Oh, The naiveté of it all

What does this mean? We are giving Tehran til the end of the year to come up with a Nuclear Weapon. Obama is continuing the footwork of Clinton and Bush

President Barack Obama suggested that Iran may have some right to nuclear energy _ provided it proves by the end of the year that its aspirations are peaceful.
In a BBC interview broadcast Tuesday, he also restated plans to pursue direct diplomacy with Tehran to encourage it set aside any ambitions for nuclear weapons it might harbor.

Iran has insisted its nuclear program is aimed at generating electricity. But the U.S. and other Western governments accuse Tehran of seeking atomic weapons.
“What I do believe is that Iran has legitimate energy concerns, legitimate aspirations,” Obama said, adding that the international community also “has a very real interest” in preventing a nuclear arms race.

The president has indicated a willingness to seek deeper international sanctions against Tehran if it does not respond positively to U.S. attempts to open negotiations on its nuclear program. Obama has said Tehran has until the end of the year to show it wants to engage with Washington.

The subtext of Hillary's Christmas Presents

Hillary's Christmas presents should be a warning to America. Do we really want to travel down the failed populist policies of Europe and Latin America.

Hillary's presents

Universal Health Care - Socialized Medicine coming to a clinic near you. Of course, we must sacrifice a little for the common good (as Hillary puts it.) We will no longer have the best medicine in the world, but I suppose that is OK right?. To support such a system, your taxes will have to be increased a lot (not just on the wealthy) but on everybody - but not to worry, its for the common good. If you want to see what is waiting for you, go to a clinic that takes MediCal and see what kind of service you get. And, don't forget, she is including illegal aliens in her socialized health care plan too, so your increased taxes will pay for all those illegals streaming across our borders - but not to worry. Look at Canada's and Europe's health care. France has the highest tax rate in the world. So, to sum it up, if you want to get ahead, it will be that much more difficult, because your taxes will be raised to such a point to help the indigent here and south of the border - but its for the common good. ¡Arriba Hillary!

Alternative Energy - I strongly believe in alternative forms of energy, but Hillary's alternative energy means ethanol which has been proven to be expensive and ineffectual. It is also subsidized by the government. It does not mean the cleanest form of energy such as nuclear energy. It also does not include drilling for oil in our own backyard. The goal should not be alternative energy - the goal should be reducing our reliance on Middle Eastern oil instead of sending petrodollars to people who want to kill us.

Bring Troops Home - This has already begun under Bush. I do believe Hillary would be the most rational in bringing the troops home. She wouldn't be as cut and run as the other Democrats. But, then there would be no difference with respect with Bush. This has become a non-issue. The surge is working. You do not hear stories of car bombs much any more. But, the drive-by media neglects to report it. The drive-by media only reports if there is mass violence. The global warming myth has usurped the war in Iraq because of the drop in violence.

Middle Class Tax Breaks - Huh? I don't think so. She will be raising capital gains (owned by the middle class.), and she will be removing Bush's tax cuts (which affect many middle class households)not to mention reinstating the death tax. If you think the rich are going to pay for this universal health care boondogle, then I have a bridge I can sell you. And, wait til they start taxing you for all this global warming, and its coming. This is another pipe dream.

Universal Pre-K - These are the formative years of children where the children should be spending bonding time with their parents. Universal Pre-K is just another way for the government to have your kids that much earlier - a dangerous precedent. And, more socialism.

For the coming year, I have a new financial plan. I never gauge my investments on which party is in the White House. This time will be different. If I think Hillary is going to win, I am going to be dumping stocks for safer investments. I am not the only one. Hillary, a European Socialist, will cause the economy to go into a recession.

Europe is trying to extricate itself from the Socialist Policies of the past. It is a difficult process if it is possible at all. The United States will find itself in the same position. It will take years for us to unravel the mess Hillary will cause for all of us.

So, Merry Christmas to all - from now until never you will be paying for Christmas presents not for your family but for people you don't even know here and south of the border.

Will the Real Hillary Clinton Stand Up?

Last Sunday, the attractive and alluring Christina Fernández de Kirchner rode into the Argentinean presidency on the cusp of her husband and President, Néstor Kirchner. “Es la hora del pueblo”, It is the people’s time intones the Argentinean singer Teresa Parodi on Christina Kirchner’s official website. Christina won a clear mandate 44%, from the Argentinean electorate, 23% above her nearest rival. Her election cements the Kirchner dynasty in Argentinean politics, and it will allow her husband to be reelected after her term according to the Argentinean constitution. Christina, a Peronista, has been compared to the former vice president and first lady of Juan Perón, the still venerated Evita Perón. She has also been compared to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Christina is the first female Argentinean president to be elected to office, and she is currently riding a wave of popularity. This is definitely the era of the woman in global politics.

Uxorial politics, a tradition in Argentina, is coming to the United States. Like Christina, Hillary Clinton seems to be riding a wave of popularity among her constituency beating out both Edwards and Obama by a wide margin. She will almost certainly win the Democratic nomination, and probably the presidency. I do not understand it.

Saturday, I was listening to Bob Brinker’s money talk. I occasionally listen to his show because he does sometimes have good insight into the market. He correctly predicted the dot-com crash. However, Brinker also had some disastrous predictions, and had you followed him then, the effects to your portfolio could have been dire.

Brinker’s show is usually never political in nature, but I was amazed at the volume of callers who were concerned about what a Clinton presidency would do to investor’s portfolios. This does not bode well for consumer confidence. There is a lot of concern and trepidation among investors about the impact raising taxes will do to their investments, and Hillary has promised to raise taxes.

These are just some of the comments made by Brinker to caller’s responses

HILARY AND CAPITAL GAINS TAX: Brinker guessed that she would settle for 20%, but she might want more, “……..because she is a big believer in re-distributing the wealth. She really loves that notion of re-distributing, so she might want more.” On dividends, “She hasn’t made it clear." On income tax, “Over $200,000, you are getting a tax increase.”
.
BOB BRINKER TAX WARNING: “So what does this mean? It means you have the balance of this year and all of next year to make money at today’s income tax rates – maximum federal 35, capital gains 15, dividends, qualified dividends, 15-Federal. You have until the end of 2008 because George W. Bush is not going to raise your taxes. "
(source: (http://honeysbobbrinkerbeehivebuzz.blogspot.com/2007/10/moneytalk-summary-october-28-2007.html) Honeybee’s summary of Bob Brinker’s Moneytalk radio show

.

I have never seen an election since I have been voting where raising taxes, (a central platform of the Democrats), is a plus rather than a negative. Hillary doesn’t even lie about it. Hillary makes no qualms about raising taxes. She continuously touts new ideas such as $5,000 baby bonds, matching 401K contributions. Adding up all her programs could increase the average family’s taxes in real terms by more than 20%. These taxes would be enacted as the United States continues to reel from the subprime mortgage debacle, and as the dollar continues to fall against major currencies. This can only be a recipe for disaster.

When Bill Clinton left office, the country was on the verge of a recession due to the dot-com crash. A year and a half later, during the second Bush administration, the twin towers were hit. The impact of the dot-com crash was still being felt. The ephemeral patriotism of the country soon led to a decline in consumer confidence. Had Bush raised taxes, we would have gone into a recession, but he didn’t, he decreased taxes. This increased consumer confidence, and we averted the recession that pundits said we were going to have. Now we are facing another crisis. It will take years before the cost of this subprime debacle is fully realized, and Hillary plans to raise taxes. This will throw us into a recession. This doesn’t even count the cost of Hillary care, which will make the cost of Bush’s Medicare plan seem like petty cash.

Hillary believes that redistribution of wealth is good for America. She believes in big government. The government will take care of you. This is the opposite of laissez-faire capitalism, and it will impede economic growth.

The Harvard economist Joseph Schumpeter coined a term which he described was the central dynamic of capitalism, “creative destruction.” Creative destruction is the process of destroying the old (the obsolete) while creating the new. Some examples that underwent the way of creative destruction are the telegraph, the selectric typewriter, the railroad, and the computer chip. Creative destruction is necessary for capitalism to work. Governmental interference impedes this process

As creative destruction takes place, employees are displaced. Employees must have to continuously acquire new skills and knowledge to advance or maintain their place in society. It has been proven time and time again that creative destruction makes a nation wealthier (including the poor.) Innovation and risk taking are the hallmarks of creative destruction. All socio-economic classes take part in this process.

Human tendency, however, is to avoid change, and to want security. Change and insecurity are essential components of creative destruction. The creative destruction component of capitalism causes societies to gravitate towards socialist governments where the government takes care of you from cradle to grave. Third world nations are very susceptible to Socialist governments. The thinking goes something like this, “It’s my right, and I am entitled to it.”

As Alan Greenspan notes in "The Age of Turbulence, Adventures in a New World."

Capitalism creates a tug-of war within each of us. We are alternately the aggressive entrepreneur and the couch potato, who subliminially prefers the lessened competitive stress of an economy where all participants have equal incomes.

Socialism has proven to impede economic growth in every society that has tried it. The more socialist a government, the less efficient an economy will be. This doesn’t seem to matter to Hillary. She still seems to believe in a socialized, centrally planned government in spite of all the evidence that such governments hurt economies.

Once entrenched in socialist style governments, governments find it difficult to extricate their way out. Citizens become used to the social net that is provided. Margaret Thatcher was a proponent of capitalism, and she took on Britain’s socialist policies with an iron hand. The new intrepid French president Nicolas Sarkozy has offered hope against France’s socialist policies including its 35 hour mandatory work week. In Switzerland, the far-right Swiss party has been gaining popularity and according to the Economist, has offered expulsion of foreign criminals, no EU entry, tax cuts—the SVP captured seven more seats in the National Council. With 62 seats and 29% of the vote, against 26.7% in 2003, it recorded the best result of any party since.

What is happening in Europe? A recent poll according to Alan Greenspan shows that 71% of Americans agree that the free-market system is the best economic system available, but only 36% of the French agree. Three-fourths of the French also prefer to work in the government sector, because the government offers security. France has double digit unemployment, a mandatory six week vacation, a mandatory 35 hour work week, and socialized health care. Taxes are a heavy burden on French society. The French view capitalism as “The law of the jungle.” The dichotomy is that while polls suggest that the French still view capitalism as an “evil.”, France elected Sarkozy, a protectionist, but a firm believer in free-markets. An ally of the United States, Sarkozy has promised France sweeping change.

Socialized health care has also proved to be deleterious on governments that practice it.

West Germany was forced to absorb East Germany into its social net after the fall of the Berlin wall. This proved to be a heavy burden on West Germany, and resentment grew among West Germans. Think illegal immigration.

Bush has destroyed the GOP. He has alienated his base from Immigration, the Medicare drug plan boondoggle to the deficit. But Hillary is not the answer, and all the other Democratic nominees are to the left of Hillary (if you can believe that.)

After decades of failed policies, Europeans are beginning to realize that with such heavy burdens on society, it is hard to compete in the global marketplace. Hillary, a European socialist, plans to take us in the direction of those same failed European policies.

Rudy Guliani was prescient when he said, “American can’t afford you (Hillary).”

Who needs Usama Bin Laden to destroy our economy when we have Hillary? If Hillary is elected president, she will take us down a path of “no return.” It will be decades before we can unravel the mess that Hillary will cause.

By Mark Dias


"We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good.”

Hillary Clinton

Another Democrat Debate or Another Voyage into Lunacy

One can only wonder about the hypocrisy of the Democratic debate last night. Speaking about diversity at Howard University, an all black university, the candidates did nothing but pander to their Black audience. Clinton basically blamed the Bush administration for racism on its funding of AIDS.

The New York Times reported May 30th, 2007

The United States’ current campaign against AIDS, with $15 billion in committed spending, has made possible the treatment of 1.1 million infected people in 15 countries, most of them in Africa — an achievement Mr. Bush called “a promising start.” If America steps up its commitment to $30 billion, 2.5 million people can be treated and as many as 12 million cases of infection can be prevented, Mr. Bush said.

So who is Clinton kidding?

Biden said he and Obama were both tested for the AIDS virus. How Sweet! I wonder if they made the appointment together. I can honestly say that I have never been tested – maybe it’s because I don’t engage in sexual practices that would be conducive to getting the virus. "I just want to make clear I got tested with Michelle” Obama said referring to his wife. Hmmm – maybe they are swingers?

They all lambasted this week’s Supreme Court decision by Chief Justice Robert, (schools cannot use race to assign students). Obama said, "If it were not for them," he said referring to race-based preferential treatment, "I would not be standing here." And my answer to that is, is that a bad thing? Of course, here you have all candidates speaking about diversity at a school where there is no diversity.

"This issue of poverty is the cause of my life," said John Edwards. Yeah, I wonder if anyone has seen his 28,000 square foot newly built house in front of a trailer park. Edwards has never visited the trailer park, and the tenants of the trailer park have expressed disdain towards him. I wonder if his 400 dollar haircuts are also evidence of “poverty as the cause of his life.”

USA reports:

Edwards' new house in North Carolina has become a symbol of what some see as a contradiction between his political image and the way he conducts his life. His challenge is to ensure that voters don't decide that it negates his populism.
Aerial photos of the 102-acre estate show a 28,000-square-foot home that's worth about $4 million and includes a recreation building with basketball and squash courts and swimming pool. http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070314/1a_cover14.art.htm

And, of course - not one question on the failed immigration bill, the most important news item facing this country in the past several months - go figure!

So what can we expect from all of these scary Democratic candidates

1) Higher taxes and the repeal of Bush’s tax cuts
2) Socialized health care – look to Europe or Canada if you want to see what a disaster that is, or take a stroll to your local clinic with Medicaid patients.
3) The legalization of half of Mexico.
4) The growth and strength in the ferocity of Al-Qaeda
5) A sympathetic ear to the plight of your local dictator (Chavez, Ortega, Ahmadinejad)
6) The beginning of a new censorship with The Fairness Doctrine http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/F/htmlF/fairnessdoct/fairnessdoct.htm . Top leading Democrats are supporting it. These so-called advocates of free speech cannot compete in the marketplace of ideas on talk radio, so they use the government to suppress it.

I cannot understand how anyone can be a Democrat. It falls in the face of all logic.

Congratulations France

It has been my contention that the typical Frenchman is not anti-American. This was a myth propagated by Chirac, the left, and the liberal media both in the United States and France, and the proof was in yesterday’s French elections where Sarkozy won with 53.06% of the vote beating France’s Hillary Clinton's Ségolène Royal.

This is not good news for the Clinton camp. First, the democrats lost their issue that Europe is not our friend. France will now be an ally of the United States. “Freedom” Fries can now retain the name of “French” Fries. Bill O’reilly has lifted his boycott of France.

Illegal immigration is an issue that resonates both in Europe and in the United States. The candidate who comes out strong on both terrorism and immigration will win the next presidential election. I have yet to see any candidate come out with any tendentious view on illegal immigration. This means that Hillary does not have a lock on the next presidency. (Note: The alleged terror plot on Fort Dix was mostly perpetrated by illegal aliens from the Middle East.)

Sarkozy, the president of UMP, the French conservative party wants a liberalized economy based on American and British examples. He is a skilled orator, and wants to be a friend of the United States. His main issue was immigration. The French are tired of the parasitic immigrants pouring in from impoverished African nations. As in the United States, most French politicians are afraid of speaking about illegal immigration for fear of being called racists. Apparently, Sarkozy understood the French frustration about immigration. He wants to design a quota system to allow skilled immigrant workers into the French economy, and stop the flood of illegal immigrants, (what a novel concept – Can anyone tell Bush that?).

According to Forbes magazine, France leads the world in taxes. Forbes uses a misery index. Misery, of course, means the higher taxes you pay, the more misery you live in. Forbes adds all taxes imposed by the government, corporate Income tax, personal income tax, wealth tax, employer and employee social security and the Vat and a misery index is derived. France’s misery index is 166.8 (See the May 21st issue of Forbes) and the USA’s misery index is 115. Sarkozy favors a five point or larger reduction in the top corporate tax rate while Royale wanted another individual flat tax on top of the existing progressive income tax and flat tax. This is why it is so hard to get ahead in France because of the heavy tax burden.

To be fair and balance it is interesting to read a French perspective on their tax burden. http://www.forbes.com/2007/05/03/forbes-misery-france-oped-cx_pf_0503favre.html

Whether or not Sarkozy can fulfill what France needs to grow its economy is yet to be seen. France has been well entrenched in its welfare system since World War II. Its guaranteed employment may also be hard to unravel as evidenced by the recent riots in the French suburbs. This has contributed to France’s double digit unemployment rate. But the fact Sarkozy was elected bodes well for the future of the country, and demonstrates that the French want change.

An article of le monde says, (translation below).

Le président élu Nicolas Sarkozy a déclaré dimanche que les "amis américains" de la France "pouvaient compter" sur son amitié et que la France "serait toujours à leur côté quand ils auraient besoin d'elle".
"Je veux lancer un appel à nos amis américains pour leur dire qu'ils peuvent compter sur notre amitié", a déclaré M. Sarkozy, peu après l'annonce de sa victoire.
"Je veux leur dire que la France sera toujours à leur côté quand ils auront besoin d'elle. Je veux leur dire aussi que l'amitié c'est d'accepter aussi que ses amis puissent penser différemment", a poursuivi le nouveau président.
M. Sarkozy a également appelé Washington à prendre "la tête du combat" en faveur de l'environnement, "parce que ce qui est en jeu c'est le sort de l'humanité". http://www.lemonde.fr/web/depeches/0,14-0,39-30789207@7-354,0.html

Transalation

The president-elect Nicolas Sarkozy declared Sunday that the American Friends of France “can count” on their friendship and that France “would always be on their side when they need it.”
“I would like to make an appeal to our American friends by telling them that they can count on our friendship” declared M Sarkozy, after announcing his victory.
“I would like to say that France will always be at their side when they need it. I would like to tell them also that Friendship means we can think differently”, continued the new president.
M Sarkozy has also appealed Washington to take “the lead” in favor of the environment, “because what is at stake is the fate of all humanity.”

When he refers to the environment, he is talking about global warming. OK – so it’s not perfect (nobody told the French that global warming is a fraud perpetrated by Al Gore and his ilk), but it still is a step in the right direction.

I predict in the next elections in Spain, Zapatero will lose. Spain is also a friend of the United States – it is their current administration that is anti-American, not the populace. Zapatero won as a knee-jerk reaction resulting from the bombing of Madrid. 90% of Spain (and France) are against the war in Iraq, but Spain would have reelected Aznar had it not been for the capitulation caused by the Madrid bombings. Aznar was a driving force in Spain’s economy, and Zapatero is turning out to be a disaster. I predict that at the end of Zapatero’s term, the socialists will lose power again, and the conservatives, “el partido popular” will regain power, and Spain will once again be a friend of the United States.

The left will be relegated to the hallways of the naiveté of the United States Educational System.