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Bipartisan Senate group proposes ‘no fly, no buy’ gun measure
(10-06-2018, 10:08 AM)pbrower2a Wrote:
(10-06-2018, 06:49 AM)Galen Wrote:
(10-05-2018, 11:10 PM)Eric the (Green) Wrote:
(10-05-2018, 09:37 PM)pbrower2a Wrote: Amicable divorce? In view of the sadistic tendencies in one part of American culture, I expect it to be as nasty as the dissolution of Yugoslavia. There are some very Red areas in some Blue states and very Blue areas in some Red states.

The obsession which you reds, Classic Xer, have, is entirely due to brainwashing. Taxes were not a big concern until Reagan, Prop 13, etc., the sleepening that happened near the end of the last Awakening 2T. That's ALL it is. It's neo-liberalism, libertarian economics, supply side, whatever you call it; it is nothing but BULLSHIT. YOu are brainwashed into thinking you should not have to pay taxes, because government is the problem, taxes are theft, taxes are coercion, job creaters create jobs, yadda yadda yadda, bullshit, bullshit, bullshit, and more bullshit. And it's is the main cause of all our problems today in the USA. And you Gen Xers grew up knowing nothing better than what the charming actor and his successors and followers have told you.

Many of us Xers remember Nixon, Ford and Carter in addition to the stagflation of the seventies which is a legacy of the Vietnam War and the War on poverty which were both very expensive.  These two things were paid for by monetizing the debt.  Which is another name for printing a bunch of currency and then buying financial assets.  The better informed will recognize this as basically the same process as QE.

Taxes became a concern in the late seventies because of the loss of purchasing power due to inflation and what was known as bracket creep.  One of the things Eric the (Green) and the Keynesian types will never admit is that inflation tends to harm those with lower income simply because the purchasing power of currency decreases while financial and tangible assets increase in nominal terms.  This increase in asset prices tends to benefit the wealthy since they are more likely to own such assets rather than simply hold cash which those with lower incomes tend to do.

But -- inflation serves people or organizations in debt by reducing its severity. Poor people typically go through their cash holdings quickly as the means of meeting the cost of living; poor people typically spend everything that they get. It's only with hyperinflation that the pay from Thursday morning loses a chunk of its value by the early afternoon that inflation starts hurting the poor. It is middle-class people who save who might get burned.

Debtors tend to be on the Left politically, as they want a more vibrant economy and can benefit from the real reduction in their burden of debt. Creditors tend to be on the Right politically, and farther to the Right to the extent that they are creditors. Creditors at their worst hold debtors in thrall, as with sharecroppers who typically fall just short of meeting obligations to pay off debt to the landowner and remain in debt -- but that allows the big landowner to keep in employ a good source of cheap labor. To be sure, small-scale creditors such as those who own a modest insurance policy or savings account have an interest in seeing that their asset not become a sick joke through heavy inflation, but such small-scale creditors need an income just to avoid devouring the assets that they own.


Quote:In many ways voting for Reagan was a rejection of the usual suspects from the political class as much as voting for Trump was in 2016.  One thing that is not commonly recognized is that the GOP establishment has been at war with its own base for decades.  Trump was not campaigning on a neocon platform which all of his GOP competitors and Hillary were.  Even Rand Paul was sounding far more neocon than he usually does which was no doubt due to his campaign advisors.  Given that red states provide so many soldiers it is hardly surprising that so many in the GOP want the wars to end and no one other than Trump in 2016 gave them the slightest hope of that happening.

Reagan was a lick pol, and he put an end to stagflation by compelling people with excessive expectations to lower theirs. Got a college degree and looking for non-existent jobs that you might like? Then take a look at the shopping mall or the fast-food restaurant. Oh, the pay is inadequate? Take two such jobs, where you are obliged to put on the moronic "Happy to serve you!" smile. You will be able to afford the rent and buy some groceries and the car that gets you to the jobs that you hate, and you might get a little extra as a minor salve. That promoted a little more productivity in the service sector.

I was there, and I hated it. But stagflation came to an end and many people were more comfortable with what they had.


Quote:Consider for a moment why evangelicals would continue to support Trump even in spite of Stormy Daniels.  There is an easily accessible reason for this that the (Democrats or liberals) will never admit to.

H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-S-Y.

Trump may be a rogue, but he  tells people what they want to hear. Evangelical Christianity is largely flim-flam, and people who get snookered for one thing often get snookered for another.

I am not a fan of inflation and QE. I am in favor of government spending though, especially during big recessions when it stimulates the economy. The Obama stimulus did that, handcuffed though it was, and its effect reduced by massive cuts in state jobs due to the Tea Party counter-revolution in Nov.2010. After that, QE was the ONLY means the government had to stimulate the economy. Inflation did not result, because the recovery was so slow.

We had a poster here named Playwrite who advocated what amounts to QE, pretty much, called modern monetary policy of MMT. I can't say that he was wrong. Government pumping of money into the economy can create jobs and prosperity, while austerity can bring it to a halt. I don't like national debt and inflation; I may be less liberal on spending than Galen claims. Normally I would prefer a balanced budget and government spending paid for by fair taxes.

But the right wing is not opposed to taxes because they might suppress business and commerce. They are against taxes on principle and according to dogma. I am opposed to their tinkle-down economics, free-market, government is the problem, self-reliance uber alles dogmas. It's a tempting superstition. But in fact we need a functioning government in order for society to work. There are still greedy people, and power-hungry people. Libertarians admit they exist in the government, and I agree they need to be voted out and restrained by law. They forget or ignore the fact that there are even more greedy people in business, and that business must be regulated and taxed, and that if they are not, then we live in a banana republic or a feudal society. That's where we're headed now, and have traveled a good distance there already since Reagan.

The GOP has been for years the leading party for wars, and there's no doubt whatever that red states are militarist. And they gladly accept all the expensive outlays and military pork into their states. The only opposition to the Iraq War came from 22 Democrats in the Senate. Obama campaigned against it. Kerry campaigned against it. There was not a single American war casualty under Bill Clinton. LBJ was a Democrat and started the Vietnam War, no doubt. But the GOP supported him. All its opponents were Democrats, and they ran peace candidates from then on. The GOP became the war party, and it put down the peace advocates mercilessly for decades, and the hate Jane Fonda madness kept Kansas and other red states in the GOP column for decades and decades. Reagan kept a ridiculous war against the people of Nicaragua going for years. Bush I started a war for no reason, and Bush II started another war for no reason. Hundreds of thousands died at his hands. Which party did he and his fellow neo-cons belong to?

Trump is a liar about all his campaign promises, to one extent or another. He is stoking war with Iran, and refuses to make peace there. He is giving war monster Netanyahu everything he wants. He might succeed in his strategy of threats with Kim Jung Un, but that has yet to be seen. He promised a reign of terror and war crimes in Iraq to defeat the IS. Thousands more died unnecessarily under his approach to war. What does "make America great again" and "we're going to win so much that you'll be sick of winning" mean?
"I close my eyes, and I can see a better day" -- Justin Bieber

Keep the spirit alive;
Eric M
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RE: Bipartisan Senate group proposes ‘no fly, no buy’ gun measure - by Eric the Green - 10-06-2018, 05:01 PM

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