COL Gene COL Gene

Exploding Two Conservative Myths

Exploding Two Conservative Myths



When I listened to Ron Paul being interviewed on Meet the Press and while watching the Republican debates, two of the most fundamental conservative axioms we hear from Republicans were shown to be fabrications.

First is an individual make better spending choices then government.

Second is that government spending is ineffective and wasteful.

Spending Choices

Does anyone believe that if all or most spending choices were made by individuals that they would say I need to spend money to help replace that tank the 1st Armored Division needs? I will repair the section of I95 between, mile marker X and Y in George. Baby Carol Smith needs formula today and I will buy it for her. We need another border guard to stop illegals and possibly terrorists from crossing into the U.S.

The truth is none of those and many other choices that are essential for our country to survive and prosper would be made by individuals. The spending choices must be made by BOTH individuals to provide for individual needs but the needs of our society and to insure our security and to facilitate commerce, banking, law enforcement and many other items must be made collectively by government.

That is not to say that some spending choices by government, like to build the bridge in Alaska where about 50 people lived, are the best choices. However if the choice were to repair a bridge that enabled tens of thousands to get to work each day that spending choice would be sound and could be essential.

Government spending is Wasteful

In most cases when the government spends tax dollars that money returns to the economy and helps individuals and business. If the Federal Government buys that tank the 1st Armored Division needs, Americans are put to work and the companies that make the tank earn a profit. That helps the people who own the stock of the companies who make and assemble that tank. It also provides something we NEED to protect our freedom. If the Federal government adds that Border Guard, that person spends the salary they are paid from taxes and that helps the economy. An expenditure the government makes that does not help our people is the interest on the debt that is paid to foreign investors. That tax money does not return to our economy.

If an individual takes their tax cut and invests it in a business that employs people outside the U.S. that investment takes money from our economy. In that case the spending choice by an individual harms the economy. Thus these two GOP axioms above are not true and it is time the American Voters understand the true nature of Federal spending. We do need to pay for our spending and STOP deficit spending! The GOP is supporting political ideas that are NOT in agreement with the majority of Americans. As a Republican I can not understand HOW the GOP got so far from the mainstream of the American People. Most Republicans can not complete a sentence without using the word “Conservative”. The majority of Americans are NOT Conservatives.
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Reply #101 Top
Robin Hood at least had a reason to exist - wealth was being involuntarily taken from one group for the benefit of another & he was redressing that "involuntary" part. This is not a Robin Hood moment, and Gene's no Robin Hood - more like Hood Robin, if you get my drift.
Reply #102 Top
Pressed for real evidence, Gene again regurgitates this little gem:

Local Report for Long Island: Executive Summary
An estimated 259,000 Long Islanders turn to a soup kitchen, food pantry or emergency shelter for help with food each year. 93,000 of them are children.
Going Hungry During Lunch Hour
21 December 2007
by Anna Kramer
End of quote


No population figures for Long Island.
No breakdown of the number of unique individuals visiting soup kitchens - doesn't tell you if one person turned to a soup kitchen 259,000 times or 259,000 people went once.
No number of soup kitchens.
No historical data for comparison.
No nothing.
Reply #103 Top
Robin Hood at least had a reason to exist - wealth was being involuntarily taken from one group for the benefit of another & he was redressing that "involuntary" part. This is not a Robin Hood moment, and Gene's no Robin Hood - more like Hood Robin, if you get my drift.
End of quote




actually robin hood was stealing from the government(the rich).
Reply #104 Top

Robin Hood at least had a reason to exist - wealth was being involuntarily taken from one group for the benefit of another & he was redressing that "involuntary" part. This is not a Robin Hood moment, and Gene's no Robin Hood - more like Hood Robin, if you get my drift.
End of quote

Col Gene is more like the Sherriff of Noddingham actually.

Robin Hood was stealing from the government to give back to the citizenry.  The government was excessively taxing the population resulting in misery.

Col Noddingham is arguing that the citizenry should be paying more to the government so that the government can decide which favored groups will be paid off for their support of those policies.

Reply #105 Top
I just had to stop in and laugh at two things.

One that gene is a republican, and two is that he trys to argue the government isn't full of waste.


Reply #106 Top
One that gene is a republican, and two is that he trys to argue the government isn't full of waste.
End of quote


it isn't as long as it can raise taxes on you and me.
Reply #107 Top
Reply By: danielostPosted: Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Reply By: danielostPosted: Tuesday, January 01, 2008I just answered that:Any one with incomes like Bush and Cheney can pay more. They did so during the 1990's and the rich never had it so good at higher tax rates. That is YOUR PROOF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this is not facts this is opinion period.


No the data on GDP growth, Jobs and the overall prosperity during the 1990's is well established. If you are saying the economy in the 1990's was not the best sustained period of growth and we were moving to a balanced budget which we achieved in 2000 and low interest rates you do not know what you are talking about. Every expert and all the data I have scene shows the period from about 1991 - 1999 was as good or better then any other period in our history. ALL that with the higher tax rates on the rich—HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?

Robin Hood was stealing from the government to give back to the citizenry. The government was excessively taxing the population resulting in misery.



Bush was taking from the POOR and MIDDLE INCOME giving to the RICH and passing the debt to the future generations. As I correctly said in the Title of my book, George W. Bush Robin Hood For The Rich.
Reply #108 Top
If you are saying the economy in the 1990's was not the best sustained period of growth
End of quote


that is not what i am saying. i am saying that clinton and company did everything they could to stop it.
Every expert and all the data I have scene shows the period from about 1991 - 1999
End of quote


after 1995 clinton hid how bad the economy was. he was hoping that it wouldn't come out until the next pres. but it hit while he was still in office.
Reply #109 Top
Bush was taking from the POOR and MIDDLE INCOME giving to the RICH
End of quote


BS, pure and simple. Bush didn't take anything from anyone, much less give it to anyone.
Reply #110 Top
Gene needs to understand that cutting taxes is not a gift.  I notice gene doesn't comment when he is showed all the social spending the government is made up of now.


Reply #111 Top
If you are saying the economy in the 1990's was not the best sustained period of growth and we were moving to a balanced budget which we achieved in 2000 and low interest rates you do not know what you are talking about.
End of quote


Man, Col, your ignorance is overwhelming.

The economy in the 1990's was an artificial growth because of the newness of technology. Dot coms were selling stocks with no business plan, there was nothing to back the value of the stock. Because the Internet was new, investors simply bought into every company that came along with the word "Internet" associated with it. Because there was no value, the market bottomed out once they could not produce any sort of ROI.

Had you watched the news, you would have known this.

As a result, the economic success of the 90's was an anomaly that cannot be compared to any other historical time period.
Reply #112 Top
Reply By: danielostPosted: Wednesday, January 02, 2008
If you are saying the economy in the 1990's was not the best sustained period of growth
that is not what i am saying. i am saying that clinton and company did everything they could to stop it.
Every expert and all the data I have scene shows the period from about 1991 - 1999


BS!!!! The economy during the Clinton Admin was good all but the last year. Look at what took place during Reagan. Mortgages at 13%. He added $3 Trillion to the debt and added $150 Billion per year to the interest which we are STILL paying for every year. I hope all you GOP supporters enjoy paying all the added tax that goes for interest. Just think of the Billions being paid to China so they can build their military. Great policy. We have a trade policy that also allows China to destroy our industry, send us dangerous products and we have a President that thinks that helps Americans! TREASON is what our trade policy is!


Reply By: Gideon MacLeishPosted: Wednesday, January 02, 2008
If you are saying the economy in the 1990's was not the best sustained period of growth and we were moving to a balanced budget which we achieved in 2000 and low interest rates you do not know what you are talking about.
Man, Col, your ignorance is overwhelming.The economy in the 1990's was an artificial growth because of the newness of technology. Dot coms were selling stocks with no business plan, there was nothing to back the value of the stock. Because the Internet was new, investors simply bought into every company that came along with the word "Internet" associated with it. Because there was no value, the market bottomed out once they could not produce any sort of ROI.Had you watched the news, you would have known this.As a result, the economic success of the 90's was an anomaly that cannot be compared to any other historical time period.



The economy of today has provided a boom to the rich and is destroying the middle income Americans and is devastating the poor. The benefit during the 1990's was better spread among all the economic groups. We were moving toward a balanced budget. None of that would have happened if we would have replaced the economic policies of the 1990's with the Bush economic policies.

Reply #113 Top
TREASON is what our trade policy is!
End of quote


LOL!


The economy of today has provided a boom to the rich and is destroying the middle income Americans and is devastating the poor.
End of quote


What BS!  The middle class, nor the poor are being "destroyed" by the government.  Personal choices are to blame for that!



Reply #114 Top
Reply By: Island DogPosted: Wednesday, January 02, 2008
TREASON is what our trade policy is!
!
The economy of today has provided a boom to the rich and is destroying the middle income Americans and is devastating the poor.
What BS! The middle class, nor the poor are being "destroyed" by the government. Personal choices are to blame for that!


Our Trade Policy is destroying jobs. Our Tax and spending policy is destroying the future of our country. The Iraq war had killed 3,900 of our troops, injured 29,000 for NOTHING. We have been fighting in Afghanistan for over 6 years and are not close to winning or capturing bin Laden. Our failure to enforce immigration laws is costing our states and cities money and the money the foreign workers earn is sent out of the country and harms our economy. Those are ALL Bush/GOP policies and EVERY ONE has and WILL harm the middle income and poor of our country! The rich make big profits on oil, the war and will most likely buy up many of the homes for low prices as they go into foreclosure and later sell them for a big profit. It is time we start to adopt policies that help middle income Americans!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Reply #115 Top
As I said.....LOL.

For years we have heard your gloom and doom, the depression is coming BS.  Wrong as usual.


Reply #116 Top
Our Trade Policy is destroying jobs.
End of quote


you mean those trade policies(treaties) that clinton left us. like nafta, and the asian one i don't remember the name. the one that got us trading so heavily with china.
Reply #117 Top
Reply By: Island DogPosted: Wednesday, January 02, 2008As I said......For years we have heard your gloom and doom, the depression is coming BS. Wrong as usual.


Better turn to the news or any Business news show. What I have posted is not gloom and doom it is REALITY!

Reply By: danielostPosted: Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Our Trade Policy is destroying jobs.
you mean those trade policies(treaties) that clinton left us. like nafta, and the asian one i don't remember the name. the one that got us trading so heavily with china.



That is correct-- they did not work for eight years under Clinton and the IDIOT we have in the White House expanded a policy that was shown to be a failure and doubled the size of the problem! Great work George!
Reply #118 Top
the IDIOT we have in the White House expanded a policy that was shown to be a failure and doubled the size of the problem! Great work George!
End of quote




no your the idiot. bush is only doing what we, the usa, said we would do under clinton.
Reply #119 Top

Bush was taking from the POOR and MIDDLE INCOME giving to the RICH and passing the debt to the future generations. As I correctly said in the Title of my book, George W. Bush Robin Hood For The Rich.
End of quote

LOL.

How exactly are the poor, who pay no taxes, having anything taken from them?

The rich pay most of the taxes and benefit the least from them.

Reply #120 Top
Better turn to the news or any Business news show.
End of quote


I watched the news, I saw nothing of your gloom and doom predictions.

If people listened to you gene, you would think we had bread lines and rationing.


Reply #121 Top
Reply By: Island DogPosted: Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Better turn to the news or any Business news show.
I watched the news, I saw nothing of your gloom and doom predictions.If people listened to you gene, you would think we had bread lines and rationing.


$3million homes into foreclosure with another $2 million in trouble. Millions of manufacturing jobs lost. $800 Billion Trade deficit. Look at the Stock Market and oil prices. Look at how your homeowners insurance cost has increased. Look at inflation last quarter. Look at Real Estate prices and the construction industry. Yes Things are GREAT!
Reply #122 Top
Exploding? I don't think so.

Myths? I don't think so.
Reply #123 Top
Which of these is not True? Which are good news?


$3million homes into foreclosure with another $2 million in trouble.

Millions of manufacturing jobs lost.

$800 Billion Trade deficit.

The Stock Market

Oil prices.

How your homeowners insurance cost has increased.

Inflation last quarter.

Real Estate prices

The construction industry.
Reply #124 Top
A small high school lesson:

E.C.O.N.O.M.I.C B.U.S.I.N.E.S.S C.Y.C.L.E

Suddenly all the gains from the boom are conveniently forgotten.
Reply #125 Top
A small high school lesson:

E.C.O.N.O.M.I.C B.U.S.I.N.E.S.S C.Y.C.L.E
End of quote




i never took this lesson but i know that everything in the economy goes up and goes down. if it stagnates it dies. but gene who ran some businesses never learned that lesson. which is why his businesses failed.