World Politics

[Anonymous]

And that "vast majority" are not subject to the overall corporate tax rate in their PERSONAL taxes, so your argument that our corporate tax rate being the hindrance is without much merit based on the information you put forth, no? Because the original discussion was over the fact that US corporations are not producing jobs because the CORPORATE tax rate is too high...well, the effective rate ISN'T, and if the majority of S corps are paying INDIVIDUAL taxes, that rate is RARELY close to the CORPORATE tax rate, ergo: False argument.

I've never argued the corporate tax rate being the sole reason for our jobs situation. C-Corps are generally larger companies with anywhere from dozens to tens of thousands of employees (or more). So, they can't be discounted in terms of the employment picture. When there is as much US corporate profit abroad as there is at this moment and the players involved indicate they will not bring that money home until our tax rate becomes competitive with the rest of the developed world, what should we do? Sit around and call them un-patriotic? Maybe we should actually listen to some of their ideas. I'm quite sure Obama is smart enough to figure out if their ideas have merit or if it's all self interest.

But we are now at a standstill and there is no movement whatsoever. So, the Immelt's of the world are just going to sit tight and see what's going to happen.

 

[redtreviso]

Bring it home from where scott?

""WASHINGTON — When the Pentagon announced an obscure California company had won a lucrative military contract, no one mentioned any plans for a Caribbean outpost -- a tropical shell the company quickly created that allowed it to duck millions in taxes and deflect U.S. lawsuits.

It's legal, at least for now. Contractors large and small have been heading offshore to shield piles of taxpayer dollars, according to an Associated Press investigation, but irate lawmakers are thundering that they'll put an end to it.

Almost a decade ago, a few months after winning the deal that has totaled more than $2 billion, Combat Support Associates established its subsidiary in the Cayman Islands, a British territory and tax haven.""

http://www.usatoday.com/news/topstories/2008-05-07-1000163828_x.htm

http://www.newrules.org/retail/news/why-does-target-have-subsidiary-bermuda

http://academic.udayton.edu/clarakim/inequality/articles/6-economic/corporate_tax_evasion.htm

 

[Amsterhammer]

I am not sure any President in my lifetime was evil. Maybe I'm wrong. I certainly don't view those I oppose politically as evil. Wrong headed? Sure.

I also do not automatically label those Presidents whom I disliked as evil. I do, however, view both Nixon and especially Dubya as evil, and criminal. I am certainly not alone in that view.

You build up GWB as a monster, Nixon was a monster, Reagan was a monster... but Clinton was a hero and Obama, while disappointing, is really a saint that has run into a bunch of evil that will not allow him to do good things on behalf of all of humanity. It's hard to take all this emotional reaction seriously.

I have not mentioned Reagan or Clinton. Not once. Can you seriously deny that Obama (on top of his admitted lack of balls) has faced the most bizar, hysterical, insane, right wing opposition that any President has had to put up with? Is it maybe (at least in part) because he's black?

Another common theme is how you arrogantly seem to speak for the rest of the world... as if there is no divergence of opinion anywhere except the effed up and backwards USA. Sorry, but this simply is not true.

I call it how I see it, Scott. Americans are by far the most insular developed nation on earth. Most Americans, though certainly not all, simply have no idea (and could care less) about how others view them and the pathetic political soap that US politics have become. I take a broader view. I see, hear, and read opinions from a number of different (admittedly, all European) countries, and from many different news sources. Since I also live in Europe, I can assert with certainty that the vast majority of thoughtful Europeans view the US as a dangerously far-right country (certainly by comparison with existing Euro governments) that would be better served putting its own house in order before attempting to foist its seriously flawed version of democracy onto others.

As for divergence of opinions - the loony opinions expressed by the US fundamentalist far right Hun wing might attract a few dozen followers over here. Everyone else, including mainstream Euro right-wingers, simply shake their heads in utter disbelief at the kind of views espoused by many of the Republicans running for office. As I have pointed out before, Obama would be a right-winger in Europe. The US is so far to the right that there is simply no realistic chance for progressive views to get a fair airing without immediately being labeled as 'socialist' or 'communist' - incidentally, these are terms that the vast majority of those who use them in a pejorative way have no understanding of whatsoever. They are simply emotional alarm buzz words in US politics.

Speaking for myself, I do not believe our system is broken beyond repair. Call me an optimist or perhaps naive, but there are some simple things that could be done to curb rampant corruption that threatens our system of government. The problem is there seems to be little political will to enact simple solutions. The political class on both sides is only concerned with winning and losing and staying in power. Doing what's best for the country is not real high on their priority list.

Perhaps you can still afford to be an optimist because you live in SoCal and presumably enjoy a quality of life far better than that of the average US citizen? You admit that the political class is thoroughly corrupt and that both sides are far more concerned with scoring their own points rather than with the good of the country - on that we agree. Everything I see leads me to the conclusion that the current system is beyond mere repair and requires a fundamental rethink.

 

[redtreviso]

I disagree. I think it would not be that hard to fix what's wrong. But there is no doubt our system is broken and corrupt.

As for the top 10%... what you write would be true if those were always the same people. The fact that people come and go from this group is evidence that the system is in fact not rigged. If it were, people like Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Jerry Yang, Larry Page, Howard Schultz, James Gosling, Michael Dell, Pierre Omidyar, Bernie Marcus would never ever be allowed in to the club.

They barely are welcomed.. dig up some FOMC hearing transcripts between Phil Gramm and Alan Greenspan and see for yourself.

 

[VeloCity]

Why someone would even consider voting for anyone in that field of Republicans after that debate last night is completely beyond me.

 

[Anonymous]

I also do not automatically label those Presidents whom I disliked as evil. I do, however, view both Nixon and especially Dubya as evil, and criminal. I am certainly not alone in that view.



I have not mentioned Reagan or Clinton. Not once. Can you seriously deny that Obama (on top of his admitted lack of balls) has faced the most bizar, hysterical, insane, right wing opposition that any President has had to put up with? Is it maybe (at least in part) because he's black?



I call it how I see it, Scott. Americans are by far the most insular developed nation on earth. Most Americans, though certainly not all, simply have no idea (and could care less) about how others view them and the pathetic political soap that US politics have become. I take a broader view. I see, hear, and read opinions from a number of different (admittedly, all European) countries, and from many different news sources. Since I also live in Europe, I can assert with certainty that the vast majority of thoughtful Europeans view the US as a dangerously far-right country (certainly by comparison with existing Euro governments) that would be better served putting its own house in order before attempting to foist its seriously flawed version of democracy onto others.

As for divergence of opinions - the loony opinions expressed by the US fundamentalist far right Hun wing might attract a few dozen followers over here. Everyone else, including mainstream Euro right-wingers, simply shake their heads in utter disbelief at the kind of views espoused by many of the Republicans running for office. As I have pointed out before, Obama would be a right-winger in Europe. The US is so far to the right that there is simply no realistic chance for progressive views to get a fair airing without immediately being labeled as 'socialist' or 'communist' - incidentally, these are terms that the vast majority of those who use them in a pejorative way have no understanding of whatsoever. They are simply emotional alarm buzz words in US politics.




Perhaps you can still afford to be an optimist because you live in SoCal and presumably enjoy a quality of life far better than that of the average US citizen? You admit that the political class is thoroughly corrupt and that both sides are far more concerned with scoring their own points rather than with the good of the country - on that we agree. Everything I see leads me to the conclusion that the current system is beyond mere repair and requires a fundamental rethink.

I do, however, view both Nixon and especially Dubya as evil, and criminal. I am certainly not alone in that view.

You are certainly not alone in that view. Nixon was criminal, that's well established. GWB evil? I suppose that only makes sense if you believe the worst theories regarding Iraq or perhaps if you believe other theories of 9/11 being an inside job.

I don't know what's in GWB's heart and I'll bet you don't either.

I have not mentioned Reagan or Clinton. Not once. Can you seriously deny that Obama (on top of his admitted lack of balls) has faced the most bizar, hysterical, insane, right wing opposition that any President has had to put up with? Is it maybe (at least in part) because he's black?

Obama has not faced opposition much if any different then Clinton faced, Bush faced or Reagan faced. The left lost their mind from the minute GWB was sworn in after the 2000 election. The left lost their mind when Reagan was elected. I'm old enough to remember those those days. Tip O'Neil and the boys were pretty freaking hard on Reagan.

The right came pretty close to impeaching Clinton. Bush has been savaged by the left. So don't think that opposition to Obama is something new.

Obama's race has nothing to do with anything. His incompetence has a lot to do with everything.

As for views from Europe, I have friends and travel there too. You are going to tell me the situation boiling in Belgium right now is what.... level headed? The country is poised to split (again). The systems of government in most of the eurozone are strained to the brink of collapse. Why? For the political structure you support. Social Utopia. It sounds great, but it doesn't work out well in the end. So tell me, when Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy demand so much from the Germans and French that the zone disintegrates, how "dangerous" will that situation be?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/64020390/xrm45126

UBS speaks of martial law and perhaps civil war. So I'm not sure your side has it all figured out just yet.

Perhaps you can still afford to be an optimist because you live in SoCal and presumably enjoy a quality of life far better than that of the average US citizen?

I have been fortunate. I have made some good decisions and some bad ones. I'm not at all wealthy. I have a good life, married a woman much better than me, go to work every day and try and enjoy my life. Probably not much different than you.

 

[Anonymous]

They barely are welcomed.. dig up some FOMC hearing transcripts between Phil Gramm and Alan Greenspan and see for yourself.

Neither Gramm nor Greenspan have or ever had the power to stop something like Google or Apple or Home Depot or Starbucks from happening. They can make it more difficult, like now, but they can't stop it.

There will always be good ideas that make it to the marketplace.

 

[Caledon]

So I don't like feminism and that makes me sexist? geez, you'd have to be dumb as dog**** to think that. I have no problem with equality but it is sometimes it is an unrealistic ideal that people have in the workplace. I think society can over-compensate in having gender equality in society due to males being the dominant gender in the past in roles such as business & government. I think feminists can often have double standards in that because women have not been treated equally in the past that they now needed to be treated extra special to compensate for the past.

It is a shame that you have such a ridiculous stereotype about the Australian male of which you basically paint me and other Australian males as bogans. I never actually said that about a Spanish person anyway as you have taken my post completely out of context. I would be more than happy to continue this discussion about such issues and even though I may disagree with your opinion I will still respect it. Think what you want about me with my opinions about issues but don't paint me to be sexist or a bigot.

What an entirely predictable response. Think your irony detector has malfunctioned…Actually it probably never functioned in the first place.


"Whats that Skippy? An obsessive cycling fan fallen down a deep hole? Wearing a T-shirt that says what? ‘Cadel – I want to have your babies’? Ewe.? He’s acting all wounded and shouting misrepresentation is he mate? Is it that the fella who keeps writing inflammatory stuff, pretends he is just a plain speaking bloke and then acts all touchy feely and hurt when somebody points out that it sounds offensive? Go rescue him should we Skip? Mmm..? We’ll go back later mate when he has calmed down a bit? Take a shovel and a copy of The Female Eunuch by that dinkum sheila Germaine Greer? What you saying Skip? He also says that some of his best friends are Spanish women and he only got in this hole by accident? Got a feelin’ Skip that he might ignore the book and just use the shovel to dig a bit deeper into that hole…?"

Apologies for all the question marks. It is known as the Antipodean Interrogative by linguists fascinated as to how nearly all sentences are turned in to questions when spoken out loud by Australians. :0

Seriously Aus, me thinks you doth protest too much…This is a serial behaviour pattern with many of your posts. Say something incendiary and then pretend that you are actually a liberal at heart once you get a reaction, yeh pull the other one. It looks like subtle trolling to me.

I don't have a ridiculous stereotype of Australians mate, you do. If you don’t like people using national stereotypes as a satirical writing device to make a point then don’t provide them with so much evidence that bolsters the stereotype. What is the point of writing crass stuff like feminism making you vomit, or Spanish people beg, (therefore sounding like a ‘bogan’) and then having to write lengthy response pieces to explain your ‘true’ position – what a waste of keystrokes. The Internet is a very clever thing but it does not make its users into mind readers. If you don’t want people to paint you as sexist or bigoted then don’t write things which sound so bloody sexist and bigoted. Heck some of your countrymen have even pointed that out to you on this forum.

As a small act of kindness I’ll save you the trouble of writing another essay in response. I won’t be reading it.

In my short career as a poster here I have quickly come to the conclusion that it’s not worth the effort – apologies to all the sensible guys on here - you have a much higher tolerance of numpties than me, but this will be my last contribution. So, farewell Aus. I hope you enjoy your next 14,000 posts, but really, perhaps you should do what I am about to do – get out on your bike more. However, if you can’t or don’t ride then at least spend less time in front of a PC. You could perhaps meditate to the mantra “ The word of is not an appropriate alternative to have or its contraction ‘ve”. Enlightenment would soon come if you work at it.

“Dumb as a dog” – coming from someone who at times seems truly Glaikit, I’ll take that as a compliment. So, Bye, bye and thanks for all the invective it’s been a truly down lifting experience.

Footnote.
This is what you actually said in response to someone laughing at the Spanish not being hard workers and you can't pretend that any so called 'context' makes it acceptable. “Well they are either working or begging.” When, not surprisingly, some people took offence you then went on a lengthy and insulting back tracking exercise which included such gems as “…people who I know who have been to Spain have seen beggars everywhere”, and then called a Spaniard who challenged you a “moron” because he did not like the tone of what you’d written.


Scottish dialect words.
Numpty – one who is intellectually challenged

Glaikit – stupid, senseless

 

[Anonymous]

I've never argued the corporate tax rate being the sole reason for our jobs situation. C-Corps are generally larger companies with anywhere from dozens to tens of thousands of employees (or more). So, they can't be discounted in terms of the employment picture. When there is as much US corporate profit abroad as there is at this moment and the players involved indicate they will not bring that money home until our tax rate becomes competitive with the rest of the developed world, what should we do? Sit around and call them un-patriotic? Maybe we should actually listen to some of their ideas. I'm quite sure Obama is smart enough to figure out if their ideas have merit or if it's all self interest.

But we are now at a standstill and there is no movement whatsoever. So, the Immelt's of the world are just going to sit tight and see what's going to happen.

This isn't a new phenomenon. They were doing this when the economy was fine, and were producing jobs then. What that tells me is that the issue of corporate tax rate has little to do with job creation. It is lower now than under Reagan, why did they create jobs then if this is such a key issue?

The fact is that the reasons for our continued recession have little to nothing to do with corporate tax policy.

But yea, you guys only call on patriotism when it comes to getting stupid people to buy into wars meant to further corporate interests so that those same corporations can then deny our country the revenue we make possible for them...so calling them "unpatriotic" will have little effect...

 

[redtreviso]

Neither Gramm nor Greenspan have or ever had the power to stop something like Google or Apple or Home Depot or Starbucks from happening. They can make it more difficult, like now, but they can't stop it.

There will always be good ideas that make it to the marketplace.

tell me all the new googles and apples or home depots or starbucks that are happening now.. GLB made the fed just a liquidity tool of wall street not to serve business in general..Gramm and Greenspan are all about the "have alreadies"..Close off the base mechanics of commercial banking except to wall street and preserve the status quo..

 

[Anonymous]

Why someone would even consider voting for anyone in that field of Republicans after that debate last night is completely beyond me.

While I am certainly not a supporter, I think you misjudge why people vote for specific candidates. In the US, we vote on image, and Romney provides the image of strength and certainty. That will sell, because presidential elections are beauty pageants more than anything.

 

[Anonymous]

tell me all the new googles and apples or home depots or starbucks that are happening now.. GLB made the fed just a liquidity tool of wall street not to serve business in general..Gramm and Greenspan are all about the "have alreadies"..Close off the base mechanics of commercial banking except to wall street and preserve the status quo..

This is just so weak. There are probably more good ideas being brought to market in poor economic times then any other. FFS, google "groupon".

 

[redtreviso]

This is just so weak. There are probably more good ideas being brought to market in poor economic times then any other. FFS, google "groupon".

Just a week or two ago you were complaining about small businesses not being able to get loans.. The fed and the banks and the brokers would rather invest in a bet on you going bankrupt than to loan you money. To depersonalize. They would rather invest and thrive on the failures of others.

 

[Anonymous]

Just a week or two ago you were complaining about small businesses not being able to get loans.. The fed and the banks and the brokers would rather invest in a bet on you going bankrupt than to loan you money. To depersonalize. They would rather invest and thrive on the failures of others.

I'm not sure what you are on about here.

Groupon was started with private equity. Same with Home Depot and Starbucks.... it's not uncommon.

We already know why banks are not lending to small and very small companies.

 

[redtreviso]

Dirty Birds??? Vitter doesn't even know who the Saints are playing..He must have another diaper date.



""Vitter, a former Rhodes Scholar whose Senate career has consisted of having constant sex with prostitutes and then trying to repair his image by sending irritating, pandering press releases about nothing for extremely short-term political gain, all the time, thought he'd found a sly opportunity to please his Louisiana constituency by pledging to skip out on work for an evening to host a New Orleans Saints party. Harry Reid's office got wind of this and issued a statement calling it "a sad commentary on the state of the Republican Party when a Republican senator is whining about having to show a modicum of respect to the President of the United States, and do the job his constituents hired him – and are paying him – to do."

But churning out a run-of-the-mill press release wasn't all Harry Reid did! From the Washington Post:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has scheduled a vote for Thursday to proceed on a measure related to the country's debt – a can't-miss vote for most members.

The timing of the vote? Right after Obama's 7 p.m. jobs speech.

Reid's move means that the few Senate Republicans who had planned to skip town Thursday night are now reconsidering their options.

Vitter responded with this semi-legible whine to his constituents:

"Typical Harry Reid," Vitter wrote to supporters in a message with the subject line, "More Scheduling Hijinks." "He's now scheduled votes that should've been held this morning for right before and right AFTER prez's speech. Pens in those who would have skipped speech, like me. So now I'll miss my own Saints game party at home. Always knew Harry was a Dirty Birds fan! Don't worry - only strengthens my Who Dat resolve. On to the Super Bowl!"
""

http://gawker.com/5838447/david-vitter-is-the-senates-saddest-little-boy

 

[Cobblestones]

In yesterday's debate, the only grown up was Huntsman; all the others looked like idiots. Now, even when I look at Huntsman's proposal, there's a lot of repub boilerplate. Very little original thought, but he has a small operation, presumably, so you can't expect much from it.

The really, truly frightening thing, when you think about it, is that any and every person in this library (with the possible exception of the moderators) would make Olde Saint Ron look like a raving lunatic somewhere to the left of Kucinich.

Anyhoo, that's not really what I wanted to discuss. If we step back and look at the big picture, I would like to step back to the year 1989, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the year of the Tiananmen massacre. In other words, we witness the demise of the global left. On one side of the globe, socialist government are overthrown by popular uprisings, while on the other side, a similar protest movement is brutally suppressed. Subsequently economic reforms are enacted to increase prosperity and to discourage further protest, essentially transforming China to the authoritarian mercantilist model of today.

Now, what happens to the capitalist system - a system based on competition - when the main competitor suddenly disappears (or gets bought up as would be a more fitting analogy)? Simple. When before, the capitalist system had to provide a social safety net for the masses (because otherwise, socialism might have been seen as a tempting alternative), this doesn't seem necessary any more. In fact, the newest competitor on the block, China, with its union suppressing, wage depressing, largely unregulated (in terms of environmental protection, workers rights etc.) economic system slowly forces the competition, which are the Western (and the new Eastern) democracies to adapt to similar strategies.

And there you have it. An explanation for yesterday's debate. Seven intellectual dwarfs plus Huntsman all of them together make GOP icon Ronald Reagan look like Dennis Kucinich.

 

[rhubroma]

You are certainly not alone in that view. Nixon was criminal, that's well established. GWB evil? I suppose that only makes sense if you believe the worst theories regarding Iraq or perhaps if you believe other theories of 9/11 being an inside job.

I don't know what in GWB's heart and I'll bet you don't either.



Obama has not faced opposition much if any different then Clinton faced, Bush faced or Reagan faced. The left lost their mind from the minute GWB was sworn in after the 2000 election. The left lost their mind when Reagan was elected. I'm old enough to remember those those days. Tip O'Neil and the boys were pretty freaking hard on Reagan.

The right came pretty close to impeaching Clinton. Bush has been savaged by the left. So don't think that opposition to Obama is something new.

Obama's race has nothing to do with anything. His incompetence has a lot to do with everything.

As for views from Europe, I have friends and travel there too. You are going to tell me the situation boiling in Belgium right now is what.... level headed? The country is poised to split (again). The systems of government in most of the eurozone are strained to the brink of collapse. Why? For the political structure you support. Social Utopia. It sounds great, but it doesn't work out well in the end. So tell me, when Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy demand so much from the Germans and French that the zone disintegrates, how "dangerous" will that situation be?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/64020390/xrm45126

UBS speaks of martial law and perhaps civil war. So I'm not sure your side has it all figured out just yet.



I have been fortunate. I have made some good decisions and some bad ones. I'm not at all wealthy. I have a good life, married a woman much better than me, go to work every day and try and enjoy my life. Probably not much different than you.

There are a few things you simply can't understand.

Precisely because there is foment and social unrest in Europe indicates a more vibrant political debate, not all of which is good (some of which is merely appalling - Lega Nord per esampio - though just about all of it from the extreme right). In truth Europe may ultimately not succeed, but this will be precisely because of a type of financial and liberal capitalism devoid of any social conscience that is quickly reaching its expiration date; while I'm becoming more convinced every day that if there's any hope of finding a new path then Europe's failure might enable the Europeans to lead themselves, and with them perhaps the world, toward its discovery. I am also quite sure that this America will never lead itself, nor the world, in any such direction, because it simply can't with all the pressing concerns of trying to maintain the empire and be the superpower. I therefore see the continued struggle here as indicative of confronting positions, which means that Europes democracy is, if not entirely functional, at least open to new possibilities. By contrast I don't see America's democracy as being open to any new possibilities. Obama's presidency is a brutal demonstration of this.

Europe, at least until quite recently when things have started becoming more centrist, had lived a much more vivacious socio-political culture. The struggle for building identity in the post-WWII/Cold War period, in addition to the legacy of regional conflicts and histories, was far more dramatic than anything you might be acquainted with. This means that Europeans often see things in ways that would be hard for you to relate to, especially as conservative as you are. There are simply a great many of them that couldn't give a damn about the economy, for instance, or at least not in the terms it is often discussed by you.

Believe it or not despite the human condition (nature) being pretty much the same wherever you go, all the cultural forces at work (environment) in a particular place have a much greater impact on shaping a person's worldview and their forma mentis. Amsterhammer's analysis is quite correct when he tells you how different the perceptions have become on both sides of the Atlantic. The political choices voters face on your side, could never be viable candidates here and vice versa. As these differences in culture and in worldview become ever more widening, this can only lead to more strained relations and a sense of not dealing with people of a same Western civilization.

All of this means that, contrary to how you may perceive things, it is in fact much different here than you could possibly imagine from your world in SoCal, as is also indicated by our conversations and yours with Amsterhammer. And knowing a few friends who travel here every so often, is no means for you to feel that you have comfortably grasped the situation. You have not.

Bush, for instance, is viewed by just about all the people I frequent as someone who should be put on trial for war crimes. Given that his and his administration's blatant prevarications led to a disastrous war, especially for the 100's of thousands of civilian lives that were sacrificed basically for a ruse that was an ideological plot for oil.

As far as the right in America today goes, I have already commented amply on my views about them. But there is simply an ultra-patriotic, fundamentalist and down right anti-progressive ideology governing them, so that if they are left unchecked (as we have seen when the neocons ruled) become a real threat to the state of peace and stability throughout the world.

Obama inherited the worst situation any US president has ever had to contend with - multi-front wars that can never be won and a ruined economy - and there are to many vested interests, even within his own political party, to be able to do much, if anything, about. Not even the Great Depression/WWII era was this terrible, for then America's power was on the rise, whereas today it is in precipitous decline.

I make no excuses for him. But this is the cold truth.

While when we look at the potential republican White House candidates, each one is more awful than the next. This is also the truth.

 

[Anonymous]

In yesterday's debate, the only grown up was Huntsman; all the others looked like idiots. Now, even when I look at Huntsman's proposal, there's a lot of repub boilerplate. Very little original thought, but he has a small operation, presumably, so you can't expect much from it.

The really, truly frightening thing, when you think about it, is that any and every person in this library (with the possible exception of the moderators) would make Olde Saint Ron look like a raving lunatic somewhere to the left of Kucinich.

Anyhoo, that's not really what I wanted to discuss. If we step back and look at the big picture, I would like to step back to the year 1989, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the year of the Tiananmen massacre. In other words, we witness the demise of the global left. On one side of the globe, socialist government are overthrown by popular uprisings, while on the other side, a similar protest movement is brutally suppressed. Subsequently economic reforms are enacted to increase prosperity and to discourage further protest, essentially transforming China to the authoritarian mercantilist model of today.

Now, what happens to the capitalist system - a system based on competition - when the main competitor suddenly disappears (or gets bought up as would be a more fitting analogy)? Simple. When before, the capitalist system had to provide a social safety net for the masses (because otherwise, socialism might have been seen as a tempting alternative), this doesn't seem necessary any more. In fact, the newest competitor on the block, China, with its union suppressing, wage depressing, largely unregulated (in terms of environmental protection, workers rights etc.) economic system slowly forces the competition, which are the Western (and the new Eastern) democracies to adapt to similar strategies.

And there you have it. An explanation for yesterday's debate. Seven intellectual dwarfs plus Huntsman all of them together make GOP icon Ronald Reagan look like Dennis Kucinich.

Well, I guess the solution is not allow the #1 market in the world to collapse.

Say what you want about the intellectual dwarfs on stage, one of them will be our next President. To that end, Romney is correct when he states the way out of our economic mess is economic growth and the employment that goes with it.

Also, China does not own us. Were are into them for about a Trillion. The American holders of US debt have 5X as much as China. I also read today where Fitch is poised to downgrade China's credit rating. China will likely have a very difficult time keeping the value of their currency down (through maniplation) for an extended period of time, so I'm not buying the idea that our marketplace will have to bend to their standards. The Chinese standard will rise. The value of their currency will also rise and a 7 -9% annual rate of GDP growth is not sustainable, so that will eventually slow.

 

[Anonymous]

There are a few things you simply can't understand.

Precisely because there is foment and social unrest in Europe indicates a more vibrant political debate, not all of which is good (some of which is merely appalling - Lega Nord per esampio - though just about all of it from the extreme right). In truth Europe may ultimately not succeed, but this will be precisely because of a type of financial and liberal capitalism devoid of any social conscience that is quickly reaching its expiration date; while I'm becoming more convinced every day that if there's any hope of finding a new path then Europe's failure might enable the Europeans to lead themselves, and with them perhaps the world, toward its discovery. I am also quite sure that this America will never lead itself, nor the world, in any such direction, because it simply can't with all the pressing concerns of trying to maintain the empire and be the superpower. I therefore see the continued struggle here as indicative of confronting positions, which means that Europes democracy is, if not entirely functional, at least open to new possibilities. By contrast I don't see America's democracy as being open to any new possibilities. Obama's presidency is a brutal demonstration of this.

Europe, at least until quite recently when things have started becoming more centrist, had lived a much more vivacious socio-political culture. The struggle for building identity in the post-WWII/Cold War period, in addition to the legacy of regional conflicts and histories, was far more dramatic than anything you might be acquainted with. This means that Europeans often see things in ways that would be hard for you to relate to, especially as conservative as you are. There are simply a great many of them that couldn't give a damn about the economy, for instance, or at least not in the terms it is often discussed by you.

Believe it or not despite the human condition (nature) being pretty much the same wherever you go, all the cultural forces at work (environment) in a particular place have a much greater impact on shaping a person's worldview and their forma mentis. Amsterhammer's analysis is quite correct when he tells you how different the perceptions have become on both sides of the Atlantic. The political choices voters face on your side, could never be viable candidates here and vice versa. As these differences in culture and in worldview become ever more widening, this can only lead to more strained relations and a sense of not dealing with people of a same Western civilization.

All of this means that, contrary to how you may perceive things, it is in fact much different here than you could possibly imagine from your world in SoCal, as is also indicated by our conversations and yours with Amsterhammer. And knowing a few friends who travel here every so often, is no means for you to feel that you have comfortably grasped the situation. You have not.

Bush, for instance, is viewed by just about all the people I frequent as someone who should be put on trial for war crimes. Given that his and his administration's blatant prevarications led to a disastrous war, especially for the 100's of thousands of civilian lives that were sacrificed basically for a ruse that was an ideological plot for oil.

As far as the right in America today goes, I have already commented amply on my views about them. But there is simply an ultra-patriotic, fundamentalist and down right anti-progressive ideology governing them, so that if they are left unchecked (as we have seen when the neocons ruled) become a real threat to the state of peace and stability throughout the world.

Obama inherited the worst situation any US president has ever had to contend with - multi-front wars that can never be won and a ruined economy - and there are to many vested interests, even within his own political party, to be able to do much, if anything, about. Not even the Great Depression/WWII era was this terrible, for then America's power was on the rise, whereas today it is in precipitous decline.

I make no excuses for him. But this is the cold truth.

While when we look at the potential republican White House candidates, each one is more awful than the next. This is also the truth.

Well Rhub, we all have opinions. That I can't understand something is a bit of your arrogance showing.

In truth Europe may ultimately not succeed, but this will be precisely because of a type of financial and liberal capitalism devoid of any social conscience that is quickly reaching its expiration date; while I'm becoming more convinced every day that if there's any hope of finding a new path then Europe's failure might enable the Europeans to lead themselves, and with them perhaps the world, toward its discovery. I am also quite sure that this America will never lead itself, nor the world, in any such direction, because it simply can't with all the pressing concerns of trying to maintain the empire and be the superpower.

Much of Europe is collapsing from the weight of promises made to the public under the guise of social conscious. Time and time again this fails. You hope, by failure of a system that has never worked (on a grand scale), that Europe will be led to discovery. Discovery of what? The 25th re-work of a socialist model that will ultimately fail (again)?

Poor Obama. Just a victim of circumstance. I guess none of the situation the US economy is in right this second has anything whatsoever to do with this president. It's entirely the fault of the last guy.

Priceless analysis.

 

[Hairy Wheels]

Well Rhub, we all have opinions. That I can't understand something is a bit of your arrogance showing.



Much of Europe is collapsing from the weight of promises made to the public under the guise of social conscious. Time and time again this fails. You hope, by failure of a system that has never worked (on a grand scale), that Europe will be led to discovery. Discovery of what? The 25th re-work of a socialist model that will ultimately fail (again)?

Poor Obama. Just a victim of circumstance. I guess none of the situation the US economy is in right this second has anything whatsoever to do with this president. It's entirely the fault of the last guy.

Priceless analysis.

Just thought I'd pop by and call you out...you obviously have never been to Europe...it works a whole lot better than the US. I can't believe the conditions I see in the US in so many places. 3rd world poverty that you just don't see in Europe. It's awful.

And the US model of socialism is better? Socialism for the rich and capitalism for the rest of us. You just buy the crap they shovel that's all.

 

[Anonymous]

Just thought I'd pop by and call you out...you obviously have never been to Europe...it works a whole lot better than the US. I can't believe the conditions I see in the US in so many places. 3rd world poverty that you just don't see in Europe. It's awful.

And the US model of socialism is better? Socialism for the rich and capitalism for the rest of us. You just buy the crap they shovel that's all.

"It" works better in Europe? What is "it"?

No poverty in Europe? Really?

I can't believe the conditions I see in the US in so many places. 3rd world poverty that you just don't see in Europe. It's awful.

This is a real testament to the social welfare system and war on poverty here is the US, wouldn't you agree?

More scintillating analysis loaded with specifics.

Thanks for calling me out. I consider myself set straight now.

 

[Anonymous]

Well, I don't think that speech is going to change much of anything. It certainly will not ensure his jobs bill passes.

 

[redtreviso]

How did Eric Cantor make it through Junior High without the smallest girls beating him to death?

 

[Semper Fidelis]

What determines whether a President is seen at the time, or perceived by history, as being 'good or 'bad'? I'm just a simple old fool who lives abroad, so my perspective is probably different to most who live in the US and who have to put up with the sh!t and horror that passes for 'normal' life in the US today.

I pass presidential judgement based on my perception of where the guy's heart is, what his intentions are, and whether or not he appears to be just plain stupid, evil, a criminal, a war criminal, or all of these, like the last idiot from Texas. Yes, I'm still on about Alpe's ridiculous contention that Obama is 'worse' than Nixon or Dubya were. In my view, the mere fact that any intelligent person can come to such a conclusion truly beggars belief. Obama has been a huge, mega-disappointment to all those of us who voted for him and who hoped for at least some of the change that he promised. I, like many, wish that he had shown more balls to push through his agenda, to implement affordable comprehensive health care, to close Gitmo, to regulate the banks and corproations, to make taxation more equitable, and to bring Bush era war criminals to justice. Obama also had the misfortune to inherit the worst economic meltdown since the Great Depression. Sure, he's been a failure and a great disappointment to his supporters around the world, but he's not an evil man, so to compare him to vile and evil criminals like Nixon or Dubya is totally beyond the pale in my book.

I can't believe how many pages have been added in the few days since I last looked in here, and although there are loads of comments I'd like to respond to, I really can't be bothered to trawl through all these posts that divert from the essence of the problem - namely, that the current US system of government is literally, figuratively, and morally bankrupt - from top to bottom. That is not Obama's fault. That is down to the fact that an essentially and traditionally very right wing country, has mutated into an extreme right wing one, enslaved to the God of Extreme Profit and increasingly dominated by reactionary thought of a kind usually only seen in Arab sheikdoms or banana republics; a country that is still trying to regulate its affairs based on an outdated 200 year old document in a social climate where any progressive thought is labeled left wing or extreme left wing, and where God is constantly called upon for guidance.

Even the right wingers here (except for Scott, of course) appear to agree that the system is broken beyond mere 'repair', yet few, if any, are prepared to accept the logical conclusion that some of us expat lefties have inevitably and sadly come to - some kind of fundamental social/political/economic revolution needs to take place before the country lurches even further to the extreme lunatic right under someone like Perry, Bachmann or heaven forbid, Palin. Not enough people in the US seem to realize or care that US politics are the laughing stock of the world. In previous centuries, many people around the world saw the US as an egalitarian society that promised a better life, a progressive country that stood up for freedom and democracy in an otherwise corrupt and reactionary old world. That view has tilted 180 degrees. The US now personifies bullying, repression and social injustice. US military and economic support has kept the vilest regimes imaginable in power, and allowed these to continue to repress their own people.

Start by putting all the lawyers up against a very big wall. (Yes, this means most of Congress.) Allow the ultra-loony Hun wing to secede from the union, expel the worst dregs of our corrupt society......I'm starting to repeat myself, so I better stop now.

who are the right wingers? Hey do me a favor and stay an expat. I do not need your stupid revolution.

I can not wait to vote for Perry and his guns!

 

[rides like a girl]

Don't post here often as seeminly there are two camps that are well entrenched in their beliefs. Nothing posted will change the mind or sway the other camp, so i read but don't post. I am very liberal socially. Hate attacks on voters rights and womens rights. Don't like we insert religion, Christian mainly, in our political system. I am protective of our water ways precious to our survival in the West.

I liked his speech tonight. He was not the professor in his delivery with long winded examples. He broke things down very simply for the 30 second phrases crew. (those independents who wanted to have a beer with Bush so they voted for him)

Like that he called out the no tax repubs on their non-action on payroll tax cut set to expire, yet dealt with bush cuts for wealthy already.

Like that he gave direct examples... you are either for this or for that pitting a middle class benefit against a wealthy advantage. They make good slogans for an election. I was stuck on one of the crumbling, overcrowded highways in my carpool coming home from work so only listened on radio, but had commentary in car as speech was broadcast, so can't recall every word. I think one of these examples was to close tax loopholes for wealthy so they pay more or you employ more teachers...

Wish mainstream media in the US would show the clip not shown on tv during the debate showing Perry getting in the face of Paul. He even made contact with the 70 something year old man...If you have to bully a 70 year old man, not sure you are balanced enough to be president.

Now on to my 2nd favorite sport football!!!