Billy the ‘Small Business Owner’

Unlike Joe the Plumber, my husband Billy runs a small business with his mom and is not worried about the possible tax implications his business may face under Obama’s tax plan.

Rather, Billy is quite concerned about the direction of the country and he wants a president who believes in government programs and support in times of recession.  He knows that government investment in people and infrastructure is key to bringing back prosperity in our economy.

You see, Billy’s business is in commercial construction.  He works with engineers and contractors to meet safety code standards on schools, hospitals and other emergency facilities.  As you might imagine, it is essential for federal, state and local governments to continue to invest in infrastructure for Billy’s business to survive and grow.

Billy feels, if he’s fortunate enough to make a quarter million dollars in profit next year, he won’t mind the higher tax bracket. Once the economy turns around, he plans to hire additional employees, and with Obama’s plan he will receive tax credits for hiring and expansion. 

He told me, “Paying taxes is patriotic. It’s my duty as an American.”

Aimee
“Aim for Aimee’s Blog“

The Rise and Fall of the American Empire

Too bad our government couldn’t move a little faster. Ideology clouded Paulson’s decision making.  He wanted to solve the crisis with some convoluted plan aimed at purchasing bad assets from banks, rather than just injecting liquidity directly (in exchange for stock). He lost precious time.

It’s hard to avoid the sense that Mr. Paulson’s initial response was distorted by ideology. Remember, he works for an administration whose philosophy of government can be summed up as “private good, public bad,” which must have made it hard to face up to the need for partial government ownership of the financial sector.

Luckily for the world economy, however, Gordon Brown and his officials are making sense. And they may have shown us the way through this crisis.

[Gordon Does Good THE NEW YORK TIMES]

This is the beginning of the end of American world dominance. In my opinion, our decline has come from poor and inadequate leadership.  This crisis proves to me that all U.S. government officials from the President to Congress are at fault.  Failing to act quickly, rationally, and directly in the global economic crisis is shameful and sad.  

It is reality-check time for America.  We must get it together or be left behind.

Aimee
“Aim for Understanding” 

The Keating Five & Our Current Financial Nightmare [video]

This is not the first time I’ve written about the Keating Five scandal.  [earlier article]

Please visit a brand new site about Charles Keating, a bailout of banks by U.S. taxpayers, U.S. Senators and Congressional Ethics Charges, oh and, John McMcain at the Center.

The current economic crisis demands that we understand John McCain’s attitudes about economic oversight and corporate influence in federal regulation. Nothing illustrates the danger of his approach more clearly than his central role in the savings and loan scandal of the late ’80s and early ’90s.

John McCain was accused of improperly aiding his political patron, Charles Keating, chairman of the Lincoln Savings and Loan Association. The bipartisan Senate Ethics Committee…

[www.KeatingEconomics.com]

The Keating Five Scandal

Vote! Vote! Vote! Don’t forget to register and vote this November! (Register Online Now)

Aimee
“Aim for the Election”

Gmail Features: Who’s Hacking your email?

Has someone been hacking your Gmail account?  A new feature in gmail monitors login activity (time stamp, i.p., etc.).  

The article below gives step-by-step instructions and screenshots:

This time I want to go over one new Gmail feature. It watches your account and displays a notification when someone else logs into your account. Basically a nice little feature from Gmail team that lets you check if someone has hacked into your Gmail account.

When you’re in Gmail go all the way down to the bottom of the page. There you should see something starting with “Last account activity …”, that’s the feature I am going to tell you about.

[Check if Your Gmail is Hacked with Activity Monitor]

Aimee
“Aim for Gmail”