Creeping Incrementalism
REAL CLEAR POLITICS The Road to Economic Demoralization -- Washington Is Going the Wrong Way By Larry Kudlow July 10, 2009 Excerpts: There's no question that current government policies for taxes, spending and regulation are causing the United States to lose competitiveness in the global race for capital, prosperity and growth. Of course, China has been moving in the direction of free-market capitalism for years. To some extent, this shows the positive benefits of America's free-trade policies and its open-mindedness in helping nurture not only Chinese growth, but also middle-class prosperity worldwide. But what's particularly galling about Obamanomics is that we may well be losing our competitive edge with Europe. While Europe is ever so slightly moving toward Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, the United States is shifting toward an overtaxed and overregulated model that smacks of Francois Mitterrand. That's something no one should want to tolerate. Heavy government controls at home, along with an income-leveling social policy couched in economic-recovery terms, is no way to run a railroad. At the simple stroke of a computer key, world investment flows to its most hospitable destination. That includes a reliable currency. But in President Bush's last year and President Obama's first, the United States has become a less hospitable destination for global capital. That should worry everybody. Full article Larry Kudlow REAL CLEAR POLITICS REAL CLEAR POLITICS November 29, 2008 Bailout Spending is Out of Control By Dennis Byrne Full article Dennis Byrne REAL CLEAR POLITICS Excerpts: Has anyone bothered to ask: Why $700 billion? Why not $800 billion to bail out the economy? Or a trillion? Jeez, as long as the dam has burst, why not make it a cool $7 trillion? Okay, $7 trillion it is, and if you think that's an exaggeration, you're wrong. In this year alone, we have committed an amount that is more than half of our entire annual gross national product to assorted bailouts and guarantees. No, that doesn't mean that we have diverted half our GNP for bailouts; it means that we have created half our gross national product virtually out of nothing. Tuesday it was the Fed saying it would buy up to $600 billion more in mortgage-related assets and will lend up to $200 billion to holders of securities backed by some consumer loans. That $800 billion is more than what Social Security lays out each year, and twice as much as the federal government annually collects in corporate income tax. It is about three times as much the entire federal deficit. November 25, 2008 'Jolting' the Economy By Thomas Sowell Full article Thomas Sowell Real Clear Politics Excerpts: Barack Obama says that we have to "jolt" the economy. That certainly makes sense, if you take the media's account of the economy seriously-- but should the media be taken seriously? Amid all the political and media hysteria, national output has declined by less than one-half of one percent. In fact, it may not have declined even that much-- or at all-- when the statistics are revised later, as they very often are. We are not talking about the Great Depression, when output dropped by one-third and unemployment soared to 25 percent. Maximum recipients-many millions of the EITC already receive a payment paying back their FICA payment, so someone else is paying for their retirement, receive a payment for their medicare tax, so someone is paying for their future use of that, receive any income taxes paid, back then get a $2200 cash payment on top of that. Barack Obama wants to add a huge giveaway on top of that RAHN: No tax increase needed Richard W. Rahn Thursday, August 7, 2008 Full article Richard W. Rahn Washington Times Excerpts: Over the past 40 years, do you think the federal government has become relatively larger or smaller in relation to the size of the economy?Surprisingly, you will see that the federal government, in terms of taxes and spending as a share of total gross domestic product (GDP), has remained almost constant for decades, even though it has grown steadily in absolute terms. (State and local governments, however, have been growing as a share of GDP, and burdensome regulations have been growing at all levels of government.) Even though income tax rates by the end of the Reagan administration (1988) were less than half the rates of 1968, tax revenue as a percentage of GDP was actually a bit higher. Budget deficits have averaged about 3 percent of GDP for the last 40 years, and the government debt as a percentage of GDP (approximately 37 percent) is close to its historical average for the last half-century. As the numbers show, those who say disaster is upon us and we must increase taxes are just plain wrong! WALL STREET JOURNAL GOP Reformers Face a Tough Fight Kimberly Strassel July 18, 2008; Page A11 Full article Kimberly Strassel WSJ Excerpts: The 11th commandment of politics is that elected officials shall not take sides in their party primaries. Then again, Missouri Republicans are burdened with so many sins, what's one more? For an insight as to why the GOP is down and out in Washington, take a look at Jefferson City. That's where Sarah Steelman, the state treasurer, is running in an Aug. 5 primary for the Missouri governorship. And it's where her reform campaign against earmarks and self-dealing is threatening the entrenched status quo, causing her own party to rise against her. So bitter are House Minority Whip Roy Blunt and Sen. Kit Bond at Ms. Steelman's attack on their cherished spending beliefs that last month they rallied the entire Missouri congressional delegation to put out a public statement openly criticizing her campaign against six-term U.S. Rep. Kenny Hulshof. Joining them in their support of Mr. Hulshof has been the vast majority of the state Republican machine. Ms. Steelman is clearly doing something right. REAL CLEAR POLITICS June 26, 2008 The Can't Do Society By Victor Davis Hanson Full article RCP Excerpts: We have become a nation of second-guessing Hamlets. Shakespeare warned us about the dangers of "thinking too precisely." His poor Danish prince lost "the name of action," as he dithered and sighed that "conscience does make cowards of us all." With gas over $4 a gallon, the public is finally waking up to the fact that for decades the United States has not been developing known petroleum reserves in Alaska, in our coastal waters or off the continental shelf. Jittery Hamlets apparently forgot that gas comes from oil -- and that before you can fill your tank, you must take risks to fill a tanker.
From the John Gibson Show on FOX News Full article John Gibson My Word Excerpts: Los Angeles City Council members are going to ban fast-food restaurants in certain parts of south Los Angeles. The proposal has passed out of a committee and is going to the full City Council. Councilwoman Jan Perry pushed for the ban in her district, saying: "We have a serious problem in my district with fast-food restaurants and the increasing level of obesity and diabetes." South Los Angeles is a minority community so we would presume she is talking about constituents who are African-American and Hispanic. Blacks and Hispanics aren't the only fat people in this county by a long shot, but they appear to be singled out in Los Angeles, all in the name of good health. ### Food police and creeping incrementalism are alive and well. The latest Government intrusion into our lives is a plan to outlaw french fries in N.Y. and Chicago. (I’d sooner outlaw the French than french fries) That’s right, those tasty little innocent floppy potato strips we all love to pig out on once in a while, are now on the endangered species list. The reason for this latest insanity? A villain called trans fats. This is the process of turning vegetable oil into solid fats though hydrogenation. Don’t ask. Anyway these fats are said to be a contributing factor toward heart disease. Creeping Incrementalism O K, let me get this straight. I can start my morning with bacon and eggs, toast and jelly, topped off with a couple cups of coffee with cream and sugar. For lunch, a nice thick corned beef sandwich on rye with mustard, an ice tea and piece of pie. At dinner the wife has broiled a thick sirloin with baked potato, lots of butter and sour cream, and oh yeah, a vegetable of some sort. All followed with a big bowl of ice cream. Later that evening I sit watching the “Face” draining a few beers and belching like a champ. I ask my son where he’s going as he heads for the door. He tells me he and his friend are going to Mickey D’s for a burger and fries. WHAT? Fries? No way, no son of mine is going to eat french fries, not while I’m head of this household. Do ya follow my logic here? I mean when you think of it, it’s kind of hysterical, but there’s a more sinister plot going on behind the scenes. This is the murky veil of creeping incrementalism. An article I read entitled; The Government and Your French Fries, by Sam Dolnick of the Associated Press, includes the following sentence. “The latest version of the Chicago plan would only apply to giants with annual revenues of more than $20 million.” Sure, and Anna Nicole Smith is normal. Remember when the cigarette storm troopers embarked on their creeping incrementalism witch hunt? They began their witch hunt in 1973. Officials ruled airlines must create non smoking sections. Since than we have all watched as incrementally, smoking has been banned in more and more places. There is even a suggestion to ban smoking in private residences. I remember a caller to Rush Limbaugh who stated she could smell cigarette smoke coming from her neighbors house, which she admitted, was some distance away. Maybe the police can use her like a sniffing “second hand smoke” dog. Don’t get me wrong. I have not been a smoker for almost 40 years and now find them offensive. However to not give bars a choice to have smoking or non smoking is ridiculous. If a bar permits smoking and I don’t approve, I don’t have to go there. Reminds me of the guy who went to the doctor and when the doc asked what his problem was, the guy raised his arm and said, “Doc, it hurts when I do this” and the doc replied, Don’t do that.” When the shoe banger Khrushchev was in power he said it would not be necessary to invade the U.S. He stated he would defeat us by incrementally taking one slice of pie at a time. This is strategy the left has adopted but with an updated handle. "Creeping Incrementalism." Maybe some conservatives have a point when they compare the left to communists. Creeping IncrementalismCreeping Incrementalism To Editorials
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