During the calendar year 2011, the American GDP grew by 1.7%, leading the Obama adminstration, and its supporters, to claim partial victory in the war against economic stagnation. Closer inspection of the numbers reveals, however, that Obama's claims of victory resonate about the same as Custer's claims of victory at the Battle of Little Big Horn. (1)
The fact that Obama's approval ratings remain above 40% has nothing to do with the decisiveness of his alleged victory against economic stagnation. Rather, it reflects the fact that at least 40% of the voting population simply do not take the time to analyze the numbers any deeper than the misleading headlines and optimistic expressions that come from the administration. They cling to their hapless leader like lost sheep.
Ve-Ri-Tea readers, on the other hand, are more discerning. We are proud of the depth of our research as well as the careful scholarship & sincerity with which we cast votes and express political opinions. We see, beneath the headlines, that there are still 10's of Millions of Americans who are underemployed or unemployed. We see, beneath the headlines, that there are still more than 40 Million Americans living in poverty. We recognize that over-regulation is the cause of this economic stagnation, not its cure. And, we attach a higher moral priority to full employment than we attach to a trumped up environmental agenda that will only makes things worse.
Sadly, it get worse. Even the fully employed, who have not experienced a single day of unemployment are seeing a decline in the value of their wages, due to high oil prices and inflation, leaving them with less disposable income and putting the squeeze on their retirement funds. This, in turn, puts the squeeze onto businesses that provide non-essential goods and services. The providers of newspapers & magazines, travel vacations, sporting goods and events, higher education, and entertainment of all kinds must compete for a smaller pie of disposable income. When aggregated across millions of consumers, the negative impacts of rising gas prices multiply exponentially throughout the economy. The result? Entire segments of the economy are forced to downsize and belt-tighten. Meanwhile, the government statistics show "Growth in Real GDP," and Obama proudly touts his 'great success' to anyone who will listen.
If you aren't already convinced that Obama is losing the battle against economic stagnation every bit as much as General Custer lost the Battle of Little Big Horn, then take this analysis one step further. Making matters even worse for the Obameconomy is the fact that most of the torrent of US Dollars spent each year on transportation fuels ends up leaving our shores and flowing to governments that do not share our unique set of political values. Like a leaky dike in Holland, our dependency on foreign oil weakens the US economy every year and could eventually lead to a devastating collapse, complete with a Greek-style debt debacle, a scenario that should be avoided at all costs.
These are the inevitable economic outcomes of Obama's set of alternative energy policies, a set of policies that artificially elevates the global price of oil by restricting the output of U.S. oil and gas resources. Unfortunately, this is the course we are on; but there is hope. Recent technological developments in the oil drilling industry have made accessible a new U.S. oil supply that is reported to be 25 times larger than the oil reserves of Saudi Arabia. Located in North Dokota, this new U.S. oil supply is large enough to free us entirely from dependency on foreign oil and reduce the pump price of gasoline to $2.50, or less, according to the Gingrich campaign.
The benefits to the U.S. economy of wholesale exploitation of that resource are almost beyond words. All of the negative economic effects of the aforementioned increase in gasoline pump prices would be reversed. A virtuous cycle of positively reinforcing economic forces, including a complete reversal of the nation's trade deficit in oil, would set in, creating one of the greatest economic booms in US history. Furthermore, the federal tax royalties generated by exploitation of US oil resources, estimated at more than $20 Trillion by the Gingrich campaign, could go a long way towards healing the US Government's declining fiscal health.
The greatest impediments to wholesale exploitation of US conventional oil resources are the Obama Administration, its Democratic allies in Congress, and their unwavering commitment to artificially high transportation fuel prices at the expense of the American economy. For the sake of the 40+ Million Americans living in poverty and the tens of Millions of unemployed and underemployed Americans, we should all pray to Almighty God that the analogy to the Battle of Little Big Horn holds true and that by Thanksgiving of this year, the election of 2012 will be remembered as "Obama's Last Stand."
(1) Those needing a refresher in U.S. Military History will take note that General George Armstrong Custer not only lost the Battle of Little Big Horn in one of the greatest fiascos in US history, but he was also killed there at the young age of 36. To learn more about "Custer's Last Stand" and the "Battle of Little Big Horn", buy one of these specially selected Instant Videos from Amazon!
