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1 minute ago, vikas83 said:

I want to end Medicaid because it is terrible policy. People have no right to health insurance. I'd end: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid (for adults), SNAP, Welfare, and Obamacare. I'd also cut military spending and taxes. My platform would be called "you are responsible for your own damn life."

I'd get like 4 votes.

That was Ron Paul. He was surprised anyone ever voted for him. 

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1 minute ago, vikas83 said:

I want to end Medicaid because it is terrible policy. People have no right to health insurance. I'd end: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid (for adults), SNAP, Welfare, and Obamacare. I'd also cut military spending and taxes. My platform would be called "you are responsible for your own damn life."

I'd get like 4 votes.

If you put a picture of Ron Swanson on a poster saying the slogan, you'd get at least a thousand votes on that alone. 

Just now, Gannan said:

We could probably create a good separate thread about this. I've heard arguments about how deficit spending doesn't matter, and the world economy is based on major countries buying U.S debt so none of it ever matters. Someone could probably write a good book about what would happen if we went to war with China or if the cold war escalated to the point where China stopped buying our debt and forced us to rethink our spending. 

Deficit spending is another topic all together, and that argument isn't totally without merit. Basically, since the Bretton Woods conference, the entire global financial system is based on the US Dollar. Almost all transactions settle in dollars, and most importantly, US government securities are considered riskless. The reason that matters is simple -- when looking at banks, the capitalization ratio is generally based on risk weighted assets. Take all the assets of the bank and then apply discounts to them, subtract the liabilities, and that gives you their risk weighted equity (basically their buffer). US government debt has a zero discount, so $1 million in treasuries is $1 million in risk weighted assets. So banks and insurance companies have an almost non-stop demand for US Treasuries since they pay a yield and have zero risk weight. That's why people say deficits don't matter -- because there is always an almost unending bid for our debt.

The counter to that is -- it works until it doesn't. It's why playing games with the debt ceiling, or the orange imbecile saying he will default, is so dangerous. If you introduce risk to the US Dollar, the whole system implodes immediately. 

May be an image of text that says 'In my experience, the right wing is always asking "What about me?" whereas the left wing asks "What about them?" And that, in a nutshell, is why I will always lean to the left.'

 

:worthy:  

3 minutes ago, mr_hunt said:

May be an image of text that says 'In my experience, the right wing is always asking "What about me?" whereas the left wing asks "What about them?" And that, in a nutshell, is why I will always lean to the left.'

 

:worthy:  

And that is also why you fail at life

If they're gonna give free lunches away to kids, it better not be free cakes, cookies, soda, and that type of ish. Health insurance premiums are high enough already as it is, let's not raise an entire generation of diabetic wheezing children that look like bowling balls with legs.

Just now, we_gotta_believe said:

If they're gonna give free lunches away to kids, it better not be free cakes, cookies, soda, and that type of ish. Health insurance premiums are high enough already as it is, let's not raise an entire generation of diabetic wheezing children that look like bowling balls with legs.

Well, congress declared pizza a vegetable. I remember when Michelle Obama tried to argue that kids should get healthy food in schools, but I was told if we did that, we'd get the communism. 

1 minute ago, we_gotta_believe said:

If they're gonna give free lunches away to kids, it better not be free cakes, cookies, soda, and that type of ish. Health insurance premiums are high enough already as it is, let's not raise an entire generation of diabetic wheezing children that look like bowling balls with legs.

They can eat sloppy joe's like we did

1 minute ago, vikas83 said:

They can eat sloppy joe's like we did

Never really liked them all that much, even as a kid. My friends were crazy for them but I couldn't understand the appeal. Not because they were too messy or anything, just didn't really like the sauce. Would much rather have had a normal burger.

1 hour ago, we_gotta_believe said:

Never really liked them all that much, even as a kid. My friends were crazy for them but I couldn't understand the appeal. Not because they were too messy or anything, just didn't really like the sauce. Would much rather have had a normal burger.

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3 hours ago, we_gotta_believe said:

Once the economy begins to recover, all they're left with is insignificant culture war garbage that you can't win an election on

to be fair, the economy was pretty good in 2016. 

don't sleep on the power of culture war BS. 

2 hours ago, vikas83 said:

That's why people say deficits don't matter -- because there is always an almost unending bid for our debt.

My quibble with that is that the #1 holder of securities is the Fed. 

Demand even for US Securities has a limit. When we blow past that limit but still need money, the Fed buys them with a money supply it controls.

Under prudent leadership this can work and balance reasonably well for We the People. Under less prudent leadership....

2 hours ago, we_gotta_believe said:

Never really liked them all that much, even as a kid. My friends were crazy for them but I couldn't understand the appeal. Not because they were too messy or anything, just didn't really like the sauce. Would much rather have had a normal burger.

 

1 hour ago, Phillyterp85 said:

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meh. sloppy joes are BBQ tacos on a Kaiser roll. 

not the worst thing. but worse than a lot of things. 

7 minutes ago, JohnSnowsHair said:

to be fair, the economy was pretty good in 2016. 

don't sleep on the power of culture war BS. 

He only won because he ran against one of the worst presidential candidates in decades not named Trump. If Biden ran against him in 2016, Trump would've lost and F'ed back off to Mar A Lago never to be heard from again.

Just now, we_gotta_believe said:

He only won because he ran against one of the worst presidential candidates in decades not named Trump. If Biden ran against him in 2016, Trump would've lost and F'ed back off to Mar A Lago never to be heard from again.

I still think if you rerun that election again a day later OR without Comey looking for his 15 minutes Hillary wins. 

3 minutes ago, we_gotta_believe said:

He only won because he ran against one of the worst presidential candidates in decades not named Trump. If Biden ran against him in 2016, Trump would've lost and F'ed back off to Mar A Lago never to be heard from again.

I agree with everything but the bold.  By the end of that campaign, Trump was already well aware of the windfall that grift could bring him.  He would've beat the drum on how the election was stolen from him and would've run again in 2020, 2024, etc.  Not sure he'd win the nomination again, but I'm sure he would try.

Just now, VanHammersly said:

I agree with everything but the bold.  By the end of that campaign, Trump was already well aware of the windfall that grift could bring him.  He would've beat the drum on how the election was stolen from him and would've run again in 2020, 2024, etc.  Not sure he'd win the nomination again, but I'm sure he would try.

True, you're probably right about that part. It would've basically played out almost exactly like it did after 2020 sans Jan 6th since it would've been Biden himself that would've certified the election so that horseshit plan would've been even less plausible even to those half-wits that stormed the capitol.

10 minutes ago, JohnSnowsHair said:

My quibble with that is that the #1 holder of securities is the Fed. 

Demand even for US Securities has a limit. When we blow past that limit but still need money, the Fed buys them with a money supply it controls.

Under prudent leadership this can work and balance reasonably well for We the People. Under less prudent leadership....

Well, the Fed being the largest holder of Treasuries currently is a function of QE that lasted for over a decade. It kept rates lower, but there is always natural demand away from the Fed but just at higher rates/lower prices.

Yes, there is a point where we blow it all up. Nobody can know where that is. But if/when it happens, it will be insanely fast.

where can I find extra-absorbent adult diapers?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

besides biden's wardrobe!

 

BAM!

 

I DID A CVON! :lol: :groovy:

29 minutes ago, JohnSnowsHair said:

 

meh. sloppy joes are BBQ tacos on a Kaiser roll. 

not the worst thing. but worse than a lot of things. 

I mean, sure if I was entertaining, would I make sloppy joe's for my guests?  No.  But is it still absolutely amazing from a school cafeteria perspective?  Yes.  And, among the "quick and cheap" food category, I'd say it's top of the line. 

4 minutes ago, Phillyterp85 said:

I mean, sure if I was entertaining, would I make sloppy joe's for my guests?  No.  But is it still absolutely amazing from a school cafeteria perspective?  Yes.  And, among the "quick and cheap" food category, I'd say it's top of the line. 

Honestly, I mentioned it because I was thinking of the song "Lunchlady Land" by Adam Sandler.

Just now, vikas83 said:

Honestly, I mentioned it because I was thinking of the song "Lunchlady Land" by Adam Sandler.

Navy beans, navy beans!

Image

One of the small issues with capitalism.

46 minutes ago, vikas83 said:

Well, the Fed being the largest holder of Treasuries currently is a function of QE that lasted for over a decade. It kept rates lower, but there is always natural demand away from the Fed but just at higher rates/lower prices.

Yes, there is a point where we blow it all up. Nobody can know where that is. But if/when it happens, it will be insanely fast.

Wasn't the first QE more about purchasing undesirable assets? Either way the fed becoming one of the primary purchasers of US securities under any circumstance seems like a bad sign. It gives permission to future policy makers to rely on it as a financial tool that the Fed is willing to deploy.

4 minutes ago, JohnSnowsHair said:

Wasn't the first QE more about purchasing undesirable assets? Either way the fed becoming one of the primary purchasers of US securities under any circumstance seems like a bad sign. It gives permission to future policy makers to rely on it as a financial tool that the Fed is willing to deploy.

It was a combination of MBS and treasuries, and then they basically ran out of MBS to buy.

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