Discussion: The Economy, National Debt, And Other Financial Issues

[DACrowe]

As there doesn't seem to be a good thread to put this in (and the subject matter is about to become one of the hottest issues in politics in the next six months coughshutdowncough) I created this thread.

REID PULLS $1.1 TRILLION SPENDING BILL FROM FLOOR AFTER REPUBLICANS BACK OUT FROM TEA PARTY PRESSURE

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/46520.html

<pulls out popcorn>

If I understand right, due to a lack of serious consideration of appropriations for the last year, the government will shutdown after Saturday if a short term extension is not put into place. That should pass relatively easily. However, that leaves the entire fiscal budget for the next year at the mercy of the Tea Party hacks...er leaders coming to DC. Can we say showdown eminent?

My favorite quote from the article:

McConnell Thursday sought to regain his footing by drawing a stark contrast with his one-page “clean” substitute. Left unsaid is that he encouraged the omnibus effort before the election and that, even after Nov. 2, McConnell continued to hedge his bets, never taking out his estimated $112.8 million in spending earmarks, nor pulling back old friends on the Senate Appropriations Committee working on behalf of the measure.

He and many other Republicans, who also left their earmarks in the omnibus, are now scrambling to separate themselves from their handiwork. Thursday brought McConnell’s second Claude Rains “Casablanca” moment of the week, when he essentially expressed shock that there’s gambling in Rick’s Café.

“It’s unbelievable, really,” he said of the omnibus. “They want us to ram this gigantic, trillion-dollars bill through Congress — and they’re using the Christmas break as an inducement to get us to vote for it.”

Popcorn time.

 

[Bathead]

This could get interesting ...

 

[StorminNorman]

This is a major victory.

 

[DACrowe]

Politically nobody comes out looking good from this mess. However, if you're thinking Tea Party nutjobs are going to get a chance to sink their claws into social security in a few months (or Gingrich the government), I can see why Stormy would be salivating at this bit of news.

 

[chaseter]

This is what happens when you don't pass a budget when you are supposed to.

 

[Kelly]

And when you spend money you don't have....

 

[Paradoxium]

JEFF GUNDLACH: The US Economy Is Awesome

I agree we need to spend moar. Like how we managed to produce a negative GDP output multiplier with the government money. People are too stupid to spend, only government knows how to spend other people's money. YAAAY !!

 

[Paradoxium]

Lets borrow moarz money from the future to spend now, to raise GDP levels for another quarter. It won't fail at all. Like rolling a credit card over another, guarantee many success!

 

[Kelly]

Men tend to work in cyclical industries. Stuff like banking and construction were bubbles. That said, just imagine China, look at their real estate bubble, overabundance of dudes as a result of a lame government policy. Yessh. Not going to be pretty.

Their one child policy, Japan's desire to stay pure and therefore continues one of the most strict immigration policies, most European countries zero population growth, is going to screw all of them.....especially those with larger socialist economies.....ya gotta have givers for that type of economic policy to sustain itself.

 

[hippie_hunter]

I really do think that someday the Chinese bubble is going to burst and it is going to burst hard. Between being far too reliant on exports, the potential real estate bubble, investing in far too much government debt, the one child policy, and tight government controls is really going to bring them down.

Hopefully their massive cash reserves and rising middle class can soften the blow.

 

[Kelly]

When it does, we are screwed....

 

[StorminNorman]

The Reality of the Tax Deal

http://mises.org/daily/4910

 

[VampElvis]

Alabama Town’s Failed Pension Is a Warning

http://www.cnbc.com/id/40791768/

Too bad Dox won't post in this thread. I'd love to hear his rant about how this is only the first pension that quits paying its retirees. Yep, that's right, no checks. It's coming, it's coming.........

 

[chaseter]

Public employee unions have single handidly destroyed America.

 

[StorminNorman]

Politicians have single handily destroyed America.

 

[chaseter]

Unions have ruined our economy and they will be the downfall of the states. Pension problems are going to be bigger than the mortgage crisis. A lot of the bailout money went to the states to use on their pensions and it has already run out. You then have states having to cut back and the unions won't go along with it. Unions have no place in today's America and tax payers should not be paying for someone's retirement salary.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Agreed. We don't need more Detroits.

 

[Paradoxium]

Alabama Town’s Failed Pension Is a Warning

http://www.cnbc.com/id/40791768/

Too bad Dox won't post in this thread. I'd love to hear his rant about how this is only the first pension that quits paying its retirees. Yep, that's right, no checks. It's coming, it's coming.........

I changed that mandate, to stir up some more interesting topics a while back. Due to the dry spell of Palin and FauxNews domination of the forum.

 

[Marx]

I heard that unemployment claims allegedly fell again...

 

[Kelly]

One thing people forget is that there is a fairly large number of people that have been laid off from teaching, non-profit organizations, churches, etc that cannot get unemployment, therefore they are not in these numbers...

 

[Marx]

The numbers also do not reflect severely underemployed and those who have seen their unemployment benefits completely run out.

 

[Kelly]

Yep.....these numbers are totally wrong.....and to say that they are getting a little better.....just isn't true. They are not looking at reality.

 

[Marx]

Yep.....these numbers are totally wrong.....and to say that they are getting a little better.....just isn't true. They are not looking at reality.

Exactly.

 

[StorminNorman]

What's better is that the Payroll Tax Holiday will increase unemployment numbers because you are going to have more people wanting jobs when they can make more money in them.

You take the same Payroll Tax Holiday and give the cut to Employers instead of Employees and BOOM! Job Creation.

 

[Kelly]

Public employee unions have single handidly destroyed America.

Politicians have single handily destroyed America.

They go hand in hand and both have screwed us considerably.