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Posts Made By: Les Chambers

March 11, 2009 12:44 PM Forum: Polls

These drugs should be legal and taxed..

Posted By Les Chambers
Nice to see you picked a fair and balanced website. However, according to the link:

"The federal government runs over 50 means-tested welfare programs, including Temporary Assistance to Needy Families; Medicaid, food stamps; the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC); the Women, Infants, and Children food program; public housing; Section 8 housing; the Community Development Block Grant; the Social Services Block Grant; and Head Start."

Later it includes student loans and Pell Grants into this mix. So, rather than just tar all these programs with the "welfare" brush, which of these programs do you suppose we sacrafice to maintain the lost "war on drugs"? Health care for children? Head Start? Food for the poor? Or hey, lets just further slash student loans and let those who don't have trust funds to pay for college just compete with all the other "nere do wells" for those Walmart jobs.

Les

March 11, 2009 09:11 PM Forum: Polls

These drugs should be legal and taxed..

Posted By Les Chambers
Dewey Barker said:


Limit the number of appeals allowed and we'll all see that cost drop exponentially.

Actually Dewey, the number of appeals IS limited----to 1. In Ohio (all death penalties are appealed directly to the Ohio Supreme Court) and most other States a Defendant has to raise all his assignments of error in his first appeal. He is barred from raising any addition claims or appeals that could not have been raised in his first appeal. Even claims of innocence based on newly discovered evidence--such as DNA--does not entitle the Defendant to a new appeal. Texas has actually executed an individual even though all the witnesses against him recanted their testimony. So the delay between conviction and execution is NOT due to an endless supply of appeals. And what if it was? What's the rush? If the State is going to take someone's life, why not make sure that the poor sunnofabitch it's going to strap to a gurney and suffocate is actually guilty?

March 12, 2009 10:57 PM Forum: Polls

The Economy ....

Posted By Les Chambers
Thomas Holst said:

I just took a look at the big pie chart on the front page of my It seems to me that this money would be better spent on expanding higher education which would lower the number of people on the welfare rolls. Am I wrong?

I agree that more money should be spent on education. Education is generally the best way out of poverty. However, if you read the chart, it appears that 30% of the stimulus money IS being spent on education. (2.9% on higher education + 21% on primary education) Also, H&W is an amorphous term, "welfare" has a broader meaning than you are implying. It almost certainly includes items such as childhood immunizations and subsidizing day care, things that help keep the working poor working.

Les

March 13, 2009 04:01 PM Forum: Polls

The Economy ....

Posted By Les Chambers
Thomas Holst said:

With Idaho ranked 45th in the nation for childhood immunizations, H&W isn't doing such a great job. All I see are 1.) unemployed single females (of varied races/nationalities) driving beater cars (with no insurance) full of kids, going to Walmart and, 2.) out of school males who would rather ride skateboards and play Guitar Hero than get a job. Drives me nuts!

That's too bad. I was in Sun City a couple years back and was surrounded by multi-million dollar houses (palaces really). The only "non-whites" I saw were Native American construction workers building even more luxury digs. There is obviously money to be found in Idaho. Find it and tax it. ;-)

Seriously, I drove up Rt. 75(?) for miles and miles and met some really decent folks along the way. I set a scope up in a place called Senate Glen and observed under the best skies I have ever seen. You have very beautiful state. I hope to get back there someday.

Les

March 16, 2009 11:06 AM Forum: Polls

The UN

Posted By Les Chambers
Joe Bergeron said:

It's the usual AM political poll. As polarized as possible, only extreme positions allowed, nothing in between. Good or evil, black or white.

If there ever was a "poll" calculated to bring out the "John Birchers" and Ron Paul neo-nazis, this is it. Of course, anyone who doesn't agree that the UN is a sign of the Antichrist, are tree-hugging socialistswho want to sign over the White House to the UN Sect. General. ;-)

March 16, 2009 04:05 PM Forum: Polls

The UN

Posted By Les Chambers
Robert Schmall said:


Ever wonder about the pollster's politics?

Nope. Somethings are clear as glass. ;-)

March 16, 2009 10:28 PM Forum: Polls

The UN

Posted By Les Chambers
steve hoff said:

I am fascinated, why/how do you equate individuals that present the virtues of individual responsibility and the actual roll of The Constitution of the United States with neo-nazis.
As I recall, the Nazis were not about individual liberty and self determination. Even "good germans" had to yield a variety of personal freedoms to the States wishes.

I guess I could have used "Ron Paul Isolationists/Reactionaries" instead of neo-nazis, but the point would have been the same. John Birchers and RP both attact ditto-heads who criticize the UN by rote without any real notion of the role or benefits of the UN. They claim the UN is hostile to the US without conceding that in many cases that hostility is well earned. The UN is not the most efficient or the most effective body, but give it credit for trying to ameliorate some of the worlds problems.

March 17, 2009 02:02 AM Forum: Polls

The UN

Posted By Les Chambers
Herb York said:

Kinda like the voters on the polls


Touche'

March 24, 2009 06:38 PM Forum: Polls

All these bailouts are .....

Posted By Les Chambers
Paul McCarty said:


There's a few more sides than just Dems and Repubs.

No sh*t. Did anyone else pick up on the Chinese Finance Premier's "warning" (his word) last week to the United States to stop with the deficit spending because it threatens the PRC's $2 Trillion in assets by devaluing the Dollar? Then today the BBC is reporting that the Chine Premier is "suggesting" that the Dollar be replaced as the benchmark currency in the IMF.

Every dollar the govt borrows to finance these bailouts comes from China. If they decide not to buy any more U.S. Treasury Bills, the good ole' U.S. of A. is up the proverbial creek because no other govt has the economic wherewithal to buy the amount of debt we need to sell. Accordingly, decisions by our govt are dictated, not by U.S. interests, but by what is good for Beijing. It'd be very interesting to know what the PRC's stake in AIG is.

Les

March 24, 2009 06:21 PM Forum: Polls

All these bailouts are .....

Posted By Les Chambers
I find your statement:

"If they were the CEOs of corporations, their sorry asses would have been fired long ago for squandering their money" more than just a tinge ironic. It is afterall these same CEOs and investment executives who created this mess. So much for holy business weeding out incompetence.

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