Hey Tea Baggers

[MannyIsGod]

Nope. The above is wrong. The meme that government does everything poorly or worse is flat out false.

[Parker2112]

I worked for City, State and Federal Govt. And in every case, an excessive % of employees are able to get by just drawing a paycheck and riding the clock. The size of the federal govt alone screams failure. The federal govt is one big stimulus program at this point. Gulf Oil cleanup: botched. Iraq: Botched. Afghan: botched. Bailouts: botched. Intelligence community: botched. Veterans medical: bothced. Insurance reform: Botched. Election process: botched. Congressional ethics enforcement: botched. Texas ethics enforcement: botched. Texas school book revision: botched. Etc. Etc. the govts solution success rate is self-explanatory.

There are way too many spoilers, cheats, crooks, liars, career politicians, etc on taxpayer payroll to have successful govt at this point. The only solution: start sending them home.

[Nbadan]

Hard to argue that the govt. doesn't do somethings right without looking at the US military...10 years or more technologically ahead than its nearest compe or....does it sell its top secrets on the open market?

Social Security is its own program, with its own funding and a 5-6 trillion dollar surplus that has been used to lead the US into a half-century of relative prosperity...to claim it as an 'en lement program' is intellectually dishonest....

...the recent market crash would have wiped out millions of retirement accounts if the GOP got what it wanted under Dubya to let people invest their own money....no further proof needed libs got that right..

[Nbadan]

Here's the problem with an opt out. in no way am I buying that people would turn around and invest that money in a retirement benefit. Not any sizable percentage of the population anyway. What would then happen is that society would have an incredible burden placed on it by a retiring population sector and it would end up costing us just as much if not more.

I don't buy that people would be more responsible with that money when they obviously aren't doing so at the moment with the money they have.

Yeah, and the needest Americans would rather pay bills than worry about the future, so they would spend the money if they could...then you would end up with a situation where these people either become indentured servants for the rest of their lives, or a burden of the state and taxpayers...

[MannyIsGod]

I worked for City, State and Federal Govt. And in every case, an excessive % of employees are able to get by just drawing a paycheck and riding the clock. The size of the federal govt alone screams failure. The federal govt is one big stimulus program at this point. Gulf Oil cleanup: botched. Iraq: Botched. Afghan: botched. Bailouts: botched. Intelligence community: botched. Veterans medical: bothced. Insurance reform: Botched. Election process: botched. Congressional ethics enforcement: botched. Texas ethics enforcement: botched. Texas school book revision: botched. Etc. Etc. the govts solution success rate is self-explanatory.

There are way too many spoilers, cheats, crooks, liars, career politicians, etc on taxpayer payroll to have successful govt at this point. The only solution: start sending them home.

I've worked for fortune 500 companies and I can apply everything you said to them as well.

[101A]

Yet the defense part is completely ignored by the tea party as is the taxation part.

When have you heard the "Tea Party" explain exactly what they/it is, or is not, for? Tea Party != Republican.

I think if I got a mike, stood up and yelled at a Tea Party rally "WE NEED AN IMMEDIATE 15% ACROSS THE BOARD CUT IN SPENDING" - plenty of people, if not the vast majority would give Huzzah's.

If I added, "AND TO PAY FOR THE PAST SINS OF OUR COUNTRY, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO ALSO RAISE TAXES 15% FOR A WHILE" .... there would be quite a few who, if not cheer, would agree.

[101A]

Hard to argue that the govt. doesn't do somethings right without looking at the US military...10 years or more technologically ahead than its nearest compe or....does it sell its top secrets on the open market?

It is private, for profit, businesses that develop those secrets - and they are allowed to profit by selling their wares to other nations; although govt. HAS been wise enough to, for the most part, stay out of R&D.

Social Security is its own program, with its own funding and a 5-6 trillion dollar surplus that has been used to lead the US into a half-century of relative prosperity...to claim it as an 'en lement program' is intellectually dishonest....

Sure, on its own it has a surplus; but the problem is, it is not allowed to stand on its own. The surplus has been spent on government bonds; and that cash has been spent. BECAUSE it is a government program, it fails, in spite of its inherent soundness. The inherent unsoundness of the fiscal house it is a room of, dooms it.

Also, When you hit a certain age, and have paid in, you are "en led"; when you get disabled you are "en led". Sounds like an en lement program.

...the recent market crash would have wiped out millions of retirement accounts if the GOP got what it wanted under Dubya to let people invest their own money....no further proof needed libs got that right..

Did you see where the market was at at the close yesterday? It is doing better than the country at large - of course it is, consider who has skin in THAT game. And what G. Bush proposed wouldn't have ruined anyone; the percentages were too small. I'd gladly take HALF of what has been donated into my SS account, wash my hands of the program, and go it alone (I'm 42) - AND pay in half of my requirement until retirement; I'd come out WAY a head.

[George Gervin's Afro]

When have you heard the "Tea Party" explain exactly what they/it is, or is not, for? Tea Party != Republican.

I think if I got a mike, stood up and yelled at a Tea Party rally "WE NEED AN IMMEDIATE 15% ACROSS THE BOARD CUT IN SPENDING" - plenty of people, if not the vast majority would give Huzzah's.

If I added, "AND TO PAY FOR THE PAST SINS OF OUR COUNTRY, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO ALSO RAISE TAXES 15% FOR A WHILE" .... there would be quite a few who, if not cheer, would agree.

I think we've come to a point where one side says "our way is the only way" and then proceed to force things down our collective throats. Do tax cuts by themselves work? No. Does spending work by itself? No.

[CosmicCowboy]

Social Security is its own program, with its own funding and a 5-6 trillion dollar surplus that has been used to lead the US into a half-century of relative prosperity...to claim it as an 'en lement program' is intellectually dishonest....

Dan, the fact that you continue to parrot this position is so intellectually dishonest that it undermines the credibility of everything else you post.

That "surplus" simply doesn't exist. It's gone. When that "surplus" is finally needed to fund benefits the US government is going to have to come up with SIX TRILLION REAL DOLLARS to fund the promised benefits.

[101A]

I think we've come to a point where one side says "our way is the only way" and then proceed to force things down our collective throats. Do tax cuts by themselves work? No. Does spending work by itself? No.

Kumbaya, brother.

[Wild Cobra]

I would opt out of Social Security yesterday if I could!!!!

Compound interest > SS

Agreed.

[Wild Cobra]

"All you have to do is get insurers to sign up"

public replaces for-profit scammers. If you want 5-star complementary coverage, you pay the for-profit scammers.

"Where's my free health care"

There's no free health care. Everybody pays, everybody's covered.

No, only about 55% would pay.

[Wild Cobra]

Dan, the fact that you continue to parrot this position is so intellectually dishonest that it undermines the credibility of everything else you post.

That "surplus" simply doesn't exist. It's gone. When that "surplus" is finally needed to fund benefits the US government is going to have to come up with SIX TRILLION REAL DOLLARS to fund the promised benefits.

I saw:

SIX TRILLION REAL DOLLARS

Couldn't help but think of Obama as the "Six Trillion Dollar [spending] Man".

[CosmicCowboy]

I saw:

Couldn't help but think of Obama as the "Six Trillion Dollar [spending] Man".

Meh. Republicans and Democrats have been equally complicit in looting Social Security.