What would Republicans like Abraham Lincoln, Dwight Eisenhower, and even Ronald Reagan think of Donald Trump and how he has taken over the Republican Party? I can just hear Ronald Reagan saying, “There you go again.”
I would think they would be appalled. Instead of Res Publica (public things) he has turned the party into Rex Donald. It’s all about him, the public be damned.
I was a Republican precinct finance chair when Reagan was nominated, I voted for John Anderson. I kept my party position next year (coming in third again in money collected). But I haven’t voted for a Republican since except Arne Carlson twice.
I really don’t care to vote for Democrats, but the current Republican Party doesn’t give me much choice. Staying away is not an option.
Showing posts with label Dwight Eisenhower. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dwight Eisenhower. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 21, 2019
Friday, March 29, 2019
How to tell “liberal” from a “conservative”
A conservative now seems to be anyone who calls anyone who disagrees with him or her a “liberal”.
How to tell who is a “liberal”? I don’t know. There are so ,many varieties.
In the current political climate. Abraham Lincoln and Dwight Eisenhower would be considered “liberals”. Probably even Mr. Republican, Robert Taft!!
It also seems that the “conservatives” are being very “liberal” with their interpretation of the Constitution: corporations are people and the Second Amendment means the people have no right to regulate a militia of one person. I would imagine that the conservatives that wrote these documents would be appalled at these interpretations.
How to tell who is a “liberal”? I don’t know. There are so ,many varieties.
In the current political climate. Abraham Lincoln and Dwight Eisenhower would be considered “liberals”. Probably even Mr. Republican, Robert Taft!!
It also seems that the “conservatives” are being very “liberal” with their interpretation of the Constitution: corporations are people and the Second Amendment means the people have no right to regulate a militia of one person. I would imagine that the conservatives that wrote these documents would be appalled at these interpretations.
Saturday, October 20, 2018
Politics: don’t do as I do, do as say
See comments to https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/20/opinion/sunday/nafta-mexico-trump-ambassador.html.
Many “conservatives” complain about “liberals” attacking Trump and the Republicans. Have they forgotten their obstruction of many of Obama’s initiatives and the false claims about his birth?
After years of obstruction of Obama’s appointees, why are they in such a rush to appoint judges?
It seems to me that many “conservatives” only want to conserve their power. They completely ignore the Constitution, Washington’s Farewell Address (foreign entanglements), Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (government of the people, by the people, and for the people), and Eisenhower’s Farewell Address (military-industrial complex).
What would we call a party that considered these important thoughts in their own governance of our country?
Many “conservatives” complain about “liberals” attacking Trump and the Republicans. Have they forgotten their obstruction of many of Obama’s initiatives and the false claims about his birth?
After years of obstruction of Obama’s appointees, why are they in such a rush to appoint judges?
It seems to me that many “conservatives” only want to conserve their power. They completely ignore the Constitution, Washington’s Farewell Address (foreign entanglements), Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (government of the people, by the people, and for the people), and Eisenhower’s Farewell Address (military-industrial complex).
What would we call a party that considered these important thoughts in their own governance of our country?
Tuesday, August 21, 2018
I had a dream
My apologies to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for using a variation of the title of one of his major speeches.
My dream early this morning was about a similar nemesis: those whose only interest is ruling with a false idea of conservatism and a misuse of religion.
The false idea of conservatism is holding on to power, irregardless of how it affects the vast majority of the citizens. This conservatism puts the interests of some large corporations over the interests of large segments of the population. The misuse of religion is to claim to have the truth even as it acts contrary to the teachings of its greatest prophet.
My dream was that teams of journalists met all over the country to unite against the attacks by false conservatives on the journalists integrity and professionalism. Interestingly, many of these journalists being attacked are real conservatives, like George Will and Jennifer Rubin.
What is a real conservative? We can start by naming a few: Adam Smith, Edmund Burke, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Dwight Eisenhower. All of these have given warning about the order of men that is not to be trusted.
Adam Smith warned about those who live by profit. Edmund Burke warned about the folly of not allowing the colonies to govern themselves. George Washington warned about factions and about foreign entanglements (letting both friends and enemies control our judgment). Abraham Lincoln stated that we had to think anew with new circumstances. Dwight Eisenhower warned about the military-industrial complex.
The best way to counter these false conservatives is to vote in each and every election. These false conservatives do all they can to dissuade people from voting from gerrymandering to false statements about their opponents.
Until such time as real conservatives appear on the scene, I’ll just have to keep voting for Democrats. I don’t support many of the issues of the Democrats, but these issues are not so destructive of our country as the issues proclaimed by false conservatives.
My dream early this morning was about a similar nemesis: those whose only interest is ruling with a false idea of conservatism and a misuse of religion.
The false idea of conservatism is holding on to power, irregardless of how it affects the vast majority of the citizens. This conservatism puts the interests of some large corporations over the interests of large segments of the population. The misuse of religion is to claim to have the truth even as it acts contrary to the teachings of its greatest prophet.
My dream was that teams of journalists met all over the country to unite against the attacks by false conservatives on the journalists integrity and professionalism. Interestingly, many of these journalists being attacked are real conservatives, like George Will and Jennifer Rubin.
What is a real conservative? We can start by naming a few: Adam Smith, Edmund Burke, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Dwight Eisenhower. All of these have given warning about the order of men that is not to be trusted.
Adam Smith warned about those who live by profit. Edmund Burke warned about the folly of not allowing the colonies to govern themselves. George Washington warned about factions and about foreign entanglements (letting both friends and enemies control our judgment). Abraham Lincoln stated that we had to think anew with new circumstances. Dwight Eisenhower warned about the military-industrial complex.
The best way to counter these false conservatives is to vote in each and every election. These false conservatives do all they can to dissuade people from voting from gerrymandering to false statements about their opponents.
Until such time as real conservatives appear on the scene, I’ll just have to keep voting for Democrats. I don’t support many of the issues of the Democrats, but these issues are not so destructive of our country as the issues proclaimed by false conservatives.
Tuesday, February 27, 2018
“Real Republicans”
Should we even call “Republicans” “conservatives”? They certainly aren’t concerned with “Res publica” (public things) and the only thing they want to conserve is their power.
I think real conservatives from Edmund Burke to Dwight Eisenhower would not want to be associated with them. Remember Eisenhower’s warning about the “military-industrial complex”.
Posted as a comment: http://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/26/opinion/the-force-of-decency-awakens.html?comments#permid=26131193:26134931.
I think real conservatives from Edmund Burke to Dwight Eisenhower would not want to be associated with them. Remember Eisenhower’s warning about the “military-industrial complex”.
Posted as a comment: http://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/26/opinion/the-force-of-decency-awakens.html?comments#permid=26131193:26134931.
Saturday, December 30, 2017
Trump is not a conservative
Are “conservatives” really conservative? About the only thing “conservatives” want to “conserve” is their power.
They are definitely not like Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, or Dwight Eisenhower. They certainly don’t take Eisenhower’s advice about the “military-industrial complex.”
And they are definitely not like the “First Conservative”, Edmund Burke. See “Edmund Burke: the first conservative” by Jesse Norman or “Great Debate: Edmund Burke, Thomas Paine, and the Birth of Right and Left” by Yuval Levin.
They are more like the French Revolution, tearing down everything that went before than Burke’s Whigs who made small changes to an existing order as needed.
This was intended for “Why I’m Still a Never Trumper”. Bret Stephens, New York Times, 2017-12-29, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/29/opinion/why-im-still-a-nevertrumper.html. Unfortunately, comments were cut off before I could get it sent.
Saturday, June 20, 2015
From my clippings file
Every so often, I email an article to myself for future reference, often with the idea of writing a blog entry. Most likely I don’t get around to it. So, since I don’t have a hot topic in my head this week, I thought I’d muse about some of these clippings. Don’t worry, I won’t write about all 59, just enough to fill a Reader Weekly page.
One apropos to the attempts to take some auditing work from the State Auditor was a letter to the Duluth News Tribune by Paul and Susan Schurke of Ely. They praise Rebecca Otto for pointing out that nobody knows what the potential cost to taxpayers of new mines will be. Is it any wonder that the corporate-lovers in the Minnesota legislators want reduce Otto’s authority? Strange that this same crowd complains about taxes.
“Otto’s common sense mining position can unite us all.” Duluth News Tribune, 2013-12-09.
Pete Seeger wrote long ago that we have the best politicians: “We elect them again and again.” One of the reasons we elect them again and again is that a plutocracy finances too many elections. Plutocracy is government by the rich. “Capitalism vs. Democracy” by Thomas B. Edsall (http://nyti.ms/Msy71t) asks “Is deepening inequality inevitable? The case for a global wealth tax.” - New York Times, 2014-01-28. It is a review of Thomas Piketty’s “Capital in the Twenty-First Century”. Edsall quotes Piketty’s assertion “when pay setters set their own pay, there’s no limit”.
A reverse on a wealth tax is offered by D. J. Tice in “There’s no pot of gold for the working poor”, Star Tribune, 2014-02-09. His first suggestion is “to stop raising their taxes.” He also suggests expanding both the State and Federal Earned Income Tax Credit. He also writes that any hike in the minimum wage will probably result in fewer workers over the long term. Think of how you once bought an ice cream cone. Somebody bent over the freezer and scooped your choice into a cone. Now you can go to Chilly Billy’s and fill your own cup with your choice of frozen yogurt.
My answer to when pay setters won’t set their pay is when the sun sets in the East. Joe Nocera wrote about all the gimmicks that CEOs and their boards use to keep raising the CEOs pay to ridiculous levels. See “CEO Pay Goes Up, Up, and Away”, New York Times, 2014-04-14 (http://nyti.ms/1erLn2H). Shareholders can vote against boards that grant obscene pay, but they will probably be outvoted by institutional investors who exercise “fiduciary responsibility” by voting in management’s favor. Even if that responsibility were directed at reducing executive pay, current law says that “Say on Pay” is only an advisory; management doesn’t have to honor the shareholders vote.
Have you considered that the wealthy wield much more power than kings of old? Except they don’t need armies of soldiers to stay in power, just armies of lawyers and lobbyists.
You can know that things are out of control when a “conservative” columnist calls attention to the inequalities. My favorite “conservative” columnist, Ross Douthat, wrote “College, the Great Unequalizer”, New York Times, 2014-05-03 (http://nyti.ms/1kzuuRQ). He says that the Party Scene at many colleges benefits the well-heeled student and sucks in the “lower-status” student. The well-heeled can rescue those who practice an excess of vices, but the less-well-off can’t. The well-heeled will go on to social or economic success regardless of their performance. Others will rarely join that social class.
And the upper-class is finding many ways to get their way no matter the cost to the rest of society. It is well-known, to those who care, that the Koch Brothers through their American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) are writing our laws in cahoots with Republican legislators. One of the current examples is “right-to-work” laws. Many of the laws are almost identical to what ALEC proposed. “Wisconsin’s law was a virtual copy of the 1995 model bill promoted by” ALEC. See “Scott Walker and the Fate of the Union”, New York Times, Dan Kaufman, 2015-06-12.
The article points out how the upper-class minions don’t care about much more than keeping their masters happy. The accident rate among workers is higher in right-to-work states. Scott Walker promised the president of the state-wide union of heavy machine operators that the “right-to-work bill” would not make it to his desk. Walker got his contribution and the labor guy lost Walker’s commitment.
How the Republican Party has changed! The 1956 Republican Party platform included “The protection of the right of workers to organize into unions and to bargain collectively is the firm and permanent policy of the Eisenhower administration.”
And it even gets worse. See “Energy Firms in Secretive Alliance With Attorneys General”, Eric Lipton, New York Times, 2014-12-06. The attorneys general are sending letters of complaint about air pollution to the Environmental Protection Agency that are almost duplicates of letters written by the lawyers of energy companies. These attorneys general are getting huge campaign contributions from energy companies. Thanks to these contributions, 27 of the states’ attorneys general are Republicans. Who was it that wrote, “We have the best government money can buy”?
Or to blaspheme Abraham Lincoln, “A government of the corporations, by the corporations, and for the corporations shall not perish from the earth.” Or should it be “shall destroy the earth”?
One apropos to the attempts to take some auditing work from the State Auditor was a letter to the Duluth News Tribune by Paul and Susan Schurke of Ely. They praise Rebecca Otto for pointing out that nobody knows what the potential cost to taxpayers of new mines will be. Is it any wonder that the corporate-lovers in the Minnesota legislators want reduce Otto’s authority? Strange that this same crowd complains about taxes.
“Otto’s common sense mining position can unite us all.” Duluth News Tribune, 2013-12-09.
Pete Seeger wrote long ago that we have the best politicians: “We elect them again and again.” One of the reasons we elect them again and again is that a plutocracy finances too many elections. Plutocracy is government by the rich. “Capitalism vs. Democracy” by Thomas B. Edsall (http://nyti.ms/Msy71t) asks “Is deepening inequality inevitable? The case for a global wealth tax.” - New York Times, 2014-01-28. It is a review of Thomas Piketty’s “Capital in the Twenty-First Century”. Edsall quotes Piketty’s assertion “when pay setters set their own pay, there’s no limit”.
A reverse on a wealth tax is offered by D. J. Tice in “There’s no pot of gold for the working poor”, Star Tribune, 2014-02-09. His first suggestion is “to stop raising their taxes.” He also suggests expanding both the State and Federal Earned Income Tax Credit. He also writes that any hike in the minimum wage will probably result in fewer workers over the long term. Think of how you once bought an ice cream cone. Somebody bent over the freezer and scooped your choice into a cone. Now you can go to Chilly Billy’s and fill your own cup with your choice of frozen yogurt.
My answer to when pay setters won’t set their pay is when the sun sets in the East. Joe Nocera wrote about all the gimmicks that CEOs and their boards use to keep raising the CEOs pay to ridiculous levels. See “CEO Pay Goes Up, Up, and Away”, New York Times, 2014-04-14 (http://nyti.ms/1erLn2H). Shareholders can vote against boards that grant obscene pay, but they will probably be outvoted by institutional investors who exercise “fiduciary responsibility” by voting in management’s favor. Even if that responsibility were directed at reducing executive pay, current law says that “Say on Pay” is only an advisory; management doesn’t have to honor the shareholders vote.
Have you considered that the wealthy wield much more power than kings of old? Except they don’t need armies of soldiers to stay in power, just armies of lawyers and lobbyists.
You can know that things are out of control when a “conservative” columnist calls attention to the inequalities. My favorite “conservative” columnist, Ross Douthat, wrote “College, the Great Unequalizer”, New York Times, 2014-05-03 (http://nyti.ms/1kzuuRQ). He says that the Party Scene at many colleges benefits the well-heeled student and sucks in the “lower-status” student. The well-heeled can rescue those who practice an excess of vices, but the less-well-off can’t. The well-heeled will go on to social or economic success regardless of their performance. Others will rarely join that social class.
And the upper-class is finding many ways to get their way no matter the cost to the rest of society. It is well-known, to those who care, that the Koch Brothers through their American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) are writing our laws in cahoots with Republican legislators. One of the current examples is “right-to-work” laws. Many of the laws are almost identical to what ALEC proposed. “Wisconsin’s law was a virtual copy of the 1995 model bill promoted by” ALEC. See “Scott Walker and the Fate of the Union”, New York Times, Dan Kaufman, 2015-06-12.
The article points out how the upper-class minions don’t care about much more than keeping their masters happy. The accident rate among workers is higher in right-to-work states. Scott Walker promised the president of the state-wide union of heavy machine operators that the “right-to-work bill” would not make it to his desk. Walker got his contribution and the labor guy lost Walker’s commitment.
How the Republican Party has changed! The 1956 Republican Party platform included “The protection of the right of workers to organize into unions and to bargain collectively is the firm and permanent policy of the Eisenhower administration.”
And it even gets worse. See “Energy Firms in Secretive Alliance With Attorneys General”, Eric Lipton, New York Times, 2014-12-06. The attorneys general are sending letters of complaint about air pollution to the Environmental Protection Agency that are almost duplicates of letters written by the lawyers of energy companies. These attorneys general are getting huge campaign contributions from energy companies. Thanks to these contributions, 27 of the states’ attorneys general are Republicans. Who was it that wrote, “We have the best government money can buy”?
Or to blaspheme Abraham Lincoln, “A government of the corporations, by the corporations, and for the corporations shall not perish from the earth.” Or should it be “shall destroy the earth”?
Thursday, August 16, 2012
A "real" Republican stands up
David Stockman was director of the Office of Management and Budget during Ronald Reagan's first term. He wrote a sharp criticism of current Republican thinking in "Paul Ryan's Fairy-Tale Budget Plan", New York Times, 2012-08-13.
Among other things Stockman points out that for all the budget cutting in "entitlements", Ryan wants to fund the "warfare state" with a budget twice what Eisenhower thought was sufficient to contain the Soviet threat, adjusted for inflation. Stockman writes that we have no real credible threat from any "advanced industrial state" and that Iran is benighted but irrelevant.
You might not agree with everything Stockman wrote, but you'll find his thinking is more in tune with reality than what currently passes for conservatism, that is, conserve the entitlements of large corporations and their "right" to raid the Treasury and the pockets of savers.
Among other things Stockman points out that for all the budget cutting in "entitlements", Ryan wants to fund the "warfare state" with a budget twice what Eisenhower thought was sufficient to contain the Soviet threat, adjusted for inflation. Stockman writes that we have no real credible threat from any "advanced industrial state" and that Iran is benighted but irrelevant.
You might not agree with everything Stockman wrote, but you'll find his thinking is more in tune with reality than what currently passes for conservatism, that is, conserve the entitlements of large corporations and their "right" to raid the Treasury and the pockets of savers.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Another reason for a third party
I leave notes to myself by one means or another all over the place. Some never resurface, some pop up but are no longer relevant, and some pop up that are still relevant months or even years later.
One such was a link to a Huffington Post article from mid-May about President Obama's supposed reset on Middle East policy: "Obama's Reset: Arab Spring or Same Old Thing?", Nick Turse, Huffington Post, 2011-05-17.
For all of Obama's talk about supporting the people in the efforts to free themselves of dictatorships and his condemnation against governments that use military force to thwart these efforts, his administration still supplies the tools of suppression - U.S.-made weaponry.
This is another instance of both parties being beholden to the corporatocracy of the U.S. instead of the people of the U.S. You can find a good definition of corporatocracy at Wikipedia.
Personally, I don't think we'll have any hope of world peace until the U.S. stops supporting dictatorships, cuts way back on its own military, and stops exporting so much military equipment. Are jobs here worth somebody dying in another country?
And I think the only way these will happen if a third party arises that really seeks to govern in the long-term interests of the American people instead of the short-term interests of a powerful few. Maybe such a party would take the advice of George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower in their farewell addresses, not as dogma, but as advice.
I'm sort of "ignorant of history" in that I have not read completely either of these. I did put versions of these addresses in my reading backlog file. My copy of Washington's address is from http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/milestones/farewell/text.html and Eisenhower's is from http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/dwightdeisenhowerfarewell.html. This latter site also includes the audio; you can find plenty of copies of the TV broadcast by a search for "eisenhower's farewell address".
One such was a link to a Huffington Post article from mid-May about President Obama's supposed reset on Middle East policy: "Obama's Reset: Arab Spring or Same Old Thing?", Nick Turse, Huffington Post, 2011-05-17.
For all of Obama's talk about supporting the people in the efforts to free themselves of dictatorships and his condemnation against governments that use military force to thwart these efforts, his administration still supplies the tools of suppression - U.S.-made weaponry.
This is another instance of both parties being beholden to the corporatocracy of the U.S. instead of the people of the U.S. You can find a good definition of corporatocracy at Wikipedia.
Personally, I don't think we'll have any hope of world peace until the U.S. stops supporting dictatorships, cuts way back on its own military, and stops exporting so much military equipment. Are jobs here worth somebody dying in another country?
And I think the only way these will happen if a third party arises that really seeks to govern in the long-term interests of the American people instead of the short-term interests of a powerful few. Maybe such a party would take the advice of George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower in their farewell addresses, not as dogma, but as advice.
I'm sort of "ignorant of history" in that I have not read completely either of these. I did put versions of these addresses in my reading backlog file. My copy of Washington's address is from http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/milestones/farewell/text.html and Eisenhower's is from http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/dwightdeisenhowerfarewell.html. This latter site also includes the audio; you can find plenty of copies of the TV broadcast by a search for "eisenhower's farewell address".
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Who "destroyed" free markets?
Which of the following do you have in your area?
Independent, locally owned grocery store
Independent, locally owned drug store
Independent, locally owned stationery store
Independent, locally owned movie theater
Independent, locally owned book store
Independent, locally owned department store
Independent, locally owned daily newspaper
Independent, locally owned lumber yard
Independent, locally owned hardware store
By independent, I mean that there is only one location and that often the owner works in the store.
Grocery stores and drug stores are most likely chains, either national or state-wide. Stationery stores are most likely national chains. Movie theaters have been done in by technology, either television or VHS/DVDs. Independent book stores have been done in both by large chains and technology, the latter being e-books. Department stores multiplied with large shopping malls and then got gobbled up by large chains. Daily newspapers have been part of large syndicates before I was even born. Lumber yards have been replaced by three or four large chains. And local hardware stores are dwindling.
So much for a large number of sellers, an integral part of the classical free market.
If it wasn't technology that did in a retail outlet, what or who was responsible?
How about a Republican president? Dwight Eisenhower pushed the interstate highway system which led to urban sprawl. City neighborhoods were decimated when people in large numbers moved to the suburbs. Dwindling neighborhoods led to fewer customers who walked to do most of their shopping.
How about large corporations? With their greater buying power, large corporations can easily undercut small stores on prices. Greater buying power also gives an advertising edge to large corporations. In Duluth, a locally owned group of drug stores went out of business this year. Walgreen's was just too much for it. Only about three or four owner-operated pharmacies are left. When I was a teen-ager, I lived in a Cleveland neighborhood that had three owner-operated pharmacies.
How about development-hungry city governments? Duluth made a big splash about getting an Office Depot to locate downtown. Guess what, the locally-owned, downtown stationer went out of business. Guess what again, Office Depot corporate closed the store within a year or so.
How about ourselves? We would rather go to a big store with a big selection. We would rather go to a chain we know than try something unknown. I know when I travel I favor one hotel chain and too often eat at a chain restaurant. The latter I do because too often the only restaurants around chain hotels are chains themselves. Fortunately, I do find pleasing exceptions now and then.
Take heart, true believers in true free markets. There are many businesses still around that are local and numerous. There are the craftspeople - plumbers, carpenters, electricians, and so on. Despite the proliferation of chain restaurants and coffee shops, there are quite a few local restaurants and coffee shops. There are still plenty of local barbers and hairdressers. Local breweries are making inroads on mega-breweries by providing better taste. And at least in Duluth and Superior, most liquor stores are locally owned. I'll drink to that!
Independent, locally owned grocery store
Independent, locally owned drug store
Independent, locally owned stationery store
Independent, locally owned movie theater
Independent, locally owned book store
Independent, locally owned department store
Independent, locally owned daily newspaper
Independent, locally owned lumber yard
Independent, locally owned hardware store
By independent, I mean that there is only one location and that often the owner works in the store.
Grocery stores and drug stores are most likely chains, either national or state-wide. Stationery stores are most likely national chains. Movie theaters have been done in by technology, either television or VHS/DVDs. Independent book stores have been done in both by large chains and technology, the latter being e-books. Department stores multiplied with large shopping malls and then got gobbled up by large chains. Daily newspapers have been part of large syndicates before I was even born. Lumber yards have been replaced by three or four large chains. And local hardware stores are dwindling.
So much for a large number of sellers, an integral part of the classical free market.
If it wasn't technology that did in a retail outlet, what or who was responsible?
How about a Republican president? Dwight Eisenhower pushed the interstate highway system which led to urban sprawl. City neighborhoods were decimated when people in large numbers moved to the suburbs. Dwindling neighborhoods led to fewer customers who walked to do most of their shopping.
How about large corporations? With their greater buying power, large corporations can easily undercut small stores on prices. Greater buying power also gives an advertising edge to large corporations. In Duluth, a locally owned group of drug stores went out of business this year. Walgreen's was just too much for it. Only about three or four owner-operated pharmacies are left. When I was a teen-ager, I lived in a Cleveland neighborhood that had three owner-operated pharmacies.
How about development-hungry city governments? Duluth made a big splash about getting an Office Depot to locate downtown. Guess what, the locally-owned, downtown stationer went out of business. Guess what again, Office Depot corporate closed the store within a year or so.
How about ourselves? We would rather go to a big store with a big selection. We would rather go to a chain we know than try something unknown. I know when I travel I favor one hotel chain and too often eat at a chain restaurant. The latter I do because too often the only restaurants around chain hotels are chains themselves. Fortunately, I do find pleasing exceptions now and then.
Take heart, true believers in true free markets. There are many businesses still around that are local and numerous. There are the craftspeople - plumbers, carpenters, electricians, and so on. Despite the proliferation of chain restaurants and coffee shops, there are quite a few local restaurants and coffee shops. There are still plenty of local barbers and hairdressers. Local breweries are making inroads on mega-breweries by providing better taste. And at least in Duluth and Superior, most liquor stores are locally owned. I'll drink to that!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Abraham Lincoln was a liberal!!
Take out a five-dollar bill. Fold it in half. Which side is Abraham Lincoln's picture on?
Our greatest Republican president was left of center!!!
Can you imagine any recent Republican president spending so much tax money to invest on railroads (Lincoln), parks (Theodore Roosevelt), or highways (Dwight Eisenhower)?
Our greatest Republican president was left of center!!!
Can you imagine any recent Republican president spending so much tax money to invest on railroads (Lincoln), parks (Theodore Roosevelt), or highways (Dwight Eisenhower)?
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Republicans used to invest
Once upon a time Republican politicians invested in the infrastructure of our country. Lincoln was very instrumental in building the transcontinental railroad. Eisenhower was instrumental in building the interstate highway system. Both of these transportation systems transformed the United States, saved millions of dollars in transportation costs, and increased investment in other areas.
Now it seems the only "investment" Republican politicians want to make is in destruction, a so-called strong defense.
Everything else Republicans look upon as costs and taxes. Opportunity costs are not part of their accounting. They just don't see the costs that can be saved by investing in schools and colleges, in health care, and alternative energy. And they ignore the opportunities that these investments will create.
Now it seems the only "investment" Republican politicians want to make is in destruction, a so-called strong defense.
Everything else Republicans look upon as costs and taxes. Opportunity costs are not part of their accounting. They just don't see the costs that can be saved by investing in schools and colleges, in health care, and alternative energy. And they ignore the opportunities that these investments will create.
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