An Ol’ Broad’s Ramblings
Archive for Economy
In Other Words….
….they’re all a bunch of lying, low life, sacks of male bovine excrement, bottom feeders! But, I’m repeating myself, aren’t I. 
What the Senate Bill Would Do To America
The Foundry
Another day, another no-show for the Obamacare reconciliation bill. House Democrats were quick to shift blame to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) with Rep. Robert Andrews telling The Hill that the delay “has been much more technical than substantive. … It’s not like what tax has to go or what spending has to go.” Which is an interesting claim, since Politico reported that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka was summoned to the White House yesterday afternoon “to discuss a higher-than-expected excise tax on some health care plans.” In fact, Politico added: “A labor source said Trumka’s meeting would focus on the entire bill, not just the excise tax question.” Sounds like more than just technical details are still in flux.
Out Of Control
The people in Washington, D.C., our so called elected officials, spend money like there’s no tomorrow. Putting aside the horror they call ‘health care reform’ for a minute, what else are the weasels up to? Well, I guess I thought, perhaps, at least the Republicans were getting the message on spending. Not so.
The aide noted that McConnell appointed an internal task force in 2008 to come up with recommendations regarding earmarks, but little was done to implement its recommendations.
GOP Conference Chairman Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), who also sits on the Appropriations panel, was the only member of GOP leadership to vote against the DeMint amendment Tuesday, but he did support a similar effort in 2008.
“I supported it before because I thought we needed some reforms, and we’ve taken some reforms,” Alexander said of the increased transparency of earmark requests.
Alexander continued: “If you have a couple of bad acts at the Grand Ole Opry, you don’t cancel the Opry. You cancel the bad acts, and what we need to do is make sure is that if we have reforms that need to be had or abuses that need to be stopped, that we do that. And we’ve taken some steps to do that.”
Excuse me? To quote Everett Dirksen: “A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you’re talking real money.” And to think, my opinion of Alexander was starting to improve, some what. Welp, he’s managed to slide back into the ‘feckless weasel” category! When are they going to remember….IT’S NOT THEIR MONEY?!
More Delving
SEC. 1233. ADVANCE CARE PLANNING CONSULTATION.
Read the whole section. Look up references to ‘clearing houses’. Interesting. While this definition relates to investments, it pretty much sums up what most of the others say.
Page 1481- lines 19-23: ‘‘(E) An explanation by the practitioner of the continuum of end-of-life services and supports available, including palliative care and hospice, and benefits for such services and supports that are available under this title.
Page 1482 – lines 1-8: ‘‘(F)(i) Subject to clause (ii), an explanation of orders regarding life sustaining treatment or similar orders, which shall include—
‘‘(I) the reasons why the development of such an order is beneficial to the individual and the individual’s family and the reasons why such an order should be updated periodically as the health of the individual changes;
Pardon my supposed ignorance, but what business is it of the “Secretary”, or anyone else, for that matter, what goes on between a doctor, patient, and the family? Oh, oops. That’s right. Silly me.
Page 1546/1547 – lines 7-27, 1-6: Marriage and Family Therapist Services
‘‘(jjj)(1) The term ‘marriage and family therapist services’ means services performed by a marriage and family therapist (as defined in paragraph (2)) for the diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses, which the marriage and family therapist is legally authorized to perform under State law (or the State regulatory mechanism provided by State law) of the State in which such services are performed, as would otherwise be covered if furnished by a physician or as incident to a physician’s professional service, but only if no facility or other provider charges or is paid any amounts with respect to the furnishing of such services.
‘‘(2) The term ‘marriage and family therapist’ mean an individual who—
‘‘(A) possesses a master’s or doctoral degree which qualifies for licensure or certification as a marriage and family therapist pursuant to State law;
‘‘(B) after obtaining such degree has performed at least 2 years of clinical supervised experience in marriage and family therapy; and ‘‘(C) is licensed or certified as a marriage and family therapist in the State in which marriage and family therapist services are performed.’’.
Defining a marriage councilor? All well and good. I go to my pastor, personally, if I have issues that need addressing, as do a great number of folks I know. I’m wondering if my pastor, and many others, will be prohibited from acting as councilors to their congregations under these new ‘rules’? When they say ‘legally authorized’, I’ve no doubt there will be consequences for any pastor, priest, etc., acting as a councilor.
Page 2147: SEC. 208. LOAN REPAYMENT FOR CIVIL LEGAL ASSISTANCE ATTORNEYS.
This section doesn’t say a whole lot, except changing dates, adding semicolons, etc. But I really have to ask….what do loan payment to lawyers have to do with so called ‘health care’?
LOANS ELIGIBLE FOR LIBOR-BASED CALCULATION? (page 2161) Isn’t that related to home loans? The name Fannie Mae popped up.
I notice this bill also address ‘education’. Education. EARLY childhood education.
Page 2271 – lines 16-24: Evaluating barriers to improving the quality of early learning programs serving low-income children, including evaluating barriers to successful interagency collaboration and coordination, by conducting a review of the statewide strategic reports developed by the State Advisory Councils on Early Care and Education and other relevant reports, reporting the findings of such review to Congress, and disseminating relevant research findings and best practices.
Small 2 legged guinea pigs to find out which methods of indoctrination works best? Just asking.
To quote a memo released yesterday by Ninny’s office (Office of the Assistant to the Speaker): Many of the conservative activists are not opposing the actual provisions in the bill, but are instead reacting to a caricature of the reform bill presented by right-wing media outlets. Uh. Wrong. On both counts! Folks out here are actually READING the bills you assjacks are shoving down our throats, while y’all are not! And we STILL oppose it!
We Said NO!
House may try to pass Senate health-care bill without voting on it
After laying the groundwork for a decisive vote this week on the Senate’s health-care bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested Monday that she might attempt to pass the measure without having members vote on it.
Instead, Pelosi (D-Calif.) would rely on a procedural sleight of hand: The House would vote on a more popular package of fixes to the Senate bill; under the House rule for that vote, passage would signify that lawmakers “deem” the health-care bill to be passed.
The tactic — known as a “self-executing rule” or a “deem and pass” — has been commonly used, although never to pass legislation as momentous as the $875 billion health-care bill. It is one of three options that Pelosi said she is considering for a late-week House vote, but she added that she prefers it because it would politically protect lawmakers who are reluctant to publicly support the measure.
“It’s more insider and process-oriented than most people want to know,” the speaker said in a roundtable discussion with bloggers Monday. “But I like it,” she said, “because people don’t have to vote on the Senate bill.”
I wonder which bloggers she was bumping her gums to/with? I can pretty much bet it wasn’t Michelle Malkin, Gateway Pundit, anyone from Pajamas Media. I can pretty much guarantee they didn’t invite Texas Fred. (Why does the mental image of Fred and the Ninny, together in the same room, make me laugh so hard? Hmm… Heh!)
First thing, go read that “self executing rule“. Seriously. GO READ IT! I’ll wait.
Of COURSE Ninny likes it!
Contemporary Use. Self-executing rules are still employed on matters involving House-Senate relations. They have also been used in recent years to enact significant substantive and sometimes controversial propositions.
Now I know just how so many of our freedoms have been eroded. Yes, perhaps I have been oblivious, not noticing the use of such an under handed tactic. Hey! I’m human. The examples provided in this .pdf, are rather small, compared to how they want to use it this time around. Banning smoking on domestic flights less than 2 hours long, while prohibiting personal choice, is NOT the same thing as taking over 1/6 of the American economy!
“When we have a bill, then we will let you know about the votes. But when we bring the bill to the floor, we will have the votes,” she told reporters.
Pelosi said Monday that House Democrats have yet to decide how to approach the vote. But she added that any strategy involving a separate vote on the Senate bill “isn’t too popular,” and aides said the leadership is likely to bow to the wishes of its rank and file.
Here’s a novel concept, you old windbag! Scrap that piece of crap at least 53% of the American people oppose! Those findings include 23% who Strongly Favor the plan and 46% who Strongly Oppose it.
And……Obama flaps his gums:
“I don’t know about the politics, but I know what’s the right thing to do,” he said, nearly shouting as the crowd cheered. “And so I’m calling on Congress to pass these reforms — and I’m going to sign them into law. I want some courage. I want us to do the right thing.”
Bud the ONLY thing you know about is campaigning! You don’t know JACK about true leadership! While you may have won the election, you have lost the nation, as a whole. Oh sure, there are still some who buy into all that phony Hope-n-Change, but a vast majority have woken up from our stupor, and are now fighting for our very survival, as FREE Americans!
Asked whether he was reconsidering his position, Kucinich demurred. But Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) said Kucinich is coming under intense pressure from Ohioans who want Congress to act, and from his colleagues in Washington.
“All of us — the governor, the congressional delegation, the president — are making clear to Dennis that we won’t have another chance for a decade if this doesn’t happen,” Brown said.
Do you get the impression that the Dems know they are going to lose the majority this year? If this happen, and I truly pray it does, it will take YEARS to attempt to undo the damage they have wrought on this country. Now is as good time as any to restore the U.S. Constitution to it’s rightful place….the LAW of the Land!
It’s About Liberty!
I came across a ‘letter to the editor” on the Detroit Free Press this morning that hits on some good point of the Tea Party folks, and naturally, some of the responses show the absolute ignorance of many on the left. Go, check it out, and let me know…..is this ignorance an epidemic, or is there some hope for the clueless?
On the same topic, there was this column, from Lee Harris, on Gov Monitor:
The phrase “Wal-Mart Hippies” is certainly attention-getting, as was no doubt intended. After all, who would suspect that there lurked a secret affinity between the carefree flower children of late ’60s and the hard-working folks who shop at Wal-Mart?
The two groups would seem a study in antithesis. The flower children of the ’60s put flowers in gun barrels and chanted sweet songs of peace. At Wal-Mart people buy guns to put bullets in and use them to shoot cute and cuddly animals. Hippies scorned work and lived in idleness.
The Wal-Mart shopper often works two jobs just to squeeze by. Flower children listened to acid rock. The folks at Wal-Mart adore Country and Western. Hippies celebrated free love. The people who fill the aisles of Wal-Mart marry, settle down, and raise families—often quite large ones. The hippies grooved on Zen or chanted Hare Krishna. The Wal-Mart crowd happily keeps Jesus at the wheel. Flower children opposed war. The Wal-Mart shopper sends off sons and daughters to fight them.
But Brooks is not really comparing the Tea Party movement to the hippie movement of the ’60s. Instead, he is comparing it to the New Left of the same decade. In one respect he appears to have made an honest mistake.
In his mind, the New Left and the hippie movement have strangely merged. Members of the New Left “went to Woodstock”—didn’t they? Actually, no, they didn’t. We should not confuse the carefree, frolicking hippie movement of that era with the mirthless and dour New Left of the same period. Hippies were whimsical spirits. The New Lefties were mirthless zealots. Hippies smoked pot and had fun. New Lefties read Lenin and plotted revolution. New Lefties regarded hippies as frivolous and fatuous. Hippies looked on New Lefties as the ultimate downers.
If read Brook’s column, you must ask yourself…..DOES THIS MORON EVER LEAVE NEW YORK?
Being of the dope-smoking, peace and love, generation, I can tell you, there are HUGE differences between those who actually shop at Wally World, and those who walked around barefoot, with flowers in their greasy hair, smelling like horse dung, hitch hiking all around the country, spreading the “word” of sex, drugs and rock n’ roll. Amazing….some of us actually GREW UP! Reality will do that to ya!
This “new left”, in my personal opinion, are the red headed step children of those who came before. While my generation talked about changing the world, for the better in some ways, with all kinds of flowery bs, this bunch wants to actually change the world by destroying anything that is good and positive within the human experience. And that will just NOT do!
Reconcile THIS!
In case you aren’t aware, the bozos up in D.C. have posted the latest version of “destroy America” bill on the internet. All 2,309 pages of it. I’ve been trying to go through it, and actually get a few things done around here at the same time, but let me tell ya, if you thought previous versions were bad, wait till you get a gander at THIS one! TRILLIONS in spending! That’s a whole number, with 12 zeroes!
Student loans? Hispanic serving institutions? I’m sure I’ll be posting things as I come across them, but in the mean time, do a little reading on your own.
Turn Off The Spigot!
Government Dependency Grows As “Non-paying” Taxpayers Hits Record Level
The Tax Foundation recently released its annual report on the number of tax returns filed that have no tax liability, and the study shows a record number of “nonpayers” in 2008. Taxpayers become “non-payers” when credits and deductions wipe out any income tax they owe.
Politicians have so totally screwed up the tax system, the only way to “fix it” will be to totally scrap the entire thing. Many advocate for Fair Tax. While I don’t disagree that if we have to have a tax system on a federal level, which I honestly question quite often, it should be fair. I’m also of the mind it should be flat. Example, no matter what your income, 10%. Companies, individuals, rich, poor, billionaires, welfare queens…… doesn’t matter. 10%.
The amount of income that a family can earn and still be non-payers is also alarming. In 2010, a family of four can earn up to $51,000 and still pay no income taxes.
$51K? Seriously? That’s a nice income, and there are people who don’t pay diddly?
Not only do a record number of taxpayer’s pay no taxes, but many of them actually receive cash payments through the tax code because of refundable credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit. According to the Tax Foundation, cash payments from these two credits alone totaled over $70 billion.
Now, while it’s always nice to get a check in the mail, shouldn’t you actually DO something to earn it, other than make babies? Granted, kids are expensive, but they can be raised without all the ‘must have’ items, like I-Pods, cell phones, $200 butt ugly sneakers, etc.
President Obama’s policies will add to the numbers of non-payers and the amount of income redistributed because he wants to expand and add even more refundable credits.
Yeah, that makes a whole lot of sense, doesn’t it. Washington is spending like the proverbial drunken sailors after a year at sea, and yet, they want to take in less taxpayer dollars to pay for it. Oh yeah. Lot of economic logic there. Are these people so clueless, they can’t even balance a checkbook? Without deposits, you can’t write the check. Oh, wait a minute, this IS the excessively liberal>progressive>socialist>communist powers that be in D.C. Silly me!
The growing dependency on government and shrinking number of taxpayers is troubling and will lead to an even faster rise in unsustainable government spending unless the trend is reversed. Congress should start by ceasing the expansion of refundable tax credits. It should then reform entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare before baby-boomers start collecting benefits from them and dependency on government explodes even further. If Congress starts soon perhaps it won’t be too late to stop the impending fiscal implosion.
How about we faze out all those damn ‘entitlement programs’? NO one is entitled to dick! Do you job, earn your paycheck, put as much as possible in some sort of savings, decide what is more important, that 64″ flat screen TV, or your future, and learn to live within your means! Do I want old folks to go hungry? Of course not. Do I believe the taxpayers should provide for anyone, including me, an income just because they had the misfortune to live much longer than was ever intended? Oh HELL no! Once upon a time, families would band together, look after their elderly parents, as their parents had looked after them when they were younger. That whole “Honor thy father and thy mother” was taken real serious for hundreds of generations. Well, until the “progressives” came to power.
Exodus 20:12 Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
Ok, I can hear it now….”But some parents aren’t such model citizens, and shouldn’t be honored.” Yes, I know. Some people shouldn’t breed, period. Those types sure as hell shouldn’t be supported by taxpayer dollars either! I can think of a few rather creative ways to deal with parents who abuse their children. Supporting them in their old age is NOT one of them!
We can no longer afford all these social programs at the taxpayers expense. We just can’t. It’s past time to re-evaluate how the the whole system works. It’s WAY past time to repeal the 16th Amendment!
When Is “NO” Not Enough?
RESIST, AMERICA!
RESIST Socialism, Communism, and Marxism!ObamaCare, Socialized Medicine, Marxism, Communism, it’s the SAME!
by J. D. Longstreet
Just a few snippets:
Obama is jetting around the country holding pep rallies to try to gin up support for the “Bill from Hell” — Socialized Medicine. You should know these rallies include ONLY Obama supporters and ObamaCare supporters. The wild enthusiasm is staged for your benefit to, hopefully, give you the impression that ObamaCare is supported by the majority of Americans. The truth is – it is NOT.
Truth? What’s Nicholson’s famous line from “A Few Good Men”? I honestly believe if Obama would acquaint himself with the truth, his presidency wouldn’t be on such a precipice.
These rallies are all propaganda. It’s “The BIG LIE” told over and over again just as the Nazis in Germany did to convince the people of an entire country they truly desired the socialism of the Nazi Party. I must tell you Joseph Goebbels, the Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, would be proud of the Democratic Party in America today. The Obama Regime has taken a page from the leftist Nazis of the last century on how to brainwash an entire nation into believing a lie. A lie that, once accepted, will spell the absolute doom of America.
The similarities are getting more than just a bit creepy.
The Democratic Party, by itself, simply does not give a damn! They are interested in two things and two things only — and that is to maintain their hold on the government of the US and to ensure their reelection. They simply have no sympathy for what the American people truly want. Plus, THEY DON’T CARE WHAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WANT! All that counts is what they, the Democrats, want.
No, they’ve told us time and time, it doesn’t matter what we say. They put their fingers in their ears, la la la la, and go on about their merry way, spending, coming up with ever more oppressive plans for our children’s future, circumventing the U.S. Constitution at every turn.
Those of us on the right vowing to throw the Socialists and Marxists, masquerading as Democrats, out of the Congress this November had better watch our backs. The dems are quietly lining up the resistance to our movement and between now and November the right will come under attack, intensifying each day as the election draws nearer and nearer.
Yes, it’s already started. The smear campaigns. The distortions. The strong arm tactics. The blatant bribes. I’m starting to wonder if, perhaps, we will need armed guards on our way to the polls come November?
They are quietly conspiring with the less literate democrat voters and those who, for generations, have depended on the government welfare dole for their existence. Their intention is to flood the polls in November of 2010 to offset and overwhelm the anti-ObamaCare. These “wards of the federal government” will be flooding the polling places, everywhere in America, to dilute the opposition to ObamaCare and defeat the efforts to save the constitutional republic we know as America. Their intent is to create, once and for all, a Socialist/Communist America. And they may very well succeed!
The unions are walking lock step to promote their King’s agenda. It doesn’t matter if it’s wrong for the citizen’s of the country. It doesn’t matter if it will totally destroy the fabric. They are the moths in the cloth of public education. The Louisville Slugger in the work place. They will present one side, and one side only to their ‘huddled masses’, never allowing the truth to be told, with the aid of the lame stream media, pushing ignorance.
I must admit to weariness and fatigue and frustration, as the realization sets in that the masses of ObamaCare advocates, like lemmings, have chosen to follow their own Pied Piper — this time straight over a cliff and into a Marxist/Communist hell-like oblivion.
Like J.D., I too am weary. But not worn down. Not one of us can ever let up OUR relentless fight to save, and return, to a Constitutional Republic. Younger people are not aware this nation was something much different that it is now. Yes, it is my generation’s fault this was allowed, but not it seems it’s my generation that must take up the ‘arms’ to save them from themselves. I pray that many more will join us in our struggle.
Economic War – Obama Versus The Real World
So, How’s That Pivot to Jobs Going?
The Foundry
Last week President Barack Obama hosted a seven-and-a-half-hour televised health care summit. This week the President launched his “final” campaign for passage of his health care plan. Next week, President Obama will travel to Missouri and Pennsylvania to continue this “final” effort to jam his unpopular plan through Congress. With this all-health-care-all-the-time White House agenda it seems like eons ago that the Obama administration announced, following the complete rejection of its health care plan in the Massachusetts Senate special election, that President Obama’s first State of the Union would mark a “pivot” from health care and to a “razor sharp focus on jobs”. So how is that pivot to jobs going? Well, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics released its monthly jobs report this morning and it showed the U.S. economy shed another 36,000 net jobs last month. Our nation’s unemployment rate is still at 9.7%.
Common Sense VS Ivory Tower Elites
Has Senator Corker Forgotten?
It might do the folks in D.C. a whole lot of good if they would remember who are their bosses. Perhaps I should clue them in? Ok, here goes….. Representatives work for their respective districts. Senators work for their states. If that is too complicated for some of them to grasp, perhaps this will help? Example: Marsha Blackburn by the citizens of Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District. See? Wasn’t that easy? So, when I say that Bob Corker was hired by the people in the state of Tennessee to reflect their best interest, I don’t think I’m being out of line, am I?
The Bob Corker Bailout Sellout
While the media and most of the public are consumed by the health care death march, the Senate is deep in negotiations to pass a sweeping re-regulation of the financial sector. As the public knows, ObamaCare is an attempt to regulate 1/6th of the US economy. The financial ‘reform’ proposal, though, will impact the other 5/6ths of the economy. In many respects, the financial services ‘reform’ is much more damaging to the economy and our future competitiveness. Worse, its passage is being aided by Bob Corker.
Uh…. 
Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory with his complete capitulation and total surrender on the Financial Services bill. The bill, passed by the House with a $4 trillion bailout provision, making bailouts the permanent policy of the United States government, was on it’s last legs until Corker came to the rescue. Now the Washington Post and other are reporting that Corker and ethically-challenged, retiring Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) are on the verge of a deal to breathe life back into the regulatory and bailout scheme.
Has Corker just signed his own defeat, IF he is allowed to run for re-election? Why would a Senator, who, I thought was the more ‘conservative’ of our two, basically conspire with the likes of Chris Dodd, to shove even more bailout BS down our throats?
See the rest at Big Government.com. I’m more than just a tad disgusted.
There Is No Sanity In D.C.’s Wonderland
The Edifice Falls
The Foundry
Having failed to convince the country that we should reorder one-sixth of our economy (health care) in one fell swoop, liberals in the Administration and Congress are now doubling down and moving on to the next big thing. This time it’s the transformation of everything, through climate legislation. One could almost stand agape, admiring the boldness of the overreach, were not so much prosperity at stake.
Democrats, Unions, and The Economy
Political Litmus Test: Bluest States Spilling The Most Red Ink
Want to know which states are in the worst financial condition? One telling indicator that might not immediately come to mind is whether most of its citizens identify themselves as Democrats.
The five states in the worst financial condition–Illinois, New York, Connecticut, California and New Jersey–are all among the bluest of blue states. The five most fiscally fit states are more of a mix. Three–Utah, Nebraska and Texas–boast Republican majorities and two–New Hampshire and Virginia–skew Democratic.
The financial ranking of the states is part of a recent Forbes report on the Global Debt Bomb. The political affiliation data was compiled in a 2009 poll of 350,000 adults by Gallup Daily.
Tennessee is ranked #13. I’m hoping we’ll at least head into the top 10 in the not too distant future. An FYI for my Wisconsin friends, that state is ranked #41. I’m surprised the state actually ranks that high considering it’s wholly owned by some fairly powerful unions.
Why do Democratic states appear to be struggling more than Republican ones? It comes down to stronger unions and a larger appetite for public programs, according to Kent Redfield, professor emeritus of political studies and public affairs at the University of Illinois’ Center for State Policy and Leadership.
For those of you who still don’t get it, unions are screwing up, not just the states, but the whole flippin’ country!
“Because workers of the world unite, it’s not just a slogan anymore.” – Andy Stern, SEIU President
One of Obama’s best buddies quoting Karl Marx. Isn’t that nice. And quite telling, don’t you think?
Once Upon A Time…
….the United States of America was the wealthiest nation on the planet, through hard work, dedication and innovation. Now?
Swiped from The Cutting Edge.
Wanna Get Rich? Work For The Gub’mint!
Employment is up, wages are up, and job security is as firm as ever. Unfortunately, this is only true for federal government workers.
And who pays these wages?
President Obama is presiding over the largest federal work force in decades. In the current fiscal year, the number of civilian workers will grow by 153,000, to 1.43 million. These are the only jobs Mr. Obama can legitimately claim to have created. Unfortunately, they are subsidized by deficit spending.
Oh yeah. Putting the taxpayers further into debt by creating jobs paid for by the taxpayers makes total sense. /snark
Federal positions are not shovel-ready make-work jobs, either. Working for Uncle Sam pays extremely well these days. Government employment used to be a calling, a career in which a sense of fulfillment from public service offset low pay and spartan working conditions. Not so today. According to a study by the Cato Institute, 2008 federal worker pay-and-benefits packages averaged $119,982. That’s more than double the private-sector average of $59,909.
When we all become government employees, who is going to pay our salaries? To misquote Margaret Thatcher, “The problem with socialism is eventually, you run out of other people’s money.” Will the income tax be raised to 75% on salaries just so we can all pay each other? But what is actually being produces by these government jobs that is really worth anything? What goods are being manufactured? Not a dadburn thing!
In the Defense Department, which is adding the most new workers, the number of civilian employees earning more than $150,000 jumped from 1,868 in December 2007 to 10,100 in June 2009. Many highly paid Defense Department employees are retired members of the military who receive full pensions in addition to salary. This “double dipping” is extra costly for taxpayers.
Excuse me while I clean the coffee off my monitor. ………………. Ok, now, let me read that again. 1,868 in 2007 increases to 10,100 in just two years? PLUS, many are getting a nice pension, from taxpayers, in addition to their nice fat salaries? Does anyone else see a major problem here?
Federal pay keeps growing even as overall private-sector compensation stagnates. In 2009, federal employees received an average pay raise of 3.9 percent, more than twice the 1.5 percent wage-and-benefit increase for private-sector employees – that is, for those who still had jobs. Mr. Obama proposed a 2 percent federal pay increase for fiscal 2010, down from a projected 2.4 percent rise. This was supposed to save approximately $20 billion, but a zero percent increase would have saved $120 billion.
I will grant you that many who work for the government are necessary. However, that being said, there are many more who are NOT! Eliminate the thumb suckers. You know the ones….the redundant, a large portion of the union workers at the IRS who sit around and file their nails instead of answering the phone, any number of Congressional staffers, etc. Oh, hell. Just get rid of the gooberment unions altogether! Make folks actually save their own money for their retirement, like responsible grownups use to do not all that long ago. That would save a WHOLE lot more than just the $20,000,000,000.
A federal pay freeze is a reasonable proposal in times of record budget deficits, especially when federal workers already make much more than their private-sector counterparts. However, this would require the president to make one of those hard choices he likes to talk about but studiously avoids. Feds who think they have a right to regular pay raises should contemplate the hardships of the millions of Americans recently forced to accept 100 percent pay cuts. And a 10 percent cut in the federal work force would save additional billions of dollars and still leave the government larger than it was when Mr. Obama took office. Those bonuses for bureaucrats should end, too.
Yep, the opinion folks at The Washington Times are almost as smart as me. Just without the same amount of sarcasm thrown in for good measure. 
Here are some interesting charts from the CBO, just in case you are interested. (.pdf)
