How would you turn the economy around?

[Das Texan]

Semi related and semi not related:

You can only have one child while on state assistance. After that you are ed for life. If you cannot afford a baby, then so be it. If you cant pay then you goto jail and your parental rights get terminated. There are plenty of couples that WANT to adopt, but the ing bureauracy that exists makes it nearly impossible, unless you want some ed up meth head kid.

This will alleviate a tremendous burden on the state systems in the long run. Short term there may be costs associated with ramping the program up, but long term it at the very least makes for a better society and shuts off these baby factory milk the got damn system welfare moms.


On that note, your benefits have to run out at some point, you cannot simply stay on aid for years upon years. Its your choice to open your ing legs, deal with it. Grow up and be an adult.

Though Universal Health Care would be a step toward joining the ing post modern world, you could still limit aid in the likes of food stamps et al to one child and for a limited period of time.

Also, being able to really export natural gas would be a good solution for the now, it should get rid of the massive amounts in storage now and also allow for prices to return to a more market based pricing system. Trying to work with ing idiots in Mexico to allow for foreign companies to come in and actually develop their reserves would do wonders for not only their economy but probably ours as well.

A simplier tax code would also be great, actually what would be great is to stop just ing over the middle class every step they get.

Term limits for Congress would eliminate career politicians and could ensure for lawmakers who will actually do productive things while in office, instead of just holding their s in a measuring contest and doing nothing useful.

[boutons_deux]

"You can only have one child while on state assistance."

I think it's AZ, a GREAT ING STATE that just never stops being THE GREATEST, that is not only effectively blocking all abortions for all reasons, but requiring raped mothers to contact/identify the "father" before mother can claim assistance. (loose paraphrase).

[I. Hustle]

[Das Texan]

"You can only have one child while on state assistance."

I think it's AZ, a GREAT ING STATE that just never stops being THE GREATEST, that is not only effectively blocking all abortions for all reasons, but requiring raped mothers to contact/identify the "father" before mother can claim assistance. (loose paraphrase).

AZ is so stupid.

They do realize that there are times when the woman has no clue who the ing asshole even is right???

[symple19]

haha @ wino's picture

Universal health care
flat tax with the exception of those who make over 250k...(higher for them but would still probably be lower than it is today after I axe half the federal government)
legalize and tax all but the most destructive drugs, decriminalize the rest
Release non-violent offenders (which would ensure the closing of probably half of the prisons, both federal and state)
Eliminate a slew of federal agencies (TSA,DHS,DEA,ATF etc etc)
Close probably half of our overseas bases. Leave the ones that are strategically important
Federally mandate a year-round schedule for schools as well as block scheduling
Federally mandate a free undergrad education for those with B averages and above, provide low rate loans for the rest
Amend the cons ution to require a balanced budget
Elimination of the federal reserve system to be replaced with a new, completely transparent organization to be formed after a massive conference filled with the brightest minds of our time (my way of saying the current system sucks and I have no real idea how to replace it)
Much, much more federal regulation of the banking system
A simple pathway to citizenship for both illegal/legal immigrants after an intensive "americanization" process whereby they are schooled in our customs and taught the language to some level of fluidity. Don't like it? Shot into the ocean where lots of sharks live by a giant cannon. Erect automated sentry cannons with interlocking fields of fire along the entire land border with both canada and mexico. mines underneath the surface and heavily increased patrols on sea routes
Heavy investment in art and music programs
Massive infrastructure investment

Politics?

Scrap everything and set up a parliamentary system which would (probably) ensure coalition building and more than 2 ty un-representative parties
Zero private funds allowed for any reason in political races/parties...Equal amounts of government money would be set aside for every single candidate/race at all levels
Take away a vast majority of state/local powers to govern themselves (by standardizing things that don't vary from state to state - highways, schools, IDs, etc... thereby eliminating swaths of state bureaucracies) and mandate balanced budgets at their level as well
No electoral college
Standardized voting nationwide

[RandomGuy]

I would eliminate the difference in tax rate for capital gains income - or even tax capital gains at a higher rate than other income. Not doing that simply to get more revenue to the govt., but to eliminate the unnatural incentive that exists for the brightest, greediest and most ambitious to ALL go into the financial industries. In those industries, all of that talent goes into coming up with novel ways to attract more wealth to themselves. Were that area not SO attractive (because income from there is not taxed at a lower rate), eventually some of those people would head back out into other fields, and possibly put that greed, intelligence and desire into pursuits that, as a byproduct of making the individuals rich, also actually increases the size of the economy. Certainly not a quick fix, but something that structurally could have long-range benefits.

Also, for more immediate impact would begin large-scale reconstruction/repair of infrastructure (roads, bridges, dams), including adding/expanding to the interstate highway system. Put a bunch of people to work building - train them to do it, if necessary; get them off their asses before we have an impossibly large, permanent, dependent class.

+1

Shockingly enough, this thread seems to have produced a lot of good ideas, even one such as DR's drastic steps.

[RandomGuy]

not nearly on the scale i'm talking about. we literally have the largest oil reserve in the world and it's untapped.

It's untapped because it costs too much go get at for reasons that have nothing to do with regulations, and everything to do with simple physics.

Even so, even if we produced enough oil to meet our current demands plus a little to export, we would still be vulnerable to middle east price shocks. You do understand this, yes?

[RandomGuy]

I would hire and pay the world's best economists and mathematicians to figure out what method/plan is the one that is going to save the most money and create the most revenue. Whatever it is, that's the way it would be. No ifs, ands, or buts. I would also try to get Congress to support something like having a fair tax and maybe some consumption taxes. I would say that cutting back on building America's empire would be the smartest thing to do. No more nation building and going overseas to force people to have democracy and be "Americans". That money would be better used helping America and Americans. I also think that America needs to try to slowly and gradually reduce the number of people that depend on government handouts like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. I mean if you need assistance and are unable to help yourself, then great but if you're free loading, that would end. Cutting back on nation building, wars, and government handouts would help the economy a lot. If only politicians would support that, then things might start to look better.

You seem to be assuming that one of their solutions isn't "help the rest of the world's economic development using massive amounts of foreign aid".

Ask an economist what effects sustained growth of 5-12% in Africa will have on the US economy. We do have a Phd running around here.

[LnGrrrR]

I would eliminate the difference in tax rate for capital gains income - or even tax capital gains at a higher rate than other income. Not doing that simply to get more revenue to the govt., but to eliminate the unnatural incentive that exists for the brightest, greediest and most ambitious to ALL go into the financial industries. In those industries, all of that talent goes into coming up with novel ways to attract more wealth to themselves. Were that area not SO attractive (because income from there is not taxed at a lower rate), eventually some of those people would head back out into other fields, and possibly put that greed, intelligence and desire into pursuits that, as a byproduct of making the individuals rich, also actually increases the size of the economy. Certainly not a quick fix, but something that structurally could have long-range benefits.

Also, for more immediate impact would begin large-scale reconstruction/repair of infrastructure (roads, bridges, dams), including adding/expanding to the interstate highway system. Put a bunch of people to work building - train them to do it, if necessary; get them off their asses before we have an impossibly large, permanent, dependent class.

Even though I'm a GASP! scary liberal, I agree with all of these ideas.

[Th'Pusher]

Even though I'm a GASP! scary liberal, I agree with all of these ideas.

thats because they're wildly liberal ideas.

[LnGrrrR]

thats because they're wildly liberal ideas.

Oh come now.. they're liberal, but I wouldn't say they're WILDLY liberal.

[boutons_deux]

here's Big Picture look of how UCA/govt policies have screwed USA

The Betrayal of America's Middle Class Was a Choice, Not an Accident


http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/11...d-james-steele

[baseline bum]

I would eliminate the difference in tax rate for capital gains income - or even tax capital gains at a higher rate than other income. Not doing that simply to get more revenue to the govt., but to eliminate the unnatural incentive that exists for the brightest, greediest and most ambitious to ALL go into the financial industries. In those industries, all of that talent goes into coming up with novel ways to attract more wealth to themselves. Were that area not SO attractive (because income from there is not taxed at a lower rate), eventually some of those people would head back out into other fields, and possibly put that greed, intelligence and desire into pursuits that, as a byproduct of making the individuals rich, also actually increases the size of the economy. Certainly not a quick fix, but something that structurally could have long-range benefits.

Also, for more immediate impact would begin large-scale reconstruction/repair of infrastructure (roads, bridges, dams), including adding/expanding to the interstate highway system. Put a bunch of people to work building - train them to do it, if necessary; get them off their asses before we have an impossibly large, permanent, dependent class.

Point #1 is a good one. On the second point I would start building public transportation such as light rail in cities instead of expanding the highway system. It will be a great investment for the future as energy costs go to and would seriously open up the highways for those who can afford to and would rather drive.

[Das Texan]

and offer another real alternative to flying long term.

[baseline bum]

You are misunderstanding.

It is taxing people when they spend their money instead of when they make it. In the case of business, we can export products cheaper when we don't tax the productivity. It makes us more globally compe ive to tax consumption like most other countries do rather than production.

If you buy a foreign car, there is little tax you are paying for to the nation it is built in. There is little tax when you buy it here. When we build and sell a car overseas, GM, Ford, etc. is taxed, and this cost carries over to a higher priced export. Then the people buying it pay taxes again on it in their country. If we want to compete in the global market, we need to change our tax structure.

Speaking of

[Th'Pusher]

and offer another real alternative to flying long term.

Like a teleporter?

[mavs>spurs]

It's untapped because it costs too much go get at for reasons that have nothing to do with regulations, and everything to do with simple physics.

Even so, even if we produced enough oil to meet our current demands plus a little to export, we would still be vulnerable to middle east price shocks. You do understand this, yes?

it's simple, put funding into ways to get at it. start by taking that trillion dollars we spend playing world police and use it to actually pull up something of value out of the ground under our fat stupid asses.

it can be done, the methods just haven't been invented yet.

[clambake]

yes, lets spend taxpayer money to produce the oil so the oilco's can sell it to the world.

bravo

[mavs>spurs]

yes, let's spend tax payer money getting our asses kicked by the taliban and made fun of around the world while our country circles the drain, that'll show me

[clambake]

how about not play world police and not spend taxpayer money so the oilco's can sell it to the world.

[Drachen]

it's simple, put funding into ways to get at it. start by taking that trillion dollars we spend playing world police and use it to actually pull up something of value out of the ground under our fat stupid asses.

it can be done, the methods just haven't been invented yet.

Then why wouldn't we just put that funding into research for better power sources? Oil is dumb.

[mavs>spurs]

also..if govt invented and patented the method, wouldn't they get a big share of the money coming from firms using it? wouldn't we be less vulnerable to oil supply shocks? aren't you a dumbass yes?

[mavs>spurs]

i'd like to see more research put into uses for natural gas as well. the middle east, those assholes, and the rest of the world. we have everything we need right here in america, let's start focusing our resources on things that are going to bring us future prosperity.

[clambake]

also..if govt invented and patented the method, wouldn't they get a big share of the money coming from firms using it? wouldn't we be less vulnerable to oil supply shocks? aren't you a dumbass yes?

you think the govt. is going to "invent it"?

who's the dumbass?

[mavs>spurs]

yeah, government funded research is a lot better idea than government funded world policing. what the do you have against science and innovation?