Monday, January 21, 2013

The Debt Crisis – Dr. King and Obama





In 1963 when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made his “I have a dream” speech in the nation’s capital the US had a debt of $254 billion.  Dr. King eloquently reminded the crowd that the US also had a debt and a promissory note to offer all of its people equal rights.  Dr. King addressed this promissory note as follows:

“In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Fast forward to Obama’s second inauguration today, our government has signed promissory notes to the extent of $16 trillion some 64 times as much as was financially owed back in 1963.  Yes the note back at the time of the declaration of independence was the guaranteed right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  It was never intended that the US would go on a joy ride and simply owe the Communist Chinese over a trillion dollars with a president who is doing nothing about it.

Obama can pretend he is the reincarnation or King, Lincoln, and Washington but he is simply fooling himself and the American people.  His task ahead is to start to pay the promissory notes and not to add to them.  We all want our inalienable rights.  The first of which is government of, for and by the people.  Obama may want to stop global warming and continue to invest in green energy which was part of his address today but first he has to take accountability for his past mistakes and sheer incompetence.

Dr. King continued his famous speech as follows:

“It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.”

Dr King intended that the Negro would attain the prosperity of the rest of Americans and not that the rest of Americans would drop their living standards to those who live “on a lonely island of poverty”.   If Obama has any talent, skill, honesty, capability, or leadership he will quickly drop the idiotic notion that Al Gore’s green agenda will create economic uplifting jobs.  Obama will realize while he signs executive orders on recycled paper to lower carbon emission the Chinese build coal power stations and buy our promissory notes to own us. 

Kicking the fiscal cliff can down the road is precisely the “gradualism” Dr. King warned of.  Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of financial irresponsibility and now is the time to reinstate the “solid rock” of our bond rating.  Mr. Obama I bet if Senator Lloyd Bentsen was still alive he would say  today “ I knew Martin Luther King, Martin Luther King was a friend of mine,  Mr. President you’re no Martin Luther King.”

3 comments:

  1. Easy enough Lindsay. Just let the Bush era tax cuts expire and reduce the military budget- the US does, after all, spend more than the 25 next national military budgets combined.

    Currently, people are essentially paying the US to invest in T-bills. Inflation and interest rates are at historic lows.

    how about reforming the tax code? A slowly increasing tax on carbon emissions would be a great start wouldn't agree? In place of the payroll tax. And increase capital gains; and a tax on financial transactions. Do away with home owner's interest on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th... nth home.

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  2. TS I see you like taxing and you like spending except on the defense of the free world. You are probably right that the interest on Al Gore's nth home should not be tax shielded. Actually Al Gore should not even be allowed to own a home in the US he should just move to Doha. Blame it on Bush (a bit old for the fifth year of the annointed one's reign) and let Obama keep on spending and we will all be moving to Texas when they claim independence. But maybe just maybe the Whitehouse can be told to wake up and cut some spending and stop giving away tax credits to bio fuels and wind energy

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    1. It's funny. When we spend taxpayer money on defense, it's not called "taxing and spending." It's just paying for national defense- oh, I mean, defending the free world. Just how would that $304M F-35 Joint Strike Fighter defended that fossil fuel mine in Algeria?

      Ultimately, if you pay into a system like SS or Medicare and you receive benefits, is that really "spending?"

      I'll consider doing away with tax credits to alt energy (that typically are not targeted by international hoodlums like AQIM) if we do the same with sugar, soy, milk, corn, oh, and fossil fuels. Google "tax write-off oil natural gas" and you'll want to review your investment portfolio if you haven't already.

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