Hopeful Quote.....

"We make scientific decisions based on fact, not ideology."

~President Obama

Does Al Gore know this?

Realistic Quote

"Politics are present wherever money and government mix."

~American Conservative Magazine

The Longevity of Slavery

I am reading an account of American history written by a history professor named Larry Schwiekhart. He openly contests some of the mainstream history being taught in our schools and wrote this book to counter them. He had this to say about the 'peculiar institution'--slavery:

He asserts that slavery lasted as long as it did in America because it was insulated by the hand of government. Had the government acted in a 'nuetral' way instead of in the protective way it did, market principles would have forced slavery out much sooner as in other parts of the world.

Slavery was not as cost effective as other industrial methods that had been or were being developed. This factor, in other places in the world, naturally ended slavery. But because of various laws implented by legislatures (that spread the costs of slavery in the South throughout the general population and prevented blacks from elevating themselves in society) that natural decay did not occur in the US. Such laws included:

Laws forcing whites to join posses to recapture runaway slaves-even if they didnt' own any.
Laws forbiding slaves from owning property or getting an education.
Laws prohibiting slaves from purchasing their own freedom.
Laws prohibiting slaves from testifying in court.
Laws restricting the movement of free blacks who lived in/or visited the south.

All these laws "emanated from the government, not the market....slave holders benefited from monumental reductions in the cost of slavery by, as economists would say, externalizing the costs to nonslaveowners". Whether they liked it or not, everyone was subsidizing slavery.

The natural "emancipating powers could work only where the government served as a neutral referee instead of a hired gun working for the slave owner."

Vocabulary

satiate - verb - 1. to satisfy fully 2. To gratify to excess

I've had a sweet tooth craving all day! I am finally going to satiate it with a Barnes and Noble Brownie!! Yummy.

Humorous Quote

Ban those dirty banks!!

In 1837 America fell into a 'panic'--or a 'depression'. During the years prior to the panic, many states had opened banks for the sole purpose of providing funds to the dominant political party of that state. The management of these banks was stacked, of course, to ensure loans were given to that particular party. And, of course, the banks got 'breaks' because of the political interests of the state gov't--run by the dominant party. These banks operated almost exclusively in states dominated by the Jacksonian party--it was their system.
(The Jacksonians were the early Democrats).

When the Panic of 1837 set in, these banks couldn't hold up and many collapsed. The Jacksonians were so burned by this, that in some states they banned banks altogether. The economy inevitably revived by itself, but the states where banks had been banned--by the Jacksonians--hung in bankruptcy. One of these states was Missouri which resorted to using fur as currency during that time because there was no money.

Let's recap--the Jacksonians spend years setting up state banks for the purpose of supplying themselves with money--these banks then fail in a bad economy because they operated on political whims and not market principles--so the Jacksonians ban ALL banks and this ban further inhibits economic recovery? It's interesting--isn't it?

Are there institutions operating under political whims now? Unions? Freddie Mac? Fannie Mae? Banks? Automobile industry? Whether it's through stacked management or intrusive regulations--it's the same. Are some of these institutions now failing because of the political hands that have been messing with them or running them altogether? Are guilty parties trying to cover up their ineptness (or corruptness) by going after the 'crooks' with show stopping fierceness? Are bailouts about helping the American people or about covering up failed schemes because the sooner they correct it the less we find out?

In light of all that is going on right now with the housing crisis, failing corporations, bail outs, claw backs, salary caps, and 100% taxation on bonuses, this historical account gives me pause. Is history repeating itself? Did someone get burned in their schemes?

Ban those dirty banks!

Ronald Reagan is one of my new favorite people. He was pretty funny---and I hear he was a good president. (I was a teenager back then so I wasn't paying much attention.)

Anyway, here is a good Reagan quote;

"I have wondered at times what the Ten Commandments would have looked like if Moses had run them through Congress."

Want another one? Ok, ok, one more...

"Republicans believe everyday is the Fourth of July, Democrats believe everyday is April 15th."

Boy, oh boy, how loud that truth is going to ring over the next 4 years.

Vocabulary

sagacious - adj. - shrewd and wise

Apparently, neither the legislature or administration is sagacious enough to oversee all the bail out funds.

I always thought 'shrewd' meant 'ruthless' but it doesn't.....

shrewd - adj. - discerning; astute

uh..........

astute - adj. - having a cunning, clever mind; perceptive; insightful