Thanks Fred! This should be posted everywhere. Sharing today on the ARRA News Service! http://arkansasgopwing.blogspot.com/2008/12/fred-on-economy.html
Always a treat to watch Actors do what they do best (miss you on Law & Order)
Some feedback Fred,
1. the Fed Chairman is not liberal but thinking he can navigate us through his thesis. 2. the last Fed Chairman put us in the place we are now (not a democrat or republican - shared between the both of them) 3. Keynesian economics is the real enemy in what you are trying to read of your cue cards. 4. Not sure if what is good for America was the intended goal - but rather unification in governments and currency - just like what was done with worshiping many gods to one god (think about it; we'll wait) 5. Must be nice to take easy pot shots at the winner; instead of producing a full plan and not a sound bite.
Overall you are dead on, course the end result of any nation which is a melting pot - is eventually alienating the previous generations.
P.S. - you should've tried to communicate this in 70's - the first time around for you. It is easy when your close to DEAD to mouth off. You got nothing left to loose AND already left it to the previous generation.
Mr. Thompson - this was a wonderful thing to hear from someone like you. I am fully aware of all of this and have spent the last 4 years first warning what was coming, and then explaining the proper solutions, none of which was listened to either then or now. You are dead on in everything you say, and the sarcasm is well delivered.
But enough of whether I (or anyone) agrees with you or not, my real point is what I opened with "from someone like you". The biggest problem of all is that our Congress is either completely ignorant, horribly corrupt, and most likely, both. I have written countless letters and made countless phone calls to them, of course to no avail. I consider it treason that 90% of Americans violently opposed the bailouts, yet they nonetheless passed them. So, you see, the biggest problem is what this country's government has become, and where it is going, and I am quite sure you feel the same way. I feel that we are beyond the point where things, if left alone, will "resolve themselves", and have in fact reached a point in our history where the only way to save ourselves is to literally "save ourselves". Something must pro-actively be done to right the course and restore our republic. All of this returns full circle to my opening sentence, an appreciation of hearing this from a person of your status and esteem. Aside from Ron Paul and a very few others, there is no one in Congress with the balls to do what is right, if they even have the intelligence to understand it in the first place.
It is exactly people like you who are the key to truly saving this country. There needs to be more like you. I only hope it can be done before it's too late, and with a microphone instead of a pitchfork.
Thanks.
Bill Nolan, Phoenix, AZ
And "logikonline" - your head is in your ass. The only thing you were correct about was labeling Keynesianism as the "enemy". But everything else you said, from the implication that the Treasury should "navigate us through" this mess (they shouldn't), to the misspelling of the simple word "lose", toward the criticism of a "lack of a plan" when in fact the best "plan" has been there all along (called the "free market") and that is in fact what Mr. Thompson is suggesting holds the answer, and finally to the slandering of a person who not only shows the integrity you lack, but has spent his life actively doing something with it, all serve to outline just how deep your head is buried.
logikonline: I agree with you about the markets. I really mean that they SHOULD be free, and they are supposed to be free. I also recognize that your general "attack" was based upon the idea that Mr. Thompson should have done something about this all along. Maybe true, maybe not. But either way, his voice on this right now is the proper one.
@slimfinger
I am all for letting the chips fall but this is not a fair comparison with respect to Congress. We have been lied too with the CDS, CDO, and other highly leveraged derivatives which have literally spread the risk across all industries.
There is no such thing as a "Free Market" - any trader with a Level 2 account knows this. If you want to live in Never-Never-Land - join the masses.
I believe in low taxes, being rewarded for ones hard work, and Austrian economics but I am not republican. Choosing between Tweedle D(epression) and Tweedle Dumb is not a choice - you wake up.
Please tell us all how Fred is trying to "Save this Country" - any decent book on the subject can outline what he has said - yet less than 20% of the public reads and 42% of college grads never pickup a book after leaving.
There is a firm rope around all major companies tied to the derivatives (places which grant credit). The people here should be mad, but until they see what is tied together - simply letting companies fall has a direct impact on everyone. The Great Depression did not have these sorts of linked dependencies (think S&L crisis with a 30's twist). Taking down a heavily leveraged "bad" corporation; where their bad investments are linked to good companies - will collapse the good companies indirectly in a bad economy.
There is no easy answer but hindsight will reveal just how close the dominoes are stacked.
Fred is not holding the answer, for those of us who read; we know the game is fixed but of course, maybe the game is larger than just a country (which if you read what I said - you may actually see it could be bigger than the greed instead more like control - evolution is more likely than revolution.)
(spelling.. really? putz)
@logikonline Wow- such a dramatic improvement in literacy, from one comment to the next, is proof positive that using the higher regions of the cerebral cortex is a good thing, don't you agree?
What I do find interesting about all the Republicans is they seldom mention that we have been spending 10 billion dollars a month on this stupid and useless war. Not to mention the cost in American and Iraqi lives. That's 600 billion dollars since January of 2004. Just think of what we could of done with that money for health care, education and the housing market. How come old Fred missed that little tidbit? Allan PS: Someone should ask him what his salary is for "Law and Order"
What I do find interesting about all the Republicans is they seldom mention that we have been spending 10 billion dollars a month on this stupid and useless war. Not to mention the cost in American and Iraqi lives. That's 600 billion dollars since January of 2004. Just think of what we could of done with that money for health care, education and the housing market. How come old Fred missed that little tidbit? Allan PS: Someone should ask him what his salary is for "Law and Order"
ed...maybe we should do as you the gang has subscibed to for the last six years...spend 10 billion a month on an unneccessry war orf death and destruction and spend as much as the oil companies could stick it to us for...in fact that was te largest transfer of wealth in the history of our country ...along with the fact president bush and his gang spent more defecit money than all of the other Presidents (in history)and there gans combined...and now you want to give us a lecture on whatwe should do....and why not...we just elected a new goverment..'that has even had a chance to react somehow you and all the others should just go sit in the corner and SHUT UP....let others at least try before you go and run on at the mouth...and by the way those goverment people who are about to come up with a new direction have been here before you are right...and we prospered and lived well and in peace ...those Clinton years....oh yes he Clinton was so immoral that he got a BJ in the white house and that was wrong...was it as wrong in sending 40,000 young mento their deaths for an unjust and unwarranted war as the Pope and many others from around the world have identified the Iraqi War..oh and just recently our own president Bush has said " I truly regret my quest to find the Weapons of MASS DESTRUCTION ..AS MY INFORMATION WAS WRONG...LIKE IT WAS TWELVE YEARS OLD....L
LET US ALL BE AMERICAN AT THIS TIME NOT DEMS OR REPUBLICAN...JUST AMERICANS AND FIND THE RESOLVE TO FIX THIS NATIONAL PROBLEM.....
TO BE D'S OR R'S AND TO POINT FINGERS IS EASY TO BE AN AMERICAN AND BE HONEST IS HARD
Wait a minute, Wait a minute. Dear Fred, aren't you were there at the MY Government chair when all this mess started, to begin with? Yea, talk is cheap. And you dear readers, if you were corporate CEOs, wouldn't you use the same corporate jets and accept million dollar bonuses while the company is going down the drain and workers getting pink slips as present for the holydays? You bet, you would. So for some of you, who really want to help their grandchildren or really want to find the solution to the broken global financial economical system, there is a solution which doesn't required a lot of $. The solution required first to acknowledge that the problem lies in the Human Nature itself. Our Ego is the actual culprit. It doesn't matter who at the whelm. Given power and money we all will behave the same. Think about it for a minute. And if you agree in principle, than there is a system which explain how to challenge our nature and to overcome it. I wouldn't challenge your intelligence and claim it is easy or it is for everybody at the beginning. Eventually all will adhere to it, but at the beginning all we need just "a few good men". http://blip.tv/file/729603 You can also check out http://www.questionyourreality.com/
Oh my God! I registered just to make this comment. "Logic" you are so stupid. It's such a shame stupid people are never bright enough to realize they are so ignorant. That's what really got us all into this mess, your stupidity. Americans are so stupid they screw everything up, all the while thinking how smart they are. An illustration: "We have been lied too with..." no, no, no, it's "to" not "too" which is as bad as the old standard "I seen it done that way!" as opposed to "I have seen it done that way!" See where I'm going here? You can't make an argument if you can't communicate intelligently. Now I know that most of you won't understand my point, but that is my point. You're too stupid to be allowed to participate in the game. If we could somehow make all of you more intelligent, we could solve most of our problems. But, every year it only gets worse as you idiots continue to breed and reproduce. You are our undoing. So put your fingers into your pockets and stop pointing at everyone else. You and only you are the problem. Putting a black crook and his legions in charge will not fix the problem. It can only get worse unless you suddenly become vastly more intelligent, which is highly unlikely.
See what your capitalist society has wrought! Fools, all of you. The only way to free yourself from the chains of consumerism is to destroy this so-called "free economy" that binds us all to the slavery of the almighty dollar. Obama is on the right track though, he must do more. Pseudo-Socialism is no substitute for the real thing. Socialism now, Socialism forever!
Whatever "logik." Seriously...spelling. You're like all of the psuedo-intellectuals putz's who bore me to tears at cocktail parties using big words without quite knowing what they mean. You really should edit before sending. "Of " for "off" and "loose" for "lose." I'll bet you only use "there" and "to," too. Just like you can't get past Mr. Thompson's age, many will not get past your lack of spelling skill. Credibility is enhanced or diminished by such things.
I used to like ole Fred, but I think something might be clouding his brain. The point is to spend money to stimulate the economy, NOT spend more than you can afford. More money injected into the economy should (in theory) create more jobs and stimulate the economy. I think the politician is playing politics.
OMG jgar, when I quit laughing I knew I had to reply.
You are such a good liberal. Ignore the fact that the majority of Americans are already in debt over their heads. You say they should spend even more money. Well if you're already in huge debt, how do "spend more money to stimulate the ecomomy" without going further into debt.? The answer is- you can't.
What do you think? This money will "magically appear"? Oh that's right, we can always print more and ignore the inflationary effects this causes.
Tell you what, why don't you go out and spend more money than you've been spending in the past with no increase in your income. Then tell us how you did it w/o using your credit cards. And let us know how much you were able to save at the same time.
So now we have to listen to Fred Thomson lecture us about printing money? Please. This guys is an actor and an opportunist, pure and simple. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZWt897p7tY
Just a couple of problems Fred: Nearly all economists, both conservative and not so conservative seem to be saying that stimulus is important right now. It is easy to be a simplistic nay sayer. Your fellow Republicans, who inherited a surplus and left a gigantic deficite, don't want to bail out anybody especially the auto companies. They were not afraid to give things like Indian Casinos and Nascar tracks big subsidies not to mention giving free land and plants to the transplant automakers. Help me with this Fred: are the Republicans trying to destroy the middle class or just the party outside the regional base they seem to be ending up with? Remember Hoover. Do you want to do it again? Do we want something out of this spending? The market has been crashing under the BUSH administration by the way. By the way, the big issue is now deflation. If we get into deflation we will be in a real pickle. That is why we can print money for a while. Time to get real Fred.
@todsails: let's say we listen to you explain exactly why deflation is bad. And as you're in the middle of doing so, see if you can figure out just WHO it is bad for, and conversely, who it is good for. If you can figure it out, write it down, and then think real hard on it as long as it takes for you to understand what the banks have been brainwashing you with your entire life.
OMG - I can't believe all of you! You vote, therefore you can change Washington. YOU DON'T HAVE TO VOTE REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT! WOW, big news I'm sure. So all of you that are complaining and giving free advice and education probably voted the two party system. There are some great voices out there that never get heard because people don't demand that their news media give equal time to all candidates. I think a revolution would be the ticket. Get rid of the lobbyists, the two party system, and let anyone that wants to run for office get fair and equal time. Ron Paul was right in his speech "A Republic, If You Can Keep It". Some of you really should read it, it's quite an education on our founding fathers and our constitution. If your government would have given each taxpayer in this country as much money as they gave AIG, we would all have been able to pay off our mortgages, had money left over to pay taxes on that money, and still had a party from coast to coast. That would have gotten the economy going - not some banker and wall street bailout package.
I was mostly agreeing with what Mr. Thompson had to say right up until he started blaming the Liberals! I almost fell out of my chair! Who has been sending out stimulus checks? Who told us to go out and spend money after 9/11? Who has had the government on a runaway spending spree for 8 years? Who has been subsidizing big business? Who has shifted a larger percentage of the tax burden to the middle class by giving the highest income folks the biggest breaks? That would be the current Republican administration.
netizen..."Who has had the government on a runaway spending spree for 8 years? Who has been subsidizing big business? Who has shifted a larger percentage of the tax burden to the middle class by giving the highest income folks the biggest breaks? That would be the current Republican administration."
Do you know who Nancy Pelosi is? The House MAJORITY leader. Harry Reid? The Senate MAJORITY leader.
Don't blame Bush for all the evil that has come out of Washington lately. Congress has been unchecked and out of control for too long. They do more harm, have less accountability, and wield more power than the sitting president.
navy wife - there's plenty I don't agree with Pelosi either, but remember - Bush is "the decider" He signed them into law.
Who cares what you label these people? The point is - and EVEN "Navy Wife" says it - it is these ideas (that are essentially "left wing" ideas) that are the problem.
Yes - Bush preaches conservative views, and then turns around and backs more socialist shit than anyone on earth.
But know the real enemy.
By the way, ALL of these problems stem from only ONE thing.
The banks.
Who else "needs" you to stay in debt?
This is a problem that needs to be FIXED, once and for all.
First for the liberal socialists: Economics is the study of scarcity, unlimited wants and limited resources. Simply stated, if we divided up all the resources and gave everyone a piece of the pie no one would be happy. Socialism doesn’t work.
For those of you who do not understand the present economic crisis, it was created by government when Jimmy Carter, in 1970s, decided to make homeownership available for everyone whether they could afford it or not. Bill Clinton’s pressuring banks to make the loans is the second nail. The derivatives that financial institutions created to absorb these losses was number three. Then, the house of cards came tumbling down.
For those of you who don’t know government, according to the Constitution responsibility for finances rests with Congress not the President. Given that the President can veto bills; do we want the government to come to standstill? Please, the President continually takes hits from his detractors and when he did veto a financing bill you would have thought the world came to an end.
The war, though an extension of the previous administrations policies, turned out to be a way to take the war on terror to the bad guys and we have not been attacked again. That said, not understanding economics, means that those who think there is a direct tradeoff between military spending and social spending, don’t understand the law of increasing costs. Also, virtually all war spending occurs in the United States. It is after all government spending. Do you want more unemployment?
For those of you who buy into the stimulus plan, $700 billion is about what taxpayers pay in two months for income and FICA taxes. Why not, as a congressman has suggested just declare a tax holiday? Remember, every dollar the US government spends can only come from three sources: 1.borrowing; 2. raising taxes; 3. printing more money. None of these are pleasant choices.
For liberal FDR fans, the New Deal was a failure. Unemployment was virtually unchanged in 1939 from 1929. National income was the same in 1939 as it was in 1929. How can one say that that economic policy worked? As to Keynesians, the 1970s disproved Keynes.
I will pretty much bet that those of you who think Fred is full of it has not a dime saved in the bank. I own a company, one of the last domestic toy manufacturers that manufacturers high dollar products that caters to a male audience in the 30 to 50 year old range. I have been in business for over 25 years and have been through three of these so called "blips", except this one is not a normal blip in the economy. I have watched my business go from no charge cards to some charge cards to 100% charge cards, and now to using two and three charge cards to buy our products, and even, "try this one and if it doesn't go through put so much on this one and so on" There are many people who enjoy our products that under normal circumstances should of either saved for them or simply looked to an alternative lesser hobby, or better yet spent the money on more important things like their family needs. As a business owner I have been watching this pattern develop slowly since the mid 80's knowing that one day this would lead to the situation we are in today. I also saved money during these times, and that was very hard for a guy like me who loves sports cars and could of pretty much purchased what ever I liked. Instead I would purchase what I thought I could afford, maybe a lesser model, not always what I wanted. Now for today, I did manage to put a good amount of savings away, lost a little bit in the market, but saw that coming last year and moved to what used to be called, constant depreciation accounts. I'll bet my brokers aren't calling them that these days. The part I didn't count on was my two sons coming back and wanting to work in now our family business. You see I couldn't save enough to carry them through these tough times so I am doing everything in my power to make this business continue for their sake. I have also explained to them how no matter how bad you want something you can't live day by day fullfilling all your whims living on spending credit, because there will come a day that you have to pay the piper. I feel that day is here and now. It's time to stop passing the blame, our government is not at fault for our lack of control, no one from Washington has a firm grip on your hand forcing you to swipe your credit cards, or sign your name on the bottom line. I am 48 years old, and never had a major credit card out side of an AMEX corporate card, (you have to pay those kind in full monthly). They make it too easy and lessen your thought and reasoning process. Quick decisions usually come back and bite you in the ass. So I think we should all listen to Freds warning and take it serious, maybe cool it for a bit and get back on track to what is really important in life. If we all would realize our personal limitations and live within them "our means" we can and will get out of this mess. It's quality of life that matters not quantity.
Interesting to hear liberals talking about 'putting it all aside' in the breath immediately after "this senseless war". Yes, all war is senseless, but that doesn't stop the world from producing the Hitlers, Stalins, Chairman Maos, Pol Pots, Chavezes, Castros, and countless other true tyrants of the world. After all, if we "put it all aside", we should be able to agree that those people were and are enemies, but you insist on including "W" as being on this list. And until the day your ilk "put it all aside", we will always be 'hated by everyone' because you set the tone for how people view Americans. I've got a solution for you. You all love Jefferson's concept of separation of church and state, so you should also LOVE his thoughts on how to handle a government who has grown out of control. Yes, a lot of our Founding Fathers considered this method of keeping government in check and agreed that with this tool, the government would never have the chance to destroy the freedoms of this country. It is called the second amendment. They were all paranoid about government and the terrible and hideous beast that a government can be, so they built this fail safe in to our system. If the government keeps going astray and bankrupts the country further, they should be cautious that the second amendment and its purpose still are available to 'save the republic from the tyranny of government'. Sic Semper Tyrannus.
slimfinger: I'm sorry you are too brainwashed to understand why deflation is the major concern. I will explain it simplistically: if there is deflation, the weight of the debt (both personal and commercial) increases. Thus, if you owe 100 dollars, and we experience deflation of 10%, you debt has thusly increased by 10% because it will take more money and efforts to pay that off. This affects EVERYONE, not just the ‘brainwashing banks.’ Inflation, on the other hand would correct that problem and the current problem we have by making debt worth less. If this happens in the housing market, home value will appreciate, and thus, we should have less sub prime ARM problems - the interest rate will decrease. Considering the fundamental problem with the economy is the housing bubble, inflationary measures will have a tremendous impact. Stoneman: you're post is absurd and full of non-sensical babble. First, the Jimmy Carter low income housing imitative is not the cause of this problem. In fact, those homeowners statistically have the best loan repayment records of loan cohort group. Nor does that program involve making investments (not home ownership) in houses intending to flip them, and if not, continue with low interest rates because of the fallacy of every increasing home values. Do not pigeon hole this massive crisis on an incredibly small portion of home owners. It is simply dishonest.
Second, you notion of holding a tax holiday is entirely without merit. Thank heavens you have not power with regards to our economy. Do you even know why we had a bailout? It wasn't merely to support failing banks. It was to inject capital into credit markets. In september/october, credit was frozen and the commercial paper market was nearly non-existent. Banks were afraid to lend to other banks for fear of never seeing that money again. That money is then lent to businesses for short term loans (commercial paper, usually only for a few days). This money is used in the day to day operation of the business - payroll, supplies, etc. This capital lubricates the cogs of our economy.
Now, if we just kept that money for ourselves, would banks have sufficient capital and trust to lend to each other to then lend to businesses? No. You ideas sound great to the unenlightened and ignorant. But upon examination, it’s clear to see that they strain credulity
I don't think I'm even going to dignify your war economy analysis with a response. It is incorrect on too many levels.
It's good that this video inspired all of you to voice your opinion and think about the issue. I'm afraid some of you are too hard headed to learn anything from the discussion. I don't have all the answers but you ought to pay attention to what boatman said. He's been paying attention, more people should do the same. The problem is that we don't have enough people creating wealth and you don't do that by flipping houses and selling worthless investments.
Our economy is strong when people focus on making things that other people need and providing services that other people need. It is weakened when schemers suck all the wealth out and spend it on imported consumable goods. The value flows out and is not replaced.
Because of the credit involved, the damage can be done over a period of years before anyone notices. Just circulating more money can stave off the effects for a while longer but at the end of the day we all need to roll up our sleeves and do a good day's work, and repeat that over and over.
I wish Fred Thompson had been this articulate when he was running for the GOP nomination then we wouldn't have been stuck with McCain.
Mr Thompson...one thing you failed to mention is that the Federal Reserve actually prints the money not the Federal government. Some one please tell me why there is so little discussion about the privately owned central banks and their complicity in this financial debacle. Isn't it ironic that in 1913 when the Fedral Reserve was created that our congress also created the IRS. Does the word linkage meananything?
As usual, it's easy to point fingers and sling cynicism, but offer no sound resolution. The American people know that the government bailouts are wrong. Just look at the poll numbers on the auto industry bailout. The problem is, we have lost control of our country. It is supposed to be a government for the people, by the people. Where did we lose sight of that? How do we get it back?
Well put Fred.
There is an actual solution which has been put forth by noted, non-partisan economists, which could literally fix the whole situation overnight, WITHOUT impacting the amount of revenue that the government collects...indeed, it would probably collect even more than it does now. It's called the Fair Tax (www.fairtax.org) and it would, among other things, do the following:
1. Return some $13 Trillion (with a "T"!) currently stashed in offshore tax shelters, back to the shores of the US. This is a sum that far exceeds the amount of the bailouts that have been criminally implemented by our "leaders". It would render bailouts completely unnecessary.
2. Actually tax the illegal immigrant and underground economy (drug dealers, etc.) population of this country, who use our services and infrastructure like roads, schools, hospitals etc., without paying a nickel for them, leaving that burden for the rest of us to pay.
3. By ELIMINATING corporate income taxes, create an environment whereby Domestic companies would be less likely to outsource their work overseas and Foreign companies would want to come to the US, set up shop and avail themselves of the greatest workforce on earth.
4. By ELIMINATING personal income taxes, create an environment where all US workers take home their ENTIRE paycheck and can save, invest, buy healthcare or whatever else they desire at their own discretion, without 'help' from the government.
5. By ELIMINATING the IRS and the insane burden of the unmanageable, unintelligible tax code currently in place, return some $300 - $400 Billion dollars per year currently spent in this country on tax compliance. This is money that is spent IN ADDITION to the actual taxes that are paid. You would no longer have to worry about April 15 or about your own government being your enemy, threatening you with asset seizures, liens or worse, including prison, for non-compliance or some other disagreement.
6. There would be no incentive to, and indeed, NO POSSIBILITY, of cheating on your taxes, because you would not have to file taxes. All tax would be paid when purchasing goods.
7. By providing a Prebate, It would completely UNTAX the poor, who currently pay embedded taxes that are part of all goods that they buy. Embedded taxes are the component of a price which suppliers, manufacturers, retailers etc., add in order to cover their own tax burdens.
The political establishment has turned into more of a "ruling class" - elites, who feel that they 'know better', are above the citizens that they supposedly work for and on behalf of...the people who pay their salaries and put them where they are. It's almost as if they consider themselves royalty...despite their ineptitude.
I think that the Fair Tax will probably never pass because it removes one of the big components of power that politicians have, which is their ability to dole out tax incentives and other favors to companies/lobbyists etc., who contribute to their coffers. If it was a level playing field, they wouldn't be able to do that and other people would actually be able to compete fairly with the entrenched companies/leaders etc. and no politician wants that!
Fred reads scripts real good, don't he?
If he showed ONE TENTH the acting job during the PRIMARY, he would'a been PRESIDENT!
Come on Fred, WHO WROTE THOSE WORDS FOR YOU???
Gee, is your role on Law & Order still available?
By providing a Prebate, It would completely UNTAX the poor, who currently pay embedded taxes that are part of all goods that they buy. Embedded taxes are the component of a price which suppliers, manufacturers, retailers etc., add in order to cover their own tax burdens. pocono raceway - regents prep - math regents
wow.... this really is a nice video to watch out. To me, one important thing you failed to explain is that the Federal Reserve actually prints the cash not the Federal government. creditcard Thanks for sharing the above video.
Excellent video, I am laughing my heart out!!! Thanks to the author.
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