Trump Thread (cont.)

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The Social Security system is a fraud, and has been from the beginning. It was sold on the idea that it was, in effect, a “forced savings” whereby people would entrust their money to the government, the government would invest it, and then give it back at retirement in stages.

But it was never invested. It was spent. Today’s payers pay today’s recipients, and it has been that way for a long time. It’s just an income transfer from working people to people who are over the age of 67.

It’s not a tax on wealth. Wealth wouldn’t be affected. I do not suggest a “means test” based on wealth, but on income. I do not see how taxing a person making $40,000 or less per year to pay a person making $250,000/year is justified. It would be easy to know who makes over the limit if they file tax returns.

And yes, I think people should be able to “opt out” in part, as was suggested by Bush years ago, and invest part of it in actual wealth-generating investments. That’s what they do in Chile, and with no ill effect. Never did I say the rich would not have to pay the tax. They should. But we ought to be honest enough to admit that it is a tax, not an “investment”.
FWIW, I don’t see how taxing a middle income person to pay a wealthy person is justified, either.
 
And “why” do you think a CAF discussion forum is equivalent in “anatomy” or “physiology” to mass media?
Sorry about the confusing terminology.

By “anatomy” I just meant the “appearance” and by “physiology” I just meant the “function”.

So I still don’t understand why Peter J. you would mix-in “donating” to FoxNews and CNN with “donating” to CAF?

(I can see how FoxNews and CNN are giving Trump large amounts of free publicity, but I don’t see how CAF is doing that. Unless you mean CAF is guilty of this by virtue of simply allowing us to discuss this here with this venue. But even then, the sheer size of FoxNews and CNN would not seem fair to compare with CAF, much less the WAY the candidates are discussed).
Hence why many people, myself included, are currently reassessing whether they want their donation money to go to CAF, FoxNews, CNN, etc.
The “appearance” of FoxNews and CNN are much different than the “appearance” of CAF.

The “function” of FoxNews and CNN are much different than the “function” of CAF.

And all I’m saying is: How are you conflating “donating” to these very different types of entities in the context of my earlier comment? . . .
If that other candidate DOES get the nomination, and you are watching the news media who gave him ENORMOUS amounts of free publicity to help him win the primary
 
Sorry about the confusing terminology.

By “anatomy” I just meant the “appearance” and by “physiology” I just meant the “function”.

So I still don’t understand why Peter J. you would mix-in “donating” to FoxNews and CNN with “donating” to CAF?

(I can see how FoxNews and CNN are giving Trump large amounts of free publicity, but I don’t see how CAF is doing that. Unless you mean CAF is guilty of this by virtue of simply allowing us to discuss this here with this venue. But even then, the sheer size of FoxNews and CNN would not seem fair to compare with CAF, much less the WAY the candidates are discussed).

The “appearance” of FoxNews and CNN are much different than the “appearance” of CAF.

The “function” of FoxNews and CNN are much different than the “function” of CAF.

And all I’m saying is: How are you conflating “donating” to these very different types of entities in the context of my earlier comment? . . .
Again, I don’t understand how your reading so much into my post.

I don’t have great knowledge of organizations that are the same size as CAF (or same appearance or whatever) that would have been appropriate to include in that post, but if you can suggest some I will try to remember them for the future.
 
Ridgerunner said (emphasis mine):

QUOTE:
Whether it’s enough or not, I would favor means testing it (Social Security)

“Means testing” for other readers, is when the Government obtains financial information about you (more than they already have), and start shaving or removing altogether, your benefits based on your assets and/or monies.

“Means testing” is Government doing a wealth inventory on you and your belongings!

Ridgerunner has many good posts but I disagree with Ridgerunner on this one.

“Means testing” for Social Security is dishonest about the whole Social Security concept of Government being a “steward” of YOUR money.

Crying “unfair” ignores the fact that Government borrowed MORE money from the wealthy INTEREST-FREE for many years, than they did from people who didn’t put much in the system.

“Means testing” is a form of wealth re-distribution that is stealing.

Haven’t we had enough of Federal Government playing Robin Hood and the taxpayers getting jilted in the end?

I think “means testing” for Social Security is a freedom disaster as well and eventually “means audits” will be necessitated with “means testing” under the guise of preventing “fraud” (which will have an element of truth).

QUOTE: “We’ll have to check under that mattress mam. This is pretty routine for us as Social Security means testing auditing agents. Not a big deal.

Sir we need to check the underwear drawer, I am sorry but it is necessary and we need to look in your wife’s jewelry box too.

You folks will have to open that gun safe for us to take an inventory of. No it is not necessary, but then you will be forfeiting your Social Security application.”

I explain WHY Social Security means testing is a disaster here.

If you want to “means test”, then America will eventually have to allow its citizens to opt out of the Social Security system.

This will be great for the rich because they will be able to put MORE money away for themselves later. It will be great for perpetuating wealth to their progeny because if they die, their money goes to their kids (and not back into the Social Security “system”).

“Means testing” and opting out of Social Security will not be so good for the poor who will now be told by the Government that since the rich have opted out, they not only have less money for them, but the Government no longer gets interest from that money either (so the poor lose that too).

Not to mention Federal Government inefficiency and even purposeful waste.

“Means testing” will also be great for Government growth. Now we need a department of Social Security recipient means testers, we will need a Social Security audit agency (let’s have them armed too because when we go "investigate “means fraud” it could be dangerous).

How about a “Social Security Means Testing Dept.” ideas seminar each winter in Orlando Florida? We can do this at taxpayers expense!

“Will our per diem cover liquor?” “Can we bring our ‘significant other’ along? Great. How bout a trip to Disney World for Dept. morale?”

And an every three-year international meeting to discuss the rich who take their money out of the country.

“We have to put a stop to this exiting of American dollars out of the country! We can meet and discuss this at tax payer expense in Davos, Switzerland or Oslo, Norway.”

I mean if international travel on tax payer expense is justified from EVEN city employees (see here to get an idea of how rampant these Government junkets at taxpayer expense are), HOW MUCH MORE is a trip to French Polynesia (Bora Bora) for our “means testing department” warranted?

The real ones who would be hurt by “means testing” is the middle class.

If you want real prosperity, you need real freedom.
👍
 
Mark Levin says he’s sick and tired of hearing Donald Trump whine and complain about Colorado. Levin argues that Trump should have gone into Colorado, hired the right people and organized his campaign, gave his speeches to try and win the delegates and then move on to the next state.

Instead, Levin says, Trump whines like a liberal and sounds like a disgruntled employee.

And that’s just the beginning. He also talks about how Trump is running a third party campaign inside the Republican nomination process…and more. (audio)

Read more: therightscoop.com/mark-levin-slams-donald-trump-for-whining-like-a-liberal-about-colorado/#ixzz45fdqct1O
 
redstate.com/streiff/2016/04/12/sean-hannity-interviewed-41-times-without-making-news-can-guess/

Hannity’s role is less of an interviewer than a member of Trump’s campaign staff. During his appearances, Hannity seeks to tamp down controversies, talk up Trump’s poll numbers, and tout his policy proposals. Hannity’s Trump is a reliable conservative with specific ideas who isn’t afraid to take on “PC” culture. Trump’s critics in the media, according to Hannity, are “dumb” “idiots” who don’t understand what’s happening in America.

Hannity has managed to interview Trump for hours without ever coming even close to making news.

Effectively, Hannity has given Trump something that is unprecedented in American politics: A serialized infomercial spanning nearly an entire year, targeted at the most reliable Republican voters, but presented to the public as “news.”
 
Lily Bernans. You said:
I don’t see how taxing a middle income person to pay a wealthy person is justified, either.
It is using police force to pilfer money from people you think are “too rich”.

And the people who are “too rich” Lily, end up eventually being YOU!

This is WHY you must follow PRINCIPLES instead of “amounts”. To prevent this from happening.

Obama promised us no new taxes on the middle class. People asked for a number and Obama falsely said $250,000 year income.

Voters sadly gave him the “keys to the car” and he re-DEFINED “the rich” as YOU (and me–see here and here for a NEW Obama tax proposal on EVERYBODY including the poor and disabled).

This is exactly what will happen if you EXPAND the Federal Government’s POWER to “means test” Social security recipients.

This is not “taxing a middle income person to pay a wealthy person” Lily.

The whole Social Security boondoggle was sold to America based upon how the Government is a better Trustee of these monies than the people themselves could ever be.

That’s WHY they called it the “Social Security Trust Fund”.

This is not monies from “middle income” people.

It is monies from the HIGH income people that the Government took (BY FORCE) away from the wealthy promising to collectively pay them back later but TAKE free interest anyway in the meantime.

These are supposedly from monies that belong to the person “putting in”.

This is NOT money from the Government (in a taxation sense), but money taken from these people (in a "steward"sense).

Now Ridgerunner is going to say, “The Government has NEVER BEEN a good steward of that money.”

And I agree. But that does NOT make it OK to steal the money of the wealthy (remember, this IS THEIR money NOT the Government’s money. And ostensibly at least, the Federal Government was merely acting as a TRUSTEE to THEIR money TAKING FREE INTEREST for all these years from them).

Since 2011, Social Security has a NET cash liability. That means the politicians (like Kasich when he was a Congressman in Washington D.C.) now cannot steal from Social Security’s arithmetic to massage budget numbers and make them artificially look good. That’s HOW they “balanced the budget” that Kasich brags about.

Kasich challenged us to look at his record. I did and I could not vote for him for President.

This is stealing.

Now that there is a net liability, the Federal Government cannot steal from the “Social Security Trust Fund” anymore.

So people like Ridgerunner, who admits the Government failed the people, want to . . . give MORE MONEY to these guys.

And during the debates, when Rand Paul was asked “why not”? After all, this “helps the poor” and all of that, Paul essentially answered, BECAUSE the Federal Government cannot be trusted with these monies while they are on a spending spree!

The Federal Government must SHOW it can stop CREATING NEW programs first.

Listen to Bernie.

He’s got all sorts of NEW PROGRAMS that he wants to start (Just like Trump and Kasich and Hillary).

WHY keep “feeding the beast” for MORE programs in the name of “helping the poor and disabled” when everybody knows they want these monies for their new “pet programs”?

Why give up your freedom to a Social Security agent’s intrusive in-your-home “wealth audit”?

I will try to start a “back fence” thread on WHY “means testing” for Social security is a disaster.

And the argument that it is ONLY “income” testing and not REALLY “means testing” in a fuller sense, is only as good as the next administration.

Ridgerunner means well, but trusts Federal Government politicians much more than I do in the face of their multiple failures.

Bernie, Hillary and the more overt socialists think of people as a little more than beasts. They think the people are incapable of making such decisions for themselves and they NEED enlightened ones (like themselves) to MAKE such decisions and IMPOSE them upon the people . . . for their own good.

The other thing is, if this was truly (at least in “name”) a TRUST and not a “TAX” as we have been sold, then TAKING the money anyway, is stealing.

Stealing from these people is NOT OK. Even if they are rich.

The long term goal of these guys like Bernie and Hillary and possibly Kasich is elimination of privately owned land and elimination of much private property.

Trump? Is HE that way too?

I have no idea:confused:. Trump has gone in circles so many times I have no idea WHAT he stands for.

Elimination of private property, free commerce and especially privately owned land. That’s ALWAYS the end game in socialism. And its tied up in “control”.
 
Tomdstone. You asked:

QUOTE:

What is socialism?

First of all, as a Catholic, I acknowledge a public dimension to goods.

But in the system of “socialism” there is a private dimension that is transgressed.

Excerpts on Socialism from Saint Pope John Paul II Centesimus Annus.

QUOTE:

SAINT POPE JOHN PAUL II . . . the Socialists encourage the poor man’s envy of the rich and strive to do away with private property, contending that individual possessions should become the common property of all . . .

. . . They are moreover emphatically unjust, for they would rob the lawful possessor, distort the functions of the State, and create utter confusion in the community". The evils caused by the setting up of this type of socialism as a State system — what would later be called “Real Socialism” . . .

. . . we have to add that the fundamental error of socialism is anthropological in nature.

Socialism considers the individual person simply as an element, a molecule within the social organism, so that the good of the individual is completely subordinated to the functioning of the socio-economic mechanism.

Socialism likewise maintains that the good of the individual can be realized without reference to his free choice, to the unique and exclusive responsibility which he exercises in the face of good or evil. Man is thus reduced to a series of social relationships, and the concept of the person as the autonomous subject of moral decision disappears, the very subject whose decisions build the social order.

From this mistaken conception of the person there arise both a distortion of law, which defines the sphere of the exercise of freedom, and an opposition to private property.

A person who is deprived of something he can call “his own”, and of the possibility of earning a living through his own initiative, comes to depend on the social machine and on those who control it. This makes it much more difficult for him to recognize his dignity as a person, and hinders progress towards the building up of an authentic human community.

. . . However, what is condemned in class struggle is the idea that conflict is not restrained by ethical or juridical considerations, or by respect for the dignity of others (and consequently of oneself); a reasonable compromise is thus excluded, and what is pursued is not the general good of society, but a partisan interest which replaces the common good and sets out to destroy whatever stands in its way. In a word, it is a question of transferring to the sphere of internal conflict between social groups the doctrine of “total war”, which the militarism and imperialism of that time brought to bear on international relations. . . . .

Therefore class struggle in the Marxist sense and militarism have the same root, namely, atheism and contempt for the human person, which place the principle of force above that of reason and law.

. . . It is not wrong to want to live better; what is wrong is a style of life which is presumed to be better when it is directed towards “having” rather than “being”, and . . . spend life in enjoyment as an end in itself. . . .

. . . . It is necessary to go back to seeing the family as the sanctuary of life. The family is indeed sacred: it is the place in which life — the gift of God — can be properly welcomed and protected against the many attacks to which it is exposed, and can develop in accordance with what constitutes authentic human growth. In the face of the so-called culture of death, the family is the heart of the culture of life.

Human ingenuity seems to be directed more towards limiting, suppressing or destroying the sources of life — including recourse to abortion, which unfortunately is so widespread in the world — than towards defending and opening up the possibilities of life.

The Encyclical Sollicitudo rei socialis denounced systematic anti-childbearing campaigns which, on the basis of a distorted view of the demographic problem and in a climate of “absolute lack of respect for the freedom of choice of the parties involved”, often subject them “to intolerable pressures … in order to force them to submit to this new form of oppression”.78

These policies are extending their field of action by the use of new techniques, to the point of poisoning the lives of millions of defenceless human beings, as if in a form of “chemical warfare”.

. . . the entire socio-cultural system, by ignoring the ethical and religious dimension, has been weakened, and ends by limiting itself to the production of goods and services alone.

. . . . It is the task of the State to provide for the defence and preservation of common goods such as the natural and human environments, which cannot be safeguarded simply by market forces.

. . . . . . However, the historical experience of socialist countries has sadly demonstrated that collectivism does not do away with alienation but rather increases it, adding to it a lack of basic necessities and economic inefficiency.

. . . . . Among the most important of these rights, mention must be made of the right to life, an integral part of which is the right of the child to develop in the mother’s womb from the moment of conception; the right to live in a united family and in a moral environment conducive to the growth of the child’s personality

. . . . . People lose sight of the fact that life in society has neither the market nor the State as its final purpose, since life itself has a unique value which the State and the market must serve.

If you want to discuss this dimension of society more Tomdstone, I know the moderators would suggest you beginning your own thread on it, instead of unpacking this any more here on a Trump thread.
 
If you want to discuss this dimension of society more Tomdstone, I know the moderators would suggest you beginning your own thread on it, instead of unpacking this any more here on a Trump thread.
You used the term socialism on this Trump thread without actually defining it.
 
Mark Levin says he’s sick and tired of hearing Donald Trump whine and complain about Colorado. Levin argues that Trump should have gone into Colorado, hired the right people and organized his campaign, gave his speeches to try and win the delegates and then move on to the next state.

Instead, Levin says, Trump whines like a liberal and sounds like a disgruntled employee.

And that’s just the beginning. He also talks about how Trump is running a third party campaign inside the Republican nomination process…and more. (audio)

Read more: therightscoop.com/mark-levin-slams-donald-trump-for-whining-like-a-liberal-about-colorado/#ixzz45fdqct1O
Did Mark Levin scream while he said some of this? Or did he scream all of it?
 
redstate.com/streiff/2016/04/12/sean-hannity-interviewed-41-times-without-making-news-can-guess/

Hannity’s role is less of an interviewer than a member of Trump’s campaign staff. During his appearances, Hannity seeks to tamp down controversies, talk up Trump’s poll numbers, and tout his policy proposals. Hannity’s Trump is a reliable conservative with specific ideas who isn’t afraid to take on “PC” culture. Trump’s critics in the media, according to Hannity, are “dumb” “idiots” who don’t understand what’s happening in America.

Hannity has managed to interview Trump for hours without ever coming even close to making news.

Effectively, Hannity has given Trump something that is unprecedented in American politics: A serialized infomercial spanning nearly an entire year, targeted at the most reliable Republican voters, but presented to the public as “news.”
I haven’t been watching much Hannity this year, but that’s sad if true.
 
redstate.com/streiff/2016/04/12/sean-hannity-interviewed-41-times-without-making-news-can-guess/

Hannity’s role is less of an interviewer than a member of Trump’s campaign staff. During his appearances, Hannity seeks to tamp down controversies, talk up Trump’s poll numbers, and tout his policy proposals. Hannity’s Trump is a reliable conservative with specific ideas who isn’t afraid to take on “PC” culture. Trump’s critics in the media, according to Hannity, are “dumb” “idiots” who don’t understand what’s happening in America.

Hannity has managed to interview Trump for hours without ever coming even close to making news.

Effectively, Hannity has given Trump something that is unprecedented in American politics: A serialized infomercial spanning nearly an entire year, targeted at the most reliable Republican voters, but presented to the public as “news.”
Hannity is doing ANOTHER full show event with Trump in Pennsylvania.
 
The Trump Effect: The Impact of the Presidential Campaign on our Nation’s Schools
Here are the highlights:
  • More than two-thirds of the teachers reported that students—mainly immigrants, children of immigrants and Muslims—have expressed concerns or fears about what might happen to them or their families after the election.
  • Code:
    More than half have seen an increase in uncivil political discourse.
  • Code:
    More than one-third have observed an increase in anti-Muslim or anti-immigrant sentiment.
  • Code:
    More than 40 percent are hesitant to teach about the election.
The comments are particularly revealing.
The survey did not identify any candidates. But out of 5,000 total comments, more than 1,000 mentioned Donald Trump. In contrast, a total of fewer than 200 contained the names Ted Cruz, Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton. During the campaign, Trump has spoken of deporting millions of Latino immigrants, building a wall between the United States and Mexico, banning Muslim immigrants and even killing the families of Islamist terrorists. He has also called Mexican immigrants “rapists” and drug dealers.
“My students are terrified of Donald Trump,” says one teacher from a middle school with a large population of African-American Muslims. “They think that if he’s elected, all black people will get sent back to Africa.”
In state after state, teachers report similar fears among minority children.
In Virginia, an elementary school teacher says students are “crying in the classroom and having meltdowns at home.” In Oregon, a K-3 teacher says her black students are “concerned for their safety because of what they see on TV at Trump rallies.” In North Carolina, a high school teacher says she has “Latino students who carry their birth certificates and Social Security cards to school because they are afraid they will be deported.”
 
Here is something Trump has never done and will never do: begging bankers, traders and Wall Street lawyers for campaign donations.

breitbart.com/2016-presidential-race/2016/04/13/ted-cruz-invites-wall-st-bankers-traders-lawyers-manhattan-harvard-club/

This Monday, assorted bankers, traders and Wall Street lawyers will gather inside the neo-Georgian walls of the Harvard Club in midtown Manhattan to write big checks to an unlikely recipient: Sen. Ted Cruz
.

Cruz, who attended Harvard Law School, isn’t one to trade too heavily on old school ties and friendships at the likes of Goldman Sachs, where his wife works. On the campaign trail, the Texas senator has railed against Wall Street “crony capitalism,” ripped giant banks as “too big to fail” and wrapped himself in populist garb in his quest to take down Donald Trump. But now he’s desperate: Cruz, who has already received $12 million in support from the financial industry, needs Wall Street money more than ever.
 
It’s starting to get interesting in the Republican race. According to Craig Dunn, one of the people elected Saturday as a Republican delegate from Indiana after criticizing Trump:
“When they reference burials and your family in the same email, and telling you that you’re being watched, that’s concerning.”
 
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