The Road Less Traveled

Economic choices

Let taxes be raised in order to give people money so they can spend our way out of trouble.

Lower taxes and let people keep more of what they make so they can spend our way out of trouble.

The third dirty little secret: cut business tax and let companies hire people so they can spend our way out of trouble.

Ireland was once the poorest of the poor countries in Europe.
In Ireland much like in Michigan: spending fueled by taxing were both out of control. Both were trying the raise taxes approach. Their respective economies were in shambles and jobs were few. The young and the brightest of the college grads were leaving for greener shores. At least the ones who could. The poor as always were left behind.

As Deputy Prime Minister of Ireland Mary Hamey said.
“We went on a borrowing, spending and taxing spree, and that nearly drove us under,"

Next the article went on to say that Ireland made some changes in the business tax rates. Ireland decided to change course and go on the lower taxes approach. The road less traveled. They slashed them to 12.5%. Here is the quote. “This change included a corporate tax rate cut to 12.5 percent, far below the rest of Europe, which attracted foreign investment. Nine of ten of the world's top pharmaceutical companies and seven of the top ten software designers currently have operations in Ireland.” The country is flourishing. The article tells of a pre capital wealth greater than France Germany and Britain. Other articles refer to Ireland’s nearly immediate economic turnaround as miraculous.

-----link to above quotes-----
http://www.taxfoundation.org/blog/show/626.html
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What about Michigan?
Michigan didn’t follow that path. We went on the other road. For some reason the one more traveled. What are our prospects for future growth in Michigan? What will we do to stem the tide and keep our young from leaving and breaking up our families?

Well from the sounds of it the Democrat party and their front runner for Governor seem to think everything is fine and we will do well.

I used to think that the first step in solving a problem was to admit there is one. John Cherry so far doesn’t seem to see there is a problem. I lifted the next quote from an article By Nick at Right Michigan in which he quotes the Detroit Free Press. Nick also made the point way before I. But something this serious I see no harm in piling on.
------quote-----
Cherry will run on Gov. Jennifer Granholm's record of working to retool and diversify Michigan's economy to take advantage of green energy. Granholm is term limited and cannot run for reelection...
"We laid the groundwork for an ambitious agenda to revive our economy, restore our standing in the world, and pave the way for a clean energy future -- a future that starts right in Michigan," Cherry said. "And we're just getting started."
-----Right Michigan link------
http://www.rightmichigan.com/story/2009/2/23/74047/6619
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This is just the beginning of my rant. Michigan is just one of the group getting on the band wagon. As we travel down the road well traveled. As this country creeps closer to nationalizing banks and the auto industry through our tax dollars as leverage; we seem eerily to be following in the footsteps of socialist dictators. Currently Chavez in Venezuela will serve as an example. As much and as loudly as the Liberal press has lauded him, I use the word example as an example of how the Democrat leaders view him and his experiments.

Chavez has tried the first method in Venezuela. He too has gone on a reckless spending spree and the results are becoming obvious as the link below shows.
-----link-----
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/venezuela/4938993/Venezuelas-Hugo-Chavez-tightens-state-control-of-food-amid-rocketing-inflation-and-food-shortages.html
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In the article the author says. “Government price controls on basic goods have been in place, in various forms, since 2003. But the restrictions have forced Venezuela to become increasingly reliant on imports of these products as local farmers will not supply the selected food staples at government prices.”

That makes sense to me. I wouldn’t either. He keeps telling the farmers when what and how much to plant and at what price to sell, and they have gone broke of quit growing the products.

The conclusion that the author then makes leaves me scratching my head. He says. “Mr Chavez last month won a referendum allowing him to stand indefinitely for re-election. With that now achieved the Venezuelan leader, who has vowed to turn his South American nation into a model Socialist state, is now taking some unpopular decisions needed to stabilise his floundering economy.” What Chavez is doing is more of what got him in the mess to start with. Of course they are unpopular, the people are starving. If he nationalizes the farmers he will have to force them to farm at gunpoint and we all have seen what the results in Russia were under that idea. I guess he figures it’s the only way he has left of keeping his base, the poor, happy or at least locked up. Too bad the author didn’t have a “history check”; but then again he didn’t use his spell check so I doubt wrong history would bother him much.

I hope President Obama’s closeness with Granholm and Chavez doesn’t give him too many more ideas. The ones he is doing are bad enough. But keep in mind that Chavez is using the “national security” idea for nationalizing food. I hear echoes of that when I hear different groups calling for laws to prohibit food in restaurants that is “unhealthy”. Ie. cheese burgers and fast foods. Or more to the point, louder echoes when I hear that obesity is a national epidemic that we need to do something about. An epidemic is not far from being a “national security” issue. The whole idea the left has come up with of suing the food makers for what people eat as they have done with the cigarette industry and are trying with the gun industry create a loud ringing echo coming in from the backdoor.

For a big “bang” of an echo, how about “nationalizing” cows due to their flatulence and their effect on global warming. But I digress.

Just a related thought: maybe the millions of little guys in the few Big Unions ought to pay closer attention to what happens when you make the terrible factory owners pay more and more and have less and less control over what they sell and for how much.

Now is the time to do that, when there are still secret ballots.

Most American workers can see the earmarked pig through the lipstick. I have more faith that the workers will dare, the states run by bureaucracies will dare in far fewer numbers. Ireland broke the path and is beckoning for us to follow them up that road less travelled.

Regards, Live Dangerously Be A Conservative

Ps. That Gordon Brown, the traveller of the well trodden path in Europe, is getting his butt kicked in England by the conservatives and David Cameron. I see he is blabbering to us about how well the "same old" will make things different. Coming to our country and doing that is as obvious a calculated political move as what? Voting Present?