Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Independence Day ... Really?

July the Fourth is Independence Day in America but independence from what.  A big part of the reason for fighting the War of Independence was taxation without representation but that's happening all over again.  It was fighting against an overbearing British government and that's happening all over again too.

It's a felony to lie to Congress but James Clapper, Director of National Intelligence, has done it repeatedly and Congress has done nothing.  (The Guardian:  James Clapper, EU play-acting, and political priorities)

The American government is completely out of control and yet this time no-one is talking of a Boston Tea Party.  Instead they will shoot off fireworks and talk about freedom.  The question remains, freedom from what.

There was a time when the American government was described in terms of a Keynesian metaphor as people wanted to use an economic model for it.  However today it is usually described in Orwellian terms regarding his vision of a totalitarian regime in "1984" ... and yet still no-one does anything.

People complain of the Affordable Care Act which is typically known as Obamacare by Republicans too stupid to put together a rational argument.  At the root of the problem with this solution is that it entrusts all medical care to American insurance companies which are notoriously corrupt.  There is all manner of hysteria about fringe elements of the program but no-one does anything about the insurance companies or the banks which have proven themselves time and again to be corrupt.  Whether the government forces you to these companies or people go to them on their own really makes no difference when both paths go to the same place.

The question today is not where is America as that much is obvious but rather the question is where are the Americans.

Answer:  bitching and moaning on Facebook


If America does do anything about the problems there, I hope they will do a better job than that ridiculous Arab Spring.  They credited that with being driven by social media.  It's probably not true but that's what they say.  In any case, they overthrew one government and have now overthrown another one to replace it with a military leadership.  Nothing like the military to provide a truly free government.  This is madness.  (The Guardian: Mohamed Morsi ousted in Egypt's second revolution in two years)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

The biggest issue with Obamacare is the requirement to insure all employees working an average on 30 per week or more. The others come under the individual statutes.
So companies like mine are forced to by insurance at a cost of about $6000 per year. Or about a 45% incrrase to my total labor cost.
With the slim profit margins I run I will be out of business in two years. Employees can opt out the first year without penalty(thier cost is abiut $1000 or a 8-9% paycut)
My other option is too keep my employees at less than 30 hours per week. An option most of the companies in my industry are preparing for.
CONGRATULATIONS OBAMA. Now all lower income employees will be forced to have 2 jibs to be poor.
Thier second option is to go on welfare total benefits equal to a job paying twice what thry made working 40 a week


PLEASE TELL THE FEDERAL GOVERMENT
to build roads and take out the trash

And get the hell iut if the rest of my life

Anonymous said...

PS. I could hire a lot more people at higher wages if I werent so busy filling paperwork to comply with the goverment and spending cash to pay for it.

Unknown said...

That is part of a generic problem of the lack of 'executioners' in the government and the corporate world. Both arenas have become massively bloated with managers as there's nothing than turns on a manager more than making more managers and they have been so fruitful in multiplying. In previous times there were 'executioners' who were known for their ability to analyse a corporation and chop out the dead wood to return it to healthy, fighting condition but that doesn't seem to happen anymore. Instead the hatchet men will buy corporations that have become sick this way and sell it off for parts thereby sacrificing everyone in it rather than those who caused the problem. (Yes, I under there is some argument on the level of the union contribution to this problem. Nevertheless, management has its own piece of the disease and these days it is rarely addressed.)