Posted on 05/27/2012 9:14:17 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
Nearby today readers will notice excerpts from a memo written to Ronald Reagan by his economic advisers between his November 1980 election and inauguration. We share the memo because it shines a historical perspective on our own economic dilemmas as the Presidential race hits its Memorial Day turn.
The memo was sent to us by George Shultz, who later became the Gipper's Secretary of State but had served previous stints at Treasury, Labor and the White House budget office. The signers include some of the last century's most consequential economic figures, notably the great Milton Friedman, tax-cut evangelist Jack Kemp and former Treasury Secretary William Simon.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
“If we cut taxes, they’ll have to lay off government employees!”
Yes....and then the taxpayers will have more money to spend and the private sector will grow and those laid off government employees can find jobs there. My little town hired an arborist.....an arborist.....somebody’s brother needed a job......what does a government arborist do all year long?.....couldn’t the city hire a private sector arborist for a couple of weeks a year?......
“And now the city arborist will give his report.”
“The leaves have fallen off the trees!”
“Doesn’t that usually happen in the fall?”
“And now the city street supervisor will give his report.”
“Some white stuff fell from the sky and made all the streets slippery!”
“I guess the changing of the seasons is too much to comprehend.”
Our city arborist runs around and tells people they cannot cut down trees even when they are falling on their houses. Then, when a developer comes along and wants to remove 200 year old speciman trees from undeveloped land, the arborist says, “Well he can do that as long as he plants new trees elsewhere on the property,” and the developer puts in a few half inch twigs in place of a 50 inch, 200 year old oak tree. And everybody applauds and says that they are doing a fine job.
In our town (within city limits) you now have to get a PERMIT to cut down or prune trees. Government gone wild...
Thanks for this thread.
___________
From the article first mentioned:
” - - - You [Reagan] have identified in the campaign the key issues and lines of policy necessary to restore hope and confidence in a better economic future:
• Reestablish stability in the purchasing power of the dollar.
• Achieve a widely-shared prosperity through real growth in jobs, investment, and productivity.
• Devote the resources needed for a strong defense, and accomplish the goal of releasing the creative forces of entrepreneurship, management, and labor by:
• Restraining government spending.
• Reducing the burden of taxation and regulation.
• Conducting monetary policy in a steady manner, directed toward eliminating inflation.
This amounts to emphasis on fundamentals for the full four years, as the key to a flourishing economy.”
My, oh my - - - ! How far we have strayed - - - - .
Oh my God! Those principles sound realy good. If only...
You know, 4 years of Carter brought us more than high interest rates. The inflationary spectre changed our culture so that people became inured to spending money they did not have (credit) to get a leg up on inflation. (Buy it now because it will cost more later.) That attitude became pervasive in the culture and has us bogged down today, nearly 40 years later.
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