Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Federal Debt Grew by $54.1 Billion During Fight to Cut $38.5 Billion - Politics - The Atlantic Wire
Image by micmol via FlickrFederal Debt Grew by $54.1 Billion During Fight to Cut $38.5 Billion - Politics - The Atlantic Wire:
"It took eight, long days for the White House and Congress to agree on $38.5 billion in spending cuts for the rest of fiscal year 2011. In that short period of time, the federal debt increased by $54.1 billion to a total of $14.2642 trillion, according to the Bureau of the Public Debt."
The only way to know if the people are willing to borrow is to see if they are willing to pay it back.
"It took eight, long days for the White House and Congress to agree on $38.5 billion in spending cuts for the rest of fiscal year 2011. In that short period of time, the federal debt increased by $54.1 billion to a total of $14.2642 trillion, according to the Bureau of the Public Debt."
We need a constitutional amendment that requires a balanced budget, but allows money to be borrowed as long as a tax is immediately instituted that pays it off in 10 years at a constant rate.
So if we borrowed $1 trillion at 5% interest, we'd need additional taxes of $10.6 billion every month for 10 years.
The only way to know if the people are willing to borrow is to see if they are willing to pay it back.
Monday, March 14, 2011
We Are Thinking of You, Japan
Image by subtle_3106 via FlickrHave you ever made something good in the hopes that it might make a difference in some one else's life?
I was thinking of this as I drove home in my Toyota, a car that has served me well for the last decade. I thought of the workers and the engineers who put extra effort into something so things might be a bit easier for me.
And now, in Japan's hour of need, I just wanted to say thanks to all of those people in that very great nation. I know you will pull through and put everything back together, because that is what you have always done.
I hope that if you feel alone in your struggle that we are thinking of you and hopefully the help we send will make your recovery a little bit easier.
I was thinking of this as I drove home in my Toyota, a car that has served me well for the last decade. I thought of the workers and the engineers who put extra effort into something so things might be a bit easier for me.
And now, in Japan's hour of need, I just wanted to say thanks to all of those people in that very great nation. I know you will pull through and put everything back together, because that is what you have always done.
I hope that if you feel alone in your struggle that we are thinking of you and hopefully the help we send will make your recovery a little bit easier.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Why Collectivism Can't Learn
Image by Editor B via FlickrWhen individuals make mistakes, they can, if they choose, learn and improve.
But when government makes mistakes, those paying the price usually have to fight to be heard over the voices of those who have figured out how to profit from the mistake. And years may pass before any action.
But when government makes mistakes, those paying the price usually have to fight to be heard over the voices of those who have figured out how to profit from the mistake. And years may pass before any action.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Murders Spark Renewed Calls for Cutlery Control Laws
Image via WikipediaIts about time we restricted access to cutlery and motor vehicles.
Police: NYC man arrested after going on stabbing, hijacking spree - CNN.com
Ok, so nobody thinks we should stop driving cars. Is it because we are familiar with them and like what they do for us that allows to ignore all the same arguments people make for gun control?
Control of guns, cars and cutlery is fine when property owners voluntarily contract together to make mutually beneficial rules. Since the neighborhood or village very closely approximates that situation, that is where these decisions should be made.
When people voluntarily join a situation and are free to leave it, its perfectly legitimate for the participants to make all kinds of restrictions that would be wrong to impose by force.
In fact, the desire to control what happens where one lives is one of the primary reasons people seek to make rules for everybody else. When people have such control, they feel less need to impose their views on others.
I think if we supported such hyper-local control, we'd actually have a lot more options. Neighborhoods would actually be a lot more diverse and life would be more interesting in general.
And we would have had things like smoke-free neighborhoods (which we still don't have) decades ago. And neighborhoods devoted to the smoker as well. Some might see that as a downside, but people are always going to be doing things we don't like, no matter how many laws are passed.
The important thing is that we each be free to make our own choices.
Police: NYC man arrested after going on stabbing, hijacking spree - CNN.com
Ok, so nobody thinks we should stop driving cars. Is it because we are familiar with them and like what they do for us that allows to ignore all the same arguments people make for gun control?
Control of guns, cars and cutlery is fine when property owners voluntarily contract together to make mutually beneficial rules. Since the neighborhood or village very closely approximates that situation, that is where these decisions should be made.
When people voluntarily join a situation and are free to leave it, its perfectly legitimate for the participants to make all kinds of restrictions that would be wrong to impose by force.
In fact, the desire to control what happens where one lives is one of the primary reasons people seek to make rules for everybody else. When people have such control, they feel less need to impose their views on others.
I think if we supported such hyper-local control, we'd actually have a lot more options. Neighborhoods would actually be a lot more diverse and life would be more interesting in general.
And we would have had things like smoke-free neighborhoods (which we still don't have) decades ago. And neighborhoods devoted to the smoker as well. Some might see that as a downside, but people are always going to be doing things we don't like, no matter how many laws are passed.
The important thing is that we each be free to make our own choices.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Message to Egypt
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
Form a new government that recognizes your rights to life, liberty, property and happiness and you can put this turmoil behind you. You don't need to choose between law and order and making the government live by the rule of law.
Form a new government that recognizes your rights to life, liberty, property and happiness and you can put this turmoil behind you. You don't need to choose between law and order and making the government live by the rule of law.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
A More Possible Balanced Budget Amendment
Image via Wikipedia"Government ought to be as much open to improvement as anything which appertains to man, instead of which it has been monopolized from age to age, by the most ignorant and vicious of the human race. Need we any other proof of their wretched management, than the excess of debts and taxes with which every nation groans, and the quarrels into which they have precipitated the world?" -- Thomas Paine
I'm in favor of a constitutional amendment that requires any new borrowing by government to be coupled with an immediate tax that pays off the new debt within ten years.
That discipline will allow for emergencies but still force Congress to pay the bills. I understand many would prefer an amendment that allowed for no borrowing at all, but that is considerably harder to get. Let's not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
I'm in favor of a constitutional amendment that requires any new borrowing by government to be coupled with an immediate tax that pays off the new debt within ten years.
That discipline will allow for emergencies but still force Congress to pay the bills. I understand many would prefer an amendment that allowed for no borrowing at all, but that is considerably harder to get. Let's not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
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