Just What We Need, More Billionaires

You hear a constant whining from politicians about wealth disparity – but the fact is politicians gave us wealth disparity. During Covid politicians went on a spending binge – spent trillions they didn’t have, borrowed (printed money is a better description) to pay for their spending. Next inflation soared. And the value of a dollar…

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Paving Trails with Good Intentions

Believing that walking trails will alleviate traffic congestion, politicians in Washington printed up a pile of dollars and handed out grants to local governments. And local politicians took the bait: After all, it was free money. But they missed a key fact: The construction industry is already operating beyond capacity. So the flood of new…

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Inflation Breeds Upheaval

Inflation is an easy way for politicians to manage the debt they pile up by spending money they don’t have – like the trillions they spent during Covid. It works like this: Inflation shrinks the value of a dollar and that, in turn, shrinks the debt politicians piled up. It’s an old story that’s happened…

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A Debt Surprise

The State Treasurer’s office just shined a spotlight on a shocking problem: North Carolina local governments have piled up $7.6 billion in debt – a debt almost no one knew about. How did that happen? Here’s one example: Local politicians promised to pay for government employees’ healthcare – even after the employee stopped working. Or…

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NC Innovation

Politicians in Raleigh are out to pass a bill that gives 1.4 billion dollars to NC Innovation – so it can pass out subsidies to corporations. That’s not a good idea. I’m against it. Mark Robinson, my opponent, didn’t try to stop that bill as President of the Senate – he was missing in action.

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Another Problem: Labor

It’s good news that folks close to retirement feel they have enough savings to retire early. It’s bad news that ‘baby boomers’ retiring is creating a big labor shortage. That means prices across the board are rising. Which, in turn, is bad news for retirees: Rising prices means their savings aren’t worth what they used…

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A Big Red Flag

John Hood, an old friend, was straightforward in his column NCInnovation Is a Bridge Too Far. The State Senate wants to hand $1.4 Billion in taxpayers money to NCInnovation – which in turn will pass out subsidies to corporations. John called that deal ‘decidedly anti-conservative’ and ‘a big red flag.’ He hit the nail on…

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Inflation: Prices went up – not down

This headline shot across the internet: Slowing US Inflation Eases Pressure on Households I confess, I’m a sinner. I’ve made plenty of mistakes. But when I read that headline – and the story beneath it – I thought: Don’t they teach math in journalism schools? My second thought was: Why do reporters spin tales? The…

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Another Storm Cloud

For years, while politicians spent money they didn’t have, to make their elite friends and donors happy they kept interest rates low. The result: We now have record high debt per citizen. Covid struck, politicians spent trillions more they didn’t have, inflation soared, politicians raised interest rates, and a new storm cloud – in addition…

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Storm Coming

It’s an old story: Family businesses struggling to survive hard times after politicians bungled the economy. President Biden, Congress, political cronies, tell us recovery is at hand. But – unless you trust politicians – you can hear a distant rumble of thunder. When Covid struck, politicians spent trillions they didn’t have – and borrowed (printed…

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