Back in 1999, scaremongering over the so-called “Y2K” disaster reached a fever pitch. The media hyped it
to the hilt, building up a doomsday apocalypse scenario that made the post 911 color
coded “terror alerts” seem like the advent of Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. The plan was gin up a false story and scare folk to death to get them to pay attention.
There was a very simple fix for Y2K. Armies of programmers, including yours
truly, had been thrown at the problem a few years in advance to implement the solution. The media knew this at the time, but ignored the solution to focus on what eventually became an impending millennial doomsday world-ending disaster.
Fast forward to today, and the “fiscal cliff” and note the similarities.
It too is a phony problem. And it has been "reported" with more hype than fact, but with similar drama as was Y2K. There’s been talk of “going over,” to conjure up disaster imagery in the minds of the unwashed in the ways of DC bullshittery; like going
off the Grand Canyon in a convertible, Thelma and Louise style. (They may have been smiling as they went over, but they were crazy, otherwise they would have known what the media wants us to "know" of this, of the ugly that awaits when they hit bottom) The political class is on board this time, as they realize fear is what they need, as its easier to put one over on a scared stupid public, and enact an agenda quite different than what the voters agreed to in November.
Another similarity is that the fiscal cliff also has a very simple fix, and just like with Y2K, the media refuses to give adequate attention to that part of the story. Instead, we only hear of the dire
implications of some sort of economic Armageddon if we “go over.”
Obama campaigned and won the election on getting rid of the Bush tax cuts and cutting taxes
for those making under $250K, and investing in infrastructure and education to further stimulate the economy. We're talking a tax cut for approximately 98% of the taxpayers.
And get this: if “deficit reduction” (read: austerity) is the priority, even though it shouldn't be, given the state of the economy, then going over will provide all manner of
reduction, including from defense programs. And the
Bush Tax cuts automatically evaporate into the ether.
The solution?
Go over the damned cliff! Prepare
a bill that cuts taxes for all under $250K, include extension of
unemployment insurance, and stimulus money for education and infrastructure. Use the leverage gained in the
election you all just won, decisively, mind you, and dare the republicans to refuse to vote for what they say they only exist
to do: cut taxes.
The republicans are in between a rock and a hard spot. The rock is the crazies in the Tea Party, who's political goals begin and end with a refusal to compromise, and a rote-like insistence on not raising taxes.
The republicans are in between a rock and a hard spot. The rock is the crazies in the Tea Party, who's political goals begin and end with a refusal to compromise, and a rote-like insistence on not raising taxes.
And we find the democrats doing what they do best: working to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. As we
speak they are working hard on smaller "deals" abandoning what they ran and won on, instead giving away the store, just to
get an agreement, giving up the leverage they had. During the campaign, they said, in Washington-speak, that "the election is about choices." And yet here we are, with dems throwing everything they promised to hold dear, and the kitchen sink, at the GOP who thus far (and thankfully) refuse to take yes for an answer, just so they can get the coveted DC insider blessing of being considered "the adults in the room." Damn.
The big difference between Y2K and the fiscal cliff is that, unlike in
1999 when the economic boom was still going, the economy today has been mired in recession for several years now. Back
in 1999, people could indulge themselves in media silliness. Today, with unemployment high, foreclosures
still at a record pace, everybody is just plain tired of juggling like circus
clowns just to keep all the remaining balls of their lives in the air.
There simply is little energy left to indulge the media.
In some ways, that’s a good thing, but in other ways, it’s a symptom of
the toll years of political bullshit has taken.
Speaking of balls, Obama and the democrats, please find yours, some common sense, grab those spines off the shelf, and get this done!
