Because my best friend tells me every week he wants to come home from Iraq... he's been there 2 years.
Why would anyone on this forum be a democrat??
- Thread starter popeye
- Start date
- Status
HarveyJ
He is - THE CACTUS!
Overall, welfare takes up SFA of a federal budget... Why do people who always bitch about tax assume it always gets spent on welfare?
Do you people have any idea how expensive it is just to maintain essential infrastructure like roads? Bitchumen & Tarmac cost approximately $25m^2... More for elevated works... How much road is there in the US?
If you use hospitals, got an education, have ever had to call the emergency services (police, fire or ambulance) or just drive anywhere EVER, you should pay taxes. Period.
Perhaps not as much as you currently are, because the ultra rich get away with spending a lot less than they should...
It just means Government needs to get tighter on upper-class tax-shelters. i.e Kerry Packer, Australian media mogul that wasn't Murdoch, was proud of paying only about $3k a year in tax... He earned about $90m a year....
22% of the USA GDP went on the combined military budget in 2007 (potentially a lot more if you count the Iraq fiasco, but that's technically "Foreign Affairs"). Welfare was 12.7% according to Wiki... Yet you never hear tax-whiners say "Oh, we need to cut the military budget" because they're always the same idiots who have "Support the Troops" stickers on their bumpers.
Support the Troops~!? You know what would support the troops? Some decent fucking veterans welfare like post traumatic medical and psychological care, and maybe a decent pension for those that never managed to become commissioned officers.
You know what else wastes millions of dollars? An electoral system based on popularity, instead of party policy, and a head of state that can veto laws that cost millions of dollars to get off the ground, unless 66% of all representatives agree with it...
Do you people have any idea how expensive it is just to maintain essential infrastructure like roads? Bitchumen & Tarmac cost approximately $25m^2... More for elevated works... How much road is there in the US?
If you use hospitals, got an education, have ever had to call the emergency services (police, fire or ambulance) or just drive anywhere EVER, you should pay taxes. Period.
Perhaps not as much as you currently are, because the ultra rich get away with spending a lot less than they should...
It just means Government needs to get tighter on upper-class tax-shelters. i.e Kerry Packer, Australian media mogul that wasn't Murdoch, was proud of paying only about $3k a year in tax... He earned about $90m a year....
22% of the USA GDP went on the combined military budget in 2007 (potentially a lot more if you count the Iraq fiasco, but that's technically "Foreign Affairs"). Welfare was 12.7% according to Wiki... Yet you never hear tax-whiners say "Oh, we need to cut the military budget" because they're always the same idiots who have "Support the Troops" stickers on their bumpers.
Support the Troops~!? You know what would support the troops? Some decent fucking veterans welfare like post traumatic medical and psychological care, and maybe a decent pension for those that never managed to become commissioned officers.
You know what else wastes millions of dollars? An electoral system based on popularity, instead of party policy, and a head of state that can veto laws that cost millions of dollars to get off the ground, unless 66% of all representatives agree with it...
Last edited:
Poto - if you read the context of the arguments here, it's much more than just 'Democrats vs Republicans'. What we are witnessing on this forum and elsewhere is a convalescence of awareness on the whole political spectrum - Dems and republicans alike.
Said differently, citizens from all parties are sick of the status-quo in American politics, and despite what the main stream media would lead us to believe, we actually see eye to eye on more issues than not.
I agree with XCMP on pretty much everything he said; we both agree that the world is fucked up for the under privileged and their families, we all agree the war is a waste, we all agree that the war on drugs, pork barrel earmarks, etc are all a waste.
The disagreement then isn't Republican vs Democrat; it's how to best use our tax dollars and help the disenfranchised. It's a dilemna almost impossible to answer. If you are talking about paying for their college, you are assuming that they have what it takes to actually attend school and get through a program; chances are they don't.
Regarding welfare, if you give them too much, you incentize them to maintain their current lifestyle. If you help them too little, they will pursue a life of crime & corruption, and end up in Jail, costing us lots of money. As XCMP pointed us, prosecuting and keeping someone in the prison system is EXTREMELY costly.
It would almost be better to just put these people in apartment complexed, give them some weed and xbox and tell them to not commit crimes. Or institute super strict laws like Singapore. I dunno. It's all fucked up, which is why it's so hard to fix.
yea, I know... I was referring to the thread title and the first post...
I also agree with most of what XMCP says...
of course, I've known people that were on welfare milking the system, buying big screen TVs and buying drugs with food stamps, etc... I've also known people that were in far greater need, but too proud to take government assistance... it's quite difficult to get help to the people that actually need it...
our system is dysfunctional and in need of repair... from a social welfare programs to taxes, bureaucracy has created a bloated beast of a system... still, what we have here in the states as dysfunctional as it is, it's much better than many 3rd world nations... our standard of living for our poorest is much higher than when compared to the poorest of most other nations...
imho, short of a revolution or major economic collapse... when the government doesn't have enough tax dollars to afford to house the millions in prison, then and only then will reforms have to be had... otherwise, I don't think much will change for the better... our 2 party system ensures too much incestuous corruption...
That doesn't change the fact that he wants to come home and they have extended his tour 3 times already. He has a 2 year old daughter that he has seen twice.
The question was, "why vote democrat"...
My answer: So a father can finally meet his daughter.
HarveyJ
He is - THE CACTUS!
I really don't like the whole blowing-my-own-horn (although if I could do it naturally, you'd never hear from me again) thing, but read up on Australia's distribution of welfare, and our various state paid for social programs.
Our culture is as close to American as you can get (except maybe Canada's), but our Governments generally believe in socialistic spending and responsibility.
Tertiary education is government subsidized, prisons have excellent education facilities for trades and IT (go figure) so people can get a real life afterwards if they want to, a welfare-to-work program (although this has its own issues in that it hides jobs that could otherwise pay a real wage), decent public medical coverage (except dental), etc etc.
And as a per-capita thing, we have less money in our economy than America does.
It's all a matter of spending priorities... Unfortunately, American governments always end up in thrall of the lobby groups due to the way that your electoral system works (yes, these issues are intertwined).
Then there's also the sad fact that, from a historical basis, America's economy actually relies on 20% of the work force to be slaves. I know it's a horrible thing to say, but I get the feeling if you compared current minimum wages against what black slaves on plantations got, the economic value of the slaves' clothes, board & feed might actually be more than the equivalent of today's minimum wage.
Our culture is as close to American as you can get (except maybe Canada's), but our Governments generally believe in socialistic spending and responsibility.
Tertiary education is government subsidized, prisons have excellent education facilities for trades and IT (go figure) so people can get a real life afterwards if they want to, a welfare-to-work program (although this has its own issues in that it hides jobs that could otherwise pay a real wage), decent public medical coverage (except dental), etc etc.
And as a per-capita thing, we have less money in our economy than America does.
It's all a matter of spending priorities... Unfortunately, American governments always end up in thrall of the lobby groups due to the way that your electoral system works (yes, these issues are intertwined).
Then there's also the sad fact that, from a historical basis, America's economy actually relies on 20% of the work force to be slaves. I know it's a horrible thing to say, but I get the feeling if you compared current minimum wages against what black slaves on plantations got, the economic value of the slaves' clothes, board & feed might actually be more than the equivalent of today's minimum wage.
Lot of complaining and pointing fingers, but only a few vague references to how to solve the problems. If we're going to bitch about it, let's come up with a solution to it.
And no more of this "If I were president" crap either. How do we fix it from where we are now? From my point of view, it seems to me that the biggest problems we have is corporate influence and career politicians. But I readily admit I don't have a clue as to how we'll get Congress to pass the laws needed to cut their own throats. But, if we could, I think we could then make progress into other areas such as the budget, foreign affairs, etc.
And no more of this "If I were president" crap either. How do we fix it from where we are now? From my point of view, it seems to me that the biggest problems we have is corporate influence and career politicians. But I readily admit I don't have a clue as to how we'll get Congress to pass the laws needed to cut their own throats. But, if we could, I think we could then make progress into other areas such as the budget, foreign affairs, etc.
Because republicans have ruined the economy.
Because being in Iraq is killing America.
Because the privileged in the country should help the under privileged.
Because money isn't everything, if they want to tax me more to help the country, so be it.
Because being in Iraq is killing America.
Because the privileged in the country should help the under privileged.
Because money isn't everything, if they want to tax me more to help the country, so be it.
Ok Obama-girl.
I'm not paying my hard earned money to send an illegal off to college and provide them with free healthcare. Eat me.
there ya go, they will be able to pay their own way to college like we all had to do if we choose that path
Those who are concerned about how their taxes are spent need to look at where the majority of them have gone over the last few years and the likely policies of a future Republican president.
Then, if money is the only thing important to you, buy shares in Halliburton and vote for McCain.
Then, if money is the only thing important to you, buy shares in Halliburton and vote for McCain.
Oh you're one of those guys who believes there will be abortion too vending machines, right?
Go fuck yourself.
Universities to not get that much money, and illegals wold be paying taxes for the most part if they were even making fucking minimum wage, and had an ability to. And with how cheap shit is because of them, you're coming out on top.
Oh yeah, and they don't go free or anything.
Fuck yeah I'm an Obama-girl. Better than being a McCain salad tosser.
And seriously, pull your head out of your cavernous vagina. The country is falling apart and all you can think about is your hard earned money? With the rate that our currency is turning into generic toilet paper you'd think people would be a little more concerned with fixing the economy and stop petty bitching about taxes.
- Status