aeortar

Reply to We've Got Nine Years in Politics JoeUser Forums

I disagree. First of all in terms of the impact of being reliant on other countries lending to them, one measure to look at is the balance of payments (which in simplified terms is looking at the difference between the money you get coming into the country and the money you have going out, i.e. imports make it worse, exports make it better). Now I wasn't able to have much success doing a quick google search for some BoP figures, but I did find this graph from some study site which plots the U

Reply to Russia Responds on the Iran Issue in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] A short, sharp air and naval campaign that hurls Iran back a generation, combined with a U.S. pullout from Iraq and Afghanistan, would leave Russia without its Iran card, and looking at an angry United States that has a very free hand [/quote] After Afghanistan and Iraq I really can't see the US managing a "short and sharp" war against Iran combined with pulling out of Iraq and Afghanistan - if anything their hands would be further tied down. Also given how little prom

Reply to One Question for ObamaCare in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] what are the population numbers of said countries compared to that of the US? [/quote] The US is larger - ahh I see what you mean now, that means it could be even cheaper from economies of scale!

Reply to Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] The question is, is it the duty of government to prohibit all education except that which is federally-approved? [/quote] For me that'd depend on the specifics although I'd lean towards a no - my main desire would be to have a government (/combination of governments) that ensure children can get an education. Whether I'd prefer that to be done locally with national government having an oversight role, or a completely hands-off, or a very controlling approach would depend on th

Reply to Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] The discussion is the U.S. Constitution and the federal government not all governments [/quote] You can try and play semantics if you want about different types of government (i.e. local/national), but ultimately they are both governing the population (one locally, one nationally), and hence are both governments. Combined, they typically (i.e. in you average developed country) are seen to have a duty to

Reply to Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Nobody but parents and state governments [/quote] So it is (a) government's duty then!

Reply to Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. It is not the government’s job to become benefactor to person’s people or nation, it is not the job of our government to give us anything [/quote] Yes it is. For example, if it's not government's duty to make sure all

Reply to Removing All Doubt - Thomas Friedman in Politics JoeUser Forums

You need spin? Theoretically the only form of government that is able to meet certain fundamental criteria generally considered desirable is a dictatorship, while intuitively a dictatorship's lack of accountability to the people carries advantages along with disadvantages, meaning that it is conceivable that a benevolent dictatorship could be preferable to a democracy. In reality it's hard to find such a dictator though, and even harder to sustain it, hence why democracy is generally seen as

Reply to Should CEOs post their obnoxious opinions under alias’s? in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Some moron that refuses to purchase a product because he/she doesn't like the political views of the company CEO would, in all probability, be such a pain in the ass customer that you're probably better off without them. [/quote] Nothing moronic about it, it's the consumer exercising their capitalist democratic right, something that makes capitalism in many ways a more effective democracy than the actual democratic system. Some people may decide to use their money to protest a

Reply to Can taxation ever be slavery? in Politics JoeUser Forums

No, not if those people had a choice about whether they worked. If they were forced to work at 100% tax, then there would be a case for slavery. Edit: Your OP is slightly unclear to me though - are these people taxed at 100% of their marginal income above a threshold, or do they lose all their income? If they lose all their income, then how would it work, since they could just work less so they weren't part of the top 1% (in turn lowering the threshold for entering into the top1%, pot

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] are you saying you don't know the difference between a public beach and a private beach? [/quote] No [quote] please explain to me what you think I implied [/quote] Ok, from before: "While the state can afford to have people pay for their own healthcare, the state cannot afford children paying for their own education (because they can't)." Funny, I thought that is what pa

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] I am fine with them using public beaches, i.e. things provided by nature. I figured, since we are talking about something man-made, there would have to be public houses on those public beaches. [/quote] Nature doesn't have ownership over public beaches, and doesn't maintain them. I'd also refer you back to the OP again regarding what was being discussed, since no mention is made of beach houses, or a focus only on things man-made, simply an analogy using public beaches

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Nobody said anything like that. The claim was that those who buy lakehouses shouldn't have to pay for beach houses that they don't use. [/quote] From the OP: [quote] With my cottage, some people like me are able to afford a place on the lake. Let’s call them the insured (except in the real world most people are insured). Others, have to use [b] public beaches [/b]. [/quote] Public beaches, not beach houses.

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] You seem to think this is fair [/quote] You seem to think it's unfair that if you buy a lakehouse you don't then get given money because you're using that instead of going to the beach. And yes, it is fair that education is funded via taxation. It ensures that every child is able to have the right to a basic education regardless of what mistakes their parents may have made, which also benefits the economy. If you then want to take your child and give them a different f

Reply to I am pro choice in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Money will be allocated for each illness or disease. This is done quarterly or annually. Once that money is used up treating sick people the next sick person has to wait till more money is allocated or the next quarter or the new year. This is how waiting lists are formed [/quote] Actually waiting lists are formed typically by a lack of a particular resource (in the case of healthcare it'll be medical s

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Now you are telling me that those going private wouldn't have to pay for the public plan? [/quote] No, those going private wouldn't have to pay [b] extra [/b]. I'll use some numbers since you appear to be misunderstanding me: UHC system: Persons A and B pay $250 a month in taxes (assume they have the same income/ignore progressive taxes for the moment) that go towards providing UHC. They both get to benefit from this UHC. Either one of them can choose to go privat

Reply to Obama = Hitler | Nationalized Health Care = Nazi Socialism in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Nice try at a dodge [/quote] Just as I thought, absolutely nothing to back up your feeble attempts at disinformation when they're challenged. As usual.

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] I seriously doubt that Obama's proposal includes permission not to pay extra (i.e. into the public fund) when someone goes private. [/quote] It wouldn't make sense to tax people extra for going private, because if they go private they're taking some strain off the public health care. Hence if the government doesn't tax then extra, it would be getting the same income, but face reduced costs, meaning they'd benefit. Alternatively they could keep the spending the same and increas

Reply to Obama = Hitler | Nationalized Health Care = Nazi Socialism in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] As in anything to do with George W. Bush. And you guys do realize, don't you, that virtually all the documented Nazi-esque crap has come from Lyndon LaRouche Democrats? [/quote] [e digicons]|-O[/e] There you go again - 'it's always the Democrats, never the Repulicans'. Also are you able to go just one day without trying to make up some words someone has never said, pretend like they've said it, and use it to 'argue' against them? Todays example: [quote] <

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

Neither would someone going private have to pay any extra to fund public just because they've gone private. That is, the lakehouse owner still gets to go to the beach if they want, but can also go to their lakehouse if they want, and they won't face any extra 'beach tax' if they do decide to.

Reply to Obama = Hitler | Nationalized Health Care = Nazi Socialism in Politics JoeUser Forums

IMO if someone has to resort to a 'hitler/nazi comparison' to argue against something, then what they're saying usually isn't worth taking seriously. There are a few rare exceptions, but generally hitler and nazi comparisons are horribly overused.

Reply to Health Care Debate #2: Obamacare and the Family cottage in Politics JoeUser Forums

Ironically your analogy is more apt when used to describe a UHC system (where private healthcare is also permitted) than a private vs UHC system: You don't become bankrupt from going to the beach - it's usually free and available to all - like universal healthcare (although it's still not an ideal comparison, because you don't have the same scarcity issues with the beach that you do with the lakehouse or with healthcare). However, if you're rich and want something better, you

Reply to So many reasons to be against government controlled health care… in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] Do you, or do you not think that the chart linked shows a direct connection between the X and Y axis of said chart? [/quote] Already answered - see reply 42. I'll even quote the relevant section for you in the hope that you'll be bothered to read it this time. [quote] looking at healthcare spending as a % of GDP is still of some use providing you make sure you group countries in rough GDP per capita bands. Looking at all of Europe+central asia, for example, the

Reply to So many reasons to be against government controlled health care… in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] I am sorry I asked for an INTELLIGENT counter. [/quote] And there I was thinking you'd finally accepted it wasn't stupid to believe healthcare is linked to life expectancy. There really is no point trying to open your eyes, since you insist on having them shut the entire time. [quote] you again create a strawman argument by ignoring the SPENDING portion of what we say [/quote] Well I guess if you've got your eyes closed it's kind of easy to miss things. I sugge

Reply to So many reasons to be against government controlled health care… in Politics JoeUser Forums

[quote] I am sorry but that is simply not a counter to this: [/quote] Already countered a long time ago (see reply 42). Your response to it was your 'most people are idiots' comment.