Sarah the barracuda

[71chmark]

Odds are if Mcain gets elected Sarah will be President before his term ends.  Wouldn't that be interesting?  I think people give the President more credit for the state of our country than he has the power to control.  Doesn't Congress really set the tone?  Were things better with a Democratic President and a Republican Congress or with a Republican President and a Democratic Congress?  By the way this is a car board but that doesn't mean there should be no other discussions between its members.  That's what the child boards are for isn't it?  Is child boards the right term?

[bb71challenger]

Bingo!

I'm surprised the moderators have let this go on as long as it has...

Why would the mods step in here? I dont see where anyone has gotten out of line or overboard. 

[craigsmytcudas]

good point mark ,good point.c

[Oldschool]

Why would the mods step in here? I dont see where anyone has gotten out of line or overboard. 

No reason to lock or remove it so far.  Just clean debate about politics.  Keep it clean with no personal attacks and such, and it is ok.  Interesting read to me.......       

[nivvy]

I think Sarah Palin is hot........ 

ISSUE                                                                   JOHN McCAIN  BARAK OBAMA 
Favors new drilling offshore US                                           Yes              No
(May have changed recently)
Will appoint judges who interpret the law not make it             Yes                 No 
Served in the US Armed Forces                                          Yes                 No
Amount of time served in the US Senate                         22 YEARS          1/2 Year
Will institute a socialized national health care plan                 No                  Yes
Supports abortion throughout the pregnancy                        No                  Yes   
Would pull troops out of Iraq immediately                             No                   Yes 
Supports gun ownership rights                                           Yes                   No 
Supports homosexual marriage                                           No                    Yes 
Proposed programs will mean a huge tax increase                  No                    Yes 
Voted against making English the official language                 No                   Yes 
Voted to give Social Security benefits to illegals                   No                    Yes 

CAPITAL GAINS TAX 
MCCAIN  0% on home sales up to $500,000 per home (couples). McCain does not propose any change in existing home sales income tax. 
OBAMA  28% on profit from ALL home sales.  (How does this affect you? If you sell your home and make a profit, you will pay 28% of your gain on taxes. If you are heading toward retirement and would like to down-size your home or move into a retirement community, 28% of the money you make from your home will go to taxes. This proposal will adversely affect the elderly who are counting on the income from their homes as part of their retirement income.) 

DIVIDEND TAX 
MCCAIN  15% (no change) 
OBAMA  39.6% - (How will this affect you? If you have any money invested in stock market, IRA, mutual funds, college funds, life insurance, retirement accounts, or anything that pays or reinvests dividends, you will now be paying nearly 40% of the money earned on taxes if Obama becomes president. The experts predict that 'Higher tax rates on dividends and capital gains would crash the stock market, yet do absolutely nothing to cut the deficit.') 

INCOME TAX 
MCCAIN
(no changes)  Single making 30K - tax $4,500
Single making 50K - tax $12,500
Single making 75K - tax $18,750
Married making 60K- tax $9,000
Married making 75K - tax $18,750
Married making 125K - tax $31,250 

OBAMA (reversion to pre-Bush tax cuts)  Single making 30K - tax $8,400
Single making 50K - tax $14,000
Single making 75K - tax $23,250
Married making 60K - tax $16,800
Married making 75K - tax $21,000
Married making 125K - tax $38,750
Under Obama, your taxes could almost double! 

INHERITANCE TAX 
MCCAIN  - 0% (No change, Bush repealed this tax) 
OBAMA  Restore the inheritance tax
Many families have lost businesses, farms, ranches, and homes that have been in their families for generations because they could not afford the inheritance tax. Those willing their assets to loved ones will only lose them to these taxes. 

NEW TAXES PROPOSED BY OBAMA 
New government taxes proposed on homes that are more than 2400 square feet.  New gasoline taxes (as if gas weren't high enough already) New taxes on natural resources consumption (heating gas, water, electricity)  New taxes on retirement accounts, and last but not least....New taxes to pay for socialized medicine so we can receive the same level of medical care as other third-world countries!!! 
       


You can verify the above at the following web sites:

http://money.cnn.com/news/specials/election/2008/index.html
http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/issues/issues.taxes.html

http://elections.foxnews.com/?s=proposed+taxes
http://bulletin.aarp.org/yourworld/politics/articles/mccain_obama_offer_different_visions_on_taxes.html

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/candidates/barack_obama/
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/candidates/john_mccain/

[FY1 RT SE]

my district is looking at cut backs (that's firehouses people) and to be honest, I'm doing great compared to most. Something has to change, and the two party system doesn't offer a lot of options.

Isn't it interesting that when they want more money the tactic they always use is fear mongering i.e. if we don't get more money we will have to cut police, fire etc, it is time to tell them they need to cut the fat and get rid of administrative staffing, wasteful spending and their pet programs before they even consider to threaten us with losing essential services.

Stand up and be a CITIZEN instead of a subject.

[72bluNblu]

Isn't it interesting that when they want more money the tactic they always use is fear mongering i.e. if we don't get more money we will have to cut police, fire etc, it is time to tell them they need to cut the fat and get rid of administrative staffing, wasteful spending and their pet programs before they even consider to threaten us with losing essential services.

Stand up and be a CITIZEN instead of a subject.

Of course, everything involved here involves politics. But before you get too far, my district (a special district with its own board and therefore somewhat insulated from most other politicians) has completely reorganized its administration to reduce costs already, due to falling property tax revenues (houses are worth less, so less tax revenue). Several positions have been eliminated by cross staffing, and several others have been filled by employees of a lower rank. Overtime has been eliminated for all of our support services (logistics, fleet maintenance, etc), which has already caused delays and backlogs in getting equipment fixed. Several spending items have been halted, including one to replace our turnout gear (having suffered 2nd degree burns in the style of coat I'm wearing now, this interests me directly) and another to build a new training center, which we've needed for years. And then there's the contractual raise we're going to end up giving away before the end of the year. We also haven't hired any new firefighters in 2 years, despite 40+ retirements.

But if the governor uses prop 1a to make an emergency borrow of 8% of our funds, houses will close. And likely, this borrow will happen without the administration saying what its actually doing, no fear mongering involved because they want the money without the stigma of raising taxes or cutting services. Its just an "innocent borrow" from the state's special districts, much like the borrow made a couple years ago (same governor!) from education. Its all hunky-dory to think that the government can cut its way out of all this mess, but I'm watching where the money they're using is coming from. Not raising taxes is great until they back door the fire departments money to do it. The government has grown (under a republican governor no less) and the cuts aren't going to be in admin. Here in CA we don't even have a budget yet. The republicans refuse to raise taxes, the democrats refuse to cut social services, and meantime neither is cutting administration. The democrats actually moved one lawmaker's office out of the capital when she voted against the budget because it didn't include a water plan for her district, so while the party might be trying to regulate, the politicians are still out for pork.

I'd call it fear mongering if the dems were trying to say services will be cut unless taxes are raised, but the cut is from the other side of the aisle, trying not to raise taxes so they can win the popularity contest by borrowing "special district" money without mentioning that it will result in fire departments losing money, and cutting services.

 

[FY1 RT SE]

I'd call it fear mongering if the dems were trying to say services will be cut unless taxes are raised, but the cut is from the other side of the aisle, trying not to raise taxes so they can win the popularity contest by borrowing "special district" money without mentioning that it will result in fire departments losing money, and cutting services.
 

That is exactly what both parties are doing.  Name one state administrative staff that has been cut, name one state program that is not needed that has be eliminated (and there are many).  The state workers are being paid $6.50/hr. but I bet the legislature is getting full salaries.  They should stop getting paid if they cannot deliver a budget on time and not get paid for any time it takes after the deadline to get it done.  Raising taxes or robbing Peter to pay Paul never works, if you want the latest example look at the state of Michigan.  California was the 4th largest economy in the world when the governor took office, it is now the 9th and dropping fast, the biggest reason is people and business are way overtaxed and over regulated.  Where is the incentive to work hard to earn more money when the polities are just going to steal it?   Their is no reason that essential services should not get the equipment they need especially considering how volatile the state is to natural disasters.  Perhaps the royalties the state would receive from drilling would be a great boost to the states economy, not to mention all the new jobs it would create.

[BoughtItNew]

Of course, everything involved here involves politics. But before you get too far, my district (a special district with its own board and therefore somewhat insulated from most other politicians) has completely reorganized its administration to reduce costs already, due to falling property tax revenues (houses are worth less, so less tax revenue). Several positions have been eliminated by cross staffing, and several others have been filled by employees of a lower rank. Overtime has been eliminated for all of our support services (logistics, fleet maintenance, etc), which has already caused delays and backlogs in getting equipment fixed. Several spending items have been halted, including one to replace our turnout gear (having suffered 2nd degree burns in the style of coat I'm wearing now, this interests me directly) and another to build a new training center, which we've needed for years. And then there's the contractual raise we're going to end up giving away before the end of the year. We also haven't hired any new firefighters in 2 years, despite 40+ retirements.

But if the governor uses prop 1a to make an emergency borrow of 8% of our funds, houses will close. And likely, this borrow will happen without the administration saying what its actually doing, no fear mongering involved because they want the money without the stigma of raising taxes or cutting services. Its just an "innocent borrow" from the state's special districts, much like the borrow made a couple years ago (same governor!) from education. Its all hunky-dory to think that the government can cut its way out of all this mess, but I'm watching where the money they're using is coming from. Not raising taxes is great until they back door the fire departments money to do it. The government has grown (under a republican governor no less) and the cuts aren't going to be in admin. Here in CA we don't even have a budget yet. The republicans refuse to raise taxes, the democrats refuse to cut social services, and meantime neither is cutting administration. The democrats actually moved one lawmaker's office out of the capital when she voted against the budget because it didn't include a water plan for her district, so while the party might be trying to regulate, the politicians are still out for pork.

I'd call it fear mongering if the dems were trying to say services will be cut unless taxes are raised, but the cut is from the other side of the aisle, trying not to raise taxes so they can win the popularity contest by borrowing "special district" money without mentioning that it will result in fire departments losing money, and cutting services.
 

We're in the same boat here in our little town in IL.  The State is worse!  Cutting life safety budgets is hard until you find a house full of guys that have station and equipment maintenance not getting done and the City Manager meanders in and finds them all watching TV in the living quarters!  I take issue with that...

What I take issue with more is having a governor who refuses to move the to the capital and live in the mansion while still maintaining full staff down there.  The icing on the cake is the $5000.00/day it costs the taxpayers to fly him back and forth from Chicago when he does show up for work.  The root of this problem is the follow the leader uninformed party first voters that re-elected him!

It's time the citizens stand up and make their voices heard like we did to kabosh the McCain-Kennedy bill.  Notice Mr. McC brought it up again in one of the debates and hasn't mentioned it since?  That incident and his hearing us in his pick for Veep has me thinking that I won't have to hold my nose quite as hard when I vote this year.  Still a long ways to go, but some good bricks are being laid in the foundation.

The news is out on Bristol Palin's pregnancy.  Dissappointing, yes.  Campaign killer, no.  I also have to say I respect Obama's response that the family matters need to stay out of the battle.  It happens to the best of families.  Doesn't make it right but it is a true test of a family's response to a difficult situation.  I'll be watching and in the off chance they're watching here,(Hey, there could be some Mopar fans on the campaign), please know my prayers are with all of them.  17 is an awful young age to be getting married and raising a child.  It was difficult enough for me in my early 20's and our first was born on our second anniversary!  Some of you here even know him!

[BoughtItNew]

No reason to lock or remove it so far.  Just clean debate about politics.  Keep it clean with no personal attacks and such, and it is ok.  Interesting read to me.......       

Yes, it has been.  Quite refreshing to be able to hold a respectful discourse.  However, I have found most Mopar folks are like that!  We even had fun poked at us once on WKRP In Cincinatti with the quote from Gordon Jump, Mr. Carlson the Station Manager who after they had broken into a competitor's office once said, "I'm not accustomed to this kind of thing."  "For crying out loud, I drive a Dodge!"

Quite unlike the lunacy and personal attacks over on the Yellow Bullet board!

I really appreciate this place.  Thanks for giving us the opportunity to hang out.