Friday, March 30, 2012

"The rich in America can't afford to help the poor."

That, thanks to economist Isabelle Tsakok, is the most accurate and succinct summary of current Republican ideology. Do they really want to balance the budget, as they have repeated said? No, not judged by actions. They have not been willing to compromise on increasing the wealth of the rich to balance the budget. And the new Ryan budget specifies no closing of tax breaks for the rich, but only a vague proposal that, judging by past behavior, will never be specified. Do they want to reduce taxes for all, as they keep repeating? No, when the issue was increasing taxes on the poor, by stopping the break on payroll taxes, they had to be dragged, under protest, to pass anything. Do they want the free market? No, they are willing to support subsidies to agribusiness, and pass laws to funnel government money to private corporations working on prisons and schools.

The sole issue on which they have been consistent? That the rich cannot afford to help the poor. This is not, I should emphasize, a matter of charity. It is a matter of spending on public goods, such as infrastructure, schools, police, and health care for children. As Tsakok's book, Success in Agriculture Transformation shows, throughout history, government investment in public goods, sustained over decades, has been the key to economic development in every single case, in the US and abroad.

But any investment in public goods, if it helps the poor, the Republicans are against. In the states recently captured by the Republicans in the Governors and Legislatures, savage cuts in education spending have followed.

What is the rationale for this? "Freedom!" The theory is that for the rich to help support public goods is taking away their freedom. This assumes that the public sector has nothing to do with the prosperity of the rich. But as Elizabeth Warren memorably emphasized recently, the public sector is the foundation of private wealth. And Tsakok's book makes clear that without that sustained public investment, countries fail to develop.

Thus in name of freedom, the public is being conned into supporting policies that will hurt our economic future more than any foreign enemy. The threat to America's future is the Republicon.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Yes, the Republicans are really that bad.

Our journalism today is very concerned about being perceived as fair, and little concerned with clearly identifying the truth. As a result,anyone saying that the current Republicans are thoroughly corrupt, and not at all driven by honest interest in helping the country, is not heard in the mainstream media. But two recent posts by Krugman again drive home the point that yes, they are really that bad. In one Krugman links to the following chart, which shows how support for college students has dramatically shrunk:

In other words claims that the Republicans want equality of opportunity are just a lie. Similarly Krugman points out that in every single case as countries in Europe have tried austerity there has been job loss. Does this stop Republicans from their "con" and keep insisting that cutting government will create jobs? No.

The Republicons are the main threat to the welfare of this country, not any foreign enemy. Believe it, they really are that bad.