The Al Realpolitik Institute of Sulfur Mining & Extraction

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Since liberals can't understand anything that isn't in anecdote form, I'll explain this rather simple concept with a metaphor.

Raising taxes is like taking King's paycheck/welfare check/allowance (not sure which, most likely the third), and telling him that instead of spending it on useful, self-improving, productive things, he can only spend it on cheeseburgers and cheap pot.  Writ large, it is immensely damaging to the economy.

(oh, wait...)

[#CriminalizeSobriety]

Will the Republicans repeal the entire healthcare bill or will they replace it with something? Will they keep in popular provisions like covering people with pre-existing conditions or letting youngs stay on their parents insurance plan till they are 26? Are we going back to the "good ol' days" where people die due to lack of healthcare? What do you guys think?

Edit: People are probably still dying due to lack of Health insurance since major parts of the bill don't even go into effect till 2014. What a clusterf**k!

As opposed to the good new days when government bureaucrats decide that certain people with health insurance are to die in the name of cost containment.

Better to die at the hands of a bureaucrat who condemns you to death while trying to contain costs to a system that rightfully serves everyone...

Than to die at the hands of an insurance cost containment specialist who condemns you to death in order to boost profits for a bunch of rich/upper middle class share holders.

"Comrade Ivanov!" said Comrade Petrov, "32 miners died yesterday in the tunnel collapse.  I must admit that I fear for my own life.  Do such things happen in the Capitalist countries?"

"Stop thinking such nonsense, Comrade Petrov!" said Comrade Ivanov, "of course such things happen in the Capitalist countries.  Under our Socialist system, we all strive to provide the best for all the workers.  It is true that we did not have enough rescue equipment to save every worker trapped in that tunnel.  But this was not due to malice, merely the fact that our resources our limited and we must rightfully serve everyone.  By contrast, in a system of Capitalist wage-exploitation, the bourgeoisie, interested only in profiteering, deliberately denies the proletariat any advantage or protection they can keep from their workers.  Do you see the difference now?"

"I think I am beginning to understand now," said Comrade Petrov, "but what is the practical difference between me, a miner in a Socialist country, and a miner in a Capitalist country?"

Comrade Ivanov's jaw dropped.  "Surely you must be joking!" he said, "under Capitalism a mine owner maintains an exploitative relationship with his wage-laborers, in which they are forced to work for the lowest wage possible while the owner steals all the profits for himself.  By contrast, this mine is collectively owned by us, the workers.  We all work to produce as much as possible, and all the profits from our production are distributed among the workers as well.  So you see, in a capitalist country a miner is the lowest caste of society, forced into their position by exploitation.  Here, even some university-educated men become miners."

"But Comrade Ivanov," said Comrade Petrov, "I didn't choose to become a miner either..."

Comrade Ivanov guffawed.  "This is absurd!  How can you not realize that this is the most crucial and remarkable distinction between Capitalism and Socialism of all?  Capitalism forces the workers to labor, Socialism requires them to."

Comrade Petrov nodded his head.  "I understand all of that, but it still doesn't explain to me; why ought we not to complain about the deaths of those 32 miners?"

Comrade Ivanov smiled.  "That's simple," he said, "they died while we did all we could afford for them; it's not as if they died due to exploitation of any sort."

The foreman cocked his shotgun.  "You two!  Back to work!"

[#CriminalizeSobriety]

I have had enough of the insanity. In years past, I've been seen as an extreme right-winger, but I have come to realize perhaps I'm more establishment than I thought.

On the one hand, you have the far right. The few people in a debate audience who boo a gay soldier or wish that there was almost a non-existent Government. I'm all for small Government, and I do believe like Ronald Reagan said The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.' That having been said, you have the extremists and the Ron Paul crowd who go so far as to have a complete and utter non-interventionist policy to whereas if Palestinians were executing Israelis in the streets, he would say, "Let's stay out of it" and in a way he almost come across liberal. I think this is where he gets his mega-huge youth coalition from.

Then on the other end, you have people who have their party in power, a liberal President from Chicago who by all accounts is way more like a European leader than a typical American President, and they feel betrayed by him as if he isn't liberal enough! I saw two days ago on the news the protesters in New York on Wall Street. One of them was asked who they thought should be President. He responded, "Mao Zedong". He's a communist. We were at war with them just 20 years ago for goodness sake!

It's gotten to the point to where if Reagan were running today, he wouldn't be conservative enough, and we have a liberal Democratic president who isn't liberal enough! When does it stop?

The bold part is a pretty conservative idea actually. Its Liberal to be interventionalist. And why should we care anyway?

Because Naso is a typical RINO schmendrick.. Well not RINO by now since they've infested your party, but you get the idea. The idea of 'almost non-existent government' (by which he means constitutionally authorized government) gives him the vapors, never mind that.

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Well this is very kind of you. Thanks Senators.

It's nice to have you around again, even if only temporarily.


Thank you Senate for getting this passed. I can sleep in peace knowing that partisan hackery has been overwritten.

Mondale was too hackish for you. So you rename it after someone who supports a Communist coup here in Atlasia. Whether it's this, or the time you said you strangled a cat, I really don't think I'll ever understand just what goes through your head. But I don't want to, as I imagine it is absolutely terrifying.