Column Presented a Misguided Analysis
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In response to Kevin Smith’s column in Sunday’s paper (June 12):
He is clearly under the misapprehension (common among liberals) that the government creates jobs. Sorry about that! Only the private sector creates jobs in a meaningful way. The failure of the Obama “stimulus” jobs bill to create jobs is a prime example of this fact.
He criticizes Speaker Boehner for not having produced a “jobs bill.” In fact, the GOP majority in the House produced a jobs bill shortly after the House came into session in January of this year. It was disguised under the title “the budget.” It spelled out in detail what the GOP would do to reduce the burden of taxes, spending, regulation and uncertainty that is currently being imposed on the private sector by the Obama administration.
He reverts to the favorite “soak the rich” liberal trope when he talks about CEO compensation when, in fact, tax revenues from highly compensated individuals increase when tax rates decrease — not vice versa.
Every significant recession in the past 50 years has been followed by rapid economic growth, which has been brought about by tax cuts (see Kennedy in the ’60s and Reagan in the ’80s as the best examples). The threat of higher taxes, excessive regulation (and the threat of more regulation) and, most of all, uncertainty are what is holding back a strong recovery.
U.S. businesses have a large supply of cash to invest to create jobs. Unfortunately, new investments are being made overseas, where the business climate is more favorable than it is in the United States.
Jim Leslie
Pinehurst
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Comments
dustyrhoades 1 year, 11 months ago
Bush cut taxes. The economy tanked anyway.
It's not taxes that affect the economy.
bigD 1 year, 11 months ago
Dusty raise your legal fees and we will see how many new clients that attracts. If it's not taxes that affect the economy than what does?
bigD 1 year, 11 months ago
"...when people talk about austerity, they’re talking about yours, not theirs." stated Smith.
when Smith tax about raising taxes he is talking about everybody elses and not his. Why not be a stand up guy and say raise taxes starting with mine?
TreadLightly 1 year, 11 months ago
Dusty, Bush could not raise or lower taxes, or else raise or lower taxes. (Or Obama would raise them today.)
You are talking about Bush going into recession when the Democrats were in control of both houses of congress. When the Republicans take charge next election, watch for OBAMA'S economy to get better! Like they made Clinton famous for his surpluses.
Ross 1 year, 11 months ago
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Ross 1 year, 11 months ago
"new investments are being made overseas, where the business climate is more favorable than it is in the United States."
translated - "workers work for peanuts overseas making cheap products to sell to americans that want cheap products!
bigD 1 year, 11 months ago
Dusty- The first Bush recession (2000-2001) was followed by a very strong prolonged recovery that lasted from 2002 thru most of 2007. Why was it such a strong recovery? You guessed it tax cuts on capital and dividends as well as cuts to ordinary income.
moonchild7 1 year, 11 months ago
The BUSH "recovery" was as FAKE, FALSE, FOOLISH, and FOOEY as he is. CREDIT CARDS! NO DOWN PAYMENT HOME LOANS! HOME EQUITY LOANS USED LIKE CREDIT CARDS! FEES, FEES and MORE FEES! PENALTIES upon PENALTIES! DESIGNER JEANS and FACE LIFTS! STARBUCKS! Who are you Republican Tea Pots? Can you not see reality or what? The rich are taking this country for everything it's worth and leaving the ruins BEHIND! The rich capitalists are NOT overly taxed so get off of it. They want to be very rich so they move their businesses overseas. The average wage earner is earning less and less. Again, just like the churches failed to help the POOR in the Depression, now the RICH won't help the unemployed, so the GOVERNMENT has tried to do what it can. You blame President Obama?! NUTZ.
honesty2 1 year, 11 months ago
MC7, you responded in a recent post (suddenly removed) that you would like to see a socialist market economy like China's, and that you support re-distribution of wealth via "taxes", correct? Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised, but I sincerely question whether you have really looked into the situation in China. Their system has led to: massive corruption, exploitation of workers, increase in social and economic inequality, created huge surplus labor in rural areas with massive migration to urban areas, ecological problems (surely your son saw the air pollution?). State owned "businesses" are in trouble and draining the economy. Maybe you'd like to go live there for a while and let us know what it's like....Oh, yeah, you may not be able to use the internet- they're not big on freedom of speech and they tend to control that sort of thing. Still, I appreciate you sticking up for the poor. It does bother me that you continue to blame everyone and everything else, but no one can blame Obama? Please tell me what exactly that he has done to earn anyone's support? All I can see is debt, division, Chicago style thuggery, debt, and more debt. I could go on, but long posts are not my thing.
Courseaire 1 year, 11 months ago
The oppressed are allowed once every few years to decide which particular representatives of the oppressing class are to represent and repress them. Let the ruling classes tremble at a communist revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win. Workingmen of all countries, unite!
moonchild7 1 year, 11 months ago
This morning the NBC/WSJ polls came out and guess what? President Obama's approval ratings are still at 49% while that of Congress is only 17%. Apparently as they should, the PEOPLE are blaming CONGRESS for our economic problems. I also noticed that my statement about China was "taken down". Why, I don't know and I never said that I would like to see a socialist market economy. I made the statement that my son visited China and remarked to me how they have PROGRESSED REMARKABLY so far in such a short amount of time. They were riding BIKES on dirt roads just 30 yrs ago!!!!! I would have NEVER survived a trip to China the way my son did because it was a bit rough after he got off that HIGH SPEED RAIL in WUHAN. He went to towns and villages not seen by westerners before and while he was welcomed, the time spent sleeping in the cold, eating food he had no idea what it was and having extremely limited bathing would have been my downfall. I won't tell you anymore because of course all of China has not progressed. There are too many negatives but since my son is an URBAN PLANNER he enjoys visiting every city/town/country imaginable on earth so he can use that information to hopefully help the cities in America with the future. This year it was his trips to ACCRA, GHANA and MUMBAI, INDIA that filled his adventures. He doesn't want to even go back to INDIA. President Obama will be re-elected because the Republicans have NOTHING to offer.
honesty2 1 year, 11 months ago
Please do tell what Obama has to offer (in a positive manner that is).
Courseaire 1 year, 11 months ago
When Democrats & Republicans debate:
ARTHUR: I did say sorry about the `old woman,' but from the behind you looked-- DENNIS: What I object to is you automatically treat me like an inferior! ARTHUR: Well, I AM king... DENNIS: Oh king, eh, very nice. An' how'd you get that, eh? By exploitin' the workers -- by 'angin' on to outdated imperialist dogma which perpetuates the economic an' social differences in our society! If there's ever going to be any progress-- WOMAN: Dennis, there's some lovely filth down here. Oh -- how d'you do? ARTHUR: How do you do, good lady. I am Arthur, King of the Britons. WOMAN: King of the who? ARTHUR: The Britons. WOMAN: Who are the Britons? ARTHUR: Well, we all are. we're all Britons and I am your king. WOMAN: I didn't know we had a king. I thought we were an autonomous collective. DENNIS: You're fooling yourself. We're living in a dictatorship. A self-perpetuating autocracy in which the working classes-- WOMAN: Oh there you go, bringing class into it again. DENNIS: That's what it's all about if only people would-- ARTHUR: Please, please good people. I am in haste. Who lives in that castle? WOMAN: No one live there. ARTHUR: Then who is your lord? WOMAN: We don't have a lord. ARTHUR: What? DENNIS: I told you. We're an anarcho-syndicalist commune. We take it in turns to act as a sort of executive officer for the week. But all the decision of that officer have to be ratified at a special biweekly meeting. By a simple majority in the case of purely internal affairs,-- ARTHUR: Be quiet! DENNIS: --but by a two-thirds majority in the case of more-- ARTHUR: Be quiet! I order you to be quiet! WOMAN: Order, eh -- who does he think he is? ARTHUR: I am your king! WOMAN: Well, I didn't vote for you. ARTHUR: You don't vote for kings. WOMAN: Well, 'ow did you become king then? ARTHUR: The Lady of the Lake, DENNIS: Listen -- strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony. ARTHUR: Be quiet! DENNIS: Well you can't expect to wield supreme executive power just 'cause some watery tart threw a sword at you! I mean, if I went around sayin' I was an empereror just because some moistened bint had lobbed a scimitar at me they'd put me away! ARTHUR: Shut up! Will you shut up! DENNIS: Ah, now we see the violence inherent in the system. ARTHUR: Shut up! DENNIS: Oh! Come and see the violence inherent in the system! HELP! HELP! I'm being repressed! ARTHUR: Bloody peasant! DENNIS: Oh, what a give away. Did you here that, did you here that, eh? That's what I'm on about -- did you see him repressing me, you saw it didn't you?
bigD 1 year, 11 months ago
Soak the rich is the standard battle cry for the left. MC7 and Smith goe beyond soaking they rich want to exploit the rich.
irkim13 1 year, 11 months ago
What money level or person's value is the limit of being rich? I would consider someone who owns 2 homes to be rich. MC& and Kevin do either one of you or anyone else pay the high taxes you want all rich people to pay? you can pay as much as you want over the required amount.
bigD 1 year, 11 months ago
irkim- Wealthy to Smith is anybody that has more money than he has...
Courseaire 1 year, 11 months ago
Of course the Republicans are the DO-NOTHINGS, we have the the MONEY, don't need to WORK and the DEMOCRATES want free hand-me-downs ($$).
honesty2 1 year, 11 months ago
Not sure who you are referring to, but isn't calling people names kind of not what the Golden Rule is all about?
TOYTIME 1 year, 11 months ago
"I think that when the RICH REPUBLICANS are HOARDING all the $$$$$, it's their "CHRISTIAN" duty to "GIVE to the POOR." Well moonchild7 we agree, on one thing I think it is part of our Christian duty to help people that need it. But since I'm sure you want a clear separation between Church and State you don't want to compell people by law to follow their "CHRISTIAN" duty.
Here are some facts for you supplied by the ultra right-winged ABC news report, concerning charitable giving...
"It turns out that this idea that liberals give more…is a myth. Of the top 25 states where people give an above average percent of their income, 24 were red states in the last presidential election.
Arthur Brooks, the author of "Who Really Cares," says that "when you look at the data, it turns out the conservatives give about 30 percent more." He adds, "And incidentally, conservative-headed families make slightly less money."
And he says the differences in giving goes beyond money, pointing out that conservatives are 18 percent more likely to donate blood. He says this difference is not about politics, but about the different way conservatives and liberals view government."
So in light of that, and many other reports you can find to support this one. Its clear that you are flat wrong.