Posted by
voice_of_reason on Sunday, November 02, 2008 8:34:17 AM
The centerpiece of Sen. Obama's economic policy is his middle-class tax cut, which is euphemistically called the trickle-up theory of wealth creation (or is it wealth redistribution?). For campaign rhetoric purposes, trickle-up resonates nicely as a populist response to the concept of a trickle-down economy.
Quick! how many times have you been hired by a person who was not rich, or at least well-to-do? Govt. workers need not respond!
Needing only just enough votes to win the election, Sen. Obama, like all Leftists before him, are seeking to buy middle class votes with their soak-the-rich rhetoric.
The melt-down of the markets, has caused enough people to fear that Capitalism has failed, and that nothing, short of redistribution by the Govt, can save us. With Sen. McCain and other Republicans also voting for the bail-out, there is nothing in our current political discourse that ideologically opposes the 'Capitalism has failed, we need Govt intervention' mindset .
Note: this is what happens when ideology is ignored in an atmosphere of despairing pragmatism. Ever since "he is an ideologue" became a pejorative statement, the stage has been set for massive compromises such as the big bail-out. Observe, that the Leftists have not abandoned their ideology - in fact, it was on full display with the 'Joe the Plumber' incident - so, they have no need to compromise. They are smart enough to cloak their outright Socialist impulses, but only until Nov 4th 2008. The gifted and charismatic Sen. Obama is very successfully using Leftist ideology to seduce those who are susceptible to its charms. It just so happens that there are many more who fall into this category as a result of the financial crisis. What we are seeing here is a strange and repulsive moral inversion, in which conservative principles are being compromised en masse, while Leftists are claiming the moral high ground.
But what exactly will trickle-up economics give the middle class?
Initially it will bring:
* tax relief - for middle-class folks who pay taxes
* welfare - for those who don't pay taxes
* 'free' health insurance for all
During a period of economic uncertainty, it is easy to find short-sighted voters in the bottom 80% of the income Bell Curve who can be seduced by visions of sugar plums and benign Govt policies! So, why do politicians work so hard to seduce the bottom 80%, even if it means sacrificing the most productive segment of our population? To paraphrase Willie Sutton, the famed bank robber, "that's where the votes are!" The worst of it is that everyone loses, in the long run, including those whom the trickle-up policies were intended to help.
Here is the long-term reality, caused by well-intentioned trickle-up Govt economic policies:
* higher unemployment - caused by the removal of massive amounts of capital from our economic system
* a bear market in stocks, driving down retirement accounts
* lower quality health care that is rationed
* new bureaucracies that will be rife with political cronyism, influence peddling and graft
So, here is the question that Sen. McCain should be asking, in the last days of this campaign:
"What good is a tax cut, if you don't have a job?"