TheWiseOldFart

Republicans are wrong about nearly everything in the 21 st century. The biggest pile of bullshit they try to feed the American people is the lie about Social Security and Medicare: they are not entitlements. There are several definitions of the term, none of which apply to the programs Social Security and Medicare. [The right to receive a benefit or privilege, often granted by law or contract. For example, you have a legal entitlement to speak to a lawyer if you are arrested.] [The feeling that you deserve to receive something, without having to work for it or earn it. For example, "celebrities who have an arrogant sense of entitlement"] [A program that provides benefits to a specific group of people. For example, medical aid for the elderly and poor.] Fact: Social Security was originally entirely funded by the employer and employee through payroll deductions. Medicare was similar, although the percentage of deductions were smaller, and there was no way to anticipate the rid...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart In 1981 Ronald Reagan created a fiscal polity he titled, “Supply Side Economics.” It quickly became known as “Trickle-Down Economics.” His eight years in office were dominated by high unemployment rates and huge increases in the national debt. Unfortunately, his three Republican successors failed to learn from his mistakes and used the same policy. The result was, in 1992, Bill Clinton rescued Reagan and George H.W. Bush: In 2008, Barack Obama saved our economy from the failures of George W. Bush: and in 2020, Joe Biden prevented another Great Depression after the disastrous incompetence of Donald John Trump. WHAT IS “TRICKLE-DOWN ECONOMICS” The simplest definition of “trickle-down economics” is that it is based on an illusion. Republicans continue to offer a baseless claim that if the wealthiest Americans receive tax cuts and thrive, jobs will be created, and the overall economy will grow exponentially. Experience proves this theory is invalid beyond a reasonab...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart If we can’t trust our 813 billionaires in the United States, who can we trust? These hard-working men and women care about you and me more than the thousand-dollar bottle of wine they will have with dinner, or the next mansion they plan to buy in Italy. We can trust them: right? Silicon Valley billionaires claim that they will support another Donald Trump presidency, but it has nothing to do with the fact that he has promised them additional tax cuts. Why would they lie? WE SHOULD ALL BE SUPPORTING PLUTOCRATS: LOOK WHAT THEY DO FOR US Billionaires don’t like Joe Biden, and why should they? He wants to take away some of their hard-earned money by making them pay their fair share of taxes. This is wrong. They have become accustomed to a certain lifestyle. Should any part of that be taken away from them? Why should they be prevented from buying a new and much larger yacht? Dreams belong to the wealthy, and they should come true. Stop blaming the insanely rich for t...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart Let’s look at the facts. Between 2017 and 2021, Trump nearly created a second Great Depression. In just four years he added more than 3.5 trillion dollars to the national debt. Over his first three years President Biden’s economic policy energized our economy to a level not seen since Bill Clinton’s administration. Inflation, caused by greedy corporations, Trump’s friends and supporters, is in decline. And yet some Americans trust Trump. It’s not okay to choose ignorance over the truth. NO ONE HAS BEEN ABLE TO PRODUCE ONE FACT ABOUT ONE ACCOMPLISHMENT MADE BY TRUMP IN FOUR YEARS Trump bragged about the accomplishments President Obama put into place during his eight years. The facts prove that his only “accomplishment” between 2017 and 2021 was in the form of permanent tax cuts for the super-rich and the large corporations they own. His policy of “do nothing” other than golf, party at Mar-a-Lago, hold hate rallies, and watch television added trillions of dollars ...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   When President Dwight D. Eisenhower left office in 1961, he made an address to the American people. The most significant issue from one of the architects who organized and planned the events known as “D-Day,” involved the growth of the “military industrial complex in America. His warning may have been a prophecy about every military conflict in which the United States was involved since WWII: each of which resulted in the surrender of America’s military. The often-repeated phrase, “war is good business” is involved in his admonition. The following are excerpts from President Eisenhower’s final speech to the American people, prior to John F. Kennedy’s inauguration.   “Our military organization today bears little relation to that known by any of my predecessors in peacetime.”      The second: “This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence — econo...