The Curmudgeon Chronicle - #305

THE CURMUDGEON CHRONICLE ©

AN IRREVERENT VIEW


Time Line: July 14 2011
Date Line: Chicago IL

Our government is challenged by a small group of egotistical, childish bullies claiming to speak for the American people. Wrapped in the flag and weeping crocodile tears, they put their political agenda aheadof the public good. The public will remember and also will not forget that their prior agendas caused the economic problems we are facing

Their latest reckless act is to hold us hostage to a statutory debt limit that they raised eight times in as many years to pay for oil wars and tax give-aways. The Constitution does not allow a political party the right to cause the US to default on its internal and external debts.

Please note that in all the rhetoric being spilled into the airways no one has suggested a way to solve the basic questions that challenge our country’s inherent promise to future generations: a decent life for all.

If you cut the rhetoric out the issues are: How to put Americans back to work; how to pay for wars we should not have begun; how to stop extraneous matters from dividing our nation and destroying our unity of purpose; how to improve the quality of our elected representatives and assure that the public good is their primary goal in office; and
how to establish permissible levels of personal greed for businessmen and their corporate alter egos

You can’t find the answers in textbooks; they are too logical and simple to be “good copy”. Nevertheless, here are my views:
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1. Some of us can get back to work if American businesses stop sending jobs abroad. Almost every credit card company and bank has its customer service department in India, the Philippines or somewhere other than the US. I will switch my banking to a Canadian bank with US offices because it uses US personnel to service US customers. If you want job growth in the entry level labor market for young graduates, bring back the 320.000 service jobs sent abroad in that niche during the past 25 months. US companies should follow the example of their foreign counterparts: use local labor to serve local markets. That practice will bring back the economy 3,000,000 jobs without raising consumer prices and for the most part not affecting corporate profits by more than a nominal percentage. The companies following that procedure are entitled to substantial tax credits.I
An amount equal to a percentage of the taxes paid by their employees hired by participation in the program. 3 million jobs at an average of $38,000 would produce $114,000,000,000 in gross income. In addition, ech payroll dollar creates $8.00 of commercial activity. Assuming a 24% average tax rate, the US could and should be very generous to companies that bring work home.

2. War is Hell and Hell is expensive. We don’t use our capability and knowhow to advantage. For example, we are asked to “stay in Iraq to safeguard its borders”. If we do that we must be paid for the service. In addition Iraq should assume 25% of the debt burden as a direct obligation secured by oil revenues.We made the Iraqis the beneficiaries of the oil deposits instead of Sadaam Hussein. The contractors who made billions (Halliburton, Brown & Root etc.) can either account for their excesses or assume a portion of the debt. Finally, the oil industry had a major increase in value of its reserves because of US policy, and since there is no free lunch, our government should participate in the windfall. The US should (temporarily) increase its revenue share in oil and gas equivalents derived by the industry from US oil leases. The current US average participation of 8% should increase to 15% until 100 billion is recovered from the excess 7%. (In most other countries government would nationalize 100% of the asset)

3. Issues like school prayer, headscarves, and gay rights should get limited coverage by the national media. The national media should cover the issues on only four days each year: the coldest day; the hottest day; the snowiest day in Buffalo NY, and the day when the latest nut case says the world will come to an end.

4. There is no way to assure sainthood, let alone honesty in a politician. The only hope is to limit his term of office and assure that no one can serve more than two terms. Eliminate pensions and perks from the position and make the salary fair but not attractive. When a representative considers his job an obligation to the nation rather than a meal ticket we have a reasonable hope of honest representation.

Finally we address the basic reason for our present malaise:

Unrestrained personal greed is the cause of bubbles, theft, and financial disaster for everyone. Unfortunately greed is applauded when “successful”. Sam Walton wasn’t satisfied with a growing, profitable, supermarket chain; he had to squeeze the most profit out of the deal. In the process he bankrupted dozens of his US suppliers; created ghost towns to replace factories and began the destruction of US textile and small appliance manufacturing. Sam did to US small business what Attila did to empires in antiquity. We decry Attila but lionize Sam Walton.

Investment Bankers brought down the US housing industry and changed the idea of owning one’s home from a dream to a nightmare. Not wishing to be left behind the commercial banks leaped on the train and after the wreck, when the smoke died down and the mirrors were wiped clean, a lot of innocent by-standers were wiped out too.

5. Try as I might, I can’t compute how much is enough for a greedy person. I think it is best to let the greedy person get as much as he can, provided that he has seen first to the welfare and security of his neighbors and his country. We can measure what society needs and since there are enough greedy folk successfully and happily stealing from each other and the rest of us, it is easy to calculate what such a person must contribute. After that he should be free to get and keep as much as he can make.

Now here is a tax approach that anyone can understand and fall in love with; “Once I make my bogey the rest belongs to me” is such a compelling notion that I’d come out of retirement to try my luck at it.

Howard Stamer