‘Voices & Thoughts’ Archives
5 Truths You Won’t Hear At CPAC
5 Truths You Won’t Hear At CPAC From The Century Foundation It’s that time of year again. That glorious weekend when thousands of uniquely dressed conservatives descend on Washington, D.C. to celebrate being the political advocates for upper-class, white, heterosexual Americans. For those of you who were not invited and will be watching from home, here are five truths you won’t hear at CPAC: 1. We need more government spending, not less. The U.S. is currently ... Full Story
The Ryan/Republican Budget
The 5 Worst Things About The House GOP’s New Budget By Igor Volsky, Travis Waldron and Tara Culp-Ressler Mar 12, 2013 Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) released the third iteration of the GOP budget on Tuesday morning. The document achieves balance in 10 years by maintaining the high revenue levels and health care savings that Republicans have vociferously opposed and slashing the health and safety net programs that middle and lower income Americans rely on. Top-income ... Full Story
Ryan Budget = tax the middle class
By Colorado Democratic Party Dejá Vu All Over Again With the Ryan Budget: Tax Hikes and Program Cuts for the Middle Class, Tax Cuts for the Rich Denver – As early analyses of the latest Ryan Budget start to come in, the terrible consequences for Colorado’s middle class families are once again clear. While cutting popular programs that seniors, disabled children, and students rely on, Chairman Ryan would offer the wealthiest Americans a new tax cut and would have middle class taxpayers ... Full Story
Republicans are the Big Government Party
Unemployment Rate Would be 7.1 Percent Without Government Cuts March 11th, 2013 By Jason Sattler One of the biggest Republican myths of the last four years is that the government has been exploding in size. The truth is that federal, state and local governments have cut more than 750,000 jobs since June of 2009. If those jobs hadn’t been lost, the unemployment rate would now be 7.1 percent, according to the Labor Department. The total number of people ... Full Story
Renewable Energy – Why Fossil Fuel and Nuclear
By Grant Smith Courtesy of the American Forum The makeup of the electric grid of the future is at stake as the fossil fuel industry continues to falsely lessen the impact of renewable energy. So it’s no wonder that the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) and the Solar Energy Industries Associations have recently rescinded their membership in the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). ALEC has mounted ... Full Story
Yellowstone gets real about budget cuts
By Lisa Rein MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyo. — The giant yellow snowplows that wake Yellowstone from its winter slumber every March are idled, waiting for the sun to make up for federal budget cuts that are forcing the park to open late for peak season. Mandatory cuts kicked in three days before the plows were to start clearing snow and ice from 300 roads at altitudes that reach 11,000 feet. Faced with an order from Washington to slice $1.8 million from his budget, the park ... Full Story
Study Finds Stricter Gun Laws Mean Fewer Fatalities
By Allison Brito A study released last week by JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association): Internal Medicine shows a direct correlation between gun laws and gun-related fatalities. While the study is mainly based on the number of gun laws, not the type (it doesn’t, for example, specify which particular laws are the most effective), it confirms that generally speaking, stricter gun laws result in fewer deaths. The report, entitled “Firearm Legislation and ... Full Story
‘Good Guys With Guns’ Will Not Stop Gun
By Bob Cesca On HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher last Friday there was an extended and heated debate about gun control. The participants included Newark, NJ mayor Cory Booker and author Sam Harris, who, in case you don't recognize the name, happens to be an insufferable marketeer of the "both sides are awful" false equivalence. The debate mostly centered around Cory Booker arguing for a massive effort to seize illegally-obtained firearms, with Maher and Harris telling him he's ... Full Story
Sequester-Pain for the neediest of our society
The Sequester and the Tea Party Plot By Robert Reich Imagine a plot to undermine the government of the United States, to destroy much of its capacity to do the public's business, and to sow distrust among the population. Imagine further that the plotters infiltrate Congress and state governments, reshape their districts to give them disproportionate influence in Washington, and use the media to spread big lies about the government. Finally, imagine they not ... Full Story
Social Security Trust Fund
To the Editor, Is the Social Security Trust Fund empty because Congress borrowed and spent the money? No. The Fund invested the money in U.S. treasuries, and it will be repaid as needed. Suppose you were in charge of the Fund. Once the current year’s payments were made, what would you do with the billions of left-over dollars needed to fund future payments? Would you stuff them in a coffee can and bury them in the back yard, where they would earn no interest and ... Full Story
