Jobs figures show how Dems’ plans beat GOP’s

The Island Now

In answer to the correspondent who loves statistics, at the Democratic Convention, President Clinton provided some statistics that have been fact checked. In the years between 1961 and 2012, during which we had 28 years of

Republican presidents, 24 million jobs were created. In that same span of years, we had 24 years of Democratic presidencies and amazingly, 42 million jobs were created!

At the end of the presidency of George Bush, the country was losing 750,000 jobs per month. After President Obama took office, the financial crisis, when we had two unbudgeted wars and a huge mortgage scandal to deal with, the president still managed, during his first term, to avert a calamity, and even brought the jobs situation to a point that half a million jobs were created. Not nearly enough to compensate for the losses caused by Bush’s legacy, but at least enough to keep us afloat.

This week, we have learned that the figure of 49 percent of our people receive government assistance and 50 percent of all households do not pay income tax. Without an explanation of those statistics, we can be deceived.

Into that figure about government assistance are lumped social security payments, welfare grants, Pell grants, grants to private industry to promote improvements, and various other help.

We are supposed to be a humane society and in a time when poor people do not earn enough money to put food for their children on the table for many days in a month, can we deny them some aid?

As far as the note that 50 million do not pay income tax is concerned, even low wages are still subject to withholding tax for social security and unemployment insurance, some pay real estate taxes, and all have to pay sales taxes when they shop for necessities. And the elderly. who often live on small pensions, do not get enough money to make them liable for income taxes.

So why do you deduce that we have one-party rule? We, unfortunately, have a Congress with too many members of each party who are so unable to compromise because they do not want the other side to get credit for positive programs, or are so afraid to violate their pledge to Grover Norquist not to raise taxes under any circumstance, or are so intimidated by the National Rifle Association who will not allow prohibitions on the sale of assault weapons to hunters (Is killing a deer with an assault weapon a sport?) or are so controlled by lobbyists and their campaign contributions.

My only suggestion to our letter writer is to try to learn what causes problems and not to swallow what the Wall Street Journal, owned and guided by Rupert Murdoch says. And if you really want to open your eyes, Google a long memorandum by Lewis Powell to the Chamber of Commerce of the U.S. in 1971, that laid out a strategy for big business to dominate our economy regardless of the consequences that we now are suffering from.

 

Esther Confino

New Hyde Park

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