Are we turning Japanese?

A recent Downsizer Dispatch mentioned a New York Times article about how a 1980's housing bubbler burst in Japan cuase economic turmoil that lead to huge domestic government spending - just as is happen in the United States today. So what happened in Japan? It seems that the spending gave Japan a HUGE debt. The economy was lifted too, but not by all the spending on construction projects and the like. It was instead lifted by an expensive cleanup of their debt-ridden banking system and increased export to to the U.S. and China which did the trick.

So if we are to learn from the Japaniese example, we should not pass these infrastructure spending bills - they will do nothing but create debt, and increased taxes for the next generation, which is myself and my kids and grandkids. We should instead stop barrowing money, pay off all our debts, and pass laws that make in much easier and cheaper for Americans to make things and export them to other countries.

In Liberty from Bergen, Hordaland, Norge,

Christopher D. Osborn

Sourse:

Are We Turning Japanese? - DownsizeDC
Can We Learn from Japan? - Cafe Hayek
Japan's Big-Works Stimulus Lesson - NY Times

How to Protect Yourself from the End of America

The latest Daily Wealth newletter is all doom and gloom.  Here's a quote from Porter Stansberry that summs up their worries:

This is how America ends – with the lie that we all can live at the expense of our neighbor and borrow endlessly. Rather than simply face a downturn in the economy, we plan to borrow trillions of dollars our children and grandchildren will be forced to repay. Rather than let all those people and institutions that took on too much debt (like GM) be liquidated and restructured, we plan to risk a hyperinflation. Rather than insist homeowners who can't afford their mortgages lose their homes, we would jeopardize the credit rating of the country.

It is all madness. None of the government's bailout plans will solve any of the problems. The government can only shift the burden of the failures. Instead of bondholders and shareholders being wiped out, taxpayers are put on the hook. These actions will temporarily resuscitate the economy – but cause a permanent decline in the value of the dollar.

I'm sure I've posted about this theory before.  Anyway, he does have a few idea's of hour to prepare. Unfortunatly many of us, such as myself, don't even have the money to take up his suggestions.  Oh well, it'll be alright, 'cause I have theory.

It may very well be that the United States of America as we know it will come to an end.  However, I think it'll be alright.  There is still war out there, but I really think the human family has evolved so very much, that by the time the U.S. starts to crumble, it won't matter.  

Don't get me wrong, I love my country dearly, and I would ber very sad to see it's end.  However, more and more people are sayign "world peace," more and more are saying "live for the sake of others."  I think that while President Obama's stratagy of saving our economy now will distroy it in the future - he helping to push for a culture of service in this country will make it alright.  Nobody will have any money, but everyone will be helping eahcother out for free anyway!  I don't mean to say we'll have communism nessiserily.  Instead, we'll have Libertarian socialism - that is, everyone living for the sake of the whole, and soing so in free will, without any forceful government persuasion.

We will have the same capitalist society that we love, accept that the culture of service will compensate for the fast that nobody has anything.  In the past, if nobody has any money, either everyone starves because everyone is looking out for themselves, a totalitarian regime comes about and forces change, or both.  However, and the global culture continues to be pushed towards a "let's all hold hands" kind of world, people won't suffer as much as they did in past depressions, nor will we cry of for some Hitlar, Stalin, or Kim-Il-Sung.

From bergen, Hordaland, Norge,

Christopher D. Osborn

Below is a messege from the Heritage Foundation that gives conservatives hope.

January 22, 2009 | By Nathaniel Ward

Heritage on the inauguration of President Obama

Although conservatives ought to remain on their guard over the next four years, Heritage vice-president Mike Franc makes a case for cautious conservative optimism on National Review Online.

Just as only President Nixon could go to China, he suggests, perhaps only President Obama can tackle serious entitlement reform and foreign policy objectives. Perhaps "oenly a man with our new president's liberal pedigree will possess the sort of political capital required to tackle our nation's most pressing and foreseeable challenge," writes Franc.

On the economy, the new administration will have to face the coming spending tsunami as Baby Boomers increasingly qualify for the big three entitlement programs, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. President Obama will have to make the difficult choice between tax hikes, which may be politically harmful, and a real effort to rein in spending.

And on foreign policy and national security, Franc argues that "with intelligence briefings comes maturity." The campaign trail asks candidates to hold up high ideals, but the Oval Office demands prudence, and the President may even embrace a number of positions he derided as a candidate. "If and when he does, the mainstream media will revisit these issues in a more understanding way and begin to explain the tough trade-offs that are required to defend America's interests."

Heritage foreign policy expert Helle Dale puts the new presidency in historical perspective. Other new Presidents —Bush, Reagan, Nixon, and Truman — faced "raging storms, far more worthy of the name than the clouds under which Obama's presidency begins," says Dale.

She continues:

The world Obama inherits today is clearly complex, but thanks to the tireless efforts of his predecessor, far less dangerous than the impression created [in his inaugural address on Tuesday]. Indeed, Obama owes a debt of gratitude to Bush for the tough decisions he has taken to keep this country safe and the sacrifices he made in political capital and personal popularity to do so. Bush may be vilified, even booed by the crowd of Obama supporters on the Mall, but he kept each and every one of them safe from terrorist attacks for seven years…Obama of course questioned those very policies during the campaign and indeed in his speech [Tuesday], postulating a false dichotomy between our safety and our ideals.

Dale concludes that Obama obviously differs from Bush philosophically, but that "how far world events will allow the Obama foreign policy to diverge from that of the Bush years remains to be seen."

Meanwhile, on WorldNetDaily, former Congressman and Heritage distinguished fellow Ernest Istook discusses President Obama's unique position to end race-based victimhood.

Though Barack Obama's election was a watershed in many respects, "America's laws and regulations don't reflect that sense of accomplishment. They remain mired in 1960s thinking and prejudices about race," Istook pointed out. 

Hard choices don't get any tougher than race relations and affirmative action. This certainly meets Obama's inaugural address standard of tackling long-avoided problems.

We have a chance at change for the better. For decades, a catchphrase has been, "If we can put a man on the moon, then why can't we ..." The new version will be, "If we can elect a black president, then why can't we ..."

If President Obama is willing to provide leadership of the right sort, we can heal many of America's racial tensions and still improve upward mobility for Americans of all races and backgrounds. Yes we can.

Finally, Heritage's Foundry blog linked to a humorous but very telling video clip demonstrating how conservativecertain parts of Obama's speech sounded.

— David Talbot

Beach proposes 'stimulus' alternative to Congress

Heritage Foundation economist Bill Beach testified last week before the Economic Recovery Working Group on Capitol Hill about an alternative to the Left's big-government economic "stimulus" package.

Beach suggested an alternative to the Left's plan to spend $850 billion on economic recovery:

1. Extend the 2001 and 2003 tax reductions for as long as possible -- at least through 2013 -- to prevent tax increases. Better yet, make the tax cuts permanent.

2. Reduce tax rates on individuals, small businesses and corporations through 2013 by lowering the top rate by 10 percentage points and reducing rates by similar amounts for taxpayers with lower income levels.

This would give employers the incentive to invest money and create genuinely new jobs.

Heritage's Rob Bluey reports that "the hearing came a week after President-elect Barack Obama invited alternative suggestions for promoting economic growth."

» Read more about the case for a conservative stimulus on MyHeritage.org

From Bergen, Hordaland, Norge,

Christopher D. Osborn

Sen. Barack H. Obama becomes President Obama

Now, this is a little odd.  My copied wiget seems to be slower than the origional by one hour.  Oh well, we'll see if it stays that way.

Fwd: People need you (Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service)

Below is a message from MoveOn.org, one of the few I've seen that shows they can actually do something nice and helpful once in a while.

If you want to help out around MLK Jr. day but absolutely hate the idea of taking any suggestions from MoveOn, I also have a seperate suggestion.  Check out Service for Peace or Service Nation and see what they're doing in your area.

For those that don't live in the U.S.A., here's a clip from Wikipedia :

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a United States holiday marking the birthdate of the ReverendMartin Luther King, Jr., observed on the third Monday of January each year, around the time of King's birthday, January 15. It is one of three United States federal holidays to commemorate an individual person.^[1]

This year it's being held on Monday, January 19th.  The official government website is http://www.mlkday.gov/ which include a very handy how to serve section.

This year promises to be the most active MLK Jr. Day of Service in the history of the holiday, and I hope with Barack H. Obama as our president, it will only become more and more active.

I truly would love to see the United States become Service Nation.

From Bergen, Hordaland, Norge,

Christopher D. Osborn

battleforheaven.blogspot.com

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Noah T. Winer, MoveOn.org Political Action <moveon-help@list.moveon.org>
Date: Fri, Jan 16, 2009 at 4:32 PM
Subject: People need you
To: "Christopher D. Osborn"

Barack and Michelle Obama are calling on us all to spend Monday volunteering in our communities. In these hard times, we're all in it together. On Monday, can you join a service project near Vineyard Haven? Click Here

Dear MoveOn member,

Barack and Michelle Obama have a request for us: Spend this coming Monday—Martin Luther King Day—volunteering to serve the urgent needs in our communities.

In this economic crisis, food banks are struggling to keep up. Homeowners need help weatherizing to keep out the cold. Schools are crumbling.

Some folks have been hit harder by the recession than others, but we're all in it together. We've all got to roll up our sleeves and help each other out. And volunteering is always a great experience—in just a few hours, you can help make a huge difference in the lives of others.

Can you answer Obama's call to service this Monday? Click here to find out how you can help near Vineyard Haven:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51086&zip_radius[0]=02568&id=15390-10294791-5sLlSDx&t=3

On Tuesday, Barack will officially start the massive job of restoring our country. As president, he plans to expand national service programs like AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps and to create new service organizations¹, including:

• a Classroom Corps to help underserved schools;
• a Health Corps to serve in the nation's clinics and hospitals;
• a Clean Energy Corps to achieve the goal of energy independence; and
• a Veterans Corps to support the Americans who serve in harm's way.
  

But on Monday, Barack, Michelle, Sasha, and Malia will still be ordinary citizens, volunteering to help their new neighbors in Washington, D.C. Can you join them by volunteering near Vineyard Haven? Click here to sign up on Obama's website:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51086&zip_radius[0]=02568&id=15390-10294791-5sLlSDx&t=4

Many of us have the day off for Dr. King's birthday, so it's a perfect time to volunteer. And with millions of Americans energized about Obama's inauguration, it will be a great day to spend with neighbors!

Hope you can make it. And thanks for all you do.

–Noah, Karin, Matt, Ilyse and the rest of the team

P.S. If you're in D.C. on Monday, join others from around the country to assemble care packages for troops in Iraq at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium (inside a heated tent):

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51093&id=15390-10294791-5sLlSDx&t=5

Source:
1. "America Serves," Change.gov
http://change.gov/americaserves/

---

PAID FOR BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. This email was sent to Christopher D. Osborn on January 16, 2009. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.

'How Pure A Partisan Shill Is Hewitt?

I just wanted to share this.

http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/2224950/38488146

It's just a note exlaiming and reminding everyone that thile the Democrats are being fiscally irrisponsible, the Republicans have not done any better whatsoever.  This is why I will never register as affiliated to a particular party.  No, not even the Libertarian party.

"The Politician Who Loves the Crisis" from D o w n s i z e r - D i s p a t c h

D o w n s i z e r - D i s p a t c h

---

Quote of the Day: "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste." - Rahm Emmanuel, Barack Obama's Chief of Staff

Subject: The politician who loves the crisis

Rahm Emmanuel loves the financial crisis. He sees it as an opportunity. His admission of this fact, which we've used as our quote of the day, is breathtaking. 

Mr. Emmanuel tried to moderate his enthusiasm for exploiting the crisis by claiming that his desire wasn't for big government, but for good government. But has Mr. Emmanuel ever acted as if good government was consistent with smaller government? We doubt it. 

Mr. Emmanuel isn't alone in seeing crisis as an opportunity to make government "gooder" by making it bigger. Donald Rumsfeld famously wanted to exploit the 9-11 attack by "roping in everything," including Iraq. And that is what they did.

One "crisis" event was used to create another crisis. Now it's happening again.

Consider what this means: What do the politicians think of you? They think you aren't wise enough to accept their grand plans for remaking the world, so you have to be scared into doing the right thing. Their grand plans require crisis to be implemented. This way of thinking also implies that only the politicians know what the right thing is.

Your plans and my plans, and all the individual plans of 300 million Americans, must be superseded by the plans of the politicians and their court intellectuals. But what's the likelihood that such a small group of people really knows how 300 million individuals should live -- how their affairs should be regulated and their money spent?

And what happens when they're wrong? If you and I make mistakes in our small plans for our own lives, the consequences effect only ourselves and maybe a few people around us. But when the politicians' grand plans go wrong, millions, perhaps everyone, is harmed in a grand way.

But isn't this very nearly the definition of a crisis -- something that harms everyone?

If politicians have the power to help everyone, then they also have the power to harm everyone. But what they can never have is enough knowledge to predict the full consequences of their grand, universal "do-gooder" plans.

Knowledge is decentralized. All of us have pieces of the puzzle. This is why small, decentralized plans tend to work, creating massive progress from the bottom-up. It's also why grand plans, from the top-down, blow-up.

Here at DownsizeDC.org we think we need to have a few, bottom-up plans of our own. We need to figure out how to stop the politicians from creating and exploiting crises. But, unlike the politicians, our plans must not be grand and universal. They should be humble and flexible, capable of being implemented in small increments.

We can't pretend to know, in advance, all the steps needed to curtail the politicians' power to create and exploit crises. No one one bill, by itself, will stop political opportunism and meddling. But we can know the rough dimensions of what our plan must achieve. Above all, we can be fairly certain of the need to make our ideas heard at the same volume as the grand claims of the crisis exploiters.

Some would attempt to accomplish this from the top-down, by finding a few large donors, and then buying lots of advertising with their donations. But large donors can change their minds or even pass on, and any plan based on them risks a large collapse at almost any moment -- kind of like the plans the politicians prefer. We take the opposite approach . . .

* We want to fund our plan from the bottom-up, with lots of small and average donations, especially monthly pledges.
* We'll then use our success in building this base of monthly pledgers to attract larger donors who will be the icing on the cake, rather than the cake itself.

It's working.

Our ability to attract a stable base of monthly pledgers is what earned us the support of the major donors who gave us the financial lever we needed to pre-fund all of our basic operations for all of 2009.

We're now in a position to spend nearly all the additional money we raise in 2009 to do outreach and recruitment. No other organization I'm aware of is in such a position. Think of what this means to you . . .

Nearly every additional dollar we raise will fund outreach that will recruit new people who will exert more pressure on Congress and fund still more outreach to recruit still more people. We're now at the point where we can create an ever growing spiral of outreach, education, recruitment, and direct pressure on Congress.

Already this month, we've added a couple of new pledgers and raised more than $1,200. This money is accumulating, and will soon amount to something that can accomplish something. Here's what we need to move forward EACH MONTH this year: 

* Just $6,000 a month (beyond reoccurring pledges)
* Just 20 new monthly pledgers each month -- less than one a day

This message is going out to more than 24,000 people. These targets seem quite doable.

We'll be presenting the first phase of our outreach plan to you in just a few weeks. We anticipate investing $50-60,000 throughout this year -- eight to ten times what we've spent on direct outreach in our four year history. Could you help make this happen by making . . . 

a) a generous one-time contribution or,
b) becoming a monthly pledger

The size and impact DC Downsizers can have is a matter of funds. The growth of the army depends on you.

Thank you,

Jim Babka
President
DownsizeDC.org, Inc.        

P.S. This afternoon (Friday) Jim Babka is scheduled to be on Straight Talk w/ Jerry Hughes on the Accent Radio Network. Details are available in this October DownsizeDC.org blog post.

D o w n s i z e r - D i s p a t c h
is the official email list of DownsizeDC.org, Inc. & Downsize DC Foundation

CONTRIBUTE to the Electronic Lobbyist project

http://www.DownsizeDC.org is sponsored by DownsizeDC.org, Inc. -- a non-profit educational organization promoting the ideas of individual liberty, personal responsibility, free markets, and small government.

You are encouraged to forward this message to friends and business associates, and permission is hereby granted to reproduce any items herein as long as attribution is provided for articles and the subscription instructions above are included.

Letter on Economy to and from Sen. Edward Kennedy

Hey, I just recently sent an email my senetors and representatives.  They are Sen. Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy and Sen. John Forbes Kerry representing the whole of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and Congressman William D. (Bill) Delahunt representing the Massachusetts 10th district.

One of them, Sen. Kennedy, responded.  Below is what I wrote, followed by what he wrote back to me.

Thank you for using Congress.org Mail System.

Message sent to the following recipients:
Representative Delahunt
Senator Kennedy
Senator Kerry
Message text follows:

Christopher D. Osborn
[my U.S. address was inserted here]


January 14, 2009

[recipient address was inserted here]


 [recipient name was inserted here],

I I just wanted to let you know that I oppose the request for $350 billion
in TARP funds (and any other government bailout or stimulus package)
because it does not make any sense for the government to intervene when
government intervention is what caused this problem in the first place.

What I support is the permanent income hypothesis (PIH).  From Wikipedia:
"The permanent income hypothesis (PIH) is a theory of consumption that was
developed by the American economist Milton Friedman. In its simplest form,
PIH states that the choices made by consumers regarding their consumption
patterns are determined not by current income but by their longer-term
income expectations."

The hole reason past stimulus packages have not worked is because while we
were all happy to receive money, a sudden burst of cash does not guarantee
long-term financial stability.  Weather you are a big company receiving
billions or an individual receiving hundreds or even thousands, if you're
only getting it once you will likely want to save it or pay off old bills
rather than spend it on new things.  Weather it be a new washing machine
or a new factory or other big investment, you will be hesitant to spend
the money if you aren't sure that you'll be getting more money in the
future.

Please consider pushing to immediately eliminate the . . .

* Capital gains tax (which discourages investment),
* Corporate tax (which is merely passed on to consumers),
* And reduce the regressive payroll tax, which does not need to be so high
in order to pay for current entitlement expenses

Permanent tax reductions would . . .

* Make new investments and businesses profitable
* Convince consumers that their incomes will be higher for the long run
* Increase investment, job creation, and consumer confidence.

P.S. while in the congress.org sender information I've put my American
adress, I currently reside in Norway as I've married a Norwegian.  Make no
mistake though, that I still care deeply about my country despite living
abroad, and I do plan on moving back to the United States in a few years.
In addition, while I am away I will still be voting.

To contact me in Norway, please either use my email address the the
Norwegian phone number a provided.

Also, my blogs are fipher.blogspot.com and battleforheaven.blogspot.com



Sincerely in Liberty,


Christopher D. Osborn
[my Norwegian phone number was inserted here]


Please use this link to SEE ME and view more information about me
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/picturepages.tt?id=81300

Employer Name: unemployed
Employer City: Bergen, Hordaland, Norge
Position: unemployed
Are you a registered voter?: Yes
Did you vote in the last election?: Yes
Age: 22
Gender: Male
Organization: One Family Under God, United States of America, Commonwealth
of Massachusetts Interest Group: God's Children, American Citizens, and
Bay Staters Living Abroad Would you like a reply?: Yes Have you visited
our website?: Yes

Christopher D. Osborn sent this message via Congress.org, which uses the
Capwiz·XC system.  Congress.org is a free public service of Capitol
Advantage and Knowlegis, LLC.  You may access Congress.org here:
http://congress.org

And here is the reply:

Dear Mr. Osborn:

 

Thank you for your recent letter on the economy and the proposed economic stimulus package.This is a very important issue to me, and I'm committed to making sure that hardworking families get the help they need. 

Day after day, we see distressing evidence that our economy is continuing in the wrong direction. The unemployment rate is rising, the cost of basic essentials such as food and fuel is soaring, and foreclosures and bankruptcies are skyrocketing. Our failing economy has a real impact on the lives of tens of millions of Americans. Every day, working men and women are being forced to make impossible choices between feeding their families, paying their bills, and keeping their homes. 

That's why I strongly support immediate stimulus legislation to help those in need and revive our economy as soon as possible. The Senate stimulus proposal is a major step in the right direction. It contains targeted spending and tax incentives designed to jump-start the economy as quickly as possible. It also provides help to the large numbers of unemployed workers, including 75,000 workers in Massachusetts, who have exhausted their unemployment benefits while they continue to look for jobs. 

There's still more to be done in coming days before the stimulus package is complete. I believe we must add aid for the millions of families struggling to heat their homes, and give greater assistance to those who need help in feeding their families. 

We have much to do in the days ahead, and I intend to do all I can to make sure that working people in Massachusetts aren't left behind. 

Thank you again for your letter on this pressing issue.

 

 

Sincerely,
Edward M. Kennedy

So, there we have it.  I imagine Sen. Kennedey did not write this, as last I heard he was, while still working to some extent, is rather ill.  Becides, even if he was perfectly fine I doubt he has the time to respond to my emails.  However, it was nice of a staff member to respond in his name.

Though despite that it is nice to get a response, I wish it more specifically adressed the ideas I  mentioned.  Oh well.  I still love being American for this very reason, that what I say and think does still matter to my government, at least a little, and while I know governments care about the people in other countires I do beleive the American Revolutuion is what really inspired this way of thinking.

From Bergen, Hordaland, Norge,

Christopher D. Osborn