Saturday, November 22, 2008

State Unemployment Rates

Facts from the October BLS report on state unemployment rates, ranked from lowest to highest:

1. Five states have unemployment rates at 3.6% or less (SD, WY, ND, UT, and NE).

2. 33 states have unemployment rates below the national average of 6.5%, 15 states are above 6.5%, and two states are at 6.5%.

3. The median unemployment rate by state is 5.7%, with 25 states at or below 5.7% and 25 states at or above 5.7%, and mean by state is 5.86%.

4. Based on #2 and #3 above, it suggests that the reason the national average of 6.5% is above the median of 5.7% is either because: a) the states with higher-than-average unemployment rates are also states with higher-than-average population, and/or b) there are more extreme "outliers" above the median than extreme outliers below the mean, bringing the mean of 6.5% above the median of 5.7%.

I believe both of these are correct: Some of the states with the highest jobless rates are also states that have large populations (MI at 9.3%, CA at 8.2%, OH at 7.3% and, IL at 7.3%). Moreover, the two states with the highest rates are Michigan and R.I. with 9.3% rates, 3.6% above the median, while the two states with the lowest rates are SD and WY with 3.3%, or only 2.4% below the median.

Bottom Line: The economic problems and labor market weakness are not necessarily distributed equally around the country, but the biggest problems are perhaps somewhat concentrated in some of the states with the largest populations. Fourteen states have unemployment rates below 5% for example, which would normally be considered to be pretty far from recessionary levels.

77 Comments:

At 11/22/2008 2:42 PM, Blogger Scott Grannis said...

You should see if there is a correlation to tax rates. I'd be willing to bet that the higher the state income tax rate, the higher the unemployment.

 
At 11/23/2008 3:44 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

In addition to tax rates, which party is in power, strength of unions? What's the bet that dem and strong is the answer?

 
At 11/24/2008 2:33 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It seems that the states with the highest unemployment typically vote for Democrats, and the states with the lowest unemployment typically vote for Republicans. That should tell everyone something

 
At 11/24/2008 2:36 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am from RI... 38 state senate seats and only 4 republicans. The governor gets overridden every time... RI insanity = voting the same over and over again, and expecting different results... duh!

 
At 11/24/2008 2:51 PM, Blogger A. Samuel said...

I'd like to see it broken down by "Right to Work" states. I suspect "Right to Work" states have both lower unemployment and more productivity per capita.

Sam

 
At 11/24/2008 2:53 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ohio and Michigan and certainly Democrat/Union centered and hurting due to it. Not sure about California, with a Republican governor, and B.W. covers R.I. Look at Utah...great state doing things right, very conservative minded...slogan I saw out there; Republ-I-Can.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:00 PM, Blogger alan said...

Red state or blue state.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:13 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

state income tax rate range
CA
1.0 - 9.3%

OH
0.618 - 6.24%

MI 4.35%

UT
5.00%

WY
none

SD
none

NE
2.56 - 6.84%

ND
2.1 - 5.54%

You need to check how high their corporate and other business taxes, such as B&O tax rates are to really see the affect of taxes on employment.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:14 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

I expected to see S.D. in the top 5
for employment. We're not afraid to
work for low wages, and we don't have
state income tax.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:21 PM, Blogger Kahleeka said...

FL
No Income Tax
6.6% Unemployment Rate

Our main industry is tourism, though and when people have no money to burn, they don't spend it here!

Republican Govener Christ
Jeb Bush was before him and he was AWESOME!

 
At 11/24/2008 3:24 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Red / Blue right! Neither side really cares and if there is a person in Washington that does they get told to be quiet. When will America understand that is part of the big plan. Globle market, spread the wealth. Before long we will all be singing. Just give me a home where the buffalo roam and the Red & Blue can't come play. Please leave us alone and go back to D.C. and stay...

 
At 11/24/2008 3:25 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Extremely conservative states with the lowest unemployment rates vs. extremely liberal states with the highest... *sarcastic* Yeah, it must be related to population, no way it could be ideology or too much government regulation.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:28 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It's obvious that the poorly performing states are democratic controlled and highly taxed.

I used to think "stupid" was a small percentage of the population. Now I see that it is on a much larger scale.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:31 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Not so much "stupid," but rather "uninformed" and "ignorant."

 
At 11/24/2008 3:41 PM, Blogger Lance said...

Let's see...Welfare states have higher unemployment rates than "Not-So welfare states."

Wow...I needed a PhD and a massive grant to fund my study and come up with those findings!!

Population!?! Of all the things to find a correlation to, that's the best you could come up with Prof???

 
At 11/24/2008 3:43 PM, Blogger Ted said...

Rex, I agree with you. I really do think if we ever really new what the plan for America was, the middle class would want to turn the state they live in, into a country. It is a sad day in America. It really has nothing to do with red or blue. Bottom line is, if a company has there corp. office located in this country. Then the bluk of there work should be done in this country.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:46 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

To find a correlation between taxes and the unemployment rate you'll not only have to look at state income taxes but sales tax, business and corporate taxes, etc. Just looking at the state income tax doesn't paint a very complete picture.

 
At 11/24/2008 3:53 PM, Blogger Ted said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:02 PM, Blogger Ted said...

Living where they are building the presidents new fleet of flying machines. Locheed pays NO prperty taxes. Because our unemployment was so high here. They get about 20% of the workers paid by the state. Which we are all paying for. And most of the work is done in the UK. So I guess that means we are paying 20% of the pay checks for works in the UK now. And nobody in D.C. can understand why the country is broke. We are not broke, we just do not understand how to invest in America.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:04 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wikipedia says Wyoming's biggest industry is 'mineral extraction', and South Dakota's 2nd largest employer is an Air Force base with 10% of the gross state product. I'm guessing out of the top 5 lowest unemployment rates, NE is the only one that 'makes anything' - beef. So what are we going to be reading about Wyoming when they run out of minerals to exploit or about South Dakota when the air force no longer needs pilots? The answer is we need to be globally competitive at building stuff, that's the real driver of the economy.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:18 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

I do not understand because California & Florida were one of the first states in a recession and they both have republican Governors for a while. Of course, republican are going to say that is not their fault but actions speak lauder than words.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:25 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

What matters more than who's in power, Republican or Democrat, is the state's overall policies: Liberal or Conservative.

California has a Republican Governor, but extremely liberal policies toward just about everything.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:35 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

The bigger the welfare state the bigger the unemployment. If it was the population then we should be breaking up the larger states controls and certainly not push for a federal government over State.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:41 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Don't look at their governors. Look at who the state in general voted for in the recent election.

It's Red vs Blue states.

Red states tend to be happy, productive, hard working, Americans, with low welfare rates, low illegal immigrant numbers, and far fewer people on the dole.

 
At 11/24/2008 4:56 PM, Blogger suzanne said...

Well 4 of the 5 lowest unemployment are the highest Christian states per 1990. But that was 18 years ago. What happened to RI since?

Top 10 Most Christian States in the U.S.A.
(Organizationally reported/affiliated members of Christian churches, 1990)
Rank State Percent Number
1 Utah 75.00% 1,097,000
2 Rhode Island 75.00 710,000
3 North Dakota 73.80 482,000
4 South Dakota 66.90 462,000
5 Minnesota 64.90 2,644,000
6 Wisconsin 64.40 3,029,000
7 Massachusetts 64.00 3,669,000
8 Nebraska 63.10 990,000
9 Iowa 60.80 1,890,000
10 Connecticut 60.80 1,890,000


Source of Christian statistics: Krantz, Les and Jim McCormick. The Peoplepedia: The Ultimate Reference on the American People, Henry Holt and Company: New York (1996), pg. 188: Table: "Top 10 Christian States"; "The table below shows where most religiously affiliated Christians... live, according to the Glenmary Research Center [1990 study]."

 
At 11/24/2008 4:59 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It might also be interesting to look at the state of the state when comparing unemployment rates. Here in PA, latest news is our budget is in shambles. Now, that could be because Republicans & Democrats overspent, or it could be due to sales taxes at 6% or it could be due to other policy issues. It could also be due to Philly dragging down the rest of the states economy.
Point is, its a conglomeration of issues that is hurting states. PA traditionally goes for the Democrat. They have voted Republican, such as for Reagan, but generally they go Democrat. Oops, they also go Rino. Think Arlen Specter, the Republican that Democrats can count on to vote for liberal policies & taxes, etc.

 
At 11/24/2008 5:02 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

A states population may not be the direct cause, but in general, the more populous states lean more liberal and have higher taxes. It makes sense. Liberals think/act as groups. Conservatives think/act more as individuals.

 
At 11/24/2008 5:07 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

I live in Illinois and I'm looking forward to moving to a red state.

 
At 11/24/2008 5:10 PM, Blogger justthetruth said...

Evelyn said... I do not understand because California & Florida were one of the first states in a recession and they both have republican Governors for a while. Of course, republican are going to say that is not their fault but actions speak lauder than words.
**

Sorry Evelyn, the economic woes predominate in mostly liberal South Fla (Miami,Ft Laud, etc). The big hit was due to RE speculators who lost their rear-ends and big spenders in legislature. We're doing Ok in rest of Florida... for now. Newly elected liberals are proposing more regulations & taxes. And Gov. Crist is more left than McCain. PS: I echo Kahleeka - Jeb Bush rocked.

 
At 11/24/2008 5:18 PM, Blogger MAGGIEB said...

I am surprised no one has mentioned "Illegal Aliens".
I know California is spending their money and our money supporting these criminals. If our constitution is read correctly "Anchor Babies" are not legal standing either. My Grandfather was a nationalize citizen. He did it the right way and was very well off when he passed away. Here is my favorite saying for our illegals situation.
CALLING AN "ILLEGAL ALIEN" AN "UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT" IS LIKE CALLING A "DRUG DEALER" AN "UNLICENSED PHARMACIST"

The communist countries are just sitting back and laughing at us as we implode. China has told Walmart CEO starting Jan. 1, 2009 everything must be paid for before they will ship. I have family that work at Walmart and this is what they were told in a meeting 2-3 weeks ago. We are going to **** in a hand basket guys! Arnold is republican in name only.

 
At 11/24/2008 5:33 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I live in Nebraska and one thing about it is that we are not afraid to work. We do what needs to be done and do not demand a fortune to do it. We do not go out on strike over everything that we want and cannot get right away. Our work ethic is good and we know that unless you work you do not eat! I do not know of many here who expect the world to pay them a living and we do not have people sitting in parks with their hands out. They would not be tolerated. There are jobs and people are grateful for them and do not expect the State or Federal government to give them a constant handout. Some of the states with high unemployment I do not believe can say that. AND yeah for the most part we are a Republican state but also we do not allow our state to go into such horrid debt.

 
At 11/24/2008 5:44 PM, Blogger rj hornsby said...

I live in Ohio, and the Democrats have only recently taken over in the last couple of years. They haven't done jack to make things better, and the Republicans before them under Bob Taft were less than stellar.

Columbus has been re-electing the same (D) mayor for as long as I can remember, and things have been on a long downhill slide here, but the voters, as a previous poster said, keep electing the same clowns and expecting a different result. Downtown is struggling mightily, because the city decided to give huge tax breaks to mall developers to build properties on the outer edges - effectively killing the downtown mall and associated commerce. Pretty soon Columbus is going to be renamed to "Nationwide" for the insurance giant who has done massive investing in the downtown arena district.

I don't know about other states, but Ohio has a big problem with brain-drain. That is, college graduates who were residents prior to coming here for school or new residents as univ students, leaving the state for jobs elsewhere.

 
At 11/24/2008 6:17 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Obviously The states with the highest unemployment rates are the industrial states. The industrial jobs have all been outsourced. the engineering schools have all shut down. The companies that produce most of the countries wealth have all gone bye bye.

This is not because of democrats, , or republicans, liberals, or unions. In modern automated manufacturing labor accounts for less than 15% of the manufacturing costs. Manufacturing and engineering moved to Asia because that is where the market is. There are three billion people in Asia who want cars, computers, cell phones, and TVs. And China has laws that you cannot buy anything in China unless it was made in China.

 
At 11/24/2008 6:47 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey I live in Ri. now left state 29years ago moved to Iowa whish I was still their Ri is still run the same way when I left COURUPED as always and they wonder why taxes and no jobs DUH!!!!!!!

 
At 11/24/2008 6:58 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Taxes.... the less taxes you impose on businesses the more they will want to locate and operate here instead of some other country. But the mess we are in now started in the '90's with Mr. Bill, Frank, and Dodd and it caused the housing bubble that burst, the banking bubble that burst, and all the fall out from that is now hitting everyone while they deny, deny, and deny and say "Bush, Republicans, Bush, Republicans" The more the Gov't tries to "fix" it the worse it will get; more money printed - inflation will be next; the Gov't needs to butt all the way out!!

 
At 11/24/2008 7:12 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm not saying its easy to solve these problems, but its almost the same as the freaking housing problem.....and the problem with the mindset of people in this country. If you can't afford it, don't buy it! i wish they would teach financial courses and business courses in highschool so that at least the kids who arent going to college would have some monitary foundation..........we are building a nation of people who know nothing about money or business and therefore spend spend spend and don't know how to earn their own. 100 years ago you had to own your own business....or be in the family business.........so many problems with this country......i wish we had a normal presidential candidate instead of people who think they know whats really going on and just say what you want to hear.......why do they have to be liberal or republican......give me a republicrat! someone in the middle who makes decisions because they are moral and good and are based on common sense.........not because their party does it this way or that........give me someone in the grey who will listen to both sides and make the best choice he/she thinks possible.....goh....i'm 23 and have no confidence in my country...how sad.....

 
At 11/24/2008 7:19 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

The US economy is like a terminally ill patient. Can you imagine what the patient would think if they saw everyone standing around the bed discussing the correlation between this and that,arguing that which way the patient had voted, eaten,slept or brushed his teeth had the most bearing on his current situation.The patient would say "everyone out" except my mother whose praying for me.It,s too late America, the fools have taken over.

 
At 11/24/2008 8:39 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Let's fix the real mess that is found in Washington DC:

1 Term limits - 6 years max

2 Pay raises for Congress must be approved by a public panel (chosen by a lottery).

3 Members of Congress must choose from an existing health plan commonly available to the general public.

4 Pensions are to be based upon wages received.

5 Congress to pay into Social Security.

6 NO aid to illegal immigrants

7 No more anchor babies

8 Secure our borders. By force if necessary

9 Put limits on welfare payments, food stamps, medicare, SSI and all other forms of welfare. And change the name back to what it really is - "Public Assistance"

10 Cross check SS# with finger-prints.

11 Full face identification on all Driver Licenses, or State ID's

12 Add one cent to the gasoline tax and apply those funds to the Federal debt. Make it a CAPITAL CRIME for any politician to try to use it for other purposes.

13 Limit CEO pay plans and golden parachutes.

Now, find some politicians with guts to get this taken care of.

Michigan needs help and we'll never get it from Lansing.

 
At 11/24/2008 8:59 PM, Blogger Serious said...

DITO to you Alpena Bob.........

i also think we should be able to impeach them for mis-using (stealing) our money for their own personal gain.

 
At 11/24/2008 10:41 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Alpena Bob is on the right track.

I'd also like to add that each time a vote in the House or Senate is exactly split down party lines that all involved should face some type of public panel. They would then have to explain how "group think" in leadership could possibly be in the best interest of our state or country.

Absolutely maddening. Think for yourselves people!!

Alpena born - Jamie

 
At 11/24/2008 10:51 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Two things that could lkely add to the problem... illegal alien population and extreme environmental regulations on business.

 
At 11/25/2008 5:07 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Evelyn, here is a clue for you. I live in California. Arnold is no conservative and both branches of the CA legislature is controlled by democrats. The CA state constitution prohibits CA from deficit spending yet that is exactly what the legislature has been doing for several years. The excessive spending got the previous democrat governor recalled and booted out. Yet the illegal deficit spending continues to grow. I can't remember when the legislature past a budget on time.

I hope you know that the president and governors do not spend public funds. They propose budgets and the congress and legislatures spend the money. A republican governor with a democrat legislature controls very little.

 
At 11/25/2008 6:45 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

At the same time you have to look at it from another perspective though. If a company builds a factory, or add's a location they'll need people to work there. So population is one of the things to get looked at. Perhaps the states with the higher unemployment rates, though having a higher populations, got that way simply because there was more jobs to lose.

 
At 11/25/2008 6:49 AM, Blogger paulrph1 said...

Now let us take Nevada, a traditionally Republican state. Las Vegas has traditionally voted Democrat where as the rural counties have voted Republican. There are enough people who live out of the city to swing the vote to Republican. Now I am a mug wamp (one who votes the person not the party) but I seldom vote Democrat because they have become to liberal. It seems to becoming the same for the Republican party since the current conservative is now the liberal of yesterday.
As far as Wal-mart/China situation goes, China is going broke and must have the monies up front. This does present a problem or two for the consumer.

 
At 11/25/2008 8:18 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Sam thinks "right to work" states have lower unemployment. I live in a right to work state, Michigan. Check out our unemployment rate. It's quite high. Unions have outlived their usefulness.

 
At 11/25/2008 9:14 AM, Blogger Mark J. Perry said...

Michigan is a "forced-unionism state," not a right-to-work state, data here: http://www.nrtw.org/rtws.htm

 
At 11/25/2008 9:38 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks, Mark. This was very enlightening. I had always heard we were a right to work state. That would explain why my husband had no choice in the matter!

 
At 11/25/2008 9:43 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hang on! we are following the same path Germany, France, Great Britian, Italy etc did after ww2 heading toward socialism and centrist control. People will become more and more used to freebies (do we see it now?) and because of that they give up their freedoms. The middle america states will have to stand up and lead the way..., before it is too late..., and it may already be. N Gsdregerson

 
At 11/25/2008 10:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I hear and read all this stuff about unemployment buttttttttttt what about the people that there unemployment runs out. Do any body count them any more or are they just lost from the unemployment. I dont ever hear anything about them.So what is the real unemployment??? I think they need to figure out a better way to figure out who is drawing unemployment and count the ones that can not get unemployment. Thank You

 
At 11/25/2008 10:27 AM, Blogger chummus said...

I live in Rhode Island. they have the second highest corporate tax rate in the country at 9% and are very unionized. It is a great test sute for Obama's tax plan

 
At 11/25/2008 10:43 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It turns my stomach to live in Michigan and hear so many people blame Bush for everything. It has been said many times, that a microcosim of the country is Michigan if..errr..make that when we are under Democrat control.
This is not going to be good!

 
At 11/25/2008 11:05 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Boy, it seems I opened a can of worms on Michigan! And I didn't listen to my husband. He had told me Michigan WAS a forced-union. It's funny to me that Obama wants Granholm on his economic transition team seeing how "WELL" this state has been doing for years now! I guess I should get an identity if I'm going to keep blogging!

 
At 11/25/2008 11:36 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

A look at the number of non documented citizens in these states would also be interesting to look at.

 
At 11/25/2008 11:48 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

My son who is a union stewart here in Michigan..spouts the company line about Bush this..Bush that..So, add one more...Gee, My Dad was right afterall in the near future. Sooner than he thinks, too. No Vodka for him, Comrads!

 
At 11/25/2008 1:37 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

All this talk of "Red & Blue" is a waste of time. It is not one party or another who is to blame for our problems. The blame can be attributed to the entire spectrum and ignorance is the driving force. Would you hire someone to run YOUR business who had never done it before? Why not? We the people do it all the time. We have hired about 535 members of Congress to run the largest business on the planet, the Federal Government, and most of them have never run a business. The only thing most of them are qualified to do is throw stuff at the wall and see if something sticks while we pay for the experiment. And that is what is happening right now. Put the blame where it belongs, inefficient and ignorant management. Just like the Big Three, right? Our elected officials act as though they are more qualified than the car maker execs. What do you think?

 
At 11/25/2008 1:38 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

44,male,married,4 kids in wisconsin.
we HAD a great gov.(tommy-rep.)who got rid of welfare which i thought was a good thing for a while UNTIL everyone in milw.found out how to get SSI for the kids starting at the age of 3 months old,the doctors lie and say kids have things to get SSI.,SO INSTEAD OF 1 WELFARE CHECK for 1 adult&5 kids,NOW THEY GET 4 SSI.CHECKS.
LETS SEE HERE-WELFARE $700 A MONTH OR SSI.$600 X #4=$2400 A MONTH,,,WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?,,,

 
At 11/25/2008 1:52 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Alpena Bob has the right idea. Term limits are a MUST. I think Dodd, Frank, and everyone involved in the housing crisis should be prosecuted to the fullest. That is one of the biggest hypocrisies I have ever heard of. The people that caused the problem are going to fix it??? Put Pelosi in that catagory as well, she and her husband are so deep in the s*** it isn't funny. Where is the common sense? NOT in Washington!! Everyone in government should be held to the same standards as the working class that support all of their "ideas". Wish I could "vote" myself a pay raise!!

 
At 11/25/2008 4:35 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I wonder if there is a correlation between unemployment and the amount of the state's budget deficit?

 
At 11/25/2008 6:25 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Alpena Bob-

Add this to your list of great ideas:

While you're on the Public Dole you lose the right to vote (unless you're TRULY disabled). When you're off the dole you get to vote again. Otherwise we're headed for socialism for sure.

 
At 11/25/2008 7:28 PM, Blogger greyhawk said...

The state's that have the largest populations have them because of the concentration of people in large metro areas. That is why states with these type population centers usually vote for Democrat City Government. And, that is why these states have become socialist states with high taxes, high unemployment and high crime rates.

The overcrowded cities are filled with large pockets of deadbeats who live off welfare programs, and these same deadbeats have a right to vote and they vote for the party that promises to give them more for doing nothing. Then, these same socialist states and large cities tax those who work and own property at exhorbitant rates.

I have a great suggestion whose time has come. All the states that have been able to stop their state governments from becoming Socialist, need to join together in a alliance and say to the Federal Government, "We are not going to contribute to you so that you can continue to buy votes with welfare programs and expect the rest of us to support it." Enough is enough. This government has created several generations of deadbeats who do not work, will not work, and they demand, demand, and demand even more, while contributing nothing but more welfare mouths to feed, crime, medical care costs, prison populations to rise, and this entitlement mentality has no limits, and we continue to allow these deadbeats to leech off the rest of us out here who work.

It is time that decent, hardworking Americans ban together. The Republicans always win the largest territories, but have smaller populations. That is why California, the Mother of All Socialist States, Massachusettes, New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois, Maryland, Washington State, Washington D.C. and Oregon, to name a few are Socialist states. They have these large crime and disease infested cities filled with vermin of all sorts, and they also have large populations of foreign invaders who have joined the homegrown deadbeats. It is time to call an end to supporting this. If these states want to support their polluted and crime infested cities, so be it, but it is time that the rest of us quit paying our Unfair Share to support it. This is the message this congress needs to hear along with this Marxist President - Elect that we are now stuck with. It is time for an old fashioned Hell No to come from the American Heartland.

 
At 11/25/2008 9:16 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Alpena Bob...right on! Here is an addendum to your suggestion on limiting exec comp/golden parachutes. The key execs of a company must keep their earnings in proportion of their employees...Much like a 401k plan is tested for "top heavy" funding (execs contributing more compared to a small percentage of common ee's) their salary must be tested against the workforce...if it exceeds the limit, there are two options: 1, cut the exec's pay to meet those limits or 2, raise the workforce's wages to the level that brings the ratio back into the parameters. And while we're at it, campaign reform is a must! Just like the Yankees...they get a "Salary Cap" on their campaign. That way everyone gets the same funding...no exceptions or refusing federal funds. For example, $14 million is the max each candidate or surrogates can spend. No more. They will be disqualified from the race. All candidates get equal air time and all candidates are to participate in town hall debates...not just Rep/Dem. Maybe this will get some better candidates in the mix instead of bankrupting the good ones and leaving those with deep pockets or friends with deep pockets...am I off base with this?

 
At 11/25/2008 10:02 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Then there was the idiot that mentioned that the largest industry in Wyoming was "mineral extraction". They further stated that they would like to see the figures for Wyoming once the minerals ran out since Wyoming produces nothing.
1) fat chance!!
2) How about cattle and sheep?
3) How about tourism?
4) How about the power that this person uses?

Coal, oil, natural gas, uranium do nothing for anyone if it is left in the ground.
Wyoming produces quite a lot of things. The other thing that Wyoming produces ..... people that don't beg the government for their existence! We had damn near 3 feet of snow here a few weeks ago. Did you hear about that? Of course not, we took care of the problem ourselves! Then quite recently, 6-12 inches shut-down parts of the midwest and east. Go Figure?

Life is hard here in Wyoming sometimes, but life is good!

 
At 11/25/2008 10:04 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm watching from Canada and the US gov't so reminds me of my sister. She maxed out her credit card and when she couldn't make the payments she applied for another credit card and used it to make the payments on the first one. Where is she at now? Applying for bankrupcy. P.S. Canada should invite Alaska to join us. We would let them drill for oil. A Glenn fan.

 
At 11/25/2008 10:21 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I live in California. We are the Poster Child for this study:
Unchecked Illegal Immigration, Highest State Tax Rate, Democrats in Power for Years and Years, Home of the San Francisco crazies, Diane Feinstein and Nancy Pelosi.
It's the Dems!!!!

 
At 11/26/2008 3:00 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I live in Illinois and I just wonder if the high unemployment rate has to do with the facts that our current president elect(most liberal senator ever)is from here, and our whole state is controlled by crooked cook county!

 
At 11/26/2008 3:05 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi--And yes, California is the Mother of all Socialist States, and has been for quite a while. I blog quite a bit on Townhall and other sites, and some of the most whacked out Liberal posters in the world come from California, especially around San Francisco and LA. I remark about how California regulates every thing from French Fries to the kind of car you drive, and then turn around and tax people to death, and pass inane laws that regulate and police legitimate citizens, and then create sanctuary cities that harbor criminal invaders. Home of every crazy and radical movement in the history of this country. Just go back to the 1960's and the Black Panthers, Black Muslims, The Symbianese Liberation Army (Terrorists who kidnapped Patty Hurst), Charlie Manson and his gang of kooks, Watts, Berkeley, Ebonics from Oakland, and of course you have Holly-Weird, and all the trash they have pushed on the rest of the country Via TV/Movies/Music. Then, you have Southern California, a desert, that has been turned into an artificial garden that uses water from Colorado that runs through Concrete Ditches that the Los Angeles folks call a river. This sort of illusionary world takes people out of reality, and of course this is a mental illness. But, unfortunately, these California Style Socialist Laws are pushed on the rest of the country by the California Lobby, and the likes of Dianne Feinstein, Nancy Pelosi, George Miller, and other Limo Liberals from that state who go to DC and gain power, and the band plays on and the crazies still run amok in California and in DC, and we all suffer, but there has come a time in our history where Sane People better get out and organize in every town, county and state to stave off the Lunatics. Look at how the Obama Loonies organzied, with tax payer money, and with direction and cheerleading from the MSM, centered in Hollywood, California. They created class envy and hatred at the Grass Roots Level, and then these Morons and Deadbeats went out and voted, and now we are stuck with a Socialist Congress, a Socialist President Elect, and an ignorant populace with their Hands Out, Waiting for the Increases in Welfare Checks, and it is you, me and others who work for a living that are expected to pay for it and they call us bigots if we protest about it.

 
At 11/26/2008 12:49 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Go Grayhawk,
Now if we could just get 20 Million more to agree with us instead of feeding at the trough...

 
At 11/26/2008 1:14 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

South Florida is not only the one that is in a bad place. If we use our taxes only for us and not for the rest of Florida we will be OK. It is pure ignorance to say that we are dragging the state down.

 
At 11/26/2008 3:15 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I've read all your comments and totally agree. But we can either continue to vent and comfort one another or we can join forces and make a difference.

I urge you all to consider logging on the website below, then click the link on the left side of the page to Join the Resistance!
http://www.grassfire.org/home.shtm

 
At 11/26/2008 5:25 PM, Blogger Evelyn in Cerritos said...

How about education? Maybe that is an indication? America needs to go back to the basic. Family values, real education - liberalism is destroying these. California students done poorly because of the the liberalism in homes and schools. We want to get the good jobs back from overseas, we need to produce better workers with knowledge, with better work ethics and hard working.

Unions are good to an extend, but stop teaching people to be greedy and lazy.

this is a different Evelyn

 
At 11/26/2008 7:22 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good Post Evelyn--We have to take our schools back from the National Teacher Unions and the U.S. Department of Education and return them to local control, and get back to basics in teaching academics, respect, responsibility, and discipline, in order to raise a literate and respectful citizenry. 40 years of U.S.Government take over of local education has taken us from #3 in 1966 to #27 in the world now. Thanks to LBJ, the Great Society Programs (Welfare and other worthless Social Programs that destroyed families, and work ethic), The U.S. Department of Education in 1978, as a payback by Pres. Jimmy Carter to the National Teacher Unions that gave his campaign money and support in return. Yes, we better take our schools and local communities back. That is where you start. If you cannot control the local yokels who run your communities and schools, how in the world can we control that out of control many-headed bureaucracy in Washington D.C. that has destroyed this country?

 
At 11/26/2008 9:22 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I live in Washington state, north of Seattle. The area along the Puget Sound from the Canadian border to Olympia is all liberal. The rest of the state pretty much votes Republican, but gets out-voted by the liberals in this particular area. I am vastly out-numbered & even demonized when I spoke the truth about Obama & the rest of the Democratic party. By the way, I am NOT a Republican, but a free thinking American.

 
At 11/28/2008 4:13 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Greyhawk you've just said EXACTLY what I've been thinking for the last few months. I live in So Cal and would just like to add one thing. The State of Cal has refused to deal with the immigration issue for over 15 years, now they're about to deal with it in the form of a tax increase to us. ...and we have no recourse. The US Gov't got off completely...I'm paying for the hospital bills of the anchor babies.

 
At 11/28/2008 5:01 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yes, the state of California is entirely socialist and has been for a long time, and sadly, the California Lobby and the Kooks that Californians elect to go to DC such as Feinstein, Miller, Pelosi and others, have imposed California Style Socialism on the rest of the country with their arm twisting of other congressmen/women. It is time for Americans in general to say Hell No to The U.S. Congress and all the inane regulations and laws they impose on us citizens, while refusing to do anything at all about tens of millions of illegals who thwart our laws on a daily basis with the government's blessings.

I heard a few years ago where over 50 hospitals in California had gone bankrupt as a result of the costs associated with caring for illegals and their illegitimate offspring. If I were a Californian, I would gather millions of protesters and march on Sacramento, but of course, the Terminator would call out the National Guard on legitimate, and straight conservative citizens, while letting mob mentality rule the day for Radicals of the homosexual persuasion, the Marxist Persuasion, or the Illegal Protester persuasion. What a state? What a country? If we Conservatives do not do something beginning in our own towns, counties, and states, the United States as we know it is finished and doomed. We now have an entire Socialist U.S. Congress and Executive Branch once Obama takes the reins, and shortly thereafter, they will have the courts packed with their ilk. Freedom, Liberty and Rights will be gone, unless we, as citizens, ban together and tell them loud and clear, Hell No, we are taking our country back, one town, one county, and one state at a time. It will require that local law enforcement be forced to do their jobs in spite of what the Fed tells them. The U.S. government and the Justice Department has been telling state and local officials to leave the illegal aliens alone. And leave them alone, they have been doing, while the illegals commit all sorts of crimes and are seldom if ever held accountable. And when they do commit a horrendous crime, and they do commit plenty of them, the MSM will not even report on it and if they do, they will not mentioin the fact that they are illegals. They are hiding behind the so called Racial Profiling Political Correct sort of garbage. They will not even report that a person is black or hispanic when searching for a violent murderer or rapist for fear of being accused of being biased or of racial profiling. It would help when you are looking for a criminal to know something about him or her such as color, age, height, weight, etc. The only time any of this is reported for a lookout for a criminal is if that criminal happens to be a white criminal. They have to problem saying we are looking for a White Male, about age 35 to 40, who has black hair, a moustache, and is about 6 feet tall, and weighs about 180 lbs. When it is a latino, they will say, it was a "possibly dark skinned white guy" or "possibly a white guy with a good tan". Political correctness has turned to absurdedness, corruptness, and is absolutely irresponsible and negiligent, if not a criminal act when a person's race, color, etc. is not reported when searching for a violent criminal. And, California, is in the forefront of absurdedness when it comes to things like this, and unfortunately, This California Insanity is contageous. Look at all the U.S. laws that have been modeled after the socialist laws of that state. California Standards for air quality, etc. have all but destroyed the auto industry, and other industries. That is why the majority of our manufacturing base has moved to other countries, to escape the insane laws in this country, that originated in the Great Socialist State of California. Good Luck Californians. I will be praying for you sane ones out there, as I pray that the insane ones either return to sanity or at least shut up and crawl back in their holes from whence they came.

 
At 11/28/2008 5:07 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good Post Evelyn--We have to take our schools back from the National Teacher Unions and the U.S. Department of Education and return them to local control, and get back to basics in teaching academics, respect, responsibility, and discipline, in order to raise a literate and respectful citizenry. 40 years of U.S.Government take over of local education has taken us from #3 in 1966 to #27 in the world now. Thanks to LBJ, the Great Society Programs (Welfare and other worthless Social Programs that destroyed families, and work ethic), The U.S. Department of Education in 1978, as a payback by Pres. Jimmy Carter to the National Teacher Unions that gave his campaign money and support in return. Yes, we better take our schools and local communities back. That is where you start. If you cannot control the local yokels who run your communities and schools, how in the world can we control that out of control many-headed bureaucracy in Washington D.C. that has destroyed this country?

 
At 11/29/2008 11:48 AM, Blogger Unknown said...

This Evelyn agrees with the different Evelyn. Education is paramount. We leave the education of our kids to the government and education starts at home. In the other hand, I know many conservative homes that their kids are not well educated to say the least. Having values and being call a conservative in this nation are two different things. I think we have to be in the middle and educate ourselves so we can educate our children and this is not only about ABC is about what is going on around us and how we can get involve.

Unions can be very good but when you tell a person that if they work 20 years they will get a pension they are not necessarily going to do a good job. If you start at 20 by the time you are 40 we are paying you a pension without doing anything. I do not think I like to use my money in supporting you while you are young and healthy. Why do I have to work to pay for your living? Government should not have any kind of pensions. WE the People are supporting a lot of lazy people and that is why things are the way they are. At what point there are going to be more pensions to be paid that employees. Yes, on that regard unions create lazy people.

 
At 11/29/2008 12:01 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Right on Evelyn. We are supporting deadbeats in teacher unions and also those deadbeats who sit at home and never seek a job as they consider themselves entitled not to work, and yet be supported by the taxes and labors of those that do. Obama and the Socialist Democrats use our tax money as a way of funding deadbeat programs to insure these same deadbeats vote for them. This leads to absolute socialism when folks have the right to vote for those who tell them they do not have to work. And socialism, leads to Fascism. A government that has no checks and balances but has absolute power, and when anybody challenges that absolute power, fascist government silence the protests. Americans better wake up and realize that this time around, it is not politics as usual. We just elected the most radical person who has ever sought the office of the presidency. Obama has been voted the most liberal member of the U.S. congress, and he did not just now start being this radical. He is and has always has been a radcial. He is basically a Marxist. His entire background has been filled with involvement in Marxist and radical ideologies. Look at his Illinois Senate voting record. He sponsored a bill and was the bill's spokesman on an abortion bill that denied any sort of aid to an abortion survivor, a defenseless baby that happened to survive the abortion process which sometimes happens in late term abortions. This man has no sense of decency, morality or convictions except the convictions of a radical Marxist. IT is the aim of Marxists to have everybody on the state dole. People who do not work for anything develop no values such as gratitude, respect, common courtesy, self respect, dignity, integrity and honesty. People who get something for nothing create an entitlement mentality and become more and more demanding. This is the aim of Marxism. To create class envy and class warfare. Read the Tale of Two Cities, if you want to see an early version of this menatality. It is a history of the peasant rebellion and revolution in France. Class hatred and envy was stirred up by their leaders, and you could go to the gillotine and have your head chopped off just because you happened to have on a clean shirt. Americans had better wake up and wake up soon to the clear and present danger that this president and this congress are presenting as they create their class envy agenda where they pit one group of citizens against another.

 

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