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  • Not if the construction contracts were open for bidding.

    If the government directly hired tons of workers it would be a shit storm. It would be a long term problem too.
  • I think the bulk of the Republican base will disagree with you. The government paying anybody who's not a major corporation for anything is socialism according to them at this point. The Right has demonized the entire of concept of social programs past the point of no return with a subset of the population who will never be swayed back.
    News flash fellas: having taxes at all is Socialism. Regulating business under any circumstances is Socialism. Making emergency workers public sector is Socialism. This isn't only denied by the Republican party, but also the Democratic (which is the main reason I don't like them). Very few people have ever wanted true Capitalism -- Adam Smith himself didn't even want it, but rather advocated for adding its policies to the existing Mercantile society -- and most of them were contemporary with the Roman Empire. So can we just agree to embrace our fiscally socialist policies and commit to the bit?
  • Not if the construction contracts were open for bidding.

    If the government directly hired tons of workers it would be a shit storm. It would be a long term problem too.
    Unfortunately the construction contract system is a big part of why road maintenance is so appalling right now. I'm of the firm belief that if we revamped that bidding system we'd get a better product for a more competitive rate and my tires wouldn't explode from driving on the roads so regularly.
  • You know this and I know this. I'm not talking about the definitions of socialism. I'm talking about the rhetorical uphill battle.
  • Not if the construction contracts were open for bidding.

    If the government directly hired tons of workers it would be a shit storm. It would be a long term problem too.
    Unfortunately the construction contract system is a big part of why road maintenance is so appalling right now. I'm of the firm belief that if we revamped that bidding system we'd get a better product for a more competitive rate and my tires wouldn't explode from driving on the roads so regularly.
    Please do clarify as to specifically what's wrong with the current contract system and what changes you'd make to improve it. Not being sarcastic here, I'm honestly interested in hearing about any way to improve it as I also wish the maintenance was better.
  • ROE - you don't have state/town road work crews?
  • If jobs programs are socialism, the TSA is socialism. In fact, the TSA is worse because they are doing nothing of value whereas people to work on infrastructure will be performing a valuable service. Sort of like the military, government employees doing a valuable service. Guess the military is socialism.
  • ROE - you don't have state/town road work crews?
    From what I understand, they're contract employees hired by the state to do the work. They're not hired directly by the state, but there is an intermediary company that bids for and receives the contracts to do the road maintenance.
  • If jobs programs are socialism, the TSA is socialism. In fact, the TSA is worse because they are doing nothing of value whereas people to work on infrastructure will be performing a valuable service. Sort of like the military, government employees doing a valuable service. Guess the military is socialism.
    Again I'm not espousing what I believe, I'm talking about what's been programmed into the heads of the Romney base (for lack of a better term). Socialism = helping out citizens of the US in any way that isn't tied to the military or curbing their civil rights for their own good.
  • You know this and I know this. I'm not talking about the definitions of socialism. I'm talking about the rhetorical uphill battle.
    Who gives a shit about the rhetorical uphill battle? They're all lying corrupt fuckers. The only ones I'd vote for are Sanders and Obama. Noam Chomsky once wrote "I'd rather vote for what I want and not get it than vote for what I don't want and get it." Following that advice is the only way to achieve progress.
  • edited November 2012
    You know this and I know this. I'm not talking about the definitions of socialism. I'm talking about the rhetorical uphill battle.
    Who gives a shit about the rhetorical uphill battle? They're all lying corrupt fuckers. The only ones I'd vote for are Sanders and Obama. Noam Chomsky once wrote "I'd rather vote for what I want and not get it than vote for what I don't want and get it." Following that advice is the only way to achieve progress.
    Since you require a democratic vote to accomplish much in this country, you should care about the rhetorical uphill battle. It's relevant whether or not it should be. I'm not saying you should respect their views, I'm saying you have to deal with their views.

    Voting 3rd party without solving the marketing problem will only ever be cutting off your nose to spite your face.
    Post edited by muppet on
  • Airports do have the option to privatize their security.

    Military is military.
  • edited November 2012
    Airports do have the option to privatize their security.

    Military is military.
    Airports have the option to privatize their security at immense private cost, and there's another gotcha in that option that I have on the tip of my tongue but can't bring to mind just now.

    Plus there's this: http://blog.tsa.gov/2010/11/airports-who-opt-out-of-tsa-screening.html

    http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/06/30/security-catch-22-airports-can-opt-out-of-tsa-screeners-but-its-not-easy/

    Post edited by muppet on
  • If jobs programs are socialism, the TSA is socialism. In fact, the TSA is worse because they are doing nothing of value whereas people to work on infrastructure will be performing a valuable service. Sort of like the military, government employees doing a valuable service. Guess the military is socialism.
    I've given a lecture on why we need to get rid of the TSA for my homeland security class back in college.
  • Ditching the TSA seems to be one of the few things people of varied political stripes, left, right, and center, seem to agree upon. :)
  • Ditching the TSA seems to be one of the few things people of varied political stripes, left, right, and center, seem to agree upon. :)
    Except for the elected ones.
  • Ditching the TSA seems to be one of the few things people of varied political stripes, left, right, and center, seem to agree upon. :)
    Except for the elected ones.
    Those don't count. :P Well, okay, they do, but I was only referring to average Joes, not elected officials.

  • TSA just unionized. It will be here forever!
  • edited November 2012
    News flash fellas: having taxes at all is Socialism. Regulating business under any circumstances is Socialism. Making emergency workers public sector is Socialism. This isn't only denied by the Republican party, but also the Democratic (which is the main reason I don't like them). Very few people have ever wanted true Capitalism -- Adam Smith himself didn't even want it, but rather advocated for adding its policies to the existing Mercantile society -- and most of them were contemporary with the Roman Empire. So can we just agree to embrace our fiscally socialist policies and commit to the bit?
    That's an oversimplification, and plainly false in some regards.

    It's simply not true that taxes or business regulation are inherently "socialism"; moreover, the term "capitalism" applies to more than laissez-faire economics.
    Post edited by lackofcheese on
  • TSA just unionized. It will be here forever!
    True, but that doesn't mean it'll be in it's present form forever. One can turn the TSA into a useful apparatus without eliminating it.

  • Since you require a democratic vote to accomplish much in this country, you should care about the rhetorical uphill battle. It's relevant whether or not it should be. I'm not saying you should respect their views, I'm saying you have to deal with their views.

    Voting 3rd party without solving the marketing problem will only ever be cutting off your nose to spite your face.
    Democratic or democratic?
    That's an oversimplification, and plainly false in some regards.

    It's simply not true that taxes or business regulation are inherently "socialism"; moreover, the term "capitalism" applies to more than laissez-faire economics.
    A fair point, but I feel a need to say it anyway because the masses don't understand.
  • edited November 2012
    That's an oversimplification, and plainly false in some regards.

    It's simply not true that taxes or business regulation are inherently "socialism"; moreover, the term "capitalism" applies to more than laissez-faire economics.
    A fair point, but I feel a need to say it anyway because the masses don't understand.
    On that topic, this is fairly interesting.
    Post edited by lackofcheese on
  • Wow I've been agreeing with Chomsky all this time.
  • edited November 2012
    You ever seen this movie?


    It has one of the hokiest hacking scenes ever.
    Post edited by George Patches on
  • So I implemented some of the running suggestions today. I should have made it a very short run just to try to implement the suggestions, but I did not. I almost made it 4KM, but I think my legs are broken now. Broken as in busted, not broken as in fractured.

    Hopefully I can get my lower body replaced with a segway now.
  • Facebook has started exclusively recommending Chinese (as in living in China) people as friends again, so I decided to start friend requesting them. I've sent out ~30 so far, and two have been accepted. Both are single girls about my age, so things are looking good.
  • Facebook has started exclusively recommending Chinese (as in living in China) people as friends again, so I decided to start friend requesting them. I've sent out ~30 so far, and two have been accepted. Both are single girls about my age, so things are looking good.
    Look out, it may be a trap.
  • edited November 2012
    I like to think music helps me program but sometimes I get too busy rocking out to code.

    Edit: Wow, that is some weird grammar thing. Obviously I don't rock out to code.
    Post edited by Pegu on
  • Facebook has started exclusively recommending Chinese (as in living in China) people as friends again, so I decided to start friend requesting them. I've sent out ~30 so far, and two have been accepted. Both are single girls about my age, so things are looking good.
    Look out, it may be a trap.
    I assume I'm getting my account suspended as a swarm of Chinese kids click "Ignore" and "I don't know this person".
  • So I implemented some of the running suggestions today. I should have made it a very short run just to try to implement the suggestions, but I did not. I almost made it 4KM, but I think my legs are broken now. Broken as in busted, not broken as in fractured.

    Hopefully I can get my lower body replaced with a segway now.
    Hope you feel better soon.
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