Serious Political Question

[47WimanND]

I voted for Trump primarily because I despise the Clinton's and felt that a vote for anyone other then Trump would effectively elect Clinton.

I also thought that Trump's appeal to the "forgotten middle class" was sincere and that he would try to clean out the political and bureaucratic elitists that actually rule this nation.

I favor immigration reform including stopping illegal immigration and providing a functional process that would allow work visa's and some form of vetting of those wishing to enter the US. I don't hate immigrants but I also do not think that open borders should exist.

I have seen Obamacare raise my premiums/co=pays/deductibles by 450% since 2009 and want a better form of healthcare reform.

I am tired of identity politics that pits women against men, white men against people of color, flaunts LBGT values as somehow superior to heterosexual values, defends the rights of Muslims while allowing violence against Christians without comment, spends more time and political capital getting transgender bathrooms than dealing with the real threats of NK and Iran.

It troubles me greatly to see Trump allow himself to be outmaneuvered by elitists on both sides like Ryan, McConnell, Schumer and Pelosi. The mission in DC appears to be to make Trump an ineffective President and he obviously does not have the experience or the will to deal with his opposition.

It troubles me that the Senate Republicans dealing with the health care bill are all white men when there are capable GOP women Senators available. Are lessons never learned?

It troubles me that Ivanka's sister-in-law is in China selling visa in exchange for a $500,000 investment in a Trump project.

It's obvious that money/power is the only currency of the realm and it will remain so until a significant percentage of the population say otherwise. I thought that the Trump election was a step in that direction and I was wrong.

So my question is how do we rid ourselves of the entrenched ruling parties? Term limits would be a start, but that will not clean out the political appointees and career bureaucrats that seem to work for their own agendas and are not held to account by the electorate.

The whole system appears hopeless to me. Clinton has just set up a PAC to oppose Trump, the Dems are only about resistance these days and appear far more competent at it than the GOP House and Senate since 2010. If Trump loses in 2020 then we swing back to a secular progressive slide to socialism with the GOP in opposition again.

We need a government that works together to solve real serious problems. Examples are plentiful here in the socialist state of California. We just had our wettest winter in 20 years yet because CA has not improved it's water infrastructure since the 1970's, much of the snow melt is going to wind up in the Pacific Ocean and Gov. Moonbeam will still tell us to stop taking showers. He'll continue to throw money at his high speed train to nowhere, while demanding a $0.125 gas tax to fix our roads and bridges. Does no one in government understand the concept of capital expenditure budgeting?

Brown is now using a scam to divert $1.5Billion raised by an anti-tobacco ballot measure into the general fund. The same thing happened with Gore's lock-box of Social Security funds.

Yet we listen to these clowns and keep reelecting them. We are in a quagmire primarily because we are all stupid. We cast votes for people if they promise to keep allowing us to kill our babies in the womb, irrespective of whether these people are actually competent to be a day manager at a fast food restaurant.

End of rant.

 

[Howard Hall 74]

I voted for Trump primarily because I despise the Clinton's and felt that a vote for anyone other then Trump would effectively elect Clinton.

I also thought that Trump's appeal to the "forgotten middle class" was sincere and that he would try to clean out the political and bureaucratic elitists that actually rule this nation.

I favor immigration reform including stopping illegal immigration and providing a functional process that would allow work visa's and some form of vetting of those wishing to enter the US. I don't hate immigrants but I also do not think that open borders should exist.

I have seen Obamacare raise my premiums/co=pays/deductibles by 450% since 2009 and want a better form of healthcare reform.

I am tired of identity politics that pits women against men, white men against people of color, flaunts LBGT values as somehow superior to heterosexual values, defends the rights of Muslims while allowing violence against Christians without comment, spends more time and political capital getting transgender bathrooms than dealing with the real threats of NK and Iran.

It troubles me greatly to see Trump allow himself to be outmaneuvered by elitists on both sides like Ryan, McConnell, Schumer and Pelosi. The mission in DC appears to be to make Trump an ineffective President and he obviously does not have the experience or the will to deal with his opposition.

It troubles me that the Senate Republicans dealing with the health care bill are all white men when there are capable GOP women Senators available. Are lessons never learned?

It troubles me that Ivanka's sister-in-law is in China selling visa in exchange for a $500,000 investment in a Trump project.

It's obvious that money/power is the only currency of the realm and it will remain so until a significant percentage of the population say otherwise. I thought that the Trump election was a step in that direction and I was wrong.

So my question is how do we rid ourselves of the entrenched ruling parties? Term limits would be a start, but that will not clean out the political appointees and career bureaucrats that seem to work for their own agendas and are not held to account by the electorate.

The whole system appears hopeless to me. Clinton has just set up a PAC to oppose Trump, the Dems are only about resistance these days and appear far more competent at it than the GOP House and Senate since 2010. If Trump loses in 2020 then we swing back to a secular progressive slide to socialism with the GOP in opposition again.

We need a government that works together to solve real serious problems. Examples are plentiful here in the socialist state of California. We just had our wettest winter in 20 years yet because CA has not improved it's water infrastructure since the 1970's, much of the snow melt is going to wind up in the Pacific Ocean and Gov. Moonbeam will still tell us to stop taking showers. He'll continue to throw money at his high speed train to nowhere, while demanding a $0.125 gas tax to fix our roads and bridges. Does no one in government understand the concept of capital expenditure budgeting?

Brown is now using a scam to divert $1.5Billion raised by an anti-tobacco ballot measure into the general fund. The same thing happened with Gore's lock-box of Social Security funds.

Yet we listen to these clowns and keep reelecting them. We are in a quagmire primarily because we are all stupid. We cast votes for people if they promise to keep allowing us to kill our babies in the womb, irrespective of whether these people are actually competent to be a day manager at a fast food restaurant.

End of rant.

You're right that's quite a rant. OK, here is your answer to breaking up the elitist infrastructure. 1) Term limits would be a good start depending on the length of terms. 2) End the "carve outs" in the tax code by going to a flat tax. This will never happen. Too many people make way to much money being involved in lobbing for them. Cruz was the only one who proposed this, but was ridiculed for doing so. Even then there is too much money involved and funneled into DC which means power. Tax lobby business for carve outs is huge. Either we give more power to the states or we let it remain in DC and hence the same problems. Remember, it only begins to get valuable for a Congressman after the 2nd, 3rd term. You get seniority and committee choice. Nothing like being on Ways and Means to become a multi-millionaire fast. It's a disgusting system, but if the above ever happened a lot would be corrected.

 

[Quest4Twelve]

You answered your own questions. People get too caught up in identifying as one party or the other and can't make AMERICAN choices. I'm not registered as a R but honestly the 2 best choices were John Kasich and Bernie. The problem is Kasich seems too democratic for hard righties and Bernie gets labeled as "socialist" and a "communist" because he wants the top 2% to pay their fair share. People who think the United States of America will ever become a socialist country are delusional. We are who we are because of free markets and capitalism. There will ALWAYS be "socialism" services mixed in with a capitalism country.

For those who thought electing a man who valued the almighty dollar more than his children were foolish. By the end of 4 years there will be a lot of funny business going on in the Trump family. These are entanglements never thought of during the Obama years. Say what you want about the last 8 years, mistakes were made but they were made in the process of trying to help Americans, not make someone rich.

 

[47WimanND]

You answered your own questions. People get too caught up in identifying as one party or the other and can't make AMERICANS choices. I'm not registered as a R but honestly the 2 best choices were John Kasich and Bernie. The problem is Kasich seems to democratic for hard righties and Bernie gets labeled as "socialist" and a "communist" because he wants the top 2% to pay their fair share. People who think the United States of America will ever become a socialist country are delusional. We are who we are because of free markets and capitalism. There will ALWAYS be "socialism" services mixed in with a capitalism country.

For those who thought electing a man who valued the almighty dollar more than his children who benefit them were foolish. By the end of 4 years there will be a lot of funny business going on in the Trump family. These are entanglements never thought of during the Obama years. Say what you want about the last 8 years, mistakes were made but they were made in the process of trying to help Americans, not make someone rich.

I wanted Kasich from the get go. A President Hillary Clinton would be just as bad a Trump in terms of wanting to enrich her family. Her and Bill have been doing that since they left office and frankly Trump's family and the Clinton's are not that different. Trump was pretty tight with the NY Democratic party.

With respect to Obama, I personally think that he was all about power and community organizing and not so much about governing. In terms of helping Americans, what exactly did he do in 8 years for African Americans or for the middle class. His health care plan cost me big time and I am not a wealthy person. We make about $125K living in SoCal with a family of 4 and that 450% increase in my health care costs have really been felt.

The only way for government to work is to separate it from money. Term limits, no post office lobbying, no accepting of gifts while in office. Make the salaries for each elected office large enough so that those that serve can support their families for a term of say no more than 8 years in any particular office. Give them some type of post service stipend that allows them to get back into the regular workforce. But make the penalties for any type of corruption extremely severe,

 

[Irish Duck]

One of our problems is that many of seem to think that having the government provide certain services (such as universal healthcare) will lead us to socialism. That is inaccurate. The fact is that all of the First World countries offer some form of universal health insurance. If you look at the top healthcare systems in the World, they are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, and the US. We are dead last and none of these countries are socialist...okay, France maybe, but not the others.

We, as a nation, have to make some major decisions and they are going to be both difficult and painful. The world as a whole, and the US in particular, is becoming less and less dependent upon fossil fuels. We can either led this transition or lag behind. Right now the Chinese have the lead. The problem is that much of our economy is based upon the discovery, mining and processing of fossil fuels.

We need to make the decision as to whether we want to continue to be the World's policeman. Part of our efforts have been done for moral reasons but a larger part has been done because our economy is so dependent upon the military-industrial complex that Ike first warned us about in the late 50s. There are a lot of jobs related to us constructing armaments for our military, as well as for use by other nations throughout the world. Changing the focus of our economy from "guns to butter" will be difficult and painful.

The same problem arises when we talk about decriminalization/legalization of drugs. A large part of our economy involves the Drug War, including policemen, prison personnel, the Coast Guard, Intelligence agencies, lawyers, judges and Court staff. While I recognize that many people are opposed to the decriminalization/legalization of drugs for moral reasons, please remember that prohibition has never worked. If people want to get high, they will find a way to get high. The only ones that really benefit from our continued efforts against drugs are the Cartels and the terrorists who fund their efforts with drug money. Legalizing drugs will make them safer and cut the legs out from the Cartels and the terrorists. Of course it will also throw a lot of law enforcement-related workers out of work.

I'm not sure what the answer is but we need to start being able to have conversations and debates without resorting to name calling. There really are at least two sides to every issue and the best result is usually a compromise by the powers that be. Compromise is not a bad thing and it has allowed our nation to remain a nation and to grow and prosper.

 

[Telx1]

A good rant nonetheless. I used to favor term limits, but no longer after seeing the impact in California. Fundamentally, the institutional knowledge that was at least partly vested in elected officials with decade long experience was supplanted by lobbyist expertise and that of Legislative staff. In other words, lobbyist became more influential in drafting legislation to meet their interests, and Legislative staff became the knowledge broker between lobbyist and their boss, the elected official. Anyone who has dealt with Government at high levels, knows how powerful and influential Congressional and State Legislative staff are in general, and term limits increases their power base exponentially.

I think the great American experiment has run its course, and our form of a Democratic Republic is totally ineffective given how divided we've become as a nation, and given the current House and Senate rules. Personally, I would prefer the Bristish model where the Prime Minister is the leader of the majority Party, and that is all that is necessary to control Parliament. Failure can be addressed with a vote of no confidence and a change in the majority party and it's head. In other words, much greater ability of the majority party to get their agenda implemented, but much greater accountability to the electorate. We can change our rules to effectively say that 51% approval is all that is needed for legislation and the budget, etc... and this would allow the elected President and his/her Party to implement their agenda, but then only be held accountable every four years. A lot of harm can be done in four years, and that's why I would prefer to change our form of democratic representative government; but of course this will never happen.

Trump is a populist running under the guise of the conservative right in the Republican Party, and I think he will disappoint those who voted for him, largely because getting a deal is more important to him than any ideological commitment. I personally think Schumer is making a huge mistake running a Party of No agenda in the Senate, as I think he could deliver a lot of Legislative victories for Trump and himself and the American people by forming a coalition with moderate Republicans. Absent this, at some point an intelligent pragmatic non politician with a lot of personal wealth will someday offer a real third party alternative and rejects the extreme of both parties. Someone like a Mark Cuban.

At the end of the day, we deserve what we get out of our elected officials because as a country we are embarrassingly ignorant of current events and major political issues, and who represents what. My reply to your rant is turning into a rant unto itself. Sorry.

 

[47WimanND]

Teix1, you are correct that we deserve what we have. We have devolved into a nation of wedge issues and identity politics and too many voters vote based solely on these single issues without regard to what really matters. I don't want to deny anyone their right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Every person deserves those rights but please don't ask me to guarantee their individual results which should depend only on their actual efforts.

We need to take power from DC and put it back to the state and local level. While I see your point about terms limits, the career politician model hasn't worked very well either. If more decisions were made locally perhaps there would be more accountability.

 

[Nocalirish]

I voted for Trump primarily because I despise the Clinton's and felt that a vote for anyone other then Trump would effectively elect Clinton.

I also thought that Trump's appeal to the "forgotten middle class" was sincere and that he would try to clean out the political and bureaucratic elitists that actually rule this nation.

I favor immigration reform including stopping illegal immigration and providing a functional process that would allow work visa's and some form of vetting of those wishing to enter the US. I don't hate immigrants but I also do not think that open borders should exist.

I have seen Obamacare raise my premiums/co=pays/deductibles by 450% since 2009 and want a better form of healthcare reform.

I am tired of identity politics that pits women against men, white men against people of color, flaunts LBGT values as somehow superior to heterosexual values, defends the rights of Muslims while allowing violence against Christians without comment, spends more time and political capital getting transgender bathrooms than dealing with the real threats of NK and Iran.

It troubles me greatly to see Trump allow himself to be outmaneuvered by elitists on both sides like Ryan, McConnell, Schumer and Pelosi. The mission in DC appears to be to make Trump an ineffective President and he obviously does not have the experience or the will to deal with his opposition.

It troubles me that the Senate Republicans dealing with the health care bill are all white men when there are capable GOP women Senators available. Are lessons never learned?

It troubles me that Ivanka's sister-in-law is in China selling visa in exchange for a $500,000 investment in a Trump project.

It's obvious that money/power is the only currency of the realm and it will remain so until a significant percentage of the population say otherwise. I thought that the Trump election was a step in that direction and I was wrong.

So my question is how do we rid ourselves of the entrenched ruling parties? Term limits would be a start, but that will not clean out the political appointees and career bureaucrats that seem to work for their own agendas and are not held to account by the electorate.

The whole system appears hopeless to me. Clinton has just set up a PAC to oppose Trump, the Dems are only about resistance these days and appear far more competent at it than the GOP House and Senate since 2010. If Trump loses in 2020 then we swing back to a secular progressive slide to socialism with the GOP in opposition again.

We need a government that works together to solve real serious problems. Examples are plentiful here in the socialist state of California. We just had our wettest winter in 20 years yet because CA has not improved it's water infrastructure since the 1970's, much of the snow melt is going to wind up in the Pacific Ocean and Gov. Moonbeam will still tell us to stop taking showers. He'll continue to throw money at his high speed train to nowhere, while demanding a $0.125 gas tax to fix our roads and bridges. Does no one in government understand the concept of capital expenditure budgeting?

Brown is now using a scam to divert $1.5Billion raised by an anti-tobacco ballot measure into the general fund. The same thing happened with Gore's lock-box of Social Security funds.

Yet we listen to these clowns and keep reelecting them. We are in a quagmire primarily because we are all stupid. We cast votes for people if they promise to keep allowing us to kill our babies in the womb, irrespective of whether these people are actually competent to be a day manager at a fast food restaurant.

End of rant.

Taking a serious political question to a college football forum tells me what a moron you are. Voting for comrade Trumpsky makes you a racist, sexist communist traitor.

 

[rgc7]

1. " A house divided against itself can not stand ! " At this point the Democratic Party with its allies in the media, Hollywood, Sol Alinsky radicals, Like George Soro, and radical liberal universities and our Judiciary are our to destroy Trunp's presidency. There is no longer a peaceful transfer of power or a free exchange of ideas. The result Of all of the above is leading to Anarchy, Civil Unrest, and free speech only for the Radicals and " Liberals ".

That is our major problem and will destroy us all eventually.

Solve number 1., and then we can have a serious discussion on the other 8 points .

2. Shrink Government programs, regulations, and thus it,s power.

4. Flat tax or universal sales tax .( as someone else suggested ) No I R S !

5. Go back to a Free Market, Capitalistc Economy !

6. Get rid of the " Entitlement Mentality ". No one is entitled to anything except " Life, Liberty, And the persuit
Of Happiness. "

7. Universal Military Service or Public Works Sevice to rebuild our inner cities.

8. Go back to teaching the 3 R' s as well as Civics, US History, and cut out the PC nonsense in both elementary and secondary schools.

9. College is for the most part a Scam ! Anyone and his brother can get into a College ! It is no longer
A rare commodity and , therefore , has lost most of its original intended value !

 

[TOMMY_23]

You answered your own questions. People get too caught up in identifying as one party or the other and can't make AMERICAN choices. I'm not registered as a R but honestly the 2 best choices were John Kasich and Bernie. The problem is Kasich seems too democratic for hard righties and Bernie gets labeled as "socialist" and a "communist" because he wants the top 2% to pay their fair share. People who think the United States of America will ever become a socialist country are delusional. We are who we are because of free markets and capitalism. There will ALWAYS be "socialism" services mixed in with a capitalism country.

For those who thought electing a man who valued the almighty dollar more than his children were foolish. By the end of 4 years there will be a lot of funny business going on in the Trump family. These are entanglements never thought of during the Obama years. Say what you want about the last 8 years, mistakes were made but they were made in the process of trying to help Americans, not make someone rich.

Mr. Gruber, is that you?

We had possibly the worst two choices we will ever have. Please don't tell us electing the criminal Hillary would've been any better.

 

[TOMMY_23]

Taking a serious political question to a college football forum tells me what a moron you are. Voting for comrade Trumpsky makes you a racist, sexist communist traitor.

What would a vote for Hillary make you? She got a rapist off and laughed about it. Her mentor was a proud KKK supporter. Hillary's husband is sexual assaulter, she is a proven liar, and they took million$ from countries in the Middle East that love killing women.

 

[hayaka]

I wanted Kasich from the get go.

With respect to Obama, I personally think that he was all about power and community organizing and not so much about governing. In terms of helping Americans, what exactly did he do in 8 years for African Americans or for the middle class. His health care plan cost me big time and I am not a wealthy person. We make about $125K living in SoCal with a family of 4 and that 450% increase in my health care costs have really been felt.

The only way for government to work is to separate it from money. Term limits, no post office lobbying, no accepting of gifts while in office. Make the salaries for each elected office large enough so that those that serve can support their families for a term of say no more than 8 years in any particular office. Give them some type of post service stipend that allows them to get back into the regular workforce. But make the penalties for any type of corruption extremely severe,

Your premiums rose 450%! And you live in California? Obamacare premium increases in California have averaged less than 10% the past three years.

You might want to check with a reputable independent insurance broker. They can probably find you a better deal.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-covered-california-rates-20160718-snap-story.html

 

[47WimanND]

Your premiums rose 450%! And you live in California? Obamacare premium increases in California have averaged about 10% the past three years.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-covered-california-rates-20160718-snap-story.html

I said premiums/co-pays/deductibles in my original post and yes my premiums alone have gone from $800/month to $2,200/month despite moving from a PPO to an HMO. The LA Times is a little biased.

 

[47WimanND]

Taking a serious political question to a college football forum tells me what a moron you are. Voting for comrade Trumpsky makes you a racist, sexist communist traitor.

Oh Mr. Tolerant Liberal how you love yourself sooo much.

I raised some political issues on a forum available to me and you prove that you spend alot of time at UCB instead of actually participating in a discussion.

Your mother must be proud.

 

[hayaka]

I said premiums/co-pays/deductibles in my original post and yes my premiums alone have gone from $800/month to $2,200/month despite moving from a PPO to an HMO. The LA Times is a little biased.

Okay if you say so. The rest of us in California have seen much lower increases. You might want to check around some more.

 

[47WimanND]

Okay if you say so. The rest of us in California have seen much lower increases. You might want to check around some more.

I work with an agency in Palo Alto. Maybe they know I went to ND. But I've shopped around.

 

[BGI User 1596]

 

[tommika]

1. " A house divided against itself can not stand ! " At this point the Democratic Party with its allies in the media, Hollywood, Sol Alinsky radicals, Like George Soro, and radical liberal universities and our Judiciary are our to destroy Trunp's presidency. There is no longer a peaceful transfer of power or a free exchange of ideas. The result Of all of the above is leading to Anarchy, Civil Unrest, and free speech only for the Radicals and " Liberals ".

That is our major problem and will destroy us all eventually.

Solve number 1., and then we can have a serious discussion on the other 8 points .

2. Shrink Government programs, regulations, and thus it,s power.

4. Flat tax or universal sales tax .( as someone else suggested ) No I R S !

5. Go back to a Free Market, Capitalistc Economy !

6. Get rid of the " Entitlement Mentality ". No one is entitled to anything except " Life, Liberty, And the persuit
Of Happiness. "

7. Universal Military Service or Public Works Sevice to rebuild our inner cities.

8. Go back to teaching the 3 R' s as well as Civics, US History, and cut out the PC nonsense in both elementary and secondary schools.

9. College is for the most part a Scam ! Anyone and his brother can get into a College ! It is no longer
A rare commodity and , therefore , has lost most of its original intended value !

5. Go back to a Free Market, Capitalistc Economy !
We have never had such a thing. Government has always tilted the market in the direction it wishes.At present,and for a long time, we have Capitalism for the working people and Socialism for the wealthy and powerful. "Profits we keep, losses we have the public pay for" Tax laws,ownership laws,depreciation laws,mediation laws,you name it and it is the wealthy and powerful people/corporations which rule with an iron fist.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Not a bad a rant at all. Well said sir. Don't agree with everything, but it's politics. Rarely will all sides agree.

Something that troubles me right now is that President Trump is hammering Canadian softwood lumber (the best in the world) in response to Canada's stance on American dairy... The part that gets me, however, is if you ask any dairy farmer in lets say Wisconsin (a Canadian reporter recently interviewed many of them), they'll tell you that Canada's market for American dairy is not the problem. In fact, the problem is that the American government licensed far too many new dairy distributors in states such as Wisconsin in recent years and the market has been flooded with milk that isn't needed. The massive surplus has driven the profitability of the market into the floor and dairy farmers in the U.S. are getting massacred. That's why Canada is protecting it's own market. So a complete Asian style race to the bottom doesn't happen across North America, destroying the livelihoods of all dairy farmers on the continent.

Basically, the U.S. Gov licensed completely redundant jobs and hurt their profitable dairy farmers, in a move yo make it look like yhere was job growth and Trump is using the media to create the narrative that it's Canada's fault there is too much milk on your side of the 49th. In a political maneuver he then turned around and hammered our softwood lumber exports using a false "retaliation" strategy, further bolstering the U.S. market... So now what? Trudeau will be forced to ammend Keystone again in our favour, putting those people who just got jobs on your side of the boarder back out of work, or further pull away from Canada's commitment to buy billions of dollars worth of fighter jets off your manufacturers...

All this for what? To create a false narrative that jobs are being created in the United States?... Degrading the largest, most lucrative trade relationship in he world?... This is where Trump's business ethics and lack of political experience hurt him. He'll act tough and negotiate tough with Trudeau in favour of a one sided deal, and all that will happen is the following... He'll look tough and arrogant on National television, meanwhile, Americans on the ground will get murdered, like your dairy farmers in Wisconsin.

Rex... Talk to your boss. This is ludicrous and it's hurting Americans. The Chinese, Japanese and Koreans are dying to get our softwood at the price we were selling it to the U.S... It won't hurt Canada at all. It's hurting you at home.

 

[rgc7]

5. Go back to a Free Market, Capitalistc Economy !
We have never had such a thing. Government has always tilted the market in the direction it wishes.At present,and for a long time, we have Capitalism for the working people and Socialism for the wealthy and powerful. "Profits we keep, losses we have the public pay for" Tax laws,ownership laws,depreciation laws,mediation laws,you name it and it is the wealthy and powerful people/corporations which rule with an iron fist.

Exactly : " Tax laws, ownership laws, etc. " Too much taxes, laws, and regulations are not a Free Market,
Capitalistic Ecomomy. I agree that we never had a completely Free Market Capitalistic Economy, but we were Were pretty close to it before the New Deal. Since then we have moved much too far to the left.
Getting rid of the IRS ( a Gestopo organization ) and going to a consumption tax would be a good first step to bringing us closer to a free market economy. We keep what we earn, spend what we want, and save an invest what we want.
My money, I earn it, the harder I work, the more I keep. I earn it and no one else is
"Entitled " to it !

 

[rgc7]

Exactly : " Tax laws, ownership laws, etc. " Too much taxes, laws, and regulations are not a Free Market,
Capitalistic Ecomomy. I agree that we never had a completely Free Market Capitalistic Economy, but we were Were pretty close to it before the New Deal. Since then we have moved much too far to the left.
Getting rid of the IRS ( a Gestopo organization ) and going to a consumption tax would be a good first step to bringing us closer to a free market economy. We keep what we earn, spend what we want, and save an invest what we want.
My money, I earn it, the harder I work, the more I keep. I earn it and no one else is
"Entitled " to it !

Even before FDR, Woodrow Wilson started to move use away from a Free Market Economy with
The establishment of the IRS and the income tax in 1913.

 

[twalsh]

Taking a serious political question to a college football forum tells me what a moron you are. Voting for comrade Trumpsky makes you a racist, sexist communist traitor.

You have slowly but surely evolved into being the biggest moron on this board. And there's a lot of people on this board, so that's saying something.

 

[ivan brunetti]

Exactly : " Tax laws, ownership laws, etc. " Too much taxes, laws, and regulations are not a Free Market,
Capitalistic Ecomomy. I agree that we never had a completely Free Market Capitalistic Economy, but we were Were pretty close to it before the New Deal. Since then we have moved much too far to the left.
Getting rid of the IRS ( a Gestopo organization ) and going to a consumption tax would be a good first step to bringing us closer to a free market economy. We keep what we earn, spend what we want, and save an invest what we want.
My money, I earn it, the harder I work, the more I keep. I earn it and no one else is
"Entitled " to it !

Our income tax rates are very low compared to other Western Republics.

If you want to keep all you earn you should perhaps buy an island somewhere outside of the U.S. You can provide your own roads and water and power. Get rid of all your own waste. Man the police and fire departments. And school any kids you may have. Best of luck!

 

[BGI User 1596]

Our income tax rates are very low compared to other Western Republics.

If you want to keep all you earn you should perhaps buy an island somewhere outside of the U.S. You can provide your own roads and water and power. Get rid of all your own waste. Man the police and fire departments. And school any kids you may have. Best of luck!

Americans pay tax for ten years after giving up the US passport? Lols!

 

[rgc7]

Our income tax rates are very low compared to other Western Republics.

If you want to keep all you earn you should perhaps buy an island somewhere outside of the U.S. You can provide your own roads and water and power. Get rid of all your own waste. Man the police and fire departments. And school any kids you may have. Best of luck!

No I don't . I pay my property tax that supports my local police and schools. I also pay a federal , state, and local sales tax whenever I make purchases. I pay tax on my gasoline which is suppossed to pay for the roads. I also pay tolls on roads, bridges, and tunnels. I pay all my utility bills which include sewers. So no need to move to an island.
I also will gladly pay a consumption tax to support our military and national defense which is the primary role Of our fedral government.
Even thought I resent paying for "entitlements" that are against my moral beliefs and that politicians use to buy votes and divide our country Into voting groups to retain political power, I give a substantial portion of my income to charities of my own choosing like St. Jude's Children's Hospital and Disabled American Veterans to name a few !

 

[ivan brunetti]

No I don't . I pay my property tax that supports my local police and schools. I also pay a federal , state, and local sales tax whenever I make purchases. I pay tax on my gasoline which is suppossed to pay for the roads. I also pay tolls on roads, bridges, and tunnels. I pay all my utility bills which include sewers. So no need to move to an island.
I also will gladly pay a consumption tax to support our military and national defense which is the primary role Of our fedral government.
Even thought I resent paying for "entitlements" that are against my moral beliefs and that politicians use to buy votes and divide our country Into voting groups to retain political power, I give a substantial portion of my income to charities of my own choosing like St. Jude's Children's Hospital and Disabled American Veterans to name a few !

I don't agree that is the "primary role" of the federal government. I believe the primary role of any government is to provide for the general welfare. We certainly don't need a military 5X the size of any other nation to defend against Mexico and Canada.

Also, this is a big country. EVERYONE pays for something with their taxes that is "against their moral beliefs". I.E., welcome to the club.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Taxation is certainly a massive difference. I've said it numerous times. Americans don't really want high quality, universal health care, high quality, federally funded education, and strong social programs... The way we know this is that they don't want to pay anywhere near the taxation we pay to enjoy those federal programs.

Absolutely nothing wrong with that. You can't have your cake and eat it too. As Canadians, for example, we may universally enjoy better, more affordable, healthcare, education, infrastructure, social programs, etc, etc, but we sure do feel it on our paychecks... Because most Canadians were born into that system, however, we're good with it because it's what we know. The same way the majority of Americans tend to prefer inferior social programs if it means more more money in their individual pocket and more perceived freedom to use their money to pursue their individual goals.

The Individual vs the Collective. It has long been the single greatest differentiator between American democracy and the style of democracy practiced by many other first world democratic nations. It's a staple of your unique identity.

To each, their own.

 

[Irish Duck]

Taxation is certainly a massive difference. I've said it numerous times. Americans don't really want high quality, universal health care, high quality, federally funded education, and strong social programs... The way we know this is that they don't want to pay anywhere near the taxation we pay to enjoy those federal programs...To each, their own.

If I could convince my wife and daughter to move, and assuming I could find a decent job there, I'd move to Canada in a heartbeat. Its not that I don't love the US but the politics of Canada are more in line with my beliefs. Unfortunately with a small law practice, I don't want to have to start all over again. Maybe when it is time to retire, I'll be able to do it.

 

[IrishInOntario]

If I could convince my wife and daughter to move, and assuming I could find a decent job there, I'd move to Canada in a heartbeat. Its not that I don't love the US but the politics of Canada are more in line with my beliefs. Unfortunately with a small law practice, I don't want to have to start all over again. Maybe when it is time to retire, I'll be able to do it.

It's also not as if we don't have our own issues here. I've lived on both sides of the 49th and both countries have their strengths and weaknesses. As you said Duck, it's more about how your views are aligned politically.

Personally speaking, I don't think most parts of Canada are as far left as a lot of Americans tend to think we are. I think the majority of Canadians are left / center, with a strong minority of right / center leaners (such as myself)... This is simply my opinion but I think the United States has such far extremes to the left and right that somebody let's say on the far right, would describe Canadians as leftist socialists who are borderline Communists, but I ask them where the proof of that is, and crickets... I simply think they sit so far on one side of the political spectrum that they've forgotten, or in some instances, never known what right / center or left / center even looks like... I feel the same about the far left wing groups in Quebec, here in Canada. Such extreme views.

 

[IrishInOntario]

If I could convince my wife and daughter to move, and assuming I could find a decent job there, I'd move to Canada in a heartbeat. Its not that I don't love the US but the politics of Canada are more in line with my beliefs. Unfortunately with a small law practice, I don't want to have to start all over again. Maybe when it is time to retire, I'll be able to do it.

Duck,

Out of curiosity, where in the USA did you live my man?

 

[ivan brunetti]

It's also not as if we don't have our own issues here. I've lived on both sides of the 49th and both countries have their strengths and weaknesses. As you said Duck, it's more about how your views are aligned politically.

Personally speaking, I don't think most parts of Canada are as far left as a lot of Americans tend to think we are. I think the majority of Canadians are left / center, with a strong minority of right / center leaners (such as myself)... This is simply my opinion but I think the United States has such far extremes to the left and right that somebody let's say on the far right, would describe Canadians as leftist socialists who are borderline Communists, but I ask them where the proof of that is, and crickets... I simply think they sit so far on one side of the political spectrum that they've forgotten, or in some instances, never known what right / center or left / center even looks like.

That is particularly true when it comes to news. Who is to say what is center? For me, I think the PBS Newshour is the most centered of TV news. Others may differ. What the world considers center and America considers center, may be two very different positions.

 

[twalsh]

It's also not as if we don't have our own issues here. I've lived on both sides of the 49th and both countries have their strengths and weaknesses. As you said Duck, it's more about how your views are aligned politically.

Personally speaking, I don't think most parts of Canada are as far left as a lot of Americans tend to think we are. I think the majority of Canadians are left / center, with a strong minority of right / center leaners (such as myself)... This is simply my opinion but I think the United States has such far extremes to the left and right that somebody let's say on the far right, would describe Canadians as leftist socialists who are borderline Communists, but I ask them where the proof of that is, and crickets... I simply think they sit so far on one side of the political spectrum that they've forgotten, or in some instances, never known what right / center or left / center even looks like... I feel the same about the far left wing groups in Quebec, here in Canada. Such extreme views.

I think that sensible thought is a result of how much noise the two extremes make in the US, while the big huge middle, in which most people reside, quietly goes about its business and its life. If you didn't know any better you'd think that every Republican in the US carries a gun and is a racist and every Democrat is either gay or transgender and has had multiple abortions. Obviously neither of those is remotely true.

 

[Irish Duck]

Duck,

Out of curiosity, where in the USA did you live my man?

Oregon, its not too far away but if I'm moving to Canada, I'm heading more in your direction than BC or the other Western Provinces.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Oregon, its not too far away but if I'm moving to Canada, I'm heading more in your direction than BC or the other Western Provinces.

Vancouver is beautiful. Often considered the best city in the world to live in. Very expensive though.

I've loved my time in Ottawa. Great schools. No crime. Really good paying jobs. Awesome place to live. Great golf. 10 minutes from beautiful provincial parks. Decent traffic relative to a city of a million people. Awesome places to swim. The Rideau Canal is the longest skating rink in the world in the winter. Cool place, overall. Great old architecture. Housing is affordable relative to big cities and there are great suburbs, 15-20 minutes from the downtown core. Linguistically diverse. 2 big universities and 2 big colleges as well... Lots to like for all kinds of people.

Maybe some disagree. Gael spent a lot of time here. He may be able to weigh in.

 

[twalsh]

Oregon, its not too far away but if I'm moving to Canada, I'm heading more in your direction than BC or the other Western Provinces.

Politically, Oregon may be more Canadian than some parts of Canada. Especially the Portland area.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Oregon, its not too far away but if I'm moving to Canada, I'm heading more in your direction than BC or the other Western Provinces.

Man did you guys have some wicked golf out there. Of the U.S. States I've visited, I find Oregon to be most like Canada in many respects... Beautiful state you have my man.

 

[twalsh]

Vancouver is beautiful. Often considered the best city in the world to live in. Very expensive though.

I've loved my time in Ottawa. Great schools. No crime. Really good paying jobs. Awesome place to live. Great golf. 10 minutes from beautiful provincial parks. Decent traffic relative to a city of a million people. Awesome places to swim. The Rideau Canal is the longest skating rink in the world in the winter. Cool place, overall. Great old architecture. Housing is affordable relative to big cities and there are great suburbs, 15-20 minutes from the downtown core. Linguistically diverse. 2 big universities and 2 big colleges as well... Lots to like for all kinds of people.

Maybe some disagree. Gael spent a lot of time here. He may be able to weigh in.

How long is the outdoor swimming season in Ottawa? Visited on a Canadian swing (Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Niagara Falls) vacation with my parents many many moons ago. Seemed like a very nice place.

 

[IrishInOntario]

I think that sensible thought is a result of how much noise the two extremes make in the US, while the big huge middle, in which most people reside, quietly goes about its business and its life. If you didn't know any better you'd think that every Republican in the US carries a gun and is a racist and every Democrat is either gay or transgender and has had multiple abortions. Obviously neither of those is remotely true.

Walsh,

Very astute and important point you make there. My experience in the United States has been exactly that. Most Americans are friggen awesome people. Just grinding away and raising their families and living their lives. For the most part, I doubt that those are the people who are extremists either way.

 

[IrishInOntario]

How long is the outdoor swimming season in Ottawa? Visited on a Canadian swing (Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Niagara Falls) vacation with my parents many many moons ago. Seemed like a very nice place.

Mid May (water will still be cool) until early October... Don't get me wrong. It's cold in terms winter (welcome to Canada), but we make the most of it. We ski-doo on 400km worth of trails 10 minutes outside of the city all winter, skate on the Rideau Canal for hours (7km's long) and make the most of cold weather. We also ice fish on one of the some 30 lakes within 25 minutes of the city.

In the summer you're looking at +25-+35, with 4 distinct season's. Wet springs. Warm summers similar to those in most parts of the U.S. Breathtaking falls as the foliage changes colours (think the Army Academy Campus in New York in the Fall) and cold ass winters that span from mid December until mid April.

I have had the opportunity to travel all around the world and I can say, without a doubt, as someone who has no connection to Ottawa outside of going to University there and sticking around afterwards, I can definitely understand why it's found its way into the international top 10 rankings of cities to live in on numerous occasions.

 

[IrishInOntario]

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https://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl...OHTAhWJ0YMKHf2aDdEQMwguKAEwAQ&iact=mrc&uact=8