The Office of the President

Did you know?  One of my pet peeves with people is when they begin a statement, "we wouldn't be in this mess if it weren't for _______, " (insert name).  Most of people insert in the blank, Obama. 

This then promts me to ask them to clarify.  Most students truely believe that Obama is the root of all governmental evils.

I generally ask them to get out their Constitutions and ask them to find me the jobs of the President.  I quickly point out that Congress shall make all laws.  So why then are you blaming Obama, when we have a House and a Senate that has done a good job of doing the most damage.  As a President he or she can set an agenda for what they would like congress to discuss, but that does not mean the outcome is going to be in his or her presidential best intrests. 

While health care was one of the Obama administrations agenda declarations.  He did not MAKE congress aprove it.  Secondly, Congress has generally two factions that can't and won't work together. The Democrats and Republicans.  When they do work together, as we saw just before Christmas to pass the payroll tax extension, the credit does not rest with the president. 

On the LONG drive (see previous post) one of the commentators was spouting that the EPA was the root of all evil.  I finally had to tell my husband that I couldn't listen to this SHIT anymore.  The commentator had said that the reason plants are closing and jobs are being lost is because of the EPA and its regualtions regarding safe environmental policy.  I as a History/Government teacher had a cow.  I know why there is an EPA, read your history books folks it isn't pretty.  I wanted to shout at all his callers, the reason you are loosing your jobs is because of EXPENSE.  When the cost of production outweights the money that product would bring in an open market economy. 

I'll break it down for you.  If a car costs 12,000 to buy new. Then the costs of production have to be under 12,000 for the company to make a profit.  Companies are in this for the profit, they do not give jobs out of the goodness of their hearts.  If the people making the cars continually expect to make MORE money, and even continue to strike (see Labor Unions) to take home more pay.  Combined with the costs of raw materials like Metal and Fiberglass used to create the actual product.  The car better cost under 12,000 when finished or the company will loose money.  NOW here is where the EPA steps in.  Sometimes companies can make MORE money if they choose to ignore environmental standards.  For instance, using water to clean car parts.  They can either dump it on the ground thereby contaminating your drinking water or they can spend MONEY to filter it and clean it before they dump it.  The first option is zero dollars, the second option is 1,000 dollars.  As a company executive your job is to make costs zero dollars.  You dump it on the ground.  But wait I go to my tap and run some water. It comes out black like sludge.  I call the EPA, they come out assess the situation and now the costs to clean up the problem have cost the company 100,000 dollars.  Is this the EPA's problem or the Company's? The company and the workers blame the EPA, but really who is at fault for the loss of jobs, it's not the EPA?   http://www.epa.gov/cleanup/whereyoulive.htm  Check out where you live, Do you live in an EPA clean up area?