Politics: Four of Hillary's Commercials, a Critique

I am posting this in response to the many Hillary commercials I've seen so far in the election.  To be honest, I've only seen one of Trump's ads.  Evidently she's running scared.  In all fairness, these commercials don't help her chances. 
1:  Her Economic Plan
Soak the Rich.
Her commercial says she is going to make the rich 'finally pay' their fair share.  Finally?  You've got to be kidding  The United States has the second highest corporate tax structure in the world.  These high taxes here have caused thousands of companies to relocate to better places.  That's a lot of business, and tax revenue, that would otherwise still be here.                  
It should be known that the top 10% of earners actually pay about 70% of total taxes.  So how is it they are somehow not paying their fair share?  If anything, they are paying more than that.   
Let's also look at it this way.  Last year the Federal Government took in more revenue than it ever has in its history.  Yet they are still up to their ears in debt.  The real issue is not revenue.  It's spending.  About one and a half billion dollars more than they make.  Every day. 
This brings to mind an interesting fact.  Hilary will not give an answer to how much is 'fair' for the rich to pay.  What percentage?  10?  20?  50?  Or more?  Corporations and the rich aren't paying their fair share, (to her, anyway) and no matter how much they are currently taxed, it's somehow still not enough. 
She offers nothing in terms of incentive for the creation of new businesses, or to keep them from moving overseas, except to punish them.  This punishment money, which will apparently be a lot, will be put to use somehow 'creating jobs'.  May I say that anytime a politician says they are going to 'create jobs' they are lying?  Politicians only create government jobs, which means they have to take (read, steal) money from hard working people and give it to bureaucrats, and that's a good percentage of the problems our economy faces today.
All this policy will do, should she be elected, is to hasten the exit of corporations overseas, they will bow out before getting hit by the fines. 
But the government can do some things to help the economy and promote business.  How about addressing the high corporate tax rate?  What if they lowered it?  Wouldn't that work to help keep jobs here rather than have them move overseas?  Wouldn't a low tax environment possibly attract business from foreign places too?  And, wouldn't more companies here would translate into new jobs? The economics is quite simple.
What about the EPA?  Last year they issued something like eleven thousand new regulations.  Every regulation should be considered a tax because it costs companies money and time.  Higher costs for businesses translate into higher costs to consumers, or lower income for employees.  Or both.
Last of all, why didn't she address the real issue at hand?  The drastic rise in size and scope of the Federal Government?  Wouldn't taking steps to control spending at the top send a message to the country that the government is willing to do its part too?  She has no commercials to that effect. 
2.  Her Plan for Technological Supremacy. 
Hey, let's put up a lot of solar panels! 
Yea.  That's going to give us technological superiority.  Some problems here.  The sun doesn't always shine.  Funny how she doesn't understand that simple fact.  There will be hours, lots of them, in which these panels will be useless.  Plus, as other countries are learning.  It's nice to think that making a bunch of solar panels will save the world, but this is very expensive electricity.  Many times higher than the cost of gas, coal, or nuclear power.  I'm not saying that solar is not a good way to go.  It may be the wave of the future, but for now, and the near term, we should go with and continue to develop the cheaper sources of energy for electricity.  That's what our infrastructure has been created  to handle.  We have enormous reserves of coal, gas and nuclear material,  enough to power our country for hundreds of years.  The best course of action is to let research continue on solar and other alternative types of power, while allowing companies to further develop our present types of energy. 
Forcing a sea change of power on the country is unwise when there are obvious problems with the new technology and great benefits from the existing set up. 
Another thought.  Where will she get the money?  Of course, from all those corporations that are moving overseas!  Governments do not make money.  They take it from others.  Economists know that for every dollar taken by taxation, the private sector loses one and a half to two dollars.  That's because the money has to be spread out through the governmental bureaucracy, whereas private sector companies often have few or no layers. 
3.  Steady Leadership
From the woman who brought you Benghazi. 
Records indicate that the embassy made requests several times for extra security because they had hints that something was going to happen.  These were ignored.  And, when the attack began, resources which the US had in hand were not called in to help.  Rather they were ordered to stand down.  Once the magnitude of the attack was known she lied, saying the attack was a reaction to a YouTube video criticizing Islam, which had hit the weekend before.  It couldn't be, the attack had already been planned by that time.   When hearings were called to investigate the matter she lied again, and again and again. 
Benghazi is not the only scandal involving her performance.
The current investigation centers around her treatment of classified emails and top secret information on her computer.  When she wasn't feigning ignorance she simply lied, again and again and again.  She has lied so much it makes one wonder if she ever actually tells the truth. 
Here we have a blindingly incompetent woman, who rose to power on her husband's coat-tails.  Who eventually made it to the House of Representatives, accomplishing nothing of merit for her time there.  Then, as Secretary of State, well, we all know how that turned out. 
So her campaign is one of obfuscation and - lies.  One could no doubt find a more competent individual by randomly selecting a name out of the phone book. 
4.  Her Critique of Trump's Shirts
First, she stole a spot from the Letterman show about the shirts without his permission.  So she had to make a new commercial.
In the spots she claims his shirts, and other clothing items, are being made in a dozen foreign countries.  This is in spite of the fact that his tag slogan is "Make America Great Again."  So what is my answer to this?  Big deal.  It is most likely that Macy's approached Trump about a line of shirts based on his style.  Trump doesn't design them, other people do that.  He approves their work, probably making suggestions along the way.  It is doubtful that Trump specifies the manufacturing either.  Macy's picked the places where they could get the best deal, in terms of price and quality, for them.  Is this somehow evil, or un-American?  Of course not.  It is in the best interest for a company to maximize effeciency.  And even though these shirts are made in another country, the profits go to American corporations and employees as well. 
When we say "America First" it doesn't mean we will only deal within the boundaries of our fifty states and territories.  Rather, it means we will closely maintain the ideals that made our nation great in the first place, and not compromise them. 

Getting Your Book Published: The Cover

Last week I got the artwork for the cover of my book.  I relayed to you before that I had sent the description in weeks ago, at the beginning of the process.  Having to wait while someone else tries to capture a particular vision based on a couple of paragraphs can be exhausting if one were inclined to worry.  I simply held hope that everything would turn out ok.

Guess what?  It kind of did.  The cover was very close to what I had envisioned.  I did not feel it had to be modified at all.  So after one day of consideration, I sent the approval e-mail to my book editor.  Excellent job art department!  I hope that one day I'll get to meet the guy, or girl, or team, who put the picture together and, if possible, interview them.  I like to know how people create things.  It's mysterious.  For now a sigh of relief is in order. 

Right now the book is in the last part of the process, that is, printing, and in another week or so I will be getting a couple of advance copies.  As soon as I do, I will post the cover art here. 

Now we are close, within a couple of weeks of the big reveal. 

Publishing Your Own Book Update

A few days ago my book entered a new phase of development.  The editing and typesetting is now finished.  The next part is to put it all together.  Very early in the process I sent them a description of what I thought the cover should look like.  I'm supposing they have been working on that design concurrently with the text, as the art often takes longer to create.  The cover will be the part of the book I have limited  control over, and yet this is the first thing people will see.  Ironic isn't it? 

Until the cover is finished I will have to wait.....

On Getting Your Book Published: Part 2

This past Friday morning I sent an email to Page Publishing.  Edit Approved.  After their editors went over the manuscript I was invited to re-read it again to see if everything was ok.

I did, and found a few problems.  Not big ones, mind you, mostly problems I had with the flow of conversations.  These I changed, sending them on with the line numbers indicated and how the new sentence was supposed to read.  I even found a misspelled word.  Where is spellcheck when you need it?  Actually the "misspelled word" was spelled correctly, it was simply the wrong word.  These revisions were quickly resolved and the corrected manuscript was put up for further scrutiny. 

Oh well,  little things do get missed.  It sort of focuses the mind to know this will be the last time I read this book while the text is still fluid.  Of course, if this process drags on and on, the work will never be finished and never be published either.  As with any project, there must be a date when all is done.

The next step?  Typesetting.  I have no idea which font they will determine to be the best.  I'm not an expert in these matters, so I'll leave the choices entirely up to them with minimal input to me. 

I'll keep you posted.

On Getting Your Novel Published

Two weeks ago yesterday I was introduced to Courtney.  She is my Publication Coordinator for Page Publishing. 

A little history is perhaps in order.

I wrote a novel and finished it last year.  Afterward the question came up, how do I know if this story  is good enough for publication?  Around that time I saw a commercial for Page Publishing.  Actually it's the only commercial I've ever seen of theirs.  I remembered their name and took a look at their web site.  Then I sent them an email saying I had wrote this novel and was wondering if they would take a look at it. 

A few days later I got a call from Bruce.  He is my book agent.  He talked to me for a bit and gave me the low-down.  I would send the novel to him and he would read part of it.  About 20 pages or so.  If he liked what he read, he would recommend the book to Page's board.  They would read it and come to a conclusion, publish or not. 

I sent Bruce the story, and he liked it.  He passed it on to the board and told me it would take about two weeks for them to get back to me.  One week later I got the next call from Bruce.  They would agree to publish my book.  Cool!  But publication is not without a price.  I would have to provide a fee for them to edit, typeset, print, copyright, and otherwise promote the book.  At the time I didn't have the money, and it seemed the idea of publishing my own novel was little more than a pipe dream.

In the ensuing months my financial situation changed somewhat, and I was finally able to gather the resources to enlist their services.  My check went out to them about three weeks ago.  Shortly thereafter I was introduced to Courtney.  Bruce is the guy who makes initial contact with potential novelists,  while Courtney is the inside contact.  She is the one who will oversee the various aspects of publication.  Editing the manuscript, of course.  Also, cover design and everything else.  I've already sent a description of what I think the cover art to be, and my three-line bio.  I'm not going crazy on that part.  People are working behind the scenes to create my novel.  It's a comforting thought. 

My experience with Page Publishing is completely a good one.  My original contact, Bruce is a very nice guy, personable and has great reassurance in his voice.  When I didn't have the money to continue with the book, he would keep in contact, calling every so often to find out how things were going.  It was a great pleasure to let him know we could continue.  Courtney is equally nice, positive and realistic.  If everyone in the company is like them, it must be a great place to work. 

Right now I am working on the text for the back cover of the book.  I hope to finish this project in the next day or so, and send it to her Monday.

Stay Tuned!

Write something that's true every day.
                    -Ernest Hemingway

Candidate of the Apocalypse: Episode 16

Dueling Commercials

“It’s really kind of simple.”  Charles was explaining his stance on economics. “Now you can study Economics from high school all the way to the PhD level.  But the plain truth is this - when people have more money, they are going to spend more money.”  He was making economics a key issue of his campaign.  “So now the question is, what can government do, to help you take home more money in your paycheck?”  With that he directed the audience and they simultaneously shouted:  “Lower Taxes!”  Charles smiled broadly and ended the commercial with a “Yes!”

He had embraced what is called the ‘Fair Tax’.  This involves changing the present system of taxation to that of a national sales tax.  A major university and some economic professors had spent about 20 million dollars testing this idea and calculated that present governmental revenues would be maintained with a tax of 15 - 20% levied on new products.  Not only that, but since this was to be a consumer tax, it would encourage people to save money.  There were a couple of caveats with this system, like how the poor would fare, but provisions would be in place to help them, in the form of monthly reimbursement for the taxes they had spent the month before.  The most exciting part of this new arrangement would be a massive power shift from government to the individual.  And, to top it off, once the changes were in place and the economy responded, the government would wind up with more money than before.  

It was so simple and straightforward that the powers that be in Washington, and even his own party couldn’t get their heads around it.  But the people did.  The ad received almost 100 percent favorable reactions by the public.  The other party wasn’t going to let this go without an answer.  So they put forth a commercial saying that Charles wanted to increase taxes by 20%.

A few days later a new ad appeared.  Charles was again in the middle of a crowd, answering questions.  He responded to a question about the ad thusly.  “They say that I want to increase taxes by some 20%.  Really?  I guess they can’t even understand the word, ‘replace’.  I want to replace the present system with the Fair Tax, not add!  You guys are paying enough in taxes already.  You know, there are laws in place for truth in advertising.  Apparently they don’t apply to politics.”  

That ad, like most of his other ones, received a firestorm of criticism from the other side.   It did demonstrate the effectiveness of Charles’ commercials.  He fired the other firm partly because they wanted to go primarily with negative ads;  Partly because they didn’t want to say anything of substance.  The present agency used multiple cameras  to record his every statement before a crowd.  Often a long speech on a major topic could be parsed down to a few key tag lines.  These would be edited into a commercial and in a day or two be national.  It allowed Charles to quickly and precisely answer the opposition and speak to the issues at hand.  Of course, there were lots of negative ads flying around, but that was because of various interest groups.  Charles had no control over them, the law allowed just about anybody with money and an opinion to buy media time and say it.  Whenever asked, he firmly distinguished his ads from all others.  

One unlikely group supported Charles.  The press.  Why was a mystery.  Especially since they were known to favor the present administration.  Perhaps it was because he was the underdog, or a breath of fresh air in terms of candor.  Charles never used a teleprompter, often had only a few notes in hand, and made no demands.  He actually enjoyed the give and take from reporters, it was a challenge he relished.  

In order to really make the economics work properly Charles’ team had worked out a two pronged strategy.  Lowering, or changing tax law would be good, but only a start.  The second part would be perhaps more difficult.  It entailed reducing the size and scope of government.  This would not be an easy task since both parties wind up making a lot of money by making promises to constituents.  Unofficially it’s called ‘buying votes’.  Under the guise of helping people.  

Fortunately for Charles the way he had set up his campaign from the beginning allowed him access to a lot of different people.  Former ambassadors for example, public servants, both active and retired stepped up to help him.  They understood the gravity of this election.  His staff made sure their thoughts and wisdom on handling government bureaucracy got through.  Charles even held a number of ‘off book’ meetings with the most skilled of them.  Meaning these were done without the knowledge of his own party.  

He had found that when people voluntarily came together to accomplish a task, good things happened.  Above all, in his public statements and in his ads, he wanted to tell the truth about what was going on.  But in a way that empowered the electorate.  It would be very easy for them to sound like conspiracy theorists and simply be dismissed as a bunch of nut-jobs.  

How did the opposing party feel about Charles’ campaign?  At the very highest levels and in public they simply laughed him off.  It was absurd, to them anyway, that a businessman with no political experience should be able to beat a sitting Executive. He wasn’t even a billionaire!  They, at this juncture wouldn’t agree to a debate between the two.  In the lower levels of the party things weren’t so rosy.  These were the ones who kept their fingers on the pulse of America.  As the weeks ran on their smug smiles started to turn to frowns.  Maybe they should be taking this a little more seriously.  Charles’ message was taking hold.  

He was rising in the polls.