Krugman- An Insurance Company with an Army

[n2doc]

April 27, 2011, 8:08 AM
An Insurance Company With An Army
A general reminder whenever budget issues are discussed: the U.S. government is — this isn’t original — best thought of as a giant insurance company with an army. When you talk about federal spending, you’re overwhelmingly talking about Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and defense. And the bulk of the insurance — all of Social Security and Medicare, about 2/3 of Medicaid — is for the elderly and disabled.

This is important both for assessing projections about future spending — yes, spending is projected to rise, but how could it not given the aging of the population? — and for assessing claims about the need to shrink the government.

Put it this way: Whenever someone talks about making government smaller, he should be asked which of these big four he proposes cutting, and how. If he responds with generalities, he’s faking it.

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/27/an-insurance-company-with-an-army/

[yardwork]

1. Since military spending alone is more than 50% of U.S. expenditures

I'd say that the U.S. is an army with insurance - and that insurance is shaky.

[edhopper]

5. I am sure that is wrong

I have learned from the MSM that most of out money is spent on Foreign Aid, illegal immigrants, teacher's pay, single mothers of color and PBS.

[yardwork]

12. Limousine liberals. I forgot to mention them. And our entitlement programs.

[Scuba]

2. Missed one...

...corporations pay NO TAXES that nonetheless get TAX REBATES. A huge chunk of our socialist pie.

GE
Exxon/Mobil
Menard's
etc.
etc.
etc.
etc.
etc.
etc.
etc.
etc.

[ThomCat]

3. I think corporate welfare fall under insurance. We insure their profit margins.

By giving them a 0% tax rate, with tax rebates on top of that, and subsidies piled on top of that, taxpayers guarantee that these corporations will always be profitable.

The military is there to insure that foreign markets cooperate with those corporations, giving them their resources either for free or at discount rates, and opening up their markets either without any tariffs or with the lowest possible barriers to trade.

In both ways, our government insures that favored large corporations will never, ever have to rely on cruelties of the free market in order to try to survive.

[Scuba]

4. Good summation. Thanks.

[Poboy]

9. Just look how hard it is for the to discontinue the Oil welfare subsidies.

In a time of world record obscene profits, they struggle with it!

[ThomCat]

13. Absolutely. They are Failing to halt oil subsidies at a time when

the oil companies are the most profitable companies on earth and oil prices are the highest they have ever been in history!

If there was ever an industry that definitely did not need subsidies, that is the one. Especially now, with solar and wind options desperately needing funding, and with both on the verge of becoming economically feasible replacements for oil and gas, all of that money can and should be better spent.

[Poboy]

6. If that is the case, they're doing a piss-poor job-

The Real American Exceptionalism
By David Morris, on April 18th, 2011

http://defendingthepublicgood.org/2011/04/18/the-real-american-exceptionalism/

[ThomCat]

7. Those numbers really show how horrible our core American Values

have become. :(

Republican values have taken over our government, and even our Democratic administrations buy into those values. x(

Damn it! We need to find a way to get real Democrats, from the real Left into office who will work with the people instead of against us to move the political spectrum back to the left.

We need a party that will make this a nation of and for people again instead of a nation of and for corporations.

[bobbolink]

8. Too bad for us..... we don't have our own army.

Time to Walk Like An Egyptian!

[mmonk]

11. Excellent piece.

[kenny blankenship]

10. Now Paul, think over the wisdom of letting ACTUAL insurance companies partner up with that firepower

No, not smart at all.