Hmmm....this sounds familiar

[GT40FIED]

Ok...so normally I don't pay just a ton of attention to Amerika's economic policies. I'm usually more interested in foreign policies, healthcare, education, etc. But I listened to Bush talking the other day about his tax plan and listening to him ramble on it suddenly hit me...I've heard a rant like this before. It took me awhile to remember where, but then it hit me. It's just Reagan's "trickle down" theory. By arguing that somehow giving the rich MORE money will spur them to spend more (like they're not spending big already) and that will positively effect your bank account. Interesting theory...but ultimately wrong. Man...I was a little kid when Reagan was in office and even I know how big of a failure "Reaganomics" was. Well...at least if you weren't insanely wealthy. If you were then Reagan was your new god. The idea is to sell people on the idea that EVERYONE will have more money...when in reality Reagan made hordes of people homeless. So if it didn't work then, why bring it back now? Is there suddenly a shortage of homeless people to blame for problems? After watching economic reports lately, I would think our homeless levels are higher than normal already.

[IALuder]

hmmm, i never noticed. but then agian i dont listen to either one of them considering they both suck. im just waiting for korea to blow up the world. seeing how they are more of a threat then any other country at the moment.

but your right, bush and regan are similar in certian aspects. you cant blame bush for this shitty theory. its all congress and his administration. (scracasm)

[mavaaoife]

Eh im almost to the point i dont even wanna vote.. because of the sheer fact both candidates suck and this is probably one of the dirtiest races in history...

[Wren57]

Reaganomics a failure? Are you kidding? The economy exploded under Reagan; granted the deficit was high, the stock market and businesses were absolutely booming. Not to mention he HAD to run the deficit to outspend the Russians to WIN (note; he WON) the cold war. Now we are running a deficit fighting a war. If Reagan had backed down under pressure and NOT defeated cold-war Russia, things would be much different right now and America might still be in danger. In 20 years, people will say "If Bush had been voted out and Kerry in, Kerry would have folded to terror, and we would not have WON the war on terror and would be less safe than we are today." Think about it; it isn't hard.

[ebpda9]

what do u expect from someone that speaks at the same level as pbaeston ? oohh and he has an MBA. guess what ? all people i have seen with business majors are not that bright either.

[pdiggitydogg]

Ive heard others say that bush and reagan were similar as well.
Sure, the economy did explode, and then took a big fat shit because of it.
We didnt win the fucking cold war. Are you serious? Russia ran out of money. They chose food and survival over making more stupid bombs. I cant believe the cold "war" even happened....

Now, russia has so many missing bombs its laughable. Just like Robbin Williams said "In Russia we have many bombs........we dont know where they all are! But..."

[Wren57]

The "big fat shit" you refer to is also known as an economic cyclical correction; it is imperative that we have such corrections to keep inflation (over-expansion) under control. Capitalism, and thus the American economy, only thrives in a situation of expansion... thats just all there is to it; capitalism can simply not exist unless there is room to expand. If business just kept expanding rapidly, eventually it would expand to the point where it could not any more, and thus collapse. I'll take a 3 year correction (what we are in now) versus a total collapse of our economic institution (capitalism) any day.


Didn't win the cold war? Tell that to anyone that lived through it, anyone that lived in Florida during the Cuban Missle Crisis. It wasn't a conventional war we won, but a spending war, and yes, we won it; last I checked the Berlin Wall is down, the Red Scare is over, and we are allies with Russia; please correct any of that if you feel it is incorrect.

There are two trains of thought here. One sees history as a continuous, fluid motion and the other sees now as the only time that matters. We are not some unique generation that is going to be remembered as great; we are just another group of people weaving our lives around what is called history; life, existance, etc, are not snapshots; they are movies and we just have cameos.

[GT40FIED]

Well...Wren...you're right about one thing. The economy boomed...for people who had money. There were massive amounts of people, however, that the"trickle down" theory didn't trickle down for. As with almost any republican regime...err...administration, the rich got richer, the poor got poorer, and the middle class got ignored. I think the movie "Wall Street" perfectly captured exactly what was wrong with the Reagan era.

As for the cold war...I don't even look at it as something possible to win or lose. It was basically just a war of ideas...our own attempt to, once again, control what the rest of the world thought. Extending all the way down from the Mcarthy hearings into the '80s, we had to weed out communism because...well...we didn't like it. Sure, Russia was the main focal point, but what about Korea and Vietnam? The ONLY reasons we were there was because of communist regimes. sure, there was a huge lie about an attack in the Gulf of Tonkin that pushed us into Vietnam...but really it's all about ideology. We were so concerned with fighting ideas, we failed to respond appropriately to real problems like the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and the genocide in East Timor committed by Indonesia. Basically...to me...the cold war amounted to little less than a bunch of diplomats in back rooms measuring each other's dicks to see whose was bigger. The war ended when they put their dicks away. The only way you can have a war and not fire a shot is if it's a war of ideas.

[Violent Apathy]

Originally posted by hondaman-iac
what do u expect from someone that speaks at the same level as pbaeston ? oohh and he has an MBA. guess what ? all people i have seen with business majors are not that bright either.

That and he managed to run every business he owned into the ground till someone with lots of money came by and bailed him out hehe.

[GT40FIED]

Originally posted by highlander
In 20 years, people will say "If Bush had been voted out and Kerry in, Kerry would have folded to terror, and we would not have WON the war on terror and would be less safe than we are today." Think about it; it isn't hard.

Seriously man...where have you been? were you in a cave while away from HST? What war on terror? It's a soundbyte...something to make it sound like we're doing a good job at something rather than failing miserably at everything. Our actions and support of nations not much better than those we claim to be against (like our support for Israel which is absolutely shameful) if nothing else is solidifying future terrorists into a deep and brooding hatred for us. They don't "hate our freedom", as our dicta...err...president so charmingly put it. If they wanted freedom they could just move here. In reality they hate our ignorance, they hate the fact that we invade their countries and exploit them for our own use, and they hate our self righteous policies. The key is to try and understand these people. If force is necessary, so be it...but we aren't even trying anymore. Bush's war on terror is little less than a showcase of the weapons we've got ready for potential buyers (who will probably end up using them against us in the future).

[mavaaoife]

If kerry gets in the white house.. expect out first female president in 08- the second reign of hilary clinton

[GT40FIED]

Originally posted by Mycivicjust8u
If kerry gets in the white house.. expect out first female president in 08- the second reign of hilary clinton

Now see if that happened I'd vote republican. I can't stand that shrew.

[mavaaoife]

Guarenteed though.. She already had 8 years in office, Clinton was just the face Hilary spoke through... Kerry wins this year.. She will get atleast another 4 in 08... she is already starting her campaign for 08 now...