Category Archives: Debt

UPDATED (12/2): Puerto-Rican Politicians & Activists Using POTUS As Their Piñata

Debt, Donald Trump, Economy, IMMIGRATION, Media

The American media and manipulative Puerto-Rican politicians are using President Trump as a piñata. Poke and pound him and the American taxpayer enough until, stateside, everyone is soon apologizing for merely existing, and coughing up into the coffers of corrupt representatives.

By all means, help the largely tax-exempt Puerto Rico territory. But realize, admit and quit the cover-up of the fact that Puerto Rico is a socialized, fiscally bankrupt, systemically corrupt “welfare state with a labor force participation rate one-third less than in the United States.” Wondering why there’s no power and water? “The major Puerto Rican state-owned or controlled enterprises are all losing money, including the power authority which is insolvent”:

… Puerto Rico has a bloated government with far too many employees, unstainable pension obligations, and an intolerable level of corruption. The proper solution to the Puerto Rican debt problem is for the U.S. government to establish a “control board,” which Congress has the authority to do. This past Friday, Rep. Jeff Duncan, South Carolina Republican, of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sent a letter to his fellow lawmakers advocating a control board for Puerto Rico, much like the one they created for the District of Columbia a couple of decades back, when D.C. was in danger of default because of mismanagement.

Puerto Rico needs fundamental restructuring of its pension and civil service systems. It needs to sell all of its interests in the fully or partially state-owned enterprises. That is, privatize them. (How many more hundreds of years will we need before the political class learns that socialism — i.e. state-owned enterprises — always fails)? In Hong Kong, even most of the transportation infrastructure is in private hands — and it is clean, efficient, attractive, and works without government subsidies.

Puerto Rico needs to radically reduce government spending, taxes and regulation so it begins to attract foreign capital again rather than driving it away. Puerto Rico is now a welfare state with a labor force participation rate one-third less than in the United States. Many of the most productive Puerto Ricans have moved to the mainland — but could be attracted back with their high-level job skills if the economic environment was made attractive again. Puerto Rico needs to embrace the Hong Kong economic freedom model, rather than the Greek model of too much government. …

MORE: “Puerto Rico Is America’s Greece By Richard W. Rahn.”

UPDATED (12/2):


Even Virginia, cradle of the American republic, has gone blue.

UPDATED (12/6): Trump Tax Plan Neither Fair Nor Flat, But Based On Faction & Class Warfare

Business, Debt, Donald Trump, Economy, libertarianism, Private Property, Taxation

Whatever happened to the promise of “reducing tax rates on individuals,” Mr. President? Whatever happened to “lowering tax rates, simplifying the tax system” and overhauling the nation’s tax code? You know, to benefit ALL Americans?

President Donald Trump said Wednesday the emerging Republican tax proposal won’t cut taxes for the wealthy, and they may go up, an assurance that appeared to contradict the plan that his administration and GOP leaders are drafting.

… “The wealthy will be pretty much where they are,” Mr. Trump, a Republican, said. “If we can do that, we’d like it. If they have to go higher, they’ll go higher, frankly.”

Who are the wealthy? Two income families bringing in 100K?

Naturally, “Trump wants to lower the 35% corporate tax rate to 15%, though most analysts think that is nearly impossible.”

Gotta keep the Familia prosperous.

MORE at:

“GOP to Release Tax Overhaul as Trump Says Rich Won’t Benefit; Republicans prepare for legislative sprint on a plan they expect would cut taxes for the wealthy.”

“House, Senate Tax Proposals Likely to Diverge“:

The document will include a specific corporate tax rate and details on the deductibility of corporate interest, Mr. Mnuchin said at a separate appearance at the same event. He said news reports suggesting the six negotiators are far apart are untrue.

Corporations above all.

SEE FACEBOOK THREAD.

UPDATE (12/6):  Hands off Our Loopholes. Alas, It’s too late.

John Maynard Keynes’ Influence At Harvard Business School, And Beyond

Debt, Economy, Political Economy, Socialism

Interesting points about what the procession of Harvard Business School elites has wrought on the American economy were made on Tucker Carlson Tonight. Making them was Duff McDonald, author of The Golden Passport.

Nothing in the interview was said about the baleful contribution of John Maynard Keynes’s credit and consumption-based voodoo economics on the entrenched thinking at Harvard Business School, and on world political establishment. (That’s not to say Keynes’ “politically inspired economic theory” is not covered in the book. It could well be.)

Because consumption is its be-all and end-all, consumer confidence is crucial to the Cult of Keynes. If the consumer is not crazy confident—even when he ought not to be—goes the “thinking,” he’ll quit consuming until he drops. In short, Keynesian economic animists hope that the holy spirit of “confidence” will enter the once bitten, twice shy lender, and make him lend. The same spell is supposed to mysteriously move the unemployed and penniless to spend.

In his wonderfully learned book, The Failure of the ‘New Economics, Henry Hazlitt summed-up the essence of Keynes’ General Theory: “The great virtue is Consumption, extravagance, improvidence. The great vice is Saving, thrift, ‘financial prudence.'” Duly, Keynes’ acolytes in all administrations are always vowing to make credit flow “the way it should.” Never mind that “all credit is debt,” and that, in Hazlitt’s words, “proposals for an increased volume of credit are merely another name for proposals for an increased burden of debt.”

Open Borders & GDP: Relying On One Statist Scam (GDP) To Promote Another

Debt, Economy, Free Markets, Government, IMMIGRATION, libertarianism, Paleolibertarianism

Ilya Somin, Professor of Law at George Mason University, states that “free migration throughout the world could potentially double world gross domestic product.”

Relying on the GDP measure to motivate for open borders is typical of the arguments made by lite libertarians.

The GDP measure is itself a state-driven metric. Official GDP numbers are deceptive because they chart—and include—the growth of government debt. In order to come to grips with America’s real economic prognosis, you must tease apart modest economic growth from the monstrous accretion of public debt.

“The GDP is a political construct, defined, tracked and manipulated by the D.C. political machine. GDP statistically conflates the growth of debt with economic growth.”

In a word, the good and surely sincere professor is relying on one statist scam, GDP, to promote another, centrally planned mass immigration.

Besides, a country is more than an economy.