tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post4343892843761402982..comments2023-09-16T04:45:50.404-05:00Comments on Sleeping with The Devil: Brookings' Intellectually Honest Analysis Of Romney's Tax Proposals Got Me BannedDervish Sandershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671865801885224353noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-16469131897194577742013-06-06T23:13:09.349-05:002013-06-06T23:13:09.349-05:00I agree that Romney wasn't qualified to be pre...I agree that Romney wasn't qualified to be president. As for him being an OK governor, I heard he didn't run again because his popularity was such that he would not have won.<br /><br />I also agree that Al Qaeda was an international pariah after September 11th. They have bush to thank for saving their organization. Invading two Muslim countries convinced a lot of people to join up. Many citizens of Afghanistan weren't even aware of what happened in our country on 9-11. They only know that we invaded and were killing them. And Iraq had nothing to do with 9-11 at all. bush turned those reservoirs of goodwill into determination to exact revenge on the foreign power that invaded their countries.<br /><br />You're right, we shouldn't have invaded either country.Dervish Sandershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13671865801885224353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-31297474118112987802013-06-04T02:43:12.606-05:002013-06-04T02:43:12.606-05:00Romney is a tool. I just saw a "news" a...Romney is a tool. I just saw a "news" article about his transition strategy. He lost. He can transition into retirement. He never articulated a tax strategy. (Remember the "click here" funny joke link about the real Romney tax plan, anyone?) Romney was simply not qualified for the presidency. He was an okay governor. But I doubt he deserves too much credit for health insurance policy in the state of Massachusetts.<br /><br />Like all of you, I am conflicted about the use of drone strikes. I like to take the purist line that killing is always wrong. Anti-war hippie. Not good for children and other living things. But I was listening carefully to Obama's speech. I tend to believe that a threat does exist. If not directly to the continental United States, certainly we have seen our soldiers, allies and embassies targeted many times in the last thirty or more years. The Taliban in Afghanistan claimed responsibility for the attack on the U.N. related organization which was targeted on May 24th. That's ten days ago.<br /><br />I agree that killing people is the worst thing you can possibly do to spread goodwill. I was so horrified by the decision to invade Iraq, the Navy shelling and aerial bombardment of Baghdad and the escalation to torture, blanket imprisonment and ruthless, wanton attacks on Iraqi cities, not to mention the siege of Fallujah, I was ready to give up all hope of a peaceful world. <br /><br />Obviously, Al Qaeda was an international pariah after September 11th and had marginalized itself almost completely out of existence. Only the two wars could have breathed new life into the organization, which, undoubtedly, they did to the max. I confess that I admired Barack Obama for even having the courage to assume the reins in a role of correcting past wrongs. Obviously some idiot like McCain or Romney would not have feared assuming the presidency. They would have only destroyed more than already was lost.<br /><br />In retrospect, I now believe that we should not have invaded Afghanistan either. But we can only soldier on into the future and work like hell to make things right again. Reservoirs of goodwill? Well, nobody ever won anything of value by giving up.Flying Juniorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02098313953658606206noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-14777756508107016412013-06-01T22:41:52.821-05:002013-06-01T22:41:52.821-05:00I don't think highly of the way Obama has hand...I don't think highly of the way Obama has handled anything. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-83611295446394357312013-06-01T21:40:38.750-05:002013-06-01T21:40:38.750-05:00The belief that drone strikes save American lives ...The belief that drone strikes save American lives is arguable. The way they are currently being used create more terrorists thus perpetuating terrorism rather than ending it. Jerry Critterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870618647449723147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-72150798216003773452013-06-01T21:21:39.966-05:002013-06-01T21:21:39.966-05:00I agree. But surely you do not approve of signatur...I agree. But surely you do not approve of signature strikes or double-taps? If you don't know what they are I suggest reading this <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/drone-strikes-barack-obama_b_2832172.html" rel="nofollow">article</a> by Cenk Uygur (the same article I linked to in my post). Drones are a tool, and a useful one that avoids the problems you mention... but the Obama Administration is currently misusing this tool, IMO. They are creating "terrorists" who hate us because we killed their relatives.Dervish Sandershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13671865801885224353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-5855182960647639342013-06-01T20:20:13.342-05:002013-06-01T20:20:13.342-05:00We create many more enemies with an invasion force...We create many more enemies with an invasion force. Bin Laden started his crusade against America after Bush Sr. sent 100's of thousands of troops into the Middle East to repel Saddam from invading his neighbor. We can create enemies without doing anything like that, some just hate America for its imperial position. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-81322522770688184472013-06-01T17:37:50.289-05:002013-06-01T17:37:50.289-05:00Jerry: That is what they mean when they say we nee...Jerry: That is what they mean when they say we need to "broaden" the tax base. Romney was no different in that regard, in that he desired to cut taxes on the wealthy and raise them on everyone else. But a certain "moderate" blogger disagreed, and banned me when I refused to shut up and admit he was right. This is why he frequently writes posts complaining about the percentage of the tax burden the wealthy pays. For some strange reason he thinks he can compare the percentage of the tax load they pay with the percentage of the income earned by all wage earners in the US. But they aren't comparable because they are based on two very different numbers... the amount of wages earned is a lot more than the taxes paid, therefore the percentage for "taxes paid" will OF COURSE be higher. But the "moderate" does not seem to understand that.<br /><br />Anonymous: Absolutely, but we must use them judiciously, so as to not incite more terrorism. When we kill innocents it creates more terrorists. Currently I believe we are creating more terrorists than we are killing. That is why I agree with Cenk Uygur who says we must stop the "signature strikes". The use of drones should also be taken out of the hands of the CIA and the executive and placed into the hands of the military and a panel of people who will decide how the drones are used. Obama should not be the sole person deciding who is killed. I would object to the current arrangement vociferously if it was a Republican president who decided who to kill... and therefore I must object if it is a Democratic president... in order to be "intellectually honest".Dervish Sandershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13671865801885224353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-1954210077905453302013-06-01T15:01:44.773-05:002013-06-01T15:01:44.773-05:00Drones do what all new military weaponry is suppos...Drones do what all new military weaponry is supposed to do; inflict harm on the enemy while saving lives of our own troops. The A-bomb was dropped to save the lives of an estimated 500,000 dead Americans, if we invaded Japan. No doubt drones kill innocent people, but a lot less innocents die from drones than an invasion force. The number of civilian deaths from our invasion of Iraq proves that. Terrorism is not a State sponsored attack; and drones are not a "shock and awe" tactic. We never should have invaded Iraq, but drone strikes have killed off terrorists better than a 500,000 man army like the force Bush Sr. had. If we must fight useless wars, then do it with the fewest American casualties as possible. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21976234.post-81638746843761121622013-05-31T15:30:09.580-05:002013-05-31T15:30:09.580-05:00In general, most if not all republican budget prop...In general, most if not all republican budget proposals shift the tax burden downward...making the poor and middle class pay for wealth tax breaks in the guise of economic stimulation.Jerry Critterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870618647449723147noreply@blogger.com