Scary!

Scary! That's what Mrs. Palin is to me. Reading her first proper interview since she was nominated was an exercise in frustration. She doesn't seem to know much about anything, but is firm in her beliefs. True believers scare the heck out of me.
Everybody's entitled to their own beliefs and their own religion, but I for one don't want anybody's religion influencing the policy of our country. We've seen what can happen as we've watched George Bush over the last 8 years and now we have this woman who is even more evangelical than he is and is more ignorant of the world than George (or Barak for that matter). Scary!

I think my canidency is looking better and better as both the main line runner shoot themselves in the foot or maybe even in the head.

For a while I was favoring McCain since he appeared to be more experienced and more sensible than Obama. Obama just dididn't & still doesn't seem credible to me. Lots of promises, but no substance and no accomplishments that might lead one to believe he might deliver on his promises.

Now, we have McCain choosing Palin as his running mate. She's scary and her choice severly calls into question McCain's judgement. If his skills at choosing his team should he win are this bad I would fear for the competency of a McCain administration.

So, its a real dilemia. How can anyone vote for either one of them? Vote for Bill & me! We're the ones to put the country right. 

Bail Out!

So, they've bailed out the mortgage guys. Good ridance I say. Booted out the bosses & left the shareholders with nothing. We'll have to how much this costs you & I, but I suspect that it will be less than if they'd left the culprits in charge.

Now I'll be very interested to see what Barak & John have to say about this. In fact I'll be very interested to hear their solutions to the whole mortgage mess. Do I suspect that Barak will want to spend even more money 'helping out"? Yes, I do. Do I expect the John will dither? Yes. I do.

My answer? Let those who took out loans they knew they couldn't repay and those who used their home equity like an ATM pay the price. If you do stupid thing with your personal finances you should pay the price. If you let some idiot talk you into a stupid loan then you deserve what you get.

Negative equity is only important if you want to sell. Stay put, struggle & make your payment & in the longer term you'll be OK.

My regret is that so far I haven't come up with a way to punish the financial community who led everyone into this mess simply to line their own pockets. I'm open to ideas.

Taxes - A whole new way!

Once I am elected reforming, no revolutionizing, the Federal Government system will be a high priority. Right after dismantling the spupidly named 'Department of Homeland Security' That alone will save a few billion. 

More fundamentally, however, here are my tax proposals.

• The first principle is that the budget must balance. No more deficit spending. Within each budget there will be a subtantive contingency fund. This fund to be used for those times when fiscal stimulus by the government is needed to help the economy along. (No, I'm not a Kensyian economist, but that doesn't mean I can't use a good idea when I see one.) If over a few years the contingency fund gets larger than realistic need part of it would be used to pay off the national debt.
• Income Tax. Firstly I would abolish all deductions. No mortgage interest, no dependant allowances, none of the fancy depreciation/ depletion allowances. None period. Thus each individuals income in total would be taxable. Doing this alone would allow me to reduce the % of tax very considerably.
  There would be only 4 tax bands. I'd need more data to compute the bands accurately, but roughly they would start at $25,000 to $100,000 then $100,000 to $3000,000 then $3000,000 to $1,000,000 and finally a supertax on incomes over $5,000,000.
  All income would count. Regular earned income, bonuses both monetary and in marketable stocks, realized capital gains & so forth.
  
• A National Sales Tax. I'd use the VAT system widely used and successful in Europe. Just about everything except food gets this tax applied. The tax is easily adjusted to 'make ends meet".
• Gasoline tax. I would announce that the tax on gasoline, diesel, heating oil and all other petroleum products will go up by 10% per year each year for the foreseeable future. Three reasons. First, we have to quit using fossile fuels at the current rate. Secondly, America needs to reduce our dependence upon foreign  sourced oil. (drill though we may we won't become independent without reducing consumption.) Finally, it will raise a lot of money every penny of which I will use to reduce the rate of income tax.
  
  Look what's happened recently as the price of gas went above $4.00 a gallon; people started driving less & buying more fuel efficient cars. A gas tax will continue that trend and prevent back sliding as the price of oil goes down due to smaller demand. We moan at $4, but don't foreget that European already pay over $7 and survive.
  
  An added advantage of this tax is that it would make alternate energy sources more & more competitive over time. The current system of subsidies is a very inefficient way to encourage alternate energy. We have stop using wishful thinking and pandering to noisy activists as a basis for energy policy. Economics and the market are the best means of making things happen. For example, we currently subisidize US produced ethanol to the point of disrupting world commodity markets when it is clear that its not cost competitive with what the Brazilians can produce using sugar cane. Why not end the subsidy, allow Brazilian ethanol in with not duty then encourage the domestic growing of sugar cane in those areas where soil & climate are right. These just happen to be some of our poorest farming regions where a new cash crop would be a boon.
• Corporate taxes would also get simplified and be based upon real profits as reckoned using International accountancy standards. Small, priviatly owned business would have a lower rate, but at the same time I would really tighten up on "allowable business expenses" many of which are simply disguised forms of family income.

This tax package would mark a major shift from direct to indirect taxation. Let everyone keep more of what they earn, but tax them on what they spend. Seems a lot more democratic to me. It would also eliminate much of the tax evasion industry with saving to both the government and individuals.

THis package coupled with my program of cost savings should lower the burdon on taxation for almost all Americans and allow us to save and invest for our and our children's futures.

Barak breaks the bank

Did you see Obama's acceptance speech? Powerful stuff, great speech, well delivered. I can see why people think he's so good. What was there not to like? The American dream? A chicken in every pot? No, it was all there.

It was not until I stopped, thought & analyzed that I realized that his economic program was folly. It truly would break the bank. Just look at what he wants to spend:

• 150 Billion on alternate energy. Worthy no doubt, but a lot more bucks following the largely ineffectual money already spent.
• A tax break for everybody except the rich. That's nearly 300 million of us versus maybe 3 million of the rich depending upon how you do the definitions. Just give each of us a $1,000 break & you're talking about $300 billion in lost government revenue.
• A University education for everyone who wants one. Hard to quantify without details, but say a modest $30 billion every year.
• Universal health care. Who knows how much. $100 billion a year is probably a vast underestimate.

So just on those major programs Barak wants to spend $580 billion a year. Now remember that on top of a budget deficit which already runs at around $400 billion a year. We're up to a Trillion dollars in round numbers. That my friend is a lot of money!
Obama says he will pay for all this by taxing the rich. Well, no doubt that George gave away far too much to his friends, but no way is it possible to raise that much money from the rich. There just ain't enough of them. Say there are 3 million rich people and you tax them $1 million each. You've only raised $3 billion. A drop in the bucket. It just doesn't work. Leftist governments in Europe tried this for years, but still had to come back to higher taxes on the middle classes to make ends meet.
Ah yes, Barak also says he'll go through the government's budget line by line cutting out waste. A worthy objective and well worth doing, but not credible as a way to save big amounts of money. Let's face it some 75% of government spending is upon entitlements and you can't change those without changing the law. Since when did Congress ever vote to reduce entitlements?

I see one of two thing happening. Either he breaks most of his promises (same as every politician) or the country goes broke in effect. Foreign money finances our deficit to a large extent already, but there is a limit to how far they will continue. The least that will happen is that the dollar will become even more devalued.

Change is Barak Obama's mantra. Well, lets see some proposals for real change in the way we tax and spend. I'll put forth a few of my proposals tomorrow.

My Choice for Vice President

I've given this important choice some thought and I've watched and listened carefully as my opponents have made their choices. Can't say that I'm particularly impressed by the way either John or Barak made their choices. Yet again its politics over ability or philosiphcal compatibility.

Joe Biden, a worthy man on doubt even though he seems to have a bit of the same foot in mouth disease the afflicts John McCain. I thought, however, that Obama was all about change. Change? From a guy who's been in the Senate for yonks years? Supposedly an expert on foreign relations, but its all theoretical. Gone on quite few boondoggles I'm sure, but ever met many ordinary foreigners, spent time in other counties or really had to deal with people from other cultures? I'm just not too sure at all that I'd want Joe Biden to be President should anything happen to Obama. But, he's older (politics), he's an insider (politics), he's from the East Coast (politics) and, supposedly, adds international expertese. Maybe. Biden does seem to have the knack of winning elections, but only in one of the most prosperous states of the union.

On the other hand we have Sarah Palin. Most of us quickly said Sarah who? What was John McCain thinking of? Well politics again of course. Woman (politics) Anti-abortion (politics) Religous right (politics) Younger (politics) Talent? Who knows? Now she is no doubt an able person to have won a governership against an entrenched party. She also seems to have stuck to her guns on change and slease in her state. Did you see the statement by one of McCain's people that Sarah Palin had good international relations experience because her state borders upon Russia? Give me a break! I don't truly know enough about her to say much. I do, however, seriously question John McCain's judgement in choosing a person with so little experience as his Vice Presidential canidate. I read that he's only met her twice yet says they're soul mates. Should have thought harder John.

Having been critical of my opponents who will I choose as a running mate and what are my selection criteria? First of all, I am looking for a person who I would be comfortable to have assume the presidency should I kick the bucket. After all in practice other then deciding ties in the Senate that's the function of the V-P; to take over should the President die or be incapacitated. (anybody watch the TV series '24' ? Shows a good example of what can happen with the wrong V-P.) So, that's the most important criteria. The second is sound judgment and a political philosophy that is compatible with mine. Why should I select somebody who I don't agree with most of the time & hardly even like? After these two critical criteria I do have to think somewhat politically and find somebody who is far better known than I. Realistically I'm a total unknown in the public world, nobody's ever heard of me, I'm not a meganaire with tons of money, I'm not even particularly good looking. I can give a pretty good speech when required, but my best hope is the Internet and a running mate with 'brand' recognition. SO:

As the next Vice President of the United States I propose: Drum rolls BILL COSBY!!! Yes, Bill Cosby. He's probably much better known than either of the other V-P candidates, he's universally liked and respected and I like the way he thinks. He's a true American who has great appeal across ethnic boundary's; he stands up and speaks for what he believes in and is not afraid to be controversial if necessary. He will bring both serious political thinking as well as an ability to lighten up the stodgier aspects of political campaigning. I like the guy and think that the American people do as well. I would be happy to serve with him.

Now of course I haven't asked Bill nor I'm sure has he ever heard of me or this blog. He probably never will since this is strictly an Ethernet campaign and not very serious; well, not at all serious. If, however, it were serious I would still think that Bill Cosby would make an excellent candidate for high office. I do genuinely admire him.

Why I will be the next President of the United States

It all started with a joke e-mail from a friend. It was a cleverly done 'news clip' claiming that my friend was a huge candidate for President even though nobody had ever seen him. I thought it was fun so I did a similar one and sent it to a bunch of my friends. Nice harmless joke ... but then I got thinking; why not start my own campaign for President? It should be a bit of a lark and would certainly give me a chance to air my political views.


So, here we are the start of my campaign for President. First let me say that I'm humbled that anybody will take the time read my thoughts. Its a great honor to be allowed to run this race. I will be spelling out my ideas over the coming two months as well commenting upon those of my opponents. Hopefully you will agree with my views and vote me in on a landslide.


My next post will be about choosing my running mate. Watch for it!