Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Welcome to Rodent's Corner

Rodent's corner is my first blog ever.  I have been on the internets for quite a while and started out with programs like telnet, gopher and ftp.  What will this blog be about?  I don't know - it's my first blog ever.  I have a lot to say and you can be the judge of whether I have anything interesting to say.  One thing I promise is that I will keep it real.  Why do I keep it real?  I'm stupid and naive by nature.  Let the blogging begin!

8 comments:

  1. Why do you oppose the flag and the troops ? And how can you oppose Nuclear power and monarchy when it is the answer to all our problems?

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  2. I support the troops and the flag. In fact I hope to purchase my first American flag this year to hang on the house for July 4th. I planned to do it for Memorial Day but things got in the way (in addition to being stupid and naive I am also lazy at times).

    In terms of nuclear power what can be said bad about it. There is an impact on humans and the environment for any technology. Coal power plants over the years have spewed a lot of pollutants such as Mercury which has caused all kinds of health problems. In comparison I think nuclear technology is benign.

    As far as monarchy is concerned, I'm going to keep it real (like I do everything - this statement is just for emphasis or more appropriately repetition). I do have a question about whether monarchy is a better system than democracy. A question is just that so it does not mean I don't like monarchy. For most of human recorded history there were monarchs with a few exceptions such as the ancient Greek democracy. What is very appealing about a monarchy is that the king cares about the country in the long term because he wants to leave it to his daughter or son. The king is thinking out 50 years while politicians as we know think in the next 4 years. The 50 year long term approach smooths out various country parameter curves over time while the 4 year approach is more agile and can correct mistakes faster (it also creates mistakes faster).

    Thank you for commenting Ms. Anonymous - is there a topic you would like to see posted on the Rodent's Corner?

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  3. What is Mr. Rat or rather Mr. Rodent's opinion on the viability of Michelle Bachman candidacy, and her tax positions.

    Also can you argue that Sarah Palin is not just a media whore who shows up whenever another Republican candidate makes an announcement? Would the Rodent not prefer that she announce her candidacy, get trounced by a more serious candidate, and then disappear onto some game show forever? Thank you Mr Rat (I mean rodent)..

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  4. What's the rodent's position on increasing taxes? If the house RepubliCONs are serious about budget deficits, shouldn't there be a focus on increasing government revenue as well as cutting spending? The tea-party position seems to only be focused on expenditures, and if you look overseas to countries getting serious about avoiding default, they are raising taxes while simultaneously cutting spending. When they throw out the "if this were a family" homily nonsense, they neglect to talk about members of the family getting extra jobs..

    I am a new poster but I also agree with the previous person.. :)

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  5. I suspect you are the very same poster :-). Setting higher taxes says it's ok to spend more once we get into a better economy and collect quite a bit more with those higher taxes. Look raising taxes now along with big cuts will surely reduce the deficit faster in the short term. We must have a long term view and not just worry about the economy now and jobs now. Politicians are afraid to say something like that because it will clearly alienate their voters, but I am sure some are thinking that and I'm sure on both sides regardless of convictions. So again really we cannot just think about the short term on the upswing and on the downswing. It's during the good times that deficits should be paid down but you and I know that politicians will instead give the proverbial sausage to the electorate instead. The only solution thus is to cap their ability to spend with keeping the taxes low. Thank you for posting and I hope you will continue to do so.

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  6. I've read something recently that suggests authoritarian-minded people have been migrating towards the Republican party and anti-authoritarians favor Democratic positions. By your response I suspect that you have authoritarian leanings because you talk of capping "their ability to spend". This suggests a lack of flexibility to respond to changing economic situations; the Republican "dogma" that lowering taxes is the solution to any economic situation is "voodoo economics" (there is no data to prove it) and only exacerbates the budget situation. The first Bush responsibly raised taxes and the Clinton administration benefited from his predecessor's political courage. The second Bush gave it all away and then some to benefit only the very richest portion of the US population while not growing employment, middle-class income or government revenue. Barack Obama is a pragmatist (as was Clinton), the bearers of inflexibility are heading the country into a ditch. Wait and see, my rodent friend :) I dislike extremists of either stripe, and we have extremists setting the agenda right now. You are just a small rat but you cheer on the big ones as they steal the cheese from everyone.. :)

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  7. If by authoritarian you mean independent minded people who want to control their own lives and not have the government control theirs then I agree. For some reason you keep ignoring that cutting spending can achieve a lower deficit just as increasing taxes can. Once again what is better for the long term growth or do we just want to get out of this recession quicker at the expense of the future. If there is no data to prove that lowering taxes boosts the economy then the huge growth in the 80s and 90s must indeed have been "voodoo economics". As far as your insults at the end I will not respond and notice I have not insulted you. I'd like to keep the dialog at a substantive level. This blog has a funny name for a reason but the reason is not because it's not serious. In part it's a play on so many people trying to give themselves importance through appearances. In other words if a blog looks serious and has a nice layout and the writer is eloquent then she or he must have something important to say. In conclusion I would say this blog will only be understood by maybe 5-10% and it is for intelligent people.

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  8. There was no large economic growth in the 80's and 90's in the US. The term came out of Reagan era arguments that cutting taxes would actually raise government revenue. No such phenomena occurred.

    Tax rates are now at historic US lows as are interest rates , and yet little job growth ensues. The arguments for even more tax cuts for corporations and wealthy individuals have no basis in fact. Now, if you want to argue that the Rodent already pays too much taxes, thats a personal argument which many people hold to, but don't try to say that its the best thing for the country as a whole. Its common knowledge that there has been little or no wage growth for the middle class, and with the drop in housing values, many people have less net worth than before, and many people have lost their higher-wage earning jobs and are either unemployed or working for less money. This is the reason for decreased production, spending, and lack of incentive for domestic companies to hire - not the tax structure! So the push for reduced government spending (except for the all-important military budget) as a solution to unemployment is just "magical" and ludicrous. But the party of "if I believe it enough it will become truth" and "if we lie enough, the public will believe it" accepts this as the "new truth". As a former co-worker would say: "I call bullshit"...

    My opinion is that middle-class people who vote for tax breaks for large corporations and the very wealthy are not acting in their own "class" interests. Its a "maybe I'll be them someday" behavior. Thus the small rat/big rat comments... No intent to offend on your relative size :)

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