#economic stuff

[lucky-fuyu]

May we be blessed with AmeGer headcanons m'lord

-this ship is better than gerpol and you can't change my mind

[youseemewheniwant]

"Graduates who hailed from households with incomes of at least $116,000—the top quarter—represented more than half of all the degrees awarded in 2014 among 24-year-olds. Students from households that earned less than $35,000—the lowest quarter—represented just 10 percent of all the degrees awarded."

The Atlantic

[mouseyfox]

I think it might be best if we go ahead and put down what my actual political views are just to avoid any confusion my last personal post might have caused: (under the cut since this will be long and not everyone is going to want to read it)

Before anyone asks let me just state that I am listed as an Independent - not a Republican OR a Democrat - and that I believe there are serious flaws with every party in the US, wish we had never split into a party system, and my vote goes towards the candidate I feel most likely to accomplish the goals they state they want to achieve who LEAST compromises on political and social justice issues I hold dear.

Full marital, workplace, voting and healthcare rights for all people of "alternative" sexualities and gender representations including trans, non-binary, and intersex persons. 

Our entire education system needs an overhaul from our preschools all the way to our universities, and there needs to be less focus on standardized testing as well as teaching options that are more beneficial for neurodivergent and disabled persons should be implemented across the US. I would also like a push for better inclusion of the arts, better accessibility for female students into the maths and sciences, better sex education, and for lowered tuition costs and possibly even free education.

I believe that every person has the right to the option of taking birth control, and that it should be covered by all healthcare plans regardless of the religion of the organization providing the healthcare. I also believe that a person's choice to have their ovaries removed and donated so that the eggs can be used for other people should have that as a basic health care assurance instead of being charged tens of thousands of dollars to do so.

I believe that all people should be given the option of getting an abortion if needed, and that they have the right to do so in a clean and healthy environment where they can get counseling before and after the procedure to HELP them through it instead of guilt-tripping them, invading their privacy, and performing incredibly invasive tests before an abortion can be completed. I also believe that people should be given a chance to better adoption options if they so choose to give birth instead of having an abortion.

I believe that our entire healthcare system needs to be rewritten and sincerely believe that universal healthcare for the US would greatly improve the health of our citizens, and help boost our economy. That is not to say that the Affordable Care Act was the only solution - in fact I think that it could be greatly improved but that improvement should have the input of healthcare and medical officials and not just a bunch of lifelong politicians deciding that policy.

I believe in the bolstering of small businesses, and that vocational education should be offered at the high school and college levels and that it should be automatically paired with business classes so that the person learns how to do both their trade and successfully manage their own small business if they choose to open something of their own one day.

Green energy should be the focus of our future, and that the wonderful inventions that have been created such as clear solar panels, and solar roadways should be implemented across the US to hopefully decrease our dependency on oil and increase our job market in the US.

The space program should be reopened, and that the funding of these projects should be better handled so as not to create a drain on our economy because there are hundreds of pursuits of science that can only be achieved through space travel and continued use of the international space station.

Taxation should be scaled based off of income and that the top 1% of America should be taxed more to help lessen the gigantic disparity going on between the economic classes in the US.

The prison system needs a gigantic overhaul, drug offenses should be treated with rehabilitation instead of extended jail time, and there should be harsher penalties for child molesters, rapists, and sexual assailants. Also, therapy and rehabilitation should be offered in every prison as well as education and options to earn degrees so that they can have a better chance of changing their life around when released.

Apprenticeships should be encouraged in all fields of education and business, and there should be guilds and better-maintained unions to help the rights of workers.

While I am still hesitant on the idea of legalizing marijuana, for my own personal health reasons mostly, I do believe that our drug policies are outdated and need to be looked back over possibly so that it is legalized in a way that maybe can be better monitored and handled less by illegal means which only hurts the communities these things are introduced in? (Honestly I currently do not have set opinions on this, I'm still very wishy-washy on what I do and do not agree with.)

Community centers, community outreach, and community enrichment programs should be encouraged in every city - especially intercity areas - and there should always be programs for children to attend afterschool to help keep them safely off the streets and lessen gang activity. It's been proven that giving kids an alternative to gang life where they can safely hang out has lessened gang activity and I feel that this is incredibly important to pursue.

I do not believe that we should allow life-long politicians in the US, and that we should have stricter mandates on all politicians, especially their income, and that they should be required to have a background in more than just law and history to be a politician. We need more scientists, mathematicians, economists, and so forth in our government so as to better balance the scales. 

Reform for our immigration policies, including the allowance of dual-citizenship, the easier accessibility of citizenship for immigrants, and less negative stigma against people who are only here for work.

Reform of disability programs to better cover Americans with disabilities and give them a shot at a healthy and stable life instead of being forced to live in poverty and crushed by healthcare costs.

I know that there are more stances I can add but writing all of that out was a bit draining and I can't pull to mind any other things to add right this second. I'll probably update this later if I remember.

Thought of a few more things to add.

Edit #1:

Legalization of sex work and healthcare, screenings, and free birth control for sex workers from filming porn, to working in a strip club, all the way down to working on a street corner although hopefully if we did legalize this brothels would be more common therefore providing sex workers a safe and regulated place in which to practice. This should include better management of the porn industry, better treatment of porn stars, as well as content warnings on porn as well.

Better education regarding rape culture, and implementation of classes advocating against street harassment, partner abuse, and rape. Better healthcare options and counseling options for victims of all three. Better abuse shelters and more access for people to get away from their abusers.

Better education on sex trafficking and a crack down on sex trafficking within the porn industry.

Honestly if we could just take the idea that America has to follow "Christian values" (most of which people and politicians opt for actually aren't very Christian anyways) would be great. People can follow political alleys that line up with their beliefs - yes - but to argue for something solely on the basis of religion is pointless and forces your belief on a person and that is unconstitutional. This can go for all religions and not just Christianity please keep this in mind.

The rewriting of the Pledge of Allegiance to omit the "under God" portion that was added in 1954 because of the Red Scare going on at the time. 

The allowance and offering of immigration status to illegal immigrants who have been working in the US for quite some time as well as the opportunity for children of illegal immigrants the chance at education and citizenship just like everyone else.

Revamping and a scour through police departments across the US, better mandates on gun safety and how to not escalate a situation as well as the removal of all military grade weapons from police departments across the US. They don't need it, they haven't been as well trained in it as military personnel, and if military action is needed in a city then they can call in the military like they're supposed to. 

The arrest and trial of police officers that kill civilians who have not threatened their safety or attacked them.

tbc.

[mouseyfox]

Oh let me solve all my healthcare problems, and financial problems by getting a GED and magically getting a job.

Gee thanks Fox News for MISSING THE FUCKING POINT ENTIRELY.

[blackines]

I had my paper ready and now they told me the publication will be in english. Great. So I have a question: would anyone (native english speaker) be willing to proof read it when I will translate it in a couple of days? It's about 3.800 words?

[bluekujira]

Okay so I so don't want to bore you with all this. US economy is a liberal economy (but not a true liberal democracy). We hold a free market system but it has limited government intervention. We're based on the idea that we let a business do it's thing and it will be okay (hoping individuals will make rational decisions to manage their production (what they make, how to supply, pay workers, estimate demand/market research) and regulate wealth. But then it becomes hard when you've got to get the market at the cheapest or most profitable price, and then you find that there are income gaps and resources aren't being fully regulated. Resources are being used up, there's a lot of rich and poor, and the middle class is growing smaller. The rich get richer.

This was something that became apparent in the depression age. They implemented and established programs to get people to put money into the economy and buy stuff to get it going, but eventually ran out of resources (profit versus sustainability). 

Neoliberalism, like sherlocktorwhor mentioned, is a backdrop to globalization (aka the expansion of global communication and market connections) which duh sounds like a great idea. With this there is an increase in social and political interdependence globally and a development of planetary awareness rather than just national awareness. But globalization involves many processes, transactions, market expansion, electronic communications. 

With globalization we would have to ease restrictions on trade between countries to free up the movement (Free trade) of goods and services to maximize economic efficiency and profits. This is done by removing controls like tariffs, regulatory measure, restrictions on investments, and the regulation on government services to private firms. 

This has opened industries industries to cheaper labor in developing worlds. Technological advances and transportations have reduced costs and dramatically encouraged expansion of trade and foreign investments. More integrated system = a rapid exchange of currencies. Increasing businesses to participate beyond borders. 

The World Trade Organization negotiates, monitors, and regulates international trade agreements and helps producers do business without fear or trade restrictions or government intervention. But the WTO can override any law meant to protect workers or the environment if the law is seen as restricting corporations to trade freely. 

Neoliberal policies are often seen as imperialist. 

The world is subject to its resources. We're not sustainable in the long run. We're limited to oil and such- which is being depleted rapidly. When we exhaust these resources then there will be collapse of global economy. 

This all can lead into the economy downturn in 2008 with banking liquidity, the huge stock market drop, the recession, and the sovereign debt crisis. 

But I don't want to kill anyone who actually read this so I will stop. I will not blame you at all if you skipped over ALL of that. 

(Sorry for any spelling or grammatical errors I did not re-read through this.)

[waterinspace-blog]

Socialism

I watched some old Colbert Show that had something to do with socialism and how everyone believes it to be horribly evil and some kind of wealth draining plot.

I do not claim to understand everything about socialism, and yes, idealistic teenager who probably looks at the world with rose tinted lenses, and yes, I do identify as liberal. So, hold that in mind.

I lived in Sweden for six months (roughly), and it's considered to be one of the more socialist nations in the world. Yes, taxes were incredibly high, and the sales tax was something along the lines of 20%.

But, overall, there were a lot of good sides. I'm not sure how much is because of socialism and how much is because of Swedish culture, but here were some things that were majorly different.

Pros

Even though everything is so expensive and there is no minimum wage (http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2880.htm), the money people do earn seems to be a lot higher. My host mom worked in SKAN, a slaughterhouse, and my dad managed a gas station. Yet, they had enough money to go to Spain and Turkey, have three kids, and take in a random American besides. So, better wages. Obvious plus.

School lunches were free, and really tasty. In the US, I go to a fairly well off school, but I pay about $4.00 a day for a lunch that I would describe as mediocre as best. Plus, here I eat off paper plates, with plastic forks. We were given real silverware and china in Sweden, although that might be because they trust the youth there more.

Wonderful public transport. The train system, while expensive, was incredibly well planned and very efficient. And the bus system was just so useful.

Medical care was both cheaper and more efficient. I didn't have much need of it, so I can't say much on it.

The unemployment benefits and the maternity leave. You get 80% of your salary if you're fired for about eighteen months, and it drops off from there, until you find a new job, or unless you can prove that you can't. Maternity leave is eighteen months, your job is guaranteed when you return, you get 80% of your salary while on leave, childcare is stellar there, and you only work 80% of the time, at 80% of your salary, until the child is eight years old.

Free university (for residents of Sweden).

I'm not sure how much of this is Sweden, and how much is socialism, but here's what drove me nuts.

20% sales tax. That was just insane.

The prices for everything were ridiculous. Americans don't pay the full price/value of the objects we consume, I know, and all of Europe has higher prices than you will find in the States...but seriously, a pair of Levi denim jeans could run to two hundred dollars. 

No advanced placement in schools. Although I think this is more Sweden than socialism, because Sweden and the other Scandinavian countries have the Jante's Law mentality, which basically boils down to "You are not better than us, loved, and have no reason to think you're special".

Lack of drive. I know that is a common problem in the USA as well, but really, many Swedes don't have the same drive or creativity. 'course, we might have more creativity and drive here because if we don't, we'll end up jangling a change mug on the street corner.

Anyway. Those are my thoughts. I'm not a professional, mind, and I am biased because I am liberal and dislike the huge wage gap that exists in the US. Sweden has a good system that works for them. I don't know if it would work here, because Sweden has nine million people, and we have three hundred million. But it's a good system, and I think people need to at least understand what living in that system was like, before they speak ill of it.

[mapsofneverland-blog]

"My screwed, coddled, self-absorbed, mocked, surprisingly resilient generation."