tell me, how is it that defense spending still remains virtually untouchable...?

[kpete]

............The alleged need to slash the financial security of American citizens -- and the notion that America faces a severe debt crisis -- would be more persuasive if the country didn't continue its posture of Endless War and feeding the insatiable, bloated National Security State (to say nothing of the equally insatible and wasteful Drug War and its evil spawn, the increasingly privatized American Prison State, which the Obama administration is expanding as aggressively as the War on Terror).
http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2011/07/12/china/index.html



MORE: http://takeitpersonally.blogspot.com/2011/07/slashing-financial-security-of-american.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AndYesIDoTakeItPersonally+%28And%2C+yes%2C+I+DO+take+it+personally%29

[villager]

1. oh, the "two" parties are quite agreed on this point, and who their true masters are

n/t

[Skittles]

2. and why a Dem president threatens SS checks

fucking SICK

[in_cog_ni_to]

4. Needlessly threatens SS checks.

:grr:

[KittyWampus]

7. What President threatened SS checks? Obama certainly did NOT threaten SS checks-

he merely pointed out that if the Republicans don't raise the debt ceiling by a certain date, their inaction might endanger SS checks going out.

How could you not know that?

[Skittles]

14. EDUCATE YOURSELF

that is BULLSHIT

[Rex]

30. WORD.

He put SS on the table and the GOP blinked. Many people here just don't realize what a gambler Obama is! The GOP blinked! Thank goodness!

[Abq_Sarah]

8. It was stupid posturing

He can't cut off SS payments.

[KittyWampus]

10. It isn't posturing. It's a potential reality if Republicans don't raise the debt ceiling in time.

[RaleighNCDUer]

11. Nope. That's not how it works.

BY LAW, SS is seperate from the general budget. Whatever happens to the debt limit, SS checks will go out as scheduled.

[Skittles]

13. CORRECT

Obama's bullshitting on SS is fucking DISGUSTING

[Kaleva]

16. The problem isn't the money. The problem would be the people sending out checks not being at work

Those who receive their checks by electronic deposit most likely won't be affected at all.

"A 1981 attorney general's opinion protects the right of at least some Social Security workers to carry out necessary functions -- and that’s essentially what happened during the 1995 shutdowns.

According to Social Security's official history on its website, 4,780 employees remained at work at the start of the four-day shutdown, while the other 61,415 were furloughed. But this cut "significantly impacted the Agency’s service to the public," the account said, and on the second day, additional employees were recalled to work."

http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2011/feb/24/barack-obama/barack-obama-says-if-theres-government-shutdown-so/

[begin_within]

3. "It's all who you know."

[StarsInHerHair]

5. that was a major slap in the face-publicly, by CHINA

.

[cliffordu]

6. We loves the fucking war, that's why.

[TroglodyteScholar]

9. The shame of a nation...

Our sense of patriotism is so tied up in our war-making that our cynical politicians dare not run counter to the status quo on defense. It's sickening.

[htuttle]

12. Because Ike was right about military spending

The Military Industrial Complex locked itself into our government and it's workings like a malignant tumor decades ago. I expect that it will be the ruin of this country. Probably not too long from now.

[Capitalocracy]

18. Define "ruin"

because by some definitions, one might say we're already there

[chill_wind]

15. Totally obscene, isn't it?

eom

[toddwv]

17. The military-industrial complex is the 4th and most powerful branch of the government.

We're talking trillions of dollars here and it is connected at ALL levels of the government.

I wouldn't be surprised if threats to politicians are made on regular occasions to ensure their complacency and the guarantee that the annual payout continues to increase at a exponential rate.

[grahamhgreen]

19. Made me sick at the press conference

[Bryn]

20. I can't read % of Military (bad artwork)

Does it say 98%? Thanks in advance

[chill_wind]

21. War is Peace.

WRL PIE FEDERAL CHART FLYERS - Where Your Income Tax Money Really Goes

http://www.warresisters.org/federalpiechart

[indepat]

22. A national security state at perpetual war and exerting global hegemony just takes boo-coo

bundles of money each day to operate. :patriot:

[bobthedrummer]

23. ^

[steelmania75]

24. about 2/3 of military spending is wasteful, that's like 400 billion dollars a year. And that folks,

is how this debt crisis should really be solved.

[Fire Walk With Me]

25. Yep. Follow the money. Goes to motive.

[Rex]

26. The rich control America.

That is how. They are slaves to the MIC - notice how the Beast is appropriately red in that pie chart and like an evil pacman is about to GOBBLE up all the remaining table scraps!

[EFerrari]

28. The question has to be avoided at all costs right now

in the media because all our military adventures are unpopular.

[Rex]

29. Yes and just like the social engineers the M$M now has become

we see the devastating effect of denying Americans open transparency, fairness and accuracy in reporting and the 'attached at the hip' situation between Wall Street, the MIC and the M$M. We have alternatives in media now, but the M$M still controls the national message. We need to find a way to change that and The Rupert scandal might be our opening!

[EFerrari]

31. I'd be more excited if I thought "our" DoJ would do more than wave

in their general direction as they did with the CIA torture program.

[Rex]

32. We might be looking at a lost cause with the DoJ. And where is the

NSA/CIA/FBI in on this huge, global wiretapping story? One does wonder...did they participate or will they investigate and procecute? I believe we might just be getting a peek behind the curtain now.

Will this all be covered up and whitewashed or will justice prevail?

I can promise you this, nothing will surpise me either way...justice has been a longtime coming for The Rupert imo.

[pwb]

27. Because we we are waiting for the generals to tell us when to leave?

Ever heard of a war a general didn't like?

[treestar]

33. Because Republicans like it

They control the House.

[MadHound]

35. And Obama is CinC,

Gee, as such he could be bring all those troops home now. Instead, well, he's withdrawing his "surge" forces by 2014, who knows when the rest are coming home, not to mention those "little wars" he keeps getting us involved in.

Poor powerless Obama, can't do anything despite being CinC:eyes:

[treestar]

36. Do you want any President to have that kind of power?

It's all or none?

The Republicans control the House. The deal is over the debt ceiling.

Too bad there's a congress and it has power. If only the Presidency could have it all.

[MadHound]

37. The president does have the power to bring the troops home, always has had it.

But instead he has chosen, using his power as CinC(and then some) to get us militarily involved elsewhere, Libya, Yemen, Sudan, etc.

Gee, you don't think that we would save money if we ended these illegal, immoral wars?

[StarsInHerHair]

34. because the garbage-barge escapees that are in power are in on war profiteering?

[myrna minx]

38. K&R n.t