The American Nightmare: No Exit, No Entry

Just a side note:

A few months ago, the usual pseudo intellectuals that masquerade as wits (Wildean and the not more accurate fractive halves) on up tried to claim that Marxism had nothing to contribute conceptually to capitalism. I immediately asked them to discuss the theory and practice of the dialectic which they promptly dismissed and went back to their discussion of sugarcane measurements.

Recently I found a book just published that discusses relevant applications of Marx`s uncompleted theory. The title included the words dancing and dialectic. Unfortunately, could not find the book title online-but will. In the meantime, found these hits:

http://heapro.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/19/1/115

As a Canadian American I will not debate Canadian politics with average Americans who do not comprehend the intricacies of dual citizenry, but will do so with Canadians. Romair, you are one of the few Canadians, even US-returned, who I find agreeing with me that taxes are reasonable in Canada. While we Canucks moan loudly about them being higher while in Canada, we have to literally compare them to the US to realize that most of our provincial taxpayers are much better off than American taxpayers in most US states. Canada has a lot of breaks for small businesses, and Canada Revenue Agency is ever helpful in matters pertaining to setting up small businesses, tax advice and even loan counseling. I have not found the US Internal Revenue Agency as forthcoming, in fact it is a quagmire unto itself.

Canada has made it very simple for immigrants to assimilate at once into its basic infrastuctural fabric, but there are severe hindrances when trying for employment in one’s own area of expertise. In order to immigrate to Canada, the barriers are set uncompromisingly high – college degree, years of relevant work experience, language expertise, friends and family circle, medical evaluations. The healthcare system on the whole benefits by a brushstroke practice of a skewed form of eugenics, and the nation on the whole benefits by demanding each new arrival speak rudimentary English at the very least, but by demanding higher educational qualifications of each and every aspirant to immigration, Canada is quickly finding itself stuck in the rut of scholars with no place to go and nothing to do. There is frustration and resentment brewing, and it will erupt sometime or the other, not in the faraway future by the hands of the citizen seedlings our Canadian government is so eager to sprout, but by the newly unleashed FOB immigrants themselves. People are not going to wait till tomorrow to fix their ills today.

Immigration quotas are also debatable, I for one am all for it, but know of very many recent immigrants who wish it would close. A part of it would be jealous human nature, but a large part is also based on employment outlook. While jobs are being created with a growing economy, it is painstakingly slow for some, and not at all materializing for others.

I disagree with the statement that healthcare is free in Canada. There is no drug coverage unless you have insurance through your employer, for which you need a to land qualifying job, preferably full-time with benefits. Small business owners (read under 25 employees) rarely have prescription coverage for themselves or their employees. The plan offered by the government for the elderly, that provides low-cost medicines, has substantial requirements, including income guidelines, and substantial waiting lists as well. Sooner or later, “healthcare” – meaning doctors’ and hospital visits - is going to be highly and eventually just subsidized, not free. The “use” of the medical system that many in the cabinet ministry see fit to label “abuse”, is putting too high a “burden” on the “employed” taxpayer. In my experience, professionals with well-paying jobs are the first ones to scream down with free healthcare. Perhaps they want to save on sick days. Prescription drugs are expensive in Canada, just like anywhere else, and the US-based bargain-hunter attitude of “it’s cheaper in Canada, let’s buy it from there” is one motivator in sending drug costs for average Canucks spiraling. In some cases a reverse drain has started in seeking medical services. While seniors from the US will drive all the way to Windsor or Niagara seeking flu shots which their government “forgot” to order in sufficient quantity, Canadian juniors and seniors are increasing looking to the US for cheaper spectacles (no pun intended). In Ontario for example, eye care including eye exams and reduced costs on eyeglasses has been done away with in 2004. One would presume eyes to be a vital part of one’s health. In the US, franchised opticians like America’s Best Contacts and Eyeglasses, offer multiple-year plans that can save a ton of hard currency for the penny-pinching father of five Eskimos. (This was just an example, not a sales pitch).

Canada has a budget surplus, not in small part from the landing fees as some new immigrants may like to think, however that is a fallacy. But how that surplus is being utilized is an intriguing question. There is no comparison to Canada’s ability to think ahead versus the US’s ability to just think. Retirement Savings Plans, the new Canada Education Savings Plans, the tax breaks on saving for and buying a new home, General Sales Tax credits that quite handsomely return part of the 15% sales tax, credits even for the millions of renters, single parents, daycare, childcare, elder care and dependent credits and benefits, all these have been so seamlessly integrated into the Canadian way of life, but still that way of life pales in comparison to the glamorous US, with its dollar purchasing power that I don’t for a second believe will ever achieve parity with the loonie. As for skyrocketing real estate prices, they are not going to burst anytime soon. The bubble may deflate a bit, yes, but all those nouveau riche (should I say fools?) with half a million dollar mortgages for three bedroom condos in Etobikoke are not going to let their prices fall as drastically as other (hopeful fools?) like to think.

I also do not agree that Canada’s educational system is affordable. If you think of the standard of living and earning power there itself, a parent still has to save a considerable amount if they want their child to go to university. Qualifying and applying for loans is being made more difficult, OSAP’s new website is testament to that. And the student loans do need to be returned at some point, otherwise the ever-chasing creditworthiness and dishonorable debt system is always present to track, hunt and maim, just like in the US, so there is no free degree. Plus, education will be a horrible nightmare in the years to come. Today, there are more children entering kindergarten with slim hopes of getting to college than twenty years ago. Every immigrant is encouraged to have more than one child, and they do. While the population is growing, the school system is not. There are not enough schools, colleges and universities put together that will accommodate the number of aspirants to their doors in the next twenty years. That begs the question, where will all that CESP funding go? I can count the number of postgraduate institutions in the whole of Canada on my fingers, I’m willing to bet so can you.

Canada’s emphasis on even hairdryers having certifications, after six-month or preferably year-long sojourns at nameless hairdryer schools accredited by the nation’s leading education advisory bodies, makes sure that even the hamburger has a diploma of some sort. What use it all is, is anyone’s guess. Spurious institutes with official sounding names have sprouted at every strip mall, laying claim to every other reject from the labor market. Right next to the institute you will find a Labour Ready butcher shop with its neon sign always on. They pay by the day, so that’s not all bad. But what does the MD from Bulgaria or the Chartered Accountant from Ghana with three young children that haven’t been fed meat in a month do when he/she can’t find a job willing to accept their fourteen year academic tenures from back home? Work in a steel or glass factory, or a warehouse that ships old clothes to Africa and makes a killing from the latest “western wear”. For every professional employed in their own fields living in shiny houses in Missisauga, there is a fellow immigrant with similar credentials counting pipes in a dingy factory in Ottawa, who is seething. Canada is failing to address that. Just as much as it has failed to address effectively what Canadian cattle ranchers should be doing with their US-designated “mad” cows, and other such political-technicality issues.

Instead of certifying meat, poultry, fish and their resellers, or inspecting the environment in which goods are being bought and sold, and not learning from the SARs scare that shut down half of Ontario’s businesses, the government’s emphasis on improving the nation’s standards by just improving the quality of people it allows into its borders, is falling short of every Canadian’s dream.

I have no more time, but want to end with the reminder that the US is Canada’s largest trading partner. For Canadians, this symbiotic relationship should suffice for never wishing the US to rollover and die.

#161

Faisaluno:

Global markets are almost always out of sync and that’s the greatest benefit of diversified portfolios. Investment horizon should be at least 7-10 years not just 5 years. Therefore, a market up or down within a 5 year span is interesting to talk about but does not mean much. Having said that, I believe that a portion of our portfolio must have emerging markets.

Japan’s Nikkei is around 14,800 today but was 39,000 or so in 1989. For this period, there are many emerging countries whose market records are much better than Japan. Does that mean that all of those countries are more promising socially than Japan and that Japan is a dead duck?

Investment opportunities and political viability/stability are two different things.

behram #:``You are incorrect when you suggest .... [... And its currency is tanking....]. Actually, the dollar has appreciated against all major currencies.``

Nope. The dollar has tanked against all major currencies. It may have gone up a tiny bit in from where it had tanked to, in certain intervals. But overall, over the past few years, it has tanked. One can simply look at where it was with respect to the other currencies a few years ago. As I mentioned four years ago US dollar bought 62 cents in Canadian currency. Today it gets you 85 cents.............

Warren Buffet, in his annual letter, stated that for the first time in his life, he has bet against the USA dollar.............

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Apparently my PREVIOUS attempt was not able to stir up much emotion in most chowkies.

Therefore.. here is the appeal again..

I know of this young man Hafeez. He is a bonafide victim whose family is out on the road. Please send him the little you can ...

I have already checked the following (Considering chowkie sensibilities):

1- He has NO political affiliation

2- He has NO Jehadi/Islamist affiliation

3- He is a hardworking law-abiding citizen of the AJK who is working in Lahore as a guard/chowkidar + office boy for lowly pay.

4- He lost some of his family and ALL of his worldly belonging.


PLEASE - please -please help.

You know where to contact me.

people can sing the praises of corporate america as much as they want. however investors who had listened to america bulls five years ago would`nt be very happy right now.

check out the graphs below to see how corporate america (measured by s&p 500 stock index) has performed against emerging asia ( measured by msci emerging asia stock index in u.s. dolllar terms). comparison is for the last five years. click on the graph for a larger image.

u.s.



emerging asia

Re: # 157

Saima,

With due respect, you have pulled yourself into a subject area that you had little or no knowledge. Obviously, you could not do justice with the scope. There is very little discussion in this article on globalization and the impact on the rest of the world. Each para hammers on ``the American this and the American that``. To top it all, you are constantly contradicting yourself in your interacts. Who is being sensitive? I thought you said that you were not talking about Americans/America, you were educating your readers on global trends and threats. I have put together a listing of your global views for your own reference:

[If people spend, the American economy will create jobs. If the American economy creates jobs, you will have money and then you can buy some nice things that will make you happy. Or as in the past few decades, the jobs will help you pay off your credit card, car, store card and loans for things you consumed today. ]

[American incomes have not grown in the last 4 years and in fact fallen steadily from 2000. This big fact is glossed over in mainstream media. Instead consumers are informed about the overall growth in GNP.]

[The American nation created amazing Universities that Americans don’t have the money or time to attend anymore.]

[An American’s life is a graph of lifetime earnings in which education is a terrible expense that reduces credit worthiness.]

[Why don’t we hear more about it in America? Apart from a few watered down, offbeat ‘opinions’, Alan Greenspan’s world-view rules. Just what has happened and who knows about it?]

[But, why aren’t welfare economists stepping forward to analyze the Development As Unfreedom of America? Why don’t we hear more voices of dissent? ]

[A central tenet of American life is that all problems are treated with the same solution; change the price and fit a model.]

[American democracy is founded in the volunteer association, the grassroots group that comes together and addresses an issue. But now those associations and community groups that were the backbone of the American system are not so active.]

[Mainstreaming of American life perpetuate. What this means that all the people in positions of power have the same values, otherwise they don’t get there. Thanks to a filtering process adopted by all corporations that weeds out all nay-sayers, the Corporate only hires its own kind.]

[Corporations succeed because of the world’s American dream of the good life. It will seduce with a house, a car, a mobile phone, a good life and the promise that if you work hard enough and if you are smart enough one day you can sell something to the world that makes you rich and solve all your problems.]

[At heart, the American is sure that others in the world are exactly like him with the same American dream. There is proof of that in the way so many people used to make their way to America to earn the right to be American. In his open generosity, the American just wants the whole world to be like him. Crack the same jokes, have the same concept of what’s fair and good, take the same responsibility for the good life that he does and just get on with it. To the American, this is at the heart of the democracy that he wants to world to have. America wants the world to be like America, and is unwilling for America to follow the same rules as the rest of the world.]

[Perhaps numbed by the American lifestyle, Americans cannot even think.]

The point isn`t that the article sucks. The point is that you cannot even justify your own perspectives and are changing gears. What`s the source of the above information and trends? You have thrown way too many spices in the pot and when examples are given to you negating your generalizations, you have no substance to add.

I recommend reading Pardesi.


Happy Thanksgiving!

Re: # 158

Dear Romair:

You are incorrect when you suggest .... [... And its currency is tanking....]. Actually, the dollar has appreciated against all major currencies.

Respectfully submitted,

I think societies should set up the following system:

- They should be Capitalist, in nature, with low taxes on business.....
- Personal taxes should be as high as required, increasing exponentially, as one gets richer. There should never be a situation, where one guy is a billionaire, while others are homeless
- Education should be carried out in a completely socialist manner. Everyone should have access to any school or university they can get into............

To a great extent, Canada is kind of like this. People may be surprised to know that business taxes, specifically for small businesses, are lower in Ontario than in California. I pay less taxes for my small business here than I would in San Jose

Personal taxes are higher in Canada, but not as high as many people think. The top Canadian tax bracker, after which taxes become consistent, is actually lower than in USA. On the whole, I pay 3-4% more personal taxes here than in California. However, other states with lower state tax than California have even lower taxes....

There is really only one area, where Canada taxes significantly higher. And that is sales tax. It is 15% on everything, except essentials. While in USA it is around 7-8%.......

In return, health care is free in Canada. People here are obsessed with free healthcare. Don`t know why. But what I like is that all university education is cheap, to the point of being free through state loans. McGill, the Harvard of Canada, costs about the same as any normal Canadian state university.......

Canada has been running a budget surplus for years. And will have a budget surplus for the foreseeable future. In addition, the Canadian dollar is predicted to reach 1-1 parity with the USA dollar. It is around 85 cents right now. When I moved here a few years ago, it was at 62 cents...........

USA is not going to just flop over and die. If it did, the whole world would collapse. But it is definitely not set up as well as before, for the long run, at the macroeconomic level. It has budget deficits for the foreseeable future. And its currency is tanking. I have sold everything I could which was in US dollars. And its housing market (the only thing keeping people rich) is going to collapse, like a bubble, anyday............

Most of all, no one in the US govt. seems to be willing to make corrections...........

() Now, Time For What I Thought Of the Interactions ()

Thanks to all posters:

I was touched at some people`s faith in America--somewhat blind I`d say but interesting (and highlighted in the article as the popular rationale). My viewpoint (as in the article) is that America is not positioned to succeed in the global realities of today because of various factors highlighted in the article, there will be more on this in the following months.

The replies unfortunately proved the points in the article. The dissenters and critics of the system tend to be outside America rather than from within--any dissenter is either labeled Marxist (I got that several times) or non American i.e., European/Canadian without US work experience (hilariously off) or a clueless FOB desi (points to a hang-up).

I got some excellent replies that went beyond labeling, tangential `facts`, defensive postures and personal attacks. These did not agree with me in many cases, however, they provided important feedback that I will consider next time around. Replies from GT, dash dash dot dash dash (man, it is hard to quote your nick), Inquirer, SaminaSha, kidbeegorilla, mirmir were educative. Pardesi, freesoul, and ZahraJ read into the article somewhat but the feedback was interesting. Their responses helped me understand just how sensitive this topic can be.

Btw, it isn`t like that in other comparable countries--this type of chasm between Left and Right is more often in less developed societies with strong income and educational disparity between the Haves and Have Nots. You guys might want to get out more in the world. May be things have changed in your countries of origin and elsewhere while you were in America.

I really don`t want to get pulled into a mine is bigger type of debate that some replies went into, so I`d rather not give my feedback about those. Lastly, the story of globalization is deeper and more interesting than whether America is the best place in the world or not blah blah.

# 148 Zahra G – Thank you.

#136 Saima,

{There is a lot more than just the educational system as you understand it. Just fixing the school system isn`t possible. The problem goes deeper}

I just mentioned education system since to me that’s the foundation for any society that wants to keep its competitive edge. Yes, there are other issues, but then which country does not have problems. Ultimately, you are graded on relative basis and I think American system is still the best humans have developed so far. Let me give you some reasons why I am so bullish on this country knowing fully well all the problems we face.

- Which country adopted the “enemy countries” as equal economic partners after bitter war and helped them to stand again on their own two feet - Only USA after WW 2.
- Which country bankrupted its enemy (Soviet Union) competitively and then immediately helped it to set up true and tested market oriented capitalist system?
- Which country adopted its “totally different” (like black and white) citizens as their own after all the injustices done to them? We do not want to compare that to our own immoral desi attitudes with respect to minor shade differences. Do we?
- Which country adopts immigrants from various countries and allows them to reach as high level as possible (well, almost) that they could have achieved in their own native countries?
- Which country gets bombed by some religious fanatics and right after that tries as best as possible to protect its citizens who were being harassed by street urchins?

I can go on and on ..

All I am saying is that USA has that moral, competitive and open minded culture and toughness of character. If it could deal with those gigantic issues, our current problems are absolutely manageable. People are fully aware of the issues here. Unfortunately, lots of our resources are tied in fighting with an ideology that we have not figured out how to deal with. Other problems, we do not know how to fix yet our welfare and dependency culture. We are struggling with “democrats and their demagoguery” about how the government can do everything for everybody.

So please, be patient with us. And yes, on a higher level there is nothing wrong with our corporate world no matter how many nasty things you might have heard about Martha Stewart, Enron and GM.

Re: # 143

DM,

``The issue of welfare is somewhat different in my opinion. I do not think that it is the job of a corporation to improve societal welfare, other than by doing what it is supposed to do, i.e., creating wealth by make efficient use of resources in delivering its product or service.``

I never said that corporations should maximize welfare. Nor is it`s job to maximize wealth or efficiency.....it`s job is to simply maximize profits. In maximizing profits it may or may not maximize efficiency (e.g. under negative externalities).

GT.

Re: # 151

The reason for the incompetence in Canada is several fold:

1. Hiring is on very narrowly defined competencies unlike the US
2. There is a strong bias against foreigners with accents, so immigrants don`t get upper level jobs unless they join at low levels and prove themselves.
3. Whereas US doesn`t care where someone got certified, Canada does.

Romair:

I agree that it cannot be restricted to Canada. But the U.S, I think, is the leader in this area and, if it sets an example, others could follow.

Re: # 149

Thanks for the reply.

To be frank this article had a tangential reference to corporations--global corporates, not just American. Freesoul defended the sense of empowerment and autonomy that workers feel in some corporate cultures, even though that wasn`t the point I was making at all.

Anyway, next time for more.

rgds

S