Taxes!

[Marlin]

Maybe its just the conspiracy theorist in me, but I think all of these "episodes" are just smoke in mirrors. Take our free food, take our free money, and before you know it your hooked. You can do whatever you want, as long as its what we tell you to do.
I think the reps are way over paid and over pampered. The amounts of money involved are mind blowing. The amounts are so high, that its Eff you money. They can do whatever they want, and there is nothing, short of armed revolution, that will change it. Nothing. Do you really think your vote counts? How do you know? When the pres can buy his way in to the office, whose to say the same doesn't happen at the state level?

[Osteomata]

Marlin,
Sorry for the delayed response, but your factual distortions actually made my mouse freeze up this morning, heh.

I am aware of the ridiculous incarceration rate in this country, including that 14 percent of our prison population is in for non-violent drug offenses. I think the problem is vastly exacerbated by our useless, counterproductive war on drugs and the power of the prison unions and other "prison industrual complex" stakeholders. But more to the point, your suggestion that low crime rate is merely a function of high incarceration is not supported by the wider facts. Crime rates in other first world countries has also been falling along similar lines as ours, but without the vast increase in incarceration. Correlation-Causation fallacy.

As for the PC thing: no one here is censoring you or dismissing you from the conversation. Words mean things, and context matters, so if you make what appear to be broad generalizations and animal metaphors but only about certain groups, then some people are naturally going to make assumptions about your biases. Feel free to continue to use them, by all means. But pointing out that people will look askance at your word choice is hardly excessive PCness. And yes, this is a democratic republic, with a constitution and legal traditions that pretty clearly limit the "tyranny of the majority." I don't know what your democratic majority rule allusion has to do with this discussion. I don't recall anyone here advocating for a law saying you can't call the handicapped "retards" or whatever you like, and I will continue to interpret you words as seems appropriate to their meaning and usage.

Foreign aid outside of Afghanistan and Iraq represents less than 1% of our budget, about .6% iirc. It's not there just because we love them foreigners, but to provide us with access and influence over their policies. We do, in fact get such influence from it. I don't have some sort of gigantic opposition to reducing foreign aid as part of a larger economic strategy, but don't decieve yourself into thinking that it will make a big savings or that doing so will be without foriegn policy consequences.

Immigrants and taxes, interesting reading. http://www.taxfoundation.org/blog/show/1424.html

[Ebenezr]

Viva la revolution!!!

Why can't we cut aid to foreign countries, tax the piss out of companies who outsource, making it cheaper to hire at home? Why can't we tier the taxes on profit, making it ideal to make a fair profit, vice the gross billions in profit and so on. That would prevent them from raising prices to maintain their current bloated profits when they are forced to hire folks at home.

That is exactly what I'm referring to when I stated I couldn't say anymore in order to keep it brief. There are reams of reasons and things we can do BUT THEY WILL not be done because big corps are in bed with politicians and political parties and for that reason it will NEVER get done. Batten the hatches friends!!

[Marlin]

Marlin,
Sorry for the delayed response, but your factual distortions actually made my mouse freeze up this morning, heh.

I am aware of the ridiculous incarceration rate in this country, including that 14 percent of our prison population is in for non-violent drug offenses. I think the problem is vastly exacerbated by our useless, counterproductive war on drugs and the power of the prison unions and other "prison industrual complex" stakeholders. But more to the point, your suggestion that low crime rate is merely a function of high incarceration is not supported by the wider facts. Crime rates in other first world countries has also been falling along similar lines as ours, but without the vast increase in incarceration. Correlation-Causation fallacy.

As for the PC thing: no one here is censoring you or dismissing you from the conversation. Words mean things, and context matters, so if you make what appear to be broad generalizations and animal metaphors but only about certain groups, then some people are naturally going to make assumptions about your biases. Feel free to continue to use them, by all means. But pointing out that people will look askance at your word choice is hardly excessive PCness. And yes, this is a democratic republic, with a constitution and legal traditions that pretty clearly limit the "tyranny of the majority." I don't know what your democratic majority rule allusion has to do with this discussion. I don't recall anyone here advocating for a law saying you can't call the handicapped "retards" or whatever you like, and I will continue to interpret you words as seems appropriate to their meaning and usage.

Foreign aid outside of Afghanistan and Iraq represents less than 1% of our budget, about .6% iirc. It's not there just because we love them foreigners, but to provide us with access and influence over their policies. We do, in fact get such influence from it. I don't have some sort of gigantic opposition to reducing foreign aid as part of a larger economic strategy, but don't decieve yourself into thinking that it will make a big savings or that doing so will be without foriegn policy consequences.

Immigrants and taxes, interesting reading. http://www.taxfoundation.org/blog/show/1424.html

I keep hearing that same concept in budget cuts. "Its not a significant portion of the budget". How about if you add all those insignificant portions,they start adding up. My cable bill is a small part of my monthly budget. So is my cell,netflix, gamefly, going out to eat and so on. Add those all together, they start to become significant.

As for incarceration, I was being sarcastic, and I agree with you on the drug thing, as I have already pointed out. But it should come with a cost. If you go for government health care, but you are a smoker/crack head/heroin addict, and so on, then you get turned away. We will help you if you need it, but don't abuse it. That would be like free health care for the idiots on Jackass.

And for the PC thing, I repeatedly said all humans with reference to breeding. As my gay friends like to say, "there are white breeders too". That term actually came from the gay community as a slur toward heteros. I just don't care to tiptoe around other's feelings. Get over it, it makes me think of the cliche: "Its the thought that counts". No matter what word I use, you know what I mean.

[Ebenezr]

And furthermore Marlin while I have you on the line aren't you the one who has a line on VX parts??? My upper trailing link off the rear axle has a creaky clunk because of play in the bushing. Do you know where I can get a bushing?....this is more important than federal budget cuts. :0)

[Osteomata]

I keep hearing that same concept in budget cuts. "Its not a significant portion of the budget". How about if you add all those insignificant portions,they start adding up. My cable bill is a small part of my monthly budget. So is my cell,netflix, gamefly, going out to eat and so on. Add those all together, they start to become significant.

I agree. My comment was merely to put the size of the foreign aid budget in perspective and mention that we do gain advantages from that investment. Reasonable people can disagree about whether those things are worth the money, and how big or small the amount should be.

As for incarceration, I was being sarcastic, and I agree with you on the drug thing, as I have already pointed out. But it should come with a cost. If you go for government health care, but you are a smoker/crack head/heroin addict, and so on, then you get turned away. We will help you if you need it, but don't abuse it. That would be like free health care for the idiots on Jackass.

No I could not tell that you were being sarcastic. It looked like you were pretty convinced that the crime rate reductions were a direct result of the prison population. Any hoo, I suspect we could take a tiny fraction of the money we flush down the toilet on the drug war and put that towards treatment and we would be way better off as a society.

And for the PC thing, I repeatedly said all humans with reference to breeding. As my gay friends like to say, "there are white breeders too". That term actually came from the gay community as a slur toward heteros. I just don't care to tiptoe around other's feelings. Get over it, it makes me think of the cliche: "Its the thought that counts". No matter what word I use, you know what I mean.

But I don't know what you mean, at least not all the time. I will simply take your word for it on the gay thing, with the caveat that having a friend in minority x does not in any way mean that you don't have irrational and unfair judgements about group x. As a comedic example, Archie Bunker was unquestionably a bigot, and he had minority friends. (No I am not calling you Archie Bunker or a bigot, just making a point about the way people try to inoculate themselves against criticism while simultaniously making outlandish statements). But for the ethnic minorities and the poor in general: no I am not at all convinced by your after the fact assertions on this matter. It really does seam like you think of them as slightly less than human.

[Scott Harness]

No offense Eb but that's exactly the kind of thinking that has gotten us where we're at. We've been sitting at the dinner table staring at our peas for decades - sooner or later we're going to have to eat them. Cutting spending and raising taxes will no doubt have significant and immediate negative effects, but in the long term that's what we have to do IMHO. Somewhere along the way our politicians lost their collective intestinal fortitude to make the right decision - they're primarily concerned about their ability to get re-elected, which is why you see all this "Oh no we can't even consider that, the consequences would be too great!" talk in the media. It's the consequences to their political career that are too great - we have weathered worse as a people in our past, and we can and should do it again to get to a better place.

Here Here...nail on the head!!

[Ebenezr]

No offense Eb but that's exactly the kind of thinking that has gotten us where we're at. We've been sitting at the dinner table staring at our peas for decades - sooner or later we're going to have to eat them. Cutting spending and raising taxes will no doubt have significant and immediate negative effects, but in the long term that's what we have to do IMHO. Somewhere along the way our politicians lost their collective intestinal fortitude to make the right decision - they're primarily concerned about their ability to get re-elected, which is why you see all this "Oh no we can't even consider that, the consequences would be too great!" talk in the media. It's the consequences to their political career that are too great - we have weathered worse as a people in our past, and we can and should do it again to get to a better place.

Here Here...nail on the head!!

Cutting spending=instant move from recession to depression. The gov is too large a part of the economy. Raising taxes will kill the financing that upper class provides to create wealth. "It takes money to make money". But aside that it will not happen cause politicians are in a form of checkmate. They CANT make it happen because of the roadblocks in thier way.

[vt_maverick]

Cutting spending=instant move from recession to depression.

And this is a bad thing (relative to gradual complete insolvency / default) because? We can choose the difficult path while we actually have control, or we can wait until our creditors are ordering us what to do.

[Ebenezr]

The US has been like a frog in hot water when it reaches a boil it is too late. It can't jump out.

[Marlin]

And furthermore Marlin while I have you on the line aren't you the one who has a line on VX parts??? My upper trailing link off the rear axle has a creaky clunk because of play in the bushing. Do you know where I can get a bushing?....this is more important than federal budget cuts. :0)

LOL, that is Merlin, not me. I can get VX parts off of a VX I have here at a local yard, but for consumables, I always use isuzuparts.com.

As for being a bigot, eh, there are far worse things I could be. Perhaps I am, but not in the sense that you might think. I am prochoice for the same reason that I am ok with gays getting married. I don't care what they do if it doesn't infringe on other's rights. (Insert libertarian here) Homosexuality is a genetic defect, I can't hold someone accountable for that. Just don't push it in my face, much the same as religion. There has to be limits on it. So when it comes to minorities/poor, and you can throw the poor whites in the mix as well, that is fine( I am an equal opportunity hater ), I am intolerant of those that refuse to change for the better. I don't care if your culture has been around for 500 years, your country sucks for a reason, don't bring it here, if you want to come here because its better, do it legally, and do it completely. Don't spout your La Raza BS, or insist that you be called African American. Don't hoist your flag above the flag of the nation that is saving your ***. Assimilate, embrace the culture that made this country so great, and get with the team. The hispanic heritage didn't make this country great, no more than it has made their own countries great. If I come to your home, I am going to follow your rules and your customs. I expect that at a country level as well. Emulate those that succeed. The conservative white culture got us this far, only to be derailed in the last 30 years or so. I don't care what your color is, act like those that succeed, perhaps you will do the same.
Yes, I am insensitive, intolerant, prejudiced (based on my own personal experience), I am not a big fan of women on ships, I loath the hip-hop culture and what it tells our children, and I wish native americans would get jobs and join the winning team already. Its been a few hundred years, the argument is over. I think that about covers it. So I suppose that yes, I am a bigot.

[vt_maverick]

Was that the sound of Osteo's head exploding I just heard? Lol...

[Marlin]

Was that the sound of Osteo's head exploding I just heard? Lol...

Not sure why, that's what he wanted to hear. From where I sit, it all makes sense. Until someone can show me numbers/facts proving otherwise, my views are not likely to change. Touchy feely sensitive emotions aren't gonna do it. Like we say in the military, "Hope doesn't get **** done."

[vt_maverick]

My favorite is "Visions without funding are hallucinations."

[tom4bren]

Y'all are missing the big picture.

It's not just the Big G

It's the American way.

Why does Fredericksburg, VA need 4 Super Walmarts and 3 Super Targets? We just ain't that big folks. But they'll keep building them until not only does the market go down the toilet (it already has) but the entire sewage system explodes and everyone is wearing fecal matter makeup.

Sure, the DOD is huge but it's not just a money pit. It also creates jobs. Anyone care to guess how cutting the Defense budget in half is going to effect unemployment???