Bill Sr., I’m with ya … oh, and brother, will you spare us a dime?
“Bill Gates Sr., co-chairman of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, gave a CityClub gathering their money’s worth Friday at a luncheon to review the year almost gone.
As a participant on a panel that included Sen. Patty Murray, state Secretary of Health Mary Selecky and Issaquah developer George W. “Skip” Rowley, Gates, along with the others, was asked to tell about someone he’d been impressed by and to say why.
He picked Wall Street big shot Pete Peterson, who, Gates said, has warned against “the pending bankruptcy of the U.S.”
His response drew shocked laughter from the crowd. But Gates wasn’t kidding, and he would return to that theme later in the luncheon.
Gates said he is worried about a lot of things — the Bush administration’s tax-cutting policies at a time of war, the financial problems forecast for Social Security and Medicare and a national debt that appears to be flying off the chart as it is being underwritten by foreign governments.”
— Excerpted from the Seattle P-I story, “Elder Gates is worried about America,” via Howie in Seattle’s blog
Good for him. He should be worried.
This administration is overseeing & enabling the systematic dismantling of the foundations of Mr. Gates’ country. Brick by brick.
There is no manufacturing base.
There is inadequate education of our young.
Inadequate medical care of our old, our young or our poor.
Our public rail system is a joke.
We thumb our noses at Kyoto.
The US invades other countries for oil.
The tax code is for the benefit of the wealthy.
We are DEEPLY in debt.
Our labor force is inadequately skilled.
The US commodifies every aspect of life.
It goes on and on.
God how I hope after the mid-terms this bozo and his goons are prevented from doing more harm. Hopefully DarthCheney will be indicted in the meantime.
What a litany. Well done, Hester.
Yes, and Bill Sr. cares. He headed a commission that investigated the tax structure in Washington state — which has a lot of tax problems — and concluded, with his group, that we need a state income tax. (Of course, that won’t happen because it’s political suicide in this state, but more learned voters all know that that’s what is needed.)
He’s done a lot more such public service … trying to recall.
Not supporting the education and development of scientists and engineers, because the corporatochracy figures it can buy ’em cheaper from India and China. Have you seen devilstower’s excellent new diary, Dawn of the Dummies: Brains! Brraaaiinnns! over at Political Cortex?
Add to the list:
1- Net outflows of capital
2- Record Trade Deficits
3- 8 Months in a row of negative personal savings rates
4- Record high natural gas prices
5- Ever increasing income disparity between rich and poor.
6- Housing bubble collapse
7- 3 more years of these idiots.
Other than that nothing to worry about.
Excellent post, Btower.
As for your point #1, outflow of capital, think about where that capital is coming from.
That is from the tax cuts.
Give people more money to invest, and they will invest in the places that give the most likely best return. That is normally not the U.S.
While the conservatives may claim that the tax cuts have improved our economy, they are wrong. The U.S. economy has been supported by the artificially low interest rates the Federal Reserve has been setting for the last five years.
Unfortunately, the recent run-up of rates by 3% changes that. Short term rates are higher, and long-term rates are following. This is going to slow down the economy. Tax cuts will continue to send investment money overseas.
Two things have been increasing our economy. Increased productivity, and increased population that gives us more workers and more demand, The result of increased population is that GDP increases. But increase productivity means the increased demand is met with fewer workers, so there is no major demand for more workers. What demand there is is met by increased supply of workers. That’s why wages are stagnate.
The tax cuts simply give investors more money to send overseas to places that have more potential for growth in the near term.
That’s the (1.) Net outflow of capital you mention. That’s money we need to use for more research creating new products and for increased training of workers to provided a more skilled workforce. National healthcare to reduce the health cost in American products and increase the reliability of workers would help, also.
Anybody at the meeting say he was wrong? I thought not. Shocked, but somehow not as surprised as they thought they’d be when someone finally said it.
Bloggers are ahead in understanding this, the Blog Board of Economists have been running the numbers for us for a while.
This is a HUGE issue for the Dems, if they’d but hammer on it.
Maybe we bloggers should hammer the Dems to take up this issue more.
Sometimes I feel like we could tear out all of the walls of Congress and all of the politicians would still stand there in the center hoping the roof won’t collapse on them.
“Walls? We don’t need them in our reality!”
Yes. We. Should. Economic ruin is quite possible for many millions, just like 1929-1933. Jerome and Bondad and others have been preaching to the blogs about what to do (reduce personal debt) and what Gov’ts need to do (many things). It’s time to push that the stupid big spending and reduced taxes are not the way. Either the Republican ruling class is blind, or this is long term intended to reduce all but the wealthy to economic control. Even if the scenario isn’t that dire, the USA is likely to be so debt loaded that the economy and populace will be impeded for a long time.
This drum needs to be beaten much harder, both as a warning and as a political point.
Since no one seems to be doing anything to stop the oncoming bankruptcy of America, everyone needs to remember one thing.
You can’t go bankrupt if you don’t owe anyone money.
Bankruptcy means you can’t pay your current debts. No debts == no bankruptcy.
Cancel your credit cards. Pay off your car early. Pay ahead on your house and if you have a second mortgage, pay it off. Don’t buy major appliances on credit. Take a cheap vacation. Don’t borrow to do it. Build up your savings in things that will not disappear when credit disappears.
Wealthy people in Argentina, Mexico and Southeast Asia came out of the collapse better off. Middle Class people with debt did not. Prepare for it now. It is coming.
No, I don’t know when. When will the Chinese and Japanese stop buying our federal bonds? Can’t tell. That’s when it all hits the fan.
But I am even more worried that anybody takes Pete Petersen seriously any more. He has relentlessly flogged the Social Security bankruptcy story for 25 years. So, now he has a new gig. It is certainly true but i wonder what he’s trying to pull now. Probably just a backdoor way of pushing yet again for privatizing SS.
the father of the richest dude on the planet is worried?! What have the poor and poverty stricken to worry about?