Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler OT: politics

i saw that on letterman last night.. your right, he didnt flinch, and neither did anyone else..

i wonder if our enemies are still using "strategery". ?

bigjohn

I read up on the sales tax idea. Couldn't really find out definitively what the plan is, but it smells fishy. In EVERY example of personal income and tax rates they analyzed, the amount paid in taxes went down. How can that be possible and still maintain the gov't's current funding levels? There is more to that than what they're showing - I ain't buying it.

The second link that Turbodog provided was very interesting, however. If the numbers from the budget office are correct in that table then it appears the liberal notion of the top 1% having 90% of the wealth is erroneous (at least the income levels don't reflect that - maybe there are some other numbers that take into account real property).

Spiff, of course I knew you wouldn't encourage a son to be gay. I forget what I was driving at; I may have been drinking last night, but I can't be certain.

I've always struggled with the "homosexuality is a genetic trait" argument because the gay gene would seem to be doomed in any organism carrying it due to the non-reproducing nature of that organism. Your friend's argument does supply a reason for the existence of a agy recessive gene, but that is opening up a huge can of worms (That can of worms being the notion that behaviors are a product of genetic predisposition. We could basically abandon all personal responsibility for our behaviors and blame our genetic make-up. It could also imply that cultural differences between races are the product of different genetic tendencies). Regardless, the human genome project will likely one day be able to substantiate or refute that belief.

I have no proof, but I would venture that for many homosexuals the root cause was a difficulty in the reconciliation of growing sexual desires with social norms regarding sexual behavior. I would also venture that such difficulty is the cause of other "deviations" (not making a judgement, I just mean deviation from the norm).

I agree, and would have some questions about the "fair tax" as well. The part about taxes going down for everyone was a question for me too. I don't know if they expect the broader tax base to make up for this or what. Either someone is paying more, or just more people are paying...they are making up that $ somehow. I posted a couple of other things earlier in the thread that I would have questions about as well before I could support such a tax plan fully. I do like the idea of getting rid of/simplifying the current screwed up tax code though.

So...

What's everyone's take on the Swiftboat Vets add. (I heard bits and peices of this almost a year ago)

It might be interesting to note that this group once tried to claim that Kerry's service records were doctored and that he never actually served in Vietnam.

I think it's a blatant political move involving a lot of lies. None of these guys served on the same boat as Kerry (here is some good info about the opinions of those who did serve under Kerry on his boat), and they all admit that on the day of the action that lead to Kerry receiving the Silver Star, they were at least 50 yards away from Kerry's boat. One of the guys who claimed to be the doctor who treated Kerry's wound later admitted that he wasn't a doctor at the time and only briefly saw the wounds, didn't treat them. One of Kerry's superiors later retracted his statement that Kerry didn't deserve the Silver Star. Actually, there is one guy who served with Kerry and doesn't like him, but draw your own conclusions.

Oh, and here's some lovely info on Jerome Corsi, the co-author of "Unfit for Command". Seems like an awfully level-headed and fair guy, doesn't he?

Why do veterans overwhelmingly support Bush when he avoided the draft, cut veterans' benefits, and sat a bsolutely still for 7 minutes while the country was under attack. Sounds like a great war president to me...

I never heard anyone, including Bush detractors, claim that W is indecisive. You're charting new territory!

I think veterans groups tend to support Bush over Kerry for two reasons. 1) Most veterans are conservative older men. 2) While Kerry did in fact serve his country in war, when he returned he had all kinds of nasty things to say about his fellow soldiers and he may have "embellished" some of his stories.

Maybe I'm just depressed today, but I don't think it matters who gets elected - we're heading for socialism regardless. Anybody read Springsteen's opinion piece that was published in many newspapers around the country? Sad, sad, sad...

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Why do veterans overwhelmingly support Bush when he avoided the draft, cut veterans' benefits, and sat a bsolutely still for 7 minutes while the country was under attack. Sounds like a great war president to me...

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Maybe because he didn't repudiate his military service, stage mock raids on the Capital, declare that the army were a bunch of rapists, murderers and thieves, and vote against every arms appropriation that came his way the last 30 years.

Mark

Well at least there's a reason.

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Anybody read Springsteen's opinion piece that was published in many newspapers around the country? Sad, sad, sad...

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When's the last time you came across an artist who was FOR the establishment?

What's sad about this?

"Through my work, I've always tried to ask hard questions. Why is it that the wealthiest nation in the world finds it so hard to keep its promise and faith with its weakest citizens? Why do we continue to find it so difficult to see beyond the veil of race? How do we conduct ourselves during difficult times without killing the things we hold dear? Why does the fulfillment of our promise as a people always seem to be just within grasp yet forever out of reach?"