For those of us who follow politics, we are under 100 days until Hopey-dopey starts packing his bags. I know some people; JOG for example, don't think it matters much who is president, but it does matter. Ultimately we are responsible for ourselves, but when government works against us we have to defeat our competition and someone's who's suppose to be on our team, but seems to be working against us. Hope and change? no thanks....

So, a few comments and figures from various stories this morning...

In the last six months, the economy has expanded at an annualized 1.7% rate — barely above the 1.4% average since Obama took office in 2009. That's pathetic. The economy needs to grow 3% or more just to sop up the 130,000 new workforce entrants each month. We've done that in exactly two quarters since 2008.

Looking back over postwar recessions, GDP is usually 15.1% higher at this point in a recovery than when the recession began. Under Obama, it's up just 1.7%.

Unemployment has remained above 8% for 42 straight months. The total number of unemployed, officially 13 million, is really closer to 28 million when you count discouraged workers and those who can find only part-time work.

Yet, Obama continues to slam the door on the entrepreneurs who create small businesses and 80% of all new jobs.Small business is in crisis, but help isn't on the way. Obama has some 300 regulations pending, each with a job-killing annual cost topping $100 million.

"The private sector's doing fine." – President Barack Obama, June 2012.


The president recently told a campaign gathering that, "[W]e tried our plan – and it worked."

Four years ago Obama told an interviewer that even if raising the capital-gains tax rate resulted in less tax collected, as it has in the past, it's only "fair" to raise the rate because he believes "the rich" should pay more, period. Therefore, taxes aren't to pay for necessary government functions. Taxes "work" when they dish out punitive "fairness,"

In 2010 Obama let it be known that "I do think at a certain point you've made enough money."

Obama's memorable explanation of his fiscal philosophy to the man dubbed Joe the Plumber: "I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody."


When Obama took office, unemployment was 7.8 percent. It is now 8.2 percent.

"If I don't get the unemployment rate under 7 percent, I deserve to be a one-term president,"

I agree.

Reagan started fixing Carter's mess (which was far, far worse) in less time.

What did Reagan do to our national debt,Up up and a way.

WebsterMark wrote on 07/30/12 at 05:39:05:


So your admitting GWB created a mess?

<100 days 'till Webster wishes he hadn't started this thread... ...

When likely voters in the three battleground states were asked whom they would vote for if the election were held today, here's the way it broke down:

   Florida: Obama, 51 percent; Romney, 45 percent.
   Ohio: Obama, 50 percent; Romney 44 percent
   Pennsylvania: Obama, 53 percent; Romney 42 percent

No one is going to fix nothing.

Romney will give $$$ to the rich. They wont hire anyone, cos they already have people working for them for less than minimum wage.

Obama will give $$$ to the poor. They will likely spend it on neccesities and booze drugs (no definite proof there but I know a few welfare recipients who are drunk all the time).

Our problems get postponed till they all get worse.

Only thing that will fix this is a caretaker govt. No political ambitions, a govt run by professors and economists. A lot of people not in the good graces of the caretakers will get killed.

When Lehman brothers failed we had a golden opportunity and we blew it.
Lehman failed and made a big disastrous ripple through the economy. Then everyone panicked and did a bail out - Mind you this was Bush not Obama. The basic theory was flawed right there. Lehman's failure was big like your engine blowing up, every subsequent failure will have been smaller and smaller and smaller even if it was a bigger firm that went under. Like how does it matter if you blow the transmission once the motor is done blowed up, then lose a tire, then lose the tank, then the seat then the headlight ... sorry not impressed.

We fixed it so the losses got socialised and the profits have always been privatized. If we had let everything that was threatening to fail go ahead and fail, we could have been back by now, and better yet we'd have been able to rebuild correct from scratch.

Cool.
Srinath.

<100 days 'till Webster wishes he hadn't started this thread...  ...

When likely voters in the three battleground states were asked whom they would vote for if the election were held today, here's the way it broke down:

Florida: Obama, 51 percent; Romney, 45 percent.
Ohio: Obama, 50 percent; Romney 44 percent
Pennsylvania: Obama, 53 percent; Romney 42 percent

Sew, you mean I should be worried about the poll numbers above when they came from faulty sources like documented below?...

The partisan sample of the polls were: FL D+9, OH D+8 and PA D+6. In 2008, the partisan split in Florida was D+3. In 2004, the split was R+4. Does anyone really believe that the Democrat vote in Florida this year is going to be 6 points larger than in 2008? In OH, today's poll's partisan split matches the 2008 result. In 2010, the state had an R+1 and in 2004 the state had an R+5 partisan split in the vote. The PA sample is largely in line with the vote in 2008, when the state had a D+7 split. Again, does anyone really expect Obama to match his 2008 turnout numbers?

Remember Wisconsin of a just a couple months ago. The 'polls' showed things pretty tight when in reality, Walker won easily.

Paraquat wrote on 08/01/12 at 15:36:56:



The thing though is, the federal welfare to work programs like clinton did, basically cut down on the federal govt welfare rolls by shoving them onto the states.
The real welfare to work program is something like what Ron Paul suggested.
Cut off all jobs for illegals. Heck roll back the 17th amendment.
Then lets see who picks fruits, plucks chicken and who makes burgers for the $8 they pay illegals. No one. There fore the wages will creep up to what is a living wage. Closer to 15-20. Then all the people on welfare will get to work. In fact cutting off welfare then would make sense.
Rich businessmen dont care for this. None of the candidates ever came close to getting anywhere near this. It is cheaper for the rich to hire illegals, pay them $8/hr and we (the not rich) pay taxes to fund welfare rolls.
The mortgage deal though is not a welfare item, its an expansion of unemployment benefits. I dont know of the rest, however in 2005 when I was unemployed for 10 months, I easily bought and sold a dozen bikes. Most of them averaging 2-400 @ purchase and 1000-1500 @ sale. If you hunt through every backyard and every rat hole some cool nuts bound to turn up. Maybe his boat is that way. Or, I recently bought a piece of land for 4g. Tax value was 24g for that, and through the last 4-5 years these were selling @ a few g over tax value. When stuff dont sell and people have to sell, you can make some killer deals.
Anyway welfare does need to be pared back. However I want to say the illegals have taken up jobs that could go to that rung of society.
Weird, being an immigrant you wont think I'd be so against illegal immigration ... suffice to say I have never been illegal in the US or in Canada the other country I lived in. And for everyone who sneaks across the border claiming "family unification" there is 10 people that legal immigrants like to be unified with.
Yea welfare is a problem, however with illegals taking up 30 million jobs, BTW have you seen any of them pay taxes ? I know for a fact most of the construction, mechanics, flea market vendors, taco truck guys and other day laborers do not.
IMHO, Obama isn't that wrong on welfare, but he's wrong on immigration.
Romney is wrong on welfare and maybe not on Immigration. Of late there are a lot of Hispanic republicans that are getting a lot of attention. I am hoping that it is because he needs as much as he can get and not because he really intends to throw the doors open to illegals.
BTW all the legal mexicans I know dont even socialize with their illegal brethen. I know these 3 guys, brothers, luis, thomas and servero. Well servero got deported, the other 2 still around, and for years I have met these 2 only @ various gatherings @ luis and servero's place. I find out they have a 4th brother, who doesn't even live that far away from servero, who I have never met. And he's the only one with legal papers.
I'll bet if we hand legal status to all the illegals that instant, we will need to bring in 30 million more illegals to do the jobs they were doing.
Cool.
Srinath.