A Fresh Update

Nothing has happened in the past 6 weeks has it?


Good. Anyways, today seems as good a day as any to get this back on track...or at least dump some of my recent musings that i have stored on my computer but not on this blog....

But instead of random thoughts that I have while riding the metro I want take the time to write about something that bothers me. Bailouts.

Without engaging in my standard Austrian influenced rants, let me target two news stories that are connected and a third that exacerbates a problem that led us to where we are today.

This first story is titled Why I'm Not Hiring. In short, it is the story of a small business owner in New Jersey who is not hiring any more employees because the government has created an uncertain environment for the private sector.

The second story is about today's new state bailout bill. $26.1 Billion for teachers...for children...how can you be against that? Well it is easy. Putting aside that taxpayers in one state should not be bailing out the reckless spending by a different state and that $16 Billion of this is going to Medicaid (Welfare), this bill still makes zero sense. What this bill assumes is that there is no possible waste that any of the 50 states could cut in order to find money to pay for teachers, firefighters, and police officers. Instead of forcing states to look for waste, reform pension plans, or cut programs, the House Democrats selflessly came back from vacation to close a tax loophole (raise taxes on US businesses) in order to fund runaway spending in individual states.

And that brings us to our third story. The protection of public sector jobs that happened at the expense of the private sector today is only another instance of the disdain that the left has for business. Guess which sector has taken the hit during the recession...yup, that's right, the private sector. While government employees get to enjoy healthy raises and job security unlike no other, the real driving force of this economy (and the people who pay the bloated pensions of many government employees) is left to get hit by tax hikes...like the one that was signed into law today in this "Manufacturing Jobs Bill". Only 43 members of the House voted against this bill. You want to know why? Because on the surface it looks like a tax cut. Hidden in the details however is a tax increase on corporations that bring in over $1 Billion in revenue each year.

As GDP growth, productivity, and consumer confidence fall we can only wonder one thing. How will redistribution solve this problem when there is nothing left to redistribute?