Politics: A new beginning

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
I will not try to persuade you that people who have been out of work for so long, and have had so little luck looking for work that have given up, deserve your sympathy, and only brought it up because it related to the reported unemployment rate, which you do care about.

but Ty, 100K quit trying last month, when unemployment has finally been dropping for the last few months? my god, that is tragic!

that's like those movies where a guy dies in the desert because he can't get over some hill, then the camera pans out and you see an oasis, or at least a 7-11 the other side.

[Not Me]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
There are conservatives who would like dismantle the New Deal, and who have suggested that the reason to cut taxes without concomitant reductions in spending is to "starve the beast" -- i.e., to put future governments in the position of having to cut New Deal social programs.

There are also libertarians who would like to do that.

All too often, you lump the libertarians in with the conservatives, and that is just not right.

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
(Why they think that future governments will not simply raise taxes is a little unclear to me, but whatever.)

Because future governments will probably be dominated by Republicans.

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
Bush would get more credit for the Medicare bill from Democrats if it were designed to benefit Medicare patients instead of K Street clients like drug companies and HMOs.

HMOs don't insure any sizable portion of the Medicare community.

The solution is to means-test for Medicare. Those seniors with the money to pay for their own health care should pay for it. Medicare should become a welfare program for the needy. That will solve the problem.

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
Not clear whether you're having an Easterbrook moment here.

I don't know what that means, but whatever. Stepping back, I guess it sounds more like a blue_triangle moment.

I guess I owe the board a bit of an apology, cuz I know how the comment might've sounded. FWIW, some of my best friends are Jews. Not really really really close friends, but okay friends. Well, actually, my reviewing attorney is a Jew and he's my friend.

Seriously, I read that thing in some paper or another this morning and thought it was strange that it was the first time I was hearing such a thing. Literally, they tied something like 5 of the candidates together as pandering to the Jewish lobby. So I did a search on the papers I tend to read, starting with the NYT which I cited, and I can't find a fucking word of reference. Not in the Boston Globe, not in the LA Times, not in the Chicago Tribune or Chicago Sun Times. Dammit, did I check the Washington Post? I'll be right back.

Well, actually, I googled the news because I don't make this stuff up. To my utter shame (though it is reporting a purported fact that each of the candidates wants recognized), it came up on a page. Unfortunately, the page references Ann Coulter (hi puffy!). Apparently, she brought this up in a recent piece.

I don't read her.

The link from google is:

http://frontpagemag.com/Articles/Rea...e.asp?ID=11133

Anyway, the article I was reading indicated that 90% of the Jewish vote went to Gore/Lieberman and at least a simple majority of the Arab vote went to Bush. The Democrats are worried now because the Jewish vote is shifting towards the Republicans. Well, at least more than 10% of Jews are expected to vote Republican. Something about the common ground on the war on terrorism.

And, I guess you'll have to take my word for it, it specifically stated that more than 50% of campaign money was sourced to Jews.

OK, so in addition to everything else you guys had heard, I guess the surprise is that Clark apparently "found out" that his dad was Jewish. Amazing that Kerry and Castro's Arkansas protege found out similar things once they were running for office.

Quick everyone, call around and find out if you are Jewish. Wouldn't you like to be a democratic candidate too?


Obviously this is a bit over the top, so untwist your panties please. Coulter's point was apparently the one I'm making in the last two paragraphs. I don't have a problem with it per-se and, in fact, all other things being equal I'd rather see a Jewish president than another president Kennedy or Clinton or a former crack addict or whatever. Unfortunately, all other things aren't equal.

Question, was that cocaine use ever admitted or verified for Bush? It just struck me again this week, I really really really have a problem with that (hi FB!) in the background of a president. Fuck me. Dean?

Hello

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by Not Me
This is just fantasy that people "leave" the workforce because they get discouraged. What, do they just wake up one day and say, "Oh, I have been pounding the pavement for 5 months now and I am just discouraged, so I guess I going to drop out of the labor force and stop eating."

Or move into my sister's basement or get a loan? Who the fuck is going to loan them money? How many people can just shack up with a relative when they have a spouse or kids? Seriously, the idea that anyone who needs to work to eat can drop out of the labor force for any significant period of time is a flawed concept.

Have you been reading SAM's posts or mine? Why does someone have to stop eating if they drop out of the labor force? Are you still that close to a hardscrabble youth?

Do you have access to credit? If not, that's very sad because you shouldn't wait until you are unemployed to start applying. I have access to, well, a lot of unused credit that will start getting used the minute I'm unemployed. Others have savings and/or family. But I already "told" you that.

I hate to give up on you so soon, but if you keep persisting in the belief and/or assertion that the work force is divided into 1.) those who work for luxuries and 2.)those who need to work to eat, I can't imagine anyone telling you for the, what, 10th? time how *youthful that sounds.

Hello

*I'm in a good mood, aren't I?

[Not Me]

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
OK, so in addition to everything else you guys had heard, I guess the surprise is that Clark apparently "found out" that his dad was Jewish. Amazing that Kerry and Castro's Arkansas protege found out similar things once they were running for office.

Did anyone else see the campaign footage from Lieberman? It was fucking hilarious. Lieberman is talking to a group of supporters and announces to everyone that he just found out that his great-grandmother's name was Mary Elizabeth O'Mallay and it turns out he is Irish. The audience didn't think it was too funny. I thought it was hilarious.

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
Question, was that cocaine use ever admitted or verified for Bush?

No but, if you were to ask me IRL, I would deny ever dropping acid/ecstacy or smoking rock (which is what crack was called on the West Coast in the early '80s). Doubt you could verify it, either. Most of those who could provide you with that information didn't survive the '80's.

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
I don't know what that means, but whatever. Stepping back, I guess it sounds more like a blue_triangle moment....

Hello

Just shoot me. It was on the front page of Saturday's Washington Post.

Here it is:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...003Dec6_2.html

See page 2 of the article.

Unfortunately, I was a little off in my characterization. Jews didn't provide half of all total money for the '00 elections. It says Jews provided half of all Democratic money for the '98 and '00 elections.

Awww yeah, how you like me now? Can you feel that? That's what you get for doubting me! Put that in your pipe and smoke it! Don't mess with Texas! You wanna start a war with me, you better bring a good supply of body bags!

Whatever whatever. Its still sort of an interesting article, and I guess Coulter does at least have a point to consider (though she didn't write the Wash Po article, duh!).

Hello

[Not Me]

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
Awww yeah, how you like me now? Can you feel that? That's what you get for doubting me! Put that in your pipe and smoke it! Don't mess with Texas! You wanna start a war with me, you better bring a good supply of body bags!

Down boy!

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by SlaveNoMore
But will this help him in "The Soviet Union"?

Yeah, like 3/4 of NYC doesn't do that. At the very least, if you people had any shame, you'd shave your womens' chests.

[Not Me]

Originally posted by Not Me
Down boy*!

*if you are black, I apologize for that racial slur. If you are white, well, no apology to you and now settle down, boy!

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by Not Me
*if you are black, I apologize for that racial slur. If you are white, well, no apology to you and now settle down, boy!

See, *he's not a racist! **He's just misunderstood.

Hello

*if you are a female, I apologize for that sexist assumption. If you are male, no apology to you and congratulations on the Jim Carrey derivation quote

**See above. I really meant it.

[Not Me]

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
See, *he's not a racist!

Of course I am not racist. Down boy is something one says to their dog when he* is getting out of hand (usually humping your leg). But then I realized, if you were black, that could be taken the wrong way and I don't know your race. However, now that I think about it, I totally ignored asians and, also, cabilinasians, so maybe it was all just one big racial slur against all non-white/non-blacks.**

*girl dogs don't hump legs, so that wasn't sexist for me to call the dog "he."

**In case you need a bit of help with this one, I was also pointing out how ridiculous all this PC crap is.

FYI - I am woman hear me roar.

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by Not Me
Of course I am not racist. Down boy is something one says to their dog when he* is getting out of hand (usually humping your leg). But then I realized, if you were black, that could be taken the wrong way and I don't know your race. However, now that I think about it, I totally ignored asians and, also, cabilinasians, so maybe it was all just one big racial slur against all non-white/non-blacks.**

*girl dogs don't hump legs, so that wasn't sexist for me to call the dog "he."

**In case you need a bit of help with this one, I was also pointing out how ridiculous all this PC crap is.

FYI - I am woman hear me roar.

That's so funny, i invented the humping leg concept on this site when I accused... forget it. Anyway, its already been done. By me. Weird that. But thanks for playing. Carry on.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by sgtclub
But in any event, the Democrats will still be able to claim, and will claim, a net loss in jobs under Bush.

Watch. 9/11 will be his fault, too. With as much factual support.

Just my prediction.

These people have NO shame.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
*I'm in a good mood, aren't I?

You sound under the influence, NTTAWWT.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
It would be irritating to see it work, as a political matter, since few self-respecting economists can try to justify the policies on their merits.

Translation: It would suck to see this work, as my entire philosophy has been devoted to explaining why it can't.