kapkomet

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Sep 10, 2009 -> 10:51 PM) If you are sick you should have access to a doctor. The failure of many people to accept that this should be a fundamental right for all American citizens is what has me so disillusioned by the whole healthcare reform process, and so disillusioned with the vocal, myopic minority of Americans that feel otherwise. People don't go because they are afraid they might actually get stuck for a bill. OH NOES! They have access to doctors now, they just don't want to pay for it. Put them in a government system, now you just paid for it and you just opened up pandora's box.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 10, 2009 -> 09:47 PM) Let me ask you this in reply...insurance companies have been going out giving people credits for things like staying in shape, or giving employers credits for things like maintaining a gym membership. Do you object to that? Because this would be exactly the same thing, except the insurance company giving credit for you eating your vegetables. I do when it's the government telling me what to do - here's why. They may give me credit for eating veggies, but they will deny me care if I eat a Snickers Bar. And that ain't right. I still don't understand why that line (the GOVERNMENT telling me, an individual) doesn't matter to you.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Sep 10, 2009 -> 05:22 PM) Can't hear him screaming through the book pages. lol. My co-worker uses the word "statist" a lot (doesn't really get into using words like "liberal" or "progressive" as pejoratives") and I figure he picked that up from Levin. Yeah that's it. I was reading some reviews on Amazon and they all sounded pretty positive but I figured those were mostly conservatives and fans of his and they'd all be biased. I just want to find a book written by a conservative that sticks to breaking down conservative ideas, when they start bashing I just tune out. The reason I got it is because from what I understand it's not the screaming through the pages - he doesn't talk about himself or his views. He lays a straight case of here's conservatism, here's modern day liberalism (aka, statist), and take it or leave it. Anyway, I got some other stuff that I'm trying to get through while I'm sitting here doing nothing while I heal up. I'll try to get to that one, too and tell you what I think.

Oh boy. The eating diaries, by Barry ObamaCare.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Sep 10, 2009 -> 05:01 PM) Have any of you here read Levin's book "Conservative Manifesto" (title paraphrased, it's longer but I don't remember what it is)? A co-worker recommended it and he said he does a good job of laying out conservative ideology without all the annoying name-calling and mocking you'd get in a book written by someone like Coulter. Liberty and Tyranny. I have it but have not read it. I will probably read it in the next couple of days though, goodness knows I got time.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 10, 2009 -> 03:56 PM) And if Obama gets his way, this is exactly what is going to happen. I don't buy for nano-second that the federal government is going to stomp its feet and costs are going to drop by enough to cover 10/30/45/50/80 million people. This hasn't happened in the history of social programs in this country. Its insane to thing it will happen all of the sudden. We will be paying trillions and trillion in either new taxes or debt if this health care plan happens. VAT. It has to happen. Hell, it might happen even if this doesn't pass, but it's going to. So, what %? Let's start with 12%. Every.Time.Something.Moves.VAT.Baby!

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 10, 2009 -> 09:07 AM) It just makes Obama a liar. You better apologize for that. You have less then 1.5 hours.

QUOTE (Soxy @ Sep 9, 2009 -> 12:50 PM) Women get more liberal after babies; men get more conservative. And yes, I do read a science daily website. My life is like a rap video. I can totally see this.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 9, 2009 -> 11:37 AM) In the interest of being fair and balanced...I'd like to note that I still am no fan of these sorts of manufactured political theater events, like the one we're going to see tonight, no matter who is at the podium. It'll be interesting to see the results perhaps, and the presence of a gifted orator might make it more interesting than usual, but still, I'm just blah about all of them. Good post, sir.

Stuart can draw? Wow.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 10:03 PM) Yup. About my life. And a whole lot of others'. And you're stealing 288,000,000 other's money and health care, and a whole lot of others not even born yet. Cool! Ok, I'll stop now. I really am just messing with you. I'm getting my "health care" tomorrow and honestly not feeling really good about it, so I'm snarkier then usual.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 09:30 PM) The Republican plan for health care. Prices you can't afford, and health care quality you can't count on. Pretty much sums up the last 16 years or so quite well. ^^^ Fearmongering.

LMAO. He sounds like a freaking used car salesman. PRICE YOU CAN AFFORD. QUALITY YOU CAN COUNT ON. BUY YOUR HEALTHCARE HERE (you stupid f'in Americans who don't know what we do!!).

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 06:41 PM) Normal day, will lucky to be home from work by 10:00 p.m. Desperately trying to overcome writer's block. Oppose Republican policies. *Poof* goes the writer's block. Seriously, good luck. I know it's not easy for you.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 06:20 PM) I couldn't resist adding my take to the Rios thread, which I didn't create. Didn't mean to anger anybody with the broken record. Don't worry, I'm not gay. I even liked the Shawn Johnson pic that was posted where somebody thought she would get fat someday. I just think Rios looks pretty good out there. Unfortunately he can't hit the ball where they ain't. I said I'd give him a clean slate next spring unlike Swisher who I will despise forever. Swisher?!?! ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZpppptttt! Just kidding.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 05:45 PM) So, I'm in a very, very large minority. That's what the propoganda being distributed by the Obama administration will get you. Most people are covered by a medical plan when they are employed - unless part time. But of course, no one can get jobs right now, unless it's in government. Oh wait a minute... People worry because they are told to worry about it. I will also argue that there's a HUGE bias on the questioning here. Note the headline of the study. It leads to BS answers. What are YOU WORRIED ABOUT YOUR HEALTHCARE SYSTEM? What a study. I better say something that worries me. On top of that, I'm worried that the system won't pay for my health care when I'm older. Because it won't, the path we're headed down. Better add myself to the worried people. Or I'll just go die. That will make it easier, I think.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 05:39 PM) Then you've somehow gotten things for you a lot better than I have. Or than a lot of us have. Congrats. Now why should we not have that chance? Really? I bet most people here are happy with what they have. But you're not. So... I may not have a lot of things, but I'm not willing to destroy my country for 5 million people that things can be fixed another way if they chose to.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 04:52 PM) If the health care sector is adding jobs at the expense of the rest of the economy, then having the government take it over would do exactly that. Thus creating a positive. You're missing the metaphor here. Just because something is adding jobs doesn't mean that it benefits the economy as a whole. The continued expansion of health expenditures is a stranglehold on consumer spending and job growth everywhere else except in the health care sector. LMAO. I get it. Government baby! Everything private destroys the wealth of everything else. Gotta transfer that health, I mean wealth somehow!

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 04:46 PM) And the health care industry adding jobs while the private sector bleeds is not a negative game? The point is it's the one area in the private sector consistently adding jobs. So, let's have the government take control of it too... which will then make the negative even more negative. Woot!

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 03:42 PM) How bout this one: He makes a helluva lot of money and has security and no real motivation to excel. The not playing every day is a pretty lame excuse for a guy brought in to help us win a (s***ty) division. He contributed nothing, zip. I will say he does look good in a uniform and I am hoping for the best next spring when he obtains a new clean slate in my mind (until he proves he can or cannot cut it on the south side). This year however he has to be considered one of the team's biggest disappointments/flops. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZppppppppppptttt........ *CRASH* Yep, there's that broken record. Seriously, this has very little to do with one player named Rios.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 04:41 PM) The government is adding jobs as well, yet you guys want to shrink the size of government. Your argument implies that since the government is adding jobs, we shouldn't do anything to limit its growth. Just like we shouldn't do anything to hurt the health care industry, it's adding jobs! Sure, higher taxes and higher health care costs may kill jobs elsewhere, but that's unimportant. The government adding jobs while the private sector bleeds is a zero sum (or in fact negative) game.

Happy birthday, sorry I'm late.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 04:17 PM) Not on the unemployment numbers I haven't. I'm pretty sure I've been arguing that they're still worse than what you're quoting and that they're no where near catching the magnitude of the hit that the American job market has taken. Plus, they're not likely to come back since we've so drastically overbuilt housing and we're not investing nearly enough in growth (green) industries. Hence that whole U6 discussion that Mr_g and I had. And since we're so willing to protect the health insurance companies, we're making sure small business stays dead and the sick stay bankrupt. Let's go ahead and kill the one industry that's still adding jobs. That way, the government owns everything.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 7, 2009 -> 11:21 AM) No one believed me when I applied this level of skepticism to the jobs numbers in the previous 8 years. "Oh, the economy is fine, it's just you crazy libs trying to make the President look bad." That's right, Balta, it's a conspiracy to doubt you libs. Wah.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 5, 2009 -> 07:30 PM) Matt Taibbi on the process of the Dems watering down this thing away from everything that might be remotely effective. You talk about a piece of s*** article full of fear mongering, lies, and half truths... gees.