Trump's Boast: Blacks will like me better than Obama

[OnMyWayID 1,489]

so he's the best choice for the majority of us, whatever color.

Nothing is easier than giving away money. He needs to explain how he can do it going forward into the future - Our debt does not offer us a steady state economy option, we have to grow and pay down our debts to be in a position to become a true welfare state. If he offered a long term realistic plan (say over a generation or two) to get where we are in a position to enact the kind of government he advocates then I might take him more seriously.

[OnMyWayID 1,489]

So you believe in the redistribution of wealth? Never can I understand why some people, especially those on this website (or their family members) who profess a desire to come here or legalize their status, can profess such opposition to one of the reasons behind the founding of this country. SMH.

There is nothing wrong with redistribution of wealth but there also needs to be a reward for contribution for a country not to go into a downward spiral as human nature takes its course.

I like what Finland is doing: They are experimenting with giving every adult in their country a check for about 1000 dollars a month regardless of income or work status. No more welfare, no food stamps, etc.. No need for endless bureaucracies wasting money tracking peoples "poorness." Want more than 1000 a month? Then work and be rewarded. I like it - nobody would ever have a valid reason to stand out on a street corner looking for handouts ever again. If someone wanted to quit their job, get a roommate and be poor for a few years while they go to school or learn a new trade in the middle of their life hey no problem..

Currently they have a system similar to ours and are planning to scrap huge parts of it wholesale for this new system. We should be watching this!

http://mashable.com/2015/12/06/finland-basic-income-800-euros/#_LEyOMEjwsq3

Edited January 26, 2016 by OnMyWayID

[lostinblue 1,989]

There is nothing wrong with redistribution of wealth but there also needs to be a reward for contribution for a country not to go into a downward spiral as human nature takes its course.

I like what Finland is doing: They are experimenting with giving every adult in their country a check for about 1000 dollars a month regardless of income or work status. No more welfare, no food stamps, etc.. No need for endless bureaucracies wasting money tracking peoples "poorness." Want more than 1000 a month? Then work and be rewarded. I like it - nobody would ever have a valid reason to stand out on a street corner looking for handouts ever again. If someone wanted to quit their job, get a roommate and be poor for a few years while they go to school or learn a new trade in the middle of their life hey no problem..

Currently they have a system similar to ours and are planning to scrap huge parts of it wholesale for this new system. We should be watching this!

http://mashable.com/2015/12/06/finland-basic-income-800-euros/#_LEyOMEjwsq3

No need for endless bureaucracies wasting money tracking peoples "poorness

Employees for the federal government earn far more than their counterparts in the private sector, according to a new study by the Cato Institute.

Federal workers’ pay and benefits were 78 percent higher than private employees, who earned an average of $52,688 less than public sector workers last year.

The study found that federal government workers earned an average of $84,153 in 2014, compared to the private sector’s average of $56,350. Cato based its findings on figures from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

But when adding in benefits pay for federal workers, the difference becomes more dramatic. Federal employees made $119,934 in total compensation last year, while private sector workers earned $67,246, a difference of over $52,000, or 78 percent.

“Since the 1990s, federal workers have enjoyed faster compensation growth than private-sector workers,” according to the study, written by Chris Edwards, the director of tax policy studies at Cato. “In 2014 federal workers earned 78 percent more, on average, than private-sector workers. Federal workers earned 43 percent more, on average, than state and local government workers.

“The federal government has become an elite island of secure and high-paid employment, separated from the ocean of average Americans competing in the economy,” the Edwards wrote.

The report noted that 2.1 million people work for the federal government, costing over $260 billion in wages and benefits this year.

http://freebeacon.com/issues/study-government-workers-make-78-percent-more-than-private-sector/

The federal and state workers will be very unhappy when you decide to reduce their wages to $ 1000/month

[Teddy B 17,252]

There is nothing wrong with redistribution of wealth but there also needs to be a reward for contribution for a country not to go into a downward spiral as human nature takes its course.

I like what Finland is doing: They are experimenting with giving every adult in their country a check for about 1000 dollars a month regardless of income or work status. No more welfare, no food stamps, etc.. No need for endless bureaucracies wasting money tracking peoples "poorness." Want more than 1000 a month? Then work and be rewarded. I like it - nobody would ever have a valid reason to stand out on a street corner looking for handouts ever again. If someone wanted to quit their job, get a roommate and be poor for a few years while they go to school or learn a new trade in the middle of their life hey no problem..

Currently they have a system similar to ours and are planning to scrap huge parts of it wholesale for this new system. We should be watching this!

http://mashable.com/2015/12/06/finland-basic-income-800-euros/#_LEyOMEjwsq3

I like that system as well.

[Rob L 3,811]

The appeal of Bernie and dare I say Donald is the simplicity of their message. They are going to "build a wall" or "make college free" which are easy concepts for anyone to grasp. Hey at least at the end of the day we can judge whether they have built the wall or made college free. The reality of what it takes to get the wall or college paid for, we tend to stuff those doubts because on some level we have a need to believe. The non traditional candidates have nothing to loose with letting loose with these statements, did we ever expect them to get above 10 %?

In contrast the more traditional candidates are trying to get legs on their message, but it is tougher because they are constraining their message to the reality of the world today: It is complex, there are constraints on what a president can do. You need to bring congress along, industry and interest groups have a vested industry in the status quo, our international partners have their own issues. None of these reality checks make great sound bites.

After next Monday, the real campaign will begin and people with the media will start focusing on the reality of the world.

Edited January 26, 2016 by Rob L

[Teddy B 17,252]

The appeal of Bernie and dare I say Donald is the simplicity of their message. They are going to "build a wall" or "make college free" which are easy concepts for anyone to grasp. Hey at least at the end of the day we can judge whether they have built the wall or made college free. The reality of what it takes to get the wall or college paid for, we tend to stuff those doubts because on some level we have a need to believe. The non traditional candidates have nothing to loose with letting loose with these statements, did we ever expect them to get above 10 %?

In contrast the more traditional candidates are trying to get legs on their message, but it is tougher because they are constraining their message to the reality of the world today: It is complex, their are constraints on what a president can do , you need to bring congress along, industry and interest groups have a vested industry in the status quo, our international partners have their own issues. None of these reality checks make great sound bites.

After next Monday, the real campaign will begin and people with the media will start focusing on the reality of the world.

The part in bold is correct and is also why neither Trump nor Sanders will be our next president. Trump and Sanders have great sound bites, but neither is in touch with reality when it comes to what can or cannot be done in the real world.

[ExPatty 502]

So you believe in the redistribution of wealth? Never can I understand why some people, especially those on this website (or their family members) who profess a desire to come here or legalize their status, can profess such opposition to one of the reasons behind the founding of this country. SMH.

Everybody believes in redistribution of wealth. Everyone. The question is what is your tolerance. Every functioning society in the world has redistribution of wealth. Typically it is from rich to poor, to varying degrees. Sometimes it is from poor to rich (particularly bad countries). It's easy to prove as well. If I find a random homeless person on the street, assault them, then disappear never to be found, are they not still owed protection of the law and some emergency medical treatment? Remember, they are absolutely destitute and cannot pay for a thing, and never will be able to.

Did you know that the richest 62 people on the planet have as much net worth as the poorest 3,500,000,000 people?

I am able to honesty write the above while still completely recognizing that excessive money given to some people creates a beggar class of person unable to fend for themselves or act as competent adults. Some people are turned into nothing but lifelong pigs suckling at the teat of the the government.

[Rob L 3,811]

No need for endless bureaucracies wasting money tracking peoples "poorness

Employees for the federal government earn far more than their counterparts in the private sector, according to a new study by the Cato Institute.

Federal workers’ pay and benefits were 78 percent higher than private employees, who earned an average of $52,688 less than public sector workers last year.

The study found that federal government workers earned an average of $84,153 in 2014, compared to the private sector’s average of $56,350. Cato based its findings on figures from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

But when adding in benefits pay for federal workers, the difference becomes more dramatic. Federal employees made $119,934 in total compensation last year, while private sector workers earned $67,246, a difference of over $52,000, or 78 percent.

“Since the 1990s, federal workers have enjoyed faster compensation growth than private-sector workers,” according to the study, written by Chris Edwards, the director of tax policy studies at Cato. “In 2014 federal workers earned 78 percent more, on average, than private-sector workers. Federal workers earned 43 percent more, on average, than state and local government workers.

“The federal government has become an elite island of secure and high-paid employment, separated from the ocean of average Americans competing in the economy,” the Edwards wrote.

The report noted that 2.1 million people work for the federal government, costing over $260 billion in wages and benefits this year.

http://freebeacon.com/issues/study-government-workers-make-78-percent-more-than-private-sector/

The federal and state workers will be very unhappy when you decide to reduce their wages to $ 1000/month

The conclusions of the Cato study are flawed. It compares total average compensation inside the federal government ( which rises aligned to cost of living) to total average compensation for the entire country. How do we compare the total compensation of a career Army Colonel who has done 3 tours of duty to someone in the private sector? We don't there is no market equivalent.

If we compared the average compensation of Think Tank employees like Cato to the real world, we would see even larger gaps.

[smilesammich 10,727]

The federal and state workers will be very unhappy when you decide to reduce their wages to $ 1000/month

and where do federal and state workers fall in the grande scheme of things?

(hint:there's no need to extract from this tier - they don't have anything either.)

The conclusions of the Cato study are flawed. It compares total average compensation inside the federal government ( which rises aligned to cost of living) to total average compensation for the entire country. How do we compare the total compensation of a career Army Colonel who has done 3 tours of duty to someone in the private sector? We don't there is no market equivalent.

If we compared the average compensation of Think Tank employees like Cato to the real world, we would see even larger gaps.

not to mention, that ain't where the money is.

[ExPatty 502]

I aspire to be in the landed gentry class. I cannot even write it without saying it in my head in an aristocratic and pitch-high tone.

One of the heartier jokes promulgated on the proletariat is the defense of the rich. They trick many of us into thinking it is unfair to raise their taxes even though it would be in our interest to do so. Yet at the same time they use their money to control what we think and believe; they own the media, they own the politicians.

That said, I don't really believe Bernie will up-heave this. Obama showed me what the office of the presidency does: it breaks you. Bernie can say, and believe what he wants. By the time he gets there he'll bend to special interests just like everybody else, unfortunately. Not to say the office doesn't matter at all but it certainly takes the edge off one's convictions.

Edited January 26, 2016 by ExPatty

[Teddy B 17,252]

I've always wanted to be a Baron.

[smilesammich 10,727]

proud wench here.

[ready4ONE 5,400]

The conclusions of the Cato study are flawed. It compares total average compensation inside the federal government ( which rises aligned to cost of living) to total average compensation for the entire country. How do we compare the total compensation of a career Army Colonel who has done 3 tours of duty to someone in the private sector? We don't there is no market equivalent.

If we compared the average compensation of Think Tank employees like Cato to the real world, we would see even larger gaps.

My suspicion is the CATO Institute cooked the numbers in their 'study' at least by including all minimum wage workers and perhaps even the unemployed to reach their findings. Best not look to closely though since the findings help reinforce the Federal Government is an evil bloodsucking entity meme. At least it is from the bunker.

[The Nature Boy 7,659]

proud wench here.

I use to love to call my wimmens wench

[OnMyWayID 1,489]

Another excited future voter...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFwcrHapdGU