There was a time, about 10 years ago, when I honestly believed that Republicans cared about things like creating jobs and economic opportunity. Since then, I have come to realize that the primary purpose of Republican economic policy is not the creation of wealth, jobs, or opportunity, but rather the protection of private wealth and property.
That's fine, as long as we have a balanced budget. But we don't, and we haven't since 2000 when the tech bubble burst and Bush got elected.
I know a lot of liberals are really angry at Barack Obama right now, because he's not doing enough to hold the line on protecting Social Security and Medicare. That's understandable, and I can empathize with the impulse to put our money in a lockbox (or bury it in the backyard of the White House, or something equally protectionist).
I'm not interested in putting Social Security or Medicare funds into the stock market, subjecting American economic security to the whims of the robber barons and hedge fund managers. I am, however, interested in economic policies that are focused on the creation of wealth and jobs, rather than being focused on the protection of wealth and the outsourcing of jobs to robots, slaves, or prisoners.
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