The Deficit

[Nick]

I'm sure you're all aware of the pending crisis over the debt ceiling and Congress' inability to cut a deal to raise it. It seems as though both sides are too attached to their ideals to get a compromise done.

My second question of the day to you is: should the government side with Republicans and only cut spending, should to government side with Democrats who only want to change the tax code, or should the government listen to the President and cut entitlements while reforming the tax code?

[Buffalo Phil]

The Republicans have it sort of right with wanting to cut spending, essentially that is what needs to happen. The government has blown itself up as a power and money hungry machine that spends money to 'save' money. The problem is the Republicans will want to only cut the spending that they don't agree with and in the end, that may not be enough. Cutting back on education and military spending would be catastrophic at best, especially now since the public education system is already starving, older, experienced teachers are being fired and replaced with fresh out of college liberal arts majors who have little to no desire to teach and we are already hearing reports of soldiers not getting paid enough.

The democrats want a flat tax which can also be extremely catastrophic because if we tax every single dollar the same, big business will be driven out of the country even more so than it is now. Granted, taking money from Fat Cats is the wet dream of every socialist, anarchist and liberal out there, but they must realize it is those people who create the jobs, the people that hand out paychecks, if we go after those people, they have the money to simply move their operations to another state or even out of the country. Despite what many think, the Rich in this country carry a heavy burden already, paying millions of dollars in taxes, maybe not through their business, but through property tax etc.

Seeing as how Obama is a Democrat, he will back the reform of the Tax Code or how the income tax is dolled out. I'd like to see entitlements cut but that also means Welfare has to get cut big time. Pensions for fireman and police need to get cut back drastically along with teachers and all government employees. Go ahead, piss and moan about it, but when you see a retired police and fire chief sitting on a lump of government money that you paid for, you become irked. It isn't a socialist tendency to want to see your money through the government spent correctly and it bothers me that a retired police or fire chief can sit back at age 50 and rake in $120,000 a year for doing nothing the rest of their lives.

If Obama cuts pensions and entitlements, the unions and middle class personnel will be up in arms with him because they expect Obama to fix everything and hand out checks.

I say cut entitlements, cut pensions, cut any unneeded government agencies and cut unneeded spending.

[Nick]

I'm all about cutting spending on everything.

Pensions are dead and no new employees are ever going to get them again, no matter if theyre public or private sector. But the procedures for calculating benefits for those currently enrolled in pension plans need to be fixed. I'm tired of seeing public service personnel hoarding OT hours in the last year they're employed, just to get that compensation for the duration of their retirement.

Obama is willing to cut a lot of entitlements which I think is a really stand up move on his part, but hes not going to cave to the Republican agenda. Social Security, the mecca of liberal programs, is a target for cuts. There has to be cuts in military spending because it burns through tons of cash. Compensation for teachers need to be reformed, I support the programs where teachers are reviewed every year and they're employment hinges on the success of their class.

Also, taxes need to go up. The country needs revenue. All Obama is asking for is that some loopholes in the tax code are closed. Corporations need to actually pay taxes for once. They aren't creating jobs with their tax breaks, nor are the banks lending out any of their TARP money. Corporate profits are at record highs, some of that money needs to be returned to the government, which will moderate the tax increase on regular people. Also, the loopholes allow the super rich to lower their tax burden. But at the same time, people who own small businesses and actually contribute to society shouldn't be taxed as much as a hedge fund manager who bankrupts companies and topples governments for fun.

This country is built on compromises, and one needs to be made now to save the country. Cut spending and raise taxes. The President is legitimately trying and neither side is cooperating, I honestly feel bad for him.

[Buffalo Phil]

Neither side is cooperating because they are at ends with each other. This is where a two party system fails because they are now allowing their political stubbornness to essentially block and type of progress.

Pensions are dead and no new employees are ever going to get them again, no matter if theyre public or private sector.

I didn't know that and I stand corrected on that one.

Compensation for teachers need to be reformed, I support the programs where teachers are reviewed every year and they're employment hinges on the success of their class.

I don't support that because there are good teachers out there that would lose their jobs because of simply who they teach. Teachers in the inner city have to battle tooth and nail with their students to learn and if the government simply looks at the test scores in black and white, they will see that most of the teachers Fail without being in that class, to see the overwhelming apathy that most students live by. Granted, small cases, there are actually VERY BAD teachers out there and I can only go by a few specific examples. In my mother's school, if a student doesn't perform, the student Fails and is held back a year. There is summer school, there are afterschool programs, but if they student cannot keep up with the curriculum, the student is held back, no questions asked, no 'no child left behind' shit. It's a different world in a charter school versus public education, but the burden should be equally split between the students and the teacher. If the student is not willing to learn, the teacher cannot be at fault and if the teacher is a poor instructor, a poor model of education when a child is willing to do his or her best by giving themselves a greater educational advantage, the student cannot be held responsible.

This falls back to Pedagogy though, a worthless practice where teachers who cannot teach attempt to teach teachers how to teach. When a pedagogy professor stands in front of a class filled with teachers infinitely more capable than the professor, what happens? Pedagogy is like Conflict Resolution, you either know it or you don't you cannot be taught it, you either suck at it or you don't.

[Nick]

I just think that there has to be a system for rooting out the teachers who suck and waste everyones time, especially the few kids who care about learning.

Obviously the system would have to be conducted on a case by case basis

[Zullock Holmes]

less money we spend, the less tax money we need to pay for shit.

[tjramplebump]

less money we spend, the less tax money we need to pay for shit.

im still voting for a like button on the forum haha

[Nick]

less money we spend, the less tax money we need to pay for shit.

I was expecting more detail

[cherokee-at-16]

I just think that there has to be a system for rooting out the teachers who suck and waste everyones time, especially the few kids who care about learning.

Obviously the system would have to be conducted on a case by case basis

There already is a system of case by case teacher evaluation, its done my the principle and assistant principles. My freshman year I had this bitch of a teacher for honors English, She was ridiculous. Now she teaches folklore and fairy tale, she wasn't very happy about that.

One thing I see as a problem is all the people saying lower taxes, but wait fix all these potholes in the same sentence. Which is the exact opposite of what needs to be done. IMO we need to be more like Europe in a way. If you want immaculate roads, then you pay a road tax.

[Nick]

IMO we need to be more like Europe in a way.

Are you currently aware of the state Europe is in?

[cherokee-at-16]

Are you currently aware of the state Europe is in?

yea yea, I'm taking about those few smaller countries that never seems to have problems. Sweden. The point was they don't complain about high taxes because the see the return. health care, nice roads, whatever. It was only an example of a specific part.

[Buffalo Phil]

less money we spend, the less tax money we need to pay for shit.

...but we still have a massive deficit that needs to be paid off or else the fucking Chinese are going to own the houses we live in. Taxes needs to temporarily stay the same while the spending goes down. Any surplus needs to be put towards whatever deficit we have.

Are you currently aware of the state Europe is in?

Nick, please, these children hardly know what the current state of our country is in let alone overseas. The Grass isn't greener in Europe because they can smoke pot or have free healthcare and all those great pasta dishes get served every night. Europe isn't some Candy Wonderland, it's just like here, there are nice places and there are cesspools.

The European Economy is Crumbling with Ireland probably doing the absolute worst and it's a Small Country just like Sweden. Ireland has a Military force that size of our Special Forces (let that one sink it), tourism dropped, they have a socialistic economy and they have nothing to export other than Alcohol.

[Nick]

yea yea, I'm taking about those few smaller countries that never seems to have problems. Sweden. The point was they don't complain about high taxes because the see the return. health care, nice roads, whatever. It was only an example of a specific part.

Sweden & the US have nothing in common, the fundamental economies are totally different. If you think the US will institute an average tax rate of over 50% you're insane.

It's easy to be idealistic, the difficulty is finding a situation that will work for America.

[cherokee-at-16]

Cut spending and raise taxes.

One thing I see as a problem is all the people saying lower taxes, but wait fix all these potholes in the same sentence. Which is the exact opposite of what needs to be done.

The point was they don't complain about high taxes because they see the return.

You do know I have been agreeing with you, even if I don't repeat what you say. I just offer something different to what is being said also, or else every thing just gets repeated and its no fun.
"Hey, what about Sweden? they seems to have an idea"
"No that wouldn't work. Two completely different countries, they nothing in common"
"alright, then what would work"
This is called a conversation, I wasn't saying that you were wrong or I was right, just ideas.

If our system is bad, and Europe's system is bad, and china is a mix of totalitarian and socialism and we don't want to be like them even though they seems to be on the path to owning us, then what are we doing? Can anything really work?

[Buffalo Phil]

China can own everything because Unions don't exist, people get paid in Pennies and they house 1/4 of the world's population.

We cannot model our economy off anyone elses; we need out own economic structure that best suits the needs of the people that live Here.