I'm sorry, but maybe you should go back and apply some critical thinking to what you wrote.
For example:
"Information has never harmed a single soul."
The fact is information about what people are doing is a critical component of national security, in both war and peace. A key determinant of the success or failure of any action is the quality of the information available. From revolutionary war spies like Nathan Hale and Miss Jenny, to the code breakers that made the battle of Midway a success for America and to yesterday's capture of Anas Al-Libi, it is clear information is critical to any operation.
I'm not cancelling out one with the other. That's some warped idea of yours.
I am pointing out the chief export is life, not death.
Look what another great American, Norman Borlaug did. Half of the world's food supply is the result of his work. His biography is titled "The Man Who Saved A Billion Lives". That actually is an understatement.
Then of course there is D A Henderson. Why he hasn't won the the Nobel Peace Price I have no idea. He merely led the effort to eradicate smallpox.
Face it. If it weren't for America the world would be a starving mess wracked with disease, and over-run with tyranny.
Talk to Boehner and his Teahadist masters about it. RIGHT NOW all they have to do is bring a clean CR to the floor of the House and it would pass immediately. The government would be back in operation in a couple of hours.
But no, they are going use every possible mechanism of the government to force their minority view on the nation.
Polls conducted on the question give the following results:
1. Obamacare : Against 2. Affordable Care Act: For 3. Coverage for Pre-existing conditions: For 4. Coverage for young adult children: For 5. Health Care Subsidies: For 6. Universal coverage: For 7. Medicare: For 8. Medicare Prescription Coverage: For 9. Small Business Coverage Subsidy: For 10. Individual Mandate: Against
Now the same polling found most American thought the ACA includes coverage for non-citizens, death panels and cuts to Medicare. It doesn't.
Most Americans just don't know very much about it, and opinions are very inconsistent.
Oh, anyone that has 60T in assets and 2.4T* in debt that is denominated in a fiat currency that it issues is not bankrupt.
*2.4T is the US net international investment position, that is the difference between the US debt and the assets it owns internationally.
> So, no, the Democrats are not the innocent party here. They'd rather see a shutdown than a delay in funding ACA which doesn't prevent the exchanges from opening anyway.
A delay in funding of the ACA is not part of ANY bill provided by the House.
The bills that were provided either completely defund the ACA or delay the individual mandate.
It is utterly preposterous to engage in this sort of legislative action when people in many states are in the process of signing up for these programs. It would be nuts to change the law at this time. They are taking the scurrilous tactic of attaching a bill that would never pass on its own to a measure needed to run the rest of the government. It's despicable. It is a form of blackmail.
The bills passed by the House also prohibit Congress and its employees from receiving a subsidy for the plans they purchase from the exchanges, (something every other employer who provides coverage offers) and they make optional various women's health programs. Including breast feeding services and battered wife counseling services.
Ultimately trying to change policy as part of a continuing resolution is absolute insanity. These bills have have historically been limited to only technical changes in law.
The last time this sort of shenanigans were tried was in 1995 when a Republican Congress tried to change the Medicare contribution rate. It too led to a government shutdown. Back then the Republicans were also rightly blamed for over-reaching.
The history is there. The Republicans are repeating the same damn mistakes they made in 18 years ago. The will suffer the same outcome as before.
There is nothing to negotiate. Policy decisions do not belong in a CR. By including policy changes in a CR the Republicans are forcing a shutdown.
The fact remains that a clean CR would pass the House. It is the will of the representatives of the people who are elected by the voters to pass such a bill.
The only people preventing the introduction and passage of this are the Republican leadership. It is THEIR decision to shut down the government of the United States.
Defense spending needs to be reduced, but this bullshit isn't the way to do it. If anything these shenanigans are going to end up costing the American taxpayer more.
All that needs to happen is for Boehner to bring the Senate bill to the floor of the House and BOOM the government will reopen because there are enough moderate Republicans + Democrats to pass it.
The idea that the Democrats are forcing the Government to close is ludicrous.
Generalized surveillance is a requirement of government for basic law enforcement. A policeman standing at a corner watching traffic for violations is engaging in generalized surveillance.
As is the collection of financial transactions for enforcement of tax laws a form of generalized surveillance.
What is not legal under the Constitution is generalized collection of data that requires a warrant. Government cannot open all the mail. Nor can it listen to all telephone conversations. There is no power under the Constitution for a general warrant. In the 18th century these were called 'writs of assistance' and the 5th Amendment was specifically framed to prohibit them.
Now however the situation has evolved because of the advance of technology. The capability to collect massive amounts of non-protected data that is exempt from warrant requirements and use that collection to invade the privacy of any and all citizens has dramatically shifted the balance between privacy and public.
The only reasonable way to address this change is to expand the scope of what data requires warrants.
> HOWEVER, there is no law that I know of that requires me to divulge information to the government about someone else without a warrant. Sure, I'm protected if I decide to do it, but there's nothing compelling me to do it of my own free will.
Better brush up. All sorts of laws require you to divulge information to the government about someone else without a warrant. We can start with subpoenas, and then work through various financial reporting laws and so on.
> When/if the national healthcare is implemented â" despite our fiercest opposition â" medical history will be similarly "safe".
This has nothing to do with national healthcare. The transition to electronic health records was part of the 2009 stimulus package. Some idiots (i.e. Congressman) have tried to tie it to the ACA but in fact if you repealed the ACA right now it would not affect this process at all.
There is also the fact that your records are pretty widely distributed right now. Insurance companies, pharmacies, likely multiple doctors, hospitals etc. etc.
It's not a warrant. Email headers are not protected information under the law so all you need is a subpoena. Since they are disclosed to third parties there is no expectation of privacy under current law.
It's the same idea that the outside of the envelope that you give the postman is not protected. Nor is a list of phone numbers that you call.
Slashdot Mirror
That seems unlikely.
According to this the US created more new millionaires last year than Germany has TOTAL.
If they weren't in an open pool there would be a nice pressure buildup.
You don't want that.
The problem is the dismal science - the economic returns of alternatives are not as good as what we have now.
Eventually this will cause a dramatic decline in standard of living. The dire end of this range is a die back of the human species.
Oil companies pay huge taxes. In fact they pay more taxes than anyone.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2013/03/17/companies-paying-highest-income-taxes/1991313/
Exxon and Chevron were the #1 and #2 US taxpayers last year, at 31 and 20 billion respectively.
Switching is fine.
Oil though is too valuable to export in raw form. It should be exported in the form of finished goods. Say like Viagra.
How about posting the source for your bullshit?
Might it be Moon of Alabama?
The same site running stories about how Iran is not enriching uranium, but rather is producing nanodiamonds?
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2011/11/on-nuclear-iran-allegations-nanodiamonds-aint-nuclear-bombs.html
Do you really think we are that stupid?
You must think we are complete idiots.
I'm sorry, but maybe you should go back and apply some critical thinking to what you wrote.
For example:
"Information has never harmed a single soul."
The fact is information about what people are doing is a critical component of national security, in both war and peace. A key determinant of the success or failure of any action is the quality of the information available. From revolutionary war spies like Nathan Hale and Miss Jenny, to the code breakers that made the battle of Midway a success for America and to yesterday's capture of Anas Al-Libi, it is clear information is critical to any operation.
I'm not cancelling out one with the other. That's some warped idea of yours.
I am pointing out the chief export is life, not death.
Look what another great American, Norman Borlaug did. Half of the world's food supply is the result of his work. His biography is titled "The Man Who Saved A Billion Lives". That actually is an understatement.
Then of course there is D A Henderson. Why he hasn't won the the Nobel Peace Price I have no idea. He merely led the effort to eradicate smallpox.
Face it. If it weren't for America the world would be a starving mess wracked with disease, and over-run with tyranny.
Gingrich was the only standing Speaker in US history to be convicted of ethics violations by his own House.
It's a rather extraordinary thing when you think about it.
Extreme gerrymandering and lack of term limits for Congress are enabling this. Put an end to both and it's done.
Talk to Boehner and his Teahadist masters about it. RIGHT NOW all they have to do is bring a clean CR to the floor of the House and it would pass immediately. The government would be back in operation in a couple of hours.
But no, they are going use every possible mechanism of the government to force their minority view on the nation.
In about 13 months you will get your chance.
There are lots of other federal sites open.
doi.gov
irs.gov
opm.gov
fbi.gov
In fact it appears most federal web sites are open. Now whether content is being updated is a different issue.
Now what I want to know is where are you getting the idea that healthcare.gov is the only site open. Is that something Rush Limbaugh told you?
95 Americans have won Nobel Prizes in Medicine. That's about half of all such prizes awarded over the entire planet.
It seems to me that the chief US export is life.
Polls conducted on the question give the following results:
1. Obamacare : Against
2. Affordable Care Act: For
3. Coverage for Pre-existing conditions: For
4. Coverage for young adult children: For
5. Health Care Subsidies: For
6. Universal coverage: For
7. Medicare: For
8. Medicare Prescription Coverage: For
9. Small Business Coverage Subsidy: For
10. Individual Mandate: Against
Now the same polling found most American thought the ACA includes coverage for non-citizens, death panels and cuts to Medicare. It doesn't.
Most Americans just don't know very much about it, and opinions are very inconsistent.
Oh, anyone that has 60T in assets and 2.4T* in debt that is denominated in a fiat currency that it issues is not bankrupt.
*2.4T is the US net international investment position, that is the difference between the US debt and the assets it owns internationally.
Quack.
> So, no, the Democrats are not the innocent party here. They'd rather see a shutdown than a delay in funding ACA which doesn't prevent the exchanges from opening anyway.
A delay in funding of the ACA is not part of ANY bill provided by the House.
The bills that were provided either completely defund the ACA or delay the individual mandate.
It is utterly preposterous to engage in this sort of legislative action when people in many states are in the process of signing up for these programs. It would be nuts to change the law at this time. They are taking the scurrilous tactic of attaching a bill that would never pass on its own to a measure needed to run the rest of the government. It's despicable. It is a form of blackmail.
The bills passed by the House also prohibit Congress and its employees from receiving a subsidy for the plans they purchase from the exchanges, (something every other employer who provides coverage offers) and they make optional various women's health programs. Including breast feeding services and battered wife counseling services.
Ultimately trying to change policy as part of a continuing resolution is absolute insanity. These bills have have historically been limited to only technical changes in law.
The last time this sort of shenanigans were tried was in 1995 when a Republican Congress tried to change the Medicare contribution rate. It too led to a government shutdown. Back then the Republicans were also rightly blamed for over-reaching.
The history is there. The Republicans are repeating the same damn mistakes they made in 18 years ago. The will suffer the same outcome as before.
There is nothing to negotiate. Policy decisions do not belong in a CR. By including policy changes in a CR the Republicans are forcing a shutdown.
The fact remains that a clean CR would pass the House. It is the will of the representatives of the people who are elected by the voters to pass such a bill.
The only people preventing the introduction and passage of this are the Republican leadership. It is THEIR decision to shut down the government of the United States.
Defense spending needs to be reduced, but this bullshit isn't the way to do it. If anything these shenanigans are going to end up costing the American taxpayer more.
Your (dipshit) Congress in action.
Afaik NSA is mostly about gathering information for intelligence purposes. As such they really don't go to court with that information very often.
All that needs to happen is for Boehner to bring the Senate bill to the floor of the House and BOOM the government will reopen because there are enough moderate Republicans + Democrats to pass it.
The idea that the Democrats are forcing the Government to close is ludicrous.
Generalized surveillance is a requirement of government for basic law enforcement. A policeman standing at a corner watching traffic for violations is engaging in generalized surveillance.
As is the collection of financial transactions for enforcement of tax laws a form of generalized surveillance.
What is not legal under the Constitution is generalized collection of data that requires a warrant. Government cannot open all the mail. Nor can it listen to all telephone conversations. There is no power under the Constitution for a general warrant. In the 18th century these were called 'writs of assistance' and the 5th Amendment was specifically framed to prohibit them.
Now however the situation has evolved because of the advance of technology. The capability to collect massive amounts of non-protected data that is exempt from warrant requirements and use that collection to invade the privacy of any and all citizens has dramatically shifted the balance between privacy and public.
The only reasonable way to address this change is to expand the scope of what data requires warrants.
ColdFusion is built on JRun which is the most miserable POS Java servlet container conceived by the mind of man.
Since the source code is out maybe it will get some bug fixes.
> HOWEVER, there is no law that I know of that requires me to divulge information to the government about someone else without a warrant. Sure, I'm protected if I decide to do it, but there's nothing compelling me to do it of my own free will.
Better brush up. All sorts of laws require you to divulge information to the government about someone else without a warrant. We can start with subpoenas, and then work through various financial reporting laws and so on.
Here's an article that might upset you then:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/04/us/monitoring-of-snail-mail.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
> When/if the national healthcare is implemented â" despite our fiercest opposition â" medical history will be similarly "safe".
This has nothing to do with national healthcare. The transition to electronic health records was part of the 2009 stimulus package. Some idiots (i.e. Congressman) have tried to tie it to the ACA but in fact if you repealed the ACA right now it would not affect this process at all.
There is also the fact that your records are pretty widely distributed right now. Insurance companies, pharmacies, likely multiple doctors, hospitals etc. etc.
It's a tea party bogeyman, and that's it.
It's not a warrant. Email headers are not protected information under the law so all you need is a subpoena. Since they are disclosed to third parties there is no expectation of privacy under current law.
It's the same idea that the outside of the envelope that you give the postman is not protected. Nor is a list of phone numbers that you call.