retakeournation
Member
- Joined
- Mar 15, 2009
- Messages
- 9
I have never done this before, but as most of you know, aside from my blog I post my political humor and comments on various forums. Today I received the best damn response to my post "I am a Right-Wing Extremist" that I have ever received. I want to share it with you and then share my response:
Re: I Am A Right-Wing Extremist; The Next Step
Nice stump speech, but like most it is long on sentiment and emotion, and short of pragmatic details.
I've read your other posts. To speak frankly, your understanding of the Constitution and the way gov't actually works seems lacking. This is reflected in the generalities and monologues you appear to favor, rather than specifics and interactive debate.
I tend to associate this sort of rhetoric with someone who wishes to take a leadership position in a movement. If that is the case, IMHO you need to do some homework and sharpen your understanding of the details first.
Item one: Simple majority rule does not set aside the Constitution. (from a post in another thread.)
Item two: Ideology and principles are fine things, but to govern in the real world you need specific plans with "how to's" in them, and the ability to persuade the undecided to cooperate with those plans.
Item three: I can't hate someone who loves the Gipper so much, but Dude, he wouldn't approve of some of your positions.
Item four: This is Debate Politics, not "post monologues from your blog". If you can't handle interactive debate you're not going to influence people much, at least not here, and so far I haven't seen you engage in any.
G.
My Response:
Goshin, I am appreciative of your comments and agree that the post is full of emotion. Right now our system is broken and it has been for a long time. Before we can do anything we must get an informed patriotism going again in this country and establish a sense of pride in our nation. We cannot move forward until we know where we have been. I hope that in my lifetime our children will once again get to experience a President who is a HERO, not a celebrity. Enough about that though, you are looking for steak, not sizzle.
Outside of informed patriotism, it is imperative that we fix our economy. Democrats truly believe that conservatives are angry about losing the election to Barry. While this belief makes great propaganda for the left wing media and their cronies, it is purely not the case. The Government wants you to believe that the fall of the economy is due to lack of regulation in the financial world and to a certain degree there is some validity to that, but it is only a minute portion of how we got off track. The principle problem in my opinion are over inflated home prices and debt pushing Republican and Democrat administrations starting with Bill Clinton, escalating with GWB and being capitalized on by Barry Obama.
Let me ask everyone this question; if you owned your own business, would you hire either of the Bush's, Clinton or Obama to run that company? I highly doubt it. Would you hire Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid? Probably not. Many of you may be thinking, well what about Reagan, he increased our national debt as well; in fact he spent like a mad man. You are right, but what did he spend the money on? Our National Defense.
If you were alive in the late 1970's you know our military's equipment, leadership and moral was decimated post Vietnam. Our government decided to send young men with no military experience to speak of to lead platoons of other men into treacherous combat simply because they had a college degree. Some of those young American men who were thrust into leadership positions that they were not prepared for were killed by their own men because one could not be allowed to lead so many to slaughter. That is for another post though.
Reagan inherited a weak an vulnerable national defense that had our enemies around the world salivating much like they are today. History has shown time and time again that Peace is Achieved Through Strength and we should always pray that our strength should never be required to be used. Had Reagan not spent what he did for our National Defense there may have been an uprising of Tyranny around the world much like there was during the early 20th Century progressive movement.
Back to our economy today though and how do we fix it? Inflated home prices and a debt pushing Government. Like it or not, we live in a Global Economy and others around the world can and will produce the goods and services we enjoy for much less than we are willing to. How many people do you know that actually make / produce something? Unless you know a bunch of farmers, probably not many, if any. Home prices were inflated while there was a lack of sustainable long term jobs and incomes that could be grown to meet these price levels. How did this happen? It is the result of multi-decade legislation {mortgage interest deduction, Fannie & Freddie expansion, latest $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers, etc} that our elected officials seem unwilling &/or unable to accept any responsibility for.
Think about this... Home prices are declining because they are too high, not due to lack of credit being available. Take away all these legislated price inflation incentives, and what are homes worth today? Not very much are they? The sustained growth that was critical to these policies working were dependent on uninterrupted inflation of home values, a problem compounded by a debt pushing Fed and financial engineering in the form of securitized lending and investing that shifted actual risk so frequently and in so many directions that no one understood what exposure they had.
Now I cannot claim credit for the formula I am about to present. It was developed by someone much smarter and far less emotional than I. A true visionary and leader. See I have no desire to be a leader in this movement, it is not my calling. I am a great foot soldier and that is my desire. I am willing to stand on the front lines because I love my country.
The Solution:
Level the playing field and let the market work again to put folks back to work. Flat or fair tax eliminates home price distortion faster than any other possible solution, and that distortion has to be permanently removed if the market is to stabilize. If you're an individual employee or retiree, your 1st $25k of income is exempt from all tax; a small business with 3-10 employees, the 1st $75k is exempt; 11-100 employees, the 1st $250k; 100-1000, the 1st $500k; over 1000 employees and the 1st $1 mil is exempt. Above these levels, everyone pays 30% tax + 5-8% for Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid, period. No mortgage or business expense deductions, no payroll tax, no alternative minimum tax, no loss carry forwards, no separate rate for capital gains, no investment tax credits, no dollar caps on social security/medical tax withholding, etc. Nothing else, just straightforward fair rates applicable to everyone equally that allows untaxed basic cost of living earnings for individuals & nominal untaxed incentive for creation and sustained activity of business. Above this, everyone pays the same rate without exception. The rates can be adjusted up or down depending on Governmental budget expenditures and revenues the code generates, but the pain or benefit of these adjustments will be shared equally by a united America. The cost of maintaining such a simple tax code, detecting and prosecuting tax cheats, and the time & money wasted by congress and lobbyists addressing tax related legislation year after year all get reduced to a minimum in a transparent and easily understandable system.
Whether you are a Republican, Democrat, Independent, Libertarian, etc. I cannot see how with any reason whatsoever you can oppose a solution like this. If you can, I would love to hear it, because the only people I believe who will oppose it are those seated in our Government. Don't be fooled both sides crave one thing; POWER. I have always said, Humility Does Not Seek Power; Power Seeks Humility. We The People are the Power and Our Government lacks Humility. We are desperate for citizen politicians who lead not because they seek fame, but because it is their Duty.
You wanted Steak; hopefully this is a little less on the sizzle side and more meat for you to chew on.
Re: I Am A Right-Wing Extremist; The Next Step
Nice stump speech, but like most it is long on sentiment and emotion, and short of pragmatic details.
I've read your other posts. To speak frankly, your understanding of the Constitution and the way gov't actually works seems lacking. This is reflected in the generalities and monologues you appear to favor, rather than specifics and interactive debate.
I tend to associate this sort of rhetoric with someone who wishes to take a leadership position in a movement. If that is the case, IMHO you need to do some homework and sharpen your understanding of the details first.
Item one: Simple majority rule does not set aside the Constitution. (from a post in another thread.)
Item two: Ideology and principles are fine things, but to govern in the real world you need specific plans with "how to's" in them, and the ability to persuade the undecided to cooperate with those plans.
Item three: I can't hate someone who loves the Gipper so much, but Dude, he wouldn't approve of some of your positions.
Item four: This is Debate Politics, not "post monologues from your blog". If you can't handle interactive debate you're not going to influence people much, at least not here, and so far I haven't seen you engage in any.
G.
My Response:
Goshin, I am appreciative of your comments and agree that the post is full of emotion. Right now our system is broken and it has been for a long time. Before we can do anything we must get an informed patriotism going again in this country and establish a sense of pride in our nation. We cannot move forward until we know where we have been. I hope that in my lifetime our children will once again get to experience a President who is a HERO, not a celebrity. Enough about that though, you are looking for steak, not sizzle.
Outside of informed patriotism, it is imperative that we fix our economy. Democrats truly believe that conservatives are angry about losing the election to Barry. While this belief makes great propaganda for the left wing media and their cronies, it is purely not the case. The Government wants you to believe that the fall of the economy is due to lack of regulation in the financial world and to a certain degree there is some validity to that, but it is only a minute portion of how we got off track. The principle problem in my opinion are over inflated home prices and debt pushing Republican and Democrat administrations starting with Bill Clinton, escalating with GWB and being capitalized on by Barry Obama.
Let me ask everyone this question; if you owned your own business, would you hire either of the Bush's, Clinton or Obama to run that company? I highly doubt it. Would you hire Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid? Probably not. Many of you may be thinking, well what about Reagan, he increased our national debt as well; in fact he spent like a mad man. You are right, but what did he spend the money on? Our National Defense.
If you were alive in the late 1970's you know our military's equipment, leadership and moral was decimated post Vietnam. Our government decided to send young men with no military experience to speak of to lead platoons of other men into treacherous combat simply because they had a college degree. Some of those young American men who were thrust into leadership positions that they were not prepared for were killed by their own men because one could not be allowed to lead so many to slaughter. That is for another post though.
Reagan inherited a weak an vulnerable national defense that had our enemies around the world salivating much like they are today. History has shown time and time again that Peace is Achieved Through Strength and we should always pray that our strength should never be required to be used. Had Reagan not spent what he did for our National Defense there may have been an uprising of Tyranny around the world much like there was during the early 20th Century progressive movement.
Back to our economy today though and how do we fix it? Inflated home prices and a debt pushing Government. Like it or not, we live in a Global Economy and others around the world can and will produce the goods and services we enjoy for much less than we are willing to. How many people do you know that actually make / produce something? Unless you know a bunch of farmers, probably not many, if any. Home prices were inflated while there was a lack of sustainable long term jobs and incomes that could be grown to meet these price levels. How did this happen? It is the result of multi-decade legislation {mortgage interest deduction, Fannie & Freddie expansion, latest $8,000 tax credit for homebuyers, etc} that our elected officials seem unwilling &/or unable to accept any responsibility for.
Think about this... Home prices are declining because they are too high, not due to lack of credit being available. Take away all these legislated price inflation incentives, and what are homes worth today? Not very much are they? The sustained growth that was critical to these policies working were dependent on uninterrupted inflation of home values, a problem compounded by a debt pushing Fed and financial engineering in the form of securitized lending and investing that shifted actual risk so frequently and in so many directions that no one understood what exposure they had.
Now I cannot claim credit for the formula I am about to present. It was developed by someone much smarter and far less emotional than I. A true visionary and leader. See I have no desire to be a leader in this movement, it is not my calling. I am a great foot soldier and that is my desire. I am willing to stand on the front lines because I love my country.
The Solution:
Level the playing field and let the market work again to put folks back to work. Flat or fair tax eliminates home price distortion faster than any other possible solution, and that distortion has to be permanently removed if the market is to stabilize. If you're an individual employee or retiree, your 1st $25k of income is exempt from all tax; a small business with 3-10 employees, the 1st $75k is exempt; 11-100 employees, the 1st $250k; 100-1000, the 1st $500k; over 1000 employees and the 1st $1 mil is exempt. Above these levels, everyone pays 30% tax + 5-8% for Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid, period. No mortgage or business expense deductions, no payroll tax, no alternative minimum tax, no loss carry forwards, no separate rate for capital gains, no investment tax credits, no dollar caps on social security/medical tax withholding, etc. Nothing else, just straightforward fair rates applicable to everyone equally that allows untaxed basic cost of living earnings for individuals & nominal untaxed incentive for creation and sustained activity of business. Above this, everyone pays the same rate without exception. The rates can be adjusted up or down depending on Governmental budget expenditures and revenues the code generates, but the pain or benefit of these adjustments will be shared equally by a united America. The cost of maintaining such a simple tax code, detecting and prosecuting tax cheats, and the time & money wasted by congress and lobbyists addressing tax related legislation year after year all get reduced to a minimum in a transparent and easily understandable system.
Whether you are a Republican, Democrat, Independent, Libertarian, etc. I cannot see how with any reason whatsoever you can oppose a solution like this. If you can, I would love to hear it, because the only people I believe who will oppose it are those seated in our Government. Don't be fooled both sides crave one thing; POWER. I have always said, Humility Does Not Seek Power; Power Seeks Humility. We The People are the Power and Our Government lacks Humility. We are desperate for citizen politicians who lead not because they seek fame, but because it is their Duty.
You wanted Steak; hopefully this is a little less on the sizzle side and more meat for you to chew on.
