A Quote From Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH)...Really?!?

"There is no real history illustrating that these tax cuts for the rich result in jobs. It's extending unemployment benefits that creates economic activity that creates jobs, not giving a millionaire an extra ten or twenty or $30,000 in tax cuts that they likely won't spend," Brown said (emphasis added)


This philosophy is a clear case of 'reductio ad absurdum.' Following the senator's logic, 100% unemployment would result in nearly infinite economic growth because, as he states, it is "unemployment benefits that create economic activity." 


Call me heartless, but it seems that for every person using unemployment benefits as a legitimate safety net while they look for different/better work there are two or three people abusing the system. I've seen studies from both sides of the political spectrum and heard enough sob stories to at least feel that the program is helping SOME people. What really takes the cake, however, was a discussion I recently heard on Madison's progressive talk radio, 92.1 'The Mic.' The discussion involved a woman calling in to express her frustration over republican attempts to cut off her benefits, and now after about a year's worth of unemployment checks she would finally have to "make tough decisions" about shutting off her cable or using some of her savings. The host even took her side in this discussion! Decisions about whether to keep the cable TV subscription need to be made well before you've been on unemployment for a year.

The GOP's Epic Win?

Even with the GOP taking back the House this election nothing has really changed. Don't get me wrong, I am a supporter, but I'm also a realist. As long as a democrat controls the veto pen it's going to be extremely difficult to create any meaningful progress. Economic policy still has us on the road to complete bankruptcy, our foreign policy is still appalling, and too few politicians have the cojones to bring up serious debate over entitlements here at home.

I also find myself not liking politicians in general so until this new wave of republicans actually does put up some good legislation I remain skeptical of their resolve to follow through on campaign promises. Probably one of the best things they could do right now is attempt to get some of their big agenda plans through to the president. As long as what the republicans are proposing is actually good for this country and they can portray the issues in a way that makes sense to the people and wins their support it won't matter what happens once something reaches the president's desk. From there two things can happen. He will either A) sign the legislation into law which will be good for the country or B) veto the legislation, action which can be used against him in the next election. Option A will allow the president to take credit for good policies, but it will also get things improving faster which is to the whole country's benefit. Option B requires real progress to wait, but makes winning the presidency back in 2012 easier to do. 

Winning the presidency back for the GOP will also require finding a better candidate to run for the position. A true conservative who sticks to principles is essential. The candidate must also be able understand and convey to the masses what is trying to be accomplished on an intellectual and philosophical level that few GOP candidates in the past have been able to do. 

What I'm looking forward to: more Ron Paul (potential candidate in 2012?) and other free market thinkers taking more of the spot light

What I'm not looking forward to: more leftist babble about how ineffective the republicans still are (durr...they only got the House, you still need the Senate or the President to get real progress through), Sarah Palin (great fundraiser, sure. great politician, I don't see it), and more campaigning (proponents of democracies always fail to mention the nearly ceaseless campaigning that goes on). 

Somewhat off-the-wall prediction: Hillary Clinton resigns as Secretary of State to being pursuit of her own 2012 campaign to upset Obama as the Democratic nominee 

Taking advantage of some time off

I recently completed an engagement overhauling many of the internal control systems used by a large (for this area) commercial real estate firm. Now I'm back to waiting for my next assignment and applying  to more full-time positions.

In the meantime I've ended up with a lot of free time on my hands. This is both a blessing and a curse for me as I'm prone to dramatic shifts between lethargy and ambition. I really need to start working out somewhat detailed schedules for these days when I don't really have anything pressing going on. Sleeping until noon and browsing the internet isn't really going to accomplish many of my life's goals.

Still Searching

As the economy continues to sluggishly plod along I continue my search for a full-time job. I currently have work I actually enjoy, but it consists primarily of consulting projects that will last two to three weeks at a time. This definitely isn't job security and they also don't pay as well as full-time employment probably would. To make up the difference I'm still doing some nights and weekends at the Walmart pharmacy; watching lumps of people wander aimlessly through the store then bother me for narcotics.

Not sure about this one

Working 50-60 hours a week and trying to study for the CPA exam on top of it isn't too crazy, right? I'm two weeks into pulling a full-time 40+ hour schedule at the accounting firm while still picking up some nights at the pharmacy. I'm determined to stick with it for now, but damn I'm exhausted. At least I'll be able to afford a new computer in the near future. Off to bed...where I will have about five to maybe six hours of sleep before I get to rise and shine for another day at the office.

Finally, Some Real Job Experience

In an effort to make my life even busier I've taken a full-time position with a local CPA firm at least through tax season. I already know that this won't be a permanent position so I'm still looking for something in Chicago, New York, or some other large city (hopefully where it's warm all year). What this new job will really do is give me some real world work experience that I had been lacking for my field when I was doing interviews for jobs late last year. Time and again they would start to ask about relevant work experience and all I really had was a few semesters of volunteer tax work while I was still going to school. I was, unfortunately, shut out of most internship programs because all the big public accounting firms in the region contract with our masters program to get candidates. Thus leaving only a handful of industry opportunities for those of us not taking the program because we'll have all the credits we could possibly need for the CPA exam.

I also opened a rather large box from amazon.com today which included all my study materials for the CPA exam. I'll be applying for my notice to schedule sometime this week and I'll hopefully have my exams taken care of by the time my lease is up at the end of the summer. Doing well on these and the GMAT, which I plan to take sometime this summer as well, will probably be deciding factors in my plans for at least the next few years.