think the Republican Party needs to be stronger and more aggreesive in today’s world. And unless I have been reading the wrong comments, I thought we were discussing fiscal issues. I thought we were discussing Democrats and their desire to give everyone a free ride/free health care at taxpayer expense vs the Republican Party that believes individuals are entitled to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness and SUCCESS (the new dirty word).
Isn’t it a shame Madeira School does not rank their graduating seniors; God forbid some young woman would actually think she was accomplished and at the head of her class. And how terrible would it be if she were to actually be known and recognized for her hard work, her diligence, her attention to detail, her pursuit of AP classes – especially after her parent’s spent $45,000+ a year for tuition and boarding at Madeira.
DLaMotte says
You mean the Ronald Reagan who raised taxes when needed, supported Planned Parenthood, and actually compromised with the opposing Party ( Tip O’Neill)? Curious how fast that is forgotten.
Fiscal issues vs social issues. Today, I believe it is extremely difficult to separate the two. One example, a woman’s reproductive rights Have a huge impact on her personal economic well being. And when the Republican Party makes a huge fuss over a fetus, never thinking about the woman carrying this fetus (even if raped), that party is clearly ok with woman as second class citizens.
Very amusing that Madeira’s philosophy rubs you so. This rigorous school feels that the most effective leaders, whether academic, political, artistic and so on, should be committed to social service. Each girl has her own path to graduation.
Cynthia McGinnes says
As a Madeira graduate of 1963 (when I was 16), we did have valedictorians. I still get the Alumnae Bulletin, which is where I got the quote from the young woman who was apparently “voted” the position now, and did not earn it with her accomplishments. It is so sad to many of my fellow Madeira graduates that the school has become so incredibly liberal. Miss Madeira (Lucy Madeira Wing), who founded the school, wished the students to become women who thought for themselves, strived for excellence, and held themselves to the highest standards of personal responsibility. The school’s mottos are..Function in Disaster, but Finish in Style…….. also Festina Lente(Latin for Make Haste Slowly). The young female graduates today might be unrecognizable to Miss Madeira…but then she would be horrified by the lack of truth and honor in the global culture today as well.
DLaMotte says
Yes, Lucy Madeira would not recognize the Madeira of today ONLY because of the amazing diversity of young women and
Staff. She would adore this, however, I am sure because she was a Forward Thinker in her day. These girls and women today
represent all the “honor and personal responsibility” you seem to imply lacks in today’s youth.
Maybe this alone is why the Republican Party’s struggle with young people continues…
Joe Boyle says
My name is Joe Boyle, a registered Democrat, and still trying to understand how much $16 trillion debt actually is??
Stephan Sonn says
The wonder of all this
is how civilized
this particular debate is.
We are treading
on the fault line
of the human genome
as history tells it.
We live in dangerous times
but this is a good sign.
Bob Kramer says
It must be the new political math… two wrongs equal a right.
How can highly informed articulate folks see the same issue(s) as exact polar opposites. Maybe that’s the clue as to why our political process is so messed up… and we have such a dysfunctional government.
Stephan Sonn says
There was a time when Congress and the president got along well enough to get things done.
Koch and company recruited and created the Tea Party in 2010 to beak the representative republic for reasons of economic advantage and the sheer rush of doing it all. A drag race smack on the cultural fault line. Cosmic Chicken. Toying with reality
As for Tea party rank and file, forgive them, they don’t know any better. They even have God on their side, they believe.
And in particular Bob it was intelligent, articulate establishment Republicans who gave up the ghost.
And a Cross of Gold is the reigning idol again.
Keith Thompson says
What passes for American politics right now is two groups of people on the Titanic arguing over what to have for dinner and how they’ll divy up the bill, not realizing that nobody will be eating dinner once the ship hits the iceberg.
Stephan Sonn says
In the abstract it was the augmenting of Ayn Rand style misanthropy that thrive on division.
Keith Thompson says
And in the reality, one cannot infinitely survive by spending more than they make…eventually the credit card bills come due. Our problem is that we want big government but we don’t want to pay for it.
Stephan Sonn says
Which we would that be?
Keith Thompson says
The universal we…the American people in general which would include both Democrats and Republicans and the people who vote for them.
Steve Payne says
They would charge it.
Stephan Sonn says
The problem emerges as corporation
and organizational fear mongering
manifesting the death of compromise.
Behind that is a select cadre of wealthy instigators
from the cold war McCarthy days.
This entire contrived mess is staged guided
cultural and political proxy anarchy.
Wealth in and of itself is not the problem.
Access to a survival reality is.
Gerry Maynes says
Hi, If the old bromide Liar Liar Pants on Fire were true thenMr Obama and his side kick Joe Gabby Biden would need abestos Boxer Shorts. Yes it is grest to claim some thing that cannot be proved one way or the other like if it wasn!t for the Obama comedy team oh I am sorry administration we would have lost more then 6 million jobs. Then look at the 1% cent growth we have turned things around. Baloney , this administration if reelected would at that rate would have to stay in office for 30 years to create enough growth to recapyure the 6 million jobs that have been lost; I have seen published reports that the typical Obama job pays 8 to 13.00 dollars per hour and replaces jobs that paid between 16 to 20 dollars per hour. Only some one who is a complete nut could say that the average American family with income down 4,000 dollars per year could possiblything that they are b etter off today then they were four years ago. The guy is over his head and for the welfare of our country n eeds to go on election day. Oh Iam sorry was it my turn to Say Hail Obama , Or should we leave that to CNN, Msnbc, NBC, ABC, and of course CBS to do so. Thank god for FOX
Abbey, (Eliza) says
It takes 4 years to complete college and get a degree. But you need 2-4 more years before anyone takes you seriously. In this particular case, in this particular period in our history, the job requires more time. I suppose anyone could state that Romney could somehow fix our financial woes (though we really don’t know how…still…), but at the same time we’d be either amid a brand new war or on the brink of one- and whether you’re a hawk or not, we cannot afford another war. Also, my rights as a woman- the choices I make concerning reproductive and contraceptive rights- decisions which I’m completely capable of making– that along with my rights to equal pay for equal work– all that would be shot to schmitt, and who knows how long it might take to get those rights back. Please, please, balance my checkbook– and in exhange I’ll trade you a chunk of my paycheck (which the fellas don’t have to pay)– and I won’t worry about getting pregnant- for whatever reason- (maybe my uncle…maybe rape) and live on the fringe because I won’t be able to afford- or take time for college- and there won’t be that wonderful social (civilized? Christian?) contract which states that we take care of folks who need help. Gee whiz, I can’t wait.
And as for those tax cuts for all those people I’ll never be (I’ve got a lot of company), those jobs that come of that strategy? You’ve gotta know… Hasn’t ever worked. Won’t work now. Give (for instance) a nice big pile of money- say 100K- to a rich fella (or gal). He can do what he wants with it. He doesn’t HAVE to create jobs- not even one job. Sure, his ‘position’ may allow as he might, if he’s a corporate guy. But he doesn’t have to. Give that sum to an average person- with a dream beyond the factory floor- with any dream at all. Let me tell you something. That person doesn’t have a choice. They have to use that cash/loan/grant to create a job. The dream IS the job. And that job probably will involve (but not necessarily) more people and more jobs. Freedom is having choices- options. When you’re well-off, you’re free. When you need a loan (student, business)and you can’t get one, you’re not free yet. It’s a matter of pride. The 1-3% are already in Forbe’s (or they’re so wealthy, they’re never in the paper unless for a birth, wedding or death…). The 1-3% will never ever need to take out a loan. Not unless they’re trying to buy a country… The rest of us? We’d just like to see those big scissors cutting that big ribbon… I just keep imagining how many jobs and job oportunities all those Koch Bros., PAC (and other) compaign fundraising dollars could generate. How that money could improve schools, improve roads and bridges… I mean, the tax cuts are still in effect, right? Lead by example, right? Jobs Jobs Jobs!
DLaMotte says
Very well said. It is important, I feel, for people to remember one thing: the better you are doing, Eliza, the better we all are doing.
I worry about this idea of each man for himself, only himself. Is not a “more perfect union” when all in our society are giving
the opportunity to advance…not just possibly benefit from some trickle down?
Abbey, (Eliza) says
and that’s the thing. Trickle-down economics only works under very specific conditions. And under Reagan, although the wealth of the poor (that doesn’t sound right) grew 6%- not bad. But how about the 80% the wealthy reaped? I’m just saying… Does anyone really think that when you give a guy a ton of cash, he’s going to go out- of his own accord- and just start a business or augment an already existing business regardless of whether that business or business growth could succees and bring in more wealth? I’m just sayin… that when you give a measure of cash to someone who’s life depends on it, they’re going to create a way to live. That’s the American Dream. When your life doesn’t depend on it, you could just as well- and just as easily- go out and buy another car, another house, another company somewhere other than the U.S.
What if the company outsources the jobs or buys computer driven technology to replace workers with the extra tax cuts? What if then they offshore the profits… how does that help America or Americans? It is a privilege to have a business in America and it is a significant advantage due to America’s very solid infrastructure. Businesses today who outsource jobs and offshore profits are slowly destroying the very infrastructure that helped them achieve the success they enjoy. However they are making it more difficult for anyone to follow in their footsteps. Taxing businesses more & CEOs who strain US infrastructure to advance their personal wealth would shore up a couple problems.
Gerry Maynes says
Hi ,You never heard of Ronald Reagan? Thirteen months turned the econom y around. FDR , two years to stabilize the Great Depression and show reall growth. Mr Obama four years no growth ,no jobs, Just a ton of money tossed down a rat hole Phoney job totals will not wash. Many economist feel that if he did nothing , the economy would be in better shape and would have healded its self. He has made things worse with his spending, with regulations. with his belief that a guy who builds a businees didn!t do it the goverment did. In short this guy makes Jimmy Carter look like Abe Lincoln. Obama has done nothing for this country, if reelected we will survive him , it will not be pretty and many a family will pay a large price for his ineptitude. What realy worries me about him unlike Bill Clinton, Or FDR, he doesent seem to be able to admit he is wrong about anything and make adjustments or try something else. But hopefully he wount have to , after election day its off to Harvard and life time like mr Carter of insisting he was correct all of the time and every one else was wrong.
Abbey, (Eliza) says
You’ll never believe this- I HAVE heard of Ronald Reagan. I also have heard (I actually read it) that the recession and recessions to that point had been caused, for the most part, by the Fed. In Reagan’s case, in ’82, the Fed lowered the interest rate and all was well with the world again– and the jobs which were created as a result, were good- high paying jobs, unlike today’s. I offer you this quote:
Reagan had an advantage over Obama: The recession of the early 1980s was caused by runaway inflation, which the Federal Reserve countered by hiking interest rates. When inflation dropped, the Fed lowered rates and a massive economic boom resulted.
The major causes of the recent recession were a banking crisis and housing bubble that exploded during President George W. Bush’s final months in office.
Another difference: With comparatively small debt loads, Reagan was able to push through a 23% across-the-board cut of individual income tax rates. Obama, meanwhile, entered the presidency with substantial budget deficits and an economy contracting at a rate of 6.7%. [CNN Money, 5/4/12]
That was 30 years ago. This are different now- including the reasons for this recent recession/depression. In addition, Reagan raised taxes. Quite often in the past, when there have been troubles such as we are seeing today, the president has rasied taxes and grown government in order to get the economy moving again.
and I offer too a quote concerning FDR’s economic recovery- and the different dimentions of that time and place in history. And I offer that the recovery was accomplished with the aid of what would now be called ‘big government’. The Tea Party movement has made it very clear how they feel about big government. Of course there’s good big government and bad big government- a point which few seem to take on in debate.
The PWA’s poor performance relative to the CWA was more than just a matter of being ruled by the wrong Harry. Structurally, the CWA was much better able than the PWA to mobilize quickly because it could avoid the cumbersome process of putting contracts out to bid and all the other obstacles to swift action that arise with public-private partnerships. (Government by contract was popular then, and remains so today, because it allows a politician to create the semblance of government action without expanding the government work force. It also caters to the public’s belief that the private sector is more capable, an illusion punctured by recent scandals surrounding Blackwater and other U.S. contractors in Iraq.) Hopkins enjoyed immediate carte blanche to apply directly the apparatus of the federal government. He shifted staff from the federal relief program he’d headed up, seized tools and equipment from Army warehouses, and cut checks through the Veterans Administration’s vast disbursement system. The CWA laid 12 million feet of sewer pipe and built or made substantial improvements to 255,000 miles of roads, 40,000 schools, 3,700 playgrounds, and nearly 1,000 airports (not to mention 250,000 outhouses still badly needed in rural America). Most of the jobs involved manual labor, to which most of the population, having been raised on the farm, was far more accustomed than it would be today. But the CWA also provided considerable white-collar work, employing, among others, statisticians, bookbinders, architects, 50,000 teachers, and 3,000 writers and artists. (“Hell, they’ve got to eat like other people,” Hopkins noted matter-of-factly.) This was achieved with a remarkable minimum of overhead. Of the nearly $1 billion—the equivalent today of nearly $16 billion—that Hopkins spent during the CWA’s five-month existence, 80 percent went directly into workers’ pockets and thence stimulated the economy by going into the cash registers of grocers and shop owners. Most of the rest went to equipment costs. Less than 2 percent paid for administration.
The only serious obstacle the CWA encountered is the same one that President Obama would face today: politics. Republicans and conservative Democrats in Congress screamed bloody murder about Roosevelt’s dalliance with state socialism—Republicans like Landon who were willing to admit a government program might actually work were as rare then as they are today—and the segregationist Georgia Gov. Eugene Talmadge was apoplectic to learn that black laborers were being paid as much as white ones. Once winter had passed, Roosevelt, worried that the controversy would cost him Democratic seats in the coming midterm congressional elections, ordered Hopkins to shut the CWA down. Hopkins promptly and uncomplainingly did so. A year later, though, Roosevelt recognized his error and put Hopkins in charge of the Works Progress Administration (later the Work Projects Administration). Over its life, the WPA would create, on the model of the CWA, more than 8 million jobs, which today would be equivalent to creating more than 20 million.
Let’s hope that the current economic crisis won’t worsen to the point that the U.S. needs a government program on that scale. But if it does, please don’t say the job can’t be done. In his inaugural address, President Obama said, “The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small but whether it works.” That may presage a departure from Republican orthodoxy (“government is the problem”) and Democratic surrender to it (“the era of big government is over”). If government can do the job best, let it.
(That quaote was from an article written by Charles Peters and Timothy Noah in The Slate, ’09
These issues are not easy and do not have simple answers. I think this points out the very real need for the president and congress to work together. And when the republicans make a concerted decision to thwart Obama at all cost (1 term), right or wrong, then we’re all losing.
Gerry Maynes says
Hi again, This country was never depended upon the 1 or 3 percent for ones suceess. I would suggest that worrying abolut rhe rich folk and how unfair that you are not one them is idiotic and a waste of time. Remember what Abe Lincoln had to say on the subject Yolu cannot pull up the poor man by pulling down the rich man. I believ the he knew something poverty and manged to make him self one of the most important Rail Road Lawyers in the country and one of our greatest Presidents. In short if you want it work for it. If you want and education I suggest the you read on your own every day of your life and educate yourself. You want to go to school there always is a way. I worked three jobs , went to Rockland Com munity and followed up in in The suny system in New York State. It took me a while but I did not take any loans or put my folks in a hole.
Jobs are created not by the govermennt but by private business when they see a need to expand and they hire. These same people start to compete with other for labor and soon these same folks start to offer better benefits and pay to keep good help.
In short you are resp;onsible for your sucess, not the rich or the goverment or any one else. Socialism, is simply put a waste of life!
Abbey, (Eliza) says
Hi again. I never said it was unfair I am not among the wealthy. I never said I was worried about rich folk being rich. It is what it is. Got no problem with that. Problem is, these tax cuts have been in effect for years. And the money big companies have saved as a result have not created more jobs. They’re sitting on their surpluss money, waiting to see what happens next. Me poo pooing the philosophic unfairness of it all would be ridiculous. I have had the luxury of a stellar education, although I must admit, I grew up in an era which looked an awful lot like Mad Men. It’s taken a lot of time, further education and mental de-programming to shed the things I grew up surrounded by- the advice of the ‘mid-century modern’ masses. I have had to take out student loans, and have paid them. Oddly, that’s a good thing for the economy– when people take out loans. I have worked my entire life, sometimes three jobs, sometimes two, sometimes just (just!) one. My parents were teachers, as was I, though briefly. I have gone for years without more than 7 days (in a row) vacation. I have had limited success in business, but I have no one to blame but myself, at the end of the day. I, like many, have worked very very hard at my chosen career, I have done my best to keep up with the changing times and the supply/demand chain. Went to school to hone my already developing career skills. I have used up most of my assets in various attempts in business start-ups, and although I would love to change it all up again- and would be a happy camper if I could be a studnet for life, but at this moment, I can’t swing that bill.
And please don’t perpetuate the Obama mis-quote. Cherry-picking quotes is ameteur. Give the whole quote, then we can talk about who built what- alone or with/because of others. The simplest example would be to give your teachers and professors credit for helping to build who you are today. I do.
Back when the democrats and repubicans could still work together, under Reagan, for instance, their cooperation ultimately landed us in a wonderfully long economic boom which lasted into Bush 1 and grew under Clinton. Everyone did well- the rich and the less rich. Interest rates were HIGH. Now, the interest rates have nowhere to go. The Fed can’t really help now. And I cannot, for the life of me fingure out what, exactly, Romney/Ryan’s economic policy really includes. As one recent poll points out, although Romney leads Obama by a few points concerning who would best be able to fix the economy, the undecideds stood at a whopping 50+%. How can anyone make an educated decision when we can’t know the policy. And I sure as heck don’t want to wait until after the election. From what experts have seen from the few things suggested in the Romney/Ryan bill, it’s mathmatically impossible. We may not fully see Romney’s budget, but Ryan’s budget proposal (which we can pick apart and attempt to make sense of, unlike the other R) might remind one of Cameron’s- which caused the English economy to suffer.
Frankly, to think that there’s a quick fix for this economy is naive. Neither candidate will be able to fix this long-term damage- a build-up of debt that probably began back in the ’70’s. I think maybe we shouldn’t look to Fox or MSNBC for the bottom line on issues. I think both candidates have flawed budget proposals. At least Obama got health on the table and passed- such as it is. It can be ammended- and should be- is expected to be. Thing is, government always works better when the private sector and the public sector work together- with the goal of mutual benefit. Government exists for the sake of life, liberty and the persuit of happiness. Part of that means jobs. Access to jobs. That’s part of the ‘Life’ and ‘pursuit of happiness’ thing. I’m not getting that warm and fuzzy feeling of all those branches of government working together. I’m thinking maybe we shouldn’t just toss around the usual names like Washington, Lincoln, FDR, Reagan, and etc. Maybe we should look at some other names- the names of the folks who ‘set the stage’ for those ‘big’ names. Those would be the stratagies to look to.
My initial post was flawed. I hadn’t realized the R/R ticket had backed away from the party platform on abortion issues.
And as far as the economy goes, I may be a little wistfull, but I’m no fool. First, most people right now (with the exception of those who actually lived through the depression) have absolutely no idea what it’s like to need. Myself included. The only people who really understand need right now are the people who do not have a home, do not have a job, and are uncertain where their next meal is coming from and whether they’ll be warm this coming winter. The economic boom of the 80’s-90’s and the tech boom of the 2000’s have all led us to think that everything has to be big and current and hip and ever-growing/changing. We’re a bit spoiled, I think. It’s like everyone’s life should be like the stock exchange- and if we’re not constantly doing better and better, we’re actually failing. Feels like there less and less room for the mom and pop place that’s always the same every time you go back to buy something. Businesses that are big enough to do fine, but not so big you need a corporate office park. Yes, I long for those days. You work your a** off your whole working life, and you provide not only for your family but maybe another family or two also. That used to be enough. Maybe we need to reform the tax laws… And yes, I think there are a whole lot of people and families who depended on the top 3% for their success. That good idea turned sour when the companies became monopolies (robber barrons), rife with corruption. Which brings be to a quick side-line. When government decides it’s going to shrink by outsourcing otherwise government jobs- it leaves a huge open door to massive corruption- which the government doesn’t have to account for. It’s business.
But there’s a bright side. If I read every day of my life, and take a good hard look at the history of the United States, the history of democracy, the history of capitolism, and even the history of business in the United States, I would find that everyone rides on the coat-tails of the person who came before them, one way or the other. Presidents both republican and democratic ride on the coat-tails of both the previous congress and president. No one got there on their own. No one built it themselves. I would find that if lessons are not learned from the past, they’re bound to resurface with a vengance. I would know that we have not necessarily succeeded in our democracy, nor have we worked out the kinks inherant in capitolism. A work in progress. Give it time. Some things need time. And every presidency is different. Different times, different world. In this particular case, I whole-heartedly believe that the next president should get credit for the progress that has been made so far- when policies begin coming into effect. That person should be Barak Obama. Bring on the debates!
Stephan Sonn says
At best Gary speaks to an idealized version or capitalism
hat has been overcome by what one pope called savage.
In this new version viable companies and human lives are consumed
by the to turn a tasty profit rather than build the country.
I tt look forward to the debates and pray that
their substance and import are appreciated.
Gerry Maynes says
Hi who mis Garry? I am Gerry and how are you. Idealized no! PO just do not believe in feeling sorry for ones self or do I believe in socialism, it has not worked any where that I know off. It is time for the Adults to take the field and send Obama to the showers. Four more years and when things get worse then what, 8 more years and things are going to get better? If this clown were to serve 50 years we would not see any recovery, Just a deep, deep whole in the ground. If you want it bad enough you will find a way to earn it. I worked 80 hour weeks to achieve what I wanted, As my mother told me as a child the world does not owe you a living, You have to go out and earn it. So please do so! Life is short and you can do it.