House of Eratosthenes

The picture certainly isn’t rosy right now, and nobody can really explain why. The media, on the other hand, is certain that there is one recent event that is having no effect whatsoever on this economic slide; and that would be the election of Barack Obama.

OK … why don’t you try to put on an investor hat for a moment here. Let’s say you’re considering getting back in the stock market. You know that some stocks out there are at historic lows, and they’re bound to bounce back … right? So why don’t you just take some money out of your savings or out from under your mattress and plow it back into the market?

Let’s see if we can find any reasons why you might hesitate.

We have a president-elect who …
… has promised to raise capital gains taxes, perhaps even double them. So this guy is just waiting for you to jump into the stock market and make some money so he can seize a huge portion of it. Why jump now? Obama has been asked if he plans to go forward with his capital gains tax increase, but he’s not saying. Just hold off on your investments for a while until he tips his hand. If he goes the tax increase route you might want to consider trying to move your money offshore to grow until he’s out of the picture.

… has promised to sign the so-called “Card Check” bill. Now again, you’re smarter than the average voter, and you realize that this unionization-through-intimidation idea is going to have an adverse affect on American business. As soon as the bill is signed union thugs (organizers) will start their petition drives at thousands of businesses across the nation. Large businesses and small businesses. America’s largest employer, Wal-Mart, will be one of the first targets. You don’t know how far this will spread, but you do know that every business that is unionized will be a poor investment for you. So you wait .. you wait to see what is going to happen with card check.

… has promised to raise income taxes on the largest jobs producing segment of our economy, small businesses. During the campaign you heard him say that he would not raise taxes on 95% of small businesses, but you know that most of the jobs rest with the remaining 5%, and that’s where most of the new jobs would be created. The ignorant voters bought his 95% line, but you’re not that stupid. You saw through his rhetoric. So, again, why jump into the market now? Wait until we see what Obama is going to do with these tax increases on America’s jobs-producing machine.

… has promised more business regulation. Obama is no fan of free enterprise. He loves government. Obama believes America is great because of government. You really think you need to wait before you make your investment moves until you see just what regulatory punishment Obama has in mind for the free market.

So .. think about it. We’ve only scratched the surface here. We could also talk about expanding the family leave act and many other little federal anti-business goodies. Invest now? Why? Doesn’t it make more sense to wait until you get a true measure of our new anti-capitalist president?

As many words as he used, Boortz missed one that’s on my mind a bit lately.

The dialog President-elect Obama really wants to start, it seems, is one He isn’t quite ready to admit He’s willing to start, let alone admit that He is exuberant about starting it.

And that dialog has to do with whether or not the time has come to give up on capitalism.

A casual observer of everday news should be able to tell you that if He is ever backed into a corner about this lawn-dart motion the market is doing, He will just lapse into a litany about FaPoBuAd (failed policies of the Bush administration). (Thanks, small-tee-tim the godless heathen!) A more curious, conscientious and thoughtful follower of our national events will figure out the iPresident-elect Man-God is just about as enthusiastic about capitalism and free enterprise, as He is about the country He is about to start ruling. Which is to say, not very much at all.

He’ll blame the market for the problems He and His kind have caused.

(“His kind.” Can I say that? Only one way to find out, I s’pose…)

We’ve already seen it with the subprime mess. He’s a community organizer; He brags about being a community organizer; community organizers browbeat banks into making bad loans; bad loan paper caused the subprime sinkhole. And now that the whole scenario has played out He wants to blame it on free entrprise running around all half-cocked, like a little kid with a children’s menu failing to keep his crayon inside the lines or something.

So with a friendly congress, we’re bound to see some more regulation…of the very kind that made the problem in the first place.

As Neal points out, investors aren’t like ordinary voters. They tend to understand cause and effect. They have to; you must believe in cause-and-effect in order to be an investor, otherwise, to you it’s nothing more than a gamble. I suppose there may be an investor here & there who sees it that way. But that isn’t descriptive of the ones who make the real money. They need to see some concrete reasons why their dollars are likely to come back, with some extra, before they send those dollars anywhere.

So for the time being, it just isn’t happening.

Oh well. Blame Bush. It’s always been an easy thing for the flaccid mind.

Best Sentence XLIX, hands down:

“Oh well, blame Bush; it’s always been an easy thing for the flaccid mind.”

FIFY.
- rob | 11/22/2008 @ 04:41
I not only concur, I blogged it.

Might have to run up a bumperstrip.
- vanderleun | 11/22/2008 @ 13:27

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Best Sentence XLIXFriday, November 21st, 2008

Best Sentence XLIX
Friday, November 21st, 2008