Is the country headed in the right direction in 2016?

[Grand Torino]

Feel free to add your own insight. This is not a debate but rather opinions that will not be changed but name calling and belittlement of others. 

 

Unfortunately for members of the next generation, it appears they won’t be living in the same sort of America where I had the good fortune of growing up. Of course, there’s still time for a course correction, but it better happen quick. These three short sentences do a pretty darn good job of showing us where we’ve got it all wrong.

 

We are told not to judge all muslims by the actions of a "few terrorists" but we are encouraged or even belittled to judge all gun owners by the actions a few lunatics or felons that aren't even supposed to legally own a gun in the first place? Funny how that works.

 

We constantly hear about social security running out of money. How is it we never hear about welfare and food stamps running out of money? The first group worked for their money while the second...not so much. Think about it for a second and let that soak in.

 

Why are we cutting benefits to veterans and cutting back the size of our military to pre-WWII levels but are not stopping payments/benefits to illegal aliens or whatever we are supposed to call the now? Am I the only one missing something?

 

Anyway...have fun with this and feel free to add your own ideas without belittling your fellow TGO members.

[btq96r]

I think we're just changing, and change is rarely accepted by 100% of folks.  Different in action, but not in theory from the changes of the 30s, then the 60s.  Just a cultural shift...as before, the Republic will survive.  But those who feel that "their America" is going away will feel bad about it.

 

 

We are told not to judge all muslims by the actions of a "few terrorists" but we are encouraged or even belittled to judge all gun owners by the actions a few lunatics or felons that aren't even supposed to legally own a gun in the first place? Funny how that works.

 

I just go with one consistent standard.  The actions of individuals don't define the demographic for me.  People who obey the law and go about their lives don't make for good news stories, gun owners and Muslims alike.

 

 

We constantly hear about social security running out of money. How is it we never hear about welfare and food stamps running out of money? The first group worked for their money while the second...not so much. Think about it for a second and let that soak in.

 

Social Security (which includes everything under it) accounted for is going up as the boomer generation retires.  It's also the single biggest item in the federal budget at over a trillion dollars, and is funded by the special taxes for it.  All the reasons add up, but yeah, it's running out of money because the funding for it won't be able to keep pace with the payments, which are mandated by law. 

 

As for Food Stamps, the money is there because it's a discretionary spending program and has been reauthorized by Congress every year.  Also, saying that group doesn't work for the money isn't accurate.  My family was on food stamps when I was a kid.  My father was working an honest job driving cross country in an 18-wheeler during that time.  I remember having my apartment packed up the day after the 2012 election, and the movers told talked about how they voted for Obama because they were worried Romney would cut food stamps.  Hard to make a case they aren't working for a living and doing their part for society.  Is there abuse, sure.  But there are also a lot of people using the program to get by while working hard, but necessary jobs.

 

 

Why are we cutting benefits to veterans and cutting back the size of our military to pre-WWII levels but are not stopping payments/benefits to illegal aliens or whatever we are supposed to call the now? Am I the only one missing something?

Feel free to add your own insight. This is not a debate but rather opinions that will not be changed but name calling and belittlement of others. 

 

Show me how we're cutting benefits to veterans?  The VA budget trend line is decidedly up over the last decade.  Just for myself, I'm having about $20k a year in tuition and housing costs paid for by the VA while I'm in school full time.

 

As to the size of the military, don't focus on the size of the force, focus on capabilities.  The Army doesn't need as many troops unless we plan on more ill advised occupations, the Navy isn't getting into ship to ship battles, and the Air Force has focused more on drones than manned aircraft in recent years.   Force size is a constant refinement.  What really matters is that SOF hasn't taken any big cuts, but has actually grown, as it should for the wars we fight today.

[A.J. Holst]

How about the erosion of the family (both hetero and homo) Why are young people draw into gangs, cults and radical fringes of religion? Maybe looking for love, acceptance, a sense of belonging, mentorship?

[btq96r]

How about the erosion of the family (both hetero and homo) Why are young people draw into gangs, cults and radical fringes of religion? Maybe looking for love, acceptance, a sense of belonging, mentorship?

 

That is a huge problem.  The how to solve it part is where you realize that there is no easy solution.  Government enforcement is out of the question, and government encouragement through things like the tax code is a slippery slope.  You can't just ostracize single parents, or kids from broken homes either.  Once upon a time, it was a financial necessity to stay as a family unit, but a lot of people were trapped in loveless homes there as well.

 

Like I said, huge problem, no easy solutions.

[DaveTN]

We live in a time where the group that lives off the government is getting bigger and bigger. They vote for whoever promises them the most money. Eventually (until our economy collapses) they will be electing everyone.

Money fixes most everything, from crime rates to broken families. There are no issues more important right now than our economy. We need to get our manufacturing base back, and put people back to work.

[Grand Torino]

 

Social Security (which includes everything under it) accounted for is going up as the boomer generation retires.  It's also the single biggest item in the federal budget at over a trillion dollars, and is funded by the special taxes for it.  All the reasons add up, but yeah, it's running out of money because the funding for it won't be able to keep pace with the payments, which are mandated by law. 

 

As for Food Stamps, the money is there because it's a discretionary spending program and has been reauthorized by Congress every year.  Also, saying that group doesn't work for the money isn't accurate.  My family was on food stamps when I was a kid.  My father was working an honest job driving cross country in an 18-wheeler during that time.  I remember having my apartment packed up the day after the 2012 election, and the movers told talked about how they voted for Obama because they were worried Romney would cut food stamps.  Hard to make a case they aren't working for a living and doing their part for society.  Is there abuse, sure.  But there are also a lot of people using the program to get by while working hard, but necessary jobs.

 

 

 

First of all I didn't say none of them worked. I said not so much. I have no problem helping folks on a temporary basis if needed. It shouldn't be a way of life over generations. I'm not convinced there isn't much more abuse than actual need. My cousin worked in that field for years before she quit. She said probably 8 out 10 cases she worked contained some fraud and abuse and time and time again her supervisors "overlooked" it and even went as far as to be asked once "What do you care..it isn't your money". When she pointed out that it actually was her money it wasn't the answer they wanted to hear. To make a long story short she collected the evidence she needed and became a whistle blower. She received a nice settlement and the torching of her garage and car because of it. Anyone that doesn't think the abuse outweighs the actual need is sorely misinformed IMHO.

[Grand Torino]

I think we're just changing, and change is rarely accepted by 100% of folks.  Different in action, but not in theory from the changes of the 30s, then the 60s.  Just a cultural shift...as before, the Republic will survive.  But those who feel that "their America" is going away will feel bad about it.

 

Twenty-six percent (26%) of Likely U.S. Voters now think the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey for the short holiday week ending December 23.

This finding is unchanged from a week ago and is up just two points from 24% two weeks ago which tied the low for the year.

 

The national telephone survey of 2,500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports from December 20-23, 2015. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 2 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.

 

I guess that makes you part of the 26% if I'm not mistaken.

[btq96r]

I guess that makes you part of the 26% if I'm not mistaken.

 

I think that the 'right track/wrong track' question is one that is too simple to deal with the complexity of the myriad issues our country deals with.  In my mind, we're doing well on some areas, need to improve in others, and need to overhaul the way we operate on others. 

 

In general though, I think we're doing good, despite the prognostications of doom and gloom that justify shows of which advertising time is sold for.  Having seen a decent bit of the rest of the free world, and some of the oppressed world, America is good to go in my mind.

[Grand Torino]

 

 

 

 

Show me how we're cutting benefits to veterans?  The VA budget trend line is decidedly up over the last decade.  Just for myself, I'm having about $20k a year in tuition and housing costs paid for by the VA while I'm in school full time.

 

 

Last week, the House Appropriations Subcommittee marked up the 2016 Veterans Affairs funding bill, and slashed more than $1.4 billion from the president’s requested budget for America’s Veterans. Today, VA Secretary Bob McDonald appeared beforethe Senate Appropriations Committee to discuss that budget proposal.

While some may argue this is not a drastic move, every cut and rescission of funds has real-world implications for Veterans across the country. Here are three ways these proposed congressional cuts will adversely affect the quality of care and services provided to Veterans next year if they are not reversed:

The 2016 House proposal reduces VA medical care by $690 million. What does this mean? As a result of the overall cut to medical services, an estimated 70,000 fewer Veterans will receive the VA care they need.

Also wrapped up in the cuts to medical care is a reduction of $582 million to address VA’s high priority construction projects. This cut will reduce VA’s ability to provide additional outpatient services and will impact four major construction projects, including the long sought-after French Camp Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Livermore, California.

The National Cemetery Administration is consistently rated top in customer satisfaction for its work in honoring our nation’s Veterans and maintaining 3.3 million grave sites across 131 cemeteries. Proposed cuts would eliminate funding for several key cemetery expansion projects, reducing our ability to provide burial honors for as many as 18,000 Veterans and eligible family members each year.

http://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/19356/how-1-4-billion-in-budget-cuts-will-impact-veterans/

[A.J. Holst]

That is a huge problem. The how to solve it part is where you realize that there is no easy solution. Government enforcement is out of the question, and government encouragement through things like the tax code is a slippery slope. You can't just ostracize single parents, or kids from broken homes either. Once upon a time, it was a financial necessity to stay as a family unit, but a lot of people were trapped in loveless homes there as well.

Like I said, huge problem, no easy solutions.

Wise beyond your years! The scary part is we are seeing this not just in the United States but in areas ravaged by terrorism and war

[btq96r]

Last week, the House Appropriations Subcommittee marked up the 2016 Veterans Affairs funding bill, and slashed more than $1.4 billion from the president’s requested budget for America’s Veterans.

 

That was in April when the budget is a concept more than it's a reality.

 

The President's budget submitted a request for $168.8 billion.  Skipping forward past the mind numbing budget process, the final approved amount was, if this article represents the total amount, $166 billion.  Compared to 2015, when the VA budget was $163.5 billion, that's an increase, even if a small one and not what the President, OMB and VA wanted.  Compared to 2009, when the VA budget was $97.7 billion, and it's a hell of an increase.

 

The devil is in the details, and with the VA budget, it has to be looked at as mandatory and discretionary spending since "the budget" is divided into those two separate items, plus a capital budget for things like buildings and repairs.  The combined number is called the VA budget.  This repeats for every department in the federal government.  Anyhoo...

 

Mandatory is what gets paid out by law to those who qualify and are approved, like my use of the GI Bill, and is basically an if they qualify for it they get it benefit spending that auto adjusts every year.  The total amount isn't subject to much drama unless there are changes to the amounts authorized, which rarely happens downward.  To say we're spending less if that number goes down without a change in the law would be like saying the VA is spending less on veterans after I'm done with school.  It's not really true, I'm just not taking the money I'm authorized since I don't need it after getting a degree, or the benefit expired and I no longer qualify.

 

Discretionary spending is what they spend on all the optional items, like how many doctors, nurses, case workers, clerks, ect... to employ, and how many supplies to stock the hospitals and offices with.  That's what shows if they are actually raising the budget or not.  For FY 2016, the VA discretionary budget was approved in the Senate at $71 billion, a rise from $68 billion in 2015.

Edited December 31, 2015 by btq96r

[frankmako]

too many people think they are owed a living from the government and the white middle class.  

[A.J. Holst]

too many people think they are owed a living from the government and the white middle class.

It's not the white middle class...looters are the most color/race/religion blind members of society...change white middle class to "producers".

I feel the term producer transcends race, and socioeconomic standing.

[rmiddle]

It's not the white middle class...looters are the most color/race/religion blind members of society...change white middle class to "producers".

I feel the term producer transcends race, and socioeconomic standing.

 

When you say Producers some people will only think of the Top 1% to 5% of people and forgot about the large group of people who still pay taxes in this country.

 

Thanks

Robert

[Jonnin]

Feel free to add your own insight. This is not a debate but rather opinions that will not be changed but name calling and belittlement of others. 

 

Unfortunately for members of the next generation, it appears they won’t be living in the same sort of America where I had the good fortune of growing up. Of course, there’s still time for a course correction, but it better happen quick. These three short sentences do a pretty darn good job of showing us where we’ve got it all wrong.

 

We are told not to judge all muslims by the actions of a "few terrorists" but we are encouraged or even belittled to judge all gun owners by the actions a few lunatics or felons that aren't even supposed to legally own a gun in the first place? Funny how that works.

 

We constantly hear about social security running out of money. How is it we never hear about welfare and food stamps running out of money? The first group worked for their money while the second...not so much. Think about it for a second and let that soak in.

 

Why are we cutting benefits to veterans and cutting back the size of our military to pre-WWII levels but are not stopping payments/benefits to illegal aliens or whatever we are supposed to call the now? Am I the only one missing something?

 

Anyway...have fun with this and feel free to add your own ideas without belittling your fellow TGO members.

 

Of course you are missing things.   This is just the tip of the iceberg.

 

I will only add one in the interest of brevity, a personal favorite:

 

we borrow billions from china each year and give away billions to countries we do not really like all that much as "aid".    Not one politician ever has said "we love you guys, but why don't you go borrow the money from china yourself??"