Don't Blame Me (Feb 27, 2009)

What do we get with Obama and Governor Schwartzeneuter? Tax increases. Planned regulation on carbon monoxide emissions. Trillion dollar bailouts to irresponsible businesses and house flippers. Sales tax increases. Some of my employer's franchises around the county closing up. Money for welfare instead of creating new jobs.

All this without addressing these things: the high cost of rent. Get it down! Also: the high number of low wage workers. This is what the problem is. Too low a wage, too high for rent and house payments and too high a credit debt means lack of spending power. What can be done to make the employers want to raise the minumum wage to $27 an hour? No more taxes on the employers? That would be better than a government bailout plan.

How about this: give a $10,000 tax credit (not a deduction) to everyone who worked during the year regardless of income. Better yet, get rid of income taxes and let the consumer sales tax be the sole means of funding the government.

How about this: a regressive flat sales tax. Tax rate would be the highest for people who spend less than $100 for a single transaction, but spend more and the tax rate goes down. Better yet, consumers would pay the lowest sales tax rate if they paid off their credit card bill within a billing period, else, the month's transactions would revert to the highest sales tax rate. Credit card companies would be responsible for setting the sales tax rates. This would help encourage people to spend more money that they have instead of spending on what they don't have. What rates would work? 10 percent for the first $100, then 9 percent for up to $1000, then 8 percent for more than that?

For those who maxed out their credit cards by spending their income on satellite and cable TV, cellphones, movie tickets, and other stuff they never needed, they wouldn't have been in too deep in the financial hole if they were more frugal with their spending. Spend less than what you make. Too many spent more than they have made. This is what has driven people into debt. They screwed themselves.

The Republicans have shot themselves in the foot in the past election because they forgot what the public wants: government funding for stem cell research, legalized abortion, decriminalized drugs (tax the sales on bongs and ganja), let the same sex people marry each other though I warn them that divorce is just as ugly for them as it is for straights, and a minimum wage tied to the cost of inflation. It would have helped greatly if McCain didn't select a governor mom who wasn't too hip on the current news headlines but was hot. If I want hot, I'll watch a Penelope Cruz movie instead of voting for one into office.

Roger Hedgecock endorsed McCain. Tom Leykis endorsed Obama because McCain to him is a bastard who almost got him fired from a radio gig two decades ago. I'd like to hear Leykis talk about what Obama is doing in office now that his ranting on the radio helped get him there. Hedgecock had been warning San Diegans and the few who listened to his Internet podcasts and streams about Obama's intentions. Now that Hedgecock has a national radio show that's on terrestrial radio and satellite, and Leykis is temporarily off the air but still employed by CBS Radio, radio is more leaning on the conservative side compared to last year.

Problem with the conservatives is that they want government to regulate healthy people instead of businesses. It's still big government when the Republicans still want the government to tell two same sex people that they can't marry. I'm no fan of marriage, but it's not my concern. If gays want to marry, let them have at it and see for themselves that marriage is no rose garden. I won't be marrying anybody because there's nothing in it for me to marry a poor woman as I don't make enough money, simple as that, and as a man, I'm not interested in marrying dudes.

For the homeless, there should be funds to convert those out of business former Mervyns and Linens 'n Things into homeless shelters and let them live in it for some $100 a month to help pay for the expenses of upkeeping it. Install kitchens, expanded bathrooms, living rooms, storage lockers, work dens, and individual bedrooms with just a cot and drawers. It might look like something I've seen on M*A*S*H except for the hospital part, but this is better than letting the people end up on the streets. They already have the parking for those who still have cars, but living in a car isn't acceptable in some cities.

There will be resources to connect the jobless and homeless with a job that will get them back on their own feet on the premises. They won't just be sitting inside the stores watching over-the-air TV (since there won't be any cable or satellite) and doing nothing to get another job. They will find the jobless employers that can pay them at least $15 an hour if they can. Minumum wage doesn't cut it in San Diego.

Obama promised change, but the way things are being governed, all we'll end up is change. Think of how much we'll be paying for socialized health care. It might be cheaper for me if I could just dump Kaiser and go with socialized health care if income limits didn't matter, but even at $15,000 a year, it might be too high for me to part with Kaiser.

Why do I get the feeling that Obama was a great marketer, but is turning out instead to be someone who might turn this country into another country with runaway inflation, welfare, unemployment, and socialization?

At least my unborn grandchildren isn't going to be paying for it because I'm not having any kids. Cost too much. Obama and Schwartzeneuter would have to pay me $500,000 to raise each child. I don't work for free when it comes to raising kids that will be paying your bills 25 years down the road.

I wonder if anybody is listening to Air America somehow on the Internet and what they are talking about as of late. Any ideas readers?