AceOfSpades's Comments (123)

“And while he's at it, the President can grant himself the dictatorial powers necessary to get single-payer passed without Congress. I would prefer to have the private sector out of the health care business, but pressing for something that can't happen given the current legislative reality isn't much better than being that old man yelling at the clouds.”

“You are entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts. I don't know of ANY union employees that have ever simply made minimum wage. I have seen plenty of research that shows that increases in the minimum wage is nowhere near as detrimental as its detractors might otherwise imply. Many of the jobs that would pay minimum wage are precisely the type of jobs that people with low skill would flock too. It sounds like you believed the tale of the Welfare Queen when it was told a couple of decades ago and never looked back.

So where did you get your degree in African-American Studies again? You say you don't have one...Not too surprised.”

“If you would like to believe that we currently live in a society that would "do the right thing" absent of any laws requiring it, then so be it. However, given that people (holding everything else constant) don't get called back for jobs depending on how non-White, but especially how Black his or her name sounds, affirmative action is absolutely necessary. (see the University of Chicago study on that subject)

Also, as it stands now, the biggest recipients of Affirmative Action are White women.”

“And you know that the results would be worse how? And how can you be so sure that the public option will work as intended? You must have one helluva crystal ball because there are all sort of laws with unintended consequences. Let me be clear, I'd prefer to have a public option in whatever passes, but to end up in the same place we were when Clinton tried it because people want an "all or nothing approach???" Seems pretty stuck on stupid to me.”

“I can't believe the people who have commented thus far on this post. You all are entitled to your opinions, but to say that no reform is better than some reform is insanity to me. I guess I'm just a different kind of liberal. Many of the other reforms that have been mentioned in these bills are really important as well and while they may not fix all of the problems with our health care system, they're something to work from. The special irony in this case is that I wonder where we Blacks would be if we demanded all of our civil rights at once instead of the way they historically came. In my opinion, many of you need to stop acting like spoiled children. Although I hate sports analogies, I'd rather we claw our way to reform by a series of first downs rather than going for a "hail mary."

Please remember that real people's lives are at stake here and while it would be better if there was a public option in this reform, it is certainly not the only important measure in the bills that have come out of the respective committees. Those who ignore the past are doomed to repeat it!”

“For the most part, all I ever see on this site when it comes to health care (and many other topics) is an "all or nothing" approach to the problem. I consider myself to be a pretty fairly liberal independent, but not everyone who voted for Obama is liberal. Many of you seem completely ignorant of the political process if you think that Obama dictating precisely what he want the bill to be would get it anything other than completely shut down. I guess some of you figure no progress is better than a little progress if you can't get exactly what you want. I just have one question for you all...Have you always been accustomed to getting your way???”

“To the extent that this becomes the reality in 2010, I think it's in no small part to people repeating the fact that the party in power tends to lose seats in the midterm elections. If the Republicans do indeed gain seats, it just goes to show how gullible a huge part of the electorate is.”

“lol I'm pretty sure I do and with regards to Gay rights, he pretty consistently said that the repeal of DOMA and DADT needed to be acts of Congress, which he would support and sign. He never promised single-payer. He did say that he likes it, but that it would never fly given the political climate of this country. Again, still no contradiction. Maybe you're the one who needs to read, or perhaps listen more.”

“Agreed.”

“What sort of nonsense is this? I'm assuming most of the people who take the time to post comments are indeed voters. Nevertheless, what campaign promises has he actually broken so far? Your comment was pretty devoid of detail. I am holding him accountable, but I also am pretty sure we elected a president and not a god. If he could control all of the political forces that currently dominate Washington, I suspect that's exactly what he would be.”

“What's constructive about it? What would you do so differently?”

“So many of you are sooo quick to bash Obama. Why aren't you bashing the people in Congress? Obama could put out his precise position and say, I'm not signing anything that falls short, but guess what? There would be no negotiations at that point and because of the present members of Congress, nothing would happen and you would bash Obama for having been so obstinate.

I really do believe everyone should have health care, but I'm not going to be another "Blame Obama" parrot for everything wrong in the country. He can only do so much and I am proud of many of the things he's been able to accomplish thus far. I guess that's why I'm a registered independent because in my opinion both parties are full of it.”

“Agreed.”

“You are probably right except for the fact that those fees would most likely decrease the demand for such risky loans. And if less of those loans are carried out, then the goal of reducing risk in our economy would be achieved. Keep in mind that most of the crisis was not created by sub-prime lending, but rather those people borrowing to buy homes way above their means and speculative real estate.

It's all about internalizing the externality.”

“Now I hold some of my applause until it actually becomes a signed repeal, but this is what all of the activist seemed to be out of touch with when they were giving Obama grief about DADT. He wanted the law to be an act of Congress and it appears it is moving in that direction. A little patience goes a long way. Now we just got to light a fire under Congress's behind to make sure that this isn't just talk. Write your people, people!”

“I'd hate to say this, but it seems to me that this is in no small part related to a rather homogeneous media covering a very heterogeneous country. I think the media is sooooo used to portraying minorities in a negative light, that it couldn't help but exclude the full story.”

“Having vegetarian options in public schools is a good idea and one I'm generally sympathetic too, however, this group did themselves and their cause a disservice by tossing Obama's children in it. It reminds me a lot of some of the actions groups like PETA take because although most are probably sympathetic to the cause, the delivery of that message can be a serious turn off. By the way, I think that if any parent/child wants to live a vegan lifestyle, they should be responsible for that themselves.”

“I think this is a good first step in breaking low education/poverty cycles all across the country. Property taxes pretty much dictate the quality of the schools and other social services and over time this should do a lot to help people lift themselves up. That's definitely a change I can believe in.”

“The "proof" are all of the currently unemployed people who are afraid to get sick because they couldn't afford to pay COBRA. The "proof" are all of the people who's company doesn't even offer health insurance in the first place. The "proof" is the fact that all of those people who do have health insurance get socked with large deductibles when they actually have to use their health insurance and finally; the "proof" is in the fact that all of those people who have health insurance are paying higher deductibles because of all of those people who use the emergency room as a general practitioner's office because they have no other choice and have no money with which to pay for the care.”

“Are you serious? You refuted all of those points by saying "except it is" or something to that effect. Not only did you not even try to make a real counter-argument, you didn't back up anything you wrote with any sources whatsoever. Why do you even make comments here? Are republicans still paying people to do that?”

“To me, it seems like that if conservatives want to blame Obama for every upward tick in unemployment, they should be congratulating him for this. If nothing else, all of that spending that they decry so much seems to have put some friction on what has become a very vicious circle (sponsored by those people who brought us the last 8 years).”

“You know what, I guess all of you single-payer advocates have done a poor job explaining your position, because I don't see how making health insurance like car insurance is really going to save that much money and make anything better. I'm pretty sure that isn't how health care works in other countries where everyone is covered no matter what.”

“Well, unless these people can put a price tag on their lives, then it's a non issue how much having universal health care (or something approaching it) will cost us. For all of the previous reasons we've run up the debt, nothing is more important than this one.”

“I don't need to need to "try to be erudite" because I've got a framed piece of paper that shows I do erudite pretty well. Get a life and attack the message instead of a mistaken word choice. By the way, I spelled on "one" when talking about health care, so I'll save you a post.”

“http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aspersions;
Yes, this is the word I meant to use, but unless you've never misused a word was your post really necessary.”