Guest Post by Martin Armstrong
QUESTION: Mr. Armstrong, Elizabeth Warren’s proposal seems to lack any comprehension of the economic impact. She has said: “To put our economy — and our families — on firmer ground, it is essential to reduce household debt both by raising people’s wages and by bringing down their costs. That is the heart of her economic agenda. We can raise incomes by increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour, strengthening unions, ensuring that women of color get the wages they deserve, and empowering workers to elect at least 40% of board members at big American corporations.” Correct me if I am wrong, but hasn’t this QE been all about getting people to borrow and spend more? Then she wants unions to run the corporations. When that was the case before everything declined as you pointed out New York was once a major port but unions destroyed that. What is your opinion of these proposals?
ANSWER: They are counterproductive. All we hear is raise wages. Why not cut taxes and increase disposable income? The minimum wage has to be reviewed for what it is. Raise it and you will destroy the entry-level jobs that kids fill to get started in life. How about we divide it and make it a “student” or “entry-level” job versus a mature minimum wage? Raise it to $15 and there go the entry-level jobs. There should be two minimum wages – entry level v position. Raise it to $15 and you no longer need a person to take your order. A machine can do it. Entry level jobs are being wiped out because of BENEFITS required so replace a simple job with a machine. The problem is not the wage by itself. The problem is all the regulation with respect to benefits and healthcare. Even the US Post Office hires part-time to avoid benefits.
You are correct that QE and negative interest rates were to force people to borrow and spend. Warren is of course on board with these proposals. What she should look at is restoring usury laws that interest rates on credit cards should be no more than 2x the wholesale bank rate. The poor are hit with high rates. There are homeless people living in old motels paying $50-$75 a day because they have no credit and cannot afford a down-payment for an apartment. They are being exploited by the current system and if we raise the minimum wage we will encourage technology to replace workers. How about we eliminate payroll taxes below $31,200 ($15 an hour) and no benefit requirements. They are either on their parents healthcare thanks to Obamacare up to 26, or they should be on medicaid and that will provide the “healthcare for all” promises.
As far as workers directing boards by 40%, well that is just stupid. If they want a say — buy the stock. This is all about OWNERSHIP, not union labor. Why would people buy stock if the workers make the decisions which will be in their own self-interest? If you say workers get a favored position in buying stock and therefore have a vested interest in the company doing well, then the workers and investors will be on the same side of the table.
This is what politics has come down to. Vote for me and I will create insane laws for you against everyone else.
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I don’t believe there is an answer concerning minimum wage. You’re going to pay people one way or another. Else you get turd world country.
Vote for me and I’ll set you free!
Elizabeth Warren groped me through my clothes. It was back in the summer of 1982 or 1983 and I was living in the same town as Elizabeth Warren (wherever that was). She was drinking beer – she and her friend Squee drank a lot of beer – at a party somewhere (I can’t remember the address) and she pushed me into a bedroom and groped me. In fact, she groped the living shit out of me. I was so traumatized that 30 years later I told a psychologist about it.
I remember it well. I’m the friend who was there whose name you can’t remember because of the trauma. Brett and I were nailing that “whoor” Sweaty Julie in the corner and the Avenatti kid was taking Polaroids of it all. Whatever happened to him? He never struck me as trustworthy. Ahh, the old days are gone forever.
I was at that party, I remember because there was beer. Liz was on a tear, I remember she was drinking beer. Lots of beer. I don’t remember her groping Iska, I was watching the gang grope in bathroom, or was it the bedroom? I think she ground her crotch on Iska, he was wearing a bathing suit, and then opened a beer with it. Her crotch that is, Iska was reduced to tears and whimpering while trying to climb under the bed, or maybe it was the sofa….I’m easily confused… I like beer. A lot.
Poci hontice needs to take a long walk on a short plank. Even the sickest of libtards must be embarrassed by her (It).
I doubt it …..
Above pic make a good case that many Americans are Total Retards.
Aye and Cankles the Kunt is consorting with 1/1024th.
The same pussy-hat wearing brainless clods who also scream and bare their genitals because….vagina, or something…
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You B rite Stucky
The bullshit about making credit card rates 2 times bank rates upis bullshit.
And here is why: the default rate on credit cards is 9%. Of every 100 dollars spent on a credit card, $9 is defaulted. So the starting point on credit card interest rate is 9% plus the bank rate.
But then again about half of people never pay any interest and pay it all off immediately. So the half that do pay interest now have a rate of around 18% to make the system viable.
Then of course, there are the costs of covering fraud.
Then of course they do make a kickback of 2 or 3% from each sale, so that helps.
The banks make a lot of money on credit cards. Yes they do.
But any suggestion that they can provide credit cards for twice the bank rate is idiocy of the highest order, and is simply pandering to the masses with zero comprehension of reality.
Want to do something about credit card debt – make the restrictions on getting one so tight that only perfect credit scores/the rich can get one. Then interest rates on them would drop to mortgage rate type levels. But very few would have them then.
I really do hate gross stupidity, and anyone making such enormously stupid suggestions destroys their credibility on just about every level.
You hearing me, Armstrong?
The above was me, llpoh.
Did a little more research.
Around $2 to $3 trillion a year is put on credit cards. Total fees for credit cards, including interest, is around $100 billion. It is hard to find actual totals, but I accumulated from a few sources.
So fees and interest are between 3 and 5 percent of the spend. Given that the total balance at any given time is $1 trillion, that means the interest rate and fes on average debt = 10%. Plus what they get from the sellers, of course, probably another $100 billion plus.
Out of that comes the losses, the interest, and the cost of administering the system.
But Armstrong the Einstein he is thinks they can do it for two times bank rate.
Morons.
That crazy cat lady would fu*k a snake to get elected. Anyone over the age of 18 who still believes anything a national stage politician says has rocks in their head.
Chancellor Warren sounds a whole lot more articulate, and yes, genuine, than the ORANGE FUCK.
Perhaps I should join the Matrix.