Well are you?

[Ray From Cleveland]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

Absolutely yes.

The Bush years ended with the destruction of the housing and financial sectors. We saw the greatest meltdown in our lives. Obama turned it around and has brought unemployment to lowest levels since Clinton.

Bush and the Republican Congress created the Patriot Act, which erected a Soviet style bureaucracy over the nation.

Trump is right. He destroyed the middle east and the economy. He had the nerve to shine a light on what the Republican Party did to this country - this is why the establishment hates him.

Our only hope is that President Trump does not repeat the mistakes of the last 3 Republican administrations. Reagan tripled the debt of Carter with a bloated Pentagon budget written largely by weapons contractors. Bush 43 doubled the debt of Clinton. Every Republican administration complains about Democratic spending, BUT THEN they always - and I mean always - increase spending. Indeed, Bush didn't veto a single piece of Republican Pork. Nobody spends like Big Government Conservatives.

The only people who believe that the economy has gotten worse since Bush are people who live completely inside talk radio and FOX News.

(Wow, just Wow)

Yeah, Fox news. You want to know what else Fox news told us? No President spent more than your precious Socialist President.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

You can bitch and moan and complain all you want to. It is not going to change the reality of our situation. We are certainly NOT going to abandon our poor people. Welfare will continue. That is just a fact. So you have two choices here . . . you can demand that employers start being more responsible for paying their employees a living wage, or you can choose to help support those people yourselves with your tax money and help those super rich employers. ???? Does anything else NEED to be said on this topic?

Or choice number 3: We can elect leaders that will take people off of these welfare programs so they have to work for everything they want.

 

[francoHFW]

I'm in fine shape because I planned for my future years ago. I have 2 retirement checks, my home and land is paid for and I have money in the bank. The "American Dream" was realized by me.

I am sorry for you young people of today. I truly am. This is what logically comes from supporting liberals and their ideology.

The middle class in America is all but gone. Part time work is becoming the "norm" and it is not unusual to see a young man or woman working 2-3 part time jobs in an attempt to get ahead.

It's a damn shame. It really is.

I'm no worse off either but everything I own is paid for. Like you Randall I don't owe anyone a dime and that's what happens when you plan ahead.

I feel sorry for those that didn't and depend on the Govt. tit to survive. Of course I hate bankrolling their live for them but that's just what this country has turned into. Those that have take care of those that don't.

After 30 years of Voodoo: worst min. wage, work conditions, illegal work safeguards, vacations, work week, college costs, rich/poor gap, upward social mobility, % homeless and in prison EVAH, and in the modern world!! And you complain about the victims? Are you an idiot or an A-hole?

Glad you people did great in the good old days before Reaganism and the New BS GOP wrecked the country. The savings rate has gone from 10% in 1980 to MINUS 1% in 2007. Great job pandering to the greedy idiot megarich, dingbat dupes...

Jesus Christ - can you think for yourself? Or do you watch MSNBC all day then come here to spew your garbage?

I watch and read EVERYTHING- so I recognize your RW ignorance, dupe. ANY ARGUMENT ON THESE FACTS, dimwit?

 

[francoHFW]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

Absolutely yes.

The Bush years ended with the destruction of the housing and financial sectors. We saw the greatest meltdown in our lives. Obama turned it around and has brought unemployment to lowest levels since Clinton.

Bush and the Republican Congress created the Patriot Act, which erected a Soviet style bureaucracy over the nation.

Trump is right. He destroyed the middle east and the economy. He had the nerve to shine a light on what the Republican Party did to this country - this is why the establishment hates him.

Our only hope is that President Trump does not repeat the mistakes of the last 3 Republican administrations. Reagan tripled the debt of Carter with a bloated Pentagon budget written largely by weapons contractors. Bush 43 doubled the debt of Clinton. Every Republican administration complains about Democratic spending, BUT THEN they always - and I mean always - increase spending. Indeed, Bush didn't veto a single piece of Republican Pork. Nobody spends like Big Government Conservatives.

The only people who believe that the economy has gotten worse since Bush are people who live completely inside talk radio and FOX News.

(Wow, just Wow)

Yeah, Fox news. You want to know what else Fox news told us? No President spent more than your precious Socialist President.

90% of which is to bail out Main St and help the victims of your corrupt GOP world depression. STILL 3-400 billion a year. Brainwashed functional MORON.

 

[francoHFW]

You can bitch and moan and complain all you want to. It is not going to change the reality of our situation. We are certainly NOT going to abandon our poor people. Welfare will continue. That is just a fact. So you have two choices here . . . you can demand that employers start being more responsible for paying their employees a living wage, or you can choose to help support those people yourselves with your tax money and help those super rich employers. ???? Does anything else NEED to be said on this topic?

Or choice number 3: We can elect leaders that will take people off of these welfare programs so they have to work for everything they want.

After 30 years of Voodoo: worst min. wage, work conditions, illegal work safeguards, vacations, work week, college costs, rich/poor gap, upward social mobility, % homeless and in prison EVAH, and in the modern world!! And you complain about the victims? Are you an idiot or an A-hole?

And that was BEFORE the W Depression...How do you think all those people got on welfare, hater?

 

[RandallFlagg]

I'm in fine shape because I planned for my future years ago. I have 2 retirement checks, my home and land is paid for and I have money in the bank. The "American Dream" was realized by me.

I am sorry for you young people of today. I truly am. This is what logically comes from supporting liberals and their ideology.

The middle class in America is all but gone. Part time work is becoming the "norm" and it is not unusual to see a young man or woman working 2-3 part time jobs in an attempt to get ahead.

It's a damn shame. It really is.

I'm no worse off either but everything I own is paid for. Like you Randall I don't owe anyone a dime and that's what happens when you plan ahead.

I feel sorry for those that didn't and depend on the Govt. tit to survive. Of course I hate bankrolling their live for them but that's just what this country has turned into. Those that have take care of those that don't.

After 30 years of Voodoo: worst min. wage, work conditions, illegal work safeguards, vacations, work week, college costs, rich/poor gap, upward social mobility, % homeless and in prison EVAH, and in the modern world!! And you complain about the victims? Are you an idiot or an A-hole?

Glad you people did great in the good old days before Reaganism and the New BS GOP wrecked the country. The savings rate has gone from 10% in 1980 to MINUS 1% in 2007. Great job pandering to the greedy idiot megarich, dingbat dupes...

Jesus Christ - can you think for yourself? Or do you watch MSNBC all day then come here to spew your garbage?

I watch and read EVERYTHING- so I recognize your RW ignorance, dupe. ANY ARGUMENT ON THESE FACTS, dimwit?

Nope. I'm done with you. You are the personification of Forest Gump. Not worth the time.

 

[froggy]

Obama economy: Welfare dependency peaks as rich get richer

 

[francoHFW]

I'm in fine shape because I planned for my future years ago. I have 2 retirement checks, my home and land is paid for and I have money in the bank. The "American Dream" was realized by me.

I am sorry for you young people of today. I truly am. This is what logically comes from supporting liberals and their ideology.

The middle class in America is all but gone. Part time work is becoming the "norm" and it is not unusual to see a young man or woman working 2-3 part time jobs in an attempt to get ahead.

It's a damn shame. It really is.

I'm no worse off either but everything I own is paid for. Like you Randall I don't owe anyone a dime and that's what happens when you plan ahead.

I feel sorry for those that didn't and depend on the Govt. tit to survive. Of course I hate bankrolling their live for them but that's just what this country has turned into. Those that have take care of those that don't.

After 30 years of Voodoo: worst min. wage, work conditions, illegal work safeguards, vacations, work week, college costs, rich/poor gap, upward social mobility, % homeless and in prison EVAH, and in the modern world!! And you complain about the victims? Are you an idiot or an A-hole?

Glad you people did great in the good old days before Reaganism and the New BS GOP wrecked the country. The savings rate has gone from 10% in 1980 to MINUS 1% in 2007. Great job pandering to the greedy idiot megarich, dingbat dupes...

Jesus Christ - can you think for yourself? Or do you watch MSNBC all day then come here to spew your garbage?

I agree. He conveniently forgets the Dems had as much to do with the state of things as the Reps do.

Of course when your a mindless haterdupe drone like Francoidiot. you don't have the intelligence to see anything but what you want to believe.

WTF is wrong with you drones. Tell the mindless GOP to get out of the way. Boooshie regulators changed Fanny and Freddies share of the market from 75% to 25% and gave the store away to Countrywide etc, rated CRAP A+ and let them be sold around the world. IDIOTS. Also wrecked the ME for lies, and have mindlessly obstructed solutions for 7 years to protect the bloated rich and giant corps. Change the STUPID bought off channel.

 

[francoHFW]

I'm in fine shape because I planned for my future years ago. I have 2 retirement checks, my home and land is paid for and I have money in the bank. The "American Dream" was realized by me.

I am sorry for you young people of today. I truly am. This is what logically comes from supporting liberals and their ideology.

The middle class in America is all but gone. Part time work is becoming the "norm" and it is not unusual to see a young man or woman working 2-3 part time jobs in an attempt to get ahead.

It's a damn shame. It really is.

I'm no worse off either but everything I own is paid for. Like you Randall I don't owe anyone a dime and that's what happens when you plan ahead.

I feel sorry for those that didn't and depend on the Govt. tit to survive. Of course I hate bankrolling their live for them but that's just what this country has turned into. Those that have take care of those that don't.

After 30 years of Voodoo: worst min. wage, work conditions, illegal work safeguards, vacations, work week, college costs, rich/poor gap, upward social mobility, % homeless and in prison EVAH, and in the modern world!! And you complain about the victims? Are you an idiot or an A-hole?

Glad you people did great in the good old days before Reaganism and the New BS GOP wrecked the country. The savings rate has gone from 10% in 1980 to MINUS 1% in 2007. Great job pandering to the greedy idiot megarich, dingbat dupes...

Jesus Christ - can you think for yourself? Or do you watch MSNBC all day then come here to spew your garbage?

I watch and read EVERYTHING- so I recognize your RW ignorance, dupe. ANY ARGUMENT ON THESE FACTS, dimwit?

Nope. I'm done with you. You are the personification of Forest Gump. Not worth the time.

You can't argue the facts- Just keep sticking your fingers in your ears, singing the marine anthem, and blaming the victims of megarich GOPers. Brainwashed functional IDIOT.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

I'll make the argument:

For one, a huge minimum wage increase would have a domino effect across the country. All wages would increase which means labor in the US would be much more expensive and cause more businesses to move overseas or make investments in automation to replace human beings. Because of the huge price increases, it would make online shopping more inviting which has an impact on mom and pop shops.

Next of course is it wouldn't solve anything. Only about 4% of our working population makes minimum wage. Therefore the only people we would most help are teenagers, college kids, and senior citizens who are just looking to keep busy during their retirement years.

Then there is the question if it would even help them. That's because even though they get a wage increase, everything they buy would be much more expensive as well. If I get a wage increase and now bring home $200.00 a month more than I did before, but my shopping bill for the month went up $200.00 a month more, how am I ahead?

I'm glad you are interested enough to discuss but disappointed in your lack of basic education on the topic.

A "huge" minimum wage increase can certainly have a domino effect on the country. Fortunately, nobody here is arguing for a "huge" minimum wage increase. My argument, from the beginning, has been an increase in minimum wage coupled with a reduction in welfare benefits. While this may end up increasing purchasing power for the impoverished slightly (which does have inflationary pressures on the economy), as the increase is more targeted to give them the ability to buy items for themselves rather than have the population at large buy them, the real goal is to only minimally increase their purchasing power, but make them more responsible for their purchases rather than having society at large responsible for a noted percent of their purchases. So, your first point is a straw man argument. That wasn't my argument. You actually never addressed my argument and then ran into a slippery slope about outsourcing.

Only 4% of the population makes minimum wage. I'm not sure about that number, but I won't argue it either. However, if you consider the population working low-wage, which is anybody making $7.26 up through a reasonable new floor for minimum wage (which you can argue about, which is why my numbers here vary so drastically), then the % of the population that that effect can be anything from 12%-26%. Also, you make a claim about a demographic based upon a simple percentage...there is no logical linkage between a number and a demographic. I'll help you however. According to the BLS in 2014, only ~5.4% of the minimum wage workers were 16-19, only ~4.3% were 65 or older. that means that (slightly) over 90% are...college kids...according to you. However, even that argument fails when you consider that ~18.4% HAVE A BACHELOR'S (or higher).

Finally, you question whether or not the wage increase would help them. Again, you need to actually READ the argument that you are countering. My contention was, is, and will be to help YOURSELF. As it stands these workers rely on varying degrees (for actual minimum wage workers, usually heavily) on government support. My point that we should increase minimum wages WHILE decreasing welfare benefits is not to aim a a large net "helping" for these workers...it is simply to place more of the burden of their living on their own back rather then mine...or yours.

Again, I'm simply shocked that anybody really has an issue with an increase in minimum wages coupled by a decrease in welfare benefits. It literally makes everybody happier and more well off (except maybe the corporations).

Why would corporations care? When you add financial burden to the companies, they just pass that burden onto us.

If you reduce government dependency, people will find a way to make more money. How many people do you know that work minimum wage and work over 40 hours a week? Not many.

As I pointed out earlier, take a look at what Maine did by creating requirements to get food stamps. Most of the people on the program dropped out! If they needed food stamps so badly, and decided they weren't going to work for them, how are they eating now????

But let me add a few things here I didn't have time to put in my other post: Minimum wage encourages people to better themselves. That's it in a nutshell.

For instance, I had a tenant that just moved out. She and her BF have been here six years. Both work fast food places. They always paid rent although late all the time, but they paid.

So why didn't they try to better themselves? Because they both smoke pot, and better paying jobs usually require drug testing.

It has always been my hope for them that they will see the errors of their ways, quit smoking dope, and try to advance themselves in life realizing low wage work just to smoke pot is not worth it.

So along comes some politicians and increase minimum wage. Such an increase would retard or hinder her decision to better herself as it would millions of people. This couple is in their mid 20's now, but it won't be long until they are in their mid 30's, then 40's. By the time they realize what a huge mistake they've made, it will be too late to get ahead in the game.

 

[francoHFW]

Oh, I see, relevance isn't relevance for you. Gotcha. How's this? On my last job, that I retired from (with a nice pension to go along with my military pension) I was making 98,970 per year with a full benefits package.

So, I went from .60 an hour in the early 60s to nearly $100,000 (well far above it with benefits) so see, relevance matters, if you don't want to stay at the bottom of the heap for your entire life.

Get it now?

Maybe you didn't read my post, but let me reiterate:

"You actually have to make a point and generally back that up with logic, knowledge, etc."

Now, personally, I'm happy to hear that you worked your way up out of the trenches (maybe even literally). Also, being a Marine veteran myself I'm happy to hear that you joined the select few who really put their ass on the line and serve the country.

However, the point still stands that an anecdotal story for you doesn't mean much when talking about the diverse population of America in general. If your point is that we shouldn't raise minimal wages, exactly WHY are you saying that? Because you once made a minimum wage? Okay...that means nothing. Maybe you are saying that everybody making a minimum wage can work their way out of it. That would mean you would have to change the entire job structure of America however (you can't honestly say that you think that there are enough higher paying jobs out there to support all the individuals making minimum wage now to move into them).
I'm not even certain why you are fighting this so much. Generally speaking the people who most commonly shop at the places that have minimum wage jobs (like McDonald's, Wal-Mart, etc.) are the individuals who also work at a place like that. People who make higher wages tend to shop and higher end stores. So, if you actually made close to $100,000 you should be actively fighting FOR an increase in minimum wages (coupled with a decrease in welfare benefits). The reason is that you generally won't use the services provided by the lowest common denominator, but, being a tax payer, you are literally paying for their meal ticket. I'm really not sure why you would argue against such an obvious point.

I'll make the argument:

For one, a huge minimum wage increase would have a domino effect across the country. All wages would increase which means labor in the US would be much more expensive and cause more businesses to move overseas or make investments in automation to replace human beings. Because of the huge price increases, it would make online shopping more inviting which has an impact on mom and pop shops.

Next of course is it wouldn't solve anything. Only about 4% of our working population makes minimum wage. Therefore the only people we would most help are teenagers, college kids, and senior citizens who are just looking to keep busy during their retirement years.

Then there is the question if it would even help them. That's because even though they get a wage increase, everything they buy would be much more expensive as well. If I get a wage increase and now bring home $200.00 a month more than I did before, but my shopping bill for the month went up $200.00 a month more, how am I ahead?

Of course, labor costs are 20% or less of final prices, so you're just parroting the usual dupe bs...

They will still be 20% of the final prices but the final price will increase.

By George, I think you're finally learning something there Frankfart.

So when you raise 20% of the price 50%, the price goes up 50%? Good thinking!

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

You cannot argue with the facts!

For most workers, real wages have barely budged for decades

Who's arguing that? I sure wasn't.

When unions were at full force, many workers were well overpaid for the work they did. People had jobs turning nuts onto bolts and were able to get wages and benefits enough to live very good.

When jobs started to leave the country and businesses invested in automation to replace monkey jobs, wages declined. Nobody can argue that.

Construction workers work 100 times harder than you do. The job takes it's toll on the body. You have NO IDEA.

I have no idea? A son of a bricklayer has no idea?

I grew up doing construction work with my father on side-jobs. I started at the age of 11 I believe. He paid me one dollar an hour. One dollar an hour to carry clamps of bricks to the job site, one dollar an hour to mix cement by hand, one dollar an hour to erect scaffolding as the job progressed.

At the age of 18, my father pulled some strings and got me into the bricklayers union as an apprentice. I worked one summer and decided I lived with construction long enough. I chose a different route.

My father made a great living being a bricklayer, but even with the wages they make today, they still can't find people to enter that field of work. Younger people today don't want to get their hands dirty, and most of them don't want to give up smoking pot.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

Absolutely yes.

The Bush years ended with the destruction of the housing and financial sectors. We saw the greatest meltdown in our lives. Obama turned it around and has brought unemployment to lowest levels since Clinton.

Bush and the Republican Congress created the Patriot Act, which erected a Soviet style bureaucracy over the nation.

Trump is right. He destroyed the middle east and the economy. He had the nerve to shine a light on what the Republican Party did to this country - this is why the establishment hates him.

Our only hope is that President Trump does not repeat the mistakes of the last 3 Republican administrations. Reagan tripled the debt of Carter with a bloated Pentagon budget written largely by weapons contractors. Bush 43 doubled the debt of Clinton. Every Republican administration complains about Democratic spending, BUT THEN they always - and I mean always - increase spending. Indeed, Bush didn't veto a single piece of Republican Pork. Nobody spends like Big Government Conservatives.

The only people who believe that the economy has gotten worse since Bush are people who live completely inside talk radio and FOX News.

(Wow, just Wow)

Yeah, Fox news. You want to know what else Fox news told us? No President spent more than your precious Socialist President.

90% of which is to bail out Main St and help the victims of your corrupt GOP world depression. STILL 3-400 billion a year. Brainwashed functional MORON.

Right. Do you know what 90% of 9 trillion dollars is??

Buy yourself a calculator there Sparky. I'm sure it comes with instructions.

 

[francoHFW]

I'll make the argument:

For one, a huge minimum wage increase would have a domino effect across the country. All wages would increase which means labor in the US would be much more expensive and cause more businesses to move overseas or make investments in automation to replace human beings. Because of the huge price increases, it would make online shopping more inviting which has an impact on mom and pop shops.

Next of course is it wouldn't solve anything. Only about 4% of our working population makes minimum wage. Therefore the only people we would most help are teenagers, college kids, and senior citizens who are just looking to keep busy during their retirement years.

Then there is the question if it would even help them. That's because even though they get a wage increase, everything they buy would be much more expensive as well. If I get a wage increase and now bring home $200.00 a month more than I did before, but my shopping bill for the month went up $200.00 a month more, how am I ahead?

I'm glad you are interested enough to discuss but disappointed in your lack of basic education on the topic.

A "huge" minimum wage increase can certainly have a domino effect on the country. Fortunately, nobody here is arguing for a "huge" minimum wage increase. My argument, from the beginning, has been an increase in minimum wage coupled with a reduction in welfare benefits. While this may end up increasing purchasing power for the impoverished slightly (which does have inflationary pressures on the economy), as the increase is more targeted to give them the ability to buy items for themselves rather than have the population at large buy them, the real goal is to only minimally increase their purchasing power, but make them more responsible for their purchases rather than having society at large responsible for a noted percent of their purchases. So, your first point is a straw man argument. That wasn't my argument. You actually never addressed my argument and then ran into a slippery slope about outsourcing.

Only 4% of the population makes minimum wage. I'm not sure about that number, but I won't argue it either. However, if you consider the population working low-wage, which is anybody making $7.26 up through a reasonable new floor for minimum wage (which you can argue about, which is why my numbers here vary so drastically), then the % of the population that that effect can be anything from 12%-26%. Also, you make a claim about a demographic based upon a simple percentage...there is no logical linkage between a number and a demographic. I'll help you however. According to the BLS in 2014, only ~5.4% of the minimum wage workers were 16-19, only ~4.3% were 65 or older. that means that (slightly) over 90% are...college kids...according to you. However, even that argument fails when you consider that ~18.4% HAVE A BACHELOR'S (or higher).

Finally, you question whether or not the wage increase would help them. Again, you need to actually READ the argument that you are countering. My contention was, is, and will be to help YOURSELF. As it stands these workers rely on varying degrees (for actual minimum wage workers, usually heavily) on government support. My point that we should increase minimum wages WHILE decreasing welfare benefits is not to aim a a large net "helping" for these workers...it is simply to place more of the burden of their living on their own back rather then mine...or yours.

Again, I'm simply shocked that anybody really has an issue with an increase in minimum wages coupled by a decrease in welfare benefits. It literally makes everybody happier and more well off (except maybe the corporations).

Why would corporations care? When you add financial burden to the companies, they just pass that burden onto us.

If you reduce government dependency, people will find a way to make more money. How many people do you know that work minimum wage and work over 40 hours a week? Not many.

As I pointed out earlier, take a look at what Maine did by creating requirements to get food stamps. Most of the people on the program dropped out! If they needed food stamps so badly, and decided they weren't going to work for them, how are they eating now????

But let me add a few things here I didn't have time to put in my other post: Minimum wage encourages people to better themselves. That's it in a nutshell.

For instance, I had a tenant that just moved out. She and her BF have been here six years. Both work fast food places. They always paid rent although late all the time, but they paid.

So why didn't they try to better themselves? Because they both smoke pot, and better paying jobs usually require drug testing.

It has always been my hope for them that they will see the errors of their ways, quit smoking dope, and try to advance themselves in life realizing low wage work just to smoke pot is not worth it.

So along comes some politicians and increase minimum wage. Such an increase would retard or hinder her decision to better herself as it would millions of people. This couple is in their mid 20's now, but it won't be long until they are in their mid 30's, then 40's. By the time they realize what a huge mistake they've made, it will be too late to get ahead in the game.

How many make less than the new min wage? Ay caramba. The rest is pure regurgitated propaganda too, dupe. Average middle class savings went from 10% to MINUS 1% from 1980 to 2007 under Reaganism. WAKE UP.

LEGALIZE AND TAX IT duh. Empty half the prisons of pot prisoners. Thanks GOP.

 

[Seawytch]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

Immeasurably better, thanks!

 

[blackhawk]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

About the same maybe slightly worse off.

 

[francoHFW]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

Absolutely yes.

The Bush years ended with the destruction of the housing and financial sectors. We saw the greatest meltdown in our lives. Obama turned it around and has brought unemployment to lowest levels since Clinton.

Bush and the Republican Congress created the Patriot Act, which erected a Soviet style bureaucracy over the nation.

Trump is right. He destroyed the middle east and the economy. He had the nerve to shine a light on what the Republican Party did to this country - this is why the establishment hates him.

Our only hope is that President Trump does not repeat the mistakes of the last 3 Republican administrations. Reagan tripled the debt of Carter with a bloated Pentagon budget written largely by weapons contractors. Bush 43 doubled the debt of Clinton. Every Republican administration complains about Democratic spending, BUT THEN they always - and I mean always - increase spending. Indeed, Bush didn't veto a single piece of Republican Pork. Nobody spends like Big Government Conservatives.

The only people who believe that the economy has gotten worse since Bush are people who live completely inside talk radio and FOX News.

(Wow, just Wow)

Yeah, Fox news. You want to know what else Fox news told us? No President spent more than your precious Socialist President.

90% of which is to bail out Main St and help the victims of your corrupt GOP world depression. STILL 3-400 billion a year. Brainwashed functional MORON.

Right. Do you know what 90% of 9 trillion dollars is??

Buy yourself a calculator there Sparky. I'm sure it comes with instructions.

8.1 trillion duh. What's your idiotic point? Missing the forest for the trees. Most of O's deficit is from fixing W's mess DUH.

 

[francoHFW]

I'm in fine shape because I planned for my future years ago. I have 2 retirement checks, my home and land is paid for and I have money in the bank. The "American Dream" was realized by me.

I am sorry for you young people of today. I truly am. This is what logically comes from supporting liberals and their ideology.

The middle class in America is all but gone. Part time work is becoming the "norm" and it is not unusual to see a young man or woman working 2-3 part time jobs in an attempt to get ahead.

It's a damn shame. It really is.

I'm no worse off either but everything I own is paid for. Like you Randall I don't owe anyone a dime and that's what happens when you plan ahead.

I feel sorry for those that didn't and depend on the Govt. tit to survive. Of course I hate bankrolling their live for them but that's just what this country has turned into. Those that have take care of those that don't.

After 30 years of Voodoo: worst min. wage, work conditions, illegal work safeguards, vacations, work week, college costs, rich/poor gap, upward social mobility, % homeless and in prison EVAH, and in the modern world!! And you complain about the victims? Are you an idiot or an A-hole?

Glad you people did great in the good old days before Reaganism and the New BS GOP wrecked the country. The savings rate has gone from 10% in 1980 to MINUS 1% in 2007. Great job pandering to the greedy idiot megarich, dingbat dupes...

Jesus Christ - can you think for yourself? Or do you watch MSNBC all day then come here to spew your garbage?

I watch and read EVERYTHING- so I recognize your RW ignorance, dupe. ANY ARGUMENT ON THESE FACTS, dimwit?

Nope. I'm done with you. You are the personification of Forest Gump. Not worth the time.

You never started arguing facts either lol. Just RW twaddle and "common sense"...

 

[francoHFW]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

About the same maybe slightly worse off.

In 2008 the country was on the abyss. Today Reaganist policy and tax rates continue to wreck the middle class and the country...but the US has recovered nicely despite mindless Pub obstruction. But we need DEMAND from consumers. See living wage and investment in the country from the rich and giant corps paying their fair share. Bern the Trump!

 

[Arianrhod]

are you better off now than you were eight years ago

In most respects, yes.

I guess everyone whining in this thread just isn't working hard enough.