Mother, mother, mother - there's too many of you crying.

[SEC_Chick]

So the polling on this whole government shutdown thing is far better for Republicans than I thought it would be.

http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/19/politi...aca/index.html

[sebastian_dangerfield]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1MZRowhMtc

[sebastian_dangerfield]

"When Trump becomes the starting point and ending point for how we talk about American politics, [we] don’t end up talking about the fundamental ways the American political and economic and cultural system are completely fucked for huge numbers of Americans who voted for Trump for that reason,” [Greenwald] says. “We don’t talk about all the ways the Democratic Party is a complete fucking disaster and a corrupt, sleazy sewer, and not an adequate alternative to this far-right movement that’s taking over American politics.”

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer...&utm_source=fb

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

"When Trump becomes the starting point and ending point for how we talk about American politics, [we] don’t end up talking about the fundamental ways the American political and economic and cultural system are completely fucked for huge numbers of Americans who voted for Trump for that reason,” [Greenwald] says. “We don’t talk about all the ways the Democratic Party is a complete fucking disaster and a corrupt, sleazy sewer, and not an adequate alternative to this far-right movement that’s taking over American politics.”

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer...&utm_source=fb

Damn, a Maher/Greenwald duo. What have you done, given up Fox and gone looking for something similar but with a less alt-right feel?

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

"When Trump becomes the starting point and ending point for how we talk about American politics, [we] don’t end up talking about the fundamental ways the American political and economic and cultural system are completely fucked for huge numbers of Americans who voted for Trump for that reason,” [Greenwald] says. “We don’t talk about all the ways the Democratic Party is a complete fucking disaster and a corrupt, sleazy sewer, and not an adequate alternative to this far-right movement that’s taking over American politics.”

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer...&utm_source=fb

So talk about it. How to make things better?

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

So talk about it. How to make things better?

via Imgflip Meme Generator

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

Damn, a Maher/Greenwald duo. What have you done, given up Fox and gone looking for something similar but with a less alt-right feel?

Find a single instance in which I’ve supported or cited Fox positively.

Things I hate (among thousands of others):

All cable news (right and left)

Things I love (among thousands of others):

Maher
Greenwald

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

So talk about it. How to make things better?

Lead the world with a guaranteed wage — get ahead of the automation/inequality problem instead of responding when it’s a crisis. And have a debt jubilee for the poor (we can talk degrees later, but let’s agree on the concept now).

But both parties would fight this to the death. Schumer and McConnell would be even closer allies in that battle than they already are in their current Kabuki dance.

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy

via Imgflip Meme Generator

https://theintercept.com/2018/01/12/...spying-powers/

[SEC_Chick]

I totally am rooting for the Eagles tonight so I get to see these put to use:

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news...470393573.html

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

Lead the world with a guaranteed wage — get ahead of the automation/inequality problem instead of responding when it’s a crisis. And have a debt jubilee for the poor (we can talk degrees later, but let’s agree on the concept now).

But both parties would fight this to the death. Schumer and McConnell would be even closer allies in that battle than they already are in their current Kabuki dance.

Not sure why you think Democrats would fight this to the death.

On the debt jubilee thing, the government would pay the cost, because it's a taking. If the government were going to pay that much, is that the best way to spend it?

[sebastian_dangerfield]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

Not sure why you think Democrats would fight this to the death.

On the debt jubilee thing, the government would pay the cost, because it's a taking. If the government were going to pay that much, is that the best way to spend it?

It needn't be structured as a taking. Structure it as a five year amendment to the bankruptcy code allowing poor people meeting certain debt to income ratios to file bankruptcy and discharge all unsecured debt, renegotiate all secured debt, including mortgages, and entirely wipe out:

1. 100% of delinquent medical debt for non-elective procedures/care;
2. Up to 1/2 of non-grad school student loan debt involving accredited institutions;
3. 100% of student loan debt involving for-profit schools; and,
4. 100% of all non-grad school private lender student loans.

I'm not going to get into the weeds on how this can be done. There are literally endless rule tweaks and adjustments which could effect this result. But the aim should simply be to cancel almost all outstanding medical and student loan debt for poor people.

Democrats, most notably Schumer, would fight this alongside Republicans tooth and nail because it would hammer certain investors. Which is true. This concept would provide a financial opportunity to indebted people of modest means at cost to some investors. The cry against it would be, "You're stealing from pensioners!"

I'd say it's more stealing from rentiers.

You and I know all the economic arguments for transferring from Wall Street and pensioners to a demographic of poor people that skews somewhat younger (they spend it!). But that wouldn't deter Schumer and McConnell from serving the interests of those who fatten their campaign coffers by painting such a plan as theft from the old and weak. And that's why none of this will ever happen.

ETA: Oh, and a universal income will never happen because... Socialism!!!!!

ETA2: One other thing that would help ease a lot of the financial burden in this country would be to put a $10k per year cap on fed backed non-grad school student loans. Radically cut that revenue stream for higher education and you'll see the totally unjustifiable tuition increases collapse almost overnight. That'd increase retirement savings for parents enormously, easing the retirement crisis the country is facing.

[Adder]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1MZRowhMtc

Is there anyone worse qualified to make that argument?

[Adder]

Originally Posted by sebastian_dangerfield

Lead the world with a guaranteed wage — get ahead of the automation/inequality problem instead of responding when it’s a crisis. And have a debt jubilee for the poor (we can talk degrees later, but let’s agree on the concept now).

This was the libertarian party platform position, right?

[ThurgreedMarshall]

Originally Posted by Tyrone Slothrop

"People need to shit. They need to shit whether or not there is a toilet nearby. It's who we are. It's a blessing and a curse. We can and should be restrained, tamed, kept under control, toilet-trained. But nature will not be eradicated. And when neat freaks deny nature’s power, ignore our powerful need to take a dump, and sees our crapping wherever we feel like it as a function entirely of poor hygiene, they are going to overreach. They are going to alienate a lot of people. If most people are told that what they are deep down is, in fact, “problematic” and "unclean," if not “toxic” and "completely full of shit," they are going to get defensive, and with good reason. And they are going to react. They will see this as a war between the neat freaks and those of us who shit outdoors, indoors, wherever we please, not as a way to advance the freedom of both. They will fight back, and in this tribalized culture, the conflict will intensify. Suppress debate, ban ideas from civil conversation, and you won’t abolish these ideas."

Nicely done.

TM