The random political thoughts thread (Part Deux)

[sleepyjeff]

Originally Posted by Ghoulish Delight

So thanks to TurboTax I got taxes done in an hour last night. It certainly made my life easier, but I wonder if it's a bad thing in the long run. It obscures the outrageous convoluted disaster that is U.S. tax code and actually makes things seem relatively straight forward. I fear that any chance of motivating the populace to demand serious reform will be diluted by the fact that fewer people are dealing with it hands-on.

You make an excellent point and I totally agree.

[scaeagles]

The ultimate power is the power to tax. The people with that power are the only ones with the ability to change how that power is wielded, and it will therefore never be resolved.

[Alex]

Then why make position on taxation such a central part of your decision on who to vote for if nobody will ever change it?

[scaeagles]

No one will change the system. An over all lowering of rates can, and does frequently, happen.

I did vote Forbes in the 2000 primaries. I believe he is someone who would have made an effort to change the tax code.

[BDBopper]

Did some digging around there is another website that is directed to the countdown clock that is on the site that Mike Huckabee used for his Presidential campaign. Which gives a huge hint to what's coming when the clock hits zeros.

He is forming a coalition called Huck PAC The Political Action Committee is already on Facebook.

[BDBopper]

The wait is over. Mike Huckabee's website has relaunched as the home for Huck PAC. Mike is going to be using his new Political Action Committee to support his party's nominee (McCain) while trying to reform it. And yes his first policy blog post was about Tax reform (the FairTax).

[BDBopper]

I am sitting here watching coverage of the Pennsylvania Primary Returns. Each network has these talking heads with their fancy maps and they are trying their very best to explain delegates and all of that. From what I can see that it is possible for Senator Clinton to win the popular vote and still get slighted in delegates because they are allocated by congressional district. However the districts that are more favorable to Democratic candidates have a higher count of delegates allocated to them.

Putting two and two together these areas that have higher delegate allocated would favor Obama. Do I have a problem with states having different amounts of delegates? No. Do I have a problem with the delegates being given out by congressional district? No. What I DO have a problem with is giving different delegates counts to different congressional distircts. If I was a Democrat in Pittsburgh my vote should carry the same weight as if I was a Democrat in Philly. We're both Democrats. It's THAT simple!

THIS IS RIDICULOUS!!!! The primary system in both parties is royally screwed up! If there is anything I have taken out of this whole process it is that. I have no doubt about it. This tears it! First the states wet themselves trying to be the first to have their primary, Then the national parties penelize and disenfracnises the voters in those states. I've seen state parties (Washington's GOP and Texas Democrats) take days to count caucus ballots, Louisiana's GOP choice wins the popular vote but the party goes to the back room and gives the delegates to someone else. This process is so screwed up it is very hard to answer the question "Who wins?" Well It is very easy to figure out who the losers are and that is the American people. How sad and infuriating!

[innerSpaceman]

I can't remember when the primaries were so hotly contested. I guess since the candidate from each party usually seems so early annointed, I never paid much attention to how messed up the primary voting systems are.

If nothing else, this season has given us a glimpse into the mess that we otherwise might have missed. It may be depressing, but it's educational.






But oh do I love the irony of all those states that wet themselves trying to be first, when for the first time it turns out to be the last states that matter. Tee and Hee.

[€uroMeinke]

I'm actually enjoying the fact that it looks like the Dems are going to have a convention to do what a convention is supposed to do - select a candidate!

If you want to select a candidate earlier, dump the prolonged primary and convention system and find another path, but don't complain that the process is doing is working the way it was originally designed for.

[Not Afraid]

Clinton won - or at least it's being called that way.

On to GUAM!