this economy needs jobs. real, productive, unionized, realistically waged jobs.

[KG]

this crap of cutting taxes to stimulate 'growth' is a fantasy. that's just a way to make people think they have more money, rather than finding a way for their wages to keep pace with the cost of living.

if this country is going to remain a capitalist/consumer based economy/society, it will have to return to making its own consumables in order to survive. it's to only way to have money flowing back into and with-in our domestic economy. that would take nothing less than some kind of reindustrialization of america.

(oh, also reregulation of resources and finance. recycling of plastic and paper products on an unprecented scale. subsidized mass transit. and massive scaling back of the military. but those are just quibbling details.)

niether party is talking about what real radical changes need to be made to make this economy work for the majority of workers instead of the elite wealthy few individuals and corporations. just vague mumbleing about job creation and tax cuts. color me surprised.

don't ask me how this would work. :P but it seems pretty clear why our economy is so shallow and weak that the implosion of one sector can bring down the whole house of cards; the US economy consists mostly of shuffling paper.

(personally, i'd like to see and live in a much less materialistic society where greed is not deemed a virtue, but since man seems destined to unthinkingly draw from the well till there's nothing left, that's not going to happen in my lifetime. :( )

just my ever-so-humble opinion, of course. but this is a train of thought i've been tumbling in my mind for some time....

[Omaha Steve]

1. Ya baby

Need I say more?

[ColbertWatcher]

2. k+r, n/t

[The Magistrate]

3. Restoring Economic Health, Sir, Is Certainly Impossible Without A Sizeable Increase In Wages

Prosperity percolates up, it never trickles down.

[Two Americas]

8. very good

You are a master at saying a lot with a few words.

[global1]

4. Why Don't The Repugs Get This?.......

More People Employed

Means

They Are Paying More Taxes Into The System

Means

They Have Money To Buy Goods

Means

Those That Sell Goods Make More Money

Means

That More Sales Tax Is Collected On Those Sales

Means

That Sales Taxes Help Pay For Necessary Government Services

Also Means

Those That Sell Goods Have To Buy Raw Materials To Make Goods & Have To Employ More People To Make Those Goods Because Of Demand For Goods

Means

More People Are Put To Work To Start The Cycle All Over Again

Also – If People Are Paid More At Their Jobs

They Pay More Taxes

Which Further Helps To Pay For Necessary Government Services & Maybe Even Allow For Some Additional Government Services

And Allows Them To Buy Even More Goods To Fuel The System

Now On The Other Hand If

When People Are Unemployed

The Government Has To Outlay Money For A Period Of Time In Unemployment Compensation

People Have To Make Decisions As To What They Can Afford And Not Afford

People Stop Buying Most Goods

Prices Go Up To Compensate For Lack Of Sales

Which May Cause Other Marginal People To Stop Buying Goods They Now Can’t Afford

Companies Start Laying Off Or Firing People Because Of Lack Of Sales

Raw Material Sales Go Down

Unemployment Spirals Up

Income Tax, Sates Tax Revenues Go Down

Necessary Government Services Are Cut

Even Local Governments Have To Cutback Services Or Raise Prices For Services

All Of A Sudden Those Rich People That Own Companies Start Feeling The Pain As Their Income Decreases

And we spiral out of control.

So – what am I missing here? If people don’t have jobs or money – even those at the top begin to start feeling the pain. Doesn't it make sense to continually raise the minimum wage?

The only time this thing works and works good is if we all cooperate and fuel the system with jobs and good pay. What is so hard to understand about this?

Why don’t companies want to pay people well? Don’t they realize that the more they help fuel the system the more they in fact will benefit?

Why do they want to eradicate the ‘middle class’? Who will buy their goods?

Would somebody try to rationally explain – why most wealthy American’s and Repugs want to keep the poor and middle class down?

[Two Americas]

9. oh they get it

They oppose it.

And they get half of the people to support them with their phony culture war crap.

[napoleon_in_rags]

5. Exactly. The name of the game is to produce wealth.

The conservative ideology seems to be that if people are paid less, they will be forced to produce more wealth to compete. But what they forget is that if they are paid less, they can't consume wealth, decreasing demand for other people to produce wealth. The end result is a lot of people without jobs, and a few people on top with vast amounts of money that don't consume the cheap products of minimum wage employees anyway. Its a totally failed system.

All a leader needs to do in my book is whatever it takes to get people doing things for each other, working to provide for each other. Everything else, wages, credit, taxes, are abstractions and representations. The only real thing that matter is whether or not people are coming together and doing things for each other. I am convinced that if you can really get that going, all else will follow.

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[stevedeshazer]

7. Right on.

knr

[Ani Yun Wiya]

10. Absolutely correct.

We also need a higher minimum wage.
And at least for a number of years a freeze on the price of things.

[machI]

11. K & R