Politics
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- luckyorphan0
On a totally unrelated note, will someone explain to me why the Tea Party folks are celebrating the latest ruling by the US Supreme Court striking down the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance bill?
I thought the Tea Party folks were all for the people (the allegedly 'real' Americans) taking back power from the establishment, and not allowing vile corporate interests.
Lil' clarity, please.
- They're spinning it as some sort of win because they think campaign contributions equal freedom of speech.. kinda twisted.mathinc
- twisted. I don't know a single sane person who thinks this is a step in the right direction.mathinc
- Just seems like a disconnect of the highest order.luckyorphan
- luckyorphan0
Oh and one more unrelated topic, will someone please explain this one to me?:
Anti-socialist Bachmann Got $250K in Federal Farm Subsidies
http://www.politico.com/blogs/gl…
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) — so fond of accusing the Obama administration of foisting socialism on an unwilling America — has apparently been the recipient of about a quarter of million bucks in government handouts.
Liberal site Truthdig links to an Environmental Working Group analysis of federal agricultural subsidies and found that the Bachmann family farm, managed by her father-in-law until his recent death, received $251,000 in farm payments between 1995 and 2006.
Bachmann’s financial disclosure forms indicate her stake in the Wisconsin farm is worth up to $250,000. Her income from the farm has grown from $2,000 a year a few years back to as much as $50,000 for 2008.
...
Consistency, people. It's not that hard.
- Now I'm done. Rack me.luckyorphan
- typical Rep.akrokdesign
- yeah, I'm not surprised.Josev
- multiply this story x all of congress replace farm with investment ABattleAxe
- mathinc0
^ Come on that's a shitty story. I'm not positive but 250k over 11 years doesn't seem like it's that much. 22k a year. So her father-in-law owned a farm and got subsidies? Farm subsidies are standard operating procedure. Are you responsible for the things your father-in-law does? Does your family-in-law's actions represent your beliefs?
- no matter how shitty, still better then any foxnews story.akrokdesign
- Mathinc 2 posts up: "Aren't we, to a degree, the company we keep?" - Nice double-standard.DrBombay
- So her husbands family is the same as the friends you choose?mathinc
- You are such an apologist for conservatives it is silly.DrBombay
- luckyorphan0
^ Bachmann has made a name of herself by bashing people who take government handouts of any kind. $250k over 11 years is $22k per year of American taxpayer dough going into her family farm.
Explain that.
- It's her father in law's farm. I don't know the whole story and that article doesn't even attempt to explain it, but it seems like it'smathinc
- trying to make a story bigger than it should be. Did she misuse her power to get the subsidies? If you're pointing outmathinc
- the hypocrisy of what she says she stands for and her father in law getting subsidies I think you would agree that's a pretty weakmathinc
- argument seeing as it's not her farm and all farms collect subsidies. So again, does your family in law represent your ideals?mathinc
- ideals? I mean come on even my own family doesn't represent what I believe in. It's a weak story.mathinc
- She gets income directly from the farm. Ownership is not the issue - it's taxpayer money in her pocket.luckyorphan
- Then how much revenue does the rest of the farm make.. 22k/yr might be a mere pittance. I'm not sticking up for hermathinc
- I'm just saying that the story is the same innuendo that you condemn in the posts above.mathinc
- luckyorphan0
Mathinc:
Incidentally, thanks for engaging in a sound, polite discussion. It's refreshing, really. Onward, a response to your side-notes above...
First off, we are not the company we keep. True, it says a lot about a person, but innuendo is flimsy, and if you're going to analyze a person, analyze them comprehensively. Don't cherry-pick to suit your thesis. Be intellectually honest and fair.
Second, we do not own the auto industry or banking. Both industries were bailed out by us through extreme loans. The auto loans are more of a gamble, yes. But the banking loans are due to be paid in full early, thereby averting the worst financial disaster since The Great Depression. But in both cases, ownership is not the case.
Adequate health care (not gold-standard) should be a right, and the free market is not supporting that right. This should be repaired, and the Obama administration is not doing anything to own it. True, Obama believes that the gov't would administer it better than the market is doing at the moment, but he has often expressed his outright desire to finding a solution in which both market forces exist alongside the gov't safety net.
Regarding wealth redistribution, virtually every tax-paying American is for it. We live in a country that levies a progressive tax. By definition, this is wealth redistribution. If you want a flat tax, that's at least intellectually consistent, but otherwise please keep in mind the 16th Amendment to the US Constitution.
If the words are to be used, they should be used correctly.
- Sorry folks...I had a late coffee...and I think the caffeine is finally wearing off. G'night.luckyorphan
- haha well I'm one red bull down and working my ass off. This has been a nice distraction. :)mathinc
- ukit0
Hmmm let's see if Obama was a socialist or even a left winger on economics wouldn't he might have surrounded himself with economic advisors who have records of that kind?
Instead he chooses Larry Summers, Tim Geitner, Christina Romer and a couple guys, Goolsbee and Furman, from the Chicago School of economics. Chicago School is a free trade oriented, less regulation school of thought, Milton Friedman being the most famous proponent. Here is Naomi Klein, a real leftist, warning about how far to the right's Obama's economic team is sounding all the way back in 2008: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commen…
Summers was Clinton's Treasury Secretary during the 90s and advocated for capital gains tax cuts and liberalizing Wall Street regulations (ironically leading to many of the problems we have now). He is good friends with (and served as deputy secretary to) Robert Rubin, former chairman of Citigroup and other Wall Street types.
Geithner is former head of the NYC Fed and although he has not worked in politics like Summers as far as I can tell not a left winger at all, not even a Democrat in fact. When was the last time you heard of a communist appointing the head of the NY Fed their Treasury Secretary?
The policies (bailout and loans to the auto companies) are simply a response to the horrible economic situation. They may or may not be the right policies but they are hardly examples of communism, a government takeover or even a leftist ideology. The leftist approach would have been to temporarily nationalize the banks as many economists on the center-left (like Paul Krugman and Joseph Stiglitz) were urging, and which Obama and his advisors refused to do.
It would be funny to see how easily fooled people are by the rhetoric out there if it wasn't so sad. Maybe it does point to the downfall of America that people can't tell up from down anymore.
- Now you can watch the rightwing morons on this site claim that they don't know who these people are, but they must be commies.********
- be "commies".********
- These dipshits don't know the difference between Friedman and Keynes, but will argue about it all day********
- You're wasting valuable life ukit********
- Now you can watch the rightwing morons on this site claim that they don't know who these people are, but they must be commies.
- lowimpakt0
maybe you guys need a series of 2 state solutions.
all the tea bagging right wing whatevers can be set free to fend for themselves. They can build their own roads, homes, schools, universities and hospitals. They can create their own jobs and have their own currency. They can have all the free speech they want and even be as fundamentalist in their religious views.
the rest of you people can continue building a society where fairness and supporting your fellow citizen become the norm.
- LOL!********
- yes, the country should just splitJonnyPompa
- it's the only way.lowimpakt
- Yes!! Secession!! I imagine the TeaBaggers will be first.luckyorphan
- Canada's taking applications form all coastal states FYI.zarkonite
- LOL!
- ********0
I don't know exactly what Obama is or isn't, but after watching his most recent speech given in Ohio, All I can say is WOW!!!
I suggest that you all go to YouTube and have a look. Be sure to listen very carefully. I think no matter who you are, or your political views, if you love America, your going to HATE what you hear.
I am sorry that I voted for Obama. Not next time, and if you ask me, based on his performance thus far, he really stands no chance of being elected for another term.
- Link? Did the search and only found Ohio speeches from a year ago. I'm interested.luckyorphan
- Don't be. It was just a normal speech. SumWurk is Republican shill and full of it.ukit
- ukit0
"Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al-Saud of Saudi Arabia will back James Murdoch as Rupert Murdoch's successor at News Corp when the elder media tycoon is ready to retire.
"If he [Rupert Murdoch] doesn't appoint him, I'll be the first one to nominate him to be the successor of Mr Rupert Murdoch, God forbid if something happens to him," Prince Alwaleed said on the Charlie Rose show this week.
Prince Alwaleed's Kingdom Holdings owns a 7 per cent stake, or 56m shares, of News Corp and is the largest shareholder outside the Murdoch family."
Wow, so the largest shareholder in Fox News is a company run by the Royal Family of Saudi Arabia? I wonder if their views gets reflected in the programming at all...considering that they own large stakes of so many other American businesses.
Here is Neil Cavuto grovelling to the Prince, who is also the largest shareholder in Citigroup. Surprisingly, he doesn't want the bank tax Obama is proposing, which would hurt Citi's bottom line.
- ukit0
BWAHAHA...pure fucking comedy gold
- omgitsacamera0
sharing = socialist
therefore
internet = socialist
- ukit0
The reporter from Forbes magazine was impressed with his house:
http://www.forbes.com/2009/03/27…
It was an opportunity too rich to pass up. Prince Alwaleed, one of the world's most successful investors and the wealthiest man in the Middle East, had invited me to spend a week with him in Saudi Arabia.
His objective: prove to Forbes that he is as wealthy as he claims to be. For years, the prince had told us he was worth several billion dollars more than the conservative estimates we printed in our list of the World's Billionaires, and he wanted to set the record straight.
The plan was for me to tour Alwaleed's vast real estate holdings, including his lavish Riyadh palace, meet with various executives of companies he owns, and gather other pertinent information needed to calculate his net worth for Forbes' annual World Billionaires list.
Last March, we estimated Alwaleed was worth $21 billion; he claimed he was worth more than $25 billion. This year, amid the massive decline of Citigroup (nyse: C - news - people ), once his largest asset via his publicly traded holding company Kingdom Holding, Alwaleed's net worth had fallen, by our count, to $13.3 billion, making him the 22nd richest person on the 2009 list. Again, Alwaleed insisted he was worth more, despite serious threats to his fortune looming on the horizon.
But observing wealth on this scale, even for a seasoned billionaires reporter, was staggering.
I arrived in Riyadh in early October. After two days, my head was spinning. There was his impossibly large 420-room palace, decked out in marble and decorated with large portraits and photographs of Alwaleed, with two indoor pools and an indoor tennis court. It took an hour and a half to tour the whole place.
Then there was the 120-acre "farm and resort" at the edge of the city with its mini-Grand Canyon, mini-zoo, horse stables, five artificial lakes and multiple residences. It was a refreshing bit of green in an otherwise brown landscape. The prince evidently does not worry about water bills; one afternoon the sprinklers at the resort were going full tilt in the 90-degree weather.
Also on display: a fleet of 60 buff-and-green-colored cars and motor homes designed just for use at the prince's desert retreat. Another garage beneath the palace holds several dozen black cars--Range Rovers, Suburbans, Volvo SUVs and other vehicles used just for city driving.
- omgitsacamera0
The 'God Hates _____' people are coming to town this weekend.
Good night...
- ********0
Obama=failure
- Too black to strong.utopian
- Um...well argued, cnaps. How could anyone disagree.luckyorphan
- Josev0
Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer has compared giving people government assistance to "feeding stray animals.":
http://www.thesunnews.com/575/st…
""My grandmother was not a highly educated woman, but she told me as a small child to quit feeding stray animals. You know why? Because they breed. You're facilitating the problem if you give an animal or a person ample food supply. They will reproduce, especially ones that don't think too much further than that. And so what you've got to do is you've got to curtail that type of behavior. They don't know any better," Bauer said."
- EightyDeuce0
Fox host defends Republicans’ right to smoke pot
http://rawstory.com/2010/01/gret…Even Republicans should be able to get stoned, according to a Fox News anchor. While interviewing Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, Fox News' Gretchen Carlson found herself in the curious position of advocating for marijuana rights Friday.
Chong told Carlson that he wants to see marijuana legalized -- but not for Republicans. "We want to legalize pot for everyone that wants to smoke it. You know, we don't want to legalize it for Republicans."