Politics

[NDFANnSouthWest]

Doing nothing to help these people and advocating to send them back into hellish violence fundamentally changes this country. Helping the helpless is what makes this country great. Abandon that and we no longer have a claim to being exceptional in any way.

Where did I say do nothing? Treat them and send them back.....

So can we send them to your city? House....Give me your address.

 

[GoIrish41]

Where did I say do nothing? Treat them and send them back.....

So can we send them to your city? House....Give me your address.

Sending them back is doing nothing. The United States is massive and the number of people we are talking about would not fill ND's stadium for a saturday afternoon game. We live in the greatest nation in the world and you are suggesting these people coming here will break us. That is illogical unless you feel we are already on the ropes. We are not. I contend we should stop telling the world how exceptional we are and start putting our money where our mouth is. We are only as great as our reactions to crisis and your suggested reaction exposes tens of thousand people to horrific violence because we would rather not foot the bill to help them.

 

[NDFANnSouthWest]

Sending them back is doing nothing. The United States is massive and the number of people we are talking about would not fill ND's stadium for a saturday afternoon game. We live in the greatest nation in the world and you are suggesting these people coming here will break us. That is illogical unless you feel we are already on the ropes. We are not. I contend we should stop telling the world how exceptional we are and start putting our money where our mouth is. We are only as great as our reactions to crisis and your suggested reaction exposes tens of thousand people to horrific violence because we would rather not foot the bill to do help them.

17 Trillion in debt....where is the money coming from? Oh ya the US credit card.

From my stand point if people want to come to US that is fine, come here the legal way and stand in line that many of my friends have done.

 

[Cackalacky]

 

[EddytoNow]

Sending them back is doing nothing. The United States is massive and the number of people we are talking about would not fill ND's stadium for a saturday afternoon game. We live in the greatest nation in the world and you are suggesting these people coming here will break us. That is illogical unless you feel we are already on the ropes. We are not. I contend we should stop telling the world how exceptional we are and start putting our money where our mouth is. We are only as great as our reactions to crisis and your suggested reaction exposes tens of thousand people to horrific violence because we would rather not foot the bill to do help them.

I agree with you completely. The question is whether or not we will continue to live up to our ideals. Turning our backs on these and other immigrants and burying our heads in the sand is a retreat from the ideals that made this country great.

 

[BobD]

Dude look at the reps that I gave you and the time stamp on it.

Oh! I see it now. Well never mind me. Thanks for the reps, sorry...

 

[irishog77]

Our private sector accumulated their wealth at the expense of the defenseless, the less fortunate, and the impoverished. Land was taken from the Native Americans. Ranchers and large farmers became wealthy off Native American land. Gold and uranium continue to be mined from land taken from Native Americans despite treaties that were supposed to protect the land. The railroads were built on the backs of immigrants (Chinese and Irish), who died by the thousands constructing the railroads under harsh conditions. The Mississippi Valley was cultivated on the backs of slave labor (primarily black), who died fighting malaria and other diseases prevalent in the humid, hot south. The wealth of the anti-bellum south was accumulated on the backs of black slaves kidnapped from their native homeland in Africa. The coal mine operators of Appalachia accumulated their wealth through land swindles that robbed local land-owners of their mineral rights and left a waste land in its place. The mines themselves were mined by immigrants (Welsh, Italian, Irish) and former slaves. The miners labored far underground in unsafe working conditions, so the wealth could be accumulated by the few in the private sector. The industrial revolution was built upon the backs of both immigrant and child labor. These practices continue today where the agricultural industry is heavily dependent upon the immigrants from Mexico and Central America. The private sector has even become too lazy to prepare their own own food, clean their own homes, wash their own clothes, and care for their own children. Instead, the private sector is content to take advantage of the less fortunate by paying wages below the poverty level and resisting any effort to share the accumulated wealth of this nation with the less fortunate.

As to where do the parents in LA and Chicago send their children? Since the private sector sits on their wealth and offers no jobs and no hope for the children of the impoverished, the children will end up unemployed, on welfare, and in the streets. It's no surprise that the impoverished, both immigrant and citizen, seek a better life for their own children. It's a moral tragedy, that so few seem to care.

A rather incomplete, at best, view and defense of capitalism in America. As is your belief that "the private sector sits on their wealth and offers no jobs and no hope for the children of the impoverished, the children will end up unemployed, on welfare, and in the streets." And going by your statements, then these immigrants are coming here not for work and to build a life in the wonderful melting pot that is the U.S.A., but to be dependent wards of the government.

But moving on...

How about sending them to the suburbs and to rural communities, the same place that the majority of middle class and wealthy people flee to avoid gangs, violence, and readily accessible drugs. My bet is that Leppy lives in a fairly safe suburb or rural area. It's easy to argue that others don't have it so bad when you're safely tucked away in your cozy suburb or rural home and not troubled by daily violence and threats to your safety.

in your first post, you gave a rundown of events that you, personally, did not experience any of, first hand, yet in your second post, you imply a lack of understanding on Leppy's part...because he may not experience urban existence amid violence and threats. In other words, your bet is that Leppy has not lived an authentic life, so therefore has an incomplete understanding of life in America today and on our border today...yet you expect us to believe you give us an authentic portrayal of the American experience, despite your incomplete understanding.

Look, it's always good to look at things from different perspectives and with a charitable heart.

But picking and choosing historical anecdotes and modern day anecdotes in an effort to describe something isn't authentic at all. Omitting key aspects of history and dismissing a person's ability to understand situations from any distance is, essentially, propaganda to further your own personal belief.

 

[Polish Leppy 22]

Doing nothing to help these people and advocating to send them back into hellish violence fundamentally changes this country. Helping the helpless is what makes this country great. Abandon that and we no longer have a claim to being exceptional in any way.

Doing nothing to secure the border and making thousands of illegal immigrants into US citizens fundamentally transforms this country. And we know how our president feels about fundamental transformation.

California town turns away buses of detained immigrants - CNN.com

Illegal immigrants flown to Bay State | Boston Herald

Video Evidence Shows Illegal Immigrant Children Arriving at BWI Early Friday Morning - WBFF Fox Baltimore - Top Stories

Housing, food, health care, clothing, and education: to be paid for by whom? For how long?

 

[GoIrish41]

Doing nothing to secure the border and making thousands of illegal immigrants into US citizens fundamentally transforms this country. And we know how our president feels about fundamental transformation.

California town turns away buses of detained immigrants - CNN.com

Illegal immigrants flown to Bay State | Boston Herald

Video Evidence Shows Illegal Immigrant Children Arriving at BWI Early Friday Morning - WBFF Fox Baltimore - Top Stories

Housing, food, health care, clothing, and education: to be paid for by whom? For how long?

Someone tap the turntable, the record is skipping again. Lol
Indifference has a pricetag too.

 

[EddytoNow]

A rather incomplete, at best, view and defense of capitalism in America. As is your belief that "the private sector sits on their wealth and offers no jobs and no hope for the children of the impoverished, the children will end up unemployed, on welfare, and in the streets." And going by your statements, then these immigrants are coming here not for work and to build a life in the wonderful melting pot that is the U.S.A., but to be dependent wards of the government.

But moving on...



in your first post, you gave a rundown of events that you, personally, did not experience any of, first hand, yet in your second post, you imply a lack of understanding on Leppy's part...because he may not experience urban existence amid violence and threats. In other words, your bet is that Leppy has not lived an authentic life, so therefore has an incomplete understanding of life in America today and on our border today...yet you expect us to believe you give us an authentic portrayal of the American experience, despite your incomplete understanding.

Look, it's always good to look at things from different perspectives and with a charitable heart.

But picking and choosing historical anecdotes and modern day anecdotes in an effort to describe something isn't authentic at all. Omitting key aspects of history and dismissing a person's ability to understand situations from any distance is, essentially, propaganda to further your own personal belief.

A guess you feel threatened by a few historical facts that contradict your rose-colored glasses view of how wonderful capitalism has been and continues to be. There is no contradicting that America has accumulated a vast amount of wealth. The facts suggest that much (Notice I didn't say all.) of this wealth was accumulated and continues to be accumulated at someone else's expense. You can refuse to accept the facts I've cited and attack me personally, but you haven't contradicted any of my facts (Facts you choose to call anecdotes.)

I'm not against capitalism, just opposed to blind capitalism that runs rampant over the less fortunate.

 

[NDFan4Life]

Someone tap the turntable, the record is skipping again. Lol
Indifference has a pricetag too.

Instead of ridiculing Leppy, how about answering his questions?

Housing, food, health care, clothing, and education: to be paid for by whom? For how long?

I'm sitting on the edge of my seat, awaiting your response.

 

[kmoose]

I'm not against capitalism, just opposed to blind capitalism that runs rampant over the less fortunate.

Captialism does not have a monopoly on disadvantaging the less fortunate. Socialism and Communism are equally prone to such things. The difference is: In Capitalism, you have the same opportunities as everyone else. The same cannot be said of Socialism and Communism.

 

[EddytoNow]

Captialism does not have a monopoly on disadvantaging the less fortunate. Socialism and Communism are equally prone to such things. The difference is: In Capitalism, you have the same opportunities as everyone else. The same cannot be said of Socialism and Communism.

I'm not in favor of Socialism or Communism that runs rampant over the less fortunate anymore than I am in favor of Capitalism that does the same. I wish the bolded statement above were true. Unfortunately, it is only true for some and not all. The door to opportunity is only available to those who can afford the necessary education and have the necessary doors left open. Not everyone can afford the education necessary to rise to a higher standard of living. Not everyone can get through the door of opportunity. Some find the door closed to them based upon their race, gender, religion, or country of origin. Others are born with a silver spoon in their mouth and enjoy a higher standard of living based upon the efforts of their grandparents and parents, not through their own initiative. I am simply advocating that everyone have an equal opportunity. And I am suggesting we should be striving to create the conditions that will allow that to happen.

 

[GoIrish41]

Captialism does not have a monopoly on disadvantaging the less fortunate. Socialism and Communism are equally prone to such things. The difference is: In Capitalism, you have the same opportunities as everyone else. The same cannot be said of Socialism and Communism.

The same can be said for capitalism only if we are willing to suspend reality.

 

[GoIrish41]

Instead of ridiculing Leppy, how about answering his questions? Just because you do not like the answer or are unwilling to accept it does not mean it has gone unanswered.



I'm sitting on the edge of my seat, awaiting your response.

I have answered the question one of the other 40 times he asked it.

Just because you do not like the answer does not mean it has gone unanswered.

 

[irishog77]

A guess you feel threatened by a few historical facts that contradict your rose-colored glasses view of how wonderful capitalism has been and continues to be. There is no contradicting that America has accumulated a vast amount of wealth. The facts suggest that much (Notice I didn't say all.) of this wealth was accumulated and continues to be accumulated at someone else's expense. You can refuse to accept the facts I've cited and attack me personally, but you haven't contradicted any of my facts (Facts you choose to call anecdotes.)

I'm not against capitalism, just opposed to blind capitalism that runs rampant over the less fortunate.

What do I feel threatened about?? I didn't dispute anything you said. Rather, I pointed out that you feel you can speak authentically about things that happened hundreds of years ago...yet Leppy can't speak authentically about things going on today, literally, in his own country. That doesn't jive. Sure, it's possible to know things and have a thorough understanding of something that you may not have experienced first hand, but Leppy (or anybody else) living in a suburb, rather than a city, doesn't preclude him from understanding violence or threats.

I also pointed out that you gave a thoroughly incomplete recap of America and capitalism.

And when did I attack you personally??? I didn't. I didn't attack anything or anybody. I found factual and logical fault in words you wrote, and pointed that out.

As for some of the words you have used in this post, "...this wealth was accumulated and continues to be accumulated at someone else's expense," and "I'm not against capitalism, just opposed to blind capitalism that runs rampant over the less fortunate," are EXTREMELY vague terms. Let me lay out a scenario for you-- say I am the son of very wealthy and very educated parents. My parents provided the best schools and tutors for me growing up. They then provided the best undergraduate and graduate schools for me. One day, when I wake up, I decide I don't like the house my parents have given me and want to sell it. Since I've never bought or sold real estate before, I'm fairly naive about the market. Adding to my naivety is the fact that I've never truly lived on my own before nor do I have any actual real world experience.

A potential buyer comes by my house. The buyer has only a high school education and his parents were both dishwashers at a restaurant. He works different jobs now, earning a living the best way he sees fit. He scratches, claws, and fights his way through life, but does what he can and must. Anyway, the buyer offers me $100,000.00, cash for my house. Now I may not know much real estate, but I know $100,000.00 cash is a lot of money. I decide to sell him my house for that amount. After closing, my parents find out I sold my house for $100,000.00. They are outraged by this and for my lack of understanding the market, because they tell me my house was worth $200,000.00. This bad decision leads them to cut me off from their money and they fire me from my job at their company.

Who, if anybody, in this scenario is less fortunate than the other and who accumulated wealth at someone else's expense??

 

[BobD]

Do you have another house for sell?

 

[Polish Leppy 22]

I have answered the question one of the other 40 times he asked it.

Just because you do not like the answer does not mean it has gone unanswered.

The questions of who pays for all these services and for how long were never answered. So consider us both waiting.

 

[Polish Leppy 22]

A guess you feel threatened by a few historical facts that contradict your rose-colored glasses view of how wonderful capitalism has been and continues to be. There is no contradicting that America has PRODUCED a vast amount of wealth. The facts suggest that much (Notice I didn't say all.) of this wealth was accumulated and continues to be accumulated at someone else's expense. You can refuse to accept the facts I've cited and attack me personally, but you haven't contradicted any of my facts (Facts you choose to call anecdotes.)

I'm not against capitalism, just opposed to blind capitalism that runs rampant over the less fortunate.

Fixed it for ya. Take a walk around your kitchen, look at everything in it (assuming you're not Amish in Michigan), and tell us all how much wealth America has accumulated.

 

[DillonHall]

Sending them back is doing nothing. The United States is massive and the number of people we are talking about would not fill ND's stadium for a saturday afternoon game. We live in the greatest nation in the world and you are suggesting these people coming here will break us. That is illogical unless you feel we are already on the ropes. We are not. I contend we should stop telling the world how exceptional we are and start putting our money where our mouth is. We are only as great as our reactions to crisis and your suggested reaction exposes tens of thousand people to horrific violence because we would rather not foot the bill to help them.

You spew empty rhetoric as beautifully as your pal barack

 

[BobD]

IMHO

Capitalism is awesome, but America broke it.

The majority of our poor would be considered middle-class in the rest of the world. For many, NOT ALL, we've made being poor comfortable by supporting them rather than teaching them. We have created a welfare society with low aspirations.

Being middle-class was so easy and comfortable for so long that many, NOT ALL of them lost site of the importance of a great education, the value of imagination, ambition and the entrepreneurial spirit. Being middle class in America became a destination rather than a stepping stone. A union factory worker doing menial labor with a high school or lower education could buy a home, cars, put kids through college and retire comfortably.

Unlike Americans after the Great Depression the poor and the middle-class today are ill prepared to recover from this last economic downturn. They ignored or were ignorant of the bubble and thought the good times would last forever. They need help, NOT WELFARE , which brings me to my final group.....

With great wealth comes great responsibility.

I think the answer to our economy becoming great again lies with the wealthy, not with hands outs or wealth distribution, but with entrepreneurship. So many of the large corporations and wealthy have become cash hoarders. Our economy would take off like a rocket if only half of the private cash reserves in America were invested in creating new businesses. I'm not suggesting they put it all on the line, but I think they should do the right thing, step up and invest in America by creating new businesses.

 

[EddytoNow]

Fixed it for ya. Take a walk around your kitchen, look at everything in it (assuming you're not Amish in Michigan), and tell us all how much wealth America has accumulated.

You neglected to quote this part of my original statement.

"The facts suggest that much (Notice I didn't say all.) of this wealth was accumulated and continues to be accumulated at someone else's expense."

There are many people who have earned their standard of living through hard work on their own part. However, there is also a past and a present in which great wealth was and is accumulated at someone else's expense. Land and resources were stolen from the native populations, often with the cooperation of a puppet government. Our military was and continues to be used to back up leaders who cooperate with the exploitation. A close examination of the battles we choose to fight reveals a lot about our motivation. We seem to be very active and concerned about the mistreatment of people in the Middle East (vast oil reserves) and care very little about people living in areas with nothing to exploit, like Africa.

 

[RallySonsOfND]

IMHO

Capitalism is awesome, but America broke it.

The majority of our poor would be considered middle-class in the rest of the world. For many, NOT ALL, we've made being poor comfortable by supporting them rather than teaching them. We have created a welfare society with low aspirations.

Being middle-class was so easy and comfortable for so long that many, NOT ALL of them lost site of the importance of a great education, the value of imagination, ambition and the entrepreneurial spirit. Being middle class in America became a destination rather than a stepping stone. A union factory worker doing menial labor with a high school or lower education could buy a home, cars, put kids through college and retire comfortably.

Unlike Americans after the Great Depression the poor and the middle-class today are ill prepared to recover from this last economic downturn. They ignored or were ignorant of the bubble and thought the good times would last forever. They need help, NOT WELFARE , which brings me to my final group.....

With great wealth comes great responsibility.

I think the answer to our economy becoming great again lies with the wealthy, not with hands outs or wealth distribution, but with entrepreneurship. So many of the large corporations and wealthy have become cash hoarders. Our economy would take off like a rocket if only half of the private cash reserves in America were invested in creating new businesses. I'm not suggesting they put it all on the line, but I think they should do the right thing, step up and invest in America by creating new businesses.

Easy to say, but our government is continually making it harder to do/(start a) business.

I agree that entrepreneurship will be key to driving our economy forward and to better the lives of citizens, both my father, and grandfathers did so and did quite well, but now my father and only grandfather that is alive said it is MUCH MUCH harder to start a business now than when they did.

 

[Polish Leppy 22]

You neglected to quote this part of my original statement.

"The facts suggest that much (Notice I didn't say all.) of this wealth was accumulated and continues to be accumulated at someone else's expense."

There are many people who have earned their standard of living through hard work on their own part. However, there is also a past and a present in which great wealth was and is accumulated at someone else's expense. Land and resources were stolen from the native populations, often with the cooperation of a puppet government. Our military was and continues to be used to back up leaders who cooperate with the exploitation. A close examination of the battles we choose to fight reveals a lot about our motivation. We seem to be very active and concerned about the mistreatment of people in the Middle East (vast oil reserves) and care very little about people living in areas with nothing to exploit, like Africa.

Take a walk through your kitchen and tell me how many of those tools/ goods/ technologies were accumulated at someone else's expense. Still cracks me up. Guy in Michigan on a computer is arguing about capitalism and how evil America is to a guy in Pennsylvania. Yeah...this place sucks.

1) Native populations fought over land and killed each other for centuries.

2) Much of our military action has been focused in the past 14 years in the Middle East. You say oil. I say they have a tendency to burn American flags in the streets and carry out terrorist attacks against us and our allies. African nations...not so much.

 

[Cackalacky]

IMHO

Capitalism is awesome, but America broke it.

The majority of our poor would be considered middle-class in the rest of the world. For many, NOT ALL, we've made being poor comfortable by supporting them rather than teaching them. We have created a welfare society with low aspirations.

Being middle-class was so easy and comfortable for so long that many, NOT ALL of them lost site of the importance of a great education, the value of imagination, ambition and the entrepreneurial spirit. Being middle class in America became a destination rather than a stepping stone. A union factory worker doing menial labor with a high school or lower education could buy a home, cars, put kids through college and retire comfortably.

Unlike Americans after the Great Depression the poor and the middle-class today are ill prepared to recover from this last economic downturn. They ignored or were ignorant of the bubble and thought the good times would last forever. They need help, NOT WELFARE , which brings me to my final group.....

With great wealth comes great responsibility.

I think the answer to our economy becoming great again lies with the wealthy, not with hands outs or wealth distribution, but with entrepreneurship. So many of the large corporations and wealthy have become cash hoarders. Our economy would take off like a rocket if only half of the private cash reserves in America were invested in creating new businesses. I'm not suggesting they put it all on the line, but I think they should do the right thing, step up and invest in America by creating new businesses.

This is my opinion as well. For many reasons, what was once middle class is now slowly becoming lower class.

Easy to say, but our government is continually making it harder to do/(start a) business.

I agree that entrepreneurship will be key to driving our economy forward and to better the lives of citizens, both my father, and grandfathers did so and did quite well, but now my father and only grandfather that is alive said it is MUCH MUCH harder to start a business now than when they did.

This is part of it but, really, why is government making it harder? My opinion is the handful of companies don't want competition, and the "elected officials" handout legislation designed to decrease access to the market. Its complete collusion between corporations and government. There is a style of government this is known as, and it is not a republic, but a form of it was stylish in Europe for a while.

 

[GoIrish41]

This is my opinion as well. For many reasons, what was once middle class is now slowly becoming lower class.



This is part of it but, really, why is government making it harder? My opinion is the handful of companies don't want competition, and the "elected officials" handout legislation designed to decrease access to the market. Its complete collusion between corporations and government. There is a style of government this is known as, and it is not a republic, but a form of it was stylish in Europe for a while.

This.

 

[GoIrish41]

Take a walk through your kitchen and tell me how many of those tools/ goods/ technologies were accumulated at someone else's expense. Still cracks me up. Guy in Michigan on a computer is arguing about capitalism and how evil America is to a guy in Pennsylvania. Yeah...this place sucks.

1) Native populations fought over land and killed each other for centuries.

2) Much of our military action has been focused in the past 14 years in the Middle East. You say oil. I say they have a tendency to burn American flags in the streets and carry out terrorist attacks against us and our allies. African nations...not so much.

So we saved them from themselves? C'mon, you don't believe that.

Our willingness to let bygones be bygones and ignore the history of how we got to where we are now is convenient, but that approach ignores some painful truths about our past.

Some would argue that our standard of living is something to aspire to, and it is no doubt better than in most places in the world. Al Capone lived a lavish lifestyle as well, but it doesn't man that he didn't do some bad things to live that way. You can't just look at the destination, the journey is very important. Our journey was not a smooth ride -- many people were run over on the way. And many more are still standing in the way if free market capitalism is the path forward. Hunter Thompson once wrote, “For every moment of triumph, for every instance of beauty, many souls must be trampled.” I think he was right.

 

[Ndaccountant]

This is my opinion as well. For many reasons, what was once middle class is now slowly becoming lower class.



This is part of it but, really, why is government making it harder? My opinion is the handful of companies don't want competition, and the "elected officials" handout legislation designed to decrease access to the market. Its complete collusion between corporations and government. There is a style of government this is known as, and it is not a republic, but a form of it was stylish in Europe for a while.

From my perspective, that isn't the case.

To be clear, this is an immensely complicated topic and each company's situation is unique. However, there are some general themes that we can see and they are:

- Much of the cash is overseas and companies refuse to bring it back to the US. In most cases, this cash is generated from international sales and profit. Brining it back to the US would, in most cases, force the company to pay tax on these earnings at the 35% rate less what ever taxes have been paid internationally. On a worldwide level, this puts these companies at a disadvantage since many of the competitors do not have these issues to the same extent. For example, Caterpillar publicly stated a few months ago that over the past few years, their effective tax rate was about 2% higher than Komatsu (their main competition). This has drained billions of dollars from Cat's corporate coffers that their rival didn't have to pay. Competitive disadvantage. This lower amount of cash retards future growth opportunities both domestically and abroad.

- Activist investors have become all the rage recently, which has put another layer of complication. Not all activists are the same and some do have a longer investment horizon. Some, however, do not and want immediate returns, whether that is company growth (M/A) or some form of cash return to investors via buy backs or dividend growth.

- The combination of the two points above have led to companies basically aiming to be cash neutral in the US on a yearly basis. Ultra cheap borrowing has allowed companies to plug a hole where it pops up. Here is what happened recently with Apple:
"Though Apple has some $150 billion in cash, almost all of that — $130 billion — is held overseas. Executives from the company have signaled numerous times, including last week, that they have no plans to repatriate the overseas cash, citing high tax rates for bringing the money to the U.S.

Apple would not only need to buy back shares with domestic cash, but company executives also plainly stated that they would like to stay with a liquid cash position to allow flexibility for options like research and development investments, as well as acquisitions."


I am sure there are numerous companies that use cash to lobby hard in Washington to protect their interests. However, I am not convinced that the lobbying has any material impact to the cash hoarding we are seeing in Fortune 500 companies.

Top U.S. Firms Are Cash-Rich Abroad, Cash-Poor at Home - WSJ
Apple preparing $17B bond sale to help fund massive share buyback

 

[Cackalacky]

From my perspective, that isn't the case.

To be clear, this is an immensely complicated topic and each company's situation is unique. However, there are some general themes that we can see and they are:

- Much of the cash is overseas and companies refuse to bring it back to the US. In most cases, this cash is generated from international sales and profit. Brining it back to the US would, in most cases, force the company to pay tax on these earnings at the 35% rate less what ever taxes have been paid internationally. On a worldwide level, this puts these companies at a disadvantage since many of the competitors do not have these issues to the same extent. For example, Caterpillar publicly stated a few months ago that over the past few years, their effective tax rate was about 2% higher than Komatsu (their main competition). This has drained billions of dollars from Cat's corporate coffers that their rival didn't have to pay. Competitive disadvantage. This lower amount of cash retards future growth opportunities both domestically and abroad.

- Activist investors have become all the rage recently, which has put another layer of complication. Not all activists are the same and some do have a longer investment horizon. Some, however, do not and want immediate returns, whether that is company growth (M/A) or some form of cash return to investors via buy backs or dividend growth.

- The combination of the two points above have led to companies basically aiming to be cash neutral in the US on a yearly basis. Ultra cheap borrowing has allowed companies to plug a hole where it pops up. Here is what happened recently with Apple:
"Though Apple has some $150 billion in cash, almost all of that — $130 billion — is held overseas. Executives from the company have signaled numerous times, including last week, that they have no plans to repatriate the overseas cash, citing high tax rates for bringing the money to the U.S.

Apple would not only need to buy back shares with domestic cash, but company executives also plainly stated that they would like to stay with a liquid cash position to allow flexibility for options like research and development investments, as well as acquisitions."


I am sure there are numerous companies that use cash to lobby hard in Washington to protect their interests. However, I am not convinced that the lobbying has any material impact to the cash hoarding we are seeing in Fortune 500 companies.

Top U.S. Firms Are Cash-Rich Abroad, Cash-Poor at Home - WSJ
Apple preparing $17B bond sale to help fund massive share buyback

I agree it is very complicated but what you provided is more of a specific symptom. I am meaning more along the lines of the illness:
Welcome to the New Corporatism | The American Spectator

To be clear, Phelps doesn’t have in mind the fascist corporatism that characterized economies such as Mussolini’s Italy. Nor is he speaking of the “neo-corporatist” institutions established in many Western European countries after World War II in an (ultimately dysfunctional) effort to try and unify societies shattered by war and intense ideological divisions. The “new corporatism,” Phelps argues, is more “tacit and finely articulated.” In his view, it has two primary features.

First, the new corporatism means using the state to radically limit freedom in particular segments of the economy (healthcare and higher education being good examples) while presenting oneself as market-friendly. Think, for instance, of the lengths to which some have gone to present Obamacare (“Welcome to the Marketplace!” proclaims the malfunctioning website) as not being what in fact it is: yet another command-and-control healthcare system.

The second dimension of the new corporatism is the way, Phelps writes, it has facilitated “the creation of a parallel economy” that exists alongside — and feeds off — the market economy. So what does this parallel economy look like? For Phelps, it primarily consists of those “lethargic, wasteful, unproductive and well-connected firms” that are propped up by what he calls a “tripartism” of government, organized business, and organized labor (the third being the weaker of the three in America) at virtually any cost.

And that perhaps is what’s so disturbing about the new corporatism in America. It’s not just the Tammany Hall-like political shenanigans or the economic Detroitification which it facilitates. The new corporatism’s most worrying aspect is that it suggests that large swaths of America’s political class (and their legion of enablers that stretches far, far beyond the Beltway) isn’t, deep-down, especially interested in freedom and opportunity for all, and perhaps hasn’t been for some time now.

 

[Cackalacky]

Millenials Socially Liberal and Fiscally Conservative

Is it time to have Progressive/Libertarian Presidential candidates?

I think a Paul/Warren team could do some really great things.