I need to clarify. You got tagged 8 days after your post. And, you were speaking in general. It's the first time I've seen it before.

And the "new" trolls are still trolling. So much for the whiners that say the Liberals get all the breaks.

We love you, MD !!!!!!!!!

Kathe: I agree totally I think the Anti-Liberals all gang up and targeted him. Guess who's next? Its time to return fire!

Kathe where is the post he got hit for?? I can't find it???

Just a minute Kathe: I'll give you info ......but it is on April 9th. Not a poll. Go to Arcive and click on april at top of page click on box 3. Can't remember the name of the poll.

They changed the page number last night....Now go to April archives and click on April (68) when the page comes up click on box four. It is the artical at the top (first degree murder charges inTM case is out)....Sally is 3.25...with her comments....She didn't give it on just one comment.....but MD was using his swatter .......Good for him.

TMom: I think mika is headhunting!!!! So will I

To all the above. I was shocked when I saw that to. We miss you MD. I have seen some very off colored post from the flies that land and buzz off. They get away with it. I do not understand how they do things sometimes. XO you be cool okay!

Revenge is a dish best served cold.

Nor mine or my democratic friends, of which I have many.....as they say.....EVER VOTE COUNTS!

I think perhaps you need to get out of the Pacific Northwest for a bit. Come to the hollows of Kentucky and learn about what god fearing hard working Americans think about our current Socialist-in-chief. Cali and the Pacific Northwest doesn't really represent normal American's Political views.

mc is a scourge to Americans......talk about a terrorist!

Anybody intent on taking from one to provide for another is a terrorist. Go forth and make your own way and rein in your petty jealousies.

scott, Would you include the billions of dollars of taxpayer money that are subsidizing the ultra profitable oil companies? Obama wanted to stop that taxpayer generosity but the GOP voted it down.

Are we, the taxpayers, terrorists? Or is it the GOP, who are taking from us to give to Big oil? Obama wanted to end that corporate welfare, but they stopped him.

who is "big oil" shareholders? 401 k investments? think a little....big oil is US.

Are you dense? One thing has nothing to do with the other.

This is exactly what Hussein Obama is betting on> the petty jealousy and envy that small minded hold so tight. Kill the rich? never mind the risk and the hassle people that own businesses go through every day of the week to provide jobs and livelihoods. especially when you have a government that currently has such a welfare state mentality.your neighbor never intended on theburden of providing for you. That was NEVER the intent of the founding fathers. As Europe crumbles under the strain of their "social safety net" and Liberals and this socialistic welfare state president wants to emulate that map? Now America is at a crossroads, America can head down the path of financial insolvency in an attempt to have cradle to grave nanny state government....OR...take the road the founding fathers intended.Personal responsibility and everybody achieving to their own ability and level of satisfaction. Class envy helps nobody. In America you can achieve great things,but it takes drive and hard work. Nobody is owed or promised anything by it's government. it's up to you to be motivated to achieve to your own level of ability and drive.

Careful Scott...somebody is going to get a rash...liberals can only take small doses of reality without an allergic reaction...

Here we go again tea bagging republicans projecting their petty traits onto democratic voters. No petty is a wealthy predator capitalist who made his fortune by buying up businesses and destroying them for profit without a thought about the workers who depended on that business for their living, who never knew what a hardship was because all his life he could buy his way out of hardships that 99% of America lives with daily ranting about poor woman not knowing the dignity of work, screw Mittens and his BS. Oh and for your information Ann has only showed signs of MS in 1998 it isn't the same as those who lived with it since their late teens and early 20's. Mittens is the perfect candidate for the tea bagging republicans, like them he is a small petty person who hates everyone and everyone hates.

he is a small petty person who hates everyone and everyone hates.

Projecting yourself again...I see you have done zero homework and your imagination is on overdrive....I would correct your story but I don't want to give you a rash...

No tap that would be you. I have never seen anyone who posts more pettiness then you. That you seem to think that you are nothing more then entertainment is rather amusing. Just because some in here try to play nice and give you some slack I see you for what you really are. That you have yet to post anything other then attacks on Obama, which in itself amusing when you consider you attack Obama every time anyone brings up Mittens dirty deeds is rather telling, you are just trying to change the topic away from filthy little Mittens. That you would trust mittens to run the country just shows where your moral compass is, in the gutter.

whom...read 115.4....That pretty much sums it up....

Thanks for filling in for me CATT...I had work to do.

whom....I suppose Obama is a "Victim of Circumstance"....wait didn't you call me a stooge yesterday? Nyak Nyak Nyak....woobbobbaboo!

my pleasure, TAP...nice to see you around this AM, keep up the good fight!!!

oh, is "fight" considered violent rhetoric??? apologies, to my pacifist friends on the left...

THE AMERICAN RULE:

Rule: Every one pays a fair share of taxes on what they can make. If you want deductions you pay a fair percentage to charities. We all do better, when we are all treated fairly. No special breaks to those who have already gotten them. They just have to pay their fair share as well. So your rule does not express anything but lack of care to how we succeed. Goodwill to your fellow man.

There is a solution, but the gop wants us to be a 3rd world country with people like mitt, kochs, grover, bushes, etc. etc. etc. being the only ones doing better.

Sounds good TM...put it into law...but I bet the Solendra's, GE, Big Oil, GM (Chevy Volt), Windmill Companies and the like are going to be ticked....I love it!

Better yet....lower my taxes so I can contribute even more to the charities of my choosing.

That is what we tried to do yesterday, but the gop got in the way of fairness and they want to inflict us with no hope, and willard. Give me a break. I use the roads, the internet, etc, etc, etc. I'd like to keep it that way and pay a few taxes, just not I pay and the rich far less and live better than I do becaue of me. It works the other way around, tap. You pay to the charities and then in the end you get some money back that you can once again pay into charities. Anyway that is the way it works for me. It would work better for all of us if the tightfisted rich were more giving. Sorry, I will never be able to support people like that.

Liberals idea of fair escapes me. Is it fair that these people take the risk of bankruptcy or failure while providing jobs and livelehoods as well as paying for the "great society" and the free ride people that are terminally unemployed and those that have recieved generational welfare have gotten that comes from the backs of these employers? Life is not fair and it's not the Kochs...or even Grover Norquist or George Soros that dictates it. tO BE so jealous of people with money and wish to take take take from them to give to the unmotivated or poorly prepared is not the American way. Everybody has the chance to succeed and it is NOTgovernment that gives you that chance. T onhe founding fathers shed their bonds from England over excessive taxation which stands in the way of every American's success.The social programs that are draining the coffers cannot continue, just as this healthcare monstrosity cannot stand and only leads to America finding itself bankrupt,and was NEVER envisioned by the founding fathers. The constitution has been distorted, stretched and discarded by socialist leaning Liberals and now has this country on financial insolvencies door. And Liberals act as if their is no problem and the free ride can continue.America is at a crossroads and this administration cannot be allowed to bankrupt this country and digging in peoples pockets to finance it!

TM-

Nope. Buffet rule would do nothing of the sort...it would raise, at MOST, $47B over 10 years...$4.7B a year...Before Ed posts a new question tonite, Obama will have already spent $4.7B...

so how is the Buffet rule a good thing??? Oh, by the way- Buffet would not even be affected by the Buffet rule...

the "rich", individuals, do pay more than you in taxes...Buffet did, even though his % rate was lower. you can't speak in absolute dollar amounts and then use percentages. your argument is disingenuous.

Besides- Buffet can't even pay the back taxes he already owes ($1B)...he can't pay those, and then wants HIGHER rates??? how about you pay what you owe, how is THAT for fairness?

Yes we have notice how the word "FAIR" escapes you, and the words, like rights, freedom, liberty and the list goes on, and on........

Source: Bloomberg

Global investors overwhelmingly support President Barack Obama’s proposed tax increase for those earning annual incomes of $1 million or more in an effort to reduce the deficit.

By a margin of 63 percent to 32 percent, respondents in a Bloomberg Global Poll approved of the president’s proposal, known as the “Buffett rule” in a nod to Warren Buffett, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., who has said it is wrong that he pays a smaller share of his income in taxes than does his secretary.

Obama said Sept. 19 that making sure that the wealthy pay at least the same tax rate as the middle class was “just the right thing to do.” House Speaker John Boehner accused the president of practicing “class warfare,” saying any new tax would hurt job creation and Buffett’s situation was not typical.

The call for the rich to pay more, however, found backing among financial professionals in the quarterly Global Poll of 1,031 investors, analysts and traders who are Bloomberg subscribers. “Higher tax payments could help to avoid or delay potential social disturbances and in addition create some kind of a general solidarity,” says Henry Littig, chief executive officer of Henry Littig Global Investments AG in Cologne, Germany, a poll respondent.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-30/obama-s-buffet...

TM-

on the contrary, i am a big fan of freedom...i want government to step back and give me MORE freedom, not less, MORE liberties, not less...and since government doesn't grant "Rights" (Obama's not a King yet), they have nothing to do with rights, except but to stay out of the way of them...

but nice ad hominem attack...

okay, lets talk "Fair"...what's "fair" in your mind??? my argument wasn't about fairness, and neither is the Buffet Rule...it will be INEFFECTIVE. how do you make such a lame rule more effective, and at what point is it fair??? what's the %?

Buffet rule would do nothing of the sort...it would raise, at MOST, $47B over 10 years...$4.7B a year...

CATT - exactly. It will make no difference whatsoever. But you're asking people who are in denial about the 15 trillion dollar debt party to do math. They don't believe the tab is ever going to come due and their answer to dealing with it is to borrow and spend even more.

In fact I wish they'd pass the Buffet rule just to prove how completely ineffective it will be.

The GOP is proposing fake spending cuts, Obama continues to spend, and it's going to be four more years of the same.

It doesn't matter if Obama or Romney are in the White House. Nothing is going to change because Romney might as well be Obama from everything from warfare to welfare. The differences between them are trivial.

For the record I don't think Romney can beat Obama, not that it matters.

I see nothing but more hard times ahead.

By a margin of 63 percent to 32 percent, respondents in a Bloomberg Global Poll approved of the president’s proposal,

SO, about the same percentage that OPPOSED Obamacare, and yet, it was pushed through...so much for liberties, right???

“Buffett rule” in a nod to Warren Buffett, the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., who has said it is wrong that he pays a smaller share of his income in taxes than does his secretary.

you can post articles all day long, TM, but the Buffet Rule WILL NOT AFFECT BUFFET...Buffet doesn't make his millions through INCOME...

heck, even Obama paid a lower effective rate than HIS secretary...

if thats not the "right" thing, why didn't they choose to do the right thing, and pay more in taxes??? they don't care about what's "right"...they paid the legal minimum as well, TM...just like you and I do.

i am a big fan of freedom...i want government to step back and give me MORE freedom, not less, MORE liberties, not less...and since government doesn't grant "Rights" (Obama's not a King yet), they have nothing to do with rights, except but to stay out of the way of them...

Once again I wholeheartedly agree with this statement, but the concept of liberty and freedom is completely lost on them because they can't grasp the premise of limited government.

They believe the government is in place to insure through regulation and redistribution of wealth that everyone gets a "fair shake." They think government safety nets are a good thing and serve the public interest. They don't know that these programs are nothing but a shell game that just continues to transfer wealth to the rich in another way. They don't realize that depending on the government to take care of people is enslavement to keep them poor. The system rewards people who are dependent on government and penalizes the poor sap who has to get out of bed and go to work to pay the tab.

It's getting to be a whole lot easier to be a parasite then go out and work for a living. We are creating a European style socialist welfare system and ignoring the fact that the economy of European countries are collapsing under this burden.

Sorry, I can't find Dennis?

Boy the tea bagging trolls are sure busy today aren't they TM. Gee just think we have another 6 months of them attacking Obama every time Mittens opens his mouth and sticks his foot in it.

Word of advice.....Whom....read the first post on this page. Don't be next. But you are right....seems a new well paid bunch are picking and choosing their next victims.

Someone want sweet revenge. So as the old saying goes....Don't speak to them directly, inflame but don't burn out. then fire off when one gets outragious....just cool it and resist feeding them. Just some Motherly advice. We need you to keep writing.

We need you to keep writing.

geez, TM, there are many more thoughtful voices on the left that the ranting inept postings of whom...i think you'd hold your side up to a better standard, have a better representative view, than that of a petulent child, who is blinded by hatred and ignorant in his worldview...YOU are a better spokesperson, as is PilotShark, Tom, India, Kathe, and others...

but hey, to each his own...personally, I wouldn't select a factually challenged bomb thrower as a voice I'd want to keep "representing" my views...

Poor catt just can't handle that a liberal can act just like a conservative troll. Funny thing is catt I have had a life time dealing with conservatives and I see them as the petty little pieces of filth they really are. Conservatives will drink your booze, molest your wife and kids then blame you for their actions because you forced them to drink your booze. Then pretend that they did nothing wrong and they are the poor innocent victims of liberal attacks. Wait we see that in every other post when a re reg gets banned.

wow whom....sounds like you need to keep a closer eye on your booze...are you sure it was booze and not something a little more psychedelic? Where were you while all of this was going on?????

No wonder we see so much crankiness.....how can you live with that guilt of abandoning your family with some booze hound like that?

No tap it is just a fact that conservatives are back stabbing pricks who think they are better then any other person around them. But reality is conservatives are a disease.

Word of advice.....Whom....read the first post on this page. Don't be next. But you are right....seems a new well paid bunch are picking and choosing their next victims.

So anyone offering a dissenting opinion now must be paid to be here?

Someone want sweet revenge. So as the old saying goes....Don't speak to them directly, inflame but don't burn out. then fire off when one gets outragious....just cool it and resist feeding them.

Revenge against what exactly? This is ultra-paranoid language and I don't believe for a minute there are people here whose paid job it is to "bring this place down" by simply disagreeing with the liberal agenda.

Anyone coming here looking for "revenge" for anything they feel wronged for has a serious mental disorder and needs to get some help. I don't know what kind of vengeance one could rationally seek or obtain on a discussion forum full of people they're never going to meet in the first place.

This is all just talk, nothing more, and the sticks and stones rule does apply.

Everyone who disagrees with you isn't "out to get you" or "bring you down." I'm sure that's contrary to your political doctrine. The standard default assumption is if I'm not with you, and if I don't support Obama or I criticize him, then I am what's wrong with this country, I'm a threat to you, I'm a troll, I'm spreading GOP lies, I'm a tea bagger, and I'm just here to cause trouble and ruin your day.

Could it be that I simply just disagree with you, and if so, why is that not OK?

Funny thing is catt I have had a life time dealing with conservatives and I see them as the petty little pieces of filth they really are. Conservatives will drink your booze, molest your wife and kids then blame you for their actions because you forced them to drink your booze.

So from this I gather this anger is directed at conservatives because of something traumatic that happened to you personally. I am sorry for whatever it is that happened to you.

I can say that holding onto that story and the anger you associate to it only clouds your thinking.

I for one have agreed with a few of the things you've said here, but instead of finding common ground to build on, you've instead chose to completely dismiss my comments altogether because there are portions of it that you don't agree with.

That's fine with me Whom, as I'm not looking for approval from you or anyone here.

But you should know you're not doing yourself any favors by holding on to that level of anger. Fixating on past events and projecting them into current situations is self-destructive and only holds you back from having a happy future.

Well no matter what saint Ronnie told you there is no way the wealthy are going to allow you to do more then clean toilets and empty cesspools behind their mansions for you towing their load. So when you get old you will find yourself trying to beg for spare change to get your bottle of ripple so you don't feel the pain from the diseases the wealthy created with their toxic chemicals. There is a reason you saw the wealthy building mansions on the top of hills, they were putting themselves above the filth they created.

Well no matter what saint Ronnie told you there is no way the wealthy are going to allow you to do more then clean toilets and empty cesspools behind their mansions for you towing their load. So when you get old you will find yourself trying to beg for spare change to get your bottle of ripple so you don't feel the pain from the diseases the wealthy created with their toxic chemicals. There is a reason you saw the wealthy building mansions on the top of hills, they were putting themselves above the filth they created.

Is this directed at me? I don't worship Reagan son, and for the record I'm nobody's disciple.

Just because I'm not a liberal doesn't mean I'm with the other side. I'm not voting for Obama but you can be damn sure Romney won't get my vote either.

I'm sure you'll spin what I've said again to categorize me as a GOP liar because once again you can't get your head around the fact that there are more than two sides to every issue.

If I say both sides are corrupt and embarrassing failures, and that means Obama, Romney, Reagan, Bush (ALL OF THEM) you'll say that's GOP rhetoric.

If you're throwing anger at me by attacking the GOP and expect me to retaliate, it might interest you to know that I agree that the GOP is corrupt.

What I don't understand is how you can irrationally hold democrats blameless for what's happening right how or even suggest they're helping the situation in when they clearly are part of the problem.

Furthermore, even if everything was the fault of the GOP, it doesn't matter anyway. ALL THAT MATTERS is, can Obama or anyone else straighten out the mess we're in?

Three years of Obama trying to borrow his way out of this says no he can't.

Four years of Romney preaching smaller government with the exact same agenda to expand it as Obama says Romney can't do it either.

Can't you just admit that both sides are wrong and we're all totally screwed if things keep going the way they're going? When are you going to take time out from building your statue of Obama to realize he's no better than any of the rest of the crooks that have come before him?

No you are a card carrying Fox news follower as we can tell by your posts.

I'm sure you'll spin what I've said again to categorize me as a GOP liar because once again you can't get your head around the fact that there are more than two sides to every issue.

you are a card carrying Fox news follower as we can tell by your posts.

Case closed.

You are right cased closed we had your number from your very first post. We know who you were in a past banned life we have known since your first few posts.

You are right cased closed we had your number from your very first post. We know who you were in a past banned life we have known since your first few posts.

I've never been banned from this place, so I'm afraid your intel is off. Be sure you update your little book or wherever you're keeping track of this. BTW the fact that you're bothering to keep track of who has been banned from here in the first place is probably a sign that you're a little too heavily invested in what goes on here (in an unhealthy way.)

Nobody with a life cares whose banned and who isn't.

Gee where have I heard that one before, oh yeah from someone who claimed he wasn't a re reg. Here is a clue, you can run but you can't hide because in the end you always go back into bad habits.

Gee where have I heard that one before

From every new person you've called a banned re-reg that's ever disagreed with you, that's where. The only common denominator in this is you.

Except for some odd reason I have yet to have been wrong about a re reg flamer. Could that be that I am able to distinguish a persons writing style which is as unique as a finger print. See when you are someone who loves to read books you get a knack for writing styles and you are able to pick out that persons style even when the writer uses another name to write under. Ex school teachers can do the same. Oh and btw I read a few of the posts of the suspected re reg before I make the claim they are re regs.

Could that be that I am able to distinguish a persons writing style which is as unique as a finger print.

Or maybe you're just blowing smoke up everyone's crack about your expertise like you always do.

See when you are someone who loves to read books you get a knack for writing styles and you are able to pick out that persons style even when the writer uses another name to write under.

I think you should keep on reading then because you obviously don't have that knack.

Here is another reason to start with using renewable, fuel... USA is being "Left Behind".... gotta see this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWbmRA5JIi0

Morning Tom...good to see you...

I am not anti-renewable...i just want to see it affordable, and not FORCED upon us...let the market decide, the way it SHOULD, not forced upon us by government, as its being done now...

oh, by the way...this is close to home for you...interesting, i thought...

The Chinese government dealt the public relations strategy of green technology advocates in the Obama administration a blow last month when Premier Wen Jiabao announced that the state-run economy would stop expanding its wind and solar industries, choosing instead to focus on nuclear, hydroelectric and shale — or fracking — as the energies of the future.

dailybrisk.com/2012/04/chinese-are-giving-up-on-wind-and-solar.html

CATT

Funny, you hear this and I have heard nothing. China is in a whole different situation than the USA... at least for today.... tomorrow may be a different story. Right now China's people are poor, for the most part and having a lot of trouble getting into a new home when the one they were in was taken down so a new modern building, with solar can go up.

I do not have the answers and neither do you. But if the government doesn't step up and tell the auto companies to go renewable.... you know as well as I the private sector will NEVER do it!! They are making way too much money to change. SO if we keep it the way it is... things WILL get worse. Have you seen that movie "2012"? Where the rich in different countries built themselves a live boat? They knew it was coming.................... but done NOTHING to prevent it! How true Hollywood is becoming!

Hey Tom...I hope the Ford car does great! Maybe it will revolutionize the industry....let's hope...I just hope that the new regulations preventing new coal fired power plants doesn't make the price of electricity go so high that gas looks cheap....Hey I can always stay home but I do need some lights.

Time to get some food in my belly and back to work...Have a great day everyone. whom here is a set of water wings ..... my guess is your gonna need them...LOL:)

Tom-

check into it, i sent you the link...

China is in a different situation because its COmmunist...they have 80% of the population living in ABJECT poverty (nothing like American poverty)...China has built entire ghost cities trying to prop up an economy that just isn't growing the way they thought it would...its yet another arguement, that even with all of its flaws (and there are many), the American system is still the best, for the greatest number of its people (only 15% living in poverty, which is higher than at any point in our nation's history...how does that compare to 800 MILLION living worse off in CHina???)...

wow, i think you just revealed yourself as a socialist...you said that the government "has to step up and TELL the auto companies to go renewable", and that the auto industry is "making way too much money to change"...in what Capitalist system does the government TELL ANY company how to run their business??? and who is the government to say how much profit they should make??? THanks for being so revealing...I can respect your socialist view, i just don't agree with it, or beileve that it works. but I respect your right to be a socialist if you want to.

as for "2012"...you can't POSSIBLY cite that load of crap movie for ANYTHING and be considered credible...however, you make an interesting point...it wasn't the rich that built the boat, it was the governments that built the boats, and only the rich could afford passage...hmmm...looks like when the chips were down, the government really didn't care about the poor at all, did they? they let them all die, and the governments picked the winners and losers, based on their "merit" to society...

CATT

China WAS communist..now it is 50/50 communist and capitalist.... in reality... no difference between the two. Many private own businesses now and even banks are private..

only 15% living in poverty... I thought it was 49% in poverty.... they don't pay taxes remember?

You told me everything paid by taxes is not socialism..... make up your mind.

Remember Orson Wells.. Man in the moon? Hollywood is letting you know in advance... you should heed it's warnings..

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/popular-science-photo-hunt-hd/id476307373?mt=8

Tom-

you can't have Communism and capitalism...the ideas are anti-theticial. what you have in China is a state capitalism, which you are correct- it IS a political ideology hybrid...but many of those private businesses are still funded, and run and controlled, by the government. basically, the government acts as a huge corporation, responsible for all of its subsidiaries, or as you put it, "Private businesses"...you can put a dress on a pig, its just a pig in a dress...Chinese capitalism, state capitalism, is still communism under any other name...

no, don't conflate facts...only 15% live at or below the poverty level. 49% don't pay taxes, due to increasing government hand outs. there is a difference between not paying taxes, and the poverty level.

you are confusing issues here, with taxes and socialism, and to be honest, I don't see your point. there is a difference between paying taxes, and the government controlling businesses and business decisions that are made.

you are right about Hollywood- we SHOULD heed its warnings...the governments in 2012 hand picked not only the winners and losers, but WHO would survive as well. that's in the future with Obamacare (IPAB, "Complete lives theory", look it up plz), and I for one want no part of it...

can't you see, that whether we cede power to the left or the right, its still ceding power, and letting EITHER side grow out of controil is a BAD thing...unless, as i mentioned, you are a Socialist, in which case you'd be pretty happy about that expanding government role...

obama care/romney care, same thing.

romney sent his guys to the white house to help "Obamacare" get started. romney thought "romneycare" would be good for the united states until he heard the repubs in washington slamming their own idea, THE INDIVIDUAL MANDATE.

the individual mandate is NOT SOCIALISM.

thank the repubs for this idea.

I don't care where the ondividual mandate came from, its unconstitutional...its a bad idea, whether it was born on the left or the right...and its illegal.

you must have confused me for a Republican...I am not...I am a conservative, and these days, there is a HUGE difference...

THe individual mandate may not be socialism, in and of itself, but it IS unconstitutional, at its very core...and I am confident that is what the USSC will find...

CATT....#116.8

.but many of those private businesses are still funded, and run and controlled, by the government. basically, the government acts as a huge corporation

You mean businesses like Caterpillar, Foxconn, Master Lock, (Who now has moved back to Wisconsin)?

no, don't conflate facts...only 15% live at or below the poverty level. 49% don't pay taxes, due to increasing government hand outs. there is a difference between not paying taxes, and the poverty level.

Those people, the 49% that don't pay taxes.... are you including the top 1%? Who are the other 48%?

Let me say this.... I do believe the top 1% pay little or NO taxes! I do not believe there are 48% or 49% of Americans that do NOT pay taxes......UNLESS you are counting kids from birth to adulthood. I understand at birth they now get a Social Security Card..... Or the seniors who do not have any earned income. Or the disabled, including the VETS who come home disabled from war. Are those the 49%? You want them to start paying their fair share right?????? But the 1%..... leave them alone... in fact, give them less taxes.... right?

I don't care where the ondividual mandate came from, its unconstitutional...its a bad idea, whether it was born on the left or the right...and its illegal.

damn straight

you must have confused me for a Republican...I am not...I am a conservative, and these days, there is a HUGE difference...

damn straight again

catt,

as far as i can tell most of the repubs in washington now are very conservative. in fact there seems to be a race as to who can be the most extremely conservative, even if it means lying about their own ideas, the individual mandate, the dream act, and cap and tax.

the repubs/CONSERVATIVES thought the individual mandate was constitutional, until President Obama put it on the table to get repub votes. as i have said here before, james inhofe, and other conservatives said as late as 2009 that the individual mandate was health care reform they agreed with. IT WASN'T UNTIL PRESIDENT OBAMA PUT IT ON THE TABLE THAT IT BECAME UNCONSTITUTIONAL.

the individual mandate originated from the conservative Heritage Foundation and newt gingrich.

but even before that, the original idea goes back to Mark Pauly during the h.w. bush administration, and it was used to counter Teddy Kennedy's health care reform, and Hillary Clinton's.

conservatives NEVER brought up that the individual mandate might be unconstitutional, until President Obama put it in his health care reform to get repub/conservative votes.

now they act as if they have never heard of anything so unconstitutional. indeed, they act as if they have never of the individual mandate AT ALL.

So who gave you this so called info, c and take them, and who decides what they get paid......can they have a union? Who makes the rules about the white house staff. Not Obama. What women in the white house are we talking about, and what kind of wadge would they get if they didn't work out side the White house. It's always been a man's world hasn't it.....So don't you think it is about time this is being pointed out. If what you say is true.....then when do we start changing it???

I worked in the only profession that I know of where women got equal pay as men. Yet the men were offered the extra curricular jobs, like driving buses etc. I didn't really have the time, since I was raising a child without a mate, so I couldn't take those jobs. But I did teach extra classes at the local colleges as a part time professor.....now you can talk about being underpaid, considering my time and talent spent just preparing to teach the class. It came to about 75cents and hour per semester.

I thought congress controls the paychecks....

He also said he didn't need the tax break..... but some in the Republican party seems to think he does.... which brings me to what Clinton said along the same lines.... he held up his tax return check and said did you get yours?

Going back to 116.2....I am not anti-renewable...i just want to see it affordable, and not FORCED upon us...let the market decide, the way it SHOULD, not forced upon us by government, as its being done now....

Remember VHS, CD, DVD burners? Remember Computers and then laptops? The electric cars will come down too. For Gods sake... Ford hasn't even unveiled it yet.... give them a month or two... ok?

TM-

whitehouse.gov. its the official annual report from the official White House Website,...thats who gave me this "so-called info"...

whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/disclosures/annual-records/2011

I've worked in 4 industries, TM...the military, engineering, a university, and in marketing. in ALL of those industries, women got equal pay as men. so there is some good news for you- your list of industries just grew by at least 3...

and oddly, NONE of them were unionized...go figure...

Tom-

those things came down in price because of CONSUMER DEMAND...electric cars will only come down in price if people WANT them. right now, the Volt is nearly $50K, made more "Affordable" ($41K) with government subsidies...it's "Payback period" for going green is nearly 20 years, it has the longest of any car...compare it to the Prius, which has a payback period of 2 years. thats pretty good, and its so far the only hybrid that has a payback period within the life of most car loans (5 years). now, I don't know about you, but I can't afford a $41K car...butif CONSUMER DEMAND drives the price down to something affordable, and I see these cars for $20, $25K, then I'll consider them, absolutely.

difference with cars and tech though, Tom...HD TV's when they came out were $5K+...you can now get the best ones on the market for 20% of that, about $1K...you'll NEVER see cars drop that much...at most, i say the Volt moves down to $40K, without the subsidy, which would be a 20% drop in price, which would be more than pretty much any car has ever seen...

I didn't get past the price of the Volt and found your first "mistake" or lie... you choose. $31,645. and look at all those $4.50 a gallon dollars you would save...http://www.chevrolet.com/volt-electric-car/?seo=goo_|_2008_Chevy_Retention_|_IMG_Chevy_Volt_|_Volt_HV_|_volt&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Retention-Chevy-IMG_Chevy_Volt&utm_content=Search&utm_term=volt

lets do a comparison, Chevy Volt vs. another small car (any other average small car) based on your $4.50 a gallon.

Avg. small car Volt

15 gal. tank, 25 mpg, 375 mile range 9 gal., 40 mpg, 500 miles (with elec.)

gas cost= $2700 a year gas cost = $1215 a year

new price: $21K new price: $32K

so in a best case scenario, you save approx. $1500 a year. now, throw in the costs of the car difference (we'll use your $31K number, even though thats a bare-bones, no whistles Volt, and the nice one is MUCH more, the $41K i mentioned). thats an $11K difference. thats a 7.3 year payback. now, i suppose if you keep the car 8 years, it was a good investment. but that doesn't include interest on the loan, repairs and maintenance, and the fact that if gas goes down to even $3.50 a gallon, you annual savings go down to $1150, which makes your payback 10 years...

sorry, not worth the upfront cost to me...oh by the way- your home electric bill will go up as you charge a car every night...and your gas fill ups will increase if you run the A/C or heater...so there are other costs I didn't even factor...

and thats...a GOOD investment???

CATT

You know you can get right down to the nitty-gritty in all things. You left out oil & filter changes, Injector maintenance. Antifreeze replacement every 30k, or radiator clean/repair. Not sure about an Alternator.... Notice I need NOT include common parts they share as in tires, wiper blades, and lighting.

Your figures, I question... everything looks good on paper.... and since you agree with Ryans figures.. I can safely ass/u/me (I did that so you wouldn't),,, that those figures were pulled................... from somewhere..

15 gal. tank, 25 mpg, 375 mile range 9 gal., 40 mpg, 500 miles (with elec.) ????????????

gas cost= $2700 a year gas cost = $1215 a year.....????????????

Tom sadly conservatives believe that because they side with the wealthy that the wealthy will give them a break. When they back a law that takes away personal freedoms, they claim well I don't have to worry about that law it doesn't apply to me. Then whine that the government has to much control over their personal liberties that they gave away because they thought it was ok for government to control people who they didn't like.

That must be why business refuses to spend any of their money they are sitting on now...huh/ the regulations the EPA and this business unfriendly socialist is THE "job killer"!

Good morning India...I am sorry to hear you feel that way, you should never give up hope on your beliefs.

It pains me to see that you say I am engaging in "sophistry"...I have done nothing of the sort...other than my tirade post launched at whom, I have done nothing but discuss facts...If you could, could you please point out to me where I am not, so I can maybe clarify a post, or look at it from a different angle. I discussed the expense of green tech, and how CHina is ditching it, and sourced it. i duscussed pay in the WHite House, and sourced it. not sure what I wrote that wasn't factual, so can you please elaborate?

thanks, hope you are well. I will remember that you said it, but I believe in the Ryan plan, and believe that Romney will bring around a much better economic recovery than the current President has. just my belief, doesn't make me a bad person, and I guess we'll see who ends up being correct philosophically.

as for an Oligarchy, we are already engaging in cronie capitalism, where a few powerful players pick the winners and losers. and we were never a democracy. if we were, many who have a voice in today's America would not have a voice...Democracy is "Majority rules"...how would blacks ever have earned equal rights if their voices and efforts were never acknowledged???

This is interesting......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XApRGR9Y_vg&feature=related

The Volt was a concept car long before Wall St. Banksters crashed the economy. It part of the future weather you like it or not!

Teaxas has more wind power than any other state, Stupid Teaxans!

Maxster1

The redistribution of wealth started with Reagan.... when you have a President that fights against your best interest... it is like playing poker with a marked deck.

As for going to earn it..... we did and got taxed, wages cut, benefits cut and given to the wealthy.... you really should get informed..

You really should not be so jealous. It is unbecoming of you

HEY MAX.... Did you use to play on the TV series, "Get Smart" He was dumb as nails... kinda like you the way your writing.... although he was funny and I like the program.... Kinda like Gomer Pile... another one... you play him too??

Are you a comedian? Ask Colbert if you can be on his show...

Max I paid a much higher rate of taxes than Romney BECAUSE we do well. I am not some envious welfare queen, but your response is typical of a right-winger who has no idea of anything. No one has ever trickled down on me or my hard working, middle class, college graduate, air-force veteran husband. We DO JUST FINE on our own. Go ahead and vote your pathetic ideology. Vote to keep the special interests happy. I'm sure they'll thank you. You'll live to regret it.

I got mine. We'll be OK. Most won't. I assure you I envy no one. I never have.

India-

you paid a higher rate because your income was INCOME, not capital gains...that is why you paid more...he did well as well- $21M is pretty good...but it was all in capital gains, not in income. his income was taxed at a MUCH higher rate. so if your overall effective tax rate was higher, its because you work, have a job, and earn income, and don't make as much money on investment income as Mitt does...or as Buffet does...or Jeff Immelt...or any other wealthy liberal or conservative...

CATT, Duh, Thanks. Who knew the intricacies of how we are taxed?

I DO. BTW, there have been years when I was taxed on capital gains. I know the rates pretty well by now.

The problem with conservatives is they are like they were in grade school when they tattled on someone they thought they won when reality is they just isolated themselves from their classmates and were left alone never getting picked for team games. They believe they were independent people because of those experiences when reality is they were alone cause no one could stand them. They grew up to be the neighborhood busy bodies that called the cops for the least little thing like a barking dog or a kid riding their bicycle near their mailbox or someone not cutting their grass. They would go so far as to make up laws as an excuse to call the cops then get peeved at the person they called the police on broke no laws so they would then blame that person for the chewing out the police gave them. It is always someone elses fault for their actions.

Tom, Sorry about the avatar. My cat insisted on it. LOL

I do get so discouraged when these trolls start in with what I know will be so bad for this country.

CATT, I don't think you are on the right track with the Ryan plan. We can still be friends. How do you honestly think the Ryan plan will benefit you? Or anyone but the special interests? It will kill R&D, educational grants, medicare and social security. How can you see that as helpful? Also, how can a corporate raider with a terrible record of creating jobs be good for the country?! He ENDED jobs!

Hey India...thanks, I agree...just because we disagree, doesn't mean we can't be friends...I have several friends with left-leaning ideology...granted, i have lost even MORE friends, because they won't accept my viewpoints. I lost a high school friend, all because we didn't agree on Obama-care. so anytime someone of differing opinion can see that we are MORE than our political beliefs, I welcome and cherish that. so thanks.

as for the Ryan plan, I fail to see its problems...all of the problems you mentioned are simply not true...it does nothing to social security, for ANYONE over the age of 55...for those of us younger, we already know that Social Security won't be there when we get to that age. so we are already planning on a life without it. personally, i'd rather see cost restructuring that saves PART of it, than to see it on its current path...I'd rather have 50% of SOMETHING than 100% of nothing.

it doesn't "Kill" R&D...companies will still engage in R&D. education grants will not be grealty affected, nor will medicare (see Social security).

if what YOU listed was what is slated to happen, then I'd say its not helpful. but those are specious arguments. those things will NOT happen as a result or the Ryan budget.

Ryan's budget cuts $6.2T in spending over a decade. thats not a lot. basically, instead of spending some $43T in 10 years, the U.S. spends $37T, and focuses that spending on FUTURE growth. saving our long-term programs like medicare and SS. you can't kill the golden goose (the current spending plan under Obama) and expect it to be there for the next generation.

and Romney wasn't a corporate raider...his company created THOUSANDS of more jobs than it cut...are you saying any company that ever lays off any employees is evil??? sure he ended some jobs...ALL companies do.

so you ask me how these things are "good for me"...i don't agree with your premise about Ryan's budget, so I don't think those things are good for us, because they won't happen...

thanks for the note, India...its just a difference of opinion, and I certainly am not going to roast you for yours... :)

OK, CATT. I give. I'm tired of trying. We'll be friends.

CATT............. you CANNOT keep cutting!!!!!!!!!!! Let's take Wisconsin.... Walker came in with guns a blazing, killing workers rights. blasting away at teachers, bus drivers, laying off public workers.. Because he was going to CUT his way intl a balanced budget! Trouble is... during all that cutting he gave the wealthy for tax breaks. Along came the budget and low and behold there wasn't enough revenue coming in to balance the budget.... I WONDER WHY?? So, being the creep he really is stole the refund from the mortgage companies that rip off the people to begin with... so now the people are being ripped off again... first by losing their job and then the refund money was... redirected.... or would you call the "wealth redistribution?"

Hello TM

Sounds like India is a little down...I think she needs a shot of Obama Kool-aid... hahaha... taste great and so good for you.

I must say.... your new avatar.... I have to check your name twice.. before I write something.. smile

The trolls are grasping at straws hoping to cause democrats to stay home like they did in 2010. The problem is Romney is the most unelectable candidate put out by the GOP since selecting Sarah as VP for McCain so more then likely the GOP base of stupid people will stay at home while the democrats take to the polls to rid the nation of those stinky rotted tea baggers.

I thought it was about as scary as catt's......Mitt in his ugly mood, trying to berate Obama......What a troll mitt is. Flamming all the time.

LOL...thanks, TM...i can apprecaite that...I am glad you find my avatar scary... :) that makes me all warm and fuzzy inside...so, thank you! :)

CATT....... V dies... but he wins at the end... so beware...take heed...you have been warned... smile

We need to let them know this......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVao_t31gL0&feature=related

They try to eliminate, or reduce what they think are the liberal votes. There a lot of the stupid middle class and the poor who are foolish enough to vote republican, but in the process they will eliminate them as well. After all we are the 99%.

So Mom the truth finally pours from your lips. Anyone who votes republican is stupid. And since you identify the middle class and poor you must be part of the 1 percent. Or at least part of the elite liberal left. However, most Americans have dreams and goals to succeed and become more comfortable (wealthy) and take the appropriate course of actions to get there. They work. Unlike your philosphy and others like you that think they are entitled.

TM and Tom, Well they're wasting their time on me. I pay attention and I know that Romney will hurt the country terribly. This is not about envy, we do very well, Thank God, (and hard work!). It infuriates me no end when they say that , especially when I just wrote Uncle Sam a nice big check and it wasn't 13.9% either!! I WISH!

Uh oh, I see now he is after you, as well, TM, you're just another shiftless bum like me and my husband! LOL Good grief!!

Don't try to put words in my post that are not there....lips?

These are the real words that came form Hilary's lips that queen ann is making such a fuss about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vrE7DG1OWc

See if you can take the truth.....

Indian, the reason we call them flamers, is that is what they do....poke and jab and try to make you mad.....while not improving their lot in life. Just stay cool.

They don't really care what we think, they only care what they think. They think they are the entitled, and not even knowing who we are, nor do they know what your circumstance are. They just like to flame. You could say it is a beautiful day and they would want to put you down for having such a thought. Pay them no mind they may say they are here to learn something. Nope, no hope for that.

They are just looking for marks. You would think that they would be embarrased that they can be so easily spotted and devalued in this conversation. They always whine that they know it all and we know nothing. So why are they so afraid we might say something of great value.

They are rather amusing at times they can voice a position in one part of a post then contradict that position in the next sentence and never see it. Like saying they are all for children's needs then whine that tax dollars are being used to feed those children they are so worried about. That they can't see their own stupidity is rather telling and shows them to be fools.

Maxter, good luck with those dreams of their wealth trickling down on you. I've seen no evidence of that so far, but, hey, if that is what you believe, good luck. Dream on, but save for your retirement. Seniors, I hear, like to eat, just like everyone else.

The Romney/Ryan plan is to sacrifice everything possible for an inflated defense budget and tax breaks and more tax breaks for the rich and the corporations. If you see that as helpful to you, vote for them. So far, it is still a free country. So far.

Thanks India. I have saved for my retirement and am comfortable with my plan It is no deam that if you work hard, have a good plan, and are prepared for opportunities and risk you will be successful. I don't need trickle down from the government. If you don't believe that you can do that then you certainly won't get there

Another words he is bragging about being a stock market wiz as well as the usual delusions conservatives have about their health, In the conservative mind bad health only happens to others, until it happens to them. Reminds me of a conservative uncle of mine who always bragged about his health being so great cause he didn't smoke or drink ate healthy foods exercised daily and at the age of 60 dropped dead from a heart attack walking a tread mill during a heart stress test. It is a weakness in the conservative, they always look backwards and expect tomorrow to be the same as it was yesterday. Funny how we again see his disconnect with reality, he thinks hard work will make him wealthy.

India-

your comments are very accurate: save for yourself, be self-reliant, take care of yourself and your family...I am glad you have, we are doing our best to do the same...( i am also a college-educated Air Force veteran like your husband)...

those are all things that Ryan's plan advocates...

you mention not relying on the government, but talk about all of the Draconian cuts in the Ryan plan...if you think that people should be saving, why do you disagree so strongly with the Ryan plan???

hos lower corporate tax rate will help raise more taxes...wider base, eliminated loopholes, more paying into the system, i don't see that as a bad thing...he pushes control of medicare down to the state level, letting seniors make LOCAL decisions that best meet their needs...I don't see that as a bad thing...

you sound to be quite self-reliant...so why the concern about the government handouts changing to require more personal responsbility?

Funny how we again see his disconnect with reality, he thinks hard work will make him wealthy.

As opposed to you who sees sitting on your ass collecting government freebies and complaining about how rich people get all the breaks is somehow better. The whole time doing so while you live off the backs of the taxes hard working people provide... Yeah, the ones who actually work... hard, and are happy and grateful for what they have, never complaining or asking anyone for anything.

Here's a clue, some people work hard because they take pride in what they do and want to be a functional part of society instead of just being a useless parasite. The goal of working hard is to leave the world a better place than you found it through contribution.

It's not about arriving at the top one percent someday.

Just because you think working hard is a waste of time is no reason to dismissively pass off your lack of ethics to others.

Making assumption again.....you don't know who you are talking to.

As opposed to you who sees sitting on your ass collecting government freebies and complaining about how rich people get all the breaks is somehow better. The whole time doing so while you live off the backs of the taxes hard working people provide... Yeah, the ones who actually work... hard, and are happy and grateful for what they have, never complaining or asking anyone for anything.

Here's a clue, some people work hard because they take pride in what they do and want to be a functional part of society instead of just being a useless parasite. The goal of working hard is to leave the world a better place than you found it through contribution.

It's not about arriving at the top one percent someday.

Just because you think working hard is a waste of time is no reason to dismissively pass off your lack of ethics to others.

There is no one here who thinks working hard is a waste of time. We all do it all the time. What lack of ethics? Who are you judging? Why do you think you are an authority on the subject?

There is no one here who thinks working hard is a waste of time.

Really?

...he thinks hard work will make him wealthy.

I don't have to be an authority on work ethic to recognize someone who is constantly fixated on money and measures worth in dollars. He's angry, obviously because he feels worthless for some reason and he comes here to vent it on anyone who disagrees with him.

He constantly complains about and vilifies others who have more of it (money) than he does. Rich people are the enemy to him and he thinks nobody can amass any kind of wealth from hard work.

Who are YOU judging?

Yet again we can see the tea bagging republican you are coming out. Funny how you are insisting that you can tell what others are feeling by post made on a blog, as the mods have pointed out a number of times, you have no ideal what another feels from what they post. Now if you had been paying attention you would know that I am using tea bagging trolls posting habits on them and you don't like when someone treats you the way you treat everyone else. So your whole objection is I pointed out a fact of life, hard work does not create wealth. The wealthy did not get wealthy through work they got wealthy by exploiting workers or selling people stuff they didn't need, neither required them to work hard. The hard work nonsense was what Reagan told the brain dead who thought because they worked hard for the little they had then the wealthy must have worked even harder, when reality is most of them were born on third base they never had to work at anything, they already had it.

Funny how you are insisting that you can tell what others are feeling by post made on a blog

No I can tell how you feel and what you are by the hundreds of posts you've made vilifying rich people and making outrageous statements like "all wealth comes from old money and all rich people are idle rich."

You're just upset because I hit the nail on the head.

you have no ideal what another feels from what they post

Not everyone, just you. You're a very angry and unhappy person whose posts reflect it.

you don't like when someone treats you the way you treat everyone else.

That's a delusion you've come up with in your own mind. Just because you're angry and miserable doesn't mean I will be infected by it. You don't have nearly the level of influence on me that it would take to do that.

I'm just calling things the way I see them.

The wealthy did not get wealthy through work they got wealthy by exploiting workers or selling people stuff they didn't need, neither required them to work hard.

It's statements like these that are indicative you've never held a job with a higher status or responsibility than a worker bee (or as you call it - exploited worker).

Here's a fact of life: If you're just an exploited worker as you call it, maybe it's because you never had the brains, drive or desire to be anything more than that.
Not everyone grows up to be an astronaut.

The most important thing I've ever learned in my life is that there is always a way if you're committed. If you're not willing to sacrifice for your dream, it's just not your dream. Some people remain in the safety of their dream and never take any action to move toward it. One day they wake up, realize it isn't going to happen, and want to blame someone else for it. They wind up angry at those who have achieved something in their lives (sound familiar?)

Not all wealthy people started out wealthy. I have a friend who was addicted to crack and had a gun in his mouth and wanted to die two years ago. He found recovery and now owns a telecommunications business that grossed two million dollars last year which he built from the ground up. I was there and he started it with NOTHING.

I have other living examples of people in my life who will never be famous for publishing a book for doing it but have done it anyway.

LOL right we are supposed to take your word that you were there. Except here is the good part you are a dishonest tea bagging troll posting on a site hosted by a person you do not watch nor do you like him or what he has to say. But we can trust you on your word, ROFLMAO

LOL right we are supposed to take your word that you were there.

I don't care what you take my word for, and in typical fashion, you expect everyone to take you at your word, because everything you say is a fact? I can't do anything but laugh at your remedial posts and tantrums.

Except here is the good part you are a dishonest tea bagging troll posting

And once again in usual predictable fashion you resort to name calling when your trips to the liberal rhetoric well run dry.

on a site hosted by a person you do not watch nor do you like him or what he has to say.

What rule says I have to be a fan of Ed or watch the show to post here? Or did you make that up too?

Then why did you make the claim that you can not prove.

Hey that you are here to start flame wars instead of talking about the topic just shows that is what you are as the only people here to flame is tea bagging republican trolls.

Nope but then again why are you here? the only ones who post in here are people that watch the Ed show. How can you voice an opinion on the Ed show topic if you are not watching the Ed show. That too is an indication of a flamer.

MOM You must be running in fear. You can't stand on your principles so noe you sling mud. Typical liberal behavior

Another words a whine about someone doing exactly what the republicans have been doing since 1979. That you support a man you neither like nor did you want as a candidate, really you have no business talking about anyones principles or behaviors.

In the American get it done yesterday society, your job and personal identity go hand in hand. Families have two parents that work, younger workers are putting in excessive overtime, job satisfaction is low and the stress level of the average American is undeniably high. Consumerism is King in America and landing that high-paying job is the only way to afford all of the objects you desire. The idea is this: if you work really hard and stick with your company for thirty or more years, when you retire you will be able to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labor. This idea is what has saturated the American society's mind, but why do people buy into this work ethic?

Our highly commercialized and consumerism-oriented society has transformed the media into a breeding ground for corporate ideology as millions of messages saturate our lives each day. There is an extreme and obvious influence that consumerism in media has had in America; from logos to fast food chains, it has permeated the American lifestyle.

Marketers and advertisers use multiple techniques to sell their product, to be number one, to be well-known, whatever the consequences. Whether it is food chains spending more than 3 billion dollars a year on advertising or commercialization invading the school systems with company sponsored learning programs, consumerism is everywhere (Special Issues). Through manipulation of advertisements, company ideologies, and even psychological tactics, the media is in complete control of the American audience.

"We are, all of us, awash in media. Television. Movies. The Internet. Billboards. Newspapers. Magazines. Radio. Newsletters. Individually and collectively we spend more time with more media than ever before-an average of 10.5 hours a day, about 25 percent of that time using two media simultaneously, according to a recent study by the University of South Carolina." (Shaw). An estimated 68 percent of kids two and younger spend an average of two hours a day in front of a television or computer. This complete saturation of the average person is astronomical. With the amount of media usage, it is easy for companies to manipulate their audience.

This saturation is exactly how companies use the media to get consumers to spend. The flashing of a new toy on a children's only station or a fast food commercial after a favorite cartoon show is a way to start with the young audience. And it doesn't change as we age. More aggressive messages are sent, the older the audience becomes. Magazine ads, commercials, pop up ads on the Internet, billboards, and of course; celebrity endorsements catch the average adult and feed their want for products. "Want creation through sales promotion techniques and political opportunism are inherent components of the modern economic system" (Harris).

This breeding of want in American society drives the value of material objects way up. And how do we afford the things we desire? We work our whole lives to pay for them. Following this path from consumerism to why we work so hard, we stumble upon the needs and shifts in technology.

The advent of Internet, speech recognition software and automation in general, makes it easier for workers to work from home or put in less man hours. However, technology and the workplace offers up another set of issues.

"Teleworking is being heralded by many as a way to improve your working life. Increasingly people are choosing to work from home - a practice made easier by the introduction of high-speed unmetered internet access and a greater willingness to invest in the necessary technologies such as virtual private networks. However, research has shown that teleworkers put in even longer hours than their office-bound peers" (Sturgeon).

This teleworking is a double edged sword. Although technology provides a way for workers to work from home, it also opens up that door to increased accessibility. "That helps explain why time pressures seem to be getting worse. Globalization and the Internet create great new opportunities, but they also ratchet up the intensity of competition and generate more work - especially with the existing corporate structure still hanging on tightly" (Farrell).

The hope holds out that "the stuck-at-work epidemic will turn out to be a transitional phase. Historically, as countries and individuals get richer, they work less" (Farrell). The idea that society is on its way to a lighter work and stress load is optimistic and hopeful. "Adding new software and more people to reduce the cost of collaboration is great - as long as it doesn't create even more work. To really ease the work overload - and, not coincidentally, make corporations more nimble - it's also essential to identify and eliminate unnecessary interactions" (Farrell). The idea that there needs to be a separation between your work life and personal life is simple, yet foreign in today's society.

With all of the advancements in the world of technology, there seems to be one goal these technological improvements are striving for: more output. It comes as no surprise (or at least it shouldn't) that companies want to make money. No matter how many company picnics or inspiring meetings a business may have; the objective is clear. Everyone is there to make money. From the president of the company, to the receptionist at the desk.

This desire for more and more output (and more and more income) is what drives the heart of American companies. "...The free market system favors those with more income in the sense that not only do these people obtain more output but also they have a greater influence on the kinds of commodities that are produced" (Harris).

Using the media as the worm and technology as the fishing pole, corporations can reel in the money. (Please excuse corny metaphor.) Looking closely at the pattern being created, it is obvious what this increase in output gives birth to: more want.

The desire for wealth is one that seems to have lived in America as long as people have, but of course that isn't true. It all began when the Puritans came to "the New World", seeking a "clean slate" to write their ethics and ideas upon. The Puritans, being a devout religious people, believed "that suffering is required to redeem our 'original sin' as human beings" (Dean). This "no pain, no gain" mentality underlies American society even today.

"The Puritans believed that honest toil, if persevered with, led to mundane and spiritual rewards. The modern equivalents of these archaic religious beliefs are:

i) Hard work is the main factor in producing material wealth

ii) Hard work is character building and morally good" (Dean).

The "Puritan work ethic" is undeniably still alive today in America, and has spread around the world. Working hard means you can afford and collect more material wealth. Working hard means that you are a good person, you have a "good work ethic".

Having a good work ethic automatically gives a person credibility in American society. You are defined by what you own. Your car, your home, your clothing; all of these things define you. It is exactly that "worthiness" that the Puritan work ethic is all about.

"The hard work ethic has conditioned us to see happiness as something that must be earned through toil. In effect, this is saying you have to suffer in order to get happiness, or to put it another way, you must be unhappy to be happy" (Dean).

Why is the opposite of working hard being lazy? Once again, we can trace the answer back to the work ethics that were founded along with America. If working is salvation and worthy, then not working means abandonment and dishonor.

There is no doubt that in American society (as well as around the globe), there is a focus upon "what you do". When asked "What do you do?", one might assume that it is their profession that is being inquired about. However, around the world this has different meanings. "What do you do?" can mean what you do for "fun", something that might never enter an American's mind when asked. The real question that should be asked is; do you live to work or work to live?

Even children are focused on what they want to "be when they grow up". The focus of achieving job success is implemented even from the time of childhood. This ideal is sown into young minds and watered with the promise that with success, your wealth will grow.

Long hours at work are becoming an epidemic. "More and more UK workers are pulling in 60-hour weeks and suffering from stress as a result of the rigours of office life" (Sturgeon). If you are working a 60 hour week, where is the time for personal enjoyment? The family is now the great multi-tasker; wake up, get the kids ready for school, work all day, come home, take the kids to their extracurricular activity, make dinner, eat dinner, get ready for bed, sleep. How can this speedy lifestyle leave room to create valued relationships in a family?

"About 60% of us are sometimes or often rushed at mealtime and one-third wolf down lunch at our desks, according to a survey by the American Dietetic Association. To avoid wasting time, we're talking on our cell phones while rushing to work, answering e-mails during conference calls, waking up at 4 a.m. to call Europe, and generally multitasking our brains out" (Farrell).

It seems as though job satisfaction is rare to come by these days. With demands on needing a high income, many settle for jobs that pay high, but hold no personal fulfillment. Without being acknowledged for hard work, "you can never totally relax because nobody ever comes along to say, once and for all, that you've worked enough" (Dean).

Boredom with work is common as "75% of the work force engage in work that is little more than simple, repetitive tasks" (Dean). This of course leads to job dissatisfaction, for how can a worker feel confident in their job when their job seems meaningless and monotonous?

Low pay is truly a cause for work-related stress. When a person isn't acknowledged for the hard work and extra work that they put into a job, they have a definite reason to be stressed. "...Those putting in the hours aren't being rewarded by their efforts - most are on flat annual salaries with no added compensation for overtime. Three quarters of all employees regularly put in overtime and of these only one third are paid extra for doing so" (Sturgeon).

Increased accessibility is an invasion of non-work associated life. With rapid technological improvements on communications, workers are able be reached through so many ways. Email, cell phones, email on cell phones, all of these allow the workplace to be in constant communication with the worker.

Many jobs don't allow breaks and if they do, they are not of sufficient time to recover. Many workers eat their lunch at their desk and work simultaneously, not using the lunch break for relaxation. Vacation time is a hot topic amongst young workers, keeping tabs on how many days they've taken off on their calendars in hopes of not using them all up.

"'It is the American way of work and the American work ethic that very often we don't begin to take all of our vacation. And we even recognize a lot fewer holidays in America than they do in European communities'," said Linda Haneborg, senior vice president for marketing and communications with Oklahoma City-based Express Personnel Services. '...on the whole, I think you'll find the American work force tends to want to and need to work as much as possible...we live in a very fast-paced society today and sometimes we're more project-driven than leisure time-driven. We tend to work until we get the work done, even at the sacrifice of our leisure life'" (Brus).

In an article written by Gordon Anderson, a writer for CNN Money, entitled "Should America be France?", the differences between American and European workers are highlighted. "Americans, on average, work 350 hours more each year than Europeans. That's 9 weeks of labor". This number is large, but it is not the numbers that matter; it is the value that lies behind the number of hours. Americans, and those countries that reflect the same American work ethics, are living to work. Working has become the only way to prove your worth and to gain more belongings and in doing so the quality of life has decreased. (Anderson).

"In France...national law guarantees workers 11 public holidays, a minimum of five weeks paid vacation, and a 35-hour work week. Americans do celebrate 10 public holidays. Still, many companies don't honor all national holidays, and U.S. firms are the stingiest in the developed world when it comes to vacations" (Anderson). To an American worker, five weeks minimum paid vacation is only a dream. A dream that is hard to fulfill and is rubbed in one's face by television commercials for resorts in the Caribbean or cruises amidst the Hawaiian Islands.

Many companies do not offer any paid vacation over two weeks, no matter how long a worker is with the company. "According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an American in his or her first year on the job gets 8.1 days of paid vacation on average. (The average doesn't rise above 10 days until year three)" (Anderson). This blatant disregard for the value of a worker's personal time has a direct effect on how a worker feels unappreciated and job satisfaction goes down.

Although some countries treat their workers differently, the hope of having an American society not focused on working seems slim. In the American society of corporate owned media outlets, the messages getting through to the public are not all that helpful.

The American media promotes work ethics and ideals through television programming, newspapers, movies, radio and the Internet. At any given moment, you can tune into the television to see a show based entirely around the workplace; shows from "Just Shoot Me" to "Stacked" that are both about the workplace and the employer/employee relationship. This workaholic ideal is embedded deeply within every aspect of American media.

Websites like CNNMoney.com and television channels like CNBC are all about stocks, jobs, money and the workplace. Newspapers have business sections and money sections, focusing on everything from stock options to how to spend your money on the latest gadget. Advertising through all of the aforementioned mediums holds a huge focus on the work ethic of America. Every television channel, Internet pop-up, magazine or radio station has commercials for buying something. An advertisement for the latest BMW model, the newest Coach purse, or Tiffany jewelry can be heard, read or viewed at any moment. The idea of whether or not the average American reader or viewer can afford these material goods is not addressed. It is a given that if you work more, you'll get more. It is assumed that everyone knows that in order to achieve the material success that is advertised, they have to work hard.

The media also enforces that only once you retire, can you rest and relax. As if this is good news. The focus is set on the future: retirement to achieve happiness. Once again, the Puritan work ethic comes to life; "happiness is earned through toil" (Dean).

One of the greatest examples of an American oxymoron has to be that of holiday stress. How can the word "holiday" and "stress" even be put together? Holiday in other parts of the world means just that; a vacation or celebration. Time off to relax and rest. But with consumerism running rampant in American culture, the holidays are turned into yet another money-spending, stress spree. The commercialism of holidays, whether it is Thanksgiving, Christmas or Hanukkah, is a sad testament to American culture. Holidays are focused around money; buying gifts and decorations to prove your families' worth is what it seems to be all about.

All of this evidence suggests complete hopelessness. Even when a holiday is offered, it is not spent relaxing and enjoying. Americans are pushed to work hard to get to their vacations so that they can spend the money that they worked so hard to earn. Is there an answer or an end to it all?

The hope holds out that "the stuck-at-work epidemic will turn out to be a transitional phase. Historically, as countries and individuals get richer, they work less" (Farrell). The idea that society is on its way to a lighter work and stress load is optimistic and hopeful. "Adding new software and more people to reduce the cost of collaboration is great - as long as it doesn't create even more work. To really ease the work overload - and, not coincidentally, make corporations more nimble - it's also essential to identify and eliminate unnecessary interactions" (Farrell). The idea that there needs to be a separation between your work life and personal life is simple, yet foreign in today's society.

It is promising to think that some day there can be "a less overloaded way of life that lets people take charge of their time while still making a decent living and a real contribution to society" (Farrell). To be able to separate your identity from the job that you work and the money that you make would be fulfilling, to say the least.

There is hope that such a life can exist in today's society. The goal of leading a purposeful life that has meaning and worth, regardless of what society enforces upon someone. A life that is worth more than the job someone works, the money they make, or the possessions they own. A life that is not postponed until old age to enjoy, but to harness right here and now.

http://voices.yahoo.com/why-we-work-so-hard-analyzing-american-work-ethic-1429613.html?cat=9

Mom you have truly lost your way and what America is all about. Sad perhaps the old Soviet way of life would suit you better.

So good old max slings mud while bragging about his greatness, but as anyone who has been using a PC knows internet brags are meaningless as anyone can be anything they want to be because no one knows who they are behind a screen name. For all we know you could be a 12 year old using mommies PC behind her back. That you are posting on a blog that is provided by a show you don't watch and hosted by a person you don't like shows you are a dishonest person.

Whom your right I could be but not. Are you sitting in Cuba?

What you expect us to take your word LOL. Oh btw those who are don't brag about it they are to paranoid someone will take it away.

...anyone can be anything they want to be because no one knows who they are behind a screen name. For all we know you could be a 12 year old using mommies PC behind her back.

Funny how you are insisting that you can tell what others are feeling by post made on a blog

Pot, meet kettle.

Lets see calling someone out on their brag is the same as telling someone how they feel by what they post. Nope one is fact one is projection.Now lets see if you are smarter then a 5th grader and figure out which is which. Oh and btw next time try to use what I said in context, what you believe you are getting your own show on Fox news.

lets see if you are smarter then a 5th grader

Most fifth graders know the difference between then and than.

Here's a clue, people who pay their own way and actually made something of themselves aren't necessarily bragging. There is nothing wrong with someone being proud of their accomplishments, even though the concept of it continues to elude and anger you. This is just another example in a very long list of your jealousy tantrums.

Yep and guess what who cares everyone makes errors in grammar only flamers say anything about misuse of words like then and than. Where you get it wrong is that even a 5th grader knows you can't compare calling out a brag the same as telling someone what they feel.

And once again the only reason you're bothering to respond is because I hit the nail on the head and totally figured out your motivation.

Now you're reduced to insults and name calling yet again.

Whom, give it up. They're flamers. Let them flame out. They're not here for discourse with us. They're here to cause trouble. Don't let them get to you.

Oh don't worry India he isn't getting to me, I already know who our flamer is, he was posting with initials PW before his ban.

I already know who our flamer is, he was posting with initials PW before his ban.

LOL wrong again Sherlock.

No when you go around projecting your feelings onto other posters trying to get a reaction from them you are a flamer. When you keep repeating the same old debunked nonsense you are a flamer. When you are a tea bagging conservative who comes onto the Ed show blog to teach liberals the truth you are a flamer.

projecting your feelings onto other posters trying to get a reaction from them you are a flamer.

I thought you said it's impossible to know what someone feels by their posts.

the same old debunked nonsense

Same old baseless generic dismissal with zero to back it up.

tea bagging conservative who comes onto the Ed show blog to teach liberals the truth

Same old name calling, and I'm smart enough to know that it's futile to try and "teach" someone who is incapable of listening.