What sucks is SSI disability is hard to qualify for and takes forever to get through all of the red tape. I think on average it takes almost 18 mos. to get SSI disability, providing you even qualify.
Ya just gotta move to that district in WV, where the local SSI disability judge/administrator has been granting over 80% of the requests for disability.
diesel: "Yeah, paper cuts can be brutal and a paper shredder can be a widow maker;) LOL just messing with you!"
It wasn't paper cuts I was worried about...sure, office work is about as low risk as one can get, but for that one-in-a-million roof that gave in or a light fixture that fell off the ceiling and landed directly on an employee's head, which can cause a serious injury and cost me a bunch...I thought it was prudent to have it...
rocky: thanks for the correction...even at 90% most folks could then live like they were when working...if they were laid off, their fuel costs were negligible (no commuting) so it was almsot like getting 100% of pay...
It also has some legal clauses in the documents that say things like "unable to perform normal or all job related functions", or something close to that. With me being a desk jockey, that means I could be confined to a wheelchair and still not be able to collect LTD.
We pay for a job specific rider (can't remember the legal term), but if you can't perform your specific job, it will pay. Or if you can work at a reduced capacity, it will pay the the gap between what you can earn and the max monthly benefit of the policy.
Unfortunately, if you have a physically demanding job, private LTD policies are either expensive, or hard to qualify for.
Like many things in life, 100% security isn't possible.
It wasn't paper cuts I was worried about...sure, office work is about as low risk as one can get, but for that one-in-a-million roof that gave in or a light fixture that fell off the ceiling and landed directly on an employee's head, which can cause a serious injury and cost me a bunch...I thought it was prudent to have it...
"I threw Donald Trump off my yacht," Epstein regales. "I told him I thought he was a low-class creep."
This one statement alone makes him a hero in my eyes!
One thing Trump has said for years is our trade agreements are horrible and what China has been getting away with is unacceptable. I don't know if he can or would actually do anything about it.
My property tax here in Colorado has decreased from $2600 last year to around $2200 this year due to the decrease in property values.
If it wasn't for the winter weather, Colorado would be a pretty good place to live - my sales tax is 7.9%, gas prices are 2nd lowest in the nation, energy costs are pretty reasonable.
My property tax here in Colorado has decreased from $2600 last year to around $2200 this year due to the decrease in property values.
In theory, my property taxes dropped from about $5,000 in 2010 to about $3100 last year. However, since the place is my principal residence, I had a "homestead tax credit", which brought my overall taxes down. In 2010, it was about $1800, so I really only paid $3200 in property tax. If it had not been owner-occupied, such as a rental property, I would have had to pay the full $5,000.
When our property values plummeted, they applied the drop against the homestead tax credit first, and then anything left was applied to the tax that was left. So, the $1900 reduction first wiped out that $1800 credit, and the remaining $100 went to lower my taxes a bit.
I remember the property taxes going down on my old condo, as well. I bought it in late 1994, and I think the property tax was initially around $950 per year. It got cut a couple years later, to around $800, but then slowly rose. By 2004 when I sold it, I think it was back up to around $950 per year.
rocky: thanks for the correction...even at 90% most folks could then live like they were when working...if they were laid off, their fuel costs were negligible (no commuting) so it was almsot like getting 100% of pay...
My aunt who drives like 50 miles has taken volunteer lay offs in the past due to that reason. Factor in $4 bucks gas she is much further ahead!!!
gagrice: this is twice in the same week I agreed with rocky...help!!!...pull me back to the "right" side of the discussion...I feel like I am drifting toward Communism...where do I apply for my UAW card???...
UNITED ATTORNEY WORKERS of America. I like it. You could start a right wing Union for Attorneys. Would be hard to find more than a handful. Most Attorneys are part of the Limousine Liberal Elitist crowd.
Most attorneys in the South are good right wingers and anti union! They understand unions about as well as the can define Socialism. You really need to get out more, Gagrice!!! :P
Bob, is the only conservative Attorney I know from the South. The other two are Bill and Hillary both bleeding heart liberals. And there is reason they hate Unions in the South. They see what they have done in the Midwest since the 1960s. Companies migrating to the South is at least 50 years running. First school I was sent to in Tennessee was North Electric in 1970. They had just moved from Galion Ohio due to the Union strikes. They could not compete with the other telephone manufacturers that left Chicago for Florida and North Carolina. Some states are real slow learners.
I know a few in family law and they are all right wingers! Most are in the South! American corporations view the south as people they can easily exploit and manipulate them through religion or gun tactics! You have some hillbilly's that believe the south will rise again. :confuse:
If you've ever seen the movie "Fire Down Below" that is not a far off description of how things are. If you can treat people like cattle and the only resistance they give you is MOOO MOOO well you can do pretty much anything you want! I also find it funny you keep bringing up like all these RTW states are beacons of prosperity! Fintail, has already debunked that but I guess like some of your hero's if you keep repeating a lie over and over and over again well doesn't it become the truth?
"Most attorneys in the South are good right wingers and anti union!"
I would not agree with that...most law schools are like colleges, and teach what I believe are left wing views...since I went to law school as an adult, way over age 30, I was not some idealistic bubblehead just coming out of college, I had worked in the real world and knew how destructive unions were...so, when I went to law school, I already knew their left-wing liberal crap, and I was inoculated against it by the real world...
The ABA is left wing, so I am not a member...anti-gun bunch of commies...:):):)
Aren't liberals in the south kind of like catholics there - keep a low profile. I think conservatives have a pretty good hold in the Midwest and are starting to make some gains on both coasts. As for the ABA, look at Illinois where they are based, maybe one of the most screwed up legal and court systems in existence.
Those republicans will be booted out of office in 2 years. The people here that didn't vote or did vote for these tea baggers are having major buyer remorse. We are trying to recall our governor again starting in May. I might volunteer this go around! I want to throw the Führer out of office and give it back to the people!!!
Rocky, Do you really know what you want? You sound a lot like Chomsky, critical of everything, with no solid foundation on which to build a better society. Do you want a total state owned society? Worker owned society? Monarchy like the UK? Communist Capitalism like China? In a society that looks like you describe it will be difficult to find any leaders. I know I would not want to run GM for a lousy 10 times what a janitor makes in the UAW.
I don't think anyone could call China communist, or the UK really a monarchy. In both of those places, those systems are mere paper formalities. UK is controlled by the same forces which control the US, and China is a statist oligarchy.
If a janitor makes a supposed 200K, I'd say 10x that for an exec with very little up his sleeve is more than fair. Exec/worker compensation in this racing to the bottom system is insane.
If a janitor makes a supposed 200K, I'd say 10x that for an exec with very little up his sleeve is more than fair. Exec/worker compensation in this racing to the bottom system is insane.
I don't think a UAW Janitor at even GM makes quite that much. I was thinking about $100k with all benefits included. I would not want the responsibility of GM for a lousy million or even $2 million a year. The IRS is going to take 35% to start with. Maybe with a stock bonus attached. Probably not even then. My personal time is too valuable to me. Those kind of jobs may look rosy, but take a lot of hours out of every day. I am sure they get tired of flying around in the Corporate jet as well.
What responsibility? You do a good job and you win big, you fail and still win big, thanks to the golden parachute ideal - and then end up landing a similar job elsewhere, as the top exec society likes to recycle "talent", to put it nicely. There are usually huge perks tacked on to those salaries too. No reason yet again to pity the rich. If they don't like the supposed pressures and work, they can do something else - but I don't see them complaining.
I think the CEO should win big if the company wins big. I hate to see an executive win big when the company fails. That should NOT be how it is. It gets back to the sleazy board members screwing the stock holders.
Maybe depending on how the win is gained. As it stands now, the CEO class is pretty treacherous.
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards, yet somehow the unionized workers are the evil. While in the lands of our competitors, the upper barely-working corporate echelons make less compared to the plebes than here, labor relations are generally better, and labor that isn't bottom of the barrel in price can actually make desirable products. Amazing to think about.
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards
You have to remember. The CEO on board A is also a board member of Company B and maybe C. It is all about "you take care of me, I will take care of you". I remember our CEO whom I was on first name basis at RCA Alascom. I regularly repaired his office phone when he would throw it across the room. He was the CEO of RCA Alascom and sat on the board of GE and PPL. He had fought and clawed his way from being a White Alice Technician to the top job. That is rare but it does happen.
Maybe depending on how the win is gained. As it stands now, the CEO class is pretty treacherous.
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards, yet somehow the unionized workers are the evil. While in the lands of our competitors, the upper barely-working corporate echelons make less compared to the plebes than here, labor relations are generally better, and labor that isn't bottom of the barrel in price can actually make desirable products. Amazing to think about.
Maybe depending on how the win is gained. As it stands now, the CEO class is pretty treacherous.
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards, yet somehow the unionized workers are the evil. While in the lands of our competitors, the upper barely-working corporate echelons make less compared to the plebes than here, labor relations are generally better, and labor that isn't bottom of the barrel in price can actually make desirable products. Amazing to think about.
There are no UAW Janitors making $100K. They never ever have!!! There hours were/are limited to 8 hours a day and only would get OT if someone called off. Usually a older worker would get those type of jobs to finish out there careers after many hard years on the assembly line. I believe the top pay for a Janitor is like $16 an/hour. There are still a great number of workers getting hurt because the corporatist IUAW, caved in on work rules and the new UAW in the assembly plants are nothing short of unsafe sweat shops! People are getting hurt all the time. I will be the first to admit in the 1980's they had it pretty easy but with the new IUAW has sold out to the D3 over the last 15 or 20 years. I speak with a lot of UAW members on Facebook and while they all are thankful to have jobs the workload is unsafe. Many have a strong dislike for King Bob the UAW President and blame him for some of the plant closings in the D3 and going along with KORUS. I think Bob King is a treasonous leader! I do not like him. :mad:
Rocky, Do you really know what you want? You sound a lot like Chomsky, critical of everything, with no solid foundation on which to build a better society. Do you want a total state owned society? Worker owned society? Monarchy like the UK? Communist Capitalism like China? In a society that looks like you describe it will be difficult to find any leaders. I know I would not want to run GM for a lousy 10 times what a janitor makes in the UAW.
There salary would be based off the top skilled tradesman x 11 not 475x.....
As far as what type of society I would like well one free of corruption would be a good start. Restore this democracy back into the hands of the people instead of the 0.01% that have total control. I would like to have a democracy where we have a multi-party government where everyone has a voice from fake libertarians like Ron Paul to Socialist like Bernie Sanders. That is the type of democracy.
I would like to live in. Get special interest money out of politics and limit it to individual maximums of like $2500 dollars. Criminal penalties up to including prison time for those who violate this law along with withholding where there contributions came from. I know it costs money to run for office but it should not cost a billion dollars to run for president.
I would like to live in a society where religion is practiced at home or in church not in our schools and government. Not everyone believes the Bible was written by god in this country and a lot of people believe it was written by man.
I also would like to live in a society where our government protects our people from polluters, poisonous food i.e. Chinese fruits and vegetables contaminated with toxic cancer causing chemicals, and other unsafe products like toxic lead toys.
I would like to live in a society where woman are treated as equal. The same for minorities. I would like to live in a society where we value immigrants that come here "legally" and not reward illegal immigration that broke our laws.
I would like to live in a society where individual liberties were protected like a woman's right to choose and not have government in a woman's uterus. I would also like a society where individual rights such as gun ownership is protected, government can not snoop through peoples email, give speeding tickets via camera's, unions and OSHA have a right to exist.
Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right. A minimum wage that pays a living wage. A military that does not play the world police. College and Vocational Centers are affordable for every citizens. Tax breaks for small business and corporations that pay for employees to be retrained so they can avoid long term layoffs. A society that embraces alternative fuel sources like bio-diesel, natural gas, solar, wind, etc that is made here in America.
I could go on but I hit the highlights!!! :shades: :shades: :shades:
Yes that sounds like some sort of Utopia. It leaves out the reality of human nature. Greed, avarice, covetousness, hatred, laziness, malice, mean spirited etc. In this world of equality what happens when a person decides to spend his share on Sex, drugs and R&R and ends up in the gutter? Then he sees you drive by in that New Caddie and wants to hit you over the head and take it. I don't believe it will work even on a small scale. Not everyone is willing to work equally to make it work. Someone rises to the top to lead, then dictate. You should join a Commune and see for yourself how your ideas work in real life. I came close in the late 1960s and backed out when I could see what I would have to give up. For every Free thing you accept, you give up a Personal Freedom.
I would like to live in a society where individual liberties were protected like a woman's right to choose and not have government in a woman's uterus. I would also like a society where individual rights such as gun ownership is protected, government can not snoop through peoples email, give speeding tickets via camera's, unions and OSHA have a right to exist.
With that statement how can you possibly support the TSA? They violate our rights so much beyond any of the above. Unions and Osha are not threatened. It is the rights of the individual that have been threatened for decades by Closed Union Shops.
Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right.
Where is that written? Who says it is a Human right? By what authority is that right given? And what happens if you cannot afford the premium? Who will pay, and who will freeload? In the USA the only basic human rights are laid out in our Bill of Rights. Which have recently been trampled by the people we have elected to uphold them.
Yes that sounds like some sort of Utopia. It leaves out the reality of human nature. Greed, avarice, covetousness, hatred, laziness, malice, mean spirited etc. In this world of equality what happens when a person decides to spend his share on Sex, drugs and R&R and ends up in the gutter? Then he sees you drive by in that New Caddie and wants to hit you over the head and take it. I don't believe it will work even on a small scale. Not everyone is willing to work equally to make it work. Someone rises to the top to lead, then dictate. You should join a Commune and see for yourself how your ideas work in real life. I came close in the late 1960s and backed out when I could see what I would have to give up. For every Free thing you accept, you give up a Personal Freedom.
That is why human nature needs to be regulated with law and order. We throw the poor people in jail and send the wealthy to the spa when laws are broken. I as I told you have no problem with someone rising to the top to lead however that person's power needs checks and balances. Just because they were gifted to lead does not mean they are exempted from these basic laws. The best interest of the American people should always be considered when making new laws or in business decisions. That is the problem with Capitalism. We will sacrifice the many to benefit the few. That in my opinion is the wrong mentality to have. That attitude has cost us dearly.
If the average American citizen did not sacrifice there life and limb in world wars we would be speaking German. That is the problem with the 0.01% is they forget average people keep this nation free for them to operate. I have no problem with people making a fair profit but I believe the duty of being an American is to pay it forward. When you are a billionaire do you really need $63 billion like Warren Buffet? I'm picking on Buffet because he is the richest man in the world. I think he is guilty of greed and is Soro's and all the other billionaires. They take and put very little back. None of them would be rich all by themselves.
With that statement how can you possibly support the TSA? They violate our rights so much beyond any of the above. Unions and Osha are not threatened. It is the rights of the individual that have been threatened for decades by Closed Union Shops.
I have never had my rights infringed traveling. I know other have. I do think TSA procedures need to be reformed as I said many posts ago and I'm saying it again. However if you fail the metal detector 3x I believe one should be wanded. In order to keep people safe we are going to have to give up some civil liberties. Each day I crossed the gate into Pantex, I could be searched. I had nothing to hide and things I do not want people to know about me I did not advertise them. We all should be entitled to choose what we want others to know about us. I view emails as private as I do mail and what one does in the bedroom. I do not need Rick telling my future girlfriend/wife or my daughter how to take care of her body. I'm a very open person perhaps a little too open. However I don't claim to be perfect. I however try to be the best person I can be each day and treat others with respect. I know I fail at that at times but I do try.
Where is that written? Who says it is a Human right? By what authority is that right given? And what happens if you cannot afford the premium? Who will pay, and who will freeload? In the USA the only basic human rights are laid out in our Bill of Rights. Which have recently been trampled by the people we have elected to uphold them.
I believe healthcare should be a basic human right as an American. I think every person should have to pay so much every year in taxes into the system. If we keep it at a not for profit level we can save money over the long term by stopping people who are severely ill going into the emergency room when a basic check up months ago would of caught the cancer and saved tax payers a lot of money. The very poor obviously would need it subsidized. I would pay for it first by slashing the military budget by 50% which would easily pay for it and then some. I would try to build up cash value in this healthcare fund to get ahead of inflation and would make it law that politicians could not touch it in any circumstances. Maybe that fund would eventually earn enough interest it would pay for itself and taxes going into it could be lowered. The other option is to borrow from the fed a few trillion dollars at 0.01% and invest that money in secure interest generating investment and then pay back the Fed. That is more less what the Fed did for the banks, right? I'm trying to think 4th dimensionally! :P :P :P
There salary would be based off the top skilled tradesman x 11 not 475x.....
As far as what type of society I would like well one free of corruption would be a good start. Restore this democracy back into the hands of the people instead of the 0.01% that have total control. I would like to have a democracy where we have a multi-party government where everyone has a voice from fake libertarians like Ron Paul to Socialist like Bernie Sanders. That is the type of democracy.
I would like to live in. Get special interest money out of politics and limit it to individual maximums of like $2500 dollars. Criminal penalties up to including prison time for those who violate this law along with withholding where there contributions came from. I know it costs money to run for office but it should not cost a billion dollars to run for president.
I would like to live in a society where religion is practiced at home or in church not in our schools and government. Not everyone believes the Bible was written by god in this country and a lot of people believe it was written by man.
I also would like to live in a society where our government protects our people from polluters, poisonous food i.e. Chinese fruits and vegetables contaminated with toxic cancer causing chemicals, and other unsafe products like toxic lead toys.
I would like to live in a society where woman are treated as equal. The same for minorities. I would like to live in a society where we value immigrants that come here "legally" and not reward illegal immigration that broke our laws.
I would like to live in a society where individual liberties were protected like a woman's right to choose and not have government in a woman's uterus. I would also like a society where individual rights such as gun ownership is protected, government can not snoop through peoples email, give speeding tickets via camera's, unions and OSHA have a right to exist.
Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right. A minimum wage that pays a living wage. A military that does not play the world police. College and Vocational Centers are affordable for every citizens. Tax breaks for small business and corporations that pay for employees to be retrained so they can avoid long term layoffs. A society that embraces alternative fuel sources like bio-diesel, natural gas, solar, wind, etc that is made here in America.
I could go on but I hit the highlights!!!
Marx(or Lenin) couldn't have said it better. Well done!
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
I believe healthcare should be a basic human right as an American
I believe we should all be given a 3000 sq foot home to live in. Just because you believe something does NOT make it so. I believe we should all take responsibility for our own welfare. And the welfare of our children. I believe it is wrong for me to tell you if you are making $30 per hour you should share so that my $10 per hour is equal with you. If I decide to go and buy a wedge of cheese for someone in need. That should be my decision. Not Big brother taking it from me and filtering it through half dozen over paid civil servants before it is handed out to someone in need.
The very poor obviously would need it subsidized. I would pay for it first by slashing the military budget by 50% which would easily pay for it and then some.
I have to assume your are joking. We are currently spending $800 billion on Medicare/Medicaid. That covers about 50% of the population. The military budget is about $600 billion. Many doctors are opting out of caring for MC patients because of the cuts. I assume you believe it is OK for Doctors and nurses to go on strike for more pay and better working conditions? There is just not enough money to give everyone top tier medical care. Health care is NOT a right, it is a service provided by people that work for a living and deserve to be paid. No more than owning a car or food and shelter.
You may think what is going on in Greece will not happen here. I think it is coming sooner than most would guess.
Greece on the breadline: HIV and malaria make a comeback
Jon Henley finds a medical aid organisation trying to plug the gaps as the health service nears breakdown
Doctors, nurses and paramedics clash with riot police outside the health ministry last May during a protest against cuts.
The savage cuts to Greece's health service budget have led to a sharp rise in HIV/Aids and malaria in the beleaguered nation, said a leading aid organisation on Thursday.
If wanting taxation with representation, removal of special interest money from politics, stoppage of the wasteful idiotic policeman of the world ideal, something more than a two party system where the same ill-gotten money owns both sides, fair trade over free for all trade, working healthcare and education, and personal liberties all links to Marx and Lenin, then you either mean some old unknown libertarians named Peter Marx and Bill Lenin, or those old reds weren't so bad. Hilarious red herring there.
Comparing Greece to the US is a pretty wild stretch without a leg to stand on. The list of differences is much longer than the similarities.
Comment from that article for the "Marxist" red herring draggers to think about, if they dare:
"Greece did not have any social policies (the unemployment benefit was always the lowest in Europe - and you needed to have many years of employment to get it), the capital was never taxed, the Vat was very high because of the government's inability to tax the rich and the minimum wage was 700 euros per month. Is that socialism?"
I wonder how much of that health crisis is also due to their embrace of the self-destructive EU ideal of letting in any third worlders who ask.
Oh I know how it works, just as I know who is really responsible for the vast majority of malaise and trouble in the general industrial and economic world.
Well, I did paint with a broad brush, so here is what stuck out to me:
"Get special interest money out of politics and limit it to individual maximums of like $2500 dollars. Criminal penalties up to including prison time for those who violate this law along with withholding where there contributions came from."
That was recently attempted- with an exclusion for labor unions of course. Why not let anyone spend as much as they want- with complete disclosure?
"I would like to live in a society where religion is practiced at home or in church not in our schools and government. "
That would have made British and American slave owners very happy. Not to mention the segregationists. That uppity Rev. King should shut up- imagine mixing politics and religion!
"Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right. A minimum wage that pays a living wage."
I think a 911 GTS 2 is a basic human right. Where do I apply?
"[where] unions and OSHA have a right to exist. "
They already do, I just don't want people compelled to join a union. If the unions are so great workers should be lining up to join without compulsion.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
I think Greece comes closer to CA than the entire USA. The bottom line is Greece is broke, CA is broke. The USA would be broke if they did not own the Printing press for money. How far are we from Depression era Germany? You cannot just print money and hope people will accept it. Some day it will be worthless with no backing. Our credibility is already in question with the Credit rating downgrade.
Who is to blame for the whole EU concept? Wasn't it France & Germany that pushed it through? Can't really blame the UK, they did not buy into the Euro business. It is not just Greece that is faltering. Italy, Spain Portugal. They are all living off of our out of control consumerism. With that narrowed down to buying mostly Chinese crappola, it leaves the rest sucking wind.
We stopped in an upscale shoe store down by the beach. Looking at the Birkenstocks. The rest of the shoes in the store were of Chinese origin. Except some sandals my wife liked called Think. They were from Romania. She could not justify $169 for a pair of sandals. The stores and restaurants were packed and it was a Thursday. Hard to tell we are in a recession.
That first bit should exist with an exclusion for nobody. Groups like the Koch cabal are no better than the unions.
Politics and religion do not work well together. Look at the insane right in this country, or theocracies elsewhere.
Healthcare to a Porsche? Something off tangent again.
If a top few could have some idea of ethics and responsibility, maybe there wouldn't be a desire for unions at all. That's why they were born, after all.
Greece is also arguably not a first world country, very weak technology, education, infrastructure, and so on. The US, even CA that some here hate yet continue to reside there, is worlds ahead, not even in the same galaxy. Creative accounting will keep the fiat moving along much longer than any of us will be alive.
The credit downgrade was a political stunt more than anything else.
Who is to blame before the EU? Maybe the postwar "victors" in an experiment for one world government, and to at least delay another war? The UK won't give up its currency, but participates in many other ways - ask migrant EU workers who run to the UK for a "benefits holiday". The EU as a trade ideal isn't bad per se - for those who deserve to belong. Which isn't the PIGS or a few others. And they aren't living off our consumerism, but off of guilted German bailouts and local consumerism. The Chinese crapola shouldn't be allowed in here - it's seen there in far lesser amounts. All to increase profit margins - the only thing the CEO class has up their sleeves, offshore it.
In areas with lots of high paying public sector work/retirees and connected industries, no doubt "what recession" is all one can say.
If a top few could have some idea of ethics and responsibility, maybe there wouldn't be a desire for unions at all. That's why they were born, after all.
Unions, especially Public Employee Unions have far outlived their usefulness. As many states are realizing they are bleeding the coffers dry. Wisconsin voted to have fiscal responsibility return to their statehouse. The PE Unions screamed bloody murder. I will be interested to see how many other states follow in their footsteps this fall. It would be wonderful to see some balance in CA legislation. Instead of the steady downward spiral pushed by the Limousine Liberals and the lackey friends in the Unions. Even Moonbeam realizes that the house of cards is coming down. He has been blocked in his attempts to get anything from the Unions. We need state legislators willing to buck the overly powerful Public Employee Unions. Even when their lives are threatened by the feather bedding liberals.
Politics and religion do not work well together. Look at the insane right in this country, or theocracies elsewhere.
Lame response, at best. Unless you are referring to Islamic Judges basing their judgements on Sharia law. Our country was founded on "The Laws of Nature and Nature's God" and a First Amendment that protects US from a theocratic government such as was practiced under the Kings and Popes. Too many try to turn that amendment around. And or misrepresent what Jefferson said in a letter that contained the phrase "separation of church and state". Nothing in the Constitution intimates that political leaders should not be religious leaders as well. Or that there is some supposed separation. It protects US all from being told how to believe. Something the Left would love to destroy.
Nothing in the Constitution intimates that political leaders should not be religious leaders as well. Or that there is some supposed separation. It protects US all from being told how to believe. Something the Left would love to destroy.
Unless it's President Obama, who is organizing prayer vigils as Obamacare goes before the Supreme Court- in which case it's perfectly fine.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
I'd easily say public sector (and we have to include police, highly paid judges and their staff, and possibly even in a roundabout way, military in this) are much more a part of the picture than private sector unions. I have met very few private sector union workers - just not a big part of the modern world. Conservatives (the dumb American brand especially) always put law enforcement up on a pedestal, but won't attack their entitlements.
And if you hate unions, think for a minute why they were born.
What is lame? Did I say something wrong? Please be specific. None of our competitors are caught up in religious fanaticism to the level it is seen here, which ends up stunting us both in domestic and foreign policy. We're closer to a backwards other world theocracy than we are to anything logical. The country was also founded by many men who had some ideals and traits that wouldn't be acceptable today. Eventually, a separation "of" will become a separation "from", and it won't be a bad thing.
You stereotype all those on the right as insane for some of their religious beliefs. I think if you really checked out the various factions on the right you would find a LOT wider variety of thought than you will on the Left. There are those on the right that feel their 1st amendment rights are being trampled under Liberal Jack Boots. And with very good cause. So you can expect more outcry from Churches across the Nation. You can expect more involvement. All brought on by the anti church Left.
Eventually, a separation "of" will become a separation "from", and it won't be a bad thing.
Perfect example. Nothing in the constitution mentions separation of Church and State. We have no competitors. China is the closest at this time, would you rather use their system? I suppose you will blame the off shoring of jobs on the Church? What Foreign policy is stunted by our Christian heritage? I don't recall the last several Sec's of State having any problem separating their personal beliefs when dealing with other countries. And if you are referring, as you like to do to Israel, they are as far from religious as you can get. That is about as secular a country as you will find. Less than 5% of the population are practicing Jews. They also have all that cradle to grave BS you and Rocky seem to love. Maybe you want to consider Germany where about 63% consider themselves Christian. Heck their ruling party is the CHRISTIAN Democrat Party. Can you imagine the uproar if the GOP changed their name to the Christian Republican Party. In fact I do not see a single party registered in the USA that has any religious connotation.
"Restore this democracy back into the hands of the people"
That is why you need to leave...this was NEVER a democracy in any way, shape or form...it was established as a constitutional republic, because the founders wanted to make sure that every person did not vote on ever issue...democracy may work on a small scale, like a commune with 100-200 people, but the larger it gets, the worse it gets...
We elect representatives to represent us in Washington...we used to have senators elected by state legislatures until the 17th (?) amendment elected senators by popular votes...we have the electoral college...if you pay attention, the entire process was designed to place buffers between the people and the government...the founders did not trust the people, per se, so they made sure that the people did not make the laws directly, or else pandemonium would result...it has worked over 200 years...may not be perfect, but it does seem to work...
As Ben Franklin said, when asked what type of government was created..."a republic, if you can keep it..."
Please stop calling this a democracy...that is the most mis-used term and teachers use it, TV uses it, and everybody uses it, and it is simply wrong...we are not a democracy, and the founders went out of their way to create something other than a democracy...
Further, health care is NOT a right...you do not have the right, or the power, to force a doctor to treat you, and if you feel you do, you may be stealing that doctor's time and skill...you have no more right to health care than you do to steal a loaf of bread from a store because you are hungry...
It always comes back to you thinking that everybody else is responsible for your well-being...someone else to pay for your training, someone else to pay you while you learn a new job (yet you are quite useless to your employer), someone else to pay for your healthcare (with, of course, no premiums from you, no copays from you, everything is free and at some else's expense, never yours)...someone else to pay for your tuition...do you even have the sense of responsibility to pay for rent or utilities, or am I responsbile to pay for your lights, and satellite TV???
I am waiting to see how long before you start whining that someone else should be paying your child support, because I would be shocked if you even see THAT as your own responsibility...
Please help me understand...where did your mind become so polluted that you see everything in your life that costs over a penny as someone else' responsibility to pay???...when do you, as a free individual in this society, ever become responsible to pay for anything???...or are you so helpless and worthless that you see that the govt exists solely to pick up the tab so you do nothing except eat and breathe???
Please tell me why you see the need to contribute NOTHING to society but have the right to take, take, take from the prodcutivity of others???
And if you are referring, as you like to do to Israel, they are as far from religious as you can get. That is about as secular a country as you will find. Less than 5% of the population are practicing Jews.
Another not well known fact is that a lot of Palestinians live in Israel (approximately 20% of Israel's population), with no problems. Imagine Israelis living in Gaza, or Lebanon, or the Sinai. How welcome would they be?
Comments
Ya just gotta move to that district in WV, where the local SSI disability judge/administrator has been granting over 80% of the requests for disability.
It wasn't paper cuts I was worried about...sure, office work is about as low risk as one can get, but for that one-in-a-million roof that gave in or a light fixture that fell off the ceiling and landed directly on an employee's head, which can cause a serious injury and cost me a bunch...I thought it was prudent to have it...
rocky: thanks for the correction...even at 90% most folks could then live like they were when working...if they were laid off, their fuel costs were negligible (no commuting) so it was almsot like getting 100% of pay...
We pay for a job specific rider (can't remember the legal term), but if you can't perform your specific job, it will pay. Or if you can work at a reduced capacity, it will pay the the gap between what you can earn and the max monthly benefit of the policy.
Unfortunately, if you have a physically demanding job, private LTD policies are either expensive, or hard to qualify for.
Like many things in life, 100% security isn't possible.
True.
This one statement alone makes him a hero in my eyes!
One thing Trump has said for years is our trade agreements are horrible and what China has been getting away with is unacceptable. I don't know if he can or would actually do anything about it.
If it wasn't for the winter weather, Colorado would be a pretty good place to live - my sales tax is 7.9%, gas prices are 2nd lowest in the nation, energy costs are pretty reasonable.
In theory, my property taxes dropped from about $5,000 in 2010 to about $3100 last year. However, since the place is my principal residence, I had a "homestead tax credit", which brought my overall taxes down. In 2010, it was about $1800, so I really only paid $3200 in property tax. If it had not been owner-occupied, such as a rental property, I would have had to pay the full $5,000.
When our property values plummeted, they applied the drop against the homestead tax credit first, and then anything left was applied to the tax that was left. So, the $1900 reduction first wiped out that $1800 credit, and the remaining $100 went to lower my taxes a bit.
I remember the property taxes going down on my old condo, as well. I bought it in late 1994, and I think the property tax was initially around $950 per year. It got cut a couple years later, to around $800, but then slowly rose. By 2004 when I sold it, I think it was back up to around $950 per year.
-Rocky
My aunt who drives like 50 miles has taken volunteer lay offs in the past due to that reason. Factor in $4 bucks gas she is much further ahead!!!
-Rocky
-Rocky
UNITED ATTORNEY WORKERS of America. I like it. You could start a right wing Union for Attorneys. Would be hard to find more than a handful. Most Attorneys are part of the Limousine Liberal Elitist crowd.
-Rocky
If you've ever seen the movie "Fire Down Below" that is not a far off description of how things are. If you can treat people like cattle and the only resistance they give you is MOOO MOOO well you can do pretty much anything you want! I also find it funny you keep bringing up like all these RTW states are beacons of prosperity! Fintail, has already debunked that but I guess like some of your hero's if you keep repeating a lie over and over and over again well doesn't it become the truth?
-Rocky
I would not agree with that...most law schools are like colleges, and teach what I believe are left wing views...since I went to law school as an adult, way over age 30, I was not some idealistic bubblehead just coming out of college, I had worked in the real world and knew how destructive unions were...so, when I went to law school, I already knew their left-wing liberal crap, and I was inoculated against it by the real world...
The ABA is left wing, so I am not a member...anti-gun bunch of commies...:):):)
Much like the Northern Socialist State of California.
-Rocky
-Rocky!!!
If a janitor makes a supposed 200K, I'd say 10x that for an exec with very little up his sleeve is more than fair. Exec/worker compensation in this racing to the bottom system is insane.
I don't think a UAW Janitor at even GM makes quite that much. I was thinking about $100k with all benefits included. I would not want the responsibility of GM for a lousy million or even $2 million a year. The IRS is going to take 35% to start with. Maybe with a stock bonus attached. Probably not even then. My personal time is too valuable to me. Those kind of jobs may look rosy, but take a lot of hours out of every day. I am sure they get tired of flying around in the Corporate jet as well.
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards, yet somehow the unionized workers are the evil. While in the lands of our competitors, the upper barely-working corporate echelons make less compared to the plebes than here, labor relations are generally better, and labor that isn't bottom of the barrel in price can actually make desirable products. Amazing to think about.
You have to remember. The CEO on board A is also a board member of Company B and maybe C. It is all about "you take care of me, I will take care of you". I remember our CEO whom I was on first name basis at RCA Alascom. I regularly repaired his office phone when he would throw it across the room. He was the CEO of RCA Alascom and sat on the board of GE and PPL. He had fought and clawed his way from being a White Alice Technician to the top job. That is rare but it does happen.
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards, yet somehow the unionized workers are the evil. While in the lands of our competitors, the upper barely-working corporate echelons make less compared to the plebes than here, labor relations are generally better, and labor that isn't bottom of the barrel in price can actually make desirable products. Amazing to think about.
Exactly!!!
-Rocky
The execs themselves are every bit as sleazy as the boards, yet somehow the unionized workers are the evil. While in the lands of our competitors, the upper barely-working corporate echelons make less compared to the plebes than here, labor relations are generally better, and labor that isn't bottom of the barrel in price can actually make desirable products. Amazing to think about.
Exactly!!!
-Rocky
-Rocky
There salary would be based off the top skilled tradesman x 11 not 475x.....
As far as what type of society I would like well one free of corruption would be a good start. Restore this democracy back into the hands of the people instead of the 0.01% that have total control. I would like to have a democracy where we have a multi-party government where everyone has a voice from fake libertarians like Ron Paul to Socialist like Bernie Sanders. That is the type of democracy.
I would like to live in. Get special interest money out of politics and limit it to individual maximums of like $2500 dollars. Criminal penalties up to including prison time for those who violate this law along with withholding where there contributions came from. I know it costs money to run for office but it should not cost a billion dollars to run for president.
I would like to live in a society where religion is practiced at home or in church not in our schools and government. Not everyone believes the Bible was written by god in this country and a lot of people believe it was written by man.
I also would like to live in a society where our government protects our people from polluters, poisonous food i.e. Chinese fruits and vegetables contaminated with toxic cancer causing chemicals, and other unsafe products like toxic lead toys.
I would like to live in a society where woman are treated as equal. The same for minorities. I would like to live in a society where we value immigrants that come here "legally" and not reward illegal immigration that broke our laws.
I would like to live in a society where individual liberties were protected like a woman's right to choose and not have government in a woman's uterus. I would also like a society where individual rights such as gun ownership is protected, government can not snoop through peoples email, give speeding tickets via camera's, unions and OSHA have a right to exist.
Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right. A minimum wage that pays a living wage. A military that does not play the world police. College and Vocational Centers are affordable for every citizens. Tax breaks for small business and corporations that pay for employees to be retrained so they can avoid long term layoffs. A society that embraces alternative fuel sources like bio-diesel, natural gas, solar, wind, etc that is made here in America.
I could go on but I hit the highlights!!! :shades: :shades: :shades:
-Rocky
Yes that sounds like some sort of Utopia. It leaves out the reality of human nature. Greed, avarice, covetousness, hatred, laziness, malice, mean spirited etc. In this world of equality what happens when a person decides to spend his share on Sex, drugs and R&R and ends up in the gutter? Then he sees you drive by in that New Caddie and wants to hit you over the head and take it. I don't believe it will work even on a small scale. Not everyone is willing to work equally to make it work. Someone rises to the top to lead, then dictate. You should join a Commune and see for yourself how your ideas work in real life. I came close in the late 1960s and backed out when I could see what I would have to give up. For every Free thing you accept, you give up a Personal Freedom.
I would like to live in a society where individual liberties were protected like a woman's right to choose and not have government in a woman's uterus. I would also like a society where individual rights such as gun ownership is protected, government can not snoop through peoples email, give speeding tickets via camera's, unions and OSHA have a right to exist.
With that statement how can you possibly support the TSA? They violate our rights so much beyond any of the above. Unions and Osha are not threatened. It is the rights of the individual that have been threatened for decades by Closed Union Shops.
Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right.
Where is that written? Who says it is a Human right? By what authority is that right given? And what happens if you cannot afford the premium? Who will pay, and who will freeload? In the USA the only basic human rights are laid out in our Bill of Rights. Which have recently been trampled by the people we have elected to uphold them.
That is why human nature needs to be regulated with law and order. We throw the poor people in jail and send the wealthy to the spa when laws are broken. I as I told you have no problem with someone rising to the top to lead however that person's power needs checks and balances. Just because they were gifted to lead does not mean they are exempted from these basic laws. The best interest of the American people should always be considered when making new laws or in business decisions. That is the problem with Capitalism. We will sacrifice the many to benefit the few. That in my opinion is the wrong mentality to have. That attitude has cost us dearly.
If the average American citizen did not sacrifice there life and limb in world wars we would be speaking German. That is the problem with the 0.01% is they forget average people keep this nation free for them to operate. I have no problem with people making a fair profit but I believe the duty of being an American is to pay it forward. When you are a billionaire do you really need $63 billion like Warren Buffet? I'm picking on Buffet because he is the richest man in the world. I think he is guilty of greed and is Soro's and all the other billionaires. They take and put very little back. None of them would be rich all by themselves.
With that statement how can you possibly support the TSA? They violate our rights so much beyond any of the above. Unions and Osha are not threatened. It is the rights of the individual that have been threatened for decades by Closed Union Shops.
I have never had my rights infringed traveling. I know other have. I do think TSA procedures need to be reformed as I said many posts ago and I'm saying it again. However if you fail the metal detector 3x I believe one should be wanded. In order to keep people safe we are going to have to give up some civil liberties. Each day I crossed the gate into Pantex, I could be searched. I had nothing to hide and things I do not want people to know about me I did not advertise them. We all should be entitled to choose what we want others to know about us. I view emails as private as I do mail and what one does in the bedroom. I do not need Rick telling my future girlfriend/wife or my daughter how to take care of her body. I'm a very open person perhaps a little too open. However I don't claim to be perfect. I however try to be the best person I can be each day and treat others with respect. I know I fail at that at times but I do try.
Where is that written? Who says it is a Human right? By what authority is that right given? And what happens if you cannot afford the premium? Who will pay, and who will freeload? In the USA the only basic human rights are laid out in our Bill of Rights. Which have recently been trampled by the people we have elected to uphold them.
I believe healthcare should be a basic human right as an American. I think every person should have to pay so much every year in taxes into the system. If we keep it at a not for profit level we can save money over the long term by stopping people who are severely ill going into the emergency room when a basic check up months ago would of caught the cancer and saved tax payers a lot of money. The very poor obviously would need it subsidized. I would pay for it first by slashing the military budget by 50% which would easily pay for it and then some. I would try to build up cash value in this healthcare fund to get ahead of inflation and would make it law that politicians could not touch it in any circumstances. Maybe that fund would eventually earn enough interest it would pay for itself and taxes going into it could be lowered. The other option is to borrow from the fed a few trillion dollars at 0.01% and invest that money in secure interest generating investment and then pay back the Fed. That is more less what the Fed did for the banks, right?
-Rocky
As far as what type of society I would like well one free of corruption would be a good start. Restore this democracy back into the hands of the people instead of the 0.01% that have total control. I would like to have a democracy where we have a multi-party government where everyone has a voice from fake libertarians like Ron Paul to Socialist like Bernie Sanders. That is the type of democracy.
I would like to live in. Get special interest money out of politics and limit it to individual maximums of like $2500 dollars. Criminal penalties up to including prison time for those who violate this law along with withholding where there contributions came from. I know it costs money to run for office but it should not cost a billion dollars to run for president.
I would like to live in a society where religion is practiced at home or in church not in our schools and government. Not everyone believes the Bible was written by god in this country and a lot of people believe it was written by man.
I also would like to live in a society where our government protects our people from polluters, poisonous food i.e. Chinese fruits and vegetables contaminated with toxic cancer causing chemicals, and other unsafe products like toxic lead toys.
I would like to live in a society where woman are treated as equal. The same for minorities. I would like to live in a society where we value immigrants that come here "legally" and not reward illegal immigration that broke our laws.
I would like to live in a society where individual liberties were protected like a woman's right to choose and not have government in a woman's uterus. I would also like a society where individual rights such as gun ownership is protected, government can not snoop through peoples email, give speeding tickets via camera's, unions and OSHA have a right to exist.
Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right. A minimum wage that pays a living wage. A military that does not play the world police. College and Vocational Centers are affordable for every citizens. Tax breaks for small business and corporations that pay for employees to be retrained so they can avoid long term layoffs. A society that embraces alternative fuel sources like bio-diesel, natural gas, solar, wind, etc that is made here in America.
I could go on but I hit the highlights!!!
Marx(or Lenin) couldn't have said it better. Well done!
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
I believe we should all be given a 3000 sq foot home to live in. Just because you believe something does NOT make it so. I believe we should all take responsibility for our own welfare. And the welfare of our children. I believe it is wrong for me to tell you if you are making $30 per hour you should share so that my $10 per hour is equal with you. If I decide to go and buy a wedge of cheese for someone in need. That should be my decision. Not Big brother taking it from me and filtering it through half dozen over paid civil servants before it is handed out to someone in need.
The very poor obviously would need it subsidized. I would pay for it first by slashing the military budget by 50% which would easily pay for it and then some.
I have to assume your are joking. We are currently spending $800 billion on Medicare/Medicaid. That covers about 50% of the population. The military budget is about $600 billion. Many doctors are opting out of caring for MC patients because of the cuts. I assume you believe it is OK for Doctors and nurses to go on strike for more pay and better working conditions? There is just not enough money to give everyone top tier medical care. Health care is NOT a right, it is a service provided by people that work for a living and deserve to be paid. No more than owning a car or food and shelter.
You may think what is going on in Greece will not happen here. I think it is coming sooner than most would guess.
Greece on the breadline: HIV and malaria make a comeback
Jon Henley finds a medical aid organisation trying to plug the gaps as the health service nears breakdown
Doctors, nurses and paramedics clash with riot police outside the health ministry last May during a protest against cuts.
The savage cuts to Greece's health service budget have led to a sharp rise in HIV/Aids and malaria in the beleaguered nation, said a leading aid organisation on Thursday.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2012/mar/15/greece-breadline-hiv-malaria
Comment from that article for the "Marxist" red herring draggers to think about, if they dare:
"Greece did not have any social policies (the unemployment benefit was always the lowest in Europe - and you needed to have many years of employment to get it), the capital was never taxed, the Vat was very high because of the government's inability to tax the rich and the minimum wage was 700 euros per month. Is that socialism?"
I wonder how much of that health crisis is also due to their embrace of the self-destructive EU ideal of letting in any third worlders who ask.
Well, I did paint with a broad brush, so here is what stuck out to me:
"Get special interest money out of politics and limit it to individual maximums of like $2500 dollars. Criminal penalties up to including prison time for those who violate this law along with withholding where there contributions came from."
That was recently attempted- with an exclusion for labor unions of course. Why not let anyone spend as much as they want- with complete disclosure?
"I would like to live in a society where religion is practiced at home or in church not in our schools and government. "
That would have made British and American slave owners very happy. Not to mention the segregationists. That uppity Rev. King should shut up- imagine mixing politics and religion!
"Where universal healthcare (single payer) is a basic human right. A minimum wage that pays a living wage."
I think a 911 GTS 2 is a basic human right. Where do I apply?
"[where] unions and OSHA have a right to exist. "
They already do, I just don't want people compelled to join a union. If the unions are so great workers should be lining up to join without compulsion.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Who is to blame for the whole EU concept? Wasn't it France & Germany that pushed it through? Can't really blame the UK, they did not buy into the Euro business. It is not just Greece that is faltering. Italy, Spain Portugal. They are all living off of our out of control consumerism. With that narrowed down to buying mostly Chinese crappola, it leaves the rest sucking wind.
We stopped in an upscale shoe store down by the beach. Looking at the Birkenstocks. The rest of the shoes in the store were of Chinese origin. Except some sandals my wife liked called Think. They were from Romania. She could not justify $169 for a pair of sandals. The stores and restaurants were packed and it was a Thursday. Hard to tell we are in a recession.
Politics and religion do not work well together. Look at the insane right in this country, or theocracies elsewhere.
Healthcare to a Porsche? Something off tangent again.
If a top few could have some idea of ethics and responsibility, maybe there wouldn't be a desire for unions at all. That's why they were born, after all.
The credit downgrade was a political stunt more than anything else.
Who is to blame before the EU? Maybe the postwar "victors" in an experiment for one world government, and to at least delay another war? The UK won't give up its currency, but participates in many other ways - ask migrant EU workers who run to the UK for a "benefits holiday". The EU as a trade ideal isn't bad per se - for those who deserve to belong. Which isn't the PIGS or a few others. And they aren't living off our consumerism, but off of guilted German bailouts and local consumerism. The Chinese crapola shouldn't be allowed in here - it's seen there in far lesser amounts. All to increase profit margins - the only thing the CEO class has up their sleeves, offshore it.
In areas with lots of high paying public sector work/retirees and connected industries, no doubt "what recession" is all one can say.
Unions, especially Public Employee Unions have far outlived their usefulness. As many states are realizing they are bleeding the coffers dry. Wisconsin voted to have fiscal responsibility return to their statehouse. The PE Unions screamed bloody murder. I will be interested to see how many other states follow in their footsteps this fall. It would be wonderful to see some balance in CA legislation. Instead of the steady downward spiral pushed by the Limousine Liberals and the lackey friends in the Unions. Even Moonbeam realizes that the house of cards is coming down. He has been blocked in his attempts to get anything from the Unions. We need state legislators willing to buck the overly powerful Public Employee Unions. Even when their lives are threatened by the feather bedding liberals.
Politics and religion do not work well together. Look at the insane right in this country, or theocracies elsewhere.
Lame response, at best. Unless you are referring to Islamic Judges basing their judgements on Sharia law. Our country was founded on "The Laws of Nature and Nature's God" and a First Amendment that protects US from a theocratic government such as was practiced under the Kings and Popes. Too many try to turn that amendment around. And or misrepresent what Jefferson said in a letter that contained the phrase "separation of church and state". Nothing in the Constitution intimates that political leaders should not be religious leaders as well. Or that there is some supposed separation. It protects US all from being told how to believe. Something the Left would love to destroy.
Keep wishing and dreaming...
Unless it's President Obama, who is organizing prayer vigils as Obamacare goes before the Supreme Court- in which case it's perfectly fine.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
And if you hate unions, think for a minute why they were born.
What is lame? Did I say something wrong? Please be specific. None of our competitors are caught up in religious fanaticism to the level it is seen here, which ends up stunting us both in domestic and foreign policy. We're closer to a backwards other world theocracy than we are to anything logical. The country was also founded by many men who had some ideals and traits that wouldn't be acceptable today. Eventually, a separation "of" will become a separation "from", and it won't be a bad thing.
You stereotype all those on the right as insane for some of their religious beliefs. I think if you really checked out the various factions on the right you would find a LOT wider variety of thought than you will on the Left. There are those on the right that feel their 1st amendment rights are being trampled under Liberal Jack Boots. And with very good cause. So you can expect more outcry from Churches across the Nation. You can expect more involvement. All brought on by the anti church Left.
Eventually, a separation "of" will become a separation "from", and it won't be a bad thing.
Perfect example. Nothing in the constitution mentions separation of Church and State. We have no competitors. China is the closest at this time, would you rather use their system? I suppose you will blame the off shoring of jobs on the Church? What Foreign policy is stunted by our Christian heritage? I don't recall the last several Sec's of State having any problem separating their personal beliefs when dealing with other countries. And if you are referring, as you like to do to Israel, they are as far from religious as you can get. That is about as secular a country as you will find. Less than 5% of the population are practicing Jews. They also have all that cradle to grave BS you and Rocky seem to love. Maybe you want to consider Germany where about 63% consider themselves Christian. Heck their ruling party is the CHRISTIAN Democrat Party. Can you imagine the uproar if the GOP changed their name to the Christian Republican Party. In fact I do not see a single party registered in the USA that has any religious connotation.
That is why you need to leave...this was NEVER a democracy in any way, shape or form...it was established as a constitutional republic, because the founders wanted to make sure that every person did not vote on ever issue...democracy may work on a small scale, like a commune with 100-200 people, but the larger it gets, the worse it gets...
We elect representatives to represent us in Washington...we used to have senators elected by state legislatures until the 17th (?) amendment elected senators by popular votes...we have the electoral college...if you pay attention, the entire process was designed to place buffers between the people and the government...the founders did not trust the people, per se, so they made sure that the people did not make the laws directly, or else pandemonium would result...it has worked over 200 years...may not be perfect, but it does seem to work...
As Ben Franklin said, when asked what type of government was created..."a republic, if you can keep it..."
Please stop calling this a democracy...that is the most mis-used term and teachers use it, TV uses it, and everybody uses it, and it is simply wrong...we are not a democracy, and the founders went out of their way to create something other than a democracy...
Further, health care is NOT a right...you do not have the right, or the power, to force a doctor to treat you, and if you feel you do, you may be stealing that doctor's time and skill...you have no more right to health care than you do to steal a loaf of bread from a store because you are hungry...
It always comes back to you thinking that everybody else is responsible for your well-being...someone else to pay for your training, someone else to pay you while you learn a new job (yet you are quite useless to your employer), someone else to pay for your healthcare (with, of course, no premiums from you, no copays from you, everything is free and at some else's expense, never yours)...someone else to pay for your tuition...do you even have the sense of responsibility to pay for rent or utilities, or am I responsbile to pay for your lights, and satellite TV???
I am waiting to see how long before you start whining that someone else should be paying your child support, because I would be shocked if you even see THAT as your own responsibility...
Please help me understand...where did your mind become so polluted that you see everything in your life that costs over a penny as someone else' responsibility to pay???...when do you, as a free individual in this society, ever become responsible to pay for anything???...or are you so helpless and worthless that you see that the govt exists solely to pick up the tab so you do nothing except eat and breathe???
Please tell me why you see the need to contribute NOTHING to society but have the right to take, take, take from the prodcutivity of others???
Another not well known fact is that a lot of Palestinians live in Israel (approximately 20% of Israel's population), with no problems. Imagine Israelis living in Gaza, or Lebanon, or the Sinai. How welcome would they be?