FD - I am seriously unhappy with Mr. Bush about tthe way the deficit has gone out of control on his watch. As far as I can tell, Mr. Kerry's only answer to this is to raise taxes, and then raise spending even more.
I can't prove this, but I have a gut level feeling that about half the money we pay in taxes is completely wasted. Let's say you wanted to add a room to your house, and the Contractor you've hired says it will be $40k. If you pay the $40k, and then actually get the addition, I'd feel pretty good about it. But it's when you pay the $40k and have nothing to show for it is when I start feeling bad.
I've referenced all the data in the "is the country on the right track" thread earlier in the week. According to U.S. Government figures, we're spending $1.4 Trillion a year in Government Programs to help people and transfer payments. But if you believe the Census Bureau, the percentage of people living in poverty has been relatively constant since 1980. That's somewhere around $20 Trillion we've spent on The War on Poverty since 1980. For that kind of money, you'd think there wouldn't be a poor person left in the country. Unfortunately, that's not the case.
Remember trench warfare in WWI? Tens of tousands of men killed against machine gun positions in a single day? After the first time that happened, you'd think the generals would realize something was wrong, and try something different. But no. The Brass on both sides kept on doing exactly the same thing for over four years at a cost of millions of lives. Pretty stupid, right? Well our Government, of both parties, has been doing exactly the same thing for decades. Only instead of throwing away soldiers, it's throwing away money (yours and mine, that is). I wouldn't feel so bad if it was actually doing some good, but I see no evidence of that whatsoever. What I do see is Mr. Kerry as the cheerleader of the status quo.
Sorry for rambling.
Harper wrote:FreeDuck wrote:Jim wrote:FD - if he follows the Platform issued by the Democratic Convention that would be bad enough.
Specifically - higher taxes, more spending (throwing money at problems just for the sake of buying votes), more far-left-of-center Federal Judges and Supreme Court Justices, more counter productive regulations slapped together by lawyers who have never worked on a shop floor, etc ad nauseum.
Well, personally my taxes were never cut by Bush so I don't expect them to be raised by Kerry.
But your health care premiums went down, didn't they? And I am sure your income soared too, right? :wink:
Hah. No health insurance -- small business owners and we can't afford it but I think it's overrated anyway. Income didn't exactly soar
Jim wrote:
I can't prove this, but I have a gut level feeling that about half the money we pay in taxes is completely wasted. Let's say you wanted to add a room to your house, and the Contractor you've hired says it will be $40k. If you pay the $40k, and then actually get the addition, I'd feel pretty good about it. But it's when you pay the $40k and have nothing to show for it is when I start feeling bad.
I completely agree with you one this. It's actually one of my recurrent complaints. I always said that if you added up all the taxes we pay, we pay taxes like a socialist country with none of the benefits.
Quote:
I've referenced all the data in the "is the country on the right track" thread earlier in the week. According to U.S. Government figures, we're spending $1.4 Trillion a year in Government Programs to help people and transfer payments. But if you believe the Census Bureau, the percentage of people living in poverty has been relatively constant since 1980. That's somewhere around $20 Trillion we've spent on The War on Poverty since 1980. For that kind of money, you'd think there wouldn't be a poor person left in the country. Unfortunately, that's not the case.
I remember your post on this. A libertarian once said that whenever this country declares war on something (poverty, drugs, terrorism) we end up with a lot more of it. I think he was right. I used to feel like you do, that most of our money is wasted on social programs, but now I think most of our money is wasted on the military-industrial complex making new, innovative ways to kill people and spread war across the globe.
Quote:
Remember trench warfare in WWI? Tens of tousands of men killed against machine gun positions in a single day? After the first time that happened, you'd think the generals would realize something was wrong, and try something different. But no. The Brass on both sides kept on doing exactly the same thing for over four years at a cost of millions of lives. Pretty stupid, right? Well our Government, of both parties, has been doing exactly the same thing for decades. Only instead of throwing away soldiers, it's throwing away money (yours and mine, that is). I wouldn't feel so bad if it was actually doing some good, but I see no evidence of that whatsoever. What I do see is Mr. Kerry as the cheerleader of the status quo.
Sorry for rambling.
No problem, it was a very good ramble. I guess I no longer buy the campaign promises of the Republicans who swear they will cut our taxes and play on class warfare. So far I can't remember any tax cutting that helped me over the last 15 years. I remember my father complaining about Reagan, who he said cut taxes but then eliminated the interest from credit card debt from being deductible. What I see is that what they give you with one hand they take back with the other -- plus interest. This administration comes across to me as something resembling looters.
..and I ramble back.
Jim- Again I agree. The Republicans are supposedly the party of small government.........yet they spend like drunken sailors. The only difference between the two parties is WHERE they spend their money.
I think that if a private business were run like the government, it would go bankrupt, fast!
FD - I guess the long and the short of it is we're screwed either way.
It's been nice chatting with you. Got to go grab some dinner before they run out of whatever it is they're serving. See you later.
Jim wrote:FD - I guess the long and the short of it is we're screwed either way.
It's been nice chatting with you. Got to go grab some dinner before they run out of whatever it is they're serving. See you later.
Same to you Jim, look forward to catching you on another thread.
Phoenix, When I was reviewing your link, it knocked me right off line. UhOh! Soooooo. I ain't going back there.
Frankly, when I'm not certain how I feel about either candidate, I just vote the party. It's as good a tactic as any, I guess.
Suffice it to say that I have met Phoenix, and she is a very objective and discerning person. Not one bit of subterfuge; nor one bit of arrogance.
As for the little lamp character of mythology, he probably is still out there somewhere looking for an honest politician. Odd that the public loves it when negative campaigns are waged. I just want an end to this war NOW!
