SHUT UP

One of the better commentaries from Andrew Klavan in a while

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWHgUE9AD4s

A Glimpse of History

Henry Morgenthau was a close friend of Franklin Roosevelt,and FDR appointed Morgenthau as Secretary of the Treasury in 1933. By 1939, the New Deal was into its seventh year, and the Great Depression continued.

On May 9, 1939, Morgenthau met with the leaders of the House Ways and Means Committee in a private meeting of Democrat leaders. Morgenthau included a transcript of the meeting in his “diary,” which was a hodgepodge of documents, memoranda, and diary entries that became thousands of pages by the time Morgenthau left office in 1945.

Morgenthau’s diary is on microfilm at the Franklin Roosevelt Presidential Library in Hyde Park, New York. On microfilm roll #50 of the Morgenthau Diary, readers will find the transcript of Morgenthau’s now-famous quote, on frame #41 from the May 9th meeting:

“Now, gentlemen, we have tried spending money. We are spending more than we have ever spent before and it does not work.”

The Immigration Policy of Absurdistan

Most of us unsophisticated Americans can’t fathom the veracity of the arguments propagated by the wizards of smart in the legal agitation business. The average American cannot comprehend why a president can succeed with his insouciance toward illegal immigration, while states that desire to enforce our core laws are overpowered by the ACLU and the courts.

http://www.redstate.com/dhorowitz3/2011/06/28/the-immigration-policy-of-absurdistan-legal-is-illegal-illegal-is-legal/

The Debt: Catastrophic Urgency, Little Concern

This article was written in 1984 when our national debt was "only" $1.57 TRILLION. It now stands at $14.3 TRILLION. "The dangers associated with this debt are very real, and the final principal evil resulting from this debt will be a debasement of the national currency, or in other words, monetization of the debt. Monetization of the U.S. Federal deficit is the most politically acceptable way to “pay” the deficit; however, the consequences of this inflation will be devastating. Economically speaking, a reduction in Federal spending is the only way to reduce our deficits and eliminate the temptation to inflate the money supply if the U.S. is to prosper in the future......“The country,” declares G. C. Wie-gand, “is faced with grave problems—thirty years of inflationary boom may be followed by thirty years of relative decline, which may seriously affect the character of American society, free enterprise, and personal freedom,—but the country has the potential economic, social, and moral resources to overcome the threatening crisis. It all depends upon whether the leaders have the necessary wisdom and courage to lead, and the people have the stamina and will to make necessary sacrifices. The future of America is ultimately not an economic but a moral issue.”^[12]

^{http://www.thefreemanonline.org/columns/the-debt-catastrophic-urgency-little-concern/}

What a Real Victory in 2012 Would Look Like

Barack Obama is but the sum and culmination, and perhaps even the creature, of intellectual and cultural developments and interest groups that have come to dominate much of American society, and most of American elites, for a century. We can't throw all of those bums out. But we can define victory in 2012 as tying successfully to the bum in the White House as many of those other bums and their bum ideas as possible, and giving them all the deep six.....Culturally, the idea that conservatives are dopes, and that opposing them identifies one with the best and the brightest among us, should not be allowed to survive this election. Never in the course of human history have so many allegedly incandescent minds, gilt-edged credentials and brilliant ideas been gathered in one Administration, we were told -- and to what effect? .... When purveyors of elitist orthodoxy attempt the supercilious pose in the campaign, they need to be reminded of their sorry record of gullibility and collaboration, and of the emptiness of the ideas and theories they foisted so glibly upon our suffering people.

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/06/a_victory_worth_winning.html

The Progressive Income Tax

This article was written in 1961 and gives a good accounting of a progressive income tax and the sequela. Here is an excerpt: "How “moral” is this approach to equality via the tax collector? If the end to be achieved were a benevolent brotherhood, then there might be something to be said for it. But the means are neither relevant to nor consistent with such an end. Equality via the tax collector operates through the social motive of envy, not love or charity. It begins with the politics of “soak the rich.” Soon the definition of “rich” is expanded to include the middle classes. And it all ends with the exaltation of the bureaucrat, who is in charge of spending the spoils. Minorities are inevitably put at the mercy of majorities—and everybody is at the mercy of the politicos, who get first whack at the resources of the state".

http://www.thefreemanonline.org/columns/the-progressive-income-tax/

The Spirit of Democratic Capitalism

The book was written by Michael Novak in 1982. The author presents a cogent, moral defense of Democratic Capitalism These are excerpts of a book review from "The Freeman".

"The author must be credited with a major achievement. He set for himself the task of articulating a moral theory and a theological base for the implicit ideals of democratic capitalism. His success is to have made a credible, compelling, intellectually solid and theoretically sound presentation of the political economy of the free society. He shows it to be the spiritually and morally commendable alternative to the collective and compulsive ethic of socialism.......Novak first inquires into the structural dynamics which are requisite for and, in turn, give nurture to the economic order which expresses itself in a noncoercive society, a social order within which individuals and peoples may realize, through the vocations to which they believe they have been called, the greatest degree of personal dignity, human freedom and personhood. The free economy requires in practice a moral-cultural ethos, and it is a failure of democratic capitalism not to have made a moral presentation of itself to the world.....Novak next examines the socialist idea and displays its hollowness against the backdrop of the realities and the promise of democratic capitalism. The genius of the free society is its recognition that the most precious of all common goods is the individuality of each person, and that the best way to increase the common good is to empower people through differentiated systems. Collectivism, by contrast, pits man against man. It narrows the circles of trust and goodwill as groups competing for the same allocations run afoul of each other’s interests. The end result is a zero-sum society which promotes the Hobbesian “war of all against all.” Economic growth, liberty, and opportunity for social mobility on the other hand promotes charity, trust, and cooperation.

The Lies a Fed Chairman Tells

From Peter Schiff

http://www.europac.net/media/video_blog

The Truth about Tax Cuts

Since tax revenues move up and down with GDP, the common-sense way to increase tax revenues is to expand the economy. This should start with a commitment not to raise taxes. Beyond that commitment, pro-growth policies such as revenue-neutral tax reforms dedicated to reducing tax rates, restrained federal spending, minimal regulation and free trade would raise more tax revenues than would be raised by self-defeating tax increases.

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/06/22/morning-bell-the-truth-about-tax-cuts/?query=Morning+Bell:+The+Truth+About+Tax+Cuts

2011 Budget Chart Book

The Heritage Foundation has published the Federal Budget in graph and chart form. The information is broken down by Federal Spending, Debt and Deficits, Federal Revenue and Entitlements. If this doesn't convince you that government spending is out of control, nothing will.

http://www.heritage.org/BudgetChartBook/

The Medical Marketplace, Free and Unfree

To progressives, the doctor-patient relationship is not really all that special. Instead, healthcare is a privilege to be granted at the prerogative of the ruling class. Progressives do not reject the idea of consumer sovereignty because it is economically or ethically flawed, but rather because the act of being a consumer requires that an individual's natural rights be fully protected. The recognition of such rights represents a check on arbitrary power, and as such it is the enemy of the state and ruling elites, who have an insatiable lust for power and control over the rest of us.

http://mises.org/daily/5359/The-Medical-Marketplace-Free-and-Unfree

Liberty and the Power of Ideas

The battle for the preservation and advancement of liberty is a battle not against personalities but against opposing ideas. The French author Victor Hugo declared that “One resists the invasion of armies; one does not resist the invasion of ideas.” This is often rendered as, “More powerful than armies is an idea whose time has come.” Consider the freedom philosophy. It is an uplifting, regenerative, motivating, creative, exciting philosophy. It appeals to and relies on the higher qualities of human nature such as self-reliance, personal responsibility, individual initiative, respect for property, and voluntary cooperation.

http://www.thefreemanonline.org/columns/ideas-and-consequences/liberty-and-the-power-of-ideas

Insights of the Day

"Under our Constitution, the federal government has delegated, enumerated and thus limited powers. Power is delegated by the founding generation or through subsequent amendment (that makes it legitimate); enumerated in the constitution (that makes it legal); and limited by that enumeration. As the 10th Amendment says, if a power hasn’t been delegated, the federal government doesn’t have it. For 150 years, that design held for the most part. When faced with a welfare bill in 1794, for example, James Madison, the principal author of the Constitution, rose in the House to say that he could find no constitutional authority for the bill. A century later, when Congress passed a similar measure, President Cleveland vetoed it as beyond Congress’ authority. That all changed during the New Deal as both congress and the president sought to expand federal power. When the Supreme court objected, rather than amend the Constitution, Franklin D. Roosevelt tried to pack the court with six additional members. The scheme failed, but the threat worked. Thereafter, the court started reading the Constitution’s General Welfare and Commerce Clauses so broadly that the doctrine of enumerated powers was essentially destroyed—and with it limited government." -- Roger Pilon
Vice President for Legal Affairs for the Cato Institute
Source: Founders Intended Only Limited Powers, USA Today, Friday, July 21, 1995.

"If you want irresponsible politicians to spend less, you must give them less to spend."
-- Irwin Schiff (libertarian)

Peter Schiff's biweekly economic prognostications

http://www.europac.net/media/video_blog

Father's Day and the Importance of Marriage

The Heritage Foundation’s Robert Rector points to the root cause of the tragedy of child poverty in America:

Child poverty is an ongoing national concern, but few are aware that its principal cause is the absence of married fathers in the home. Marriage remains America’s strongest anti-poverty weapon, yet it continues to decline. As husbands disappear from the home, poverty and welfare dependence will increase, and children and parents will suffer as a result.

Fathers are essential to protecting the well-being of children and, subsequently, to promoting the stability of society. Being raised by a married father and mother is vital to preventing childhood poverty and the host of social ills related to it. On this Father’s Day, the nation should recommit to strengthening and promoting the institution most likely to help fathers fulfill their crucial role: marriage.

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/06/17/morning-bell-fathers-day-and-the-importance-of-marriage/

Economic Smackdown: Paul Ryan vs. Barack Obama

Andrew Klavan's politically satirical view on the alternatives to tackling our oncoming economic crisis

http://www.pjtv.com/?cmd=mpg&mpid=80&load=5603

How the Experts are Wrecking Healthcare

Classic quotation from Friedrich Hölderlin: "What has always made the state a hell on earth has been precisely that man has tried to make it his heaven."

There are a multitude of reasons why government planning always fails. These reasons include, but are not limited to, the denial of consumer sovereignty, the ineptitude of central planners and their inability to account for the actions of millions of individuals living in different situations and responding to different incentives, and the willingness of policymakers to sacrifice honesty and prudence for expedience and power.

http://mises.org/daily/5320/How-the-Experts-Are-Wrecking-Healthcare

Roosevelt Redux: How Obama is Creating a Depression of His Own

Roosevelt responded to the recession he inherited with a combination of massive spending on new government programs and sweeping controls over private industry, (sound familiar?). His thinking was that government spending would get people back to work, and controls over private industry would end deflation. Rules and regulations over private industry were put in place designed, incredibly, to increase the prices of goods. The President and his advisors thought deflation was a cause of the recession. But of course it wasn't a cause; it was a result.

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/06/roosevelt_redux_how_obama_is_creating_a_great_depression_of_his_own.html

Not Entitled - Ending Medicare does not mean abandoning the Elderly

A welfare program to help the truly needy is something a decent society can and should support in accordance with its means, but it is not a right. The federal government need not micromanage such a welfare program; it would best be left to the ingenuity of the states, private insurers, charities, and families. A well-conceived welfare program would encourage personal responsibility rather than dependency — you want people moving out of it rather than being recruited into it. A federal entitlement is something that is owed regardless of the country’s financial condition. The central government must enforce it by coercing participation. And, because enough is never enough for those who see themselves as entitled to take, government officials are incentivized to ply beneficiaries with more and more goodies, further punishing thrift and personal responsibility.

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/269379/not-entitled-andrew-c-mccarthy?page=1

Teacher Arrested

A public school teacher was arrested today at John F. Kennedy International airport as he attempted to board a flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a compass, a slide-rule and a calculator. At a morning press conference, Attorney General Eric Holder said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al-Gebra movement. He did not identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math instruction.

'Al-Gebra is a problem for us', the Attorney General said. 'They derive solutions by means and extremes, and sometimes go off on tangents in search of absolute values.' They use secret code names like 'X' and 'Y' and refer to themselves as 'unknowns', but we have determined that they belong to a common denominator of the axis of medieval with coordinates in every country. As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say, 'There are 3 sides to every triangle'.

When asked to comment on the arrest, President Obama said, 'If G-d had wanted us to have better weapons of math instruction, he would have given us more fingers and toes.' White House aides told reporters they could not recall a more intelligent or profound statement by the President - It is believed that another Nobel Prize will follow.

Ronald Reagan - my personal favorite

"There are many well-meaning people today who work at placing an economic floor beneath all of us so that no one shall exist below a certain level or standard of living, and certainly we don't quarrel with this. But look more closely and
you may find that all too often these well-meaning people are building a ceiling above which no one shall be permitted to climb and between the two are pressing us all into conformity, into a mold of standardized mediocrity."
-- Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) 40th US President

Peter Schiff was right in 2006-2007

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2I0QN-FYkpw

Thoughts for the Day

"It is a sobering fact that the prominence of central banks in this century has coincided with a general tendency towards more inflation, not less. [I]f the overriding objective is price stability, we did better with the nineteenth-century gold standard and passive central banks, with currency boards, or even with 'free banking.' The truly unique power of a central bank, after all, is the power to create money, and ultimately the power to create is the power to destroy."
-- Paul Volcker former Federal Reserve chairman

"The American Republic will endure, until politicians realize they can bribe the people with their own money."
Alexis de Tocqueville [Alexis Charles Henri Maurice Clerel, le Comte de Tocqueville] (1805-1859) French historian

America's Stupidest Family

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akWNX5I75Ms

The Rights of Man

Great YouTube video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jONF4D_sTK8

Another Devastating Jobs Report

As every economist outside the White House and the New York Times now recognizes, a healthy recovery is not just around the corner. Economists have been racing to lower their second quarter and full-year GDP estimates to below 2%. There is growing apprehension that the economy is slipping back into recession. And all of this is happening because of the President's intense hostility toward capitalism.

http://www.americanthinker.com/2011/06/another_devastating_jobs_report.html

Sorting Out the News

Well, the economic news is in, and it is grim. Unemployment is up. QE2 is not working. The stimulus didn’t work. The bailouts of Chrysler and GM are expensive, and GM stock tanked this week. What larger observations can we make? I have three.

http://www.burtfolsom.com/

Unemployment goes up, Obama declares victory

Unemployment in the United States increased again last month to 9.1 percent, with the Obama economy adding only 54,000 jobs—thefewest in eight months. Today’s terrible jobs report is much worse than expected. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had grimly predicted 160,000 new jobs and an unemployment rate of 8.9 percent earlier this week.

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/06/03/morning-bell-unemployment-goes-up-obama-declares-victory/

Double Dip recession fears

This video by Peter Schiff provides a good explanation for the financial dilemma we(USA) are in. You don't need to have an MBA from Harvard to understand the content and consequences provided.

http://www.europac.net/media/video_blog