I couldn't agree more. So where was the conservatives when Trump handed the top 1% 32 billion dollars that added to this deficit?
Kathyp:
Since revenue is up, the problem must be spending, right?
You don't have to be that smart to predict what is going to happen in the future.
No you don't, but there is a comparison that should be watched. China and India. India has embraced capitalism and done things to make their workers and industry possibilities attractive. They have a way to go to improve lives in that country, but they are making great strides.
China, on paper has an expanding economy, but the lives of the average person are not much improved in comparison. They use their people as slave labor, and control wages and just about everything else.
The one economic bright spot in China is Hong Kong. You note that even though the protests have been going on for a couple of months, the government has been careful to not stomp on it. They aren't even making that many arrests. There are a number of reasons, and among them, they do not want the massive mainland population to do the same. They would have no way to stop it if the uprising became a popular movement on the mainland.
Yes, you can have a thriving economy if you have slave labor. We did the same in the South. You can also have a thriving economy if you embrace free trade and markets and make sure your people have the skills to participate. You don't get "eqality" the second way because participation depends on the will of the people to participate. You do get opportunity for those who wish to advance.