wealth redistribution – The Old Guy Phd

Republicans ARE the Party of “YES!”

G’Day!

Wake up American—regarding the future of our great country, Republicans ARE the real party of “YES!”

While not an official spokesperson for the Republican Party, I am a total supporter of the United States of America and know the difference between good and bad governmental policies. In my opinion, the principles below are good and are those for which the Republicans stand.

Yes, Republicans believe America is the most exceptional and unselfish nation on earth.

Yes, Republicans love our country, want to preserve our Constitution, and retain the balance of powers between the Administrative, Congressional, Judicial branches of government and the States.

Yes, Republicans believe in a constitutionally limited-power federal government providing national security, protection of our freedoms, an impartial legal system, and only essential and affordable government services for those citizens that are truly in need and unable to provide for themselves.

Yes, Republicans believe in a strong military to protect our country and preserve our freedoms.

Yes, Republicans believe in free and honest elections with proof of citizenship required at the voting stations.

Yes, Republicans believe in individual freedoms, especially freedom of choice, unrestricted by unnecessary government regulations and controls.

Yes, Republicans believe in sound fiscal and monetary policies to promote a solid financial foundation for growth and job creation in our economy.

Yes, Republicans believe the efficiency and effectiveness of free market capitalism and private property ownership produce superior economic growth and wealth for a nation. Government should get out of the way and let capitalism and entrepreneurship work.

Yes, Republicans believe our government has become too large, too expensive, and our unsustainable government spending supported by unrestricted debt will ultimately lead to a financial and economic crisis for our country.

Yes, Republicans believe in the dignity of all people, human rights, and freedom of choice and have repeatedly shown a willingness to unselfishly fight for these principles on behalf of other countries when these principles have been challenged by dictators and corrupt leaders.

Yes, Republicans believe in and want to preserve a financially sustainable Social Security System.

Yes, Republicans want to preserve America’s quality healthcare system that allows freedom of choice for all Americans at affordable costs.

Yes, Republicans believe in solving our illegal immigration problem through proper legislation without granting unilateral amnesty.

Yes, Republicans believe our federal tax system is broken, unnecessarily complicated, and needs major revision and simplification.

Yes, Republicans believe taking wealth from those who have achieved it and redistributing it to those who have not is a historically failed socialist policy that leads to economic and moral decline.

Yes, Republicans believe in equal rights and equal opportunities for all citizens, not just those selected by our government.

Yes, Republicans believe Presidents and their Administrations, especially the current Departments of Justice, Health & Human Services, Labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the IRS, should impartially administer the law and not arbitrarily pick and choose who wins and who loses in our society.

Yes, Republicans believe Presidents and their Administrations should be honest and transparent with American citizens, especially on major issues and crises effecting our country.

Yes, Republicans believe Presidents should put the needs of the American people above party politics.

Yes, Republicans believe our Presidents should uphold the oath they take at inauguration: “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of the President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

I believe our votes in the next two elections will be vitally important to the future of our country. If you want to preserve our Constitution, our personal freedoms, our economy, and maintain the balance of powers between the three branches of government, the time to act is now.

Republicans ARE the Party of “YES” and are dedicated to protecting and improving our great nation. It is up to us, the citizens of America, to recognize the current dangers and elect Republicans to the House and Senate in 2014 and 2016 and replace Obama with a Republican President in 2016. Let’s save our country from “Obammunism” before it is too late.

The Old Guy PhD

Obammunism – What is “Fair”?

G’Day!

Everyone believes in “Fairness” but what is it? Is “Fairness” equal opportunity to succeed based on your own efforts and decisions, free of government intervention? Or, is “Fairness” government dictated equal sharing of the success of others independent of personal effort and decisions? Consider this, who determines “Fair Share”? Under Capitalism, “Fair Share” is objectively determined by the choices of free people in a free market. Under “Obammunism”, political bureaucrats subjectively and arbitrarily determine “Fair Share” and impose it on the people. Regarding tax alone, what is to protect you from the “Bureaucratic Elite” changing the wealth threshold from $1 million, to $250,000, to $100,000, to $75,000 or lower? If you support Obama’s policies, nothing can protect you from the Government arbitrarily changing “Fair Share” to adversely penalize more and more successful people. If you work hard and succeed in improving yourself and your family, what is to prevent the government from penalizing you for becoming “Rich”? Under Obama, “Fair Share” cannot be satisfied until everyone is economically equal. This is not “The American Dream”.

To our Founding Fathers “Fairness” is our personal “Entitlement” to national security, individual freedom, and free market capitalism with limited fiscally-sound government based on equality of opportunities and private property rights. To President Obama and the Democrats it is “Obammunism”, which is based on the government’s “Entitlement” to regulate and control the American people and businesses to accomplish subjectively determined income and wealth equality. “Obammunism” is achieved through higher taxes, bigger government, forced income and wealth redistribution, expanded welfare dependency, and unfunded entitlements to an unnecessary and undeserved portion of the population. It further requires excessive environmental restrictions on the use of private property, regulations and controls over selected industries, and use of taxpayer funds in the arbitrary selection of industrial “winners & losers”. So far Obama’s big government approach to economic equality has resulted in slow economic growth, a net loss of approximately 4 million jobs, and an energy policy that has killed jobs and leaves American security more dependent on imports of foreign oil. “Obammunism” has also resulted in a 60% increase in our National Debt (from ~$10 trillion to ~$16 trillion) and a huge fiscally unsustainable federal deficit that has exceeded $1.3 trillion in every year of Obama’s Presidency. Erskine Bowles of the Bowles-Simpson Debt Reduction Commission stated earlier this month on the subject of our National Debt, “It is like a cancer. Over time it will destroy the country from within.” Alan Simpson simply referred to it as, “Madness”.

The founders of our great country also believed in equality, the equality of opportunity implemented through personal freedoms, private property rights, and free markets. They believed in minimal government and established a Constitution and subsequent Bill of Rights to guarantee and protect the individual liberties of all citizens from the oppressive policies of the foreign governments from which our ancestors fled in search of a better life. Is it moral or ethical or “Fair” for the government in a land of equal opportunity to engage in wealth redistribution from those who worked hard, made good decisions, and earned their success to those who did not? While nearly everyone believes and supports a reasonable social safety net for the truly needy, the trends since the Great Depression have increasingly been to increase welfare and entitlements far beyond reasonableness and absolutely beyond sustainability.

So what do I believe is “Fair”? What “Entitlements” should we expect from our government? First and foremost, I believe that we are entitled to a President who actually believes and supports the oath of office he declared at his inauguration, which is: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

I believe that we are entitled to a limited government that is business friendly and supports and protects our individual freedoms, free markets, private property rights, sound fiscal & monetary policy, economic growth, and the security and defense of our great nation.

I believe that we are entitled to a limited federal government that regulates and enforces only those activities that cannot be controlled by citizens through either individual freedom of choice under free market capitalism or by State and local governments.

I believe that, except for essential government services, we are entitled to keep what we earn and that wealth redistribution for the goal of economic equality, excessive welfare, and unsustainable entitlements is “Unfair”, unethical, and destructive to economic growth. I further believe that tax reform is essential. (See “Fiscal & Debt Crises – Tax Reform Essential!”)

I believe that, as the Founding Fathers intended, we are entitled to a government that protects our right to use our private property as we wish as long as it does not endanger or encroach on the value of our neighbor’s property AND that we should have the right to use our private property free of unnecessary environmental control and regulation by administrators.

Finally, I believe we are entitled to a President that supports and protects the rights of ALL American citizens and does not promote policies intended to enhance reelection prospects by dividing the country by income, gender, ethnicity, religion, political party, sexual orientation, or race.

Under Obama, our exceptional nation is on the precipice of a fiscal catastrophe and terminal decline in the world. It is not yet too late to correct the Obama’s neo-socialist trend for more taxes, more spending, bigger government, slower economic growth, and eventual collapse under a mountain of unsustainable debt. Throughout history, no nation has been able to sustain excessive spending by taxing, borrowing or “printing money” as a way out of fiscal insanity. All have failed. It is time for America to wake up and realize where this “Amateur” President is taking our country. Study the issues and vote accordingly in November.

The Old Guy PhD

Election 2012 – America’s Choice Has Never Been More Clear!

G’Day!

Happy New Year! I hope your holiday season was enjoyable and successful and best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2012!

This year we will face an election that will probably decide our nation’s course for many years to come. 2012 may be the most important election in our lives. Never have the choices been clearer than they are today: small government vs. big government – free market capitalism vs. centrally planned socialism – individual liberty vs. bureaucratic control of freedoms. At stake is the future of our economy, the relationship between our government and ourselves, federal fiscal and debt solvency, taxation levels, America’s role in the world, and the legacy we are endowing to our children. The key issue is which choice offers the best opportunity for economic & job growth, wealth creation, and a higher standard of living for the American people. It is critical that we each take the time and make the effort to understand the potential consequences for our culture, our opportunities, and our country from these two widely different visions of the role of government and vote accordingly.

Choice 1: Overall, the Republican Party generally supports small government, free market capitalism, and individual liberty. More specifically, they further believe in the Constitution as written by the Founding Fathers, individual & business freedoms, sound fiscal and monetary policies, tax reform for business and individuals, a government limited to protecting the legal rights of individuals, property, and the security of our nation, and equality of opportunities for all citizens. They believe that a reasonable but not unlimited social safety net is desirable for those truly in need. Republicans believe that prosperity and job growth is derived from entrepreneurial business activity free from excessive government interference and is promoted by minimizing regulations and maximizing freedoms and opportunities. Individual success is honored and rewarded. Free markets determine winners and losers and wealth is distributed based on objective “achievement”.

Choice 2: Overall, the Democrat Party supports big government, centrally planned European-style socialism, and bureaucratic control of freedoms. They support a “living” Constitution to be interpreted and modified by the judicial system as desired, regulated individual & business freedoms, unsustainable government spending and entitlements, higher taxes, and forced wealth transfer from the successful to the less successful. Democrats and especially the current President believe in regulated and even hostile control over businesses and the use of Administrative Executive Power as desired to accomplish this. They believe that economic and job growth is derived from government planning, controls, and subsidies to bureaucratically selected companies and industries. Individual success is envied and resented and should be corrected through wealth redistribution. The government determines winners and losers based on fiat and wealth is distributed based on an arbitrary determination of “fairness”.

For months we have heard impressive speeches from our President promising more “Hope and Change” supported by more government regulations, unsustainable entitlements, and higher taxes on the “Rich”. No doubt we will hear many more. But no volume of skillful oratory by the President or his eventual Republican contender can disguise the fact that the two fundamental choices above are the issues in the forthcoming election.

Do you believe that big government, centrally planned European-style socialism, and bureaucratic control of freedoms with increasing control over your lives and businesses are best for you? Do you believe that government administrators can make better decisions for us than we can make for ourselves? Do you believe that these bureaucratic decisions are the best approach to economic growth, job creation, and a higher standard of living? If you believe this, vote for Democrats.

On the other hand, do you believe in small government, free market capitalism, and individual liberty with the freedom to make our own decisions about our lives and businesses? Do you believe that we can make better decisions for ourselves than the government? Do you believe that individual decisions under free markets are the best approach to economic growth, wealth creation, and a higher standard of living? If you believe this, vote for Republicans.

President Obama’s position on the above choices is precisely clear and soon we will have a Republican Presidential Candidate to compare. Please take the time to study the choices, the potential outcomes from each on your lives, consider what is at stake for our nation and our children, and vote accordingly. The choice will be yours in November.

The Old Guy PhD

Capitalism is the Answer – Socialism is the Problem!

G’Day!

Yes, Free Market Capitalism IS the answer to our economic malaise. America is the country of equal opportunity (not equal income) and self-improvement through economic and social mobility, not stagnation, stratification, and redistribution of other people’s money. Capitalism is founded on growth, innovation, unlimited production, and decentralized decision-making through free market pricing. Capitalism properly allocates our economic resources as citizens’ wish (not the government), rewards creativity, and expands the wealth “Pie” for all to share based on effort and contribution. Socialism is founded on personal immobility, government control of production through central planning, and price controls. Socialism predetermines and distorts proper allocation of goods and services as the government wishes (not the citizens), restricts innovation, and redistributes the existing wealth “Pie” based on arbitrary administrative decisions of the government “elite”.

While no system is perfect in all respects, history has proven that Free Market Capitalism works best for maximizing economic growth and prosperity and improving living standards. History has also shown that Socialism does not work and over time retards economic growth and prosperity, and produces a lower standard of living. The demise of communist Russia, China under Mao, and the current European Union fiscal and debt crises are recent examples of the failures of Socialism and central planning. Our government should realize that it cannot tax and spend America into prosperity. Only growth in the private sector can create long-term prosperity and new jobs for our nation. The government should get out of the way, reduce regulations, shrink spending and entitlements, reform personal and business taxes, and let the innovative forces of Free Market Capitalism work.

Our current socialist-oriented, anti-business government has assaulted and discouraged innovative opportunities by enacting legislation and imposing regulations that restrict our ability to engage domestically in creative and profitable endeavors. These policies, including taxation, have stifled domestic investment, encouraged companies to create new jobs offshore, and suppressed the economic growth for which our nation is famous. If Obama’s policies continue and he is reelected, the “Middle Class” will suffer most from the continuing consequences of our economic stagnation. The current “Middle Class” will increasingly join America’s “Dependent Class” who rely on government handouts that sustain and maintain lower living standards. Is this the future you want for our nation and your children?

The factors that have made our country great and the envy of the world are the equal opportunities to improve ourselves through personal hard work, innovation, risk-taking, and thrift. To grow and prosper as our nation has historically done, we need to return to our foundations and encourage entrepreneurial opportunities for wealth creation based on individual freedoms, free markets, private property ownership, and limited government. We don’t need a handout; we want a hand up. Without government support and encouragement for vibrant and profitable financial and business sectors, our economy will continue to underperform. This will result in less, if any, economic growth; less, if any, wealth to redistribute; and fewer, if any, new jobs. Wealth is not created by attacking the institutions and individuals who create it. The choice for the future of our country will be ours at the 2012 election. Vote wisely.

The Old Guy PhD

What has America Become?

G’Day!

I just became aware of a “letter to the editor” on the above subject written by Ken Huber of Tawas City, Michigan. This letter initially appeared in the Iosco County News Herald on June 9, 2010. While I am not in complete agreement with some of his examples, the overall question he raises is appropriate.

Ken Huber’s observations may be even more relevant today than they were a year ago. Since the letter was written, the size of our government has expanded, more regulations have been imposed, we have moved further toward socialism and wealth redistribution, and our President is using “Executive Orders” to replace our legitimate legislative process. The “Occupy Wall Street” mobs appear to support anarchy over law and order, communism over capitalism, and destruction over constructive action. All of this is very disturbing and is eroding our individual and business freedoms, stifling economic growth, and increasing the scope of government far beyond the intentions of the founders of our country. If you love our country and the freedoms it has provided, I suggest that you give consideration to the observations Ken Huber’s letter presents and their implications for our country’s current and future leadership. For those who have not seen it earlier, repeated verbatim below is Ken’s letter.

What has America become? 

Editor,

Has America become the land of special interest and home of the double standard?

Lets see: if we lie to the Congress, it’s a felony and if the Congress lies to us its just politics; if we dislike a black person, we’re racist and if a black person dislikes whites, its their 1st Amendment right; the government spends millions to rehabilitate criminals and they do almost nothing for the victims; in public schools you can teach that homosexuality is OK, but you better not use the word God in the process; you can kill an unborn child, but it is wrong to execute a mass murderer; we don’t burn books in America, we now rewrite them; we got rid of communist and socialist threats by renaming them progressive; we are unable to close our border with Mexico, but have no problem protecting the 38th parallel in Korea; if you protest against President Obama’s policies you’re a terrorist, but if you burned an American flag or George Bush in effigy it was your 1st Amendment right.

You can have pornography on TV or the internet, but you better not put a nativity scene in a public park during Christmas; we have eliminated all criminals in America, they are now called sick people; we can use a human fetus for medical research, but it is wrong to use an animal.

We take money from those who work hard for it and give it to those who don’t want to work; we all support the Constitution, but only when it supports our political ideology; we still have freedom of speech, but only if we are being politically correct; parenting has been replaced with Ritalin and video games; the land of opportunity is now the land of hand outs; the similarity between Hurricane Katrina and the gulf oil spill is that neither president did anything to help.

And how do we handle a major crisis today? The government appoints a committee to determine who’s at fault, then threatens them, passes a law, raises our taxes; tells us the problem is solved so they can get back to their reelection campaign.

What has happened to the land of the free and home of the brave?

– Ken Huber Tawas City

These are troubling trends and I also ask the same questions about what our nation is becoming and where our current government is taking us. Are we on the right or the wrong track? Is a politically correct, European-style unsustainable welfare state in the best interests of ourselves and our children? Does the transfer of wealth from those who create it to those who consume it increase or decrease our country’s economic growth and prosperity? Do you believe free market capitalism or more government regulation and control is the best solution to our fiscal and debt crises and the stagnate economy? These are some of the questions we all should consider before our next election.

I believe our government is too large, too centralized, too oppressive, and is out of touch with the desires of the American people. If you share this view, I suggest you commit yourselves to understanding the serious issues confronting our country and actively work to elect representatives who believe in our US Constitution, individual freedoms, free markets, sound fiscal and monetary policy, and limited government. Let’s correct our nation’s course in 2012!

The Old Guy PhD