August 11, 2026

When the government picks winners, the applicants might already be losers

Maybe it’s time to choose leaders who won’t keep “picking winners” by subsidizing private businesses and using government to compete with the market? Even the Chinese can make a city look good by pouring enough money into it. Just look at the Olympics. That doesn’t mean the economy will do better because of it.

Government subsidies equal corporate welfare. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Washington, D.C. or West Valley City, it’s the same thing. Whether it’s Solyndra or UTOPIA, the more a company shells out to get onto the public assistance, the less likely it would perform well in the market. Spending more money on campaign donations and lobbying might be correllated. [cont…]

Obama’s 2012 Budget Proposal is a Trip to La-la Land.

What would you say if I told you that the Obama Administration is proposing in a budget that cuts out spending to the equivalent to getting a penny off of your Wendy’s value meal?

Let’s be clear: for an administration that has had to deal with the worst economy in decades, the Obama Administration has proven an uncanny ability to live in La-la Land when it comes time to make a budget.

I don’t say this to attack the Obama Administration on its handling of the economy. Indeed, that might be seen as a different issue. Rather, I point it out because it is significant in that budgeting is how the executive branch sets its priorities for the coming year. As yet, over the course of his tenure in the White House, the President has not had a budget survive through Congress, even when his party controlled both the Senate and House.

Further, it is widely accepted by economists that once national debt exceeds 90% of GDP (gross domestic product or the value of everything a country produces in a year), “annual economic growth tends to be about one percentage point lower.” The current GDP for the US is about$14.58 Trillion. The current national debt is at $15.087 Trillion, or about 103.45% of GDP. [cont…]

Twelve Adults and the CBO: How many adults in the room?

The much ballyhooed Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction–aka the “supercommittee”–was supposed to hear a history of the debt crisis today. You can imagine how well that was going to go over.  Partisans from both sides were prepared, I’m sure, to lay blame for the federal government’s fiscal problems at their opponents feet. “It […]

The Debt is Too Darn High

Apparently, that thing about ostriches sticking their head in the sand is no joke. Nor is it without parallel in the human world. The other day I cited a study by a several prominent economists. Their research argued, quite persuasively, that excessive debt tends to inhibit economic growth. They looked a thirty year period,  included the debt levels of […]

Debt too high saps economic growth.

Debt. You don’t like it. I don’t like it. No one likes it. And yet, without it, much of the prosperity and technological progress we rely upon would not be possible. Finance and the power of compound interest has thrust our economy forward faster than any in history. Yet, compound interest is not a tool […]

Downgrade.

From the S&P report (via HollyontheHill): Political brinksmanship of recent months highlights what we see as America’s governance and policymaking becoming less stable, less effective, and less predictable than what we previously believed. Thestatutory debt ceiling and the threat of default have becomepolitical bargaining chips in the debate over fiscal policy. Despite this year’s wide-ranging debate, in our view, […]

Perspectives on last week’s debt debate: two sides of the same coin

How the “left” sees the recent debt ceiling debate/crisis… And how the “right” sees it… Is it any surprise that the politicians had a hard time finding a middle ground? They don’t see eye to eye on what the problem is in the first place. Also, what’s with this “super committee” that’s lacking any deficit […]