Politics, In My Opinion (Part 2)

Okay, here goes. Hopefully you won't hate me and those who are following my blog won't drop me.

The Issues

I realize it’s been 6 days already. It’s starting to settle. But I still want to get it all out there. Maybe we all just need to start having a real dialogue in this country instead of leaving it up to the major news networks and talk radio.

The Economy

For the most part, I don’t think presidents affect the economy THAT much. The economy goes in cycles. It goes up, it goes down, again and again. Most economic factors are beyond the control of any president or administration. Clinton rode the internet bubble. How could he have possibly had a bad economy during the coming of the information age? But that was just it. The bubble began to burst. About the same time Bush came into office. Stocks had become way overinflated. Then 9/11. Real fear in the country definitely brings the economy and spending down. Then Enron and so many companies followed suit. I don’t blame any of that on Bush.

One of the few things the government can do to affect the economy is in tax policy and the Fed can move interest rates up and down. That’s mostly it. Everything else is small potatoes and doesn’t change much. Lower taxes means people (and companies) have more money to spend. High interest rates encourage investing and not spending. Low interest rates encourage spending and not investing.

Oh, and also making the market a friendly place to do business. We need to have policies that make it easy for businesses to operate. So we need to be careful to not overregulate or to force companies to pay for expensive programs that they can’t afford. Right now companies are making the decision – health care and higher taxes, or people’s jobs.

There you have it. And what do you know? My mommy brain can actually recall a bit from my two business degrees after all. Well, that’s microeconomics anyway.

MACROeconomics is different. It is the simple concept of supply and demand. Free markets generally work better than anything else. As supply and demand changes, the price that people are willing to pay in the market moves up and down. But the government likes to put controls in all these places that causes more problems. One of my favorite examples is minimum wage. Without going into all the details, the IDEA of minimum wage sounds great. But in reality here is what happens. Minimum wage workers make more, and therefore cost more to companies. Companies then raise prices (inflation), which then gets passed onto consumers. The wealthy don’t really feel the inflation and absorb it easily. The people living paycheck to paycheck, though their wages just increased, they did not increase as much as the now increase in the cost of living. It actually WIDENS the gap! But conservatives are painted as evil for not wanting to raise the minimum wage. You have to look further down the road to see the real effects of government intervention. So I think we need to, as much as possible, let the free market do its job.

Now, do we want entire major industries failing? No. The results would be devastating. But free enterprise encourages the best in companies and in innovation. We should let companies compete. That’s why companies do everything better than the government. If they don’t, people will no longer give them their business.

The Budget

It needs to be balanced. The national debt is so large that it’s going to probably take a combination of tax increase and spending cuts. But the best way to bring in tax revenue is actually growing the economy. More people at work means more people paying tax revenue, and greater total tax dollars because their incomes are higher.  Our dollar is collapsing. This is a bad thing for America.

Also, isn't it kind of Money Management 101 that you don't spend more than you make? There are times of exception for this, just as there are in real life, but it better not get out of control, and you better not be spending on things you don't need. America has a spending sickness. We have a lot in America, but we are not a rich nation at this point in time.

The Wealthiest 1%

I’m okay with a progressive tax rate. But how much of any one person’s income is too much to take? Is there a limit? Is it fair? Sure, wealthy people maybe don’t NEED all that they have, but isn’t the sky’s the limit the ultimate in the American Dream? Do we want people holding back so they can stay just under the next tax bracket? I had a friend point out that the Lord asks ALL people to tithe 10%, why shouldn’t the government operate the same way? I think he has a point. But I’m still okay with a progressive tax. I think it’s silly to ask someone living in poverty to pay taxes to the government. But I also think really anything above about 30% is highway robbery. 40% is nearly half. Not cool in my opinion, no matter how rich someone is. They earned it.

As for that 1%, the one point that I don’t think gets said enough, or emphasized enough, is that that 1% INCLUDES many small businesses. Those are the companies that employ the greatest number of people in this country. They often have 5-20 employees. The tax rate is killing these businesses (and thus killing jobs). That to me is the greatest reason to keep taxes down. This argument about the wealthiest 1% has painted those people to be full of greed, but it’s about the American Dream, incentive, and jobs which are everybody’s problem.

Foreign Policy

I’m all for a strong military. A really strong one. I don’t like spending cuts to the military and I believe the military should always be a top priority. We also need to take care of soldiers and their families.

As for how we relate to other countries, we need to of course work together as best we can, as often as we can. But we need to be strong against our enemies, and I like the idea of American exceptionalism. I don’t think we should be obnoxious, but I think because of the ideals of our country – freedom, democracy, capitalism, and good values – that we have a responsibility to the world to maintain world peace and help when we can. That doesn’t mean we tell everybody what to do, but there are often times where we cannot stand by and tolerate certain things in the world. And we need to be bold to our enemies. In spite of the fact that America is not beloved around the world, it’s still the one country everybody wants to get into, and that’s for a reason.

The Environment and Oil

I believe in global warming (or really we should call it climate change), but I don’t believe we should blame it for everything. To deny it is just as silly as blaming it for everything. I also don’t think we can stop it. But I’m all for doing what we can to help the environment, within reason. We need our factories. And some of us need big cars. I think everyone, including companies, should be conscious about what they’re doing affects the environment, and should try to do their best to be environmentally-friendly. I believe in the EPA, so long as they don’t overregulate to the extent that companies can no longer afford to do what they do. We need those companies and their products.

I like the idea of reducing our foreign dependence on oil. Lets utilize as many ways as we can to do that. Increasing our production through a variety of ways should be a given. And coming up with new technologies that are affordable (the hard part) for products to become a real change in our society. The Prius sounds great, but not very affordable for many people. And I’ve yet to see a fuel-efficient (or electric) car made for large families. But we can’t force the auto companies to build these if it does not make financial sense for them to do so.

Abortion and Women

Okay, we’re getting into touchy subjects here. This is not about condemnation or anything else. I will go ahead and state that I am not for abortion, except in rare cases. However, I am not for overturning Roe v. Wade. I think most Republicans would say the same thing, especially presidential candidates. What Republican presidential candidate have you actually heard say they wanted to overturn Roe v. Wade? None in my adult life. The outcome would probably be social upheaval at its worst. I do not think it would be good for America. Secondly, the president does not have the power to overturn Supreme Court decisions. This is one issue that I really just don’t even see being an issue anymore. I’m tired of both sides continuing to make this an issue. The left LOVE to make it an issue because it wins them more votes. They love to plant fear in everyone about this. The right forces politicians into a corner on this one. Candidates have to say they’re pro-life, and keep it an issue, to get the nomination from their party. But no one rising to the top of the ticket really has any intention of overturning anything. And if they did, they would have to make a bunch of Supreme Court appointments, that got approved, that would all want to overturn it, combined with a case that actually brought the whole Roe vs. Wade decision back into question. So, why is this still a presidential issue?

I DO think abortion is a touchy subject because I think the left’s argument that the government shouldn’t tell people what to do with their own body doesn’t really hold up because there is the life of the baby at stake. The government has a responsibility to protect life, so where is the line? Nobody really actually knows. On the subject of mid-term and especially late-term abortion, that is again another matter with even greater meaning. Still not sure it’s a presidential issue. Aside from views on abortion due to the sensitive nature of what's at stake, I don't really see any other women's issues out there that have to do with government. Republicans aren't trying to keep women downtrodden and in lower status than men. Sure women overall make less than men, but that's not the government's fault. And it's very hard to prove that a woman is making less because she's a woman vs a myriad of other reasons. So what can the government really do about it? The birth control thing - that's more about forcing religious companies to provide it even though they might be against it, not about not wanting women to have birth control. Now, it IS an answer to many health concerns, but again, let the companies provide what coverage they feel is in their company's best interest. The consumers' best interest IS in their best interest.

Gay Marriage

You know, I’m really in the middle on this one. I like the idea of it being a states’ issue, though I think it’s going to work its way across the country. I’m really not for gay marriage due to my religious beliefs that marriage actually is defined as between a man and a woman, but I’m not so sure it’s a government issue. I’m neither here nor there, so when looking at a political candidate, I’m not really looking at this issue.  I hope no one is offended by my stance on this. But it is a political hot topic and if I’m talking about the issues and my opinions on them, then I’m going to include this one as well. I also have concerns that churches and religious institutions will be required to perform gay marriages when it is against their belief system. It’s like religious organizations that are also told to provide birth control when it is against their belief system. I thought we were supposed to make exceptions for religious organizations and their beliefs?

Welfare

This country is once again in need of welfare reform. So many people abuse the system and it is bankrupting our country. True, there are many people in need and I'm all for helping them, but there are many others who will continue to happily take their check, or whatever it is they are getting, and work the system instead of actually bettering their lives. There are also many people on government aid that are on it simply because of poor choices they have made in life. I know that because I have such people in my own family. Smart, able people who continue to make bad choices. On the one hand I am glad they have the help, but on the other hand, it’s really not fair. My husband and I made good choices in life, we pay our taxes, and it gets distributed out to someone who makes bad choices. Again, that’s not everybody, but there are a lot.

Immigration

I'll admit I don't know the answer here. I think the answer lies somewhere between amnesty and deportation. Amnesty simply isn't fair to those who are trying to get in here legally, and it will further encourage more illegal immigration. I also don't think we need to go around with patty wagons rounding up illegal immigrants. I DO think if they break the law then out they go. I don't believe they are entitled to any government services at all with the exception of medical treatment in the way that all others who don't have insurance get. I know it's not great - but a man in great need of medical care should not be denied at least basic treatment. We in America have more soul than that.

Social Security

It's not going to be there. People my age and under need to not expect it. It's money gone and you better start saving for your retirement. For our parents' generation, it's there. No politician intends to take it from them.

Health Care

It definitely needed reform, but it went too far. I think the intent of Obamacare was of course a good one, but according to everyone else around the world who have lived in other countries, this new health care plan that is similar to other countries’ plans has been bad for the quality of health care. No one wants to see anyone suffer and not get the care they need, but I also don’t want the quality of care to go down. Again, the intent is good, but the long-lasting effects are not so good overall. I DO like the idea of keeping people on til age 25 and I definitely agree that we need to get rid of not covering someone with pre-existing conditions. But someone somewhere’s got to pay for all this stuff.

The Electoral College

Okay, so it’s not an issue. But the last couple decades there’s been a lot of talk about doing away with the electoral college. I disagree. The electoral college was designed so that the states would each get their own representation. In other words, who’s going to look out for the farmers when everyone moves to the cities. Elections would completely target the cities and urban areas and the heartland of America would be largely forgotten. They have different needs from the government and it’s important that their voices be heard. I would love to see though how the total votes would differ if there were no electoral college. How many more people would get out to the polls if they felt their vote actually mattered? And would we see a significant difference toward one candidate or another?

So again, I am not putting out my views to offend anyone. I’m just ready for a real dialogue. I’m ready to defend my views and explain them because I think that conservatives are so unfairly portrayed by most of the media. I wish everyone saw things how I do, but that is what is great about America. We are all allowed the freedom to have our own beliefs.

Actually, I’ve been thinking lately, there are 3 things that really make America great: Freedom, Democracy, and Capitalism. Let’s never lose those ideals and practices!

Again, comments are welcome so long as they are respectful. That is, if you made it this far! Sorry this was SUPER LONG! It’s not exactly a simple topic! I’m sure I didn’t cover everything either. Thanks for letting me put it on my otherwise light-hearted blog!