The Recent Jobs report is actually a big positive. Let me explain.
1. The lousy employment report for September 2011 is a positive report. We see more private sector jobs and fewer government jobs. This is a trend reversal and as long as it remains, we are heading in the right direction. I suggest that when we return to a balanced and functional economic situation, one government employee should match 13 private sector employees. In 2011 we have 1 government employee for every 5.6 private sector employees. In 1950 we had one government worker for every 10 workers. I suggest that this should be the trend due to the long-term productivity gains due to technology. We could eliminate 750,000 IRS positions if we reform and level the tax codes as discussed later in this article… salaries over $170,000. Between late 2007 and mid-2009, the number of federal workers earning more than $150,000 more than doubled, even as the economy fell into a deep recession during that period. (Some interesting trends: 1950 10% of the workforce were government employees. 2011 15% of the workforce are government employees. Federal wages have grown 33 percent faster than inflation. Their pay and benefits averaged $123,049 in 2009, up 36.9 percent from 2000. Private workers averaged $61,051, an increase of just 8.8 percent over the same time), as reported by CBS news on 8/11/2010. All I can say is where the next tea party meeting is. Another reason for my dismay is the fact that government jobs work 35 hours a week for salary and private jobs are based on 40 or more hours for salary positions.
2. The Federal Reserve is not doing anything that is exactly what it should be doing. This is a positive trend. The world needs predictability. That is the strength of the US If we are constantly changing our monetary policy, how can the world function efficiently?
3. The United States government is at an impasse. This is a very positive situation. Every time the government tries to disrupt the free market, there is a price to pay. If the government’s hands are tied, then the free market can work.
4. T Boone Pickens is a man of great vision. He has identified a growth area for America-Energy. Our government should devote all available resources to the mission of energy independence instead of some lame stimulus package that produces $50,000 in private sector employment for every $500,000 increase in public debt. I know of a small business that has been trying to get seed money for their energy idea. They offer to convert pine chips into ethanol. 1/3 of the chips can be easily converted into ethanol. When Germany ran out of oil during World War II, Hitler converted wood chips into ethanol in the same way. The company can unlock the remaining ethanol by heating the chips into a suspension using the waste product of a barrel of oil. A barrel of oil has 10 gallons of oil that cannot be used due to the high sulfur content. This small company has a patent that removes sulfur during combustion. Now this waste product is shipped to China at a cost to refineries and where it is burned and ends up in the atmosphere. This makes no sense wasting energy to ship this product back to China where they end up dumping sulfur into the atmosphere. So far the EPA and keep the world’s air clean. This company claims that there are enough renewable pine chips annually to provide enough fuel for all the cars in the US that use their system. At full capacity, they would be adding more than 100,000 jobs in the poorest areas of the US They can’t get seed money from the Federal Government or others.
5. Social Security first started paying people who reached age 65. When it started, the average lifespan was 62 years. What should have been incorporated into the SS law was that the qualifying age should be adjusted each year based on average lifespan. Today, the average lifespan in the US is 79 years. Based on how Social Security was established, Americans should collect when they are 82 years old. Review the billing age each year and adjust the billing age to be 3 years older than the average life. To take pressure off beneficiaries of the social security means test. Stop all other payments, such as disability. Limit SS to only those who live long enough to collect. This solves the problem for Medicare if people were covered at age 81 instead of 65. End of story. Any modification to the SS would require the same approval as an amendment to the Constitution.
6. Health care. Implement the Australian model of Health Care. They have public and private hospitals and they are moving to a private system as public is not sustainable. If Obama Care becomes law, then a reciprocal system must be established for those who want to opt out. These individuals should receive a tax credit equal to the per person cost of Obama Care. Americans demand freedom from government regulation. This will put pressure on any system of government to remain competitive. The changes can be continuous, but there must be a system that rewards healthy choices.
7. Educational reforms are necessary. Stocks cost too much and their utility value is negative. Allow each person in the US holding a licensed profession to award qualifications to only one person to enter their profession based on the equivalent degree period. Similar to how businesses operate. For example, a doctor can certify another person’s ability to qualify for a medical license every 6 years. This person could take the MD exam for credentials just like a medical school graduate. This would put pressure on the university system to be competitive and improve the value returned.
8. The Tax Code Reform is necessary and must be contained in a 5-page document. Changing this number of spaces would require the same procedure as amending the constitution. Flatten our tax code to a simple tiered system. 0-10,000 without tax, 10-25,000 5%, 25-50,000 15%, 50-infinity 25%. No deductions. Credits may be offered only up to the point of tax liability in a given year. Do this the same for Corporations. Dividends would be free of personal taxes as they are taxed on the corporate side. This provides incentives for people to invest in quality stocks to provide for retirement. The objective would be to take pressure off the Social Security System since it would be subject to verification of resources. No more 401 or other inefficient tricks. As Americans, we want people to invest and be free from social security. If your dividend income and employment income exceed 100,000, your SS payments are not paid and may be credited to your children’s SS account or direct reduction of US debt in your name. Let’s take one more positive step. For every $5 invested in dividend-paying stock, that person will get $1 tax credit/SS tax.
9. Our electoral system needs to be reformed. Voting will be open for 6 months online. There will be a nominal fee paid by credit card, debit card, or bank check to verify identity. The fee will go to a fund divided among the top 20 rebate candidates. The position would be instantly available. Candidates could borrow up to the previous payment amount. Your borrowed funds must be made public on the website. Any breach of disclosure would bar them from holding public office now and in the future. People in office can only campaign during the last 3 months of a career as they are paid to perform the functions of an office. They would not be eligible for reimbursement nor would they be able to accept or borrow campaign contributions. Your previous public service history should be sufficient.
These are simplistic solutions to our simple problems. These problems are not like going to Mercury, deciphering DNA, or how to move 500 tons of stones without machinery. The US system works on incentives (tax credits), limited regulation, and predictability. Russia proved that central planning doesn’t work. We have an army that is outdated and oversized. Reduce the current military by 90%, enough to protect our borders. For objectives outside our borders, private services similar to the foreign legion would be used. For example, Iraqi ex-patriots could join the foreign legion and fight for their country’s independence. These foreign legion services would be open to all citizens and available to all free nations. They would be organized like any Multinational Corporation except that a higher standard of transparency would be maintained with a 3 month delay in reporting requirements. The officers of the corporation would be held to a higher legal standard and would receive the same penalty imposed on any of its employees. For example, Gaddafi would not have recognition with the services of the foreign legion, but the Libyan rebels would. The source of payment would be Gaddafi’s reserves in foreign banks. This same model would have worked for the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. The model would put dictatorships at a disadvantage with the powers of democracy. Democracies would be deploying their most powerful weapon: freedom.