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Health & Fitness

Sailing into Uncharted Waters

This article should be required reading for every congressperson, staffer, citizen and high school and college student in the country. We are headed for a cliff.

The article on Real Clear Politics by Richard Fisher should be required reading for every congress person, staffer, citizen, high school and college student in the country. Richard Fisher is the president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.

He mentions the questions raised at the Fed’s FOMC meeting about the “efficacy of further asset purchases.” This is Fed-speak for buying further Treasury debt, which is quite simply enabling the continued deficit spending of Congress.

He also refers repeatedly to “Congress” as a monolithic entity. It is not. It is a collection of 535 individuals, each of whom is engaged in a political mini-circus between his constituents, his congressional associates, his party and his president. It is only when the collective will of these 535 people becomes strong enough to take controversial action that we will see real progress. Unfortunately, that isn't likely to happen until there is a crisis, and then the action is rarely well thought-out.

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It is too easy, and even compelling, for congressmen to submit to the pleas of their business or labor contributors, their lobbyists, or even their constituents to use the federal purse or tax system to dispense goodies such as food stamps, unemployment compensation, health care, tax preferences, subsidies, grants and all the other forms of vote-buying that they engage in. It is too easy for “we the people” to accept all of these goodies as part of our expectation for an “advanced” society that “takes care” of people.

Like an errant college student with her first credit card, it’s all fun until the limit is reached and the bills must be paid off. In the case of the United States, or the countries of Europe, the limit is very near. Ignoring that approaching limit literally guarantees the collapse of our economic system and our country. If you think the recession of the last few years was tough, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

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It is past time that we demand of our representatives some fiscal responsibility and some limits on the passing out of goodies.

Please read the article.

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