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GOP is against critical thinking

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auntblabby
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25 Nov 2014, 12:36 am

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Obamacare banned perfectly legitimate health insurance policies. Why should people have to pay to have birth control pharmaceuticals included in their plan when they use the most effective and only free birth control--abstinence? Some people, particularly young people, may want a plan that only covers catastrophic and unanticipated health issues, not routine doctor visits. Obamacare essentially bans real health insurance. Do you also think the government should ban homeowner's insurance plans that don't cover weekly lawn mowings? While we're at it, let's ban car insurance plans that don't pay for the yearly inspection. That's the logic of Obamacare. It's absurd.

that is not true. these plans collected premiums but did not pay out claims. and young people may indeed [up to the age of 30] still buy catastrophic-only plans. do your homework. the lawn mowing thing is just a red herring. Obama's plan MANDATES real insurance plans ONLY on the exchanges. that is the key word, EXCHANGE- one is not legally required to buy plans for sale on the exchange.



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25 Nov 2014, 1:01 am

auntblabby wrote:
that is not true. these plans collected premiums but did not pay out claims. and young people may indeed [up to the age of 30] still buy catastrophic-only plans. do your homework. the lawn mowing thing is just a red herring. Obama's plan MANDATES real insurance plans ONLY on the exchanges. that is the key word, EXCHANGE- one is not legally required to buy plans for sale on the exchange.


Are you sure? Because I thought that anyone without an Obamacare approved health insurance plan would have to pay the penalty that's actually a tax but not really, depending on which part of Justice Roberts' opinion we're reading. Admittedly, like the Democrats that voted for Obamacare, I have never read the statute (although now that they passed it, we can see what is in it). Why would I read it when clearly it means whatever Obama wants it to mean, kind of like the Constitution and every other federal statute.



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25 Nov 2014, 1:06 am

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Are you sure? Because I thought that anyone without an Obamacare approved health insurance plan would have to pay the penalty that's actually a tax but not really, depending on which part of Justice Roberts' opinion we're reading. Admittedly, like the Democrats that voted for Obamacare, I have never read the statute (although now that they passed it, we can see what is in it). Why would I read it when clearly it means whatever Obama wants it to mean, kind of like the Constitution and every other federal statute.

even the GOP says the constitution "is just a piece of paper." it is a mundane hypocrisy of each party to accuse the other of trampling on the constitution. "patriot act" anyone? what PPACA saved you from is GETTING RIPPED OFF buying fake insurance that doesn't actually cover anything at all, but just collects your premium dollars. this is in your best interest. but if you wanna still buy fake insurance, then by all means vote GOP, they will be happy to oblige you with as much fake insurance as you could afford. your tax dollars support a budget-busting bloated military industrial complex, why don't you have a problem with that? if we cut that down 50% it would still be bigger than several other nations. and the moneys could pay for a REAL universal coverage program.



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25 Nov 2014, 1:25 am

auntblabby wrote:
even the GOP says the constitution "is just a piece of paper." it is a mundane hypocrisy of each party to accuse the other of trampling on the constitution. "patriot act" anyone?


I'm speaking as a citizen, not as a party. The Constitution is the highest law of the land but we have a president who thinks his whims are above the Constitution. That's a problem. And the more the people and Congress rebuke him, the bolder he gets to the point where he thinks he can do anything by fiat just because Congress didn't bow to his will.

auntblabby wrote:
what PPACA saved you from is GETTING RIPPED OFF buying fake insurance that doesn't actually cover anything at all, but just collects your premium dollars. this is in your best interest. but if you wanna still buy fake insurance, then by all means vote GOP, they will be happy to oblige you with as much fake insurance as you could afford.


This is exactly what I'm talking about. Democrats tell the American people "this is in your best interest, you're just too stupid to realize it. We here in Washington D.C. know what is best for you but you have no clue."

auntblabby wrote:
your tax dollars support a budget-busting bloated military industrial complex, why don't you have a problem with that? if we cut that down 50% it would still be bigger than several other nations. and the moneys could pay for a REAL universal coverage program.


In case you haven't noticed, the U.S. military does the heavy lifting in the world. Maybe if China starts helping to police the Middle East, we can cut back on military spending.



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25 Nov 2014, 1:38 am

American wrote:
I'm speaking as a citizen, not as a party. The Constitution is the highest law of the land but we have a president who thinks his whims are above the Constitution. That's a problem. And the more the people and Congress rebuke him, the bolder he gets to the point where he thinks he can do anything by fiat just because Congress didn't bow to his will.

then YOU try dealing with a recalcitrant GOP-dominated congress that refuses to cooperate and that insists on shoving poison pills down your throat.
American wrote:
This is exactly what I'm talking about. Democrats tell the American people "this is in your best interest, you're just too stupid to realize it. We here in Washington D.C. know what is best for you but you have no clue."

let me let the infinitely smarter h.l. Mencken supply my reply here- "no one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public." or George carlin- "Everybody complains about politicians. Everybody says they suck. Well, where do people think these politicians come from? They don't fall out of the sky. They don't pass through a membrane from another reality. They come from American parents and American families, American homes, American schools, American churches, American businesses and American universities, and they are elected by American citizens. This is the best we can do folks. This is what we have to offer. It's what our system produces: Garbage in, garbage out. If you have selfish, ignorant citizens, you're going to get selfish, ignorant leaders."
American wrote:
In case you haven't noticed, the U.S. military does the heavy lifting in the world. Maybe if China starts helping to police the Middle East, we can cut back on military spending.

and you think all that is necessary? George Washington warned us of unnecessary foreign entanglements but that was soon forgotten. Ike warned us of the dangers of a bloated military/congressional/industrial complex but nobody listened. and so now we have our noses everywhere they don't belong. and YOU are paying for it all, along with me and that fella hiding behind the tree, one way or another. and you think this is a good thing?



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25 Nov 2014, 1:51 am

auntblabby wrote:
then YOU try dealing with a recalcitrant GOP-dominated congress that refuses to cooperate and that insists on shoving poison pills down your throat.


What you call recalcitrant, I call prudent. Obama is the recalcitrant one. His power and the power of Congress are set by the Constitution and do not change depending on how much of Obama's agenda Congress passes. Congress is under no obligation to do what the president wants. That's what separates our country from, say, North Korea. That and an ocean.

auntblabby wrote:
George Washington warned us of unnecessary foreign entanglements but that was soon forgotten. Ike warned us of the dangers of a bloated military/congressional/industrial complex but nobody listened. and so now we have our noses everywhere they don't belong. and YOU are paying for it all, along with me and that fella hiding behind the tree, one way or another. and you think this is a good thing?


I think it is a bad thing, just not as bad as letting tyrants enslave the planet. George Washington also warned us of monarchs. Enter King Obama, whose power hath no limit other than his majesty's infinite wisdom, real and imagined, but mostly the latter.



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25 Nov 2014, 2:00 am

American wrote:
What you call recalcitrant, I call prudent. Obama is the recalcitrant one. His power and the power of Congress are set by the Constitution and do not change depending on how much of Obama's agenda Congress passes. Congress is under no obligation to do what the president wants. That's what separates our country from, say, North Korea. That and an ocean.

ignore the poison pills at your own peril. you want unaffordable health care, vote GOP. you want no voting rights, vote [for the last legal time, most likely] for the GOP. I see you had no problem at all with king George [#42].



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25 Nov 2014, 11:22 pm

auntblabby wrote:
ignore the poison pills at your own peril. you want unaffordable health care, vote GOP. you want no voting rights, vote [for the last legal time, most likely] for the GOP. I see you had no problem at all with king George [#42].


That's ridiculous. What evidence do you have that Republicans want to eliminate voting rights? Is this over photo ID? Many federal buildings under the control of the executive branch (i.e., Obama) require everyone to show photo ID before entering. Is requiring someone to show a photo ID to get into a federal courthouse akin to eliminating the right to access the courts? No, of course not. Also, you are assuming that I had no problem with George Bush. You assume wrong.



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25 Nov 2014, 11:28 pm

American wrote:
That's ridiculous. What evidence do you have that Republicans want to eliminate voting rights? Is this over photo ID? Many federal buildings under the control of the executive branch (i.e., Obama) require everyone to show photo ID before entering. Is requiring someone to show a photo ID to get into a federal courthouse akin to eliminating the right to access the courts? No, of course not. Also, you are assuming that I had no problem with George Bush. You assume wrong.

you choose to ignore widespread voter suppression via spurious "voter ID" laws which are really mean-spirited ways of deterring working class folk from voting [via restricted voting hours, restricted voting locations, restricted access to affordable voter ID documents, et al]. fine. be that way. when the GOP gets their whole agenda in place that [among other things] bumps you down from middle-class into the working class, maybe then you'll get it.



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25 Nov 2014, 11:38 pm

auntblabby wrote:
you choose to ignore widespread voter suppression via spurious "voter ID" laws which are really mean-spirited ways of deterring working class folk from voting [via restricted voting hours, restricted voting locations, restricted access to affordable voter ID documents, et al]. fine. be that way. when the GOP gets their whole agenda in place that [among other things] bumps you down from middle-class into the working class, maybe then you'll get it.


So, your position is that requiring photo ID to enter federal courthouses is a "mean spirited[] way[] of deterring working class folk from" accessing the courts? When I first started voting I couldn't believe that I didn't need any ID to vote. I thought that was bizarre. So I agree with voter ID laws. Unless you think determining who the POTUS is going to be is less important and less solemn than boarding an airplane, I imagine you agree.



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26 Nov 2014, 12:00 am

American wrote:
So, your position is that requiring photo ID to enter federal courthouses is a "mean spirited[] way[] of deterring working class folk from" accessing the courts? When I first started voting I couldn't believe that I didn't need any ID to vote. I thought that was bizarre. So I agree with voter ID laws. Unless you think determining who the POTUS is going to be is less important and less solemn than boarding an airplane, I imagine you agree.

if you want poll taxes to keep people like me from voting, then by all means vote for the GOP. if you don't like my posts then don't read them.



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26 Nov 2014, 12:29 am

auntblabby wrote:
if you want poll taxes to keep people like me from voting, then by all means vote for the GOP. if you don't like my posts then don't read them.


You have not explained why it is okay to have to show photo ID to access the courts but not to vote. Now you're on to poll taxes.



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26 Nov 2014, 12:30 am

American wrote:
auntblabby wrote:
if you want poll taxes to keep people like me from voting, then by all means vote for the GOP. if you don't like my posts then don't read them.


You have not explained why it is okay to have to show photo ID to access the courts but not to vote. Now you're on to poll taxes.

you haven't noticed, but voter ID IS A POLL TAX!! !! it costs MONEY for working people to drive hundreds of miles to file paperwork at offices with bankers' hours. that is how it is done in the states that have enacted this form of disenfranchisement, but since you are middle class you don't notice this.



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26 Nov 2014, 12:55 am

auntblabby wrote:
you haven't noticed, but voter ID IS A POLL TAX!! ! ! it costs MONEY for working people to drive hundreds of miles to file paperwork at offices with bankers' hours. that is how it is done in the states that have enacted this form of disenfranchisement, but since you are middle class you don't notice this.


How can anyone function in modern society when almost everything except breathing requires a photo ID?



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26 Nov 2014, 1:01 am

American wrote:
How can anyone function in modern society when almost everything except breathing requires a photo ID?

the middle and upper classes have no trouble. they are in their element with bureaucracy and jumping through [what for them are] low hoops that for working people are mostly insurmountable barriers to public participation. that is the whole point of the way they have made things, to lock out what they see as "useless eaters" from participating in America.



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26 Nov 2014, 1:23 am

auntblabby wrote:
the middle and upper classes have no trouble. they are in their element with bureaucracy and jumping through [what for them are] low hoops that for working people are mostly insurmountable barriers to public participation. that is the whole point of the way they have made things, to lock out what they see as "useless eaters" from participating in America.


I don't care what class you are, how do you not have an ID? How would you function? Drive? Get welfare? Go into a courthouse? Write a check? Get a job? How many people do none of those things ever?