A Little Bit of Chicken Fried

To get attention, headlines focus on extremes.  Perhaps in these days of information overload that’s just something we all have to live with.  Sometimes, however, it is helpful to focus between the headlines, or behind the story, to come up with the right questions about public policy.

After the Democrats’ healthcare Waterloo in Massachusetts, President Obama made a big public display, wishing himself back into the mold of change agent by taking up the mantle of banking reform (something at times he rejected and at other times ignored during his first year in office).  To do this he placed a big target on the excessive bonuses paid to executives of financial institutions that benefited from TARP funds.  Putting aside the President’s attempts to get out in front of public anger once again, there are good reasons to take a close look at Wall Street’s behavior, and it’s more than just bonuses.  Remember these guys already brought the system to its knees once, triggering a bail-out that we’ll all long remember.

The Concept of Capitalism

I find a weird kind of wisdom in the electorate’s rejection of President Obama’s agenda.  However, I also think it’s important not to make wild conclusions about what it meant.  President Bush still couldn’t run for dog-catcher in Massachusetts.   Looking back at the 2008 Presidential campaign, the electorate did truly desire change.  Once candidate Obama won the Democratic nomination, he did what every candidate does, he ran to the middle.  This is how he obtained his majority.  Aided by Wall Street’s face plant, he was able to convince enough voters that he was a better agent of change than Senator McCain.  Unfortunately for the country, Mr. Obama’s “new” ideas really amount to warmed-up New Deal dreams, and he seems to be more concerned with ideology than effective management.

Healthcare’s High Noon

Ted Kennedy & Barack Obama

By now, everybody should know the results of the Massachusetts special election, which is being held to replace former Senator Edward “Teddy” Kennedy (at the time of writing polls had not yet closed).  The plot and twists of this saga are worthy of the bard himself, or perhaps some tragic opera.

For my generation, and probably others, nobody embodied the “New Deal” philosophy better than Mr. Kennedy.  For those of us who did not ascribe to this philosophy, this is not a complement.  Nothing against Mr. Kennedy personally, but he was never able to capture the nation’s imagination like his brothers.  Each Kennedy seemed to get progressively more liberal, and Teddy never seemed to have the right stuff.  Perhaps it was because of the unfortunate “Chappaquiddick incident,” or maybe he lacked the Kennedy charisma, or, perhaps, his views were just too extreme for the nation.

Google as Patriot

Too often we focus on what’s wrong with the world.  Politicians and the media tend to concentrate on the negative.  We struggle to make sense of all depressing news modern living forces upon us.  It seems to come from everywhere:  our jobs, our schools, the Internet, even our friends and neighbors.  All of this contributes to the anxiety we feel during our day.  So when something good comes along, it should be shouted from the rooftops.  Unfortunately, it is too easily buried by the big stories of the day.

When Giants Roamed the Land

James Madison was the “Father of the Constitution” and championed the idea of checks and balances.

This will be my last post for 2009.  It seems amazing that we are already witnessing the close of the first millennial decade.  As we move so rapidly into the twenty first century we seem to be picking up both speed and weight.  A scary thought to those of us who were born in the 1950’s, and probably scary to everyone else as well.

If you are reading this, I thank you for the opportunity to express my humble viewpoints.  I realize I must seem like a modern day Don Quixote.  I know the usefulness of these exercises is in doubt—the sound of one hand clapping.  By way of defense of this peculiar behavior, I’d like to address a couple of questions that people must be wondering about:  What in the heck are you doing, and why are you doing it?

Too Light/Too Heavy Taxes

I ended my last post with a plea for Americans to step up to the plate and show real leadership in regards to the problems confronting us as a nation.  The subject of this post—taxation—is probably the most vexing issue afflicting the Party.  There is no doubt that a free, open and prosperous society requires low tax rates to function properly.  This statement requires no defense, and, I believe, is supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans. 

The G.O.P. Sloggin Thru Copenhagen

What will be the G.O.P.’s agenda for the 21st Century?

The signs  are not good going into the Copenhagen climate conference.  The great political divide is widening, and it seems likely that the only “winners” will be the political dirt mongers.  Politics being “the art of the possible” aside, there are good arguments for wanting “Cap and Trade” to go down, but bottom line, the U.S. really does need to find a reasoned approach to the issue of global climate change. 

There is precious little political safe ground in regards to this issue.  I believe this has more to do with where you rank the issue as a problem rather than the reality of mankind’s impact on earth’s natural processes.  If you don’t think the issue is as important as the economy, you are likely to scoff at the tree huggers.  If you worry about environmental degradation and/or the political insecurity caused by continued reliance on fossil fuels, you are likely to blame the greedy corporations.  Paradoxically, both these viewpoints have validity.  So where does the middle approach lie?

Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye

John Maynard Keynes

 

What in the heck is John Maynard Keynes doing in a self-described Republican blog?  Growing up in a fiercely Republican household, I learned quickly to equate Dr. Keynes’ name with socialism.  However, I have since learned that this is not exactly accurate.  The primary tenet of socialism is the public ownership of the “means of production,” which Keynes did not advocate.  In these times of big government and massive bailouts there are important distinctions to be drawn.  

Animal Spirits, published last year, coincidentally around the time of the financial system’s collapse, expounded on for nearly 200 pages, and I found myself disagreeing with a great deal of it.  However it did outline an important point that goes right to the heart of our capitalist system and to the role of governance. 

G.O.P. Wins! Now What?

Last Tuesday’s election results have been hailed as a rejection of President Obama’s first year.  Local politics aside, that does seem to be the case.   Even the late-night talk show hosts are starting to take their shots.  However, it’s not time to celebrate.  There is still plenty to do.  Republicans must develop our own agenda that will take us farther into the 21^st Century than the next election, and tea parties aren’t the answer.

The truth is that neither party is adequately addressing the real issues regarding the economy.  As Republicans, we obviously don’t believe that massive new government spending is the answer, but, unfortunately, there is nothing new in what Republicans are saying.

The Greed of Gordon Gekko

If pop-culture is a mirror on society, then the character of Gordon Gekko is an excellent example.  Michael Douglas won the Academy Award for his portrayal of the character in the 1987 movie Wall Street.  The character became something of a national hero.  Many Americans related to his powerful “greed is good” speech.  This is how the speech went:

“The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love; knowledge; has marked the upward surge of mankind. And greed, you mark my words, will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA.”