Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

Ok, so no more taxes for anybody. And while we're at it, let's abolish the IRS. Because, afterall, taxes by their very nature is the collection and redistribution of wealth.

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• Posted by leehuaitu on October 21, 2008 at 1:16 a.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

I tend to agree with this article. A progressive tax system like the one we've had for long long time has its purpose along the lines of "fairness" but I don't think its all that fair.
The problem with taxing success and paying people to stay at home is that you create less incentive to be successful. Like the person who works 32 hrs a week, but has an opportunity to work more or get a higher paying job, but wont because then they lose their food stamps/welfare/WIC benefits. The idea of penalizing success is counterproductive to helping an economy because it stunts growth. If a person on food stamps, say 40 yrs old, wants to go to college, then they will lose their food stamps. Basically, these entitlements are keeping people down. They are handOUTS not hand UPS.
Taxing businesses in context of Obama's plan and giving "tax cuts" to people will hinder business growth and many small businesses with either raise prices or cut costs-one way to cut costs is cut jobs or lower quality of products. The principle of incentive and capitalism can go hand in hand with "fairness," but sooner or later we have to be independent citizens and be self-reliant. Give people opportunities to better themselves, don't give them excuses to stay home and hinder their income. This is why I'm a republican.

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• Posted by afmoore on October 21, 2008 at 8:37 a.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

I've actually written a blog post about Obama's tax plan on small businesses. According to the US Census, over half of small businesses DO make over $250,000 a year.

http://connoerbloggers.blogspot.com/

Obama's tax proposals are misleading at best and manipulative at worst. We do not need to raise taxes on small businesses, the primary employer in America, right now.,

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• Posted by connerm on October 21, 2008 at 10:57 a.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

"proud republican"? well thankfully, after Nov 4, we can retire you dinosaurs for awhile. you've had fun deregulating everything and managed to FUBAR this nation. i don't buy your spin. sell it somewhere else, Neocon.

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• Posted by swishymcjackass on October 21, 2008 at 12:45 p.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

Good job pointing out specifically what was wrong with his reasoning, "swishymcjackass".

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• Posted by Hendrix321 on October 21, 2008 at 4:22 p.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

Another "opinion" from Adam Poole... it's the same stuff time and time again, and it's laughable that you are always so insistent that no Republican anywhere, ever contributed to anything bad, but rather the EVIL DEMOCRATS led us to [insert bad thing here]. Your article fails to help me or anyone else see how only over-regulation has landed us in this crisis. I (along with most educated Americans) was under the impression that Republicans, with their traditional tenet of deregulation, had significantly contributed to the lack of control over the banks and the subprime crisis. While Democrats and petty partisan conflicts have certainly also contributed to our current situation, please PLEASE at least pretend to try to be fair. Through your elephant-tinted glasses, everything that has ever been wrong with this country is the other side's fault, and it's really quite pathetic. I'm starting to think you're one of those people who thinks "trickle-down economics" is an economic theory to be taken seriously and implemented.

You're an opinion writer. Write opinions, not lies.

PS: I'll admit, though, that this is a lot better than your terrible and ridiculously misinformed Palin editorial. There was so many factual errors and "convenient" oversights with that article that I was astonished that it was printed.

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• Posted by becsully on October 21, 2008 at 5:07 p.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

I think a lot of you forget to recognize the fact that small businesses have the ability to write off hundreds of thousands of dollars on "tax-exempt"policy which lets you write off things like office supplies and using a home office. And another thing you all forget, Welfare to Work, a program implemented by Bill Clinton in the mid-90s and supported by Barack Obama makes you work while on welfare or you stop receiving your benefits. And another thing all of you seem to be forgetting is that the poorest people in this country can't get off of welfare and food stamps, not out of choice but because no one hires the man who comes in poorly dressed and with ratty shoes. And the only way we're going to get out of this financial mess is by increasing aggregate demand, something even the biggest deregulators like Alan Greenspan believe is true. And the conclusion that follows is the only way you can possibly increase aggregate demand is by increasing the purchase of aggregate (perishable items that need to be repeatedly purchased) and keeping large amounts of money in the hands of the wealthy prevents that from happening. The amount of food or clothing doesn't increase when they keep their money - they put in places like investment firms and the market, and well look at how that turned out. We need greater regulation in a time like this, saying that we can keep taking the advice of these bankers is ridiculous and the libertarian attitude on the market needs to stop now, before things get worse.

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• Posted by selliott on October 21, 2008 at 5:17 p.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

And another thing, proud republican, John McCain's plan to buy up the bad mortgages fails to see the actual problem we face. It's that greedy Wall Street lenders took mortgages, packaged them into securities and sold them off in pieces to European banks trying to hedge bets. Well, that popped the bubble and the mortgages are now scattered across the world, how will we collect all that? How will we buy up those mortgages and balance the budget by the end of the first term? You could revitalize an old Republican idea, dissolve the Departments of Education, Agriculture and Energy, which are huge wastes of money apparently. Try writing your column when they eliminate subsidized collegiate-level education. Democrats have lofty goals after this election but at least they're honest in saying it might not all work out.

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• Posted by selliott on October 21, 2008 at 5:36 p.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

I honestly think this was one your better ones. It seems you write best when you are in a pissy mood (I do too)! I'm a big fan of sarcasm and dry humor, though. Keep up the good work!

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• Posted by fchambers on October 21, 2008 at 12:45 p.m.
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Poole: How over-regulation has ruined Wall Street

I am impressed. Well said.

I agree that Democratic regulation of Fannie and Freddie as well as the Clinton administration taking a free market approach on other portions of the market both worked congruently in starting this mess. Which is why many illiterate Monica Clinton lovers tout the fact that "the economy was so good when Clinton was in office" Yes of course it was, Deregulating markets and taking excessively more risk by levering up Fannie and Freddie (though I am sure they had no idea it would amount to this sort of pain at the time) is in the short run going to provide economic returns. This leads us to the principles of Modern Portfolio Theory and the theory of markets. Often times, emerging companies, markets, securities, derivatives, will be undervalued when first issued simply because a.) they are growing and b.) no one knows any information on them yet, which this turns out to be the more important reason why. But when this happens many investors will jump on the bandwagon and run away with gains (much like we saw with Fannie and Freddie and home start ups and sales and prices) however, as time progresses and the black hole that is the other side of the equation (risk) starts to come about. Stuff hits the fan. Also, when something is levered up much like fannie and Freddie were, they experience usually at least double the downside effects. Much like we are seeing now. So as a result, maybe Bill should have a.) not acted so much like a "damn greedy wall street Harvard MBA" and chosen to be a little more conservative in his economic plan and his ideals behind Fannie and Freddie, we may not be in this situation.

Good article.

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• Posted by BillBroskie on October 23, 2008 at 12:44 a.m.
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