Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

[Samuel Coleridge]

I thought I simply had to share this one with my wingnut acquintances here at LBC.

Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day


There are a number things the public "knows" as we head into the election that are just false. If people elect leaders based on false information, the things those leaders do in office will not be what the public expects or needs.
Here are eight of the biggest myths that are out there:
1) President Obama tripled the deficit.
Reality: Bush's last budget had a $1.416 trillion deficit. Obama's first reduced that to $1.29 trillion.
2) President Obama raised taxes, which hurt the economy.
Reality: Obama cut taxes. 40% of the "stimulus" was wasted on tax cuts which only create debt, which is why it was so much less effective than it could have been.
3) President Obama bailed out the banks.
Reality: While many people conflate the "stimulus" with the bank bailouts, the bank bailouts were requested by President Bush and his Treasury Secretary, former Goldman Sachs CEO Henry Paulson. (Paulson also wanted the bailouts to be "non-reviewable by any court or any agency.") The bailouts passed and began before the 2008 election of President Obama.
4) The stimulus didn't work.
Reality: The stimulus worked, but was not enough. In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the stimulus raised employment by between 1.4 million and 3.3 million jobs.
5) Businesses will hire if they get tax cuts.
Reality: A business hires the right number of employees to meet demand. Having extra cash does not cause a business to hire, but a business that has a demand for what it does will find the money to hire. Businesses want customers, not tax cuts.
6) Health care reform costs $1 trillion.
Reality: The health care reform reduces government deficits by $138 billion.
7) Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, is "going broke," people live longer, fewer workers per retiree, etc.
Reality: Social Security has run a surplus since it began, has a trust fund in the trillions, is completely sound for at least 25 more years and cannot legally borrow so cannot contribute to the deficit (compare that to the military budget!) Life expectancy is only longer because fewer babies die; people who reach 65 live about the same number of years as they used to.
8) Government spending takes money out of the economy.
Reality: Government is We, the People and the money it spends is on We, the People. Many people do not know that it is government that builds the roads, airports, ports, courts, schools and other things that are the soil in which business thrives. Many people think that all government spending is on "welfare" and "foreign aid" when that is only a small part of the government's budget.

[Pastor J.C. Manning, M.D., Ph.D.]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

Dear Samuel Coleridge,

I see that Satan has filled your mind with communist nonsense. Allow me to show you the wrong of your ways.

"And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth." (Exodus 34:6)

1) President Obama tripled the deficit.
Reality: Bush's last budget had a $1.416 trillion deficit. Obama's first reduced that to $1.29 trillion.

The current deficit is $4.38 trillion so Obama did indeed triple it.

2) President Obama raised taxes, which hurt the economy.
Reality: Obama cut taxes. 40% of the "stimulus" was wasted on tax cuts which only create debt, which is why it was so much less effective than it could have been.

If this would have been true, the stimulus would have worked. Less taxes means business can spend more money which boosts the economy. Instead Obama raised taxes which caused the worst economic crisis since Jimmy Carter.

3) President Obama bailed out the banks.
Reality: While many people conflate the "stimulus" with the bank bailouts, the bank bailouts were requested by President Bush and his Treasury Secretary, former Goldman Sachs CEO Henry Paulson. (Paulson also wanted the bailouts to be "non-reviewable by any court or any agency.") The bailouts passed and began before the 2008 election of President Obama.

Bush did indeed save our financial sector from the certain doom created by Bill Clinton. Unfortunately Obama wrecked all this by increasing government control over banks effectively making them communist banks.

4) The stimulus didn't work.
Reality: The stimulus worked, but was not enough. In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the stimulus raised employment by between 1.4 million and 3.3 million jobs.

No it didn't. Creating fake jobs by wasting huge amounts of tax money has nothing to do with creating real jobs. The number of real jobs was reduced by 12.6 million by Obama. Even Joe the plumber is without a job nowadays.

5) Businesses will hire if they get tax cuts.
Reality: A business hires the right number of employees to meet demand. Having extra cash does not cause a business to hire, but a business that has a demand for what it does will find the money to hire. Businesses want customers, not tax cuts.

Hiring people costs money, tax cuts make it possible to hire more people, it's basic economics.

6) Health care reform costs $1 trillion.
Reality: The health care reform reduces government deficits by $138 billion.

At the same time raising taxes by $1.138 trillion. See how this works?

7) Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, is "going broke," people live longer, fewer workers per retiree, etc.
Reality: Social Security has run a surplus since it began, has a trust fund in the trillions, is completely sound for at least 25 more years and cannot legally borrow so cannot contribute to the deficit (compare that to the military budget!) Life expectancy is only longer because fewer babies die; people who reach 65 live about the same number of years as they used to.

Don't you realize it takes 65 years for a baby to become 65, not 25? It's a long term process and since it is broken it will not survive.

8) Government spending takes money out of the economy.
Reality: Government is We, the People and the money it spends is on We, the People. Many people do not know that it is government that builds the roads, airports, ports, courts, schools and other things that are the soil in which business thrives. Many people think that all government spending is on "welfare" and "foreign aid" when that is only a small part of the government's budget.

The government does nothing. The real work is done by companies which are paid for with tax money. The government is just a middle man wasting time and money making everything less efficient.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor J.C. Manning, M.D., Ph.D.

[Jedediah]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

Sam, I am not going to waste my precious time reading your socialist propaganda. As you are well aware, we are Real Americans(tm), and as such, we cherish three things above all else:

God, Country, and Free Enterprise.

You worship in a false church, you hate the things that make America the greatest nation the world has ever seen or ever will see (such as traditional family values and gun rights), and you would prefer to burden those who generate the wealth that trickles down to everyone with oppressive taxation than put in an honest day's work. You come to God's Favorite Forum and spew your liberal hate speech, when what you should really be doing is packing your bags and moving to some socialist hellhole like Canada or Sweden or France.

If you don't love America, you can leave!

[Rev. M. Rodimer]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

Mr. Coleridge, while there may be some validity in some of your points, one is patently wrong.

7) Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, is "going broke," people live longer, fewer workers per retiree, etc.
Reality: Social Security has run a surplus since it began, has a trust fund in the trillions, is completely sound for at least 25 more years and cannot legally borrow so cannot contribute to the deficit (compare that to the military budget!) Life expectancy is only longer because fewer babies die; people who reach 65 live about the same number of years as they used to.

The entire Social Security "trust fund" consists of non-marketable Treasury securities. Decades of Legislatures have exchanged the actual cash reserves for these securities, which are essentially IOUs from the general fund.

That means that, beginning in 2010 -- yes, this is the year when Social Security brings in less than it spends -- all shortfalls must be made up by redeeming those Treasury securities.

They can only be redeemed by selling them to the government. That's what "non-marketable" means. They can't be sold to investors.

The government will buy them with general fund revenues -- income taxes, primarily, unless they want to borrow YET MORE money. In other words, they will increase the deficit to pay this "entitlement program". That's another term for "welfare program", Mr. Coleridge.

So, shortfalls in Social Security will be paid out of income tax revenues if Congress decides to pay-as-they-go. If instead they choose to continue the path of least resistance, the least pain for today (while they are in office, let it be someone else's problem), shortfalls in Social Security will be financed with interest-bearing debt owned by China, Japan, or other creditor nations . . . at least as long as they consider our debt to be worth buying.

As the number of young people paying ever-higher taxes to fund Social Security grows and the elderly collecting begin to die off, there will eventually be a push to substantially restructure if not eliminate Social Security. The Youngsters will tell the Oldsters to take a hike and toss them off welfare. I suspect tiered benefit ranges will appear first, along with private investment accounts where what you put in is (all or in part) yours, instead of funding a welfare program.

When will that happen? I don't know. Within my lifetime, I suspect. I certainly don't expect to ever collect a dime of Social Security welfare funds.

Welcome to the real world, Mr. Coleridge, where financial problems actually exist and are ignored at our own peril.

[barton]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

I thought I simply had to share this one with my wingnut acquintances here at LBC.

That just looks like a lot of nonsense. Why should I waste my time reading it? I already know what I believe.

My house is built upon a rock and nothing you say can shake my steadfast faith in Him from whom all Blessings flow. Go peddle your commie trash talk somewhere else.

[Wide-Open]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

Samuel, Samuel... Tssk.

You forget to mention that Obama forced the banks to pay him back, and last time I checked all the money, except for $80 million, has been payed back. That means that not only he OWNS the banks, he also took the money Mr. Bush and Mr. Paulson so kindly provided to the suffering banks. Which of course puts those banks in danger AGAIN.

These are not the acts of a President, there are the acts of an African Dictator.

[Bobby-Joe]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

Samuel, Samuel... Tssk.

You forget to mention that Obama forced the banks to pay him back, and last time I checked all the money, except for $80 million, has been payed back. That means that not only he OWNS the banks, he also took the money Mr. Bush and Mr. Paulson so kindly provided to the suffering banks. Which of course puts those banks in danger AGAIN.

These are not the acts of a President, there are the acts of an African Dictator.

That Obama forced the banks to pay back the loans that kept them from collapsing is why the economy is in the mess it is today. It was basically a slap across the face of the hardest working REAL Americans in this country, the producer class. No one can blame them from going Gault and denying this nation their productivity.

PS Tax cuts for buisness always grow the economy. See Ronald Reagan.

[handmaiden]

Re: Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

Well, all this is certainly beyond my limited female brain. I am just going to trust the smart, selfless male Republican politicians to look out for my best interests -- And Sarah Palin, of course. She governed the largest state in the union and reduced rape and destructive moose populations. If only she weren't so pretty, more people would see her for who she really is.




Trustingly Yours,

Handmaiden