Politics Unfiltered

[the ollie reed fan club]

Just thought I would swoop by this thread to see if the Spyder/Caneman jerk circle is still going.

It is.

[BrotherCane]

the ollie reed fan club Wrote:Just thought I would swoop by this thread to see if the Spyder/Caneman jerk circle is still going.

It is.

Just live under your queen and STFU You pound it to her?

[Spyder]

the ollie reed fan club Wrote:Just thought I would swoop by this thread to see if the Spyder/Caneman jerk circle is still going.

It is.

I tried to change the subject to the EU proposal for one government rule over all of Europe, but no one wanted to talk about it.

What would you like to talk about Ollie?

[jlupi]

you two or three can keep rotting in your own pissed off world.....it is clear there is NOTHING getting through the thick skulls you have....you are right...everybody else is wrong....even if you see it first hand....if it does not fit your idea of what should be...it's wrong.

but you both are prime examples of why the agendas you seek will never come to fruition....nobody wants to support cold hearted, selfish assholes....and that us what you have become....your statements show that to be very clear.>>>>

republican party is dying in 2012/13 just like the democratic party was dying in 2010.

I think polls show MOST americans support oil exploration and fracking. True nobody wants ANYTHING in their backyards just the benifits.

whats the liberal ideas on power? fantasy clean energy and jack prices so people have no choice but to freeze and not drive. Not to mention force ethenol production which is really another fantasy (burns as much energy to make as it produces) and jacks food prices world wide.

[salvador]

Speaking of Europe, it seems to me that there is literally no chance that Spain will be in the Euro in 10 years. It's actually hard to understand why it's still there because it clearly can't compete with the rest of Europe because it is less efficient and needs a cheaper currency to level the playing field. 60% youth unemployment will, without a doubt, result in a generation of entrepreneurs moving to other countries and ruin the country for decades. And obviously the politicians know it.

The absolute only reason why I can imagine that it hasn't broken away from the Euro yet is because of the banking system and the 700T of derivatives floating around out there that can't get converted to pesetas without collapsing the entire global financial system. It's clearly the most dangerous threat to the global economy and every day it gets worse. It's almost as if they have the whole world hostage and will continue to get free money from Germany and eventually the US and China.

Simply put, the reason Spain hasn't left the Euro is because it can't. (It's the same reason that interest rates in the US won't go up soon despite the insanity of the artificially low interest rates, because a 6% 10 year treasury yield could collapse the dollar - so it won't.) I just don't think that "because it can't" is a good enough reason for Spain to stay in the Euro or to assume that interest rates in the US won't go up.

Very very terrifying. We are all hanging by a thread and the socialists in Madrid and Washington hold all the cards.

[Spyder]

salvador Wrote:Speaking of Europe, it seems to me that there is literally no chance that Spain will be in the Euro in 10 years. It's actually hard to understand why it's still there because it clearly can't compete with the rest of Europe because it is less efficient and needs a cheaper currency to level the playing field. 60% youth unemployment will, without a doubt, result in a generation of entrepreneurs moving to other countries and ruin the country for decades. And obviously the politicians know it.

The absolute only reason why I can imagine that it hasn't broken away from the Euro yet is because of the banking system and the 700T of derivatives floating around out there that can't get converted to pesetas without collapsing the entire global financial system. It's clearly the most dangerous threat to the global economy and every day it gets worse. It's almost as if they have the whole world hostage and will continue to get free money from Germany and eventually the US and China.

Simply put, the reason Spain hasn't left the Euro is because it can't. (It's the same reason that interest rates in the US won't go up soon despite the insanity of the artificially low interest rates, because a 6% 10 year treasury yield could collapse the dollar - so it won't.) I just don't think that "because it can't" is a good enough reason for Spain to stay in the Euro or to assume that interest rates in the US won't go up.

Very very terrifying. We are all hanging by a thread and the socialists in Madrid and Washington hold all the cards.

Worse than that, Greece and Italy are helping it hold the Euro markets in a constant state of uncertainty. And since all Global markets take cues from one another, we also bear the brunt.

[salvador]

The crazy thing is that we aren't learning a damn thing from Europe. Instead of cutting back on public spending on things like pensions and healthcare, we are actually increasing these with Obamacare.

California is, of course, the most fucked (Union thug governor and dems have supermajority in state legislature). My friend's brother in law is a cop in LA (regular, not a big wig at all) and he is going to retire at 48 with about $75K a year plus COLA for the rest of his life plus free healthcare for him and his family. Who in the hell is going to pay for that? The best estimate is that California's public pensions are roughly $500BN underfunded.

The idea that the subject of changing the public sector's retirement package from defined benefit to defined contribution is somehow taboo is almost hilarious - if it wasn't so tragic. Of course, public sector employees vote disproportionately (i would too if I could vote for my salary and benefits) so politicians won't touch the subject.

My favorite thing about California is the 13.3% state income tax for rich people - it's "fair". It's also fair that the three people I know who would be paying it are all moving out of state for 181 days a year or setting up Nevada Trusts to shelter their income. The new tax will be a case study in what happens when you tax rich people too much - THEY LEAVE (like Phil Mickelson). Not only will state revenue decline, but businesses and jobs that are supporting the state's largess will also vanish. Goodness Gracious, I didn't see that coming!

[BrotherCane]

salvador Wrote:The crazy thing is that we aren't learning a damn thing from Europe. Instead of cutting back on public spending on things like pensions and healthcare, we are actually increasing these with Obamacare.

California is, of course, the most fucked (Union thug governor and dems have supermajority in state legislature). My friend's brother in law is a cop in LA (regular, not a big wig at all) and he is going to retire at 48 with about $75K a year plus COLA for the rest of his life plus free healthcare for him and his family. Who in the hell is going to pay for that? The best estimate is that California's public pensions are roughly $500BN underfunded.

The idea that the subject of changing the public sector's retirement package from defined benefit to defined contribution is somehow taboo is almost hilarious - if it wasn't so tragic. Of course, public sector employees vote disproportionately (i would too if I could vote for my salary and benefits) so politicians won't touch the subject.

My favorite thing about California is the 13.3% state income tax for rich people - it's "fair". It's also fair that the three people I know who would be paying it are all moving out of state for 181 days a year or setting up Nevada Trusts to shelter their income. The new tax will be a case study in what happens when you tax rich people too much - THEY LEAVE (like Phil Mickelson). Not only will state revenue decline, but businesses and jobs that are supporting the state's largess will also vanish. Goodness Gracious, I didn't see that coming!

Exactly, we are embracing the policies that destroyed them and I truly believe it's what Obama wants! It's got so bad here that SOME communist countries are growing at rates faster than us! Pitiful!

[Spyder]

Florida recently passed a measure to help with public employee retirement funding. Rather than it being completely paid for by the taxpayer, Florida now requires that public employees contribute 3% toward their own retirement. Yes, I typed that correctly...public employees are being asked to contribute a measly 3% of their gross income to help pay for their own retirements. The protests and outcry from public employees would make you think that Governor Scott told them that they were no longer eligible for any retirement benefits.

All of the women in my family are some kind of public employee (mostly teachers), so you can imagine that I got to hear all about it. I explained to them that 3% is nothing compared to what I am contributing. I also mentioned the fact that my 401k is not guaranteed to sustain me for the rest of my life. They can't argue against that, but look at it as a pay cut rather than an investment toward their golden years.

Anyway, that 3% is currently being argued in court to be overturned...citing a government breach of contract. It is unbelievable to me that they don't understand the concept of sustainability.

[salvador]

Spyder Wrote:Florida recently passed a measure to help with public employee retirement funding. Rather than it being completely paid for by the taxpayer, Florida now requires that public employees contribute 3% toward their own retirement. Yes, I typed that correctly...public employees are being asked to contribute a measly 3% of their gross income to help pay for their own retirements. The protests and outcry from public employees would make you think that Governor Scott told them that they were no longer eligible for any retirement benefits.

All of the women in my family are some kind of public employee (mostly teachers), so you can imagine that I got to hear all about it. I explained to them that 3% is nothing compared to what I am contributing. I also mentioned the fact that my 401k is not guaranteed to sustain me for the rest of my life. They can't argue against that, but look at it as a pay cut rather than an investment toward their golden years.

Anyway, that 3% is currently being argued in court to be overturned...citing a government breach of contract. It is unbelievable to me that they don't understand the concept of sustainability.

All these public pensions are going to hit a brick wall at some point and it's just a matter of time before the federal government is going to be asked to step in. I actually think California and Illinois are intentionally jacking up the spending and promises to accelerate the process in order to be first in line (first will undoubtedly get the best deal).

The thing is, all these programs really kicked into gear in the 1970s and 1980s with the public sector unions and now that those employees are starting to retire, most of the country's municipalities will be put in a position of having to pay full salaries for both the current employees and retired employees and still getting the same services.

If any politician in Washington thinks it's "fair" to ask a dry cleaner in Wyoming to pay for teachers in L.A. to retire at 52 with an average pension of around $50K a year plus medical plus COLA then that politician deserves to be shot - or burned! Unless, of course, only the rich dry cleaners in Wyoming are asked to chip in. That would be more fair.

As Rand Paul would say, "the cart is getting too heavy for the private sector to pull".