Happy New Year

We would like to wish all of our Readers a

HAPPY NEW YEAR and, as Edward R. Murrow would have said,

,,Good Night and Good Luck ’’

in 2013

 

31 December 2012 - The Fiscal Cliff and Negative Energy

The Reality of the impending ,, Fiscal Cliff ’’ has reached Washington, today, New Year's Eve.  After Weeks of Predictions by various Pundits both inside and outside of the Government that a ,, Last Minute Deal ’’ would be reached, now, it appears that, at best, some Sort of ,, Last Minute Patchwork ’’ is the best one can hope for.

Former Senator Alan Simpson was ridiculed by both Democrats and Republicans for uploading a Video on YouTube in which he ,, danced ’’ well, sort of, along a Can of Soda (or, maybe was it a Beer Can?), symbolically pointing out to what is likely to happen, which is, kicking the Can forward.

There are numerous Factors which have contributed to reaching this sad Situation and this Column would like to attempt to refresh our Recollections as to how we may have gotten to where we are and why it seems that both Congress and The President appear so powerless in finding a Solution, a real Solution, not a Patchwork.

To this, we also wish to add the Following Observation.  One of the Attributes which is necessary for the Political Leadership and, yes, the Political Infantrymen as well, to find Solutions to or in difficult Situations is Enthusiasm, Élan and just a pure Desire to get Things (or at least something) accomplished.  This Attribute, this Force is lacking, lacking so glaringly that one cannot but feel the
,, Negative Energy ’’ which surrounds those who must struggle and find a Solution.

But what are the Factors which got the Federal Government into this horrid Situation and who was responsible for getting us there?  The List is long.  Below, we can only attempt to enumerate some of the Factors, likely important ones but certainly not all of the important ones along with Reasons why addressing these Problems is ultimately necessary in order to address the ,, Fiscal Cliff ’’ as well as the surrounding Decisions which need to be made (increasing the Federal Debt Ceiling).

§  Afghanistan - Defense Expenditures.  It is generally accepted by a good Number of People now that the War in Afghanistan has been a Financial Disaster.  Expenditures in Afghanistan as well as Iraq and Pakistan need to be addressed as President Reagan would have put it, with a
,, Red Pencil.’’ 

§  Income Tax Rates.  It is Time not only for the Republicans but for everyone else to recognize that the Principle of
,, Reaganomics ’’  which theorized that the Government can eventually raise more Revenue by lowering Taxes (and stimulating the Economy) is, basically, what President G. Herbert Walker Bush called ,,Voodoo Economics.’’  Moreover, specifically as to Corporate Income Tax Rates, while it is true that some Industrialized Countries have lower Corporate Income Tax Rates than the United States, none has the Array of Tax Deductions and Loopholes, some, custom written by Congress which are available to many large Corporations in the United States.  Returning to the pre-Bush (G. W. Bush) Era Tax Cuts for People earning in Excess of $ 250.000,00 is really not only a modest but also a sensible Solution and no credible Argument has been put forward that such a Move would result in the Loss of Jobs or Job Creation.

§  Restore Social Security, Medicare and related Social Costs to the pre Clinton Status Quo of ,,Trust Funds.’’  This will prevent future Presidents from claiming that they have ,,balanced the Budget’’ by shifting Funds around and raiding Funds which show large Surpluses (or even small Surpluses).

§  Remove the Social Security Tax Cap which currently stands at $110.000,00.  Think about this for a Minute.  More important than the Rate paid by Employees (currently lower than the Rate paid by the Employers, somebody forgot the ,,creating Jobs’’ Argument on that one by not reducing the Employers’ Contribution Rate) is that all the huge Earnings by Corporate Executives and Wall Street Bonus Recepients are exempt from Social Security Taxes; once they've paid the $ 110,000.00, the are home free.

§  Put Pressure on the Federal Reserve in general and Mr. Bernanke in particular to abandon ill advised Theories of ,,Quantitatve Easing’’ and what not by pouring Billions of Dollars into the Stock Market.  This is simply irresponsible.  The Stock Market is jittery at the Prospect of the Fiscal Cliff simply because it loves ,, Easy Money.’’  Even though the Stock Market has propelled to new Heights since the Start of the Fiscal Crisis (generously not referred to as a Depression but as a Deep Recession), this has had very little Impact, if any, on the Economy.

§  Abstain from huge Expenditures into Support Ventures
(,, Bailouts ’’) of large and even not so large Corporations such as AIG, General Motors, Solindra and others.    Although AIG has technically repaid all of the Government Loans this does not  account for Billions of Tax Breaks which AIG has received from the Government.  Besides, much of AIG has now been sold to China.  The General Motors Bailout is costing the Government Billions in Net Losses.  Somebody said, ,,Give me $ 60 Billion and I can show you how I can make a Profit.’’  It would be good to consider, at least, the Opinion of some Experts who contend that it will not be possible for General Motors to succeed as a viable Entity.

There are other Issues and Areas to be addressed but we wanted to list just a few.

Additionally, however, another Warning regarding a great Disservice which the Federal Reserve and Mr. Bernanke are doing to the Budget.  The Fed is keeping Interest Rates low, almost at Zero, to be exact.  This helps Banks and Financial Institutions which are entitled to borrow directly from the Fed and then reap huge Profits in large, complex and sometimes questionable Financial Transactions.  This does not help the Consumer, or even most Business Owners, who must pay a Bank or a Financial Institution nearly Ten Times, or more, in Interest, than what the Financial Institution needs to pay to acquire the Funds.

But there is a hidden Danger.  The Fed cannot keep Interest Rates at such low Rates at Infinitum.  Some Day, after Mr. Bernanke leaves (and he wants to leave soon), Interest Rates will have to, at best, inch or creep upwards and when that happens, the Cost of borrowing Money for the Federal Government will rocket astronomically.  The Rate on Federal Borrowing may one Day be dictated by Markets and The Fed may not be in a Position to dictate what it will be.  This has happened elsewhere, as we all know, only too well.  In such an Event, the Impact of Debt Service, not to mention the Cost of new Borrowing on the Federal Government will be not a pleasant Thing, as it is today for Mr. Bernanke to play around with announcing what the Interest Rates will be and throwing Money around into the Financial Markets while he invents new Names, such as ,, Quantitative Easing’’ for Things which aren't really that new at all.

Priorities in India

The tragic News out of India, regarding the brutal Gang Rape of a 23 Year Old Woman on a Bus in New Delhi and the Outrage that it has caused reached its depressive Apex with the Report that the Woman, whose Name has intentionally not been made public (according to Indian Law) has died.

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/29/16230911-india-charges-six-suspects-with-murder-after-victim-of-horrific-gang-rape-dies?lite

There have been massive Demonstrations of Protest in India deploring the Event although the Suspects have been arrested and the Authorities have decided to charge them with Murder.  We can understand the Outrage that has been outpouring on the Streets especially since, fortunately for India, such horrific Incidents are not as frequent there as they are in some other Places.

Something else is puzzling, however.  The Rape Victim was not only Gang Raped but also abused and beaten so horribly and violently (so graphically that it defies Description) that she had very little Chance of Survival.  In a valiant Effort to try saving her Life the Indian Government decided to send her by Air Ambulance to Singapore for a Last Ditch Effort to save her Life.

This raises some disturbing Questions, we believe, regarding the Policies of the Indian Government and the Ethics of some of the Indian Doctors, particularly those who are no longer in India.  India is the most populous Country in the World.  It has an Abundance of Medical Schools which graduate an impressive Number of Medical Doctors.  If India has to send a Patient of this Condition, possibly other Patients as well to Singapore because it does not have sufficient and adequate Medical Facilities for such extraordinary Cases, why is India exporting so many Doctors or allowing them to leave for other English Speaking Countries where they have an Opportunity to earn 10, 100, 1.000 or even 10.000 Times what they would earn in India and depriving itself of an Opportunity to reach a World Class Level of Medical Care?

There is a Crisis grappling many Western Countries in how to deal with the skyrocketing Costs of Medical Care.   But Indian Doctors, who receive a Medical Education in India at a Fraction of what the same costs in the United States (for Example) cannot really do very much in helping solve the Medical Care Crisis in Western Countries (particularly English Speaking Western Countries, where it is easiest for Indian Doctors to obtain a Medical License).  Indian Doctors can serve a far better Purpose in putting their Skills to use in India, where they have studied Medicine through vast Outlays made by the Indian Government, so that, when such horrific Incidents such as the New Delhi Bus Rape, but also other Medical Situations which require First Class Medical Care arise (and we think, they probably arise often enough) World Class Facilities would exist in India without requiring that the Patients be flown to Singapore or Goodness knows where else, or, worse yet, when the Patient is not important enough or rich enough, to just, let them die.

Holiday Greeting

The Vitznau News Team wishes all of our Readers,

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

 

 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS - JOYEUX NOËL - FRÖHLICHE WEIHNACHTEN

BUON NATALE - FELIZ NAVIDAD

Շնորհավոր Սուրբ Ծնունդ

 

 

 

 

Tragedy in Connecticut and the Value of Freedom

The horrible News from Connecticut, today, Friday 15 December 2012, 10 Days before Christmas, has the Nation and much of the World in deep Shock.  28 People died.  20 of them were Children.  The Shooter, dead, shot his own Mother before killing himself.  He used 3 Guns.  All, according to what we know at the Time we are writing this, were purchased by his Mother.  She apparently owned 5 Guns, all legally owned, at least one of which (an automatic Weapon), would have had to have been purchased before 1990.  Why this Woman felt the Need to own 5 Guns 3 of which, one Way or another, we do not know how, came to fall into the Hands of her Son, is a Secret which she is now taking to her Grave with her.

Parents not only in Newtown, Connecticut but also throught the U. S. are in deep Shock and Fear and rightfully so.  A Detachment of Law Enforcement People, Emergency First Response Unit as well as Federal and State Officials were dispatched and descended almost like a Batallion upon this little School in Sandy Hook, Connecticut.   Police Cars were placed as a Precaution not only at other Schools in Connecticut but throughout the Nation as well.  The President appeared on Television, visibly shaken and wiping off more than one Tear.

We should take a Moment to look beyond this Tragedy, not to mention Six other mass Public Shootings in 2012 alone, the worst Year yet for this Type of horrific Calamity.

The Catholic Priest in Newtown held a Mass Vigil at his Church for the Victims, their Relatives and all those near them, which, it can be safely assumed, included just about the whole Town of Newtown, Connecticut and beyond.  These 20 Children and the Adults killed along with them will now no longer live to see Christmas 2012.  But he also pointed out another important Factor.  He made a Connection between the Culture of Violence and the Frequency of this Type of Events.

In ,,Klartext'' what he was referring to is the Culture of Firearms which has not only become pervasive but continues to spread.  True, as the Opponents of Weapons Control Legislation point out, a Criminal is a Criminal and (s)he would find one Way or another to kill another Person, if that is his or her Mindset.  True, yes, true.  But it is a lot easier to pull the Trigger and kill People with mechanical Precision, from a Distance, with a Fireweapon, than to go up to People and slit their Throats.

The other Point is, with all the Police, Security, Screening Systems and other Procedures which are set up at Schools these Days, it is also Time to examine what Kind of Effect the outpouring of Entertainment from Movie, Television and ,,Concerts'' with violent Overtones is having in cultivating what has become a very violent World out there.

In a Society where Freedom is cherished as a supreme Value, being reduced to living, working and functioning in ,,Fortresses'' not only diminishes the Value of Freedom, but it also comes at a Cost, both monetary and human, which is outrageously high.  Therefore, examining the Factors which cause such violent and senseless Tragedies to take place is not only sensible from a practical Point of View but may be a fundamental Necessity, to protect the very Value of Freedom.

Fiscal Cliff

Recent Reports suggest that soon, a Family of Four will be paying $ 25.000,00 for Health Insurance annually and that, with less Coverage and higher Deductibles.

While the Affordable Care Act (so called Obamacare) is a Step in the Right Direction, it is, some suggest, not nearly enough to bring under Control Medical Costs.

Various Statistics reveal the following:

§ Medical Costs in the United States are the highest in the World.  The Second Runner Up is at less than half.

§ Doctors in the United States earn the highest Incomes of any Doctors anywhere, so much so that Doctors from less affluent Countries who have a Medical Education in English (it is considerably more difficult to pass the Boards with a non English Medical Education) are clamoring to get a Foothold in the United States and practice, yes, practice Medicine, of course.

§ Despite all this, Life Expectancy in the United States is just about Neck in Neck with Life Expectancy in, of all Places, some place like Cuba.  There are a Multitude of Reasons for this, of course, including Dietary Factors but, still, one would expect more, given the Costs of Health Insurance and Health Care.

§ A Common Medical Procedure, known as an MRI costs, on Average, according to some Statistics, $ 2.500,00 in the United States.  It can be performed at some Outpatient Clinics for as low as $ 600,00 and one Reporter recently found a Hospital in Boston which charges in Excess of $ 7.000,00 for this exact same Procedure.  Health Insurance Companies have Contracts under which they pay less (why should people who pay for Medical Care out of their own Pocket have to pay more is a Question which deserves being raised and be examined on its own Merits).  The more interesting Thing, though, is that the same exact Procedure, an MRI costs approximately $ 160,00 in Germany, France and Italy.  In Japan, a Country not exactly known for low Costs, it costs $ 60,00.  They all use the same exact Equipment, manufactured by either Siemens or GE and, at least two of the four Countries above, Germany and Japan, are not exactly known for low Wages.

What is going to be compromised between Mr. Obama and Mr. Boehner with regard to the ,,Fiscal Cliff,'' whatever that means, is yet to be revealed and it is probably not known by either of them at this Moment.

However, one Item which has come up is the new Medicare Taxes which will be going into Effect 1 January 2013, as a Result of Legislation passed by Congress and signed by Mr. Obama.  This Legislation provides, no, it does not provide for new Taxes, it establishes the Provision that Medicare Taxes should continue on Wages in Excess of $200.000,00 (for Single Taxpayers) and $ 250.000,00 (for Married Taxpayers).

http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/11/15846903-democrats-seek-delay-in-one-obamacare-tax-increase?lite

Suddenly, this Provision has now come under Scrutiny and may be sacrificed as part of the Negotiations to avoid the so called ,,Fiscal Cliff.''  We do not understand this Point.

The Congress and the President of the United States can decide what the Obligations (including the financial Obligations) of the Federal Government will be on a Year to Year Basis.  Some of these Obligations are inescapable, they are either dictated by Law or by Contracts (such as Debt Interest, for Example).  How are Wage Earners who make more than $ 200.000,00 or $ 250.000,00 ,,hurting'' the Economy by paying 1,45% of their Wages for Medicare Tax on Income above that Amount?

Paranthetically, another Tax which is equally regressive is the Social Security Tax, currently at 4,2% for Employees, but only on the First $110.000,00 of their Wages.  Translated, that means, of course, that People who get huge Salaries, sometimes $ 500.000,00, sometimes $ 5.000.000,00 or even more, simply pay that $ 4.000,00 or so in Social Security Tax and then are 4,2% ahead for every Dollar they earn from $110.000,00 forward.

One Thing is apparent.  With this Kind of Manœvering, if it comes into Play, very little is going to get accomplished.  And the Can will be kicked forward.

The Violence of American Football

So, here comes Bob Costas, well known Football Television Personality, to add his Voice to the Necessity of Gun Control.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/04/15679906-bob-costas-on-gun-control-comments-availability-of-guns-makes-mayhem-easier?lite

If we are to understand Bob Costas correctly, he would severely restrict the Availability of all Guns; a laudable Objective and one that stands about as much Chance as a Snwoball's Chance in Hell.  Something has to be done about Guns; we agree with Bob Costas although, from a Practicality Point of View, starting with a Prohibition on Automatic and Assault Weapons in the Hands of ordinary Citizens would seem a more logical Place to start.

What Bob Costas fails to observe, lamentably (but also understandably), is that he is part of an ,,Industry'' and Culture which is the most violent Team Sport that one can think of and one which makes a Lot of Money for him and for Lots of other People.  Although there is overwhelming and still growing Evidence that Football Players are highly prone to ,,Traumatic Encephalopathy,'' a fancy Medical Term which simply means that People who are hit too many Times on the Head are likely to sustain Brain Injury, little, indeed nothing is being done to curb the Popularity of this violent ,,Sport.''  Young Men in College, High School and, indeed, young Boys in School and Preschoolers are herded in Droves by Peer Pressure and Parents to play Football, the ,,Macho Sport'' each Player, starting from a very tender Age, becoming a Candidate for this horrific Disease.  A malfunctioning Brain can drive a Person such as Jovan Belcher to pick up a Gun and shoot Kassandra Perkins and then himself, in public, at that.  A malfunctioning Brain can also cause a Person to pick up a Butcher Knife or a Bludgeoning Iron and commit equally horrific and even more horrifyingly graphic Acts.  A malfunctioning Brain can also cause one, as many other ex Football Players have, to die, horribly and needlessly, without even having killed another Person.

So, yes, Mr. Costas, we all agree with you that there should be Gun Control Legislation and even as stringent as you seem to think, or maybe even more stringent, but how about not trumpeting Football as being such a wonderful Sport and rather seeing it as an Incubator of horrific Brain Injury Diseases on so many People?

How about toning down or even prohibiting so many young Men, young Boys and even Kids in engaging in this purposeless Violence which you and others, help it achieve Cult Status?

On Board with that one, too, Mr. Costas?