Thursday, February 12, 2009

The End of the Private Sector?

There are some reports that government jobs have become the most attractive employment opportunities in the current economic downturn. Indeed, it's gotten to the point that the Washington, D.C., public sector - Congress and the executive branch - has become the primary agent of job creation in the United States, either directly or indirectly:

Big government is walking away as the knock-out winner over the private sector in the latest financial crisis. Washington spinmeisters have placed the blame for the crisis on too much capitalism and too little regulation, with no blame left over for Washington's own bad regulatory, monetary and tax policies.

The solution offered by big government is even bigger government. If unchecked, the Washington "fix" for the financial crisis would create its biggest power expansion since the New Deal.
My thoughts were drawn to this question of government employment and economic survival after reading this post at Incertus:

I'm actually starting to get offended by the rhetoric about how we need private-sector, not public-sector, jobs from whatever stimulus plan we hatch.

First of all, jobs are jobs and we need them, so let's get them all "stimulated" and into action. But secondly, can I just say that the only people I know who are secure in their jobs are people with government jobs? My friends, family, and students working for private companies or for themselves are getting hosed. Those of us working for the county, state, and country are relatively secure.

So why would private sector jobs be, in these uncertain times, preferable to public sector ones?
The sheer ignorance in this essay is astounding. No one dismisses the deep economic dislocation facing the country. But this idea that we don't need "private sector jobs" and that "friends, family, and students" are getting "hosed" by private employers is simply astounding.

I'm reminded of the recent essay by Stephen Moore at the Wall Street Journal, "
'Atlas Shrugged': From Fiction to Fact in 52 Years," where he suggests the current economic crisis is demonstrating the profound wisdom and insight of novelist Ayn Rand.

Note
this passage Moore cites in particular:
One memorable moment in "Atlas" occurs near the very end, when the economy has been rendered comatose by all the great economic minds in Washington. Finally, and out of desperation, the politicians come to the heroic businessman John Galt (who has resisted their assault on capitalism) and beg him to help them get the economy back on track. The discussion sounds much like what would happen today:

Galt: "You want me to be Economic Dictator?"

Mr. Thompson: "Yes!"

"And you'll obey any order I give?"

"Implicitly!"

"Then start by abolishing all income taxes."

"Oh no!" screamed Mr. Thompson, leaping to his feet. "We couldn't do that . . . How would we pay government employees?"

"Fire your government employees."

"Oh, no!"

Abolishing the income tax. Now that really would be a genuine economic stimulus. But Mr. Obama and the Democrats in Washington want to do the opposite: to raise the income tax "for purposes of fairness" as Barack Obama puts it.

""Oh, no!" We can't get rid of those government employees! Otherwise they might get "hosed" by the endlessly greedy capitalist roaders! AAAHHH!!!!

This economy's going to come back in the next year or two, but it won't because of Barack Obama and the Democrats created more "public sector jobs." At some point the left's socialist-regulatory state will kill the economy altogether and Rand's vision of economic calamity and social pandemonium won't be fiction.

But don't tell that to
the radical leftists attacking Rand's philosophies. Nope, the more government the better - that's the ticket to prosperity!

See also, Tigerhawk, "
Is it Time to Re-Read Atlas Shrugged?"

6 comments:

  1. Since almost all the public sector jobs created by the stimulus are designed to aid "families" like Nadya Suleman, this bill needs a name.
    The Octomom Stimulus Bill of 2009

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  2. Sweating,

    I don't know of a single other family even remotely like Nadya Suleman"s family but I do know that many families need help. I support the economic recovery plan and I wish that I shared Professor Douglas's optimism that the "economy's going to come back in the next year or two."

    I think that this economic downturn has been years in the making and it will not be turned around quickly.

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  3. Take the principles of the book - they're sound. The left in office cannot let go. They are driven to expand Government, increase control. They will never freely "choose". They will never ask for help from free enterprise experts. It doesn't even matter the effect on the economy and the people - communists don't let go.

    Obama, I would guess, is going to move hard communist within the first 6 months. He's already moving to nationalize the banks with 2.5 trillion dollars. It's to force communism. Next step?? Create a crisis that requires martial law. There are going to be diverse ways. The collapse of the economy accelerating creating riots - so martial law in response. (not stabilizing - it won't... more jobs will be lost in acceleration) Or, a terrorist attack on our shores... or a perceived threat of one. He'll move to some form of propaganda to create tight controls on people and liberty. People will think, "No... that wouldn't happen." We're not 30 days in - and he's moving to nationalize ALL banks... and has created a communist vehicle of the "stimulus package". He's going to go for totalitarianism. He really is. Why? Communism is his passion... his drive... along with other things.

    Anyway, the red state legislatures are going to vote to secede. When Obama moves to institute communism with a supermajority in Congress - it will either be secession or communism.

    ?? to others. Given the choice between the secession of the red states in state legislature votes... or communism in a national/global socialist UNITED States of America -- would you vote to stay in a communist United States of America to preserve the union... or would you secede with the red states or move there??

    Because the only way out is by decisive action. The left is not going to ask for help from the right... though I do believe the increased collapse of the economy is coming. It takes something powerful to preserve freedom when communism is rammed through DC onto the States and people of those States.

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  4. Purple,

    No argument that families need help. But we are not helping them - we're borrowing money from foreigners to do so, and it is a situation that cannot be sustained.

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  5. You know, Donald, you made absolutely no point here. All you did was just rewrite what other people already wrote. Why bother? If all you're going to do is regurgitate points that others were already regurgitating from Ayn Rand, why bother saying anything? It was bad enough when Rand was wrong the first time. You score no points by repeating her unworkable theories.

    And just as a clue: There's no stimulus effect of cutting income taxes if businessmen aren't making profits. We get in recessions because people aren't spending money. And if they're not spending money, then businesses don't make profits. And if they're not making profits, they're not paying income tax. And if they're not paying income tax, then cutting their income tax bill won't get them to spend more, because they weren't paying anything in the first place. And so we're stuck in the same boat we started in. Do you guys even try to understand this stuff, or is it strictly regurgitation?

    And once again, you smear me as a "radical leftist" without ever discussing how I was wrong. I thoroughly trashed Rand's "theory," yet all you can do is label me as a leftist and imagine you scored a point. I guess you'll just have to wait until Stephen Moore attacks me before you'll know what to say.

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  6. I'm just an old country boy. I can take a dollars worth of change and teach you economics, the reality of money and taxation, but you'd have to have some intelligence. Yes Virginia getting rid of taxes is a stimulus. Only one who chooses to be ignorant really is. The truth is that all in government who choose to spend more money than we have and make a communist nation our largest creditor (why do we even have a creditor?) need to be hung for treason. Re-distribution of wealth?
    Taking what I make and give it to those who refuse to get up and earn? Boy, if I had no sense of self worth I'd sign up. No pride no self worth no self respect. Sounds like today's politician. The next time I hear one of these politician's compare themselves to a president prior to the 1900's I'll speak out again. Those men would have challenged them to a duel for being the thieving scum they are. If it was allowed I'd do it myself, but in our new utopia calling an ace an ace is not allowed, how ironic. Which one of the vermin decided that? So much wrong and so many morons in power... LDC

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