The Goat Pen

Professor Tiger wrote:Toe, if you think the Middle East is bad now (and it is) wait 'til the ISIS flag flies over Baghdad, Iran tests their first nuke (which will leave Obama shocked - SHOCKED!) and 6 different Arab countries quickly have nukes.

Tell us again about the aluminum tubes, Mr. Wolfowitz.

I am no Wolfowitz sir. When it comes the Middle East, I am almost an isolationist. I think the whole region is afflicted with medieval theocratic insanity. I have no interest in conquering and Americanizing the asylum.

I would maximize US and Western oil production (Frack Baby Frack!) so that we won't need their oil, then mostly get out of the whole region, and let them live in a 7th century paradise to their heart's content. I would only leave a robust intelligence infrastructure, drone and SOF capabilities so that when two or more terrorist leaders get together to sodomize goats and plan attacks on America, they get a missile or visit from the Delta Force instead.

And I absolutely, positively wouldn't sign deals letting the nuttiest of the nutjob regimes have nuclear weapons. One Neville Chamberlain deal is enough for one century.

The unemployment situation.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/102694868

I especially love this quote:

"Nearly 9 of out 10 respondents (89 percent) said they would "search harder and wider" for work if their benefits ran out. Moreover, in a series of statements about benefits, the one that garnered the most agreement, with 69 percent, was that benefits were "giving me a cushion so that I can take my time in searching for a job," while 59 percent said compensation "has allowed me to take time for myself," 36 percent agreed that it "has allowed me to turn down positions that weren't right for me" and 40 percent agreed "I haven't had to look for work as hard knowing I have some income to rely on."

sardis wrote:The unemployment situation.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/102694868

I especially love this quote:

"Nearly 9 of out 10 respondents (89 percent) said they would "search harder and wider" for work if their benefits ran out. Moreover, in a series of statements about benefits, the one that garnered the most agreement, with 69 percent, was that benefits were "giving me a cushion so that I can take my time in searching for a job," while 59 percent said compensation "has allowed me to take time for myself," 36 percent agreed that it "has allowed me to turn down positions that weren't right for me" and 40 percent agreed "I haven't had to look for work as hard knowing I have some income to rely on."

And your point is?

What good is insurance that you cannot draw from when you have a claim? I'm in L.A. and I can remember seeing (pre-Dynasty) Joan Collins in the unemployment office in the mid-70s. Drawing UI doesn't make you a lazy bum and you shouldn't have to take ANY job just because you don't have one. I'm 52 and if I lose my gig tomorrow, I'm not going to Chick-Fil-A at $8.57/hr while I still have UI (which would pay me more). My time is better spent - and it's better for society - if I look for a gig paying what I'm used to/capable of making. I'll contribute more to society in terms of taxes paid, money put into circulation, etc., than I would making $17K/year.

I've paid into it for 35 years and have collected maybe $1,000 in UI total (was out of work for a couple of weeks in the late 80s). I would feel NO shame if I had to collect some more.

I can remember seeing (pre-Dynasty) Joan Collins in the unemployment office in the mid-70s.

Did she look like this?

First of all, you don't pay unemployment insurance, your employer does.

My point is that there is something wrong with this particular safety net that 9 out of 10 folk aren't incentivized enough to search for jobs right away.

LA just raised their minimum wage to $15/hour. A lot of Angelenos will be laid off and on unemployment insurance soon.

A 65 percent increase in the minimum wage is too steep. No doubt a lot of those newly unemployed will draw UE insurance and work somewhere off the books.

After all they've paid into the UEI all there working lives. They deserve to get some back.

Johnette's Daddy wrote:

sardis wrote:The unemployment situation.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/102694868

I especially love this quote:

"Nearly 9 of out 10 respondents (89 percent) said they would "search harder and wider" for work if their benefits ran out. Moreover, in a series of statements about benefits, the one that garnered the most agreement, with 69 percent, was that benefits were "giving me a cushion so that I can take my time in searching for a job," while 59 percent said compensation "has allowed me to take time for myself," 36 percent agreed that it "has allowed me to turn down positions that weren't right for me" and 40 percent agreed "I haven't had to look for work as hard knowing I have some income to rely on."

And your point is?

What good is insurance that you cannot draw from when you have a claim? I'm in L.A. and I can remember seeing (pre-Dynasty) Joan Collins in the unemployment office in the mid-70s. Drawing UI doesn't make you a lazy bum and you shouldn't have to take ANY job just because you don't have one. I'm 52 and if I lose my gig tomorrow, I'm not going to Chick-Fil-A at $8.57/hr while I still have UI (which would pay me more). My time is better spent - and it's better for society - if I look for a gig paying what I'm used to/capable of making. I'll contribute more to society in terms of taxes paid, money put into circulation, etc., than I would making $17K/year.

I've paid into it for 35 years and have collected maybe $1,000 in UI total (was out of work for a couple of weeks in the late 80s). I would feel NO shame if I had to collect some more.

I think we all can agree that an unemployed pastor is a net gain for the world. I hope you get to collect every penny of that UEI and very soon.

sardis wrote:First of all, you don't pay unemployment insurance, your employer does.

My point is that there is something wrong with this particular safety net that 9 out of 10 folk aren't incentivized enough to search for jobs right away.

If my employer DIDN'T pay it to the state/feds, it would be paying it to me in the form of higher wages and Uncle Sam would get it from me directly.

Your 9 out of 10 number is BS. 34% of those on UI find jobs within a month of filing a claim. The median length of time is 2 months, and the reason it's that long is because of the profound changes to the economy during the Bush Depression.

Fact is, there are jobs that disappeared in 2008 (and before) that will never return.

In 1970, 25% of all US jobs were in manufacturing, now it's 9%. Yes, some of that is efficiency (we're better at making stuff and can do it with less labor), but most of it is off-shoring. The long-spewed mantra of the oligarchs has been that the US economy wouldn't be negatively impacted because we would dominate the services sector with middle- and upper-middle class jobs.

But then we started off-shoring those jobs, too.

BUT . . . even with that, businesses are making more money than ever and profitability is approaching an all-time high.

What does that mean?

Basically, it means that the Kochs, Adelsons and other GOP Billionaires are HAPPY with an economy where Joe Average has gone from making $54K to $38K in 10 years, while Mr. Fat Cat has gone from making $1.5M to $57.5M over the same time period.

Cletus wrote:I think we all can agree that an unemployed pastor is a net gain for the world. I hope you get to collect every penny of that UEI and very soon.

Panties still bunched up over God? Do you get this worked up over mall Santas and Disney characters?

It's fine if you don't believe, but why be a dick about it?

I don't believe in Hiduism, Buddhism, Paganism, atheism etc. But I never felt the need to spew constant hostility towards people who do. I wonder why so many secular liberals feel the need to do so against Christianity. You hardly ever hear them rag on Jews, Muslims, or any other religion.

Although this is the first time I have seen the secular liberals' venom used on black Christians. You're usually on the same team.

Johnette's Daddy wrote:Basically, it means that the Kochs, Adelsons and other GOP Billionaires plus George Soros, Tom Steyer, Michael Bloomberg and other Dem billionaires are HAPPY with an economy where Joe Average has gone from making $54K to $38K in 10 years, while Mr. Fat Cat has gone from making $1.5M to $57.5M over the same time period.

FYP

Still not getting this Baltimore thing. 6 charged. 3 white. 3 black. It's a racist killing? Or more a police thing? Do black police in Baltimore beat and kill black suspects? Do they beat and kill white ones? Do white ones beat and kill white ones because we all know white ones kill black ones. Media eats that shit up. Playing the race card or the cop card is Bullshit either way. Look at those Dumbass bikers in aTms neighborhood. Dumbass white guys killing dumbass white guess over some god forsaken turf in a place in Texas no sane person would want to live. They hate cops too. Deal drugs, weapons, kill cops.

It's no different and I think that although race is still a major issue here it's an issue that goes both ways.

Killing cops, drive byes, gang shootouts killing innocent 14 year old bystanders, some as young as 2.

Bad cops, racist cops need to be sprayed with Roundup Racist Control. Weed out the ones who care about themselves, their greed, their bias beliefs and find the strong ones who are immune to it.

FYI.

The Rat Has Spoken.

::: drops mic :::

Ladies and gentlemen, Rat has left the building.

Jungle Rat wrote:Still not getting this Baltimore thing. 6 charged. 3 white. 3 black. It's a racist killing? Or more a police thing? Do black police in Baltimore beat and kill black suspects? Do they beat and kill white ones? Do white ones beat and kill white ones because we all know white ones kill black ones. Media eats that shit up. Playing the race card or the cop card is Bullshit either way. Look at those Dumbass bikers in aTms neighborhood. Dumbass white guys killing dumbass white guess over some god forsaken turf in a place in Texas no sane person would want to live. They hate cops too. Deal drugs, weapons, kill cops.

It's no different and I think that although race is still a major issue here it's an issue that goes both ways.

Killing cops, drive byes, gang shootouts killing innocent 14 year old bystanders, some as young as 2.

Bad cops, racist cops need to be sprayed with Roundup Racist Control. Weed out the ones who care about themselves, their greed, their bias beliefs and find the strong ones who are immune to it.

Meanwhile, 49 people were shot in Chicago last weekend. Not a peep in the national media.

http://wgntv.com/2015/05/18/2-killed-47 ... s-chicago/

Professor Tiger wrote:I don't believe in Hiduism, Buddhism, Paganism, atheism etc. But I never felt the need to spew constant hostility towards people who do. I wonder why so many secular liberals feel the need to do so against Christianity. You hardly ever hear them rag on Jews, Muslims, or any other religion.

Although this is the first time I have seen the secular liberals' venom used on black Christians. You're usually on the same team.

There's an organization of black secular humanists who despise the black church. AFAIK it's not very large, but they took out billboards around the country, to which my point (again) was - if God doesn't exist, why are you wasting time & money fighting Him? http://www.aahumanism.net/

Maybe we should go on routine tirades against Shintoists. I never really liked them anyway. They've done nothing but ruin my life.