My state of the union (a Fathertime! production)

[fathertime]

I really can't sit through these state of the union speeches, they are so disingenious and trite that it is unbearable to watch.

Although it was said that we have 'broken the back' of the recession, that is completely ridiculous.
-- We are still running up debt at a clip of 4 Billion dollars a day.  I realize that we are never actually going to repay this debt in a meaningful way, but nevertheless it will hang over us in one way or another for a long time. 
--housing is down 25% and still falling, despite the desperate governmental attempts to prop it up. 
--illegal immigration enforcement is still a joke and we spend 100's of billions on people who are not our citizens.
---unemployment, GDP, inlation, and practically everything other number our nanny govt. spoon feeds us is manipulated to such an extet that they are relatively meaningless.

-Our countries economy is the Titanic the hull has been torn upen and the frigid waters are entering the below deck compartments while the band continues to play on on the upper decks.  Food and drink are still being served for now but make no mistake this ship is going down..the question is how much longer before the waters reach us.

My feeling is that our president is not the right man for the job.  He continues to commu8icate that all is well.  It is not his fault that the mess is upon us, but he ismaking things worse with his actions/words. We need a president  is willing to level with the people and take bold actions to reverse this country's course. 

This situation continues to worsen and has now surpassed the great depression. Thankfully we have food stamps for the 45million people that need them or the 'soup lines' would run in the street and around the corner. 

I would like for my kids to have a good life in the future but I am concerned that they are goign to be living ina very different and harsh world than what we are used to.  I really feel a little sorry for them, us adults have already had a great life pu to now. 

Fathertime!

[robert angel]

So the sky REALLY is falling?

[Alabamaboy!]

I think the worst thing is that we now look like a country of freeloaders and hypocrites. We have lost a lot of credibility in the world. How can we try to bully other countries to do what we want, when we cannot even handle our own affairs? We look like chumps borrowing money like crazy from our daddies (China), and then we waste it on bubble gum and baseball cards (stupid economic policies, propping up doomed business models). Do we think we are invisible or something? That the whole world cannot see how stupid we are? The worst part is when we then go crying like little babies when China is kicking our ass in pretty much everything economically.

They have a plan for success. We have no plans for anything. At least nothing that will get us out of this mess. And the policy makers are pussies and are more worried about getting re-elected than doing anything meaningful.

The stock market gains are mostly a combination of international giants like McDonalds who get most of their profits from outside the US and of financial/insurance giants who we artificially propped up with bail out money. It is smoke and mirrors. Oh, and don't forget where the bailout money came from....from the Chinese.

When this issue comes up soon about increasing the debt ceiling, whoever votes to increase it should be fired immediately and sent to "rehab". Just like you have to take a crack pipe away from an addict and lock them up sometimes to make progress. Because the American people, if they truly were not so ignorant and knew what is being done, they would definitely not go along with this mess. It is illogical that the American people need to pay their bills, but the US Government does not.

I am not saying that we are doomed as a nation, because things could be fixed very quickly with some strong maneuvers such as increasing the SS and Medicare starting ages. If some people do not like it, tough baloney. It has to be done. If we are living 20-30 year more on average than someone in the 1930's then we should have no problem working a few extra years, or starting our benefits at a slightly later date. If you told my 10 year old son that he will not get his cash until he is 69 or 70, I don't think he is going to be bitching about it. I think that is more humane than strapping generations of debt on them without a second thought.

Many people who are receiving cash from the State and Federal Government don't deserve it. They can be doing something of use for our country. Even if they are working picking up trash, taking care of government parks, working in toll booths, or whatever things, they can do it and they can earn their money rather than us just giving it to them. And if your started making them do something, watch how quickly the people will get off "assistance" programs.

This President is just playing games. He ran on a platform of change. He has not done anything of any benefit that I can see. And a quick poll of my workers and clients tells me that nobody is claiming they are better off than a couple years ago. On the contrary they are heading in the opposite direction.

The only ones who are doing better are the richest of the rich, because of the stock market which is roaring due to the massive injection of free cash, massive layoffs which has improved bottom lines, etc.

[Alabamaboy!]

It definitely is not falling for guys who have already "got theirs". If you are receiving a nice  pension, you are already safe. You cleared the hurdle. But that is going the way of the dinosaurs. It has to. You cannot pay out massive cash for guys to be retired for 40 year, complete with awesome health care benefits and expect the system to function. An 8 year old with a calculator could determine that in a few minutes. But for some reason grown men in Washington DC cannot.

You are also safe if you have so much cash that you can buy stocks whether the economy is up or down, because it is like a casino, or a game of "chance" at the fair. Things can be manipulated with the Federal reserve, injections of bailout cash, whatever they want. But the common person making $20K per year does not have much invested in the stock market.

[fathertime]

i'm going to have to agree with you alabamaboy! i think of the govt really really made the deep cuts that are going to be necessary they could put us all in the lifeboats...but i have no confidence that they will actually do that.

i am going to be curious to see what happens with the debt ceiling issue that will be coming up within the next 2 months or so. 

i think the SS age has to be raised but i don't think it will help out the deficit, but it might give people more incentive to work, because as we know not many people go to work because they enjoy working more than free time, that is unless they have a spouse they are worried they are going to get clobbered by if they stick around the house too much! 

Fathertime!

[ignorante]

I am not saying that we are doomed as a nation, because things could be fixed very quickly with some strong maneuvers such as increasing the SS and Medicare starting ages.

  In forty years, three programs will soak up all of the tax revenue that can be squeezed out of the economy.  The three programs are:

Social Security
Medicare
Medicaid

This means they will take up everything that the government can bring in, with no money for military, interest payments, federal law enforcement, border patrol, or anything else.

They should be scrapped, not "fixed."  That just puts off the day of reckoning even further while we pat ourselves on the backs.

Also, there is nothing in Article 1, section 8 of the Constitution authorizing any of these three programs.  They are not a power that Congress has.  The Founders set up a government of limited, enumerated powers, and "social security" is not on the list!

[jm21-2]

While the budget certainly needs to be fixed, and without doing something about SS and medicare you might as well not do anything, I think it's misleading to say the age of retirement should be raised due to increased longevity. A large portion of the gains in longevity come from reduced infant mortality rate and reduced deaths during childbirth, as well as reduced casualties due to war or epidemics. I would bet if you look at the number of additional years someone who made it to 60 in the 1930's was supposed to live compared to someone who made it to 60 today, the difference would not be as much as you might think. It's much more that people are not dying pre-maturely than living longer. If they're going to keep the programs means-testing for SS seems like a better idea than raising the retirement age.

[william3rd]

  In forty years, three programs will soak up all of the tax revenue that can be squeezed out of the economy.  The three programs are:

Social Security
Medicare
Medicaid

This means they will take up everything that the government can bring in, with no money for military, interest payments, federal law enforcement, border patrol, or anything else.

They should be scrapped, not "fixed."  That just puts off the day of reckoning even further while we pat ourselves on the backs.

Also, there is nothing in Article 1, section 8 of the Constitution authorizing any of these three programs.  They are not a power that Congress has.  The Founders set up a government of limited, enumerated powers, and "social security" is not on the list!

THere was no standing army either but that didnt stop them.

[Alabamaboy!]

While the budget certainly needs to be fixed, and without doing something about SS and medicare you might as well not do anything, I think it's misleading to say the age of retirement should be raised due to increased longevity. A large portion of the gains in longevity come from reduced infant mortality rate and reduced deaths during childbirth, as well as reduced casualties due to war or epidemics. I would bet if you look at the number of additional years someone who made it to 60 in the 1930's was supposed to live compared to someone who made it to 60 today, the difference would not be as much as you might think. It's much more that people are not dying pre-maturely than living longer. If they're going to keep the programs means-testing for SS seems like a better idea than raising the retirement age.

Then they should do both. And more. This is a huge hole that keeps getting bigger. But nobody is doing anything about it. And the showdown is coming. I want to see just how big of wimps these guys are when this showdown about raising the debt ceiling comes in the next few months.

[euforia51]

We look like chumps borrowing money like crazy from our daddies (China), and then we waste it on bubble gum and baseball cards (stupid economic policies, propping up doomed business models).

How about bailing out all the idiots who bought way more house and car than they could afford, then mortgaged it a second time so they could finally take the vacation to Disney World?

Do we think we are invisible or something?

Ask this question the next time you see someone trying to send a text message when they're suppose to be driving!
Ask someone who is holding up a line of 4-5 cars in a parking lot at the store because they’re waiting for car to back out of the spot closest to the door because they’re too freakin’ lazy to walk a few more steps.
Ask the young and chipper little family of 4 who rolls up in their shiney new bling mobile, grabs the last handicapped spot in the restaurant parking lot, slaps the wheel-chair placard on the rear view, then jumps out, and walks quite normally into the restaurant to eat. (True story).
Ask the old bat falling into her Cadillac, cigarette in mouth, package in hand who is also parked at the only handicapped spot at … you guessed it … the liquor store.
Better yet, I’d like to ask why there are 4-5 people occupying handicapped spots where I work and only 1 of these people truly deserves this spot.

That the whole world cannot see how stupid we are?

Oh is this what they call it? And here all along I thought we were “entitled” because we’re Americans.

They have a plan for success. We have no plans for anything.

If I take one memorable thing from the Obamanator's speech, it is this: "...we need to celebrate when someone wins the science fair." No truer words could be spoken in times like these.

Oh, and don't forget where the bailout money came from....from the Chinese.

Yes ... and where did the Chinese get their money? Why we gave it to them with all of the money (and credit) we use to buy our cell phones, game consoles, laptops, and big screen TVs.

Many people who are receiving cash from the State and Federal Government don't deserve it. They can be doing something of use for our country. Even if they are working picking up trash, taking care of government parks, working in toll booths, or whatever things, they can do it and they can earn their money rather than us just giving it to them. And if your started making them do something, watch how quickly the people will get off "assistance" programs.

And when did the government decide the fat and lazy could also get all these damn handicapped placards?

Great post, Bamaboy … couldn’t help but throw in my two cents.

[Researcher]

    I agree that the US government has to change but so do the vast majority of the people who live here.Spending more than you have is a way of life here, like it or not.If we don't change voluntarily then soon we will be forced to change.Globalization is going to kill the standard of living for the middle class.I know the" free marketeers" want to paint a rosy picture of how everything will balance out and in the end be OK and it will for the rich minority.But for the average working stiff, get ready for a significantly diminished standard of living.With an endless supply of cheap labor around the world wages will continue to drop here in the US and other developed nations until we all are  a 3rd world planet.

   Researcher

[Ray]

Hey!

For all of you idiots who voted in a commie president, you got exactly what you deserved.

And for the lazy a-holes who didn't even bother to vote, why don't you just STFU!

Ray   

[euforia51]

Alright ... which one of you posted on this thread and did not bother to vote? 

[jm21-2]

Hey!

For all of you idiots who voted in a commie president, you got exactly what you deserved.

And for the lazy a-holes who didn't even bother to vote, why don't you just STFU!

Ray   

Yeah, the alternative would have been so different...

[utopiacowboy]

I always vote and in the last 7 presidential elections I have never voted for the winner. Of course I frequently vote for characters like Ross Perot and Ron Paul.......

[no comment]

While the budget certainly needs to be fixed, and without doing something about SS and medicare you might as well not do anything, I think it's misleading to say the age of retirement should be raised due to increased longevity. A large portion of the gains in longevity come from reduced infant mortality rate and reduced deaths during childbirth, as well as reduced casualties due to war or epidemics. I would bet if you look at the number of additional years someone who made it to 60 in the 1930's was supposed to live compared to someone who made it to 60 today, the difference would not be as much as you might think. It's much more that people are not dying pre-maturely than living longer. If they're going to keep the programs means-testing for SS seems like a better idea than raising the retirement age.

Not to mention the fact that there simply aren't enough jobs available and many companies don't want to hire older workers.  So instead of collecting Social Security, older workers can collect unemployment checks.

[Woody]

Alright ... which one of you posted on this thread and did not bother to vote? 

I voted for Ron Paul. I'de do it again too.

[piglett]

Yeah, the alternative would have been so different...

your rite there JM
old Johnny boy was a poor choice too
but he mite have been a slightly better grade of poor


pig
 

[no comment]

Just read that Jeb Bush & Newt Gingrich ran the idea of bankruptcy for states up the flagpole. That would really change the equation.  http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-gingrich-bankruptcy-20110127,0,4958969.story

[Researcher]

  I voted but not for Obama, I didn't know enough about him.I did see Bill Clinton on CNBC today.He was being interviewed by Maria Bartiromo and all he kept saying was how we need to penetrate the Chinese market! He just kept saying we need to penetrate! I don't think he is over Monica yet. Hehehehe.

   Researcher

[piglett]

i understand "The Donald" mite run next time
what are the chances that he or i guy like him (bussiness man) could turn things around for us? i would say that if we don't get someone much different soon our goose is cooked !!!

pig

[Researcher]

    Maybe but I don't think "The Donald" has a snowballs chance of winning.


   Researcher

[Ray]

Kudos to all of you who voted, no matter whom your choice was.

What bugs me is the millions out there who never bother to vote, but continually whine and complain about our elected representatives.

If you voted, then you have a right to complain. If you didn’t bother to vote, then who freaking cares what you think?

Ray

[Jedironin]

I did vote, but not for this guy...

As for Donald running, I don't think it would work out well. Back when Lee Iococca had resurrected Chrysler and was in all the news, etc, he asked a good friend of his (can't remember who, but it was a DC politician) if he should consider running for President. His friend said, "NO! Are you crazy?" He went on to explain that as a businessman, he decides how to run the business, he tells the guys what to do, and they do it. As President, he would have very limited abilities to tell everyone else what to do because it has to go through the rest of the legislative process.

Currently, I'm happy it still works that way, sometimes...

[Capstone]

i understand "The Donald" mite run next time
what are the chances that he or i guy like him (bussiness man) could turn things around for us? i would say that if we don't get someone much different soon our goose is cooked !!!

Considering all the businesses that The Donald has run into the ground and into bankruptcy, my guess is that he would not have a snow balls chance in hell of turning things around.