Near Bush’s sunset, Treasury Secretary Paulson and Fed chairman Bernanke terrified the nation with “the sky’s falling and America is doomed” unless the government steps in with new regulations, institutional takeovers and massive lending. Congress hastily approved. Guess what? It didn’t work; more banks and corporations failed and unemployment zoomed.
Even before inauguration Barack Obama begun fear mongering, “If we don’t act swiftly, the economic decline might be irreversible." Congress signed Obama’s unprecedented “stimulus” package without even reading it. Where did President Obama get the impression that history owes him $2 trillion to spend on whatever he wants, the right to live out his personal dream of being Franklin Roosevelt?
His irritating language reminds me of the arrogance of George Bush who similarly believed that history owed him a gargantuan war in the tradition of FDR. In farewell Bush said, “I had to push aside my free-market ideas in the face of this crisis.” Say what? Presiding over the destruction of American prosperity with the largest spending spree in history and he calls himself a free-market guy? And who can top the arrogance of “we won it, we’ll run it” speaker Pelosi?
America wanted change and got something else. Obama’s head is filled with myths and lies, not only about FDR and the New Deal but also about the government’s power to repair the existing economic problems. He needs to recognize that the New Deal was a calamity far worse than the market plunge that began it. It is utterly bizarre that the Obama gang with befuddled economic credentials crafted an economic plan based on a discredited economic doctrine – failures piled upon failures.
These Washington misfits have no idea how the American market economy works. They wrongly believe that output (production) generates employment (rather than vice versa) and that government spending is a measure of real output; that the central government must spend money in order to stimulate the economy. What a crock. Never mind that this Keynesian trick has never worked in all of human history.
Obama has reversed economic cause and effect. The truth is that production generates employment whereas production feeds on investments. Investments on the other hand are encouraged by cutting taxes and abolishing regulations that thwart entrepreneurial innovations. You cannot make the country rich by looting taxpayers and paying people to repair the peeling walls at public schools. This amounts to capital consumption, a drain on the wealth of society, not investments.
Obama is taking exactly the wrong path. Interest rates should be raised, not lowered. Government spending should be cut, not increased. Taxes should be reduced. Regulations should be cut, not expanded. On the current path, the bozos in Washington are going to wreak whatever hope for recovery there is.
He needs to clear his head of the Babel of silly ideas about the power of government and hostility for the free-market, i.e., his really stupid stimulus speech remark, “Government is the only entity that can solve this crisis.” He should understand that markets are far more powerful than even the bloated federal government and that markets always have a way of healing themselves, no matter what governments do or don't do to try and right them. It is clear that Obama’s top priority is not fixing the economy but a massive socialist expansion of government.
Obama tapped Timothy Geitner for Treasury Secretary to head his economic team, reportedly the only man on the planet that can solve the current crisis. During confirmation, he got the sharpest grilling from Senator Ensign (R-NV). The senator knew history well and asked the wannabe treasury secretary details about the New Deal. Geitner’s answer was incoherent. Imagine: Geitner plans to duplicate the disastrous New Deal for which he is completely ignorant.
Obama heaped praise on Geitner for his upcoming new bailout plan, “he will be just great.” But as soon as Geitner opened his mouth the market began to tumble and it fell nearly 400 points by time he finished. His long awaited plan was full of grandiose talk and fluff but extremely light on details: he announced a "plan to come up with a plan." So investors dumped their stocks.
The danger of the Obama stimulus, however, is that massive government spending will divert financial resources away from the private sector and instead of righting the economy will more likely drive it into a deep depression dragging on for a decade, the same as FDR did. What Obama has done in fact is to declare war on prosperity and freedom.
Columns
March 16, 2009
STUMPTALK: Stimulating a war on prosperity and freedom
- Columns
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GARY'S WORLD: Thank our veterans this weekend
A tremendous opportunity presents itself in our community this weekend — an opportunity to honor those who served in the Vietnam War. Personally, after attending last year's first Welcome Home celebration, I wouldn't want to miss this. It was an emotional event for both Vietnam veterans and ordinary citizens. It was a great way to commemorate Vietnam Veterans Day in Tennessee, March 29.
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RANDOM THOUGHTS: "Antiques Roadshow" comes to Tennessee
If you are one of the 10 million who watch each episode of the “Antiques Roadshow” mark your calendar. The three upcoming Mondays, March 30, April 6 and April 13, were all taped in Chattanooga last July.
- LION AND THE LAMB: An open letter to Sharon Baier I was happy to read your well-written article, printed in last week's Chronicle. It makes a strong case, in the story of Al and Jennifer, that "To make money, you have to spend money." That misguided couple thought that they ought to cut down on their purchase of supplies, to save money. They did so, week after week, until they lost their business.
- WE THE PEOPLE: Veterans storm the Hill When young men and women risk their lives and sacrifice both physical and mental health for their country, a grateful country should at least provide them with shelter, food, and health care. But there is a lot of hypocrisy between what some windbag says on Veterans Day and what the country actually does for veterans.
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THEREFORE I AM: Kids stress out parents? Well, duh!
This just in: According to an expert, children can add stress and strain to a marriage. In other news, further expert studies have indicated that the sky is in fact blue, Paris Hilton is a tad spoiled, peanut butter and chocolate taste great together, and the Middle East has issues. Thank goodness we have experts to tell us these things.
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INSIDE THE FIRST AMENDMENT: With shekels come shackles
When President Obama launched his faith-based initiative at the National Prayer Breakfast on Feb. 5, he promised not only to sustain the Bush administration’s signature domestic program — but to expand it.
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THEREFORE I AM: Jim Croce and I will keep you safe and sound
My philosophy of life is simple: When in doubt, follow the advice of a dead folk-rock star. I always found Jim Croce to be particularly handy in this capacity. Don’t tug on Superman’s cape. Don’t spit into the wind. Don’t pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger, and regardless of how badly you may want to, do not, under any circumstances, mess around with Jim.
- STUMPTALK: Stimulating a war on prosperity and freedom Near Bush’s sunset, Treasury Secretary Paulson and Fed chairman Bernanke terrified the nation with “the sky’s falling and America is doomed” unless the government steps in with new regulations, institutional takeovers and massive lending.
- WE THE PEOPLE: Thoughts on bringing a recession to heel Responding to the recent full-throated baying of conservative “economic watchdogs,” I slogged into the swamp of their icon Adam Smith’s murky tome, “The Wealth of Nations,” to see if they had finally treed anything of value.
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LION AND THE LAMB: Reality
Dim blue of early morning shines into the living room
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