Some folks are overjoyed at the prospect of creating nearly 800,000 new jobs for the Census Bureau . I see very little difference between being on welfare or working for the government; they both involve redistribution of wealth from folks who actually produce goods and services in the private sector to folks who just want a pay check, a huge difference if you consider the impact on the economy.
“Honey I have great news. I got me a government job that will last only a couple of months at best; but we’re still eligible for 99 weeks of unemployment benefits.”
No real jobs are being created, at least nothing that will strengthen the economy; government jobs are expenses which have to be paid for by taxing the private sector. It’s all smoke and mirrors for a compliant news media, a diversion from reality now that the Olympics have concluded and we’re waiting to see who makes the Final Four in basketball.
The national treasury is already in debt far beyond our ability to pay, to the point where foreign governments holding our markers have begun to call in those markers.
Trade agreements with China come to mind as they’ve become the most powerful holder of our debt. I don’t think the term free trade really applies as China is now in a position to dictate terms of trade rather than openly trade with U.S. companies.
Some products from China are inferior, or worse, health hazards. Recently questions have been raised about the safety of Chinese dry wall products showing up in newly constructed houses in Florida, a product which smells of rotten eggs and destroys wiring within the walls. I don’t think the Chinese care as long as we keep buying other inferior products, toys contaminated with lead or pirated movies and software.
Our balance of trade with China is strained to say the least, quoting from a report prepared as a brief for Congress by Wayne M. Morrison dated April 13, 2001.
“U.S.-China commercial ties have expanded substantially over the past several years. Total U.S.-China trade rose from $17.8 billion in 1989 to $ 116.4 billion in 2000. Yet, U.S.-China economic ties have been strained by a number of issues. For example, U.S. policymakers have expressed concern over the surging U.S. trade deficit with China, which rose from $6 billion in 1989 to nearly $84 billion in 2000. Many analysts blame the burgeoning trade deficit on China's restrictive trade and investment practices.”
Let me run that by one more time, “…policymakers have expressed concern over the surging U.S. trade deficit with China.” That was nine years back; but the only things which have change are the number of attacks on the free market system along with the frequency of those assaults. Are we less dependent on foreign oil or more? What about EPA restrictions so burdensome as to make it impractical to build refineries. Add to that the threat by our current administration to put the coal businesses out of business and it all adds up to shutting down the economy rather than growing one.
More recently, according to an article by Patrick Heller , posted on March 9, 2010, “Something is developing in China which will have a major impact on the value of the US dollar and the price of gold.”
How much more difficult can we make it on ourselves, continually adding to an already staggering debt? The value of our Dollar is in jeopardy because of reckless spending by congress, decades of entitlement programs and pork barrel items from both sides of the isle have become accepted as the way things are done in Washington. The Treasury Department has the most efficient printing presses in the world working around the clock destroying the value of what money supply is already out there.
How will spending money that we don’t have solve our indebtedness problems, money that won’t be collected for decades to come? The answer is; it will only make the debt worse.
“But we’re helping 800,000 people who’ve lost their jobs get back on their feet”, I can hear the violins in the background. In that case, let’s drill for oil, grab some coal out of the ground, build refineries and power plants. Once the entrepreneurs are reassured that their government is on their side real jobs will automatically be the result as production rather than reduction turns the economy around. We have idiots running our country!
“Forecasters had been expecting the Chinese government to allow the yuan to rise possibly 5% against the US dollar by the end of 2010. Any shift in value between the two currencies is important as the Chinese government held $894.8 billion in US Treasury debt as of the end of last December and about 2/3 of the country’s $2.4 trillion in reserves are denominated in US dollars. If the dollar were to decline against the yuan, that would also reduce the value of China’s reserves.”
That means China is putting up with our reckless ways because they’re holding far too many of our Dollars, money which only has value as long as our means of production back it up. If not for that China would drop us like a hot potato and we’d be just another third world country with our hands out. Come to think of it, we’re pretty close to that now as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attempts to shore up relations with our benefactors in China. For all her saber rattling, we’re sending Dragon Lady over to China hat in hand.
The foundations of production are being hand cuffed with the threat of Cap & Trade legislation which will raise the cost of energy several fold. Why would anyone consider investing capitol to expand industry when their own government was doing its level best to destroy them? Competing in the world market with mandated expenses included in health care reform is just another example of government control over industry as a recipe for a declining economy.
When those new Census workers sign on, will they have suits made in America or China? How much will these folks get paid and will it be more than folks working in the private sector? Will they be required to join a union and how long are they to remain on the government payroll or hadn’t anyone bothered to think this thing through past the immediate press release, “800,000 new jobs”? Washington mentality will bankrupt us all; tell me again, how’s that hope and change working out?
2 comments:
Well, the difference between Census jobs and "welfare" is that at least there is some Constitutional justification to spend money to do a Census, whereas there is NO justification anywhere in the Constitution for spending one dime on "charity".
I could be happier if the Census simply sent folks out to take a head count of CITIZENS and their families (and at the same time root out pockets of illegals, although then they'd have to go armed in pairs--at least--and be properly trained in self-defense, etc.), but the ten-question survey this year is a VAST improvement over the previous Census long form in 2000 (which arrived at my door).
Of course, "some households" (and the criteria for selection is muddy at best) will be required to fill out one of the ANNUAL long form surveys as well, according to the Census website. *sigh* I'll probably get one of those, too, even though I already sent in my short form.
That's the thing about big government, it only begets bigger government. I'd be very surprised if those 800,000 jobs don't eventually become permanent or just get reassigned to a different role altogether.
The leftists in America and Australia have learned what's lead to national failure in the UK, there the government has grown to such a point that the politicians are now beholden to these government workers. That's how big they've become.
And that's what they want to emulate in America and elsewhere. Get so big that it won't matter who is in government, it's socialism who ever is running the joint.
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