Educating One At A Time

The New York Times reported on Thursday that Senate Republicans applied pressure to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service (CRS) in September, successfully persuading it to withdraw a report finding that lowering marginal tax rates for the wealthiest Americans had no effect on economic growth or job creation.

“The pressure applied to the research service comes amid a broader Republican effort to raise questions about research and statistics that were once trusted as nonpartisan and apolitical,” the Times reported. Democrats in Congress, however, have resurfaced the report and published it in full. It can be read below.

Republicans told the Times they had issues with the tone, wording and scope of the report, but they clearly objected most strongly to its findings, which undermine the governing fiscal philosophy of the party, that tax cuts for the wealthy will spur growth and benefit everybody.

GOP officials told The Times that the decision by the CRS came after a cooperative discussion, but Democrats have suggested that the move is part of a broader effort by Republicans to squelch legitimate research that runs counter to their economic principles.

More here…http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/01/congressional-research-service_n_2059156.html?show_comment_id=201815231#comment_201815231

It looks like we finally know the reason why Republicans are refusing to fund FEMA, the federal agency that responds to natural disasters.Former Republican Governor Jeb Bush is set to lead a newly formed FOR-PROFIT natural disaster response company. According to the Maritime Executive, Bush’s newly created firm, Old Rhodes Holding LLC, joined forces with O’Brien’s Response Management, a subsidiary of SEACOR Holdings, to form a for-profit disaster response company.

“We are pleased to enter into this partnership with one of the leading response organizations in the United States, backed by SEACOR’s global network,” Bush said. “Together we look forward to helping a broader array of organizations and communities become more resilient through preparation, response, communication and recovery.” Of course, this response team only helps people for a price. Rather than come to the aid of people affected by a natural disaster out of the kindness of their hearts, like FEMA and other organizations do, the response team led by the former Florida Governor will respond to disasters if the price is right. In other words, they’ll profit off of death and destruction.

All of this comes as House Republicans continue their assault against FEMA, an organization that helps people at no charge beyond the taxes paid to the United States Government by the American people. This is all too coincidental to not be connected in some way.

4 hours ago (12:15 PM) The big uncertainty facing the business community is the way we are getting energy. We’re seeing all sorts of zippy ads about the importance of being an “Energy Voter”, but in a de-regulated economy, how will oil and natural gas companies affect the economy?

Fracking, for instance, requires massive amounts of water. Where will this water come from? How will the use of this water affect the water bills that businesses must pay? In addition, without regulation, natural gas companies will free to dump all sorts of toxic chemicals into aquifers. How will this unregulated dumping affect property values in the surrounding community?

The same uncertaintly revolves around the so-called Keystone Pipeline.

First of all, if the Trans Canada Pipeline goes all the way to Port Arthur, businesses can be certain that Trans-Canada will export all of the oil. Gasoline prices will go up, simply because oil pipelines require massive fleets of vehicles which consume diesel and gasoline.

In addition, dil-bit is horribly toxic and corrosive. Without strict regulations, pipelines can rupture, dumping all sorts of toxic chemicals into aquifers. How will a massive spill affect the Ogallala Aquifer - and how will this pollution affect businesses?

Finally, getting oil from tar sands releases massive quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, hastening global climate change. How will rising sea levels affect property values, particularly along coastal areas?

How Wall Street Scams Counties Into Bankruptcy

Government Spending

[starting with this chart and ending with Job Growth were published by CNNMoney]

Consumer Spending

Manufacturing

Stocks

Foreclosures

Economy’s Growth