The Many Faces of US Politics...

[Rossfan]

Correct in your last sentence Seaf as huge numbers of ordinary people got to have unbelievably decent lifestyles.
Thatcherism/Reaganism marked the end of that and since then vast quantities of wealth have been transferred to an ever decreasing band of super super rich.
Time for another "New Deal"

What part of 1945-79 was better than 2017 for the average man, woman or child in Ireland? If I'd been born then I'd have had to emigrate from Ireland to work like my father.

You could buy a house on one salary.
People got payrises.
Banks didn't collapse
There were no economic crashes
Debt related suicides were unheard of
Society was more creative because the money was spread around

The economy was in deeper shìt then with huge immigration and the welfare supports you complain about were no where near as strong as they are now.

Far too many people fall into this trap of believing life was better in the olden days. It wasn't.

You are confusing 2 things Syf.
The system by which money was distributed was far batter because it was focused on general well-being.
But there were no iPhones.

Wait s few years and people realise their pensions won't be paid. Neoliberalism sucks

We were behind the loop as usual - 19 60s and 19 70's were our "New Deal" years.
FF fcuks it up with their 1997 Budget of neo Liberal tax cuts and Socialist major increase in Public Spending.
As a eesult we had our new depression in the 80's as the Thatcher Reagan neo Liberalism had its initial boost.
We went down the neo Liberal route from 1997 and blew up on the double -property and banks 2008.
1930s/40s/50s/60s we could provide public housing for our people.
Now we sit back and hope the private sector will solve the housing crisis despite building houses no one can afford or charging rents no one can afford.
19 50s a State Company provided rural electrification -now we sit wringing our hands because the totally privatised communications world won't provide rural broadband.

[Syferus]

Correct in your last sentence Seaf as huge numbers of ordinary people got to have unbelievably decent lifestyles.
Thatcherism/Reaganism marked the end of that and since then vast quantities of wealth have been transferred to an ever decreasing band of super super rich.
Time for another "New Deal"

What part of 1945-79 was better than 2017 for the average man, woman or child in Ireland? If I'd been born then I'd have had to emigrate from Ireland to work like my father.

You could buy a house on one salary.
People got payrises.
Banks didn't collapse
There were no economic crashes
Debt related suicides were unheard of
Society was more creative because the money was spread around

The economy was in deeper shìt then with huge immigration and the welfare supports you complain about were no where near as strong as they are now.

Far too many people fall into this trap of believing life was better in the olden days. It wasn't.

You are confusing 2 things Syf.
The system by which money was distributed was far batter because it was focused on general well-being.
But there were no iPhones.

Wait s few years and people realise their pensions won't be paid. Neoliberalism sucks

We were behind the loop as usual - 19 60s and 19 70's were our "New Deal" years.
FF fcuks it up with their 1997 Budget of neo Liberal tax cuts and Socialist major increase in Public Spending.
As a eesult we had our new depression in the 80's as the Thatcher Reagan neo Liberalism had its initial boost.
We went down the neo Liberal route from 1997 and blew up on the double -property and banks 2008.
1930s/40s/50s/60s we could provide public housing for our people.
Now we sit back and hope the private sector will solve the housing crisis despite building houses no one can afford or charging rents no one can afford.
19 50s a State Company provided rural electrification -now we sit wringing our hands because the totally privatised communications world won't provide rural broadband.

The costs involved with fiber optic networks in rural areas are astronomical. We're already far ahead of countries like the US in terms of 4G coverage and broadband pricing so I wouldn't be as quick to buy into the high speed internet hand-wringing as some are. We're in a pretty good place all things considered when you look at the position we were in half a decade ago. And Christ if our mixture of FF and FG-Lab governments don't look a damn sight better than what the US or UK have inflicted on themselves..

[Rossfan]

Anything is better better than the 2 thickest most ignorant countries on Earth.
It's nothing to do with FFFGLAB - It's neo Liberalism -  everything for the few fck all for the many.
Return to the 1840s -" no money? Fck off and die you useless yoke".

[mrhardyannual]

Jerusalem debacle, sexual assualt claims, the Russia Files, and now net neu-f**king-trality disappearing. Hope them hicks that voted for Trump never are able to stream a porno into their trailer again.

This is more of what I'm saying about our inability to understand the USA. You mention Jerusalem and net neutrality as if they were two areas in which Trump is out of line with American thinking. He's not. Congress, both Reps and Dems have repeatedly backed this policy. Few Americans can understand any system that does not allow capital influence decision making therefore a web provider accepting payment to promote one product/site over another is like mother's milk to them. Time to be thankful you live in a highly regulated EU.

Au contraire:
Poll: 83 percent of voters support keeping FCC's net neutrality rules

Everyone knows there's widespread bipartisan support for net neutrality in the US. Literally anyone who isn't in the telecoms industry has no reason not to. Republican senators were even streaming out opposing the FCC vote and the speed at which the reckless maniac Trump put in charge of the FCC is pushing it through. MrHardy's claims of having some sort of insight into the US took a big hit with that one.

Everyone knows is a broad statement.

A poll showing 83% support for net neutrality in USA is about as reliable as the latest poll from CNBC showing support has dropped to 52%. What percentage of people in Ireland or the USA understand what net neutrality is without having the concept explained to them? I don't  claim to have any great insight into the US, indeed as I've pointed out early it's incomprehensible at times as I think it is to most people coming from European social democracies. In this regard I think that you like many others project your own opinion onto Americans and expect to find that's that how they will think/react. From what I see and hear from people in US that I would expect to react as the "centre-ground" would here, they don't. 

[Eamonnca1]

Sweet. Jesus.

[seafoid]

Correct in your last sentence Seaf as huge numbers of ordinary people got to have unbelievably decent lifestyles.
Thatcherism/Reaganism marked the end of that and since then vast quantities of wealth have been transferred to an ever decreasing band of super super rich.
Time for another "New Deal"

What part of 1945-79 was better than 2017 for the average man, woman or child in Ireland? If I'd been born then I'd have had to emigrate from Ireland to work like my father.

You could buy a house on one salary.
People got payrises.
Banks didn't collapse
There were no economic crashes
Debt related suicides were unheard of
Society was more creative because the money was spread around

The economy was in deeper shìt then with huge immigration and the welfare supports you complain about were no where near as strong as they are now.

Far too many people fall into this trap of believing life was better in the olden days. It wasn't.

You are confusing 2 things Syf.
The system by which money was distributed was far batter because it was focused on general well-being.
But there were no iPhones.

Wait s few years and people realise their pensions won't be paid. Neoliberalism sucks

We were behind the loop as usual - 19 60s and 19 70's were our "New Deal" years.
FF fcuks it up with their 1997 Budget of neo Liberal tax cuts and Socialist major increase in Public Spending.
As a eesult we had our new depression in the 80's as the Thatcher Reagan neo Liberalism had its initial boost.
We went down the neo Liberal route from 1997 and blew up on the double -property and banks 2008.
1930s/40s/50s/60s we could provide public housing for our people.
Now we sit back and hope the private sector will solve the housing crisis despite building houses no one can afford or charging rents no one can afford.
19 50s a State Company provided rural electrification -now we sit wringing our hands because the totally privatised communications world won't provide rural broadband.

The costs involved with fiber optic networks in rural areas are astronomical. We're already far ahead of countries like the US in terms of 4G coverage and broadband pricing so I wouldn't be as quick to buy into the high speed internet hand-wringing as some are. We're in a pretty good place all things considered when you look at the position we were in half a decade ago. And Christ if our mixture of FF and FG-Lab governments don't look a damn sight better than what the US or UK have inflicted on themselves..

Ireland is not in a good place Syf. State debt is €200 bn. Looks ok cos interest rates are on the floor. If rates went to 7% servicing the debt would cost €14 bn a year and you would have another house price crash.
The Eurozone doesn't have a fire brigade so if there is another crash the value of pension assets will collapse. The system is designed to be unstable.

[seafoid]

Correct in your last sentence Seaf as huge numbers of ordinary people got to have unbelievably decent lifestyles.
Thatcherism/Reaganism marked the end of that and since then vast quantities of wealth have been transferred to an ever decreasing band of super super rich.
Time for another "New Deal"

What part of 1945-79 was better than 2017 for the average man, woman or child in Ireland? If I'd been born then I'd have had to emigrate from Ireland to work like my father.

You could buy a house on one salary.
People got payrises.
Banks didn't collapse
There were no economic crashes
Debt related suicides were unheard of
Society was more creative because the money was spread around

The economy was in deeper shìt then with huge immigration and the welfare supports you complain about were no where near as strong as they are now.

Far too many people fall into this trap of believing life was better in the olden days. It wasn't.

You are confusing 2 things Syf.
The system by which money was distributed was far batter because it was focused on general well-being.
But there were no iPhones.

Wait s few years and people realise their pensions won't be paid. Neoliberalism sucks

That is complete and utter nonsense with no basis in fact.

Keynes designed it. He wanted to avoid the instability of a system based on debt with its crashes and depressions. He understood that debt based systems end in deflation and unsupportable levels of inequality.

The system was based on the development of aggregate demand. Not the expansion of debt.

Aggregate demand is about the money in the pockets of GAA fans and concert goers.

Under the old system social housing was built so people could get on in life. Interest rates allowed for the time value of money.

You are too young to remember the arrival of celebrity culture in the Irish media. Celebrity porn is a feature of inequality. If people dont have social mobility sell them fantasies.

We are going to get a new system anyway.

[seafoid]

And how does that lead you to think the ECB isn't a "proper" central bank or a lender of last resort?

Because in.order to.qualify you need
Lender of last resort
Bank. Recapitalisation
Deposit insurance
Clearly defined crisis responses which are fully funded

Money in Eurozone banks is not safe because of the ECB. This is why the Swiss franc is 30% overvalued. Money is safe in Switzerland because there is a lender of laSt resort, deposit insurance etc

[seafoid]

Trump.nominee judge facepalm

https://mobile.twitter.com/SenWhitehouse/status/941484131757838337/video/1

[J70]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/cdc-gets-list-of-forbidden-words-fetus-transgender-diversity/2017/12/15/f503837a-e1cf-11e7-89e8-edec16379010_story.html?tid=ss_tw&utm_campaign=buffer&utm_content=buffer41dbd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_term=.bb765effda60

Words fail.

Any of our resident conservatives want to defend this?

This is mainstream GOP thought in this day and age.

Where is the bottom?

[seafoid]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/cdc-gets-list-of-forbidden-words-fetus-transgender-diversity/2017/12/15/f503837a-e1cf-11e7-89e8-edec16379010_story.html?tid=ss_tw&utm_campaign=buffer&utm_content=buffer41dbd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_term=.bb765effda60

Words fail.

Any of our resident conservatives want to defend this?

This is mainstream GOP thought in this day and age.

Where is the bottom?

Here:

https://www.rawstory.com/2017/12/heather-heyers-mom-ive-had-to-hide-my-daughters-grave-from-neo-nazis/
Susan Bro — the mother of Heather Heyer, 32, who was killed in Charlottesville, VA by a white supremacist — told The Daily Beast that she has been forced to conceal her daughter's grave site because of ongoing violent threats against her and her family.

Heyer's ashes, Bro said, are in an undisclosed, unmarked location that is "completely protected" from the public. The grieving mother said she had to take that step because threats and harassment from the violent right have not stopped since the day 20-year-old James Alex Fields, Jr. plowed his car into a crowd of anti-racist protesters, killing Heyer and injuring 19 others.

[whitey]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/cdc-gets-list-of-forbidden-words-fetus-transgender-diversity/2017/12/15/f503837a-e1cf-11e7-89e8-edec16379010_story.html?tid=ss_tw&utm_campaign=buffer&utm_content=buffer41dbd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_term=.bb765effda60

Words fail.

Any of our resident conservatives want to defend this?

This is mainstream GOP thought in this day and age.

Where is the bottom?

Well given that Trump has surrounded himself by the biggest hape of dunces that ever congregated in one place, I wouldnt be surprised.

2 things jump out

(1) It is "proposed" at this point.....nothing is official

(2) Is this one of these situations where the CDC solicits input from various sources and this is just one set of suggestions among many submitted......that never gets implemented.

I hope Im wrong, but this has all the elements of fake news

[Denn Forever]

Kinda like the EU legislating that all "bananas" must be straight, alledgally.  No longer a problem now with Brexit.

[J70]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/cdc-gets-list-of-forbidden-words-fetus-transgender-diversity/2017/12/15/f503837a-e1cf-11e7-89e8-edec16379010_story.html?tid=ss_tw&utm_campaign=buffer&utm_content=buffer41dbd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_term=.bb765effda60

Words fail.

Any of our resident conservatives want to defend this?

This is mainstream GOP thought in this day and age.

Where is the bottom?

Well given that Trump has surrounded himself by the biggest hape of dunces that ever congregated in one place, I wouldnt be surprised.

2 things jump out

(1) It is "proposed" at this point.....nothing is official

(2) Is this one of these situations where the CDC solicits input from various sources and this is just one set of suggestions among many submitted......that never gets implemented.

I hope Im wrong, but this has all the elements of fake news

Well it's been carried across the media, including the likes of Forbes and Fox News. CDC hasn't denied it.

Hopefully sane (not saner) heads will prevail.

[Gmac]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/cdc-gets-list-of-forbidden-words-fetus-transgender-diversity/2017/12/15/f503837a-e1cf-11e7-89e8-edec16379010_story.html?tid=ss_tw&utm_campaign=buffer&utm_content=buffer41dbd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_term=.bb765effda60

Words fail.

Any of our resident conservatives want to defend this?

This is mainstream GOP thought in this day and age.

Where is the bottom?

Here:

https://www.rawstory.com/2017/12/heather-heyers-mom-ive-had-to-hide-my-daughters-grave-from-neo-nazis/
Susan Bro — the mother of Heather Heyer, 32, who was killed in Charlottesville, VA by a white supremacist — told The Daily Beast that she has been forced to conceal her daughter's grave site because of ongoing violent threats against her and her family.

Heyer's ashes, Bro said, are in an undisclosed, unmarked location that is "completely protected" from the public. The grieving mother said she had to take that step because threats and harassment from the violent right have not stopped since the day 20-year-old James Alex Fields, Jr. plowed his car into a crowd of anti-racist protesters, killing Heyer and injuring 19 others.

seafoid do u think this story reflects us society at the moment .