First of all, people tend to think that foreign policy and economics are two different entities that have very little, if anything, to do with each other. This couldn't be further from the truth. We're currently stationed in over 130 countries around the world, and most of these bases were supposed to be temporary. This is costing us a fortune, and we've had to borrow over a trillion dollars from China just to fund this "Empire" of ours and keep up the War on Terror, which it would seem Obama is still continuing, as outlined in my last post. Currency crumbles and empires fall when they spend too much money overseas. Look at the Soviet Union for example of this.
We also have this problem of inciting hatred in other nations because of our arrogance and the thinking that the world will fall apart if we're not sticking our noses into the business of others. One of the common arguments I recieve from people is that other nations only hate us when we threaten them with bombs if they don't comply to our standards. This isn't true. Most countries actually dislike us because our bases are set up, we're using their resources, sometimes comitting crimes, and generally being a pain. Really now, if Russia or China set up a base on our land to protect their overseas interest, we'd pull out our guns, demand that they leave, etc. Why do something to others if we'd protest it ourselves? It's the Golden Rule!
So, while Obama might not have soldiers parading down towns and holding people at gun point (although Pakistan might say otherwise), we're still making the world angry at us for simply being there. It's intimidating and it'll come bite us in the butt one day...again. We were called the Evil Empire long before Bush came to town, and we'll be called that until we get our military-industrial complex in order.
Another argument I typically come across is, "The world is much more complex today that it was 100 years ago." The world isn't more complex, actually. The technology is stronger, the wars more devastating, but people's thinking is still very much the same. The Middle-East has been in chaos since the beginning of time, and I highly doubt they won't be getting along no matter how many times we urge them to. Politics are politics, no matter what toys you give them to play with.
What needs to happen, then? We need to pack up and come home. Our borders aren't safe anyway. One study (I can't find it right now) suggested that we would be unable to survive a second attack because our military is stretched so thin. Our national defense is weakened when we overdue our military aggressiveness, so we should close down all those bases and have our soldiers actually protecting our borders. This would also solve some illegal immigration problems we've been having!
Second, we need to fix things at home. The best way to promote our way of life is not to force it on others or pressure them in any way, but to lead by example. Democracy doesn't look so pleasing when it means intimidating others and letting our own people pay for it. It's better to make sure our needs are met first, and that isn't happening.
First of all, we need to get the government out of our lives. The role of the Federal Government is to protect our borders and secure our freedom. This will also improve our lives drastically. I won't go into everything, but here's some things that should definately happen.
Firstly, the Department of Education has to go. Everyone seems to think that this will lead to the dismantling of schools, but it's not. What the Dept. of Education does is standardize schools and regulate them. Public schools should be in the hands of their community and their State, not in the hands of beaurocrats for obvious reasons.
A good example of this would be "No Child Left Behind," which, while it sounds good when you hear it, is not practical. In fact, it actually hinders student progress instead of helping it by standardizing tests, placing limitations on schools, and not allowing students to progress at levels comfortable to them. Not everybody is on the same page, and expecting everyone to be there will be a real challenge for some and hindrance for others.
This is really all that the Department of Education does. It regulates, mandates, and takes control away from the States, the parents, and the educators. I maintain very strongly that children belong to their parents, not to the government.
If you sit with a group of children today, you'll notice almost immediately that their levels for reading and writing are atrocious. They have difficulty understanding abstract concepts and are generally unable to apply what they learn in their everyday lives. Not all schools suffer from this, but many of them do, and it's because of these mandates. Teachers are spending their time trying to make sure students pass their standardized tests, and they prowl about searching for the unproven and scientifically void "mental illness" in children. It's not education at all, and it's disruptive to children's learning environment.
We also need to get the government out of health care. Most people will now say, "No one will be insured!" and, "Health care is already unaffordable because of lack of government!" Both of these are completley and utterly false. Does our current health care system suck? Yes! (Sorry for the wording.) This is due to government intervention. Let me tell you a story.
Once upon a time, the elderly and poor could go to a doctor and get top-quality care, but for either cut costs or for free. Why? Because hospitals were run by churches, charities, etc. not by government. In his book, Ron Paul said, "In the days before Medicare and Medicaid, the poor and elderly were admitted to hospitals at the same rate they are now, and received good care. Before those programs came into existence, every physician understood that he or she had a responsibility towards the less fortunate and free medical care was the norm. Hardly anyone is aware of this today, since it doesn’t fit into the typical, by the script story of government rescuing us from a predatory private sector."
Drug companies also have a monopoly on our health care system, and they are some of the most corrupt businesses in America. A lot of them have government ties, and they have placed a stranglehold on doctors. We face a multitude of problems, and drug companies want to make sure you don't know about alternative treatment programs or natural medicine. This is due to a bunch of HMO laws that they influenced in order to further restrict doctors and to keep profits for themselves. Medicine is now a business and money-making machine for government officials and lobbyists, not a life-saving practice.
If we got government out of health care, the competition would force prices down, not just for hospital bills themselves, but for insurance agencies as well, and we would be spared a bit from the drug company influences.
The last thing I'm going to talk about in this article today is the IRS and Federal Reserve. Yep, you know it was coming, didn't you? We need to give them boot, along with the income tax. If we diminish government spending overseas by bringing everyone home, get the government to stop looking over our shoulders and telling us what doctors to see, what pill to ingest, and what teachers can and cannot do (along with the dismantling of other government programs I've not yet talked about), we'll be able to get rid of this tax and this manipulative Federal Reserve system.
This way, the government will be out of the market and economy, we'll be able to keep our money and spend it, thus improving the economy as a whole, and if we go back to the Gold Standard we'll also have sound money.
"Then Enron will come back! We need government oversight!" I've heard that one too many times. If you really want to know about Enron, read this article.
In truth, however, the problem was not the lack of government involvement with Enron, but rather the close relationship between Enron and government. Enron in fact was deeply involved with the federal government throughout the 1990s, both through its lobbying efforts and as a recipient of large amounts of corporate welfare.
Enron provides a perfect example of the dangers of corporate subsidies. The company was (and is) one of the biggest beneficiaries of Export-Import Bank subsidies. The Ex-Im bank, a program that Congress continues to fund with your tax dollars, essentially makes risky loans to foreign governments and businesses for projects involving American companies. The Bank, which purports to help developing nations, really acts as a naked subsidy for certain politically-favored American corporations- especially corporations like Enron that lobbied hard and gave huge amounts of cash to both political parties. Its reward was more that $600 million in cash via six different Ex-Im financed projects.
The income tax was also not born out of a growing population. Please see this video to clear up your doubts.
I know, I'm rushing the end of this, but people also seem to be under the delusion that the income tax is the government's only source of revenue. There are many other taxes out there. We pay a tax whenever we buy something. There's also highway taxes, tarrifs, etc. The government can easily afford everything it needs if we cut back on government programs and stop being a bunch of freeloaders.
Free markets aren't the problem, they're the solution. The Federal Reserve has been manipulating our currency and causing bubbles. They've caused every depression and recession we've had in this country, and they constantly insist that the problem is the free market. They create the bubbles, corporation and government subsidies lead to the bad loans, etc., and then we wonder who's to blame! A government-regulated market, especially one who's currency cannot be measured by anything and manipulated, is doomed to failure. The solution is sound money and less government.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment