NowISeetheLight
NowISeetheLight's JournalI Got BANNED from posting at FoxNews.com!
I had an account there and enjoyed posting in the comments after articles. I'm a numbers guy so I always backed up my postings with actual data. It was always fun to refute some idiot Trumpite with actual numbers. I even posted a timeline of his Covid comments from the pandemics start (that was really fun). Anyway I logged in today and found I was no longer able to post anything. I was signed in on the website but anytime I tried to post it would say I was logged out. I emailed and got a reply back pretty quickly stating my posting was no longer permitted. Considering all the whining the right wing has done about "censorship" by companies like Facebook and Twitter I was very amused by this. They like to dish it out but they sure can't take it.
I think the post that got me banned was one in which I replied to a posting about how great Trump was with the reply he was an "unqualified, failed businessman with four bankruptcies, a history not paying his working class vendors, whose only claim to fame was his ability to self promote himself and being a reality TV star". Ouch.
VA Gov Youngkin under attack...
… from Republicans. Apparently he has an LGBTQ staffer. A capital crime for religious totalitarian conservatives.
https://news.yahoo.com/wingers-turn-glenn-youngkin-over-212716065.html
Real American History
One of the great shames of America is the treatment of Native Americans. I read this article today about a "federal Indian school" in Nebraska where over 100 students dies. The article notes how the students were separated from their families to remove "tribal influence", how they were given "white names", how they were forbidden to speak anything other than English, and how they were forced to covert to Christianity.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/nov/15/nebraska-native-american-boarding-school-students-died
While they're teaching about the American Revolution in school history class and about leaders like George Washington I think they also need to teach the other "real history" of America too. Don't call it "systemic racism" or "CRT" or anything like that. Just call it real American history.
Saving Social Security - A Winning Idea for Dems
I was thinking about things that could boost the Dems chances in the mid-terms. One thing kept coming to mind. SOCIAL SECURITY. It’s estimated by 2034 if nothing is done Social Security will only be able to pay out 78% of promised benefits. In 2020 the SS program had an $11b surplus but 2021 is the first year the program will pay out more than it takes in. Added to this is the fact the money is pooled in the general treasury where it can be used for anything. Remember the “Lock Box” idea?
I think the Dems next proposed bill should be called “THE SAVING SOCIAL SECURITY BILL”. I’ve been reading a lot of proposals for how to accomplish returning to a solvent trust fund. I think a combination of raising the payroll tax, raising the annual cap above the $142k amount (maybe not raising that but taxing any amount over say $400k a year with a two-tier structure), and raising the retirement age to 68 are all possible solutions. One article I read online (Motley Fool I think) mentioned a SS tax increase of 3.54% would do it alone. Divide that by two to see what the employee and employer would pay.
Social Security is the third rail of politics. If the Dems go all out to “SAVE IT” and publicize the fact they’re working to help Americans, they will find some extra votes and supporters. I also believe that you would see some moderate Republicans also support something like this just as a few supported the BIF. TV commercials, print adds, mailers to citizens in congressional districts, flooding the news with the plan. As an added benefit any Republican who opposes it could be said to be wanting to “eliminate Social Security” or “privatize it”. I remember years ago those arguments being made and how unpopular they were with the general public.
I also think part of this could be to increase the benefit for some citizens. Right now, someone who works until age 66 and two months (current age for full retirement) would receive a check of between $897 and $3148. I’d like to see the amount increased for lower earning beneficiaries. $897 is NOT enough to live on. The same goes for SSI (Supplemental Security Income) where the minimum benefit is $794 for a disabled person without enough work credits to qualify for SSDI. I read forums like Reddit and see people who are in their early 20’s with major health issues who are approved for SSI posting about their struggles. Years long waiting lists for housing, no money for food or utilities, needing medications that Medicaid won’t cover, things like that.
Anyone voting against it would be very unpopular come reelection time. I can even think of some “funny” TV commercials to run against the Republicans if they vote against it like Grandma dumpster diving for cans to buy food. Or maybe showing a future where someone gets a SS check that is cut by 25% because they didn't do anything. A Blitzkrieg campaign of publicity to trumpet a plan to SAVE SOCIAL SECURITY could be a WINNER.
Profile Information
Gender: Do not displayHometown: California
Home country: USA
Current location: California
Member since: Sun Aug 22, 2021, 10:54 PM
Number of posts: 3,943
