Straight from the South Seas

Straight from the South Seas
Retired Expat living the Philippines

Augustus Summerfield Merrimon

This Blog is dedicated to my great-great-grand uncle who was a Democratic US Senator from the state of North Carolina between 1873 and 1879.

Showing posts with label unemployment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unemployment. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Mexico, Drugs and the Recession

I wonder sometimes what the politicians in Washington might do in this great recession; they might be able to deflect the jobless recovery for several years by waging war on the drug cartels. Would Mexico allow to a takeover by the cartels or would they willingly turn to the US for guns and butter? Some African nations might go along for the economic benefits.

Invading Mexico would truly bring the drug wars to the US. The Mexican people and the world will not stand by if the US repeats its adventures into Mexico as we did so many years ago. The previous wars were not that popular, except in some regions of the South West. I’m there will be always someone who cheers that. When people in the US start dying because of the stupidity of a leadership that chooses to ignore the reality of what happened with regards to prohibition, the consequences to the cost will be enormous.

The careless attitude expressed about war, suggests someone more interested in a political agenda than anything to benefit Americans, and the misreading of history is enormous. Which is exactly right is saying - worked out in the rise of something similar to Nazism. I can imagine that if the government was looking to take the pressure off the working class they would round up the illegals and send them packing.

In the short-term the government will need some policy to pretend at leadership. I just think that, looking at the prospects, I guess waging a real shoot-em up war with the cartels would be their best shot while waiting out the recession.

I often wonder how the Afghan and Iraq wars have lasted far longer than WWII. Did it take that long to restore the oil fields and get oil flowing again? Didn’t the Al-Queda leave the battle field years ago?

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

General Powell’s remarks about the President

Here are retired General Powell’s remarks about President Barack Obama on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on last Sunday:

Powell said; “You can't just sit around beating up the President. But the President also has to I think shift the way in which he has been doing things. I think the American People feel that too many programs have come down. There are so many rocks in our knapsack now that we're having trouble carrying it. I think the President has to like a like a razor blade, just go right after the single issue that is uppermost in the minds of the American People and that's employment. And he's done a lot with health care, with cap and trade, with education. And I understand the importance of all of that. But as far as the American People are concerned, the main attack is employment. … I think he has lost some of the ability to connect that he had during the campaign. And it is not just me picking on the President. It's reflected in the polling. Some of the anxiety and anger that you see out there, I think comes from a belief on the part of the American People, whether it's correct or incorrect, and the White House would say it's incorrect, that not enough attention, his singular focus should be on employment…”

President Obama is all these things and more, that's why the confusion. People are left going in all kinds of different directions at once, and aside from being against Obama, there’s nothing new, nothing fresh for Republicans to be for. The Republicans can’t keep their emotional rant against Obama and the Democrats up forever. Sooner or later the anger and fear won’t have the punch they once did, and the Republicans won’t be the party that can take things in new directions. They’ll be the party of tired old rivals. For how can America go forward to reclaim being number one in the world? Given that Smaller Government and Less Spending cannot be the only answer.

But are those jobs quality jobs that a person can support themselves on or low paying service sector minimum wage jobs? We used to make steel in America, now we make happy meals.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

HAPPY UNEMPLOYMENT DAY, USA!




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