Interesting read on the U.S. govt.

[Jeremy]

I found this on the internet by Rush Limbaugh. He makes some great points. In my opinion the U.S. government is the most mismanaged and corrupt organization in the world.

I think the vast differences in compensation between victims of the September 11 casualty and those who die serving our country in Uniform are profound. No one is really talking about it either, because you just don't criticize anything having to do with September 11. Well, I can't let the numbers pass by because it says something really disturbing about the entitlement mentality of this country.

If you lost a family member in the September 11 attack, you're going to get an average of $1,185,000. The range is a minimum guarantee of $250,000, all the way up to $4.7 million. If you are a surviving family member of an American soldier killed in action, the first check you get is a $6,000 direct deat h benefit, half of which is taxable.

Next, you get $1,750 for burial costs. If you are the surviving spouse, you get $833 a month until you remarry. And there's a payment of $211 per month for each child under 18. When the child hits 18, those payments come to a screeching halt.

Keep in mind that some of the people who are getting an average of $1.185 million up to $4.7 milli on are complaining that it's not enough Their deaths were tragic, but for most, they were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Soldiers put themselves in harms way FOR ALL OF US, and they and their families know the dangers.

We also learned over the weekend that some of the victims from the Oklahoma City bombing have started an organization asking for the same deal that the September 11 families are getting. In addition to tha t, some of the families of those bombed in the embassies are now asking for compensation as well.

You see where this is going, don't you? Folks, this is part and parcel of over 50 years of entitlement politics in this country. It's just really sad. Every time a pay raise comes up for the military, they usually receive next to nothing of a raise. Now the green machine is in combat in the first place in The Middle East while their families have to survive on food stamps and live in low-rent housing. Does this make sense?

However, in our own country-region, Congress voted themselves a raise. Many of you don't know that they only have to be in Congress one time to receive a pension that is more than $15,000 per month. And most are now equal to being millionaires plus. They do not receive Social Security on retirement because they didn't have to pay into the system. If some of the milit ary people stay in for 20 years and get out as an E-7, they may receive a pension of $1,000 per month, and the very people who placed them in harm's way receives a pension of $15,000 per month.

I would like to see our elected officials pick up a weapon and join ranks before they start cutting out benefits and lowering pay for our sons and daughters who are now serving our country. When do we finally do something about this?" If this doesn't seem fair to you, it is time to forward this to as many people as you can.

[xpertadvice4u]

Originally Posted by Jeremy

I found this on the internet by Rush Limbaugh. He makes some great points. In my opinion the U.S. government is the most mismanaged and corrupt organization in the world.

The level of *denial* among Americans is incredible when it comes to this issue, as it pertains to the whole society, not just the federal government.

I absolutely agree, also, with criticisms of the "entitlement" mentality - which seems to be so prevalent among so many people.

But, that sense of entitlement kind of goes hand in hand with the system - that everybody is entitled to grab their piece of whatever pie is available, and first come first served....who cares if it is maybe a bit unethical, as long as it is not specifically illegal.

I am a harsh critic of most things military, and totally against the way the US has conducted itself, and its military in the past few decades (with the exceptions of Kuwait and the Bosnian/Croatian nightmare).

I am one of those who jokes that Military Intelligence is an oxymoron.

But, dammit, those people who *serve* need to be treated a hell of a lot better than they are, and, while I disagree with the geo-political goals of their sacrifice, I have to respect the NATURE of their personal sacrifice.

They are like the cops, in my mind...we absolutely *must* have such people to rely upon in order for our societies to survive. And we need to respect that function...but not necessarily to the level of uncritical "hero worship."

There is so much hypocrisy and hype and BS tied up in the Patriotism issue, and we just allow these young (and older) men and women to be used as fodder.

So, yeah, I want to see them taken better care of by the people who benefit from their blood, sweat and tears; and the way they have been neglected borders on "criminal," almost.

BUT....I guess the other side of the argument is that these are folks who *volunteer* to possibly get killed, which takes them out of the "Victim" category, to some degree.

The folks at the WTC did not volunteer to be victimized by the terrorists.
Their families did not *know* when they failed to kiss them goodbye that morning that they would never get another chance.

It was pretty hard for them to have avoided that situation.

And, I think that this tends to mitigate the the feeling of a need for compensation, when it comes to soldiers, and their surviving families.

When you kiss your boy goodbye at the station as he leaves for Iraq, you know there is a high risk you will never see him again....in one piece.

But, there has to be some sort of line drawn, where "enough is enough" with regards to victim compensation of all categories.

And, I think we passed that with the WTC families some time ago.

Don't forget, their victimization - and compensation - was something that went hand in hand with the outrage that was necessary to stoke the fires of war in Afghanistan and Iraq...and it helped dupe people into thinking that an illegal invasion of a sovereign nation like Iraq was the right thing to do, even though International Law and most of the rest of the world disagreed.

American leaders had to keep reminding citizens of the WTC tragedy in order to siphon off more and more civil liberties and more and more of Taxpayer's Money to support a bogus war, and to pay buddies of the Power Elite (Haliburton) juicy contracts to then rebuild what we destroyed in Iraq - in order to supposedly make us all safer from terrorism like 9/11.

They could hardly point to 9/11 as a huge victimization - calling for stringent, desperate measures like the Patriots Act - without being willing to compensate the victims generously.

God, I hope the pendulum swings back towards the middle of rational thought and debate and ethical conduct in this country soon.

And, the truth is the truth, even when it comes from the mouths of hypocrites like Rush Limbaugh, who totally discredited himself, yet can bounce back to be a "leader" and a spokesperson for the American way of life.

We need to talk more about Limbaugh, and his rants against "entitlement," but I will save it for another post.

[xpertadvice4u]

I am sorry if I seem to be hijacking this thread, but Rush Limbaugh and his rants against "entitlement politics" need to be seen for what they really are.

Limbaugh, and others of his ilk, in speaking out against "entitlement," are usually just using it for "code" to further dismantle the concept of "affirmative action" in America.

Do the arithmetic: why else would he put a specific time-frame of "50 years of entitlement politics in this country" if he were not referring to the past 50 years of enforcement of the concepts and laws surrounding the Civil Rights movement, starting with the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling (1954) that Segregation was separate but NOT equal.

Limbaugh refuses to accept that the systematic victimization of Blacks AFTER the civil war should in any way be recognized as justification for compensation in the form of "affirmative action" programs to help a social group that was deliberatedly victimized and held back from free market competition for most of this country's history, and still is - to some degree.

If we are going to talk about Victims, I think we could start with the over 2,000 men, women and children who were murdered in Louisiana in 1865 *alone* because they happened to be Black, and they refused to be intimidated into resuming living like Slaves after they had been emancipated by the law.

After all, they had been promised that "All men are created equal" would finally apply to the protection of *their* civil rights as well, not just white people's...it didn't. Should they, or the people they symbolize, be "entitled" to some sort of acknowledgement or compensation for that?

See.... Rush Limbaugh, and the people he speaks for, cannot stand the thought that the sacrifice of *those Americans* in the survival of this country ought to be recognized and compensated in some way.

Don't be fooled by Limbaugh's "cloaked link" between compensating 9/11 victims and the entitlements legitimately recognized and promised during the Civil Rights era....which were long overdue, much to America's shame.

The country needs to compensate the victims in such a way that the long-term effects of that victimization are mitigated to a more reasonable extent....instead of continuing to blame the victims for the state of affairs that they were forced into inhabiting. Yeah, FORCED.

America needs to acknowledge that if terrorism had not been used to subjugate Blacks after the Civil War, the country would not have been able to recover and rebuild the cotton industry and the rest of the economy. It was only through continuing to treat Blacks like slaves, and forcing them to *live* like slaves, that the rest of the country got to recover their fortunes destroyed by the civil war.

Former slaves had been promised "40 acres and a mule" by Special Field Order 15, using lands that had been abandoned and confiscated from *traitors* during the war. Thousands of acres were leased and rebuilt by Blacks, so that they could feed their families and create family farms, and participate in the economy. They could not eat cotton, and no longer wanted anything to do with that industry.

But the Government forced them off of those properties at gunpoint, when white "former" rebels demanded to have their lands back, and when there was nobody to work in the cotton fields for *free*.

Blacks had to be restricted from competing in the free market economy in order for whites to rebuild and prosper. Nobody wanted them opening their own businesses....everybody just wanted them to just get the hell back to the plantations - so we could get back to business as usual, as quickly as possible, and as cheaply as possible.

Blacks had no choice. If they refused to be a docile Negro, they were murdered. You see a gap in leadership in some Black communities today?

Well, any intelligent Black man who took a stand was murdered, and their communities suffered from the loss of their leadership and moral contributions. "Alpha males" were weeded out and taught it did not pay to compete or disagree with the white man, through a bullwhip across their back or a noose around their neck.

So, think twice before you swallow Limbaugh's bait, and start nodding your head that all this "entitlement" nonsense needs to stop.

Who profited from segregation in Major League Baseball and other professional sports prior to the 1950s? White people, not Blacks.

Who profited from segregation that kept Blacks out of the best colleges and the best professions? White people, not Blacks.

Who profited from keeping Blacks out of the real estate market through "restricted covenants"? White people, not Blacks.

Who profited from keeping Blacks out of Management roles: Whites, not Blacks.

Duhhhhh....Look at the Super Bowl!!! Two BLACK coaches. First time in history!

Who profited from coaching successes during all the years that Blacks were considered not good enough to be coaches and managers, and were never given the chance? White people, not Blacks.

So, add up all the money, prestige, and success, over all the generations that Black people OUGHT to have a had a fair chance to earn.

You will see that White people in this country benefitted from a massive FREE ROLL in this society.

But people like Limbaugh refuse to acknowledge that, and refuse to consider that a Free Roll for Blacks to help them into the game is long overdue, and it is not actually FREE.

It was paid for, and earned, during the generations they were abused and exploited and excluded so that whites could get *their* shot at the American Dream.

But, don't get confused: most Blacks just want the rules that are already in place to be "justly" applied so that there is equal opportunity to compete.

A "level playing field" has *never* existed in this country.

The problem is that whites have always been the "starting five" on the fields that count the most in this country, even when they were not necessarily the best players.

And some whites will always complain bitterly when somebody says "Sorry, you cannot have all five starting positions any more, we are going to make room for some Black players."

But, how else are you going to let Black people get a taste from the drinking fountain which was reserved for "Whites Only" for all these years?

"Lest we forget" should apply to the sacrifices/victimization suffered by *everybody* during this country's struggle for survival, regardless of their skin color or ethnicity.

And, some day, there should be a limit set - which will draw to a close active compensation through affirmative action programs; and *some* Minority people need to move on from their Victim mindset.

But we are nowhere's near to that date yet, because we have yet to truly acknowledge the tragedies which took place, and the blood, sweat and tears of Black folks that fuelled and enabled this country's growth into the mightiest nation on earth.

[Brandon]

Shipped you a new title Xpert

[edmc]

xpertadvice4u
Longest Poster Ever

LMAO

[xpertadvice4u]

Originally Posted by Brandon

Shipped you a new title Xpert

I am now going to write a 30 page post on the subconscious hostility expressed by authoritarian moderators in the semi-arbitrary abuse of power in labeling annoying posters who do not know when to shut up.

[Brandon]

haha...I actually read all that and agree on most...but it takes 30 mins so I gotta bust your chops

being well thought out is never a bad thing

[xpertadvice4u]

Originally Posted by Brandon

haha...I actually read all that and agree on most...but it takes 30 mins so I gotta bust your chops

I heard somewhere that not moving your lips can save some time.