An Important Debate About Government Spending

The following debate covers all the angles on this important topic. It's only a few minutes long but it sure packs the valid points into that time.




Hat tip to Dan Mitchell at International Liberty

If Abbott and Costello Were Economists

By Grant Davies

Today I received a forwarded email from one of our crack staff who keeps an eye out for stuff on the internet that can be used to educate and amuse our readers. I think this one may have been going around for a while but I have never seen it before.

And since I am interested in economics, and even more interested in laughing, I thought this would be a good post to start 2014 off with.

So who's on first? Why, Bud and Lou of course!


COSTELLO: I want to talk about the unemployment rate in America.

ABBOTT: Good subject ... terrible times. It's 7.8%.

COSTELLO: That many people are out of work?

ABBOTT: No, that's 14.7%.

COSTELLO: You just said 7.8%.

ABBOTT: 7.8% Unemployed.

COSTELLO: Right 7.8% out of work.

ABBOTT: No, that's 14.7%.

COSTELLO: Wait a minute. Is it 7.8% or 14.7%?

ABBOTT: 7.8% are unemployed. 14.7% are out of work.

COSTELLO: If you are out of work you are unemployed.

ABBOTT: No, Congress said you cannot count the "Out of Work" as the unemployed. You have to look for work to be unemployed.

COSTELLO: But THEY are out of work!

ABBOTT: No, you miss his point.

COSTELLO: What point?

ABBOTT: Someone who doesn't look for work can't be counted with those who look for work. It wouldn't be fair.

COSTELLO: To whom?

ABBOTT: The unemployed.

COSTELLO: But all of them are out of work.

ABBOTT: No, the unemployed are actively looking for work. Those who are out of work gave up looking and if you give up, you are no longer in the ranks of the unemployed.

COSTELLO: So if you're off the unemployment roles that would count as less unemployment?

ABBOTT: Unemployment would go down. Absolutely!

COSTELLO: The unemployment just goes down because you don't look for work?

ABBOTT: Absolutely it goes down. That's how they get it to 7.8%. Otherwise it would be 14.7%. Our government does not want you to read about 14.7% unemployment.

COSTELLO: That would be tough on those running for reelection.

ABBOTT: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: Wait, I got a question for you. That means there are two ways to bring down the unemployment number?

ABBOTT: Two ways is correct.

COSTELLO: Unemployment can go down if someone gets a job?

ABBOTT: Correct.

COSTELLO: And unemployment can also go down if you stop looking for a job?

ABBOTT: Bingo.

COSTELLO: So there are two ways to bring unemployment down, and the easier of the two is to have people stop looking for work.

ABBOTT: Now you're thinking like an Economist.

COSTELLO: I don't even know what the hell I just said!

ABBOTT: Now you're thinking like Congress.

Hat Tip To Staff Researcher Jerry Vandenberg for finding this gem.

Dreaming of Sugarplums

I had a dream about how to fix Obamacare. Then I woke up and realized that it was only a dream about the pajama-boy. Oh well, not all dreams come true but we can keep on dreaming anyway.

If Health Insurance was Coffee

By Grant Davies

When our crack staff finds cool videos that our readers will want to see, we usually put them on the side bar and leave them for a few weeks so all can enjoy. Some however, are so good that we feature them right here in middle of the wisdom section.

Credit Carl Holzhowser with finding this one. He has been doing a great job lately and we are considering giving him a 50% raise over what he was previously earning on this swell gig.

So grab a cup of coffee and sit back and learn about health insurance in this new world of hopeless change.

Obamacare, It's Laughable for Young People

By Grant Davies

Propaganda is just "facts" you choose to believe because you usually agree with the people who are propagandizing you. The following video is propaganda from the right. But it's funny, and it's mostly true. At least as true as humor can be.

One thing is true as far as I'm concerned; young people (along with the rest of us) are screwed under Obamacare. They just haven't figured it out yet. When it starts they will. But the frog will have already been cooked by the time they figure out that they are the frog.

So here is a humor post. Compliments of Dan Mitchell of course.

The original can be found here, it's more than just this video. A funny look at how Obamacare screws young people.

Zombies and Democrats

Video courtesy of the Heartland Institute

This gives new meaning to the term "Zombie Apocalypse." Maybe we have already had it?

Late Night Talkers Take Aim at Obama and Other Statists

The following collection of jokes is republished with the permission of International Liberty. There are some really funny (or sad, if you choose) jokes about the President. There are also a few about other people who don't know anything about the current tri-fecta of scandals.

May 25, 2013 by Dan Mitchell

I’ve been sharing one-liners from the late-night talk shows for a long time, mostly because I enjoy mocking politicians (and also because the folks at News-max are very good at compiling them).

So I think I have at least a vague sense of where they are coming from. Well, ever since Jay Leno announced that he’s retiring, it sure seems like his jokes have veered in an anti-Obama direction.

Enjoy his latest, as well as contributions from others.

Jay Leno

Time magazine found a picture of President Obama at his high school prom back in 1979. Let me tell you how long ago that was. Back then, Obama had to ask a girl for her phone number. He couldn’t illegally obtain it through the Justice Department.

It is not looking good for President Obama. Today, his teleprompter took the Fifth. In fact, the White House has changed its slogan from “Yes, we can” to “No, I can’t remember.”

The latest scandal in Washington, of course, is raising questions about the IRS. You know, I have a question. Why is it called the Internal Revenue Service? How is having your money confiscated a service?

A Democratic congressman said that he worries that the IRS scandal might have a chilling effect on the IRS and that they might be afraid to audit people. So finally some good is coming out of all of this.

White House officials continue to insist that President Obama knew nothing about the IRS scandal until we all heard about it in the news last week. They said because there was an investigation under way, it would have been inappropriate to tell him. And besides, Obama was too busy not knowing anything about Benghazi.

Anthony Weiner has formally announced he is running for mayor of New York City. He posted a video announcing it just after midnight — and traditionally, being online in the middle of the night has always worked so well for Mr. Weiner.

President Obama gave the commencement address at Morehouse College over the weekend. Great speech, very inspiring. He told the young graduates their future is bright — unless, of course, they want jobs.

The White House admitted President Obama’s chief of staff had advance warning that the IRS was targeting conservative groups. President Obama says the first time he heard about the IRS and AP scandals was from the media. See, that’s why President Obama holds press conferences. It’s not to explain what’s going on. It’s to find out what’s going on.

These White House scandals are not going away any time soon. I’ll tell you how bad it’s looking for President Obama: People in Kenya are now saying he’s 100 percent American.

This week will mark the 37th time House Republicans have tried to repeal Obamacare. If Republicans really wanted to do away with Obamacare they should just endorse it as a conservative non-profit and let the IRS take it down.

President Obama announced the appointment of a new acting commissioner of the IRS — the other guy was fired. See, they’re called “acting commissioner” because you have to act like the scandal doesn’t involve the White House.

A lot of critics are now comparing President Obama to President Nixon. The good news for Obama? At least he’s no longer being compared to President Carter.

This week marks the 40th anniversary of the Watergate hearings. For those of you too young to remember, back then the administration had an enemies list. They were spying on reporters, and they used the IRS to harass groups they didn’t like. Thank God those days are gone forever.

A lot of critics are comparing President Obama to President Richard Nixon, which is unfair. Nixon’s unemployment rate was only 5 percent.

Today the White House unveiled its latest high-tech weapon: the IRS audit.

I love what IRS commissioner Steve Miller said today about this whole targeting conservative groups thing. He said, “Mistakes were made, but they were in no way made with a political or partisan motivation.” Yeah, “Mistakes were made” — try saying THAT during your next IRS audit.

David Letterman

I feel bad for Barack Obama. He’s got the Benghazi scandal, the IRS scandal, and the FBI wiretapping phones. The president is in so much trouble politically, he’s thinking about killing bin Laden again.

Have you folks been paying attention to what’s going on in Washington? In a matter of six weeks we have three big scandals, and it looks like President Obama and all his buddies in the White House may go to prison. Finally, some good news for the Romney campaign.

People always say this to me: “Hey, Letterman,” they say. “Why don’t you make jokes about Obama?” All right, I’ll tell you why. I don’t make jokes about him. Because I don’t want the FBI tapping my phone, that’s why.

Conan

A new international poll finds that the least popular country in the world is Iran. After hearing this, North Korea said, “What do we have to do?”

During a Senate hearing yesterday, Senator John McCain said it was too hard to always have to update apps on his iPhone. No one has the heart to tell him the device he was holding was a garage door opener.

President Obama is in a lot of hot water lately. Despite the scandals, 53 percent of Americans say they approve of the job he’s doing. The other 47 percent are being audited.

A new report just came out. It says someone close to the president knew about the IRS scandal and kept his mouth shut. In other words, we can rule out Joe Biden.

In a new interview, Joe Biden says he spends four or five hours every day with President Obama. In response, Obama said hiring that Obama impersonator was the best decision he’s ever made.

Since President Obama took office, the Democratic Party has lost nine governorships, 56 members of Congress, and two Senate seats. In his defense, Obama said, “Well, I did promise change.”

Jimmy Fallon

Time magazine just released a picture of a 17-year-old President Obama with his prom date. They would’ve published a picture of Joe Biden with his prom date, but his mom didn’t want to be photographed.

A woman in New Jersey just found her missing dog after she grilled pork in her backyard and he came home because of the smell. Unfortunately, he was immediately shoved out of the way by Governor Chris Christie.

Vice President Joe Biden met with two undocumented immigrants this week to promote the new immigration bill. When they learned they had to sit down with Biden, they went ahead and deported themselves.

These scandals at the White House are just getting worse. It turns out that President Obama’s chief of staff knew about the scandal at the IRS three weeks before the president found out. Obama was like, “Anything else you guys aren’t telling me?” And Joe Biden was like, “Uh . . . I broke the copier.”

Eagles’ offensive lineman Evan Mathis posted a picture on Instagram that shows him relieving himself on an IRS building with a caption that says, “Audit this!” Or as the IRS said, “OK, see you tomorrow at noon.”

President Obama is not having a good week. With three scandals shaking the White House, they’re saying this is one of the worst weeks of Obama’s presidency. Obama was like, “How could things get worse?” And Joe Biden was like, “You rang?”

It was just revealed that the Department of Justice secretly recorded the phone calls of AP journalists for two months. Obama promised reporters that the incident will be immediately investigated — by the Department of Justice.

Craig Feruson

The IRS has a new boss after it came out they unfairly targeted tea party groups. The president says the new IRS chief is not only good with numbers, but he has more integrity than the last guy. The new guy is Bernie Madoff.

How to Write Good

Deck the Halls with Macro Follies

With all the recent stories of people stealing Christmas gifts;

• the theft of the baby Jesus figure from the nativity scene,
• the men who followed the UPS truck to steal the Christmas packages that were being delivered,
• and the thief who stole all the donated gifts from the church,

I thought I would join in the fun and steal another video from Dan Mitchell and give it to all of you for Christmas. That clears up my list!

So here is the great vid full of wonderful songs for the holidays that I carted away from his site. They are about my favorite subject. You guessed it... Keynesian economics!

Merry Christmas!

Good News For Business Due to the Election

My friend "TJ" was kind enough to send me an email pointing out some good news in the stock market yesterday. As the prices melted down over three hundred points on the day after the election results were announced, he noticed that the price of one stock was moving higher. The shares which were going up were those of....drum roll....Smith and Wesson!

We shared an on-line laugh over the story. We both have a "different" sense of humor I guess. But when our friend Dan Mitchell of The Cato Institute, wrote the following piece on his blog, International Liberty today, I knew I had to share it.

Like much of what Dan writes, it's funny as hell as well as informative. So I reprint it here today so you can enjoy it too, and maybe pass it along to your friends. And as an extra treat I have included a video taken from his site as well. It's freakin' hilarious. At least to me, since I have this "different" sense of humor. Be sure to watch it. If you laugh, you might be "different" too.


An IQ Test for Criminals and Liberals

November 8, 2012 by Dan Mitchell

A lot of people say Obama is anti-business, but there’s one part of the American economy that is delighted that he got reelected.

No, I’m not talking about bankruptcy lawyers or corrupt lobbyists, though those would be good guesses.

The real winners from Obama’s re-election are America’s gun manufacturers and gun sellers.

Not that I’ve looked at any data. I’m just basing this on the comments I’ve heard over the past few years and the up-tick in such comments in the past 36 hours.

But I’m quite confident that the overall firearms industry has profited from Obama’s tenure.

Anyway, the great economist Frederic Bastiat teaches us to look at both direct and indirect effects (or, as he put it, the “seen” and “unseen”), so I want to highlight a disadvantaged group that will suffer as a result of the Obama-induced increase in gun sales.

Yes, I’m talking about criminals.

To understand the point I’m trying to make, we’re going to do a thought experiment.

Start by closing your eyes and thinking about someone you know who has worked hard, saved some money, bought a nice house, and filled that house with nice things for the family to enjoy.

Now tell yourself, “I want those things as well.”

But you also think, “Damned if I’m going to wake up early every day like that chump and bust my rear end to earn a good life.”

Instead, you decide it’s okay to take things that don’t belong to you, even if it involves some coercion.

So what’s your next step?

No, this isn’t a thought experiment about voting for Obama. Besides, the election is over.

Close your eyes again and think about how you would obtain things that don’t belong to you and without using the government as the middleman.

What would you do? Well, you might beg the person to give you things.

But that might be a bit awkward or demeaning, and the person might say no.

That leaves burglary as your only option. Sort of a private sector version of income redistribution.

Now we get to the key point in our thought experiment.

You sneak up to the house with the nice things and you suddenly see a sign.

Here’s a quiz. What do you do after seeing this sign?

a. break into the house because you once heard a politician or journalist assert that gun ownership doesn’t deter crime?

b. decide after a bit of reflection about potential costs and benefits that it might be more prudent to find another house to rob?

If you need some help with the answer, think about the meaning of this cartoon.

And if you still don’t comprehend, then congratulations. You deserve a starring role in this video.

 

Obama Supporter Interviews Herself

Okay, here's a really funny anti-Obama video. I know our liberal Democrat readers will hate it (and me) for running it. Both of them.

But since I think we really need a sense of humor to get through these bad times and into the next bad times, I run the ones I think are funny. Regular readers know I'm no fan of Mitt Romney's vision for more big government "solutions" to societal problems so I'm looking for funny anti-Mitt videos too in order to be an equal opportunity basher. If come across any (or you send me some) and I laugh out loud at them, I'll run them too.

Meanwhile, in the spirit of an aging Clint Eastwood interviewing an empty chair (representing an empty suit in the White House) at the recent GOP self congratulation and coronation convention, here is a pretend Obama supporter interviewing herself in a YouTube video.

It's pretty funny until you realize that it's pretty close to the truth about how a lot of people feel concerning their vote for BHO four years ago. It's even more entertaining when you realize that it absolutely drives the hard core liberals insane while they watch it. I can visualize their veins bulging out, and that's a neat visual.

Hat tip to Fitz for sending the link.

PS.. There is an anti-Mitt video on the sidebar for your entertainment, just to be fair 'ya know. Because it's all about fairness.

Obama and the Malfunctioning Home Teleprompter

I don't care what political team you are rooting for or what your tribal affiliation is, Red teamers and Blue teamers who don't think this video from The Onion is humorous might need a check-up on their funny bone.

(Check first to see if the visit is covered under Obamacare.)

Green Eggs and Ham ala Dan Mitchell

by Dan Mitchell

In my efforts to promote liberty, I’ve noticed that some people seem impervious to logical arguments and empirical evidence.

Since they have a child-like faith in government, perhaps the best way to reach them is with updated versions of children’s stories and fables.

I’ve already shared the PC version of the story about the ant and the grasshopper, as well as the modern fable about bureaucracy, featuring an ant and a lion. Now it’s time for a revised version of Green Eggs and Ham.

I do not like this Uncle Sam,
I do not like his health care scam.

I do not like these dirty crooks,
or how they lie and cook the books.

I do not like when Congress steals,
I do not like their secret deals.

I do not like ex-speaker Nan,
I do not like this ‘YES, WE CAN!’

I do not like this spending spree —
Even a fool knows that nothing’s free.

I do not like the smug replies,
when we complain about their lies.

I do not like this kind of hope.
I do not like it, I’m not a dope!

If your left-wing friends understand this fable, then you can see if they’re ready for more advanced stories, such as the one about using beer to explain the tax system, the joke about using two cows to explain various economic and political systems.

At some point, after years of therapy and education, maybe they’ll even be ready for grown-up analysis!

Dan Mitchell is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute 
He blogs at International Liberty
His articles are republished here from time to time with his express permission.

How Obama Really Is

Not long ago a post on this blog went mini-viral with one of these type cartoons. They are appearing everywhere on the net and seem to cover almost every subject. The one we posted was about libertarians and it was a big hit because the readership we enjoy is largely made up of freedom lovers.

I just saw this one on the popular blog "The Left Coast Rebel" and it I loved it because it shows how attitudes haven't changed regarding the current President over the last three years. Just as important, it's funny as hell and there's just a smidgen of truth to it.   

Hat tip to "RightKlik"

You Can Learn a Lot From Body Language

Keep your chin up.

El Duce

and

 El Duce Bag

Sorry if I offended anyone,,,,umm,,never mind.

Obama - Caught in the Dragnet

You might have to be a person of a certain age (really old) to remember this hugely popular TV show from the 50s and early 60s. But it's funny, no matter what age or political persuasion you happen to be.

That's because it's clever. At least I think so.

Hat tip to Dale for sending this gem.

This Story Stinks

Lots of things the government does stinks to high heaven, but a story I read today on Dan Mitchell's excellent blog, International Liberty, sets a new standard on the "malodorous" scale. It's a story about farting, of all things.

This is a polite blog for the most part, but you'll have to beg our pardon for releasing this story. (Pun intended) It's really a story about how goofy, and even dangerous, it gets when government employees - in this case teachers - over-react to the kind of thing that wouldn't even get the disciplinarian involved back when I was in school. Teachers used to handle this kind of stuff with a dunce cap in those days, but I digress.

It seems that a student used some "country" nomenclature to describe what he had done in the library when nature called and it resulted in eleven different government agencies responding to the "emergency" and his arrest for his doodling about "dropping a bomb" among the books. Here is the way the tale appears on Dan's site:

"Harold Wayne Hadley, Jr., 19, was arrested at a Mississippi junior college after he allegedly wrote a note on a piece of toilet paper on Tuesday, containing the word ‘bomb,’ according to Weirdnews.net. The note prompted 11 emergency agencies to respond to the school, but there was no bomb. Hadley and his family contend that he was only explaining the joy of flatulating in the library. “He was in the restroom doodling on some toilet paper … we are from the country, and he calls passing gas, bombs,” said Hadley’s aunt, who wouldn’t give her name to WDAM. ”[He] put ‘I passed a bomb in the library,’ talking about passing gas, and somebody came in and found it, gave it to a teacher that recognized his hand writing and it blew all out of proportion.” …Hadley was arrested and held on $20,000 bail. If convicted of threatening to blow up the school, he faces 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine,according to WAPT."

I'm guessing he won't get a guilty verdict or even face trial once the authorities smell the coffee instead of the gaseous stupidity of their over-reaction. In his piece, Dan goes on to address a lot of very valid questions about the actual issues this whole mess brings up, so I'll let him raise a stink about it over at his blog and I suggest you read the rest of it because like all the of his posts, it's terrific.

Which brings up a perfect segue for my next request. Although many of you already know, for those you who drop by here only occasionally, I have started a new blog and invite you to click on the link and help me launch it. It's called Cheeky History and if you enjoyed the style I wrote this article with you might enjoy it. It's a non-political spot where you can spend about thirty seconds a day learning some tidbits about "what happened on this day in history" with my own cheeky spin on them.

I'm having some fun writing the blurbs and I'm hoping folks might enjoy reading them. If you do, by all means leave a comment and let me know. If you think it stinks as much as what happened in the story above, well, just do what you usually do when you are in the library and someone "drops a bomb", make a squinchy face and leave as fast as you can.

Is Obama from Keynesa?

Did you hear the one about the economist who walks into a bar with an imbecile on his arm? The bartender asks him.......

What Libertarians Do

Nuff said.

Click to enlarge

Cheeky History - The New Blog Feature

2/12/12

In 1809 on this day a man evolved from a monkey and entered into this world.  His parents named him Charlie. In adulthood, Mr. and Mrs. Darwin's bouncing boy went on to have a theory about how animals got to be the way they are and it changed the world. Along the way his theory pissed off a lot of religious people and a controversy started that continues to this day. He got so famous they named an award after him.

I'm of the minority opinion (again) because I could never understand what all the fuss was about. It always seemed to me that if a guy was powerful enough to create all the heavens and everything in them, he probably could fashion the method of creating new species in any manner that caught his fancy.

Oh yeah, and Abraham Lincoln was born on this day too. And so was a dancer named Anna Pavlova, whose dog couldn't stop drooling whenever she busted a move. Oops! The dog actually belonged to some guy with a similar name. My bad.

The above is yesterday's entry to the new blog feature. It's just an introduction to my newest brainstorm. One I hope will be fun and lighthearted and mostly non-political. Imagine, a whole new audience made up of those who are weary of politics! Even Democrats and liberals might enjoy it.


I'm having fun toying with the ideas and even thinking of making a new blog out of it. So please let me know what you think by taking the poll on the right or drop me an email. I hope you enjoy it.