TheShadowKnows's Blog

Last night I once again heard some national speaker bashing President Bush over the cost of oil. Mention was also made of the profits that the major oil companies are making. Poor President Bush. He gets the blame even though he has nothing to do with the price of oil OR gasoline.

I've just recently read a long article in a newspaper about the price of oil and gasoline and WHO sets the price of oil. Come to find out, no one actuallys sets the price of oil. The price of oil is set by the open market and speculators who are investing in oil futures. Each investor who is willing to pay a little more for oil in the hope of making a profit in the future is helping to push up the price of oil. It's all based upon how much oil is available on any given day. None of these investors are expecting to take actual delivery of the oil. They'll sell their contracts before that happens. And they hope at a profit which is usually the case since the price of oil keeps going up.

The oil eventually goes to the refineries and is processed into gasoline. Much the same thing happens to gasoline as happened with the oil. It's the speculators and the market place all over again. At the moment the price of gasoline is down somewhat. You can still make money in a falling market. What you do is sell gasoline that you don't have at today's price and in a few days buy that amount of gasoline at the lower price  and deliver the contracts. You've made a profit on the difference.

As of midnight Sept 2nd the wholesale price of gasoline was $2.49/gal. according to The Nightly Business Report. Today the retail price at my local station is $3.49 leaving a dollar for profit for them. Right? No, it's not. A little more than half of that dollar goes for Federal, State and local taxes. About $0.30 goes for truck transportation. Maybe $0.15 is left for the station's profit minus the station's operating costs.

And President Bush is responsible for all of that!  NOT!!

The Democrats are pointing their fingers at the oil companies because they are making a profit. But their profits are not out of line with the volumes that they deal in. In the end they are making about 11% profit. Which actually is not as good as many other types of companies are doing. And not ALL of the oil companies are making profits. Some of the smaller ones such as Sunoco are actually losing money. The very large companies like Exxon/Mobil are making money. A merger that was heartilly approved of by President Clinton by the way. His fingers in their pie perhaps? Hmmm? Oh and speaking of him, much is made of the depletion allowance given to the oil companies. Here's a little tidbit...... OIL MONEY: With Americans paying record prices at the pump, Politico's Rogers gets a look at a draft GAO report that has oil companies standing to enjoy "an ever larger windfall from royalty relief granted by Washington to encourage deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

"The Government Accountability Office report — reviewed by Politico — suggests that the foregone royalties could reach $53 billion, depending on the outcome of industry lawsuits and what critics contend was a lapse in administration under President Bill Clinton."

And the smoke gets thicker.

So why don't we have more American oil which would lower the cost of oil? Point your Democratic fingers at President Bush but it's the DEMOCRATS that have put a lid on oil drilling in the United States. No no you're NOT going to drill for oil in our country. Besides that, the DEMOCRATS have placed a lid on the price of American oil. The oil companies can't sell their American oil for the same price as foriegn oil. Which is why the Alaskan oil is being sold to Japan and other asian countries. It's why we export oil rather than use it here. The oil can be sold on the open market in other countries.

There is so much more that is hidden behind the Democrat smoke and mirrors. Last week I saw the Democrats cheering for their hero Ted Kennedy until their throats were raw. What a man. What a DEMOCRAT! Have you checked your electric bill lately? Some of that cost is due to the cost of oil fired electric generators. (See above about the cost of oil) But, there are less expensive ways to generate electricity. One is with wind generators. Beyond the initial cost of construction it's free except for occasional maintenence. Free, renewable, nonpolluting! What a deal right? So when it was proposed to build wind generators on Nantucket Sound where the wind blows constantly did Ted Kennedy embrace such a boon for the American people? NO, HE DID NOT!!!

He killed the project saying, not where I sail my fifty foot schooner! I sail my boat there and I'm not going to put up with looking at and dodging those things. Do you suppose that he just might be one of those elite rich foks that the Democrats are so much against? Hiding behind all of that smoke and mirrors.

I have at various times outlined various ways that we as individual people can help others less fortunate than ourselves. My suggestions have met with a less than resounding reception. One could get the idea that the liberal Democrats are more smoke than substance.

I've been listening to Obama and his retoric about how he is going to help so many of us po' folks. A prime example of smoke and mirrors. Why do I say that? Consider and give some thought to the following.

Last year Obama earned four million dollars plus. Thats okay with me. But in his speeches he wants me to share some of my tax money with those in need. How about him leading by example? I saw an interview with Obama's brother in Africa. Whatever country he lives in. I don't recall it. Obama's brother states that he has met his famous brother, the future President of the United States only two or three times during his brother's visits to Africa.

This is what I mean when I say, leading by example. Obama's brother states that he lives on approximately $1.00 a month. Now thats abject poverty. And Obama who wants us to share that which we have while he earned four million plus and doesn't give a dime to help his own brother.

That is what I call smoke and mirrors. This is what Obama says to you and this is what he actually does.

Lots of things passing through my mind these days. I expect another Bill to be elected. Too many people willing to buy a pig in a poke sack. Hang on tight! It's going to be like riding the world's biggest roller coaster.

Two grandchildren visiting for the summer. I suspect that they are a barometer of our countrie's future. For those who are younger than I am, you've got a wild future ahead of you.

Now don't get me wrong. These kids are very sharp when it comes to technology. Ipods, MP3, cell phones, video games, digital cameras,etc. One is a junior in high school. Mention Mark Twain, receive a blank look. Mount Vernon, same thing. George Washington, he was somebody famous wasn't he? Mona Lisa, isn't she an actress? And on and on and on like that. He has taken his black studies where he learned that Lincoln helped Martin Luther King Jr. free the slaves. He lives in California so he has also taken some classes that were taught only in Spanish. So he knows a few words in Spanish. That's good I guess. At least he's doing what Obama wants him to do. However, if he goes into business, it's very likely going to be an international business and our largest customer is China. They don't speak Spanish.

I know that recently someone was trying to tout Spanish as THE most widely spoken language and named off several countries that spoke Spanish. A couple of those countries actually spoke Portuguese rather than Spanish. However, business wise, we do more business with China than all of those countries combined. Our trade with China has tripled in recent years. English is actually the most widely spoken language world wide no matter what the Mexicans of our southwest would have you believe. And many of the students in China are studying English as well as Chinese. In the meantime, Obama wants our students to learn Spanish. But the largest class of students studying Chinese outside of China is comprised of 8,000 students in Cambodia. They by the way are learning English at the same time. But not Spanish!!

An interesting thing that I heard last night on Charlie Rose. In the last ten to twenty years some 600,000 Chinese have risen up from the poverty level to the middle class level. That's double our entire population. And what has our population done during the same time period? Yup, gone down in the opposite direction.

Why is that? I think that it's because us Americans are willing to sell the farm whereas there is no way that the Chinese will do so. For those who don't understand what that means: We say, you want to import your cars to the U.S.? Sure, of course you can. Spare parts and repair parts? Of course, you can import those also.  And the Chinese? What do they tell General Motors? Yes, you can sell your Chevies here in China. But some of your car has to be assembled here in China. And your spare parts and repair parts have to be manufactured here in China. You see? They do business with us but they don't sell the farm. Hell, we even use our taxes to subsidize jobs in Asia but not here in the U.S. Which is very smart of us, eh?

China has has a change in policy during the last few years. They now buy food outside of China. If we are not now, we will soon be competeing with China for food in the world market. China currently buys every soybean that Brazil can grow. Their requirements for this year are double what they were for last year and expected to double again for 2009. So if you are a soybean farmer in Brazil your future looks rosey. On the other hand if you want to buy soybeans to use in Brazil, too bad. There are no soybeans left for sale. You see, as people move up in the social scale they also expect to eat better. With 1.3 BILLION people they have a lot of mouths to feed.

Oh, my grandson, when I asked him what was the last book that he read? "I don't read books", he said. Nope, never heard of Hemingway.

SIGH..........

BLECK!!!

Interests
By Michael Reagan
July 18, 2008

 

Page 2 of 2

So they fall back on the old canard that even if we started drilling here it would take years for the United States to see any results, ignoring the fact that by telling all those Arab potentates and the Marxist dictator in Venezuela that the gravy train is going to come to a grinding halt in the near future, we're warning them that if they don't increase supply now we'll stop buying from them as soon as we can.

Republicans are demanding that the Democrat-controlled Congress approve drilling here at home now. The environmentalist lobby -- which hates automobiles and fossil fuels almost as much as they hate people -- owns Barack Obama and his Democratic Party, and they say "no drilling." Barack Obama and the Democratic Party obey.

Then there's big labor, which is running short on members whose compulsory dues they use to finance Democratic candidates. They want an end to secret balloting in certain labor elections, and Obama bends his knee and pledges to do big labor's bidding, and to heck with workers' rights.

Then there's the abortion industry. When they say killing the unborn is just dandy, Obama agrees. And the big bucks from the multi-billion dollar baby-killing industry flow into his coffers.

He knows who his bosses are.

E-mail this story to a friend Have comments? Send them to the editor. Printer Friendly Version Subscribe for Free! Other Columns by Michael Reagan Michael Reagan Bio The Real Party Of Special Interests
By Michael Reagan
July 18, 2008

 

Barack Obama is given to calling the GOP a party captive of hateful special interests.

It takes a lot of what my Jewish friends call "chutzpah" to suggest that unnamed special interests control the Republican Party when his own party is totally captive to the most wealthy and powerful special interests in the nation.

Obama and the national Democratic Party is owned lock, stock and barrel by the teachers' unions, the bosses of big labor, cash-heavy, tree-hugging environmental groups, and Planned Parenthood and its allies in the sleazy abortion industry.

And boy, do Obama and his fellow Democrats dance to their tunes! When they say "waltz," in a second he's out there on the political stage whirling obediently to their three-step beat.

In February 2008, Obama spoke to reporters from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel saying, "Let's see if this [school voucher] experiment works, and then if it does, whatever my preconception, you do what's best for kids."

He danced a different waltz on Saturday, July 12, when he told the American Federation of Teachers (which, with the National Education Association, owns the Democratic Party) that like them he was opposed to vouchers, and when his campaign was asked about his newest stand on the issue, it released a statement saying, "Senator Obama has always been a critic of vouchers."

Oh?

Said Catholic League president Bill Donohue: "Guess Obama couldn't resist pandering to the teachers union. It's so easy to tell the media that keeping an open mind on school vouchers is the best way to go. But when cash counts -- and the American Federation of Teachers has plenty of it -- who cares about principle? Fact is, no amount of empirical evidence was ever going to change his mind."

Then there's the matter of the current crisis in oil prices. One patently obvious answer to the problem of relaxing our dependence on foreign oil supplies is to exploit the massive oceans of oil waiting patiently to be found here at home and in the waters offshore, and in Alaska.

It's just plain common sense that when you have enough oil beneath the surface in your own backyard to meet your needs just about forever you should start getting hold of it and stop paying tens of billions to foreign nations who have us by the short hairs.

Any five-year-old with enough sense to come in out of the rain would understand that given the vast supplies of oil available to us here at home it is just plain idiocy to keep ourselves utterly reliant on foreign sources of the stuff.

Mr. Obama and his fellow Democrats don't see it that way. They're not allowed to. Their elitist lords and masters in the environmental movement won't permit it, and should they defy the tree huggers they'd lose all those lovely dollars the greenies keep shoveling into their coffers and those of their candidates running for re-election to Congress.

End Part I

- The Loft - http://www.gopusa.com/theloft -

Welcome to
The Loft

Obama Tells American Kids to Learn Spanish

Posted By Bobby Eberle On July 10, 2008 at 6:17 am

I hope the American public is watching. For months, Barack Obama was a blank slate. The only thing people knew about him was that he gave a good speech and that he wanted "change." This apparently was enough to garner him the Democratic presidential nomination. (That should be a clue to most Americans NOT to vote for him.) But now, with no help from the media, the real Barack Obama is starting to appear.

The media won't write stories about what he says, but they don't need to. With today's technology, we can see for ourselves, and this latest incident is a doozy! Our education system is crazy enough with all these liberal, feel-good programs. Forget adding, subtracting, spelling, and grammar. Now, despite the fact that the rest of the world is learning English, he says that American kids should learn Spanish? What? Learn Spanish? Yes, and it shows just how out of touch and far left Obama is. We need a president who will put America first, not push for our culture to be forgotten.

 

 

What an absolutely ridiculous speech. We need to make sure our kids can speak Spanish? Why? That is the question. Oh, and I have the answer. It's because the liberals are quite happy seeing millions of illegal aliens pour across our border and do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about it. Rather than solve the problem of illegal immigration by enforcing laws and securing our border (after all, if we did that, liberals would call us racists), the far left would rather Americans simply learn Spanish. That is their solution to the problem.

And it is definitely becoming more and more of a problem. Example... during these very nice summer months, my kids love to go swimming with me at our neighborhood pool. We go in the late morning and spend an hour or two there. Afterward, we come home for lunch. On some days, we go out, and they love it when we get sandwiches at Subway. Getting the sandwiches, however, has become more and more of an ordeal. In fact, the last time we went, it took forever simply because I couldn't understand the attendant, and the attendant couldn't understand me.

I'll have a six-inch ham sandwich on wheat with lettuce and tomato... All I got was a blank stare. I repeated the order, with my daughter looking on. The lady finally grabbed the wheat bread and then selected turkey. No... I said ham.

Now, this being a Subway restaurant in AMERICA, one would think that I could place my order in English. Wrong. This must be a Barack Obama Subway restaurant, and the only way to place an order is to do it in Spanish. Hmmm... I guess I should thank Obama for his speech. What he was trying to get across was the idea that we should teach our kids Spanish just so we can order a sandwich at an American restaurant. Thanks Obama for looking out for me!

Sarcasm aside, Barack Obama continues to show that he is not ready for the presidency, and more importantly, America is not ready for him. Our kids should not be told to learn Spanish. Our kids should be told to learn English and math and science, so they can become contributing American citizens. Obama's example in his speech is that Americans sound silly when they go to France because they can only say a simple phrase. What's his point? Is he saying that we should all learn French for that day that we spend thousands of dollars to travel to France?

English has become the language of international business, commerce, science, and technology. Other nations learn English, because English is the "universal" language in which things get done. Only in America (an English-speaking country) would left-wing Barack Obama tell Americans that their kids should learn Spanish.

My grandson is visiting me for the summer. He will be a Junior in High School this fall. We have of course talked some about his schooling. He told me that he had to attend what he called a "trash school" for middle school. I didn't know what that meant. Apparently it's a school with a high percentage of Mexican students. This kind of school also has many classes that are taught ONLY in Spanish. My grandson who is American/Japanese/German had to attend one of those classes. Needless to say, he failed the class.

There is more. My grandson has also been REQUIRED to take Negro History classes. But no American History classes to date. Nathan can tell me about Rosa Parks and Jesse Jackson. But when asked about George Washington, the ONLY thing that he knew was a demeaning piece of information. That is that George Washington had wooden false teeth. This is what he has been taught in school by his liberal teachers.

Nathan is halfway through high school and does not know when the American Revolution started. Not where it started. He does not know who Thomas Jefferson was nor what he accomplished. He does know that a Negro man invented the traffic light in Cleveland but he doesn't know who Benjamin Franklin was nor what he accomplished. In other words, his liberal teachers have never taught him anything about American heros. Abraham Lincoln? He ended slavery. That is ALL that Nathan knows about him.

What is wrong with our country? Just look at what the liberals have been doing to our children.

Think before you vote in November.

ORANGE COUNTY ( CALIFORNIA ) NEWSPAPER 
  This is a very good letter to the editor. This woman made some good points. For some reason, people have difficulty structuring their arguments when arguing against supporting the currently proposed immigration revisions. This lady made the argument pretty simple. NOT printed in the Orange County Paper... 

Newspapers simply won't publish letters to the editor which they either deem politically incorrect (read below) or which does not agree with the philosophy they're pushing on the public. This woman wrote a great letter to the editor that should have been published; but, with your help it will get published via cyberspace! 
 
New Immigrants 
  
 From: 'David LaBonte' 
  My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course, was not printed. So, I decided to 'print' it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass it along if you feel so inclined. 
 
Dave LaBonte (signed) 
 
Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register: 
  Dear Editor: 
  So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry. 
  Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented.. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home. 
  They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture. 
 
Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated France, no one in those villages was looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American The people of France, Germany & Ireland saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country' s flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.  And here we are in 2007 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags. 
 
And, as for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet. 

(signed) Rosemary LaBonte 
 
KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING.  FOR THE WRONG THINGS TO PREVAIL THE RIGHTFUL MAJORITY NEEDS TO REMAIN COMPLACENT AND QUIET!!  LET THIS NEVER HAPPEN!! 
  I hope this letter gets read by millions of people all across the nation!!

TIGER WOODS!!!!

 

[Prime Minister John Howard    -    Australia]





 








 







Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of Australia , as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks.







 







Separately, Howard angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques.







 







Quote:  







 







'IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS , MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave It. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians, as we have never seen before.'







 







'This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.'







 







'We speak mainly ENGLISH  .  not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society, then you have no choice but to learn 'our' language!'







 







'Most Australians believe in God. This is not some Christian, right wing, political push, but a fact, because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture.'







 







'We will accept your beliefs, and will not question why. All we ask is that you accept ours, and live in harmony and peaceful enjoyment with us.'







 







'This is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this But once you are finished complaining, whining, and griping about Our Flag, Our Pledge, Our Christian beliefs, or Our Way of Life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great Australian freedom ...







 







       'THE RIGHT TO LEAVE.'







 







'If you aren't happy here then LEAVE. We didn't force you to come here. You asked to be here. So accept the country YOU accepted.'







 







Maybe if we circulate this amongst ourselves, American citizens will find the backbone to start speaking and voicing the same truths.







 

analogy is absolutely right on . . . Maxine tells it like it is!!!!


 

I bought a bird feeder. I hung
it on my back porch and filled
it with seed. What a beauty of
a bird feeder it is, as I filled it
lovingly with seed. Within a
week we had hundreds of birds
taking advantage of the
continuous flow of free and
easily accessible food.
But then the birds started
building nests in the boards
of the patio, above the table,
and next to the barbecue.
Then came the poop. It was
everywhere: on the patio tile,
the chairs, the table ...
everywhere!
Then some of the birds
turned mean. They would
dive bomb me and try to
peck me even though I had
fed them out of my own
pocket.
And others birds were
boisterous and loud. They
sat on the feeder and
squawked and screamed at
all hours of the day and night
and demanded that I fill it
when it got low on food.
After a while, I couldn't even
sit on my own back porch
anymore. So I took down the
bird feeder and in three days
the birds were gone. I cleaned
up their mess and took down
the many nests they had built
all over the patio.
Soon, the back yard was like
it used to be.... quiet, serene
and no one demanding their
rights to a free meal.
Now let's see.
Our government gives out
free food, subsidized housing,
free medical care, and free
education and allows anyone
born here to be an automatic
citizen.
Then the illegals came by the
tens of thousands. Suddenly
our taxes went up to pay for
free services; small apartments
are housing 5 families; you
have to wait 6 hours to be seen
by an emergency room doctor;
your child's 2nd grade class is
behind other schools because
over half the class doesn't speak
English.
Corn Flakes now come in a
bilingual box; I have to
'press one' to hear my bank
talk to me in English, and
people waving flags other
than 'Old Glory' are
squawking and screaming
in the streets, demanding
more rights and free liberties.
Just my opinion, but maybe
it's time for the government
to take down the bird feeder.
If you agree, pass it on; if not,
continue cleaning up the poop!

I've written a number of blogs and most times I've received pretty much the sort of response that I've expected. For one thing, many of the responders have proven over and over again why I know that the Democrats are not what they claim to be. For one thing, Democrats claim to be interested in helping others. I have in the past, posted several ways in which we as Americans, can help others who are in great need. All of which have been completetly rejected by the responding Democrats on this blog site. In most cases, all that I have heard from the Democrats is that they EXPECT TO RECEIVE, NOT GIVE. They demand that they are entitled to receive from the rich without doing anything for it themselves. That seems rather selfish to me.

 The Democrats resort to subterfuge while they are at it. Last night on the racist talk show of Travis Smiley there was a Democrat Senator plugging his book. He was saying that one thing wrong with this country are the amounts that CEO's are paid. Twenty years ago he said, they used to be paid twenty times what the ordinary worker made. Now he says, the CEO's are making four hundred times as much. That does sound pretty bad on the surface of it. But he neglected to say that during those twenty years many hundreds of those former ordinary workers are now millionaire CEO's themselves while the incomes of the workers have also increased over those twenty years. So workers should have gotten pay increases while CEO's should not have? That's a selfish attitude isn't it?

The Democrats are entitled to receive from the rich? Let us take a look at the overall, world wide picture. I have seen hundreds of photographs of former residents of New Orleans. It's a sad sight to see the damage that New Orleans received from  hurricane Katrina. It's also very disheartening to me to see so many of those people sitting on their duffs waiting for someone else to come along and rebuild their houses for them. Especially since millions of dollars have been sent to Lousiana to help them. They don't want no help! They want someone to do it for them. When I hear someone like Travis Smiley talking about how the "brothers" of New Orleans have not been helped, a picture flashes into mind. A picture of millions of people in India who are grateful just to have a 4' X 4' PLACE to keep the cardboard box that they live in. And many don't even have that much. Then a flashbach to someone complaining about the travel trailer that the government provided for them to live in temporarily.

I would imagine the many of those from India would think that they had died and gone to heaven if they had the assets of those from New Orleans.

The Democrat demand their welfare, housing assistance, and food stamps. But they certainlly don't want to give anything to those in need in most of the African countries and else where. They also absolutely refuse to HELP those who are able to make use of just a little help.

I've been there when all that I needed was a little temporary help. A few hundred dollars to help out for the moment. I could pay it back. But. it was denied as I had no assets.

On the other hand I've seen those who did not work at all live quite well from the public trough. Totally non-productive and rewarded for it. They certainlly were not Republicans.

There is no one more selfish than a Democrat.

President Obama and the Coming Stock Market Crash

 
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Indeed, Obama makes no bones about his plans to go on a tax rampage. Not only would he increase the capital-gains tax rate from 15 percent to as much as 28 percent, he wants to allow the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts to expire in 2010, which effectively raises taxes on Americans by tens of billions of dollars.

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This wide-ranging Newsmax report explores:

How Obama's policies could cost more than $850 billion over four years The dire repercussions of Obama's minimum wage proposal for small businesses and retail outlets Obama aides' private and very revealing admission about the candidate's economic savvy The surprising revelation when Barack's own tax returns were reviewed by an expert The "proof" that Obama will kowtow to organized labor Obama's Social Security plan: a giant income-redistribution scheme How Obama's policies could boost some tax rates to 60 percent Leading economist Arthur Laffer's warning on Obamanomics Obama's policies point by point on energy, healthcare, regulation, and the housing crisis Who would lose under Obama's tax proposals — and who would win How Barack "flunked" an easy question on capital gains The Democrat's contradictory statements on tax increases Why Obama's campaign against special interests would backfire Obama's plan to double America's foreign aid How Obama's trade policies would damage U.S. multinationals Obama's embarrassing denial regarding NAFTA The National Taxpayers Union's Obama rating: just 5 percent Obama's misguided views on technology's future How the Democrat would undermine private sector healthcare Obama's tactics — old left-wing populist ploys

Senate debates windfall profits tax on oil
By H. JOSEF HEBERT
Associated Press
June 10, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) -- With gasoline prices topping $4 a gallon, Senate Democrats want the government to grab some of the billions of dollars in profits being taken in by the major oil companies.

Senators were to vote Tuesday on whether to consider a windfall profits tax against the five largest U.S. oil companies and rescind $17 billion in tax breaks the companies expect to enjoy over the next decade.

''The oil companies need to know that there is a limit on how much profit they can take in this economy,'' said Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, the Senate's No. 3 Democrat, warning that if energy prices are not reined in ''we're going to find ourselves in a deep recession.''

But the Democrats are going to have to overcome staunch Republican opposition to any new taxes on the oil industry. The five largest U.S. oil companies earned $36 billion during the first three months of the year.

Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., will need 60 votes Tuesday to proceed with the oil tax legislation in the face of a threatened GOP filibuster. If he doesn't get 60, he likely will pull the bill from the floor.

Only last week, Reid was forced to withdraw a measure aimed at addressing global warming, falling short of the 60 votes needed to advance that legislation.

The Democrats' energy package also would:

-- Make oil and gas price gouging a federal crime, with stiff penalties of up to $5 million during a presidentially declared energy emergency.

-- Authorize the Justice Department to bring charges of price fixing against countries that belong to the OPEC oil cartel.

-- Require traders to put up more collateral in the energy futures markets to curb speculation.

Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has acknowledged that Americans are hurting from the high energy costs but strongly opposes the Democrats' response and has ridiculed those who ''think we can tax our way out of this problem.''

Oil executives, testifying before Congress last month, called the proposed taxes ''punitive'' and warned that they would discourage domestic oil and gas exploration and production, possibly causing prices to rise instead of fall.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents the major oil companies, has been reminding lawmakers that in the early 1980s, when the government imposed windfall profits taxes on oil companies domestic oil production dropped and imports increased.

But Democrats reject the comparison.

The Senate proposal would impose a 25 percent tax on profits over what would be determined ''reasonable'' and would allow oil companies to avoid paying the tax if they invest the money in alternative energy projects or refinery expansion.

The tax breaks that would be rescinded, given by Congress over the past five years, are expected to save the five largest oil companies about $17 billion over the next 10 years. The Democratic proposal would funnel the money into tax incentives for renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, and to promote energy efficiency and conservation.

Most Senate Republicans have a different approach to dealing with the growing energy crisis -- pump more oil and gas.

The GOP energy plan, rejected by the Senate last month, calls for opening a coastal strip of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil development and to allow states to opt out of the national moratorium that has been in effect for a quarter century against oil and gas drilling in more than 80 percent of the country's coastal waters.

''Republicans by and large believe that the solution to this problem, in part, is to increase domestic production,'' said McConnell.

Monday, June 9, 2008 8:30 AM

By: Newsmax Staff Article Font Size  

 

The spending plan approved by the Senate last week fails to extend President Bush’s tax cuts — and could lead to the largest tax increase in U.S. history.

“Make no mistake: This tax hike is gargantuan,” the Investor’s Business Daily states in an editorial.

“Simply by not making Bush’s tax cuts permanent, taxes will rise by a minimum of $2.8 trillion between now and 2018.”

The IBD says that if the tax cuts are allowed to expire in 2010:

 

Spending will rise by half a trillion dollars over the next five years. And the Democrats will pay for it by raising taxes by $683 billion — “the biggest such increase ever.”

 

 

About 48 million married couples — “the heart of the middle class that Democrats say they want to help” — will see an average annual tax increase of $3,007.

 

 

The tax bill for the elderly will rise $2,181 a year on average.

 

 

A single parent with two children earning $30,000 a year will see a tax hike of $1,600.

 

 

A family of four earning $50,000 a year will be hit with a tax increase of 191 percent.

 

 

The 2009 budget for the first time ever spends $1 trillion on discretionary items — non-defense, non-entitlement.

 

“This is a foretaste of future fiscal recklessness under a Barack Obama presidency (he voted for the bill),” the IBD observes.

Noting that the budget would weaken the economy and kill job growth, the IBD concludes: “This is supply-side economics in reverse — creating massive disincentives to work, save and invest, and shrinking the pie.”