Dakryn's Batshit Theory of the Week

[Dak]

It's a waste of reading.

Blah Blah politician lie more government will equal little government blah blah.

 

[Jimmy... Dead.]

Also written in PDF form which if you right click and look for an author is : former Exxon lobbyist Brian Wild

Now comes the Pledge to America. Perhaps we should be careful and watchful of what we wish for. we have heard all this before, and things did not work out well when the 'Contract with America' was let loose in the 1990s.

 

[Dak]

Things haven't worked well for the US since the Federal Reserve was instituted.

 

[V.V.V.V.V.]

I agree, and by "I agree" I mean you're fucked in the head.

 

[Jimmy... Dead.]

Things haven't worked well for the US since the Federal Reserve was instituted.

lol

So what are you suggesting? You just cant get rid of the fed with no plan

So what? no monetary policy? No interest rates are determined?

Think about the relation between interest rates and the stock market the entire system relies on. You can't just go right ahead and trust the banks. Companies only look out for themselves - which is why we have the fed...

What system is going to go in place?

Dak,you make some bold statements buddy

 

[Saparmurat_Niyazov]

I have a theory about why the Tea Party/republicans want to reduce the power of our federal government: so it can be weakened and overthrown, and then it can be replaced with a Calvinist theocracy. Bear in mind, I never said it was a good theory, but it's a theory nonetheless.

 

[Cythraul]

So what? no monetary policy?

Why do you assume that there needs to be a monetary policy?

No interest rates are determined?

In the absence of a central bank interest rates would presumably be determined by the market.

You can't just go right ahead and trust the banks. Companies only look out for themselves - which is why we have the fed...

Banks "only" looking out for themselves is not necessarily a bad thing. One thing that I think is quite plausible is that it's a bad thing when there's a central bank to provide the moral hazard that turns self-interest into something malignant.

What system is going to go in place?

Free banking.

Dak,you make some bold statements buddy

Sure, but some of his bold statements actually have an intellectual pedigree backing them up. That said, I think it's hardly ever a good idea to just abolish an established institution overnight.

 

[Dak]

lol

So what are you suggesting? You just cant get rid of the fed with no plan

I didn't know I had to have a 5 part action plan to accompany statements about things that should be changed.

Obviously it's just couldn't be shut overnight, but it needs to be audited, and shut down, with Congress taking it's rightful place.

Maybe Congress would stop fucking things up so much if they would handle their responsibilites instead of outsourcing.

 

[Pessimism]

So apparently Tom Brady is a Karl Marx fan now (judging by his avatar). Just when I thought he couldn't get more retarded. At any rate, I too would like him to explain what's wrong with that pledge. I didn't read the whole thing; I only read the first couple of pages, but from what I saw it looked for the most part like totally unobjectionable classical liberal rhetoric. Is that what's supposed to be disgusting? If so, then what the fuck is wrong with you people?

Took me a minute to realize that you were using the actual definition of liberal, instead of the typical usage of it (associative). Then I read you thought it was unobjectionable, so then I thought you were being facetious. Then I just stopped wondering and went on to answer Krampus' last post.

Can someone copy and paste the pledge? net filter blocks it here.

The entire intro talks of the whole "premise of America". You know, we are born free and have the right to be free and yadda yadda. Funny thing is that with everything they say, man and woman being created equal and all that jazz, is that if you look at America's history it is anything but. In my opinion, this generally accepted form of lying is unforgivable, as propagating false knowledge is the only cardinal sin.


Then it goes into a portion that really tickles my funny bone. Let's start off with this thought though: remember who drafted this document. It started with Gingrich in the mid 90's and has ended with the backing of a few highly select GOP officials (which is akin to saying all of the GOP, since they vote like a damned hive mind). It must be said though that some republicans have come out against this new pledge, as to some it isn't strong enough when referring to its anti-abortion stance (to a few others however, it comes off as hot air). So when something like this:

The need for urgent action to repair our economy and reclaim our government for the people cannot be
overstated

...is stated, it reeks of political bullshit. Not only is it rooted in this false presumption of partisan "correctness", it is written in a manner that says "hey guys, we are just like you, we are you - we aren't the government that created any of the problems we are all facing, it was those other tyrannical senators who aren't letting us do our jobs correctly!"


Frankly, it's pandering.


Then, still on the first page mind you, we get this gem:

1. We pledge to honor the Constitution as constructed by its framers and honor the original intent of those precepts that have been consistently ignored – particularly the Tenth Amendment, which grants that all powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.


2. We pledge to advance policies that promote greater liberty, wider opportunity, a robust defense, and national economic prosperity.


3. We pledge to honor families, traditional marriage, life, and the private and faith-based organizations that form the core of our American values

1. "We, the GOP, have an awesome notion of what the founding fathers wanted when they drafted the constitution. Things like religious freedom and inalienable rights to all people."

Funny how if they really wanted to revamp the system and put the power in the peoples favor, none of them would probably have jobs (as in, very few people love their representatives).


2. All good jazz and that, even though a "robust defense" to me sounds like jargon for an inflated military budget, given the parties voting record for the past 5-7 decades.


3. Remember point one, with the whole intent of the founding fathers? That they did it to escape religious persecution and taxation without representation? Well, that's all good and everything, but here in America we pledge to honor the traditional notions of marriage, which are deeply rooted in Christian notions. On top of it, let's just support (what appears to state) all faith based organizations (although in reality... let's face it, the GOP is having a shitstorm with the mosque controversy as it is. They're referring to christian charities). "Screw America being secular" is the entire point of the 3rd line.

We pledge to make government more transparent in its actions, careful in its stewardship, and honest in its
dealings

Would be awesome, except the entire voting record of the party is centered on non transparency. Let's face it, the document has a lot of positive statements like this, but without the record of voting for things that support such issues, there is no reason to believe a corrupt party (that is filled with highly powerful people who each have many ethics violations held against them) would be willing to change or be honest. Ultimately, this is fluff, and the sole purpose of said fluff is to devalue other parties. By stating they are clinging to traditional and original values, they are hoping to tie the failures of past republican and democratic administrations solely on the current democratic administration. By also stating they are attached to such notions, they place themselves squarely in the middle of what would be considered the "healing process" to "getting America back on track".

We make this pledge bearing true faith and allegiance to the people we represent, and we invite fellow citizens
and patriots to join us in forming a new governing agenda for America

Seriously?






The next page that isn't left blank has this bolded:

Though these petitions come from different walks, their message is uniform: Washington has not been listening.

Funny, that all of a sudden the men who weren't listening were able to draft a document detailing how they have not been listening and what should be done to fix it (hint: it doesn't include firing them).






Next:

It’s time to do away with the old politics: that much is clear. It’s not enough, however, to swap out one set of leaders for another. Structure dictates behavior, so we have drafted this blueprint on a process of listening to the American people and fielding their concerns and ideas for turning things around.
•Our plan offers a clear and clearly different approach, one in which the people have the most say and the
best ideas trump the most entrenched interests.
•Our plan stands on the principles of smaller, more accountable government; economic freedom; lower
taxes; fiscal responsibility; protecting life, American values, and the Constitution; and providing for a robust
national defense.
•Our plan puts forth a new governing agenda that reflects the priorities of the American people – priorities
that have been ignored, even mocked by the powers-that-be in Washington.
•These are focused concrete examples of the policies through which we will promote greater liberty, wider
opportunity, and national economic recovery – and they can be implemented today

First, THE BOLDED; pragmatically this is obvious, but I can't help but reading it as "HOORAY WE HAVE JOBS!"
Bullet 1: Verbatim: A new plan to give voice to the people, to hear the great ideas they have and "trump entrenched interests". Let's see if they elaborate, as this should interest most everybody.
Bullet 2: Smaller government, more "economic freedom" (whatever that may mean in this context), lower taxes and greater fiscal responsability. Protecting life (could be interpretated many ways... by means of either maintaining a strong defense for the nation, or by disallowing abortion as mandated by the religious sections - clarification needed).
Bullet 3: WE WON'T BE MOCKED
Bullet 4: Step 1: Follow us, Step 2: Ambiguity, Step 3: ???, Step 4: Profit!!






Now we get to some actual substance, or at least what is supposed to be substance.
To start off, I will quote, paraphrase, etc. the argument/statement at hand, and then list their “WHAT WE'RE UP AGAINST” wall of text, as this appears to be some sort of justification/defense. But before that, there is another forward!


Highlights:

A plan to create jobs, end economic uncertainty, and make America more competitive must be the first and most urgent domestic priority of our government. So first, we offer a plan to get people working again. We will end the attack on free enterprise by repealing job-killing policies and taking steps to assure current businesses and future entrepreneurs that the government will not stifle their ability to compete in the global marketplace.

By permanently stopping job-killing tax hikes, families will be able to keep more of their hard-earned money and small businesses will have the stability they need to invest in our economy and help grow our workforce. We will further encourage small businesses to create jobs by allowing them to take a tax deduction equal to 20 percent of their income.

Yeah, trying to extend the Bush tax cuts to the wealthy while doing nothing for the middle or lower classes will surely help the families who need it. I expect this will be elaborated on further down. Funny though how they earlier stated they want a robust defense budget, yet thy want to reign in spending and decrease taxes. How the fuck?

We will rein in the red tape factory in Washington

Red tape factory

In addition, we will repeal the costly small business mandates contained in the new health care law.

We all new this was going to appear somewhere. Funny how the health care law was butchered by giving into a lot of Republican demands (which basically neutered the whole bill in its originality), and now they are saying it is total shit even though it was by means of their contributions to said bill that turned it to shit in most cases.

With common-sense exceptions for seniors, veterans, and our troops, we will roll back government spending to pre-stimulus, pre-bailout levels, saving us at least $100 billion in the first year alone and putting us on a path to balance the budget and pay down the debt. We will also establish strict budget caps to limit federal spending from this point forward.

Give me cold hard numbers here. Until I get those, this is fluff.

We will launch a sustained effort to stem the relentless growth in government that has occurred over the past decade. By cutting Congress’ budget, imposing a net hiring freeze on non-security federal employees, and reviewing every current government program to eliminate wasteful and duplicative programs, we can curb Washington’s irresponsible spending habits and reduce the size of government, while still fulfilling our necessary obligations

They will try their darndest to stop those terrifying practices that the Bush administration proposed and halt the expansion of the executive branch (thank you Dick Cheney) that they certainly didn't help put into place! The scary part of this is what can be interpreted as a “duplicative program”.

We will also prevent Washington from forcing responsible taxpayers to subsidize irresponsible behavior by ending bailouts permanently, canceling the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), and reforming Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

For more information on TARP, by all means click this link here












Ugh, I thought I would go on, but this shit is just waaay too much.


I'll just copy and paste the bolded parts of their shit:

a plan to repeal and replace the government takeover of health care with common-sense solutions focused on lowering costs and protecting American jobs. We will enact real medical liability reform; allow Americans to purchase health coverage across state lines; empower small businesses with greater purchasing power; and create new incentives to save for future health needs. We will protect the doctor-patient relationship, and ensure that those with pre-existing conditions gain access to the coverage they need. We will permanently end taxpayer funding of abortion and codify the Hyde Amendment .

a plan to reform Congress and restore trust so that we can put power back where it belongs: in the hands of the people. We will govern differently than past Congresses of both parties. We will require that every bill contain a citation of Constitutional authority. We will give all Representatives and citizens at least three days to read the bill before a vote.

There is a link connected to this with an ironic article you will find further down near the end.

We offer a plan to keep our nation secure at home and abroad at will provide the resources, authority, and support our deployed military requires, fully fund missile defense, and enforce sanctions against Iran. We will keep terrorist combatants in Guantanamo Bay not in our local jails and courtrooms.

Undeterred by dismal results, Washington Democrats continue to double-down on their job-killing policies.

Oh god, they're job-killers!


Mandatory Reagan quote:

“Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: if it moves, tax
it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.” -- Ronald Reagan

Pg. 11 is where they lay out their idea's, followed by a pie chart of how many assistance programs exist within a given department. This pie chart however includes programs available to states, local governments, for-profit and non-profit organizations, groups, and individuals. Because, you know, taxing a non-profit or a volunteer/non-profit organization completely makes sense.


There is another nice graph which is completely blown out of proportion following that one. Look at the time frame discrepancy to see what I mean.




Page 14 has some more meatless bones, I particularly like this bit

Abortion: Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to using tax dollars to pay for abortion, and the executive order issued by President Obama in conjunction with congressional passage of the health care law is inadequate to ensure taxpayer funds are not used in this manner.

Some people are also opposed to women voting and blacks being considered 5/5th's of a person. Point is, the minority is supposed to be protected from the majority, it's part of the whole “not infringing on the rights of others” deal.




Page 15 has some things on just how bad the Health care law is, talking about how expensive it is and etc. We've had this discussion before, it isn't more expensive – moving on.


Page 16: A graph that is incomprehensible, especially given its size.


Page 17: Hilarious!

During final consideration of President Obama’s government takeover of health care, Speaker Pelosi and Rules Committee Chairwoman Louise Slaughter publicly discussed a plan to allow the House to pass the bill without a vote by the House. Referred to as the “Slaughter Solution,” House Democrats eventually abandoned the scheme under the weight of a sustained public outcry.

If I am remembering this correctly, they were considering this legally justifiable maneuver due to the republican base not allowing any bills or propositions be put forward. So when they found a legal way to sidestep the bullshit, republicans bitched about it. If I am remembering that correctly, then they have come back to bitch again.


Page 18: The little graph peaked my interest, yet I can't find any more info on it because it lists nothing. “Martial law provisions of house use” when google'd brings up this ironic article.


Page 19 & 20: More junk that has already been stated, although they do start talking about absolving the miranda rights of aliens and suspected terrorists. Awesome.




Remember, the contract with America that came out in 1994 led to a sweep of the house for the republican party. The only reason this piss poor concoction of words exists is due to the fact that again, the republicans need to sweep the house – especially after the tea party has taken seats from areas that republicans had favored candidates in. All in all, the whole “contract” is crap. The one thing that would raise the value of this “pledge” (aside from ripping out the partisan crap) would be cold hard data. Without it this is nothing but pathetic rhetoric.

 

[Dak]

So basically your biggest problem with the document is it is a lie by Republicans? You haven't seemed to mind the Democrat's lies.

 

[-CC-]

So basically your biggest problem with the document is it is a lie

Your post should have ended here.

 

[Prismatic Sphere]

The document is a softcore, half-assed, feeble attempt at pandering to open dissent, nothing more.

 

[Jimmy... Dead.]

@ Cyth & Dak, I understand what you guys are saying - The Federal Reserve is a cartel of private banking corporations which lend money to the United States and is touted as if it were a government agency (which it is not) it is private.

but all I hear is complaining and no suggestions. How can monetary reformers achieve a meaningful return to honest money?
how do we return to asset-backed currency?
If the FED is the cause of booms and busts why did the panic of 1907 happen? There were 3 US recessions during the 1890s.
Have you discovered the formula yet for economic prosperity?


The idea of abolishing the Fed is lunacy and would lead to total chaos including the collapse of the world financial markets. The Fed has made mistakes,yeah, particularly under the over rated Mr. Greenspan. As much as I hate cliches, "let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater." The Fed needs to be independent in setting monetary policy and not under the thumb of the President, congress or anyone else. To charge that the Fed has been strongly influenced by Goldman and others is yet another lunatic idea.

A world without fractional reserve banking is not going to work. The Fed doesn't just "set" interest rates, they target interest rates by using their balance sheet to buy and sell debt securities. The forces of supply, demand, and risk "set" interest rates. That is why a creditworthy borrower can get capital at 5 or 6 percent and a risky borrower has to pay much more (10 percent, 15 percent, etc.).

macroeconomics 101.

The economy" is not a machine to be tinkered with and fine-tuned like a car engine. We should strive to keep the value of money as constant as possible, The most practical and reliable way to accomplish this is to make it exchangeable for some commodity, such as gold, whose value is estimatedto be very stable. (Although, it is not strictly necessary to abolish the Fed in order to accomplish this.)

I would just really like to hear some of your suggestions and not just complaints.

 

[Jimmy... Dead.]

Why do you assume that there needs to be a monetary policy?



In the absence of a central bank interest rates would presumably be determined by the market.

Its called greed, thats why you need a monetary system.

No the prime rate would be determined by the highest bidder, free enterprise, banks could just charge whatever they want - the consumer gets screwed in other words.

Your ideas seem naive.

 

[Pessimism]

So basically your biggest problem with the document is it is a lie by Republicans? You haven't seemed to mind the Democrat's lies.

My biggest problem is the document is a lie PERIOD. I feel both parties are at fault for numerous things, the main difference being some key people/groups of people are more at fault than others in certain situations.

Fuck, do you always automatically assume a critique (much like the exceptionally laid back/non academically formatted critique like the one I posted) of republicans must come from someone who is a staunch Democrat?

 

[Jimmy... Dead.]

I love the GOP's reestablished reform on health reform.

and what is even funnier is that the Democrats will let them get away with it.

 

[Pessimism]

I do like the fact that this one thread is better than the entire philosophy sub-forum here.

 

[Badbird]

I do like the fact that this one thread is better than the entire philosophy sub-forum here.

.

I love the GOP's reestablished reform on health reform.

and what is even funnier is that the Democrats will let them get away with it.

And sadly both sides point to the other when they are the same expect one liberal and one conservative.

 

[Dak]

Fuck, do you always automatically assume a critique (much like the exceptionally laid back/non academically formatted critique like the one I posted) of republicans must come from someone who is a staunch Democrat?

Because it usually is, just like attacks on Democrats usually come from GoP fanbois.

@Jimmy: Greed is easily one the top reasons to get rid of the Fed, since they have no real oversight in the creation of the unit of value, and they get paid with their own creations. They also control who gets the money and who does not (amongst the major monetary players), as well as indirectly for everyone through with interest rates. How is this not a conflict of interest?

 

[Valerie]

Cruel pranksters dye cat bright pink

The fluffy female, thought to be between one and two years old, was tossed over a fence into a back garden in Swindon, Wilts.

Its white fur had been dyed bright pink from tip to tail to look exactly like the classic television character Bagpuss.

...