Paul Hein offers an excellent analogy to illustrate the foolishness of “economic stimulus”: children running a lemonade stand seem to understand that building their business won’t make more people buy their product:
I was reminded of the lemonade stands we had as kids. One of our moms would donate a pitcher of lemonade (in those days, made with actual lemons!) and we’d haul a card table, the pitcher of lemonade, and some glasses down to the curb and shout “Lemonade!” at passing cars. On occasion, a motorist would actually stop and enjoy a glass of our delicious beverage, at a cost of a nickel or dime – I don’t remember the price we charged. In a short time, though, we’d lose interest in the beverage business, gulp down the lemonade ourselves, and go on to other enterprises.
But we were foolish! How could we expect our lemonade stand to prosper with such under-capitalization? We needed, at least, a sign at the end of the block, advising oncoming drivers of the lemonade oasis ahead. And the stand itself should have been more impressive, perhaps with lighting, and bold colors. We could improve our efficiency with an electric juicer, and the purchase of lemons and sugar in bulk.
What we needed, in a word (okay, two), was a stimulus package. Well, in theory, anyway. In actuality, we never even considered approaching our parents for such a package, knowing instinctively that the potential customers to make such a venture profitable just didn’t exist. Lemons by the bushel, sugar by the ton, and electric juicers whirring away, just weren’t going to make people who might be thirsty for lemonade drive down our street, looking for kids with a pitcher of lemonade on a card table.
Ron Paul appeared on CNN’s American Morning this morning to discuss the “atrocious” way Obama’s stimulus bill jettisoned its way through Congress.
Paul tells CNN viewers that there were only 5 hard copies of the bill for each house of Congress to read beginning when the House opened at noon time. He calls it business as usual.
He again remains positive that his fellow Republicans voted against this bill, but laments that they didn’t follow these convictions during Bush’s 8 years.
We are in the midst of celebrating Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday at the same time Barack Obama is ready to put his signature on one of the largest spending bill’s in American history. It is quite appropriate. So appropriate to almost approach irony.
The United States was not a shining land of liberty prior to Lincoln’s Presidency. Slavery is the best and most popular testament to that. America was an imperfect country pursuing perfection. Lincoln made it worse. The fact that he is revered so universally from the surface dwellers is bothersome. However, the fact that so many historians make excuses for his authoritarian methods because he supposedly “freed the slaves” makes me downright ill.
Lincoln cared little for abolishing slavery. He cared about keeping the Union together and maintaining his own political interests. He was the first President to truly preside as a dictator. Some may argue that John Adams had dictatorial “qualities” as well, but Lincoln went far beyond the scope of the Alien and Sedition Acts.
Lincoln and other Presidents after him like Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and George W. Bush paved the way toward a more oppressive authoritarian federal government. Lincoln was the first though. It’s all his fault that we are high kicking toward socialism today. He kicked first. The rest have followed.
Apparently, Barack Obama is going to be making a call for service during the telecast of the NBA all-star game this evening in Phoenix, Arizona. According to CNN, the White House released an excerpt of his message.
Obama says that we should “lace ‘em up” for service by preparing “a care package for a soldier”, reading to children, or fixing up a basketball court. He then plugs the service website USAService.org to find “service” events near you.
I thought, “Hey, this is a good thing for our President to be doing as long as it remains voluntary and non-partisan.” So I go to the site to see what types of events I could volunteer for in my area. What I discovered were some events among the “proper” ones that were nothing more than pep rallies for Obama and the Democratic Party. I think I’ll just continue to do what I’ve always done, pay attention to my own community and not seek acceptance from the service bean counters in Washington.
Here are two events in my area alone that are deemed “service”:
President’s Day Mix and Meet: Democrats are invited to first meeting and mixer to enroll and meet new members. We will reorganize Community Outreach, Communications, and Precinct sub-committees.
Obama Day: Have a ceremony for president Barack Obama and Family. And selected community guess[sic] will attend. We will have music, Food and Games, just to show our appreciation of the Obama family.
If your among the 30% of the U.S. population who voted for Obama then USAService.org is for you.
If you are in the majority who did not, then you may want to continue to do what he is asking of everyone, but do it on your own terms and in your own community.
If the recent economic situation and Obama’s ill-conceived efforts to fix it are any indication there are going to be a lot more people that need volunteer help. Also, if enough people actually volunteer and results are seen maybe Obama won’t make it mandatory some day. How ironic would that be, the first African American President enslaves the people? That can’t happen here can it?
Robert Higgs gave his views on the economic stimulus package on Fox Business news. He is yet another economist supporting the “do nothing” approach and letting our financial system adjust to its appropriate levels.
Ron Paul was interviewed on Fox Business Channel earlier today for two segments. He discussed the “plunderous” stimulus package that Congress passed and is now awaiting Obama’s signature. I bet he’d use his left hand to sign it even if he were right-handed just to make a point. We are all lefties now!
Paul has some more choice words here but my favorite has to be his response to the question regarding setting up a “bad bank”.
He said (paraphrased), “We already have a bad bank, it’s called the Federal Reserve.” So true.
The video is not high quaility but it doesn’t need to be when the words ring true. It is in two parts.
“Peering through reverent fingers I watch [the Gods of the Market Place] flourish and fall. And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all.” – Rudyard Kipling
by Jake, the Champion of the Constitution
Originally published Saturday, February 14, 2009 at http://www.nolanchart.com/article5998.html
[In case you do not yet understand futures markets, "backwardation" means that silver to be delivered today is now being priced higher than metal to be delivered later. This article refers to the LBMA, or London Bullion Market Association's futures market in London, England. For more details on backwardation, please refer to my five-part December series which starts here "The End for the Dollar and all Fiat Currencies (1/5)". Contango is the opposite of backwardation and exists when futures price is higher than the spot price as I explained for those new to futures terminology here "The Money Matrix - What the Heck Are Derivatives? (PART 10/15)". [As you read, please also note that I am NOT a commodities trader, I am just an engineer by trade, so feel free to help me out with my analysis or mistakes.] ( Photo) (2)
As we learned in “The Significance of Gold Backwardation Explained (4/5)“, backwardation is a sign of a very tight market, and a market that will be tight for sometime into the future either 1) current supply is very tight, 2) future supply is projected to be very tight, or 3) there is a severe distrust in counterparties that the short positions can deliver the goods on time per the contract, or vice-versa that the long positions will not have the cash.
While gold traded as a “store of value” (a currency, really), very little is actually consumed. Silver, on the other hand, serves as both an industrial metal and a “store of value” for silver investors. As we learned here, both silver and gold are precious metals since there is very little aboveground stock. All of the gold stock in the world would fit into a cube 20.5 meters to a side. Due to high amounts of industrial usage, the silver stock is even smaller, less than 14.5 meters to a side.]
Ron Paul released a new video about today’s stimulus package vote. He points out the increase in the national debt caused by passage of the bill and that there were only 5 hard copies available (some of it was still in handwriting).
“An atrocious way to legislate.”
“They are doing atrocious legislating.”
I don’t think Ron Paul liked the bill, what he was able to read of it anyway.
No, not the questions his supporters are still asking: “What if Ron Paul were President?”…
..rather a litany of questions to demonstrate how far America has slipped off the moorings of its founding.
“What if Christianity actually teaches peace?”
“What if propping up oppressive regimes in the middle east endangers both the United States and Israel?”
“What if we finally decide that torture… is self destructive?”
“What if conservatives understood once again that their only logically position is to reject military intervention and managing an empire throughout the world?”
“What if Obama has no intention of leaving Iraq?”
And so on. Watch the Thomas Jefferson of our day below…
Ron Paul isn’t perfect. I agree with him on about 95% of the issues, but from time to time he supports a bill I do not. For instance, take H.R. 997 which aims to make English the official language of the Unites States, for which Ron Paul is listed as one of the co-sponsors. The bill reads:
To declare English as the official language of the United States, to establish a uniform English language rule for naturalization, and to avoid misconstructions of the English language texts of the laws of the United States, pursuant to Congress’ powers to provide for the general welfare of the United States and to establish a uniform rule of naturalization under article I, section 8, of the Constitution.
I love the idea that there be an “official language” in order to simplify official documents, signs, etc. Such a thing can save a lot of money. But the fact remains that such a declaration by Congress is not expressly authorized in the Constitution.
The bill specifically indicates that it will invoke Article I, secton 8 (known as the “general welfare” clause) of the Constitution, but as one blogger points out, Ron Paul has argued on many occasions against this type of misue of the clause by saying:
Madison said: “With respect to the words ‘general welfare,’ I have always regarded them as qualified by the detail of power connected with them. To take them in a literal and unlimited sense would be a metamorphosis of the Constitution into a character which there is a host of proofs not contemplated by its creators.” Madison argued that there would be no purpose whatsoever for the enumeration of the particular powers if the general welfare clause was to be broadly interpreted. The Constitution granted authority to the federal government to do only 20 things, each to be carried out for the benefit of the general welfare of all the people. This understanding of the Constitution, as described by the Father of the Constitution, has been lost in this century.
Because of my continuing and uncompromising opposition to appropriations not authorized within the enumerated powers of the Constitution, I must remain consistent in my defense of a limited government whose powers are explicitly delimited under the enumerated powers of the Constitution…
So then why is Ron Paul supporting this unconstitutional bill?
Liberty Maven
This article and charts is an update to an earlier article “![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=ba307e46-ea24-4549-9ed7-2aa36df3a00a)
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