Please hold my spot. I will be right back

Please hold my spot, I will be right back

Growth And Tax Cuts


Wall Street celebrated Friday when it learned the nation's gross domestic product - a measure of economic activity - posted slower growth. The slowdown means the Feds will be less likely to raise interest rates again, a benefit to businesses.

But the slowing economy tells us more than that. 

Second-quarter growth fell to 2.5% from 5.6% in the first quarter. The substantial drop came amid a continued rise in prices, which complicates the Fed's decision. Among the Federal Reserve Board's major goals is to contain inflation.

The New York Times reported Saturday that a sharp slowdown in the housing market helped curtail the quarterly GDP number. The roaring housing market of the past several years, and the paper wealth it has brought Americans, has been fuel for the modest economic recovery seen during the mid years of the Bush presidency.

Bush argues his tax cuts for the wealthy have been the other accelerant in the US economy. Whenever a good economic report comes out, Bush extols the cuts as the reason for the good news. 

Shouldn't we then be skeptical of the power of the cuts when we see a report like the one on Friday? What's your opinion? Does cutting taxes for the wealthy lead to faster economic growth?

Please hold my space, I will be right back

Is Israel Right Or Has It Gone Too Far?

Your call. Ten days of bombing continues. Israeli armor amasses on the Lebanon border. Hundreds have died, tens of thousands flee their homes.

Is Israel's assault on Lebanon and the terrorist group Hezbollah a justified response to the capture of two of its soldiers? Or has the 58-year-old Jewish state, already occupying Palestinian land, gone too far in its assault of a recently democratic, sovereign country?

Israel's enemies are determined to crush it. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah vowed this week that his organization absorbed the strike and has "more surprises to come." Hezbollah has been shooting missiles into Israel's cities with random results, killing even Muslims.

But the cycle of violence goes on with no end in site and civilians suffer an increasing share of the misery. In the U.S., neocons show little concern for the loss of innocent life. Bush has yet to call for a cease fire, and Richard Perle, an architect of the Iraq War, suggests extending the fighting to Syria.

In Baghdad, the result of militarism is hardly appealing. Gen. John Abizaid announced Friday that mounting sectarian violence in the city requires bringing more American troops to the capital. Despite our efforts, killing begets killing.

What is your view?
 

Please hold me place, I will be right back.

Bright Words For Dim Times


The debate we are having about the merits of holding prisoners of war indefinitely without trials, legal consultations or Geneva Conventions protections should cut to the core of our beings - even if it hasn't.

We are free people. Should we extend our freedoms to others even if we don't agree with their beliefs or methods? Should we worry about detaining people without proof of a crime?

I ran across some smart words this week that merit repeating. They come from Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham.

"What I am trying to do with my time in the Senate during this whole debate we're having is to remind the Senate that the rules we set up speak more about us than they do the enemy. The enemy has no rules. they don't give people trials, they summarily execute them and they're brutal, inhuman creatures. But when we capture one of them, what we do is about us, not about them.

"Do they deserve, the bad ones, all the rights that are afforded? No. But are we required to do it because of what we believe? Yes."

 

Please Hold My Space, I'll Be Right Back

Is a National ID A Good Idea In The Age Of Terrorism?


The dispute over a voter ID card in Georgia offers an opportunity to examine the pros and cons of a national, government-issued ID.

The 9/11 disaster made this once unthinkable a discussion worth having. In the same way we have a duty to guard our borders and regulate who comes and goes, we have the right to know who is on our streets and in our cities.

But we also have an obligation - and a responsibility - not to create a society in which big brother looks over every shoulder.

In Georgia, supporters of the voter ID bill, including Rep. Gov Sonny Perdue claim the law would bring new honesty to the voting booth. No more dead people would cast ballots, he said, without offering details to show whether this is a big problem in this deep south state.

On the other hand, a statewide ID places greater burdens on the elderly, the poor and minorities, who don't have easy access to government services - or the time off from work to apply for cards.

There is no simple way to balance security and freedom.  But with unchecked wiretapping and bank account probing a tool of the Bush Administration, it is a discussion we should be having.