U.S.
public debt is nearing 20 trillion dollars while U.S. gross domestic
product is somewhat more than 18 trillion dollars. The public debt is
apparently increasing faster than U.S. economic growth-and most of
that is going to the most rich. Because the Clintons and Obamas did
not address the structural issues for the benefit of the poor and
middle class first, and as the discretionary part of the federal
budget comprises just 7%, I wonder how the economic picture of the
nation can be reformed.
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
Actually
I think that real economic reform that actually benefits the poor and
middle class isn’t likely. Human greed and original sin saturate
government, the media and Wall Street to the point that even the
environment suffers so champagne and fine booze drinking elites can
have cashmere shag carpets or whatever and cars that pollute the
atmosphere with tons of carbon emissions each year.
Actually
socialism, communism and corporatism end up with the same
oligarchy-like monopolistic bureaucracies running the world because
of the nature of human social organization. Free enterprise actual
dies within advanced bureaucratic-wall Street stock owning wealth
concentration though good product continues to be produced for some
time. Individualism and free enterprise as well as real democracy are
actually the endangered political forms now.
Government
with the consent of intelligent masses could actually make vast
practical reforms toward sustainable ecological economic
infrastructure limiting the percent of capital anyone may have in
order to keep democracy rather than plutonomy ruling. With guaranteed
minimum income and pragmatic social support services it would be
possible for inventions and clever, efficient free enterprises to be
developed theoretically first and those meeting environmental low
impact and synergy goals best allowed to go ahead. That is
desperation for jobs wouldn’t be the only political moderator on
the electorate. Capitalism itself selects naturally for more capital
rather than for a better environment or equitable distribution of
wealth to all people equally within basic criteria even while
allowing people to profit and save from their labor and inventions
above the baseline.
Plainly
the United States and most world political systems today are
maladaptive to the present environmental and demographic facts of
life. Political theory tends to be at least a century behind along
with governing environmental theory. The natural default to
thoughtless minions supporting concentrated wealth and saluting the
dollar sign fuhrers that are money rather than reason will continue
even being reinforced by waves of senseless commercial brainwashing.
A financial philosopher today developing political epistemology might
write “I think, therefor I am broke”.
It
will be amazing to see what President-elect Trump can do with a
fundamentally crummy national economic outlook that has found it to
easy to develop overseas, exploit cheap foreign labor, run up public
debt and avoid any sort of national leadership responsibility since
the end of the cold war. Capitalism itself is in need of reform as
well as the nation’s infrastructure. Infrastructure could be
transformed into a new ecological economic form rather than wasting
resources in old style, existing establishment, yet of course the
establishment resists that.
President
elect Trump should prioritize green transportation with electric
cars, buses and rail drawing power from green sources. African
development should be influenced toward green electro-magnetic power
too, rather than fossil fuel cars-and that means new mass
transportation.
Wherever
possible developed land should be returned to a natural condition
replacing existing buildings with smaller, cheaper better monolithic
domes occupying less space. Border security could have a
trans-continental salt-water canals and solar
evaporation-condensation for desalinization infrastructure to make
water for the parched Southwest. Many things are possible. A return
to making patents affordable would help. Inventors should be given
exclusive patents for just 7 years and after that a small royalty
percent from anyone using the patent for production (for 50 years)
before its public domain. Its rather difficult materially to
manufacture things in the U.S.A. after getting an idea that is
patentable making it doubly difficult for poor yet intelligent and
inventive people to cash in on thought-as it is presently-ideas have
to be given away to trickle up to the rich or well-placed, so why be
inventive at all?