A Whole Lotta Stupid

In a few weeks close to fifty million Americans will vote against their own interests by choosing John McCain. Why? Idealism, greed, racism, and fear for starters. I tend to believe the main reason is stupidity.

I grew up on Long Island and spent two summers as a toll keeper on the Atlantic Beach Bridge. Great job if you love the outdoors and don't mind emphysema. About a mile from the toll plaza was a sign that read: "Toll Ahead 50 Cents". A similar sign appeared about a half mile closer.

As you approached the tollbooth, a very large sign on plaza read: "Slow Down. Pay Toll. 50 cents." As you pulled into my lane there was a blinking sign that read "50 cents." When I leaned out the window of my booth, a neon sign flashed right in the driver's face "50 cents." Over the course of one eight-hour shift, at least thirty people would ask me "How much?" "One dollar" I'd reply. Nine times out of ten they'd pay it. I'd ring up the 50 cents and pocket the rest.

Now this was a suburb of New York City and the people in the cars were, for the most part, savvy Manhattanites. Can you imagine if I worked at a bridge today in oh, let's say West Virginia and the traffic was all heading to a McCain/Palin rally? I'd make a mint and retire early.

If you think Obama is a Muslim, you're stupid. If you think he's a terrorist, you're a dope. If you think Sarah Palin would make a good President, send me fifty dollars and I'll pass it on to her. Promise.

Comments

[LetMeUnderstandThis]

This is Limbaugh rhetoric tossed in there as well!!

[LetMeUnderstandThis]

ROFLMAO

[mrusteika]

This may be true, but you really shouldn't say it. Liberals lose elections because they condescend to people like this. They're real people with feelings and opinions, and just because they're horribly wrong doesn't mean you should call them names in such a public forum.

[Petey131]

Oh believe me they are STUPID!

[ladydriver]

To clarify, there behavior is stupid.

[Mugzi]

Sorry, but call it what it is...people should vote their best interests. I have grandchildren and I don't want some maniac making wars so they will be cannon fodder. I want them to have a good education, taught by certified educated teachers. With a good education, there should be good jobs. I've paid into SS since I was 16 and don't want it privitized into Wall Street. Those are pretty basic and not highly regarded in the Republican party.

[ladydriver]

One of the problems we have in this country is that we are afraid to call things out by their name and tell the truth. To fix something, you have to first know what the problem is and call it what it is. The truth shall set you free, but it's probably going to tick you off first.

I don't have it right in front of me, but in "The Audacity of Hope," Obama quotes another congressman as telling one of his peers,with whom he disagrees, "You are entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts." McCain/Palin supporters want to make up their own facts.

That is stupid.

[neocon666]

No, liberals lose elections because the DON'T condescend to people like that. The GOP knows that most people are stupid and focus their attention on that segment of the population. George W. Bush was proud of not being the intellectual that John Kerry was with all his fancy "readin' and writin'". Kerry's problem was that he assumed people were too smart to fall for the swift boad veterans for "truth" load of crap from the same person who awarded him his commendations in Vietnam in the first place.

[Mover]

That's funny. The left always ignores the fact that Bush Had higher SATs than Kerry, but you think Kerry is so smart.

He's so smart he lost to the dummy.

too funny.

[demfriend]

Stu: I agree with you. Stupid is the best reason I can think of for voting for McCain as the people who are still "waiting to hear what Obama plans to do" and "want to know the truth about Ayers" and are afraid the blacks will take over Washington or the administration are out there and they live and breathe and vote. I know people I never figured for racist that are. I know people who think the country "isn't ready for, you know, a black man" and are I believe honestly afraid of him and what "they" believe he stands for. Thanks to the GOP ticket Rush and BillO along with the ministers across America who have stepped in and stepped up the fear machines we have too many ignorant people who will vote their fears and stupid. I have tried to give information to those I know who have read the fake emails and the whipped up nonsense sent around by email and believe them over anything I can send them which is proven from multiple sources. Mostly because someone they believe they can trust forwarded the emails and crap. Cannot do much about the ill informed nor the stupid and tried to help the ignorant.

[BlueBoomer]

As a current resident of West Virginia, the state where mine workers walked off the job rather than contribute to an NRA-sponsored anti-Obama piece, and the state of Sen. Robert Byrd, I must ask you to pick some state other than WV to illustrate your point... perhaps Georgia or Alabama, or some other bright neon-red state... And I would happily accept an apology from you in the meantime on behalf of my neighbors.

[DeniseD]

The author qualified his point by saying that these people were going to a McCain/Palin rally. That does not include all of West Virginia. BTW, I am pleasantly surprised that the numbers in your state are starting to trend away from McCain.

[missjabez]

Good for West Virginia!

[joesnuffy]

This is a great post and exactly how I feel. you see people interviewed at the Palin rallies saying they believe Obama is a Muslim, suspect he is a terrorist, and aren't convinced he was born in the US. Along with these idiots, there are rich people who, despite having more than enough for themselves, will vote for McCain just because of keeping the Bush tax cuts, and then there are hard-core religious pro-life types. So you either have stupdity, greed, or narrow-mindedness (or all of the above) on the McCain side. There are a small group of reasonable people that just don't trust the government with our tax dollars and will vote McCain. I'll throw these in with the narrow-minded, since that seems to be their only issue. I'm hoping that this time around we have progressed just enough as a nation such that these folks comprise less than half the voters. I'm still in disbelief over 2000 and 2004 and won't be convinced that Americans will do the right thing until the voting is all in and settled. I hope it's a landslide so that it will be obviously silly when Repubs cry voter-fraud.

[longislandlol]

We had to hit rock bottom for change

[scooperss]

Actually, I figure it's more for the 3rd reason you mentioned. Unfortunately.

[kathy001]

And, as that wise old sage Ron White often says, "You can't fix stupid."

I know, someone probably already put that in on another page. I just could not resist. Great article!

[vegas9999]

I think the stupid people are starting to pay attention. Gallup at 5:00 on Drudge= Barry by 2

[Nomccain]

This is where the Republican vote is coming from. The well heeled for whom Bush's policies have been good for and the ill informed who fall victim to their claims of racism, attempts at instilling fear, their selling of lies and distorted issues. Look for them to also try and steal another election with claims of voter fraud, just as they were guilty of in 2004. They'll stoop to anything to win so be wary, very wary lest we embark on 4 more years of the Bush administration policies.

[Mover]

Continued from Post at 04:33 PM on 10/16/2008 by me, Mover

Barack's income tax plan would lower taxes on a few, but is more of a giveaway to people who pay no taxes at all. Here's why. Depending on who you believe, between 25% and 35% of working Americans pay no income taxes at all. So how does Barack arrive at 'tax cuts for 95% of working families'? He is passing out $1000 to everyone, so much like EIC, he would pay a tax dividend to those who pay no taxes (i.e., they get all of their withholding income taxes back, plus Barack's $1000 payola).

Finally, Barack's economic plan would minimally add close to $3.5 trillion to the national debt by 2018 (NY Times). It could be a lot more when the economy fails even further, more jobs go away and with Americans looking to government to bail them out.

Tax Policy Center say McCain's economic plan would add $5 trillion to the national debt in the same time frame, but they do not figure in the increased revenue from the improved economic environment and and job creation. FYI: Lowered income taxes has increased federal income tax revenue every time it's been reduced. It worked for JFK, Ronald Reagan and G.W. Bush.

I believe voting for Obama would be against everyone's best interests.

[Missouri22250]

Finally, someone with some common sense and the actual facts.

[BruceHNV]

Or not...

[BannedFromCommenting]

Did you watch the debates last night where even Shaeffer said how they were reviewed, and they would run about the same supposedly?? But that is taking into account the money still being spent in Iraq... McCain wants to stay there 100 more years, Obama plans to bring soldiers home..

so uh... big diff on long term outcome of tax proposals.... You wasted a lot of typing for nothing...

[oafishcad]

I'm getting a little sick of the lie that lowering tax rates increases tax income. The only reason tax income goes up from the wealthiest Americans is because there is at the same time a MASSIVE increase in government spending. That money goes almost exclusively to the wealthy, so their income goes up. If tax cuts were coupled with a spending freeze or spending reduction., tax income would go DOWN. Using that same GOP think, the way the government would get the most in tax income would be a 0% tax rate. Right? Use your brain.

[Mover]

Interesting point. Government cuts taxes, spends more on rich people and the rich people in turn pay more taxes. Is that about right?

Only one problem. If you actually look up the federal budget for the years that followed income tax cuts, you can see that the federal revenue from income taxes went up significantly from all sectors.

The main problem with Obama's budget plan is that he will significantly increase taxes on the job creators, which will cause an adjustment period while the actuaries figure out how to stay in business, or whether to move their operation overseas. In the mean time, more Americans will loose their jobs, causing an additional strain on the budget as we apply for unemployment compensation, lose health care insurance and require help with that, lose our homes to bankruptcy and all that will drive the deficit and the national debt beyond our ability to comprehend.

FYI: US Corporations already pay the second highest corporate tax rates in the world, which is the number 2 reason jobs go overseas, and Obama wants to raise those taxes even higher. I guess he doesn't like being number two..

And what will he do with money? The same thing politicians have been doing with taxpayers' dollars since they found out they could: They pay off their high roller supporters. It’s called incumbency protection.

[Teckwreck]

Well, the years of Tax Cuts has certainly paid off for the US. Duh!

[Mover]

It might have worked, but it faced an ongoing war, earmarks by congresspersons, and other nonsensical federal spending.

[DeniseD]

Why are all of the decorated economists prize supporting Barack's economic plan then? Paul Krugman, who just won the Nobel prize, says that Barack's plan is better for our economy, and he is not the only Nobel laureate that has endorsed Barack's plan. Is it because they are, dare I say it, elitists?

[Mover]

Decorated economist translates to 'we have our position, we have plenty of friends who think like we do, so our position is unassailable by the non-experts'.

I'm sorry to have to point this out but the Nobel prize has lost all credibility after giving the "peace"prize to Yasir Arafat, a known and unrepentant terrorist who is responsible for the murder of thousands of people.

The historical fact is: Tax cuts on business creates jobs. Tax increases on business reduces jobs.

A caller to a radio show claimed that President Clinton's increased taxes caused job creation and 8 years of prosperity. That claim fails to recognize the Newt Gingrich Congress' capital gains tax cuts in 1996 increased jobs many fold and ignores the "Tech boom" that fell apart as Clinton prepared to pardon convicted terrorists and his girlfriend's Rich husband, who ran off to France with millions from working family's retirement plans. Some of which, I'm sure, made it into the president's museum in Arkansas.

[Mover]

I'm sorry, but I seem to be missing the point.

You are stating that 50 million Americans will be voting against themselves but give no reasons why.

Is there an actual reason that those who vote for McCain would be voting against themselves?

I've been thinking just the opposite, and here is why.

McCain's corporate tax plane will help bring jobs back to the USA, help create new jobs, improve middle America's retirement accounts and cut short the current banking crisis. Did you know that only one country on the planet has a higher corporate tax rate than the USA?

In contrast, Barack's Corporate tax plan will push more jobs outside of our borders, slow, if not reverse, job growth in this country and exacerbate the banking crisis. Just like Hoover did and it extended the Great Depression Longer than it otherwise would have been.

McCain's income tax plan would lower everyone's taxes and would help make health insurance more affordable for everyone.

Continued….

[justmeinAz]

Yeah, because the tax laws that McCain has voted for over the last 8 years have created so much new opportunity and job growth already. Here's another stupidity - doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

[Mover]

Barack voted with President Bush 40% of the time.
Barack voted with Congressional Democrats 100% of the time.
Barack has never "reached across the isle".
Barack voted for many of the same laws that McCain did, including the stupid "bailout".

If you've listened to McCain, you'd know that :
A. He's not Bush.
B. He has different priorities than Bush (like how to run a war).
C. He won't raise taxes and extend the bad economy.
D. McCain will make America more business friendly and bring jobs back from China.

[rinpochet]

Bush's tax cuts did NOT create jobs and many thousands of jobs were shipped out of the USA. So we want more of the same? Tax cuts for the wealthy didn't work then and they won't work now. It's time to give some impetus to the middle class.

BTW, what "job growth" are you talking about? Are you reading the news?

[DeniseD]

You are correct, we do have the highest corporate tax rate. However, you forget to mention that because of our convoluted tax code with all of those loopholes that we have, no corporation pays their fair share of taxes. Not even close.

Why do all of the decorated economists endorse Barack's economic plan? Paul Krugman, the most recent Nobel prize winner, just said that Barack's plan is best for this country. I have seen and heard two other Nobel laureates endorse Barack's plan too.

[Mover]

Those "convoluted loopholes" have been pretty much closed up over the years. When Reagan first slashed tax rates, he closed a bunch. I recall not being able to claim interest on credit and store cards anymore. Clinton and Bush tightened up even more. Pretty much all of the deductions business can take are exclusively operational or marketing related, such as investing money in candidates. Oh wait, my bad. I meant lobbyists. Lobbyists who give hundreds of millions to who? ANS: Politicians.

And the other thing that is not mentioned is that if a corporation is selling their widgets for $19.95, a widget you need to live, eat, or work, and all of a sudden it costs them more to produce your widgets because you wanted them taxed more, it will then cost you $24.95 for that same widget. Why, because they just pass on the higher operating costs to you. And you can apply that to everything your family needs and can’t produce yourself.

Please enjoy your $19.95 widgets while it lasts. The price is going up by your request if Barack wins. Guaranteed. That is, buy it if your job isn't eliminated as a cost saving measure when big government increases the cost of doing business. Of course they could try other cost saving measures, but that may effect quality. You’d hate to have a fire extinguisher or air bag that work when you needed it.

[Mugzi]

There is a difference between stupid and fantasy land...you're in it! McCain wants to privitize SS, can you imagine where our seniors would be now??? McCain will lock in the tax cuts which his bud gw created..jm is called McBush for no reason!!!You'll believe what you want...call it for what it is!!!

[Mover]

You open another can of worms.

The meltdown caused by them plays into just what you rant about. I.e., it's not safe to put your retirement account into the stock market. The Democratic Party leadership wants you to believe that because if social security were ever personalized, Americans would have their own personal retirement accounts, and would not need Democrats in government to take other people's money and give it to those who "need" it.

The mortgage meltdown was a direct result of the Democratic Party members in the US Congress and the Executive branch from the Carter Administration forward. There have been many attempts to reign in the government insured home loans to people who could not otherwise qualify for the loan, but the Clinton Administration leaned on them to make the loans. During the Bush 43 Administration, Congress was approached dozens of times to reign in Fannie and Freddie, but Congressional Democrats killed every attempt. First, when they were the minority they would kill them with threatened filibusters in the US Senate, and then after they got the majority in 2007, they just ignored it or, in their usual fashion, accused Republicans of being mean spirited racists.

BTW: Retirement accounts can be put in many of the more stable interest and dividend earning instruments rather than dumping it into the stock market.

[chagedorn]

Why do you think our public education system has been going down hill since Reagan? An ingnorant, ill informed and non-thinking, non curious electorate is much easier to lead -- and eventually will choose someone who looks just like themselves...George W. Bush, meet Sarah Palin.

[vegas9999]

It has been going down because of the teachers union. Kids can not even play dodge ball because somebody may get their little feelings hurt. They are more interested in their political pins than the 3 r's

[Mover]

And who has been in charge of the public schools?

The teachers' union and the Department of Education.

Go figure.

FYI: It didn't start with Reagan. It started during Nixon Administration. What did Carter do to fix it?

[booksnmore4you]

Ah, so THIS is what Hannity means when he says he's "Hannitizing the vote"!