Classic economic signs of a declining nation

[rsmith6621]

http://www.king5.com/sharedcontent/northwest/bizcoach/stories/NW_071205TBCdeclineDS.9b86d839.html

He asserts the economic recovery has been aided by rising home prices. But Dr. Morici says Americans are merely relying on their paper assets to borrow money in order pay their bills.

"Low mortgage rates, zero-percent down and easy terms on home equity loans are powering a home construction boom and rising automobile sales," he added. "In addition, give away prices offered by GM, and now Ford and Chrysler, create the mirage that the auto industry is recovering when it is not healthy at all. June sales notwithstanding, GM and Ford continue to cut employment and abandon suppliers."


Good think Bush says the economy is healthy......

[puddycat]

1. Corporate CEOs who move jobs overseas are committing treason

rich corporations run this country and corporations owe allegiance to stockholders, so profit is God, and so allegiance to country and Constitution means nothing when profits are involved. All hail profit.

[Maple]

2. Treason??

Treason is betraying your country to the enemy in time of war.

Moving jobs overseas is just part of globalization.

Overseas companies also move to the US and hire Americans.

[GreenPartyVoter]

5. Do the overseas companies moving in pay taxes to the US? (Their

workers would, but what about the corporate HQ?)

[puddycat]

7. IMHO its treason. When you deprive your own countrymen of jobs

its treason and unpatriotic and whatever else you want to call it. Globalization? That's just a word that means hire the poor of other countries to do work at below minimum wage, thereby escaping having to face Unions who force companies to treat their workers with a semblance of human worth and dignity.

sounds treasonous to me

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. Not to mention escape to places with miniMal regulations on environement

along with work conditions.

Outsourcing is all about searching for the lost gilded age on foreign shores.

[puddycat]

10. yes. They are re-creating a former age when corporations went uncontrolled

and ruled supreme. And since we are in the midst of fascist control that has reigned since the end of WWII, they seem to be doing a pretty good job of global fascist control.

[Maple]

13. Sorry guys

but foreign companies have often moved to the US and hired Americans. You even go out of your way and offer big tax breaks to bring them to the US. Toyota is building in Texas at the moment.

The rest of the world has been globalizing for years folks, you just noticed it apparently.

[puddycat]

15. What? Japan certainly has not been globalizing since 1945

Anyway, this is about huge American corporations taking jobs out of the USA. Its not about foreign companies coming here, which is a whole other issue. I don't agree that foreign companies should be allowed to freely roam America, gobbling up American companies and taking profits offshore.

Huge corporations have this economy so screwed up that I do believe it will lead to the death of the USA as we know it. When you consider that the USA is governed by the pressure of $$$$$$ and not by law, it does not portend well for our future. And factor into that the wealth and power of foreign corporations, then our doom is sealed. Its a one-two knock-out punch. Its happening now, only people are blind to it. God, if most people are blind to the realities of Iraq, then how on Earth are they going to wake up to the evils of globalization?

[bonito]

3. Corporations and stockholders are people. time to wake up.n/t

[GreenPartyVoter]

6. Corporations are not people. They employ people but they are not

"people" (except in the eyes of the law. *sigh*)

[wuushew]

16. Incorporation serves many useful functions

the ability for a non-person entity to enter into contracts and possess huge potential to raise money via issuances of stock in my opinion are good things. It also radically democratizes financial earning since you can invest in tiny amounts that do not rely on uber wealth. The scale and scope of such entities are potentially much larger than other forms of ownership. If businesses were forced to crumble and start over everytime their was a dead ended bloodline you would see a lot more waste and duplication in material production.

Not all corporations are bad since there are publicly chartered and non-profit corporations as well.

The problem as always is the intersection of money and politics. Public financing and campaign reform would go a long way to clean up Washington.

[GreenPartyVoter]

19. Sure there are good corporations, but my point is not that we should

do away with corps, but we should limit that stature as "people" and impose and follow up on regulations that keep them honest.

And I agree about the election reform: http://timeforachange.bluelemur.com/electionreform.htm

[mycatmelvin]

4. Well..................

If the place where I work at does not make money, I don't have benefits or a job. It's a tough job market out there. I really don't want to go back out there again.

[puddycat]

12. Not talking of ordinary businesses but huge corporations n/t

[newyawker99]

17. Hi mycatmelvin!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[BlackVelvetElvis]

9. Those people who live hand to mouth

sure can count on their stock going up, can't they?
Maybe it can pay for their healthcare costs.

[Oversea Visitor]

11. The Chimp

has and still is creating a disaster on the American Economy
To bad so many Americans and their future generations will need to pay for this.

:crazy: How did ever win?

[dcfirefighter]

14. Taxes & Regulation

Push companies (and jobs) overseas, as do wages that must rise to keep up with real estate.

We don't need protection, we need smart taxes, and a level playing field against unregulated overseas companies.

If you tax corporations, they'll relocate. If you tax income, earners will relocate or earn (report) less.

Tax real estate (less buildings & improvements) and it can't go overseas, and can't be hidden. Reduce corporate taxes and companies will flock here, especially since such real-estate would be easier to acquire: net present value decreases with future taxes, instead of taking a loan to purchase land, you'd merely make payments to the local government (or fractionally if taxes weren't too high), though your payments would be less because of no interest charged, and very little speculative value paid for (no bubbles).

Side benefits: smart growth (up not out), reduced transport (oil) costs, less expensive housing, more open space.

[Spider Jerusalem]

18. Ah. A geolibertarian. Henry George's "Single Tax".

That hasn't really been tried anywhere, yes? (Except Australia on a reduced scale and for a short time, that is...)