Politics and religion.

[wombat2u2004]

The Balloonist

A man in a hot air balloon realized he was lost. He reduced altitude and spotted a man below.
He descended a bit more and shouted, "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him half an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The man below replied, "You are in a hot air balloon hovering approximately 30 feet above the ground. You are between 42 and 44 degrees north latitude and between 83 and 85 degrees west longitude."

"You must be a Republican," said the balloonist.
"I am," replied the man, "but how did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of your information, and the fact is I am still lost."

The man below responded, "You must be a Democrat."
"I am," replied the balloonist, "how did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you are
going. You made a promise which you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. The fact is you are exactly in the same position you were in before we met, but now, somehow, it's my fault."

[phesina]

The Balloonist

A man in a hot air balloon realized he was lost. He reduced altitude and spotted a man below.
He descended a bit more and shouted, "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him half an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The man below replied, "You are in a hot air balloon hovering approximately 30 feet above the ground. You are between 42 and 44 degrees north latitude and between 83 and 85 degrees west longitude."

"You must be a Republican," said the balloonist.
"I am," replied the man, "but how did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of your information, and the fact is I am still lost."

The man below responded, "You must be a Democrat."
"I am," replied the balloonist, "how did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you are
going. You made a promise which you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. The fact is you are exactly in the same position you were in before we met, but now, somehow, it's my fault."

Hey Wom, do most Australians follow the American political scene as closely as you do, or do you make a special study of it all? And are American political goings-on in the news a lot in Australia?

I live right next door to Canada and listen to a Canadian radio station much of the time, so I have some idea of what's going on over there.. but I don't really follow the political scene all that closely, since it doesn't affect me directly and I have no say in it. (They do cover what's happening in the U.S. much more than American stations cover what's happening in Canada, too.)

[wombat2u2004]

Hey Wom, do most Australians follow the American political scene as closely as you do, or do you make a special study of it all? And are American political goings-on in the news a lot in Australia?

I live right next door to Canada and listen to a Canadian radio station much of the time, so I have some idea of what's going on over there.. but I don't really follow the political scene all that closely, since it doesn't affect me directly and I have no say in it. (They do cover what's happening in the U.S. much more than American stations cover what's happening in Canada, too.)

Not really Pat. I think 99.9% of Australians would probably tell you that "Congress" means a beer and shrimp BBQ. And there's never much on the media here about American politics.
I email a lot of US artillery veterans who were with me in Nam, and when they are unhappy about something, I get bombarded with all kinds of political stuff from over there.
Plus I had a lot of brothers and sisters in law who were Americans (connected to my first wife, who is now ancient history), and they used to talk about their politics to me when they came here or I went there.
So, what I know, which isn't a great deal, came from those sources, and also from PT to......LH is a good source for politics.

[lizbud]

Sometimes it helps to look back at how we got into the current money
problems. Might help on who we trust to better get us out of the debt woes.


http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...r-america.html

[Lady's Human]

For those who are unfamiliar with Mr. Begala, keep in mind that he is a long serving Democratic campaign strategist and adviser.

The article is far from the truth. It makes good partisan rhetoric, but as a factual piece it fails miserably.

Wall street deregulation (which Begala states is the cause of the crisis) started in 1999 when Pres. Clinton signed the financial modernization act, which removed the walls between securities firms, insurers, and banks. Had Pres. Clinton vetoed it, the veto likely would have stood, as Congress was too tightly contested to override a Presidential veto.

Despite the constant cries stating that the tax cuts signed into law by Pres. Bush are the cause of the current fiscal crisis, Federal tax revenue rose steadily from 2002 to 2007. Prior to 2002, the economy was in a state of flux driven by the collapse of the the tech stock bubble with the equally economically disastrous 9/11 attack. In 2008 federal revenue fell as the housing bubble burst.

To pin the current debt crisis on one party is foolish. Both are to blame, and both are to blame equally.

[Edwina's Secretary]

Anyone who has worked in a business knows you cannot be successful by just cutting costs. You must also increase revenue. Anyone who has ever been responsible for a family budget knows the same thing. And you certainly cannot increase costs and cut revenue and not expect a disaster.

Starting two wars and cutting taxes at the same time was the most idiotic decision.

Whether partisan, bi-partisan or non-partisan it doesn't change that truth.

[Lady's Human]

ES, point being, revenue ROSE after the tax cuts.

[Puckstop31]

Anyone who has worked in a business knows you cannot be successful by just cutting costs. You must also increase revenue. Anyone who has ever been responsible for a family budget knows the same thing. And you certainly cannot increase costs and cut revenue and not expect a disaster.

Starting two wars and cutting taxes at the same time was the most idiotic decision.Whether partisan, bi-partisan or non-partisan it doesn't change that truth.

I agree, 100%.

So, the new guy (and for the first couple years, 'his' Congress) ADDS more 'wars' and goes all in on the spending. Woot.

Again... Two sides of the same coin.

[Puckstop31]

In 2008 federal revenue fell as the housing bubble burst.

IMO, this had a greater impact. Fannie/Freddie. Follow the money. You do not even have to take any pundit's word. Just do your own digging, its easy enough to find the truth.

Demolicans.... Republicrats. Different sides of the same coin.

To pin the current debt crisis on one party is foolish. Both are to blame, and both are to blame equally.

LH for the win! (And the note about tax rates go down, revenue increases. Again, not a 'partisan' thing, facts. Easy enough to find and prove on one's own.)

Just watch the idiots we send to DC fight over this.... And people STILL want to play 'partisan'. As if one 'side' is better than the other. LOL


Question of the day. Why do certain people want to INcrease tax rates on the "rich"? We realize that its an INCOME tax, right? Where are the people screaming for a Capital Gains Tax increase if they want to sock it to the rich? The evil, super rich have little, if any, 'income' that gets taxed in the traditional way. This is something important to note as we allow them to engage us in class warfare.