Are the Republicans intentionally or unintentionally trying to ruin America?

[MrScorpio]

The fact that they're out to ruin America isn't in question at all… They're definitely out to do it… The question is, "In what way?"

Moody’s Economist Says GOP Jobs Bill Would ‘Likely Push The Economy Back Into Recession’

By Marie Diamond on Oct 14, 2011 at 3:50 pm

Yesterday, Senate Republicans unveiled their much-hyped alternative to President Obama’s jobs plan. The “Jobs Through Growth Act” is heavy on Republicans’ favorite policies like cutting corporate taxes and reducing regulation, but light on details. Nevertheless, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) declared that it would create 5 million jobs.

Moody’s Analytics estimated that Obama’s American Jobs Act would create 1.9 million jobs, grow the economy by 2 percent and cut unemployment by a percentage point. Their review of the Republicans’ plan is not nearly as favorable. In fact, the Washington Post’s Greg Sargent reports that one Moody’s economist thinks it may damage the economy even more:
But an economist I spoke to just now said there isn’t enough information in the plan to evaluate whether it could even achieve its goals as Republicans themselves have defined them. He said it won’t help the economy in the short term, and could even make matters worse.

“I don’t have enough detail to evaluate how many jobs this would create,” Gus Faucher, the director of macroeconomics at Moody’s Analytics, told me.

“Should we look at regulations and make sure they make sense from a cost benefit standpoint? Certainly. Should we reduce the budget deficit over the long run? Certainly,” Faucher said. “But in the short term, demand is weak, businesses aren’t hiring, and consumers aren’t spending. That’s the cause of the current weakness — and Republican Senate proposals aren’t going to address that in the short term.”

http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2011/10/14/344588/moodys-economist-gop-jobs-plan-recessio/

[FarLeftFist]

1. They're not even hiding it anymore.

[teddy51]

2. I am just reading the Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klien and the Repugs

are doing exactly what appears in the first 20 pages of this book. They are trying to shut down Government, and Privatize everything, and in many cases do it with some sort of disaster attached; ie: Katrina, 911 etc.

Very good read.

[FarLeftFist]

4. Great book.

[teddy51]

5. I am enjoying it for sure... Should have gotten it much sooner, but better late than never. n/t

[jwirr]

9. I had the book in my library for two years and was afraid to read it.

And it lived up to its reputation. Even so it is a must read book for anyone who loves America.

[bloomington-lib]

12. I'm reading it too

Up to Chap4 and so far and this all seems to be following the "Chicago Boys" plan to the letter.

[Aerows]

15. I cannot believe that anyone believes in the "Privatize everything" argument

anymore. It's been repeatedly proven that when you privatize portions of the government, costs are raised astronomically. It's straight up graft. Look at what has happened via the privatizing of our military. Costs have soared.

And this is what they want to do to our schools, Medicare and Social Security. It's a shameless money grab, and why people don't realize it, I'll never know. Do they honestly think taxes are going to go DOWN if everything is privatized?

Your taxes won't go down, but you can guarantee that fees (the hidden taxes) will go through the roof. We are already nickle and dimed to death - wait until everything is privatized or otherwise destroyed.

[rucky]

3. easiest poll ever

[Faygo Kid]

6. They're trying to ruin it for 99 percent to the benefit of their 1 percent masters.

I suppose in that sense, they aren't intentionally trying to ruin America - because THEIR America is to benefit those few who will suckle them, and the rest of us can shrivel up and die.

Once our poor labors and assets are taken, of course.

[OHdem10]

7. This is what happens when ideology trumps reality in a Political

Party.

The theory says this so we must do this.

[jwirr]

8. They want a level wage field for their companies. Bringing us down

to lower wages.

[Aerows]

16. Exactly

That's what business owners DO. They are in it to make money, and the unethical ones will pay as little as they possibly can, and have as few workers as they possibly can. That's why it is so critical to keep our laws that prevent people from being exploited. It's already bad enough for a lot of "managers" at these stores that are on salary - they work 70 and 80 hours a week as everything from the janitor to the stocker to the cashier - just so owners can keep expenses low.

Don't they realize that when you keep taking money out of the pockets of the people that eventually they won't be able to buy any of your products?

[lumberjack_jeff]

10. They're intentionally trying to destroy american government.

They're not bright enough to realize that this might have some ramifications for themselves.

[toddwv]

11. The nation as a whole is just collateral damage.

Their goal it so end social spending and return America to the "glory" days that existed, in their besotted minds, prior to the labor movement that led to prosperity in this nation.

[Douglas Carpenter]

13. they are certainly trying to harm the economy intentionally. In fact I'm sure if President Obama

proposed exactly what the Republicans are proposing through their “Jobs Through Growth Act” they would try to block it. But the vast majority of Republicans in their own minds are simply unable to distinguish feelings of patriotism for America from commitment to right-wing ideology and support for the Republican Party. To the overwhelming majority of today's Republicans supporting right-wing ideology and the Republican Party is being patriotic - opposing - even qualified and selective opposition to right-wing ideology and the Republican Party is being unpatriotic. That is how most of them think these days.

[Aerows]

14. Republicans in Washington?

Intentionally.

Rank and file Republicans? They believe the lies that Republicans in Washington feed them despite it being proven over and over again that Republican policies only benefit the few. They unintentionally support the ruin of our nation.

[TheKentuckian]

20. Willful ignorance is no accident, I don't give their rank and file a pass.

I don't give our politicians a pass on the damage they are doing to our nation or their refusal to propose and make arguments for actual solutions instead of Republican poison band-aids either.

My question is more do our Democratic rank and file deserve a pass? They seemed to be able to perceive the problems much more clearly when the opposition was in charge, so it isn't that we don't know any better.

To a degree, I cannot ignore the binary trap of the two party system. Logically, taking the least bad choice consistently is all that can be done, no matter what the actual result, it is better than the worst choice being made at any point along the decision tree. The problem that I don't accept is the lack of will and purpose to every change the options we control for the better through the wedding process designed into the system known as the primary process nor is their much widespread will to make our politicians accountable to us rather than be accountable for being less bad than the opposition which allows the Republicans to set the debate and makes their failed ideology universally accepted because there isn't the space for a debate. We are constrained to mitigating their worst excessed while the regular excess are accepted into the common wisdom.

There is no political option for a better future, greater self determination, broader prosperity, peace, reduced poverty, more responsible stewardship of our habitat and resources, and greater opportunity for all.

[madokie]

17. The pukies want to roll us back to the sixties

environmental wise that is. Their plan may add jobs but look at the cost it would be at.

[LuvNewcastle]

18. Yes. For the past few decades,

many American corporations have become international conglomerates. They have no loyalty to America. Rather than attempt to bring the rest of the world up to America's standards, as was done in Europe and Japan after WWII, they chose to bring down the West's standard of living to the level of emerging nations like India and China. This could not be done quickly, of course, or there would have been massive backlash; it had to be done in stages. They took over both political parties and they gutted unions and worker protection laws. Environmental laws are being discarded and now, perhaps most importantly, they are destroying the last of the social safety nets. Soon, we'll all have two choices: we can go to work for slave wages or go die or get maimed in one of the never-ending wars. Unless something significant takes place, that's the future I see for America.

[blkmusclmachine]

19. GOP is trying to destroy America.

Unfortunately, too many DEM's in DC are happy to go along to get along.