When Tax Reform Isn’t-What Congress Giveth It Taketh Away-Podcast 676

They call it Tax Reform. A Jobs Bill. That’s what it must be, right? Journalists and commentators are playing the same old game. Argue a proposed piece of legislation on its merits. Time to reset the boundaries in When Tax Reform Isn’t-What Congress Giveth It Taketh Away-Podcast 676.

Freedom Of Choice

While listeners to The Bob Davis Podcasts always have the freedom to choose what they think is right, I want to introduce the concept of marginal improvement. Legislators on both sides of the political spectrum talk big about ‘reform’. Usually though they make what really are marginal changes. This is especially relevant when we’re talking about the tax code.

The Real Football Game Is Congress

Team Red moves the ball back to the Blue thirty yard line. It’s hailed as a great victory. Team Blue moves the ball back to the Red twenty yard line a few years later. These are what both sides call marginal improvements. Meanwhile, as economist Milton Friedman famously suggested, they keep getting elected by making the tax code more complicated.

Budget Neutrality Isn’t A Thing

Enter a legislative concept called Budget Neutrality. The idea every expenditure must be ‘paid for’ with tax increases, or budget cuts. You think Tax Reform means lower taxes. What they’re really doing is taking away tax deductions and loop holes, and increasing our overall tax. The sad part is, it’s not their money, it’s our money. In When Tax Reform Isn’t-What Congress Giveth It Taketh Away-Podcast 676.

What Is Real Reform?

If you want real reform. The end to this kind of corruption? Then the power of the federal government to tax our incomes and our property must be permanently eliminated. Should corporations be taxed at all? Do you have property rights if you pay property taxes? How does government pay for the wonderful things both sides wants it to provide? We talk about it in When Tax Reform Isn’t-What Congress Giveth It Taketh Away-Podcast 676.

Already Socialists

So called conservatives like to argue the merits of capitalism versus socialism. It seems like I’d be on pretty safe ground if I suggested the United States has been collectivist for decades. Our economic system is not so much capitalist as it is a controlled market economy. Our elected Kings and their privy courts control our behavior and our futures with regulation and a tax code so complex, were it to be proposed as a single law in its present form, it would cause a revolution.

(Editor’s Note: While the first actual income tax in the United States was levied during the Civil War, it was later repealed as ‘unconstitutional’. Several attempts were made to establish an income tax through the late 1800’s which were unsuccessful, until the 16th amendment, ratified in 1913.)

Sponsored by Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul and Reliafund

When Tax Reform Isn’t-What Congress Giveth It Taketh Away-Podcast 676

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When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627

One issue above all others has been the driving force in Republican politics for the last seven years. Repeal ObamaCare. None of the candidates said anything about repeal and replace. When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627 takes a raw view of the latest health care fiasco of the US Congress.

Promise Broken Again

President Trump and Republicans call The American Health Care Act of 2017 a victory. HR 1628 keeps much of ObamaCare intact. There are still two hurdles. The bill has to pass the senate. The president has to sign it into law. Call it what you will but it is not a repeal of the ACA. This is what republican voters wanted. In When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627.

Republican Entitlement

Many in politics and the media will argue what the American Health Care Act does and doesn’t do. One thing is for sure. If it passes the senate and is signed into law, the American Health Care Act anchors a new entitlement passed by congress in 2010 and makes republicans, not democrats responsible for it. In When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627.

Those Who Endorsed Republicans Own It

Pundits and personalities cry, “If this is what happens why vote republican?”. Rather than endorsing and supporting republicans perhaps these personalities and other politicians should have been asking this question. A question that should have been on the lips of every republican for several cycles.

An economic Question

Commitments to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Medicare Drug Benefits and now Health Insurance will eventually swamp the United States Budget. The government cannot grant its citizens anything. Whatever is ‘given’ must be paid for through taxation eventually. The biggest issue in governments whether they are local, state or federal is spending. Talk about it in When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627.

Debt

The United States Federal Debt is more than 100 percent of its yearly GDP. The republican congress just passed another trillion dollar budget. State, federal and local governments employ over fifty percent of us. Public institutions have become major stakeholders in every political decision made.

Why Don’t They Ever Fix Anything

When government is so involved our personal lives, it’s personal. Every decision is politicized. Frustration and anger are the order of the day. Politicians solve problems by creating problems. We have an archaic and sclerotic government bureaucracy. Because the republicans failed to keep their promise to repeal the health insurance entitlement, the ‘health care debate’ will rage for the foreseeable future. In When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627.

New Thinking

With government largesse comes oppression. Surveillance, policing and prisons. War. It’s time people consider a new political movement in this country to permanently remove the power of government over our lives.

Sponsored by X Government Cars and Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul.

When A Repeal Is Not A Repeal-Podcast 627

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Podcast 599-Advertising Your Business On Podcasts

Big Shift

Time to talk about advertising on podcasts. We’re in the middle of a big shift. People are changing how they use media. What about using podcasting to Advertise Your Business? Podcasting is a rapidly growing space. Businesses can use podcasts to connect with their customers. Podcast 599-Advertising Your Business On Podcasts tells you how.

Retooling Your Mind

Entrepreneurial efforts require retooling how we think. Why do small businesses fail? Your business may have developed a great product. You and your team may have discovered a large untapped market. Getting the word out about a product or service is increasingly complex. Not advertising or advertising ineffectively is one of the chief reasons small businesses fail.

Old Ways Don’t Work

Studies say about 30 percent of the public listen to podcasts. I think podcasting is growing at a much quicker pace than the research is picking up. In this environment, it’s easy to see why small businesses might assume the old ‘tried and true’ methods of advertising are best. Print or Direct Mail. Buying ads on radio and television. Hiring an ad agency. Flyers. These are ancient and expensive and increasingly ineffective methods.

New Ad Space

Digital Marketing and Search Engine Optimization are big topics these days at business conferences. Digital Marketing and SEO are necessary for generating awareness for your company’s website and social media platforms. These tools alone don’t help you form a bond with potential customers. Advertising your product or service on a podcast provides a personal connection with an audience you cannot get in traditional broadcast, print or direct mail, or even social media. Ads placed on podcasts live forever on the Internet. Podcasts can deliver a local, national or world-wide audience. Podcast 599-Advertising Your Business On Podcasts tells you how and why.

Pure Play Podcasting

Small businesses persist in spending thousands of dollars in old media. Pure Play Podcasters like The Bob Davis Podcasts weave the advertiser’s message into the content of our podcast. We talk about a product or service because we believe in it. The Bob Davis Podcasts and other Pure play podcasters are able to combine the best attributes of personal endorsements with digital marketing and SEO to help your business.

Are You Ready For Big Changes?

There is a big change going on. The new smart phone and pad devices are more powerful and run easier and faster applications for media. Podcasters are noticing increases in feeds and hits on our websites as more people come to digital media every day. From an advertising perspective managing your FaceBook or Twitter feed to bond with your customers isn’t enough. Businesses need a closer bond. Podcasting helps you bond with your potential customers.

Clarifying Moment

Big shifts in media usage begin long before the research companies driven by the big advertising agencies and media companies pick them up. AM Radio was overtaken by FM Radio slowly, then all at once. 24 Hour Cable News overwhelmed broadcast TV news in an avalanche. Remember when you listened to the radio to find your favorite music? Spotify, Pandora and podcasts took over that space. We used to watch our favorite TV shows once a week as part of a network schedule. Now we binge watch them on Netflix or HBO Now or other cable ‘Netflix Like’ services. When did that happen?

Tipping Point For Podcasts

Podcasts are replacing broadcast radio, especially talk radio, at a rapid pace. It isn’t being picked up by the research and ratings companies. We have not had what I call a ‘clarifying moment’ yet. A clarifying moment is that moment when it becomes obvious to everyone that things have changed permanently.

There are lots of different podcasts and all of us have different advertising styles and packages. This is an informative pitch for advertising from businesses that want to work with The Bob Davis Podcasts or are interested getting some help with their advertising strategy with podcasts in general. It’s time for small and large businesses to get into the podcast space in a big way. We’re ready for you. Listen to Podcast 599-Advertising Your Business On Podcasts and find out how to get started.

Sponsored by Ryan Plumbing and Heating of Saint Paul and X Government Cars.

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