An open letter to the editor of The Student Life,
I was dismayed to read a very misinformed article titled, "With Stimulus, Republicans Still Need To Learn That Beggars Can't Be Choosers" by Nick Hubbard that was flat out wrong on the facts and that rests upon faulty assumptions.
His first assumption turns out to be the least well-founded: that Republican governors are hurting their states by refusing to change their state laws in order to receive money from the pork-heavy "stimulus" package. Hubbard is wrong to single out Republican governors, Sarah Palin of Alaska, Mark Sanford of South Carolina, Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, and Haley Barbour of Mississippi. (Curiously he left out Governor Perry of Texas.) He should add two Democrats to the list. Governors Lynch of New Hampshire and Breseden of Tennessee will refuse parts of the stimulus because they consider it fiscally irresponsible to use money to expand or create programs for which the revenues will be lacking.
The examples of these two Democrats cuts against much of Hubbard's argument that Republicans are putting their principals above people. On the contrary, by favoring tax cuts over Trojan horse spending programs, Republican and Democrat governors that oppose the stimulus are faithfully executing their oath of office. Other states would do well to follow suit. A January 27 press release from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that only one state in the entire country recorded an increase in employment in December: Louisiana. Two states with extremely high tax rates -- Florida and California -- lost the second and first highest number of jobs in the nation. As of November 2008, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the highest unemployment rates in the country are Michigan, Rhode Island and California, three of the most taxed states in the Union.
Seen through taxes, Hubbard's final statement that "Republicans need to avoid making decisions out of frustration that would prolong the recession and make beggars out of us all" is just plain wrong. It was Democrats that said all of capitalism would be in trouble if the so-called Stimulus bill was passed. George Soros, a big Democrat financier, suggested that it would be a catastrophe worse than the Great Depression. Obama, though, felt it necessary to go on a vacation before the bill was passed. Whenever a party shuts out the other of the debate or discussions, it imperils our democracy and must be resisted. Republicans are doing their country a service by pointing to all these things that Democrats want us to ignore. The American people are tired of being scared silly by their government.
Hubbard claims that Governor Palin "probably breathes a quiet sigh of relief every time the state budget balances thanks to the $12,200 that Uncle Sam spends per Alaska." In fact, the figures Mr. Hubbard cites are from 2004. The correct figure is $506.34 per capita, which is still the highest in the nation, but not nearly as high as Hubbard would have you believe. Given that much of money claimed to be spent on behalf of Alaska goes into the pockets of Indian tribes as a welfare payment, (thank you Ted Stevens!) I'm sure Governor Palin would be happy to get rid of that federal entitlement as it would boost productivity in her state. Mr. Obama, for his part, would like to increase those types of federal entitlements to all sections of our country. To their credit, the Republican members of the House of Representatives, even with all the money promised to get them to compromise their principles, refused.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
The Student Life's Mistaken Op-Ed on Republicans
More Evidence for Why the 5Cs Shouldn't Divest from "Killer Coke"
Last April I defended so-called "Killer Coke" from a Pomona College movement that was calling for it to be censored by the college for its alleged human rights violations.
It looks like Pomona College probably ought to have purchased more shares of Coke. Here's why. [Emphasis, as always, is mine.]
With the crumbling economy forcing companies to cut dividends, Coca-Cola last week announced a 7.9% boost to its quarterly payout, the 47th consecutive annual increase.
Before Coke's hike in its dividend to 41 cents a share, the globally diversified firm said fourth-quarter revenue fell slightly because the dollar rebounded. Still, earnings per share rose 10% to 64 cents from a year earlier. Analysts forecast earnings to climb 24.5% to $3.10 a share this year and gain an additional 9% to $3.38 a share in 2010.Investors are more favorable to Coke than they have been. The company's stock has fallen only 5.5% this year, making it the Dow's second-best performer. In the past year, the shares have declined 25.1%, earning a ranking of No. 10.
Bill Gates and Warren Buffett get it. Why doesn't Pomona?
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