A Fiscal Cliff in History

If you have picked up a newspaper or turned on the television to watch the news, you have more than likely heard about the impending “fiscal cliff” of doom. When I hear the term fiscal cliff, I immediately imagine hopelessness–a point of no return…(much like the picture [left] suggests).

The term fiscal cliff became popular this past year when Ben Bernanke, chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, used it to describe laws on the books–coming into effect in 2013–as:

…a massive fiscal cliff of large spending cuts and tax increases.

But what is the fiscal cliff?

The fiscal cliff is an expression to explain the conundrum that Congress has on its plate. There are certain laws that are set to come into effect or expire, January 1, 2013. Some of the key pieces of legislature that are accelerating American towards the fiscal cliff are:

1. Expiration of Bush tax cuts, which were extended by Obama’s Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Re-authorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010;
2. Expiration of delaying the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate, which was extended under the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (MCTRJCA);
3. Implementation of the Budget Control Act of 2011, which will cut spending across the board;
4. Expiration of the 2% Social Security payroll tax cut, which was extended by MCTRJCA;
5. Expiration of federal unemployment benefits, which were extended by MCTRJCA;
6. New taxes to cover the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare); and
7. New taxes to cover the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.

Oh dear, what are we to do?

I originally thought that with $16,400,000,000,000.00 in national public debt, there is no way that America will ever get the debt or its spending under control–so why even bother? 

Then I thought, let me reflect on history and see how America has come out in other circumstances.

America started out as a broke country; to gain our independence, Americans had to win a very lengthy, expensive war. The estimated cost of the Revolutionary War, in inflation-adjusted United States dollars, was 2.4 billion dollars. You don’t engage in a 2.4 billion dollar war and not owe money to anyone. In addition, the War of 1812 cost another 1.5 billion (inflation-adjusted United States dollars). I am sure that the politicians of these days were just as overwhelmed as our current Congress officials;however, with some hard work and dedication, the United States of America became debt-free in 1835. One of the main ways this was achieved was by creating a home market for goods produced in the United States. All foreign trade was cut off, and while purchasing American products were more expensive, it lead to a booming economy. (Cough, Cough, China… Cough) Unfortunately, this did not last very long. In 1836, just one year after becoming debt-free, America started to take on debt again.

Confederate Dollar experienced a 9000% increase from 1861 – 1865.

Another costly event was the American Civil War. The American Civil War lead not only to loss of human life, but loss to lots of money. Combining both the cost for the North and the South, the inflation-adjusted cost was 79.7 billion dollars. After the Civil War, the United States of America has a national debt of $39,103,472,140.00. When it was over, the South was in ruins. Many southern states had been plagued by constant battles, and inflation of the Confederate dollar rose above 9000%.

It has been less than one-hundred and fifty years since the end of the Civil War. It was a long road, but some southern states have come out on top. Take the state of Georgia.

Untouched for most of the first half of the war, the second half of the war led to more that five-hundred battles and skirmishes within the borders of Georgia. When Georgia’s capital city, Atlanta, was taken by the Union Army and General William Sherman, Sherman ordered the people residing in Atlanta to evacuate and then burned the city. General Sherman wrote in his memoirs,

Behind us lay Atlanta, smouldering and in ruins, the black smoke rising high in air, and hanging like a pall over the ruined city.

The Wikipedia entry on Georgia’s Re-entry to the Union says:

The war left most of Georgia devastated…the state’s economy in shambles.

The state remained poor well into the twentieth century. Georgia did not re-enter the Union until June 15, 1870, more than two years after South Carolina was readmitted. Georgia was the last of the Confederate States to re-enter the Union.

 And where are they today? Near the top…Less than one-hundred and fifty years, and Georgia has completely rebuilt itself.

The Frazier Institute just published their annual Economic Freedom of North America 2012 report. Among all the United States, Georgia came in as number 8 (eight). A state that was last to re-enter the Union, a state which remained poor well into the twentieth century, a state with its economy is shambles has clawed its way to the top.

Just as Georgia has proved that economic freedom can be gained, America has risen from low points as well.

There will be more on America’s economic woes on the next post, so check back tomorrow for that.

http://hankeringforhistory.com/2012/12/04/a-fiscal-cliff-in-history/

Presidents Before Washington

When I was in high school, I never heard about the presidents before Washington. My teachers took the cut-and-dry, fast-paced approach to the start of America’s great history. The presidents before Washington were never discussed, let alone explained in-depth to me. I grew up thinking that the steps to establishing America’s government and first president were swift (and of course that I knew them all). It was: 1) the Revolutionary War, 2) the Declaration of Independence, 3) the United States Constitution, and 4) President George Washington elected; boom, boom, boom, boom! I knew about the Articles of the Confederation and the Continental Congress, but I just thought the four steps above happened so quickly that there wasn’t a need for a president, until the “kicking the British to the curb” was over.

Now whether you debate that America became a country in 1776, when it declared its independence; in 1781, when The Articles of Confederation were adopted; or in 1783, when the Treaty of Paris was signed and Britain acknowledged America as an independent nation, you have to admit that from these time periods to the appointment of George Washington, to President of the United States, there was a long stretch of time. George Washington became president in 1789. So who acted as the executive officer while George Washington was engaged in battle with the Redcoats?

Peyton Randolph, Henry Middleton, Henry Laurens, John Jay, Samuel Huntington, Thomas McKean, John Hanson, Elias Boudinot, Thomas Mifflin, Richard Henry Lee, John Hancock, Nathaniel Gorham, Arthur St. Clair, and Cyrus Griffin. These men, in somewhat chronological order (some served non-consecutive terms), all served as “President” in some form or fashion.

From September 5, 1774 – July 1, 1776, Peyton Randolph, Henry Middleton, and John Hancock served as “President of the Continental Congress” for the United Colonies of America. From July 2, 1776 – Feb 28,1781, John Hancock, Henry Laurens, John Jay, and Samuel Hamilton served as “President of the Continental Congress” for the United States of America.

With The Articles of Confederation adopted on March 1, 1781, this is when a lot of people–including myself–really start to see the formation of America and its government. On March 1, 1781, Samuel Hamilton transitioned into president and continued to serve as “President of the United States in Congress Assembled” until he became ill in July, then was replaced by Thomas McKean on July 19, 1781. On November 5, 1781, John Hanson was elected as the third “President of the United States in Congress Assembled,” but was the first president to serve one full term.

John Hanson, President of the United States in Congress Assembled

There are those that like to nit-pick history and consider John Hanson to be America’s ‘first president.’ (Maybe nit-pick isn’t the right term. I understanding wanting correct history to be made available to the public, but some people take it overboard.) Over the next several years, under The Articles of Confederation, Elias Boudinot, Thomas Mifflin, Richard Henry Lee, John Hancock, Nathaniel Gorham, Arthur St. Clair, and Cyrus Griffin all served as “President of the United States in Congress Assembled,” until 1789, when the United States Constitution was ratified and George Washington was elected as the first “President of the United States.”

All these names I should have known, or at least heard of while in high school. I remember hearing about three of them, but not because they were presidents.

I know what you are thinking, these were just token positions, figureheads. These former “presidents” had no real powers. Maybe they did, maybe they didn’t; however, people thought the position was important.

In 1781, when John Hanson was elected “President of the United States in Congress Assembled,” George Washington wrote to him and said,

I congratulate your Excellency on your appointment to fill the most important seat in the Untied States.

In 1804, when Tomas McKean was approached to run as Vice President under Thomas Jefferson, he said,

…President of the United States in Congress Assembled in the year of 1781 (a proud year for Americans) equaled any merit or pretensions of mine and cannot now be increased by the office of Vice President.

So clearly the title of these previous presidents were enough that accepting a Vice President position would be beneath it.

Now, if someone stops you on the street and asks you, “Who was the first President of the United States?” I think that you can safely stick with “George Washington.” However, if they do want to nit-pick and try to tell you that it was John Hanson, you can calmly reply:

Oh, I am so sorry. I thought that you said “President on the United States.” I didn’t hear that you said “President of the United States in Congress Assembled.”

Then you can go ahead and show off your knowledge of the presidents before Washington, and even tell said person of the presidents before John Hanson…

http://hankeringforhistory.com/2012/12/02/presidents-before-washington/

Today in history, Nov 28th!

Some of the great historical events that happened today in history, on November 28th!

1520	Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan reached the Pacific Ocean after passing through the South American strait that now bears his name.
1729	Natchez Indians massacre most of the 300 French settlers and soldiers at Fort Rosalie, Louisiana.
1861	The Confederate Congress admits Missouri to the Confederacy, although Missouri has not yet seceded from the Union.
1868	Mt. Etna in Sicily violently erupts.
1872	The Modoc War of 1872-73 begins in northern California when fighting breaks out between Modoc Chief Captain Jack and a cavalry detail led by Captain James Jackson.
1895	The first automobile race took place, between Chicago and Waukegan, Ill.
1899	The British are victorious over the Boers at Modder River.
1905	Sinn Fein was founded in Dublin.
1919	Lady Astor is elected the first woman in Parliament.
1925	The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville made its debut on radio station WSM.
1935	The German Reich declares all men ages 18 to 45 as army reservists.
1937	Spanish leader Francisco Franco blockades the Spanish coast.
1939	The Soviet Union scraps its nonaggression pact with Finland.
1941	The aircraft carrier USS Enterprise departs from Pearl Harbor to deliver F4F Wildcat fighters to Wake Island. This mission saves the carrier from destruction when the Japanese attack.
1942	Fire destroyed the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Boston, killing nearly 500 people.
1943	Sir Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin and Franklin D. Roosevelt meet at Tehran, Iran, to hammer out war aims.
1944	The first shipment of supplies reach Antwerp by convoy, a new route for the Allies.
1948	Dr. Edwin Land’s first Polaroid cameras go on sale in Boston.
1950	In Korea, 200,000 Communist troops launch attack on UN forces.
1958	The African nation of Chad became an autonomous republic within the French community.
1961	Ernie Davis becomes the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy.
1963	Cape Canaveral is renamed Cape Kennedy.
1971	The Anglican Church ordains the first two women as priests.
1975	President Gerald R. Ford nominated federal Judge John Paul Stevens to the U.S. Supreme Court seat vacated by William O. Douglas.
1984	Republican Robert Dole is elected Senate majority leader.
1995	President Bill Clinton signed a bill that ended the federal 55 mph speed limit.
2001	Enron Corp., once the world’s largest energy trader, collapsed after would-be rescuer Dynegy Inc. backed out of an $8.4 billion deal to take it over.
2011	Egyptians voted in the first parliamentary elections since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak; Islamist parties were the big winners.

Today’s historical facts are from various sites including, but not limited too: the History Channel, The New York Times, WHG Historynet.com, HistoryOrb.com, and On This Day blogs from my blogroll.

http://hankeringforhistory.com/2012/11/28/today-in-history-nov-28th/

Today in history, Nov 20th!

Some of the great historical events that happened today in history, on November 20th!

1695	Zumbi dos Palmares, the Brazilian leader of a 100-year-old rebel slave group, is killed in an ambush.
1700	Sweden’s 17-year-old King Charles XII defeats the Russians at Narva.
1789	New Jersey became the first state to ratify the Bill of Rights.
1903	In Cheyenne, Wyoming, 42-year-old hired gunman Tom Horn is hanged for the murder of 14-year-old Willie Nickell.
1910	Revolution broke out in Mexico.
1914	Bulgaria proclaims its neutrality in the First World War.
1917	Robert C. Byrd, the longest-serving senator in U.S. history, was born Cornelius Calvin Sale Jr. in North Wilkesboro, N.C.
1928	Mrs. Glen Hyde becomes the first woman to dare the Grand Canyon rapids in a scow (a flat-bottomed boat that is pushed along with a pole).
1931	Japan and China reject the League of Council terms for Manchuria at Geneva.
1943	U.S. Army and Marine soldiers attack the Japanese-held islands of Makin and Tarawa, respectively, in the Central Pacific.
1945	The Nazi war crime trials begin at Nuremberg.
1947	Princess Elizabeth (future Queen Elizabeth II) marries Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in Westminster Abbey.
1950	U.S. troops push to the Yalu River, within five miles of Manchuria.
1955	The Maryland National Guard is ordered desegregated.
1962	President John F. Kennedy bars religious or racial discrimination in federally funded housing.
1966	The musical “Cabaret,” with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb, opened on Broadway.
1967	U.S. census reports the population at 200 million.
1969	The Nixon administration announced a halt to residential use of the pesticide DDT as part of a total phase-out.
1971	The United States announces it will give Turkey $35 million for farmers who agree to stop growing opium poppies.
1974	The United States files an antitrust suit to break up ATT.
1975	Spain’s Gen. Francisco Franco died after nearly four decades of absolute rule.
1977	Egyptian President Anwar Sadat became the first Arab leader to address Israel’s parliament.
1978	In Jonestown, Guyana, American Rev. Jim Jones leads his followers in a mass suicide.
1982	South Africa backs down on a plan to install black rule in neighboring Namibia.
1985	The first version of Microsoft’s Windows operating system, Windows 1.0, was released.
1995	Princess Diana admitted during an interview broadcast on BBC TV that she had been unfaithful to Prince Charles.
2003	Singer Michael Jackson was booked on suspicion of child molestation in Santa Barbara, Calif. (He was later acquited.)

Today’s historical facts are from various sites including, but not limited too: the History Channel, The New York Times, WHG Historynet.com, HistoryOrb.com, and On This Day blogs from my blogroll.

http://hankeringforhistory.com/2012/11/20/today-in-history-nov-20th/

Winning the Electoral College but NOT the Popular Vote

When I was younger I played chess, quite competitively. The basic rule of thumb was after a match–win or lose–there was a handshake and the expected exchange of “Good game.” So whether you were voting for Obama, Romney, Johnson, or had a write-in… “Good game.” That being said, there was a moment last night when it looked as if President Obama would win the electoral college but not the popular vote. Instantly, everyone started to think back to the 2000 Presidential Election, and had flashbacks to hanging chads and the Florida recount.

The news report that I was watching started to talk about how the system was flawed, that the electoral college was a mistake, that a new and improved system was needed. As it stands now, it seems that Obama won the popular vote by roughly 2.5 million votes; Obama 50.3%, Romney, 48.1%. But what if it was the other way? In four previous presidential elections, a person won the electoral college vote but not the popular vote. Therefore, the least popular was declared victorious and named President of the United States. :- / I know…right?

Starting with the most recent, and moving backwards, there is the 2000 election. In 2000, Governor George Bush and Vice President Al Gore squared off in one of the closest elections in United States history. Once the final count was tallied, Gore won the popular vote by 543,895. This number can be represented as 0.54% of the voting population voting for Gore and Bush combined. Winning the popular vote, however, was not enough. George Bush won the electoral college 271-266. At this time in history, as is still true today, the required number to win the electoral college is 270. Bush was declared the winner,even though more voters voted for Gore.

In 1888, President Grover Cleveland and United States Senator Benjamin Harrison battled a long race, with the outcome of the election coming down to Cleveland’s home state of New York. The overall popular vote was only a difference of 90,596 votes. This number can be represented as 0.83% of the voting population voting for Cleveland and Harrison combined. What is crazier is that the state of New York, came down to less than 15,000 votes, roughly 1.1% of a difference. If Cleveland could have swayed 1.1% of voting New York citizens, he would have changed the electoral college vote from 233-168, to 204-197; thus, putting him over the 201 electoral college votes necessary to win presidency. Unfortunately he would have to settle for only winning the popular vote, stepping down as president, and re-running as president in 1892. President Cleveland would go on to win in 1892, becoming the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms.

Gosh, these elections are all so close… So what happens when we look at one that wasn’t so close?

In 1876, Governor Rutherford B. Hayes and Governor Samuel J. Tilden competed in on of the most disputed elections in our nation’s history. I won’t get into all the specifics, but let’s cover the same numbers that we have covered in the two earlier examples. Governor Tilden received 247,448 more popular votes than did Governor Hayes. This number can be represented as 2.97% of the voting population voting for Hayes and Tilden combined. Now we start to see an issue. Almost 3% difference in the popular vote, and Hayes was declared the victor because he was 185-184 in the electoral college. This election stands as the only time in America’s history where there has been an absolute majority of the popular vote–more than 50%–go to one person, yet the votes did not get the majority winner elected president.

I saved the best for last. Imagine having the most electoral college votes AND the most popular votes, then not winning the election. You are in a race with three other competitors, and you win every contest. Unfortunately there are some “rules” that decided that you didn’t win by enough, so you lose. Check out the race statistics from 1824 below.

You can see that Andrew Jackson clearly won the popular and electoral vote; however, Jackson did not have the majority (majority is more than 50%) of the electoral vote. This led to the tie-breaker event laid out in the Twelfth Amendment of the United States Constitution. It would talk me hundreds and hundreds of words to describe the events that took place at this point, so watch this video.

Wow! So this is what happens when someone running for President of the United States, wins the electoral college but not the popular vote; or in the case of Jackson, win both. If you want to see how someone could only receive only 22% of the popular vote and still become your president…you must watch this video! (The good stuff starts at 4:20, but I recommend watching it all.) Watch this video, and then you tell me that we don’t need a new system.

http://hankeringforhistory.com/2012/11/07/when-a-president-wins-the-electoral-college-but-not-the-popular-vote/

Department of Interior Announces the 2012 New National Landmarks

The following post is from the blog, A Student of History. This was originally written yesterday, October 22nd.

Interior Designates 27 New National Landmarks – Landmarks Honor Nation’s Cultural and Natural Heritage

Humpback Bridge, Allegheny Co., VA

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced the designation of 26 national historic landmarks and one national natural landmark as places that possess exceptional value and quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States. Currently there are only 2,527 designated national historic landmarks and 592 national natural landmark sites across the country that bear this national distinction.

“Each of these landmarks represents a thread in the great tapestry that tells the story of our beautiful land, our diverse culture and our nation’s rich heritage,” said Salazar. “By designating these sites as national landmarks, we help meet the goals of President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors Initiative to establish a conservation ethic for the 21st century and reconnect people, especially young people, to our nation’s historic, cultural, and natural heritage.”

The national historic landmarks announced today include: