It's the Economy, Stupid!by
Suzann Darnall
"It's the economy, stupid" is a phrase that came into popular use in the early 1990s and has reared its ugly head again as we move into another presidential election cycle. With an economy in even more dire straits than it was nearly two decades ago. An economy that not only rivals, but surpasses the disaster that was the Jimmy Carter era. An economy that Barack Hussein Obama owns . . . no matter how much his administration tries to push it off on George W. Bush!
I had several other ideas I intended to write about this week. These ideas covered quite a number of subjects, some with the articles already half written. But, this topic just pushed itself to the forefront last night and this morning as I read comments posted on my FaceBook page. These were comments from friends and family about how their grocery dollars aren't stretching very far anymore.
I posted a rhetorical question, to vent a bit of frustration, asking, "Can anyone explain to me how you exclude FOOD and GASOLINE when figuring rising inflation or cost of living???" I cannot believe it when I hear them talking about government figures for inflation and cost of living excluding those two NECESSITIES! I don't know about all y'all, but I know food and fuel eat a big chunk of our monthly budget.
A family member came back with the comments, "because that would give an ACCURATE account of how much inflation we really are experiencing" and ""they" think if they show us a small number we will believe that instead of our wallets with are showing us just how much more we are paying". I think he is right. I think "they" honestly believe we are too dumb to see reality and that we will just follow along believing what "they" say is true. What scares me is that I think "they" are right about a far too large segment of the population.
A friend then posted about being incensed over the rising cost of other necessities, in particular toilet paper. She says, "I cringe every time I have to pay nearly $20 a pack in order to get the best price per roll. 5 years ago the same package was $12". In my basic math, that is nearly double the cost in 5 years. I think that qualifies as a significant increase, but maybe that's just me not using the new modern governmental math models correctly. That same math they use that counts savings twice or drops unemployed people out of the overall figures. You know the math I mean? But, new math aside, I am pretty sure that when a $12 item rises by more than 10% per year it is kinda significant. Isn't it?
Another family member jumped into the discussion with her own comment on food prices, "That bag of pretzels that I'm always referring to that used to be $1 . . . is now $1.48. And, you know they're not increasing that cost to make milk cheaper because milk is now $3.14". I talked to her about the pretzel price jump. This is not some long ago days gone by price she is referencing. This is a price increase that has happened in the last year or so! Again, I am pretty sure that's kinda significant.
Other friends and family have said similar things to me recently and over the past couple of years. Including some contractors visiting my home to do projects. This economy is in trouble. Deep trouble. And, the only shovel ready project Obama and his minions seem to have is one that entails digging the sinking hole a whole lot deeper!
There were problems before Obama took office. I readily acknowledge that truth. But, there is a big difference between walking through deep sand and flailing in quicksand. We are flailing now. With a very real danger of sinking right out of sight.
I don't know if Conservatives have all the answers, but I do know they are at least expressing a willingness to try some different things. As opposed to Obama and the Left, who want to do the same things over and over, bigger each time, in hopes that the outcome will change. Albert Einstein said the definition of insanity was, ". . . doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." I'd say we pretty much got that kind of crazy happening in Washington DC right now!
If ever we needed to vote our pocketbooks, I think this is the time! We need to make the right choices by making Right choices. We need true Conservatives. The kind of Conservatives who will uphold the Constitution. Conservatives who will work to shrink government's intrusions into our lives. Government must be shrunk to a manageable size. It has gotten too large to be sustained, without bleeding the private citizens dry. And, I don't just mean federal government; I mean government at all levels. We need to do some old-style rose bush pruning and cut bureaucracies back so they can bloom beautifully, not just crowd everything else out of the garden with over-reaching branches of thorns.
Take a few minutes to ask yourself Ronald Reagan's questions, ". . . are you better off than you were four years ago? Is it easier for you to go and buy things in the stores than it was four years ago? Is there more or less unemployment in the country than there was four years ago? Is America as respected throughout the world as it was? Do you feel that our security is as safe, that we're as strong as we were four years ago?" Look at your life and circumstances. Are you doing as well now as you were before Barack Obama was elected? Don't even ask about whether you can afford four more years of his economic policies, just think about how you can afford the next 13 months while he finishes out this term!
I know I am not better off with Obama. His policies are not only encroaching on our income, but on our liberties. I do not want a Nanny State and I don't want to pay exorbitant au pair rates for the privilege of being babysat by the government! I am a grown woman and I will make my own choices, than you very much! And, I choose to vote for anyone but Barack Hussein Obama. In my opinion he has been an utter failure in at least the hope portion of his agenda promising hope and change. And, I don't much care for the kind of change he brought about!
© Suzann C. Darnall, OCTOBER 2011