Congress Nixes Extension of Unemployment Benefits (video at link)

Fox News ^ | November 22, 2010

[CowboyJay]

"See how many jobs you create then"

The answer is 'almost none', statistically. I'll say again - those industries are gone. Their overseas replacements are heavily subsidized and vigorously protected by their countries' governments. And their populations have nationalistic buying tendencies. If our domestic labor rates were ZERO, it would not be economically feasible to close down the factories and and start them back up here. Due to the way our currency works, we have huge amounts of defacto overhead built into our cost of doing business. That's why it's so important to protect domestic industry from predatory trade practices -- once those kinds of places close down, it's near impossible to bring them back.

The service/retail economy is flat because household liquidity in the US has been melted down and sucked up by the banking system and gov't over the last decade. There is no money out there chasing services. Thus everything that is not a daily necessity is currently experiencing downward pricing pressure. Slashing wages will not affect this in a good way.

We have a huge overhang of unsold commercial and residential RE. We've already cut rates as low as they can go and they're not moving. Maybe because nobody has money to buy them? Nothing to build = no construction jobs.

What about exports? Nope. As mentioned in paragraph one it wouldn't matter if our labor rates were ZERO. The basic industries necessary to support heavy manufacturing are nearly gone here and would cost tens or hundreds of billions to rebuild to a point that we'd be competitive on world markets again.

Our only hope would be the next Ford or Edison. Problem is, the next Ford or Edison will probably speak Mandarin or Hindi.

I guess maybe if fuel prices spike high enough to make imports impractical it could tilt the scales back towards domestic production. When/if that happens, I have a hard time seeing where that would be good news for anyone.

Anyway, back to the OP. There is really nothing for these people to do with their time, and no way for them to earn their keep once they are cut from the roles. Anyone on our side shouting 'let them eat cake' or 'get a job' is every bit as deluded as Nancy Pelosi, and begging trouble.

[USALiberty]

That's why it's so important to protect domestic industry from predatory trade practices -- once those kinds of places close down, it's near impossible to bring them back.

The solution is easy:

1) Slash artificially high wages by eliminating the minimum wage and union coercion once and for all.
2) Slash taxes (eliminate them for business altogether)
3) Eliminate government regulation
4) Watch the economy grow

NO SOCIALISM NEEDED! No PROTECTIONISM needed! Just unleash CAPITALISM!

[USALiberty]

That's why it's so important to protect domestic industry from predatory trade practices -- once those kinds of places close down, it's near impossible to bring them back.

The solution is easy:

1) Slash artificially high wages by eliminating the minimum wage and union coercion once and for all.
2) Slash taxes (eliminate them for business altogether)
3) Eliminate government regulation
4) Watch the economy grow

NO SOCIALISM NEEDED! No PROTECTIONISM needed! Just unleash CAPITALISM!

[CowboyJay]

The solution is easy:

1) Slash artificially high wages by eliminating the minimum wage and union coercion once and for all. 2) Slash taxes (eliminate them for business altogether) 3) Eliminate government regulation 4) Watch the economy grow

NO SOCIALISM NEEDED! No PROTECTIONISM needed! Just unleash CAPITALISM!

Can we agree to at least quit using Marxist terminology? 'Capitalism' is class warfare rhetoric. I prefer the term 'Free Enterprise'.

1) Wages are not 'artificially high'. Anyone advocating lower wages for everyone else is a class warrior. I'd be all for outlawing public employee unions because they're subverting the political system, but I'm not at all sure that's constitutional.

2) Slash Taxes! Yes, please. Although we still need some provision to pay for our government. And yes we do need some government (although most of what we have now is unneeded and economically counterproductive). I'm all for eliminating personal & corporate income taxes. I'd prefer we reverted to a more constitutional form of taxation - tariffs - in the form of a value added tax on all imports. We have one hell of a lot of infrastructure here that has to be maintained. I'd also be for eliminating debt-based currency and fractional-reserve banking. Neither are constitutional, and both result in defacto taxation.

3) Eliminate government regulation? No not altogether. As with government, some of that is actually needed. Anymore though, it seems like most is backed by large corporations as a barrier to entry for the purposes of keeping competition down. I'd be all for completely ridding ourselves of that. The rest needs to be reviewed. On the other hand, it might be possible to do away with nearly all gov't regulation if we were willing to throw out the concept of 'limited liability' as currently applied to corporations. Let them govern themselves with the understanding that an ownership stake implies full personal liability for the actions of the company.

4) Watch the economy grow? Not so fast. That's the problem with rhetoric. Sooner or later it meets reality. Most of that industry we shipped overseas still isn't coming back. Not even if we did everything you're asking 100%. It will still be more expensive to operate here by sheer weight of the amount of infrastructure we have to support and the way our currency works. And it's very expensive to open a steel mill or outfit a production line.

And foreign countries have no compunction about subsidizing their domestic firms or denying us access into their markets until US competition can be eliminated. As long as foreign countries are engaging in this kind of behavior, some kind of protectionism is needed. That is if we want to bother with having anything more than a vestigial economy left in 20 yrs.

[USALiberty]

Can we agree to at least quit using Marxist terminology? 'Capitalism' is class warfare rhetoric. I prefer the term 'Free Enterprise'.

I am a PROUD capitalist! If that offend the politically correct, then SO BE IT!.

I advocate for an end to 100% of social programs and all forms of coercion with regard to wages -- unions, minimum wages, protectionism, etc.

Americans expect too much. And it was inevitable that there would be a backlash against all the income redistribution/theft we have seen in the past 100 years. I advocate rolling back the governmental clock to a pre-socialist era -- roughly about the size and scope of government we had in 1900.

Most of the "vast infrastructure" the government maintains can and should be sold off to private interests -- starting with the interstate highway system, which could be converted into s system of private toll roads.

[bobcat62]

I’m willing to bet that our government employee unions would make every effort to stop a new “CCC” program dead in its tracks.

[bobcat62]

CowboyJay,

You’re right. There are no jobs. I know because I have been out of work for two years now.

I recently attended a Thanksgiving party, where just about everyone there was unemployed. These folks are going to be in a difficult state once their UI runs out.

Gerald Celente is right: When these people have nothing to lose... What happens then?

[fatima]

((((((Hugs))))))))Who is Gerald Celente?I think I read about him before.

[bobcat62]

Gerald Celente is a “trends researcher” who is on Coast to Coast AM from time to time. He has a channel on YouTube.

[fatima]

Thanks bobcat62 (((((Hugs)))))

[fatima]

Let’s starve you first USALiberty :)

[happydogx2]

There are not enough jobs being created now to even employ those coming into the work force. U-3 unemployment in my area is 16%; U-6 is 23%. Check the unemployment stats that come out every week and you’ll see approximately 250,000 people dropped from the rolls as their EUC expires. Yes, 250,000 people each WEEK are becoming 99ers...

I personally know and see too many people losing everything - including hope. Homeless numbers are sky-rocketing, non-profit agencies are being over-whelmed w/the demand for services. My point re: CCC - rather then extend benefits w/o requirements have the receipient work - p/u trash, construction, public works, etc.

[Borges]

The word “Capitalism” was coined by French Socialist Louis Blanc and used earliest by another French Socialist: Pierre-Joseph Proudhon. It was very much a derisive term.