Yearly Archives: 2012

Stop Using Obama for America Against the People!

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Devin Smith | 12 comments

Obama for America, the campaign apparatus with the very large e-mailing list and great segmentation techniques that exploited Romney’s weaknesses to help the President to eke out (yes, I know the electoral vote involved no “eking out,” but the popular vote was something else again) his re-election victory, is now trying to mobilize people who voted for the President to work against their own interests by supporting his deficit/debt cutting activities. So, I couldn’t resist the following commentary on their mobilization e-mail. Continue reading →

12 Comments

Posted in Joe Firestone

Tagged debt-subject-to-the-limit, debt-to-GDP ratio, deficit, fiscal cliff, Fiscal Responsibility, Fiscal Sustainability, MMT, Modern Monetary Theory, national debt, Obama for America, OFA

Craziness on Three Continents

Posted on November 22, 2012 by Devin Smith | 4 comments

NEP’s William Black appears on The Real News Network discussing problems in Ecuador, Spain and the heartland of the U.S.

4 Comments

Posted in William K. Black

Tagged banking crisis, ecuador, spain, US Heartland

How the “Takers” Voted

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Devin Smith | 20 comments

By Stephanie Kelton

In any fiscal union, some states will benefit disproportionately from the way federal dollars are collected and allocated. In the US, roughly half of all states are net recipients of federal spending (i.e. they receive more in federal spending than they pay in federal taxes). These welfare queens are supported by fiscal transfers from the remaining states, who sacrifice their tax dollars but don’t enjoy the same investments in their infrastructure, industries, schools and communities. Continue reading →

20 Comments

Posted in Stephanie Kelton

Stephanie Kelton appears on Majority Report

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Devin Smith | 28 comments

Stephanie appeared on Majority Report with Sam Seder on 11/20/2012. The image as well as this link will take you to the Majority Report web site.

The podcast can be downloaded or listened to by clicking this link (opens in new window).

28 Comments

Posted in Stephanie Kelton

Tagged Economic Fantasy, Majority Report, Sam Seder, The Elite

Radio-Collar for a Dollar

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Devin Smith | 7 comments

By J. D. Alt

You know those radio collars they put on grizzly bears, so they can track where they go through the bushes and forests? Well, I’m pleased to announce they’ve developed a radio collar that fits on a U.S. Dollar. (This was a particular accomplishment since most U.S. Dollars now are electronic, the essence of their existence coded on magnetic discs, the embodied code appearing and disappearing, disc to disc, not unlike the quarks and neutrinos of quantum mechanics.) Without going into how they did it, then, we can simply announce that now we can track a U.S. Dollar through the bushes and forests of our economy and, hopefully, on this episode of NATURE, discover the roots and results of wasteful government spending. Continue reading →

7 Comments

Posted in J. D. Alt

Tagged dollar, MMT

William Black’s Comment to Krugman’s Twinkie Manifesto

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Devin Smith | 4 comments

NEP’s William Black posted the following comment in response to Krugman’s Twinkie Manifesto post: Continue reading →

4 Comments

Posted in William K. Black

Tagged banksters, equador, paul krugman, twinkie manifesto

The Republican Campaign to Convince Missouri to Join in a Fiscal Suicide Pact with Kansas

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Devin Smith | 3 comments

By William K. Black
(Cross-posted at Benzinga.com and Huffington Post)

I have written previously to describe Kansas Republicans’ unholy war against moderate conservatives of their own Party. Governor Brownback and Secretary of State Kobach led the successful purge in the primary elections of any Republican official who did not back dramatic changes in taxation and measures against “undocumented workers” or “illegal immigrants.” The Kansas fiscal plan will end most income taxes, adopt highly regressive taxes that will not provide equivalent revenue, and sharply cut social programs such as education. Continue reading →

3 Comments

Posted in William K. Black

Tagged conservatives, Fiscal Policy, income tax, kansas, missouri

Trigger Mechanisms To Avoid the Fiscal Cliff? You’re Kidding, Right?

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Devin Smith | 51 comments

By Joe Firestone

Robert Reich has been writing a series on “the Grand Bargain” and the “fiscal cliff.” In this post, I’ll do a commentary on his “The President’s Opening Bid on a Grand Bargain (II): Put a Trigger Mechanism in the Legislation”, because I think it’s a good example of self-defeating progressivism or “loser liberalism”. Take your choice of epithet.

Continue reading →

51 Comments

Posted in Joe Firestone

Tagged debt-subject-to-the-limit, debt-to-GDP ratio, deficit, fiscal cliff, Fiscal Responsibility, Fiscal Sustainability, MMT, Modern Monetary Theory, national debt, Robert Reich, triggers

Will the Real Alan Greenspan Please Stand Up (for America)

Posted on November 17, 2012 by Devin Smith | 52 comments

By Stephanie Kelton

What’s gotten into Alan Greenspan? Is he schizophrenic? Has he gone senile? Or is he simply shilling for Wall Street? Whatever the explanation, something doesn’t add up. What happened to this guy, who boldly declared that the US government can always pay its debt?