Thread: The State Of The Union

One of the lies. These "tax breaks" mostly include technicalities, like the home-buying tax break etc. that lots of people are eligible for but won't get.

Politics are so polarized in the United States these days. It hasn't always been like this. Increasingly, we get our news from partisan news sources that each report different subsets of the facts, providing their own reliably partisan interpretations.

Instead of having rational discussions about how best to fix problems, we have tirades about why this or that politician is awful, and why it's the other party's fault. On some of our news sources, that's a great deal of what we see.

And you see the same irrational shouting at each other even on a straight razor forum. Sad. If we want our country to be continue to be great, we'd better get better at working with people who have a range of opinions, trying to understand how to fix our problems.

At any rate, I'm going to avoid getting into a heated argument with people who all carry very sharp razors ....

Originally Posted by Bootstrap

Politics are so polarized in the United States these days. It hasn't always been like this. Increasingly, we get our news from partisan news sources that each report different subsets of the facts, providing their own reliably partisan interpretations.

Instead of having rational discussions about how best to fix problems, we have tirades about why this or that politician is awful, and why it's the other party's fault. On some of our news sources, that's a great deal of what we see.

And you see the same irrational shouting at each other even on a straight razor forum. Sad. If we want our country to be continue to be great, we'd better get better at working with people who have a range of opinions, trying to understand how to fix our problems.

At any rate, I'm going to avoid getting into a heated argument with people who all carry very sharp razors ....

It has always been like this and always will be. Imo the only presidency where everyone agreed was the first, George Washington. If you look to the next election between Jefferson and Adams you will find a load of partisanship. Hamilton(big government) had his paper he was feeding information to and Jefferson(limited government) had his. (Boy how things have changed, since the republicans claim Hamilton and the Dems claim Jefferson) The only difference is that the general government at that time could not touch the populous at the individual level because they had limited government at the time, now the general government touches all our lives to an extent never before seen and seems to get more and more involved "for or own good" every year.

Most if not all the problems we have today were invented as a platform for a campaign, imo. Government can not solve them, but they are definitely good at promising to do so, if only we will cast our vote for them. Individualism is what made the US the great country that it is, the new form of government our founders set up on these shores is what has made this a great country, having the nanny state look over us from cradle to grave is what is destroying this country and will continue to do so. It is kind of funny that as we are running to make our government more european in nature, the europeans are making their governments more like us, the EU is basically how our government was at first, a collection of states(countries) grouped together presenting a unified front to other countries. France is even becoming more conservative than the U.S. as well as Germany. This whole two party thing is what gives politicians their out. We get caught up in arguing against this or that party and not against this or that policy, because from what ive seen both parties pretty much support the same policies any more.

BeBerlins post on totalitarian leaders being the only ones that can accomplish all that they want is completely true AFAIC, all we have to do is look to our history. We dont need to look to Hitler, and Stalin because we have Lincoln in ours.

I think if we all looked back at the state of the union and inaugral addresses of previous presidents(1st ten) and compared those to the latest speeches(last ten) we would be shocked at how far we have fallen, from Jeffersons where he states he is not qualified to be the pres. but would try the best he can, to now days when politicians believe they are the only ones that can save us if every one would just quit questioning them. (I forgot about the sedition act, so one or two of the first 10 would fit in pretty good with the latest ten). I'll get off my now.

Originally Posted by Bootstrap

Politics are so polarized in the United States these days.

It has always been this way in the USA because we have an adversarial type government and court system. Actually I think any free government has to be an adversarial system because when dealing with humans we have to have some approve and some disapprove any law that we have. The big difference today is that the people that disapprove think they have the right to cause anarchy because they don't get their way.....basically zealots, on both sides. Far Lefties spout their crap and begrudge anyone from disagreeing with them or they will burn down your cities like they tried to do in Copenhagen. Far Righties like that guy that killed the abortion doctor in his church is no better. To live in a society you have to accept the good with the bad and if you don't like it change it the best you can but don't burn down the society to get your way. That is just being the equivalent of a Jihadist and I don't think we should tolerate it. That means from anyone!


Later,
Richard

Originally Posted by Bootstrap

Instead of having rational discussions about how best to fix problems, we have tirades about why this or that politician is awful, and why it's the other party's fault. On some of our news sources, that's a great deal of what we see.

And you see the same irrational shouting at each other even on a straight razor forum. Sad.

Yes. This is what I've been pointing out for a long time. It's always the same people ranting and making new topics about their political beliefs, and they in turn are thanked by their lackies. Very sad, indeed.

Originally Posted by Bootstrap

Politics are so polarized in the United States these days. It hasn't always been like this. Increasingly, we get our news from partisan news sources that each report different subsets of the facts, providing their own reliably partisan interpretations.

Instead of having rational discussions about how best to fix problems, we have tirades about why this or that politician is awful, and why it's the other party's fault. On some of our news sources, that's a great deal of what we see.

And you see the same irrational shouting at each other even on a straight razor forum. Sad. If we want our country to be continue to be great, we'd better get better at working with people who have a range of opinions, trying to understand how to fix our problems.

At any rate, I'm going to avoid getting into a heated argument with people who all carry very sharp razors ....

You know what I like about this post? That unlike the dozens like it in so many past political threads, the "it's so bad that america is so polarized" isn't followed by five paragraphs of praising the poster's ideology and blaming the opposing one.

I congratulate you for not being a hypocrite like those posting along these lines before you.

Originally Posted by Bootstrap

.... It hasn't always been like this. ..... ....

Ya, at one time they would go outside and dual with pistols and one of them would get dead. Maybe we should bring that back.
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On another note ......

Now that is funny!


Richard