Me and the Prez!!!!

Yep, today is our birthday! He is one year older than I and still has hair. I don't like him already!

Last night he partied at the Aragon (sic) Ballroom in Chicago. (sounds like a nice place but it's pretty much NOT) Last night I worked the Night Shift in an attempt to help our Country get out of debt. OK, OK, I worked to bring home a paycheck and the Government did benefit a tad from it but you get my drift.

The political events of the past few months has really bothered me. Months of partisan bickering over the "debt ceiling" seemed to miraculously come to an end when Gabby Giffords showed up to place her vote. I'll agree it was an impressive and feel good moment but it does make one wonder what it will take to get our Congress to act together for THE GOOD OF THE COUNTRY instead of their respective parties.

Let's think about it, shall we? We all have a debt ceiling. The difference between ours and the governments is that we don't have much say in it. In fact, we really have none. Banks decide what we can borrow based on our supposed ability to repay. The problem with Government is that the same Morons that got us into the massive debt are now deciding on what their limits are. The truth is that as a Country, we are broke. Not only are we broke but we are broken.

Take for instance our beloved Congress. We have been hovering around this Crisis for literally months, (when in fact we should have been fixing it years ago) and there are myriad problems in our Country that need fixing but within the last 6 months, part of our Congress's efforts has been spent on putting Roger Clemons, (another guy born on this same day) on trial for lying to Congress. Lying to Congress???? Really???? A baseball player??? Heck, I'm surprised they didn't put him in an office on Capitol Hill and have him pass some legislation. In Illinois, we would elect Him Governor twice and then throw him into Prison, hoping beyond hope that He would make our license plate so that we could sell it on E-Bay!!!!!  How much money have we wasted on prosecuting a ball player for being a liar? It is truly ridiculous. 

We have other problems, Guy's and Gal's! Unemployment is crippling our already over-taxed working class. Infrastructure is literally falling down around us in this State and many others. More jobs are going Overseas by the day but we sure are showing that over-paid Ball Player that you better not lie to Congress! They don't like the competition.  

It's time we get real as a Nation and as Individuals. Government was never intended to bail out Car companies, Mortgages, Banks and yes, even Health Care. It's no wonder we are broke. We have these great entitlement programs but never a plan to pay for them. The "left" doesn't want to let go of them and the "right", well, I'm not really sure what the "right" wants anymore. They talk fiscal responsibility but talk should end when actions don't line up.

The "Lefts" answer is to tax those wealthy corporations more and more and the "Right" says it's not fair to put the entire burden on those Captains of Industry. Meanwhile, we slide further and further downhill every day. It's really not that hard but fixing the problem will require everyone to become less greedy and therefore will probably never happen. But since it is my Birthday too, I feel the need to opine my opinion a tad more.

How about that we charge a flat tax rate on all Fortune 500 companies. As they bristle, let's say for arguments sake that they pay 10% of their Profits each year. Not from the Profit and Loss sheet than can be easily manipulated but from the actual profits generated. The same ones they currently base their bonuses on! Ouch!!! The Good Lord only asks for that much, surely you can do it for your Country!! OK, before the Captains hyper-ventilate let me unveil the part of the plan that will turn things around.

For every 1000 jobs that these companies generate, they can deduct 1%. For every 1000 New jobs created they can deduct 2%. Yes, it is conceivable that they can literally work themselves out of paying taxes at all but what will have happened in the mean time? JOBS!

The problem with today's Workplace is that they are feasting on greed with no motivation to put more people to work. "Lean and Mean", "5S", "Six Sigma" are all business philosophies that focus on one general theme and that is, get as much as you can out of as few people possible and get rich. They encourage workers to come up with better ways to do their jobs but the desire behind it is not to employ more people but actually less. These are Japanese driven business philosophies but they are cut short of the Japanese loyalty to their workers. You see, once you have a job in Japan, you have a job for as long as you want it. No wonder they are Leaders in things such as Robotics. They know they aren't going to be replaced by them. Are Japanese companies wealthy? Absolutely! Wealthy and loyal to their workers. Something American should pay attention to.

And let's talk Congress for just a minute. When was the last time you voted yourself a pay raise?? Why should they get to? If I don't bring my Department in under budget, someone else will in the near future. Let's see who has the courage among them to enact legislation that requires a balanced budget be brought in each year or no pay raises. We've heard them threaten Soldiers pay and Retired workers pay during the recent crisis, using shameful scare tactics to get their way but not once did I hear a Congress person say, let's forfeit our pay! One of the things that bother me whenever I'm bored enough to watch C-Span, (which I do recommend you do on occasion) is the high number of "no votes" that appear on every Bill. Where are these Clowns at? Why aren't they representing us by being there AND ACTUALLY VOTING. How about we dock their pay for every missed vote?? Just thinking out loud, Folks.

No, I doubt that these things, even if possibly enacted, would cure all of our ills. But wouldn't it be nice to just be "better?" OK, that's my Birthday rant! I can't wait to turn 50!!!!!