Shame-Out:: (Third Time) It's the ECONOMY, (you) stupid congressmen...

Shame-Out:: (Third Time) IT's the Republicans (and the tea-party idiots) STUPID.

 OK.  Listening to MarketPlace on NPR,  I heard two economists discussing the June 2011 Unemployment drop (only 18,000 jobs created in June).

I said this, I will say this again.

It's not a single dip or Double dip RECESSION.  It's a ##^#&^#@$*&#@$^& DEPRESSION (2.0).

Get the facts.

• Companies that are sitting on billions in ca$h will NOT hire new workers, as the existing ones are being over-worked.
• Companies will NOT invest in new workers, making the problems worse.
• Republicans claim that cutting the deficit is key to getting the economy fixed.  NOT!
• In fact, the only reason we do not have an OFFICIAL unemployment rate of 16% TODAY  is because we DON'T count the people who are under-employed or gave up on looking.  Otherwise it would be much higher today, and perhaps at about 23% today.
• The $$$ that the federal government gave to local states and cities has ran out because the stimulus was limited.  Therefore, states and cities have cut over a QUARTER of a MILLION jobs in the past two years.

Republicans refuse to consider tax increases.  It now is time for them to realize that the 'trickle-down' economy concept has failed.  We have two Americas (one highly educated, and motivated, and one of  'burger-flippers', employing a huge percentage of our country) and we also have two Financial Americas.  Corporations, and "Multi-millionaires", versus 'the rest of us'.

We need to address this huge imbalance.  For republicans to ignore this imbalance, and still claim, "TRICKLE-DOWN", is simply like a huge "Trick on the down and out!".

It's time for the congress to get off of it's REAR, and actually do a stimulus LARGER then the last time.


HINT:  see my discussion on green job building and Eisenhower Highway Expansion.

Spending trillions of dollars on a NEW transportation system (not re-using existing rail lines) is green:

To reiterate:

• Use existing Eisenhower highway system and establish 4 new rail tracks on every highway.
• 2 Tracks would be for freight/trucks/motor vehicles.
• 2 tracks would be used for mass transit.

Benefits:

1. Federal jobs creation program.  Construction will take 15-25 years [it took that long to finish some parts of the Eisenhower system]  giving lifetimes of employment to current and future workers.
2. Green program.  Project objectives are 
• Reduce # of trucks/diesel/buses (and especially gas and emissions) on road.
• Program would seek to get both trucks or just trailers (and cars -SUV's too) from origination point to destination as fast and as fuel efficiently as possible, increasing productivity, and reducing emissions, fuel consumption and driver time behind the wheel.
3. Technology Driven:  Program objectives would be cost reduction via technology, reducing fuels, and needs for drivers going cross country.  
• Cargo should be able to go on a trailer, or with a truck.
• Rail system would use existing right of ways of highways.
• Totally separate from existing freight lines, but would interconnect.
• Existing Railroads would not be running these systems.
• Technology would allow national 'ez-pass' type electronic billing system for interoperability with all systems.
• Commuter rail portion of system would also be technology driven.

In summary again, we are NOT in a recession, but a full blown DEPRESSION 2.0.

In order to get out of this, we need to drastically increase spending, and have a PROGRAM and way out to:

• Rebuild our economy
• Rebuild the  MANUFACTURING and construction sector.
• Re-Train our workforce (from a service 'burger-flipping' mentality) to meaningful middle-class jobs.
• Create the "Green Economy", that everyone claims they want.
• Reduce fuel emissions DRASTICALLY
• Reduce gas and Diesel usage
• Make transportation a Technology driven , growth industry.
• Stop the political bickering, and allow our government to work together to solve our problems.