mr_genius

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 5, 2009 -> 02:35 PM) Coleman's legal challenge regarding the 600 or so properly rejected absentee ballots was rejected this morning. As of now, every legal claim from the Coleman camp has fallen. All that remains is the general challenge to the election, which relies on repeating arguments that have already been thrown out by courts. Of course, I think now is the time to appropriately bring up former Senator Coleman's statement in November about why it was so important that this not drag on endlessly... Coleman found 800 improperly rejected ballots today. They are projeted to put him past the 250 improperly rejected ballots cast for Franken on Burger King napkins that put Franken ahead.

QUOTE (Texsox @ Jan 5, 2009 -> 02:33 PM) There are masters on both sides. Let's bring out Joe the Plumber Grand master blackbelts on both sides. Someone on FOX yesterday actually said "I wonder what Joe the Plumber thinks about all this." True story. edit: anyone know if he Joe the Plumber won his lawsuit against the state of Ohio for illegally searching his private records and handing them over to the media and all the other pro-Democrat organizations?

QUOTE (Texsox @ Jan 5, 2009 -> 02:30 PM) FemiNazis Ditto Tree Huggers liberals etc. etc. No monopoly on that skill. no one said they had a monopoly on it.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 4, 2009 -> 11:58 PM) You have to be fairly impressed, though, that the democrats actually coined a phrase that stuck. The Democrats are masters of bumper sticker slogans and such phrases.

QUOTE (kapkomet @ Jan 5, 2009 -> 02:18 PM) Bush lied, people died... oh wait... This will all be GWB's fault, no matter what (or that's how they'll spin it, they already are)... Congress has no responsibility for their votes anymore (at least since 2003) - unless you're a Republican, then you're an evil f***er who mislead those poor Democrats. So true.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 5, 2009 -> 12:32 PM) With the way the mess is right now, letting them fail does not let the economy heal, it pushes it down further and makes coming back even harder. thank you for the words of wisdom, Mr.Paulson.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 5, 2009 -> 10:36 AM) http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/04/opinion/...=2&emc=eta1 Very good article by Michael Lewis (Liar's Poker) about the current Wall Street disaster...worth reading. Lost amid all these buyouts is the fact that almost nothing at all has been done to help anyone this would be considered below "investor class" Americans. The SEC and FED are more concerned with propping up the stock market than addressing the real endemic problems in the first place. Paulson, in particular, will end up looking very foolish when all this is over and he's called to account for what he's done. Paulson and everyone in Congress that voted for that bailout bill.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/20...elect-make.html of course. what a joke this is. the other 80% will be pay to play bulls*** given out to corrupt unions and other organizations that paid enough bribes to the Democrats.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Jan 4, 2009 -> 05:26 PM) So because Republicans have in the past been guilty of things, this makes the recent spate of Democrats being caught doing some bad s*** ok? of course it does. Blago for president in 2016!

"if we can get enough kids to grow old enough for you to send to Iraq to get their heads blown off for the President's amusement." When reached for comment, the President was furious that his amusement level has dropped off due to the lack of US casualties.

culture of corruption indeed

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 3, 2009 -> 03:34 PM) Several of your points there are simply false and are proven so by my graph above. As a percentage of GDP, take a look. The starting point in 1940 pre-war is actually higher than our current public debt as a %age of GDP right now (because a chunk of the other debt is held in assets that have tangible value) Secondly, there is no economic theory at all which states that government money spent on a public project is going to be a less efficient use of money than private money spent on a private project. The thing which is less efficient is when the government spends its money on a private product, i.e. the government decides which car you're going to buy...unless the economy of scale effect winds up being larger. For example, the government spending money on things like a highway or on an improved electricity grid can provide economic benefits that are actually larger per unit money than what you get if the private sector spends a similar amount of money...but that all depends on how effective the decision makers are. On that, we'll see. 3rd...the value of the dollar is not solely affected by government spending. A key factor is also the unsustainable trade deficit. That, more than anything else, is what is driving the currency downwards. No they are not false at all. You are also ignoring a key factor, you must look at the overall increase in spending during WWII as compared to the spending levels at the time. Merely stating percentages while ignoring the base of spending up which the increases are built upon is not a good evaluation. You are suggesting we have a comprable increase in spending as for WWII. You are suggesting very dandgerous spending levsls as our current spending levels are a much higher percentage of GDP than they were pre-1940. You are suggesting a 20% increase in spending compared to GDP which would bring us to 50%. As you can see, WWII increases went from 15% to 35%. And this chart only goes to 2003, our deficit spending has ballooned since then. We can sustain a massive spending increase, it's just not possible.

I do not agree with this at all. The truth is the spending output during a massive world war is a cataclysmic event, wanting to spend compartively on government waste is epic in it's potential for disaster. Under such a philosophy the government should always spend at highest possible levels, as using a comparison in which the relations of spending are of no equal. By these standards we will easily be 25 trillion in debt by the end of the Obama administration if we spending to levels of GDP during WWII. This is not sustainable and a guaranteed prescription for ruin. If such levels of spending are used we will see a complete collapse in currency. During WWII spending we were not in debt, we were financially sound. Spending levels that high as compared to GDP will make the great depression look like a cake walk.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 3, 2009 -> 12:58 PM) Link near subprime car loans to fix the subprime home loan crisis? oh man this could backfire

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 3, 2009 -> 09:01 AM) Here's something I never fully understood about that. So massive government spending, brought on by the need for military hardware, is what really ended the Depression, right? So why couldn't the government cause the same effect with massive spending on non-military goods that will actually benefit society in the long run (like infrastructure, for instance)? A lot more variables to add. The US was not in massive debt then, the US was lending money not sinking in debt, after the war the US was the only major power untouched, other countries needed to rebuild, and history shows that winners of something big like WWII are going to benefit. We are more like post-WWI Germany right now with our debt levels; their currency collapsed and the country really fell apart. Just a question here, how much is too much deficit spending? or is there no such thing. We have already thrown 3 trillion at this mess, I just think we are going to see an absolute financial disaster if we drop endless money into this. We have already surpassed the new deal spending levels, we are going to completely blow away the new deal as far as spending. here's an article stating the new deal was way too small, and this is the kind of thinking that is really dangerous. http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1209/p01s03-usgn.html

QUOTE (kapkomet @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 11:24 PM) I think it's very difficult to compare the New Deal to now. There's no way that the New Deal PROLONGED the Great Depression. But, I'm not sure it was the miracle it was percieved to be as only WWII truely brought us out of the Depression. I agree.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 07:46 PM) If you go into the future, the only things that Bush did that could be considered Republican are cutting taxes on the rich, cutting back regulations further and going to war. Everything else, you'd think he was a liberal Democrat, lol, or WORSE! Actually, starting/getting involved in wars is traditionally more of a Democrat tendency. It's a very recent development in the GOP. It's part of the neo-con philosophy that government spending can fix any economic problem, fighting wars and nation building should be top US priorities, and a large overbearing government is good. Many of the neo-conservative principles are heavily barrowed from liberalism. GW even went as far as to nationalize the banks and auto industry.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 06:42 PM) A few years down the road, yes, that's a major worry, it's a gift left to us by the people who built it, and a major problem. But worrying about inflation spirals when deflation is a real possibility is going to make the current mess that much worse. It didn't work when the Republicans tried it in 1930-32, it didn't work when FDR tried it in 1936, and it won't work now. Obviously big spending and deficits don't work either (aka GW Bush). Surprisingly enough, wasting money doesn't help the economy. You don't want to continue the failed Bush regime policies right? I demand change and hope! I guess we could get a new deal type thing and hope WWIII breaks out and have the rest of the world in shambles except the US; like WWII. Yea lets go for that one. Use the new deal combined with world war blueprint to get us out of this economic downturn; as the new deal alone doesn't work.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 06:06 PM) Because in the middle of a dramatic consumer and business spending downturn, a government spending downturn is another path towards a depression. this next great derpression will be caused, if anything, by massive debt and currency failure. the spending you are suggesting is path to another depression.

Democrat governors demand 1 trillion bail out http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE5014F120090102 Hmm, I have an idea, how about cutting spending as to not be that much in debt? of course thats not an option

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 02:31 PM) White was just taking a stand. Call it political grandstanding, ambition for future office, or (I know, take a deep breath) maybe he really was standing on principle. In any case, I am sure he knew that would at worst just stall things, but he did it anyway to make a point. It doesn't make him incompetent though. In fact, I respect him for doing that. His principles should be to uphold the duties of secretary of state, not grandstand. It just goes to the base of what is the toxic political environment in Illinois. Everything is done for personal gain, ignoring the law. This whole chapter in Illinois history is a keystone cops episode.

Jessie White can't block the Senate appointment, he doesn't know what he's doing. Kind of like Lisa Madigan's ridiculous attempt to get Blago removed. What a list of incompetent people we running this state. Very sad.

Important news update about marijuana issue

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 1, 2009 -> 02:53 PM) Still can't be worse. oh i'm sure the Democrats will come up with new ways to be worse than the GOP