The Profitable Dismantling of Civil Society

Posted by Howie Klein

Down With Tyranny!

May 13, 2008.

Public infrastructure is deteriorating and Wall St. stands to profit
from it.

Yesterday Scholars & Rogues featured a pretty ominous look at the
serious deterioration of basic American infrastructure. The author,
Dr. Denny, points out that our otherwise preoccupied government is...

I sympathize Hardpan. Reading Jared Diamond's latest, "Collapse" I
notice that when the resource base is maxed, the power elites, rather
than cutting back to buy time to look for solutions, increase their
exploitation of all lower classes so as to keep increasing the perks
and luxury they've enjoyed to give the illusion that "progress" continues.

Course, there is the unintended effect on increasing stress on the
middle class- the workers who maintain the infrastructure you refer to.
They work longer hours for less pay because of the power elite exploitation.

Machiavelli and Gibbon picked up on this. They saw that the aristocracy
encouraged immigration to Rome from tribes that lacked strong republican
traditions to flood the market with workers to drive wages down. They
also funded the campaigns of demagogues pandering to ethnicity and
religion, promising one thing to them in their own language, but saying
something else in Latin to the Romans.

On Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:26:33 -0500, Day Brown daybrown.org> wrote:

On Tue, 08 Jul 2008 11:58:15 -0700, Sir Frederick
fuzzysys.com> wrote:

On Jul 7, 11:40 pm, Hardpan yahoo.com> wrote:

Supply-side Economics Explained

George W. Bush's economic policy is based on trickle-down economics,
also known as supply-side stimulus. Reagan was a big fan of this idea
also. Simply described, supply siders argue that the best way to
stimulate the economy to grow is to cut taxes on the wealthy. When
their tax rates fall, the rich will increase their investments. For
example, a restaurant owner might decide to build a larger kitchen if
she gets a big refund check. Then, she'll have to hire more workers to
staff that kitchen, and so employment goes up, indirectly because of
that original tax cut.

It's a neat theory. Reagan argued that it even makes sense for the
government to cut taxes to below current spending and take on debt
because in the long run, the economy would grow back so that
eventually the tax cut would pay for itself. This approach is called
"supply-side" because the stimulus (the tax cut) are applied to the
suppliers of goods and services (the business sector).

On Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:26:33 -0500, Day Brown daybrown.org>
wrote:

That didn't work too well in France, but we shall see what Americans
will do when the stuff really hits the fan in another year or so.

Yes, they certainly do.

Sir Frederick wrote:

I am hard put to say which is worse, for if the lower classes themselves
were rational, they would not put up with it, and would not be suckered
by demagogery and the resulting policy disasters.

Part of the problem is that ever since the birth control pill came in,
smart women have used it thinking they could teach the craft to the
airheads. Unfortunately, they were wrong about that. All too often,
honorable talented men have stayed faithful to wives who bore them no
sons, so they are out of the gene pool.

Meanwhile the charming philanderers have sired bastards to be raised on
welfare all over the county, and now young women see there are not
nearly enuf responsible young men to start a family with.

Polite discourse appreciated Hardpan. but to move on from where we are,
which is not well defined, to some of the scenarios we mite be
confronted with. Which may not wait til next year, or even the election.

If foreign holders of dollar denominated securities start dumping, with
global communications, it could all come down over nite. Any nite. We
can still hope the election discourse provides foreign investors the
idea that their holdings will be worth something, but I've not seen word
one from any candidate yet.

I've lived most of the last 40 years in the Ozark boonies, and never
been gladder of it. I spoke with a young couple moving here who are also
concerned earlier today. And every time I drive to town, I see new
McMansions and starter castles going up. There's no decline in real
estate values in the Arkansas Ozarks. Dont imagine there is in Idaho,
Montana, or Alaska either.

But I've already got most of the firewood I'll need next winter already
cut. That'll be a bitch in those northern states. Especially if nobody
has chainsaw gas. Nevertheless, if four men can share a house, they can
cut the wood to heat it with a two man saw. I was born on a farm in MN
in 1939, and remember it that way.

"Sir Frederick" fuzzysys.com> wrote in message
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