Through 2009, while the country and its citizens against the terrible economy, in the absence of foreign wars, extreme partisanship and sniping of Congress, no improvement in the most important problems of this country as the growing national debt, the ' high unemployment, public schools, widespread drug addiction problems, rising health costs and other important issues, such as politicians are concerned? Looking back to 2009, seems to have been three different categories ofAmerican political class behavior: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.
The Good
Car Donation In California
By all accounts, 2009 was a difficult year in America. The good news is that I really identify some areas where the political class has some good things. The bad news is I was only three examples in which the actions of the political class taxpayers and citizens had in mind when they are running their campaigns:
1) The first example is based on personal experience-based. I live in PinellasCounty in Florida and in the last four years property taxes have gone to a base on the previous year. They have so much that they now pay about 40% less in property taxes today than I paid four years ago with a significant portion of that decline occurring in 2009 went. There are probably a number of factors, both political and apolitical, that went into this decline, but the bottom line is that they are collapsed. And here's the good news: I still have the policeSecurity, I still have the fire protection, schools are still open, the parks are still open, many libraries are still open and the streets and traffic lights are still in good shape. This is the evidence that can be taken at a very local level, excess waste from the government, without any significant reduction in essential services and protection. The primary word in this sentence is crucial.
2) The second example comes from the U.S. Senate, and there was a proposal and formallyProposal to the Senate by Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee. His reasoning: because the federal government about $ 60000000000 U.S. taxpayers' money paid to acquire a 60% stake of General Motors and save from bankruptcy in theory, every American taxpayer should not receive share certificates and owned by GM, instead of Washington bureaucrats? After all, while the government is able to work only because the taxpayers' money, whether in a government-ownedprivate company, does not mean that the taxpayer owned the company, because it was their money? Senator Alexander was the only politician in this year that he understood the relationship between the payment of taxes and public spending has shown. Give every citizen to ensure the actions of GM would be more interested in how GM will be made in advance, since every citizen would have a share of its survival, is probably a better chance of survival as GM with state ownership.Unfortunately, the senator's proposal was not approved by the Senate.
3) The last example comes from a small town in South Florida, Miami Gardens. In the last year, Miami Gardens Municipal Government, the following actions:
- The growing city's payroll. Most usually increases throughout the country, unemployment.
- Employees of the city yet the cost of living increases and merit. Most of the rest of the country
Wages and salaries have been frozen or reduced.
- The Cityincreased its financial reserves in excess of $ 300,000. Most of the rest of the country, local
and provincial governments dipped into their reserves to cover operating costs.
- The 17 best city parks and schools 4. Most other state agencies have been reduced or eliminated maintenance projects.
How Miami Gardens was able to all the positive things in the light of a recession very, very deep and the fact that not a city of rich? According to interviewswith representatives of the city:
- City employees to share both human and other resources.
- The city rents the only people who actually need to do the work needed to be done.
- City officials say they have the ability and backbone to say "No" to amend non-essential projects and programs, claims that she is not all in all.
- As the first example above, the politicians in Miami Gardens has shown that running a lean, efficient government operationsis possible if you are respectful of taxpayer dollars. All it takes is a little 'planning and the ability to just say no.
The Bad
In life, we must take the good with the bad, so now you an overview of some of the less glorious antics that the political class are served in the second half of 2009:
- Ginny Brown-Waite, a member of Congress from Florida, has been actively investing in shares of the bank, while she sat on the House Banking Committee, to determine the Banksget what levels of the bailout money and support from American taxpayers through the federal government. This is a clear conflict of interest. Ordinary Americans, you probably have gone to prison for insider trading if they have the same thing, of course, conflicts of interest and insider trading activity are not members of Congress.
- Senator Hillary Clinton obviously does not understand the theory of conflict of interest. He helped pass a law that allows mall developersNew York State to obtain favorable tax treatment, shortly after the developer a substantial donation to the foundation of Bill Clinton.
- Senator Daniel Inouye Hawaiian helped employees of a bank in Hawaii to receive bailout money from the FDIC after the FDIC determines the bank was not worth saving. It turned out that the senator had invested heavily in the bank, and stood to lose a lot of money if the bank was rescued by American taxpayers.
- Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut has receivedsubstantial campaign contributions from Fannie Me and Freddie Mac are two things wrong here. Dodd was the first chairman of the Senate Banking Committee responsible for monitoring the activities of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a case of clear conflict of interest. Secondly, as two federal organizations that exist now only to support the taxpayer bailout and have the money to use taxpayers 'money' to support certain candidates for office? Should not remain non-partisan and non-governmental organizationsNot a piggy bank for politicians, should look for?
- Ex-Congressman William Jefferson of Louisiana of taking bribes was found guilty and sentenced to 13 years in prison. You may remember that Mr. Jefferson with bribery in his home and freeze 'caught in the freezer. This continues the tradition of the Hall of Shame political class, which has recently included Congressman Randy Cunningham to eight years in prison for $ 2.4 million in bribes, was convicted Congressman BillNey, who had two and a half years in prison for accepting bribes, Congressman James Traficante, who was sentenced to seven years in prison for corruption, and most of the former governors of Illinois, who have served prison sentences, Prison Service may have time or a short prison.
- 60% of the members of Congress sit on the House Armed Services Committee have received campaign contributions from companies that previously had provided a lot of pork barrel budgetFor money.
Congressman Charles Rangel of New York is under investigation for a series of ethics violations, including but not limited to, limited under-declaration of rental income, certain assets and other income.
- In the "who cares about this law," deputy Anna Eshoo of California and its employees are on legislation to federally regulate the volume of television commercials. Never mind that viewers can turn off the sound, allowing you to change the channel, the spaceto get something to eat, fast forward on their DVR machine, or simply ignore TV for 60 seconds. Why work in Iraq, Afghanistan, the deficit, unemployment, lack of public schools, etc., if the stain TV volume problem is so urgent?
- In the same sense, as Ms. Eshoo contributions to America are studying the deputy Jim Moran and his staff, if the erectile dysfunction commercials should be banned. I do not know it was so important, either. As with womenEshoo, try to ignore the real problems for America and the work of ED commercials.
- It never stops. Thaddeus McCotter Congressman and his staff is working on legislation for a maximum of 300 € a month the amount deducted, so that the unemployed do not have their pets for adoption. Perhaps if he and his staff on how to get America working again at work, there would be no need for this program is ridiculous that they would never be able to pursue and which would be full of pitfalls.
Worse still work as trivial, individual people and Congress the bills of the staff, such as forcing a house subcommittee on legislation of the NCAA for a playoff format will determine the best division in college football a team working on? In cases where this problem would rank with the great majority of Americans today? Probably not very high.
- The fence along the border between America and Mexico was the work of the entire Congress. A 2009 report documented that the constructionThe fence is seven years late, costs $ 6400000000 to maintain the fence in the next 20 years (870 thousand dollars a day!), And there are at least 3,000 violations of the fence, where illegal immigrants can enter the country was despite these billion-dollar fence.
- Washington, DC The new visitor center is complete, but only after they overran the budget construction of about 50%.
"I'm not sure to say: - Congressman Henry Waxman was quoted as sayingknows everything that there is law "in relation to the mass cap and trade legislation, which should come before Congress in 2010. The disturbing aspect of this statement is that Waxman is the official co-writer and author of the draft Act!
- Recently, the forgotten, the tangent clearly the bill recently approved by the health reform necessary when a handful of Democratic senators were able to penetrate in their individual states in the order of hundreds of billions of dollars,Return for their final vote to support this bill.
If these actions were not serious and far-reaching, it would be fun. Conflicts of interest, trivial projects, wasted money, sad but true in 2009.
The Ugly
It 'been said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, it is hard to find so much beauty in one of these federally funded projects, as federal waste tax dollars on local projects that contribute nothing to solving the most importantnational issues facing the country today. The only beauty is in the eye of established politicians who support this waste of tax money, their re-election:
Exhibitions - Teddy Roosevelt Inaugural Site Foundation - $ 150,000
- Restoration of Portsmouth, New Hampshire Music Hall - $ 1000000
- Restoration of the Uptown Theatre in Philadelphia - $ 350,000
- The construction of the Market Monroe County (Kentucky) Farmers' - $ 250,000
- Restoration ofMurphy Theatre in Ohio - $ 250,000
- Restoration of the Slater Mill in Rhode Island - $ 194,000
- Restoration of pregón Theater in the Bronx - $ 150,000
- Construction of the Santa Ana River Trail in California - $ 100,000
- Financing of the Myrtle Beach International Trade & Conference Center - $ 100,000
- Financing (State) Washington Opera - $ 200.000
- Funding for the Montana World Trade Center - $ 134,000
- Funding for the Arkansas Commercial DriverTraining Institute - $ 200.000
- To investigate the funding and to educate citizens about the role and importance of the U.S. Senate, is in Massachusetts - $ 18.9 million
- Funding for the Brown Tree Snake program funding in 2010 U.S. defense budget has been built - $ 500 000
- Restructuring of the Ritz Theater in Newburgh, New York - $ 400,000
- Restructuring of the Little Theatre Lardeo Laredo, Texas - $ 200.000
- Expansion of Bristol Street in Santa Ana, California -$ 350,000
- Construction of a cycle track in Port Sanilax, Michigan - $ 250,000
- Funding for the Aviation Museum - $ 350,000
- Funding for the World Food Prize in Iowa - $ 750,000
- Medicare questionable statements, including those by way of example, payment for blood glucose strips for impotence - $ 47000000000
- Government waste through improper payments in all federal ministries - $ 98000000000
- Conversion of 21 in a Caboose Motel luggagePennsylvania - $ 500,000
- Funding for a remote airport Pennsylvania, serving a twenty passengers per day - $ 200 million
- Funding for a state of the art radar system to the airport away Pennsylvania, which has never been used - $ 8000000
- Funding for a boundary remote Montana move to the Canadian border, which runs about three passengers a day on average and less than $ 200 goods per day on average - $ 15 million
- Funding for the company in the Polynesian VoyagingHawaii - $ 238,000
- Funding for laboratory research animal fodder production in Kentucky $ 1.6 million
- Funding for swine odor and manure management in Iowa Search - $ 1790000
- Funding for oyster rehabilitation in Alabama - $ 800,000
- Support the health and economic development in the Arctic - $ 19600000
- Develop a loan to a company in California and build an expensive sports car hybrid .... Finland - $ 529,000,000
These are just someDozen programs that waste hard earned taxpayer dollars. The 2010 budget bills are more than 11,000 other programs which, even if President Obama, the number of pork projects like this always advertised in 2000. The reasons we have states and municipalities is to serve the national and local needs. Should not the role of federal government funding of local bike paths, to expand local roads, renovation of theaters, etc. It is a distraction of time, money and resources from the truly national problemsas the two wars we are currently involved, growing government deficit, unemployment, Social Security and Medicare from bankruptcy, failing public schools, high rates of drug and crime problems, the lack of a strategic national energy plan, etc.
So why not spend the political class / time and money on this problem unique to local needs? It helps a guaranteed re-election, trying to prove to their voters that are sentother money from American taxpayers and channeled to steal in their cities and states. Remember, the government pays nothing, means that programs have agreed with the taxpayers' money from all Americans. So, the bike path in Michigan as part of the taxpayers in Arizona that will never go that tracks financed. Polynesian Voyaging Society is part of the taxpayers in Vermont who have never funded any benefit from the company.
Long ago, the statue ofLiberty, a symbol of this enduing across the country and its freedom, was in poor condition and needed renovations. The country has risen to privately donate sufficient funds to restore this national symbol. If the Statue of Liberty does not deserve federal money is only a few decades ago, because the farmers 'markets' and support the bike on the federal government today?
This national tax dollars stolen may hide a dangerous reality. Could it be that this generation of politicians, and those who havecame immediately before them, they do not know how to solve the real problems of today's American national. In 1960, Nixon declared war on drugs, but we still have a big drug problem in this country. In 1970, President Carter, when we experienced the energy crisis, but we have no national energy strategy program occurred. In early 1980, the Reagan administration has presented the danger of our failing public school system, but today many of our public schoolsyet they are not. In 1990, despite numerous wake up (before the World Trade Center, U.S. Embassy terrorist bombings in Africa, USS Cole attack, etc.), we have not yet on the terrorist threat in check, as the almost disastrous collapse of experienced aviation safety KLM flight Christmas Day in Detroit.
It may be that our current politicians unnecessary and wasteful spending programs and local labor concerned about the volume of television commercialsbecause they are incapable of doing anything else. If they were, like many of our national problems are addressed and resolved. So take the following steps to reduce "the ugly" and "The Ugly" and the expansion of "The Good" by the political class must be:
Step 1 - start to reduce federal spending by 10% a year for five years to begin to root out waste wasteful but politically convenient local money.
Step 2 - only forindividuals to contribute to political campaigns, as many of the programs are really unnecessary tangents, directing tax dollars to companies, trade unions and pressure groups to get campaign contributions for re-election each other incumbents' campaign.
Step 3 - Keep congressional committee and subcommittee members for their performance from this committee contributions, if their efforts are unsatisfactory and expensive.
Step 4 - to establish time limits forall senators and members of Congress since serving in such a way that does not always work. If the president is a major elected official in the world, has term limits, less important House and Senate seats should be limited in terms of length.
Step 5 - issued federal money would for any program or project, unless it materially affects a significant number of residents in at least five states, in order to spend federal tax dollars for national needs, not to state and localGovernments and individuals to take local needs.
While "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," made for a good movie by Clint Eastwood, is not to make an effective and efficient administration. We hope that 2010 will be better and that somehow take some of the steps above into this year, in 2010 a list of spending programs and unnecessary negative political shenanigans, which is much smaller than in 2009, less bad and ugly and even more good list.
Note: only credible, well-known news sourceswere used for the information contained in this article. These sources included, but were not limited to the New York Times, the St. Petersburg Times, CNN, Associated Press, the weekly magazine, Reason Magazine and limited and contained no personal opinions or information from sources very partial. For detailed information, refer to the sources, please http://www.loathemygovernment.blogspot.com, which identifies all these facts and figures previously discussed.
End of 2009 years - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly American of the political class
No comments:
Post a Comment