The Politico/Economic Crisis in the U.S.

[quaddriver]

Dave - Im probably going to have to disagree with just about every line of your post.

[Grim Reaper]

Apparently stopping the government from funding some abortions is more important than keeping the government running.

[dgs49]

Yo, Reaper, how would you feel if your tax dollars were being spent to fund an off-shore prison for detained, suspected terrorists where they employ creative torture techniques?

Now imagine you believe that babies in the womb are human beings (babies, actually) - a large percentage of American taxpayers do believe that, you know - and Congress wants to fund an organization, one of whose main reasons for existence is to perform tens of thousands of abortions every year.

Let's see.....mass infanticide.....inconvenience..... oh, fuck it. Let's just fund Planned Parenthood!

[Grim Reaper]

a large percentage of American taxpayers do believe that, you know

Just because a lot of people believe something to be true doesn't mean it is. It also doesn't mean that their belief should be pushed upon others.

After all, a lot of people don't believe in evolution. But Congress funds an organization (Department of Education) one of whose main reasons for existence is to teach people about evolution.

Oh, and we could do a much better job with sex education in school, but that's another thing Republicans don't care about.

[rubato]

Yo, Reaper, how would you feel if your tax dollars were being spent to fund an off-shore prison for detained, suspected terrorists where they employ creative torture techniques?

Now imagine you believe that babies in the womb are human beings (babies, actually) - a large percentage of American taxpayers do believe that, you know - and Congress wants to fund an organization, one of whose main reasons for existence is to perform tens of thousands of abortions every year.

Let's see.....mass infanticide.....inconvenience..... oh, fuck it. Let's just fund Planned Parenthood!

You are a liar.:

".. Planned Parenthood is the nation's leading sexual and reproductive health care advocate and provider.[30] In 2008, they reported that contraception constituted 35% of total services, STI/STD testing and treatment constituted 34%, cancer testing and screening constituted 17%; and other women's health procedures, including pregnancy, prenatal, midlife, and infertility were 10%;[31] less than 2% of visits involve abortions.[32] ... "

And none of the federal funds were used for abortions.

Planned Parenthood prevents poverty and the death of women. The Catholic Church perpetuates poverty and kills women.

yrs,
rubato

[Grim Reaper]

The 2009 figures show a slight increase, 3% of visits involve abortion.

Oh, and the Republicans chickened out. They agreed to a budget that involves no cuts to Planned Parenthood, the EPA, or Title X.

[Grim Reaper]

You are a liar.:

And he's not the only one.

Senior Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ) stated that abortions are 90% of what Planned Parenthood does. Of course he later "apologized" by saying "his remark was not intended to be a factual statement, but rather to illustrate that Planned Parenthood, a organization that receives millions of dollars in taxpayer funding, does subsidize abortions".

[rubato]

Senior Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-AZ) stated that abortions are 90% of what Planned Parenthood does. Of course he later "apologized" by saying "his remark was not intended to be a factual statement, but rather to illustrate that Planned Parenthood, a organization that receives millions of dollars in taxpayer funding, does subsidize abortions".

"not intended to be a factual statement" describes most public utterances by Republicans.

But when you have followers who are not particular about what the facts are, and they have commandeered most of that demographic, it gives great lattitude to lie continually and get away with it.

yrs,
rubato

[quaddriver]

"not intended to be a factual statement" describes most public utterances by Republicans.

hmm,I see you were not following last weeks 'debates'.

Harry Reid is an evil untruthful man.

John Boehner is moreso.

And will someone PLEASE send this Bachman chick back to the walmart checkout registers......(alongside Pelosi to be sure...)

[Gob]

But who are the winners and losers?

The Republican leader, Speaker John Boehner, is a clear winner. Had there been a shutdown, his party would have suffered, and his authority would have been damaged. He negotiated skilfully between the Democrats and his own ardent members and won a deal that many independents will welcome as sensible and necessary.

For the Tea Party movement, too, it is a success. They have made their agenda Washington's agenda. They have stiffened the steel in their leadership's spine to hold our for deeper cuts. But if they complain that this is not enough, or that they've been betrayed, they will look petulant and fall into a Democrat trap - that of looking and sounding like extremists.

The social conservatives, for a time insisting on a rather incoherent anti-abortion policies tacked onto the budget ("fungible money" doesn't make it into a soundbite), risked disaster for their party.

They appeal to a minority in the country and look politically irresponsible - a danger to their party's electability and the purity of the Tea Party's economic and constitutional messages.

BBC analysis continues here

[Grim Reaper]

Another bit of info dug up: That 3% isn't just abortions, it includes abortion counseling as well. So not every visit under the 3% for abortion resulted in an abortion. While the majority very likely did result in abortions, the longer you look at what Planned Parenthood does, the smaller the number of actual abortions becomes.

[Gob]

Come on guys, pull your socks up!

There is an urgent need for the US to tackle the deficit in the government's finances, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The organisation has warned that the size of the deficit risks creating instability in the financial markets.

However, the global economic recovery is gaining strength, the IMF said.

In developed economies the private sector is increasingly replacing government spending in driving that recovery, it added.

This reduces the risks of a renewed recession as governments continue to curb their spending, the IMF's Fiscal Monitor said.

However the report warned that developed economies still needed to watch levels of government debt.

"Among the advanced economies, the United States, in particular, needs to adopt measures that would allow it to meet its fiscal commitments," the IMF warned.

"Market concerns about sustainability remain subdued in the United States, but a further delay of action could be fiscally costly, with deficit increases exacerbated by rising yields," it said.

The US federal deficit currently stands at $1.4 trillion (£858bn) and is expected to reach $1.5 trillion in the current fiscal year.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13050017

[rubato]

What we need is for the Republican legislators to explain why the policies they enacted while controlling all three branches of government drove the country into the worst crisis since WWII, what this mistake has taught them and how they won't do it again. But for that to happen Republican voters would have to demand such an explanation and they are not honest or intelligent enough to do that.

It is human to make mistakes, but unforgiveable to deny reality and thus never learn from them and continue to rape the country with stupid policies.

yrs,
rubato

[dgs49]

(1) Money is fungible (look it up rube). To say that "none of the Gub'mint money goes to fund abortions," is idiotic and false.

(2) All bullshit aside, the FUNDAMENTAL purpose of Planned Parenthood - from its very beginning - is to help poor people control the size of their families. Indeed, the roots of Planned Parenthood are embedded in the odious history of eugenics, which taught that "colored people," unintelligent people, and the chronically poor should be discouraged from having large families.

(3) Harry Reid said last week that defunding Planned Parenthood would threaten the health of his wife, daughters, and grandaughters. Is there any further need of the proof of what a lying jackass he is? BTW, this quote has been largely reported in Conservative talk radio, but the MSM? Not so much.

(4) As for whether legislation should be sensitive to what pluralities of Americans believe or "feel," I would only ask, how much of the Global Warming bullshit ("Cap & Trade") is sold to the American people on the basis of its soft spot for polar bears (peoples' irrational feelings)? Why have we not drilled for oil in ANWR if not for peoples' feelings about inconveniencing migrating caribou? ANWR is an uninhabitable, mosquito-infested swamp in the Summer, and an uninhabitable frozen tundra in Winter - there is no rational reason why it should be protected or preserved beyond the normal precautions required by existing environmental regulations. At least a third of the American public believes that abortion is the taking of a human life. Planned Parenthood may be doing a thousand different things, most of which are altruistic and beneficial, but it is MOST CLOSELY ASSOCIATED IN THE AMERICAN CONSCIOUSNESS with being a one-stop shop for getting an abortion. Thus, in fighting the public funding of Planned Parenthood, the R legislators are doing exactly what they have been elected and paid to do.

(5) All politics is compromise (which is why one D. Trump would make a horrible President). One must pick one's battles.

[Beer Sponge]

Republicans are all lying douchebags.

Note: This is not intended to be a factual statement.

[Grim Reaper]

1. Money can be directed to specific purposes. Various donors can mark their donations be used for specific purposes. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation donates money with a request that it not be used for abortion services. The Buffet Foundation has fund specifically marked for abortion services.

2. This is some really silly stuff here. 62% of what Planned Parenthood is not related to family size. 35% is contraceptives, and 3% is abortion services. And since Planned Parenthood isn't forced on anybody, I fail to see how eugenics can possibly be relevant.

3. He said it would deny them access to health care, not that it would threaten their health. And it would affect many more people than just Senator Reid. Oh, and Senator Reid is pro-choice, yet he supported Planned Parenthood anyway, despite that massive 3% (or 90% depending on your math) that went to abortion services.

4. Who cares what it's most closely associated with? Why should perception of reality be allowed to trump reality? That's a very dangerous road to start going down.

[oldr_n_wsr]

Couldn't (SHOULDN'T) all of this crap (funding for this, no funding for that, can't go to Jellystone National Park ) been avoided had a budget been passed way back in September? I don't think one was even proposed back then.
All this waste of time and effort (and money) that should have been taken care of already.

But on the bright side, for the first time in years (13 I think) NY State got their budget done on time this year (it was due April 1and they finished late March 31)

[quaddriver]

What we need is for the Republican legislators to explain why the policies they enacted while controlling all three branches of government drove the country into the worst crisis since WWII, what this mistake has taught them and how they won't do it again. But for that to happen Republican voters would have to demand such an explanation and they are not honest or intelligent enough to do that.

first Id like to hear from the democrats who until recently controlled all 3 buildings associated with the US budget created red ink like we never thought possible.

Obamas OMB earlier today released a graphic that was startingly honest, it showed the growth of the debt ceiling, which was essentially a constant slope from Bush1 to Obama, then steeply rising under Obama.

curious.

[quaddriver]

which taught that "colored people," unintelligent people, and the chronically poor should be discouraged from having large families.

given that none of us are translucent, I agree with this.

.[/quote]

[quaddriver]

I don't think one was even proposed back then.
:

Oh one was proposed, by both bodies as required by law. but apparently controlling all voting bodies and signing authorities was not enuf.