By using the greater computer power of today we can have a much higher turn over of capital in the capital market. This higher turnover will make the market harder to game or control and the market will no longer have the unstable run ups or declines. Who can change or control the market when say 20% of the capital is trading each day?

So now that we have the compute power to provide for all these transactions that will smooth out the market how do we force people to turn over at a rate of 20% a day? Easy, put a cap gains tax of 0% (zero) on all gains of 7 days or less and put a cap gains tax of 90% of all gains of more than 7 days.

The likes of Yahoo, Micosoft and/or Sun Micro Systems will give us the systems that will provide automated software agents to support turning over one’s investments every 7 days (based on the specs you give the agent).

A system like this will make the financial markets work as smoothly as the local fruit market.

No one would want their parents leaving them a huge pile of debt, but that is exactly what we are doing.
Zack has it right, we need to call BS on Keynes school of economics and his followers like Paul Krugman and start using common sense.

To the host, please get a few economists that have an opposing viewpoint – it would make for a much more interesting show.

The Constitution was not meant to be a document written in stone as an absolute. Witness amendments that have been added over the years.

I could argue that the 2nd amendment, which was a response to the British efforts to disarm their militias in the late 18th century is now obsolete.

In that year have a new Bretton Woods to stabilize currencies, replace the Federal Reserve with the U.S. Mint, nationalize failed banks (as William Black said should be done by law), and get rid of Reaganonmics (outsourcing jobs to China, Mexico, etc, deregulation (eg banks to big to fail created by gutting antitrust), anti unions, budget busting tax cuts for the wealthy, an out of control military-industrial complex).

I said this months ago and little of it has been done and the economy is still shedding near one half million jobs a month. Check out William Black on Bill Moyers. So many callers to AirAmerica and NPR ask that the jobs be brought back from China and Mexico but I rarely hear it from Presidents, governors, or Congressman (actually only Dennis Kucinich and Bernie Saunders). The rest are all corrupt.

The government ’stimulus’ hurts the economy, for every dollar the government spends on stimulus, is a dollar coming out of the *productive* sector. Even if we borrow the money, that money can no longer be borrowed by private industry to grow. Japan tried this stimulus nonsense for years – they paved every road in their country, and they still have NO economic growth since the 80s. Google the “Lost Decade”?

And yes, a lot of the stimulus money is going to politically connected cronies to be wasted on useless “projects”. Look how $400K of Americorps money was spend on washing the boss’ car (Google Kevin Johnson Americorps car wash). Don’t you think this money would be better left in the hands of the citizenry to spend as they see fit?

Lastly, I know that no one really cares about the rule of law any more, but perhaps it’s worth noting, that stimulus spending is not authorized anywhere in the Constitution. You know, that document that’s supposed to be the foundation of all our laws. Try reading it sometime and you’ll see that 99% of what the Federal Govt. does is expressly NOT ALLOWED by the 10th Amendment.

Here’s what we need to do to fix the economy –

#1 recall and replace 90% of the congress, both GOP and Dem. Anyone that voted for the bailouts should be the first to go

#2 with the new Congress, dramatically CUT spending in the Federal government, and the first place to start is in the Defense budget. We should pull out of Iraq, Afghanistan, Germany, Japan, Korea, and cancel more weapons programs. We are all cutting back on our spending, so too should the federal government.

#3 cut federal income taxes commensurate with the budget cuts

#4 return to Constitutional small government

France has pumped a lot of money into shovel ready projects on infrastructure and construction which is already putting some of the unemployed back to work and there unemployment is below ours at about 8.5%.

Germany announced growth in exports while it is lower than they want it shows that they are heading out of the recession. Both countries have extensive social programs for both health care and unemployment, retraining and so on.

So if the French can do this why can’t we?
What’s wrong with this country?
Why is our government so dysfunctional?

The only way to turn economy around is to bring back the industries that made this country great. In order to do this we need to get rid of “experts” and politicians who got us into this mess.

Stimuli must be directed to those at the lowest income level + create jobs that put people to work in high unemployment rate areas. Only if disabled, elderly & long-term unemployed would push money into the economy as quickly as possible..

Those who want it to go as a high-earner tax break for “investment” forget that their business investments won’t go far if their customers & their customers’ customers don’t have the $$$ to buy their products/services.

Bush kept it too siimple & paid off his friends & donors the simplest way possible via Paulson. Pres. Obama /Geithner have not only made things too complicated + they paid off Wall ST again & didn’t touch the real economy with instant mortgage help + more cash to the lowest income/most numerous consumer base.

Dean Baker has it right, POTUS & VP took the “consensus” instead of one of the worst possible case. They underestimated the real economic problem & not the Wall ST/Bank problem that has been solved approx 5x now. 1) Bush/Paulson 2) bailouts 3) bailout 2 4) the multi-Trillion Treasury program & 5) AIG, GM, Chrysler – etc. which all pay back to the largest banks. So hit 5x & the real economy hasn’t gotten touched except for the “rebate” checks of GWB & BHO.

Here’s my thought on this:

Unemployment is bad because people need money to support themselves and pay for things.

Well, how about forgiving people’s debts, so they don’t have to pay some of their bills? Like govt forgave banks, let banks forgive debtors.

And how about mandating that if a couple of people with kids are both unemployed or if a single parent is unemployed, making it mandatory to hire at least one of the parents?

Capital markets are unstable. In the past there was no way to make them stable. But today we have computer power that can be used to make them stable.

By using the greater computer power of today we can have a much higher turn over of capital in the capital market. This higher turnover will make the market harder to game or control and the market will no longer have the unstable run ups or declines. Who can change or control the market when say 20% of the capital is trading each day?

So now that we have the compute power to provide for all these transactions that will smooth out the market how do we force people to turn over at a rate of 20% a day? Easy, put a cap gains tax of 0% (zero) on all gains of 7 days or less and put a cap gains tax of 90% of all gains of more than 7 days.

The likes of Yahoo, Micosoft and/or Sun Micro Systems will give us the systems that will provide automated software agents to support turning over one’s investments every 7 days (based on the specs you give the agent).

A system like this will make the financial markets work as smoothly as the local fruit market.

In some European countries they pay a lot more in taxes but get more in return, good health care and free or cheap higher education, excellent public education.

So it is relative. The rise in sales tax in Massachusetts might hurt the economy, but people are already cutting back. I know I am. The last time time bought a shirt I went to a second hand store and picked up 3 shirts for $10.

Perfectly good shirts as well.

“Taxes are what we pay for civilized society.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

I’d like to see more discussion on why we are at this point in the economy and that instead of trying to artificially correct it, that maybe this is the way it needs to be to correct itself.

An unwarranted war debt, and the financial industries greedy lending practices notwithstanding, I feel the problem is Americans pursuit of spending beyond our means. Examples being large credit debt and no savings, mortgages we can’t afford, wanting less expensive goods from outside the country instead paying the American price….the list goes on. Let me admit right here that I count myself among this group. While Americans do continue to work hard, be inventive, and creating the cutting edge there is no denying as a whole we have grown into a society of wanting/expecting more than we’ve earned. An unfortunate result of this society of excess is we’ve also come to expect to be saved from our mistakes instead of paying for them.

I’d offer that maybe our current economic situation is our society’s way of correcting itself. Maybe our society needs to dig itself out, suffer this hardship, and use the lessons to improve itself instead waiting for more handouts from the government to make things right. We should also consider that such adversity breeds ingenuity. I’m also no historian, but I suspect many a great invention and strong moral character was created as a result of the Great Depression. I would also suspect that these hardships can strengthen this country’s great need for better family values. Society would be forced to rely on those close to them instead of a government bailout. I’m all for social programs for those who truly cannot help themselves. I am not for programs that just prolong the problem instead of fixing it.
Therefore I say, “More Stimulus? No!” Continuing to spending money we don’t have is the very essence of the problem that put us here.