Some amongst us, in this time of economic crisis, refuse to play fair. They stand firm in their refusal to do what is best for the rest of us. They whine about the inequity and unfairness of being asked to make sacrifices, and ask why they should be asked to part with even more of their money. They flex their muscles, wielding the only power they have, trying to stave off the rising tide of ill sentiment toward them from some corners of the nation. The conspire to bring government to a halt, rather than be placed in the position of having to give more than their fair share.
I speak, of course, of the ultra-wealthy conservatives in America.
Showing posts with label business. Show all posts
Showing posts with label business. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Monday, September 6, 2010
Make This Job And Fill It!
For those who are sure that the Bush-era tax cuts are the key to stimulating job growth, here is a little sober realization: in 2009, private sector job growth for the previous ten years: a net loss of 203,000 jobs. So, to recap, in roughly the last ten years, there has been no job gain in the U.S. private sector, including the years in which the Bush tax cuts were in effect. So, for those pinning their hopes on putting money in the pockets of the wealthy as a means to stimulate job production, I'm sorry to say that you are misplacing your faith.
The job situation is bleak, and it is so because the circular chain of job loss is not being broken. Americans are not buying goods and services. This causes companies to trim expenditures on equipment and supplies, and decrease their employment rolls to maintain profit margins and keep investors happy. With new people out of work, forced to rely on savings and/or unemployment, they spend less, paying only for the necessities, and therefore the economy weakens further. This cycle continues apace, with companies holding dearly to unsustainable profit margins, rather than bucking the trend and putting people back to work. No longer is it OK to run lean; you must be able to maintain profits, even in the hardest economic times.
The Federal government can only do so much. While the stimulus bills initially helped, the fact remains that the government cannot continue to pour money it does not have into the economy to keep it running. The "free" market is supposed to be able to correct itself, but it shows no sign of doing so, squeezing every last dime out of operating margins to ensure that stock prices remain high and the outlook for their companies, healthy. Those who bear the brunt of this tortuous policy are the small and middle-sized businesses, who rely on the big businesses to generate their cash flow. The effect cascades down the supply chain, until small businesses are bankrupted and middle-sized companies are forced to lay off workers to survive.
Congress shows no signs of rushing to the aid of small and medium business in a mid-term election year. The Republicans hope to capitalize on the sluggish economy, as a way of pointing out the folly of Democrats, even though it was they who stalled and obfuscated and rejected to the point of hopelessly snarling necessary legislation. Even now, they could be helping small businesses with tax breaks and incentives, and doing more to get big business to pry money out of their wallets, but they prefer to watch the slow strangulation of the American worker in order to score political points with a constituency that does not seem to realize that their elected representatives are to blame for their plight.
The job situation will not improve until big business decides to stop the bleeding and pump up its payrolls. Rather than off-shoring work and trimming workers to force up productivity numbers, they need to grab up the available talent and put them to work in expansion and solidification. Until companies hire workers, injecting money back into the economy in the form of salaries and benefits, the news will continue to be dismal. While Fortune 500 CEOs may be enjoying their big bonuses, eventually the companies beneath them will be eaten away, and their golden parachutes will be more full of holes than they realize. It is up to captains of industry to step up and do their part, to take the cash out of the bank and put it where it will do the most good: in the hands of decent, hard-working Americans.
The job situation is bleak, and it is so because the circular chain of job loss is not being broken. Americans are not buying goods and services. This causes companies to trim expenditures on equipment and supplies, and decrease their employment rolls to maintain profit margins and keep investors happy. With new people out of work, forced to rely on savings and/or unemployment, they spend less, paying only for the necessities, and therefore the economy weakens further. This cycle continues apace, with companies holding dearly to unsustainable profit margins, rather than bucking the trend and putting people back to work. No longer is it OK to run lean; you must be able to maintain profits, even in the hardest economic times.
The Federal government can only do so much. While the stimulus bills initially helped, the fact remains that the government cannot continue to pour money it does not have into the economy to keep it running. The "free" market is supposed to be able to correct itself, but it shows no sign of doing so, squeezing every last dime out of operating margins to ensure that stock prices remain high and the outlook for their companies, healthy. Those who bear the brunt of this tortuous policy are the small and middle-sized businesses, who rely on the big businesses to generate their cash flow. The effect cascades down the supply chain, until small businesses are bankrupted and middle-sized companies are forced to lay off workers to survive.
Congress shows no signs of rushing to the aid of small and medium business in a mid-term election year. The Republicans hope to capitalize on the sluggish economy, as a way of pointing out the folly of Democrats, even though it was they who stalled and obfuscated and rejected to the point of hopelessly snarling necessary legislation. Even now, they could be helping small businesses with tax breaks and incentives, and doing more to get big business to pry money out of their wallets, but they prefer to watch the slow strangulation of the American worker in order to score political points with a constituency that does not seem to realize that their elected representatives are to blame for their plight.
The job situation will not improve until big business decides to stop the bleeding and pump up its payrolls. Rather than off-shoring work and trimming workers to force up productivity numbers, they need to grab up the available talent and put them to work in expansion and solidification. Until companies hire workers, injecting money back into the economy in the form of salaries and benefits, the news will continue to be dismal. While Fortune 500 CEOs may be enjoying their big bonuses, eventually the companies beneath them will be eaten away, and their golden parachutes will be more full of holes than they realize. It is up to captains of industry to step up and do their part, to take the cash out of the bank and put it where it will do the most good: in the hands of decent, hard-working Americans.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
The Richness Found In Enriching The Rich Richly Enriches Us
I am delusional. I was told so by someone who does not like the idea of being taxed, and is aghast at the idea of the rich paying a greater percentage in taxes. After all, they take greater risks, create jobs, and run the economy -- why shouldn't they, like anyone, get to keep what they make? The idea of the "redistribution" of wealth makes their stomach turn.
It is such hyperbole in the name of wealth preservation that is enough to give one an ulcer.
It is safe to say that, given proper financial planning, those with millions and billions of dollars at their disposal are beyond the ordinary vagaries of normal existence. Short of blowing it all on gambling, drugs, alcohol, or risky investments, they are insulated from the vagaries of the world to a great extent. They will continue to wheel and deal and pile up their monies, secure in the knowledge that they need not travel in the normal circles of human society, but fly in the rarefied air of the ultra-wealthy. In their exclusive club, they vie for the position of top dog, for he (or she) who has the most toys and the biggest Swiss bank accounts, wins.
True, they invest, and move money around, placing it here and there, but rarely does that money have much more impact than buoying the profits of the companies they invest in, companies headed by wealthy compatriots, who are busy trying to pad their portfolios and offshore accounts with the profits of their companies, even as their workers are suffering. A recent report shows that CEOs at the fifty companies that have fired the most workers since the economic downturn began, are making forty-two percent more in compensation than the rest of their S&P 500 brethren.
While big business continues to ride a wave of profits, small business cannot catch a break. In Washington, D.C., Congress continues to fight over restoring the Bush-era tax cuts, which would benefit the wealthiest Americans, while unable to pass comprehensive reform to help small businesses create jobs. Given small business is often the greatest creator of jobs, this explains the lagging job numbers, and the slow pace of recovery. Still, profits continue to soar on Wall Street, and no one at a Fortune 500 company seems too eager to hire back any of the workers they so recently divested themselves of.
Couple that with reports that most companies that do business in the United States pay little or no taxes, and we are left to wonder whose side Congress is on. Looming budget deficits and proper funding of the government could be solved, in part, with the revenue that large corporations and their subsidiaries would pay in taxes, to support the country that allows them to operate and the citizens who provide them the skilled labor that runs their business here. Rich corporations make the rich richer, and in the process, do it by bankrupting the very people whose blood and sweat make those riches possible.
No one can begrudge those who have made vast fortunes their due, for it takes shrewd investment and some level of acumen to accumulate wealth. But if the only end to the accumulation of wealth is the final number you end up with at the end of the day, then what of it? What makes all the extra dollars and cents worth it, if to make them requires the reduction of the very people who performed the work to a life of abject poverty and suffering? No human, outside of a professional athlete, makes millions by their own toil and sweat; it is more often the result of the toil and sweat of others. Is life so cheap, people so disposable, that they can simply be used as chattel, chained to jobs they would rather not do, simply so they and their families can survive?
The rich should be taxed at a greater rate, for the simple reason that their riches flow not from a secret spring, but from the work of others. They should be willing to do right by those who make them rich, to encourage them to continue to do so, to ensure they are capable of doing so, and to provide the nation in which they operate to provide them with the educated and trained workforce needed. Philanthropy is good, but it is a narrow window; it is important for the Federal government to fulfill its mandate of seeing to the general welfare, and for that it needs tax revenue. All must pay their share, and those who make more, must pay a little more.
It is not so much about redistribution of wealth, as redistribution of misery. Our human duty is to help our fellow humans up, to provide them safety, and to be sure they can work as productive members of society. If fairness is the issue, then is it fair for those who can barely make due to pay a larger proportion of their income, though it add up to less money to support their country? Proportion is the key, because those with more, are using more resources and people to gain their wealth. In essence, they must pay the proper price, not the price they choose to set. Until a day comes when humanity can look at each other, realize our connectedness, and provide for others simply out of the goodness of being human, we must continue to ensure an equitable balance is struck.
It is such hyperbole in the name of wealth preservation that is enough to give one an ulcer.
It is safe to say that, given proper financial planning, those with millions and billions of dollars at their disposal are beyond the ordinary vagaries of normal existence. Short of blowing it all on gambling, drugs, alcohol, or risky investments, they are insulated from the vagaries of the world to a great extent. They will continue to wheel and deal and pile up their monies, secure in the knowledge that they need not travel in the normal circles of human society, but fly in the rarefied air of the ultra-wealthy. In their exclusive club, they vie for the position of top dog, for he (or she) who has the most toys and the biggest Swiss bank accounts, wins.
True, they invest, and move money around, placing it here and there, but rarely does that money have much more impact than buoying the profits of the companies they invest in, companies headed by wealthy compatriots, who are busy trying to pad their portfolios and offshore accounts with the profits of their companies, even as their workers are suffering. A recent report shows that CEOs at the fifty companies that have fired the most workers since the economic downturn began, are making forty-two percent more in compensation than the rest of their S&P 500 brethren.
While big business continues to ride a wave of profits, small business cannot catch a break. In Washington, D.C., Congress continues to fight over restoring the Bush-era tax cuts, which would benefit the wealthiest Americans, while unable to pass comprehensive reform to help small businesses create jobs. Given small business is often the greatest creator of jobs, this explains the lagging job numbers, and the slow pace of recovery. Still, profits continue to soar on Wall Street, and no one at a Fortune 500 company seems too eager to hire back any of the workers they so recently divested themselves of.
Couple that with reports that most companies that do business in the United States pay little or no taxes, and we are left to wonder whose side Congress is on. Looming budget deficits and proper funding of the government could be solved, in part, with the revenue that large corporations and their subsidiaries would pay in taxes, to support the country that allows them to operate and the citizens who provide them the skilled labor that runs their business here. Rich corporations make the rich richer, and in the process, do it by bankrupting the very people whose blood and sweat make those riches possible.
No one can begrudge those who have made vast fortunes their due, for it takes shrewd investment and some level of acumen to accumulate wealth. But if the only end to the accumulation of wealth is the final number you end up with at the end of the day, then what of it? What makes all the extra dollars and cents worth it, if to make them requires the reduction of the very people who performed the work to a life of abject poverty and suffering? No human, outside of a professional athlete, makes millions by their own toil and sweat; it is more often the result of the toil and sweat of others. Is life so cheap, people so disposable, that they can simply be used as chattel, chained to jobs they would rather not do, simply so they and their families can survive?
The rich should be taxed at a greater rate, for the simple reason that their riches flow not from a secret spring, but from the work of others. They should be willing to do right by those who make them rich, to encourage them to continue to do so, to ensure they are capable of doing so, and to provide the nation in which they operate to provide them with the educated and trained workforce needed. Philanthropy is good, but it is a narrow window; it is important for the Federal government to fulfill its mandate of seeing to the general welfare, and for that it needs tax revenue. All must pay their share, and those who make more, must pay a little more.
It is not so much about redistribution of wealth, as redistribution of misery. Our human duty is to help our fellow humans up, to provide them safety, and to be sure they can work as productive members of society. If fairness is the issue, then is it fair for those who can barely make due to pay a larger proportion of their income, though it add up to less money to support their country? Proportion is the key, because those with more, are using more resources and people to gain their wealth. In essence, they must pay the proper price, not the price they choose to set. Until a day comes when humanity can look at each other, realize our connectedness, and provide for others simply out of the goodness of being human, we must continue to ensure an equitable balance is struck.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Are You There, World? It's Me, Haiti...
Six months ago, the region around Port-au-Prince, Haiti was rocked by a titanic earthquake, which leveled buildings, cut essential services, crippled the government, and killed over two hundred thousand people, leaving five times that number homeless. Aid and assistance came in from all over the globe, as the plight of the Haitian people touched hearts and minds everywhere. For a brief moment, Haiti was central to the world, not just the Caribbean Sea. Tent cities were erected to house the homeless, food and water were shipped in continuously, and medical staff from everywhere converged on makeshift hospitals and clinics to treat the wounded.
Now it is six months later, and while rubble has been cleared and some semblance of normalcy is slowly returning to everyday life in Haiti, the problems still remain. Infrastructure -- what little of it there was -- is still in bad shape. Tents dot the landscape, as permanent structures have yet to be built. Hospitals are still crowded. Jobs are scarce. The Haitian government still seems afflicted with the same torpor.
The grand promises of the United States and other nations, in the form of aid money and expertise to help get Haiti on its feet again, are not materializing quickly enough, and where groups and organizations want to make inroads on the critical problems of creating proper water supplies, consistent waste management, and adequate housing, the Haitian government seems incapable or unwilling to act. Six months in, and the average Haitian is still struggling to survive, living in refugee conditions in their own country, clinging to hope and not much more.
There is a unique opportunity here, to rebuild Haiti in such a way, as to make it more self-sustaining and prosperous. It as if the earthquake has provided a blank canvas for the world to work on, and here is the chance to put theories to the test. Earthquake and hurricane resistant housing could be built, to minimize damage from catastrophes. Sewer systems and water purification plants could provide clean drinking water and sanitation to everyone. Solar power could be used to provide everyone with clean and cheap electricity. A fiber-optic network could be constructed, to give Port-au-Prince the latest in communications capabilities. Between construction and operation of these systems, jobs would be created, and the tourist industry could be revitalized. Finally, the poorest members of this proud nation might be brought up from the depths of their poverty, to share in the wealth that is available.
Such a revitalization would be a draw for global businesses, bringing badly needed investment and jobs to an island with few natural resources. Proper business and tax law would ensure that Haiti remained attractive to business and commerce, while supplying it with the revenue necessary to maintain and expand on the systems that promote growth. In essence, Haiti could be an incubator for new ideas and concepts in business, infrastructure development, renewable energy generation, and telecommunications. Investment would allow the government to properly fund the school system, assuring future generations the education require to work in the wider global marketplace.
Maybe this is all a pipe dream, but the potential is there, if only someone or some group will seize the reins and drive it. Haiti deserves no less for the depredations it has suffered over the decades. It is time for the world to make good on its promises.
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