Mid Term U.S. Election

[mikey_the_redneck]

Originally Posted by Stimpy

It's sad the world you've created in your head (that likely didn't come out right). Who exactly has the ability to take an aggressive stance in the world, especially across two great oceans, against the United States? Only the paranoia promoted by those entrenched with the industrial military complex believe the next threat is around every corner. Eisenhower warned all Americans what was brewing and they missed it.

No no, the military industrial complex is a conspiracy and Eisenhower clearly did not know what he was talking about.

The American corporate/political elites have had foreknowledge of every attack on American soil, including Pearl Harbor and 9/11.

[PIMking]

Originally Posted by Rockin' Flames

Don't know what you've been watching but the economy in the US isn't stabilized by any stretch of the imagination yet. The debt is growing too fast and the spending is still out of control. People are upset with 10% unemployment rates and a balooning debt. There are also a lot of people upset with Obamacare. There were several Democrats during this election trying to distance themselves from Obama and his policies (including Obamacare).

I don't think Obama's ideas for immigration reform will go anywhere when he's wanting to naturalize illegal immigrants. When he's willing to allow the federal govenment to sue the Arizona govenment over their immigration enforcement law it'll be tough to campaign on progress on making the border more secure.

best part was when they declined to have Obama campaign for them.

We are able to see what they voted for, so they can't say they didn't. So it was great to see the snakes slithering back to the weeds.

[SeeBass]

[QUOTE=PIMking;2760491]Underfunded schools have a lot to do with local and state governments not just the fed. Places like here in Alabama we cant have a lotto or small casinos because the are the "devil" and they could use said tax for schools.

Pay for it locally or nationaly I dont care you guys should be paying more if the majority is asking for things that can't be afforded at the current tax rate.

I also said that I would vote for a 10% flat tax hike to every person paying income tax to cover medical insurance for everyone. I would also rather have just a flat tax also. I don't like the tax tiers that we have now, it causes class warfare.

I would agree with that too



Start wars? we are not the only ones to start a war. Believe it or not, we were attacked on 9/11... ( I don't believe that we should still be there now)Isn't Canada in Afghanistan and Iraq with us?

We didn't start WW2 or WW1, but we came to the aid of the allies when it was needed. But we are also the country that other countries come calling on if the sh*t hits the fan.

I never said the US is the only country that does start wars. I also don't think we need to derail this thread with what wars are right or wrong. My only statement is that if the US wants wars they have to pay for it. I will take back my "start wars" wording as that is another topic in which you and | probably agree 90%. But again you can't play the role of Global Cop without paying for it.

PS: we are not "officially" in Irag

[PIMking]

Originally Posted by mikey_the_redneck

No no, the military industrial complex is a conspiracy and Eisenhower clearly did not know what he was talking about.

The American corporate/political elites have had foreknowledge of every attack on American soil, including Pearl Harbor and 9/11.

Yea, but we are already a bunch of s; we cant just take every threat and go beat on some doors and get away with it.

[PIMking]

[QUOTE=SeeBass;2760673]

Originally Posted by PIMking

Underfunded schools have a lot to do with local and state governments not just the fed. Places like here in Alabama we cant have a lotto or small casinos because the are the "devil" and they could use said tax for schools.

Pay for it locally or nationaly I dont care you guys should be paying more if the majority is asking for things that can't be afforded at the current tax rate.

I also said that I would vote for a 10% flat tax hike to every person paying income tax to cover medical insurance for everyone. I would also rather have just a flat tax also. I don't like the tax tiers that we have now, it causes class warfare.

I would agree with that too



Start wars? we are not the only ones to start a war. Believe it or not, we were attacked on 9/11... ( I don't believe that we should still be there now)Isn't Canada in Afghanistan and Iraq with us?

We didn't start WW2 or WW1, but we came to the aid of the allies when it was needed. But we are also the country that other countries come calling on if the sh*t hits the fan.

I never said the US is the only country that does start wars. I also don't think we need to derail this thread with what wars are right or wrong. My only statement is that if the US wants wars they have to pay for it. I will take back my "start wars" wording as that is another topic in which you and | probably agree 90%. But again you can't play the role of Global Cop without paying for it.

PS: we are not "officially" in Irag

Yeah, and Vietnam was a "conflict"

I agree about having to pay for being the worlds police, but we still are the country that others look to for guidance and help when something happens either military or a natural disaster. But then we get bashed all the time for being "war Mongers".

War is a necessary evil, I don't like war but we will always have war when people cant agree. It just in our human nature.

[SeeBass]

Originally Posted by PIMking

this is what I really find funny about us Republicans, I can care less if you're gay or not. If you're happy and want to get married it's fine with me. You just get to jump to the higher tax bracket like the rest of us married folk.

Abortion is touchy and I'm staying away from it.

Immigration shouldn't be an issue at all, people are coming in illegally and using tax funded programs when they aren't even Americans. It would be like me going to Canada for a medical procedure because it's free up there. I'm sure it happens and isn't right and needs to be stopped.

The best part is the Republican party use to be about less taxes, smaller government control on people. But now it's like the total opposite, they want to control your sex life and intrude on crap.

I'm ashamed sometimes to be a registered Republican.

I completly agree with you. The party has been hijacked by the Christian Right. Maybe they have left to join the Tea party but not as long as the tea party runs under the GOP banner. I expect to see that line between the two grow in the next two years as they now have to legislate rather than just say no. What would really help the system is a third party though.

A perfect example of that is I would vote for a Mcain in 2000 but not Mcain in 2010.

Obama is about as centrist as Reagan where are those voters now?

If the Reaganites would come to the Dems the Dems could be more forceful on the illegals.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by PIMking

Yeah, and Vietnam was a "conflict"

I agree about having to pay for being the worlds police, but we still are the country that others look to for guidance and help when something happens either military or a natural disaster. But then we get bashed all the time for being "war Mongers".

War is a necessary evil, I don't like war but we will always have war when people cant agree. It just in our human nature.

There will always be nationalistic movements and accusations of the US being war mongers. It's an opportunity.

Let's use Taiwan as a hypothetical example. Right now in Taiwan the government supports Taiwan independence but it friendly to China. Then there's also a Nationalistic "China is Evil" party that has seats in Parliament but is a small party. Under these circumstance, the China is Evil Party has no chance.

But let's say China attacks Taiwan tomorrow and the current government is outsted. The US enters the war to protect Taiwan. All of a sudden the China is Evil Party will start to rally.

Independent TAIWAN! CHINA IS EVIL! USA ARE INVADERS WHO SUPPORT CHINA FRIENDLY PARTY, US WILL TAKE OVER! on and on and on and all of a sudden a party who would never have a chance, now can form government on the backs on a US Invasion because people will feel they are the only choice left.

Being the World's Police is no fun.

[SeeBass]

[QUOTE=PIMking;2760683]

Originally Posted by SeeBass

Yeah, and Vietnam was a "conflict"

I agree about having to pay for being the worlds police, but we still are the country that others look to for guidance and help when something happens either military or a natural disaster. But then we get bashed all the time for being "war Mongers".

War is a necessary evil, I don't like war but we will always have war when people cant agree. It just in our human nature.

Now this is one that i dont agree with. There are very few times when countries look for america's guidance but more like america claims divine right of our opinion is correct.
In the last ten years what countries have looked for america's guidence?

There are numerous countries that help in disasters and many times help more I just get tired of the US taking a victory lap when efforts are shared. The US still hasn't cut the check they promised in Haiti.

[Stimpy]

Originally Posted by PIMking

quit trying to twist my words into your perverted fantasy.

I wasn't trying to twist your words. I'm honestly trying to understand a certain segment of the population in the United States. Let's try this again.

What would you cut to balance the budget? This is a question that stumps the Tea Party crowd so I'm hoping you can answer this off the top of your head.

Of course we need taxes, but then we have crap like the FED reserve and Social Security which are utter failures and need to be waxed. But no, we will just raise more taxes for the baby boomers SS funds. I love paying for SS benefits when they will be gone by the time I get to retire.

There are two issues there that are completely unrelated. First, the FED. I'm not a fan of the way it was set up or works, but it provides a function needed in a country that does not have a central banking system. What the FED needs is a good audit, which is not going to happen because neither party wants to be responsible for exposing the corruption that is at the core of that entity.

The second issue is SS. This is another one of those fear issues that the Republicans like to trot out come election time and have their hopes of making ungodly amounts of money off of. Currently the SS system is funded until 2047, using just funds collected to date. The system could be shut down tomorrow, produce no more revenue and it would still have money in it until that date. The system needs some revenue tweaks but is fine as a model. The big problem with SS is there is a group that wants to privatize it and get their hooks into the hundreds of billions of dollars in the reserve and play with it in the stock market. Based on the latest shenanigans by Wall Street would you like to see that? Wall Street can keep their hands off my SS!

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Originally Posted by PIMking

Underfunded schools have a lot to do with local and state governments not just the fed. Places like here in Alabama we cant have a lotto or small casinos because the are the "devil" and they could use said tax for schools.

Problem with the lottery is that it really does function as a tax on the poor. In that respect, I'm not sure that it is a useful net solution to society.

[valo403]

Originally Posted by PIMking

I know hundreds of people that joined the military for the G.I. Bill. Yet, I know plenty of people that joined right after 9/11 to defend their country.

Some kids, (like myself) are just either not mature enough for college right away or don't know what they really want to do. The Military is a great way to get some experience under their belt along with defending their country.

Yes, there is some Gomer Pyles in our Military but that isn't a new found stat, every military has someone that isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.

I don't disagree, and I think I was probably way too broad and chose my words poorly earlier.

To clarify, my point isn't that they're stupid, it's that their left with little in the way of choice, something that I attribute at least partially to the massive failure that is the US public education system in much of the country. People are churned out of high school, with no real ability to continue their education, into cities and towns with increasingly little to offer in terms of employment. Coincidentally, the recritment centers are often all too ready to offer that future. It sometimes makes me question the actual desire of the US to open other doors for people in those areas when they provide such a significant portion of manpower. There are obviously people from all walks of life in the military, I have a buddy who did a couple tours in Afghanistan who left his six figure wall st. job to do so, I guess I just can't shake the idea that there are too many 18 year old kids who join the military simply because it's the only door open to them. Maybe I'm wrong about that, it's just the sense I've picked up living down here.

[PIMking]

Originally Posted by Stimpy

I wasn't trying to twist your words. I'm honestly trying to understand a certain segment of the population in the United States. Let's try this again.

What would you cut to balance the budget? This is a question that stumps the Tea Party crowd so I'm hoping you can answer this off the top of your head.

This is just my prospective, I just want something better for the people and at this moment this has noting to do with being Red, or Blue.

Plenty of things, for instance
Congressmen and women salaries
750k to study a midwest fox? really?
just look at some of the pork that is in bills (both sides put it in)

Originally Posted by Stimpy

There are two issues there that are completely unrelated. First, the FED. I'm not a fan of the way it was set up or works, but it provides a function needed in a country that does not have a central banking system. What the FED needs is a good audit, which is not going to happen because neither party wants to be responsible for exposing the corruption that is at the core of that entity.

The second issue is SS. This is another one of those fear issues that the Republicans like to trot out come election time and have their hopes of making ungodly amounts of money off of. Currently the SS system is funded until 2047, using just funds collected to date. The system could be shut down tomorrow, produce no more revenue and it would still have money in it until that date. The system needs some revenue tweaks but is fine as a model. The big problem with SS is there is a group that wants to privatize it and get their hooks into the hundreds of billions of dollars in the reserve and play with it in the stock market. Based on the latest shenanigans by Wall Street would you like to see that? Wall Street can keep their hands off my SS!

Do you plan on retirement by 2047? I wont be old enough to retire.

The Fed controls the rate or how much money is worth, all else fails just keep printing more money, that sure did work well for the Germans.

There is so much crap that needs to be fixed and wont get close to being fixed for another twenty years. First we need to have both parties sit down and work together, until we can start working together we will be a bunch of ######s humping a doorknob.

[PIMking]

Originally Posted by valo403

I don't disagree, and I think I was probably way too broad and chose my words poorly earlier.

To clarify, my point isn't that they're stupid, it's that their left with little in the way of choice, something that I attribute at least aprtially to the massive failure that is the US public education system in much of the country. People are churned out of high school with no real ability to continue their education into cities and towns with increasingly little to offer in terms of employment. Coincidentally the recritment centers are often all too ready to offer that future. It sometimes makes me question the actual desire of the US to open other doors for people in those areas when they provide such a significant portion of manpower. There are obviously people from all walks of life in the military, I have a buddy who did a couple tours in Afghanistan who left his six figure wall st. job to do so, I guess I just can't shake the idea that there are too many 18 year old kids who join the military simply because it's the only door open to them. Maybe I'm wrong about that, it's just the sense I've picked up living down here.

Very few people have a nationalistic ideals anymore, this is why I make sure to thank every man or woman I see in Uniform.

[Rockin' Flames]

Originally Posted by Stimpy

I wasn't trying to twist your words. I'm honestly trying to understand a certain segment of the population in the United States. Let's try this again.

What would you cut to balance the budget? This is a question that stumps the Tea Party crowd so I'm hoping you can answer this off the top of your head.

The Heritage Foundation put out a great article of areas to cut in the federal government and measures to take. Take a read through this for a way to start cutting spending by $343 Billion.

[cal_guy]

Originally Posted by Rockin' Flames

The Heritage Foundation put out a great article of areas to cut in the federal government and measures to take. Take a read through this for a way to start cutting spending by $343 Billion.

Curious to see one major Department that the Heritage has omitted.

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Originally Posted by Rockin' Flames

The Heritage Foundation put out a great article of areas to cut in the federal government and measures to take. Take a read through this for a way to start cutting spending by $343 Billion.

Not one penny of discretionary defense spending cuts yet they spend the time to squeeze out 2 million dollars of funding by eliminating "the Japan–United States Friendship Commission."

Really?

They want to eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts before cutting 1 penny from discretionary defense spending? 664 billion dollars in discretionary defense spending that Heritage won't touch, but apparently they're outraged that the equivalent of 0.02% of that spending is done for the Arts?

And this is why it is hard to take ideological organizations seriously.

[Phaneuf3]

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/11/03/iowa.judges/

Voters in Iowa chose to remove three high court justices who helped make Iowa the first Midwestern state to permit same-sex marriage. The vote marks the first time a member of the Iowa Supreme Court has been rejected by the voters under the current system that began in 1962.

Under the voting system in Iowa, each of the three justices up for retention -- Chief Justice Marsha Ternus, David Baker and Michael Streit -- needed simply to get more "yes" votes than "no" votes in the election to be elected for another eight-year term. They faced no opponents. None of the judges raised money for the campaign.

[Rockin' Flames]

Originally Posted by Flames Fan, Ph.D.

Not one penny of discretionary defense spending cuts yet they spend the time to squeeze out 2 million dollars of funding by eliminating "the Japan–United States Friendship Commission."

Really?

They want to eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts before cutting 1 penny from discretionary defense spending? 664 billion dollars in discretionary defense spending that Heritage won't touch, but apparently they're outraged that the equivalent of 0.02% of that spending is done for the Arts?

And this is why it is hard to take ideological organizations seriously.

I'd have no problems with some cuts to defense especially when you have a debt as high as the US does. This is a starting place for cuts, and really why should an Endowment for the Arts be a higher priority than continuing to heap mountains of debt on our children and grand children.

[Flames Fan, Ph.D.]

Originally Posted by Rockin' Flames

I'd have no problems with some cuts to defense especially when you have a debt as high as the US does. This is a starting place for cuts, and really why should an Endowment for the Arts be a higher priority than continuing to heap mountains of debt on our children and grand children.

You don't think a little culture is worth 0.02% of the discretionary defense spending budget?

[Stimpy]

Originally Posted by Rockin' Flames

The Heritage Foundation put out a great article of areas to cut in the federal government and measures to take. Take a read through this for a way to start cutting spending by $343 Billion.

Two questions. 1. Did you read the report? 2. Did you understand the report and the myriad of agencies that these cuts would affect?

This report is a complete hatchet job, passing all responsibility and budget requirements of issues that should be handled at the federal to the state and sticks it to the poor while giving more and more to the rich. Based on where it came from I'm not overly surprised, but seriously, this is so flawed it hurts to read. A lot of the measures aren't really cuts by transfers to the state level, increasing the regional spending requirement and debt load on the states. It isn't a plan to cut a lot of spending but is nothing more than fancy parlor trick to shuffle the debt around. Also the cuts that are there affect programs that keep jobs in depressed economic regions or allow for poor people to improve their standard through training and education. The cuts to the arts have always been a target for the conservatives, which is something I don't understand. The arts are a big way of protecting our culture and passing it along to future generations. The arts is part of what makes us human. The reasoning behind cutting that doesn't make sense. Finally, a lot of the cuts would impact the small business owner, especially in agriculture, and put money directly into the coffers of the corporate farms. I don't think that report makes much sense and is not what America is about.