FANNING THE WRONG FLAMES

Charles Payne 


A heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet
that are swift in running to evil.
Proverbs 6:18
Robert Reich and the political left continue to
devise wicked imaginations and promote
policies based on punishment of those that
have excelled. Such policies have and always
will hurt those at the bottom more than those
at the top. Reich fanned the flames of outrage
while citing record sales of Lamborghinis and
Ferraris, sales of $100 million condos, plus
sales at Tiffany. He then went on to ask: At
what point does conspicuous consumption by
the ultra-wealthy invite a revolution?
Envy is a human emotion that for many is
unavoidable. It's admirable when that
emotion is channeled into aspiration and
despicable when politicians use it to fan the
flames of anger and hatred. In this case Reich
isn't warning of revolution, instead he's
pleading for revolution. In the process he's
also saying capitalism does not work, America
has reached its peak and regular people do
not have what it takes to pull themselves up
by the bootstraps.
Yet, the people Reich rails against earned
their wealth in a capitalist system, pushed
America to new peaks and got there with that
pivotal first step of pulling themselves up by
the bootstraps.
If this way of thinking catches on even more
with the public than it already has, then
America could suffer irreversible harm. This
massive push into a country that has no faith
in God, themselves or their laws is a major
reason a dark cloud remains overhead. The
answer is not a collective run by the super
elite. The answer isn't pushing all wealth in a
giant pot to be administrated the right way
by an otherwise detached administration.
"When the taste for physical gratifications
among them has grown more rapidly than
their education . . . the time will come when
men are carried away and lose all self-
restraint . . . It is not necessary to do violence
to such a people in order to strip them of the
rights they enjoy; they themselves willingly
loosen their hold. . . They neglect their chief
business which is to remain their own
masters."
Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America
Volume 2
In the end, it has to be about engendering
aspirational urges that motivate people to
pursue and capture their dreams.
The Fed
Janet Yellen's yawner yesterday was good
enough for the market to breathe a sigh of
relief. Her measured words made me feel like
I was watching the great migration crossing
of three million animals through crocodile-
infested waters of the Serengeti. So, the Fed is
on the backburner for the moment, but the
market needs a spark and it has to come from
better US economic data.
Jobless Claims
Regarding the initial jobless claims figure that
came out this morning, the outlook for the
June unemployment number should definitely
show some improvement. Today's initial
jobless claims showed a 6,000 dip last week to
312,000. The 4-week average, at 311,750, is
now down 11,000 from the middle of May.
We note that the mid-month readings tend to
compare well with the government's monthly
employment report.
Improvement is also evident in the
continuing claims which are lagged by one
week. Continuing claims for the week of June
7th fell by 54,000 to a new recovery low of
2.561 million. The best part is that there are
no seasonal or holiday factors influencing the
data this week, so the improvement is far
more believable.