Private Investment vs Public "Investment"

We hear our anti-capitalist Dear Leader attack investment bankers as evil, though he doesn't use the word. That’s his “evil empire”; not enemies of freedom but venture investment companies like Bain Capital. Our Dear Leader is forever talking about the government (him and Democrats) investing “in our children”, “in health care”, “in manufacturing”, and most importantly “in green jobs”.

Well, let’s do a comparison. Here’s the “investments” by Obama in the “green energy” industry:

Evergreen Solar
SpectraWatt
Solyndra (received $535 million)
Beacon Power (received $43 million)
AES’ subsidiary Eastern Energy
Nevada Geothermal (received $98.5 million)
SunPower (received $1.5 billion)
First Solar (received $1.46 billion)
Babcock & Brown (an Australian company which received $178 million)
Ener1 (subsidiary EnerDel received $118.5 million)
Amonix (received 5.9 million)
The National Renewable Energy Lab
Fisker Automotive
Abound Solar (received $400 million)
Chevy Volt (taxpayers basically own GM)
Solar Trust of America
A123 Systems (received $279 million)
Willard & Kelsey Solar Group (received $6 million)
Johnson Controls (received $299 million)
Schneider Electric (received $86 million)

All failed. 

About 80% of these companies are in the bag for Obama. “… $16.4 billion of the $20.5 billion in loans granted as of Sept. 15 went to companies either run by or primarily owned by Obama financial backers—individuals who were bundlers, members of Obama’s National Finance Committee, or large donors to the Democratic Party. The grant and guaranteed-loan recipients were early backers of Obama before he ran for president, people who continued to give to his campaigns and exclusively to the Democratic Party in the years leading up to 2008.  Article here.

Here’s a note to your pocketbook. Fossil fuel based energy costs 5 cents per kilowatt hours. “Green” based energy costs 35 cents an hour.  Obama is on vid saying he wants to drive energy costs up. His energy policy by design is to raise the amount of $money it takes to warm and cool your house, and purchase gas and oil for your car. 

Bain Capitol was involved in 77 companies between 1984 and 1999; 22 percent of them failed within that period Romney worked there. Some of the companies included AMC Entertainment, Aspen Education Group, Brookstone, Burger King, Burlington Coat Factory, Clear Channel Communications, Domino's Pizza, DoubleClick, Dunkin' Donuts, D&M Holdings, Guitar Center, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), Sealy, The Sports Authority, Staples, Toys "R" Us, Warner Music Group and The Weather Channel.  Some pretty good investments and lots of jobs were generated.  Certainly more than Obama's "investments" listed above. Of course Obama’s “investments” have cost $billions and tens of thousands of jobs have been lost. In case you're wondering, I'm putting "investments" in scare quotes because they aren't, they're payoffs for crony capitalism. 

Much grief was given Romney, even by some Republicans, most notably by Rick Perry and Newt Gringrich during the Republican Presidential Debates. For some reason they thought if an investment failed no profit should be taken.  That money gets reinvested too, so it’s a wash there. On the other hand Bain used money from private sources they raised by being so competent people were willing to trust them with their money to the tune of $billions. On the other hand, Obama and the Dems used money confiscated (through taxation), borrowed from unfriendly foreign countries, and printed, to finance companies with no demand for their products and services, and in the case of car companies were failing due to stupid management.

We have a president and political party that use tax payer money (not their own put at risk) to “invest” in private companies. That’s okay. But a man that gains the trust of others, and risks his own money to invest is not okay.  Go figure.

Explanation of Right to Left Government and the Consequences

This is a good presentation of politics, the political spectrum (usually mischaracterized) and how it influences freedom and capital.

http://youtu.be/SBlCyeurT9Y

“The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground.” 
Thomas Jefferson 

Simple Explanation of Our Economic Problems

This is the most simple explanation of the dire straits our economy is in. It's a Left vs Conservative view of the problem and solutions without the yelling. Well worth 12min.

http://youtu.be/iwJTORFuG6g


Of course the politicians won't fix the problem. Just look at the beating Paul Ryan takes for even marginal solutions to the problem. 

"Make Mine Freedom" ~ 1948

Lessons in free minds and free markets

Crises of Capitalism (vid)

This is the most entertaining and creative Marxist view of the current international financial situation. Well worth the watch, for both Capitalists and Marxists.

Obama and His Populism

What happens when someone with no experience, who hasn't done anything or accomplished anything that builds character, wisdom, and knowledge, gains a position of immense power? He plays with words, manipulates emotions, attacks and blames. Eventually no one trusts him.

Columnist Bob Herbert, Suporter of Obama:

"Mr. Obama may be personally very appealing, but he has positioned himself all over the political map: the anti-Iraq war candidate who escalated the war in Afghanistan; the opponent of health insurance mandates who made a mandate to buy insurance the centerpiece of his plan; the president who stocked his administration with Wall Street insiders and went to the mat for the banks and big corporations, but who is now trying to present himself as a born-again populist.

Mr. Obama is in danger of being perceived as someone whose rhetoric, however skillful, cannot always be trusted. He is creating a credibility gap for himself, and if it widens much more he won’t be able to close it.

Mr. Obama promised during the campaign that he would be a different kind of president, one who would preside over a more open, more high-minded administration that would be far more in touch with the economic needs of ordinary working Americans. But no sooner was he elected than he put together an economic team that would protect, above all, the interests of Wall Street, the pharmaceutical industry, the health insurance companies, and so on."

Full article here.

Obama's latest response to our fiscal woes is to attack banks.

The result is that over 70% of Americans think he's anti-business, and 77% of businessmen thinks he's anti-business. Does Obama really think that after bailing out financial institutions, he can turn on them with targeted tax penalties and regulations? Will businessmen and entrepreneurs trust him and increase business and hire new people? Will they if they believe that for their efforts Obama will go after them and take their profits? Note to Obama and Statists; profits are needed to grow business and hire people. No one gets jobs, belay that, only government types get jobs, with this policy. What does government produce that generates wealth?

The "spending freeze" is a red herring. At best it'll begin in fiscal year 2011, and it won't have to be put into effect until 2012 or 2013 or 2014. What we're looking at too is $120 Billion in savings over 10 years, measured against a $12 Trillion debt. Peeing in the ocean will have as much an effect. The projected debt by the end of Obama's first term will be $14-$16 Trillion.

What little Obama understands about capitalism he hates. He has about a third of the country behind him on that. Posturing as a populist with empty words, attacking banks, insurance companies, corporations and small business just doesn't work. Americans, if nothing else, are practical. Obama is not.

Government-Managed Capitalism: A Love Story (vid)

A small note to refute the huge novel of lies about capitalism fostered by that master of lies, Michael Moore.