Tracey1212 The economy, overall, isn't bad. The current administration can not claim credit for this, as their influence on the economy is rather limited, as with all administrations. But inflation and higher interest rates will become larger concerns, as will the increased price of oil, which can contribute to inflation, higher cost of goods, and recession concerns. Exports are not faring well, due to a strong dollar. The key will be small business development, as more than 80% of US businesses have 50 or fewer employees. Unemployment is not a concern, as a percentage. However, the number of good-paying jobs may become more problematic because of inflation and foreign compebreastion. See above. The U.S. still maintains, in general, a favorable atmosphere for starting new businesses without "excessive" regulations when compared to many other industrialized democracies. There are two ways that federal, state, and local governments can raise tax revenue - they can change rates or eliminate loopholes. In general, true federal tax relief or reductions are a pipe dream, since economic prosperity and personal wealth dictate a family's disposable income much more than any tax rate can. Gang activity seems to be growing in power. People flock toward a pack mentality when they don't find personal satisfaction and pride. For example, during the recent Puerto Rican day parade (what a joke!), a gang called the King's actually took to the streets as part of the parade and declared the streets "King's Streets." That is absurd. And this trend must stop. The country is a rather socialist state, in many ways, with all the social programs and big governmental spending and influence. Dems or Repubs, this has been the case for nearly a century. That is unfortunate to see, as that is supposedly the ideology we fought against for so many years. Poverty is probably holding steady, if you factor in things like income, job availability, crime, drugs, etc. The American family, if there is such a thing, isn't bad. However, black fathers tend to still go awol and 50% of American marriages end in divorce. But it's not the government's job to define "family" or enforce some arbitrary definition of "family values." Costs are high, taxes aren't. No. No. People should consider having smaller families. There has always been an excuse not to bring kids "into the world right now." Yeah. But they have to work much longer and harder to do so. Quality of life may be suffering, as a result. It's probably about the same as the past few decades. There are environmental concerns, and life expectancy isn't increasing for the next generation for the first time ever. Pretty well, on whole. The elderly have a lot of programs specific to them. Violent crime is down in many large cities. But crime trends change. Some crimes are on the increase, some on the decrease. There's still very much a "middle clbutt." But there are more "rich" people than ever before, with the lowered cost of many goods and the expanded income earning power of many Americans. Yeah. But traffic is a unpleasant woman. People don't trust government, but generally like their own elected officials. Therefore, nothing really changes much on a large scale. The country isn't necessarily in "bad shape;" but many of its leaders are making bad and short-sighted decisions. No. Probably. A majority of the general voting-eligible public doesn't even choose to vote in most elections. Too many rules and regulations. Taxation needs to be simplified. Government spending needs to be reigned in. Yup. It doesn't matter whether it's Dems or Repubs, goverment has continuted to try and increase its power and influence for almost a century. The current government is no exception. They are too involved in most things. More than "bad" or "good," government is promoting what is unnecessary. Not "too many" wars, maybe just the wrong ones at the wrong times. There's only so much government can do to promote security. Often, they want to make it look like they're doing more, even if it's out of their hands. Unfortunately, sometimes that's at the expense of personal liberties. What are they doing there? Good question. Yup. Liberty isn't being preserved as much as it should be. They are generally too incompetent to be feared. Sometimes they do good things too. But they do lose touch with reality sometimes, and that can be scary. Pretty free, really, despite all the attempts to erode liberties at the expense of "security." But we must be vigilant and continue to fight for freedoms in the courts and by the letter of the Consbreastution.
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