Comments for Serious People Could be Seriously Embarrassed: Why It's Important that We Not Go Off the "Fiscal Cliff" at http://www.cepr.net , comment 1 to 12 out of 12 comments http://www.cepr.net Fri, 24 May 2013 01:44:48 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20714 Congress could put an end to this charade and repeal the Budget Control Act of 2012. People have had it with this foolishness. We have real crises to deal with: unemployment, putting an end to immoral, wasteful wars, reforming the banking system, restoring civil liberties, among others. - Mary Bess Sun, 16 Dec 2012 16:58:54 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20701 I said 2 years ago we were in the same position. Obama made the same threat. And then he kicked the can. I thought at that time he should have let all the "irresponsible" Bush tax cuts expire, even though it would have cost me a lot. Indeed, when he said he was going to give me a reduction in the payroll tax, I thought he was nuts. Now apparently 98% of the Bush tax cuts (75% of the lost revenues) are quite responsible. Go figure. Kick the can. It ain't worth the pittance of revenue, especially with 30 year rates at 2.9%....better to borrow. - pete Sat, 15 Dec 2012 05:08:30 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20698 Actually, leaping off the fiscal cliff may be more like jumping off the curb and landing on the tarmac. - Ron Alley Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:34:16 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20697 I thing the R's said it well today. When the going gets tough Congress leaves and goes home. BTW, Buscuit looks good in red. - MarkJ Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:29:48 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20694 Pete, kicking the can isn't a good strategy. Obama should let Jan. 1 pass, to further discredit the VSPs, which they wholly and utterly deserve. Read the second paragraph on Hoover here: [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Hoover[/url]. Hoover went from 25% to 63% tax rate and increased corporate taxes. The wealthy should be grateful we don't need them to pitch in as much as that. Of course, if they'd just allow a large enough stimulus package through, then they can keep their damned tax savings. - David Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:06:05 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20693 as chris has pointed out the people getting unemployment benefits that stop will definitely be hurt. & just because the economy doesn't crash for the top half of americans with the gdp uneffected isn't really much to crow about. obama's history of giving away the store to republicans before negoiations start is a real cause for concern. obama is the same type of politician as his real mentor clinton, give away as much as possible to the wealthy so in return he profits handsomely from the wallstreet & outsourcing corporation's largesse. look does anyone really believe that clinton's help with the repeal of glass-steagall & enactment of "free trade agreements" wasn't a giveaway to the very wealthy? in return clinton became wealthy, & spent more on his daughter's wedding than many people make in a whole lifetime. obama's the exact same kind of character, look at his cabinet, full of wallstreet, destroy democracy, kind of scoundrels. - mel in oregon Fri, 14 Dec 2012 08:20:29 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20691 Dean, Thanks for your reply. You make some very good points. I'm just worried that all the tough talk and posturing against the Republicans is going to leave a lot of lower class Americans totally screwed in the crossfire. There's a lot of talk about the non-negotiable issues of Medicare eligible age changes and raising taxes on the rich -- but aside from some statements by the likes of Chuck Schumer, there isn't a lot of support to help these 2.1 million Americans after Christmas who are being marginalized by bad politics and a bad labor market/economy which they had not been instrumental in causing whatseoever. So if we (centrists) play hardball and go over the cliff, these low class Americans end up cash-poor, if we have actual negotiations then we're probably going to have to give in on UI. When one analyzes the game-tree of such a situation, there's really bad odds for these Americans who will have a pretty bad new year if action isn't taken before the 29th. I just think about these casualties of the rhetorical policy battle. - Chris Fri, 14 Dec 2012 08:05:26 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20688 Obama says now that he wants to raise the top rate, but then if they can agree upon spending cuts, possibly lowering it by September. That is of course just more uncertainty. If that is really on the cards, then they all should agree to kick the can to September, have yet another commission or gang or something. I.e., extend all the Obama nee Bush tax cuts to September. Or, in a similar logical, agree raise the top rate till September. - pete Fri, 14 Dec 2012 06:00:51 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20687 Chris, you're absolutely right that people getting UI and other benefits will be hurt if there is not an extension of the recession provisions by the end of the year. However, this is not what the Serious People are warning about. There is absolutely no guarantee that an extension of these programs will be included in a budget deal. The Rs really don't want them (as opposed to the tax cuts), and it is quite likely that Obama will give up ground on how much of the recession provisions are extended. In that case, the pain suffered by these people will not be due to the "cliff," but an agreement by President Obama and Congress to scale back benefits. - Dean Fri, 14 Dec 2012 05:58:42 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20686 "But some people will remember, and there will always be people rude enough to bring up past mistakes. So the Serious People really do have a lot at stake here. If we go past January 1 and there is no deal, they will be very unhappy." Also, there are young people who are looking at these issues in real-time for the very first time. Some trust authority but others have had bad experiences with authority and will notice and remember that the media got it wrong and the will remember how and why they got it wrong. Some of those who tend to trust authority nonetheless place high importance on facts, reason and logic and will witness for the first time in real-time how the media was wrong. - Peter K. Fri, 14 Dec 2012 05:17:20 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20685 I noticed you didn't address my last comment in your other post, so I'll essentially repeat myself...whether or not the fiscal cliff registers as disastrous on a macro data level is irrelevant to the 2.1 million Americans who will have their unemployment benefits run out. Food stamps won't pay the bills, and they will be in a very serious situation. So while I agree that the hype is overblown in the aggregate analytical sense, 2.1 million families will be very unhappy, not just the Serious People...and that will create real misery in our society. I'm worried that your dismissive tone ignores the real pain that will be inflicted on the 29th of December if there's no emergency extension of their benefits. - Chris Fri, 14 Dec 2012 04:56:06 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/serious-people-could-be-seriously-embarrassed-why-its-important-that-we-not-go-off-the-qfiscal-cliffq#comment-20683 This is the next Washington Post headline. http://onion.com/Uevr4U - Jennifer Reft Fri, 14 Dec 2012 04:32:57 +0100