Tory vs Voodo Conservatism

[Rationalist]

Well at least the British have true conservatives in their political system and aren't stuck with the nut jobs we are. I'd still be a Republican if they had reasonable and rational conservatives like those in the UK.

Allowing taxes to increase in a recession is a fundamentally bad idea, regardless of your school of thought. Even in the Keynesian approach, taxes would be cut during a recession to boost investment (although overall spending would increase). Besides, taxes in the UK are already very high.

I do like this:

"Osborne is about to unveil an austere deficit-reduction plan that will cut most departmental budgets by 25 percent over several years. This is not some dead-on-arrival presidential budget; the parliamentary system means that these are for-real cuts."

This is what needs to be done in the United States, albeit even more drastically. We ought to start cutting the budget by 5% every year for at least 5 years in a row. The measly $100 billion in cuts proposed by Republicans will accomplish very little (if it ever happens to begin with), and Democrats oppose any budget cuts whatsoever. That attitude will need to change if meaningful fiscal reform is going to take place in this country. Also, Republicans will need to end their love affair with the military industrial complex.

 

[FUCK THE POLICE]

Allowing taxes to increase in a recession is a fundamentally bad idea, regardless of your school of thought. Even in the Keynesian approach, taxes would be cut during a recession to boost investment (although overall spending would increase). Besides, taxes in the UK are already very high.

I do like this:

"Osborne is about to unveil an austere deficit-reduction plan that will cut most departmental budgets by 25 percent over several years. This is not some dead-on-arrival presidential budget; the parliamentary system means that these are for-real cuts."

This is what needs to be done in the United States, albeit even more drastically. We ought to start cutting the budget by 5% every year for at least 5 years in a row. The measly $100 billion in cuts proposed by Republicans will accomplish very little (if it ever happens to begin with), and Democrats oppose any budget cuts whatsoever. That attitude will need to change if meaningful fiscal reform is going to take place in this country. Also, Republicans will need to end their love affair with the military industrial complex.

5% of what each year?

 

[Rationalist]

5% of what each year?

Discretionary spending, 5% across the board per year. While I also favor eventually phasing out "entitlement" programs, I'm realistic in that 1) we need to meet our current obligations to the people who have put into the system, and 2) it will take a very, very long time to accomplish.

 

[Mott the Hoople]

Allowing taxes to increase in a recession is a fundamentally bad idea, regardless of your school of thought. Even in the Keynesian approach, taxes would be cut during a recession to boost investment (although overall spending would increase). Besides, taxes in the UK are already very high.

I do like this:

"Osborne is about to unveil an austere deficit-reduction plan that will cut most departmental budgets by 25 percent over several years. This is not some dead-on-arrival presidential budget; the parliamentary system means that these are for-real cuts."

This is what needs to be done in the United States, albeit even more drastically. We ought to start cutting the budget by 5% every year for at least 5 years in a row. The measly $100 billion in cuts proposed by Republicans will accomplish very little (if it ever happens to begin with), and Democrats oppose any budget cuts whatsoever. That attitude will need to change if meaningful fiscal reform is going to take place in this country. Also, Republicans will need to end their love affair with the military industrial complex.

That's not the point I'm making Vol. My point is that solutions to the US national debt will require difficult decisions and share pain and sacrifice which the Republican party is completely unwilling and irrationally prepared to do. They just keep offering the same glib generaltities while absolutely refusing to name specific measure as to how they would solve these problems.

 

[Rationalist]

That's not the point I'm making Vol. My point is that solutions to the US national debt will require difficult decisions and share pain and sacrifice which the Republican party is completely unwilling and irrationally prepared to do. They just keep offering the same glib generaltities while absolutely refusing to name specific measure as to how they would solve these problems.

Fair enough; we are in agreement. While I am voting Republican in this upcoming election, I have no delusions of grandeur. The fact is, both parties will continue to screw up our country. I just believe the Republicans may screw it up at a slightly slower pace.

 

[Mott the Hoople]

Fair enough; we are in agreement. While I am voting Republican in this upcoming election, I have no delusions of grandeur. The fact is, both parties will continue to screw up our country. I just believe the Republicans may screw it up at a slightly slower pace.

There we will have to agree to disagree. The 8 years of the Bush administration alienated me (I switched to being a registered Democrat after 24 years as a registered Republican in 2004) and left ample evidence of having a poor ability to govern responsibly placing ideology above good governance. By no means am I a partisan democrat but I am appalled at how far towards extremism the Republican party has drifted and I see little evidence of them moving towards the center. In fact, I see them moving further to the right and thus becoming even less able to govern.

Be that as it may though. How much of the present situation is our, the voting constituencies, fault?

We want less taxes and government intervention in our lives but contradictory to that we also want the strongest defense in the world, social security, medicare-medicaid, managed health care, the best public education, etc, etc. and if we don't get those, we vote against the politicians who don't bring home the bacon. So how much of that is the politicians fault and how much of that is our fault for wanting to have our cake and eat it too? The politicians aren't in this alone. It's not all their fault either.

 

[Phantasmal]

There we will have to agree to disagree. The 8 years of the Bush administration alienated me (I switched to being a registered Democrat after 24 years as a registered Republican in 2004) and left ample evidence of having a poor ability to govern responsibly placing ideology above good governance. By no means am I a partisan democrat but I am appalled at how far towards extremism the Republican party has drifted and I see little evidence of them moving towards the center. In fact, I see them moving further to the right and thus becoming even less able to govern.

Be that as it may though. How much of the present situation is our, the voting constituencies, fault?

We want less taxes and government intervention in our lives but contradictory to that we also want the strongest defense in the world, social security, medicare-medicaid, managed health care, the best public education, etc, etc. and if we don't get those, we vote against the politicians who don't bring home the bacon. So how much of that is the politicians fault and how much of that is our fault for wanting to have our cake and eat it too? The politicians aren't in this alone. It's not all their fault either.

Well stated, I jumped to the no party affiliation when Nixon rocked my world and I haven't looked back. I do not see myself as a Democrat. I vote for the person, not the party.
I am applaud by what takes place these days on 24 hours TV, we have become a nation seduced by entertainment and easy, lazy thinking, most don't research and find out for themselves, they are told what to think and now, once again, are linking it to religion and morality which means if you don't agree, you are evil.