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No, they are an illustration of trickle down economics. All of those companies essentially started up in garages, and as they grew and prospered, they hired thousands of people with most having good paychecks. They purchased and used services of other companies creating more jobs outside of the primary companies. The taxes paid by those companies and employees paid for infrastructure and social programs that benefitted a large segment of society.
Considering our social programs are going bankrupt and our infrastructure is falling apart, it seems clear that "trickle down" is a failed policy.
What needs to be looked at are the unfunded entitlements. Seniors have paid into SS and Medicare for decades, and there are STILL premiums that have to be paid for Medicare after age 65, so that's not really the problem.
Welfare recipients: Medicaid, CHIP, WIC, food stamps, free school breakfast, lunch, and sometimes even dinner, section 8 housing, welfare, etc., etc. have NO contribution requirements for eligibility.
The UNFUNDED entitlement programs are the problem.
Technically the last realized surplus we had was under Eisenhower when the national debt decreased during a Fiscal Year. Why does Clinton get credit for saying he OPPOSED balancing the budget, when the push was made by the contract with America for the nearly balanced actual budgets.
As for Trickle Down economics, Obama has seen more of it on his watch than any president with his Fed picks for QE.
All three candidates have proposals to add MORE debt than if no laws were changed. We are screwed, no one us taking the debt seriously.
A friend and I had a conversation over a year ago, about how our government (all governments really) suck at real long term planning. They plan in vacuums and consider 5-10 years from now to be a long term plan. I also think they suck at analyzing the potential 2nd and 3rd order effects of plans that they implement or fail to implement. Long term planning ideally should be a generation's length, or at least 1/2 of an average generation span. But when you can't even agree year to year on simple budgets...i suppose what can you expect when it comes to real long term planning.
I agree that five to ten years isn't long term planning - unless you compare it to business planning.
And the basic problem is that the world doesn't cooperate. As much as we all like to think we can pronounce "be it so" - we can't.
Another problem is that no Congress can bind a following one. A Congress or President can set a policy, and Congress can enact a law, but that only lasts as long as subsequent Presidents and Congresses agree. In fact, it seems to me that most of the time, both presidents and congress critters run on overturning policies and laws they don't like. Kind of unrewarding to develop a true long-range plan and then go to the work of implementing it.
What needs to be looked at are the unfunded entitlements. Seniors have paid into SS and Medicare for decades, and there are STILL premiums that have to be paid for Medicare after age 65, so that's not really the problem.
Welfare recipients: Medicaid, CHIP, WIC, food stamps, free school breakfast, lunch, and sometimes even dinner, section 8 housing, welfare, etc., etc. have NO contribution requirements for eligibility.
The UNFUNDED entitlement programs are the problem.
Medicare is an unfunded entitlement, just like food stamps, section 8, and welfare, even when accounting for premiums and past payroll taxes. The program borrows billions of dollars from the general fund every year, with no ability to pay it back.
Social Security is one of the few, if only, entitlement programs that was properly funded by the people who use it.
Medicare is an unfunded entitlement, just like food stamps, section 8, and welfare, even when accounting for premiums and past payroll taxes. The program borrows billions of dollars from the general fund every year, with no ability to pay it back.
Nope. Workers pay FICA for decades before Medicare eligibility. And even then, have to pay Medicare premiums for coverage which are deducted from their SS checks.
Tell me, what are Medicaid, CHIP, WIC, food stamps, free school breakfast, lunch, and sometimes even dinner, section 8 housing, welfare, etc., etc. recipients required to pay into the system before they become eligible for benefits? And how old do they have to be to even apply? 65+? Absolutely NOT!
I agree that five to ten years isn't long term planning - unless you compare it to business planning.
And the basic problem is that the world doesn't cooperate. As much as we all like to think we can pronounce "be it so" - we can't.
Another problem is that no Congress can bind a following one. A Congress or President can set a policy, and Congress can enact a law, but that only lasts as long as subsequent Presidents and Congresses agree. In fact, it seems to me that most of the time, both presidents and congress critters run on overturning policies and laws they don't like. Kind of unrewarding to develop a true long-range plan and then go to the work of implementing it.
That's part of the issue we discussed as well. A true long term plan (in the sense of my previous post) would truly have to be "fluid" or as the newer buzz phrase...a living document. It would have to be able to be changed, as culture/technology advances and changes. But again, you're right - government is always the problem, as it's made up of politicians and they're never like minded as a whole...which leads to the "my idea is better than yours" and next thing you know...a plan that has been put into place has been rescinded and a new one is ratified.
Sigh - can we just wipe out the human race and start over?
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