DEATH AND TAXES

[Abracadabra]

this is my first post in here. probably the last.

wanna know where your taxes are going? click 'view the graph' (http://thebudgetgraph.com/view.html)

[angelofdeath]

sweet site

[!@#$%]

the NIH got a huge logo on there while, when you think about how much money they are getting compared to defense and social security, is barely a drop in the bucket.

[CALIgula]

The defense budget is way too huge!.....we need less money going to defense (and building prisons and CIA funding) and put more into universal health care and education....cause there are over 50 million uninsured people and our kids are falling behind asian and european countires in education..

/end rant


.....p.s......awesome site!!

...(bookmarked)

[angelofdeath]

i demand food insurance, for everyone

[Theo.Huxtable]

imagine what a great country this would be if the u.s. spent half as much on defense at put the rest into domestic services... per capita incomes would be higher, probably everyone would have health care, poverty could be almost eliminated, meaning less crime, less crack in the neighborhoods, we were going that way with Clinton and his military cutbacks (which resulted in a huge surplus-boom of the 90's and a steady drop in unemployment and crime), the illegal immigration situation could be confronted better, the quality of public schooling would skyrocket -- so many things. hell part of that could go towards the paying off the national debt.

unfortunately with this new "war on terror" it's going to be hard to head in that direction.

[CALIgula]

imagine what a great country this would be if the u.s. spent half as much on defense at put the rest into domestic services... per capita incomes would be higher, probably everyone would have health care, poverty could be almost eliminated, meaning less crime, less crack in the neighborhoods, we were going that way with Clinton and his military cutbacks (which resulted in a huge surplus-boom of the 90's and a steady drop in unemployment and crime), the illegal immigration situation could be confronted better, the quality of public schooling would skyrocket -- so many things. hell part of that could go towards the paying off the national debt.

unfortunately with this new "war on terror" it's going to be hard to head in that direction.

wow....this is exactly what im thinking......you don't even have to cut it in half....cut 1/3 out of defense.....shit..the only other country that comes close on spending money on defense is china...and they dont even spend as much as we do.....are we really that paranoid???......i guess after sept 11th, we are.

[Theo.Huxtable]

wow....this is exactly what im thinking......you don't even have to cut it in half....cut 1/3 out of defense.....shit..the only other country that comes close on spending money on defense is china...and they dont even spend as much as we do.....are we really that paranoid???......i guess after sept 11th, we are.

i always liked japan's view of foreign policy (since wwii)... keep a small self-defense force, and maintain peace by strong diplomatic relations between countries... use most of taxpayer dollars on domestic issues... that's probably why japan's economy is so strong... they have one of the lowest murder rates, the biggest producers of electronics and cars, etc. -- all on a small island nation.

if the u.s. did the same thing as japan, people in compton would be wiping their asses with benjamins. the u.s. generates more money than any nation (unless you count the e.u. as one nation, then i think the e.u. is either equal to the u.s. or slightly higher in yearly GNP). anyways it really is a shame that the u.s. that the u.s. spends half of its GNP on military, and spend about the same as the rest of the world combined -- of course, that's really a result of the cold war... after the fall of the soviet union, clinton's policy was to downsize the military and put more funds into domestic issues. the neocons policy however is to take advantage of the absense of a second superpower, in the new era they dubbed the "new world order," and expand u.s. military might, power, and influence throughout the world.

of course, these days it would be stupid to downsize the military now that the u.s. has helped created a new hotbed and foundation for terrorists to want to strike at us... the republicans have already created a new momentum of militarization and the "war on terror" that even if the democrats were in power in the white house and congress, i don't they would go back to the clinton era of military cutbacks. of course, september 11th couldn't have been avoided, but afghanistan/pakistan should've been the only venture to destroy al qaeda and capture their top leaders, and iraq is a complete farce and unneccessary and has only caused more hatred and negative view of the u.s....

[Smart]

How long can America get away with calling it a 'Defense' budget?

I'm looking at YOU Iraq!

[CALIgula]

yeah..there was nothing "defensive" about invading a country.

funny thing is Bush never admited he fucked up....when he didnt find weapons of mass destruction....he was like "well, we went in there for Iraq's democracy".....he don't give a fuck about those people.

[Oi Vei]

the only reason i came in here was to say that i am becoming dyslexic. i read the title of this thread death and texas. and then i looked again, and i realized it said death and taxes. first/last time in crossfire.

/good story.

[<---]

i demand food insurance, for everyone


Sounds good to me.

[<---]

AOD, I know you were on some anti-socialist sarcasm but I'm sure the founding fathers would also agree if they had any idea that one day all food would have to be bought and it would be basically illegal to just go outside with your gun and hunt for dinner.

[Larry Pubes]

How long can America get away with calling it a 'Defense' budget?

I'm looking at YOU Iraq!

hell-ooooo!

[Theo.Huxtable]

yeah..there was nothing "defensive" about invading a country.

funny thing is Bush never admited he fucked up....when he didnt find weapons of mass destruction....he was like "well, we went in there for Iraq's democracy".....he don't give a fuck about those people.

yep and his other reason was "well Saddam was brutal dictator and the iraqi people are better off without him." O RLY? let's take a look at iraqi deaths to violence between 92-2002, and then from 2003-2006... guarantee there's more in the last 3 years.

[CALIgula]

true....and more americans have died in the war in iraq...than on sept. 11th

[Theo.Huxtable]

true....and more americans have died in the war in iraq...than on sept. 11th

yeah the troops deaths in iraq hit the 3,000 mark like a month ago or something?

[fermentor666]

wow....this is exactly what im thinking......you don't even have to cut it in half....cut 1/3 out of defense.....shit..the only other country that comes close on spending money on defense is china...and they dont even spend as much as we do.....are we really that paranoid???......i guess after sept 11th, we are.


What's funny is that China's army is even bigger than ours. They could probably crush us if they really wanted to. And they might want to if we don't payback that 300 billion and growing we owe them, plus interest.

[fermentor666]

I'm surprised AOD didn't have a heartattack just looking at this graph, when he found out that the federal government actually uses our tax dollars for things.

[Theo.Huxtable]

What's funny is that China's army is even bigger than ours. They could probably crush us if they really wanted to. And they might want to if we don't payback that 300 billion and growing we owe them, plus interest.

china may have more soldiers but what the u.s. lacks in manpower, they make up in technology. the u.s. still has the world's largest (and most advanced) navy, and the world's largest and advanced airforce. prior to a ground attack, the u.s. would spend months just bombing from sea and air at china's troops, support, defenses, facilities, manufactring, and reduce them to levels small enough to where the u.s. could fight them, and disorient them in their fighting ability... and of course, in the case of a nuclear war -- china has a little over 20 nukes while the u.s. has well over 1,000 nukes. the u.s. also has bases in the west pacific in striking range of china whereas china has no bases in striking range of the u.s.

[russell jones]

Nuclear weapons have made direct conflict between major powers an impossibility.

[CALIgula]

yeah the troops deaths in iraq hit the 3,000 mark like a month ago or something?

yeah... it was on all over the news a couple months ago....needless to say...i was pissed.:mad:

[CALIgula]

bump!!

this is probably one of the best things found on 12oz.

[Dawood]

AOD, I know you were on some anti-socialist sarcasm but I'm sure the founding fathers would also agree if they had any idea that one day all food would have to be bought and it would be basically illegal to just go outside with your gun and hunt for dinner.


the founding "fathers" were masons.

[Dawood]

yep and his other reason was "well Saddam was brutal dictator and the iraqi people are better off without him." O RLY? let's take a look at iraqi deaths to violence between 92-2002, and then from 2003-2006... guarantee there's more in the last 3 years.


yeah, probably more, but it would be nice to have those figures, I bet somebody did some research. The only poblem with research is that it as almost always biased with an expected outcome.

[.coma]

only a country with a guilty conscience as this one need this much "defense"


one can only wonder what the fuck they have to hide?

[Theo.Huxtable]

only a country with a guilty conscience as this one need this much "defense"



good point. i wish america took japan's approach and maintained national security not with a robust, expensive military, but through diplomacy, trade, and peaceful engagements with other countries (of course u.s. bases on their soil helps as a deterrent).

at this point, it's too late for the u.s. to go that route as the u.s. has already made itself a hated target. right now a large military is necessary considering the shit this country put itself in to over the years.

[angelofdeath]

i think we should model ourselves after switzerland, more than japan in the foreign policy arena.

[Dawood]

but, then it wouldn't be "america" now would it?

[tabloid-]

true....and more americans have died in the war in iraq...than on sept. 11th

What does 9-11 have to do w/ Iraq? ( other than Bush using them both in the same speach 1 bazillion times, but never really equating the two )

[stunt double]

What does 9-11 have to do w/ Iraq? ( other than Bush using them both in the same speach 1 bazillion times, but never really equating the two )

without september-11 bush could have never have rationalised a war in iraq. other than that, nothing really.

[CALIgula]

What does 9-11 have to do w/ Iraq? ( other than Bush using them both in the same speach 1 bazillion times, but never really equating the two )

see stunt doubles post.