The auto industry is seeking $50bn in additional low-cost loans - beyond what was already approved by Congress last year - to help them out of the mess they’ve made, selling SUVs after peak oil and 911.  Did they really think this wasn’t going to come to an end, soon?  But here they come again, to suck on the teet:

Auto industry officials have argued that the loan program would not represent a bailout, but would be similar to aid lawmakers have given to Wall Street investment banks and struggling mortgage firms. They also note that auto companies face tens of billions of dollars in costs from new fuel economy regulations.

I see.  So, since we’ve bailed out the financial markets without calling it a bail out, we should just go right ahead and bail out the auto industry and not call it a bail out.  Because, you know, it’s really not a bail out.  Let’s not forget that the government issues loans in the form of bonds, and that’s a large part of how our currency remains viable.  Giving out low-interest loans means accepting less of a return on those bonds, which isn’t doing our larger society any good.

In other countries, like Japan, there’s no question that the government helps out industry.  It’s how they operate, with industry and government working hand in hand to make their economy strong.  Of course, there are a number of obligations industry must observe in exchange for consistent help in hard economic times.  In this country, we do the same thing, except that we have false ideological bullshit swirling around in Conservative circles that allows industry leaders to demand tax cuts along with their low-interest loans.

We’d be doing our country a world of good if we dropped the pretense.

DFE Blogger and Rochester City Councilwoman Carla Palumbo reports on the state of the current proposed City budget. Notice how much different the City’s budget process is from the County’s. What? You’ve never heard about the County process? Yeah, that’s the point:

» Firetrucks and Rec Centers… » Carla Palumbo

The City Budget process is almost to the end…City Council’s vote on Tuesday night will wrap up over a month of budget review, hearings and deliberations. There are a few major changes proposed in this budget — the two drawing the most ire are the changes to the Fire Dept and Rec Centers After-school programs. Given the tight budget there were some fairly significant cuts to City staff, mostly in IT — but the Rec Center After-school program is being cut and the Fire Dept methodology changed with a loss of 16 positions (not lay offs, loss is by attrition)

Ya gotta love Eliot Spitzer. Here this guy acts like he’s some kind of progressive during the elections, delivers nothing on his promises other than a pittance of money, and then every time you turn around, he’s got some new fascist program he wants to put in place.

First, it was the Real ID card. How did we go from documenting illegal aliens to Big Brother style national ID cards with biometrics? Fortunately, that one looks like it’s a back-burner issue now. We shall see. But the new thing? How about cameras on the streets, catching traffic violators? Well, if he has his druthers, it’s coming:

Democrat & Chronicle: Local News

Spitzer also proposed Tuesday that Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse, Yonkers and Nassau and Suffolk counties be allowed to have traffic safety programs similar to one in New York City that uses cameras at red lights. The Legislature must approve installing cameras. Last year Buffalo was rebuffed when it requested permission for 50 cameras expected to generate $3.5 million to hire more police officers and pay for other public safety initiatives. Spitzer’s request would allow up to 50 cameras for each locale. The cameras snap photos of license plates so that tickets can be issued to the owners of vehicles that run red lights.

O.I.C. So, this is only to catch red light violations? I don’t think so. Right there in the article is the fact that installing the monitors will raise revenues by 3.5 million dollars a year. Janet Napolitano in Arizona is already balancing her budget using revenue from the same types of camera monitors.

Notice that this has nothing to do with prevention. In fact, prevention is the last thing they want. It’s about raising revenue for the state off our failings as humans. Instead of having cops out there, watching what’s going on, making judgment calls based on all available evidence and maybe sending someone off with a warning, we’ll have disinterested cameras clicking away and raising insurance rates across the state.

Good for corporations, good for the state. I believe that’s the definition of fascism.

Much though I do applaud the new sense of bipartisanship in Washington (brought on by a “holy shit” economic outlook), the suggestions so far show the typical in-the-box thinking that dominates Washington, especially when there is a Bush in the White House.  What are the Bush proposals to ebb the tide of recession?

Why, tax cuts and tax rebates, of course.  The government has oodles of money to just throw out there willy-nilly in tax rebates.  The only problem is: the last time they tried that crap, most people did what seems to the individual to be the most responsible thing to do with their rebate checks, which is pay down their credit cards.  The net affect is that the rebates had almost no effect on the economy or consumer spending at all.

Here’s an idea: if you’re just going to give that money away, why not give the money to the states in exchange for sales tax-free shopping days?  Better yet, make those sales tax-free purchases cash-only transactions below a certain level, so we’re not making our private debts worse.  In those states like Florida where there is no sales tax, some other incentive would need to be worked out.  But the point is to focus what we give away on the national level (where we really can barely afford to give anything away in the first place) on retail sales and things that would actually stimulate the economy.

Discounted rates on home purchases or rebates for purchases; ditto for cars; state tax relief on gasoline.  There are lots of options that don’t involve simply handing us a check as citizens.  We’re perfectly responsible people out here beyond Washington’s borders, but as demonstrated in the recent past, our priorities as individuals may not always be what’s in the best interest of the economy.

I may not agree with Jack Driscoll on a lot of things, but I’ve spoken with him on a few issues, and he’s struck me as a pretty decent guy. He’s been fairly responsive to this blog, a statement that cannot be made for even a number of Democratic members of the Legislature.

Having said all that, now that the tax bills are in and folks are starting to realize that they either lost County school money for diddly in the way of tax breaks or even a loss, Republicans are starting to cover their bases and spin, spin, spin towards safety. Some municipalities are seeing County tax increases because of a redistribution of the costs of maintaining MCC, based on the number of people from each district attending that school. Jack gives us a mind-numbingly irrelevant comparison:

Homeowners Confused Over County Tax Bills - 13WHAM.com

The charge is part of a charge back for Monroe Community College, a way of dividing the costs of MCC based on how many students go there from the homeowner’s municipality.County Legislator, Jack Driscoll (R, Henrietta) said, “Some communities had a much higher percentage of their residents attending MCC than other communities.” Driscoll said it’s all part of the county executive’s F.A.I.R. plan, which kept services intact and erased a $50 million deficit.

Driscoll said his bill went up slightly too, but it paled in comparison to the price increases for gas or groceries.

OK, Jack. Should we now start blaming the Legislature for the rise in gas prices, or no?