America’s Deceptive 2012 Fiscal Cliff » Counterpunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names

America’s Deceptive 2012 Fiscal Cliff » Counterpunch: Tells the Facts, Names the Names
"Wall Street lobbyists blame unemployment and the loss of industrial competitiveness on government spending and budget deficits – especially on social programs – and labor’s demand to share in the economy’s rising productivity. The myth (perhaps we should call it junk economics) is that (1) governments should not run deficits (at least, not by printing their own money), because (2) public money creation and high taxes (at lest on the wealthy) cause prices to rise. The cure for economic malaise (which they themselves have caused), is said to beless public spending, along with more tax cuts for the wealthy, who euphemize themselves as “job creators.” Demanding budget surpluses, bank lobbyists promise that banks can provide the economy with enough purchasing power to grow. Then, when this ends in crisis, they insist that austerity can squeeze out enough income to enable private-sector debts to be paid.

The reality is that when banks load the economy down with debt, this leaves less to spend on domestic goods and services while driving up housing prices (and hence the cost of living) with reckless credit creation on looser lending terms. Yet on top of this debt deflation, bank lobbyists urge fiscal deflation: budget surpluses rather than pump-priming deficits."

Fix the debt? How about fixing private pensions first

Fix the debt? How about fixing private pensions first
"While America's CEOs are fretting about the government's so-called "fiscal cliff," millions of American workers face a financial disaster that gets much less media attention. There's a half-trillion-dollar deficit in the nation's worker retirement benefits."

PERRspectives: The Fiscal Cliffs of Dover

PERRspectives: The Fiscal Cliffs of Dover
"That doesn't mean the world will end if the U.S. goes over the cliff on January 1st. After all, Congress and the Obama administration can take action any time before or after December 31, 2012 to avoid the new recession inaction would likely produce. But whatever agreement President Obama reaches with Congressional Republicans cannot slash the debt too fast too soon. Economic growth and job creation, not deficit reduction, must be the top priority for the United States.

This week, the Washington Post summed up what premature austerity looks like. "Fiscal cliff?" Anthony Faiola asked, "Britain has already jumped." And we know what happened after that leap."