American Politics during the Obama Presidency

[QUOTE=WorldTravel69;429833]The first thing they should cut is the subsidies to the Tobacco Industries. I know it isn't much S46, 000, 000, but it will help. Because tobacco kills 1200 people a day.[/QUOTE]It is $191 million, not $46 million:

[url]http://farm.ewg.org/progdetail.php?fips=00000&progcode=tobacco[/url]

Corn subsidies were $4. 6 [B]billion[/B] In 2011 (same source) and much of that corn goes to ethanol and should be replaced with HEMP. 40% of all tobacco subsidies go to a single state, if you can believe that, which is why the whole concept of the senate is fucked.

It would lead to a Financial Disaster.

[url]http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/141093-boehner-failure-to-raise-debt-ceiling-would-mean-financial-disaster[/url]

[QUOTE=Wild Walleye; 429812]You have the part about the credit rating exactly backwards.

The US Credit rating is specific to the risk of US Treasury securities. That is the likelihood of a US default on it's obligations (interest and principal) as they relate to treasury securities. How could increasing deficit spending make the US less likely to default on its obligations?

Think about it this way:

- a guy makes $100k / year.

- His effective tax rate is 20, so he has $80K in disposable spending.

- he has a $5k / mo mortgage ($500k balance)

- he pays $1k / mo in car payments ($50k balance)

- he pays $1k / mo to service his credit cards ($50k balance)

- his monthly bills run $2k / mo.

Net of taxes, he brings in $80k. His annual expenses are $108K and he owes $600k.

You are the loan officer at the bank. If this guy is granted more debt, do you think that he will be more likely or less likely to default?

Now, what nobody seems to bother to say is that the US Govt can't default on its treasury securities. End of story. If the US didn't have the money necessary to meet its obligations, it would print more. Further, there is no shortage of funds within the federal government. The 'one' payment that they absolutely must make is on the federal debt. If there wasn't enough cash lying around, they would have to not pay other obligations (entitlements, etc.) in favor of servicing the debt (that is the law). If the president, regardless of skin color, failed to service the debt, it would be an impeachable offense. The fact that this president lied to the American people about a potential default, for political gain, is one of the more despicable things I have seen, and I have seen quite a lot.

How could refusing to increase the debt limit harm the US credit rating? It couldn't. The US credit rating was lowered strictly because of the fact that the US was / is not behaving in a fiscally responsible manner: was / is running huge annual deficits (more than $1T each of the last four years) ; the legislature has not passed a budget in three years and the national debt is growing at an exorbitant rate (increasing 50% every 3-4 years). The GOP's contribution to that problem is its legacy of bending over and spending, just like their liberal counterparts.

There is a black guy in the WH who called the prior white president unpatriotic for increasing the national debt. Now that same black guy says it is imperative for the good of the nation for him to cripple the country with debt (pretty twisted logic). In your way of thinking, he too is a racist (actually, I agree completely with you on this one, he is a racist).

If there aren't real spending cuts, I say, let's go over the economic cliff. The house controls the purse strings. They should just pass the spending provisions that they want and send it to the senate. If they (senate and president) don't like it, f*ck 'them.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Esten;429817]PS. Why the childish, name-calling rants against other posters? Bad form, Toymann.[/QUOTE]I agree.

Thanks,

Jackson

[QUOTE=Jackson; 429853]I agree.

Thanks,

Jackson[/QUOTE]No need for piling on dude. I already indicated that I would ease up. Based on your post and the new politically correct world you want on this thread. You'll have no need to worry about anymore political posts from me. Enjoy El Jeffe. Toymann.

Ps. Nice to see you sticking up for dickhead. His sensitivity on the board is well known. Good to see you two have kissed and made up. His post regarding his academic analysis of obomocare deserved a betch slap. But, I get it. Enjoy the new gentile political thread. You asked for it, you got it. Toymann out.

[QUOTE=Toymann;429819]I will treat all posts going forward like a high school debate forum.[/QUOTE]Thought I made made myself clear. Guess not. Monger on dudes. Toymann

[QUOTE=Toymann;429858]You'll have no need to worry about anymore political posts from me.[/QUOTE]Toymann, why don't you stay around and tone it down. I appreciate your perspective. Every time I saw Thomas Peterffy's political advertisement on television this fall I thought about Toymann. You've lived in a socialist country, and accomplished much in another society where there has been economic liberty, at least up until now.

You're the best cage fighter in this thread. Member #2041 is second best. I agree with you on most issues and almost always your posts are entertaining to me. But I'm not sure the low blows, biting and kicking, as you put it, are healthy. My favorite nonsexual fantasy used to be making obscene gestures and yelling obscenities at Nancy Pelosi in a public forum. That has been replaced. Now it's defecating on Member #2041. I expect some on the left may have similar thoughts about Toymann. You've got a talent for biting sarcasm but I think would be better served if you harnessed it a bit. Make the posts more about the issues instead of about personalities. And again, I at least appreciate the substance of your posts, and would miss them.

Just kidding 2041, if you're still reading this thread.

[QUOTE=Tiny12; 429877]Toymann, why don't you stay around and tone it down. I appreciate your perspective. Every time I saw Thomas Peterffy's political advertisement on television this fall I thought about Toymann. You've lived in a socialist country, and accomplished much in another society where there has been economic liberty, at least up until now.

You're the best cage fighter in this thread. Member #2041 is second best. I agree with you on most issues and almost always your posts are entertaining to me. But I'm not sure the low blows, biting and kicking, as you put it, are healthy. My favorite nonsexual fantasy used to be making obscene gestures and yelling obscenities at Nancy Pelosi in a public forum. That has been replaced. Now it's defecating on Member #2041. I expect some on the left may have similar thoughts about Toymann. You've got a talent for biting sarcasm but I think would be better served if you harnessed it a bit. Make the posts more about the issues instead of about personalities. And again, I at least appreciate the substance of your posts, and would miss them.

Just kidding 2041, if you're still reading this thread.[/QUOTE]I was. But now I'm out of here. I'll have nightmares for a while after reading this post

[QUOTE=Tiny12; 429877]Toymann, why don't you stay around and tone it down. I appreciate your perspective. Every time I saw Thomas Peterffy's political advertisement on television this fall I thought about Toymann. You've lived in a socialist country, and accomplished much in another society where there has been economic liberty, at least up until now.

You're the best cage fighter in this thread. Member #2041 is second best. I agree with you on most issues and almost always your posts are entertaining to me. But I'm not sure the low blows, biting and kicking, as you put it, are healthy. My favorite nonsexual fantasy used to be making obscene gestures and yelling obscenities at Nancy Pelosi in a public forum. That has been replaced. Now it's defecating on Member #2041. I expect some on the left may have similar thoughts about Toymann. You've got a talent for biting sarcasm but I think would be better served if you harnessed it a bit. Make the posts more about the issues instead of about personalities. And again, I at least appreciate the substance of your posts, and would miss them.

Just kidding 2041, if you're still reading this thread.[/QUOTE]My tantrum is now over! El Jeffe pisses me off some times with his selective rules enforcement. I still won't post too much on this thread as we are years away from the next election. You will find my prediction on healthcare in the new America will sadly come true in spades! Monger on TinyDude. Toymann

Romney said "When I'm elected, I will put Americans back to work."

And 51% of the Americans said,"Fuck that!"

Some things are starting to appear more likely than others. Raising the Medicare age to 67 is going to happen. There is a tweak to the CPI formula for Social Security and tax bracket adjustments that is reasonable and moderate and gradual. That will happen too. Next will be face saving measures that allow taxes to go up for the rich without explicitly raising brackets. The likelihood of a limitation on the mortgage interest deduction is increasing and this surprises me. Then there is raising the OASDI payroll tax ceiling, or even eliminating it, which if they eliminate it, would cost Alex Rodriguez something like $780, 000 a year. In turn Obama said something like the top rate has to go up next year but maybe could be reduced down the road. What I said earlier about compromising on the tax rate appears less likely as now they seem to be in loophole-closing mode. I think Obama should offer to eliminate at least one entire agency. Let Boehner submit three and Obama can pick one. Maybe repeat that again in two years. Also Obama does not seem to be talking about taxing capital gains the same as ordinary income and seems content to let the former 10% and 20% come back. Earlier he was making noise about 10% and 25.

What a story. Mitch "My Number One Goal Is To Defeat Obama" McConnell made a motion for a vote on legislation that would let the president extend the country's borrowing limit on his own. In fact this was McConnell's own idea in last year's debt ceiling standoff. I guess he wanted to show that even Democrats would not support such a bill. But Reid said it might be a good idea, and proposed a straight up or down vote. McConnell then said no.

[QUOTE]"This may be a moment in Senate history when a senator made a proposal and, when given an opportunity for a vote on that proposal, filibustered his own proposal," said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). "I think we have reached a new spot in the history of the Senate we've never seen before."[/QUOTE]Debt Ceiling Bluff Called By Harry Reid, Leaving Mitch McConnell To Filibuster Himself
[url]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/06/debt-ceiling-mitch-mcconnell_n_2251515.html[/url]

When will the Republicans learn?

Some of you hate Unions, but what the Republican Congress is doing is the same as the Unions.

They Want More Money for their People.

Photos from Old Ale House in Chicago.

Now that the GOP is reluctantly waving the white flag in regard to taxes of the rich, the end is in sight to a constructive compromise in regard to spending & reducing the deficit. The effort to make Obama a failure and limit him to one term ended one of the most destructive and unproductive 4 years in American history. Now, the GOP face losing the House in 2014 if they allow America to fall off the cliff. Yet, millions remain stubborn and angry and hoping that their version of America can come back from the dead in 2016. Yes, anything can happen.

Just like Facism is making a comeback in Greece, with nationalist groups marching & making Nazi salutes and beating up any foreigners that are of a different color. Now, for sure, anything can happen.

When I was a kid, my friends and I would play cops & robbers, or act out a battlefield scene with homemade weapons. Killing was fun. You could say that was 3rd world, and over here, we are 1st world and we don't have to pretend. And so mental illness is trotted out to be the villain. Like the plea of insanity for any henious crime. What is the plea, NRA? Not guilty, judge. Yes, we cannot allow legislation to come between us and our profits. Ever faithful, they trot the 2nd amendment, the right to bear arms. Samuel Jackson said it best,"Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel". Perhaps, it is true, that you feel more American if you have a gun in your waistband. I think thay should make all naturalized citizens do that when they are sworn in, so as to have that "feeling". Myself, my dick, small as it is, would shrink even more with a gun in my waistband.

But optimism runs in my blood, so I see changes & progress in many areas in the next 4 years. Things can only get better politically as the GOP do damage control and try to regroup and rearm. Sombreros and burros in the GOP, what is the world coming to? So as usual, a body massage will take care of whatever problem.

[quote]The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed, lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work instead of living on public assistance.

Cicero, 55 BC[/quote]So, evidently we've learned nothing in the past 2,067 years.

[QUOTE=Jackson;430486]So, evidently we've learned nothing in the past 2,067 years.[/QUOTE]Countries, societies, teams, individuals have always shown a capacity for self destruction. It is nature's way of redistributing the wealth.

But now, it seems that America is coming to terms with it's addiction. We have to abandon building the Tower of Babel and check in for rehabilitation. We could have started down this road 2 or 3 years ago, but you know, somebody did not want to play ball. But now, there is hope and that is a good feeling. But everybody has to pitch in.

With the SS costs of living cuts down the road, I am going to have to abandon my penis enlargement surgery and also my dream of buying a harem. The name of the game now is sacrifice, sacrifice, sacrifice. I have done my part.