This is a radio show too. You can hear it here.
It is Wednesday February 19, 2014.
I am heading to Sarasota, Florida to speak on Thursday to the Sarasota Film Commission about reality TV. Join us if you can.
By the way, Sarasota would be a great place to live and retire to.
But it probably won’t work for me – and many of you.
Why? I think we’re going to need a new country to live in – in about 6 years.
Here’s what I am looking for. Warm weather. A place to play lots of golf. Good medical care since I will be getting into my 60s. Good internet since I will continue to do my analysis work on the media, politics, and the economy.
But why do that in another country? Why can’t I do it in the US? The answer is simple: those things might not exist in the next 6 years – and beyond – in the US.
How do I know that?
Well, I saw all the political ads and interviews about the effect of the Obama Stimulus 5 years ago.
Republicans say it was a disaster.
Democrats say it was a success.
Thankfully, there is Richard Haass. He’s from the Council of Foreign Relations. He wrote a very good book called Foreign Policy Begins at home. You can see my review of it — on informed not inflamed dot-com.
Yesterday morning on Morning Joe he was the only person to discuss the real problem of our economy that both political parties and their media minions refuse to mention.
Haass said, the stimulus was not a raging success, but it wasn’t a disaster either. He quickly proved again both parties are usually wrong at the same time.
But he told another nugget of truth. He said the thing neither party did – or tried to do 5 years ago – was to reign in the financial disaster that is headed our way in about 6 years.
Our entitlements – with no reform – meaning social security, Medicare, and Medicaid – will be a financial tsunami to the US that will bury us. We won’t be able to pay our bills because we’re paying our entitlements and our debts.
In other words, forget about investing in infrastructure, education, technology, or even national security.
Watching the political sniping on the stimulus – from 5 years ago – was too much for me. I realized I don’t want to have to deal with a country that could be doomed. I don’t want to have to deal with a country with no leaders. So, I am thinking about getting out of here.
I know it sounds like I am a quitter, a naysayer, someone who has thrown in the towel.
Sure, but here’s my reasoning of why I can do this. First, I have talked about this for the past 14 years. Look at my past columns and radio shows. Everything I have predicted is now being confirmed by the latest CBO report.
So frankly, I feel slighted. You’re not listening to me. That’s fine. I will take my own advice.
Second, this is quickly becoming the anti-America. I am an American — and I will go out and find the new America. Because I will look for a country with technology and a fresh approach to being a part of the new world economy.
Why is this so different now?
Well, the answer is simple. Politicians are finally affecting our economy.
It took 3 centuries. Lincoln gave stuff away to the opposition to get the 14th amendment passed. LBJ got the voting rights act passed because he gave stuff away too to opposition leaders in the south. Obama had a weak stimulus package because — there is no more stuff to give away.
We need to cut entitlements. We don’t need to cut them for recipients right now. We need to cut them for people like me – in our 50s and younger – because the Republicans are right. We are mortgaging the future of the country.
We’re doing the same with our military budgets. Our wars have created massive future debts of caring for our soldiers and their families. We have weapons programs that are used to fight the Soviet Union in the 1970s and not today’s terrorists because they’re disguised jobs programs for powerful Congressman in certain districts. I know you guys say you hate Keynes but that is nothing but a bastardize version of John Maynard’s theories. And you won’t stop.
But here’s where the Republicans — and the Democrats — are both wrong. No party will do change – because they believe they won’t get re-elected. And they’re right. We are an aging nation. And many baby-boomers will probably vote out anyone who touches their entitlements. Or as the sign, indicative of the Tea Party 5 years ago, read – tell the government to keep their hands off my medicare.
There are two problems here. First, the baby-boomers and those older are scared. And most of them apparently only care about their own destinies. Frankly, many older folks could be protected. It’s people my age that need to sacrifice or cut back or prepare for less entitlement dollars. Second, we have political leaders who are not willing enough to lose an election to do what is right for the country. Why is that? Because running for political office brings you so much money. Thank you, Citizens United.
Sure, the economy is growing again. But that is a tribute to American ingenuity and productivity. We are growing in spite of our political leaders. The real problem is this: Structurally, nothing has changed over the past 30 years.
And, as we have seen with our leaders, they aren’t changing anything.
And again the solutions are very simple. Read Simpson Bowles. To quote Alan Simpson: We Can’t tax, cut, spend, or invest our way out of this. We need to do it all of them.
And there is no political leader with the guts – and maybe the smarts — to do that.
Ultimately, I blame us. So, let me thank you all. First, thanks for giving us political leaders based on their glitzy ads, their shallow talking points given that we swallow without question. Second, thanks for listening to the extremist media like MSNBC or Fox who tell us how to think. Like we should elect someone based on if they would be a nice person at a barbecue. And third, thanks folks for swallowing the half-truth garbage we get from our political parties that act like they are the mullahs of Iran – deciding for us who we can vote for. Greatest country in the world, huh? Yet we resemble Iran politically.
As a result, we have now really screwed up our nation and our economy.
I am doing a financial seminar – for Newsmax — that you can see in the next few days. I talk to a former nuclear scientist who has a new method of investing – that uses big data – and can lead to big gains in a quick period of time. I am looking at this closely. Because I think there is some big money to make over the next few years – before the proverbial fit hits the shan.
Am I joking around here? To be honest, I don’t want to leave the US. And I am also quite optimistic about us as a people. But the more I talk about this, I realize the US has left me and overseas is looking pretty good.
So where are we going? Tell me what country you would head to?
That’s it. Stay informed not inflamed.
Catch you next time.
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