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ROWLETT RAMBLINGS

Dusting off the keys

3/4/2020

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It's been a while since I've written.  It's a long story, but part of the story is that I've been distracted by national politics.  I was trying to stay out of national politics,  but it's damned near impossible.  I guess I've got a hankerin' to write something.

First, I'd like to make two confessions.  You probably already know about both.  I am a conservative in politics and economics.   I'm not way out far right with ammo belts around my chest, or building a shack "off the grid."  But, I think there is much an individual should have the right to do for him/herself without government interference.  I hold governments responsible for the money they collect and how they spend it. 

Second, I don't personally like Donald Trump too much, even tho I will vote for him.  I think he is self centered and has an overpowering sense of himself.  I don't much care for that.  But that's not why I support him and will vote for him.  I like what he's done for our country.  In spite of recent Dow Jones hiccups, our economy is very good.  Employment is good, and unemployment is low.  Other countries seemed to have awaken and took notice of the USA again.  This includes some adversarial countries.  It seems to me that China would like to make efforts to enhance their own economy by trade with the USA.  Worldwide, this would be an enormous event.   This is still a work in progress, but certainly Trump forced a hand, and started conversations.  It had not been done to such a degree before.  It's a much grander scale than Ford and GM merging.

Of course, the current Coronovirus problem can change a number of courses of action.  I'm confident we'll beat it.  I don't intend to back pack into the woods.

Trump has aided Veterans, elderly, reduced bureaucracy and red tape, lowered taxes, etc.  Essentially, he did what he promised he would.  I like that.  The above is why I support Trump......not because of his personality. 

All the above sets the stage for the following comments.  I have nothing personally against Bernie.  He seems to be a gruff, outspoken old grandpa.  I admire his spirit and gumption.  However, I absolutely hate his politics.   Bernie is a Socialist and a Communist.  He only admits to Socialism.......but he's both.  He always has been. 

Bernie is under the mistaken belief that he can pay for all his give away programs by taxation.  If one graphs taxation on a chart, as taxes line moves up, the revenue lines move down.  Where they cross, true chaos begins.  

As those companies that earn over $50 million a year begins to be taxed 90%, they owe it to their stockholders to make efforts to maximize remaining revenue.......particularly net revenue.  This would include moving manufacturing back to overseas production.  China and India would love it.  It would also pave the way for additional layoffs in this country.  Why work so hard to produce revenue of which the government is going to take 90%?  It's not worth it.    As far as paying off all college debt, what about the ones that worked their way thru school to avoid debt or had help from parents?  How do they get paid off? 

All the above are just very basic and elementary questions of economics that Bernie is avoiding.  There is no sophistication in those observations.  I understand that governments need to do some things:  standing military, interstate highways, ports and harbors, and all other things that individuals can't do.  However, I think I can work out for myself what bathrooms I can use without any government edict.

Now I'm up to the point where I really wanted to be......our colleges and universities.  I am of the hopes Trump can help on this issue.

Nearly, or certainly most, of Bernie's supporters are young.  Most are college trained.  They are brainwashed.  I am furious at our colleges and universities.  I went to an excellent university, Indiana University.  I was in the business school, but when in classes outside the business school, say English or Social Studies, you didn't know what kind of influences you would be subjected to.  I remember a paper we had to write for English Composition.  It was a paper discussing a Vocational Education vs. a Liberal Education.  My position was both were equally important, but used in different applications.   For example, a
degree in Education as a school teacher wasn't much needed to lay a sewer line down the street.  Someone majoring in Plumbing would be much preferred, and probably made more money.

Well, I quickly learned that that viewpoint was not going to get me a good grade.  My paper finally concluded that it was better to get a liberal education rather than a vocational education.  I got a B.  It paid to be a liberal......for a while.

Folks, that incident happened a very long time ago, but the march to liberalism in our colleges and universities had already begun.  Now, if you're a conservative student on many campuses, you are at risk of harm.  Unfortunately, the universities seems to have sided with the militant liberal students.  I watch the news, too.

Furthermore, where do you think the student debt came from?  When I was in school, school loans were like car loans.  They had to be collateralized.  Nowadays, student loans are secured by federal guarantees.  Therefore, loans were readily available, and even sought after by banks.  The colleges and universities, by definition, were not stupid.  When money became easily available, tuition costs elevated by leaps and bounds.  When I was in school, our tuition was $7.50 per academic hour.  Fifteen hours per semester was considered an average load.  Therefore, a tuition bill for one semester of 15 hours would be $112.50.  A friend told me that Baylor was now $60,000 per year, or $30,000 per semester. 

Who got that money?  Well, technically, the student did and is responsible for repaying the debt.  However, the student only had it for a few minutes or hours.  Then, it went to the university.  The university is not responsible to pay the debt back, or to award any credit toward education.    What a deal: money without repayment obligation and no promises to grant anything.  I wonder if I could start a university.

The colleges and universities are very well endowed by alumnae with cash and other assents.  They're so smart, they ought to be able the lend a hand on solving problems to alleviate student debt, and destruction of young human's credit score.   I don't know what authority has some  influence over colleges and universities, but it's time to wake up.  It's well past time. 

Oh, one other thing.  The place to put militant liberal students that commit harmful acts on conservative students is called jail.  They're easy to find.  Every town has one.  Intellectual pursuit is not a valid defense. 



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