Golden Goose vs. Golden Calf (updated)

    To hear Trump tell it, the US is in the worst financial shape ever. You'd never guess that unemployment for example had decreased from a Bush-crash high of 10% all the way down to 5%, along with restructuring banks, taking us off the "bankrupt" list, etc. (You'd think that would even produce some gratitude, but don't hold your breath. You see....

    Under Clinton, poverty rates dropped something like 5 points, 22 million jobs were created (or a 14% increase), the crime rate fell drastically, the long-standing deficit was reversed to a surplus, taxes were raised while the economy still boomed, home ownership rose, the dollar was strong yet exports still expanded, health care was greatly expanded despite the failure to enact Hillarycare, and no major wars were fought.

    And ever since, the far left and the right (yeah, they're all "far") have pushed to discredit each and every accomplishment. I don't think I can change anyone's mind with just facts and figures at this point, as everyone's imprinted with the data they want to believe. But here's where my perspective's at.

    1) I lived abroad during much of Clinton & Bush's tenures, and I can tell you any mug can increase exports by dropping the currency - it takes a mensch to do it while making the currency *stronger*. In 2 years under Bush, my life savings in dollars dropped by over half as he pursued his weak dollar "strategy". 

    And curiously, our trade deficit with Canada in the 90's was twice that with Mexico - but being racist bastards, we only worry about the jobs going south. Kudos, guys - almost Trumpian.

    2) Magazines like Counterpunch will jump over themselves to tell you successes like Clinton & Obama's were illusional, that despite all the new jobs (which at the end of the day are more important than a bonus, amirite?) "all the wage increases went to the top 1%", cause wages have been flat for decades, oh noes...

    But go to this site and click "1995-2000" - men, women, or all - and look at all the wage growth down at the 10%, 20%, 30% range - poor people getting a boost. (plus the Earned Income Credit was kicking in). Now click 2000-2007 to see what happens when crony capitalism kicks in. Do it again. And again. And again until the message sinks in - Clinton helped build out wealth for all - new jobs, higher wages, affordable homes, even for hourly factory workers and the poorest of the poor; Bush made sure the rich prospered. You've been conned. Yay, have a drink. (you pay, sorry)

    3) Despite keeping America out of any major war (the bombing in Kosovo was the closest Bill came), the Clintons are now "war hawks". Mostly based on a war that Bill's successor started and Bill's wife as a junior opposition senator couldn't stop. And besides me *preferring* peace, it's also a ton cheaper (meaning you can then do things like balance the budget while still affording social programs, health care, etc....)  Our burying the peace still freaks me out, right up there with

    4) Most of the supposed negative results of welfare reform, Glass-Steagal, housing crisis, bank meltdown, NAFTA, etc are based on *NOT ELECTING GORE*, voting against the Clinton years, and putting someone else in office who wanted to "SHRINK GOVERNMENT ENOUGH TO DROWN IT IN A BATHTUB*. Yeah, that worked so well *WE JUST DID IT AGAIN*. Gore ran on a Social Security lockbox. Bush ran on a tax cut to the wealthy. Which candidate won? Which president cut normal oversight activities as "intrusive"?

    Which year did all of Clinton's initiatives magically start to go to shit? Hint: 2002. Go look at NAFTA's supposed effect on manufacturing jobs - fine from 1994 til 2002.

    You've heard "elections have consequences"? well apparently your friends haven't cause we're DOING IT ALL OVER AGAIN. Fuck me, it's Groundhog Day in hell. Even a tiny shithole in Pennsylvania looks good from here.

    5) The Clintons entered the White House with about $400K-700K wealth, significantly less than any modern president aside from Truman. They left the White House stuck with millions of dollars in lawyers' debt. While pulling themselves out of debt over the next decade, they also built up a $400 million a year charity. Admirable, no? Apparently not.

    (unless your name is Bill Gates and you made your fortune squeezing billions out of a global monopoly that you expand and lord over the market like a hawk for decades - then it's admirable when you stop gouging people long enough to pivot and throw a few coins to Africa).

    And despite all the focus on their income, they're still only worth say $40-80 million (Al Gore is worth more like $300 million, Bill Gates $40 billion?). 2 of the most talented politicians of their generation, and in their 60's they finally have enough money to be called rich - and be attacked over it like no one before or nor will be again. The source of all that ill-gotten gain? Speeches. Bloody speeches.

    Vicious of them. And they probably said one thing in public and one thing in private (even though the Wikileaks leaks showed it wasn't much different). Unlike the others who say one thing in public and another thing in public and even a 3rd thing in public, and probably a whole slew of things in private, cuz we never gave a shit about *their* transcripts, did we?. Ah well, at least we can be proud of standing up as class-resentful idiots when we're not cheering the Kardashians or hosing down our eco-kale.

    6) "The Clinton Dynasty is Over". I read that again and again, and I'm sure someone out there is intentionally trying to piss me off. THE CLINTON DYNASTY NEVER EXISTED, YOU MOTHERFUCKERS. Yeah, it's okay to have Sonny Bono or Paul Wellstone's wife fill their seat on death, or George Wallace install his wife cause he's out of term limits, or have several generations of Jerry Browns, Cuomos, Kennedys, Bayhs, Rockefellers, Bushes, Dingells, etc. pass their positions on to their kids.

    But just not okay for a Yale-educated DC-connected politically active lawyer wife to *earn* her Senate seat or vie for the Presidency once her hubby's done it, after she campaigned by his side from the beginning, held down the "day job" to pay for his losses and crap public salary. We've had 3 of 45 presidents who were sons or grandsons of other presidents; 2 more who were distant cousins of prior presidents  (meaning 11% of presidents were legacy admissions), but 0 who were daughters or granddaughters or female cousins or even female. Dynasties include easy ascendancy (like a friend of the family being appointed Senator and then resigning so Ted Kennedy could have it as a 30th birthday present).

    Hillary tried twice and failed, with many of the levers of power pulling against her. Dynasties include only *THINGS THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED*. So for those still playing the dynasty card, SHUT THE FUCK UP ALREADY. (or at least look up "DOUCHEBAG" in the internet glossary and own it).

    More to come when time & anger permits.

     

    Comments

    I read an article during the Clinton presidency that claimed that even criminals released from prison were finding higher levels of employment because the job market was so tight. Replete with all the comparative numbers and statistics. I remember it after all these years because it was so surprising. This is really important. If criminals who have served their time can not get jobs because they've been in prison what do we expect them to do? Live on the street and starve to death? Or go back to stealing or selling drugs?


    A sad irony is we just about had unemployment down enough that it could start hitting inelastic demand, resulting in wage increases rather than just more McJobs or more skilled jobs but at bargain basement wages.

    Well, scratch that plan.


    I got nothing really Peracles. Back to Trump.

    A new theme song:


    t


    You're right.

    I  briefly considered the sophistry of objecting to "failed"  in

             Hillary tried twice and failed

    on the grounds that her 1.7 million (and counting) popular vote margin, surely was not a "failure."

    Wrong.

    Clearly she failed to achieve what she wanted to achieve . That's the correct metric. 

     


    She failed to win the White House. Despite all the 1000 ponts of light consolation talk, that was the prize, that was *the* goal, that was the *starting point* for having serious effect on the nation and politics.


    The country elected a racist. White supremacists held a meeting in public in D.C. where they hailed their new champion. The media has not pressured Trump to condemn the increase in hate speech and hate crimes.In stead the media is called to Trump's throne to hear him say that he hates their guts. The media is not on our side, they are cowards. 

    Evangelicals support a man who has never read the Bible, is a misogynist and a sexual abuser. The church is not on our side. Trump voters look forward to the change he will bring to Washington, even as he plans to Abolish changes in overtime pay.

    Hillary is not the problem. Hillary is not the failure, she got most of the popular vote. The threat comes from our fellow citizens who voted this evil man into office. Fascism is staring us in the face and we blame Hillary. Our fellow citizens are not willing to accept facts,they are willing to reject climate science. They will stand by if families are deported en masse in public. They will not speak out if Muslims are abused. They will remain silent as votes are suppressed and people lose health care. Hillary is not responsible for any of this. This is the personal responsibility of everyone who supports Trump. They are not redeemable.

    Hillary got the majority of the popular vote. We need to work on encouraging folks who stayed at home to come out for the midterms. The deplorables are not going to admit that their vote for Trump was in error.


    Hillary is not "a failure", but she failed, and we failed.what we can do about it now is a huge question


    We have to make Trump and the Republicans into Nixon. When people see his face, even his own supporters should see "crook". Every penny his corporation gains from his being president should be looked upon as money stolen from the American people. The markets are up, so businessmen are licking their chops. At the same time, Trump is about to curtail overtime pay. We have to show that Trump is laughing all the way to the bank. 

    Edit to add:

    A large part of our problem is the worlds dumbest news media being located in the USA. Aside from submitting to a tongue lashing by Trump, CNN actually ran a chyron  questioning if Jews were people. They did this as an anchor interviewing a white supremacist. The main stream media is normalizing anti-Semitism, racism, and bigotry. 

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/jake-tapper-cnn-anti-semitic-comment...


    Except Nixon won by a landslide. He would have never been impeached in today's world where hacking Podesta's email and stealing a Supreme Court seat and blocking blacks at the polls are considered great ideas or core party strategy. We're in a rough place.


    The hope is that people who stayed at home will come out at midterms. Voters who decided there was no difference between Hillary and Trump, may feel differently when they are directly impacted by Trump.


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