Could be the smartest thing I have read here in a while. I've also thought of this angle in the past, but your description articulates it very well.
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Similar to a movement in Britain; the Robin Hood Tax.
http://robinhoodtax.org.uk/
Expand it to more than the banks [[though they should be first).
I'll reiterate that I simply don't understand how some people think they can prosper all by themselves.
Looks like the old codger gave in..
By the way, here is a quote from the Senator that appeared in a NYT story a few moments.
“We are on an unsustainable path as far as the budget,” said Mr. Bunning, who said the fight had caused him to be on the floor more than any other time during his 24-year-career in Congress.
My questions, what's he been doing for the past 24-years?
Jez...
Good speech from Sen. Bernie Sanders:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sDbLmyngWs
One old man wanted to prove a point. We had a multi-trillion dollar stimulus plan passed, with so much money left unspent, but we couldn't use any of the money to fund this effort? We have to create NEW spending? Have to print or borrow NEW money? We have a massive Federal budget for 2010..... We couldn't use any of those trillions to pay for this?
And is this bill EXCLUSIVE to extending unemployment benefits? Or is it chock full of earmarks and programs to special interest groups? I'm willing to guess it's the latter.
I was unemployed for six months of last year, So I know how critical it is to at least have the pittance unemployment pays. Without it and my savings I would have been homeless. I realize that this bill was a political football to oppose. Stopping spending a week after Obama suggests a PAY-GO policy is a good thing, but having them stuff an unemployment benefit extention in it makes you a bad guy if you vote against it.
This is the method of the crooks in Washington. You take a necessary action, such as funding the military or funding unemployment, and stuff in 9000 earmarks and special interest programs. Then when someone opposes the wreckless spending you say YOU DONT CARE ABOUT THE TROOPS or WHAT ABOUT THE JOBLESS YOU HEARTLESS BASTARD !!
Politics suck.
earmarks are bad [[agreed)...unless they create jobs...unemployment extension good unless it doesn't go to the people...politics really suck lately...special interest groups depending what the interests are ...that's where the real budget warriors should focus..
save billions cut foreign funding of countries that can sustain themselves...
In fairness to Sen Jim Bunning, he wasn't pulling a "fast one" in this case. The Senate leadership was trying to "fast track" the bill through a shortcut process which required unanimous consent rather than having it introduced as a bill in the normal process. Bunning just said "wait a minute".
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Hermod, much of our foreign aid is simply another form of subsidy to the defense industry. We give funds to countries with the understanding that they will then, in turn, buy arms from our manufacturers.
That said, though, total foreign aid is less than 1% [[1/4% +/-, I think) of the federal budget.
Quote: "Most of our "foreign aid" which is direct aid to countries not tied to our Afghan and iraq ventures goes to Israel and Egypt"
Our sole reason for being in Iraq and Afghanistan IS Israel. Many in the middle east have a problem with us for our unwavering and seemingly uncontrollable support of the Likud's. Period. Not about oil, not about Daddy's fight WMD or some other such bullshit. We are there because of the Likud's treatment or apartheid of the Palestinians.
Stay tuned, Iran is the next on the list of people we need to attack for no real reason.
"Regarding Iran, nothing is off the table" Barak Obama
That shit is killing this country. How this will turn out, one only needs to look at VietNam and Russia and their occupation of Afghanistan in the 70's. Did wonders for their economy.
Did I say all that? :confused: It is not the government's obligation to feed people, but rather to provide a business climate where American companies can prosper and provide jobs to Americans so that we can feed ourselves. Current government policies favor foreign companies and discourage the employment of more expensive American labor.
:D
Thanks for the laugh, Red !
I'm in my fifties and out of work again. I retrained for everything my employers asked for over the years to stay on top of the job market. But over the last twenty years Wall Street wanted everything outsourced out of the country to increase profits.
Now the only ones not hurting are - guess who, Wall Street, and Polititions.They need to come down a few more notches. :mad:
^ LOL, tell that to the Chinese!
I'm sure you've seen some of the fantastic products that are now manufactured in China. Toys with lead paint, toothpaste with diethylene glycol, food products tainted with formaldehyde, electronics components that spontaneously combust, drywall that corrodes copper--A real success story, huh?
Race to the bottom all you want--just don't drag the rest of us with you.
And so many people are just waiting to move there! What quality of life!
The ultimate goal of making money and having businesses in the first place is to increase the quality of life of the people of a country.
I agree with ghettopalmetto-- it's a race to the bottom with some people.
I would take that a step further, and say that the purpose of having a *government* is to *improve* the lives of the citizens of that nation. Right now, our national conversation is being dominated by a bunch of uneducated morons and greedy pricks, whose only goal is to put more pennies into their own pockets, while absconding any responsibility to the rest of us.
As it stands, there are people in this nation who have fewer rights than handguns do. It's time we START DEMANDING that our fellow citizens live up to the responsibility they have to each of us, and that we each return that favor in kind.
LOL, yeah, I want our economy to be dragged down like China's. China's products are so dangerous that Americans have stopped buying them. :rolleyes:
Many Chinese have left the countryside to move to manufacturing centers. Their quality of life improves by doing so.Quote:
Originally Posted by choquant
I think you two are missing the point. American policies are less friendly toward business than the Chinese. Are you two aware of the trade imbalance and the fact that the Chinese are funding our socialisticly-enhanced debt? The quality of life in China is improving tremendously while ours is in decline. This is not due to the superiority of Communism over Capitalism; it's the result of Chinese companies being free of the burdens imposed on American companies.
GhettoP wrote: "the purpose of having a *government* is to *improve* the lives of the citizens of that nation."
Translation: I want an "Government" that gives me stuff for zero effort of my own.
You could not be more wrong about the purpose of government. It is the individual's responsibility to make their life better. We are all just individuals. The role of Government is to govern, nothing else.