The Battle of the Budget Plans – Which is Best?

15 April 2011
Global American Series

The Battle of the Budget Plans – Which is Best?

Within the last week we have seen two budget plans introduced – one for the GOP
by Rep. Paul Ryan and the plan outlined Wednesday by President Obama. Which is
best for the future of America? That is the topic of this week's Global American
radio Saturday at 9 am Central.

It all boils down to tax revenue and expenditures. Did you know the first U.S.
income tax was instituted by President Lincoln during the Civil War in 1862 –not
1913 as commonly thought? It was a progressive tax: 3% on incomes up to $600, 5%
on incomes over $10,000. It was repealed in 1872. The Supreme Court ruled the
new income tax passed in 1894 unconstitutional. So it remained until 1913 when
the sixteenth amendment was ratified.

Did you know that the highest tax rate during World War I was 77%? During World
War II the highest rate for the richest was 94%. The highest rate in 1982 was
50%. Today it is 35% - yet hedge fund managers only pay 15% - the capital gains
tax rate (their house cleaners pay a higher rate). And for the Afghanistan and
Iraq war what did we do? We CUT taxes, with the top incomes getting the lion's
share and BORROWED money to pay for the wars. It's the first time in our history
we didn't pay for our wars.

That 2001 cut turned Clinton's last budget surplus of $250 billion, which Bush
43 inherited, into an immediate $1.65 TRILLION deficit. That caused our national
debt to double from 2000 - 2008. And when Bush 43 left office in January 2009,
he handled Obama a $1.2 Trillion deficit on the first day of the job, TARP, and
an economy in free-fall. It was a scary time if you recall.

So now what is the best plan going forward to fix our debt problem? Today the
tax burden on wealth is the lowest in 50 years!

Rep. Ryan proposes making the Bush tax cuts permanent. 100% of his plan is
focused on 12% of the budget. Defense spending remains untouched. It converts
Medicare from an open-ended entitlement to a voucher system tied to State block
grants. Seniors would have to pay $6,400 more for insurance. What if the private
insurance premiums go up or doesn't pay for a procedure? Basically it privatizes
Medicare just as baby boomers reach retirement.

The President's proposed plan would do two things: Eliminate the Bush tax cuts
on the top 2%, netting another $1 trillion in income AND cut Medicare costs by,
for example, allowing drug prices to be negotiated down (the 2004 Plan D
prohibited the government from negotiating lower drug prices!) He also put
defense spending on the table – currently the $700 billion/year is more than the
defense budgets of the rest of the 200-county world COMBINED, which should
indicate how bloated it is (especially when it is sitting on the sidelines in
Libya whose leader killed 270 on Pan Am 103 rides around Tripoli laughing). Its
costs aren't covered by taxes. Our military is still marching on borrowed money.
It isn't sustainable unless we have more revenues. How many toys are we willing
to tax ourselves for?

So which budget plan is best for America -- the one that cuts grandma's Medicare
while giving millionaires a better rate than you and me, or the Presidents plan
-- which asks the wealthy to pay their fair share while preserving the Medicare
safety net for Grandma --and us boomers? But we have bigger things to fix.

Did you know that America ranks 52nd (out of 200 countries) in math and science?
And America is 24th in percentage of households with a personal computer? 9th in
college graduates? We give stats on America's global standing. We talk about how
to return America to No. 1. That's important, right?

Tune into the insights on America's future and "the big picture" this Saturday
on Global American radio at 9 am Central time on Business 1110 AM, streamed on
www.Business1110KTEK.com and Podcast 24/7 at www.GlobalAmerican.org

Host: Michael Fjetland
Global American Series
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Fascinating story of the President's Unique Mother

This is a fascinating story of President Obama's unique mother. I suggest Mr. Trump and the other "birthers" read it. He might learn something...

After my travels I believe as she did: "She believed that people were all basically the same under their skin, that bigotry of any sort was wrong and that the goal was then to treat everybody as unique individuals."

The more you travel to other countries the more you realize how alike we all are - people want job opportunities, education opportunities for themselves and their children and to be treated with respect.

No one has a monopoly on good or bad. MLK was right. It's all about the content of your character not the color of your skin that counts.

Sharia Law: Does it Apply in U.S.? Expert Opinion

There has been a lot of hysteria over the issue of “Sharia Law” in the United States. Here are the facts about Sharia Law and why my opinion as a Fortune 500-trained international attorney should interest you. Here is why Sharia Law does not apply in the U.S.

I have negotiated in over 50 countries since the 70s, which means I’ve had to research and know 50 different legal systems (plus numerous State laws and all the international treaties, etc. as part of representing an international company, and later as an entrepreneur). I first encountered Sharia Law as in-house counsel for Brown & Root and Dresser Industries when my employers were establishing Joint Ventures and other contracts for construction, oil services and manufacturing in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, etc. (At one point I was asked to be the contract attorney for B&R on the naval base they were building for the Shah of Iran at Chabahar on the Persian Gulf. Fortunately I took another job and was not there when it was overrun by the Iranian revolutionaries in 1979. Instead, I was in Cairo at the time, giving up my room at the Nile Hilton for a Presidential peace mission between Egypt and Israel. Details will be included in my upcoming book "Better Times Ahead: April Fool?")

So my opinion should be considered as an international legal expert opinion, right? BUT even I did what no one else apparently has done, including our lawmakers - I researched it! (Lawyers don't just blow opinions out the nose, or base "fact" on what some wacko on the Internet says. They dig for FACTS and what the law books say).

I'm embarrassed our legislators don't know that Sharia Law only applies in two Mideast countries, Saudi Arabia and Iran, not here. Everyone within our jurisdiction is subject only to our laws, not theirs, regardless of your nationality. If you are Martian in Texas, Texas law applies, not Martian law. If you are from Saudi Arabia, only American law applies. Any judge who doesn’t know that is incompetent and gets embarrassed and reversed on appeal, like a recent New Jersey case of a husband who claimed it was ok “back home” to rape his wife.

If you and I go to Saudi Arabia, then yes, their Saudi Sharia law applies. Same in Iran. Note that the debate between the “cutting off a hand for theft” versus executing a person later exonerated by DNA evidence is not a debate we should engage until we no longer have those incidents in our own system. How many Congressmen would be missing limbs under Sharia law anyway? LOL.

To their relief of lawmakers and their hands and feet, I can say that Sharia Law only applies in Saudi Arabia and Iran, not Washington DC, Austin or Phoenix. Any law student should be able to tell you that.

The only law that applies in Texas is Texas law (and U.S. law). The only law that applies in Arizona is Arizona law (and U.S. law), etc. It's the same for all the states. Anyone within our borders is subject to the law of the place where you are. Even foreign travelers are subject to Texas law when in Texas, and Iowa when in Iowa, etc. regardless of what their legal system is like at home in England, Saudi or Mars.

So, is this is a phony issue? Is it intended to be a distraction from the real key issue facing us: Developing a sustainable budget in the face of extraordinary deficits!?

Because nothing else is more important to our future. We MUST get our budget system in balance but avoid the 1937 mistake of FDR cutting back too fast and depressing the economy.

We also have to avoid undercutting the investment needed by our country's next generation for America to maintain a lead in the global high tech competition we face. We can't fix a problem caused by a decade of ‘borrow and spend’ like drunken sailors’ with ‘cutting like drunken butchers.’ We don't need to cut bone or muscle. We need a scalpel approach, not a meat cleaver.

Those obsessed with Sharia Law need to educate themselves. The issue is whether it applies to cases in states in the United States or in U.S. courts. It doesn't. Get an international lawyer to research it and confirm what I am saying. Then let us move on to real urgent issues facing us!

Once we fix the budget we need an American strategic plan that is fair and balanced and plays our strengths in an increasingly competitive world with its shrinking resources.

What has been proposed by Mr. Ryan is neither. It penalizes seniors and kids. It gives the richest a permanent pass on paying their fair share. It fails to invest in our technology future, which is vital for our success against a world of high tech countries. It does not lift all boats, only the wealthiest ones.

The President is about to announce a budget plan. Beyond what Mr. Ryan and the President offer, I am proposing my own vision for America as part of my upcoming book, "Better Times Ahead: April Fool?" It is a global strategic plan for the United States. It is more visionary than anything we have had since JFK.

Stay tuned for updates either here or at our blog: http://globalamericanvalues.blogspot.com/

Michael Fjetland

Global American Series

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Is American Education Meeting Our Future Needs?

Is American Education Meeting Our Future Needs?

8 April 2011

Global American Series

What happens to American business-- and our students-- in a high tech globally-competitive world if legislatures cut education funding at a time when the U.S. has sunk to 9^th in the world in the percentage of students who are college graduates?

Today America has 3 million jobs that can’t be filled by Americans because they don’t have the skills required. How will funding cuts improve this situation?

We specifically look at the Texas situation this week on Global American radio – and get some surprising insights on the impact on business from a former GOP lawmaker who is the current President of the Texas Association of Business.

We also talk to two teachers, one with the State statistics and another who is a former teacher in Houston who describes what the classrooms will look like as a result of these radical changes in funding as the State of Texas continues to grow by 170,000 more students each year, joining the 5 million presently in school.

Our first guest is Bill Hammond, President of the Texas Association of Business, who in a recent article in the Austin American Statesman said: “If we don’t have an educated workforce, the jobs will leave.” He also said that, even before these cuts are made: “We are not meeting the needs of the future.”

He also says: “Sixty percent of students entering college need remedial courses.” HOW do we fix that?!

“By 2030, 60 percent of adult Texans will need an associate’s degree or higher for future jobs. Today only 30 percent of adult Texans have those degrees compared with 42 percent nationwide.”

Hammond says: “Higher education has a worse completion rate than high school.” He talks about HOW we fix that.

As it stands, Texas could cut as many as 100,000 teachers and school jobs, which will have a ripple effect through the economy. Right now, Texas ranks about 44^th out of 50 states in education.

We ask Mr. Hammond and the teachers: “How will cutting education funding improve our status?” Tune in for the answers on Saturday at 9 am Central time on Business 1110 AM, streamed on www.Business1110KTEK.com and Podcast 24/7 at www.GlobalAmerican.org (Click on Favorite Programs).

Michael Fjetland

Global American Series

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TV Clip Mentioning Gadhafi as a terrorist -- in 1991 Gulf War

For the first time in probably a decade I actually LISTENED to this Video (which has some 680,000 views), and realized that the TV anchor and I mentioned Moamar Gadhafi relative to the FIRST Gulf War in 1991!!...

Amazing that he was in the conversation as a known terrorist even that far back ...!

It is a short clip. Check it out - then freak out at the crazy comments kids make regarding 9/11...

Where do they get their education? Let some sanity weigh in...

How a Bigot in U.S. Caused Beheadings in Afghanistan

Because a hateful bigot and misguided Minister in Florida burned a Koran in an act of religious intolerance -- and a rogue squad of American soldiers took photos of a teenage civilian they had killed for fun in Afghanistan as if he were a deer -- and their officers failed to take action to stop or even report it, an angry mob of Afghans today hit the streets, looking for Americans to kill in Afghanistan today.

Finding none, they beheaded UN staff, the only western symbol available. Innocent people died in Afghanistan today because of a nasty alleged "Minister" bigot in Florida, falsely claiming to be "Christian"... What was in their odd heads--and I'm referring to OUR idiots? This is so un-American and disgusting -- and not an isolated example of a plague we need to wipe out in America.

Yesterday over lunch, a friend of mine said he went to a restaurant to have dinner and a beer with his wife recently in the Spring area. He was well dressed in a white shirt. As he sipped a drink with his wife, he heard a white guy seated nearby, say quite clearly: "Ah, Mexican mafia is here!" It really hurt him. Yes, he is an Hispanic, someone I've known as an honest, decent family man for over 20 years.

My friend is an American military veteran! The sting of racism from an asshole white guy was visible on his face as he told his story, the first time he had ever shared such as thing with me. I've known him to be a successful, bright professional, whose sales are earning his employer over $1 million a year! Although he could have made an issue of it with that idiot, he didn't. His wife works for Spring school district and is regarded as a key employee.

Had I been there I would have told that white jerk (as a white guy sick of jerks like him) that he had just insulted an American veteran -- and that he either apologize or explain why he could wrongly make assumptions about people he didn't know.

This ignorant behavior needs to change. I'm sick of such low brain stupidity -- and ignorance that offends civilized nice people, who happen to be a different color, yet have served in America's military and worked like dogs to make a living for their family, and serve their employers.

It's the content of the character, not the color as MLK said, that really counts. Having been in over 50 countries and meeting all kinds of people, I know that to be true. There are good and bad in every culture. But we need fewer prejudiced jerks out there, killing people they don't know, or opening casting untrue negatives on people they don't know in a public restaurant.

America is better than that. America is better than the bigots who think they are better than others. If they did some traveling around the world would show these turkeys would see what I've seen -- how much we are all alike. I discovered when I was sent around the world as a young negotiator so many years ago...more of us need to do the same thing.

Meltdowns, Hurricanes & Billionaires

Meltdowns, Hurricanes & Billionaires

1 April 2011

Global American Series

No April Fool -- This Week on Global American Radio…

Segment 1: From a Job Layoff to the Making of a Billionaire

How could a laid-off guy connect an American businessman to an African oil deal that ended up making BILLIONS in oil profits -- for the people he connected? It’s like an Indiana Jones/Beverly Hillbilly story sort of… (and an example how listening to the same guy behind the mike could make YOU rich -- or at least globally smarter, so you can impress friends if desired).

It’s another week of meltdowns from plants to dictators --to the NCAA. Why should we worry about the Libyan rebels more than the guy who killed over 200 Americans on Pan Am 103? Gadhafi’s Foreign Minister just defected from the guy who declared himself “king of kings” and is despised by the other despicables in the Middle East. And what can be done about Japan’s out-of-control reactors when its spewing radiation traces are turning up in 15 U.S. states from west to east –and in milk from our own cows in the U.S.?! The U.S. has 29 ships helping Japan. Are they near an unfolding Japanese Chernobyl?

Segment 2: Hurricane Forecast: 50% More Hurricanes in 2011!

Hurricane Experts predict “50% more Hurricanes in 2011. In 2008, IKE -- a mere 94 mph CAT 1 – blew out windows and power all the way from Houston to Ohio—causing over $5 million damage to one Houston building alone. What makes them building killers according to a Florida study? Hear about a space station executive’s odd experience with plywood before a storm would make even Charlie Sheen’s former bosses laugh. What is NASA’s procedure to prepare for a hurricane? We’ll tell you, but you won’t believe it. As the oceans warm, even a one half degree increase is raw meat for these heat-fueled monsters, making them stronger and more dangerous. CAT 2 and 3 could become the norm…

Segment 3: FOUND: Billions for Texas Budget. Couldn’t other States do this too?

The BAD News: Texas faces a mammoth deficit up to $25 BILLION. The GOOD News: I found a list of BILLIONS of potential revenue dollars that could dramatically cut our deficit with little or no “pain”! An example: Adding slot machines at EXISTING gambling sites in Texas would raise $2 BILLION! “State legislators are gutting education, and our future,” says the President of Texas Business Association, a former GOP lawmaker (and our guest next week). Think? GE makes $14 BILLION and pays ZERO?

Segment 4: President’s Energy Drive to Cut 1/3 by 2025: Enough to Avoid Future Oil Crisis?

Did you know that when you fill your car with gas from Saudi Arabia, some of your money going to Saudi is funneled to terrorist groups targeting the same Americans filling up?! Want to stop doing that?

The United States has NEVER had a “Strategy for Energy Independence.” While China executes its global strategy, Congress can’t see past 3-week “Continuing Resolutions.” The President’s goal to cut imports of oil by 1/3 in 2025 is a start -- but is it enough when China and India will add another 1 BILLION CARS by 2030? Have we hit global peak oil as an expert says? By 2028 Saudi will be consuming 8 million barrels a day INTERNALLY--oil it now exports! China’s investment in renewable energy (solar, wind, etc.) last year was DOUBLE that of the U.S. How do we lead from behind? Green jobs and renewal energy are the next economic driver worldwide. With a high jobless rate in rustbelt industries, how can we NOT invest in our own future and the next generation technology?

Find out more by tuning in to Global American radio Saturday, April 2 at 9 am Central time on Business 1110 AM, streamed on www.Business1110KTEK.com and Podcast 24/7 on www.GlobalAmerican.org (Click Favorite Programs and look for the above title “Meltdowns, Hurricanes & Billionaires…

P.S. The 10^th Anniversary of 9/11 is this year. But something has gone wrong. A disturbing number of the kids commenting at the link below think 9/11 was a “hoax” or that it was done by the U.S. government! It’s just crazy what they say (The YouTube video has had over 680,000 views! It is a TV appearance I made in the 1991 Gulf War as a Mideast expert, predicting a future 9/11).

Please weigh in with your own comments! Set the record straight on behalf of our first responders and troops! But be more civil than I was. LOL.

Here’s the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr_SXX2qp-M

On behalf of our troops and 9/11 responders, THANKS!

Michael Fjetland

Global American Series

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