You don’t need a crystal ball to see where we are headed
ByThe British have had a tough time in this recession. If you read Allen’s post about life in Jolly old England you’ll find out it’s no bed of roses over there. And it looks like things are only going to get worse for our friends across the pond.
The government will increase its top rate of income tax to a higher than expected 50 percent from next year, Chancellor Alistair Darling said on Wednesday as he delivered the government’s annual budget. The tax band had originally been due to rise to 45 percent from 40 percent in April 2011 as Britain seeks to claw back lost tax revenue caused by a deep recession.
The 50-percent rate will apply to any income above 150,000 pounds.
Using today’s conversion rate, that’s about $218,000 US. On top of that, they have a 17% value added tax on purchases. At what point do people realize that this simply isn’t sustainable? They are literally robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Unfortunately, this is exactly the road Barack Obama and the democrats are taking us down. With the way they’re spending money I can only imagine it will be even worse.
In addition to the spending, it looks like the Republicans were right about what cap and trade will cost every American. Well, they weren’t entirely right. Their estimate was off by about $800 per year - on the low side. Instead of costing us $3100 per year we’re looking at an increase closer to $3900 per year per family. If you have an extra four grand a year to stop global warming, or your heavily invested in “green” companies - like Al Gore - you probably won’t mind. The rest of us will. The poor will. Cap and trade will hit the poor the hardest. Contrary to popular belief, the government doesn’t do a very good job of taking care of the folks.
If you don’t think we’re only a hare’s breath away from socialism, think again. Unless, that is, you think we’re already there; if so, you’re probably right. The most damning evidence is the recent announcement that the government would like to convert their shares in TARP companies from preferred stock to common stock. That will give the government voting rights at those institutions. Which means the same folks who brought us Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will control the banks.
While it is true that President George W. Bush began the whole TARP debacle - and I’m not defending that – President Bush did not plan to nationalize any banks.
When the TARP intervention was first outlined by the Bush administration, it did not call for any transfer of stock, of any sort, to the government. The Democrats demanded, as a price for their support, that the taxpayers “get something back” for the money they were lending to the banks. House Republicans, wise to what was going on, rejected the administration proposal and sought, instead, to provide insurance to banks rather than outright cash. Their plan would, of course, not involve any transfer of stock. But Sen. John McCain undercut his own party’s conservatives and went along with the Democratic plan, assuring its passage.
As a side note, perhaps the good people of Arizona can thank Senator McCain by voting for Minuteman founder Chris Simcox in the upcoming primary.
Back to my point. Everywhere socialism has been tried it fails. The only thing that keeps these socialist economies afloat are their capitalist trading partners. Just look at they way the press is exalting Barack Obama for easing relations with Cuba. They’re really poor in Cuba. Nobody has money for anything. If Americans can send some of the fruits of capitalism their way the lives of Cubans will improve. It’s not rocket science.
So what do you think will happen when we’re all socialist? You don’t need a crystal ball to tell you that the world wide recession will turn into a great depression. Who will be left to bail out the United States?
Popularity: 5% [?]
Lee Iacocca Says:
‘Am I the only guy in this country who’s fed up with what’s happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder! We’ve got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we’ve got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can’t even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, ‘Stay the course.’
Stay the course? You’ve got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned, ‘Titanic’. I’ll give you a sound bite: ‘Throw all the bums out!’
You might think I’m getting senile, that I’ve gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore.
The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs. While we’re fiddling in Iraq , the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving ‘pom-poms’ instead of asking hard questions. That’s not the promise of the ‘ America ‘ my parents and yours travelled across the ocean for. I’ve had enough. How about you?
I’ll go a step further. You can’t call yourself a patriot if you’re not outraged. This is a fight I’m ready and willing to have. The Biggest ‘C’ is Crisis! (Iacocca elaborates on nine C’s of leadership, with crisis being the first.)
Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It’s easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory. Or send someone else’s kids off to war when you’ve never seen a battlefield yourself. It’s another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down.
On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A hell of a mess, so here’s where we stand.
We’re immersed in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving.
We’re running the biggest deficit in the history of the country.
We’re losing the manufacturing edge to Asia , while our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs.
Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy. Our schools are in trouble.
Our borders are like sieves.
The middle class is being squeezed every which way.
These are times that cry out for leadership.
But when you look around, you’ve got to ask: ‘Where have all the leaders gone?’ Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point.
Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throw away our shampoo?
We’ve spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.
Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the hurricane or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in the crucial hours after the storm.
Everyone’s hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn’t happen again. Now, that’s just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you’re going to do the next time.
Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when ‘The Big Three’ referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do about it?
Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry.
I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn’t elect you to sit on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is everybody so afraid of? That some bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a break. Why don’t you guys show some spine for a change?
Had Enough? Hey, I’m not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I’m trying to light a fire. I’m speaking out because I have hope – I believe in America . In my lifetime, I’ve had the privilege of living through some of America ’s greatest moments. I’ve also experienced some of our worst crises: The ‘Great Depression,’ ‘World War II,’ the ‘Korean War,’ the ‘Kennedy Assassination,’ the ‘Vietnam War,’ the 1970’s oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11.
If I’ve learned one thing, it’s this: ‘You don’t get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it’s building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. That’s the challenge I’m raising in this book. It’s a “Call to Action” for people who, like me, believe in America ‘. It’s not too late, but it’s getting pretty close. So let’s shake off the crap and go to work. Let’s tell ‘em all we’ve had ‘enough.’
Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know and care about. It’s our country, folks, and it’s our future. Our future is at stake!!
Earth Day predictions of 1970. The reason you shouldn’t believe Earth Day predictions of 2009.
http://texasfred.net/
AWM-I heard about those predictions earlier. Isn’t it amazing we all survived?
smilinshark: I agree, we should throw the bums out. But we shouldn’t be looking to government to solve all these problems. Government makes them worse. And in reply to this question: “Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing.” I can answer that in one word: “Unions.”
Whatever the rest of the world does wrong, our gang in Wash. will emulate, double and triple it, so that we can be even worse.