2000 pages? Really?!

[Raynestorm]

Ok, I read on yahoo the other day that Sen. Reid's bill is 2000 pages long.

No, that's not a typo. I didn't mean to type 200 and hit an extra zero by mistake...it's 2000 pages long.

That's three times as long as War and Peace.

First thought....did Sen. Reid know he didn't have to use this size font?

The bigger question is, did he have that much to say or did he make it that long so no one would read it.

I'm beginning to think that we need a bill to put a limit on how long a bill can be.

 

[Skull Pilot]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

 

[rightwinger]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

If they had word processors and "cut and paste" the Constitution would have been much longer.

When you transcribe by hand, you tend to keep it short

 

[asaratis]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

If they had word processors and "cut and paste" the Constitution would have been much longer.

When you transcribe by hand, you tend to keep it short

That is so far from the true reason for its conciseness I'd categorize it as bullshit.

 

[Raynestorm]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

Rep points.....well said.

 

[Oldandtired]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

If they had word processors and "cut and paste" the Constitution would have been much longer.

When you transcribe by hand, you tend to keep it short

We can rationalize anything by starting off with the word "if"

Truth is...when the stimulus bill was 1000 pages, people like you were rationalizing it as well.

Meanwhile, contrary to the promise of Obama....there were 9000 earmarks in it.

Ya think 9000 earmarks had something to do with its size?

 

[Claudette]

Well the longer it is the more chance to put all that hidden shit in it. The stuff we'll find out about if this peice of shit passes. Can hardly wait.

 

[rightwinger]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

If they had word processors and "cut and paste" the Constitution would have been much longer.

When you transcribe by hand, you tend to keep it short

We can rationalize anything by starting off with the word "if"

Truth is...when the stimulus bill was 1000 pages, people like you were rationalizing it as well.

Meanwhile, contrary to the promise of Obama....there were 9000 earmarks in it.

Ya think 9000 earmarks had something to do with its size?

Does size matter?

 

[uscitizen]

The health care/insurance lobbyists needed to hide a lot of loopholes for themselves in there.

 

[Oldandtired]

If they had word processors and "cut and paste" the Constitution would have been much longer.

When you transcribe by hand, you tend to keep it short

We can rationalize anything by starting off with the word "if"

Truth is...when the stimulus bill was 1000 pages, people like you were rationalizing it as well.

Meanwhile, contrary to the promise of Obama....there were 9000 earmarks in it.

Ya think 9000 earmarks had something to do with its size?

Does size matter?

Excellent response to a logic you have no way to refute.

 

[ABikerSailor]

Funny how the Constitution is a mere 4400 words and lays out the entire framework of the totality of federal government and its powers but we need 2000 pages and a hundred times as many words to "reform" health care

If they had word processors and "cut and paste" the Constitution would have been much longer.

When you transcribe by hand, you tend to keep it short

You know......you may be onto something there Right Winger and Skull Pilot. Matter of fact, while I was in the Navy, the worst time of the year was whenever evaluations were being written.

In the old days (OCR), it was a simple form, but then the word smiths (read: officers with a college degree and too much time), spent ENORMOUS amounts of time to see who could write the better eval. Next thing ya know, they went from 10 pitch type to 12 (and in some cases 15), and tried to make 'em longer.

Then..........they started to allow additional pages to describe particularly noteworthy accomplishments. Eventually, when BUPERS ended up getting them for Chief's boards, they were too long.

They revamped the eval system in the early 90's to make them 1 page ONLY, and to not put all sorts of extraneous bullshit in it.

Took around 2 cycles to finally get it back to manageable.

In this case? Well.......think about it.........politicians (most of 'em anyway) are lawyers, and they like to see if they can outdo each other in the speaking and words department.

THAT is why the fucking bill is so long and the Constitution isn't. If they had word processors and computers back then? Well.......I'm betting it wouldn't be as short a document, probably more along the lines of a sizeable book.

Remember.........the easier it gets to make changes, the more changes people will want to make, because remember.........politicians have ENORMOUS egos, and every one of 'em wants to leave a "fingerprint" on the bill so that they can tell their constituents about it and get re elected.

The Founding Fathers weren't so much concerned with writing stuff down as much as they were interested in actually building a new country.

The politicos now? Well.......the country is here, so now all they have is words and not much in the action department.

 

[LibocalypseNow]

It's just a colossal Socialist Nightmare in the end. Common sense alone would dictate a Nay Vote on this Boondoggle. We'll see i guess.

 

[ABikerSailor]

Interesting tidbit...........if the health care bill was put in NORMAL type (12 or 10 pt), then the "book" that they call it is actually only 450 pages long.

Same size as Palin's book.

Coincidence perhaps? Naahhhhh..........ain't no such thing as coincidence. It's synchronicity.