There's an old saying. When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. You cannot get out of the hole by digging out the bottom. That just puts you deeper into a hole.
We are in a sixteen trillion dollar hole. That's a sixteen with TWELVE ZEROS behind it. It's an addiction to spending. When we have a trillion dollar deficit each year, not including interest on the debt, we have a problem. Yet the infamously hypocritical and stupid Nancy Pelosi said that people are lying when they say we have a spending problem.
So I guess GSA execs spending tax dollars on clowns, gambling, and alcohol isn't a problem. Hundreds of thousands of dollars spent to make an aquatic treadmill for shrimp (yes, I said shrimp) to run on so we can see what it looks like isn't a problem. Paying bloated salaries to members of congress who don't even read the bills they pass isn't a problem.
According to a survey done over the weekend, 83% of Americans say we have a spending problem. The 17% that don't must all work for the government. We have record waste and fraud each year, and Nancy Pelosi has the gall to say that we don't have a problem.
President Obama will admit roughly that we have a problem. His problem is he thinks the solution is to dig faster. Spend money on bridges. Spend money on special interests. Spend more money. He calls it a stimulus.
Only we've tried that. Over. And over. And over. Bush tried it, and Obama called it stupid. Then Obama walked into office and said "Hey you know that thing that didn't work? Let's try that." That's INSANE!!! Einstein said "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result." Congrats to both Democrats and Republicans. You are insane. He's even said that he's going to raise the tax on gasoline to give us more spending. Because, you know, paying more for gasoline really helps low income people like you and me.
On another note: the minimum wage. I am big on social justice. I want to help the poor. But I'm also a pragmatist. That means I do things that work. Raising the minimum wage sounds good, in theory. That's why we raised it $2.00 a few years ago. That's why he wants to raise it $2.00 again.
The problem is it doesn't work. Yes, you bring home more money (unless you work for tips. Or on commission. Or on a salary. Pretty much, it screws most people because we aren't hourly like the unions.). But that tank of gas costs $2 more. That trip to McDonalds with your family? $2 more. Everything from food to gas to utilities goes up, more than you raise did. Plus, businesses don't hire as many workers. That's just what we need right now, higher prices and less jobs. Again, I love the idea behind the higher minimum wage, but in practicality it hurts those you are trying to help. Ideals don't pay the rent here in the real world. What actually works is if those few dollars we do bring home go further, but that involves reducing the debt. Short term pain equals long term solutions, just like it does in personal finance. But that's never going to happen, because those that work in Washington won't deign themselves to step foot in the real world.
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