Going to Reagan White House malcontent Donald Regan and Kitty Kelley for research about Ronald Reagan seems like bad journalism to me. But it is just what Bill O'Reilly did with his new book "Killing Reagan," which should have been called "Killing Reagan's Reputation." When comparing the attitudes of conservative pundits towards Ronald Reagan, William F. Buckley was considerably more impressed with the Gipper than was George Will, who tended to think Reagan left something to be desired as a statesman. (This is a Will ideosyncracy. Will loves conservatism, and thinks few exemplify it.) So for Bill O'Reilly to act as though Will is an uncritical apologist for Reagan, going so far as to call Will "a hack," shows that not only is O'Reilly a poor journalist, he is also a hypocrite of the worst kind. The same guy who thinks it's all right to act as though his audience are the only American patriots, selling "American Patriot" merchandise off his website, now has the temerity to insult George Will? Now O'Reilly has the same verdict on Will as ueber-leftist Salon magazine. Let's see how this partnership works out, folks.
Showing posts with label George Will. Show all posts
Showing posts with label George Will. Show all posts
Saturday, November 07, 2015
Monday, February 10, 2014
The Immigrant Song
George Will has always been a favorite of mine. Unlike many commentators, he has a Burkean style to his commentary. When Estase gets a little more caught up on his reading list (2042, maybe?) he intends to read Statecraft as Soulcraft. However, I think in his recent remarks about immigration he is showing signs of having lived in D.C. too long.
Immigration is of benefit to big business. Why? Because corporate America loves having low skilled workers that will come in and do degrading, unglamorous jobs for $8.25/hr. This is why every employer who pays minimum wage longs for amnesty. It isn't born out of some kind of altruism. It is borne out of a desire to have cheap labor.
The idea that cheap labor equals economic growth is nonsense. Skilled labor and entrepreneurship cause economic growth. This is why India has a growing economy. If just the presence of hordes of cheap labor caused economic growth, Bangladesh and China would be much more wealthy than they are.
Add to this the costs of cheap labor. People who work for minimum wage, and especially people who work part-time at minimum wage (as many are forced to do in this economy) will require food stamps, Medicaid, and other costly social welfare benefits. So explain how increasing the number of unskilled workers will grow the economy, when you are talking about also increasing the number of people recieving social welfare benefits?
On a purely partisan note, anyone who thinks amnesty will not kill the prospects of conservatives is a fool. George W. Bush thought Hispanics were potential Republican voters. He also thought John Roberts was a good pick for Chief Justice. He also did some very un-conservative things to education. Without No Child Left Behind, would we be staring down the barrel of Common Core? Clearly, the former governor of Texas was a mixed bag, and no one's idea of a prophet. If Hispanic voters favored Republicans, the entire southern border of the U.S. would have been fortified with a thirty foot electrified fence during the Clinton presidency. Laura Ingraham is right.
Immigration is of benefit to big business. Why? Because corporate America loves having low skilled workers that will come in and do degrading, unglamorous jobs for $8.25/hr. This is why every employer who pays minimum wage longs for amnesty. It isn't born out of some kind of altruism. It is borne out of a desire to have cheap labor.
The idea that cheap labor equals economic growth is nonsense. Skilled labor and entrepreneurship cause economic growth. This is why India has a growing economy. If just the presence of hordes of cheap labor caused economic growth, Bangladesh and China would be much more wealthy than they are.
Add to this the costs of cheap labor. People who work for minimum wage, and especially people who work part-time at minimum wage (as many are forced to do in this economy) will require food stamps, Medicaid, and other costly social welfare benefits. So explain how increasing the number of unskilled workers will grow the economy, when you are talking about also increasing the number of people recieving social welfare benefits?
On a purely partisan note, anyone who thinks amnesty will not kill the prospects of conservatives is a fool. George W. Bush thought Hispanics were potential Republican voters. He also thought John Roberts was a good pick for Chief Justice. He also did some very un-conservative things to education. Without No Child Left Behind, would we be staring down the barrel of Common Core? Clearly, the former governor of Texas was a mixed bag, and no one's idea of a prophet. If Hispanic voters favored Republicans, the entire southern border of the U.S. would have been fortified with a thirty foot electrified fence during the Clinton presidency. Laura Ingraham is right.
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