Voice of the People - January 16, 2009
Big bailout is bad idea
I ask why would John Spratt, chairman of the House Budget Committee, vote for the bailouts? He knows government should stay out of private business. The bailout has broken the government.
The autoworkers union president said no to cuts. Bush gave them a Bandaid anyway. They got bailed out, a bunch of losers. We pay.
Who jacks up oil prices? The only way to help the economy is keep down imports and keep gas around $1.49 a gallon, otherwise greed takes over.
Why not make a car with bumpers of steel instead of rubber or plastic. I would like to see Spratt answer.
Charlie E. Fox
Rock Hill
Bush inherited this fiscal mess
I am responding to Terry Plumb's recent column, "How in the name of God" that trashes Bush's presidency. Plumb should thank God that Bush has kept us all safe from further terrorist attacks since 9-11. Plumb says that he expects an apology from Bush as he leaves office and wrongly blames Bush for a myriad of problems to include the Iraq war, the economic collapse, rising unemployment and folks losing their retirement money. Let's examine the facts on each issue.
Regarding the Iraq war, the whole world, including president Clinton, believed that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. Further, the U.N. authorized the use of force against Saddam to remove this threat.
Bush had little to do with the economic meltdown which has resulted in rising job losses, bank failures, falling home prices and stock markets. The real reason for this catastrophe was the policies pursued by liberal Democrats in Congress led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Have you forgotten that Bush inherited from Clinton the second-worst stock market collapse in history and that through tax cuts for all of us who pay taxes caused the Dow to hit all-time highs as recently as the fall of 2007?
The two major liberal Democratic policies that ultimately led to the current mess are:
1. The Community Reinvestment Act (a really clever vote-buying scheme) which began under our worst president, Jimmy Carter, in the '70s and expanded exponentially under Clinton. The act forced banks to lend money to unqualified homebuyers or face stiff fines.
2. Repeatedly blocking drilling for oil domestically, which resulted in gas prices near $5 per gallon. This was ultimately the straw that broke the camels back!
Oil industry experts have said that we have at least three times as much oil in Colorado, Wyoming and Utah as the amount of oil in Saudi Arabia, not to mention what we have off both coasts or in Alaska. Yet whining liberals keep us from developing it! --
As for the apology Plumb awaits from Bush, he should apologize to his readers for misleading them about Bush's presidency and start telling the truth about the Democrats' destructive agenda!
Dave Plexico
Rock Hill
Sanford tax plan is confusing
Mojo and I were confused. In the paper we read about Gov. Sanford's State of the State speech. It was reported that Sanford urged lawmakers to reject proposed federal money for roads, bridges, construction and health care. The next paragraph reported that in order to attract business to South Carolina, he wants to eliminate corporate income taxes.
My undergraduate work was in industrial management at Georgia Tech. Many of my classmates are in the corporate world and make decisions about where they will go to set up shop. I did an informal survey. Lo and behold, their decisions are often based on things like, roads, bridges, health care, education, local tax incentives, etc. They are happy to do their part by paying corporate income taxes.
Mojo is a graduate of the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm. Its most famous alum is of course Snoopy. He did his own survey and reported back that the governor's world view is a dog that just won't hunt.
Jim Watkins and Mojo
Rock Hill
This story was originally published January 16, 2009 at 12:52 AM with the headline "Voice of the People - January 16, 2009."