Opinions and Letters

RE: Bain’s gain, town’s loss

These people in South Carolina, whose town has been destroyed by Bain’s looting practices, say, “well that’s Capitalism.” Is it?  Rather, should it be?

Yes, this country was built on capitalism. With the industrial revolution came people who made huge amounts of money from, for example, the railroads. They built their empires on the backs of those who worked for them, with no regard to any reward to those whose daily work made their fortunes possible. Through the ensuing years, some of those workers, with the help of Unions, and with the realization of ethical business owners that they did not do this all themselves, developed into the middle class. These were people who didn’t own the business, but who took pride in their companies and in their work.

Now we are moving backwards. Is what Bain did to the businesses they bought, destroyed, and took millions from legal? Clearly, yes. Is it ethical? Clearly, No. This election is not about socialism vs. capitalism. It is about whether we will accept this unethical form of capitalism practiced by Bain and companies like Bain. Should someone like Mitt Romney, who inherited a fortune ,  who increased that fortune at the expense of those who worked for the businesses his company destroyed,  who oversaw sending any remaining jobs overseas, and who now says that those who are not wealthy like him are simply jealous, be elected President of the United States? 

Most people in this country believe it to be and ethical country. Few people in this country want to destroy capitalism. Most of us want an ethical form of capitalism where those who work are rewarded fairly and are able to take pride in a job well done. No one should be allowed to make millions of dollars the way Bain and like companies had been allowed to do. We must tell Mitt Romney that we are not jealous of him. Rather, we hold his unethical behavior in distain.

Mary Lou Ambrose, club Secretary, Belleair Bluffs

 

Do You Remember?

 

Cain calls claims 'bogus': Poor crisis management

I find it interesting that the "family values" party that came after Bill Clinton with such disdain is making excuses for Herman Cain.

However, regardless of the final outcome of the sexual harassment charges, a troubling aspect of this matter has been overlooked. POLITICO uncovered this matter. Before publication, they gave the Cain camp 10 days' notice that the story was going public. After 10 days, during which time the story could have been vetted and a rational response could have been prepared, Cain had no idea how to respond.
He knew nothing; then he knew something; then he did not know these women; then he admitted knowing them but the payments to the women were not "settlements" but "agreements"; then it all became a Democratic "conspiracy" to keep a businessman out of the White House.

Herman Cain wants to be president, but he cannot respond to a story with 10 days' notice. How would he react to a threat to the United States? How would he handle a crisis of any type?

Take notice, voters.

Mary Louise Ambrose, Belleair Bluffs

(Club Secretary)

This was published in the Nov 9 edition of the St. Pete Times.

We Must Learn from the 2010 Elections and Do Better!

We must learn from the 2010 elections and do better in the future!  That was the message of most of our club members as we reviewed the elections at our November meeting, at the PCDEC volunteer picnic and in various discussions and email exchanges since then.

In order to do so, we must understand what occurred in 2010.  Local returns in our Pinellas County precincts suggest some of the answers.  First and foremost, there was a surge of Republican turnout in 2010 compared with 2006.  Democratic turnout over 2006 also increased, thanks in large part to the Get Out the Vote drives that our club, the PCDEC, the Campaign for Accountability, the Gulfport Democrats and others mounted.  However, the Republicans’ surge in participation was so great that it swamped our Democratic efforts.  The result was that 21,000 more Republicans than Democrats voted in Pinellas County, even though Democrats enjoyed a registration edge of more than 10,000.  Only Alex Sink was able to overcome the effects of the Republican turnout advantage to win at the countywide level; and she was ably assisted by the especially poor quality of her opponent, Rick Scott, and a divisive Republican primary.  Even though such Democrats as Janet Long, Bill Heller and Bob Hackworth were able to appeal very effectively to nonpartisan and independent voters and even some Republicans in November, they lost because Republican turnout in their districts was so high relative to that of Democrats and independents that it constituted a near-majority ( in a county with a Democratic registration plurality).  In all of the other urban counties in Florida, the pattern was even less favorable to Democrats than in Pinellas County.  Although our results were somewhat discouraging, it is important to know that we did generate more Democratic turnout here than in most of Florida. 

Most of the reasons for the Republicans’ surge in 2010 and their victories in Pinellas County and elsewhere can be traced to actions (and inactions) at the national and state levels.  These included:

What Democrats Did In 21 Months (Policy over Politics)

Adapted and excerpted from the CFAF Newsletter of Nov 2, 2010

Rachel Maddow analyzes the Democratic record being judged on Election Day: "A lot of hard stuff done on hard problems in a short amount of time.": "The legislative agenda of the last 21 months was policy, not politics. It was designed to get stuff done for the country and in that sense, it's an investment in long-term political reward, not short-term political reward ... Hard votes with long-time horizons that don't translate into killing the other party in the next election."

Rachel Maddow analyzes the Democratic record being judged on Election Day: "A lot of hard stuff done on hard problems in a short amount of time.": "The legislative agenda of the last 21 months was policy, not politics. It was designed to get stuff done for the country and in that sense, it's an investment in long-term political reward, not short-term political reward ... Hard votes with long-time horizons that don't translate into killing the other party in the next election." Health reform already working, as small businesses expand coverage thanks to tax incentives. WSJ: "The number of small businesses offering health insurance to workers is projected to increase sharply this year, recent data show, a shift that researchers attribute to a tax credit in the health law ... According to a report by Bernstein Research in New York, the percentage of employers with between three and nine workers and which are offering insurance has increased to 59% this year, up from 46% last year." GM ready to gradually reduce government stake, as Treasury forces plan to maximize taxpayer investment. NYT: "The automaker is planning a three-for-one stock split that will bring its total outstanding shares to about 1.5 billion ... Through the offering, the Treasury Department, which gained a 61 percent stake in G.M. as part of its $50 billion bailout of the company last year, will sell about $7 billion worth of shares. That will cut its holdings in the company to just more than 43 percent ... Treasury intends to further reduce its holdings with subsequent stock sales over several years ... The company’s former government-appointed chief executive, Edward E. Whitacre Jr., had expressed a desire to sell the Treasury Department’s stake all at once if possible. But Treasury pushed back, seeking to maximize the price it fetched for its shares." Who turns out will make the difference. W. Post's E. J. Dionne: "Perhaps the likely voter screens are wrong and young voters will surprise the pollsters. Or the Democrats will have to go back and ask themselves if there was more they could have done to keep younger voters engaged. And the country will have to ask if it should be drawing excessively broad conclusions about the entire country from a midterm election in which older voters are vastly overrepresented compared with members of the rising generation." Third Way seeks to expand influence with Dems, attack "left-wing economic populism." Politico: "With cap and trade effectively dead in a Republican House, Third Way will release a 'Plan B”' for energy reform. On Dec. 7, it’s hosting a summit on nuclear energy — one of the group’s big causes — with Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Obama energy czar Carol Browner. It will come out with a paper on the need for changes that could save Social Security, which it presents as a direct challenge to economist Paul Krugman."

Health reform already working, as small businesses expand coverage thanks to tax incentives. WSJ: "The number of small businesses offering health insurance to workers is projected to increase sharply this year, recent data show, a shift that researchers attribute to a tax credit in the health law ... According to a report by Bernstein Research in New York, the percentage of employers with between three and nine workers and which are offering insurance has increased to 59% this year, up from 46% last year."

GM ready to gradually reduce government stake, as Treasury forces plan to maximize taxpayer investment. NYT: "The automaker is planning a three-for-one stock split that will bring its total outstanding shares to about 1.5 billion ... Through the offering, the Treasury Department, which gained a 61 percent stake in G.M. as part of its $50 billion bailout of the company last year, will sell about $7 billion worth of shares. That will cut its holdings in the company to just more than 43 percent ... Treasury intends to further reduce its holdings with subsequent stock sales over several years ... The company’s former government-appointed chief executive, Edward E. Whitacre Jr., had expressed a desire to sell the Treasury Department’s stake all at once if possible. But Treasury pushed back, seeking to maximize the price it fetched for its shares."

Who turns out will make the difference. W. Post's E. J. Dionne: "Perhaps the likely voter screens are wrong and young voters will surprise the pollsters. Or the Democrats will have to go back and ask themselves if there was more they could have done to keep younger voters engaged. And the country will have to ask if it should be drawing excessively broad conclusions about the entire country from a midterm election in which older voters are vastly overrepresented compared with members of the rising generation."

Third Way seeks to expand influence with Dems, attack "left-wing economic populism." Politico: "With cap and trade effectively dead in a Republican House, Third Way will release a 'Plan B”' for energy reform. On Dec. 7, it’s hosting a summit on nuclear energy — one of the group’s big causes — with Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Obama energy czar Carol Browner. It will come out with a paper on the need for changes that could save Social Security, which it presents as a direct challenge to economist Paul Krugman."

 



Stop calling opinion polls news

Remember the days when the media called a national election before California voters finished voting?   A stop was put to that.  Why, now, is the Times calling the election against Democrats?  You are causing those who may have voted for Democratic candidates to skip voting because they believe the election is already over.

I remind you that a poll reported in the Times on Aug 19 showed Bill MCollum with a 9 perentae point lead over Rick Scott.  It is not your responsibility to make the news, just to report it.

Polls are not news.  They are easily manipulated and not as scientific as you would like to believe.  Leave the decisionmaking to the voters and keep your opinions on the editorial page.

Mary Louise Ambrose, Belleair Bluffs (Club Member)

published on Oct 28, 2010

Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

By Dave Johnson

October 22nd, 2010 - 1:07pm ET

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(Note: The words that appear in red are links that you can click.)

There are a number things the public "knows" as we head into the election that are just false. If people elect leaders based on false information, the things those leaders do in office will not be what the public expects or needs.

Here are eight of the biggest myths that are out there:

1) President Obama tripled the deficit.
Reality: Bush's last budget had a $1.416 trillion deficit. Obama's first budget reduced that to $1.29 trillion.

2) President Obama raised taxes, which hurt the economy.
Reality: Obama cut taxes. 40% of the "stimulus" was wasted on tax cuts which only create debt, which is why it was so much less effective than it could have been.

3) President Obama bailed out the banks.
Reality: While many people conflate the "stimulus" with the bank bailouts, the bank bailouts were requested by President Bush and his Treasury Secretary, former Goldman Sachs CEO Henry Paulson. (Paulson also wanted the bailouts to be "non-reviewable by any court or any agency.") The bailouts passed and began before the 2008 election of President Obama.

4) The stimulus didn't work.
Reality: The stimulus worked, but was not enough. In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the stimulus raised employment by between 1.4 million and 3.3 million jobs.

5) Businesses will hire if they get tax cuts.
Reality: A business hires the right number of employees to meet demand. Having extra cash does not cause a business to hire, but a business that has a demand for what it does will find the money to hire. Businesses want customers, not tax cuts.

6) Health care reform costs $1 trillion.
Reality: The health care reform reduces government deficits by $138 billion.

7) Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, is "going broke," people live longer, fewer workers per retiree, etc.
Reality: Social Security has run a surplus since it began, has a trust fund in the trillions, is completely sound for at least 25 more years and cannot legally borrow so cannot contribute to the deficit (compare that to the military budget!) Life expectancy is only longer because fewer babies die; people who reach 65 live about the same number of years as they used to.

8) Government spending takes money out of the economy.
Reality: Government is We, the People and the money it spends is on We, the People. Many people do not know that it is government that builds the roads, airports, ports, courts, schools and other things that are the soil in which business thrives. Many people think that all government spending is on "welfare" and "foreign aid" when that is only a small part of the government's budget.

This stuff really matters.

If the public votes in a new Congress because a majority of voters think this one tripled the deficit, and as a result the new people follow the policies that actually tripled the deficit, the country could go broke.

If the public votes in a new Congress that rejects the idea of helping to create demand in the economy because they think it didn't work, then the new Congress could do things that cause a depression.

If the public votes in a new Congress because they think the health care reform will increase the deficit when it is actually projected to reduce the deficit, then the new Congress could repeal health care reform and thereby make the deficit worse. And on it goes.

Eight False Things The Public “Knows” Prior To Election Day

By Dave Johnson

October 22nd, 2010 - 1:07pm ET

---

(Note: The words that appear in red are links that you can click.)

There are a number things the public "knows" as we head into the election that are just false. If people elect leaders based on false information, the things those leaders do in office will not be what the public expects or needs.

Here are eight of the biggest myths that are out there:

1) President Obama tripled the deficit.
Reality: Bush's last budget had a $1.416 trillion deficit. Obama's first budget reduced that to $1.29 trillion.

2) President Obama raised taxes, which hurt the economy.
Reality: Obama cut taxes. 40% of the "stimulus" was wasted on tax cuts which only create debt, which is why it was so much less effective than it could have been.

3) President Obama bailed out the banks.
Reality: While many people conflate the "stimulus" with the bank bailouts, the bank bailouts were requested by President Bush and his Treasury Secretary, former Goldman Sachs CEO Henry Paulson. (Paulson also wanted the bailouts to be "non-reviewable by any court or any agency.") The bailouts passed and began before the 2008 election of President Obama.

4) The stimulus didn't work.
Reality: The stimulus worked, but was not enough. In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, the stimulus raised employment by between 1.4 million and 3.3 million jobs.

5) Businesses will hire if they get tax cuts.
Reality: A business hires the right number of employees to meet demand. Having extra cash does not cause a business to hire, but a business that has a demand for what it does will find the money to hire. Businesses want customers, not tax cuts.

6) Health care reform costs $1 trillion.
Reality: The health care reform reduces government deficits by $138 billion.

7) Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, is "going broke," people live longer, fewer workers per retiree, etc.
Reality: Social Security has run a surplus since it began, has a trust fund in the trillions, is completely sound for at least 25 more years and cannot legally borrow so cannot contribute to the deficit (compare that to the military budget!) Life expectancy is only longer because fewer babies die; people who reach 65 live about the same number of years as they used to.

8) Government spending takes money out of the economy.
Reality: Government is We, the People and the money it spends is on We, the People. Many people do not know that it is government that builds the roads, airports, ports, courts, schools and other things that are the soil in which business thrives. Many people think that all government spending is on "welfare" and "foreign aid" when that is only a small part of the government's budget.

This stuff really matters.

If the public votes in a new Congress because a majority of voters think this one tripled the deficit, and as a result the new people follow the policies that actually tripled the deficit, the country could go broke.

If the public votes in a new Congress that rejects the idea of helping to create demand in the economy because they think it didn't work, then the new Congress could do things that cause a depression.

If the public votes in a new Congress because they think the health care reform will increase the deficit when it is actually projected to reduce the deficit, then the new Congress could repeal health care reform and thereby make the deficit worse. And on it goes.

Vote Progressive on Nov 2! Recomendations on Amendments

ProgressFLorida  has published a Guide for the Amendments on the 2010 Ballot.    Their guide shows not just the Progress Florida recommendations, but those of other Progressive groups, including the ACLU and Unions.

YOu can dowload the Guide here and take it with you the polls....

Liberals love America, but want it better for all

I've never understood why/when "liberal"   became a dirty word.  Here's a letter to the editor I spotted in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently that I think addresses very well that issue. I Didn't see the letter it references.  

"In 'Liberals have lost touch with many Americans,' the writer implies that 'liberals' do not love this country, its way of life, and individual freedom.

"Perhaps liberals view America through a different lens - one that focuses on opportunities for the many and the preservation of human rights and social justice for all. Rather than indulging in the narcissism of the right, with its "I've got mine" mentality, many of us (while acutely aware of our own personal blessings) also are acutely aware of those among us who are not so fortunate. If anyone has lost touch, it is those who wrap themselves in the American flag and trumpet their "discontent" with the emerging changes in our society that are necessary for us to continue to grow and prosper as a nation."

Submitted by Kathleen Jamison