The Recession: Sunil

It is about time someone came out of the shadows of a speechless population and say enough is enough directly to government. In this case, government means most Republicans: they might just become the sole reason America can’t rise from the ashes of this worsening depression. There is no time for excessive debating over that which has already been proven wrong. When all is said and done, more has been said than done.

Our economy has always been unbalanced, because the rich have always owned more of all wealth than the poor. It may seem like common sense when worded in that fashion. Now think… how would tax cuts help? Wouldn’t it just increase the gap, and destroy the middle class? This is exactly what’s happened the past eight years. To level the economy, it’s coherent to increase taxes on the rich and decrease taxes on the less fortunate. That’s exactly what President Obama is planning to do. That’s number one.

Number two is the statistical proof that tax cuts don’t work. Mark Zandi of Economy.com had done an excellent job effectively showing why tax cuts don’t add enough money to the economy. On page nine of his paper, “The Economic Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act,” Table two shows tax cuts don’t work as efficiently as spending increases. The most tax cuts would add to the GDP is $1.28 per tax cut, compared to food stamps—which were incorporated into the New Deal—which add $1.73 per stamp into the economy.

Speaking of the New Deal, conservatives and general critics of Obama’s stimulus’s package cite it as proof spending doesn’t work… wrong. The only way to prove that correct is to try and prove this is show unemployment figures from the time, but completely exclude those who labored in work-relief programs, such as the famous WPA. If included, it’s clear unemployment rates went on a steady decline from the moment FDR became president in 1933, minus the years 1937 and 1938. Why? Spending was cut those two years to “balance the budget.” Who thought of that idea? Republicans, my friend… Republicans; isn’t hypocrisy just grand? There was a reason World War II helped as well: an increase in consumer goods, which the U.S. currently doesn’t have.

To make sure nothing else comes up, nobody—absolutely nobody—should cite Ronald Reagan as proof tax cuts and trickle down theory worked. Reagan was not only the first president to increase National Debt by $100 billion in one year, but also $200 billion in another year. The productivity growth rate dramatically decreased in his years, and the poverty rate increased. And, to top it off, the rich did get richer, and the poor didn’t necessarily get poorer, but didn’t improve much. Well… at least inflation was decreased.

It isn’t true that the stimulus plan is from the hands of God or that it’s perfect, by any degree. Half of what critics say of the plan isn’t true, either. First off, there isn’t any spending on “golf carts”… but fuel-efficient vehicles. By “remodeling federal offices”, the plan is for making buildings more “green”. There’s also no money specifically for butterfly parks, or Frisbee golf courses… or water slides. There’s also nothing about “floating trains,” but high-speed rail projects, which America lacks in compared to the rest of the world. If there is any pork, it’s not nearly as much as conservatives claim there is.

As the factual breakdown starts to wind down, the proper way of addressing this economic catastrophe must be addressed. America must produce something, and export it… period. Stand out for something. Importing more than exporting doesn’t help when competing in a global market. That “socialist” idea known as Universal Health Care would actually help. In fact, it’s not even socialized medicine. It’s a guarantee that all citizens have health care. Therefore, government wouldn’t necessarily provide it, if someone still thinks it’s “socialism.” It’s also been proven to save money, not waste it, according to the National Coalition of Health Care. UHC could save at least $320 billion over 10 years based on four different scenarios the NCHC tested, with a single-payer system saving $1.1 trillion over 10 years. It should be noted we have around a $1.75 trillion deficit… See something here?

The last thing to possibly say is that America must keep its head up. A significant chunk of this recession/depression is mental. Confidence significantly influences the stock market, after all. Quarreling doesn’t solve anything. The media is notorious for confusing the ever loving heck out of people because of all of the different views it shows, with no true answer. America must be informed. It must know everything will be fine, but it depends on the people. The people must unite as a nation, and put personal views aside. Fighting will lead to an inevitable destruction of the values America was founded on: hope and change.

Sunil is my brother. He’s also pretty awesome. Check out his blog at http://ssk001.wordpress.com.

Why the Youth (Especially) Needs to Vote

It looks like most of us are pretty riled up now, but just in case the point(s) isn’t perfectly clear, here’s why we need to get the vote out.

This election REALLY matters.

Ok…they said it last time.  Remember?  When John Kerry ran against Dubya.  That race really mattered too…needless to say, the nation collectively dropped the ball.  So we embarked on another four years of neo-conservative, country-destroying policies that have borne their poisonous fruit.  The economy is tanking, education is tanking, healthcare is tanking, everything…is…tanking.

How does that affect me, you may ask.  Let me put it in terms to which we can probably better relate.

The dollar is losing value, so your plans to backpack across Europe after college?  Not as cheap as you may think.  That trip to the Caribbean will probably cost you a bit more than you’d like.  Don’t even get me started on air travel.  Oh and that pretty Prada bag?  That’s an Italian import, expect a higher pricetag on that. Same for Armani, Gucci, etc.

Are you on par with students from other countries in the areas of math and science.  Probably not.  Why?  Blame Dubya’s “No Child Left Behind.”  While the intentions are good (increase passing rates) it also dumbs down the curriculum so far that everything is just watered down to its basics.  So you say you want to go to college to further your understanding of some topic of interest?  That’s fantastic.  Expect the price of a decent education to take off like a rocket, and those loans you were going to take out?  Yeah expect it to get harder to get a loan, and expect it to get harder to pay it off once you have your framed, shiny degree (or degrees).

Well now that you can vote, you can also probably buy your own health insurance right?  Most health insurance companies make some sort of allowance for full-time students over the age of 18 to continue to stay on their parents’ plan until some age (usually 25).  That’s assuming, of course, you can afford to be a full-time student.  If you can’t, well then you’ll need to find a job that provides healthcare benefits.  That is, of course, if you can find a job.  Finding a job in this economy is about as easy as finding a needle in a haystack.  Now imagine finding that needle with about a thousand other people clamoring to find it as well.  Best of luck.

Don’t expect to be able to buy a home anytime soon.  We are probably going to end up a society of renters…until the housing market is somehow, treated…if not cured.

Half our products are being produced abroad, where the regulations are much more lax.  Hooray for melamine!  Unless you like your food and merchandise with a side of profound neurotoxicity and painful kidney stones, we need to find a way to bring production back to the U.S.  Otherwise, expect really high medical bills…since getting affordable health insurance will be pretty hard.

Ok, but cars are better right?  Sure, I have a soft corner for imports.  Yet the question is…why can’t we get the same quality in the U.S.?  Ford, GMC, Chevrolet (for the most part) are still clunky and noisy even though they are cheaper.  They are lacking the smooth appeal in function and appearance that their foreign cousins seem to have as a default.  Let’s try to change that.

Gay rights need to come now.  Let’s stop living in a world that frowns on (at the very least) basic civil liberties for gay couples, while gladly contributing to the juggernaut that is the porn industry.  Seriously…does anyone else not see the irony here?

I could probably go on…and on…and on.  But we, as youth, generally have the attention span of small rodents.  So I’ll stop.

Please vote tomorrow.  I’m not telling you to vote for any specific candidate.  I’m telling you to vote for the candidate that can save our future.  I’m telling you to think long and hard about each candidate’s stance, and decide which candidate brings the most promising plan to the table.  We will be the ones inheriting most of the mistakes of the last administration, not our parents (though they will also be affected).  We are the ones that need to assure that, at the very least, our children will not have to deal with the same dilemma.

Please…go out tomorrow (November 4th, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise) and vote.  Polling centers, to my understanding, are open from 6AM-9PM.  Bring your iPod, bring a book, bring something to kill the time because lines will be long but they will be worth it.

Let’s hope this election yields a better future for us, and our country.