So, we've got talking points out the yin yang right now on both sides between the Libby indictment and the Alito's nomination to the court. But there are a lot of other issues facing America right now. You wouldn't know it but there are.

So what issues are we considering here? Lets consider a few:

The Budget

Congress is currently debating on the what to do with the budget. They've got to make cuts somewhere (Don't they?). So naturally, they look to raiding the all the domestic programs. No one debates the military budget can be cut much right now. Dick and Rummy felt they could run it on a tight budget, getting by with bare necessities. They say they won't cut national security but they've cut the heck out public safety budgets, including police, firefighters, first reponders, etc. We also can't forget those annoyances like food stamps, medicaid, heating assistance for the winter months. All these will be cut.

But, we've got $458 million bridge in Alaska being built so a senator can up his mom's property values. The road bill had over 6000 special projects in it, popularly called PORK. It's one thing if roads are getting paved. It's needed. But the bridge goes to an island of 50 people. That's just one example. Getting rid of the bridge will protect half of the proposed cuts in the food stamp program. It would also heat a lot of homes in January. I bet it would pay off some of the loans from China.

The Economy

The first beef is the Fed. Greenspan keeps up the interest rate a quarter of a point to slow down inflation. The problem is inflation came almost single handedly from fuel prices. When fuel goes up, so does everything else. Many economists are saying that if they raise it again, they are nuts and will wreck the ecomomy. No one is saving, no one is preparing for the future. They should be because they can't get out debt now thanks to the Congress. Ben Stein (yes, that Ben Stein)even said it was the wrong move. The Fed is expected to raise the rate tomorrow though.

Professor Peter Morici of the Smith Business School at the University of Maryland said, "The prospects for weaker consumer and housing sectors and moderating inflation, coupled with the need to encourage business investment, indicate the Fed should pause in its march to push up interest rates to 4.5 percent. If it fails to heed these warning signs, the Fed risks throwing the economy into a tailspin."

Then there's jobless rates, the screwed up CAFTA agreement, China producing all the goods we consume AND buying tons of U.S. dollar every year. What're we going to when a couple hundred thousand veterans come back from Iraq. It will happen some day and everyone knows the bureaucracy in the V.A. can kill someone quicker than tap dancing on landmines. All those guys will need jobs too because most won't stay in the military I can assure you.


Iraq War

Seems like a good point next. So, we just hit 2000 dead. That's just our own. We attempting to democratize a nation with no history of it. No history of it anywhere around them except maybe Israel and they surely look to them for influence. Bill Buckley had a good column last week. He mentioned a conversation between former NSA chief Gen. Brent Scowcroft and his protege' and former NSA chief and now secretary of state Condi Rice. Scowcroft said it's darn near impossible to do. Of course Scowcroft is one of those people who created the current state of event to begin with because of meddling in the middle east but that's another post.

The point is, the administration has botched this one royally across the board. I just think of the 7 P's. Piss Poor Planning Promotes Piss Poor Performance.

Fuel Costs

Fuel costs are exorbitant. It's no big secret it's forcing people to cut back on spending in various other sector. There are few people who want higher fuel prices so it will cut back on levels of pollution. They think people should live closer to their jobs, use public transit, etc. I got new for you, most people can't use public transit. Try coming to Kentucky. Many people drive to Lexington or Louisville or Frankfort or Charleston or Elizabethtown or one of several other cities in Kentucky because many cannot afford to live in the city. They have no desire to live in a place with incredibly high property values when they can get something about the same for much less just 1/2 hour away. Lexington and Louisville have bus systems. I don't know much about TARC in Louisville but Lexington's LexTran system still needs a lot of work and more frequent routes before it could become really useful for most people.

Then there's heating. I wonder how many will freeze to death this winter to because they can't afford gas prices. All fuel costs are going up in our free market economy. Heating oil comes from crude just like gasoline does.



These are just some of the issues we must deal with and the administration is not dealing with. America is losing thanks to the problems created by this administration. While Clinton wasn't perfect by any means, he didn't create the problems in our country the way Bush has. I just hope our country can survive.

posted by Stithmeister @ 9:18 PM
 
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