Bangee5 Loc: Louisiana

You mean "Socialist Studies", don't you? Must have been a typo error on your part.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

I quoted TchrBill, so blame it on him. Social, socialist, whatever. At least people with a little interest in how humans interact with each other and how to care for each other are doing some studying, and that, in my mind, is a good thing!

TchrBill Loc: Houston, TX

You didn't quote me on anything. Whatever you make up about that prez is all your own words. If you choke on those words because of another idiotic program of his, at least your medical is covered. Good luck with that. I'm done with this repartee.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

You mentioned "Social Studies." All I did was quote you on those Social Studies.

Sure glad I left Texas before I met Tchrs like you.

Bangee5 Loc: Louisiana

I call it Brainwashing, Obama, Socialist. All the same but humans do not interact this way. Schools are for learning not for propaganda and reprograming of our childrens minds. And really, you missed the point of the OP's post.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

I'm presuming you also think that religions and Sunday School is an inappropriate place for learning all that fairy tale propaganda and reprograming children to hate other people. Nah, probably not. You sound like the problem rather than the solution.

Victors throughout history are the ones who did the teaching. Same now. Obama won. We survived Bush. You'll survive Obama.

I didn't miss the point of OP's post at all. I simply disagreed with his reason for posting it.

KW Conch Loc: USA

Would you please define "Socialist" ?

Bangee5 Loc: Louisiana

I am not a writer and I can not use words as perhaps as well as you can but I am sure that if I could get across to you of what I think a socialist is it would not be the same views that you have. This I do know that Socialism takes away the freedom of the people in exchange for a welfare state. Where you see it as a collective of people working for the good of all (doesn't that sound just great), the taking from the more wealthiest among us (spreading the wealth until we are all equally poor and the government holding all the wealth). I am sorry but I am all for Ann Ryan. A conservative and a die-hard republican, love the constitution of the US. I believe if you worked for it then it is yours, not for someone who has not worked for his but wants yours. Crap! What a rant that turned out to be!

http://www.corporatewelfare.org/articles/ideology.htm

Bangee5 Loc: Louisiana

We didn't teach Bush 101 in school - we don't need Obama 101 in our schools either. What else would you teach in a church or Sunday school but to love God and to know Jesus and to love one another...

Yes, Jesus loves me.
Yes, Jesus loves me.
Yes, Jesus loves me.
'cause the bible tells me so!

KW Conch Loc: USA

I think you are defining communism. The term socialist is often tossed around carelessly by many. Here is a definition of socialism from a conservative source.

http://usconservatives.about.com/od/glossaryterms/g/Socialism.htm

Our economy is far from socialist and private business runs the show for the bulk of the economy. I am not for and would not support a socialist society. I've done quit well under capitalism
As far as taxes are concerned, we have always had them and they are lower today than in the past 50 years. The Bush tax cuts have been made permanent for 97% on the public.
If we abolish taxes how will we fund our military, build our bridges and highways, pay for SS and Medicare, fund research to cure diseases and inspect our food for safety, pay our teachers, police, firefighters and more ?
Oliver Wendell Holmes said, "Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society".

Bangee5 Loc: Louisiana

I have nothing against paying taxs but God, give us a break. We tax our bread before buy it, we tax it before it goes into my mouth and it is taxed when it leaves my body (just kiddin') but we are over taxed. There is a tax for everything. Have you ever figured out how much of a dollar is yours from the moment you get it to the last penny is spent? Niether have I but I have wondered. Yes, I know that tax is needed.

As for socialism, too much government in control not a good thing. Next comes Communism, Socialism twin brother.

Don't take this the wrong way but I am beginning to like you (in a manly way).

KW Conch Loc: USA

Bangee, I really feel that I get hit much harder in state sales and income taxes and local property taxes than any taxes that the Feds hit me with. If you want to bring those into the discussion then you have an ally.
Thank you for the compliment Bangee. I try (but don't always succeed) to not be obnoxious. I would much prefer a debate without insults and name calling and you have been a gentleman in this discussion.

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

I'm pretty sure you mean Ayn Rand unless Paul Ryan has a sister or mom named Ann.

I think there has to be a middle ground somewhere between 100% capitalism and 100% socialism. Of course, there never has been a country that was 100% capitalistic, nor one that has been 100% socialistic.

I liked J.K. Rowlings statements about why she, a billionaire, said about why she continues to live in the U.K. with its high taxes. Loosely quoted, she said that she once lived off of the U.K. welfare system and she was thankful for that. When she became a worldwide famous author and made those billions of dollars, she want to stick around and help others by paying her taxes which might possibly help someone else who was going through what she went through.

Even Bill Gates, worth a mere $60 billion or so, has given away many billions of dollars since he and his wife set up the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 1994. It currently has an endowment of $36 billion, all from Bill.

I mean, come on, how many billions of dollars does one need to survive? Or even to live the life of the rich and famous?

Personally, I think the sliding tax scale should be something like 0% or those making $10,000 or less, 1% for $10,001 to $20,000, 2% for $20,001 to $30,000, 3% for ~$35,000, 4% for ~40,000, etc. That means that someone making about $500,000 would pay about 50%. After that, the extraordinaly rich should continue to pay more, but not at the same rate. Let's let them keep a little more of their hard-earned money (as if the poor don't have any hard-earned money). However, once they hit something like $1 billion in annually salary, make the tax rate 75%. That means the would earn only $250 million annually. Poor babies. Whatever are they going to give up?

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

Oh, yeah. Jesus loves me all right, as long as I worship him unconditionally, accept him as my savior, and all those other fairy tale things. Otherwise I'm going to hell.

That's just too funny. Sad, too, because so many otherwise intelligent people for some reason believe those fairy tales. Oh, wait! I know why. Because they were brainwashed as young children!

russelray Loc: La Mesa CA

And we can use the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, as a great example of the value of what our taxes go to pay for. Gov. Perry was so proud of the fact that they ignore many federal and state building, code, and business regulations so that their businesses thrive. The fertilizer plant hadn't been inspected since something like 1987, and federal regulations instituted when fertilizer bombs became commonplace were being ignored. Ergo, an explosion that killed 15 people, injured more than 160, and damaged or destroyed 150 buildings. If you want to live haphazardly, sometimes there is a significant price to pay.

Bridges and highways are another great example. If you don't want to pay taxes to have such infrastructure, then you get the I-38 bridge collapse in Minnesota which killed 13 and injured 145.

It's interesting that so many ignorant people like to put words into the mouths of the Founding Fathers, such as them having founded the United States as a Christian nation, without ever having actually read all the works of those same Founding Fathers to see what they really thought about things.