If I could fix 3 things about government, I would:
1) allow any bill or amendment to come up for a vote.
2) force Senators to actually filibuster the old fashion way. No more calling it in.
3) force term limits. 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate, 3 for the president.

(12-31-2012 09:33 AM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 07:22 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:40 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:23 AM)Smaug Wrote:  So, continue to feed the beast.

Just once I would like to see us simply say..."We don't need ________ this anymore." When was the last time we ended a useless government program?

How about the 294 golf courses operated by the Pentagon. I am a veteran and my son is currently serving but the defense budget needs about a 25% reduction (then we would only spend 5 times more than anyone else on earth)

25% across the board for the entire federal govt and then go to Clinton tax rates...

I could live with that..

That's a good starting point. We should start with everything on the table & understand that we will not accomplish everything on our wish list but be determined to make some sort of progress. I've never been more ashamed of our political system than the past two years wasted discussing the fiscal cliff but coming away from the table with zero deficit reduction. The bond market will be our judge in just a few years if we don't address the issues at hand.

(12-31-2012 10:27 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 09:33 AM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 07:22 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:40 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:23 AM)Smaug Wrote:  So, continue to feed the beast.

Just once I would like to see us simply say..."We don't need ________ this anymore." When was the last time we ended a useless government program?

How about the 294 golf courses operated by the Pentagon. I am a veteran and my son is currently serving but the defense budget needs about a 25% reduction (then we would only spend 5 times more than anyone else on earth)

25% across the board for the entire federal govt and then go to Clinton tax rates...

I could live with that..

That's a good starting point. We should start with everything on the table & understand that we will not accomplish everything on our wish list but be determined to make some sort of progress. I've never been more ashamed of our political system than the past two years wasted discussing the fiscal cliff but coming away from the table with zero deficit reduction. The bond market will be our judge in just a few years if we don't address the issues at hand.

Yeah, I'm not sure why some people praise our political system so much and don't want to change it from its origins 200 years ago. We clearly need a constitutional convention to recreate our government.

(12-31-2012 09:33 AM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 07:22 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:40 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:23 AM)Smaug Wrote:  So, continue to feed the beast.

Just once I would like to see us simply say..."We don't need ________ this anymore." When was the last time we ended a useless government program?

How about the 294 golf courses operated by the Pentagon. I am a veteran and my son is currently serving but the defense budget needs about a 25% reduction (then we would only spend 5 times more than anyone else on earth)

25% across the board for the entire federal govt and then go to Clinton tax rates...

I could live with that..

Neither would I.

A few of my suggestions:

Installation of HR25 or some variation of consumption tax paradigm.
This totally untaxes the poor, brings in gray and black market revenues, spurs economic growth and makes America again THE place for business.

Install market incentives into government to reduce it size.
For example....Pay management bureaucrats percentage bonuses for every dollar that is "returned" from their budgets at year end without penalty of budget reduction in the next year. Pay additional incentives for every job cut through not replacing retired workers. The system now is exactly the opposite and has led to expansion of government programs.

Marketize as many government functions as possible through competitive "term" contracts. The goal is to reduce the massive cost of government pensions and entitlements and open up government functions to market competition and lower costs.

Removal of US Military assets throughout the world that do not threaten security. Require nations in which we "protect" to PAY for that protection..or..we leave. Many of these nations are taking advantage of the US and need to start protecting themselves or pay the damn bill for it.

Across the board mandated 1% reduction in ALL government budgets for the next 30 years. We did not get in this mess overnight and a slow reduction is probably prudent. We need a long term PLAN in any regard.

Revamp the SS system.
Repay ONLY what a person has payed IN to the system if their personal retirement income is above a particular threshold....let's say...300K.
Increase retirement age until the system becomes solvent again.
Allow young workers to increase returns in their SS through safe investment options.
Mandate the the government "repay" the SS trust fund over the next 30 years and make it a law that it can NEVER be borrowed from again.

Repeal Obamacare and install a system similar to that of the French. I have no problem with a National HC system. Let's just do it right and do our due diligence.

Elimination of redundant government functions everywhere they exist.

(12-31-2012 09:38 AM)firmbizzle Wrote:  3) force term limits. 6 terms for the house, 2 for the senate, 3 for the president.

You should probably hold off on the 3-term President decision for a year or two... if we kick the can down the road any longer the poor will learn the true meaning of poor when we can't pay them someone else's money to sit around any more. Food prices will skyrocket, gas only to the working, hyper inflation... They'll turn up the violence in "protest" and get mowed down by the police and "gun nuts" they are stealing from.

Yay Obama.

(12-31-2012 10:40 AM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 10:27 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 09:33 AM)Bull_In_Exile Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 07:22 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:40 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  Just once I would like to see us simply say..."We don't need ________ this anymore." When was the last time we ended a useless government program?

How about the 294 golf courses operated by the Pentagon. I am a veteran and my son is currently serving but the defense budget needs about a 25% reduction (then we would only spend 5 times more than anyone else on earth)

25% across the board for the entire federal govt and then go to Clinton tax rates...

I could live with that..

That's a good starting point. We should start with everything on the table & understand that we will not accomplish everything on our wish list but be determined to make some sort of progress. I've never been more ashamed of our political system than the past two years wasted discussing the fiscal cliff but coming away from the table with zero deficit reduction. The bond market will be our judge in just a few years if we don't address the issues at hand.

Yeah, I'm not sure why some people praise our political system so much and don't want to change it from its origins 200 years ago. We clearly need a constitutional convention to recreate our government.

Lawd have mercy

(12-31-2012 07:22 AM)Mr. Peanut Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:40 AM)Fo Shizzle Wrote:  

(12-30-2012 09:23 AM)Smaug Wrote:  So, continue to feed the beast.

Just once I would like to see us simply say..."We don't need ________ this anymore." When was the last time we ended a useless government program?

How about the 294 golf courses operated by the Pentagon. I am a veteran and my son is currently serving but the defense budget needs about a 25% reduction (then we would only spend 5 times more than anyone else on earth)

Am I to understand you think we play on those courses for free?

How about this, you come to terms with a 16 trillion dollar debt, 8% unemployment, 48+ million on food stamps, over 1 trillion dollar deficit, a credit downgrade, etc. all while OWNING the Presidency and the Senate, and then explain to me why anyone else should have to come to terms with anything other than the fact that you're a blind, partisan fool. Don't give me this B.S. about Obama inheriting a damn thing. He was elected, spent 4 years, and ran for re-election. If he was in over his head, he shouldn't have wanted re-election. This f*cked up economy is all his now. We'll be 20 trillion in debt in less than 4 years. Idiot Dims apparently lack the intellect to understand the implication of that.

(12-29-2012 05:17 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 03:58 PM)Rebel Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 03:25 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  What are you paying them to do, tv interviews? Lol

Regulate interstate commerce and defend the nation. All the rest of that BS they need to leave up to the states. I'd just as soon send them on 11 month vacations and work only one month a year, save for national emergencies. What the hell is it with you Progs that you just cannot understand more government = less individual freedom? Are your brain cells on strike?

How many times does Abraham Lincoln and the Union army have to tell you NO before you get it through your thick skull? Keep fighting that war, keep losing that war. You aren't the sharpest tool in the shed.

Slavery is dead and we've all but kicked the Dims out of the South, fool. It's time to start running this nation as the founders intended.

(12-31-2012 01:49 PM)Rebel Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 05:17 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 03:58 PM)Rebel Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 03:25 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  What are you paying them to do, tv interviews? Lol

Regulate interstate commerce and defend the nation. All the rest of that BS they need to leave up to the states. I'd just as soon send them on 11 month vacations and work only one month a year, save for national emergencies. What the hell is it with you Progs that you just cannot understand more government = less individual freedom? Are your brain cells on strike?

How many times does Abraham Lincoln and the Union army have to tell you NO before you get it through your thick skull? Keep fighting that war, keep losing that war. You aren't the sharpest tool in the shed.

Slavery is dead and we've all but kicked the Dims out of the South, fool. It's time to start running this nation as the founders intended.

Then quit yer yapping about states rights.

Newsflash. This nation has rarely been run as the founders intended. Thank God.

(12-31-2012 03:03 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  This nation has rarely been run as the founders intended. Thank God.

Wow.

(12-31-2012 01:49 PM)Rebel Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 05:17 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 03:58 PM)Rebel Wrote:  

(12-29-2012 03:25 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  What are you paying them to do, tv interviews? Lol

Regulate interstate commerce and defend the nation. All the rest of that BS they need to leave up to the states. I'd just as soon send them on 11 month vacations and work only one month a year, save for national emergencies. What the hell is it with you Progs that you just cannot understand more government = less individual freedom? Are your brain cells on strike?

How many times does Abraham Lincoln and the Union army have to tell you NO before you get it through your thick skull? Keep fighting that war, keep losing that war. You aren't the sharpest tool in the shed.

Slavery is dead and we've all but kicked the Dims out of the South, fool. It's time to start running this nation as the founders intended.

Besides you being an idiot that brings only heat and no light to any conversation can you tell me what the GOP gained by stonewalling these negotiations other than walking away from a reasonable deal that was better than the one they will end up with. We have to work across the aisles to move the debt needle.

(12-31-2012 03:10 PM)Smaug Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 03:03 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  This nation has rarely been run as the founders intended. Thank God.

Wow.

It all changed after Lincoln. 87/236 years were as the founders intended.

So, your conversation begins and ends with slavery.

Good to know.

(12-31-2012 05:05 PM)Smaug Wrote:  So, your conversation begins and ends with slavery.

Good to know.

Not just slavery. There is suspension of habeas corpus, due process, citizenship, equal protection clauses, expansion of the franchise, and the use of the executive order. The rules have changed over time to meet the needs of the current era.

Don't forget the nanny state we're devolving to.

(12-31-2012 05:21 PM)Smaug Wrote:  Don't forget the nanny state we're devolving to.

We are becoming a society where women are gaining power. Women like to be taken care of. They don't want to "go it alone" or "build it from scratch". They like safety and the nanny state makes them feel secure. So in the future look for more daycare/work options, working from home, universal health care, shorter work weeks, more mandated vacations and generally more involvement from government.

(12-31-2012 05:55 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 05:21 PM)Smaug Wrote:  Don't forget the nanny state we're devolving to.

We are becoming a society where women are gaining power. Women like to be taken care of. They don't want to "go it alone" or "build it from scratch". They like safety and the nanny state makes them feel secure. So in the future look for more daycare/work options, working from home, universal health care, shorter work weeks, more mandated vacations and generally more involvement from government.

And decline. You left out that point. You're right about the rest.

(12-31-2012 05:55 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 05:21 PM)Smaug Wrote:  Don't forget the nanny state we're devolving to.

We are becoming a society where women are gaining power. Women like to be taken care of. They don't want to "go it alone" or "build it from scratch". They like safety and the nanny state makes them feel secure. So in the future look for more daycare/work options, working from home, universal health care, shorter work weeks, more mandated vacations and generally more involvement from government.


* * *

Not just slavery. There is suspension of habeas corpus, due process, citizenship, equal protection clauses, expansion of the franchise, and the use of the executive order. The rules have changed over time to meet the needs of the current era.

You live in a sad dark America. And that saddest part is you want Americans to be MORE dependent on the government. You seem to want to sweep aside the constitution because it stands in the way of your vision of all-encompassing government. If you dislike America so much, why do you want to be here? I'm sure you could find a statist socialist country that suits you. Why do you want to destroy everything that America represents?

At least the right-wing folks who talk about secession want a constitutional government. They love the idea of America and want to return to constitutional limits on the federal government. You want the opposite. You want the opposite of America quite simply. I'm literally shocked.

(12-31-2012 06:10 PM)Jugnaut Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 05:55 PM)firmbizzle Wrote:  

(12-31-2012 05:21 PM)Smaug Wrote:  Don't forget the nanny state we're devolving to.

We are becoming a society where women are gaining power. Women like to be taken care of. They don't want to "go it alone" or "build it from scratch". They like safety and the nanny state makes them feel secure. So in the future look for more daycare/work options, working from home, universal health care, shorter work weeks, more mandated vacations and generally more involvement from government.


* * *

Not just slavery. There is suspension of habeas corpus, due process, citizenship, equal protection clauses, expansion of the franchise, and the use of the executive order. The rules have changed over time to meet the needs of the current era.

You live in a sad dark America. And that saddest part is you want Americans to be MORE dependent on the government. You seem to want to sweep aside the constitution because it stands in the way of your vision of all-encompassing government. If you dislike America so much, why do you want to be here? I'm sure you could find a statist socialist country that suits you. Why do you want to destroy everything that America represents?

At least the right-wing folks who talk about secession want a constitutional government. They love the idea of America and want to return to constitutional limits on the federal government. You want the opposite. You want the opposite of America quite simply. I'm literally shocked.

I want a better America. We are getting there.

We are?