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Congrats US Govt, you screwed us

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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
Well, so much for the supercommittee. Its great to have a party with no brains, and another without any balls. Discuss.
Nov 21 2011 8:28AM
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theabortionator
Posts: 51642 - Karma: 162,229
Um, we've been screwed for a while. Everything's been going downhill for a while. Just sayin
Nov 21 2011 8:31AM
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freestyler540
Posts: 13083 - Karma: 18,720
There is a major flaw in our politics: Privatize the gains and nationalize losses
Nov 21 2011 8:33AM
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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
Shit, I just came up with a great idea to reduce our deficit - lets ask the banks we bailed out to foot our bill till we get back on our feet.
Nov 21 2011 8:37AM
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poptarts4life
Posts: 376 - Karma: 12
Looking forward to reading about this today. Although I am in no way defending our government's childish behavior I will say it could be worse(Europe)....
Nov 21 2011 8:51AM
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*monsterskier*
Posts: 2671 - Karma: 61
that is true...sadly
Nov 21 2011 9:05AM
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PASKIINGSUCKS
Posts: 9097 - Karma: 777
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Occupy Wall Street??



We should have charged the banks a similar interest rate to the wonderful percentages they tack on to an average joe's cash advance.
Nov 21 2011 9:08AM
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WestWoods
Posts: 960 - Karma: 414
The US is chill, but the government blows mad whale dick!
Nov 21 2011 9:14AM
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84891jnf92048
Posts: 11552 - Karma: 2,550
.
Nov 21 2011 10:34AM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
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Occupy Capitol Hill/Washington DC more like.
Nov 21 2011 10:40AM
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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
I dont give a single shit about the NBA, I really dont, but I think a lockout of DC might have some value to at least consider. Congress is not allowed to come back and legislate until they can sit down like the rest of the country at a big table, and despite the radically different views, get along. We call it Thanksgiving.

Screw their payrolls too, if the government needs to be run like a business and pay for its bills, I'm all for it - just like any job, you shouldnt be rewarded for fucking up massively.

Nov 21 2011 11:15AM
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.RYAN66
Posts: 5381 - Karma: 235
I agree with ginko a ton. Congress doesn't give a shit about us at all. Just about making themselves and their rich friends richer. Fucking occupy capital hill is what needs to happen. These reatrds are protesting the wrong people.
Nov 21 2011 11:18AM
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Funnel
Posts: 7815 - Karma: 1,531
I pretty sure anyone could have seen this coming. Hmmmm.... Take members from a partisan Congress and make a smaller, bipartisan Congress. Hahahaha. Of course it won't work. Because its those same idiots in Confress that are making shit tough. Fuck the super committee.
Nov 21 2011 11:24AM
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theabortionator
Posts: 51642 - Karma: 162,229
The views of people in congress are not "radically different".


Everyone seems to agree on most of the real shitty issues. It's the small things like putting more religious shows on at christmas that everyone bickers over.

With every election, nothing changes for the better. We keep heading down the tubes. The ignorant people are at fault for a lot of things. Unfortunately ignorance is a world wide past time and actually seems to be the cool thing to do.


AKA We're fucked
Nov 21 2011 11:30AM
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cow.
Posts: 416 - Karma: 200
communism never looked so good.
Nov 21 2011 11:34AM
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vandersteeze
Posts: 2650 - Karma: 1,511
We are not totally screwed, now they just cut everything equally, which is the only way it can be done (not that I say its ok)
Nov 21 2011 11:39AM
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Big5hifty
Posts: 3243 - Karma: 1,253
the terms of senators and congressmen needs to be capped at 2 years. the issue is that all these people with the power to do something, view it as a long term job, and just want to stay there and keep people happy as opposed to doing whats right for our country.
Nov 21 2011 11:44AM
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grown-ninja
Posts: 3031 - Karma: 175
with 2 years terms even less would be accomplished-maybe that's good actually.  most positions were 2 years terms exist the majority of it is spent campaigning for their next term.  Incumbents would do less than usual, 
Nov 21 2011 11:53AM
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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
This is the problem exactly. Politicians interests, in order are special interests, lobbiests, getting elected next term... somewhere far after that is their duty to work in the best interests of the american people.
Nov 21 2011 12:03PM
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Big5hifty
Posts: 3243 - Karma: 1,253
this is a very good point. there needs to be some kind of cut off though, maybe if they stop being motivated by their wallets something will get done.
Nov 21 2011 12:07PM
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Mr.Huck
Posts: 6096 - Karma: 14,896
Nice generalization, but isn't it great that they make $174,000 a year and get better benefits than most people who work for fortune 500 companies?

Congressmen and women are obviously able to supplement their income. When people started going into politics to get rich, that is when the system started to go to shit. I would be more in favor of increasing taxes if I didn't know that the money was going to make politicians rich and support government corruption. Instead of occupying Wallstreet, people should be occupying congress.

Don't get me wrong. I think that corporate executive compensation is out of control, but if you don't like it, as an investor you can always sell the stock and as a consumer you can stop buying their product. With congress and government agencies, that is taxpayer money that is paying these peoples' salaries and bonuses and we have no say in that. The fact that the execs at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are getting multimillion dollar bonuses when they single handedly wrecked our economy; and those bonuses are basically coming out of our pockets as taxpayers, should really piss us off.

Nov 21 2011 12:12PM
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k-rob
Posts: 14217 - Karma: 2,891
mythreads for American politics lulz
Nov 21 2011 12:18PM
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THAT-GUY
Posts: 141 - Karma: 11
If this does go non-violent, people are going to get slaughtered by the police, national guard, and if they bring in the military. Our only hope would be to get the military on our side, which we are no where close to. Our militias do not have the means to change anything.

Nov 21 2011 12:21PM
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theabortionator
Posts: 51642 - Karma: 162,229
The majority of people are still far too ignorant to get any positive change rolling. I mean hell, people learned everything they know about our government and economics from fucking cnn and fox news. I'm not surprised we're in such a shitty spot. People are fucking stupid.
Nov 21 2011 12:31PM
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Petey.
Posts: 5736 - Karma: 4,885
the government is now aerials
Nov 21 2011 12:34PM
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PASKIINGSUCKS
Posts: 9097 - Karma: 777
Our militias would increase ten fold if the government ever opened fire on armed protesters. I mean , think about how many gun owners there are that are not currently in militias. You do realize that basically every hunter owns a sniper rifle right??

military?? what military?? I bet half of em are half way around the world right now. You think our military would actually take up arms against the population when they could be standing against their own family??
Nov 21 2011 12:37PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
The US Military is getting the shaft just as much as the rest of the populace too. At least your basic foot soldier is, I'm not counting guys that are like full bird Colonels or the assholes sitting in the Pentagon that probably don't remember how to take apart and put their sidearm back together.


And to Ginko I agree.... it would never happen though.
Nov 21 2011 12:43PM
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THAT-GUY
Posts: 141 - Karma: 11
Using history as the basis of my reply I will use the Russian revolution as an example. Their fight was not very different from ours. The democrats, protestors, and anyone who supports the OWS movement will be represented by the “bourgeoisie” they were the peasant masses who were controlled by the "aristocracy" basically the owners of Russia. The wealth discrepancy was incredibly similar to the united states of today. When they tried to unify and overthrow the government MILLIONS were killed by the Russian military. This ultimately lead the bourgeoisie to lead Lennin to power.

Yes there are plenty of gun owners in the united states, and our militias would explode! But I don't think you grasp our military power in this country. We spend 600B on defense. That is 6X the next closest nation(china).

Your right though I'm not sure how many would be able to open fire on protestors but I guarantee some would. Brainwashed right wing soldiers who do whatever they are told.

Nov 21 2011 12:53PM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
Be extremely careful about generalizing people in those positions. I know very very few people with that power who didn't earn it through hard work and extreme respect from their followers.

Also, the value of someone who can shoot a pistol (like any moron with a IQ of 10 can't do that, seriously look at your local shooting range) can't seriously be weighed against someone chosen to sit in one of those positions.
Nov 21 2011 12:54PM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
Foot soldier =/= officers they receive orders from.

There are both exceptionally bad and good examples from both sides, but generally I'd trust that today's military system doesn't work quite the same way it did in Vietnam. Or COD like most people seem to think.
Nov 21 2011 12:57PM
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howlongcanausern
Posts: 4982 - Karma: 1,737
>social security
>defense
>medicare


Nov 21 2011 12:57PM
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p-fo
Posts: 9372 - Karma: 6,155
Private/corporate donations (especially corporate)--> two party system--> indirect corruption.
How about we level the playing field by banning all private and corporate donations and giving each candidate some moderate sum? Yeah it's taxpayer money, but the potential to change this country is incredible. It is beyond worth it. Right now, money decides who wins. Not directly by payoffs or something, but by buying exposure in the form of ads. The two parties act like corporations, and they have a large monopoly. The bigger they get, the more they get to squash anyone not belonging to them. And now we deregulate it... What do we really expect to happen?
Nov 21 2011 12:59PM
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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
I think the thing that gets me the most is that these assholes need just to take ACTION. Its inaction and the stonewalling that is tanking our economy. Fuck, thats whats scaring investors, killing jobs. You want proof, just look at the markets. Left and right have differences they may never agree on, I get that, but these dicks look past the petty bullshit and see that they are the now part of the problem.
Nov 21 2011 1:03PM
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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
Absolutely. Fuck Super PAC's too, thats some shady shit.

Seriously, if theres ever a year for an resolute independent candidate to step up to the plate, its now. I cant be the only one who's done dealing with the two party bullshit.
Nov 21 2011 1:06PM
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PASKIINGSUCKS
Posts: 9097 - Karma: 777
I don't think you can compare todays US population to that of russia's during that time. How many of those russian peasants in that time do you think owned more than three guns?? Now how many guns do you think the average american today owns??

Yeah we spend 600B on defense, you think they'd drop bunker busters and smart bombs on US soil??

Brainwashed right wing soldiers might also be persuaded to do what their other military brothers are doing at the time. It's much easier to defy orders when you're not the first to do it.

I honestly don't think the government could even get the military to attack it's own citizens.
Nov 21 2011 1:17PM
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RudyGarmisch
Posts: 25443 - Karma: 13,844
I'm not sure bigger government is what we need, but I'll check your link once I'm off work and digest some of that. I think it can be said that we need a more efficient government regardless of the size - the wasteful rusting systems we have in place are in desperate need of an update, if not a total overhaul - I mean some of this shit was created for a world where the life expectancy was 65 and the treatment for cancer was "Oh well, you're fucked."

I do agree with you strongly on your second point - America has become apathetic. We are comfortable being stupid, inactive, and perfectly happy to blame someone else. We were the idiots who elected all these people, so yes, it ultimately is our fault, or at least the 20% who actually vote. Its why radical minority political groups like the Tea Party can win elections and divide the country further. Politicians are wrestling with issues too big and complex for them to either understand or be able to explain to the public in a dumbed-down enough way to not come off as "intellectual and elitist" and ruin their chance for re-election. Call me crazy, but shouldn't we perhaps listen to, I dont know, experts on this sort of shit? People who have gone to college and studied economics, instead of US law and how to defeat your opponent in a debate?

And please dont chastise me for picking on the Tea Party, I'd single out a left wing group if the democrats actually had it together enough to form something like that, but again, the party of No Ideas...
Nov 21 2011 1:27PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
I for some reason frankly have a severe distrust of guys with stars/birds on their uniforms. I understand the work and respect they need to get to those positions but I have heard too many stories from friends of guys trying to earn another star or a full bird by pushing their battalions through shit they had no business going through.
Nov 21 2011 1:27PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
You do realize like 70% of that 6000 billion is used for running bases in countries like Germany, Japan, and other places as well as for military research that you a private citizen can benefit from (some of the biggest advances in emergency room care came from military research... the BIG BAD MILITARY learned how to patch people up in ORs in urgent care situations first) or are used to train the soldiers.
Nov 21 2011 1:32PM
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howlongcanausern
Posts: 4982 - Karma: 1,737
many Americans are apathetic because they have better things going on in their lives (family, career, skiing) than worrying about politics/deficit/elections. myself included.
Nov 21 2011 1:32PM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
That's a 19 year olds opinion. And a stupid one at that to be perfectly honest. No one's getting gold stars for stuff like that, and promotion at that level is very rarely based on anything regarding tactical engagement.
Nov 21 2011 1:33PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
Yeah I get that.

Still, I think I would trust the lower level Lts and Captains over guys that are generals if some shit went down in this country and the military had to pick a side.



THAT said I still hold the belief US military members would likely join an armed resistance/uprising if there ever was one before opening fire on the citizens. Everyone I know in the military has said their loyalty lies with family first and the guy giving them orders second.
Nov 21 2011 1:36PM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
As a LT, I completely disagree. You don't make Colonel without the respect of your people. If your people hate you, your leaders notice and it reflects on your chances of making rank. There are 3 Colonels on this base and I respect them all very much both at the bars after a flying day and on the job. It doesn't take much (relatively I guess) to become Captain....at all. I'm considering it a given so long as I don't get a DUI or something. But to make Colonel, and even Lt. Col. with some noted exceptions, you have to be very good at what you do and have a pretty incredible ability to inspire and lead. Top 1% type of people put a bird on. The same goes to the enlisted force putting on multiple chevrons. I have an incredible amount of respect for a Chief, even as an officer I call them sir and treat them as I would a high ranking officer. Not because I am supposed to, but because we respect them and that's how you treat those you respect on or off any job in the world.

Some of the nicest and most genuine people I have ever met have stars or rockers on their shoulders.

I think the whole taking up arms thing is a fairy tale. A small uprising would be put down by citizens and government alike, it's not like millions of Americans would grab guns and go shooting up Congress. Even some soldiers trained to do so are often too scared to fight when presented with life and death. How is Joe Six Pack gonna do with no motivation other than the possibility to lower his taxes a few hundred bucks a year?
Nov 21 2011 1:48PM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
What do you guys think about the citizens incentive to give up more to benefit the whole?

Hypothetically, how much of the debt could we knock out if each citizen gave up $1,000 to throw at it? A small but noticeable chip I'm sure. What's my incentive as a citizen though? How can I be assured it's a solid investment, especially considering the leadership that created that debt still reigns?

Side conversation based on some random thoughts...
Nov 21 2011 1:52PM
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[~_~]
Posts: 20239 - Karma: 1,273
I'm just going to say it: certain people need to die. Non-violent protest my ass; if history has taught us anything it's that violence -> victory.
Nov 21 2011 1:53PM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Wall Street is Greedy. Congress allows them to be greedy. The President lets Congress do whatever it wants to, and the justice system is... lol.

Simply put, things need to change... and by change, I mean, we need to start realizing that we are being retardified by an underfunded, overpriced, and ultimately, poorly run education system, and we need to start realizing that everything starts there.

We start educating our idiots, they might start voting... and if they start voting, they wont vote for the loudest idiot on the block, and instead vote for the person who really means well and has the best ideas about how our country, and how the world can be better handled.

I don't agree with like 70% of what Ron Paul says, but if Obama's gonna keep just keeping this status-quo shit going instead of growing a pair and spartan-kicking some fuckers in the face to get them to do their job, then he's the next best choice in my opinion, because at least he's fucking different. It could spearhead a movement of actually voting for the right people, not just the same old white, christian, southern fucktards... even if it's pretty damn obvious nothing he wants to do will get through the congress.. including his relatively awesome social ideas.

...Maybe if we change things from the top, there will be a trickledown of intellectual voting spawning REAL change? Meh. In a perfect world eh?
Nov 21 2011 1:55PM
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PASKIINGSUCKS
Posts: 9097 - Karma: 777
agreed.

Things are much too cozy here in the states for the general population to take up arms against the government. Shit would have to get much much worse for everyone before that ever happened.

If it did though, I'd honestly put my money on the people.
Nov 21 2011 1:55PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
I would rather they close tax loopholes that allow companies like GE from paying NO taxes whatsoever.
Nov 21 2011 1:56PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
See, I'm just going off what my buddies are saying who are all Lance Cpls or just became Sgts. And all they ever do is bitch.
Nov 21 2011 1:57PM
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XtRemE11
Posts: 5680 - Karma: 246
governments always blows mad whale dick, the only time our government worked was when it was small, and had less power than the people because it was mostly run by the people.
Nov 21 2011 1:57PM
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Anathema
Posts: 21048 - Karma: 5,061
well it's certainly a good deterrent.
Nov 21 2011 2:01PM
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Mr.Panda
Posts: 17711 - Karma: 564
Funding is going to the wrong places basically I think.


Also, I hate to say this but I lost just about any and all sympathy for teachers and their "low" pay when I took a look and realized, they get like 4 months paid vacation and multitude of days/weeks off in the year. AND, at my high school let's say there were like 75 teachers or so (probably a little more)... only like 10 of those ever showed up more than 20 minutes before class started to do prep work. For which in my state at least they are paid from an hour before class starts to an hour after class ends.
Nov 21 2011 2:02PM
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