leh-nerd skin-erd

Hogwash. The left is perfectly comfortable with a permanently entrenched class of Americans, and design programs to perpetuate intergenerational poverty. Unfortunately, there are many, many Americans and non-Americans willing to apply for the job. A safety net is necessary, it cannot be the size of Australia. Other than Narnia, I'm stumped.

I wasn't sure if by "purge", you meant the Josef Stalin, Chairman Mao or Marie Antoinnette 'off with their heads' version or the other kind. Now that I know you meant the friendly, 'It's not you, it's me' with the Dunkin Donuts gift card on the way out, I follow.? In a nutshell, I would support the removal of any individual acting against the administration in a hostile capacity, using their position of power abusively, to undermine the President. I would also support the removal/dismissal of those in positions of power that work at the will of the President who may act appropriately and without malice, yet against the interests of the President consistent with the rules of the game. In Vindmann's case, he's gone, he was expendable and it makes perfect sense that Trump canned him. Same with Sonderland.

you guys had a party? Was @Buffalogal there? She seems nice, if she didn't tell me what's the point?

define wide scale, define purge, and let me know what you think i meant by well-intentioned people. i'll be happy to reply.

I think the challenge is that by the very nature of self-preservation, virtually every person who works in government has skin in the game and most of Trump's policies go counter to their instincts. That includes well-intentioned people of all political leanings who when push comes to shove, are at best apathetic to targets on Trump's agenda.

Acknowledging Trump's weaknesses is fair game to be sure. However, it seems that it would be nearly impossible to sweep the floor clean and empty the septic tank under the best of circumstances, and given what he had dealt with since day one, there are only so many moles you can whack.

It would be interesting to see the reaction of dems to a candidate who actually has ties to Russia and espouses the ideals of the communist party.

In some ways, Mayor Pete has to be wondering how the heck it's even a horse race with two angry old baldies. One has had more plastic surgery than Joan Rivers, can't remember where he is most days, speaks like he's right out of a Bogart movie, and has performed more uncomfortable mammograms than the Cleveland Clinic. The other has what might be considered an advanced case of osteoporosis if he weren't 20 years beyond what any reasonable medical professional would ever consider 'advanced' anything, combs his hair with a pillow and is 3 months removed from a major heart attack. With luck, he sees what perpetual raging against the machine and age do to a liberal, goes home, and quits the race tomorrow.

I implore you to stop doing this. I barely survived disco when I lived it the first time, and this song gets stuck in my head for another 3 hours after reading this. Mercy.

1 sick....random. 2 sick....Odd coincidence. 3 sick... THEY'RE ON TO US. Go to ground, lay low, and I'll be in touch. Eyes up for a copy of a newspaper insert featuring women in bikinis, 4 pages in upper right dog-eared down to form a V. It'll be in your mailbox or if you live the filthy restless life of an actor/screenwriter on the west coast, check under your surfboard between 10:00 am and 1:00 PM CST. The sun sets at midnight. Be well.

Warren always ends up sounding like a former teacher and present school board member pitching an increase in the budget for something like "English as a Second Language". She talks about building a campaign where everyone brings their "whole self" to work. Mamby pamby touchy feely crap that means literally nothing.

My God, of course. I pretended he was president during the last 4 years of W and 6 of the 8 years Obama was in office.

The type of interview really aggravates me. Why on earth would any person sit for an interview with someone proven to be his sworn enemy unless required to do so? A reasonable question for Wallace to ask would be—-given the problems now well-documented with you investigation, the treatment given to Michael Flynn by the FBI, the leaks, the problems noted in the AG report...would you recommend DJT sit down with his enemies and reassure him he would get fair treatment? She’s become one dour hag since Trump won. Couldn’t get McCain over the line and it seems it broke her spirit.

I think they are all winners, and everyone can feel good about that.

Thanks for the reply. Fair answer on Trump, tweets and so on. I used to feel that way, but recognize when his adversaries seem intent on driving him to an early grave, or to prison, or branded a traitor...the “Presidential” way means you become a glorified punching bag. The election process began with he’s racist...sexist....assaults women....islamaphobe...war monger...tax evader...Russian agent and so in. It seems politics today is kill or be killed, maybe the old days are gone. Most assuredly he is a world class ball buster. On that we agree. As for Medicare and health insurance, I’ll try to track down your other post, but honestly you made my point better than I did. Medicare started in 1965. Over the past six decades, govt founded a program, established the rules for the program, hired people to work on behalf of the program, and planned coverage/premium/benefits. The govt IS the health insurance company. The fact that it serves an aging population isn’t a surprise, it’s the customer base they serve. The fact that costs increase isn’t a surprise, the fact that folks are living longer isn’t a surprise either. It’s all entirely predictable. The problem with Medicare is that it isn’t funded properly, the premiums are wrong, expenses too high and nobody’s head will roll for the mismanagement. As for elimination of the private health insurance market, what about the hundreds of thousands of people summarily dispatched when Medicare for all goes live? Sure, the CEO is out of work, but he’ll probably be ok. What about everyone else? What about the cottage industries that serve those companies? Let’s be honest, the costs associated with those people doesn’t go away, the Medicare office doesn’t just port in the files, it’s a massive undertaking that expands bureaucracy exponentially. As for socialized medicine and foreign countries, I don’t want to be disingenuous. I don’t really care what they do In Finland, so I couldn’t tell you if it’s great or not, or at what cost the greatness comes. I do know that most of my Canadian family members who had serious medical issues travelled to NY for treatment. In one case, it prolonged the life of my uncle by a decade or so as he would have died awaiting surgery in Canada based on his assessment, I don’t really understand the CEO pay argument. I mean, I do, but it seems silly. The average lifer who works for a fed or state government retires with a pension and health care worth millions over their lifetime. The average US Senator fares even better, yet no one clamors for the billions in benefits paid to retirees to level out the playing field. What does that cost the average American in taxation over a lifetime? Also, many CEOs and execs from other industries are worth millions or billions, why aren’t we debating the takeover of Amazon, Microsoft or Apple and putting those robber barrons in the street? They hire people too, where is their skin in the health insurance game? When all is said and done, Medicare as run by the govt faces a massive shortfall. I read the Hospital trust fund starts going backward in about 6 years. Those entrusted with management have had 55 years to solve the problem, and yet, here we are. Appreciate the tone of the reply. I hope Bernie is boxed out and goes away, though I know there’s always a crazy socialist in the wings. They want control.

Great write up. I likely see Sanders the way you see Trump, but that's beside the point. The issue on health insurance is just flat wrong. You've been duped, at least partially. I'm not singing the praises of health insurance carriers but consider: 1. The rules of the game were written by 50 different state regulators 50 different ways creating 50 different kingdoms. The game was fixed, in large part by the people you want to hand total control to. 2. While companies/people can make mistakes or be corrupt, all the b-s you have been fed re: coverage, pre-existing conditions, expense and profit ratios and premium increasing or decreasing was designed, implemented and regulated by the state. That's the way it is, the way it was, and the way it continues to be, albeit on this $$$$#ed up ACA platform. The fact that some crazy old millionaire with a funny accent screams something else doesn't change that. BS pitches bs on this issue. Trade the tyranny of the insurance billionaires (following the rules established by government employees) for the tyranny of the federal govt and the plan is we all come out ahead? At the heart of the matter for me, beyond what's outlined above, is the thought of transitioning a system where employees work in private industry, with a vested interest in continued employment, with relatively modest benefit packages to a system staffed by govt lifers, benefit rich packages, near-guaranteed employment, with multiple redundant departments doing the same work, all with a promise to be retired by 58 and living on pension for another 30. Medicare for all would be a disaster, much as it has been with Medicare for some, as social security and on and on are.

I'm a big picture guy, I'll leave that to the people in charge of the program locally. And disregard this envelope that appears to be stuffed with hundos. It's my lunch.

I’d outsource it to the states. All paint is local, and you go moving buckets of whitewash all around the country it’s going to totally offset the carbon reductions from painting the durn houses.

Why don’t they just stop building green houses, and paint the ones that are out there? The answer is right in front of our eyes!

I apologize in advance.

These hearings can be so frustrating to listen to. Collins inquires about a “Woods Review” having been completed in the Paige surveillance case, Wray contemplates, considers, and ultimately dances around the answer without ever providing a yes or no. The premise of the hearing starts off with attempting to restore faith in a rogue (at worst) or functionally disorganized (at best) agency with virtually unlimited power, and the Director of the FBI cannot answer a simple question on a procedure mandated by FBI procedure designed to ensure accountability and review? Would the answer in either case compromise our national security? We end up with this sort of debacle because it’s baked into the system, and for all of Wray’s bloviating about his 40 new guidelines, it will continue to happen. The only question is the target, and politically-speaking, whether the dems or Rs are crying foul. The one hope we have as citizens is if some top level players are targeted for justice, stripped of their political protection and brought to trial. Let them have their say, avail themselves of the finest defense team they can afford (or be provided by the wealthy who value this sort of thing), do their 24 months in federal prison or not, but at least get some facts on the table outside of this political theater. Btw, have to keep moving so haven’t watched the whole thing, if Wray clarified with a yes or no answer 5 minutes later, do a brother a favor and let me know so I can put these torches back in the barn.

I wonder if the Latins ever contemplated time where their cool new word “ergo” would be paired with “Butgig” and make perfect sense to the reader.

I voted for Romney as well, but in retrospect I might as well have cast my vote for a well-coiffed Pomeranian. I really was just offering an opinion on the response to Romney being willing to remove a president from the White House over the incident in question. With Rs like Willard Romney, who needs dems?

Well, therein lies the point. If, as some feel, the attempt to impeach was a bunch of political nonsense, one assumes a Republican senator would see it that way as well. Given his background with Trump, it’s fair to consider the level of personal animus he feels and whether or not that impacted his vote. He rejected the Constitutional arguments made by the President’s lawyers, opted instead to believe the narrative laid out by the opposition, and voted accordingly. When people feel betrayed, it’s natural to lash out at the betrayer. On the other hand, maybe he does feel like Trump will sell Alaska to the Russians in a WH Garage Sake as impeachment manager Schiff suggested. Had he the strength of his convictions during his presidential run, had he the courage to speak loudly and proudly, he might have appeared more presidential and less neutered.

I didn’t think the question was strange until you clarified you didn’t mean French kissing. I didn’t kiss my father, but I did hug regularly and often after I became an adult. It really wasn’t his thing, but God love him he’d pat me on the back and tolerate my newfangled ways. He died many years ago, and I’m grateful for every minute. Good for you, and send your friend some dead fish wrapped up in newspaper. It means “Thanks so much for sharing your opinion, it means the world to me and I’ll consider your perspective moving forward.” In Italian, but you probably knew that.