A Constitutional analogy that liberals might understand.
Imagine that you and several associates enter into an unbreakable lifetime contract to set up a charity to feed the poor. You set up a charter, a mission statement and establish rules to change the established methods and practices of the charity. You elect an "executor" to carry out the mission of the charity. The charter and contract (which you cannot break) says that you must give 20% of your gross income to the treasury which will then be used to feed the poor. For a time, the executor carries out the duties of his office faithfully, but after a while, in addition to buying food for the poor, he buys firearms for them "so they can protect themselves". Let us say that you disagree with this and resent the fact that your money is going to this purpose. When the executor comes up for election again, he retains his seat, because the majority of the members agree with his "pro gun" rhetoric. The majority does not have enough votes to satisfy the rules for changing the mission statement to include buying guns. So you have a situation where an organization is taking the money of a member and the executor uses that money in a manner that, not only does the member disagree with, but that is outside the authority of the office of that executor to perform. Whether or not the majority agrees with the executor's policy, the executor does not have the authority to act in a manner beyond the written methods and practices of the charity. Would you seek to find a replacement for the executor who has overstepped the authority you gave him to act on your behalf, or would you just sit back, shut up and pay for a policy you disagree with?
This is the situation we constitutional conservatives find ourselves in. The constitution is the charter and rules and the government is the executor. No matter how much any majority wants the government to do a thing, if it falls outside the specific authority that the constitution spells out, It is outside the authority of government to act.
Section 8 - Powers of Congress
The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States
Truth is, the Constitution is pretty vague, and highly open to interpretation. So I don't know how claiming to drape your side of the argument in this document is relevant. Because right there it says it has the right to take care of the "general Welfare" of the country; whatever that means is open to interpretation by the people of the country, who speak through their representatives. It's imperfect and nobody gets exactly what they want, but everybody gets a little bit of something they need, and hopefully it makes all of our lives a little bit better.
I'm not the author you were responding too but I thought I should make a point. If you read further into section 8, it gives a list of items do which I interpret as items congress can as part of "promoting the general welfare". So the question really is, can congress make a law regarding something that isn't on that list because it’s a separate paragraph and thus a separate thought or is the whole section supposed to be taken together as one organized statement?
Personally I think it’s fairly obvious that our founding fathers meant it as one organized statement to be taken as a whole and not "pick and choose" where to stop in the section. However this has been the discussion since our country's creation and so long as people have an agenda, they will do what they can to support their beliefs regardless of which side the issue they are on. That’s why IMO the 10th amendment is one of the most over looked yet one of the most important amendments to the constitution. It gives the people and states the power to keep the federal government in check.
What many I have spoken with seen to forget is we are a representative republic not a democracy. The envisioned structure was the states answer to the people and the federal government answers to the states with the federal government existing only to protect the states from each other, from foreign powers, and to guarantee individual freedom's/rights couldn't be taken away. Getting away from this structure IMO is part of the reason there are so many problems in general within our government today.
Anyway like I said it’s just my opinion I just wanted to pose the question regarding the constitution as I did above.
Yes, these "teabag" types are unfit to be fellow citizens, or vote for our leaders, but unfortunately there seem to be a lot of them. Mostly in the South. How about we cut them loose, let them have their own country their own way, and also pay the 7 trillion dollar bill they racked up during the reign of the murderous war criminal G. W. Bush? We could probably get Universal Healthcare going up North here within the year if we get rid of the nutjobs. We should start a program that encourages the greedy right-wing nutjobs to move to Florida and Texas. The zero state income taxes down there should appeal to their greed (nevermind the lack of public services, they like that!). Say, how much would Mexico pay us for Texas, anyway? Would it repay for Iraq, the tax cuts for the rich, and the bailouts? We could throw in Florida, maybe Mexico and Cuba could split the cost, divvy up the land, and we could give them a 30-year mortgage on it (heh heh, how apropos)...
I love you, Mark. Thank you for bringing humor to what up until now I have found as a completely depressing devolution of our national "values." It makes me feel sick to my stomach that these people consider themselves patriotic... psychotic maybe, but patriotic- not a chance. The violent nature of some of the commentaries here illustrate that. It feels very liberating to be able to laugh at how crazy our Country can be. Thank you so much.
just because it is animated, has bright colors & has a condescending soundtrack complete with a lame laugh track does not automatically qualify a cartoon as funny no matter what the topic. unfortunately, this is true of this "tea bag" cartoon. it is a snide, shallow, swipe at humor that deprives fiore's fans of his usual wit. it's almost like he felt obliged to do a "tea bag" item and this was his half-hearted offering.
seriously, this was a sad, intellectually inept, humorless effort...yawn...
The so-called conservatives who are objecting to this must not listen to the nasty, mostly unfounded sack of crap coming from the mouths of the hundreds of conservative talk show hosts each day. This is funny. None of the crap coming from Limburger, Ins-Hannity, Laura, etc.etc. etc. is even remotely funny. It's just small minded paranoia, feeding small-minded paranoids so they keep buying their small-minded, selfish, un-Christian thoughts in any form profitable.
Repuglicans and neo-ConJobs are like school yard bullies; they can dish it out, but cry like babies when someone stands up to them.
Three cheers Fiore!
Actually, your statement about "neo-conjobs" seems directly aimed at members of the Jewish community, as predominately "neo-conservative" titular thinkers have been Jewish. Is this because you're actually a Nazi? I think so, I think the Democratic party is just a bunch of Nazis in disguise! No really, you're just arrogant fools. Conservatives do have a sense of humour, it kicks in every time we look at stuff people like you say and DON'T fly into a fit of violent rage resulting in permanent bodily harm to you for OBVIOUSLY hating Jews. I mean cmon, you're a Nazi. Right? (Cue cry-fest over how mean conservatives are and just call you nazis and socialists all the time) Oh ya, socialist. NAZI. NATIONAL-SOCIALIST?? Lol, funny thing is, it's doubtful that you'd know what a Neo-Conservative is (Hint, its not actually a political party, more of an internal joke term used by about 3 people then later used as a derogatory term used by the christian religious right as a code-word for Jewish Republican party members who were once liberals and definately not "one of us[christians]")... or why you'd hate them (The 5.2 Neo-Conservatives in the world) ? Even funnier, George W. Bush was NOT a neo-conservative, he was never a liberal first, he never got "mugged by reality" and only a handful (about 3 total including Cheney's) of his aides were.
The funniest joke of all is liberals acting like they know politics rambling about conspiracy theories and making cute sound-a-like names for conservative pundits (who even we conservatives find annoying) ;)
You don't hear anything like this coming from the conservative talking repugnants because they really don't have a fully developed sense of humor and only see the world as black and white.
I'd rather be sucking on the governments b--s than taking their d--k in the a-- . . . keep bending over America and watch what happens! Does your low opinion of Americans fighting for their rights translate to gay activists and hyphenated americans? Oh wait . . . let me guess, that question makes me a racist homophobe???
Submitted by Gary Kleppe on Thu, 2010-01-07 18:29.
No, it just makes you utterly clueless. The problem with tea-baggers isn't that they want to fight for their rights. It's that they're so disconnected from reality that they wouldn't know a real threat to their rights if it danced up and down singing "threats to rights are here again".
The worst part probably is that this guy is sitting there waiting for comments as a total narcissist. I remember in school watching professors look sadly on cartoons that can never truly rise to the level of being art.
This stuff is just more liberal media rubbish off the same assembly line that produced "Mama voted for Obama," (red line underneath "Obama" Ironically, technology is still not accepting Obama) National Enslavement of the Arts Propaganda movement, etc. There are lots of flashy colors, I am noticing at the sidebar where it says: "Torture US Troops." Mark is sadly stuck on Bush.
I'm surprised that San Francisco hasn't fallen into the pacific ocean already, or been burned to the ground. Perhaps this is the only website which is operated from an airliner restroom over Detroit. Oh, well it is in fact the same motivation at its core.
I think the worst part is that your rant lacked any cohesive points.
The artist is a narcissist stuck on Bush?
National Enslavement of the Arts Propaganda movement?
San Francisco falling into the sea?
Wow! I have to say that your most impressive transition was from SF to an 'airliner restroom over Detroit'. Left we wanting more (or at least, what the hell you were talking about!)
If you want liberty then join us liberals and the ACLU. Say NO to government reading of emails and phone calls, to torture of other human beings, to the recent gift to corporations of "personhood" so they can buy elections and congresspersons, and fight against those who would deny women the right of control of their bodies by making it nearly impossible to choose a legal abortion. You want liberty? Join with us.
Time to withdraw funding for public radio and web sites such as this. Isn't it ironic that tax payer money is being wasted to ridicule the people who are complaining about wasted tax money? Mark Fiore, aren't you ashamed of yourself for being part of the problem? Or are you just to happy to be making a crap load of cash while the left cheers you on? No need to answer.
When the morons began to call them selves "tea baggers" all bets were off. How could they not know that this term was already defined? Really, in my mind it is the biggest joke of the decade. Hey, I have a tea bag for ya! Come on over, we can have a tea party! Cheers!
Anderson Cooper and the "morons" at MSNBC used the sexual term "tea baggers" to be crude and dismissive of the protesters.
The people protesting the government grab to takeover private businesses (including the financials, automotive and health care industries) and protesting the severe taxation of a small group of Americans to pay for these and other government programs call themselves the TEA PARTY, but you knew that.
In some industries, rigging the game is called collusion. In our nation, where we're looking at corporate entities obtaining civil rights akin to individual rights, it's about extreme power differential.
Pure profit motive and predatory capitalism should not be the model for our healthcare. This type if ethos falls far short and the ironic bit is those who expolit systms make enough where they seldom have to deal with their own systems' shortcomings.
It's a rigged game and many on the right are playing classic tricks of misdirection with financially driven hidden agendas- stuff that has little to do with the many loaded words used at will (liberty, justice, freedom).
The systems seem to rule, just like the corporations. Hell, I work for the entropic governmen- but who else can put the brakes on? Granted, they're as dirty (both sides) as anyone else, but how else are you gonna fix things?
Oh sure, it's easy to scream Socialist- especially when certain pretend news channels are feeding the hate, their corporate sponsors fearing losing billions. The worst of it is what happens if those they stir run amok- to the point that Conservative leaders can't even control them?
BTW- ain't it funny the Right goes on and on about people sponging off the systems of care when this is a pittance considering the $$$ corporations make off of an extremely rigged game? Kinda like the Right's repugnance at evolutionary theory but marriage to social darwinism when it comes to healthcare.
For teabaggers, it doesn't have to make sense, just yell loudly, inflate your numbers, and carry a BIG STICK (compensation for a short stick, perhaps?)...
Capitalism has been able to solve more world problems, enable more people to better themselves based upon their own hard work then any other economic theory. It is not a rigged game nor misdirection. The novel idea that is completely and obviously beyond the grasp of Anonymous (compensation for promoting dumb ideas, perhaps?) is that successful business and enterprises reward the hard work of those that contribute to the success. Unlike the the neer-do-well politicians and government workers who demand to be rewarded like union members for mediocrity (e.g., autoworkers and teachers immediately spring to mind!!) or outright failure.
It wasn't the unions or union thinking that got us out of the depression, it was the industrialization to support the war effort. It wasn't Al Gore claiming to invent the Internet it was all of the entrepreneurs who tried to capitalize on the Internet that was the driving force behind the economies success during the Reagan and Clinton years. (Please note Anonymous, that I attributed the success to both Republican and Democratic administrations - this is not a partisan rant, which you are likely in your claim). I could include other examples, but I prefer instead to ask, what did socialism or Marxism or communism ever achieve except millions of deaths?
The answer for health care is to remove the state imposed barriers to insurance companies and let them compete. Mandate some basic rules like no pre-existing condition exclusions for people who show a track record of purchasing insurance, no caps or limits on coverage and so on. The beauty of this solution versus Obama Cares is that it is basically free, can be implemented immediately and will save the budget untold trillions!!!
Further, we need to either round up and deport illegal aliens (the US has done it at least three times before, Google Operation Wetback) or devise a scheme so that they can become productive, registered citizens who can purchase their own insurance if they want to.
Lastly, I bet this post gets deleted. If not then at the very least I expect some type of juvenile name calling rebuttal. But if you are interested, I would be happy to discuss the matter in detail. Alas, I think, based upon the derogatory name calling in the original post is something that will never occur to Anonymous!!
Remember that we elected the team that is raping us, selling us out, taking away our rights. We really need to vote them out, hopefully before they give away the country.
List the rights you've lost, under the current administration. The people who sold the country are the last administration, spending and deregulating and warring with no regard for cost.
According to CNN Money, just under health care rights you will lose five key freedoms:
1. Freedom to choose what's in your plan
The bills in both houses require that Americans purchase insurance through "qualified" plans offered by health-care "exchanges" that would be set up in each state. The rub is that the plans can't really compete based on what they offer. The reason: The federal government will impose a minimum list of benefits that each plan is required to offer...
2. Freedom to be rewarded for healthy living, or pay your real costs
As with the previous example, the Obama plan enshrines into federal law one of the worst features of state legislation: community rating. Eleven states, ranging from New York to Oregon, have some form of community rating. In its purest form, community rating requires that all patients pay the same rates for their level of coverage regardless of their age or medical condition...
3. Freedom to choose high-deductible coverage
The bills threaten to eliminate the one part of the market truly driven by consumers spending their own money. That's what makes a market, and health care needs more of it, not less...
4. Freedom to keep your existing plan
This is the freedom that the President keeps emphasizing. Yet the bills appear to say otherwise. It's worth diving into the weeds -- the territory where most pundits and politicians don't seem to have ventured...
5. Freedom to choose your doctors
The Senate bill requires that Americans buying through the exchanges -- and as we've seen, that will soon be most Americans -- must get their care through something called "medical home." Medical home is similar to an HMO. You're assigned a primary care doctor, and the doctor controls your access to specialists. The primary care physicians will decide which services, like MRIs and other diagnostic scans, are best for you, and will decide when you really need to see a cardiologists or orthopedists...
Then there's Taxpayer Rights (bill signed into law 2009-02-17).
As a major part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Obama and the Congress have taken away even more of our rights to determine what to do with our own money, especially in light of the Tenth Amendment prohibition on federal powers not granted by the Constitution (explicitly or implicitly via the "necessary and proper" clause), both now and -- because it is deficit spending -- for many years into the future. [As the Congress and President tend to do this almost all the time, we won't bother noting every example of it.]
It is not about Obama... but about government in general forgetting their place in our society. THEY work for us, we do not work for them. Though my taxes will go up once the Bush
1) There is very little option currently to choose what is in your health plan to begin with, particularly if you are getting it through your job/
2) There currently is no reward system for healthy living either, so where's the loss here?
3)Freedom to choose high deductible coverage is an interesting one, but really, a high deductible plan doesn't help individuals that much in general, though it shouldn't be regulated out
4) Taking this away would not effect the people getting it through an employer
5) You have no freedom to cheese your doctor unless you have medicare or Medicaid anyways.
The real problem is that conservatives argue "no" but offer no alternatives. Although this bill is bad for everybody as it doesn't solve the underlying problems in the system.
When I learned about propaganda Bandwagoning, straw man, stereotyping all are here and this is the worst sort of propaganda that the people who put this together are using to claim that thieir opostion is using propaganda.
What I find interesting from this thread that seems to have people railing against corporate greed or government control (being a rather bemused observer from Australia) is the absence of this question: Do you think its right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick? Even after they get their insurance and establish a savings account and live healthy lives. Although I must congratulate the U.S. for one thing…you have shut down the health lobby in my country by giving all of the anti-private providers more then enough ammunition to rebut all of their claims (we, like the UK have a mix…high quality nationalized heath for all procedures with a private option if you wish something extra).
"Do you think its right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick? "
Although it is a very good question, it is the wrong one to ask. The right question is:
"Does the Government have the authority to take resources from one individual (without compensation), and give them to another individual?"
The government has the authority to protect Rights, and enforce contracts. The right to own property and to keep that property which one has earned, is certainly a right. So, is health care a Right? You would think that every American has the right to be healthy, and I would agree that anyone has the right to "be" anything they have the ability to be. But look at the question. Health care is a service. So to clarify, I will ask some of the questions that are missed in the media. When answering these questions, there are two rules.
1. Warm fuzzy feelings don't count.
2. People have a right to be mean and stingy, when it comes to their property.
so, here goes:
1. From whom do you demand this service (health care)?
2. Do you demand this service for free?
3. Whose labor goes to pay for those who cannot afford to pay?
4. Do those people have a right not to labor (without compensation) for the benefit of the people who need?
5. How is this labor (without compensation) different from slavery?
6. If you see the “society” as compensation, society is based on mutual benefit. What benefit does the one who labors receive from the one for whom he pays the health care?
You have a right to procure, protect, and trade your own resources, not a right to demand resources of others.
Some use the argument that it is immoral to let people "die in the streets", or to deny a child needed medical care. To those people, I ask:
1. Is it the function of government to enforce morality?
2. Whose morality? The majority?
3. What if the majority were to deem that slavery was moral? Or that homosexuality were immoral?
4. Should the government allow, mandate or prevent these based on the majority opinion?
It is the responsibility of the individual, not the government, to take steps to insure that he is protected against financial ruin (by buying catastrophic coverage).
So, in answer to the original question: No, it is not "right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick" but it is beyond the scope of the government's authority (and responsibility) to prevent such an event by violating the property rights of another individual.
You are a heartless, selfish moron. I hope you soon develop an uncurable cancer, and you must spend every last dime of your assets in a futile attempt to hang on to your miserable life, finally choking to death on your sanctimony.
"You are a heartless, selfish moron. I hope you soon develop an uncurable cancer, and you must spend every last dime of your assets in a futile attempt to hang on to your miserable life, finally choking to death on your sanctimony."
Notice that there was no coherent argument in this rant, just reactionary namecalling and a wish for my ill health. Very much like the individual depicted in the animation. So, are you speaking "tea bag"? sounds like incoherent liberal spew, to me. Come back when you can muster a valid argument.
"Do you think its right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick? "
Although it is a very good question, it is the wrong one to ask. The right question is:
"Does the Government have the authority to take resources from one individual (without compensation), and give them to another individual?"
The government has the authority to protect Rights, and enforce contracts. The right to own property and to keep that property which one has earned, is certainly a right. So, is health care a Right? You would think that every American has the right to be healthy, and I would agree that anyone has the right to "be" anything they have the ability to be. But look at the question. Health care is a service. So to clarify, I will ask some of the questions that are missed in the media. When answering these questions, there are two rules.
1. Warm fuzzy feelings don't count.
2. People have a right to be mean and stingy, when it comes to their property.
so, here goes:
1. From whom do you demand this service (health care)?
2. Do you demand this service for free?
3. Whose labor goes to pay for those who cannot afford to pay?
4. Do those people have a right not to labor (without compensation) for the benefit of the people who need?
5. How is this labor (without compensation) different from slavery?
6. If you see the “society” as compensation, society is based on mutual benefit. What benefit does the one who labors receive from the one for whom he pays the health care?
You have a right to procure, protect, and trade your own resources, not a right to demand resources of others.
Some use the argument that it is immoral to let people "die in the streets", or to deny a child needed medical care. To those people, I ask:
1. Is it the function of government to enforce morality?
2. Whose morality? The majority?
3. What if the majority were to deem that slavery was moral? Or that homosexuality were immoral?
4. Should the government allow, mandate or prevent these based on the majority opinion?
It is the responsibility of the individual, not the government, to take steps to insure that he is protected against financial ruin (by buying catastrophic coverage), cutting back on their lifestyle, if necessary.
So, in answer to the original question:
No, it is not "right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick" but it is beyond the scope of the government's authority (and responsibility) to prevent such an event by violating the property rights of another individual.
a Public option (insurance exchange) =/= GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER OF HEALTHCARE
Everytime one of you chimps state that, it makes you sound even more retarded. I don't how many times your idiot role models like the Boehner and the thrilla from Wasilla puke that soundbite from their cakeholes, it's not the same thing.
You Liberals crack me up. For eight years YOU have done exactly EVERYTHING you claim supporters of liberty are doing. There are no bigger hypocrites in the world than Liberal Democrats.
And don't blame me, I voted LIBERTARIAN, because I want you to be free to live your life the way you see fit and not force you to do anything against your will.
And just because you can't accept the fact that Barry O, Pelosi, Reid et al are Socialists doesn't change that reality. Of course, you all called Bush a Nazi for years but now that the shoe is on the other foot you have nothing better than showing the world the true colors of Liberalism which is to act as childish as you can, call the other guy sophomoric names and when that fails play the race card. HAHA! 2010 will be the end of Democrap tyranny.
Thanks for the laugh. Not the video, the delusions of the Leftists posting here!
Oh, and Dubya wasn't a Conservative. He was a Neocon which is another name for a LIBERAL!
Yeah, good luck with that... and when life is better than it was, and America is itself again, rather than a torturing hate-state, you can feel free to move away, or eat your words, as you choose.
Comments
A Constitutional analogy
A Constitutional analogy that liberals might understand.
Imagine that you and several associates enter into an unbreakable lifetime contract to set up a charity to feed the poor. You set up a charter, a mission statement and establish rules to change the established methods and practices of the charity. You elect an "executor" to carry out the mission of the charity. The charter and contract (which you cannot break) says that you must give 20% of your gross income to the treasury which will then be used to feed the poor. For a time, the executor carries out the duties of his office faithfully, but after a while, in addition to buying food for the poor, he buys firearms for them "so they can protect themselves". Let us say that you disagree with this and resent the fact that your money is going to this purpose. When the executor comes up for election again, he retains his seat, because the majority of the members agree with his "pro gun" rhetoric. The majority does not have enough votes to satisfy the rules for changing the mission statement to include buying guns. So you have a situation where an organization is taking the money of a member and the executor uses that money in a manner that, not only does the member disagree with, but that is outside the authority of the office of that executor to perform. Whether or not the majority agrees with the executor's policy, the executor does not have the authority to act in a manner beyond the written methods and practices of the charity. Would you seek to find a replacement for the executor who has overstepped the authority you gave him to act on your behalf, or would you just sit back, shut up and pay for a policy you disagree with?
This is the situation we constitutional conservatives find ourselves in. The constitution is the charter and rules and the government is the executor. No matter how much any majority wants the government to do a thing, if it falls outside the specific authority that the constitution spells out, It is outside the authority of government to act.
Section 8 - Powers of
Section 8 - Powers of Congress
The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States
Truth is, the Constitution is pretty vague, and highly open to interpretation. So I don't know how claiming to drape your side of the argument in this document is relevant. Because right there it says it has the right to take care of the "general Welfare" of the country; whatever that means is open to interpretation by the people of the country, who speak through their representatives. It's imperfect and nobody gets exactly what they want, but everybody gets a little bit of something they need, and hopefully it makes all of our lives a little bit better.
I'm not the author you were
I'm not the author you were responding too but I thought I should make a point. If you read further into section 8, it gives a list of items do which I interpret as items congress can as part of "promoting the general welfare". So the question really is, can congress make a law regarding something that isn't on that list because it’s a separate paragraph and thus a separate thought or is the whole section supposed to be taken together as one organized statement?
Personally I think it’s fairly obvious that our founding fathers meant it as one organized statement to be taken as a whole and not "pick and choose" where to stop in the section. However this has been the discussion since our country's creation and so long as people have an agenda, they will do what they can to support their beliefs regardless of which side the issue they are on. That’s why IMO the 10th amendment is one of the most over looked yet one of the most important amendments to the constitution. It gives the people and states the power to keep the federal government in check.
What many I have spoken with seen to forget is we are a representative republic not a democracy. The envisioned structure was the states answer to the people and the federal government answers to the states with the federal government existing only to protect the states from each other, from foreign powers, and to guarantee individual freedom's/rights couldn't be taken away. Getting away from this structure IMO is part of the reason there are so many problems in general within our government today.
Anyway like I said it’s just my opinion I just wanted to pose the question regarding the constitution as I did above.
Yes, these "teabag" types
Yes, these "teabag" types are unfit to be fellow citizens, or vote for our leaders, but unfortunately there seem to be a lot of them. Mostly in the South. How about we cut them loose, let them have their own country their own way, and also pay the 7 trillion dollar bill they racked up during the reign of the murderous war criminal G. W. Bush? We could probably get Universal Healthcare going up North here within the year if we get rid of the nutjobs. We should start a program that encourages the greedy right-wing nutjobs to move to Florida and Texas. The zero state income taxes down there should appeal to their greed (nevermind the lack of public services, they like that!). Say, how much would Mexico pay us for Texas, anyway? Would it repay for Iraq, the tax cuts for the rich, and the bailouts? We could throw in Florida, maybe Mexico and Cuba could split the cost, divvy up the land, and we could give them a 30-year mortgage on it (heh heh, how apropos)...
Brilliant!
Brilliant!
I love you, Mark. Thank you
I love you, Mark. Thank you for bringing humor to what up until now I have found as a completely depressing devolution of our national "values." It makes me feel sick to my stomach that these people consider themselves patriotic... psychotic maybe, but patriotic- not a chance. The violent nature of some of the commentaries here illustrate that. It feels very liberating to be able to laugh at how crazy our Country can be. Thank you so much.
good stuff... right on
good stuff...
right on target!
Hilarious! I especially
Hilarious! I especially love the angry and muttering teabag at the beginning.
Video
Video Response
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZDZzbUxrnM
Geithner Needs Your Help!!!
your sure get a lot of
your sure get a lot of opinionated, one eyed people commenting on here...their comments are almost as funny as you
Hilarious
Hilarious
just because it is animated,
just because it is animated, has bright colors & has a condescending soundtrack complete with a lame laugh track does not automatically qualify a cartoon as funny no matter what the topic. unfortunately, this is true of this "tea bag" cartoon. it is a snide, shallow, swipe at humor that deprives fiore's fans of his usual wit. it's almost like he felt obliged to do a "tea bag" item and this was his half-hearted offering.
seriously, this was a sad, intellectually inept, humorless effort...yawn...
Lack of wit.totally
Lack of wit.totally simplistic.no sarcasm.just plumb stupid cartoon.
The so-called conservatives
The so-called conservatives who are objecting to this must not listen to the nasty, mostly unfounded sack of crap coming from the mouths of the hundreds of conservative talk show hosts each day. This is funny. None of the crap coming from Limburger, Ins-Hannity, Laura, etc.etc. etc. is even remotely funny. It's just small minded paranoia, feeding small-minded paranoids so they keep buying their small-minded, selfish, un-Christian thoughts in any form profitable.
Repuglicans and neo-ConJobs are like school yard bullies; they can dish it out, but cry like babies when someone stands up to them.
Three cheers Fiore!
Actually, your statement
Actually, your statement about "neo-conjobs" seems directly aimed at members of the Jewish community, as predominately "neo-conservative" titular thinkers have been Jewish. Is this because you're actually a Nazi? I think so, I think the Democratic party is just a bunch of Nazis in disguise! No really, you're just arrogant fools. Conservatives do have a sense of humour, it kicks in every time we look at stuff people like you say and DON'T fly into a fit of violent rage resulting in permanent bodily harm to you for OBVIOUSLY hating Jews. I mean cmon, you're a Nazi. Right? (Cue cry-fest over how mean conservatives are and just call you nazis and socialists all the time) Oh ya, socialist. NAZI. NATIONAL-SOCIALIST?? Lol, funny thing is, it's doubtful that you'd know what a Neo-Conservative is (Hint, its not actually a political party, more of an internal joke term used by about 3 people then later used as a derogatory term used by the christian religious right as a code-word for Jewish Republican party members who were once liberals and definately not "one of us[christians]")... or why you'd hate them (The 5.2 Neo-Conservatives in the world) ? Even funnier, George W. Bush was NOT a neo-conservative, he was never a liberal first, he never got "mugged by reality" and only a handful (about 3 total including Cheney's) of his aides were.
The funniest joke of all is liberals acting like they know politics rambling about conspiracy theories and making cute sound-a-like names for conservative pundits (who even we conservatives find annoying) ;)
You don't hear anything like
You don't hear anything like this coming from the conservative talking repugnants because they really don't have a fully developed sense of humor and only see the world as black and white.
I'd rather be sucking on the
I'd rather be sucking on the governments b--s than taking their d--k in the a-- . . . keep bending over America and watch what happens! Does your low opinion of Americans fighting for their rights translate to gay activists and hyphenated americans? Oh wait . . . let me guess, that question makes me a racist homophobe???
No, it just makes you
No, it just makes you utterly clueless. The problem with tea-baggers isn't that they want to fight for their rights. It's that they're so disconnected from reality that they wouldn't know a real threat to their rights if it danced up and down singing "threats to rights are here again".
Fiore sees hate and
Fiore sees hate and hatefully tosses 'jokes' around. Now hate is funny, see!
Would you like fries with that?
All Tea Baggers want is to
All Tea Baggers want is to live in a country that:
(1) has NO Income Tax, or any other taxes
(2) has NO gun laws !
(3) the government is not passing stupid health care laws
Fortunately, such a country exists !
It is called Somolia.
I suggest all Tea Baggers move there immediately !
Wonderful ! Could not have
Wonderful ! Could not have said it better. Thanks.
no, we want to live in a
no, we want to live in a country where the government protects our RIGHTS against the WANTS or even the NEEDS of others.
The function of government is to protect the rights of the individual, not take care of his needs. That is the responsibility of the individual.
excellent remark and to the
excellent remark and to the point
All tea baggers are smarter
All tea baggers are smarter than you.
The worst part probably is
The worst part probably is that this guy is sitting there waiting for comments as a total narcissist. I remember in school watching professors look sadly on cartoons that can never truly rise to the level of being art.
This stuff is just more liberal media rubbish off the same assembly line that produced "Mama voted for Obama," (red line underneath "Obama" Ironically, technology is still not accepting Obama) National Enslavement of the Arts Propaganda movement, etc. There are lots of flashy colors, I am noticing at the sidebar where it says: "Torture US Troops." Mark is sadly stuck on Bush.
I'm surprised that San Francisco hasn't fallen into the pacific ocean already, or been burned to the ground. Perhaps this is the only website which is operated from an airliner restroom over Detroit. Oh, well it is in fact the same motivation at its core.
I think the worst part is
I think the worst part is that your rant lacked any cohesive points.
The artist is a narcissist stuck on Bush?
National Enslavement of the Arts Propaganda movement?
San Francisco falling into the sea?
Wow! I have to say that your most impressive transition was from SF to an 'airliner restroom over Detroit'. Left we wanting more (or at least, what the hell you were talking about!)
Oboobma's schemes to destroy
Oboobma's schemes to destroy America will fail. Give me liberty or give me death!
If you want liberty then
If you want liberty then join us liberals and the ACLU. Say NO to government reading of emails and phone calls, to torture of other human beings, to the recent gift to corporations of "personhood" so they can buy elections and congresspersons, and fight against those who would deny women the right of control of their bodies by making it nearly impossible to choose a legal abortion. You want liberty? Join with us.
Time to withdraw funding for
Time to withdraw funding for public radio and web sites such as this. Isn't it ironic that tax payer money is being wasted to ridicule the people who are complaining about wasted tax money? Mark Fiore, aren't you ashamed of yourself for being part of the problem? Or are you just to happy to be making a crap load of cash while the left cheers you on? No need to answer.
When the morons began to
When the morons began to call them selves "tea baggers" all bets were off. How could they not know that this term was already defined? Really, in my mind it is the biggest joke of the decade. Hey, I have a tea bag for ya! Come on over, we can have a tea party! Cheers!
Anderson Cooper and the
Anderson Cooper and the "morons" at MSNBC used the sexual term "tea baggers" to be crude and dismissive of the protesters.
The people protesting the government grab to takeover private businesses (including the financials, automotive and health care industries) and protesting the severe taxation of a small group of Americans to pay for these and other government programs call themselves the TEA PARTY, but you knew that.
A rigged game In some
A rigged game
In some industries, rigging the game is called collusion. In our nation, where we're looking at corporate entities obtaining civil rights akin to individual rights, it's about extreme power differential.
Pure profit motive and predatory capitalism should not be the model for our healthcare. This type if ethos falls far short and the ironic bit is those who expolit systms make enough where they seldom have to deal with their own systems' shortcomings.
It's a rigged game and many on the right are playing classic tricks of misdirection with financially driven hidden agendas- stuff that has little to do with the many loaded words used at will (liberty, justice, freedom).
The systems seem to rule, just like the corporations. Hell, I work for the entropic governmen- but who else can put the brakes on? Granted, they're as dirty (both sides) as anyone else, but how else are you gonna fix things?
Oh sure, it's easy to scream Socialist- especially when certain pretend news channels are feeding the hate, their corporate sponsors fearing losing billions. The worst of it is what happens if those they stir run amok- to the point that Conservative leaders can't even control them?
BTW- ain't it funny the Right goes on and on about people sponging off the systems of care when this is a pittance considering the $$$ corporations make off of an extremely rigged game? Kinda like the Right's repugnance at evolutionary theory but marriage to social darwinism when it comes to healthcare.
For teabaggers, it doesn't have to make sense, just yell loudly, inflate your numbers, and carry a BIG STICK (compensation for a short stick, perhaps?)...
Capitalism has been able to
Capitalism has been able to solve more world problems, enable more people to better themselves based upon their own hard work then any other economic theory. It is not a rigged game nor misdirection. The novel idea that is completely and obviously beyond the grasp of Anonymous (compensation for promoting dumb ideas, perhaps?) is that successful business and enterprises reward the hard work of those that contribute to the success. Unlike the the neer-do-well politicians and government workers who demand to be rewarded like union members for mediocrity (e.g., autoworkers and teachers immediately spring to mind!!) or outright failure.
It wasn't the unions or union thinking that got us out of the depression, it was the industrialization to support the war effort. It wasn't Al Gore claiming to invent the Internet it was all of the entrepreneurs who tried to capitalize on the Internet that was the driving force behind the economies success during the Reagan and Clinton years. (Please note Anonymous, that I attributed the success to both Republican and Democratic administrations - this is not a partisan rant, which you are likely in your claim). I could include other examples, but I prefer instead to ask, what did socialism or Marxism or communism ever achieve except millions of deaths?
The answer for health care is to remove the state imposed barriers to insurance companies and let them compete. Mandate some basic rules like no pre-existing condition exclusions for people who show a track record of purchasing insurance, no caps or limits on coverage and so on. The beauty of this solution versus Obama Cares is that it is basically free, can be implemented immediately and will save the budget untold trillions!!!
Further, we need to either round up and deport illegal aliens (the US has done it at least three times before, Google Operation Wetback) or devise a scheme so that they can become productive, registered citizens who can purchase their own insurance if they want to.
Lastly, I bet this post gets deleted. If not then at the very least I expect some type of juvenile name calling rebuttal. But if you are interested, I would be happy to discuss the matter in detail. Alas, I think, based upon the derogatory name calling in the original post is something that will never occur to Anonymous!!
Remember that we elected the
Remember that we elected the team that is raping us, selling us out, taking away our rights. We really need to vote them out, hopefully before they give away the country.
They are White collar terrorists.
List the rights you've lost,
List the rights you've lost, under the current administration. The people who sold the country are the last administration, spending and deregulating and warring with no regard for cost.
According to CNN Money, just
According to CNN Money, just under health care rights you will lose five key freedoms:
1. Freedom to choose what's in your plan
The bills in both houses require that Americans purchase insurance through "qualified" plans offered by health-care "exchanges" that would be set up in each state. The rub is that the plans can't really compete based on what they offer. The reason: The federal government will impose a minimum list of benefits that each plan is required to offer...
2. Freedom to be rewarded for healthy living, or pay your real costs
As with the previous example, the Obama plan enshrines into federal law one of the worst features of state legislation: community rating. Eleven states, ranging from New York to Oregon, have some form of community rating. In its purest form, community rating requires that all patients pay the same rates for their level of coverage regardless of their age or medical condition...
3. Freedom to choose high-deductible coverage
The bills threaten to eliminate the one part of the market truly driven by consumers spending their own money. That's what makes a market, and health care needs more of it, not less...
4. Freedom to keep your existing plan
This is the freedom that the President keeps emphasizing. Yet the bills appear to say otherwise. It's worth diving into the weeds -- the territory where most pundits and politicians don't seem to have ventured...
5. Freedom to choose your doctors
The Senate bill requires that Americans buying through the exchanges -- and as we've seen, that will soon be most Americans -- must get their care through something called "medical home." Medical home is similar to an HMO. You're assigned a primary care doctor, and the doctor controls your access to specialists. The primary care physicians will decide which services, like MRIs and other diagnostic scans, are best for you, and will decide when you really need to see a cardiologists or orthopedists...
Then there's Taxpayer Rights (bill signed into law 2009-02-17).
As a major part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Obama and the Congress have taken away even more of our rights to determine what to do with our own money, especially in light of the Tenth Amendment prohibition on federal powers not granted by the Constitution (explicitly or implicitly via the "necessary and proper" clause), both now and -- because it is deficit spending -- for many years into the future. [As the Congress and President tend to do this almost all the time, we won't bother noting every example of it.]
It is not about Obama... but about government in general forgetting their place in our society. THEY work for us, we do not work for them. Though my taxes will go up once the Bush
1) There is very little
1) There is very little option currently to choose what is in your health plan to begin with, particularly if you are getting it through your job/
2) There currently is no reward system for healthy living either, so where's the loss here?
3)Freedom to choose high deductible coverage is an interesting one, but really, a high deductible plan doesn't help individuals that much in general, though it shouldn't be regulated out
4) Taking this away would not effect the people getting it through an employer
5) You have no freedom to cheese your doctor unless you have medicare or Medicaid anyways.
The real problem is that conservatives argue "no" but offer no alternatives. Although this bill is bad for everybody as it doesn't solve the underlying problems in the system.
Please, do not give people
Please, do not give people the right to "cheese" their doctor.
(Signed) A Retired Doctor. ;-)
When I learned about
When I learned about propaganda Bandwagoning, straw man, stereotyping all are here and this is the worst sort of propaganda that the people who put this together are using to claim that thieir opostion is using propaganda.
What I find interesting from
What I find interesting from this thread that seems to have people railing against corporate greed or government control (being a rather bemused observer from Australia) is the absence of this question: Do you think its right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick? Even after they get their insurance and establish a savings account and live healthy lives. Although I must congratulate the U.S. for one thing…you have shut down the health lobby in my country by giving all of the anti-private providers more then enough ammunition to rebut all of their claims (we, like the UK have a mix…high quality nationalized heath for all procedures with a private option if you wish something extra).
"Do you think its right for
"Do you think its right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick? "
Although it is a very good question, it is the wrong one to ask. The right question is:
"Does the Government have the authority to take resources from one individual (without compensation), and give them to another individual?"
The government has the authority to protect Rights, and enforce contracts. The right to own property and to keep that property which one has earned, is certainly a right. So, is health care a Right? You would think that every American has the right to be healthy, and I would agree that anyone has the right to "be" anything they have the ability to be. But look at the question. Health care is a service. So to clarify, I will ask some of the questions that are missed in the media. When answering these questions, there are two rules.
1. Warm fuzzy feelings don't count.
2. People have a right to be mean and stingy, when it comes to their property.
so, here goes:
1. From whom do you demand this service (health care)?
2. Do you demand this service for free?
3. Whose labor goes to pay for those who cannot afford to pay?
4. Do those people have a right not to labor (without compensation) for the benefit of the people who need?
5. How is this labor (without compensation) different from slavery?
6. If you see the “society” as compensation, society is based on mutual benefit. What benefit does the one who labors receive from the one for whom he pays the health care?
You have a right to procure, protect, and trade your own resources, not a right to demand resources of others.
Some use the argument that it is immoral to let people "die in the streets", or to deny a child needed medical care. To those people, I ask:
1. Is it the function of government to enforce morality?
2. Whose morality? The majority?
3. What if the majority were to deem that slavery was moral? Or that homosexuality were immoral?
4. Should the government allow, mandate or prevent these based on the majority opinion?
It is the responsibility of the individual, not the government, to take steps to insure that he is protected against financial ruin (by buying catastrophic coverage).
So, in answer to the original question: No, it is not "right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick" but it is beyond the scope of the government's authority (and responsibility) to prevent such an event by violating the property rights of another individual.
You are a heartless, selfish
You are a heartless, selfish moron. I hope you soon develop an uncurable cancer, and you must spend every last dime of your assets in a futile attempt to hang on to your miserable life, finally choking to death on your sanctimony.
"You are a heartless,
"You are a heartless, selfish moron. I hope you soon develop an uncurable cancer, and you must spend every last dime of your assets in a futile attempt to hang on to your miserable life, finally choking to death on your sanctimony."
Notice that there was no coherent argument in this rant, just reactionary namecalling and a wish for my ill health. Very much like the individual depicted in the animation. So, are you speaking "tea bag"? sounds like incoherent liberal spew, to me. Come back when you can muster a valid argument.
argument = assertion + supporting statements.
till then, buh-bye.
I'm still waiting.
I'm still waiting.
"Do you think its right for
"Do you think its right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick? "
Although it is a very good question, it is the wrong one to ask. The right question is:
"Does the Government have the authority to take resources from one individual (without compensation), and give them to another individual?"
The government has the authority to protect Rights, and enforce contracts. The right to own property and to keep that property which one has earned, is certainly a right. So, is health care a Right? You would think that every American has the right to be healthy, and I would agree that anyone has the right to "be" anything they have the ability to be. But look at the question. Health care is a service. So to clarify, I will ask some of the questions that are missed in the media. When answering these questions, there are two rules.
1. Warm fuzzy feelings don't count.
2. People have a right to be mean and stingy, when it comes to their property.
so, here goes:
1. From whom do you demand this service (health care)?
2. Do you demand this service for free?
3. Whose labor goes to pay for those who cannot afford to pay?
4. Do those people have a right not to labor (without compensation) for the benefit of the people who need?
5. How is this labor (without compensation) different from slavery?
6. If you see the “society” as compensation, society is based on mutual benefit. What benefit does the one who labors receive from the one for whom he pays the health care?
You have a right to procure, protect, and trade your own resources, not a right to demand resources of others.
Some use the argument that it is immoral to let people "die in the streets", or to deny a child needed medical care. To those people, I ask:
1. Is it the function of government to enforce morality?
2. Whose morality? The majority?
3. What if the majority were to deem that slavery was moral? Or that homosexuality were immoral?
4. Should the government allow, mandate or prevent these based on the majority opinion?
It is the responsibility of the individual, not the government, to take steps to insure that he is protected against financial ruin (by buying catastrophic coverage), cutting back on their lifestyle, if necessary.
So, in answer to the original question:
No, it is not "right for someone to lose everything just because they become sick" but it is beyond the scope of the government's authority (and responsibility) to prevent such an event by violating the property rights of another individual.
Once again for the willfully
Once again for the willfully ignorant.........
a Public option (insurance exchange) =/= GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER OF HEALTHCARE
Everytime one of you chimps state that, it makes you sound even more retarded. I don't how many times your idiot role models like the Boehner and the thrilla from Wasilla puke that soundbite from their cakeholes, it's not the same thing.
You Liberals crack me up.
You Liberals crack me up. For eight years YOU have done exactly EVERYTHING you claim supporters of liberty are doing. There are no bigger hypocrites in the world than Liberal Democrats.
And don't blame me, I voted LIBERTARIAN, because I want you to be free to live your life the way you see fit and not force you to do anything against your will.
And just because you can't accept the fact that Barry O, Pelosi, Reid et al are Socialists doesn't change that reality. Of course, you all called Bush a Nazi for years but now that the shoe is on the other foot you have nothing better than showing the world the true colors of Liberalism which is to act as childish as you can, call the other guy sophomoric names and when that fails play the race card. HAHA! 2010 will be the end of Democrap tyranny.
Thanks for the laugh. Not the video, the delusions of the Leftists posting here!
Oh, and Dubya wasn't a Conservative. He was a Neocon which is another name for a LIBERAL!
Neoconservative is the full
Neoconservative is the full name... so yes, he IS a conservative, thanks for playing.
Yeah, good luck with that...
Yeah, good luck with that... and when life is better than it was, and America is itself again, rather than a torturing hate-state, you can feel free to move away, or eat your words, as you choose.
"There are no bigger
"There are no bigger hypocrites in the world than Liberal Democrats."
I think conservative republicans would fall into this category.
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