No comment about the pic? Bah. I spent that time for nothing. :-P

I've always held the view that you have to work for something. Obama wants to "give" everyone everything (except the rich). The problem with Americans is that we are so materialistic we don't give a damn about saving. We have to have the "best items". New cars. The highest technology. Sometimes the entire country will spend more than they save in a month...that is frightening.

One company I know had an 8% compliance with a 401k program. EIGHT PERCENT.

Say what you want about costs going up for everything, but a big factor in the problem is people trying to live beyond their means - and then crying because they can't make it. America is by no means perfect. But this notion that personal responsibility is second to governmental responsibility? GTFO!

It's the moral hazard problem galore. Look it up. Obama = Moral Hazard contributor for the poor/country

While I don't like McCain much either, I will vote that way if it comes to this

Argh, I thought the question was "Who do you think would win?" and chose McCain.

pretty liberal website I'm involved with here

because liberal means "good guys"

This is just misinformed thinking. I'll agree, a lot of people have no concept of money, and a majority of Americans waste their paychecks. That doesn't mean everyone does that, and it doesn't mean we should refuse to help people. What you're telling me is that we need programs to ensure that government money isn't spent on expensive cars and sneakers.

You're being idealistic. Ideally, everyone would spend their money properly and we wouldn't need to help anyone. Realistically, there are kids in families that will grow up to be Burger King managers simply because their parents couldn't provide a decent education for them. Realistically, there are people who become disabled and can't care for their family. Realistically, a single parent cannot afford the cost of inflation that has been caused by corporate enterprise (oil being one.)

You have to be realistic about our society. Without that realism, you won't have a society for very long.

I think, Kirbs, the chief problem is your lack of realism.

so wait...when did JM change back from Isuwen?

When I logged out of Isuwen, logged into JM, and couldn't remember the password for Isuwen. Or the e-mail attached to it.

But isn't forcing "realism" on someone the same issue as forcing religion on someone? Ideally, we shouldn't have to force anything on anyone but force is force, no?

I laughed.

um, what? Forcing realism? Are you just trying to make a point? Realism isn't something that's forced on anyone, it's the harsh reality that we have to deal with. The point I'm making is that it's cute to sit back and cast stones from an idealist "everyone works for their money" capitalism, but the harsh reality is that not everyone is capable of working for their money, and in order to maintain a society, we need to provide for the lesser of it.

Thank you.

*sends $100 to TE's paypal account*

Your realism is someone else's fancy. Face it, Kirbs. Realism is subjective too.

Also, nobody is advocating not giving you money. So stop *****ing about the disabled. It's not about the disabled.

No we don't. What you meant to say is, in order to maintain a society THAT I LIKE, we need to provide for the lesser of it.

Subjectivity strikes again!

The Spartans maintained a society by killing imperfect babies.

They also maintained society by doing each other in the butt like a big bunch of homos.

So whats your point?

You didn't see it? Wow you're dumb.

(Hint : What makes a society good is subjective.)

Hmm, it seems you totally miss the point of "moral hazard" kirby.

I'm not saying there isn't those examples in our society. But there will always will be those examples - you said lets be realistic, so start with that.

There will always be the "poor" regardless of what we do.

The issue is that Obama is wanting to give everyone something.

More money in the schools = greater chance for kid to make something out of life?

Let's be realistic Kirby, not idealistic. Washington DC is known as spending tons on their school systems. Yet they perform horribly. They opened a middle school that cost $35 million dollars - yet its output is not great in terms of success (judging by testing rates)

If we spend $35 million on one middle school, yet can't achieve results - how much are we going to have to spend to rehaul 50 states worth of schools?

This is just an example. Obama has latched onto this "lets fix the problems". However, saying give more money to the schools only sounds good. What is the logistics behind it?

This is what I wish people considered. Not "Oh that makes sense!" Every president wants change. Every president could promise to overhaul and fix every injustice. But how?

And then there's still my concern with Americans becoming too obessed with handouts. Kirby, I'm not selectively choosing people. When the ENTIRE NATION spends more than it saves - this is a major problem. I'm not stereotyping a group - it's the entire country

I was just making a spartans are gay joke.

I try to do it every time they're mentioned.

How in the world do your opinions stand up to other nations that DO fix those problems?

Such as?

Jedikirby, there's a country that has no poor?

There's a country that has no problems of any sort (health care, education, violence, mortality rates, obesity, etc)? Don't forget that we have 300+ million people here - and the shear size of America.

Problems will vary country to country - but in no way is any country perfect.

Don't get me wrong - I think our education system definitely needs some work. But Obama's catch phrases aren't enough to convince me. I need some sound proof that he knows what he's going to do.

Obama hasn't convinced me that he's anything more than a good speaker

The education system needs a complete and total reworking. Throwing more money at it will not help. Paying the teachers more will not help. Maybe if the students were coming out more learned, then the teachers should be compensated more. I don't understand this whole, "The children can't learn unless you give us more money " attitude. ****ing assclowns.

Especially when half of school's budgets are spent on a couple of dozen retarded jocks on the sports teams.

My high school was a charter school that had to meet in rented office space for lack of funding. We had no sports, and could barely pay the teachers. We held fund raising drives to simply pay the rent. Yet *somehow* our scores beat out almost every other school in the city including some of the ultra rich catholic schools. Every time I hear about teachers in their brand new schools with multi-million dollar tracks and stadiums, blaming their bad performance on lack of funding, I want to puke.

I retract my previous statement.

im goin to a barack rally here at my campus today