Promise61 Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 Fantastic speech from Obama yesterday. 4 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gsquare Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 Joe Grushecky will be playing a couple songs this afternoon at some DNC convention meetings. Wish it was broadcast, but Joe is definitely not high profile enough for prime time. Pittsburgh rocker Joe Grushecky to perform for Democratic convention 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daisey Jeep Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 is the US postal system like your usual govt dept and bloated with managment, i bet its bleeding money why does the president even have any say in how the post office is run maybe you guys should privatise it, sell ot off - but the dale precedes toward infrastructure- then it will operate in the black 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
JustDan Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 Other artists pitching in to lend a hand to Uncle Joe & Kamala...The Dixie Chicks performing live tonight. 2 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhereLoveRuled Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 2 hours ago, Daisey Jeep said: is the US postal system like your usual govt dept and bloated with managment, i bet its bleeding money why does the president even have any say in how the post office is run maybe you guys should privatise it, sell ot off - but the dale precedes toward infrastructure- then it will operate in the black The Post Office is already in the black, it is a self-sufficient agency. It's funding issues stem from a Republican plan to force them to fund pensions for the next 75 years, a standard which no other office is held to. Privatization would result in $15 letter fees and an immediate reduction in accessible options offered around the country. The USPS is a service, not a business, and should be treated as such. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daisey Jeep Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 1 minute ago, WhereLoveRuled said: The Post Office is already in the black, it is a self-sufficient agency. It's funding issues stem from a Republican plan to force them to fund pensions for the next 75 years, a standard which no other office is held to. your pension system seems to have alot of holes (where the money drains out ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhereLoveRuled Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 10 hours ago, Jimmy James said: Correct, only taxable income. Which is a pretty minimal number. That's why all the tax loop holes and tax havens. That's why a Flat Tax would be perfect. 10-15% across the board no loop holes no tax havens. The Kochs have been promoting a Flat Tax for a long time. That should tell you who would benefit from it. Hint - not us. 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhereLoveRuled Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 8 hours ago, badlands78 said: This. I’m not advocating a 0% tax. But if I have disposable money, I’d rather chose its charitable destination than to let it be swallowed by a wasteful state program. I'm with you on one hugely wasteful state program. Everything else has been getting cut. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Judgeb Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 Watching CNN and one of the commentators said to watch the convention until the end because there is going to be a surprise. Bruce? 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daisey Jeep Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 1 hour ago, WhereLoveRuled said: The Post Office is already in the black, it is a self-sufficient agency. It's funding issues stem from a Republican plan to force them to fund pensions for the next 75 years, a standard which no other office is held to. Privatization would result in $15 letter fees and an immediate reduction in accessible options offered around the country. The USPS is a service, not a business, and should be treated as such. our letters don't cost $15 to post it costs $1.30 here and that's after the effects of covid is taking into account NZ post was corporitzed in 1987, at the time i was opposed a letter cost 40c back then 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
badlands78 Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 1 hour ago, WhereLoveRuled said: I'm with you on one hugely wasteful state program. Everything else has been getting cut. Military is just as prone to waste as any other program. I’d be glad to see deadwood cut down across the board. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MagicRatAFC Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 3 hours ago, WhereLoveRuled said: The Post Office is already in the black, it is a self-sufficient agency. It's funding issues stem from a Republican plan to force them to fund pensions for the next 75 years, a standard which no other office is held to. Privatization would result in $15 letter fees and an immediate reduction in accessible options offered around the country. The USPS is a service, not a business, and should be treated as such. Privatisations worked a dream over here with SO many things.....☹️ 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhereLoveRuled Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 2 hours ago, badlands78 said: Military is just as prone to waste as any other program. I’d be glad to see deadwood cut down across the board. Yeah but the military has a much bigger and identifiable amount of deadwood that has never been treated. In fact, as much as I trash the Pentagon, they regularly ask for less money than they get. Plus, the money spent on things like health, education, and veterans can be trimmed without a decrease in services, with badly-needed regulation of things like pharma prices and tuition profiteering. But the DoD should absolutely be priorities A1 and A2 for huge budget cuts. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhereLoveRuled Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 2 hours ago, Daisey Jeep said: our letters don't cost $15 to post it costs $1.30 here and that's after the effects of covid is taking into account NZ post was corporitzed in 1987, at the time i was opposed a letter cost 40c back then What New Zealand has now sounds a lot like how the USPS used to operate, such as with postal banking. What the Republicans would probably like to do is an outright dismantling of our postal infrastructure. Someone will make a bunch of money if this happens. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhereLoveRuled Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 1 hour ago, MagicRatAFC said: Privatisations worked a dream over here with SO many things.....☹️ It always seems to make a handful of people really rich while the people who depend on those services suffer. 1 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Daisey Jeep Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 24 minutes ago, WhereLoveRuled said: What New Zealand has now sounds a lot like how the USPS used to operate, such as with postal banking. What the Republicans would probably like to do is an outright dismantling of our postal infrastructure. Someone will make a bunch of money if this happens. the post office had a bank since the late 1860s we all had post office savings account through school i miss the days of the suburban post office with its stamp only counter unfortunatly the bloated civil service were unable to run the post, the telephone and the bank -the govt of the day (labour btw) split them up and sold them off in the 80s rather than implementing change themselves so they could be turning a profit for the country's coffers many many people were made redundant and the new bussiness went on to do exceptionally well postbank was brought out, then merged with the Australian owned ANZ over time the people again wanted a NZ owned bank so Kiwi bank was set up at the post office. im a first day customer but ANZ did all the paperwork for my morgage application so they got my morgage Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SoulBoogieAlex Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 8 hours ago, WhereLoveRuled said: I'm with you on one hugely wasteful state program. Everything else has been getting cut. Maybe the military van deliver the mail 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SoulBoogieAlex Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 5 hours ago, Daisey Jeep said: our letters don't cost $15 to post it costs $1.30 here and that's after the effects of covid is taking into account NZ post was corporitzed in 1987, at the time i was opposed a letter cost 40c back then Is the post in your parts compelled to deliver the mail at no extra charge? There's people living at the bottom of the Grand Canyon for example that are now insured of mail delivery. There's some remote parts in the US. Though I guess you can compell the mail delivery services by law to do so and cap fees. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Silvia Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 What's the percentage of online voting in the States? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
badlands78 Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 3 hours ago, WhereLoveRuled said: Yeah but the military has a much bigger and identifiable amount of deadwood that has never been treated. In fact, as much as I trash the Pentagon, they regularly ask for less money than they get. Plus, the money spent on things like health, education, and veterans can be trimmed without a decrease in services, with badly-needed regulation of things like pharma prices and tuition profiteering. But the DoD should absolutely be priorities A1 and A2 for huge budget cuts. That’d be fine with me. Just as long as that money goes back to the taxpayer and is not just shifted around the state. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MagicRatAFC Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 8 hours ago, WhereLoveRuled said: The USPS is a service, not a business, and should be treated as such. That is true of SO many public services. Yet the aspiration remains to get them in the hands of "wealth creators" (sic) to line their pockets at the expense of service provision. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Eileen Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 I missed most of the talk yesterday but I see that charity was discussed. Should we have charity in this day and age? Why shouldn't we - I'm sure charity of one sort or another has always been with us. Whether it was between households or people who 'wished to do good things' it's always been of special value to those who received it. Lots of folk don't seek it, usually because of pride and wanting to do things on their own, but most get such comfort/help from it. The people who donate to or give their time to help various charitable organisations get so much from it, too. That's one of the reasons they do the afore-mentioned. Doesn't matter ... if people in need get the help they need, that's good. It's not an ideal world - never was, never will be. Governments cannot possible help everybody, we only hope that they do their best. Those who are able will either chastise them for their lack of forthcoming assistance or do something to alleviate any distress. Help who you can, how you can. That's the way the world goes round. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Wout Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 Wait what they actually spend money on their roads in USA? 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
whispered secret Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 I don't think anyone is advocating having no charitable giving. The discussion was more about charitable giving v. taxes and what people thought the balance should be. I agree with you @Eileen that volunteers get a huge amount from volunteering. I like working at the Food Bank, but I really wish it didn't exist. I might then volunteer at the Dogs Trust, for example. 2 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MagicRatAFC Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 2 hours ago, whispered secret said: I don't think anyone is advocating having no charitable giving. The discussion was more about charitable giving v. taxes and what people thought the balance should be. I agree with you @Eileen that volunteers get a huge amount from volunteering. I like working at the Food Bank, but I really wish it didn't exist. I might then volunteer at the Dogs Trust, for example. I think every government should have at the heart of their aspirations the alleviation of the need for charity. Unfortunately, too many politicians, and voters, see the need for charity in so many areas (be it specific, homeless charities, hunger charities etc. or just more general, poverty) as inevitable, something that 'just happens'. They don't see the cause and effect of policies. (Note, an unfettered free market causes poverty. That's a fact.) Is it stoppable? Maybe, maybe not. Is it stoppable if you don't aspire to stop it? Sure as shit not. If you aim for the stars you might just hit the ceiling, trouble is, most politicians are content to aim for the gutter of short term self interest. And AJ, the day when we don't need dog shelters or dog rescue is certainly one I dream about. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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