JimBob2232

Well, i had 2 listed...then i edited and added 3....oh well at any rate...I am NOT a socialist. In fact, I am about as conservative as they get. Making blanket statements about me is just asinine. If you have taken any sort of basic economics course, you will know that there are basically 2 kinds of taxes. Those that are levied to generate revenue, and those that are levied to elicit a certain behavior. The current tax code is set up in a manner to encourage people to act in a certain way, which benefits us all. An ownership society is a good thing. People driving electric cars is a good thing. Getting an education is a good thing. The government is trying to encourage this behavior by giving people tax breaks for doing these things. This benefit of the current tax system will be gone with a consumption tax. Any business needs to know what their revenues are so they can budget accordingly. This system has the potential to be very volitile in revenue streams to the government. A coordinated effort could make it MUCH worse. I personally feel that taxes are WAY too high currently, and I like every tax cut proposal out there. The government is too big, and has too many needless programs. But the proper way to go about correcting the problem is not to just instantaneously stop funding the government. The correct approach is to elect people to represent you who will actually work towards real meaningful fiscal reform in washington. And one clarification....IRAs were created for a reason. To encourage people to save for retirement. Obviously there is a need for people to save for their own retirement. A consumption tax would eliminate IRAs. They would no longer serve a purpose. And finally, I want to again clearly state that i am not outright against this consumption tax idea. It has some problems that need to be worked out. It is most definatly something we should consider. Is it the best plan out there? I dont know. We need to do something, but whatever it is, it should not completely eliminate many of the good aspects of our current tax system (and yes....there are some...not many, but some.)

Finish this sentence: Doronbos needs to be replaced because __________________.

Of course I should list some of the positives that have not been brought up. 1) current untaxed earnings (especially for illegal activities) now becomes taxable. If you are a drug dealer, or earn money through illegal gambling or prostitution rings, you would be stupid to claim that money on your taxes. But you know they are going to buy the jewlery, cars, houses, etc., and when they do, the government will get a cut of that. 2) You get to control the amount of money you pay in taxes. Invenstment income is tax-free.

I am for this in principle, but there are 2 big drawbacks. 1) No longer will there be tax deductions encouraging a behavior (i.e. student loan interest deduction, home mortgage interest deduction, emission free vehicles, charitable contributions, etc.) 2) A coordinated effort to curtail discresionary spending by a large group of citizens, could result in signifigant reductions in federal revenue. 3) Related to #1, IRAs and 401ks become meaningless without tax deferment. Why put my money in an IRA? Might as well put it in a non-ira account where i can have easy access to it. This could cause people spending money originally (and currently) intended for retirement. The biggest problem we have today is that people do not understand taxes. I spoke with a good friend today who was highly educated, with an engineering degree, and a well paying job, who had not a clue about taxes. He actually thought it was possible to recieve a pay raise and take home less money because you were in a higher tax bracket. The concept of marginal tax brackets was lost on him. My point is, if someone with as much education (and pays as much taxes as he does), has no clue how our current tax system works, something is wrong. Personally, I would like everyone to have to write a check every quarter for the taxes they have to pay. Do away with the payroll deductions. I would love to see everyone in this country pony up $1000, 2000 or $10,000 per quarter to the federal government. THAT my friends is how you solve the problem of goverment spending. Zell Miller said it best when he "people don't complain about taxes because they are selfish or stingy. They complain because they simply don't believe they're getting their money's worth." Make them cut the check...they will raise hell, and our problem will quickly be solved.

Leno should have a body double come in and deliver one Jackson joke a night....

Jonas has been fixed...

While we are doing captions http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/...ing_flrd114.jpg Is it me, or does mike piazza look like micheal waltrip in this picture?

You never heard of him because he played at HAMPTON. For those who dont know he: 1) Set I-AA Record with 5 Kickoff returns for Touchdowns 2) Led the country with an average 35.5 yards per KO return 3) Set school record with 394 all purpose yards in a playoff game. 4) Had 41 receptions for 993 yards. Thats 42 less than braylon edwards....in 2 fewer games. This guy is a gamer. 1st rounder? Probably not. First day pick, I think definatly.

I think you are looking into this just a TAD too much. If playing "2nd fiddle" to Harrison means 1210 yards and 12 TDs I think he is quite content. How many more yards can he want?! Hard to say he is even 2nd fiddle. Harrison had a few more catches and a couple more touchdowns, but Wayne had more yards.

Indeed they may...but throwing hillary up against them would not be taking advantage of the situation.

There are so many good GOP candidates out there. However, most of them are moderates. I think McCain wins the GOP nomination hands down if he runs (and age is becoming a factor for him). Nobody has mentioned Sen. Allen from Virginia! This guy will satisfy the most conservative voters, yet not alienate the left. I think he has a good chance if he wants it. Throw in Mitt Romney, Tom Ridge, Condeleeza Rice, Newt Gingrich and Sam Brownback and you have a pretty good crew to choose from. My personal opinion here is that Cheney will resign in the next couple years and allow bush to basically appoint the next GOP candidate. Should be fun to watch, but if the dems run hillary...wow...they will lose in a landslide.

Also, unless you are Jack, Tony or Aubrey, DO NOT LEAVE CTU.

Does anyone else wonder where the Secretary of Energy is? How about the national security advisor? Seems odd that the DOD is heading this whole thing up. Good episode though.

This is also how we aquired spikes. We made him an offer cincy did not want to match, and they got nothing.

Welcome to 3 days ago.

No, because with our luck, drew will take them to the superbowl...

Still hoping for Mark Martin or Rusty....Come on guys! 1-2 finish

I think with mason and other key players leaving, mcnair will hang it up. Why would he want to sit through a season, which at best would be 6-10

NM

Here's hoping Rusty or Mark Martin win. 2 Classy guys making their last daytona 500 start. My dream winner: Kyle Petty Realistic prediction: Micheal Waltrip. Mikey Likes it

Wow! Lots of good names on that list. I'd consiter carter if Pat isnt signed Mason is the one on that list though that I would like to see here to replace reed. Rolle can walk...No use for him here.

Also keep in mind that the league proposal was a 42.5 million dollar cap. So even if the owners got what they wanted, it still wouldnt be good for every team. TAKE THE 45 MIL AND BE DONE WITH IT.

I agree with you, however by bringing dallas detroit and colorado back to the pack, the chances of buffalo and others excelling is greater. Their 30 million dollar salary will now buy better players, they will field a more competitive team, solidify their fan base, and increase revenues. They might still be losing money next year and the year after, but eventually they will be right up there with the rest of the league. Also, dont underestimate the value of inflation. Hopefully the cap stays at 45 mil for 10 years, and inflation can eat away at this problem as well.

Another way a 45 mil salary cap will benefit teams like buffalo is as follows: 2003-2004 salaries Detroit Redwings 78mil New York Rangers 76 mil Dallas 69 mil Philly 63 mil Colorado 62 mil stlouis 62 mil Now, with the 45 mil cap, all of the above teams, and any other team above 45 mil (NJ and boston), cannot go out and spend money on big time free agents. They cannot afford to sign or trade for Jagr's and lindstroms of the world. They simply cannot continue to pay huge salaries to these players. So they have to make concessions. Either they sign a Jagr or they sign a bunch of guys at a lower pay rate. Either way, there will be better players available for other teams (the buffalos and pittsburgh) to get at a cheaper price. So your B range players will be available for buffalo to pick up cheaply. Buffalo fields a better team, at the expense of a detroit or new york, who can no longer fit them in under the cap. So the margin of play between the top payrolls and the bottom payrolls is decreased. All in all this is a decent proposal. One which will at least allow some teams to regain profitablility short term, and will allow virtually any team who can survive the next few years long-term profitability

Listen, a cap is a cap. This 45mil threshold will not solve the entire problem today, but let inflation and the popularity of the sport increase, and every team will be at 45 mil in a few years. Give it some time. This is a good step in the right direction