Posted on 08/20/2016 7:53:47 AM PDT by expat_panama
As a longtime advocate for capitalism, I’ve been considering the prospects for free market ideas in a White House presided over by either of the two major party candidates for president. It’s not an easy challenge. Both candidates, in their own way, misunderstand the need for, and the benefits of, a free economy. And it’s difficult to say which brand of wrongheadedness is more damaging – attacking the best aspects of our current economic system or defending the worst.
Neither major party candidate seems to understand the advantages of a free economy.
Hillary Clinton... ...“every so often” the American people need to “save capitalism from itself.” But as any entrepreneur will tell you, it’s a far more pressing task to protect the productive sector of the economy from overly burdensome government policies...
...Trump, on the other hand, is famous for building a business empire. In many ways, though, he has been more of a political operative than a capitalist... ...long operated in the shadow zone between government and the market economy, where development deals often involve use of eminent domain, zoning exemptions, and government subsidies... ...Trump considers himself the greatest deal-maker...
...the more politically regulated a sector of the economy becomes, the less it prospers. In a truly capitalist system, entrepreneurs acquire property by purchasing it voluntarily at a price agreed to by the previous owner. Neither party seeks or receives any subsidies or special treatment. All parties hope to make a profit, but none have any guarantees...
...it may be too much to hope for one of the major parties to nominate a candidate to carry the banner of capitalism... ...We simply need a leader with the common sense and humility to understand that government, as President Reagan put it, is more often the problem than the solution...
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
For me it's getting harder and harder get motivated to vote this year.
I would like to see advocates of capitalism call it free enterpise or free economy. Capitalism is a Marxist label that became obsolete many years ago.
“For me it’s getting harder and harder get motivated to vote this year. “
Poor baby.
Trump plays the system, and whatever hand he is dealt. Bends the rules, takes full advantage of every loophole, knows when to fold ‘em and knows when to bluff... Maybe that attitude would be a good one in regard to all the stupid treaties and alliances we are entangled in.
Hillary likes giant government, regulations and social engineering through the rule of law and Justices.
Trump being a businessman who has dealt with too much regulation as said he would do things like go through government with a knife to cut things out and make it run better.
Trump has benefited from an open freeish market. I think he and the rest of us acknowledged though that competing against slave labor or unregulated manufacturing would not be a free market for us since we are required to pay more and be cleaner while producing.
The dirty little secret is that a “Free Economy” doesn’t exist.
Quit reading bs like this one, which is aimed at people like you to discourage your vote for Trump.
Two comments:
1. Hillary is a progressive socialist. Trump might not have read F.A. Hayek, but he isn’t a progressive socialist.
2. If Trump wins, we will restore a conservative majority to he Supreme Court, keep our (squishy) majority in the Senate, and keep or even build on our strong majority in the House.
This means we win, period. This is easy to figure out.
It seems to me Smith misses an important point, one candidate attained success working within the system, the other got rich working outside the system as an outlaw.
This guy makes a good point. Trump has learned how to “play the game” in the real world and still employee thousands of people, though. Hillary, OTOH, uses the system ITSELF as a way to enrich herself and the very few in her orb.
DJT treats government as a necessary evil with which you must deal to get a job done. HRC looks at gov’t as a way to get rich in itself.
The choice for me is clear.
I do not understand anybody who has trouble getting motivated to vote for Trump against Clinton. It is as big a difference between the two major party candidates as we have had since 1980.
Agreed. Still, writers/analysts foolishly continue to use the most derogatory labels slapped on them --like the way Rush keeps calling free enterprise "trickle-down".
securing the border = most important thing for Trump’s hard core supporters
But to paraphrase Vince Lombardi, winning the election isn’t the most important thing, it’s the only thing.
Bingo. It is two step propaganda.
step 1: bash hillary to attract Trump supporters.
step 2: exaggerate supposed flaws in Trump to depress enthusiasm.
To many of these “free economy” thinkers, a “free economy” requires open borders to be able to freely move labor without regard to borders, rendering citizenship meaningless.
For me it’s getting harder and harder get motivated to vote this year.
If you can’t happily vote against Hillary’s SCOTUS there is no hope for you. You are not a patriot or a conservative. Bye.
Bingo. It is two step propaganda.
step 1: bash hillary to attract Trump supporters.
step 2: exaggerate supposed flaws in Trump to depress enthusiasm.
Fred, you ignorant slut!
Trump has already discussed the fact that like the rest of us, he had to function in the world that the crooked politicians and croney capitalists have created.
After all - the corruption affects every one of us.
But Trump also has made it clear that when elected he will change the system.
“securing the border”
It is doubtful our borders will ever be highly secure. Recently the leftist Canadian Prime Minister announced plans to let Mexicans fly freely into Canada, from which they could easily get into the US.
We need to secure our money from the government via permanent Constitution tax/fee/fine caps.
I propose:
1. no tax credit shall be refundable
2. a Constitutional amendment imposes permanent protective tax, fee, and benefit caps effective January 1, 2019:
a. for any person or entity (within any jurisdiction), 8% on total state (and local) income taxation
b. 8% total maximum on excise, occupancy, sales and use taxes of all types, except 100% maximums on telecom services and devices, motor fuel, sweeteners, food with over 12% fat and/or oil and/or over 2% added sugars by weight and alcoholic/containerized beverages and no maximums on tobacco or drugs
c. no new government payment/purchase/provision mandate, federal tax or impost, excluding import duties
d. financial impositions on and related to privately owned real property (and its rental, repair, renovation and transfer) may only be made under state and local law and they shall be limited to:
A. annual real property tax on a residential building and its curtilage of up to:
1. $2 per square foot of any finished/cooled/heated/plumbed open plan area on the first floor or higher, plus
2. $150 if the open plan area includes a food preparation counter or cooking unit, plus
3. $300 per finished/cooled/heated/plumbed room not in a taxed open plan area, but
a. $100 for half-baths, laundry rooms, attic/basement/over garage rooms not legal for bedroom use and
b. $0 on foyers, atriums, hallways, stairwells, closets, pantries, lanais, porches, and vehicular garages not legal for bedroom use
plus the following optional surcharge percentages
1. up to 15% to build/maintain public roads in the levying jurisdiction
2. up to 2% to provide free library service within 10 miles of the property
3. up to 2% to build/maintain public parks
4. up to 20%, if required by statewide law
less, in any tax year, 6% of the impact fees collected on the property in the prior twenty years
B. an annual tax of up to 1.5% set by state law of market value on other real property
C. recording fees of up to $50/instrument, but no more than $100/transfer in total
D. impact fees of up to an absolute total of $6,000/housing unit and $2/square foot of enclosed non-residential space
E. total other construction related fees of up to $1 per square foot for a new building or on an existing building $30 plus $20 for each of the following trades involved: roofing, electrical, plumbing
e. other official fees shall be capped at $10/instrument (and $1/page for more than one page for recording/photocopying/printing)
f. a certified copy of a birth or death certificate or other official document required by state or federal law shall cost no more than $20 ($10 if not found to be produced)
g. a passport shall not cost more than $50/$80 if produced and delivered within ten business days of request/$100 if produced and given to the person within one hour of request
Dollar amounts may be adjusted by Congress for inflation in a prior calendar year, but by no more than the lesser of 3% or 8/10ths of the lowest annual rate of any five-year or longer federal bond issued in the prior four years.
No international taxation or its equivalent may be levied or collected in the United States on US citizens, their US income, their US estates, their US property, etc.
Electricity may not be made substantially more expensive by new domestic government action, except to obtain market prices for natural resources now owned by a domestic government.
The tax caps and tax bars shall not be subject to loosening by amendment.
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