Gun control, liberals, and conservatives

Firearms have become one of the main polarizing issues between the parties. Almost on the level of the pro-life/pro-choice debate. On a national scale is seems clear cut: Republicans love guns and want your children to carry them to school every day. Democrats are evil dictators that want to take away your freedom. In reality, it’s not so simple.

It’s fairly easy to determine the thought processes of both candidates as it relates to the 2nd amendment:

Barack Obama on gun rights

John McCain on gun rights

My take, is that John McCain is not particularly anti gun control and Barack Obama is not particularly pro gun control. Yet, the NRA will spend millions this year telling people that Barack Obama will take away your guns. Does anyone really think that this is going to happen?

It seems to me, that both sides live in fear. The conservatives live in fear of government taking away their “freedom” while liberals live in a fear of the unknown.

Gun control is a tough subject for me, as I am a gun owner and see no problem with safe gun ownership. However, there are people out there who should not own firearms due to past or current mental and criminal issues. How can that be regulated? In a country with as many guns as we have, it would be very difficult to keep guns out of the criminals hands.

Americans own a lot of guns and that’s not going to change. We need to not let gun control cloud our judgement in the upcoming election. Single issue voting is never the answer.

Buy American!

That is all

Facts about Sarah Palin

Rather then fill the inter-tubes with partisan rhetoric (too late), I thought it would be a good idea to list out some of the facts about Sarah Palin. The focus will be on facts that either we don’t hear about very often, or ones that I find extremely telling about her. I will try to be as non-partisan as possible though it will be difficult for me.

Sarah Palin first applied for, and received a passport in 2006. This was her first visit outside of North America. She has traveled to Canada and Mexico in the past.

Sarah Palin does not support adding Polar Bears to the endangered species list. “[polar bears] are worthy of our utmost efforts to protect them and their Arctic habitat. But adding polar bears to the nation’s list of endangered species, as some are now proposing, should not be part of those efforts.”

Sarah Palin is in favor of banning books that have “inappropriate language” When she was elected Mayor of Wasilla she asked the city librarian Mary Ellen Baker how to go about banning certain books from the library. There does not appear to be a list of what those books were.

Sarah Palin wants Creationism taught in school. She suggests: “Teach both. You know, don’t be afraid of education. Healthy debate is so important, and it’s so valuable in our schools. I am a proponent of teaching both.”

Sarah Palin does not support explicit sex education in school.

From an interview with Eagle Forum Alaska:

Q: Will you support funding for abstinence-until-marriage education instead of for explicit sex-education programs, school-based clinics, and the distribution of contraceptives in schools?

SP: Yes, the explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support.

Sarah Palin supported a $150 bounty for the right front leg of a freshly killed wolf. This was part of the controversial predator control program.

Sarah Palin supported $400,000 in state money to be used in a PR campaign in support of aerial hunting of wolves. Even though Alaskan citizens voted to ban aerial hunting twice.

9/11/2001

I had only been at work for a few hours when a coworker told me that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. My first thought was that it was an accident, however, within minutes we knew that was not the case. All the websites of the major news sources were overloaded with traffic so we couldn’t get fresh information. We ended up connecting an antenna to one of our demo computers that had a TV tuner to watch what was going on.

As soon as the second plane hit, my first thought was Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda. Others in our call-center speculated wildly, but it was obvious that no one else would have been so bold. As the other impacts occurred at the Pentagon and the the crash of Flight 93, we knew that this was a watershed moment. When the first tower came down, it was almost more shocking then the initial impact. I never would have expected such a well designed building to fall so easily, though it makes perfect sense now. By the time the second tower fell I was too numb to be shocked.

I found it strange that people kept calling our call center for technical support as if nothing was going on. The calls were reduced, but there will still plenty of them. Eventually, I went home and watched the TV for a while, wondering if it was over and what was next. Several gas stations in the Twin Cities arbitrarily raised their prices to as high as $6/gallon. I slept fitfully and wondered if I’d be drafted into whatever war would come from this.

By the next morning, at work, it was almost as if nothing had happened. However, the TV stayed on and there was an uncomfortable tension everywhere I went. Call volumes were higher then normal as customers who had avoided calling in the previous day called for tech support. We all talked about how the world had changed.

The question we need to ask ourselves; is how did it change each of us individually?

“Now small fowls flew screaming over the yet yawning gulf; a sullen white surf beat against its steep sides; then all collapsed, and the great shroud of the sea rolled on as it rolled five thousand years ago.”

Every day I’m more afraid of organized religion

I apologize for the commercial prior to the video (by the way, I love the flag pin. He must be the most patriotic guy ever!!! But why isn’t it bigger? I think John Robert’s pin is bigger. Couldn’t he be more patriotic? He’s only got one pin. Wouldn’t 2 pins be more patriotic? I think an American flag tie might help, but only a little.)

McCain must embrace Palin’s beliefs, evangelical leader says

I seem to recall a separation of church and State vaguely implied in the Constitution…

Oh Yeah! I remember!

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…

Now, I understand that though this does not explicitly guarantee “separation of church and state” it’s very clear what it implies. We have a secular government that does not meddle in the affairs of religion. What this means to me, as it relates to the Presidential elections, is that if a voter thinks that the religious beliefs of the President are important, that’s great! They are welcome to imagine what they are. However, as the President oversees a secular nation *regardless of who’s religion is the most popular today*, the Presidential candidate should shut the hell up about their religious beliefs.

I honestly don’t care if John McCain is a Muslim or if Barack Obama is a devout Atheist and it shouldn’t matter to the American people.

How are you Catholics feeling? Oppressed? How about Methodists? Are you under-represented? How about Snake Handlers? Feel the President isn’t fondling enough of them? Could the Middle East crisis be handled by groping a few more snakes? Oops, the Catholics want to handle the Russia issue through the President drinking the transubstantiated blood of a 2000 year old dead guy. Can we do both? Is there time? There’s a Vikings game on at noon and I don’t know if I can cope with missing kick-off. Maybe we should just go with a quick prayer to God to smite the poor un-saved Muslims and maybe put in a good word for the Vikes. They could use a win and, after all, I’ve got a ten spot riding on it.

Here’s an idea…

Worry about policy and historical votes/behaviour. Not what some asshole tells you they believe.

McCain and Obama tax plans in detail

Now that the conventions are over and the blood and confetti has been washed from the streets, it’s time to look at some reals comparisons of the candidates. It can be hard to push through the rhetoric and just make the decision for yourself. Even at the candidates websites, their own detailed proposals are written in an overtly biased manner and spread out across multiple pages and categories.

John McCain has been pushing the oversimplified agenda of Obama = raise taxes, McCain = lower taxes. Unfortunately, it’s far more complicated on both sides. Please see the below for a quick comparison:

Look where Obama’s tax increases are and look where McCains tax cuts are. As you can see, there is a pretty obvious difference when it comes to income level. The most outstanding item, at first glance, is the tax increases in the Obama column on wage earners $600,000 and above. As it such a glaring difference, it might lead you to believe that McCain is correct about Obama being an evil “tax and spend” liberal. However, as none of you (well, at least 99% of you) are being affected by those tax increases, look at the rest of the graph.

If you cover up the top 2 tiers of the graph (less then 1% of wage earners) you can see where John McCains bread is buttered. The fact is, that the lower brackets will spend into the economy any tax breaks they receive, whereas the upper tax brackets will simply invest the funds in markets that will either harm the lower classes (i.e. fuel and farm commodity speculation) or possibly invest them in other markets or currencies doing better then the US at this stage there-by reducing our economic growth even more then before the tax cut. If anyone tells you that the average Joe will receive a penny of trickle-down from the rich, they’re blowing smoke up your ass.

Below is a table of the tax plans in detail. I think they speak for themselves. The biggest issue that affects the “Middle Class” is the removal of the cap on the Social Security tax in Obama’s plan. However, since it only affects families earning over $200,000, we’re only talking about 3% of wage earners. From the Tax Policy Center an easy to read analysis of McCain and Obama’s proposals.

	Barack Obama	John McCain
New Tax Cuts	Obama Refundable Making Work Pay tax credit of 6.2 percent of earnings up to a maximum of $8,100 Refundable Universal Mortgage Credit of 10 percent or mortgage interest for nonitemizers, capped at $800 ($8,000 of interest) Eliminate income tax for senior making less than $50,000 per year First-time buyers tax credit for new farmers Small Business and Microenterprise Initiative tax credit of 20 percent on up to $50,000 of investment in small owner-operated businesses	McCain Allow first-year deduction of 3 and 5-year equipment, deny interest deductions (expires) Reduce maximum corporate tax rate from 35 to 25 percent Increase the dependent exemption by 70 percent Suspend the federal gas tax (18.4 cents per gallon from this Memorial Day until Labor Day
Adjustments to Existing Credits	Make R&D and renewable enery production tax credit (wind, solar) permanent Extend childless EITC phase-in range and increase phaseout threshold, double the phase-in and phase-out rates for childless individuals paying child support, increase EITC phase-in rate to 45 percent for families with three or more children; increase add-on to EITC phase-out threshold for married filers to $5,000 Make CDCTC refundable and allow low-income families to receive up to a 50 percent credit for child care expenses Make saver’s credit refundable and change to a 50 percent match of the first $1,000 of savings, phases out beginning before $75,000 Increase Hope credit 100% match rate to $4,000 for college education and make refundable, rename American Opportunity Tax Credit Mandate automatic 401(k)s and automatic IRAs	Convert R&D credit to 10 percent of wages incurred for R&D, make permanent
Capital Gains	Increase maximum capital gains rate to 20 percent Require information reporting of basis for gains Eliminate capital gains taxation of start-up businesses and provide capital gains tax break for landowners selling to beginning family farmers	Keep the current rates on dividends and capital gains
Bush Tax Cuts	Permanently extend marriage penalty relief, adoption credit expansions, 10,15,25, and 28% rates, EITC simplification Restore 36 and 39.6% statutory income tax rates, Restore PEP and Pease phaseouts for households making more than $250,000, increase in PEP and Pease threshold	Make permanent all provisions other than the estate tax repeal
Alternative Minimum Tax	Extend and index 2007 AMT patch	Extend and index 2007 AMT patch, further increase exemption by 5 percent in excess of inflation after 2013 (temporarily)
Estate Tax	Make permanent estate tax with $3.5 million exemption and 45 percent rate	Make permanent estate tax with $5 million exemption and 15 percent rate
Simplification	Give taxpayers the option of pre -filled tax forms to verify, sign, return to IRS	Give taxpayers the option of an alternative tax system with two rates and a larger standard deduction and personal exemption
Revenue Raisers and Tax Havens	Eliminate oil and gas loopholes Close loopholes in the corporate tax deductibility of CEO pay Tax carried interest as ordinary, Increase the highest bracket for capital gains and dividends Reallocate multinational tax deductions Codify economic substance doctrine Create international tax haven watch list Other unspecified revenue raising provisions	Eliminate oil and gas loopholes Unspecified corporate base broadeners Eliminate earmarked projects from the budget, freeze nonmilitary discretionary spending for one year, eliminate programs
Health	Income-related federal tax subsidies for health insurance	Replace exclusion from income for employer sponsored health insurance with refundable credit of $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families
Other	Social Security/payroll taxes: impose additional tax of 2-4 percent (combined employer and employee) on workers with income above $200,000 ($250,000 for married couples)	Require a 3/5 majority vote in Congress to raise taxes Ban internet and cell phone taxes Higher premiums for Medicare prescription drug coverage for single people earning more than $82,000 and couples earning more than $164,000

Sarah Palin’s speech at the RNC

Until Palin gave this speech, I didn’t realize how irritating she really was. Though I disagree with almost everything she stands for, I didn’t think she had the most annoying trait of all: A Minnesota accent. Though I am a Minnesotan, I find the stereotypical North Dakota/Minnesota accent extremely grating, even more then a strong southern drawl. That’s enough for me to hate her.

However, so as to not make this an entirely personal attack, below is a link to a detailed fact check of Palin’s speech last night by Mark Kleiman.

Palin V. Reality

Excerpts:

“PALIN: “In fact, I told Congress — I told Congress, ‘Thanks, but no thanks,’ on that bridge to nowhere.”

REALITY: PALIN WAS FOR THE BRIDGE TO NOWHERE BEFORE SHE WAS AGAINST IT.

October 2006” Palin Supported Bridge To Nowhere. In 2006, Palin was asked, “Would you continue state funding for the proposed Knik Arm and Gravina Island bridges?” She responded, “Yes. I would like to see Alaska’s infrastructure projects built sooner rather than later. The window is now–while our congressional delegation is in a strong position to assist.” [Anchorage, 10/22/06, republished 08/29/08]

2006: Palin: Don’t Allow “Spinmeisters” To Turn Bridge To Nowhere Project “Into Something That’s So Negative.” “Part of my agenda is making sure that Southeast is heard. That your projects are important. That we go to bat for Southeast when we’re up against federal
influences that aren’t in the best interest of Southeast.’ She cited the widespread negative attention focused on the Gravina Island crossing project. ‘We need to come to the defense of Southeast Alaska when proposals are on the table like the bridge and not allow the
spinmeisters to turn this project or any other into something that’s so negative,’ Palin said.” [Ketchikan Daily News, 10/2/06]“

“PALIN: “But we are expected to govern with integrity, and goodwill, and clear convictions…”

REALITY: PALIN UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR ABUSE OF POWER.

Former State Official Accused Palin, Palin’s Former Chief of Staff and Current Ted Stevens Campaign Manager and Palin’s Husband Of Pressuring Him to Fire Trooper. In July 2008, former state official Walt Monegan accused Palin, Palin’s former Chief of Staff and current Stevens’ campaign manager Mike Tibbles and husband Todd Palin of pressuring him to fire Palin sister’s ex-husband Mike Wooten. [Anchorage Daily News, 07/18/08]

July 2008: Special Counsel Appointed Last Month to Investigate Palin Abuse of Power Claim. In July 2008, the Alaska State Legislator voted 12-0 to approve $100,000 for a special investigator to begin an investigation into claims Palin fired a former state official because he would not fire a state trooper who was involved in a bitter custody battle with Palin’s sister. The legislator’s intent was to investigate the events surrounding the termination of former Dept. of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan and potential abuses of power and improper action by Palin and her administration. [KTVA 11, 07/28/08]“

“PALIN: “ But listening to him speak, it’s easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform – not even in the state senate.”

REALITY: OBAMA PASSED THE MOST SWEEPING REFORMS SINCE WATERGATEIN BOTH THE ILLINOIS AND US SENATES, AMONG OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Obama Helped Pass The 2007 Ethics Reform Law, Which Curbed The Influence Of Lobbyists And Was Described As The “Most Sweeping Since Watergate.” In the first week of the 110th Congress, Obama joined with Senator Feingold to introduce a “Gold Standard” ethics package. Many of the Obama/Feingold bill’s most important provisions were included in the final ethics reform package passed by the Senate in late January: a full ban on gifts and meals from lobbyists including those paid by the firms that employ lobbyists; an end to subsidized travelon corporate jets; full disclosure of who’s sponsoring earmarks and for what purpose; additional restrictions to close the revolving door between public service and lobbying to ensure that public service isn’t all about lining up a high-paying lobbying job; and requiring lobbyists to disclose the contributions that they “bundle” – that is, collect or arrange – for members of Congress, candidates, and partycommittees. In January 2007, the Washington Post wrote in aneditorial that “…Mr. Reid, along with Sens. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.), deserves credit for assembling and passing this package.” In September 2007, the AP reported, “President Bushsigned a bill Friday that will require lawmakers to disclose more about their efforts to fund pet projects and raise money from lobbyists, a measure that backers call the biggest ethics reform in decades…Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. who had pushed for the bundlingprovisions and was one of four lawmakers who participated in a Democratic conference call to reporters said the measure marks “themost sweeping ethics reform since Watergate.” [S. 230, 110thCongress; S.1, Became Public Law 109-110-81, 9/14/07; AP, 9/15/07;TheWashington Post, Editorial, 1/21/07]

Obama Passed Illinois State Gift Ban Act “Heralded As the MostSweeping Good-Government Legislation in Decades.” In 1998, Obama passed the Illinois Gift Ban that prohibited legislators, state officers and employees, and judges from soliciting or receiving gifts from a person or entity with interests affected by government. The Chicago Tribune wrote, “Gov. Jim Edgar signed into law Wednesday anethics and campaign finance package heralded as the most sweeping good-government legislation in decades.” The law also required greater campaign finance disclosure and limited the uses for which raisedmoney could be spent. Obama said, “I have seen a general cynicism from taxpayers about government. They believe they have no influence on the process since they don’t have the money of special interest groups. With the gift ban and the ban on Springfield fund-raisers that are contained in this legislation, I think at least some of thisconfidence will be restored.” [HB672, 3R P 52-4-1, 5/22/98; PA90-0737, 8/12/98; Chicago Tribune, 8/13/98; Chicago Independent Bulletin, 6/4/98]

Ø Illinois Ethics Bill Most Far Reaching Since Watergate,Product Of Bipartisan Work. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote ofObama’s bill, “The ethics restrictions would be the most far-reaching since the Watergate-era campaign financial disclosure law. They are the product of months of negotiations among two lawmakers of each party, other state officials and Mike Lawrence. He is an aide toformer Sen. Paul Simon, a Democrat, and used to be an aide to Edgar, a Republican.” [St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 5/24/98]…”

Mike Murphy and Peggy Noonan Trip over Live Mics on MSNBC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq4sOM4tpno

It’s pretty obvious that there’s no focus, excitement, or passion behind the McCain campain. I hate to say it, but I would have voted for him a decade ago, when he wasn’t a party hack. Now he’s voting over 95% along party lines and pretending he’s still a maverick. It’s depressing.

At any rate, for those who don’t know, Peggy Noonan wrote the “Boys of Pointe du Hoc” speech for Reagan as well as the post-Challenger disaster speach link. She also was origin of G.H.W. Bush’s “a kinder, gentler, nation” quote. She now has declared the McCain campaign officially over. She obviously belives in John McCain, as I once did, but it seems to me that she no longer believes in the decisions of the party.

Transcript:

Chuck Todd: Mike Murphy, lots of free advice, we’ll see if Steve Schmidt and the boys were watching. We’ll find out on your blackberry. Tonight voters will get their chance to hear from Sarah Palin and she will get the chance to show voters she’s the right woman for the job Up next, one man who’s already convinced and he’ll us why Gov. Jon Huntsman.

(cut away)

Peggy Noonan: Yeah.

Mike Murphy: You know, because I come out of the blue swing state governor world: Engler, Whitman, Tommy Thompson, Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush. I mean, these guys — this is how you win a Texas race, just run it up. And it’s not gonna work. And –

PN: It’s over.

MM: Still McCain can give a version of the Lieberman speech to do himself some good.

CT: I also think the Palin pick is insulting to Kay Bailey Hutchinson, too.

PN: Saw Kay this morning.

CT: Yeah, she’s never looked comfortable about this –

MM: They’re all bummed out.

CT: Yeah, I mean is she really the most qualified woman they could have turned to?

PN: The most qualified? No! I think they went for this — excuse me– political bullshiat about narratives –

CT: Yeah they went to a narrative.

MM: I totally agree.

PN: Every time the Republicans do that, because that’s not where they live and it’s not what they’re good at, they blow it.

MM: You know what’s really the worst thing about it? The greatness of McCain is no cynicism, and this is cynical.

CT: This is cynical, and as you called it, gimmicky.

MM: Yeah.

Why national healthcare is as important as a strong military

From a thread on Fark

redneckgeek: I missed the part where the founding fathers said I had to take care of your sorry ass.

Rob.D: That’s what citizens do. That take care of each other in bad times.
That’s why someone’s granddad died in Manila in 1943.
That’s why you should be willing to take care of someone if they get the C.
Most of you have forgot about being citizens and simply consider yourselves taxpayers.
Link

It’s nice to see an non-financial based argument regarding nationalized medicine. Too often, the focus is on the cost of national health care or a feeling of entitlement. It is not an individual entitlement for a citizen to receive health care, it is a responsibility of a citizen to ensure that all people receive the help they need.

The more I hear about Joe Biden, the more I respect him

Biden on 9/10/01 warned the ‘real threat’ may come in ‘the belly of a plane’

“We will have diverted all that money to address the least likely threat while the real threats come into this country in the hold of a ship, or the belly of a plane, or are smuggled into a city in the middle of the night in a vial in a backpack.”

I’m shocked that I haven’t heard this quote before. Especially in that Condoleezza Rice received so much criticism for ignoring the “Bin Laden determined to attack” memo. Wouldn’t it be nice to be forward looking instead of locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen? Now we’re pushing missile defense again.

Sigh…