kids, adult kids today, don't want dirty hands, hence...

This article reminds me a remark my bff's son implied: 'went to college so as not to dirty hands working in the shop'. Smart kid with leftist views.
Mind you, 'shop' is a machinist factory started from scratch by his enterprising late grandfather, presently run by his uncle as well as his father. His late grandfather and recently deceased grandmother, I greatly admire as Great Americans - entrepreneurs, generous and accepting of people of all race and creed. May both rest in peace and in the bosom of the Lord's kingdom!

What will Socialist democrats say to...

Sarah Palin's post on Facebook today...

If you want real job growth, cut taxes – including capital gains taxes and small business payroll taxes – and slay the death tax once and for all. If you want to stimulate the economy and help poor and middle class families, cut payroll taxes so that more Americans can keep and invest more of what they earn...
If you want lasting economic expansion and prosperity, get the federal government’s budget under control. Instead of more pork-laden stimulus plans, let the free market correct itself...

Ugly indeed!

This unemployment number is PI like...

The unemployment rate in the U.S. soared to a 26-year high of 10.2 percent in October and employers cut more jobs than forecast, underscoring why Federal Reserve policy makers say interest rates will remain near zero...
“The rise in the unemployment rate is very ugly,” Ethan Harris, chief U.S. economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television in New York. “This is a big backward step to get this high of an unemployment number this early in the recovery.”

Nurses, RN's in particular, in the past, are immune to unemployment. Not this time. My RN sister-n-law lost her job early this year and has not found a comparable one. Now, she's comfortable on unemployment pay and stop aggressively looking for a job. Ugly insidious head of welfare on the soul and body...
Lord God, have mercy on us.

Fr. Gheddo wrote...

Fr. Piero Gheddo, director of Mondo e Missione and of Italia Missionaria, and is the founder of AsiaNew.

The radical causes of poverty are not colonization, or the multi-nationals or the egoism of rich countries...

The root of the problem is that first one must produce if one is to consume: One consumes if one produces, and in poor countries not enough is produced to maintain the rate of growth of the population...

ht: headlinebistro.com, zenit.org

Subsidiarity means...

What the Church teaches about (big) government by Valerie Schmalz
Our Sunday Visitor...

"Subsidiarity is that principle by which we respect the inherent dignity and freedom of the individual by never doing for others what they can do for themselves and thus enabling individuals to have the most possible discretion in the affairs of their lives," wrote Archbishop Naumann and Bishop Finn in their pastoral letter.

ht: headlinebistro.com

Where's the money coming from?

Obama Pledges Massive Public Works Program, New York Times, by Peter Baker
from lucianne.com

Where is the money coming from to fund these 'massive public works program'?
The government can print the paper that money represents. Government does not create the money, just the currency paper on which it is printed.
Adam Smith and Milton Friedman rise up from your grave.
We are screwed...

Pope Benedict & capitalism, Adam Smith style

from IBDeditorials.com...

Amidst all the panic-induced foolishness, it's worth considering that Benedict XVI is the second pro-capitalist Pope in a row. Like the free market's greatest defenders, however, he simply recognizes that it — like most of man's worthwhile endeavors — fails without a religiously-rooted ethical foundation.

Neal Boortz explains...

Townhall.com, Neal Boortz explains domino mess credit woes of investment banks in sub-prime mortgage...

Political correctness won the day. Washington made it clear to banks and other lending institutions that if they did not do something .. and fast .. to bring more minorities and low-income Americans into the world of home ownership there would be a heavy price to pay. Congress set up processes (Research the Community Redevelopment Act) whereby community activist groups and organizers could effectively stop a bank’s efforts to grow if that bank didn’t make loans to unqualified borrowers. Enter, stage left, the “subprime” mortgage. These lenders knew that a very high percentage of these loans would turn to garbage – but it was a price that had to be paid if the bank was to expand and grow. We should note that among the community groups browbeating banks into making these bad loans was an outfit called ACORN. There is one certain presidential candidate that did a lot of community organizing for ACORN. I won’t mention his name so as to avoid politicizing this column.
These garbage loans to unqualified borrowers were then bundled up and sold. The expectation was that the loans would be eventually paid off when rising home values led some borrowers to access their equity through re-financing and others to sell and move on up the ladder. Oops.

Fear lead to Panic

a friend has a money market account with a major bank that is over the limit of FDIC guaranteed coverage and wanted to withdraw the excess amount asap on Wednesday. This Wall Street Journal article mirrors her fears..

Huddled in his office Wednesday with top advisers, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson watched his financial-data terminal with alarm as one market after another began go haywire. Investors were fleeing money-market mutual funds, long considered ultra-safe. The market froze for the short-term loans that banks rely on to fund their day-to-day business. Without such mechanisms, the economy would grind to a halt. Companies would be unable to fund their daily operations. Soon, consumers would panic.

Bank money market funds are covered by FDIC and joint accounts are covered as 2 accounts.

If a couple has a joint checking account and a joint savings account at the same insured bank, each co-owner's shares of the two accounts are added together and insured up to $100,000, providing up to $200,000 in coverage for the couple's joint accounts.

Capitalism & Freedom, filipino style

Capitalism will prosper in a democratic climate but democracy is not necessary as shown by communist China and socialist India.
Capitalism is an economic system.
Democracy is a political system.
Capitalism will improve people’s economic lives.
Freedom in a democratic society enhances capitalism.
Capitalism need a free market to sell, to buy, to trade.
Economic freedom must increase 50% in the Philippines by:
Sunset government laws, rules & regulations that controls and hinders individual endeavor!
Repealing laws and regulations that discourage risk taking!
Raise children independent, self reliant and individually responsible for their actions!

Socialistic Philippines!

Why present day Philippines tend socialistic even with American influence of freedom, self-reliance and limited government.

Present day Filipinos are influence by Roosevelt's New Deal. Much like today's US Democratic party who believe in government big role in our individual lives - social security benefits, medicare, medicaid.

But a limited US army research in 1980's shed a little light ...

It required 2 major changes to the post-war status quo for the Philippine govt to defeat the Huks. 1st, US had to recognize the severity of the insurgency and provide appropriate amounts of advice and military and economic assistance to help counter it. Luckily, this American advice was sound and well received by an enlightened Filipino leader; Magsaysay. 2nd; a government victory required an administration in Manila that was more concerned with improving the quality of life for its citizens than with self-enrichment. Ramon Magsaysay provided the latter when he accepted the position of Secretary of National Defense and later won the office of President.
What attributes made this former Zambales resident and son of a village school teacher so successful in winning his fellow Filipinos' loyalty? Certainly his well-known honesty helped him achieve his position in the Congress. But it was his deep and sincere concern for his fellows that brought him to national attention and paved the way for his becoming the Secretary of National Defense. He was a man dedicated to duty and blessed with a personality that blended persistance and charisma with an ability to listen to those around him. Perhaps his greatest attribute, an attribute certainly reinforced by his own war-time experience as a guerrilla leader, was his ability to see the Huk guerrilla movement as symptomatic of greater diseases that were threatening his country -- poverty, rising social expectations, and an uncaring and corrupt central government.
These were the targets that Magsaysay set his sights on. He combined military operations with civic-action projects to form his grand strategy, a strategy that, if successful, would improve Philippine living conditions and remove the base of guerrilla strength - popular support. He demanded that each soldier, regardless of rank, be dedicated first to the people, then, to killing the guerrillas. He changed the basic tactics used by the Philippine military and fostered unconventional operations, while concurrently developing a more professional and competent armed forces. The military and the government had first to win the respect of the people before their anti-Huk campaign could ever produce tangible results. Military abuses ceased and soldiers or policemen implicated in abusing civilians were dealt with swiftly and harshly. Without the people's support, whatever gains the military made would vanish as soon as the last trooper returned to his garrison. Without the people's support, Huks would be unable to move freely or sustain themselves in the field.
With American assistance and the fortune of having Edward Lansdale's advice, counsel, and friendship, Magsaysay's strategy proved a resounding success. EDCOR provided land for reformed guerrillas. Other tracts of government land were sold to the people, schools were established, transportation and communication networks were repaired and improved and, for the first time, the armed forces worked side by side with the people to secure their mutual future.
As an epilogue to his remarkable life, Ramon Magsaysay was honored with a commemorative stamp issued by the United States shortly after his death in 1957. At the ceremony accompanying the stamp's issue, President Eisenhower eulogized this progressive leader and his contribution to Philippine democracy.
If we are ready to do our full part in combating communism, we must as a unit stand not only ready, as Magsaysay did, to bare his chest to the bayonet, if it comes to that, but to work day by day for the betterment - the spiritual, moral, intellectual, and material betterment -- of the people who live under freedom, so that not only may they venerate it but they can support it. This Magsaysay did, and in this I believe is his true greatness, the kind of greatness that will be remembered long after any words we can speak here will have been forgotten.
United States Support
Without American economic and military assistance to the Philippine governments after 1950, the Huks might well have succeeded in their rebellion. But, before we applaud the U.S. effort too quickly, perhaps we should consider that U.S. neglect and short sighted helped put the government in jeopardy. Before 1950, U.S. policy makers concentrated their attentions on Europe, were tired of war in the Pacific, and seemed blind to the many problems that tore at the islands. The land-tenure question had been present since the days the nation became an American protectorate and very little had been done to ease its burden on the Filipino farmer. Although land-tenure was a major factor in the years preceding WWII, after the war, U.S. policy ignored it and was intent on divestiture of responsibility for the islands. Economic aid was made available to the government after the war but the programs were poorly managed and did little other than increase the size of many Filipino elite's bank balances. Other programs, such as the various economic trade acts and the issue of collaboration served only to widen the gap between the people and their government. American foreign policy makers simply did not understand Filipino concerns and aspirations and therefore chose to ignore them. Many incisive and worthwhile reports on conditions in the Philippines (such as Bell Mission) went unheeded until the government in Manila nearly fell in 1950.
Luckily, once the American government realized how close to collapse the Quirino administration was in 1950, Washington reacted. JUSMAG reports, long ignored or given only summary attention, suddenly gained new respect and concern. The JUSMAG was expanded, aid began to flow in, and opinions expressed by some of the JUSMAG's exceptional advisors began to receive attention. Thanks in great measure to the Korean War that was attracting the lion's share of attention in Washington, advisors found themselves with great latitude and were able to develop comprehensive assistance programs that worked hand-in-hand with Magsaysay's objectives for integrating the armed forces with social reforms. Although the Philippines received large amounts of military aid and equipment from the United States during this period, most of it came from surplus WWII stocks. The equipment was simple to use and maintain, and allowed the AFP to adapt quickly to it and keep it operational. One should remember that the vast preponderance of newer equipment was committed elsewhere, Europe and Korea. Another result of the Korean War was that no U.S. troops were readily available for deployment to the Philippines and, with very few exceptions, American advisors were prohibited from taking the field with their Filipino counterparts until the latter stages of the insurgency. This was perhaps one of our greatest contributions to the Philippines during this period. Without foreign troops to assist them, the Philippine military was forced to develop on its own, under its own leaders, and fight to protect its own land and people. Once the Army became convinced that they were fighting to protect their countrymen, and not as an occupation force trying to subdue an unruly foreign
population, they began to receive the people's support. As already described, the alliance of the military with the villagers, and in turn the villagers reliance on the government, spelled the end for the Huk movement.
JUSMAG advisors did all they could to foster a sense of Filipino self-reliance. Whenever possible, they assumed back-row seats for themselves so that govt officials could look good and receive the credit for successful operations. Even when programs succeeded as direct results of American efforts, the advisors played down their own role and let a Filipino become the moment's hero. This built pride and self-esteem in both the officials involved and, more importantly, in the Filipino people. They saw themselves succeeding where others had failed and they tried to continue the pattern. When advice was given, it was given directly to the Filipino leader who needed it, as low in the organization as possible, and given by an advisor who the recipient knew and trusted. And how did they develop this trust? General Lansdale put it quite simply - treat them as equals, treat them fairly and honestly, never lie to them, and prove your intentions by displaying courage and willingly accepting the same hardships and inconveniences that they do. In essence then, you must demonstrate that you consider them as good as yourself and that you trust and respect them as much as you want them to trust and respect you.
By following these guides US helped the Philippine government solve its internal insurgency. The American government provided most of the material with which the Philippine military fought, provided the money that paid them, and provided advice when it was needed. But, it was Filipinos who fought the battles and defeated the guerrillas under the leadership of an unusual man endowed with the insight to see the larger problem that fostered the resistance, and a leader who aggressively sought to remove the causes for internal unrest in the future.

Except for soldiers pension program in early 1776, there was no social security assistance for anybody in United States until President Roosevelt’s great society expenditure in 1935.
Roosevelt's New Deal has been debunk by many economist including economist at Mises Institute.

Philippine was granted independence in 1946 by US legislators.
The first Filipino president after the independence was Manuel Roxas. Last president before dictatorship was Diosdado Macapagal, the father of today's president. Father and daughter have economic background, academically but not in capitalistic practice.

Capitalism in the Philippines for years is a dirty word.

Spanish influence is socialistic.

In the beginning, US influence was benignly competitive, literate capitalism.

Filipinos know in their heart, the American way is better for themselves. Educate oneself to help yourself, then help others. Many Filipinos, my parents included, went to school taught by Americans or fluent English speaking Filipinos taught by Americans, in provincial capital schools, then went back and taught in their towns and barrios.

Something went haywire as the years go by. Filipinos are independent, self reliant, literate but never became entrepreneurs in business sense.

I have not talk to or met a literate Filipino who have read or heard of Adam Smith, my University of Visayas educated cpa/auditor hubby included.