Socialism Key to Prosperity and 3.3% Unemployment

greensdale: about 11 weeks ago

Jason how much is your current EITC check?

jason10006: about 11 weeks ago

That question was in fact asked of economists, more or less:

"Question B: The distortionary costs of raising the federal minimum wage to $9 per hour and indexing it to inflation are sufficiently small compared with the benefits to low-skilled workers who can find employment that this would be a desirable policy." - 62% agree/strongly agree versus 16% disagree/strongly disagree

http://www.igmchicago.org/igm-economic-experts-panel/poll-results?SurveyID=SV_br0IEq5a9E77NMV

The issue also is that the GOP right wing (thus about half the GOP in the house) is now against the EITC too - the whole "half of Americans pay no taxes!!!" Fox News meme. So Reagan and Bush conspire along with GOP Senators and Congressmen (and Clinton and lots of Dems too) to purposely remove working poor from the income tax rolls and to give them negative taxation to encourage work...and now many in the GOP want to BOTH end this AND not raise the minimum wage. Its not an even/or for them.

Riversider: about 11 weeks ago

Christine Romer says most economists prefer the earned income tax credit to the minimum wage.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/03/business/the-minimum-wage-employment-and-income-distribution.html?smid=pl-share&_r=0

RAISING the minimum wage, as President Obama proposed in his State of the Union address, tends to be more popular with the general public than with economists.

I don%u2019t believe that%u2019s because economists care less about the plight of the poor %u2014 many economists are perfectly nice people who care deeply about poverty and income inequality. Rather, economic analysis raises questions about whether a higher minimum wage will achieve better outcomes for the economy and reduce poverty.

pismo10: about 11 weeks ago

5000 years of history could not disagree with you more. Centralism has always lead to a lower standard of living.

greensdale: about 3 months ago

Socialist, are you pro minimum wage increase / teenage unemployment increase?

alanhart: about 10 months ago

"Most of us couldn't even point to Hungary Estonia on the map"

... cause, like, it was, like, renamed Munchies?

huntersburg: about 10 months ago

>But if the reddest of red states uses taxpayer money to help a EUROPEAN company, its helping to create American jobs.

So you deny that they are creating jobs that wouldn't otherwise be here?

somewhereelse: about 10 months ago

are you really confusing tax breaks with the government taking over control?

jason10006: about 10 months ago

If Obama uses taxpayer funds to help AMERICAN companies its SOCIALISM. But if the reddest of red states uses taxpayer money to help a EUROPEAN company, its helping to create American jobs.

" Alabama Puts Airbus Incentives at $158 Million...
...Alabama's governor said the state agreed to an "expensive" package of incentives to lure Airbus into establishing its first U.S. jet-assembly plant...

...Airbus said it plans to invest $600 million in the Mobile facility, creating 1,000 jobs."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304022004577516922037292712.html?grcc=36036838144a3b6c29ef885c2c54596aZ3ZhpgeZ0Z861Z200Z78Z2&mod=WSJ_hps_sections_business

___________________________

Alabama's Airbus Subsidy Eerily Reminiscent of Auto "Transplants"

somewhereelse: about 10 months ago

That socialism sure seems to be working out for Europe...

huntersburg: about 10 months ago

>the WSJ editorial boards and the right wing in general REPEATEDLY held up Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary Estonia, and Ireland as models for the rest of Europe.

Most of us couldn't even point to Hungary Estonia on the map, so we aren't qualified to answer your question.

jason10006: about 10 months ago

...And I will go further - the WSJ editorial boards and the right wing in general REPEATEDLY held up Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary Estonia, and Ireland as models for the rest of Europe. While decrying "old Europe" Guess where their darlings fall on the list?

jason10006: about 10 months ago

"Euro Zone Unemployment – Graphic of the Day"

http://blog.thomsonreuters.com/index.php/euro-zone-unemployment-graphic-of-the-day/

From 200-2007, Spain, Ireland, Lithuania, etc. had the LOWEST debt to GDP ratios, lowest government as a percent of GDP ratios, lowest social expenditures as a percent of GDP, and not only had lower deficits but were generally running SURPLUSES. And guess which countries had the opposite of all this - and were thus the most socialist? 8/10 or so of the lowest unemployment are the MOST socialist in the EU. And Germany (not Sweden, Germany) is the most socialist of all.

Hmmmm.

Riversider: about 11 months ago

mis-understood you renter, thought you were arguing for north dakota..

renterjoey: about 11 months ago

Pretty much any system that endorses fraud whether it by public or private is wrong. Making private banks Public would change nothing other than 'technical' ownership. A commodity based currency with full fractional backing by the US treasury is the only answer with private non-monopolistic banks that have the ability to lend out at interest.

Riversider: about 11 months ago

North Dakota's is the third least populous state and has virtualy the lowest economic output of all 50 states. We're almost talking developing nation here, so maybe a state owned bank makes sense, North Dakota has more in common with an emerging economy than a devleoped one such as New York or California. Bringing up the state owned bank is just non-sense.

renterjoey: about 11 months ago

"So since North Dakota has a govt. run bank, it must be on the verge of bankruptcy and collapse, right? WRONG! The bank had a 19% profit return on investment. Goldman Sachs would kill for thoser kinds of numbers."

Okay I'm along with everyone here is sold. Let's give all out money to the Sate of New York to manage.

I don't agree with Ellen brown of gooznews or whatever newspapaer she writes for..

Her solution is instead of having a private banking cartel counterfeit money, lets have some govt beaurocrats counterfeit money and lend it out. In the end its an evil scheme that will only attract lobbyists, bribery and corruption of beaurocrats deciding who to lend money to - no different than the present scheme.

For every dollar counterfeited out of thin air by private banks or the state, a dollar is robbed from those who worked hard to save a dollar.

Publically owned banks will be much like the "publically" owned IMF which is publically handing out funds to private banking crooks in Europe which they will default on. You will be left holding the bag.

What's wrong with the idea of borrowing money from the people who have worked for it and saved it instead of these elaborate schemes. It only leaves the door open to corruption, bribery and theft ie JP Morgan.

Riversider: about 11 months ago

The metric for these projects should be whether productivity goes up for the population sufficiently enough to justify the expenditure. In California there are simply not enough business people who would travel back and forth and pay a premium to justify the project. In the North East you just have to offer a service that is a little cheaper and a little faster than taking air route. Plus you cut out taxi expense etc. But our brillian politicians want to focus on Florida, California to Vegas etc

Triple_Zero: about 11 months ago

"the 1% who would be using these systems, subsidized by the rest of the population."

We 1% who would love to have such train infrastructure are subsidizing the automobile infrastructure used by the majority without getting anything out of it. How about they subsidize us for a change?

AvUWS: about 11 months ago

You only get to compare rates for the infrastructure that is in place, not the dream of some sort of Boston to NYC commute you wish in the case of HSR.

On the East Coast you really could replace a flight from Logan to La Guardia (with commensurate taxi's) with an HSR where the central stations are in the midst of dense urban areas with robust and mature mass transit. If you want to link LA with something.... not so much.

And even on the East Coast, HSR does't get you to IBM's headquarters, or Pepsci, or Johnson & Johnson, not to mention the myriad small companies in between, nor does would it be linked via Mass transit to the suburbs the way are some of the regional airports. You can't rent a car or park one at the stations that are the dream locations of HSR stations.

It really is just a wet dream of the 1% who would be using these systems, subsidized by the rest of the population.

Riversider: about 11 months ago

The only place in the country a true high speed rail line might make sense is the Bostom to DC route where you have the density of buisness travelerst that justify the price. A true high-speedc rail (not the acela compromise) would increase productivity along the whole north east corridor by cutting down on commute times and cut donwn on air -tavel and airport upgrades. Leisure riders are not as time sensitive and the economics are different when it comes to whether they would pay enough to justify.

Triple_Zero: about 11 months ago

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/30/california-high-speed-rail-to-nowhere/

This commenter doesn't get it:

"The average price round-trip for a family of four, according to the rail authority's own figures, is $648 – plus car rental at your destination to actually get where you're going plus paying to park your car at the HSR lot while you're away."

No, you live near one of the stops and take the bus there, and then hop on the bus (which will be waiting outside the station) to get wherever you're going -- like all train/bus-oriented societies do. He's a Californian who can't conceive of not being dependent on a car.

huntersburg: about 11 months ago

is Obailout also controlled the Rockefellers and the Rothschilds?

caonima: about 11 months ago

the biggest government spending is war, did those teass against war?

obailout is a right-wing extremist puppy controlled by GS etc.

tarp is robery and totally anti-socialist

Riversider: about 11 months ago

More great gov't spending?

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/30/california-high-speed-rail-to-nowhere/

Riversider: about 15 months ago

Beware of ISM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIUa4GblVJg&feature=player_embedded#!

Socialist: about 18 months ago

There was a great piece on about North Dakota last night on NBC. Truck drivers make $80,000 a year and one electirican had 4 job offers within 2 hours. Even fast food workers make $15 an hour.

jason10006: about 18 months ago

rb345, all of the places I mention are far more socialist than the Dakotas.

Riversider: about 18 months ago

Centralized planning works well initially, technocrats have little difficulty identifying projects with high return on capital, but over time the low lying fruit is gone, and they begin the Mal-investment. It happened in Russia, it happening in China right now, and it even occurs in the U.S.(solar-solyndra). Everyone predicted the USSR would surpass the U.S. in GDP years ago. They were wrong. Similar predictions were made regarding China, yet right now China has invested foolishly and consumption as a percentage of GDP has collapsed. Maybe China will overtake us but it won't be for decades to come.

Capitalism works better than a planned central economy. What gov't needs to do is ensure a level playing field and enforce basic property rights and avoid crony capitalism.

rb345: about 18 months ago

Those cities are national capitals. As such they benefit from concentrations
of businessmen and government workers and spending. And neither Britain nor
Canada have socialist governments.

And while San Francisco is a very liberal city, it also has an enourmous home-
lessness problem

jason10006: about 19 months ago

"The Soviet Union also had exceptionally low unemployment in the early 1930's under
Stalin. He achieved that goal by shooting or starving 10% of the Russian population"

Yes, because 100% of socialist places turn out EXACTLY like that. I mean, this is what Toronto, Stockholm or London were like last time I was there. And San Francisco, where I was born, was very much like North Korea.

What a fucking moronic argument you make.

rb345: about 19 months ago

The Soviet Union also had exceptionally low unemployment in the early 1930's under
Stalin. He achieved that goal by shooting or starving 10% of the Russian population

huntersburg: about 19 months ago

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Cao%20ni%20ma

Cao ni ma

In Mandarin (Chinese for you ignorants) means "fuck your mom" word for word. Very commonly used, Cao can be used as a stand-alone word for fuck. Cao ni ma is most commonly used in Beijing taxis to aid one in reachign their destination.

"Cao ni ma de bi, yi zhi zou, sha bi" -fuck your mother's cunt, go straight you dumb cunt

caonima: about 19 months ago

socialism is much better than our 2-party dictatorship capitalism, period

jason10006: about 19 months ago

Came across this. Its household income adjusted for cost of living for the US states.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States#Income_by_state

New York State moves from 15 nominally to #43 adjusted. North Dakota from #27 to #22.

Problem solved.

huntersburg: about 20 months ago

>I have no idea why she starts these threads.

Who?

Brooks2: about 20 months ago

no and no. This is a RE site. I have no idea why she starts these threads.

huntersburg: about 20 months ago

Does anyone here have asthma? Does anyone here care?

Socialist: about 20 months ago

Don't you just hate it when facts get in the way of a good partisan rant against Obama? Next thing you know, someone will say that Obama signed TARP.

jason10006: about 20 months ago

Here is an FDA press release excerpt on the topic:

"...The FDA began public discussions about the use of CFCs in epinephrine inhalers in January 2006. The FDA finalized the phase-out date for using CFCs in these inhalers and notified the public in November 2008. Many manufacturers have changed their inhalers to replace CFCs with an environmentally-friendly propellant called hydrofluoroalkane (HFA)...."