A number of threads have been occurring lately on the state of the economy. They have a common denominator of ‘shit going to hit the fan’. It’s important that the blogosphere get some kind of handle on this discussion as the whole dammed mess to clean up is going to shortly land in our laps and we got to do the cleaning; and you can rest assured this shit really stinks.

Whereas the current norm of absolute failure of MSM community to assist the public in the reality of complex issue decision making without only presenting neoconism for public digestion, we’ll have to enter the fray to help them. As is my practice I think that it is important to place this in some kind of historical (old people have a propensity to do this) perspective.

The situation is quite similar to where we found ourselves around 1986. Reagan had already signed into law the single most irresponsible piece of economic legislation in a century in May of 1981, (up to that point at least, Bush II would surpass that irresponsibility in orders of magnitude in 2001). Reagan, being not the brightest bulb on the string probably thought supply side economics was a good thing. I imagine the discussion on the subject at the WH went something like this, ‘Well… you guys are the experts, hell it sounds good to me’. The big problem here was there was no such animal as supply side economics. For the previous 50+ years the country and the world for that matter was functioning under Keynesian Theory.

Basically, Keynesian Theory held that capitalist economies, by their most essential nature shall always experience peaks and valleys. Government’s duty was to tamp down dangerous speculation at the top of the peaks, through the Federal Reserve and other mechanisms, that could produce depressions and government spending would be used to even out the dips, and pain if you will, of recessions upon and for the public good. The theory was working well for Americans; until a new entity began to rear its ugly head during the Nixon administration today we call neoconism. The neocons agenda was to establish America as the most superior and preeminent country in the world with American corporations firmly at the helm. The neocons sold Reagan on something they called “supply side economics”. Now; supply side economics was and never has been any kind of economic theory. It is and always has been a sales tactic developed to sell to the public and Ronnie, to the idea to give the corporations and the richest people at the top, exorbitant tax cuts. The most unfortunate part of the equation was that the tax cuts were not tax cuts at all, but tax deferments upon generations to follow. The other big problem, among many others, was it produced massive federal deficits. Undaunted the neocons continued the sales tactic upon him with, ‘we’ll just grow our way out of the deficit’. It must have sounded good to him which behind closed doors he was thought of as a buffoon by economist working out the details of the project, (see laugher curve drawn on napkins were lines just mysteriously ‘go up’). It didn’t work.

Democrats fumed on the hyperbole of it all and spouted daily ‘you can’t just cut taxes, increase defense spending and increase social spending at the same time’. They produced reams of data demonstrating that the only outcome could be, is massive debt. Enter the new neocon argument, debts don’t matter. Federal debt began to build immediately. Thoughout 82, 83, and 84 the federal deficit grow to new records and interest alone on the debt consumed nearly a third of the federal budget by 84, before any dime was even spent. Somebody must have said ‘oh shit’ and Ronnie was quietly taken out of the decision making process on economic matters and replaced by Bush I to try to clean up the mess. Bush I, and republicans began reversing the tax cuts by mid 84. But too much damage had already occurred, and throughout 85 and 86 the stinker in the room, Allen Greenspan began whispering the great depression on 1987. The problem at that point was of course what to do, not if but when, we enter the next recession when revenues would fall drastically and the people still needed to eat. Since the Great Depression of 29 the government had always bridged the pain and helped the economy back on its feet by increasing government spending. For the first time since 29, the government just didn’t have the money to spend. There was a massive state of confusion setting in down at the WH and no one seemed to have a plan, but the only guy that seemed to understand it all was Allen Greenspan. So they put him in charge of the Federal Reserve. Through just shear dumb luck, the nation didn’t experience a rescission during the most extreme period of vulnerability from 86-88, and not until the early 90’s, which by that time deficits were coming down somewhat to more manageable levels. In 92, democrats would rally and through decisive leadership of the new President Clinton demanded fiscal responsibility and by 1998 balanced the budget and actually began to produce a surplus.

Enter George Bush II, and the worst economic disaster America has faced in it’s 200+ year history. The new president was hell bent from day one to service every desire of the corporations and the neocons agenda. Unlike Reagan a true conservative he is part and parcel a true neocon. The assault would begin much as under Reagan with a tax cut far exceeding the degree of irresponsibility Reagan would ever even consider. I won’t go into too much of the details of his economic history here for I believe most have a firm grasp on what has occurred over the previous five years. But I will point out here, the thrust of this document, that we are back at the question uttered behind closed doors by Mr. Greenspan in 85,what’s going to happen, not if but when, we enter the next recession. Will we be as lucky as the last time and get things back under control before it hits? Unfortunately, I think not. My gut feeling, and I’m not alone if you just google and see what many economist are saying 2007 or 2008 are serious concerns.

This time we will begin the recession with deficits far greater, exceeding by many orders of magnitude, the beginning deficits under Reagan we might have had to endure. If there is any consolation I will tell you we don’t have a conservative problem, we have a neocon problem. I know because I’m speaking as a conservative. A conservative democrat, but conservative none the less. I will also point out that it is my belief the entire definition of what is a conservative and what is a liberal has been skewed. The whole thing has been successfully spun disinformation by daddy Bush designed under Nixon to defeat the antiwar movement. So superb were daddy Bushes skills, he became known as a man that knew how to gather intelligence (on us) and knew what to do with it, Nixon would appoint him as director of the CIA. < SIDE BAR just for the record; By my definition, you are (virtually) all conservatives. We never have been for big government since the very beginning of the 60’s movement. I’ll point out we hated the government. The conservative agenda has produced a long history of what is right and good. We support human rights. It has been our agenda to stop slavery and to give women the right to vote. The very roots of the environmentalist is firmly entrenched in the conservative agenda. The control of our national resources in the firm control of the people is ours to sport. It is us that supports the notion of count every vote and fixing the manipulated electoral system. And now in our hour of greatest need who stands for the protection of the very document that we hold so dear? Who is standing tall for privacy, liberty, equal representation, not the republicans. Us, the democrats, we stand for the promises, we are all created equal. My liberal biases are routed in Jefferson and Washington and other great liberals before me. The republicans represent at best communist corpmunism where a small group makes all our decisions for us and control us and at worst Fascist ruination of the nation and our great document. Simply put I’m a democrat because it’s the only course I have that represents my conservative beliefs. So I’m a liberal conservative as are you.>

Honestly speaking, I see no way we will not experience a depression. I am under no illusion that at least one stinker in the room that Greenspan represented uttering the R word has entered the room over the last six months, but if we’ve learned anything about the faith based presidency by now, they stuck there fingers in their ears, squinted both eyes closed as hard as they could, yelled NOOOO, and threw him out of the room. There is no one in the room to speak to this irresponsibility. And WE, by necessity are going to have to figure it out and fix it. Should you or any of your MI force be killed or captured the secretary will disavow any knowledge of your actions. Good luck Mr. Phelps.