Recent Example of Transformation.....

[callmeslick]

That there "apointee" seems a little confused...mostly, about what they is.....

actually, the appointee(note spelling) seems pretty certain of what she wished to be.

And that there Obama remark and debt? If things is whut you say...about all that money owed or obligated....Why in the world would anyone want to add a couple trillion dollars more in debt to it.....

because, if they hadn't, the economy would have really gone tits-up, and the loss of tax revenue would have made a bad situation far worse. This stuff isn't rocket science, Pudfark. You just have to try and learn about it a little more. It's amusing and all to write cutesy, folksy stuff, but seriously, read what you write before you hit 'submit'. I'll give you an example:

....What's wrong with the current health care system? I can afford it....

whether you, or I, can afford it isn't the issue. It's that lots of folks, without hybrids or ANY cars, can't. Even more, those who could afford it at reasonable rates, are denied because of pre-existing conditions, and still more, who are paying for it, get denied coverage due to a profit-oriented system of determining payout. What you end up with, in this country, is as fucked-up as a soup sandwich. The poor, or penniless, flood the emergency rooms, driving up costs to paying customers. People lose their homes and life savings over medical bills unpaid by the insurance they do carry. What's wrong, you ask? Plenty.

then again, I drive a ten year old truck and not an overpriced hybrid hoopty.....just sayin.....and meanin....

seems like you do plenty of sayin' with utterly no meanin' at all.

Old Pudfark sez: " The buck don't stop at Obama...it goes plum to yer pockets "

whatever the fuck that means.

[callmeslick]

foreign aid makes up less than 1% of the budget.

Gotta start somewhere.

fine. But you don't really address the problem, and for less than a 1% savings, you piss off the less developed parts of the world, upon whom we depend for resources, military outposts and other stuff they might be WAY less inclined to provide. The US is in a bidding war with China in many of the most strategic of those places.

Face it, the government, whether anyone wishes to face up to it, needs more revenue. And, there's a fair way to go about it(unless you're an accountant or tax lawyer). It's called a Flat Tax, and it would be simple to administer. You know(as in, the Government knows) approximately the total income of the citizenry. You have the Federal Budget. You give every taxpaying adult a $15,000 per person untaxed income allowance, and take the remaining income and figure the percentage that is needed to cover the budget. Budget in an increased debt payment to lower the long-term indebtedness. No writeoffs, no legislation via tax breaks, no loopholes, nothing. Everything I've ever read indicates that about an 18% rate does the trick. Problem solved.

[ruggbutt]

The problem with the flat tax is that it never stays at the percentage it starts with. First it's 10%. Then it's 12. Then 14. Then it's 33%. We all know how that works which is why people are against it. Hell, I'm still paying for the Spanish American War every time I pay my phone bill.

[callmeslick]

The problem with the flat tax is that it never stays at the percentage it starts with. First it's 10%. Then it's 12. Then 14. Then it's 33%. We all know how that works which is why people are against it. Hell, I'm still paying for the Spanish American War every time I pay my phone bill.

that is true about any tax, but you have to pay for government somehow. And, it should be approximately fair, which rules out sales taxes. If you peg the tax to the budget, and the People maintain some intelligent vigilance over the government, you shouldn't have an issue.

[Pudfark]

Slick...the fundamental thing here is this....What's next Slick? Mandatory contributions/taxes for the United Way...because you and a few other dipshits think that's the way it oughta be? Fuck them....that's life.

Law of Nature: "Survival of the fittest"...go ahead argue it...all you want...grave yards is full of them that argued it and it didn't change nothing for them.....

So, Slick...I challenge you to put yer money where yer mouth is...do this? Grab the checkbook and a pen and start writting checks to all them misfortunates...until your balance is zero....then go apply for every credit card you can think of...and start charging for them poor folks....sell all your worldly goods and properties...borrow from your family...and leave no inheritance.....and when you can't pay back any of the debt that you have accrued....declare bankruptcy....slide out the back door in court....and be sure and tell everybody including your creditors and family...what a good guy you are......and by the way, do all of this because I told you to.....cuz, that is what you are telling the rest of us....

Old Pudfark sez: "America..the land of the brave, the home of the sheep"

[callmeslick]

Slick...the fundamental thing here is this....What's next Slick? Mandatory contributions/taxes for the United Way...because you and a few other dipshits think that's the way it oughta be? Fuck them....that's life.

Law of Nature: "Survival of the fittest"...go ahead argue it...all you want...grave yards is full of them that argued it and it didn't change nothing for them.....

nice attitude. Sorry, but I believe in a bit of a safety net. Not a nanny state, but a safety net. It's pretty simple. Other nations manage it, without any adverse effects.

So, Slick...I challenge you to put yer money where yer mouth is...do this? Grab the checkbook and a pen and start writting checks to all them misfortunates...until your balance is zero....then go apply for every credit card you can think of...and start charging for them poor folks....sell all your worldly goods and properties...borrow from your family...and leave no inheritance.....and when you can't pay back any of the debt that you have accrued....declare bankruptcy....slide out the back door in court....and be sure and tell everybody including your creditors and family...what a good guy you are......and by the way, do all of this because I told you to.....cuz, that is what you are telling the rest of us....

that's nonsense. Nothing new for you, but still complete nonsense. This nation has plenty of capital and can do what is reasonable and just with no real problems. You read my Flat Tax example above(I presume). Is that something you couldn't afford? Or, is it just something you're too selfish to consider?

[Barfly]

Start with foreign aid, next dump postal delivery. Those are easy. And who says the budget is fixed... it can and should be "unfixed". And let's do a National Sales Tax, and get rid of the IRS entirely.

[ruggbutt]

Ya know Slick, I have a hard time believing that the government can't live on the average of 28% tax on all income. Yeah, some pay more and some pay less but that's what's coming in. They need to do something about the spending going out. And to do that we need to stop with all the bullshit government agencies that don't do shit. If I'm supposed to live within my budget and I'm not allowed to declare bankruptcy every few years I expect the government to as well. I can give you a short list of 50 agencies that really aren't needed in government. Time to cut back.

And let's not forget that the tax on oil and gasoline is 17% Federal plus whatever the state's cut is. There's plenty of taxing going on and plenty of it being wasted and given away for stupid reasons. There has to be cuts somewhere.

[nuf]

but, 85% of the budget is essentially either fixed, or politically impossible to reduce. And, yet, no one seems to want to admit we have to raise more revenue. Simply mind-boggling.

Stop giving money to other countries. Israel, Africa, South America. Hell, every country on the planet. Let them help themselves, we need to do the same.

Foreign aid from states is no heartbleeding thing, it´s business. You can make beter business whwn you have foreign aid up your sleeve to dictate the rules plus you can spread your oh so great culture around the world. The chinese are starting to recognize this.

So like with the majority of your other ideas you would hurt you country more then you would help it.

I still think your idea is not too bad as foreign aid is often a dirty thing. But a better idea would be to not fuck so much with other coutries so that they have a chance to free themselves from foreign aid. Don´t flood them with subsidised goods to destroy their markets and then send them aid workers to "feed the poor".

[callmeslick]

Start with foreign aid, next dump postal delivery. Those are easy. And who says the budget is fixed... it can and should be "unfixed". And let's do a National Sales Tax, and get rid of the IRS entirely.

since you obviously didn't read the above messages, let's recap: 85% of the budget is either devoted to debt payments, defense spending, and the following programs:Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. What politician
would mess with those spending items. Second, a sales tax punishes the lower end of the income spectrum out of all proportion to the top. The wealthy LOVE your idea. The Flat Tax eliminates the IRS and can be made fair.