from the Star Wars film series
This is one of my favorite quotes, and yes I know Yoda is a fictional character. But it says it all. Last night as I listened to the Presidential debate between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, I thought of this quote. Ironically today, I opened my email, and there it was again. So I was inspired to write this post.
Let's review the last four years, from an economic perspective. First, the medium income in our country has decreased by around $4,000. This means that people are making less money. It also means that they have less disposable income to spend and stimulate the economy. They are primarily living and holding back on everything else. What else can they do? We have to get to work, so we buy gas and a few cars. We have to eat, so we buy food, but even there we stick to survival basics, and have not been visiting restraunts as frequently as the economy needs us to visit them. This affects the bottom line of food sellers, restricting their expansion, and hindering employment, which stands at 23 million people.
Healthcare costs are up $2500 per year. More stress on our incomes, but what if we get sick? Yet our politicians spend their time trying to "help" us by mandating healthcare. Yet they let us get sidetracked by the contraception arguement. That is a minor issue, but is preventing us from taking care of the major issue. Contraception is cheap, even if you do not have healthcare. Walmart lists Trojan condems at $7.47 for 10, or 75 cents each. Many pharmacies offer the "pill" for around $10 per month. And, because of peoples passions and religious beliefs, we are easily sidetracked and lose sight of the larger picture. Personally, if $10 a month is too much, you probably shouldn't be procreating.
Food costs are increasing, and they will increase more over the next year. Besides using corn to put in our gas tank, driving up the price of corn, we have the results of the midwest drought to contend with. More stress on our individual budgets. But we have to eat...
Because of the unemployement rate there is more supply and demand pressure to keep wages down. If you need a job, and have been earning $50,000 a year, in this economy if you are offered a job for $45,000, would you take it? What if your unemployement insurance ran out, then how much would you accept? Anything to feed your family? Remember there are 23 million unemployed, and many million more who gave up on finding work.
There is no disposable income left for vacations, amusement park or any other liesure activity. Its these elective things that can drive our economy.
So how does the quote lead back? Our current President took the stand that he was trying. He "inherited" a bad economy. Its not his fault. But Mr. President it has been four years, how many more do you need to "fix" the economy? I believe it is just a matter of economics. The President is a follower of Keynes. Keynes believes, like Marx, that the government can plan the economy. At no time in history has this planning worked. Is our President too hard headed to realize this? I have been told the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting it to work.
It didn't work at Plymouth rock, we celebrate the end of that experiment on Thanksgiving Day. It didn't work in the former Soviet Union and eastern Europe. It isn't working in Cuba or Venezuela. Europe is a mess. China is moving toward a more open economy. Why are we going the other direction?
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