Republicans Today

[Darkangel]

Pardon my blunt anger on this one but…

Hey dick head read it lets review what I said and then I will show you where u went wrong…
“There will always be a need to feed the poor and the hungry but, not if they put themselves there and are doing nothing to get into a better situation.
Judgmental, sure. But, aren’t we all.”

OK now the part where I said “put themselves there and are doing nothing to get into a better situation” has nothing to do with a child who was born into poverty or just has some dead beat parents who are making the kid live this way. I go do mission work in the U.S. and around the world for at least one week out of every year and when I can afford it I will do more. I know it is not the kids fault, I love little kids and hate having to see them grow up in a messed up life that had nothing to do with their actions. Next time you attack someone look in the mirror. When was the last time you did a good deed to help out your fellow human being instead of sitting at home talking trash behind your computer? If you really think everything is so messed up then go do something about it.
GET BIG. ( a sissies GET TOUGH or go home crying).
DA

[kuri]

nice to see you posting iscariot, and your on point as usual.

[The_Mage]

I really should get here more often. (I have been busy.)

It is so easy to try to pigeonhole people, but it is not that easy. Like the mistaken idea that Democrats are Liberal, and Republicans are Conservative. This is not true in all cases.

Republican and Democrat mean the political Party of affiliation. Liberal or Conservative means a political philosophy.

I am not a Republican, but I will admit that I am generally Conservative. This follows my general belief in smaller, less intrusive government. The truth is that I only believe in logic, and right now that logic seems to lead me to the Conservative side of the fence. But not always.

I am not a Republican because I don’t believe that following a party line is more important then thinking for yourself. And there are plenty of things I disagree with the Republican Party on. One of the things I have a problem with is the repeated statements that we need to cut spending, and generally Republicans increase spending. People have attacked Bush, trying to say he has cut various programs, but in actuality he has not cut a single cent of spending.

“Tax and spend” is bad, but “don’t tax while spending more” is just as moronic. Either way the government is living on credit cards. The only benefit to the latter is that the economy gets more of a boost, and income will grow faster, resulting in more taxable income.

Expansion of government follows the Liberal philosophy, so if the Republicans are expanding government, then they are Liberals. This might just mean we actually have two Liberal parties.

Libertarians are the closest to Conservative, though they might go too far. If the two big parties keep doing stupid shit, they might start to have a chance politically.

One thing I find annoying is this crazy idea that people have to hate each other if they are on the opposite political sides. Politics is too much about trying to destroy the other person, or Party, instead of trying to solve problems. And many of these problems are so fucking simple that people are blind to the answer.

All the time I spent in discussion here I never actually got angry with anyone. Just gave my point of view. But too often I can tell some people just go off, and get pissed off at others, and me. At which point I usually start laughing. (If you want to know if I am laughing at you, or with you, it is at you.) We don’t ever need to take these discussions so seriously.

Here is the crux of my philosophy. It seems so simple to have the government help people. If you give money to the poor, there would be no poor. Give health care to the poor, and they will be healthy.

While I could have listed item after item, I will stop at those two. These are lofty goals. I understand how these ideas are so enticing. But we have been giving to the poor for decades. Why are there still poor? How come free or reduced housing is generally higher in crime?

It falls under the same reason that most people who win a million or millions, in some sort of lottery, end up broke, and financially worse off then before they won. And yet it has been show repeatedly that there are people who build a fortune, lose it, and build another one, often as big or bigger. (Donald Trump is only one that comes to mind.)

People think throwing money at something is a solution. But it can often make it worse. Businesses started without a lot of money backing it up are actually more likely to succeed then businesses that have large amounts of cash.

When trying to eliminate poverty, you want to be able to help people succeed, not tie them to a wheelchair and push them to success. There is a difference between helping a student with their homework, and doing it for them. The world is littered with failures who got somebody to do their homework for them, not realizing it left them weak.

A second problem is this notion that anything is free. If you have ever dealt with the government, you know that there are always strings attached with everything. And every little thing that we give the government power over increases the government’s power over us.

Every socialist / communist country was started for noble reasons. But every time it has resulted in a government getting so much power that the people no longer are served by the government, but become slaves to it. Power hungry people are everywhere, and with such power as in a socialist government, these people can do some terrible things.

[The_Mage]

Now on to Lumpy:

Fist you Bash Rush for obtaining drugs, possibly illegally, (wait, isn’t this a site that is favorable about using a certain drug illegally?) and then you talk about how bad it is that marijuana is illegal.

Now I am not going to spend all night on this ranting diatribe full of biased crap, and twisting of facts. How exactly does each statement move us foreword? Each item is nothing but an attack. Where is the discussion?

Ok, the other side does the same thing. Listing item after item of B.S. without logic or proof.

Oh yeah, have you figured out the difference between the terms UN-AMERICAN and ANTI-AMERICAN yet?

[ZEB]

Lumpy,

With all due respect to you, and your most recent post. “The 35 million people living in poverty” are not exactly living in the sort of “poverty” that this country experienced during the great depression, or that many other countrys currently experience.

The Census Bureau and the US Department of Health and Human Services both record poverty statistics for the country. It is done by looking at money income plus family size and composition. This is before taxes and does not include any non-cash benefits (such as food stamps, etc.)The current poverty level is an income of less than $18,000 per year for a family of four.

Keep in mind that this figure does not include all food stamps or any other assistance by the US government. A family who lives in “poverty” in the United States can get all of their food paid for! In addition to this a majority of their housing is also paid through various government programs. There are also state and local programs which give discounts to those living at the poverty level. Items such as heating, gas and lights can be either fully paid for or at least partially subsidized. Did you know that most who live at the “poverty” level in this country have a microwave, cable TV and at least one car?

Also, relative to politics, 20% of the nations chldren live in poverty. This figure has not changed since 1981! Proving that this issue transcends both democratic and republican administrations.

I state none of this information as a reason not to help the poor. I have dedicated a portion of my own time and money giving to various programs that help children, such as the YMCA, Red Cross and other worthy organizations. I have seen poverty “up close” in the United States. I can claim without fear of contradiction that the sort of poverty that is experienced in this country cannot be compared to that which you see in any other part of the world!

[bigarrow]

My grade on Lumpys post:
Overall grade a very funny and solid B
Each statement is graded on its own.
It would of been an A if he would of thrown out the anti-church ones, they were too offensive for me and not funny or factual. And I don’t even go to church. Some but not all of the anti bush ones were a little biased too.

Subject: The Good Republican

To be a Republican today, you must believe that:

Being a drug addict is a moral failing and a crime-- unless you’re a conservative media host. Then it’s an “illness,” and you need our prayers for your recovery.

A+ factual A+ on satire and funny especially when the people who worship Rush get all bent out of shape

The United States should get out of the United Nations, but our highest national priority is enforcing United Nations resolutions against Iraq.
C+ factual B on satire

“Standing Tall for America” means firing your workers and moving their jobs to India.

C on facts C on satire

A woman can’t be trusted with decisions about her own body, but multi-national corporations can make decisions affecting all mankind without regulation.

F on facts F on satire (last I checked abortion is legal in America)

Jesus loves you, and He shares your hatred of homosexuals, environmentalists, and Hillary Clinton.

B on facts A on satire ( calm down, The B grade is for the preachers who preach against homo’s not actually Jesus)

The best way to improve military morale is to praise the troops in speeches while slashing veterans’ benefits and combat pay.

A on facts A on satire

Daily prayer in school is important for the moral teaching of our youth–as long as it is a Christian prayer. Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and others should convert or keep quiet.

F on facts C on satire ( At least where I live there are no prayers specific to religion in the schools )

Group sex and drug use are degenerate sins – unless you someday run for governor of California as a Republican.

A on facts A on satire and funny

If condoms are kept out of schools, teenagers won’t have sex.

A on facts A on satire All the young pregnant teenagers make it too sad to be funny

Unregulated free trade is capitalism at its best–unless it adversely affects a business sector key to your re-election.

A on facts A on satire Bush should of known better than this ( steel tariffs )

The United States alone is above international law.
F on facts F on satire

Government should relax regulation of Big Business, Big Energy, and Big Money, but crack down on individuals who use marijuana to relieve the pain of terminal illness.
B on facts A on satire

A good way to eliminate terrorism is to belittle our long-time allies, then demand their cooperation and money. A better way to eliminate terrorism is to attack much smaller, poor countries without provocation.
D on facts D on satire

HMOs and insurance companies have the public interest at heart.
B on facts B on satire but still funny, any joke making fun of lawyers or insurance company’s always works

Revocations of individual freedoms due to perceived security threats should not be questioned. Those who ask for justification are unpatriotic.
C on facts B on satire

Randomly-timed alteration of congressional districts solely to increase Republican seats is what the Founding Fathers had in mind.
A on facts A on satire same can be said for Democrats too

Second Amendment rights (as interpreted by Charlton Heston) are more important than First Amendment rights.
F on facts F on satire I don’t get it, but I really like Heston even when he gets a little excited.

Providing health care to all Iraqis is sound policy. Providing health care to all Americans is socialism.

D on facts B on satire unfactual but funny

Losing the popular vote still gives you a public mandate for radical change.
A on facts C on satire The vote didn’t give a mandate for radical change but 9-11 did.

Global warming, alternative fuels, and tobacco’s link to cancer are junk science, but creationism should replace evolution in school curricula.
D on facts D on satire Again I don’t think creationism is teached in the public schools.

The media that supports the Bush wars, the Bush tax cuts, and the “Patriot” Act but spent 8 years pursuing and embarrassing Clinton is still too liberal.
B on facts B on satire funny

Government regulation of individual rights must be limited as a hallmark of our free society–unless you’re talking about what consenting adults do in private.
B on facts A on satire funny

Saddam Hussein was a good guy when Reagan armed and financed him, a bad guy when Bush Sr. made war on him, a good guy when Cheney conducted business with him, and a bad guy when Bush Jr. needed a “we can’t find Bin Laden” diversion.
D+ on facts C on satire

A president lying about an extramarital affair is an impeachable offense. A president lying to enlist support for a war in which thousands die and millions are left destitute is solid defense policy.
C on facts C on satire

Invoking the phrase “September 11th” gives you the right to take any policy steps you deem necessary.
D on facts A on satire not true but funny

Government should limit itself to the powers named in the Constitution, which include banning gay marriages and censoring the Internet.
A on facts A on satire and funny

The US government knows what’s right for all other cultures and has the right to overthrow foreign governments and change economic systems as it sees fit.
B on facts A on satire The Republicans used to be against nation building.

To kill is utterly immoral and wrong. To show how wrong it is, you will be righteously killed if you kill.
A on facts A on satire real funny and I’m pro capital punishment, killing the murders is ok with me

Democracy and free debate are the foundations of our great country and should be encouraged worldwide–unless you’re an ally who disagrees with a US policy, in which case you should be isolated and ridiculed.
C on facts C on satire I really wanted to give this an F because I think the French suck, but I curbed my bias.

The public has a right to know about Hillary’s cattle trades, but George Bush’s driving record is none of our business.
A on facts A on satire funny

Treating all people equally and fairly is the root of our justice system–unless you’re a Muslim male, in which case you’re automatically regarded as suspicious.
A on facts D on satire this is a necessary fact of life at least for the time being

Letting our children see anything more loving than a kiss on television will corrupt their minds and lead to ill-behavior. But letting them watch gratuitous violence with weapons is a patriotic tradition.
F on facts F on satire didn’t get this one there’s lots of sex on tv

You support States’ Rights, which means Attorney General John Ashcroft can tell states what local voter initiatives they have a right to adopt.
C on facts A on satire I can’t give this a rating of funny because Ashcroft scars me.

Invading Islamic countries is a good excuse for ignoring severe recession and other social ills at home.
C on facts D on satire

What Bill Clinton did in the 1960s is of vital national interest, but what Bush did in the '80s is irrelevant.
A on facts A on satire funny

Trade with Cuba is wrong because their government is communist, but trade with communist China and Vietnam is vital to a spirit of international harmony.
A on facts A on satire and again funny

[silverback584]

Lumpy,

Your comment about Goebbels being proud…

wasn’t Goebbels a racist…I am pretty sure that I never mentioned race… maybe I should read my post again…nope…no race… i guess you are just dense…

no wait, that is an insult to dense people…you aspire to be dense someday…this is obviously a long-term goal for you, since you are so far away from it right now, but everyone has dreams…you can do it.

also, the comment about fat people was pretty harsh… you are right that our big government does subsidize fatness through corn subsidies, so i guess we should subsidize fat people’s food, and then subsidize when they get sick from a constant state of fatness.

my aunt’s doctor put it a good way when she wanted to lose weight in college… he said: take a look at the WWII pics of the concentration camps…are there any fat people…no…no food…no fat…

pretty harsh way to look at it, but it really addesses the collumn after collumn written by people who don’t understand why they just can’t lose weight… hmm… really simple…not easy…just simple.

to let you know LUMPY, my view is first hand

my father is a successful business owner who divorced my mother and let me grow up in the trailer parks of florida…i literally stole for food when i was in middle school. then, he moved me to one of the richest high schools in michigan when i was a freshman, but couldn’t figure out why i didn’t fit in… so i left, and we don’t talk too much…

fortunately, like so many of my friends in central florida, i actually did my school work. i came from poverty… studied…had a high school drop-out mom… most everything not working for me, except i trusted that education was the way out… it was the only thing i got from my dad… so, i crank out a great SAT score (and, don’t imply that i am just a lucky one who is good at standardized tests…that is some of the worst horseshit i ever heard… i give seminars to high school kids, and the kids always talk SAT this and SAT that being unfair…or worse yet, that they aren’t a good test taker… my response is usually: well, when the lights go on on friday night and the whistle blows, you are a damn good test taker, huh? maybe the enswer is that you don’t prepare to be successful. i love those that imply that Geometry and algebra is racially biased… haha… yeah Mr. Geometry is a grand marshall in the KKK)

here is my point: poor is a mindset

we support the poor… let me say that again… we support the state of being poor… it is a state of being… it is a mindset… we subsidize the state of being poor…

if we give the poor money, they are still poor…

if you do not earn the money, you are a leach, you are poor, you are a non-producer…

so, when we support the state of being poor more and more, we cause there to be more poor people… if you make people earn their way, hey will find a way…

shit pavlov had it right…it is simple… do not reward behavior you do not desire… that is it…it is easy…

now, will there still be poor…yes…always will be…there were poor in the Soviet…many more poor in fact than in the US… many more

is it a shame for the kids…yes, of course… it sucked growing up where i did… i go back every year to motivate myself… every year

my knowledge is not only from the trailer parks…i taught at a high school with 68% at risk kids…mostly minorities… you know what was different? the color of their skin. you know what was the same? mindset.

the problem is simple… give a helping hand, not a supporting one…make poor a state that is bad enough to motivate… it is almost better to be a poor american than a middle class mexican… think about it… there used to be no welfare… it was the poor houses… there used to be no income tax (before 1913, yes, i was a history teacher)

help all cultures to embrace education as the way out…it is…not to riches necessarily, but out of the trap of poverty…

also, let’s remember another key fact: many of the rich libs and repubs in government earned their money the old fashioned way…they inherited it.

this is key to understanding motivation:

let’s ask fat-assed kennedy if we can repeal income tax (new money, people producing wealth and jobs) and instead instill a tax on his capital gains…

make the capital gains tax say somewhere in the realm of 75%, then repeal the income tax… now see how many spending cuts will be proposed…

our tax system perpetuates old money, and harms new producers…

it is easy for him to tax the piss out of everyone out there doing something… he already has his money and tucked away, so it is taxed at a lower rate…much lower, no?..

something to think about…