Hike They Shouldn't
Principled Populism
Relationship Between US Productivity & The Decline in The Labor Share of National Income
Most Americans Get 'Free Stuff' From The Government
Hail to the Pencil Pusher
Union Power & Inequality
Showing posts with label full employment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label full employment. Show all posts
Saturday, December 5, 2015
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Easing Economic Efforts
The Journal Sentinel continued its march to make Paul Ryan's economic spewings seem important and credible with Ryan leads opposition to Fed's economic efforts. The Federal Reserve recently bought $600 billion Treasury securities - quantitative easing. This action, in theory, helps keep interest rates low (although they're already really low), injects money for, hopefully, increased lending, and devalues the dollar, which is good for exports.
Creditors, generally, don't like such actions - it devalues their wealth. It's often good for debtors, as it lowers the cost of their debt. In tough times, like we're in, this is one of the last tools in the Fed's arsenal to boost the economy, priming the pump, so to speak.
But, because it's an action taken by the Government (well, in this case, the Fed) it must be bad, according to Paul Ryan and Republican logic (wait, is that an oxymoron?). For Republicans, monetary policy should only be concerned with price stability (a primary concern for the Haves) - a low, predictable rate of inflation - which translates into stable asset prices. They're not really concerned with full employment (a primary concern for the Have-Nots) - trying to make sure there are enough jobs for everyone who wants to work.
Such an attitude is typical of those with a blind faith in trickle-down. Always maneuvering to help the owners of capital with the belief it will benefit us all. Real-life experience has shown this is a fantasy. Yet right-wingers still cling to and claim their vision, their supple-side dogma, is the path to the promised land. And, apparently the Journal feels this is a credible opinion to continually interject into our discussion regarding the economy.
Now that $810 million of investment in Wisconsin has been lost due to Scott Walker's idiocy, any help the Government can inject into the economy is appreciated by those of us with even a slight awareness of the hardships many U.S. citizens are facing. We are in the second worst slump this country has faced in its history. This in no time to protect prices for the uber wealthy while imposing austerity on working citizens.
For Further Reading:
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Lies, Lies, Lies
As is their wont, the right-wing is energetically espousing revisionist and false views, and accomplishing their objective of having these lies envelop and permeate public discourse, thereby, sadly, steering the debate.
Complaints regarding President Obama's employment numbers are simply petty, bitter, and nothing less than an attempt to besmirch the President and score political points.
First, stimulus policies have stabilized what could have been a second Great Depression. And, let's not forget which party was in office the last eight years, not dithering, but actively encouraging the bubble economy by continuing to deregulate, loosening monetary policy, and a completely disregarding any oversight.
Second, to expect the Obama administration to overcome this economic juggernaut of a mess in the ten months they have been in office [some started complaining merely weeks into his first term] is not only mind-boggling, it shows a complete lack of understanding of economics, business cycles, and previous economic downturns and their recoveries.
How many jobs did George Bush create per year while he was in office? 375,00 - the worst total among U.S. presidents. Unemployment increased from 4.2 to 7.2 percent during the Bush reign. This all after inheriting a surplus from the Clinton administration. The fact that Bush pissed that away with giveaways and tax cuts to his cronies didn't help matters.
These facts are never mentioned by the right and their sheep. They pretend Barack Obama created all of these problems since taking office. And, let's not forget, the initial $700 billion bailout was initiated by the outgoing Bush administration.
During an economic recovery, the initial-phase success gauge is "jobs saved." One can not seriously expect some magical initiative to simply revert the economy back to full employment overnight. Or are these cranks advocating a Public Works Program?
The general idea, and hope, is to return to a more stable and sustainable economy. Slowly returning to full employment, with the ability to create steady growth while maintaining less volatility in the market. Thus enabling, again, full employment.
To pretend trillions of dollars, due to the collapsed bubble, in lost wealth can be re-created within a few months is disingenuous and counterproductive to our discourse. These critics have two choices (as I see it): sit back, enjoy unemployment, and wait for the market to correct everything, which could take a while; or, allow the government to create public jobs (repairing infrastructure, etc.) and spend on needed policies and programs to make up the difference now.
Complaints regarding President Obama's employment numbers are simply petty, bitter, and nothing less than an attempt to besmirch the President and score political points.
First, stimulus policies have stabilized what could have been a second Great Depression. And, let's not forget which party was in office the last eight years, not dithering, but actively encouraging the bubble economy by continuing to deregulate, loosening monetary policy, and a completely disregarding any oversight.
Second, to expect the Obama administration to overcome this economic juggernaut of a mess in the ten months they have been in office [some started complaining merely weeks into his first term] is not only mind-boggling, it shows a complete lack of understanding of economics, business cycles, and previous economic downturns and their recoveries.
How many jobs did George Bush create per year while he was in office? 375,00 - the worst total among U.S. presidents. Unemployment increased from 4.2 to 7.2 percent during the Bush reign. This all after inheriting a surplus from the Clinton administration. The fact that Bush pissed that away with giveaways and tax cuts to his cronies didn't help matters.
These facts are never mentioned by the right and their sheep. They pretend Barack Obama created all of these problems since taking office. And, let's not forget, the initial $700 billion bailout was initiated by the outgoing Bush administration.
During an economic recovery, the initial-phase success gauge is "jobs saved." One can not seriously expect some magical initiative to simply revert the economy back to full employment overnight. Or are these cranks advocating a Public Works Program?
The general idea, and hope, is to return to a more stable and sustainable economy. Slowly returning to full employment, with the ability to create steady growth while maintaining less volatility in the market. Thus enabling, again, full employment.
To pretend trillions of dollars, due to the collapsed bubble, in lost wealth can be re-created within a few months is disingenuous and counterproductive to our discourse. These critics have two choices (as I see it): sit back, enjoy unemployment, and wait for the market to correct everything, which could take a while; or, allow the government to create public jobs (repairing infrastructure, etc.) and spend on needed policies and programs to make up the difference now.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Crony Capitalism
I'm really tired of only hearing about price stability regarding the markets, our economy, and the Fed. The Fed has dual purposes; the other is full employment. Making sure those whom want to work are able to, is just as important, if not more, as monitoring the economy for possible price increases.
Thomas Palley expands on the Fed's brand of crony capitalism here.
This is an excellent piece by Robert Kuttner about Robert Rubin's involvement in the Wall Street takeover of our government.
Thomas Palley expands on the Fed's brand of crony capitalism here.
This is an excellent piece by Robert Kuttner about Robert Rubin's involvement in the Wall Street takeover of our government.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)