Yeah, this. Holy crap he told the truth! Quick, let's make him a pariah!
In all honesty, how many representatives do you think feel like this and just don't say it? The travesty should not be that he dared to say it out loud; it should be that the sentiment exists. Unfortunately all the outrage is going to do is encourage people to be more careful about what they say; it will not change their worldviews.
I think it's the way that he said it. With all of the vague "plans" and complaints that the Republicans have been pitching, throwing a specific number like 47% can be disputed extremely easily. Calling the US a welfare state can easily be dismissed as sensationalized political speech, saying that a group composed of low income households, retirees who rely on benefits, and minors maintain jobs are afraid of reform is a statement he attempted to pass off as a fact and now must either stand by or appear timid and stupid.
I was cynical of the political impact regarding Romney's comments after the Middle Eastern protests began, but this is something that steers the campaign back to a sensitive scenario and gives the GOP a definitive disadvantage in the conversation.
Not really Steve. Compare the two statements made: (completely stolen from Sean on my facebook)
"But the truth is that our challenge is to get people persuaded that we can make progress when there's no evidence of that in their daily lives. You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, Ohio—like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years, and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration and the Bush administration. And each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are going to regenerate. And they have not. So it's not surprising then that they get bitter, and they cling to guns or religion, or antipathy toward people who aren't like them, or anti-immigrant sentiment, or, you know, anti-trade sentiment [as] a way to explain their frustrations. Now, these are in some communities. You know, I think what you'll find is that people of every background—there are going to be a mix of people. You can go in the toughest neighborhood, you know, working-class lunch-pail folks, and you'll find Obama enthusiasts. And you can go into places where you’d think that I'd be very strong, and people will just be skeptical. The important thing is that you show up and you're doing what you're doing." (Obummer)
This is an inclusive message, describing that these communities haven fallen through (the cracks) and that people have turned to guns and religion and "clinged to" them. That's a fair point. Compare that to this:
"There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right? There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement, and that government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. I mean, the president starts off with 48, 49—he starts off with a huge number. These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax. So our message of low taxes doesn’t connect." (Romneybot)
This is an exclusionary statement. It hinges on the notion that there is an "us" versus "them".
Funny part about this whole thing is my dad made Romney's point in a conversation OVER the weekend... saying that once the government is paying over 50% of the population it's game over... Wish I had that chart showing the states who have the most people paying 0 income tax....
Income tax is not the only federal revenue-generating tax. Why do people not understand this?
I quit.
BECAUSE NO ONE UNDERSTANDS THE TAXES THEY PAY!!! Think about how many cry about how they can't do their taxes come April when for most people it's nothing greater than simple algebra.
Yesterday I had a school superintendent try to justify a purchase by saying he only spent federal grants -- not tax money -- on something that was questionable. News reporting double sucks during election season because you have to wade through 100 times the bullshit rhetoric for everything, no matter how small.
Yesterday I had a school superintendent try to justify a purchase by saying he only spent federal grants -- not tax money -- on something that was questionable. News reporting double sucks during election season because you have to wade through 100 times the bullshit rhetoric for everything, no matter how small.
Yes, because Federal money falls from the skies in big bushels held by naked ladies.
Income tax is not the only federal revenue-generating tax. Why do people not understand this?
I quit.
BECAUSE NO ONE UNDERSTANDS THE TAXES THEY PAY!!! Think about how many cry about how they can't do their taxes come April when for most people it's nothing greater than simple algebra.
Think about how hard it is to split a bill at a restaurant. I know people who call it "advanced math." *facepalm* (why I LOVE eating out w you guys.)
Income tax is not the only federal revenue-generating tax. Why do people not understand this?
I quit.
BECAUSE NO ONE UNDERSTANDS THE TAXES THEY PAY!!! Think about how many cry about how they can't do their taxes come April when for most people it's nothing greater than simple algebra.
Think about how hard it is to split a bill at a restaurant. I know people who call it "advanced math." *facepalm* (why I LOVE eating out w you guys.)
A couple years back I taught my dad how to calculate his own tip, mentally. He really appreciated it. My dad is one of the best surgeons in the midwest, by case success rating.
Quite a lot people suck at math, regardless of how smart they are. It's not even that they're bad at actual advanced math (I can talk to my dad about metabolic half-life and stuff just fine), but I think it's more like people aren't that great at mental math, especially with what feels like trivial stuff.
Well, I can understand the difficulty in mental math given how mathematics is taught using pencil and paper in the vast majority of schools. Remove the pencil and paper and some people just kinda shut down.
I like to think I'm pretty good at mental math, but it wasn't through any thing anyone taught me. It was a combination of trying to do a lot of the pencil and paper techniques in my head instead of on paper as well as discovering/figuring out/etc. various other tricks and shortcuts. For example, I went out of my way to carry numbers in my head as opposed to writing them down on paper when doing math that involved carrying in school. I also often to break down mental calculations into things that I know I can do quickly in my head, such as multiplication/division by 10 and/or 2 combined with addition, to solve other problems. However, none of this was stuff I learned in school -- it was all stuff I learned/figured out on my own.
so carry a pen with you, or use the calculator on a cell phone. Or practice. Sure one can be slow at mental math.. doesn't make calculating one's fair share of dinner impossible or "advanced".
so carry a pen with you, or use the calculator on a cell phone. Or practice. Sure one can be slow at mental math.. doesn't make calculating one's fair share of dinner impossible or "advanced".
Oh, I agree. It's no excuse for not being able to calculate your share at dinner... I mean, it's all simple addition, division, and multiplication. The only potentially annoying calculation is if you itemize everything based on who ordered what, but that's less a math problem and more a bookkeeping problem. Either way, once you figure out how you're going to divide up the check, the actual mathematical calculations to do so are simple. Even the tip isn't that rough. You can either use my trick (assuming a 15% tip, divide the total by 10, take half of that, and add up the two numbers to get 15%), my wife's trick (again, assuming 15%, divide the total by 7 and round up), or perhaps another trick I haven't heard of and the calculations are all pretty simple.
My tip trick is to move the decimal to the left one place, and multiply by two.
That's pretty much my trick for 20% tips (dividing by 10 can be accomplished by just moving the decimal point left one place, hence why I use it). However, either I'm just a really cheap bastard, or what's considered an appropriate tip for "competent, but not stellar service" has gone up to 20% from 15% (then again, I remember when 10% was considered appropriate, so what do I know).
My tip trick is to move the decimal to the left one place, and multiply by two.
That's pretty much my trick for 20% tips (dividing by 10 can be accomplished by just moving the decimal point left one place, hence why I use it). However, either I'm just a really cheap bastard, or what's considered an appropriate tip for "competent, but not stellar service" has gone up to 20% from 15% (then again, I remember when 10% was considered appropriate, so what do I know).
You ARE a cheap bastard. :-)
I tend to tip 30% as long as the waitress doesn't spill a drink on me because I know that in all likelihood she's getting stiffed by most other people. If I can afford to go out, I can afford to tip.
I double the tax. It's easy but it only works if you have about 8% tax.
Edit: Thats how i figure 15% I generaly tip closer to 25% unless the restaurant was really pricey. Pizza Delivery guys get 2 bucks plus a buck a pizza if more than 2 pies.
Further, I worked in food service long enough to know when someone is really doing an awesome job despite having way way too many tables. It's a personal annoyance of mine when friends don't recognize that the wait-staff is handling more than their fair share and is genuinely putting forth a lot of effort. I'm not opposed to leaving $5 on a $10 meal when I know they're doing a commendable job.
Bar tabs are different. I'm more of a $1-$2 per drink person. It's not a percentage there.
And pizza guy gets $4-$5 because I know I'm a little out of the way.
And pizza guy gets $4-$5 because I know I'm a little out of the way.
I'm pretty sure the local delivery places hate me because I never give them a tip. Granted, most of the places I order from are less than ten minutes away. If they had to trek more than that I'd give them something.
And pizza guy gets $4-$5 because I know I'm a little out of the way.
I'm pretty sure the local delivery places hate me because I never give them a tip. Granted, most of the places I order from are less than ten minutes away. If they had to trek more than that I'd give them something.
Not tipping a delivery guy is the height of shittiness. You've probably consumed your share of delivery guy spit and/or funk as you become infamous for not tipping.
However, either I'm just a really cheap bastard, or what's considered an appropriate tip for "competent, but not stellar service" has gone up to 20% from 15% (then again, I remember when 10% was considered appropriate, so what do I know).
You ARE a cheap bastard. :-)
I tend to tip 30% as long as the waitress doesn't spill a drink on me because I know that in all likelihood she's getting stiffed by most other people. If I can afford to go out, I can afford to tip.
30% is higher than what most tip etiquette sites suggest. I rarely go over 25% for exemplary service. In general, while I calculate 15% for "standard" service, it usually comes up to be somewhere between 15-20% due to rounding. I also include tax (rightly or wrongly?) in my tip calculation, which may make it a bit higher than normal.
I also nearly always pay for my tip in cash (and write "CASH" on the tip line on the check), even if I pay the main part of the bill with a credit card.
As far as delivery orders, I typically do a standard $5 tip for every delivery order I get, though I have yet to actually order anything really huge that I feel would justify anything more.
And pizza guy gets $4-$5 because I know I'm a little out of the way.
I'm pretty sure the local delivery places hate me because I never give them a tip. Granted, most of the places I order from are less than ten minutes away. If they had to trek more than that I'd give them something.
Not tipping a delivery guy is the height of shittiness. You've probably consumed your share of delivery guy spit and/or funk as you become infamous for not tipping.
As far as delivery orders, I typically do a standard $5 tip for every delivery order I get, though I have yet to actually order anything really huge that I feel would justify anything more.
Do you still tip a full $5 if the restaurant already has a delivery fee? I would feel a little ripped off tipping $5 when the pizza place is already charging me $3 bring it.
I roll 15%, but I'm usually out with friends anyway, so we just yell at each other, figure a flat amount per person, and then go get drunk and watch Harry Potter.
Comments
I was cynical of the political impact regarding Romney's comments after the Middle Eastern protests began, but this is something that steers the campaign back to a sensitive scenario and gives the GOP a definitive disadvantage in the conversation.
"But the truth is that our challenge is to get people persuaded that we can make progress when there's no evidence of that in their daily lives. You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, Ohio—like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years, and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration and the Bush administration. And each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are going to regenerate. And they have not. So it's not surprising then that they get bitter, and they cling to guns or religion, or antipathy toward people who aren't like them, or anti-immigrant sentiment, or, you know, anti-trade sentiment [as] a way to explain their frustrations. Now, these are in some communities. You know, I think what you'll find is that people of every background—there are going to be a mix of people. You can go in the toughest neighborhood, you know, working-class lunch-pail folks, and you'll find Obama enthusiasts. And you can go into places where you’d think that I'd be very strong, and people will just be skeptical. The important thing is that you show up and you're doing what you're doing." (Obummer)
This is an inclusive message, describing that these communities haven fallen through (the cracks) and that people have turned to guns and religion and "clinged to" them. That's a fair point. Compare that to this:
"There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right? There are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe that government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement, and that government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. I mean, the president starts off with 48, 49—he starts off with a huge number. These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax. So our message of low taxes doesn’t connect." (Romneybot)
This is an exclusionary statement. It hinges on the notion that there is an "us" versus "them".
I quit.
Quite a lot people suck at math, regardless of how smart they are. It's not even that they're bad at actual advanced math (I can talk to my dad about metabolic half-life and stuff just fine), but I think it's more like people aren't that great at mental math, especially with what feels like trivial stuff.
I like to think I'm pretty good at mental math, but it wasn't through any thing anyone taught me. It was a combination of trying to do a lot of the pencil and paper techniques in my head instead of on paper as well as discovering/figuring out/etc. various other tricks and shortcuts. For example, I went out of my way to carry numbers in my head as opposed to writing them down on paper when doing math that involved carrying in school. I also often to break down mental calculations into things that I know I can do quickly in my head, such as multiplication/division by 10 and/or 2 combined with addition, to solve other problems. However, none of this was stuff I learned in school -- it was all stuff I learned/figured out on my own.
A) Get 10% of total
C) Problem solved
I tend to tip 30% as long as the waitress doesn't spill a drink on me because I know that in all likelihood she's getting stiffed by most other people. If I can afford to go out, I can afford to tip.
Edit: Thats how i figure 15% I generaly tip closer to 25% unless the restaurant was really pricey. Pizza Delivery guys get 2 bucks plus a buck a pizza if more than 2 pies.
Further, I worked in food service long enough to know when someone is really doing an awesome job despite having way way too many tables. It's a personal annoyance of mine when friends don't recognize that the wait-staff is handling more than their fair share and is genuinely putting forth a lot of effort. I'm not opposed to leaving $5 on a $10 meal when I know they're doing a commendable job.
Bar tabs are different. I'm more of a $1-$2 per drink person. It's not a percentage there.
And pizza guy gets $4-$5 because I know I'm a little out of the way.
I also nearly always pay for my tip in cash (and write "CASH" on the tip line on the check), even if I pay the main part of the bill with a credit card.
As far as delivery orders, I typically do a standard $5 tip for every delivery order I get, though I have yet to actually order anything really huge that I feel would justify anything more.