ThinkFast: November 9, 2006
ThinkFast: November 9, 2006
Incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) promised to press forward with an ambitious agenda “that includes an increase of $2.10 an hour in the minimum wage.” Her agenda for the first “100 hours” of Congress is filled with items that, “though opposed by Bush, should attract near-universal approval from Democrats and could even win some Republican votes.” Read about the agenda here.
Defense Secretary nominee Robert Gates “apparently holds a view on the highly sensitive subject of relations with Iran that hasn’t been embraced by all his new colleagues in the Bush administration.” In a report entitled “Iran: Time for a New Approach,” he and former NSA Zbigniew Brzezinski co-chaired a task force that argued for opening a dialogue with Iran.
A day after Michigan approved an initiative to ban affirmative action, University of Michigan president Mary Sue Coleman pledged to “consider every legal option available” to continue to fight for diversity on campus. Opponents of the proposition also “filed a federal lawsuit challenging the measure as unconstitutional.”
Incoming Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Joe Biden (D-DE), said yesterday that John Bolton’s troubled nomination as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is “going nowhere.” He added, “I never saw a real enthusiasm (for Bolton’s nomination) on the Republican side to begin with. There’s none on our side.”
A federal judge ruled the Center for Reproductive Rights could “subpoena more than three years of Plan B-related communications between the White House’s domestic-policy office” and FDA officials. The documents could “determine whether the White House interfered with the FDA’s handling of a request by manufacturer Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. to allow sales without prescriptions.”
Iraqi government corruption could amount to $4 billion a year, over 10 percent of the national income, according to the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. Much of that money “frequently goes out to fund criminal militias or insurgents.”
Iraq’s parliament yesterday voted to extend the country’s state of emergency for 30 more days, “a recognition that Iraqi security forces and their U.S. allies are still far from bringing violence in check.”
“After tumbling from the pinnacle of the American evangelical movement amid allegations he snorted meth and cavorted with a male prostitute,” former National Association of Evangelicals president Ted Haggard will undergo a “rehabilitation process that could last three to five years.” “There will be advice, confrontation and rebuke from ‘godly men’ appointed to oversee” Haggard’s spiritual “restoration.”
And finally: Rummie resigns, Onion-style. The satirical news site The Onion caught the tail end of Rumsfeld’s resignation speech yesterday: “Years ago, I decided to bog this great nation down in an extended, grueling foreign occupation, and I’m happy to say that’s exactly what I’ve done. … Each of my actions – from undersupplying troops with body armor to focusing on capturing Saddam Hussein while Osama bin Laden remained free – has led America inexorably toward our current state of extreme crisis. Well, anyway, goodbye!”
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“…former National Association of Evangelicals president Ted Haggard will undergo a “rehabilitation process that could last three to five years.†“There will be advice, confrontation and rebuke from ‘godly men’ appointed to oversee†Haggard’s spiritual “restoration.â€
If that doesn’t work they will just burn him at the stake.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:08 amOn Tim Haggard: “There will be advice, confrontation and rebuke from ‘godly men’ appointed to oversee†Haggard’s spiritual “restoration.â€The people who should oversee his restoration should include state prison officials – the man should be investigated for doing illegal drugs. Why do the rich and powerful get to opt for the “I’m sick and need help” path instead of jail time?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:10 amIt looks like Haggard is going to be the poster boy for the “reparative therapy” movement. Maybe, the science (it does not work) will finally be known to the public.
Go, Madam Speaker Peloski. Although I think the $2 hike in minimum wage might be excessive, I like the concept of raising it. Maybe, we can lower it from the $2 mark, to satisfy the critics, and still get it raised overall. Hey, this has worked for gas prices.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:12 am“…Incoming Defense Secretary Robert Gates”
The Dems can shoot this guy down now. I want Wesley Clark. We no longer have to accept Bush’s horrible nominees. Unless they’re doing this before dems take control of Senate in January?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:14 am3, Minimum wage needs to be approx. $8-9 just to meet poverty for one person. I think it should be tied to this level. This will be a boost to the economy as poor people tend to put almost all their money into circulation.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:17 amIsn’t calling yourself a ‘godly man’ heretical?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:18 am3
Pelosi not Peloski (I must have developed Polish fingers)
November 9th, 2006 at 9:19 am#6 – It’s not really ‘heretical’ but is is all kinds of hubris! Speaking for God is a sin and just plain wrong!
November 9th, 2006 at 9:21 amGas prices went up 4% the day after the election in my town. Anyone else see a rise in the price of gas at the pumps yesterday?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:24 am#7 PLC,
November 9th, 2006 at 9:24 amLOL!
John Bolton’s troubled nomination as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is “going nowhere….
November 9th, 2006 at 9:24 amAlong with Bush, Cheney & the rest of this gang.
Let’s get someone in the UN who knows how to ‘play nice’ to begin with.
Someone who had ambassadorial skills & can build trust with other countries. Bolton is like a bull in a china shop; everything he touches gets broken or discarded.
We need to restablish trust in the international community, not acting like bullies. (The current Burns & Allen show comes to mind.)
#4 Larry from C That is who I first thought of was Wesley Clark. He has military experience. This guy Robert Gates does not have any military experience.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:26 amAMERICAN ZERO
9 November 2006
Mirror.co.uk
At last, US wakes up and boots idiot Bush
Ryan Parry, US Correspondent In Washington
MILLIONS of Americans turned on President Bush yesterday as he suffered a crushing election defeat.
The Democrats swept to power in the House of Representatives and closed in on the Senate in a massive backlash against the war in Iraq.
US Defence Secretary and chief warmonger Donald Rumsfeld was forced to resign in the wake of the mid-term drubbing.
And lame-duck Bush showed all his usual political insight when he said of his humiliating defeat: “Actually, I thought we were going to do fine yesterday.”
November 9th, 2006 at 9:27 amPRICELESS:
Iraqis cheer Rumsfeld departure
November 9th, 2006 at 9:28 amFrom the Pelosi link:
It looks to me like we could eliminate the deficit and keep the Paris Hilton tax cut. All we have to do is nationalize the Oil and Pharmaceutical companies and we could balance the budget overnight!
November 9th, 2006 at 9:31 amZbigniew Brzezinski
November 9th, 2006 at 9:31 amDidn’t he write a little book called The Grand Chessboard
In which he lays down an imperialistic strategy that we find PNAC embracing.
This guy, unless he’s suddenly changed his hardcore imperialistic perspective will likely be of little help.
That Haggard rehabilitation thing sounds draconian. Way to deal with your demons, Ted – more suppression. Idiots, the lot of them!
November 9th, 2006 at 9:37 amAmerica’s Least Wanted
One has to wonder what Teddy was really doing during his daily visits to Dubya as his “spiritual advisor”….hmmmm???
Pelosi rocks and has the chutzpah and fearlessness to push foward, full steam ahead….unlike some of the less courageous….Shumer comes quickly to mind…what’s that guy thinking?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:41 amIsis,
November 9th, 2006 at 9:48 amShumer’s too busy slumming it on Imus.
:)
Re: Bush’s comedy routine yesterday during his press conference and his “winking” on the way to the podium to announce Rummy’s resignation/his lying…
If I were a republican candidate who’d just sacrificed my life campaigning, not to mention the millions of dollars spent, and the head of my party came out to the press cracking jokes about the loss, I’d be bullshit right now. If Republicans are not, then they’re as demented and stupid as Dubya himself. Perhaps it’s his obvious meds?? Whatever it is, it was downright insensitive, embarrassing, and totally egomaniacal of this supposed “diplomat” to come out after such a scathing loss to his party and crack jokes. What planet is this man on anyway? Out of touch with reality is an understatement.
He’s become the butt of jokes and the press is obviously handling him with far less respect than ever. I suspect that we’ll be seeing much less of him, if his handlers and the GOP ever want to recover an iota of respect again. He’s toxic at this point to his party.
As for the admission of lying to the press, isn’t that SOP for him? He’s been lying for years – can’t even count the lies and yet is not impeached when we impeached Nixon for one lie and Clinton for one as well. Perhaps this new Congress will do what the american people want and begin impeachment proceedings. I believe the laundry list of lies, coverups, broken laws, criminal behavior is an avalanche at this point.
It’s over for this administration, as I see it and from the almost-indicted in the Iran Contra debacle, it appears that while Gates may be Bushco’s “shoe in” for the job, the american people may not want someone who came so close to being indicted for precisely the thing which this administration may be indicted for – fixing intelligence to suit the policy. Evidently, Gates is a pro at it from way back.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:48 amIncoming Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Joe Biden (D-DE)
Although Biden does or doesn’t do things that bother me, this still has a nice ring to it. Oversight, debate, evidence – welcome back, Democracy.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:49 amI read an article about the election results on The Guardian. I was curious to see what the UK was saying about this issue. It was at the top of their website, and while far more like journalism than we get here most days, it did seem pleased about the results (unlike the comments about the 2004 election). I hope the rest of the world feels a sense of relief as we here do.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:50 amCan anyone say for sure if Rummy can still be called in front of Congress and put under oath even after he has left the position?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:50 amBnF,
I don’t think we should “take over” any companies so to speak.
But something so VITAL to our economy such as oil needs much tighter regulations, as well as HUGE taxes on their HUGE profits. If I won 1 million in a lotto, the govt would take about 600,000. We need to be taxing these HUGE profits. Which from my understanding why the 16th amendment was added, to tax corporate income, not ours.
Has anyone noticed the PR campaign by big oil/energy lately? I don’t watch much TV, but the bit I’ve watched for election coverage sure show these companies putting on a show.
The “right” is right we’re gonna raise taxes… on those who can afford to pay it the most, and those who should be paying the most.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:51 amIt appears that the Gates nomination is Daddy helping his son out of a terrible mess. Baker is another one with close ties to Bush the Elder. There may be a lot more to this story. With 2 years left before he’s officially the worst president ever he is going to do all that he can to scrape out some type of legacy. Wesley Clark wouldn’t help with that in any way.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:52 amPelosi not Peloski (I must have developed Polish fingers)
Comment by PatrioticLiberalChristian(PLC)
Not that there’s anything wrong with that…
November 9th, 2006 at 9:56 amJason M Hendler, Happy Dude, Roger_Roger, Mark Gleanse:
November 9th, 2006 at 9:57 amThanks for keeping your promise and showing up the day after elections to continue intellictual debate. sarcasm/off
Hey, at least exley had the cohona’s to post yesterday.
Oh, and one more thing, if JMH ever does make an appearence, I have one question.
please enlighten me as to how you are going to show “us poor, defeated progressives” the way back to political leadership.
Just curious, ya know
dlet, Rumsfeld can definitely be called before Congress. As a citizen, he has no excuse to ignore a congressional subpoena.
November 9th, 2006 at 9:58 amNow that the election is over, time for me to check in on the predictions I made over two weeks ago on this very site: http://thinkprogress.org/2006/10/22/biden-course/#comments
1. Voter turn-out in the coming election is going to surprise a lot of people. -True. Voter turnout has been estimated at 40.4%, which is the second highest mid-term turn-out since 1982.
2. If Democrats do not win outright control of Congress, they will at least be equal in number which will bring Cheney out of the White House a lot more often, distracting him from his shadow presidency and possibly giving the country some breathing room. -True. And I still have a bit of a hang-over from election night partying and amazing memories of scoring with this amazingly gorgeous liberal war protestor hippie chick from Berkley U. (note to my wife, just kidding on that last one dear.)
3. Regardless of the election results, we will remain in Iraq at near current levels through the entirety of 2007 and possibly 2008. -Undetermined. Pelosi came out of the gates swinging and Rummy’s firing/resignation is a promising sign but we won’t see much movement until after the first of the year.
4. An emboldened Iran is going to become an even more important player in internal Iraqi matters with an eye toward annexation of at least a big portion of Iraq. -Tie? I am only calling it a tie because we still have to wait and see what happens yet the appointment of Gates to SecDef shows a renewed emphasis on dealing with Iran.
By the way, it’s difficult for me to get to this site as often as I would want and so I welcome emailed comments/responses as well.
Hey, TP! Any chance of installing some kind of email alert for comment responses?
November 9th, 2006 at 9:59 amA federal judge ruled the Center for Reproductive Rights could “subpoena more than three years of Plan B-related communications between the White House’s domestic-policy office†and FDA officials. The documents could “determine whether the White House interfered with the FDA’s handling of a request by manufacturer Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. to allow sales without prescriptions.â€
Let the subpoena’s begin.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:02 amPelosi did a good job on CNN yesterday calling for bipartisanship. Who here is on board?
November 9th, 2006 at 10:03 amTed Haggard will undergo a “rehabilitation process that could last three to five years.†“There will be advice, confrontation and rebuke from ‘godly men’ appointed to oversee†Haggard’s spiritual “restoration.â€
Just make sure all those “godly men” look like Dennis Hastert in a speedo, and he’ll be fine.
He’ll still be gay, but he’ll never get it up again…
November 9th, 2006 at 10:04 amMacaca the prick still hasn’t conceded yet.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:05 amPoor Haggard, a tortured soul.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:06 am#31 – Paul,
Three days ago, I don’t believe you would have said that.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:07 amPaul we’ve always been ready for Bi-partisanship, now that your arrogant GOP has to work with the Dems, all of the sudden its all about bi-partisanship. I can do that, its for the best interest of the country you dipshit.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:08 amOne caution today in this day of celebration: Be wary – be very wary about the lack of overt manipulation of voting machines during this midterm. Obviously, the GOP has “bigger plans” for 08 and hope to have americans take their eye off the voting machine corruptibility ball! Don’t be lulled into complacency and the belief that they cannot be rigged – they can and have been and will be again if we to not, today, pressure the Congress to “fix” this “broken and vulnerable voting system” we presently have. If we don’t get on it immediately, we’ll have Congress but the GOP will again have the White House!! Don’t be asleep at the wheel, fellow americans.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:09 amTed Haggard will undergo a “rehabilitation process that could last three to five years.†“There will be advice, confrontation and rebuke from ‘godly men’ appointed to oversee†Haggard’s spiritual “restoration.â€
November 9th, 2006 at 10:12 amWell, let’s see, either a) they believe homosexuality is a condition which can be rehabilitated (it cannot, IMHO) or b) they believe drug abuse can be cured in 3-5 years (it cannot. As with alcoholics, it is a lifetime struggle)
and who are these “godly men”? Yeah, like what demons do the hide in their closet?
And finally, Zooey, you’ve now officially given me an eternity of ED, with the mental picture at post #32 (my wife thanks you, tho)
What in the world is the concept of rehab for bisexuality or homosexuality as though it is a “sickness”? This, in itself, is nonsensical. One’s sexual preference is simply that: a preference for a lifestyle. Why does this country have to diagnose sexual preferences as illnesses which can be “cured”….I really don’t get that one at all. Haggart is what he is and has made his choices and has made them clear. What’s all of this self-flagellatory degredation all about anyway? Repenting?? For what?? For making a personal choice?
November 9th, 2006 at 10:12 amIdaho has all paper ballots, and we still got Gov Otter and Rep Sali (maybe).
November 9th, 2006 at 10:12 am*hanging head in shame*
I requested email comments/responses and just realized the site only reveals my website URL, which is http://www.warriorvisions.com.
My email is bragle@gmail.com .
Stand tall and proud progressive brethren and sistren!
November 9th, 2006 at 10:12 amdrxj – great minds think alike, eh?
November 9th, 2006 at 10:13 amIsis,
The mental health profession stopped saying homosexuality was an illeness, way back in the 80’s. We all know its not an illness, I think the crazy evanjelicals are the last ones to call it an illness.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:15 am#24, actually the federal government would take about $350,000 and your state their share, in my case Illinois would take $30,000. What people do not realize is that there are tax increases all the time, you just don’t know it. For instance new IRS regs on how to handle a deduction were recently issued. These regs do not affect my situation, but for other companies they could wipe out the deduction, hence they became a back door tax increase. Ditto for expiring deductions, for instance last year the bonus depreciation deduction essentially ran its course. This made for lower depreciation deductions, hence higher taxable income for companies and higher revenue for the fed. You think those higher revenues the president was touting were actually from growth? Nope, they were a mix of growth and back door tax increases, and the cynic in me says they were timed to be phased out for the election cycle.
#28 unless he takes the Frank Thomas approach and says he has a bum toe that precludes travel to Washington.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:15 amZooey,
Sorry about Sali, we know its not your fault.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:15 amSorry about Sali, we know its not your fault.
Comment by ForTruth
Thanks Truth,
TP will never have to run another O’Reilly or Coulter film clip. all they have to do is point a camera or microphone in Sali’s general direction, and they’ll have a ThinkStupid thread everyday.
At least Sali smells nice…
November 9th, 2006 at 10:20 amAnd finally, Zooey, you’ve now officially given me an eternity of ED, with the mental picture at post #32 (my wife thanks you, tho)
Comment by DRxJ
Oops! Sorry, DRxJ! Would it help if Hastert wasn’t wearing a speedo? No? Again, sorry. :)
November 9th, 2006 at 10:22 amI hear Sali smells nice, especiall to young men.
You gave DrxJ ED, stop it.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:23 amNancy Pelosi, the new savior of the Democratic Party and of the United States, has announced, among other things, that the U.S. must “change the course” in Iraq. How, exactly, is this course going to be changed? Reading from her statement, that determination cannot be made.
What does seem apparent is that Ms. Pelosi does not care one iota for the safety of those troops. As with so many Democrats, she points out the failings of the Bush administration in Iraq but for some inexplicable reason cannot bring herself to say that those troops must be withdrawn from that quagmire in Iraq as soon as possible. One wonders how many American military personnel must needlessly die in Iraq- 58,000, about the same number who died in another foolish war in a place called Vietnam?- and how many more Americans should return to this country badly burned from their vehicles exploding and how many should return missing an arm and/or a leg and how many more should return severely traumatized by what they had seen and/or participated in by waking up screaming in the middle of the night, because of no legitimate reason- before Nancy Pelosi, another politician who does not give a damn for the welfare of those troops, will finally allow the words immediate withdrawal to pass from her lips?
November 9th, 2006 at 10:27 amYou gave DrxJ ED, stop it.
Comment by ForTruth
If only that could work on demand…not on DRxJ, but on those more deserving…
November 9th, 2006 at 10:28 amWesley Clark as SecDef would be awesome.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:29 amClinton as UN Ambassador would be better.
Heh, that would some special power.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:30 aman increas in the minimum wage is always good.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:32 amZoo – ED – was that ‘electile dysfunction’ ? Or perhaps only in Japan.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:34 am“After tumbling from the pinnacle of the American evangelical movement amid allegations he snorted meth and cavorted with a male prostitute,†former National Association of Evangelicals president Ted Haggard will undergo a “rehabilitation process that could last three to five years.†“There will be advice, confrontation and rebuke from ‘godly men’ appointed to oversee†Haggard’s spiritual “restoration.â€
Haggard will be going on about his gay life style and those “godly men” will have all those dirty thoughts stiring around in their homophobe brains and … well it just might spread….
November 9th, 2006 at 10:35 amOne caution today in this day of celebration: Be wary – be very wary about the lack of overt manipulation of voting machines during this midterm. -IsIs
It is not so much the machine as the software that runs it. The Diebold machines use a closed source code. I would like to see an open source code for the Voting machines NOT written in the insecure C++ programming language.
An example would be Australia, who uses open source code.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:36 amWaterboard old Ted Haggard. Bush thinks it is one way to gain enlightenment.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:39 amDog – there you go:
November 9th, 2006 at 10:39 am1. nationalize the election machine companies (same model as the old regulated utility industries) – hand the code over to the open source industry
2. nationalize election coverage on in the media – if you have 5pct-10pct opinion poll you get airtime
It is not so much the machine as the software that runs it. The Diebold machines use a closed source code. I would like to see an open source code for the Voting machines NOT written in the insecure C++ programming language.
An example would be Australia, who uses open source code.
Comment by Dog_named_Boo
In January I will be writing a hand writen letter to my new representative here in Indiana and explaining the need for open source voting systems and how that can be used to securely run fair elections and explain how many software developers in this country such as myself would donate our time for free to make such a system for the government at ZERO cost.
Hopefully many of you do the same and that will make a difference.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:40 amWhen I heard about Haggard’s “rehab” I immediately thought about “A Clockwork Orange”. They’ll prop his eyes open and make him watch gay porn while sipping ipecac.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:50 am58,59 I second those motions!
November 9th, 2006 at 10:50 amLol, this made me think of another satire.
Two flew over the coup coup nest.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:55 amStarring Karl Rove and George Bush
Dobson Quits Haggard Counseling Team
James Dobson will no longer take part in the counseling process, called restoration.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Nov. 7) – Citing a lack of time, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson withdrew Tuesday from the team overseeing counseling for the Rev. Ted Haggard, the evangelical pastor who was fired amid allegations of gay sex and drug use.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:58 am…
Should George Bush be impeached?
Maybe — but that should not be the focus of the new Democratically controlled congress.
The new House and Senate should get its oversight engines up and running again and after a year of hearings, the American people will be demanding Bush’s impeachment.
And the Republican controlled Congress and its friends at FOX news will have only themselves to blame.
When healthy checks and balances are in place, an administration is less likely to get itself (and the country) into as much trouble as Bush-43 has. When he stuck his toe in the waters of limiting our constitutionally protected rights or in the swamp of intellegence manipulation – he might have felt the nip of oversight – and thought twice.
Instead, the Republican-controlled Congress and cheerleaders at Fox News (and to a lesser degree, other mainstream media) urged him on, promised no serious inquiries. When he attached signing statements saying he may or may not follow new laws seeking to limit his powers, there was no outcry. no hearings, no calling to account.
So if in the end the people call for Bush’s impeachement, he has only himself and his enablers to blame.
November 9th, 2006 at 10:59 am#62, Dog, that’s a groaner!:-) Has Rove come out of his drunken stupor yet and made any comments?
Did Wayne and I imagine this? We saw a clip of Rush Limbaugh saying that he feels free because now he doesn’t have to pretend anymore? Something about, he no longer has to carry water for people who don’t deserve to have their water carried? I didn’t get much sleep Election Night, but I don’t think that was a dream. Anyone?
November 9th, 2006 at 11:03 amOnly Haggard can decide whats best for him, if he wants this restoration then he will take it. I hope he finds internally what he thinks exists externally.
November 9th, 2006 at 11:07 am#62, Dog, that’s a groaner!:-) Has Rove come out of his drunken stupor yet and made any comments?
Not that I have heard. But they say Karl doesn’t drink, and if thats true,and he did get drunk hes probably hugging the porcelain crown right about now chanting the “Oh God, I promise to never drink again” mantra!!
November 9th, 2006 at 11:10 amI find it hilarious that someone actually thinks that banning Affirmative Action is “unconstitutional” … The Constitution gives everyone the same rights under law … Affirmative action grants a select group special rights above the rest.
If any group is allowed to have special rights then there is no equal rights.
November 9th, 2006 at 11:29 amAffirmative Action is what is unconstitutional.
How many people hyere really understand the economy?
You can argue with what I am bout to say, and criticize me, and make fun of me, but guess what, I will be proven right, UNFORTUNATELY!!!
If the Minimum wage is raised $2.10 an hour, the first thing that will happen is, a number of jobs will be cut. Second, prices are going to go up accordingly, untill companies can get things cheaper from overseas, where prices will drop a bit, and more jobs cut, because it’s cheaper to Call overseas, order from overseas, manufacture, ship, deliver to stores etc etc.
Unemployment will go up 1-2 % almost within DAYS of a minimum wage increase, maybe even more. I have been studying the effects of minimum wage increases, and while smaller increases do not show drastic economic changes, largers ones show an immediate impact, and it’s ALWAYS detrimental.
If a wage increase is to be implemented, it needs to be in small increments, or the very people you are looking to help, will be the people who lose their jobs first.
November 9th, 2006 at 11:30 amEd Markey should be chair of the House Telecom/Internet subcommittee next year. He has been the biggest proponent of net neutrality in congress. Email him and let him know you care about the new economy. Without net neutrality Microsoft could have stifled the upstart Google just by ponying up more cash.
November 9th, 2006 at 11:42 amDoug, clearly, only you, Thomas Friedman, and W, know anything about the economy – we’re all so very sorry that we don’t know all that you 3 guys do – thanks for setting the record straight, and explaning exactly what will happen in any economic eventuality. Gosh, we’re all so lucky that you would share that very valuable information with us – how else would we ever know anything about it?
November 9th, 2006 at 11:46 am#69: Actually, those states that have raised the minimum wage beyond the federal standard have seen an improved economy as well as growth in jobs in the manufacturing and service sectors. How is that detrimental?
November 9th, 2006 at 11:49 amWhy would Enron try to bring California to their knees with an artificially created energy crisis (also known as economic terrorism) who Cheney was connected to.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/06/01/eveningnews/main620626.shtml
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/06/02/eveningnews/main620795.shtml
911 is the same deal in my book –
a handful of dusty arabs in a cave on the other side of the world – with flimsy ass boxcutters made NORAD stand down and took 4 planes over? … that’s the most unbelievable story of all of them.
The 200 or so Americans on the plane when faced with 2 guys with a boxcutter would have beaten them to death with their carry-ons.
Why is this all happening? … they want to destroy our economy.
The North American Union is real … FOIA documents released last week prove that certain people in our government are having secret dealings with foreign nations behind the public and a good part of the U.S. governments back – to dismantle America.
http://stopspp.com/stopspp/?page_id=11
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=52164
It’s even caused a resolution to be brought against the merger in the Senate:
Rep. Virgil Goode Jr., R-Va., has introduced a resolution – H.R. 487 – designed to express “the sense of Congress that the United States should not engage in the construction of a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Superhighway System or enter into a North American Union (NAU) with Mexico and Canada.”
Co-Sponser:
November 9th, 2006 at 11:50 amReps. Thomas Tancredo, R-Colo., Ron Paul, R-Texas, and Walter Jones, R-N.C.
#70, Yachts, thanks for the tip re: Markey, I’ll email him.
November 9th, 2006 at 11:51 am#49 great job of shifting Iraq to Dems shoulders. How about this…She at least recognizes that change is needed. The current administration has no clue or will not admit that change is needed. Since day one of the war the dems have been shut out of the process. So perhaps a prudent thing to do would be to get the politicos’ together and develop and acceptable political solution, because face it you can not find a solution over there that is not politically acceptable to the US, the Region and most importantly the Iraqi’s. Next they need to get with the military find out what they need to pull of the fix or if they even can. Get them what they need to get the job done then allow them to do their work. If the military does not think the job is doable then back to the drawing board only this time include the military in the discussions on how to develop a fix. It’s actually simple to think of how to do this, the hard part is coming up with a strategy that will work. Having been shut out of the process for so long the dems will have to get real information on what is happening over there, not the sanitized happy face stuff the white house has been peddling.
To say two days after the election that the dems do not care about the troops is pure utter bullshit. They have had no say in the government for 6 years. It has been take it or leave it on every proposition from the white house or from the republican controlled congress. It is those people who put the troops into Iraq it is those people in the administration who have used our troops to effect nation building, and to use for think tank regional experimentation. It is those people in the administration who have cowed the generals. It is the administration who has allowed the situation to get out of hand. So shut up and let the new leadership work to fix the mess that the republican party has left in their wake.
#64 – Should the president be impeached? Who knows, with no oversight there can’t be any grounds for impeachment. The new congress needs to re-install oversight then investigate all those issues that should have received oversight in the past. Once those investigations are complete then determine if impeachment is warranted or not. Perhaps if it is warranted they can use it as a bargaining chip with the white house to get legislation passed. The same goes for members of congress who have done as they pleased in the absence of any ethic oversight.
#69 besides the punditry do you have any empirical data to support your claims? Is this what happened the last time minimum wage was increased? In the manufacturing sector there are essentially zero jobs that this will affect so the cost of manufactured goods will most likely not increase. In the service sector there are jobs this may affect. However I do not believe that the effect will matter as the minimum wage is mainly symbolic. Where I am familiar with (the Chicago Area) many, if not all) of the traditional minimum wage jobs are already paying more than minimum because they are hard to fill. These retail and fast food jobs pay $8 and $9/hour or more. Heck Portillos was paying almost $8 ten years ago. There probably are situations around the country where the minimum wage will have an impact, but not as many as you think.
What will happen will not be a loss of jobs, it will not be doom and gloom. It will be a situation where things reach an equilibrium point and the minimum wage will once again be irrelevant. There will not be jobs lost due to any wage increase if that is the case then every year when companies dole out pay increases some people should be let go, but they are not. Whether the minimum is $2 $10 or completely market driven, the jobs still need to get done. I can not think of one business owner who will leave tasks undone rather than pay the wage, because leaving tasks undone shorts your customers.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:05 pmDoug – false premise. Manufacturing jobs can and have been shipped overseas, but those already paid more than the minimum wage. Minimum wage jobs are predominantly in the service sector, and those cannot be shipped overseas.
However, I cannot think of any minimum wage increase that was not implemented in increments.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:07 pmEd Markey should be chair of the House Telecom/Internet subcommittee next year. He has been the biggest proponent of net neutrality in congress. Email him and let him know you care about the new economy. Without net neutrality Microsoft could have stifled the upstart Google just by ponying up more cash.
Comment by Yachts and Lattes
Without net neutrality AT&T (Americas domestic spy network) could stifle Microsofts Windows Mesh Networking simply by making adjustments to their network to prevent people from using Microsofts free peer to peer wireless networking and their Internet connections together.
http://research.microsoft.com/mesh/
When WiMax comes out next year make sure you all finally get on the wireless and Microsoft Mesh technologies so we can have an Internet that has no middlemen like AT&T… an Internet For the People, By the People, and Of the People.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:12 pmComment by Douglas G.
OR those companies can stop being so greedy and share more of those profits with their poor employees.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:14 pmI highly doubt the Rover drinks, or does anything to fog his mind or interfere with his work, he is always at work too. Rover maintains complete control at all times. He is the “designated driver”.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:20 pmUmmm… Wireless is great, but most people have no clue it is wide open and they need to secure it. I don’t recommend wireless to the average user.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:22 pmUmmm… Wireless is great, but most people have no clue it is wide open and they need to secure it. I don’t recommend wireless to the average user.
Comment by ForTruth
Lots of people didnt recommend horseless buggies either… Get a clue.
More and more routers are coming with Microsofts UPnP technology which makes it easy for security to be turned on by default. In fact more and more wireless routers are being made to act as wireless repeaters so that people can get on the mesh without the need to have any access to a persons home network.
Modern technology is making the old phone companies as out dated as the steam engine. Decentralized Internet means no one can put up any toll boths and no wires means no one can demand to “own” the Internet because of the cost of laying down the wires.
November 9th, 2006 at 12:35 pmOkay, so, Bush didn’t come out and tell the Press last week Rumsfeld was going to resign. So what? Who cares? The man’s gone and now maybe we can make some progress in this war. The word is “progress” people. Not “withdrawal”. Rumsfeld needed to go, and after Tuesday’s elections, he and Bush saw that. Any idiot can see that they based their decision on the elections, probably because they knew that the liberals would now go after Rumsfeld with all they have. So, the American people have spoken, and everyone who voted should be commended. I just fear that the relationship we’ve chosen with the government will now be one of TOTAL deference on our part and seduction on the government’s. Even after 9-11 so many of us still don’t get it. It’s too bad the fire it lit is cold now. But please, let’s live over here in supposed peace, inflate the value of the dollar, make jobs harder to get for young people just starting out, socialize healthcare to make it the bureaucratic mess that public education is, and just watch the rest of the world die, until it comes to us. But hey, maybe it won’t be us that has to see that happen…it’ll be our children or grandchildren. I wish you people would grow up and live in the real world. But, that’ll never happen. You’ll all walk around with the same disillusionment and naivette you always have. At least these next two years will be fun to watch. Let’s see what the Dems can screw up now…
November 9th, 2006 at 12:51 pmHere’s what Erroll (#49) thinks: “What does seem apparent is that Ms. Pelosi does not care one iota for the safety of those troops.”
Erroll, as I’ve pointed out about 100 times, Iraq and Afganistan Veterans of America (IAVA) gives Pelosi a B+ for her voting record in support of the troops. Now, where did you even get the idea that she doesn’t support the troops? I’m guessing you got it from some chickenhawk on FOX or a chickenhawk member of the fighting 101st keyboarders.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:09 pm#77 Wimesh would be our worst nightmare. Do you know how many people out there have unsecured computers, that would be turned into spam zombies or worse?
I can actually take my laptop and drive through almost ANY downtown, and get into several BUSINESS networks. If those netowrks are not secure, and the computers open, can you imagine what would happen if everyone was on the same wireless system?
#78 Companies won’t stop making profits, they will cut jobs first, and raise prices. If they have to pay more, they will charge more, and pay less people.
As for the request about my data? Any site that gathers, and displays economic data shows that right after a forced minimum wage increase, unemployment goes up immediately.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:10 pmDouglas G. has been studying the minimum wage and thinks it’s a big mistake to raise it. Unfortunately for Douglas, historical facts are not his friend. We have raised the minimum wage scores of times since the ’70’s and there isn’t a single incidence of the number of jobs dropping or more unemployment as a direct reaction to a minimum wage hike. Douglas, if you have an example based on numbers, please enlighten us. Otherwise, your position is just stale, warmed-over propaganda from corporate stooges.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:14 pmDouglas: “As for the request about my data? Any site that gathers, and displays economic data shows that right after a forced minimum wage increase, unemployment goes up immediately.”
How fortunate for you that it’s so easy. You should easily be able to furnish us with the data to back up your claim. I’m waiting.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:20 pm#85 do the research yourself. Every single time the minimum wage went up, so did unemployment. Maybe a course in economics would do you some good. Unemployment has a directly proportional relationship with the minimum wage. A bit of common sense would be of assistance, too. But it happened every single time. Just do the work to look it up before you slam someone for bringing it up without spoon feeding it to you.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:24 pm#85/86, Bluedog49, I guess J.C. must think he’s the ‘J.C.’, and doesn’t have to answer to you. ;-)
November 9th, 2006 at 1:38 pmThat’s what makes this country great. We don’t have to answer to anyone, especially if the information can be obtained freely with just a little effort….oh I’m sorry. I forgot you probably don’t know what effort means. It’s the opposite of hand-out.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:46 pmComment by Douglas G.
Ever hear of something call progress?
If people took your attitude to heart there would be NO Internet. PCs were not made to be plugged into a public network, yet people did it anyway because it was worth it. As PROGRESS happened we technology people made our systems accomidate the Internet and that progress is still being made by the MAC, Windows, and Linux people. Dont tell me you are one of these conservatives that believes in staying in the past so as not to take any risks?
Oh and try driving by my house and getting into my network and make my PCs into zombies… good luck… but if you want to jump on the Internet while there through my wireless router then by all means enjoy the ride … I dont mind sharing.
Just because SOME peoples networks are not setup secure does not justify stoping the PC revolution. Get a clue.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:48 pm#88, Here is the bottom line. Whenever I research info, and post it, people like Bluedog40 wants to have it spoon fed. If I request from someone where they got their info, they tell me the same thing that J.C. told #85/86.
Too bad, if it works for you, it works for me, if you all expect me to research things you have said, you can research what I have said.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:49 pmComment by Douglas G.
It is simple math really.
#1) Mimimum wage increases
#2) Either the company is on the brink of closing and so it cannot afford the increase and shuts down or lays people off or finds costs savings in some other way. (not very common)
#3) A company has profits and is NOT on the brink and so they either find costs savings to cover the increase in minimum wage OR they lower their profits and eat the additional cost.
Are you trying to say that the majority of businesses out there are on the brink of closing down? If not then what are you talking about? Are you saying that the poor poor wealthy people are going to be getting less profits and so we cant increase minimum wage? If so then just say that. The rich getting richer is more important than the poor getting less poor…. just say that if that is what you mean.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:54 pm“That’s what makes this country great. We don’t have to answer to anyone…” Comment by J.C. — November 9, 2006 @ 1:46 pm
Yeah, that’s what got the Bush administration and the Republican Congress into trouble.
November 9th, 2006 at 1:56 pm[...] From ThinkProgress: A federal judge ruled the Center for Reproductive Rights could “subpoena more than three years of Plan B-related communications between the White House’s domestic-policy office†and FDA officials. The documents could “determine whether the White House interfered with the FDA’s handling of a request by manufacturer Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. to allow sales without prescriptions.†[...]
November 9th, 2006 at 1:58 pmThat’s what makes liberals liberals, too. Taking an excerpt of a quote, putting it in a context never intended, and saying, “Look what a bad man!” Liberal, liar, what’s the difference? Jane, you’re hilarious. Keep showing that I.Q.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:05 pmJC: “#85 do the research yourself. Every single time the minimum wage went up, so did unemployment. Maybe a course in economics would do you some good.”
JC, you’re the one making a sweeping statement. I don’t accept your sweeping statement on your word alone, because you have been very wrong about lots of other things around here. Every single time???!!! Do you want to stand by that and give me the citation on where you got this info, or do you really want me to go to the government site and embarrass you?
November 9th, 2006 at 2:06 pmGot to the government site and embarass yourself…just do some real research…what you’ll probably do is get you info here on this site…I got the informayion grom my own extensive study of it, whereas you think you can do one little 5 minute internet look-up and prove your case? Jeez, when will you people learn something? You haven’t done anything but expect others to take your word on it. I at least say research it yourself. We know why, however, because we know I’m right.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:12 pmFrom the Economic Policy Institute: In response to dire predictions made by minimum wage opponents prior to the enactment of Florida’s minimum wage, Bruce Nissen of Florida International University and Luke Shaefer of the University of Chicago followed up with a comprehensive study of Florida’s economy one year after the minimum wage increase. Their conclusion:
No empirical evidence shows that Florida’s minimum wage has caused businesses to lay off workers. Instead, state employment has shown strong growth since the new wage took effect, better than in previous years and better than the U.S. as a whole. (Shaefer and Nissen 2005, 3)
November 9th, 2006 at 2:14 pmAnd keep showing that bitter anger, JC, you’re pretty hilarious, too. There’s nothing wrong with my IQ. I’m just commenting on your sweet disposition.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:14 pmFrom the AEA: “Over 650 economists, including 5 Nobel prize winners and 6 past presidents of the American Economic Association, believe that increasing federal and state minimum wages, with annual cost-of-living adjustments for inflation, “can significantly improve the lives of low-income workers and their families, without the adverse effects that critics have claimed.”
November 9th, 2006 at 2:19 pmYes, well thank you, Jane. I’m not angry at all, but I am pretty bitter. I’m bitter at how divided this country is, at how we seem to be following these politicians around like little pups. Why don’t we all just decide what we want to believe in as a people, and stop this legislative dictatorship? That’s all. Am I the only one who is tired of politicians who are more loyal to their party than the people they serve? And let’s remember that, too. This government was set up to serve, not rule, the People.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:21 pmThe most recent labor study in New York found that increases in the minimum wage resulted in more retail employment, not less.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:25 pmHere are the facts behind minimum wage in America:
November 9th, 2006 at 2:32 pm4.3 million: Number of Americans who have fallen into poverty since President Bush took office
$5.15: Federal minimum wage
26%: How much the inflation-adjusted value of the minimum wage has eroded since 1979
0: Number of times minimum wage has increased since 1997
7: Number of times Congress has increased its own pay since 1997
$0: How much more a year people earning minimum wage earn today compared to 1997
$28,500: How much more a year members of Congress make today compared to 1997
$10,700: Amount a person making minimum wage will earn in a year
$5,000: Amount below the poverty level working 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year at minimum wage will leave a family of three
7,300,000: Number of workers who would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage
72%: Percentage of adult workers who would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage
1,800,000: Number of parents with kids under the age of 18 who would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage
11 million: Number of jobs added to the economy in the four years after the last minimum wage hike
$8.70: Amount minimum wage would have to be today to have the same purchasing power it had in 1968
2.5 years: Amount of health care for two children which could be bought by raising the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25
86%: Percentage of Americans who support raising the federal minimum wage
“Am I the only one who is tired of politicians who are more loyal to their party than the people they serve?” Comment by J.C. — November 9, 2006 @ 2:21 pm
I agree with you 100% there. The system is broken in that and many other respects.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:32 pmComment by J.C. — November 9, 2006 @ 2:12 pm
Now you’re sounding like Exley.
if you post something as a fact yet refuse to post a link, as you have done, you reveal yourself as something less of an expert and more of a Talking Points Lackey. Your argument lacks all credibility because you refuse to support yourself. We’re not going to research your facts for you.
And, since you have repeatedly refused to support your statement, I shall assume you are lying.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:34 pmBluedog, you still don’t quite get it.
1) Using a state as a model for the country is foolish….
2) 650 economists, including 5 Nobel Prize winners, tells me nothing of who they are or how they performed their study which led them to their conclusions.
3) Again, a labor study in New York cannot serve as a model for an entire nation.
Look, just give it up. I could pick your examples apart all day. Look at it from a national level, please, and go back to the reports when minimum wage went up. Not any “recent studies”. My comment was regarding the history, which apparently no one has taken a lesson from.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:37 pmAssume what you want, but I’m not doing any research for you, either. Since you talk about me not backing up my statements, why haven’t any of you done the same. Gee, could it be that you know you might be talking out of your butt? You just want to look like some great and wonderful intellectual. I don’t have to assume you are lying, because I already know it. This is not a court of law, mind you, this is a Blog, where anyone who feels compelled may research anything anyone has to say…just don’t expect to be spoonfed the information.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:41 pmGlad to hear that, Jane. So how does it get fixed? That’s the big question.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:43 pm“STUDIES SHOW THAT A MODERATE INCREASE IN THE MINIMUM WAGE, ESPECIALLY IN A STRONG ECONOMY, DOES NOT INCREASE THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE†(PRESIDENT CLINTON, 1996).
JC, Clinton was a Rhodes Scholar in economics. I’ll take his view over yours any day of the week. The minimum wage has been increased something like 68 times. We have more minimum wage workers than ever before. I know you think your view on this is sacred and I know the kinds of places where you have gotten this idea. Our society is filled with phony “think tanks” which are nothing more than mouthpieces for corporate power. You choose to believe what these mouthpieces have written. That’s your right, but understand that when you say things like “you people don’t understand basic economics,” you leave yourself open for ridicule.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:46 pmJC: “Look, just give it up. I could pick your examples apart all day. Look at it from a national level, please, and go back to the reports when minimum wage went up. Not any “recent studiesâ€. My comment was regarding the history, which apparently no one has taken a lesson from.”
Full of ourselves aren’t we? As I said before, minimum wage has been raised something like 68 times. Are there less minimum wage jobs today than when this process started? No? Then just shut up.
November 9th, 2006 at 2:55 pmMark at #75
You are laudatory that Nancy Pelosi is acknowledging what should be obvious, that the policy in Iraq is not working and as a result American soldiers are needlessly being killed because of this errant policy by the Bush administration. But instead of stating the obvious, that in order to save American lives, those troops should be withdrawn as soon as possible, your inelegant advice is for people to “shut up” if one dares point out that the Democrat’s plan is little different from that of the Republicans. You say that the Republicans have been in charge for six years. Does that then mean that the Democrats, and anyone else, are prohibited from speaking out and offering to save the lives of those soldiers who are trapped in that quagmire in Iraq ["Into the valley of death" rode the 144,00]?
The point that I was attempting to make, which you seemed to fail to grasp, was that the Democrats are in a position now to do something, which is to offer an alternative to having those troops getting blown up. The Democrats, now that they control both Houses, can also cut the funding for the occupation. If no more money is forthcoming, then the occupation and fighting must cease, thus allowing American lives to be saved. Like a place called Vietnam, the U.S. military is in an untenable position. It is going on four years since the illegal invasion took place and they are no closer to putting down the insurgency. That is because, like Vietnam, the Iraqis will fight with their dying breath until the Americans are finally driven from their soil.
It appears that you, like the administration, are looking for some magic solution to appear to aid the U.S. in Iraq. The same thing was sought regarding a place called Vietnam. The only solution is for the U.S., like Vietnam, to leave Iraq, and the sooner the better. When that finally happens, less Americans will be returning in flag draped coffins to this country in the dead of night and less Americans will return to this country screaming in the middle of the night because of what they had witnessed and/or participated in while being in Iraq. Again, to point out the obvious, if Nancy Pelosi actually cared for the troops, she would recognize this and try to prevent it by trying to get those troops out as quickly as possible.
But in your world such criticism and observation is not allowed. I should only, as you so less than elegantly put it, “shut up.”
November 9th, 2006 at 2:57 pm#35. Zooey. Of course, I would have said that 3 days ago. You know I’m always in favor of Democrats and Republicans getting together.
November 9th, 2006 at 3:00 pm#108, I don’t know. Certain things would help, like taking big money/corporations out of government, term limits, get rid of the electoral college. Off the top of my head, that’s a start.
November 9th, 2006 at 3:01 pmYes, as do we all, Bluedog. You are completely free to take his view if you want. I won’t argue with why you do it, because you have no idea who I am. That’s fine. But you are wrong in one point, that being where I got my view from. I was never in a “think tank”, never studied a “think tank”, and I despise corporations. The backbone of our economic system is the small-business owner, the ones who get pushed over by the big boys. Why do you think there are more minimum wage jobs now than before? Because the corporations have taken over most of the farming, and are running all the small biusinesses out. I would love nothing more than to see more people starting their own businesses than getting jobs in a corporation. It seems to capture what America is all about, at least to me. But after being raised 68 times, is it really going to do any good this time? No, it just inflates the dollar and perpetuates the cycle…
November 9th, 2006 at 3:01 pm#36. ForTruth. Is that the bipartisan, work in cooperation, term of endearment form of ‘dipshit’ or the F.U. you heartless conservative son of a b*tch form of ‘dipshit’?
November 9th, 2006 at 3:05 pmYou don’t know what your own values are you kook!!! You get them from a politician and a reporter…no, not everyine wants to own a business, but doing work for yourself is a big aspiration of many…handling your own affairs…You remind me of Oliver Twist, stepping up to the government, saying, “Please, sir, can I have some more?” You’re the problem, you’re the reason we’re in this fix, and you’re the kind of person that has killed what value America once had…
November 9th, 2006 at 3:29 pmNo need for to read an economics text book, reference some bias study or visit anymore websites here is a common sense explanation why minimum wage hikes are ultimately bad for the economy. Pretend you’re a business owner that makes widgets.
U.S. Company:
Sale Price 6
Shipping Cost 1
Material Cost 1
Labor Cost 3
Profit 1
Foreign Company:
Sale Price 6
Shipping Cost 3
Material Cost 1
Labor Cost 1
Profit 1
Then do this same math assuming we increase the minimum wage in this country by 38% or 5.15 to 7.15. Result: the U.S. Company goes out of business; unemployment goes up, welfare/foodstamp expenditures rise, taxes revenue drops, etc.:
U.S. Company:
Sale Price 6
Shipping Cost 1
Material Cost 1
Labor Cost 4
Profit 0
Foreign Company:
November 9th, 2006 at 4:35 pmSale Price 6
Shipping Cost 3
Material Cost 1
Labor Cost 1
Profit 1
Fever – hmm the us has a lot of manufacturing jobs that pay minimum wage? I never knew.
November 9th, 2006 at 4:46 pmJC: “Bluedog, you’re an idiot…You really think MORE minimum wage jobs is good? Jeez, why don’t you try living on minimum wage for a year or two, and tell me it’s good? No, no, that’s too much like right. The answer is NOT jacking up the minimum wage, like the government should be allowed to have a say in it anyway.”
JC, you started this by posting that we didn’t understand anything about economics because we didn’t agree that a minimum wage hike means more unemployment. Now, you’re changing the subject to poverty. Fine. But, at the same time, you seem to be making the very strange argument that raising the income of our poorest citizens somehow makes them more poorer. Sorry, that just doesn’t make any sense at all. I think you’re getting mixed up. But, speaking of poverty, under Clinton’s administration poverty rates declined every year for 8 years. These rates have risen every year under Bush. So, if poverty is your big issue, you’re backing the wrong party.
November 9th, 2006 at 5:01 pmOr to put it another way: “If I pay my workers enough to make my automobiles, they will purchase them and I will profit. Everybody wins.”
–Henry Ford, big-time Capitalist
November 9th, 2006 at 5:09 pmSo we all agree that by having a minimum wage we eliminated a bunch of low paying manufacturing jobs? If yes, what jobs are going to be eliminated when it goes from 5.15 to 7.15? In addition, if any of you are worried about illegal immigration you just gave every employer more incentive to hire illegals versus give americans a 38% raise.
In regards to the Clinton Administration, a lot for things affect how and why the economy grows but the vast majority of the reasons have to do with the actions of the private sector not the actions of the Government. I mean, the Government didn’t invent Microsoft, Bill Gates invented Microsoft.
November 9th, 2006 at 5:12 pmJC: “Jeez, when will you people learn something?”
“I wish you people would grow up and live in the real world. But, that’ll never happen.”
“Maybe a course in economics would do you some good.”
“You haven’t done anything but expect others to take your word on it. I at least say research it yourself. We know why, however, because we know I’m right.”
“My comment was regarding the history, which apparently no one has taken a lesson from.”
JC is very full of himself. And, he’s having a very bad day. He’s told us over and over how brilliant he is and he has hectored us for being stupid, but we still don’t see it his way. Even if he stamps his feet, clenches his fists and cries bitter tears, we just don’t agree. Poor JC.
November 9th, 2006 at 5:18 pmFever: “So we all agree that by having a minimum wage we eliminated a bunch of low paying manufacturing jobs?”
Ummm, No. Fever don’t reed tu guud.
November 9th, 2006 at 5:20 pmFever: “I mean, the Government didn’t invent Microsoft, Bill Gates invented Microsoft.”
Microsoft is a corporation. It wasn’t “invented.” A number of people invented software which would eventually be called “Operating Systems,” but none of them were Bill Gates.
Fever, if you’re going to pose as another know-it-all, this isn’t a great start.
November 9th, 2006 at 5:26 pmThe Democrats had a great victory yesterday. Their majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate coupled with the resignation of Donald Rumsfeld already illustrate this “power” shift in Washington.
The question remains whether today’s Democratic Party is the vehicle to eradicate poverty and usher in a wave of much needed social change.
If the party of FDR and LBJ, who lead a Second American Revolution, will today’s Democrats follow true to their political ancestors and lead a “Third Revolution� Or, will these Democrats be a reincarnation of the Know-Nothings.
More: http://www.garart.org/we-voted-now-we-must-boycott/
November 9th, 2006 at 8:47 pmThe new Congress should hit the ground running with the agenda Mrs. Pelosi outlined, but they should take care of a few relatively quick fixes right out of the box. First among these, I would submit, is to regularize the voting procedure across America. Start with new requirements for voting machine manufacturers to ensure straightforward ease of use even by non-tech-familiar voters, tamper-proof software, standardized connection & retrieval systems, & paper & other backup security systems. If the procedures to set up, connect, cast votes, & retrieve votes is virtually the same among different machines, it eliminates many training issues & machine errors. Follow this with funding for localities to update old voting systems & purchase enough machines to spread amply among all voting precincts to end this disgusting spectacle of more machines than are needed in the suburbs while urban areas are shorted so voters are forced to wait in long lines. Create incentives for communities to provide shuttles & other transportation to the polls on election days, & streamline absentee & early voting procedures. Standardize ballot design to avoid confusion. Then set about creating a voter card, equivalent to a drivers license or other photo ID, that can be used by the elderly, non-drivers, & others. This is to ensure that only registered voters participate in elections. Work with AARP, the elder care industry, senior centers, & even the State Department to assist all citizens to register properly & vote. Incentives could even be created for child care centers to be open longer on election days. By fixing this broken election system, Congress will demonstrate a new commitment to honesty & transparency in government & will allay the fears of American voters that they can’t trust the system to count their votes properly.
November 10th, 2006 at 9:30 amAnother relatively quick fix is to re-engage with the international community on the issue of climate change. Bush and his posse reneged on commitments made by previous administrations and refused to even discuss the matter with our allies, even though most advanced nations recognize that it is potentially the greatest threat ever to everyone’s national security. For political reasons only, he forbade government scientists from speaking about research results and denounced scientists across America as charlatans. It’s time now to take away his pixie dust and return our nation to the real world by facing this looming crisis side-by-side with the rest of the thinking countries. We’ll need to do more than just discuss the issue, however. We’ve wasted so much time, it’s imperative that Congress act soon to begin immediate reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, require new fuel economy standards, curtail smokestack emissions on land-based plants and ocean-going vessels, and phase out old fuel formulas in favor of bio-diesel, ethanol, and other alternative fuels. British scientists recently released a study that shows the economic devastation wrought by inaction on climate change, so if health and environmental reasons aren’t enough to prod Bush into action, maybe bottom-line issues will be. In any case, it is Congress who now must take the reins and steer our country in the right direction.
November 10th, 2006 at 10:04 amMy final suggestions (then I’ll go away and leave you in peace!) for quick fixes that Congress might immediately undertake are these: First, require that Bush submit real budgets for approval, not cooked-books fairy tale budgets that allow him to come back later requesting supplemental war funding. Secondly, Congress should do everything possible to ensure health care for all returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. At this time, Reservists and National Guards have lesser health care benefits than Army, Navy, and Air Force veterans and that’s just plain wrong when they’ve been every bit as engaged in war as the regular military. And while we’re at it, as a third suggestion, Congress should insist that the government keep ONE set of financial books so we can accurately assess our true financial position. At this time, the entire budget process is horribly politicized in order to make one administration or another look better than it really is on fiscal issues. We want the true picture, not hidden debts and liabilities that emerge later in surprise revelations.
By taking on these important issues that are relatively easy to solve, the new Congress will go a long way toward restoring balance to government and the confidence of the American people. Sorry to take so much space, and thanks for the opportunity to chime in here.
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January 12th, 2007 at 1:25 am