Political Debate or Boxing Match?

As I watch people debate about the elections, it is more reminiscent of them talking about a boxing match, not an election. Lots of one-liner trash talk, but very little substance. It makes me question if our country is ready to move forward regardless of the candidate we choose. And I do still believe we will figure it out, but not sure this is the election in which we will do that. So often it takes people years to realize the truth, or a new generation has to come along who is hungry for change.A dear friend added... David, I'm afraid you hit the nail right on the head. We are NOT ready to move forward AT ALL. To be honest, I think more of us...

Drug War, Prisons and Debt

If you add all the money we are spending on prisons, I think the number is even higher. Worse we have a neighbor, Mexico, who is losing many lives in a war that will never end. We need to be a leader in ending this war, and using the money more wisely for treatment programs and paying off debt. ...

Get Your War On Animated

Get Your War On started as a little cartoon published every week or so and was popular for a long while, but then somewhat forgotten. Enter this animated short film and I would say it is back! (see the video below).It was often an "over the top" cartoon with a blend of extreme humor meant to make a case. For example, to "get your war on" was used almost like a positive phrase as the USA was going to in and totally bring the "shock and awe". So now they have animated it into a moving cartoon. Enjoy!    ...

Game Theory and the Triumph of Capitalism

When you look at Capitalism you can't help but look at Game Theory. Players can come to dominate the game. Then the idea that capitalism always achieves maximum gain becomes invalid. There is a role of governments to regulate and adjudicate the game. That is not Socialism, but rather makes the "triumph of capitalism" possible....

Income and Wealth Per Person Worldwide

If there were a worldwide redistribution of income today in which every man, woman and child earned the same amount of money, it seems that amount would be be right around $10,000 per year. According to multiple sources (World Bank, IMF, CIA), the total global domestic product is about $70 Trillion per year and we have about 7 Billion people on this earth. If we limited this number to just the 4.5 billion adults wordwide they would each earn $15,555. Now that is income per. Total wealth is a little harder to measure, but for example the Credit Suisse Total Global Wealth Report for 2011 put that number at about $231 Trillion, and probably not include which means there would be about $33,000 in wealth...

Assault Rifles are Weapons of War Not Self Defence

It is estimated that 2000 guns per day are flowing illegally across the border into Mexico, a large percentage of those weapons being semi-automatic rifles similar the one used in today's shooting in Aurora. These guns are being used to kills cops, so much so that the cops cover their faces so they or their families will not be hunted down and killed. There are some guns like a pistol with a low capacity clip that make sense for an individual to have for self defense.An AK-47 or AR-15 is a gun that is designed for waging war, not self defense. We have a military and a police force to help defend against heinious acts. When we make sure that high capacity assault rifles are...

Wealth comes from the help of others

I've heard a similar message coming from Elizabeth Warren, but this one comes from Obama. People who are wealthy and successful got there because of the many people who made that possible which likely includes people who work much harder and face even greater challenges. The heros in our society should be the people help others when nobody will help them, people who are guided by their heart, not their quest for power and wealth.Here is the quote from Obama... There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me — because they want to give something back. They know they didn’t — look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own. You didn’t get there on your own. I’m always...

10 Years of Lost Equity

Many people across the United States got the idea that home ownership was the epitomy of living the American Dream, but as a result of Wall Streen shenigans, it seems this dream is lost for over a decade. Take a look at this chart of a suburb of Atlanta. It is not even among the worst hit. Someone who bought a house in 2002 finds their house worth less in 2012. What is even worse is the people hurt by this also support people in Congress who are against government regulation, when Wall Street tycoons walked away scott free with Billions, if not Trillion, of dollars. Buford Zillow Home Value Index Buford real estate info ...

Response to Circular about Work and Prosperity

  The following is something that is getting circulated. On the surface, the logic sounds good, and it would be good assuming some other things are true as well, so here is first the circular followed by my response   1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealthy out of prosperity.   You also shouldn't legislate special breaks for those who already are doing so well, especially those who get bonuses as they run companies into the ground or take from consumers with crafty financial products. You can't make a society richer by increasing inequality. An increasing number of poor people means a less productive society for all.   2. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving.   There are people at all...

Why does Congress pass bill that will fail?

So for something like the thirty fifth time, the US House of Representatives passed a bill to end the Healthcare Reform that is a cornerstone of the Obama presidency. Not only is the Democratically controlled Senate certain to vote this house bill down, the President is certain to veto it. This bill has a 0% chance of passing.It makes you wonder if there is something more sinister at play here like waste the time of the Senate and the President when these people are working hard to run our government. It seems like quite a sham. Why not work on a bill that has a chance of passing?...