We're not talking about the middle of Americans. We are talking about the "class" that falls into the middle of the working classes. There is a DIFFERENCE
You're evaluating the middle income as equivalent as the middle class. This is incorrect thinking.
Middle Class is not the middle of average income, it is the class level in the middle of the working/incomed classes. To explain further, what you are saying is like stating the top 33% of of Americans are the rich, the middle 33% the middle class, the bottom 33% the working poor class.
With that logic, the income gap between someone in the working poor and the rich class is a few tens of thousands. Clearly something is inaccurate with your logic. You're essentially saying a $75,000 income puts you into the rich category that includes folks earning $500K - $500 million a year.
Classes are not defined by quantity, in other words, a feudal system had 3 classes. Peasants, Lords, and field lords (knights and such middle-class). In the break down, 95% or more fell into the peasantry.
Likewise today,...
Working Class is by far one of the largest.
Middle Class is also large, but shrinking. Middle class is defined by a quality of life factor. Usually defined by owning home, reasonably functional somewhat newer vehicles, being able to take a moderate vacation (Disneyworld, international travel, cruise, etc, periodically), having a safety net, retirement accounts, etc. Upper end may have a small vacation home.
Wealthy Class, usually has multiple homes, travels first class, may own private air or yachts, or other high end expensive recreational items in the $100K+ mark. Often do not have to do work, simply manage investments and resources. Often pays a low margin on taxes due to ability to maximize loopholes, capital gains, etc.
Okay, first off, if we're talking college educated salaried middle-class workers. We are NOT talking the RICH.
We're talking about those who basically, live near the same quality of life as the working class, except they receive no government assistance, and basically have more assurances and insurances (ie: have newer cars, have basic life insurance policies, have health insurance, etc). And get to take a vacation once a year.
That's NOT rich...
***
The rich, are working less and less. I remember reading an account of a wealthy 1% lambasting how many hours he had to work and how that was why he was rich.
He logged as time worked: his commute, his time at the gym (must look professional folks), business lunches, dinners, and cocktails (that's right, eating and drinking on company dime is so so so much work - mind you, even when an average joe worker has a company dinner such as a retirement party. That time is on your dime, no pay, deducted from your hours.) By the time I extracted all the lame and weird add-ons, the guy basically was working 35 hours a week at best.
That H1B visa holders are contacted almost every year on their anniversary and apologized to, that they must accept a 5%-15% wage cut...if not, they lose their job and visa. So they accept.
Then they tell the American's the avg wage is xx,xxx, so they are being let go because they're being paid more than average..
You're not understanding that the problem of culture that couldn't be fixed, was workers complaining of abuse. Since the workers were not willing to just accept it, no matter what managers, upper managers, and executives tried. The solution was to replace workers with temp. immigrants.
FDA, makes a $40 CPAP cost $1,000 and a $20 CPAP mask $800. It's disgusting. MRI machines are millions of dollars but ancient technology at this point. Even Xrays, I mean consider that Cathode ray tubes are ancient, you may recall them as CRT monitors. But Xray machines are still big bucks.
Sure, it's all in the name of regulation and safety. But that is just dumb, because lets be honest. It's like building inspections. Sure, you're required to get your home inspected for safety and liability during construction. But when, if ever, have you heard of anyone getting to sue the city inspectors when something was done wrong and passed. Does it ever help against the contractors? Nope, they just start new LLCs.
The FDA's role should be one of advisory, and spec mandates. In other words, the FDA should simply publish open source reference designs and safety specs.
No X-ray machine should emit more than x amount of radiation, and backscatter should be no higher than y. And here is a reference design that meets that spec. As long as the safety is achieved, than it should be fine.
Oh, and they could offer a testing lab to certify. If you sell, and don't get certified, you could be sued for greater liability during injury. But regardless, not necessary.
This would do a lot to greatly reducing medical costs. DVD players were $4,000 and now they're $40. The same should be said for CPAPS to MRI machines.
Yes, Stevens wants to enact a Constitutional change....but the government has been endeavoring to enact much of these policies without such, and they are unconstitutional.
"your oath to support and defend the Constitution would obligate you to honor this amendment, properly enacted, just like any other part of the Constitution"
Yes, if they actually fairly passed this as a Constitutional Amendment rather than their present means. We would be obligated to uphold it.
But crap like the NSA violating the 4th Amendment in no unquestionable ways. They're a clear and present threat. And all servicemen are duty bound to oppose. Presently, I still feel I can do so through the system. I believe every service person is bound by their oath to oppose any incumbent who supports the NSA's blanket monitoring.
"Terrifying. Unaccountable quasi-military organizations that tend to be high on ideology and low on reason."
I'm confused, are we talking about Nevada or the NSA & TSA?
"just allowing a freeloader to not pay for grazing rights?"
Please note this was not about freeloader grazing, this was about the Feds demanding he shrink his herds (and all other ranchers their herds) by 90% so that precious water would not be used for agricultural reasons and more can be diverted to urban California residents (larger voter pool).
Go read....you'll learn that if this was just about the $1/head of cattle, there would be no issue. But it wasn't. And if you think it was, you need to STFU because you haven't read enough of this to even have two bits worth of awareness about what is going on.
"Managing land to keep it from being destroyed like it was during the Dust Bowl is important and costs money."
That is NOT what they're doing. In fact, ruminant grazers are important for preventing the dustbowl type scenarios.
"but your rationalizations are arbitrary and capricious"
My rationalizations are far less arbitrary and capricious than.gov
"somehow you use that to justify murdering people (or at least threatening to.)"
No, you seem to have things reversed. I'm arguing for people's rights to defend themselves against arbitrary and capricious government thugs who are threatening to murder people.
If I told you that in order to file your next W2 you had to sign a form. That form stated that from henceforth, you can only earn 10% of what you are currently earning. You refuse to sign, cause that's ridiculous.
Then I claim the reason we're arresting you is because you failed to pay taxes. BS. You failed to basically be put out of business.
And please realize this has NOTHING to do with tortoises, just like California Central Valley issue had nothing to do with a tiny fish. This is ALL about water for urban Californian cities. That is why the Federal government used an environmental law to shutdown ranching in a huge portion of Nevada. In order to reduce the water usage so more was available to California.
Regardless, the Declaration of Independence not only affirms one's right, but admonishes one's duty to do so. No it is not law.
Rather it is the one document higher than the Constitution, the document that affirms that none of these rights are provided by laws. And that one always has the right to replace the government or constitution when it fails to work.
Right, but find me ANY pre-1800 discussions on the 2nd Amendment which purport it to not be a right of individuals, and solely for an organized active militia. Find them. Post them. Or STFU.
Swords should NOT be prohibited. In fact, they are "arms" and should be recognized as protected by the Constitution. In fact there is even an organization kniferights.org, that was recently started to help restore such rights.
What about Ruby Ridge? There is a reason we paid that family millions of dollars in compensation.
Not saying either were great people. But look at Nevada, a 1,000 man militia. Probably the first time a battalion size militia has been active in the U.S.
Sure you can argue Mr. Bundy was breaking the law. But one can also argue the Feds enacted unethical policies and mis-used laws, in an abusive way.
Remember EVERYTHING the British did to the colonialists was 'legal'. The point of the Second Amendment is for those times when what is legal (or what is illegal) is WRONG!!!!!
And lest we forget, the militia was the defense, that overthrew the British regulars (trained).
Hence it is stated the need for a well regulated (trained) militia capable of countering an army of "regulars" (or what we would call "professional" soldiers).
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Realize the average blue collar worker picking up an extra 10-20 hours a week in the 70's, likely made $35,000 a year, equivalent today to $100,000.
So actually no, the real thing is that when adjusted for inflation, we are likely making far less than yesteryear for the amoun of work we do.
Well the rich do it by including their commuting time as part of their "hours worked"
It takes three things to make money:
1. Work
2. Ability/Skill
3. Luck
Without all three, you do NOT get rich.
Most of the poor and starving in Africa and India are not in debt either.... I will call them rich and see how they react.
Do you understand what the word "class" means.
We're not talking about the middle of Americans. We are talking about the "class" that falls into the middle of the working classes. There is a DIFFERENCE
You're evaluating the middle income as equivalent as the middle class. This is incorrect thinking.
Middle Class is not the middle of average income, it is the class level in the middle of the working/incomed classes. To explain further, what you are saying is like stating the top 33% of of Americans are the rich, the middle 33% the middle class, the bottom 33% the working poor class.
With that logic, the income gap between someone in the working poor and the rich class is a few tens of thousands. Clearly something is inaccurate with your logic. You're essentially saying a $75,000 income puts you into the rich category that includes folks earning $500K - $500 million a year.
Classes are not defined by quantity, in other words, a feudal system had 3 classes. Peasants, Lords, and field lords (knights and such middle-class). In the break down, 95% or more fell into the peasantry.
Likewise today,...
Working Class is by far one of the largest.
Middle Class is also large, but shrinking. Middle class is defined by a quality of life factor. Usually defined by owning home, reasonably functional somewhat newer vehicles, being able to take a moderate vacation (Disneyworld, international travel, cruise, etc, periodically), having a safety net, retirement accounts, etc. Upper end may have a small vacation home.
Wealthy Class, usually has multiple homes, travels first class, may own private air or yachts, or other high end expensive recreational items in the $100K+ mark. Often do not have to do work, simply manage investments and resources. Often pays a low margin on taxes due to ability to maximize loopholes, capital gains, etc.
Okay, first off, if we're talking college educated salaried middle-class workers. We are NOT talking the RICH.
We're talking about those who basically, live near the same quality of life as the working class, except they receive no government assistance, and basically have more assurances and insurances (ie: have newer cars, have basic life insurance policies, have health insurance, etc). And get to take a vacation once a year.
That's NOT rich...
***
The rich, are working less and less. I remember reading an account of a wealthy 1% lambasting how many hours he had to work and how that was why he was rich.
He logged as time worked: his commute, his time at the gym (must look professional folks), business lunches, dinners, and cocktails (that's right, eating and drinking on company dime is so so so much work - mind you, even when an average joe worker has a company dinner such as a retirement party. That time is on your dime, no pay, deducted from your hours.) By the time I extracted all the lame and weird add-ons, the guy basically was working 35 hours a week at best.
That is the "rich"...
That H1B visa holders are contacted almost every year on their anniversary and apologized to, that they must accept a 5%-15% wage cut...if not, they lose their job and visa. So they accept.
Then they tell the American's the avg wage is xx,xxx, so they are being let go because they're being paid more than average..
You're not understanding that the problem of culture that couldn't be fixed, was workers complaining of abuse. Since the workers were not willing to just accept it, no matter what managers, upper managers, and executives tried. The solution was to replace workers with temp. immigrants.
CITIZENSHIP...to start...
For almost ALL medical devices...
FDA, makes a $40 CPAP cost $1,000 and a $20 CPAP mask $800. It's disgusting. MRI machines are millions of dollars but ancient technology at this point. Even Xrays, I mean consider that Cathode ray tubes are ancient, you may recall them as CRT monitors. But Xray machines are still big bucks.
Sure, it's all in the name of regulation and safety. But that is just dumb, because lets be honest. It's like building inspections. Sure, you're required to get your home inspected for safety and liability during construction. But when, if ever, have you heard of anyone getting to sue the city inspectors when something was done wrong and passed. Does it ever help against the contractors? Nope, they just start new LLCs.
The FDA's role should be one of advisory, and spec mandates. In other words, the FDA should simply publish open source reference designs and safety specs.
No X-ray machine should emit more than x amount of radiation, and backscatter should be no higher than y. And here is a reference design that meets that spec. As long as the safety is achieved, than it should be fine.
Oh, and they could offer a testing lab to certify. If you sell, and don't get certified, you could be sued for greater liability during injury. But regardless, not necessary.
This would do a lot to greatly reducing medical costs. DVD players were $4,000 and now they're $40. The same should be said for CPAPS to MRI machines.
Yes, Stevens wants to enact a Constitutional change....but the government has been endeavoring to enact much of these policies without such, and they are unconstitutional.
"your oath to support and defend the Constitution would obligate you to honor this amendment, properly enacted, just like any other part of the Constitution"
Yes, if they actually fairly passed this as a Constitutional Amendment rather than their present means. We would be obligated to uphold it.
But crap like the NSA violating the 4th Amendment in no unquestionable ways. They're a clear and present threat. And all servicemen are duty bound to oppose. Presently, I still feel I can do so through the system. I believe every service person is bound by their oath to oppose any incumbent who supports the NSA's blanket monitoring.
a) !@#$ Reagan, I'm not a big fan
b) many laws that are abused today were passed decades ago, and get perverted and twisted and used for unintended consequences.
"Terrifying. Unaccountable quasi-military organizations that tend to be high on ideology and low on reason."
I'm confused, are we talking about Nevada or the NSA & TSA?
"just allowing a freeloader to not pay for grazing rights?"
Please note this was not about freeloader grazing, this was about the Feds demanding he shrink his herds (and all other ranchers their herds) by 90% so that precious water would not be used for agricultural reasons and more can be diverted to urban California residents (larger voter pool).
Go read....you'll learn that if this was just about the $1/head of cattle, there would be no issue. But it wasn't. And if you think it was, you need to STFU because you haven't read enough of this to even have two bits worth of awareness about what is going on.
"Managing land to keep it from being destroyed like it was during the Dust Bowl is important and costs money."
That is NOT what they're doing. In fact, ruminant grazers are important for preventing the dustbowl type scenarios.
"but your rationalizations are arbitrary and capricious"
My rationalizations are far less arbitrary and capricious than .gov
"somehow you use that to justify murdering people (or at least threatening to.)"
No, you seem to have things reversed. I'm arguing for people's rights to defend themselves against arbitrary and capricious government thugs who are threatening to murder people.
Capiche?
Then you need to read more sir.
If I told you that in order to file your next W2 you had to sign a form. That form stated that from henceforth, you can only earn 10% of what you are currently earning. You refuse to sign, cause that's ridiculous.
Then I claim the reason we're arresting you is because you failed to pay taxes. BS. You failed to basically be put out of business.
And please realize this has NOTHING to do with tortoises, just like California Central Valley issue had nothing to do with a tiny fish. This is ALL about water for urban Californian cities. That is why the Federal government used an environmental law to shutdown ranching in a huge portion of Nevada. In order to reduce the water usage so more was available to California.
Regardless, the Declaration of Independence not only affirms one's right, but admonishes one's duty to do so. No it is not law.
Rather it is the one document higher than the Constitution, the document that affirms that none of these rights are provided by laws. And that one always has the right to replace the government or constitution when it fails to work.
Which may be very soon...
You really think most of the 1,000 folks there were wealthy?
You can buy a decent 22 caliber semi-automatic rifle for $100. It's getting hard to do that for a pair of shoes.
Right, but find me ANY pre-1800 discussions on the 2nd Amendment which purport it to not be a right of individuals, and solely for an organized active militia. Find them. Post them. Or STFU.
Actually, you're quite misinformed.
a) the NRA is often outspent by Mr. Bloomberg alone (one rich fat ugly 1% crap outspends the entire NRA)
b) the NRA is often forced to drag gun manufacturers kicking and screaming to the fight (not the other way around)
c) the NRA is actually far milder than it's 4 million members, and 20 million ad-hoc supporters.
Do you know the number one reason why gun owners do not join the NRA? The number one reason I hear, "Won't join them, they compromise too much."
Really, did you not see the standoff in Nevada? First time in probably over a hundred years that a Battalion size militia was formed.
Oh, you mean only for the likes of the rich and powerful who can afford body guards...
We do....
Swords should NOT be prohibited. In fact, they are "arms" and should be recognized as protected by the Constitution. In fact there is even an organization kniferights.org, that was recently started to help restore such rights.
Really, what were they doing?
What about Ruby Ridge? There is a reason we paid that family millions of dollars in compensation.
Not saying either were great people. But look at Nevada, a 1,000 man militia. Probably the first time a battalion size militia has been active in the U.S.
Sure you can argue Mr. Bundy was breaking the law. But one can also argue the Feds enacted unethical policies and mis-used laws, in an abusive way.
Remember EVERYTHING the British did to the colonialists was 'legal'. The point of the Second Amendment is for those times when what is legal (or what is illegal) is WRONG!!!!!
And lest we forget, the militia was the defense, that overthrew the British regulars (trained).
Hence it is stated the need for a well regulated (trained) militia capable of countering an army of "regulars" (or what we would call "professional" soldiers).