From: marlon menezes <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Thanks to poor management and the focus on wrong priorities such as the
disastrous Iraq war, the fall of the American economy in the last 8 years
has been quite stunning. Whoever wins the next election, will have a
difficult challenge ahead of him. I think the fiscally conservative McCain
would be a better choice, but Obama may also be ok too. Regardless, either
candidate would be better than the monkey currently occupying the white
house. I hope monkeys around the world will not be insulted with this
reference.
Mario responds:
Wow! What a great opportunity to provide Goanetters with yet another
seminar in the use of facts, common sense, context and perspective:-))
I have always said that people are entitled to arrive at whatever opinion
they choose to, however misguided, but cannot be allowed to make up their
own facts.
Unlike some others featured on Goanet recently, Marlon normally uses
recognizable facts. Unfortunately, in the comment above, Marlon has
abandoned the use of facts while allowing himself to confuse puerile
ridicule with objectivity.
The facts will show that President Bush 43 inherited a declining economy and
stock market in 2001 and the US was then hit by the sneak attack on 9/11,
before the initial budget that he requested and Congress approved, which
contained massive reductions in income tax rates and investment tax rates,
was implemented beginning in October 2001.
Thereafter, the US led coalition quickly defeated the Taliban in Afghanistan
and the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq, and assisted the Afghanis and Iraqis
respectively to form democratic systems of government, all while being
relentlessly opposed by people like Marlon and the entire left wing
worldwide. Since then the US has been engaged in helping to defend these
nascent democracies against a furious and desperate assault by radical
extremists and to build up their own security apparatus. In spite of these
burdens undertaken to encourage freedom and democracy where these had never
been experienced before, the US economy grew at a moderate rate with low
inflation for seven years, until slowing down in the eighth year, while
still not slipping into a recession. BTW, for those critics lacking in
historical perspective, the US has always had business cycles; they used to
be 3 to 4 years in duration until the last two which have been 7 to 8 years
in
duration.
So much for the bald faced falsehood that the US has experienced 8 years of
a declining economy.
Then we have Marlon's curious support for a fiscally socialist candidate as
"ok too" who has already promised to raise tax rates across the board to
historic levels, which will push the economy into a deep recession, while
promising massive spending increases in government social programs. This is
irrational in the context of Marlon's corresponding support for a fiscal
conservative and his criticism of the profligate spending in recent years,
which were at least partly offset by massive increases in income tax
revenues from reduced tax rates.
In the meantime, the growing US federal deficits, which are much publicized
by those with an ulterior motive, without relating them to the size of the
US economy, have been modest when compared with the growing economy fueled
by the reductions in tax rates. The deficit as a percentage of GDP actually
fell from 3.5% in 2001 to 1.9% in 2006, and is expected to rise again to the
3 to 4% of GDP range in the next couple of years. Compare this with how the
media misrepresents the US deficits.
Not relating the deficit to the size of the economy is like worrying about
Donald Trump buying another hotel using debt to finance the purchase. When
backed by adequate assets debt is not necessarily a problem. This is why
the US has been able to get away with debt financing for so many years.
The US has always encouraged foreigners with brains and money and initiative
to participate in its economy as a fundamental foundation of US economic
success and vitality since it's inception.
However, if Barack Obama wins the presidency, and the Democrats also retain
control of both the US House and Senate as they might, we will experience
the dreaded Perfect Storm in US governance. In this case all bets are off
on the economy, until Sarah Palin and Bobby Jindal are elected in 2012 and
return sanity to the US administration.
