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Political Discussion Thread (With Rules)


Simon

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The Commission on Presidential Debates has adopted new rules for the upcoming debate requiring  President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden stand barefoot in tubs of water during the debate. Anytime a candidate interrupts the other, electricity will be automatically shunted from the interrupting candidate's microphone into his tub of water.

 

The Trump campaign issued a statement complaining that the above room temperature warmth of the water gave an unfair advantage to Biden, who is three years older than the president. 

 

Jill Biden's tell-all book, released before the election, revealed that her husband has cold feet and regularly warms them on her posterior before going to sleep.

 

"I know many people enjoy role-reversal in the bedroom", Mrs. Biden wrote, "But I never expected for that to be part of my own marriage. In many ways, Joe really is a rebel."

 

Trump stated in his campaign appearance in Florida, "I wish they would fill the tub with ice cubes. I'm not some geriatric geezer like my opponent. I can take the cold."

 

Many in the Florida audience were visibly taken aback at the president's boast.

 

Trump campaign spokesmen were quick to release a statement that Trump has the greatest love for geriatric geezers in general and that his statement was directed only at the former vice president and not at geriatric geezers in general.

 

https://politics.theonion.com/

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3 hours ago, Dr. MID-Nite said:

 

Pure greed at work here. The richest in the country could be taxed at 90% and they'd STILL be the wealthiest people in the country. So sick of the American lack of empathy. It makes me ashamed.


The richest in the country could be taxed at 100% and still be the wealthiest, because that’s how tax brackets work. Also, capital gains. But you knew that. 

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Wow...entertainers complaining about high tax rates.  That's not exactly new, is it?

 

"let me tell you how it will be"

"that's one for you, nineteen for me"

 

That was George Harrison (and the other Beatles') tax rate in the mid-'60s when the song was written.

 

There is a definite psychological barrier when tax rates go above 50% and more than half of every additional dollar earned goes to the government. 

 

A key element of modern tax systems is ensuring everyone pays their "fair share".

 

A key challenge for modern tax systems is achieving the slightest consensus on what, exactly, that "fair share" is at all income levels.

 

Politicians are very good at fanning the flames and helping the population expect that they will get more government services than they will pay in taxes.  Guess what? Everyone cannot get more than they pay for.

 

And, like it or not, high earners have a lot of choices.  50 Cent could renounce his US citizenship and move to a Caribean tax haven without too much difficulty.  If he weren't in the US, his citizenship would not even matter.

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1 minute ago, Hugh Neilson said:

Wow...entertainers complaining about high tax rates.  That's not exactly new, is it?

 

"let me tell you how it will be"

"that's one for you, nineteen for me"

 

That was George Harrison (and the other Beatles') tax rate in the mid-'60s when the song was written.

 

There is a definite psychological barrier when tax rates go above 50% and more than half of every additional dollar earned goes to the government. 

 

A key element of modern tax systems is ensuring everyone pays their "fair share".

 

A key challenge for modern tax systems is achieving the slightest consensus on what, exactly, that "fair share" is at all income levels.

 

It's interesting to me that George Harrison bankrolled the Monty Python films as a way of reducing his taxes. ABBA essentially hit a 100% tier in their home country, but managed to build Polar Studios for similar reasons, a major recording studio used by many artists between 1978 and 2004, including Genesis, Led Zeppelin, the Beastie Boys, and many others.

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8 hours ago, DShomshak said:

And in other news, water is wet.

 

 
Dean Shomshak

 

"Water is wet" is dead on. Good article, but it confirms more than anything.

 

I honestly think that's where a lot of the outrage is in this country. The two sets of law and rules. People KNOW life's not fair, what is pissing them off is that our governments and the laws the produce seem to set things up as much as it can for MAXIMUM unfairness.

 

"Corporations are people, my friend" but I've yet to see a corporation executed in Texas even when its actions cost lives.

 

A rich kid kills four people drunk driving, has it blamed on Afluenza, and gets less jail time than a poor black kid with a joint.

 

The whole situation with police officers getting away with flat out killing people but your average citizen damn well better be careful how he protests or he can have his voting rights ripped away (Thanks, Tennessee)

 

Politicians blatantly violating the law, with jail time level offenses, and no one bats an eye.

 

And the IRS can't AFFORD to go after rich people, so it harasses those who they can bully.

 

If the Stock market thrives, that is, if the higher ups who have the bulk of it's profits' are doing well, then "The Economy is good"... nevermind the poor saps who haven't seen a raise in five years while cost of living increases.

 

And so on. We all know these stories.

 

So folks get pissed, they get angry, but they feel powerless...

and they either choose to direct that rage to those they CAN hurt, often more powerless than them, or directed to do so by those who know the value of divide and conquer

 

Honestly, at this rate I fear we're going to either have a revolution, and a bloody one, or an autocracy within a 15 year period.

And some of my friends tell me I'm optimistic

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Hugh Neilson said:

Politicians are very good at fanning the flames and helping the population expect that they will get more government services than they will pay in taxes.  Guess what? Everyone cannot get more than they pay for.

 

 

To paraphrase Rick Mercer, "30% of the public would vote for a gerbil if it promised to lower taxes."

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31 minutes ago, Lord Liaden said:

 

To paraphrase Rick Mercer, "30% of the public would vote for a gerbil if it promised to lower taxes."

 

That's the thing....I don't consider taxes inherently bad. I just want them used for a constructive purpose and to be implemented based on actual income earned in a fair manner. Trump paying 750 dollars in taxes for a year is beyond insulting.

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Televangelist Pat Robertson said that God told him President Trump will win. Followed by disaster for the country and the world after the election, including civil unrest, two attempts or more on Trump’s life and a war against Israel that will be put down by God. Then, the world will see five years or more of extraordinary peace (no word on whether Trump is still president during that time).

 

Then an asteroid hits the Earth.

 

This was told to his viewers in the context of convincing them that they should go out and vote for Trump. Presumably because the country and the world needs the disaster, I guess? 

 

https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/521993-televangelist-pat-robertson-says-god-told-him-trump-will-win-an

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I've often wondered why a flat tax with a starting index based income wouldn't work.  Something like first $30,000 is free then everyone pays 20% after that.  No loopholes, no deductions, no nothing.

 

And the answer is it wouldn't allow the ultra-wealthy to tax loophole their way to paying less / nothing / less-than-nothing.

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3 minutes ago, Greywind said:

 

Someone bought the domain name.

 

Even if something happened to Biden, there's no way at this point that they'd replace him with any of the Clintons.

 

I've read speculation during previous elections what would happen if the ballots were printed already in most of the country and the person running for president died or was removed from the ticket by the RNC or DNC. That's something which could actually be done under RNC rules (long story on that one). I've not looked up DNC rules but I assume they have a mechanism for removing someone who goes insane, is shown to be an enemy spy, is incapacitated, etc.

 

The consensus seemed to be that the election would move forward and the person elected VP would be sworn in as president.

 

 

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1 hour ago, archer said:

Televangelist Pat Robertson said that God told him President Trump will win. Followed by disaster for the country and the world after the election, including civil unrest, two attempts or more on Trump’s life and a war against Israel that will be put down by God. Then, the world will see five years or more of extraordinary peace (no word on whether Trump is still president during that time).

 

Then an asteroid hits the Earth.

 

This was told to his viewers in the context of convincing them that they should go out and vote for Trump. Presumably because the country and the world needs the disaster, I guess? 

 

https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/521993-televangelist-pat-robertson-says-god-told-him-trump-will-win-an

 

There are no few evangelicals who believe that the prophesied devastation of the Earth is imminent, and the faithful (meaning themselves of course) will then be raptured to Heaven. They look forward to it. Their leaders have been telling them that Donald Trump is God's instrument to bring that about. In this context the chaos and conflict he causes are part of God's plan -- a feature rather than a bug.

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1 hour ago, archer said:

 

Even if something happened to Biden, there's no way at this point that they'd replace him with any of the Clintons.

 

I've read speculation during previous elections what would happen if the ballots were printed already in most of the country and the person running for president died or was removed from the ticket by the RNC or DNC. That's something which could actually be done under RNC rules (long story on that one). I've not looked up DNC rules but I assume they have a mechanism for removing someone who goes insane, is shown to be an enemy spy, is incapacitated, etc.

 

The consensus seemed to be that the election would move forward and the person elected VP would be sworn in as president.

 

 

 

After 2016 and the last 4 years of the Dems theatrics, I wouldn't put Clinton past them at this point.

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14 minutes ago, archer said:

 

Chelsea Clinton is 40 years old now. Plenty old enough to be president.

 

That's nice...is she Funkadelic?

 

On second thought, that's not nice.  Can we move away from the same family being in charge of the country for awhile?  Bushes and Clintons and Trumps, oh my!

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