A plan for righting the ship

[KeeptheChange]

I think most of us can agree that Obama has led this country to complete financial ruin or very near it.  But please don't think I am letting Republicans off the hook.  We have played the big government game for far far too long and the first President Bush and his son both created massive deficits and fell in love with lavish spending and big government programs.  Their mistakes, now being magnified by Obama's drunken spending spree and incompetence as Presdeint could be leading us to Depression or worse.  So what is your plan for turning this country around in 2012? 

Here is mine, but it is in the very early stages of development.  See what you guys think-----


TAXES--  the first, best and fastest way to kill a country's economy is with taxation.  This is Econ 101.  But we can't be irresponsible about cutting taxes either.  Just rolling back the Obama tax hikes and reinstating the Bush tax cuts won't be enough.  I propose a fair, flat tax rate that drops every year until 2016 until it reaches one percent.  At that point, the economy will be strong again and the President & Congress can freeze it at one or eliminate it all together.

If need be, amend the Constitution to disallow income or property taxation of any kind beyond this amount.  Taxation, principally, is stealing.  But as I said earlier, you can’t just end it willy-nilly.  You have to wean the child deliberately.  The death tax would be eliminated immediately and I would consider retroactive payments to those the government stole from.  There is just something so unjust about taking money from people who are grieving.  Large corporations and businesses, unfortunately, would have to pay taxes for the foreseeable future, but we could reduce the maximum tax rate somewhat and then offer additional tax cuts to those companies that keep jobs here in the states and that manufacture “made in America” products. There would be absolutely NO taxation on small and medium sized businesses.

SPENDING---  People want to know where the revenue will come from if we cut taxes to almost nothing or to nothing all together.  That is a good question and we need to be prepared to answer it.  These are the plans I would propose to save money.  First, I would immediately close these departments:  Education, Agriculture, Labor, Health & Human Services, EPA and HUD.  Government has no business being involved in any of these areas and the savings we would realize from ending them would be massive.  I would then privatize the following departments:  NASA, NOAA/NWS, Interior, CDC, Transportation, FAA and Veteran’s Affairs.  More savings piling up and being applied to debt.  Then, I would take the remaining departments (which are actually Constitutional and necessary) and mandate significant spending cuts, program cuts and staff reductions.  More savings.  This would still not be enough to take care of the hideous deficit Obama is racking up so there would be even more cuts.  I would end all foreign aid.  I would immediately withdraw from Iraq.  I would privatize the federal prisons.  I would withdraw from the useless UN and stop paying into that gigantic sinkhole of fail. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid would be phased out and/or privatized over a 20 year period.  All federal salaries from President on down would be cut and then frozen until the deficit was eliminated. The only major expenditures would be homeland security and the war on terror. 
JOBS----   By not taxing small businesses and by privatizing so many federal agencies, job creation would be of epic proportions.  Also we would be ensuring a more capable and educated workforce by getting the government out of the school business. Granted, the benefits of this would not be felt for many years.  But once kids who are homeschooled, private schooled or schooled in new, for-profit academies hit the workforce…we will be ready to compete with the rest of the world.  I think all of us can agree that public education has been a massive failure.  Now the question is, what newly privatized agencies would take off and what ones would die on the vine?  Profit and the market have always been the American dream and the American way.  So if, for example, the newly-private version of NASA flopped or there was no interest at the out set, so be it.  But if it succeeded, we would be second to none in the world. 
Well those are my ideas in a kind of rough sketch.  I would very much love to hear everyone else’s ideas about how to save our economy from the mess now being made. 

[Free Trade is managed by the invisible hand.]

wow you sound real civil(sarcasm)

[Lief 🗽]

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lol

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Actually a lot of that spending (TARP, stimulus) prevented a Depression or worse.

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I've taken Econ 001 (Intro to Macroeconomics) and Econ 002 (Intro to Microeconomics) and they never taught us this.

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no such thing has passed

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Oh, so it's a police state at constant war with The Other that you want.

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It's working fine in most countries.

Thanks for the hilarious post though. A+++ would read again

[Beet]

I think most of us can agree that Obama has led this country to complete financial ruin or very near it.  But please don't think I am letting Republicans off the hook....

Your arrogance is amazing, but I do suppose you think that the mainstream echo chamber entitles you to presume that "most" of us agree that the economic problems we face are Obama's doing. And really, how nice of you to throw Bush under the bridge as well, now that he is no longer needed by your party or movement, taking care of course to assign his policies as those of "big government".

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Playing fast and loose with the truth I see, nothing new to those of your ilk, ignoring the hundreds of tax cuts included in Obama's stimulus, including tax cuts for 95% of Americans; while the Bush tax cuts that have us in the drain fiscally to begin with have yet to expire.

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I would like to see it. I really would. So long as it exists in an alternate reality and the clock can be rewound at the end, leaving nothing but the searing memories of the consequences, in your mind especially. In fact, upon further reflection, I would like to see all of your proposals implemented. Let us say that we will agree to all that you list for 5 years, and if at the end of this time, job creation is indeed at epic proportions, as you say, then they shall continue; but if not, and you are unable to bring about general satisfaction economically, then the Republican party and the conservative movement is forever disbanded. The only doubt I have are those of my bleeding heart to the potential human suffering of such a proposal. But the pure entertainment value would be immense.

As to your proposals overall, I have only two things to say... first, it is better than fascism! That is definitely a solid point in favor. Second, and this is the most important point of all, I beseech you from the bottom of my political being to find a Republican nominee who will actually do these things and run that person in 2012. At that time perhaps this thread can be revisited and with luck, you will still be around.

[Beet]

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I've taken Econ 001 (Intro to Macroeconomics) and Econ 002 (Intro to Microeconomics) and they never taught us this.

He was talking about Econ 101 not Econ 001 doofus. Had you taken the upper level course you would know that all the knowedge you learned in 001 has been superceded.

[phk]

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I've taken Econ 001 (Intro to Macroeconomics) and Econ 002 (Intro to Microeconomics) and they never taught us this.

He was talking about Econ 101 not Econ 001 doofus. Had you taken the upper level course you would know that all the knowedge you learned in 001 has been superceded.

101 is international trade at my school.

[KeeptheChange]

I'm a little disappointed that we can't have a friendly discussion of ideas and must resort to insults and name-calling, but I realize that is pretty much how all message boards are.  So I shall not take anything personally. 

I do note that a couple of you disagree with my plan, which is a good thing in a democracy.  But no one has offered an alternate idea.  No one has explained WHY my ideas are flawed.  I believe in the laboratory of history.  And history has proven that TAX CUTS and SPENDING CUTS revive struggling economies.  Kennedy, Reagan and even Clinton proved that.  President Bush (whose social agenda I share) and President Obama have done nothing but tax and spend (Obama) or just spend and give band aid tax relief (Bush).

Surely we can agree that government departments must go.  They are massive sinkholes.  Can you name even one government program that has actually driven economic growth?  Can you name one that would not thrive and flourish under private supervision, as opposed to the bureaucratic nightmare that is Washington?

I appreciate that good and fine people have different opinions and I respect your right to yours.  But if you could offer some specific solutions, rather than simply enumerating problems, it would be very helpul

[opebo]

You're wrong about tax cuts.  History has proven that Keynesian spending (redistribution) is what 'revives struggling economies'.  The ship should be righted with greater spending and tax increases.

[Free Trade is managed by the invisible hand.]

I'm a little disappointed that we can't have a friendly discussion of ideas and must resort to insults and name-calling, but I realize that is pretty much how all message boards are.  So I shall not take anything personally. 

I do note that a couple of you disagree with my plan, which is a good thing in a democracy.  But no one has offered an alternate idea.  No one has explained WHY my ideas are flawed.  I believe in the laboratory of history.  And history has proven that TAX CUTS and SPENDING CUTS revive struggling economies.  Kennedy, Reagan and even Clinton proved that.  President Bush (whose social agenda I share) and President Obama have done nothing but tax and spend (Obama) or just spend and give band aid tax relief (Bush).

Surely we can agree that government departments must go.  They are massive sinkholes.  Can you name even one government program that has actually driven economic growth?  Can you name one that would not thrive and flourish under private supervision, as opposed to the bureaucratic nightmare that is Washington?

I appreciate that good and fine people have different opinions and I respect your right to yours.  But if you could offer some specific solutions, rather than simply enumerating problems, it would be very helpul

you were the one who started with the insults.....just read the first few lines of your original post.

[KeeptheChange]

I didn't insult anyone here.  Criticizing a politician (or stating a boldface fact) is not an insult.

This country is on the brink of financial ruin.  It began with Bush spending too much and has been made far worse by Obama spending more in his first year in office than all Presidents combined. 

Why can't people propose their own ideas for financial recovery?

[Ban my account ffs!]

I didn't insult anyone here.  Criticizing a politician (or stating a boldface fact) is not an insult.

This country is on the brink of financial ruin.  It began with Bush spending too much and has been made far worse by Obama spending more in his first year in office than all Presidents combined. 

Why can't people propose their own ideas for financial recovery?

Quit making sh**t up.  Thank you.

[Free Trade is managed by the invisible hand.]

I didn't insult anyone here.  Criticizing a politician (or stating a boldface fact) is not an insult.

This country is on the brink of financial ruin.  It began with Bush spending too much and has been made far worse by Obama spending more in his first year in office than all Presidents combined. 

Why can't people propose their own ideas for financial recovery?

//This country is on the brink of financial ruin//
care to back this statement up?

//Why can't people propose their own ideas for financial recovery?//
why don't you create a thread proposing some of your own ideas?

[KeeptheChange]

I didn't insult anyone here.  Criticizing a politician (or stating a boldface fact) is not an insult.

This country is on the brink of financial ruin.  It began with Bush spending too much and has been made far worse by Obama spending more in his first year in office than all Presidents combined. 

Why can't people propose their own ideas for financial recovery?

//This country is on the brink of financial ruin//
care to back this statement up?

//Why can't people propose their own ideas for financial recovery?//
why don't you create a thread proposing some of your own ideas?

1.  I have to read the newspaper for you, too?

2.  I did.  You didn't.