Lousy Democrats

I saw a bit of the Democratic Party's Presidential Candidates' Convention, held in Philadelphia this past Monday. Wow, so many wrong and funny moments in such a short period of time.

First off Bill Press, of Buchanan and Press fame, made the ludicrous comment that Philadelphia was the cradle of democracy. Sorry Bill, you're going to have to go a bit further back in history to find it.

Ed Rendell, Pennsylvania's governor, introduced the candidates in alphabetical order. After he introduced Senator John Kerry, Rendell pulled Kerry close and whispered into his ear, with a tone of incredulity, "Cucinich is a congressman?" Kerry, stunned, affirmed. The microphone picked this exchange up so, since I heard it at home, Cucinich and the rest of those in attendance probably heard it as well. Priceless.

I haven't heard so much class warfare and bad political/economic theory since, well, the last time the Democrats held some sort of conference. The California recall effort was just another example of how the Right hates democracy. President Bush's tax cuts were destroying the economy. We need to take the tax cut back and put it into universal health care. And, we have to create jobs by rebuilding our nation's infrastructure, thereby creating taxable income.

First off, the CA recall is not undemocratic. 1.6 million people signed petitions requesting the ballot initiative, and it will be decided by a vote. This is democratic theory taken to its logical end. Recalls are the product of the hyper-democratic Progressive Era, along with the direct election of senators, etc. Recalls recognize that the democratic process can have lousy results, and try to fix the problem with more democracy (it's odd that people think the only solution to democracy's shortcomings is more democracy).

Governor Gray Davis is not just a scapegoat for the problems President Bush has caused, as the Democrats assert. Yes, the nation is also in bad financial shape. Want to know why? Perhaps the shocking terrorist attack that took place on September 11th, 2001 had something to do with it. Perhaps the fact that the USA was badly shaken by that huge blow, as well as the fact that we lost millions of square feet of office space, had something to do with it. We're still feeling the aftermath. How many businesses have left New York City to go into New Jersey as a result? How much capital was lost?

It's too simplistic and dishonest to blame the bad economy on tax cuts. Empirical evidence shows tax cuts work (look at the boom after World War II, when the federal bureaucracy was slashed along with taxes, or the cuts that went into effect under Kennedy and Reagan), and it seems President Bush's tax cuts are finally starting to kick in. It should be no surprise that their effect took a while to manifest itself, since it takes a while for people to start receiving the benefits of the cuts and to act (spend or save) accordingly.

Yes, tax cuts don't need to be spent to be effective, which is why "tax cuts for the rich" are just as helpful as any tax cut (although, it's true, the Republicans hurt themselves by allowing way to many tax loopholes for corporations; Democrats pander to their own interest groups, like unions, but the Republican alliances can be easily attacked from a class warfare perspective).

I shouldn't even have to address the statement that we can create jobs and new tax revenues by rebuilding the USA's infrastructure. I wouldn't mind seeing nicer highways, bridges, and tunnels; that would be very nice, and I'm all for it. I do mind the ridiculous assertion that the process would create new sources of revenue. The government would just tax the paychecks it is handing out to construction workers; it would give them money and then take some back.

I can't stand watching Democratic conferences or conventions for too long, and it's upsetting that such a huge part of the population buys the stuff they're spouting.