Just ran across this old gem from The Gipper:
No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth.
Michael Cannon at CATO says he caught a hint of things to come while talking with a WalMart lobbyist in a cab a few years back. WalMart is backing an employer mandate for health care, i.e. a legal requirement that employers provide a government-defined package of health benefits. And by defined, we mean something along the lines of “you will pay no more and no less than “x” for your workers’ health care plan.” Cannon explains and theorizes why WalMart – one of America’s greatest entrepreneurial, free-market success stories – is going along with an anti-free market, government dictated approach to employee benefits. In short, it’s to gain an advantage over their biggest competitor (Target). He also slams them pretty hard for it.
Update: On the subject of Big Government and Big Business getting in bed together, Jonah @ NRO has an excellent post. Read it.
Re: the header reference, for those scratching their heads:
In 44 BC, Julius Caesar was murdered by a group of senators. They were led by Marcus Brutus, who had been a close friend of Caesar. In Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar, Caesar begins to resist the attack but then resigns himself to his fate when he sees his dear friend with knife in hand:
Caesar: Doth not Brutus bootless kneel?
Casca: Speak, hands, for me! [They stab Caesar.]
Caesar: Et tu, Brute? Then fall, Caesar! [Dies.]
Cinna: Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!
Et tu = And you
This post on the values of capitalism over on Overcoming Bias is just excellent.
It starts with this quote:
“The financial crisis is not the crisis of capitalism. It is the crisis of a system that has distanced itself from the most fundamental values of capitalism, which betrayed the spirit of capitalism.”
— Nicolas Sarkozy
and includes gems like:
The fundamental morality of capitalism lies in the voluntary nature of its trades, consented to by all parties, and therefore providing a gain to all.
and
Vigorous work is praiseworthy but should be accompanied by equally vigorous results.
and
No one has a right to their job. Not the janitor, not the CEO, no one. It would be like a rationalist having a right to their own opinion. At some point you’ve got to fire the saddle-makers and close down the industry.
and
No company has a right to its continued existence. Change happens.
and
A high standard of living is the just reward of hard work and intelligence. If other people or other places have lower standards of living, then the problem is the lower standard, not the higher one. Raise others up, don’t lower yourself. A high standard of living is a good thing, not a bad one – a universal moral generalization that includes you in particular. If you’ve earned your wealth honestly, enjoy it without regrets.
and
People safeguard, nourish, and improve that which they know will not be taken away from them. Tax a little if you must, but at some point you must let people own what they buy.
and
In countries that are lawful and just, the government is the referee, not a player. If the referee runs onto the field and kicks the football, things are starting to get scary.
and
Making money is a virtuous endeavor, despite all the lies that have been told about it, and should properly be found in the company of other virtues. Those who set out to make money should not think of themselves as fallen, but should rather conduct themselves with honor, pride, and self-respect, as part of the grand pageantry of human civilization rising up from the dirt, and continuing forward into the future.
Amen!
You simply must read this NYT times piece by Stephen Holmes from September 20, 1999. A few excerpts to whet your whistle:
In a move that could help increase home ownership rates among minorities and low-income consumers, the Fannie Mae Corporation is easing the credit requirements on loans that it will purchase from banks and other lenders.
The action, which will begin as a pilot program involving 24 banks in 15 markets — including the New York metropolitan region — will encourage those banks to extend home mortgages to individuals whose credit is generally not good enough to qualify for conventional loans.
and
In moving, even tentatively, into this new area of lending, Fannie Mae is taking on significantly more risk, which may not pose any difficulties during flush economic times. But the government-subsidized corporation may run into trouble in an economic downturn, prompting a government rescue similar to that of the savings and loan industry in the 1980′s.
and
”From the perspective of many people, including me, this is another thrift industry growing up around us,” said Peter Wallison a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. ”If they fail, the government will have to step up and bail them out the way it stepped up and bailed out the thrift industry.”
(Hat Tip: Nicky Cheese)
Well, as a writer/journalist/blogger, there is nothing like reading something you strongly disagree with to wake you up and get your day started right. Such is the case with Treasury Secretary Paulson’s statement before the Senate Banking Committee.
With the takeover of AIG, the federal government has wangled its fourth major bailout and taken control of its very first insurance company.
Both McCain and Obama have called the bailouts of AIG, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Bear Stearns “necessary measures.” McCain blames greedy Wall Street tycoons while Obama blames failed GOP policies.
Most sensible folks agree that the government’s implicit guarantee to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were a license to lenders to run rampant. Fannie and Freddie were able to buy bundles of home mortgages and/or mortgage-backed securities in massive quantities without contemplation of the financial risks.
Some economists blame the regulators/regulations. I disagree. The financial industry is heavily regulated. It was the government’s guarantee of Fannie and Freddie that emboldened lenders to put together dicey loans and encouraged undisciplined financial endeavors.
Government policy laid the foundation of the mortgage crisis more than three decades ago when Congress passed the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977. The law forced banks to loan money to low-income borrowers in order to meet the “needs” of the local community.
No worries, though. The banks knew they could sell off those loans to Fannie or Freddie, and F & F knew they could buy those loans with little regard for the risk.
I’m reminded of the past weekend here in Las Vegas when a few enthusiastic friends (first time visitors) went out and hit the blackjack tables.
A young man playing two hands was dealt four sevens. A friend advised him to split and play four hands. Pondering the risks, he hesitated – but the helpful friend offered to cover his losses and let him keep all the chips if he won.
What do you suppose that young man did?
He behaved as anyone would: he played all four sevens. And, unfortunately, lost on all.
So it goes on the tables of Sin City. So too, in Congressional corridors and bank board rooms.
I am pleased to point my readers to a new website by the Nevada Policy Research Institute. The site – www.TransparentNevada.com – will bring much needed oversight and transparency to our state and local governments.
If you want to see how your tax dollars are being spent, just go browse the site. It’s easy to use and allows visitors to view and search public employee salaries and overtime (there are some real Doozies!) as well as state and county contracts and purchase orders, lobbying expenditures, budgets, and financial reports.
Since your blood will no doubt be boiling after a few minutes on the site – just the first page of government Salaries/Compensation in Clark County was enoughto raise my BP ten points - you’ll be glad to know the site also features a blog for citizen comments & reporting and links to government transparency resources around Nevada.
In the website’s press release, NPRI president Sharon Rossie said, “There is simply no subsitute for independent, non-governmental oversight of public financing. NPRI is proud to provide this valuable service to Nevada citizens.”
SUFFERING FROM YUCCA-SCHIZOPHRENIA
“It seems 58 percent of Nevadans polled oppose the Yucca Mountain project, where the government wants to bury the highly radioactive waste from nuclear plants. But in a different question, 58 percent of Nevadans said they had no problem whatsoever digging up more uranium to refine and use in nuclear power. Thus creating more nuclear waste. Thus creating a greater need for the disposal of said nuclear waste. Thus creating more pressure to build and operate Yucca Mountain. Which 58 percent of Nevadans say they’re against.
Does that make sense to anybody? We didn’t think so.”
- CityLife editor Steve Sebelius, 8/26/08
Carter said in his video clip that during and after Katrina, New Orleans residents were “abandoned by their government.” Um… In the midst of all that Chaos mistakes were certainly made, but that does not equal Abandonment. Carter grossly exaggerates. As usual. What is his deal?
Last year, 162 Washoe County employees each cost taxpayers more than $100,000, while 61 Clark County employees each cost taxpayers more than $200,000. One Clark County official made $266,562 – almost double the salary set by law for Nevada’s governor.
An open records request found that the City of Las Vegas paid more than $21 million for overtime, the State of Nevada spent over $29 million, and Clark County paid the most at more than $32 million in one year. One Vegas city employee made more in overtime than he made in base salary. Multiple Clark County fire officials made close to $100,000 each in overtime.
Further, state and county audits found that some public employees received overtime pay despite it not being approved in advance by supervisors, that several law enforcement personnel received more overtime than their contracts allow, that some law enforcement officials were paid for overtime they did not work, and that some Laughlin police officers received both regular salary and overtime pay for the same shifts.
Public employees in some counties receive extra holiday pay for working on such faux holidays as “Family Day,” “Nevada Day” or the employee’s birthday. Some public employees enjoy inappropriate round-the-clock use of taxpayer-funded vehicles.
Finally, some county employees taking college classes are fronted the entire cost of tuition and books, then are paid time-and-a-half for hours spent in class.
It is commonly argued that police and firefighters have jobs that are more dangerous than the average citizen’s, so higher pay is appropriate. But according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, law enforcement and firefighting actually do not rank in the country’s top ten most dangerous occupations. Lower-paying occupations in construction, mining, fishing, roofing, farming, trash collection, manufacturing and the military see more deaths and injuries on the job than do either law enforcement or fire fighting.
Where is accountability to Nevada’s taxpayers? Where is the fairness to our private sector employees who earn far less than our government workers for doing essentially the same jobs? And where is the outrage that irresponsible payroll spending by our elected officials has helped create Nevada’s current economic situation?
I encourage Nevada residents to contact their state Senators and representatives in the Assembly and let them know we expect them to pass economic reforms that will limit government spending on the salaries, overtime, and perks of our public employees. If you receive a response, please email me or post a Comment so we can track results.
From the website Americans for Tax Reform:
Cost of Government Day (COGD) is the date of the calendar year on which the average American worker has earned enough gross income to pay off his or her share of spending and regulatory burdens imposed by government on the federal, state and local levels.
Cost of Government Day for 2008 is July 16. Working people must toil on average 197 days out of the year just to meet all costs imposed by government. In other words, the cost of government consumes 53.9 percent of national income.
How about some suggestions for how we can all celebrate the Day we stop feeding our income to the Insatiable Monster that is Government? Talk sarcastically amongst yourselves and report back.
© 2012 Elizabeth Crum. All Rights Reserved.