politics and bullshit
I'm going to apologize in advance because there are two things I usually NEVER get into, Politics and Religion. You want the fastest way to get into an argument or fight? Start in on one of these topics. I've gotta be honest, if I had heard one more political commercial or news brief regarding what this candidate said or what that leak revealed I was about to lose it. Naive me then assumed that once the election was over, all the bullshit would just fade away. Nope. Now its all about protests and people complaining about the election, "but so and so won the popular vote" or how "now this county is fucked right down the tubes", and "so and so should be in jail". Good for everyone, go ahead and protest, or gloat, whatever makes you happy. I'm pretty sure the country wasn't going to collapse regardless of which of the two main candidates had gotten elected.
The election itself was divisive enough, now however is not necessarily the time to be divisive anymore. It's time to come together, have a frank discussion and then give the president-elect a chance to succeed. Lets agree to disagree on some points, but lets all recognize that there are issues which need to be addressed across the country. Yes there are other issues for sure, but to me, Jobs, Healthcare and Race Relations were the main points.
Disclaimer: I'm no economist, health care expert or race relations relations guru.
I've been looking for a position for a while with few or no real prospects. I have an associates degree and have supplemented this by taking classes as I am able, so I am educated, but not to the undergraduate level of BA/BS. However I'd like to think I more then make up for this with experience, aptitude, confidence and hard work. But my prospects are limited, because there simply not many jobs in my field or any other field which I remotely qualify for. This leads to a crowded job market, which means the minimum standards employers set forth are higher (not necessarily a bad thing) but can translate to highly qualified people taking jobs which are beneath them educationally. How about to stimulate job growth we cut the corporate tax rate (38% rn) and encourage companies to return their operations and cash the USA? I'm not suggesting cut it to levels like Ireland's 12.5%, but to a more reasonable 20% for example. This rate will come with the caveat that companies keep their facilities in the country and that they invest in the infrastructure in the communities surrounding their plants and offices. This would mean sponsoring road, bridge, power grid maintenance and repair in the form of PILOTs (payment in lieu of tax) equivalent to an additional 5% for a total of 25% overall rate for example. This would create jobs at the companies and spin-off industries and jobs maintaining the infrastructure. It also would allow the local municipalities to focus their monies on less developed areas in their jurisdictions.
Basic health insurance is extremely expensive and not very good. Not having healthcare coverage, then clogging up the ER for minor things while the rest of the general public pays doesn't make sense either. Is the answer Obama-care? Not when insurance companies like Anthem and United Health aren't making enough profit and are rolling back their participation. Should we put a profit limit on these companies? No but but the government could mandate mid-range insurance care as the baseline standard for minimum care and ensure corporations participation by adding an extra tax to these companies who don't comply or "help out". This could potentially encourage the insurance companies to innovate by investing in new medical technologies or startups in addition to cutting costs elsewhere maybe starting with the amount of salary, bonuses and stock options the CEO's' get. How much is enough? Is 10 million enough? Or 108 million? Healthcare companies are always looking to cut costs on the backs of their employees and the people they insure. Why not start looking at top level management?
Racial relations has been a very touchy subject in this election. But come on now, its almost 2017, there is NO room for racism in the US, we are all pink on the inside. The first thing our President-elect needs to do is apologize for his insensitive statements and then lead by example. Appoint some qualified non-whites to the cabinet, set up a some scholarships for minorities, invite people from all sides to have a "town meeting" and discuss ways to improve the level of respect people have for each other. I'm not saying this is all he could do, just some ideas to get things started. As for the rest of us in the general public, above all we all have to realize that this country is not exclusively one colour or race. This country is a melting pot of cultures, European, African, Hispanic, Asian, and Indigenous peoples. The majority of us or our ancestors came here for similar reasons (freedom, opportunity, safety) and those that are here now need to keep that in mind and show a little respect to each other.