sam

there needs to be a happy medium with car size. that's what the US lacks. we have supersized, huge or crappy sedan.

granted there are some very cool sport cars, and the Audi/BMW series is pretty trick.

but when did driving a school bus sized vehicle become fashionable?

dandan

Well, they are now (prices). Don't knock the Brits being socialists, at least their people don't die because of lack of health insurance. In Australia we're now paying almost as much as the Poms for petrol, and we have a very conservative government (John Howard's), but hopefully not for long, we're having an election soon .... :surfin:

Bigjohn

Healthcare is not the governments job. It's government buracracy that makes healtcare so expensive and difficult. My doctor's office has 3 full time people just to do insurance and government forms! That adds more than $90K per year to the cost of running that office (not counting their benefits costs, office space, etc)....

Anything government gets involved in usually ends up costing 2x as much as if it were handled in a competitive environment.

Here in the USA there are statistics that show over 20% of taxes collected for 'medicare' are lost in the buracracy, and another 10% goes out through fraud.....

John

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miakeru

If it were, I would have to pay taxes on one more thing I didn't feel I needed to.

Teksonic

i drive a modifided 90 Honda crx, i don't really care what the gas price is like i can go so far on one tank it unbelievable.

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dandan

OK, I'll bite :goodandev
Of course it's the government's "job". The ideology that you're voicing has no practical basis whatsoever; it's just that, ideology which you have probably acquired through your socialisation in a conservative, market-based society. It's also known as Reaganism and Thatcherism, and started with von Hayek's notion of the minimalist state, this is known to the rest of the world as neoliberalism. Before that we had Keynesianism as the basis of govt policy, which gave the US and the rest of the western world great social and economic security and prosperity after the second WW (read history). Taxes are what ensures that necessary services (health care, age care, education, ambulance services, police, army, fire services, and so on) are provided equitably to all, regardless of one's luck in life. If these services are subjected to market forces, then you, as a customer (and not citizen with rights), have to compete with others to buy them as products (and not services). So if you have the money you can 'buy' good quality healthcare, if you don't, then you need to rely on welfare and charity. Unfortunately, this absolute hogwash of an ideology is being imposed in Australia and some other countries, and so many people are now suffering because of it, while some fat cats enjoy the benefits of lower taxes.

And, did you know that 25% of statistics are wrong? :sheep: Seriously, though, I can also show you stats that support the contrary, which also demonstrates that the reality we each try to portray are just suitable arrangements of objective facts.

:angel:

john

Wow! I don't think I've ever seen so many "-isms" in one post before.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not an intellectual. However, it has been my observation that every time I give the government a dollar, they pee it away. Now, if I were to hang on to that dollar myself, I might pee it away as well, but hey, it was my dollar to begin with, so that should be my right. More my right than some bleeding heart liberal who is just trying to convince the unwashed masses that he (she) knows how to take care of them better than they do, but that the only way they can do it is if they can take all of my money first.

Now that I've expressed my simple point of view, I'll turn this conversation over to Bigjohn.

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Bigjohn

Ahh, but have you looked at your FICA taxes? You can't get a refund on those.... Social Security is the biggest ponzi scheme in history, and medicare taxes... you'll never ever see that money either.

John

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Bigjohn

The constitution of the united states provides "for the common defenses, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty for our selves and our postarity, do ordain and establish this constitution"

Where is it written that someone can use the police power of the government to take money from someone who earned it in order to provide them something that they want or need?

People complain here that you "can't raise a family on the minimum wage." No $hit, sherman... don't get pregnant at 14, don't drop out of school, don't make your problems a burden on MY FAMILY!

John

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>>>>> Some Change is GOOD! Keep your paycheck! Support the Fair Tax
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What SHOULD Government do? Much Less than it Does!