tfmsview:

Executive Summary --

I received this email question that came from one of my friends at work: "I would be interested in your opinion of this summary of the cause of our economic problems. I got it off the blog comments following a news article on Bernanke's speech this morning." Eventually I'll write a full article on Keynesian Theory. In the meantime here is my response to his question:

I've actually mention Keynesian theory in a few of my articles on the website. I believe the concept is given too much credence. As the writer below indicates many people believe it was the implementation of Keynesian principles that brought us out of the great depression. This would include those spending programs that had people employed to dig a hole in one place just to have another crew fill it in the next day. The enormous amount of money spent funding WWII counts in the Keynesian model.

When I write I make a point in telling people the spending has to be for an innovative purpose. For instance the Tennessee Valley authority, Hoover dam and other electric distribution projects used public funds to force utilities to bring electricity out to farms (a zero profit user group and not one that would have soon been served by corporations answering to stock holders). This revolutionized farming in this country. An inexpensive and reliable food source for this country was one of the backbones which allowed the economic expansion from the 1940's and beyond.

In today's context; the Keynesian model tells us borrowing to pay teacher's salaries is good for the economy. I disagree.

- Tom McMasters

Here is the quote from the article he read (sorry I don't know the author in order to give proper credit):

"US fiscal policy has embraced Keynesian economics since FDR and every US Administration whether it be Democrat or Republican has embraced the theory ever since. John Maynard Keynes believed that a centralized government needs to take an active role in monetary and fiscal policy and firmly believed in government stimulus as well as deficit spending, especially during recessionary periods and economic downturns. The problem is that this approach to jump starting economies can not be a long term solution and eventually the private sector must resume growing on its own. If not you remain in a perpetual state of debt, stagnation and eventually decline. The reason why Keynesian theory was successful in the past was because the US always had a solid manufacturing base rooted in the private sector. Therefore, we were able to weather the effects of the Great Depression with FDR's New Deal policies and when WWII came our dormant manufacturing base was able to gear up and mobilize for the war effort. After the war the US economy exploded because of our established private sector industry. This is very far from reality today. America's manufacturing base has all but disappeared and what ever industries remain are insufficient to provide the necessary growth and employment. So with Keynesian applications all you are left with at the end of the process is more debt, ineffective stimulus programs, a declining economy and a recovery that never materializes."

About the Author

You are one of about 70 visitors a day that visit this website. I'd like a little feedback on the content of the articles.

Also, get your friends to research the political issues in-depth enough so they are not brain washed by the slanted coverage of the cable news networks Fox and MSNBC

Thanks for visiting!

Background: tfmsview, The Online Magazine; publishes commentary and opinion by Thomas F. McMasters. Tom McMasters achieved ballot position for Ohio ’s 8^th Congressional District Republican Primary as an alternative candidate to Rep John Boehner. The congressman from the 8^th district represents the people from Allen Township, Jacksonburg, Ansonia, Ludlow Falls, Arcanum, Maria Stein, Beckett Ridge, Mayfield, Bradford, Middletown, Burkettsville, Montezuma, Butler Township, New Bremen, Camden, New Miami, Casstown, New Paris, Celina, New Weston, Chickasaw, Newberry, Coldwater, North Star, Dayton, Osgood, Eaton, Oxford, Eldorado, Piqua, Fairfield, Pleasant, Fletcher, Potsdam, Fort Laramie, Rossburg, Gasper Township, Sommerville, Gibson Township, St Henry, Gordon, St Marys State Park, Grand Lake, Staunton Township, Granville, Tipp City, Greenville, Trenton, Huber Heights, Troy, West Manchester, Union City, West Milton, Versailles, York , Wayne Lakes It covers Darke, Preble, Miami , Mercer and parts of Montgomery and Butler counties. Newspaper and television stations that serve the district include: The Middletown Journal, WCPO, The Cincinnati Enquirer, The Dayton Daily News, The Fairfield Echo, The Hamilton Journal-News, The Huber Heights Courier, The Middletown Journal, The Oxford Press, The Piqua Daily Call, The Daily Advocate, The Daily Standard, The Oxford Press, The Tipp City Herald, The Tipp News Daily, WCET, WDTN, The West Milton Record, WGRT, WHIO, WKEF, WKRC, WLWT, WPTD, and WXIX.

Tom would like to thank all the Ohio voters and absentee voters that took the time to find their voting places and precincts to cast their ballots in his bid to become a member of the US House of Representatives. American politics and Ohio politics benefits from all the new people becoming engaged in the political discussions. The registered voters that identify with The Ohio Tea Party, Coffee Parties, Constitution Party and others engaged in the political debates will help strengthen the incumbent and all challengers.

Now that the primary is over Tom has again embraced his tfm persona as a political commentator; offering insight into issues such as the budget deficit, the national debt, taxation, healthcare reform. The website is set up as a political blog but it delves into other categories concerning basic American and Ohio life. Also, contributions and comments by all readers is always welcome.

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