tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post8835899613007993560..comments2024-03-18T13:22:06.536-07:00Comments on Calafia Beach Pundit: Optimism is still in very short supplyScott Grannishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14028519647946868684noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-18083899808875807552012-04-02T02:33:59.685-07:002012-04-02T02:33:59.685-07:00The managerial (corporate and public sector) mantr...The managerial (corporate and public sector) mantra seems to be "people are cheap," and if they're not, get rid of them.Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06365403570563730880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-79042427404888977032012-04-01T21:18:38.374-07:002012-04-01T21:18:38.374-07:00I don't disagree with Dr. William; never reall...I don't disagree with Dr. William; never really do.<br /><br />I just hope things change fast enough to prevent that future.<br /><br />Take cover? Hyperbole? I guess take cover means civil unrest when welfare is reduced.<br /><br />The cost of medical care needs to come down. Crony government keeps it high like it does education.Squirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14088030568579672500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-25508666666105687912012-04-01T10:55:56.702-07:002012-04-01T10:55:56.702-07:00"everyone else should take cover."
What..."everyone else should take cover."<br /><br />What or where is the "cover?"<br /><br />Off the grid? Canada? Costa Rica?Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06365403570563730880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-60284717192290212942012-04-01T08:15:41.334-07:002012-04-01T08:15:41.334-07:00@Squire, the consumer in America will require all ...@Squire, the consumer in America will require all of their earnings to maintain their standards of living (clothing, food, housing, utilities, etc) -- so there is no chance that those earning less than $250,000 annually will have a dramatic effect on the economy -- in fact, those with ordinary skills (masters degrees and below) will likely see their earnings further eroded by paycuts, benefit McKibbinUSAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10545798495680527622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-2212442819909201162012-04-01T08:03:09.741-07:002012-04-01T08:03:09.741-07:00"the majority of people get their insurance p..."the majority of people get their insurance paid for by their employers"<br /><br />They get a portion of their insuarance paid for by their employers. Most of us pay a share with pretax dollars. I assume the employer's share is also tax deductable.<br /><br />If the tax deduction for the employee (and or employer) were eliminated, wouldn't that run afoul to Norquist's no Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06365403570563730880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-80348767161672582872012-03-31T20:06:34.493-07:002012-03-31T20:06:34.493-07:00Back to the consumer, who has had flat real dispos...Back to the consumer, who has had flat real disposable personal income for a while.<br /><br />It is an epiphany for those who come to understand that production comes first. They have an insight that demand siders don’t have no matter how obvious it is to them that demand comes first. Of course, demand side econ fits into the bigger savior government ideology. And demand side is simplistic Squirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14088030568579672500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-69631172818395476782012-03-31T20:03:32.486-07:002012-03-31T20:03:32.486-07:00I was being sarcastic when I said consumers should...I was being sarcastic when I said consumers should borrow and spend.<br /><br />I don’t believe it is enough to just change the tax code to allow all or disallow all deductions for health insurance, it is essential though and I hope that can happen In January. The medical providers can charge you based on who you are. No other industry is allowed to do that. My doctor charges a different priceSquirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14088030568579672500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-53130172884931206662012-03-31T11:27:47.501-07:002012-03-31T11:27:47.501-07:00No. Because the majority of people get their insur...No. Because the majority of people get their insurance paid for by their employers, and if they quit or are fired, they lose their coverage. We need portability, and that works best when people buy their own policies from the start.Scott Grannishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14028519647946868684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-35800134372882894252012-03-31T10:03:29.472-07:002012-03-31T10:03:29.472-07:00"allow everyone or no one to deduct health in..."allow everyone or no one to deduct health insurance costs"<br /><br />Don't we have that now in the form of HSAs?Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06365403570563730880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-19417802583626871082012-03-31T09:26:37.874-07:002012-03-31T09:26:37.874-07:00"Job-lock" can be fixed very easily by c..."Job-lock" can be fixed very easily by changing the tax code to allow everyone or no one to deduct health insurance costs. Changing the tax code would be the single most important and most far-reaching of all decisions affecting the health care industry, since it would reintroduce market forces, which can only operate if the person who receives a product or service is the same one who Scott Grannishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14028519647946868684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-44391012495472058422012-03-31T09:21:46.446-07:002012-03-31T09:21:46.446-07:00"This Soviet style of healthcare (single paye..."This Soviet style of healthcare (single payer)will make us sicker and poorer."<br /><br />No, not "Soviet style," more like Canadian style, more like U.S. Medicare style, where doctors and hospitals are in the private sector and there is a single payer with much lower administrative costs.<br /><br />Ever heard of "job-lock? The current employer-based health care system Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06365403570563730880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-52855890153753950772012-03-31T08:35:44.166-07:002012-03-31T08:35:44.166-07:00Re: "we need to get the consumer to stop savi...Re: "we need to get the consumer to stop saving and borrow and spend." No, that's not the solution at all. We can't spend our way to prosperity. Prosperity comes from the supply side: creating new businesses, new products, and new services, making work more productive, and/or working more.Scott Grannishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14028519647946868684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-80993441395074367782012-03-31T07:55:58.434-07:002012-03-31T07:55:58.434-07:00I agree with, Squire!
This index is beyond worthl...I agree with, Squire!<br /><br />This index is beyond worthless; designed for cocktail parties to fuel conservation...Hanshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05183141792723754273noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-60545741387867474832012-03-31T07:28:16.073-07:002012-03-31T07:28:16.073-07:00PS: Errata -- I meant to say when bond interest ra...PS: Errata -- I meant to say when bond interest rates rise, bond prices decline...McKibbinUSAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10545798495680527622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-24208982605010743352012-03-31T07:19:51.835-07:002012-03-31T07:19:51.835-07:00The only people in America who should be optimisti...The only people in America who should be optimistic are accredited investors -- everyone else is likely to see long-term erosion of their wages and savings -- it's that simple -- my advice to Americans is to start building a portfolio of investments and acquire world-class skills early in life -- labor is abundant in the world right now, and those relying upon government pensions, McKibbinUSAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10545798495680527622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-46736671420254144642012-03-31T07:07:54.967-07:002012-03-31T07:07:54.967-07:00Looking at the data I see that real disposable per...Looking at the data I see that real disposable personal income is flat and has been for a while. Still, we need to get the consumer to stop saving and borrow and spend. Maybe the newest PB, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, can have the Federal Reserve Bank guarantee part of consumer loans. This way credit standards can be lowered and get more people to borrow and spend. Wall Street Squirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14088030568579672500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-3385725377660322182012-03-31T07:05:07.929-07:002012-03-31T07:05:07.929-07:00Companies and unions should not be allowed to prov...Companies and unions should not be allowed to provide group insurance. But single payer will bankrupt the country as fast as what we have now. Single payer does nothing about the high costs caused by croney government. Start by eliminating the anti-trust exemption for medical care providers.Squirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14088030568579672500noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-32544817703217652742012-03-31T07:02:38.947-07:002012-03-31T07:02:38.947-07:00"We could take a huge competitive jump forwar..."We could take a huge competitive jump forward by going to a single payer Medicare for all system and separate health care from employment."<br /><br />This Soviet style of healthcare will make us sicker and poorer. <br /><br />You take this system, I'll go where there is freedom and prosperity.<br /><br />Can't you find places to comment on Move On or Huffington?PD Dennisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10012560806774461700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-54843905238586553142012-03-31T06:52:16.482-07:002012-03-31T06:52:16.482-07:00Oil and health care costs are a big drag on the U....Oil and health care costs are a big drag on the U.S. economy. Martin Wolf wrote in the FT this week that oil spikes are likely because supply is tight, demand is strong and the price effects of trouble with Iran.<br /><br />The solution is not to drill more, but to get off of oil. (Why are we not seeing a bigger push to convert vehicles to natural gas?)<br /><br />Ampother big drag is health careJohnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06365403570563730880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-60829854196773687212012-03-30T14:05:59.885-07:002012-03-30T14:05:59.885-07:00Perhaps if Obamacare is shot down, and Romney wins...Perhaps if Obamacare is shot down, and Romney wins, you will see investors confidence pick up. Rallies beget rallies, so maybe we have a secular rally even if Obama stays in. <br /><br />We get no peace dividend as we are spending about one-third more now on defense than we spent (in break dollars) when reagan was staring down the Soviet Union. That is a big drag on the economy, as is closing Benjamin Colehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14001038338873263877noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6616959642391988608.post-15583781995632387972012-03-30T11:08:11.789-07:002012-03-30T11:08:11.789-07:00Consumers spent like crazy in February. They didn...Consumers spent like crazy in February. They didn't buy stocks but they sure did consume. Thus the name for U.S. citizens - consumers.<br /><br />Sentiment is unreliable. How do you interpret it? Maybe people are unhappy because they don't have all the stuff they want. Maybe after consumers get their fill of stuff, they will start putting money into stocks.Squirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14088030568579672500noreply@blogger.com