365 Reasons I Love Costa Rica
Archive for November, 2011
Wall Street Speak
I don’t completely know why I have been so heavy with the political and philosophical stuff lately. It seems that I go through these phases of depth versus shallow-ness. Who knows? A friend told me to “get my mind out of the gutter.” Easier said than done. I like the gutter….if it means the “guttural” attempt [...]
The Premise of Laissez-Faire
I ran across an old video of Phil Donahue interviewing the renowned economist, Milton Friedman. The topic of the discussion was greed, with the left leaning Donahue intimating that “capitalists are greedy.” Friedman doesn’t disagree and further points out that greed is in fact the engine of economic growth. He makes a statement that I would say pretty much sums up [...]
Should There be a 1%?
The graph paints an alarming picture. The share of total income by the top 1% peaked in 1928 and 2007 at just shy of 25%. Wow, does the graph really mean that 25% of all income earned in the U.S. went to that select slither of the population? Yep, that’s what it means and, moreover, [...]
Middle Classlessness
I looked up GDP per capita among North American countries this morning. Here are some of the results: U.S. $41,557, Costa Rica $10,316, Mexico $10,090, Nicaragua $2,779. The “poverty line” for a family of four in the U.S. is currently $22,350 in annual income. That’s twice the per capital GDP of Costa Rica and Mexico and [...]
Just in Time for Christmas: The Gingrich Grows a Heart!
When your heart’s desire is to be the President of the U.S. there are those correct things to say to the “base” and then there are the correct things to say to the wider electorate (and the two are often vastly different). Last night at the Republican “National Security” Debate, I believe Newt may have [...]
Oh to be a 1%’er
The Occupy Wall Street protesters claim to represent the 99%. But, if asked and answered truthfully, wouldn’t any of them prefer to be in that 1%. The answer may well be yes, but if I was, I would think and act differently. Hmmm….there might be some semblance of an “aim” in that very reply. And [...]
W-W-Che-D?
The Occupy Wall Street movement appears to be gaining steam, despite the fact that the mayors of the towns where these demonstrations are taking place have had just about enough of it. The truth is, the more action they (the mayors) take against it (the movement), the stronger it will become. Opposition will only give [...]
Weighing In
I have to feel a bit empathetic for Herman Caine and Rick Perry. In Caine’s case, who hasn’t been falsely accused of something. Despite the fact that the political left is now marching lockstep in condemning Caine for acts that he claims never to have done, I for one don’t believe the accusations for a [...]
The Big Red Bogeyman
What is government’s real purpose for existence? I came of age in the U.S. during the 70′s and 80′s. I was indoctrinated with a view of the world in “us versus them” terms. That is, western-style democracy versus anything else….especially the so-called “red menace” of the “cold-war” era. Even though that period is now dead [...]
The Caine Mutiny
It appears as if the “non-politician” GOP candidate is now getting a dose of what it means to be a politician in the highest stakes race of them all. Although I hardly agree with most anything that comes out of Herman Caine’s mouth (other than the fact that the U.S. tax system could use some [...]
