The Kind of Tax Cuts that will Really Help the Economy

On May 15, 2001, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 was formally introduced in the House as H.R. 1836 by Rep. William M. Thomas. Not long after, then President George W. Bush signed the bill into law on June 7, 2001. The act basically made significant changes in several areas of the U.S. internet revenue code. It meant the implementation of tax reduction schemes on income tax rates, estate taxes and taxes on retirement plans. All these tax cuts are set to retire at the end of the year 2010 Congress decides to act and extend it further.

Today, there have been debates with regards to extending these tax cuts or not. We can clearly see the massive effect of the economic recession to the American economy. The high unemployment rates are attributed to the sudden collapse of financial institutions and business firms who felt the huge impact of the recession. Figures show that about 15 million Americans are still unemployed as of the moment. Many politicians believe that one of the short term solutions to these problems is an extension to the previously implemented tax cuts by Bush.

Democrats have shown less support for tax cuts while Republicans strongly oppose the idea of spending more. So what kind of tax cuts should be implemented then to generate jobs faster and help the economy recover? Simple, the kind of tax cuts that will generate more jobs is that one that business companies get only if they spend more money. One concrete idea was to implement a temporary cut in the payroll system so that employers will be relieved of the cost of employing people. By suspending the taxes that cover social security and Medicare, Washington will be able to lower the cost of keeping or hiring workers.

There are other viable suggestions that are presented by U.S. lawmakers. One solution was to implement an expanded tax credit that will benefit the new clean energy projects. Another is the expansion of tax credit for businesses that will increase their workforce or hire more employees. Although these tax cuts will generally not solve the long term economic problems that the nation has faced, it will certainly help avoid the resurfacing of newer problems such as a double dip recession. The most helpful thing that the government can do is to generate more jobs as people badly need it today. We may have long work to do but as long as we start now, we will be assured of victory in the future.

Of Climate Change and Extremism

The U.S. is perhaps the most active nation in terms of global influence and participation. Since the September 11 attacks that claimed that lives of almost 3,000 people, the U.S. has been actively involved in worldly affairs and are doing what they can to stop terrorism. For example, the U.S. has been giving aid to foreign nationalities with the primary aim of winning the hearts of the people and getting their trust. Unfortunately, this strategy may not be so effective at all in selected nations.

Climate change has now become a primary concern for all people especially that it has already claimed the lives of thousands of people and displaced millions more. The frequent occurrence of earthquakes, cyclones, and other environmental calamities has caught the attention of world leaders and their government. There is a growing belief that climate change may not only inflict damage through environmental hazards but may also fuel and encourage more people to adopt extremism.

In Pakistan, the continuous downpour of rain has already affected at least 14 million people. It is now considered in Pakistan as the worst flood in its entire history. There are now at least 1,600 people who lost their lives in this massive catastrophe. And just recently, the U.S. government has been particularly concerned with the existence of a charity group that is believed to be linked to Al Qaeda that is giving aid to the stranded Pakistani people.

There is already an intense pressure in the government of Pakistan to provide aid and relief goods as quickly as possible. People have grown tired and weary waiting for the government’s slow response. The actions of the charity is seen by the U.S. as a strategy to lure people against the government and into extremism. This is a very troubling find especially of the millions of people directly affected by the disaster.

This particular happening clearly showed how climate change can really be a serious threat. Not only can it inflict massive environment disasters but also cause conflict and unjust. And since the U.S. government has been very concerned with national security, perhaps they can look at this situation as a stepping stone in securing the country against radical extremists. The people in Pakistan need immediate response. If we want them to trust us and reject these terror groups, we should help provide humanitarian aid instead of wasting money on lobbying and other political propagandas.

Pres. Obama’s is Less Credible Nowadays

Ever since Barack Obama took the highest seat in office in the United States, he already faced tremendous pressure in saving America from the problems he inherited during the previous administration. With a national debt almost reaching $14 trillion and budget deficit that is over $1 trillion, it is no doubt that the Obama administration is facing a budget nightmare which will really bring out his whole ability to solve such issues.

Perhaps the huge burden that is faced by the country today is the ongoing economic recession that has paralyzed the economy and triggered a massive loss of jobs. With so many financial and business institutions going bankrupt, the unemployment rate of nation have now almost reach 10% of the population. A lot of teachers, cops and federal workers have also lost their jobs due to low funding. Social security is also under constant threat because the Obama administration is taking any necessary step such as to cut funding for a particular in order to save more money and lessen the budget deficit.

And now, after having to face much of the problems that the country has experienced, the U.S. president is also dealing with the problem of a low trust rating. With his inability to develop a quick solution to these problems, the public has already lost their trust and confidence to the president. The YouGov/Polimetrix poll indicated that the approval rating in economy of Pres. Obama is 35% during mid-August compared to 42% last may. The significant drop prompted Democrats to panic especially that the midterm election is drawing near.

According to a recent poll conducted by Reuters, 72% of the respondents are very worried about jobs while 67% are very concerned about government spending. The used-to-be high trust and credibility ratings of the president are slowly trimming indicating that the people are not contented. There are also claims by the President such as the effectiveness of the stimulus bill which the people strongly oppose or strongly ignore. People are equally tired of hearing the usual exaggerated claims of the president.

If we look at the stimulus fund more clearly, we can clearly say that it has done little to alleviate the problem of unemployment. A growing number of the population is still either without a job or underemployed. Since the passing of the stimulus act, about 2.6 million Americans have lost their jobs and 1.2 million people have given up even looking for work. The unrealistic claims of the Obama administration have only made people angrier. Better accountability and transparency is drastically needed in this present time.