OMG Politics, I'm over it already.

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GomezAddams said:
It was broken down and explained by people who had a very vested interest in seeing it fail. It was explained to you by people who've also been saying they have a better idea, but even after 6 years don't have squat to present as a replacement.

Please explain to us what, exactly, in the ACA forced insurance companies to raise rates. The only thing the ACA forced on insurance companies is that they had to extend family coverage to kids until they were 26, and they couldn't refuse anyone because of preexisting conditions. I can't see how either of these was so onerous that it forced substantially higher rate.

In case you hadn't noticed the cost of health care and health insurance was spiraling put of control well before the ACA. You may also want to note that the largest segment of the population (the baby boomers) is getting ever older, and costing insurance companies more for their health care.

Lastly, you might want to go read the SEC filings from some of the health insurance companies paying particular attention to their yearly profits and their executive compensation.
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@mikesr1963 After re-reading this, I'm afraid this came off as far more strongly than I intended. I am sorry - it was not meant to be an attack against you. I think you are wrong on this issue, but I do value your contributions to the conversation.
 
mongooz said:
not if the border is patrolled by F-16's....or.....maybe that's a job for the brand new and improved wonderful greatest of them all......F-35 :mad:
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Regular fighter jet border patrols would be enormously expensive and highly impractical. Fighter jets burn through fuel at a tremendous rate (like 2 gal/sec) and don't carry enough fuel to stay aloft more than 2 hrs without in-flight refueling, itself also a very expensive operation that requires tons of logistical planning and coordination. One of my best friends was an Air Force refueling drogue operator for more than seven years during the Iraq War*.

Figuring fuel, logistical and support costs, it ran about $12,000/hr for each fighter jet to fly in non-combat roles during Iraq War II, Bush Boogaloo. It's absolutely going to be much more expensive now, but hypothetically let's say it's not: 4 jets patrolling the US/Mexico border around the clock would cost $1.2 million/day, or $430+ million/yr. And that's just for fighters in the air, not counting maintenance, troop costs, etc.

And it will be much more expensive than that now.

*He was involuntarily extended for another year and a half past his six year enlistment because of the critical nature of his job.
 
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I'm reading the transcript of Trump's interview from last night. I know you're going to lose something in reading a transcript of a conversation rather than actually listening to it, but it's so.......disjointed is the best way I can think of to put it. Also, he seems legitimately delusional.
 
Devil is Dill said:
I'm reading the transcript of Trump's interview from last night. I know you're going to lose something in reading a transcript of a conversation rather than actually listening to it, but it's so.......disjointed is the best way I can think of to put it. Also, he seems legitimately delusional.
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It seems like he is still speaking to the most radical views of his core supporters in headline/sound bites. I was a little surprised that he's still chewing on what's almost a fetish for torture & CIA black sites when none of his cabinet nominations or the overwhelming majority of congress is on that page.


Remember when President Obama won the Nobel Peace prize for bringing America back to the table of rational global relations & simply not being GWB? They're going to come up with a new +2 version for that President who un-thaws American foreign policy & human rights after this administration.
 
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the same people flipping out about Obama's relatively minor executive orders on immigration are acting pretty hypocritical about trump going about 10,000 steps further with his executive order to build the wall and hire 5000 federal employees a day after implementing a hiring freeze.

they should really stop calling themselves conservatives. this wall debacle is going to cost us, our kids and our grandkids so much money and do absolutely nothing. they claim to care about the deficit until they get in power and then they spend money we don't have on completely worthless shit.
 
http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/25/politics/trump-calls-for-major-investigation-into-voter-fraud/

President Donald Trump could sign an executive order or presidential memorandum initiating an investigation into voter fraud as early as Thursday, a senior administration official tells CNN. The investigation would be carried out through the Department of Justice. The move would expand on Trump's interest in the unproven claims he has made since November's election alleging millions of illegal votes were cast, without citing any evidence.

"I will be asking for a major investigation into VOTER FRAUD, including those registered to vote in two states, those who are illegal and ... even, those registered to vote who are dead (and many for a long time). Depending on results, we will strengthen up voting procedures!" Trump wrote in two consecutive tweets Wednesday morning. [snip]​

http://jezebel.com/president-donald-trump-could-soon-sign-executive-order-1791640176

Also distressing is what appears to be the true source of Trump’s concerns about voter fraud: an anecdote about the golfer Bernhard Langer, whom Trump referred to as a “friend,” recounted to Senate leaders on Monday over hors d’ouevres.

From the New York Times, emphasis ours:

The witnesses described the story this way: Mr. Langer, a 59-year-old native of Bavaria, Germany — a winner of the Masters twice and of more than 100 events on major professional golf tours around the world — was standing in line at a polling place near his home in Florida on Election Day, the president explained, when an official informed Mr. Langer he would not be able to vote.

Ahead of and behind Mr. Langer were voters who did not look as if they should be allowed to vote, Mr. Trump said, according to the staff members — but they were nonetheless permitted to cast provisional ballots. The president threw out the names of Latin American countries that the voters might have come from.

Mr. Langer, whom he described as a supporter, left feeling frustrated, according to a version of events later contradicted by a White House official.

The anecdote, the aides said, was greeted with silence, and Mr. Trump was prodded to change the subject by Reince Priebus, the White House chief of staff, and Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas.​

Confusing stuff, especially when you take into consideration the fact that when the Times contacted Langer’s daughter, she confirmed that her father is not a friend of Trump and is also a German citizen with permanent residence status in the U.S., meaning that by law, he can’t vote. White House staffers also told the Times that Trump had told this story before, but it was a story about one of Langer’s friends, not Langer himself. It seems that Trump seized upon this anecdote, treated it as fact and felt it was enough to shape the anti-immigrant executive orders he signed Wednesday and this possible executive order he might sign Thursday.

Never mind the fact that these executive orders are reportedly being rushed through with little consideration for the legality of the orders or the people under him who will have to somehow enforce them. Never mind the fact that according to this report from Poltico, the majority of the executive orders are being written by Stephen Bannon, a man who up until very recently ran a news organization that is nothing more than a mouthpiece for hate speech. Please ignore the fact that the very serious implications of the numerous executive orders Trump has signed within the first five days of his presidency have not been vetted by the various people who would and should vet them, not only because it’s their job, but because they know an awful lot more about any of this shit than President Donald J. Trump. Ignore all that. This is how the world is now. It’s fine.​
 
GDSmithTX said:
Regular fighter jet border patrols would be enormously expensive and highly impractical. ...
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You say that like it is a bad thing. The Republicans will just say that we are keeping criminals out AND stimulating the economy, and the people who own the Republican party will gleefully shovel those tax dollars into their pockets whilst throwing a few of those dollars back to the Republicans.

For the Republican party, this is a win/win/win/win.

Impractical doesn't even cause a blip on their radar (bad pun intended).
 
GDSmithTX said:
Regular fighter jet border patrols would be enormously expensive and highly impractical. Fighter jets burn through fuel at a tremendous rate (like 2 gal/sec) and don't carry enough fuel to stay aloft more than 2 hrs without in-flight refueling, itself also a very expensive operation that requires tons of logistical planning and coordination. One of my best friends was an Air Force refueling drogue operator for more than seven years during the Iraq War*.

Figuring fuel, logistical and support costs, it ran about $12,000/hr for each fighter jet to fly in non-combat roles during Iraq War II, Bush Boogaloo. It's absolutely going to be much more expensive now, but hypothetically let's say it's not: 4 jets patrolling the US/Mexico border around the clock would cost $1.2 million/day, or $430+ million/yr. And that's just for fighters in the air, not counting maintenance, troop costs, etc.

And it will be much more expensive than that now.

*He was involuntarily extended for another year and a half past his six year enlistment because of the critical nature of his job.
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i guess i forgot to put the /s at the end of my post. i wasn't being serious, but it WOULD be something the dumpster might say we need.
 
GDSmithTX said:
http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/25/politics/trump-calls-for-major-investigation-into-voter-fraud/

President Donald Trump could sign an executive order or presidential memorandum initiating an investigation into voter fraud as early as Thursday, a senior administration official tells CNN. The investigation would be carried out through the Department of Justice. The move would expand on Trump's interest in the unproven claims he has made since November's election alleging millions of illegal votes were cast, without citing any evidence.

"I will be asking for a major investigation into VOTER FRAUD, including those registered to vote in two states, those who are illegal and ... even, those registered to vote who are dead (and many for a long time). Depending on results, we will strengthen up voting procedures!" Trump wrote in two consecutive tweets Wednesday morning. [snip]​
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I'm not sure which is funnier, the fact that it isn't voter fraud to be registered in 2 states (its only illegal if you vote in both places) or that his top advisor (Steve Bannon) and his daughter (Tiffany Trump) are both registered in 2 states.
 
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