Socialism v Capitalism

[billvon 2,396]

3 hours ago, airdvr said:

It seems to me that we've doubled down on government spending for social programs over the last 70 years...and then some.  We're so far in debt I would consider it dangerous.

I agree!  Although I would suggest that, if you want to cut spending, we look at the item that makes up more than half of our discretionary spending - the military.  I mean, we could cut that 5% back to 1.2% and not even make a dent.

[Phil1111 910]

48 minutes ago, JoeWeber said:

I live on a yacht in the Caribbean and do my own financial planning. But thanks for more great advice.

Not to worry airdvr, trump Jr. and all the other GOP bigwigs will eventually be fender to fender with you. Here are some good charts on US inequality. I especially like the one entitled "Silver Spoon Oligarchs" in America.

Brent would show up there with you in the sun as well. But he will likely lose it all in the great carbon crash of 2030.

[brenthutch 383]

56 minutes ago, rifleman said:

Soviet

Try again 

[airdvr 197]

3 hours ago, JerryBaumchen said:

Hi airdvr,

What is good is that we can agree to disagree.

If you are concerned about the US Debt Clock, I strongly suggest that you look at the US military budget.  That is one fat item in the US budget.

Jerry Baumchen

A veteran

 

Hi jerry,

 

Defense spending pales in comparison to Social Security and Medicaid.

[airdvr 197]

3 hours ago, JerryBaumchen said:

Hi airdvr,

What is good is that we can agree to disagree.

If you are concerned about the US Debt Clock, I strongly suggest that you look at the US military budget.  That is one fat item in the US budget.

Jerry Baumchen

A veteran

 

Hi jerry,

 

Defense spending pales in comparison to Social Security and Medicaid.

[airdvr 197]

3 hours ago, JoeWeber said:

I live on a yacht in the Caribbean and do my own financial planning. But thanks for more great advice.

Hopefully soon you'll be able to afford to live in the US again.

[Phil1111 910]

19 minutes ago, airdvr said:

Hopefully soon you'll be able to afford to live in the US again.

Why live in the US when you can visit for free?

[Stumpy 256]

11 hours ago, airdvr said:

Hopefully soon you'll be able to afford to live in the US again.

Why would he want to downgrade?

[Stumpy 256]

11 hours ago, airdvr said:

Hi jerry,

 

Defense spending pales in comparison to Social Security and Medicaid.

The US spends more on looking after its poor, sick, and vulnerable, than on killing foreigners.

 

THE HORROR!

[wolfriverjoe 1,340]

19 hours ago, airdvr said:

It seems to me that we've doubled down on government spending for social programs over the last 70 years...and then some.  We're so far in debt I would consider it dangerous.  How much further should we go?  

In 1952 social programs accounted for 1.2% of GDP.  By 2010 it was close to 5%.  I didn't get into the past 2+ years but it was phenomenal.

Well, yeah.

Back in the 50s, letting poor people die from lack of medical care (or lack of nutritious food) was the norm.

Johnson was a piece of shit, but his social programs did a lot to improve the lives of poor folks. And improved the country as a side effect.

The "Great Society" concept had a lot going for it.

[SkyDekker 1,122]

17 hours ago, brenthutch said:

Try again 

USSR is Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. What did you think it stood for that you think the second S was socialist? Or did you just struggle with counting?

[billvon 2,396]

14 hours ago, airdvr said:

Defense spending pales in comparison to Social Security and Medicaid.

Agreed.  But you can cut one without harming Americans very much.  You can't cut the other without harming Americans.  

[ryoder 1,384]

6 minutes ago, billvon said:

Agreed.  But you can cut one without harming Americans very much.  You can't cut the other without harming Americans.  

Someone remind me again why the US needs to spend more on defense spending than the next eleven countries combined.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

[GeorgiaDon 340]

6 minutes ago, ryoder said:

Someone remind me again why the US needs to spend more on defense spending than the next eleven countries combined.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

It's called the military-industrial complex.  If they didn't spend so much on the military, they might be able to afford universal health care, or decent schools for everyone, or paid sick leave and maternity leave, like every other economically advanced country.  But that would be socialism!  Far far better to build a bunch more tanks, or aircraft carriers, or whatever.

[kallend 1,623]

10 minutes ago, ryoder said:

Someone remind me again why the US needs to spend more on defense spending than the next eleven countries combined.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

And 8 of those are our allies.

[brenthutch 383]

7 minutes ago, SkyDekker said:

USSR is Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. What did you think it stood for that you think the second S was socialist? Or did you just struggle with counting?

Read rifleman’s post and rethink.  You are starting to get very petty, but if that is all you have…that is all you have.

[JerryBaumchen 1,048]

16 hours ago, airdvr said:

Hi jerry,

 

Defense spending pales in comparison to Social Security and Medicaid.

Hi airdvr,

OK, I'm game; which of those two would you want to eliminate right now?

Jerry Baumchen

PS)  People have short memories.  Back when Medicaid was being proposed, the GOP told us how it was socialized medicine & it would bankrupt this country.  Now, tell me which, if any, member of the GOP advocates eliminating Medicaid today?

 

[brenthutch 383]

18 minutes ago, JerryBaumchen said:

Hi airdvr,

OK, I'm game; which of those two would you want to eliminate right now?

Jerry Baumchen

PS)  People have short memories.  Back when Medicaid was being proposed, the GOP told us how it was socialized medicine & it would bankrupt this country.  Now, tell me which, if any, member of the GOP advocates eliminating Medicaid today?

 

Looks like the GOP was right

https://www.americanactionforum.org/research/the-future-of-americas-entitlements-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-medicare-and-social-security-trustees-reports-4/

[Phil1111 910]

1 hour ago, kallend said:

And 8 of those are our allies.

 

1 hour ago, ryoder said:

Someone remind me again why the US needs to spend more on defense spending than the next eleven countries combined.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures

Hey.....don't forget. If trump and the GOP are re-elected. We'll all become enemies again.

[JoeWeber 2,299]

2 hours ago, kallend said:

And 8 of those are our allies.

Well, because otherwise with all of the leftover money we'd have no excuse not to feed kids and put them in school and quality daycare. And faster than you can ask how long were we in Afghanistan those kids would be lining up for free higher education and getting PhD's in Pronoun Development Studies and Bathroom Degenderification. There'd be plenty of loot left over for quality national healthcare and forced gay marriage, too. So, really, our bloated military not only protects us from invasion from all enemies except our next door neighbors but it also saves us from wokeism and other social blights. A real bargain, seems to me.

[Phil1111 910]

57 minutes ago, JoeWeber said:

Well, because otherwise with all of the leftover money we'd have no excuse not to feed kids and put them in school and quality daycare. And faster than you can ask how long were we in Afghanistan those kids would be lining up for free higher education and getting PhD's in Pronoun Development Studies and Bathroom Degenderification. There'd be plenty of loot left over for quality national healthcare and forced gay marriage, too. So, really, our bloated military not only protects us from invasion from all enemies except our next door neighbors but it also saves us from wokeism and other social blights. A real bargain, seems to me.

Are you anchored in Jamaica now? You should not hoist the sails for a bit.

[JoeWeber 2,299]

3 hours ago, Phil1111 said:

Are you anchored in Jamaica now? You should not hoist the sails for a bit.

Bonaire, DWI. On a mooring, no anchoring allowed. The Leewards have been getting pounded lately, unusually for now but that's weather. 

[wmw999 2,121]

Mmmmm, Bonaire. I’d go there in one half of one second… 

Wendy P. 

[JoeWeber 2,299]

9 minutes ago, wmw999 said:

Mmmmm, Bonaire. I’d go there in one half of one second… 

Wendy P. 

Lately it's been a delight. Low covid and easy to stay in a smallish smart thinking group for safety. The diving at the south end, past the salt pier, has been really good for the Caribbean. The conditions look good for a deep dive off the south tip tomorrow so we'll give that a go. The Wahoo have been hitting hard so maybe we'll get lucky coming or going.

[lippy 771]

1 hour ago, JoeWeber said:

Lately it's been a delight. Low covid and easy to stay in a smallish smart thinking group for safety. The diving at the south end, past the salt pier, has been really good for the Caribbean. The conditions look good for a deep dive off the south tip tomorrow so we'll give that a go. The Wahoo have been hitting hard so maybe we'll get lucky coming or going.

When I was an illegal immigrant to Venezuela (I was young and dumb and my employer at the time told me that 'everybody only had a tourist visa'), I had to leave every 90 days to rubber stamp/renew the tourist visa.  For the first year or so they'd just fly me out for the weekend and I got to have some good times in Aruba and Bonaire...never made Curacao.  Then they figured out they could just loan me to operations in Colombia for a month and get my visa renewed without financing my vacation.