America has always been a land of boom and bust. It’s just part of the natural business cycle. But Obama and his socialist cabal have channeled Hoover and FDR, who turned an ordinary bust into The Great Depression with a toxic strategy of bigger government, more spending, more debt, expanded entitlements, more rules and regulations strangling business, higher minimum wages, more power to unions, and dramatically higher taxes to pay for this expansion of big government. Sound familiar? Simply add in "green energy" and this is the same toxic brew of the Obama game plan.
Interestingly, it's the same plan that has led Europe to the edge of the cliff as well. The EU is crumbling under the weight of suffocating debt. If you think Greece was bad, wait until you start hearing the news out of Spain, the "green energy" capital of Europe. 25% unemployment. 50% unemployment among young adults. Crushing corporate debt 6 times higher than Germany. Insolvent banks. Greece was child's play. Spain is the world's 12th biggest economy. As Spain crumbles, it will bring the EU to its knees later this summer. So I guess "green energy" didn't work, huh?
The question is, is Obama following this same toxic game plan out of leftist naiveté and ignorance? Afterall, Obama’s lifetime of business experience before taking up residence in the White House would not qualify him to run a Bronx bodega. Yet we made him CEO of the world’s biggest economy. Oops.
Or does Obama understand exactly what he's doing? Is Obama's goal to overwhelm the system with debt and entitlements, incite crisis, sow doubt about capitalism, redistribute the wealth of business owners (his political opposition), and force Americans to their knees begging for government to save them, thereby opening the door to big government socialism, or at the very least European-style Social Capitalism (a hybrid of socialism mixed with capitalism).
Does it really matter?
Here's where the story gets downright frightening. This time the results are going to be dramatically worse than 1929. This time we are facing The Greatest Depression ever.
Why? Because The Great Depression had NONE of problems and obligations we are now facing:
In 1929 America did not have $115 trillion in debt and unfunded liabilities.
In 1929, most of our states were not bankrupt, insolvent and dependent on the federal government to survive. Exhibit A is California (our Greece).
In 1929, we had far fewer government employees living off taxpayers. Today we have a mind-boggling 21 million government employees, with record numbers earning over $100,000 annually. Today 77,000 federal employees earn more than the Governors of their states. Today the average federal employee earns over $120,000 annually (double that of private sector employees). Worse, a tremendous number of government employees retire at age 50 with $100,000 pensions for life. Protected by their unions and the politicians they elect, government employee pensions will strangle the U.S. economy. Even FDR said he could not imagine allowing public employees to unionize. Now we know why.
In 1929, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid didn’t exist. The federal government had no such obligations that today threaten to consume the entire federal budget within a decade.
In 1929, there was no such thing as welfare, food stamps, aid to dependent children, or English as a second language programs. Americans didn’t consider it the responsibility of government to pay for breakfast and lunch for students - let alone illegal immigrants.
Cuba just eliminated their version of food stamps, yet today under Obama we have over 46 million Americans on food stamps. It's getting hard to tell who the socialists are.
In 1929 we didn't offer unemployment payments for years on end, let alone the ability to join the disability rolls for life.
In 1929, we didn’t have millions of illegal immigrants and their children collecting billions of dollars in entitlements from U.S. taxpayers.
In 1929, legal immigrants wanted only to work. My grandparents from Russia and Germany received no government benefits. They worked day and night to provide for their family and become American citizens. It was sink or swim.
In 1929, we had 150 million citizens with a strong work ethic- all motivated to earn the American Dream for their children and grandchildren. Today the hungry, motivated citizens and entrepreneurs are in China and India.
In 1929, we had an education system that was the envy of the world. Today our public schools are in shambles. Education in America is a national disgrace- creating generations dependent on government. The difference? Teachers unions are in charge, instead of parents.
In 1929 we had cheap plentiful oil. Today Obama blocks offshore drilling, while canceling the Keystone pipeline. Environmentalist extremists and Democrats politicians (I know- I repeat myself) keep us dependent on foreign oil supplied by tyrants and terrorists.
Do you get the picture? Disaster looms. The only reason America is keeping it's head above water is that the Fed is printing trillions in fake dollars, while at the same time artificially keeping interest rates at the lowest levels in history. America is just like a bankrupt consumer living on credit cards and adjustable rate mortgages. If interest rates are ever allowed to return to normal levels, the interest alone will explode the debt and overwhelm the economy.
The solution is actually simple- cut government, cut spending, cut entitlements, cut foreign aid, cut taxes, dramatically reduce government employee compensation and pensions, stop the wars, encourage drilling, balance the budget, reform the Fed, term limit politicians, restore school choice, dramatically reduce the power of teachers unions, and back the dollar with a gold standard. And of course remove the current occupant of the White House. Or, like so many other great empires of history, America may never recover from the Obama Great Depression.