Whether it is a topic of Wisconsin union, or Cash for Clunker, or Minimum Wage, or ACORN, or Florida Train, or Affirmative Action, boil down to a single deeper, more fundamental topic:
a) “merit base” versus b) “everyone should get equal result”
In other words Socialism versus Capitalism
Some of us are more inclined to one side or the other.
Statistically speaking, people who feel they are not as competent as others would favor (a) others will favor (b)
I think, worker should have the right for collective bargaining provided union membership (including membership fee) is voluntary/optional.
Let's analyze this post.
Cash for Clunkers: Analysis: pisses off people who didn't get theirs. Seeing the neighbor who got a free discount on a new auto causes resentment. Hearing in the news about the million dollar salaries and golden parachutes for financial institution execs who gambled with depositors' money and lost it causing taxpayers to have to bail said banks, too abstract to feel more than mild transient outrage.
Bailing out GM and the financial institutions had the same goal of slowing unemployment and ending the recession. Whether you agreed with the bailout or not, there was a net greater benefit of getting gas guzzling autos off the road and putting some money into the hands of consumers instead of into the hands of the rich. But that was overridden by the resentment that one neighbor got a benefit the other did did not get.
Minimum wage: The minimum wage serves an important purpose. It prevents employers from creating abject poverty in times of high unemployment which would also contribute to the downward spiral during a recession. Minimum wage prevents employers from paying workers such little pay they cannot pay for food and shelter, necessitating taxpayers subsidize the employer by making up the difference when low wages create destitute workers.
Is it better to let the market determine the minimum wage? The evidence supports the conclusion a minimum wage is an important aspect in a capitalist economy. Workers are not a product. You cannot treat labor the same way you treat a commodity. Treating employees as a commodity, completely subject to market forces, is akin to returning to a peasant economy. And we know from history such a situation results in revolutions. Libertarians need to be careful what they wish for.
Will minimum wage limit jobs? Not necessarily. And employer isn't going to hire two people when one is all that is needed. A cheaper product or service might increase demand, but when fewer workers can afford to spend, demand does not necessarily increase. I doubt there is evidence lower wages corrects or prevents a recession.
ACORN: Anyone who thinks ACORN was evil it was portrayed to be hasn't bothered to look beyond the campaign to destroy it. They were responsible for registering a lot of new Democratic voters during Obama's campaign and ACORN became a Repub target because of it. Before that ACORN was used to trump up fake voter fraud charges to distract from the real voter fraud that was going on by
'caging' and manipulating voter access using tactics by Repub controlled election boards. This has all been thoroughly documented for anyone who bothers to actually look.
ACORN
On December 7, 2009, the former Massachusetts Attorney General, after an independent internal investigation of ACORN, found the videos that had been released appeared to have been edited, "in some cases substantially". He found no evidence of criminal conduct by ACORN employees, but concluded that ACORN had poor management practices that contributed to unprofessional actions by a number of its low-level employees.[90][91][92][93] On March 1, 2010, the District Attorney's office for Brooklyn determined that the videos were "heavily edited"[94] and concluded that there was no criminal wrongdoing by the ACORN staff in the videos from the Brooklyn ACORN office.[95][96] On April, 1, 2010, an investigation by the California Attorney General found the videos from Los Angeles, San Diego and San Bernardino to be "heavily edited,"[8] and the investigation did not find evidence of criminal conduct on the part of ACORN employees.[8][83] On June 14, 2010, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) released its findings which showed that ACORN evidenced no sign that it, or any of its related organizations, mishandled any federal money they had received.[97][98]
Florida Train I assume you mean the FL Guv turning down federal funds for the high speed rail project. I don't have an opinion other than if I cared and had the time, I'd want to know if it was a campaign stunt and/or if the planned high speed rail was more influenced by the companies that stood to get the contracts. But the concept, we would all benefit from investing in our future infrastructure, is a very legitimate means of stimulating the economy during a recession.
Historical evidence, not economic ideology, supports that position.
Affirmative Action: Otherwise called, resentment when one perceives it affects oneself, but people could care less when the shoe was on the other foot. This is old news.
Then there is the summary:
a) “merit base” versus b) “everyone should get equal result” or Socialism versus Capitalism; "Some of us are more inclined to one side or the other" In other words, no need to think things through if all you need to know is, is it socialism or capitalism.
The issue should be, what mix of the two is best. Having an oversimplified position of good/bad, good/evil black/white creates the conditions which are ripe for being influenced by the propaganda machines.
