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QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 06:17 PM) The other thing to remember is that borrowing money for the federal government is a different beast from the state or local governments doing so. IIRC 98% of the states are required to submit some version of a balanced budget every year. There are shenanigoats that get you around those requirements, like borrowing against lottery profits or selling off highways, whatever, but in an economic downturn, the state and local governments are going to feel their budgets dramatically pinched, because it's much harder for them to borrow thanks to those requirements. Then, throw in a massive credit crisis thanks to the scorched-earth policies of the Banks, and really, there's only 1 borrower right now that anyone has any confidence in, who actually has legal authority to do the borrowing, and that's the federal government. Edit: I will agree with one thing though. I'd rather take a lot of the money being spent on road upgrades and spend it on rail transit and electricity production. well thank people like Kit Bond for that.

QUOTE (ChiSox_Sonix @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 05:55 PM) Ok, so let's just rely on Daddy the Federal Government to fix everything for us then. If you are against the stimulus bill, that's fine, but this is the exact things that it set out to do, find underfunded projects, fund them, create jobs, improve infrastructure. It set out to infuse money in the demand market while trying to do things that improve things for the future. But, lets see, resort to childish cliches within a few posts, yep, this is going to be fun. I can do it to: Oh no, in a massive stimulus package don't infuse money into public projects that create jobs, big brother oh no

QUOTE (ChiSox_Sonix @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 04:49 PM) They are hardly in need of "fixes" so badly that they had to be included in that bill. It is a local issue that should be fixed locally, not something that the rest of the country should be paying for. In case you haven't noticed, local/state governments aren't doing so well.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 04:45 PM) Do those roads fix themselves or are people hired to do so? Seriously. So these roads you claim needed to be fixed are going to be fixed. What does urgently mean.

http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/vox_po...ris-resign.html Roland Burris, Resign

John Kerry didn't win, but nonetheless is a pretty smart guy - just had no idea how to run a campaign especially against Rove, or in the new century. He would have been a bad president - probably. But the correlation didn't have to do candidates anyways. My point is, there really hasn't been a brilliant Republican president, or one that really knew the economic theory that well besides Reagan and before that Nixon-but he was his own downfall and his strategies destroyed this country.

Can't say how pleased I am with Jose, that is some dedication.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 03:58 PM) I don't think there is any meaningful correlation there. I do, and here's why. The culture wars that the Republicans have made meaningful gains on have been based on being especially down to earth, encapsulating everything down to a catch phrase. Basically, many of them have been stupid. And now, the party of ideas is now the party of guhhh. I'm not saying there are no dumb democrats, boy howdy, there are, but when it comes to picking a Pres. candidates, they pick people with pretty sane minds and good practical decision making.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 02:48 PM) I find it hysterical that the GOp keeps pushing Tax cuts and deregulation as a way to make the economy better. HELLO!!! Well, I understand that's their philosophy in general, but like, to act like, Oh, we got this, I know how to solve this economic collapse...extend Bush's tax cuts!

QUOTE (MurcieOne @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 06:36 AM) Roland Burris is now Henry Burris awesome.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Feb 18, 2009 -> 12:00 AM) I'm getting into some of the Post-Oasis Brit punk scene started with The Libertines, moved to BabyShambles, now on Dirty Pretty Things. It's fascinating that a guy like Pete Doherty is huge over there (in an Amy Winehouse fashion), but it's get no publicity except for his whole Kate Moss thing. Regardless, he makes good music, and I’m not even into punk. I liked the first solo stuff he did after the libertines, but babyshambles I really didn't like.

Man I have the upmost amount of respect for Jose, what a champ!

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 17, 2009 -> 10:21 PM) Unless he's indicted for perjury or resigns, I really don't think you have a choice. Let me get working on his case then. I'd love to add "indicted for perjury" on his tomb.

QUOTE (jasonxctf @ Feb 17, 2009 -> 08:15 PM) im so over this whole story. The seat is up for re-election in 21 months. There is going to be a lot happening these next 21 months, and I don't want the intellectual and moral lightweight wasting one percent of the spots in the Senate.

I blame Blago, Burris and the Illinois legislature for shuffling their feet on Blago for this, but in reality, the US Senate had no legal basis to keep him out. Even when they 'barred' him from office, Burris could've walked in, the officer couldn't have arrested him. As long as Blago was gov he could appoint someone, we were stupid enough to think that a crazy man wouldn't appoint someone, and then surprised when someone was crazy enough to accept.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Feb 17, 2009 -> 08:04 PM) Isn't this the same thing he said 2 days ago? 2 days ago he admitted Blago's bro contacted him about fundraising, which in itself was a contradiction to his testimony. This is admitting that after that phone call he tried to raise funding for him.

I hate being right. http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_...lagojevich.html

Well, makes sense it was andrew sullivan then, no?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 16, 2009 -> 09:26 PM) IMO, if Kerry stuck to an actual coherent formula on Iraq, he'd at least have had a much better shot, rather than setting up the obvious flip-flopper meme. And IMO, and in a lot of people's opinion, if Hillary voted against the Iraq war resolution, the Obama campaign never happens. Well, Hillary was fighting the culture wars of the sixties and the republicans of the 90s and it was an old school, boring, inefficient campaign. Kerry, of course, was completely incoherent on a lot of his answers, and again, another inefficient campaign. Why the hell would you have leftover money? Kerry was much more enjoyable this year than in 04. He had no swagger.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 16, 2009 -> 07:42 PM) But take a look at the Iraq war for reference. I can name 3 major Democratic Presidential contenders from 2004 and 2008 who voted for it, and 1 who spoke out against it. The 3 who voted for it are: John Kerry, John Edwards, Hillary Clinton. The one who spoke out against it was this kid in Illinois named Obama. They may benefit no matter what...but they take the biggest gains if they stand up against it from the start and don't have to do the John Kerry dance like in 2004 on the Iraq war. I think you can effectively argue that in 04's election America still felt Iraq could be turned around. It had been a little over a year and I don't think anyone besides Bush thought there'd be a stable democracy by then. And as per Hillary, of the reasons why she lost to Obama, I'd put her Iraq War vote pretty low on the list.

Naw, the story telling was really fresh and the characters weren't all stereotypes and it wasn't hit you on the head cause we don't know subtlety type of plot (Crash)

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 16, 2009 -> 07:48 PM) I've gotten the impression that there's a decent number of Republicans in DC (Cao, for example) who agreed with either this bill or with the concept of a stimulus package of this magnitude, but the Republicans whipped very, very hard against this bill. They basically figured out what the Dems failed to realize on Iraq; if it goes well, they're screwed whether or not they support the package, if it goes poorly they're in much better shape if they said no. If it fails, the minority party will benefit no matter.

As for impeaching blago seeming 'undemocratic', he was impeached by our representatives with a whole lot state support. I really doubt this will be a slippery slope. When Madigan was drafting impeachment papers in July in didn't have a chance in hell of going through, and his popularity rating was at 30 percent then, incredibly low.

QUOTE (Rex Kicka** @ Feb 12, 2009 -> 04:51 PM) His diet should be exclusively peanut butter sandwiches on peanut bread all from his factory. This is the kind of behavior we expect to see coming from Chinese food factories, not from the US... but it happens more than we realize. You'd be surprised how much cow poop is in that burger you had for lunch for example. why wouldn't I want fertilizer in my burger, rex? You are so naive. Been a vegetarian for 3 weeks now...going well.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Feb 12, 2009 -> 04:16 PM) I'll never understand the fascination. Well, I didn't start to like her until I saw her on Charlie Rose and saw how smart she was. I say smart not like, oh hey, a Woman? But more like she didn't seem to have the same stupid news anchor opinions we hear so much, she seemed to be fed up with everything, like me.