At a point in the very near future, I wish that the majority of both democrats and republicans would openly recognize that middle ground must be found quickly before the "check" bubble situation in the country pops. There is very little difference between the far right and the far left in one sense. One side would completely wipe out welfare so that some people would be hungry and the other extreme side would have everyone on welfare and bankrupt the nation so that everyone is starving. In both scenarios the "checks" will quit coming and people will be hungry. In the second scenario, everyone suffers. Middle ground must be found quickly are we are all screwed.
It would be very wise for everyone to study up on what is going on in Greece and other countries having financial woes due to socialism. Jobs are gone and governments on the edge of bankruptcy. The countries taking handouts from the International Monetary Fund and other international agencies such as the World Bank are all suffering in different ways. There is mass chaos and rioting in the streets in many of these countries around the world. At the same time, those international agencies giving the "handouts" are placing "rules" on the people in those countries that they are giving money to. These "rules" take away from the freedoms and the liberties of the people. This "international intervention" is also taking away the sovereignty of those countries who are taking money. Yes, people have been rioting all around the world and yes, the European Union is in bad shape. You saw the rioting at the occupy movements across our nation, but you may not have noticed the extreme elevation of riots worldwide. The majority of the occupy movement protestors really didn't understand what they were protesting about, but there was something instinctual that something bad was happening in the present and vibes that it would be worse in the future. Yet they protested something based on a feeling, yet they didn't even really know where that feeling was coming from. All of that education and student debt, but no jobs. In other countries protesting, it seems it is about not having jobs or about very little pay from what everyone was accustomed too. In Greece, their "checks" were cut severely. Don't think that won't happen here becuase if changes aren't made, it will happen here. A few people in the occupied movements across the country tried to make the movement political and tell us what "all the others" were protesting about. They wan'ted some fame and credit for something they themselves really had no clue about. Some people even encouraged the protestors to the point of hanging "the elite" by tree limbs if they didn't "share the wealth". Some of the political narcisists even tried to use their momentum for political or Hollywood fame such as Michael Moore. None of them really got to the bottom of it. Little did our "leaders" understand how a few choice words of encouragement could have turned a protest into a lynch mob. We are certainly in "delicate" times. It is no coincidence as to why this is happening worldwide and I predict that it will get much worse in the future if major changes are not made.
Last I heard, this was the U.S.A., the most powerful superpower in the world. I care about the people here and I yet I understand we've had it very good compared to other countries over the years. Times are lean now and if changes aren't made soon, lean will have a new meaning with our culture that generations of adults have never experienced. I wish the majority of our politicians truly cared about the well being of the citizens instead of themselves.
We are spoiled to the point that we are deluded to think that the "checks" will always keep coming but the truth is, that they won't. In the last few years, the "retirement" checks quit coming to ALL retirees in the city of Prichard, Alabama. Yes, the "checks" quit coming. Prichard tried to file for bankrupcy and at the same time quit mailing out retirement checks to their aging past employees. A retired fire marshal there died in his own home. He was too young for social security and he based his entire budget around his City of Prichard retirement check. When his retirement check quit coming, he was too proud to ask for help and possibly, there simply just wasn't anyone to help. They found him dead in his own house. His power and his water had been cut off because he simply couldn't afford to pay his bills any more. This was a man that worked for the city he loved for 30 + years. He gave the better part of his life to the city of Prichard, yet a dwindling tax base and corrupt city officials murdered him in his own home.
The retired fire marshal has a name. His name was Rex Wall. You should read the following article and try to get to know Rex because you'll know a lot more people like him if our national leaders don't get their act together.
You can read a little about Rex Wall and Prichard's pending bankrupcty in the following article:
http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/the_next_chapter_municipalities_are_using_chapter_9_to_fend_off_creditors/
The truth is, it doesn't matter if our president is white, black, or purple and from the planet Pluto to me, but what does matter is that programs are put in place to encourage businesses to expand to create jobs here in this country, not laws that encourage jobs and factories to be built in China or other "slave labor" countries. What matters to me is for our government to not be putting more and more aggresive regulations, restrictions etc on our small businesses when common sense tells us that they are already struggling in the most sluggish economy since the great depression. I understand completely that you can't get people off of welfare and unemployment if the jobs simply do not exist in our nation. I also understand that creating new government programs and expanding government entities in order to fool the American citizens into "thinking" jobs are being created is a trend that is not productive. The real truth is that all government jobs are paid for by taxes from the private sector and if the private sector is shrinking and the government is growing, then there is an increasing deficit. Government jobs do not bring in one single dollar of "Private sector" tax revenue in the system. The formula is rather simple really; more government jobs = increased national debt and bankrupcy. Fewer government jobs and a large and growing "Private sector" job base means increased private sector tax revenue and a decreased national debt. Increaseing the size of government just to fill some of the lost private sector jobs is a is like putting a stick of dynomite into the leaking crack in the dam which is worse than just letting the dam leak for a while. Sooner or later that stick of dynomite is going to blow the entire dam up drowning everyone downstream in the floodwater's path. It only puts our country deeper into debt. In other words, "ALL checks that come from the government to the people, whether in the form of salaries or in the form of entitlements come from the private sector. Every private sector job that is lost and replaced by a government job is increasing the national debt and if the trend continues, one day the system will implode. Every American factory that is closed and every Chinese factory opened to replacing it is transfering American Jobs overseas and destroying our country. People need to take all of this very seriously because there's going to come a time when you wished you had. Our leaders have over 300 million American citizens under their care. It's past time to start putting American private sector jobs first.
Cities filing bankruptcy is something which is very "new" in the history of our country, and there are many cities and municipalities that are struggling now. The old saying that change is good, does not apply in this case. Volcanos sometimes give advance notice of pending eruptions and our economies across the nation are pointing to something very dangerous happening in the future as well. If we do not pay attention to what these signs are telling us, then we are all in trouble. Our nation is entering a new "era" and in this case. The thought that the "checks will always come" is changing. Take a look at the following governments that are in trouble (not including Prichard, Alabama):
Jefferson County, Alabama
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 11/9/2011
Debt or Deficit Amount: More than $4 billion
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Status: Bankruptcy filing
rejected, defaulted on payments
Date: 3/10/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: More than $300 million
Central Falls, Rhode Island
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 8/1/2011
Debt or Deficit Amount: $21 million of outstanding debt, plus unfunded
pension liabilities
San Bernardino, California
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 8/1/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: $46 million
Mammoth Lakes, California
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 7/3/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: $43 million
Stockton, California
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 6/28/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: $26 million
Boise County, Idaho
Status: Bankruptcy filing rejected
Date: 9/8/2011
Debt or Deficit Amount: $5.4 million
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Status: Bankruptcy filing
rejected, defaulted on payments
Date: 3/10/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: More than $300 million
Central Falls, Rhode Island
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 8/1/2011
Debt or Deficit Amount: $21 million of outstanding debt, plus unfunded
pension liabilities
San Bernardino, California
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 8/1/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: $46 million
Mammoth Lakes, California
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 7/3/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: $43 million
Stockton, California
Status: Filed for bankruptcy
Date: 6/28/2012
Debt or Deficit Amount: $26 million
Boise County, Idaho
Status: Bankruptcy filing rejected
Date: 9/8/2011
Debt or Deficit Amount: $5.4 million
You can keep up with this at http://www.governing.com/gov-d.... There are at least 12 more municipalities attempting or obtaining bankruptcy protection across the nation. As I said before, all of these bankrupcies are within the last few years. It is a trend, a very dangerous trend.
People often casually talk about politics but what many people don't see is the dire seriousness of bad decisions and/or "lack of good decisions" made by our politicians that have the potential to affect over 300 million Americans in either a positive, a negative or even potentially catastrophic way. Our politicians MUST get very serious about the direction of this country. The rising national debt HAS to be reversed. We need JOBS and we need people off of government programs. There must be JOBS before people can successfully get off. Jobs and creating an environment conductive to allowing businesses to succeed instead of creating programs to stagnate or keep businesses from expanding and creating jobs. Propaganda pushed by political campaigns against businesses that create jobs is bad. Big government programs that do not generate private sector tax income is bad.
If it is true that 47% of the citizens in the U.S. are not making it on their own, and if it's true that 40% of every tax dollar that comes in goes to pay our national debt and only 60% goes towards everything else, then we are in serious trouble. If it is true that the majority of baby boomers have retired and are pulling from the system while at the same time, far less people are working and paying taxes in the private sector to pay for those retirement checks, then we are in serious trouble.
But all in all, you need to understand very clearly that my views have nothing to do with what color the candidates are, or what they look like, or what religion they are. It doesn’t even have anything to do with how well they speak. I could care less about who they sleep with or who they don’t sleep with. My thoughts have to do with the images I get when I see people that appear to be eating well now and are moderately happy, and I wonder what they will look like in the future if their check quits coming in because our nation has defaulted and cannot pay its bills.
My heart goes out to the hungry, the homeless, the starving; the people who have lost and will lose their homes. It goes out to the future "Rex Walls" of the United States who will not be able to pay their bills or buy groceries for their families. I get quite pissed when I see those images. I only wish our politicians were as pissed off when they see those images also, but it appears they are only concerned with themselves. Get it together people and hold our representatives responsible for their actions and/or inaction or the pain of hundred of millions of Americans could fall on your shoulders.
Don't buy into this nonsense some would tell you that "the lesser of two evils is still evil, so do not get out vote". The next time someone tells you that lame excuse for them not voting, ask them if they'd "rather be burned by a match or thrown into a hell fire inferno?". There is simply NO excuse to not vote in ANY election. To not vote because your candidate did not make the cut and is too arrogant to endorse anyone except himself , is irresponsible. To vote for a candidate simply because he is white, black or yellow is also irresponsible. A candidate that would have you sidestep your responsibilty to vote in any election is selfish and arrogant; neither good traits of a worthy leader. I learned how to cut through propaganda and lies years ago and it is time for all of us to hold ALL candidates responsible for false propaganda, even if they do pretend to be supporting liberty and the constitution.
I urge you, before you get out and vote, get passionate about learning about the national debt, the recent bankruptcies, what's going on with failing governments around the world (particularly the European Union) and why they are failing, and after you've learned everything you can learn, remember that money does not grow on trees as some people might think and that the chicken came before the egg... I meant to say, businesses MUST exist before employees and more than that WE CANNOT COMPETE WITH CHINESE PEOPLE MAKING $2.5 PER HOUR AND EXPECT OUR FACTORIES TO STAY ALIVE AND WELL IN THIS OVERLY REGULATED FISCALLY IRRESPONSIBLE BUEROCRACY.
It's time to get serious about good financial stewardship and policies in our nation before it's too late. If we EVER get to the point in this nation that the "checks quit coming", then you might just become a big fan of the National Rifle Association, at least in principle, because you'll need a gun to keep your hungry neighbors from stealing all the food from your pantry. All of this talk about sharing the wealth is fine and dandy until you and your children are hungry and armed thieves try to steal the last little bit of food from your freezer.
People will do almost anything for food if they are hungry enough; even bow down to tyranny. So much for freedom and liberty. Get it together and hold ALL of them accountable!
P.S. I find it interesting that there have been 42 views since last night here in the U.S. and 5 views from Germany which is the only "strong" economy left in the European Union because of it's strong private sector and industry base and the other views were all from the two countries having serious problems right now in the EU and they are Greece and Ireland. If you want to see the into the future of socialism google those two countries and do some research on socialism in those countries, how long they've been geared that way and also what their current economic situation is like.
