Iceberg Ahead, Ramming Speed!

Barack Obama worked on the presumption that America had struck the tipping point where there were more takers than makers, more people enjoying the largess of government than contributing to sustaining government.  It turns out that he was right.  Though it will be many years, perhaps decades, there is only one end point on this path: financial collapse.  Eventually, there will not be enough producers to supply the ever more voracious consumers.

What does this say about us?  Apparently, most of us don't want to be responsible for ourselves.  We want the government to handle those annoying issues like planning for our retirement (Social Security), arranging for our medical care (Medicare, Medicaid, Obamacare), or providing for our education (Pell Grants, Dept. of Education).  You see, most of us are now incapable of doing such complicated things and are only too happy to let the government do it for us.  We are children, doomed never to grow up; we are a nation of Peter Pans.

Of course, this won't work.  We see the result of this path playing out even now in Europe and yet we blindly follow the same trail with hope in our hearts and emptiness in our heads.  The markets know where we are headed; the Dow fell 313 points, demonstrating great faith in the future.  Reality will catch us but Obama will no longer be president by then so why should he care?

Some predictions:

1. We will go over the financial cliff.  Obama has long wanted tax increases (he campaigned on them) and a recalcitrant Republican House gives him the perfect opportunity to raise taxes and blame it on the Republicans.  Blaming the Republicans is a favorite game of his.

2. The economy will continue to stagnate.  The lapse of the Bush tax cuts and the introduction of Obamacare taxes and mandates will be a drag on job creation.  The 4th quarter of 2012 might prove better than expected as investors and businesses attempt to realize profits before taxmageddon strikes.  This will make for a very weak 1st quarter of 2013.

Some positive thoughts:

1. Americans have shown, yet again, that we aren't racist.  If anyone wants to continue this race card nonsense, what does that say about the people who voted against Mia Love (black Republican in Utah) and Alan West (black Republican in Florida)?  Are those voters racist?  No.  It is all about party-affiliation, not skin color.  Retire the race card.  Obama could still be a great president if he would abolish the race card in America.  He won't because it benefits his party to use it.

2. Obama has now inherited the Obama economy.  No more blaming Bush.  Honestly, what kind of CEO would still be blaming his predecessor for poor performance four years after he took over?  If Romney had won, he would have inherited the Obama economy, not the Bush economy.  Obama has to take ownership at this point.  Doesn't he?