So, What's New?

Same ole same ole.  Netanyahu refuses to wrest control of sanity from the extreme right wing of Israeli politics.  Obama can’t wrest control from the extreme right wing of American politics.  Teenagers are still committing suicide because of their inability to cope with the bullying that comes with their relatively different sexual preferences.  Millions are out of work in the US because ideological directives steer politics rather than the needs of the country.  And the country falls behind the rest of the world when it comes to progressive thinking.  Yeah, same ole same ole.

Bebe N. finally recognizes that the USA IS the best friend of Israel; despite the political rants of the right because IS there anyone else willing to take the heat for vetoing a U.N. resolution declaring Palestinian statehood?  Personally, because I don’t stand for the myths and folklore that enabled the creation of the state in the first place, and the ensuing hypocrisy for 60 years, they should stand on their own and answer for themselves why they remain recalcitrant towards a peaceful settlement with the Palestinians.  I don’t buy the American rationale that the two entities should negotiate directly---they haven’t in 60 years that has yielded any fruit.  Bebe refuses to reign in the fanatics who dictate the occupation of property outside the 1967 boundaries and only inflame an unjust situation in the first place.  On top of that, Israeli courts are becoming more restrictive with the interpretation of the “Right of Return” as to who’s a jew. Israel is looking more like Iran every day.  We’re going to call them Isran.

If Obama came on board the Titanic after it hit the iceberg; would he be considered the worst captain?  Well that’s the picture the Tea Party/Republican crowd would have you believe.  And what’s worse yet, they’re succeeding to a degree that a democratic president might not get reelected based on that platform.  Go figure.  In the eight years before he was elected, with ALL the Bush tax cuts, the Republican administration drove up the debt; job creation was paltry; a surplus was squandered; they waged two wars on a credit card further driving up the debt; and among all the social programs aimed for conservatives, left office with the biggest financial disaster ever seen since the great depression.  And because Obama hasn’t gotten cooperation on the solution side from congress, all they want him to do is fail---regardless of who suffers in the process.  Apparently it’s ideology first instead of country.

Kids are still being bullied because they might have sexual preferences that are statistically below the average of all sexual practices.  But that behavior isn’t abnormal compared to heterosexuality so says the American Psychiatric Assoc. and others.  Why should they be labeled gay because they prefer homosexual relationships any more than people are labeled straight any more than some of all are NOSE PICKERS and they’re NOT labeled?  But maybe the bullying continues because the perpetrators are ignorant because they are taught that those practicing homosexual behavior is something to detest. Their label is the new Hester Prynne’s, Scarlet Letter.  Maybe the organized religions should be indicted for the equivalence of shouting fire in a crowded movie theater.  I thought hate speech was illegal.  One reason we detest Iran is because they castigate homosexual behavior.  So what differentiates us from them in that department?  They’re going to change our name to USran.

Everybody’s getting used to 15-20% unemployment and restructuring budgets and hiring practices based on the new “reality”.  The mantra is cut taxes, cut expenses, cut programs aiding the elderly, the poor, and the uneducated; anything not having anything to do with those who have enough in their pockets not to feel the effects of our economic calamity.  A jobs bill for $450 bil purportedly to crate 1mil+ jobs is hardly a jobs bill.  How about an infrastructure bill for trillions paid for with the offshore corporate dollars that need repatriating to be accomplished in the form of war type bonds?  Make a deal. Millions of jobs would be created creating the demand needed to spur more hiring and refuel the tax revenues.  More fruit would come out of that move than paring down the tree to a stump. 

Now there’s a push to spread ignorance.  It’s almost fashionable to believe in the pseudoscience of creationism rather than the hardcore science of natural selection, known as evolution, because it’ll upset some 2500 year old dogma.  It’s fashionable to believe that climate change doesn’t exist because we are fearful of losing jobs; because we refuse to think how to create new jobs.  It’s ignorance to believe in the retreaded supply side economics and cut taxes when it’s failed miserably twice in the last 30 years and some want to keep doing it.  It’s ignorant to continue to believe in deities when this practice’s policies retarding science prevent us from competing with the rest of the world.  You can privately believe what you want, but you don’t make public policy that affects all.

So it’s the same ole same ole. We can continue all this insanity by just reelecting the same that want to continue the same ole same ole obstinance; or we can vote them out and give the president the tools he needs to save the Titanic.  At this point continuation of the same ole same ole can’t be worse than the cost of giving him a repair kit to save the ship.  While the country dithers, I’ll just go back to writing my book.

Mediocre at Best

The President’s speech on Sept. 8^th was a welcome change in tone, but disappointingly short on bite.  Offering more tax cuts to employers goes nowhere if employers don’t hire.  And why should they if they have no need for extra help in manufacturing when demand is still weak?  Employers are the supply side of the equation; the consumer is the demand side.  And simply, until more people have jobs, demand will remain weak.

All that the president offered was some payroll tax deductions that should offer some increased demand thru increased purchasing power.  But when that runs out, where’s the real demand created by those who have jobs?

In the meantime our infrastructure continues to decay and becomes obsolete.  This is timeless.  On top of that, we need new infrastructure just to keep up with population growth and new technological developments.  Airports, highways, broadband, educational and research facilities need addressing in the 21^st century.  Would you like to read about your child on the school bus that went down on the bridge that collapsed due to lack of maintenance? 

Whether we can afford to address these issues is not a concern when we have the ability.  The debate over ideology shouldn’t take precedence when it comes to feeding our population.  A 20% unemployment level is NOT the norm.  So cutting spending to match revenues based on 80% employment skirts the issue.  Not to mention the emotional and structural deterioration in our workforce due to being out of work. 

The main issue is create jobs so those newly employed can pay taxes; instead of being a burden on the unemployment, social security, and healthcare benefits because they DON”T have jobs.  Instead, those in our congress believe it’s more important to balance a budget when a sovereign government has the ability to stimulate and do more benefit for the citizens than inflict pain trying to satisfy an outdated, ideologically disproven tax policy.  When the ideological crowd proclaims Keynesian fails in the same breath they denounce evolution and global warming, they only display their ignorance.  You gotta believe their disproven theories advancing tax cuts as supply side economics are just as misplaced and self serving.  Tax cuts only benefit those who pay taxes.  Jobs benefit everyone.

The President should have gone big in the expectations department.  He should have challenged the congress to approve a more ambitious proposal rather than try to get a compromised something approved.  After the election things will return to a do nothing congress if he gets reelected and congress stays with the same mix.  Unless there’s a mandate for this proposal, the stimulus he seeks will once again not be enough.  And if he gets the current proposal, then what?  We need 15% of the workforce to return to work---not 1%!  Those elected officials running against a bolder proposal should be voted out by the electorate in November.  Then maybe we can return to getting the country solving problems; not gridlocked by the ideologically controlled minority.

A bolder proposal would have been for the president to offer amnesty for the unpatriated offshore dollars that corporations find themselves awash in.  Bringing back those funds to the country would incur a tax consequence.  How about making a tax amnesty deal that says you can bring back those funds if they are invested in war type like bonds that were used for financing WWII?  How about using those funds for Infrastructure bonds in the amount of trillions of dollars creating MILLIONS of jobs while modernizing and maintaining our country’s competitiveness? Today’s borrowing rates are the most opportune in years. Defer some of the principle via tax gimmicks. Get creative; not rely on outdated dogma.  Increased tax revenues from increased employment helps to offset other expenses.  Simply cutting expenses will only lead to the demise of the country.  Think about it.  Don’t just jump on the sound bite of the day.  Does decreased spending create jobs, or does satisfying the needs of the country do even more than create jobs?

                                       No Flies !            

We’re getting a little slower

in our production of essays at thenoflieszone.  Not because there’s a dearth of topics.  On the contrary, reporters probably have never been busier or bewildered as to what subjects take priority.  But, I, for one, without benefit of staff, only have 24 hours in my day.  And not coming from a prolific literary background, I haven’t figured out how to get more into the day when I have other things that need attention.  But I’m happy to say that, of all people, I am working on a book.  And this is what seems to be demanding more of my authoring time.  Fortunately, the diversionary topic happens to be an expansion of thenoflieszone’s agenda.

I also have something to admit.  I have been holding back.  My concern for human rights taking precedence over 2500 year old dogma is because there happens to be new scientific evidence contradicting these dated tenets.  The subject of my book will be the revelation of this information and how it relates to man’s inhumanity towards man.  The discrimination, apartheid, slavery, genocide etc. is a result of the perpetuation of wrong information as to who we are.  Consequently, many of our social ills and programs are a result of perceptions of man garnered from myths and stories.  Yet, why would we perpetuate such atrocities?  Good question, glad I asked.  And when it comes to an overwhelming amount of information applicable to the specifics of this topic, little is discussed as the reason for these criminal acts.  Perhaps we can now point to a more nefarious possibility that the prejudices and injustices that have haunted us for ages are based on agendas and policies designed to favor the few while harming the many.  Wouldn’t THAT be a startling revelation; not. 

The overwhelming point is that there’s a sea tide of humanity all over the world that suffers by basic standards of what an American would call, pathetic.  Yet some examples occur right here on U.S. soil.  We live in a world where too many think that those less fortunate are really less deserving.  We remember the thousands boarded in the coliseum in the wake of hurricane Katrina.  Yet most were black or poor whites.  It was somehow their fault they lived in New Orleans and what happened to them was their responsibility and their task to return or rebuild.  But we’re talking humanity; are some more deserving than others?  Does one who has more opportunity deserve better treatment or is more human than another with less materialism?  Does skin color have anything to do with our perceptions?  The dots will be connected.

In 1948, as a response to the atrocities of WWII, the participating world countries enacted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  These articles in recognition of human universals, before they were discovered, recognized certain inalienable rights, the same in our constitution, worthy of all man regardless of race, economic or social status.  This was enacted regardless of competing or contradicting religious tenets.  It is these rights that should take precedence over manmade legislation and the myths and stories that delude rational thinking. 

It is this destructive intolerance that continues today when there are children still being taught that certain behaviors of man are abhorrent; discrimination should be permitted when it comes to property rights; giving assistance during national crisis should be legislated on a state level basis; evolution is only a theory, as in hypothesis; creationism is as valid a science as evolution; and everybody who breathes should pay their fair share of taxes, regardless of their income; even if they’re below the poverty level; and a gazillion other “facts” based on these myths and stories.  We can rationalize ‘till the cows come home who is entitled to what.  But the root of who and what we are should determine what basics every person should enjoy.

                                          No Flies !