Why Are We In This Mess?

Hi Everyone:

Today's topic is about how and why we as a country find ourselves in this Great Recession. I have touched on some of these points previously, but today I will connect the dots to answer those two questions. In this very political atmosphere that we live in, it never ceases to amaze me when untruths are spread around as truth. So let's look at the facts and nothing but the facts:

1)-2001 Bush tax cuts.

2)- 9/11/01 Islamic extremists attack our country.

3)- 10/7/01 The war in Afghanistan began with allied air strikes.

4)- 3/20/03 The war in Iraq began with air strikes.

5)- 2005 thru 2006 This was when the majority of sub-prime mortgages were sold. They were
also sold into 2008.

6)- 2006 thru 2008 Oil speculators became very greedy and caused the extraordinary
price spikes of gasoline to pass the $4.20 per gallon mark.

7)- 12/07 The month that the Great Recession actually began.

8)- 7/30/08 President Bush signs TARP (Troubled Assets Relief Program) which loaned out
approximately $750 billion to troubled banks, investment firms and AIG.

9)- 1/20/09 President Obama is sworn in.

Now those are the undeniable facts. Now let's see how all of those combined ended with the Great Recession taking a grip on not only this country, but helped to plunge the entire global community into the Great Recession.

1) Although the tax cuts reduced rates for all people at every income level, there is now proof that it has really, really helped the richest 1%, with tax reductions averaging $85,000. These huge tax cuts to the richest prevented the collection of tax money that could have been used to reduce the burden on the middle class.

3) In my opinion, this is a just war against the Taliban and al-Queda who attacked us first. But the ongoing war has cost us billions and billions with no end in sight.

4) In my opinion, this is an unjust war based on lies and misinformation. We should have never attacked Iraq. This almost 7 year war is now costing us $12 billion per month. This war has taken a trillion dollars away from every state, county and city in America. Again, there is no easy way out of this war and consequently it will continue to cost us billions of dollars each month.

5) The financial scam that banks, investment firms and insurance companies were allowed to perpetrate involving toxic loans, derivative bond bundles (which usually contained about 10% of sub-prime mortgages), and insuring these worthless pieces of paper all but destroyed our nation's free-enterprise system.

6) At the same time that the sub-prime fiasco started to rear its ugly head, speculators took the price of a barrel of oil to new heights, namely $147/barrel; which translated into a whopping $4.20 for a gallon a gasoline. A gallon of home heating oil was even more expensive.

7) At the time, 12/07, no one knew that this was when the Great Recession actually began but it has been determined to be the start date and obviously continues to this date.

8) The surprise of how fast President Bush decided to bail out the banks, investment firms and AIG to the tune of $750 billion was astounding. Of course that first round of TARP money bailout was given out without any strings attached. Who does that? So it was business as usual for the banks et. al. to hand out billions in bonuses before they even repaid the TARP money, which they so desperately needed. The banks et. al. caused their own demise. The TARP money was supposed to be partly used for new loans and instead they horded it and used it to help their own bottom lines, hence the large bonuses.

9) When President Obama was sworn in on 1/20/09, he inherited from President Bush a one trillion dollar deficit and the fast growing Great Recession was quickly approaching what some analysts predicted to become a depression. During the beginning of the Great Depression of 1929 then President Herbert Hoover decided not to do anything but sit back and watch and to leave everything alone; as they believed that the market and banks would correct themselves. That's why President Roosevelt was elected to help the country get back on course. By the time FDR took office in March 1933, the Great Depression was already 4 years old and immediate action was most needed and was taken.

So yesterday, Sarah Palin gave a speech in Nashville, Tenn. to a Tea Party gathering. From what I heard and read, Ms. Palin was big on enthusiasm but short on any ideas. She blamed President Obama for all of our problems. It seems that some people are convincing themselves that almost everything that President Obama has done to help the country is wrong. Unfortunately, in this day and age everyone wants immediate satisfaction no matter what. I am not sure if the second $750 billion stimulus President Obama issued was too much or too little. Why? Because it is too early to tell. It will take time to fix our economy. It took FDR 7-8 years to get our country back on track. What makes people so damn impatient today is besides me. Let's give it time. It will take years not days or months till unemployment and economy is up to snuff.

So it seems that some people in this country have very short memories. So let's review the undeniable facts: numbers 1 through 8 all happened on President Bush's watch and no one else's period. If we never attacked Iraq and the Bush tax cuts were never implemented, without a doubt, and no one can argue this point, this country would be so much better off financially. The draining of our tax dollars for Iraq is unprecedented and can not continue indefinitely or it will bankrupt our country.

So there are the facts. I can only hope that people, including politicians, especially Republicans, remember what the actual facts are and to use them correctly. Unfortunately, in our present political climate that may just be wishful thinking.

Go Colts!

Til next week.