States Suffer, Wall Street Parties

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) reported last month that 47 states are facing budget shortfalls. The CBPP has called it “a fiscal crisis of historic proportions.”

Investigating the extent to which the economic crisis and its impact on state budgets has forced new hardships on the most vulnerable members of the population, the CBPP has reported that “At least 40 states have cut a range of services, including those aimed at some of their most vulnerable residents.”

The list of cuts is staggering, The CBPP writes that “At least 18 states have enacted or implemented cuts that will affect low-income families’ eligibility for health insurance or reduce their access to health care; at least 18 states and Washington, D.C. are cutting medical, rehabilitative, home care, or other services needed by low-income people who are elderly or have disabilities; at least 21 states are cutting K-12 and early education; and at least 28 states have implemented cuts to public colleges and universities. Also, at least 37 states and Washington, D.C. have proposed or implemented cuts to their state workforce.”

In an effort to balance budgets, state governments have started laying off state workers, including those responsible for evaluating and approving disability claims. Social Security Commissioner Michael J. Astrue acknowledged that the decision to lay off state workers responsible for disability claims was “completely illogical,” pointing out that states ultimately do not save any money. The federal government, he said, reimburses states for the cost of any disability benefits paid out as well as the salaries of those workers overseeing such decisions. The decision to dismiss workers in this field is particularly destructive due to a recent increase in requests for disability benefits.

Leaders in state government continually point to federal stimulus money as a means of coping with such difficulties. However, the funding guaranteed by the federal government is woefully inadequate for confronting the crisis at hand. The CBPP estimates that only 40 percent of the shortfall in state budgets across the US could be filled by federal aid.

Things could not be more clear. While no expense can be spared to bail out the Wall Street elite and financial speculators who have contributed to the crisis currently leading the world into an economic catastrophe, the working class is being forced to accept the most drastic assaults on their living standards and basic necessities.

The Market Is The Answer To The Economy

The Dean of the College of Business at the University of Southern Mississippi believes the best hope for the United States is that the stock market begins rebounding next year.

Personally, I think that is just trying to build false confidence.  Consumption is the only way to build the economy….so the creation of demand is the answer….but to insist that banks begin loaning money again is just to start the whole process that put us where we are today, all over again.  The American consumer is a credit addict and making it easy to obtain the drug will not help.

Yes government spending is a necessity for a kick start of economic growth but it should be more consumer based….the more disposable income the consumer has the more spending they will do and then the the more demand will be created.

We can put up graph after graph…but it will make little sense or little difference….it is NOT rocket science….demand creates growth.

Do You Want Someone To Blame?

The economic crisis we are facing has many ugly side effects, unemployment, foreclosure, recession, etc.  The people of the state of Mississippi are facing the unemployment rate of 9.2% and the likelihood of it going higher, loss of state revenue that could cause state cuts in much needed programs.  The stim package is coming, but I do not think it will be near enough to help us out of our dilemma.

But as Americans we need someone to blame and as Mississippians we definitely need to know who is to blame.  So if you are struggling with the economy, or unemployed or facing foreclosure and your 401k is just about worthless, there are some from Mississippi that are to blame.

Back in 2000 the US Congress passed the Financial Sercvices Modernization Act which basically deregulated the banking industry, which made room for hedge funds and corporations that got too big to fail and in turn set the economy up for the crap we are now experiencing.

Of Mississippi’s congress people who voted for the Act…..both Senators Lott and Cchran and the now senator Pickering voted to deregulate the banks so they could screw the economy.  Rep. Taylor was the only Mississippian to vote NO on the act.

So you really want someone to blame?  The remaining culprits of Pickering and Cochran are still playing games with the lives of Mississippians…will you hold them responsible?

Barbour Delivers GOP Response

“Hi, I’m Haley Barbour. It’s budget time for a lot of states, and we governors, Republicans and Democrats alike, are working to balance our budgets.

“Though the stimulus package spends an incredible amount of money, with some of it going to state governments, the mandates about how we have to spend much of that money, plus the severe drop in most states’ revenue, mean all governors are preparing a wide variety of significant spending cuts to balance our budgets.

“With the federal government it’s just the opposite: President Obama’s budget spends too much, taxes too much and borrows too much.

“It’s breathtaking: The new Administration’s budget for next year alone calls for a one point two TRILLION dollar deficit … nearly triple any past federal deficit.

“While families are cutting back, President Obama has proposed a massive government spending spree. It reminds me of how one of our old senators used to joke about the federal budget. He said it was like a newborn baby: insatiable appetite at one end and total irresponsibility at the other.  (there is that good old boy sense of humor)

“This astronomical record federal deficit would be accompanied by the largest tax increases in history. But trillions of new taxes won’t nearly cover all the new spending, so our children and grandchildren will be saddled with trillions more in debt.

“And this budget blowout comes on top of the debt for the $787 billion Obama stimulus package, the $410 billion omnibus appropriations bill passed by Congress this month, the $300 billion the Federal Reserve said this week it would spend to buy U.S. government bonds, and the $750 billion the Fed announced just Wednesday it would spend to buy mortgage-backed securities. Trillions and trillions in new spending mean record tax increases and record government debt.

“The cap and trade tax and other energy taxes will drive up both electricity and gasoline prices for families and for businesses. And while Wall Street gets trillions to bail them out, small businesses will get stuck with not only income tax increases but also enormous cost increases for energy: for electricity and gasoline. Families will get clobbered, too.

“Don’t take my word for it; listen to what Barack Obama himself told The San Francisco Chronicle last year, and I quote: Under my plan of cap and trade, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket.

“And President Obama was right. His energy taxes, like the cap and trade tax, will drive energy costs for American families through the roof.

“In this budget season we have choices. While states are controlling spending and balancing their budgets, the Obama budget spends too much, taxes too much and borrows too much. It’s not the right choice for America.”

Why is the GOP using governors who will let their people suffer by refusing stim money as spokesmen for the party?  IMO,  just shows the party for what it really is–a party of rich white guys with a redneck mentality.  No one in the GOP has looked to the future in the past, but now all of a sudden it is a priority…..they are so worried about what will happen in the future…too bad they did not worry about that when they were helping create the problem we have now….huh?

Foreclosures Come To Mississippi

Even Mississippi is not immune to the  problems of the economic crisis.

The number of Mississippi households threatened with losing their homes through foreclosure is up.

That’s according to RealtyTrac, a national firm that lists foreclosed properties.

In February, 294 Mississippi households received at least one foreclosure-related notice, up from 275 in January and 148 in February 2008

The number of homes actually taken back by the lender jumped to 121 in February from 32 in January and 55 in February 2008.

The figures come despite halts on new foreclosures by several major lenders in advance of President Barack Obama’s plan to stem the foreclosure crisis, which was launched last week.

Mississippi Could Ask For Bailout

As tax revenues for January came in Monday trailing projections, Mississippi’s elected leaders were differing on whether to accept all of potentially more than a billion dollars in federal help that could be on its way.

The state collected $362 million for the general fund in January, according to the state Tax Commission. That’s $24 million, or 6.2 percent, below what was anticipated.

A proposed bailout would bolster budgets in Mississippi, and other states, and pay for everything from infrastructure and education needs to Medicaid. The $819 billion stimulus bill winding its way through Congress has passed the House but has a long way to go before gaining final approval.

House Speaker Billy McCoy said Monday that Mississippi would gain $2.6 billion under the bill and that the state would accept it despite hesitation from Gov. Haley Barbour.

Barbour, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee, said some of the money may include stipulations that change public policy, such as expanding Medicaid or unemployment benefits.

A national recession is affecting Mississippi and making it difficult to balance the state’s budget. Barbour has made two rounds of budget cuts totaling $200 million in the current fiscal year.

January revenues were better than the previous month but still lower than what had been expected.

Total tax collections in December 2008 were 9.5 percent below estimates.

Most of Mississippi’s revenue is from sales taxes. The state collected $10 million less in January than it did in the same month a year ago.

Revenue from gaming and corporate taxes also is down. But state tax officials said individual income taxes were up $2.9 million in January.

The state is $103 million, or 3.9 percent, below projected revenue for the fiscal year that runs through June 30.

There is an answer and it is all so damn easy……but instead the state will go to Washington with its hand out and make whatever changes they must to get the money.  Too bad that the politicians of the state are so closed minded or we could be on firm ground while everyone around us flounders.

A Leading Economic Indicator

Staffers say the Christmas season was the best Pawn Mart 2 has seen in its 13 years in business.

Retail sales doubled, said manager Chad Bourn, who noted similar sales at the company’s Moss Point store.

Bourn attributed the booming business to the sluggish economy, and good deals.

It is a trend that’s happening nationally, as well. A story in the Los Angeles Times in late December noted “two of the nation’s leading publicly traded pawn companies, Ezcorp Inc. and First Cash Financial Services Inc., are among just a handful of stocks that have risen this year, up 31 percent and 20 percent, respectively.”

And it isn’t just pawned-goods sales that are rising.

Many local residents pawned items for spending money before Christmas. Now a majority of customers are getting loans to pay bills from holiday purchases.

“Everybody always spends more than they should,” Pawn Mart’s Bourn said. “After Christmas, everybody’s broke. We’re doing nothing but loaning, loaning, loaning.”

Bourn has been surprised at the items offered as collateral on 30-day loans, such as big-screen televisions. He expects the trend to continue into tax season; then it will flip-flop as people getting refund checks start spending again.

How Silly Can People Get?

With the economy tanking and these people are worried aboiut their ownership of a gun?

The Saturday after Barack Obama was elected president, people jammed Cook’s Gun Shop in Biloxi, eager to purchase the guns they believe might be off-limits beginning next year.

Manager Michael Creel said sales began to increase last year, but really ramped up after the election.

“It started about a year ago when the election started to heat up,” he said. “People were afraid that if the Democrats won they would institute more control on guns. It kept building, and the Saturday after the election it was pandemonium in here.”

Gun-shop owners and managers throughout South Mississippi are reporting similar trends, which also are reflected across the country.

The FBI reported earlier this month that in November it completed more than 1.5 million background checks, a 41.6 percent increase over November 2007 when the agency performed just over 1 million checks.

Obama has said in the past he believes state and local governments should have some say over gun control. He also has said he believes in a “common-sense approach” to curtail the number of illegal guns that end up on the streets.

Those comments have caused gun owners all across the U.S. to buy guns now before any new laws go into effect.

This whole thing is just flippin’ silly…..too much BS from Hollywood and the end of days….personally, I am thionking about how to feed my family without using a gun….Peace.

Casino Revenue Down

The economic crisis is effecting everyone…..how long will it last is the question all are waiting for the answer.

November was the third straight month that revenues at the 11 Coast casinos fell below the 2007 levels.

Numbers just released by the Mississippi Tax Commission show the Coast casinos won $96 million this year compared to $103 million in November 2007.

The River casinos took a much bigger hit from the slow economy, down $12 million in November after falling $7 million in October.

Total earnings for the state were $205 million compared to $225 million in 2007.

I believe that I read that Louisana’s casinos had a 6% rise in profits for the same period.

State Repubs Hold Up “Bailout”

Wicker said in a press statement that the country could not afford to reward bad management with bailouts.

“I opposed this bill because I think it fails to get to the root of the problem. The Big Three were in financial straits before our economy slowed down due to a troubled business structure that ensured they couldn’t compete with other automakers. Now, they have asked for billions of dollars in taxpayer assistance to help survive. While the merits of using taxpayer funds to help save these companies can be debated, the fact is that this proposal falls well short of guaranteeing the needed reforms to keep these companies afloat. The U.S. government simply cannot continue to throw good money after bad using taxpayers’ dollars,” Wicker stated.
“This is an unfortunate reminder that Mississippi is not immune to the global economic slowdown,” wrote Wicker in reaction to the news. Ӆ [W]hile it may have been delayed by the economic downturn, I am confident Mississippi workers will still play an important part of that future.”

Mississippi workers have already played a huge role in allowing foreign auto manufacturers to duck the union presence in their home countries, however.
Mississippi AFL-CIO President Robert Shaffer pointed out that Nissan’s existing Mississippi plant has successfully fought off attempts to unionize since it arrived in 2003, giving them an unfair advantage against its unionized competitors in Detroit.

“What they do is they come to America and start a bidding war between these southern, right-to-work states, and taxpayers wind up subsidizing their arrival by paying for infrastructure and tax subsidies. Then they get to sell a product for less than their American counterparts,” Shaffer said.

The state, according to Gov. Haley Barbour, has already invested about $200 million in infrastructure development at the Blue Springs site while local governments have invested an additional $35 million.  (Keep in mind this is money that is gone)

My question is, how will the state get its money back from Toyota?  What domestic programs suffered to get this deal from Toyota?