President Barack Obama - Term 1 and 2 Thread

[Boomchild]

Found this interesting. I believe he is not the only one to be fired or let go that were in charge\involved of our nuclear weapons program.

"The Air Force has announced Maj. Gen. Michael Carey was fired "due to a loss of trust and confidence in his leadership and judgment." The statement further specified that the allegations about Carey don't involve sexual misconduct and aren't related to inspection results. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports."

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10 ... &gt1=43001

[Memorex]

Found this interesting. I believe he is not the only one to be fired or let go that were in charge\involved of our nuclear weapons program.

"The Air Force has announced Maj. Gen. Michael Carey was fired "due to a loss of trust and confidence in his leadership and judgment." The statement further specified that the allegations about Carey don't involve sexual misconduct and aren't related to inspection results. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports."

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10 ... &gt1=43001

A friend sent me this, if you can buy into such things?

http://www.infowars.com/top-nuke-commanders-fired-following-missing-nuclear-warheads-report/

[The_Noble_Cause]

Can you cite any more examples that prove you're a complete idiot? All of those health care systems are - 1. Socialized Medicine.

Wrong. The systems vary. Unless w're talking about the British NHS, in which the government controls every aspect of the industry.

2. Far worse than the USA's present, privatized medical sytem.

Wrong again. If our system is 100% privatized, what exactly do you call Medicaid, Medicare, and the VA? Regarding those w/out insurance, what EXACTLY do you think a taxpayer funded trip to the ER is? That is a form of subsidized care. You obviously haven't thought much, if any, of this through.

Fuck, dude, why don't you move somewhere, where the government tells you when you can take a shit or pee. Seems that is what some people here want.

Nice deflection. Name a capitalist US ally and odds are they have some form of universal healthcare coverage. Clearly, mandated coverage does not automatically lead to dictatorship, as suggested. You are a bleeding ass dunce.

[steveo777]

Can you cite any more examples that prove you're a complete idiot? All of those health care systems are - 1. Socialized Medicine.

Wrong. The systems vary. Unless w're talking about the British NHS, in which the government controls every aspect of the industry.

2. Far worse than the USA's present, privatized medical sytem.

Wrong again. If our system is 100% privatized, what exactly do you call Medicaid, Medicare, and the VA? Regarding those w/out insurance, what EXACTLY do you think a taxpayer funded trip to the ER is? That is a form of subsidized care. You obviously haven't thought much, if any, of this through.

Fuck, dude, why don't you move somewhere, where the government tells you when you can take a shit or pee. Seems that is what some people here want.

Nice deflection. Name a capitalist US ally and odds are they have some form of universal healthcare coverage. Clearly, mandated coverage does not automatically lead to dictatorship, as suggested. You are a bleeding ass dunce.

Do you feel better now? I was not speaking of Medicare, Medicaid and the VA, ass hat. Since we already have those programs, what is the rest that Obamacare is targeting? Welfare recipients get those benefits too. So, that leaves a couple other classes, those who work and have medical insurance through their employer and those who don't. This is a fucking robinhood program, tax the better off and give it to the less fortunate......you know, the ones who sit on their porches all day, drinking a forty and smoking a blunt. Only this time, Obama has targeted the middle class and wants to give the money to the lower class, the kind of people who vote for people who think they are gonna help them.......a community organizer.....a crooked Chicago politician.

[Boomchild]

Do you feel better now? I was not speaking of Medicare, Medicaid and the VA, ass hat. Since we already have those programs, what is the rest that Obamacare is targeting? Welfare recipients get those benefits too. So, that leaves a couple other classes, those who work and have medical insurance through their employer and those who don't. This is a fucking robinhood program, tax the better off and give it to the less fortunate......you know, the ones who sit on their porches all day, drinking a forty and smoking a blunt. Only this time, Obama has targeted the middle class and wants to give the money to the lower class, the kind of people who vote for people who think they are gonna help them.......a community organizer.....a crooked Chicago politician.

Just based on how poorly the federal government has run Medicare, it should give you an idea of how things will go with the government in the driver's seat for the nations entire healthcare system. How anyone can think this is going to be a good system is beyond me.

[Boomchild]

A friend sent me this, if you can buy into such things?



http://www.infowars.com/top-nuke-commanders-fired-following-missing-nuclear-warheads-report/

I heard about this article. Since it's coming from Alex Jones' site, I am not sure what to make of it. To me he operates on the extreme fringe. I am sure it's possible that some of his stuff contains accurate information. But, I find it tough to filter.

[The_Noble_Cause]

Do you feel better now? I was not speaking of Medicare, Medicaid and the VA, ass hat.

You clearly are just making it up as you go along. All three of those programs are a part of US healthcare, like it or not. And the GOP's solution - as uttered by the party's standard bearer, Mitt Romney - is to simply let uninsured people go to the ER. Which is just another case of taxpayers' subsidizing the cost of the less fortunate. Is that your idea of privatized free market care? Truthfully, Obama's mandate is more of a conservative solution than anything proposed by the other side. The Democrats are now the Republicans and the Republicans are now...I don't know what? Limp dicked Rush Limbaugh wannabes, substituting shock value for pragmatic bi-partisan solutions.

Since we already have those programs, what is the rest that Obamacare is targeting? Welfare recipients get those benefits too. So, that leaves a couple other classes, those who work and have medical insurance through their employer and those who don't.

And what about the vast percentage who work, (in many cases two jobs), and do not get employer based healthcare?

This is a fucking robinhood program, tax the better off and give it to the less fortunate......you know, the ones who sit on their porches all day, drinking a forty and smoking a blunt.

Yet not a word about corporate bailouts grants, exemptions, subsidies etc. This country has the least generous entitlement program in the western world. Yet, here you are, shaking in your boots over the impoverished masses, which are deciding between which can of Alpo or Purrina to eat for dinner. You are truly a sad delusional soul.

[Memorex]

TNC - I just have to ask for the sake of asking. When we increase entitlements, do you not see what that does in return to the workforce, to the tax revenue, etc? It seems very clear to me, and I think it's proven time and time again, that the easier you make it for people not to excel, the less motivated they become.

You talk about all these other countries and societies. But no other country led the world we did in so many different ways.

I guess I don't understand why you don't want to acknowledge the factual downsides to some of these things. Our way of life is eroding and I think that's ok with you. But there are negatives to that.

If all of this entitlement stuff works so good, why is the tax burden in this country becoming so one-sided? Why is it so easy to not work anymore? Why are there so many fraudulent disability claims? Why has food stamp use risen to record levels with no end in sight? Why is the labor participation rate at record lows? Why have we doubled the US debt in the last few years? The more you give away, the less motivated people are. Do you dispute that and if not, then can you at least see what conservatives are preaching about? Not Republicans - they are just as much a part of this as dems, but fiscal conservatives.

What are your limits? A direct answer would be cool. How much debt is too much? How much QE is enough? What tax rate is too high? How many things in society should be taxed more and more like we are doing? How much regulation is enough? How much power is enough? I've never met a liberal that can answer (or will answer) these questions. You will hear a bunch of stories about unhappy liberals having to pay so much for healthcare, but they will still vote for the same policies.

So two basic questions - do you see the faults in liberal fiscal policies and how much is enough for you?

[Memorex]

Couple more TNC, because it ties in to all of this. So much of this is fixed if a lot more people were working.

Are you disappointed in Obama at all that he has spent nearly zero hours focused on real job growth? Are you bothered by the use of "fake" numbers to make the unemployment rate appear lower? Does it bother you that the ratio of golf outings to meetings on the jobs and economy for Obama skew far in favor of golf?

[The_Noble_Cause]

You talk about all these other countries and societies. But no other country led the world we did in so many different ways.

When? After WW2, after we (literally) decimated the competition? The only thing we lead in nowadays is low paying customer service jobs, obesity, illiteracy, and rigged corporate elections.

Our way of life is eroding and I think that's ok with you.

Raise the marginal tax rates up from their Reagan/Clinton era level, back up to FDR/JFK levels and see what happens. The middle class didn't even exist in this country until the safety net was introduced and the rich were taxed heavily.

If all of this entitlement stuff works so good, why is the tax burden in this country becoming so one-sided?

It's one sided alright. But the side making out like bandits, aren't those who rely on entitlements -

"The top 1% of income-earners in the US took 19% of the national income in 2012, the largest share since 1928. That 1% also saw their average income rise by 31.4% from the current crisis's low point in 2009, through 2012. The top 1% certainly enjoyed a recovery.

In total contrast, income for the other 99% rose by an average of 0.4% during the same period. Many of those people actually saw their earnings drop. That was not a recovery, not even close. For the vast majority of Americans, the recovery hype is just a weapon of mass distraction."

http://rdwolff.com/content/recovery-hyp ... istraction

Why is it so easy to not work anymore?

It's not.

Why has food stamp use risen to record levels with no end in sight?

Because an 8 trillion dollar housing bubble exploded and there has been nothing to fill the lack of demand. An 800 billion dollar stimulus is a drop in the bucket.

Why is the labor participation rate at record lows?

Repeal Taft-Hartley. Actually fund the Depart. of Labor and give it teeth.The younger generations don't even know what a union is anymore. You got Conservative knowitalls enjoying their paid holidays and overtime while saying that Unions are the root of all evil. These very things are the spoils of labor's hard fought battles.

Why have we doubled the US debt in the last few years?

War. Depression. More war.

The more you give away, the less motivated people are. Do you dispute that and if not, then can you at least see what conservatives are preaching about? Not Republicans - they are just as much a part of this as dems, but fiscal conservatives.

I do dispute it. Most policymakers have been operating from a deregulating, business-friendly approach for decades (including Carter who deregulated rail and airlines). These policies, in combination with women in the workforce, globalization (i.e. unfair trade), and automation has paralyzed economic mobility in the US, the very thing that once enabled people to go from nothing to striking it big. The American dream is dead. Now it's all talk.

[Memorex]

And there you have it. It has to be the way our genes work at birth. Everything you said is exactly the opposite of what I see as basic truths - mathematical truths.

Yes - the rich are getting richer. The poor are becoming poorer, especially now. You say a housing bubble blew. Had strong conservative ideas been followed, there would have been no bubble to burst. Same thing with the QE now. If the economy can't right itself based on the rules with which it was created, then the rich will continue to get richer and the poor will continue to get poorer. You think QE helps the poor - that's silly. It is helping wallstreet more than anyone else. You think running up all this debt helps the poor?

The rich run things, and so they will always exist, always be protected, always flourish. You cannot change that ever. Even Obama takes every possible path to securing his wealth.

So it's my understanding that you would like to see the top marginal tax rate be about 70%. Plus state and local taxes. And in this new world we live in, you think there would still be an incentive for people to go out and create jobs? It's really hard for me to understand why it's ok with some people for the government to take 70% of anyone's money so that they can pass that money down to others. What I will agree with is that companies like Google and GE should be banned from doing any business in the US unless they pay a certain percentage of income in actual taxes. We've allowed far too many loopholes. Want to move your money around to avoid taxes, then practice elsewhere.

I'm not sure what you mean about a recovery. There has yet to be a meaningful recovery and I sense things will get worse before they get better. You likely support QE, but then when it is set up to make the stock market perform better, you complain when the rich are the beneficiaries. Over half the QE goes straight to the stock market, which Joe plummer is not generally trading in. Joe Ferrari is. So if you don't want to see rich guy get richer, you better start railing against these policies. Obama has been president for nearly 5 years. If the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, you need to take a hard look at your guy. Someone on TV the other day said that blacks have gone downhill in every indicator since Obama took office.

See the post a day or two ago about how median welfare is higher than median income in several states and tell me again how it's not easy to stop working anymore.

Unions had their time and place and I think that kind of power has moved on to lobbying. Unions have gone into a phase of actually making life harder in some regards for the people they wish to serve. And they have become far too married to politics and their higher-ups, more than the worker. No sane organization would create a scenario where over 50% of their budget has to go to pensions, with that percentage only going to rise as time passes. Complaints about the LAUSD? Over 50% of their annual budget goes to pay pensions. You can't teach kids properly or hire good people with that monkey on your back. Every teacher is thankful for it, but it's crushing the system. So instead of any teacher giving anything up, they simply ask for more tax money. And it goes in circles to where the state can hardly function. Auto unions - same shit. And no American should EVER be forced to pay dues that are then used to support political candidates and policies they may not agree with. You'd agree with that, correct?

Now that you have had nearly 5 years of increased regulation, maybe you can tell me how it has helped. More people out of work than ever. Entire industries that we have long relied on crumbling. Businesses struggling to stay afloat with all the new fees and rules. We need jobs, not fees.

My father-in-law just lost his job a couple days ago. Too expensive to keep everyone. First time he has been out of work in his life.

[slucero]

Mem.. TNC did quote the following.. (not sure if its what he agrees with)

"For the vast majority of Americans, the recovery hype is just a weapon of mass distraction."

[Memorex]

Just for the record - I'm as full of shit as anyone else. I studied programming, come from a long line of Democrats and Republicans, and don't really have any answers either. So who knows? Football is on tomorrow - that's what really counts.

[Boomchild]

Speaking of the uninsured driving up healthcare costs by going to the ER for non emergency care, according to a report by the NCHS states the following:

"Frequency of ED use was associated with insurance status, with Medicaid
beneficiaries being the most likely to have visited the ED multiple times in
the past year."

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db38.pdf

[slucero]

Thomas Sowell: Who shut down the government?
Oct. 12, 2013 @ 07:55 PM



Even when it comes to something as basic, and apparently as simple and straightforward, as the question of who shut down the federal government, there are diametrically opposite answers, depending on whether you talk to Democrats or to Republicans.

There is really nothing complicated about the facts. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted all the money required to keep all government activities going — except for Obamacare. This is not a matter of opinion.

You can check the Congressional Record.

As for the House of Representatives’ right to grant or withhold money, that is not a matter of opinion either. You can check the Constitution of the United States. All spending bills must originate in the House of Representatives, which means that congressmen there have a right to decide whether or not they want to spend money on a particular government activity.
Whether Obamacare is good, bad or indifferent is a matter of opinion. But it is a matter of fact that members of the House of Representatives have a right to make spending decisions based on their opinion.

Obamacare is indeed “the law of the land,” as its supporters keep saying, and the Supreme Court has upheld its constitutionality. But the whole point of having a division of powers within the federal government is that each branch can decide independently what it wants to do or not do, regardless of what the other branches do, when exercising the powers specifically granted to that branch by the Constitution. The hundreds of thousands of government workers who have been laid off are not idle because the House of Representatives did not vote enough money to pay their salaries or the other expenses of their agencies — unless they are in an agency that would administer Obamacare.

Since we cannot read minds, we cannot say who — if anybody — “wants to shut down the government.” But we do know who had the option to keep the government running and chose not to. The money voted by the House of Representatives covered everything that the government does, except for Obamacare.

The Senate chose not to vote to authorize that money to be spent, because it did not include money for Obamacare. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says that he wants a “clean” bill from the House of Representatives, and some in the media keep repeating the word “clean” like a mantra. But what is unclean about not giving Harry Reid everything he wants?

If Sen. Reid and President Obama refuse to accept the money required to run the government, because it leaves out the money they want to run Obamacare, that is their right. But that is also their responsibility.

You cannot blame other people for not giving you everything you want. And it is a fraud to blame them when you refuse to use the money they did vote, even when it is ample to pay for everything else in the government.

When Barack Obama keeps claiming that it is some new outrage for those who control the money to try to change government policy by granting or withholding money, that is simply a bald-faced lie. You can check the history of other examples of “legislation by appropriation” as it used to be called.

Whether legislation by appropriation is a good idea or a bad idea is a matter of opinion. But whether it is both legal and not unprecedented is a matter of fact.

Perhaps the biggest of the big lies is that the government will not be able to pay what it owes on the national debt, creating a danger of default. Tax money keeps coming into the Treasury during the shutdown, and it vastly exceeds the interest that has to be paid on the national debt.

Even if the debt ceiling is not lifted, that only means that government is not allowed to run up new debt. But that does not mean that it is unable to pay the interest on existing debt.

None of this is rocket science. But unless the Republicans get their side of the story out — and articulation has never been their strong suit — the lies will win. More important, the whole country will lose.


Thomas Sowell, a native of North Carolina, is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305. His Web site is http://www.tsowell.com. Representations of fact and opinions are solely those of the author.

[tater1977]

Speaking of the uninsured driving up healthcare costs by going to the ER for non emergency care, according to a report by the NCHS states the following:

"Frequency of ED use was associated with insurance status, with Medicaid
beneficiaries being the most likely to have visited the ED multiple times in
the past year."

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db38.pdf

Just a thought..since the FEDS declared smoking as a reason for high health care cost & ultimately
taxed the hell out of smokers..& that tax went to the FEDS for health care costs ..alledgedly.
FEDS say folks on welfare drive up health care costs. Why the hell don't they tax them for abuse
of running to the ED everytime they get a cut or cold?
Yes there are many kids out there who have TRUE medical emergencies...
This would be aimed at adults, who work the system for their drugs or whatever.

Since the FEDS will have E1's personnel info & medical HX...if they don't already have it &
they are hiring how many NEW IRS ppl to keep track of US?..Then lets put them to work
& they can track these abusers down.
Fine them...take it out of their monthly welfare checks B4 they get them..

Many hospitals nowadays have opened a 24 hr office, staffed for NON-emergencies.
If its determined they are true emergencies..they are then taken to the ED.
It lightens the load for ER staffers..& if you don't know how busy they get..go volunteer at your local
hospital.
& while I'm on the soapbox QUIT calling EMS as your damn private taxis people.
(not you guys, but I'm sure we all know someone who does it )...

[tater1977]

Real or Photoshopped...

Obama.jpg

Photoshopped. Snopes says it's bogus. I have a Republican friend who posts anti Obama stuff all day long on Facebook. This is one of the things he posted recently. I told him to try fact checking his bullshit before he posted it. He said "Who gives a shit?" I went to check just now because I wanted to post it here, and he had taken it down.

Thanks Rick and ConvPC for the info...

[Memorex]

Interesting John Ondrasik (Five for Fighting) interview.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/10 ... the-world/

[Memorex]

Could be the picture of the year:


https://twitter.com/andrewbcreech/status/389410814773723136/photo/1

Could have just as easily been laying this in front of congress instead of the white house. But I like when Americans take a moment and realize this is our country, not politicians.

[StoneCold]

Could be the picture of the year:


https://twitter.com/andrewbcreech/status/389410814773723136/photo/1

Could have just as easily been laying this in front of congress instead of the white house. But I like when Americans take a moment and realize this is our country, not politicians.

That pic and I'm waiting for a pic of a pile (or hill) of barricades dumped in front of the WH.

[Boomchild]

Just a thought..since the FEDS declared smoking as a reason for high health care cost & ultimately
taxed the hell out of smokers..& that tax went to the FEDS for health care costs ..alledgedly.
FEDS say folks on welfare drive up health care costs. Why the hell don't they tax them for abuse
of running to the ED everytime they get a cut or cold?
Yes there are many kids out there who have TRUE medical emergencies...
This would be aimed at adults, who work the system for their drugs or whatever.

Since the FEDS will have E1's personnel info & medical HX...if they don't already have it &
they are hiring how many NEW IRS ppl to keep track of US?..Then lets put them to work
& they can track these abusers down.
Fine them...take it out of their monthly welfare checks B4 they get them..



Many hospitals nowadays have opened a 24 hr office, staffed for NON-emergencies.
If its determined they are true emergencies..they are then taken to the ED.
It lightens the load for ER staffers..& if you don't know how busy they get..go volunteer at your local
hospital.
& while I'm on the soapbox QUIT calling EMS as your damn private taxis people.
(not you guys, but I'm sure we all know someone who does it )...

You'll never see this administration do anything that a person who is on entitlements feels is negative or impacts what they are getting from the government. What I found interesting about this report is that people who have coverage through Medicaid still go to the ER for non urgent reasons. So even if you give people coverage that doesn't automatically mean that the they will use it wisely. Coverage doesn't equal intelligence.

[Boomchild]

Could be the picture of the year:


https://twitter.com/andrewbcreech/status/389410814773723136/photo/1

Could have just as easily been laying this in front of congress instead of the white house. But I like when Americans take a moment and realize this is our country, not politicians.

The first three words of the constitution should make them realize it.

[StoneCold]

Tons of good pics...they called out the riot police..


http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/10 ... ashington/

Amazing video on that page.

Found a great pic on that guys facebook page. I'll see if I can post it here.

[steveo777]

http://www.codewit.com/north-america/13 ... t-hearings


HOUSE REPUBLICANS SCHEDULE OBAMA IMPEACHMENT HEARINGS



The problem here is going to be the corrupt Democrat controlled Senate. I'm on board.

[Memorex]

http://www.codewit.com/north-america/13034-house-republicans-schedule-obama-impeachment-hearings


HOUSE REPUBLICANS SCHEDULE OBAMA IMPEACHMENT HEARINGS

This could be the most stupid shit I've ever read.

I keep looking at this to see if it is filed under Satire. Benghazi, IRS, etc - may be some grounds there for impeachment. But the government shutdown? The President has zero control over a shut down, unless he specifically vetoed a bi-partisan bill. Yes, maybe he should be a leader that solves issues, but to say he should be impeached over a shutdown is about as lame as it gets. No wonder the Republican party is wilting away. Maybe I am missing something, but this is beyond stupid.

[steveo777]

http://www.codewit.com/north-america/13034-house-republicans-schedule-obama-impeachment-hearings


HOUSE REPUBLICANS SCHEDULE OBAMA IMPEACHMENT HEARINGS

This could be the most stupid shit I've ever read.

I agree. I posted it for discussion. The article wasn't even written properly for being true.

[Voyager]

I think we should give Louisiana to the Tea Party Terrorists and treat them like Cuba.

The GOP House allowed Ted Cruz and the Tea Party Terrorists to take control and throw the economy into a tailspin.

It's time to clean House in 2014. Bye bye morons.

[steveo777]

I think we should give Louisiana to the Tea Party Terrorists and treat them like Cuba.

The GOP House allowed Ted Cruz and the Tea Party Terrorists to take control and throw the economy into a tailspin.

It's time to clean House in 2014. Bye bye morons.

I think your idea and my idea of morons may differ. The way Obama admin has treated our vets and service people may confirm this in 2014.

[Boomchild]

EBT (Food Stamp) shoppers in Louisiana, go on "shopping spree" due to glitch in EBT system. Got to love it!

"Shelves at Walmart stores in Louisiana were cleared in a shopping frenzy over the weekend after a glitch in the Electronic Benefits Transfer system allowed government food stamp recipients to make purchases without spending limits."

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/10 ... e-through/

[tater1977]

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT.JPG (34.91 KiB) Viewed 1041 times