Balta1701

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 11:26 AM) I wouldn't be opposed to a civil union type of arrangement to where a gay couple would be eligible for equal benefits and/or penalties under the law. Interestingly, it is starting to seem that some Republicans are actually starting to take up that position. In Colorado, a Republican in the State's Senate introduced a bill which would allow just that, which seems to have gained the support of Focus on the Family's James Dobson (those on the left will probably have heard him bashed at whatever websites they read).

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 11:26 AM) You're absolutely wrong on this. Absolutely 100% wrong.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 11:22 AM) So the Dems would be OK with removing virtually all federal funding from education, putting that entirely on the states? Having seen what happens when the Feds step in, I'm not sure that would be a terrible idea, if there was some way we could guarantee that the funding levels wouldn't be cut in, oh, let's say Alabama, which would hurt the U.S. as a whole by creating a less educated workforce in a decent chunk of the country. The nice thing about having more state participation in education is that it would provide more opportunity for innovation to develop...for states to find things that are actually working better and saving themselves money, as opposed to having the Feds say "you must do things this way."

QUOTE(Rex Kickass @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 11:12 AM) I don't think that Democrats are far off from you when it comes to states rights issues. Not when a Republican is in power. Or at least a big-government Republican.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 11:04 AM) I'm curious as to when China actually got the contract on the LA port. I'm still looking for when they first started, but it appears that they were trying to buy territory at the port as early as '98. WND, of all places.

Well, I guess this is one way to make a point.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:58 AM) Free trade my ass. They need to turn in their GOP cards and STFU. Man, I'm sad I wasn't here on the day Bush decided to support those steel tarriffs.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:53 AM) This is just some crap the media and Dems are grabbing onto to make the adminstration look bad. (Random MSNBC piece) Honestly, if those are Dems, I really don't want them.

QUOTE(Rex Kickass @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:52 AM) Honestly, I think they ought to get booted out of control. I think the Federal government's role is to keep its borders secure - which would mean Port Administration in my book. I for one am becoming more convinced that they're probably right that I shouldn't care who runs them as long as the U.S. still has control over hiring and firing of security personnel...but the real thing we should care about is whether or not the containers themselves are being properly inspected, and by almost all accounts they're not.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:48 AM) From what I got yesterday while reading, China pretty much runs the port of LA. (Source, the "China Post").

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:43 AM) lets add a wrinkle to this thread. What would your legacy be? Best hitter ever, best pitcher ever, most k's, etc. Im still surprised nobody picked golf. Baseball...don't care about exactly which position, but would like to be pretty good at defense. Legacy? I'd love to hit .400.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:39 AM) Elaborate, please. There are people who think that high numbers of abortions are a bad thing and that we should work as hard as possible to lower that number without making the procedure illegal, and there are people who don't a priori accept that having an abortion is a bad thing.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:33 AM) If you guys peruse this thread, I've been pretty damn quiet on this issue as I wasn't sure where I stood. I did make an initial post stating that this didn't make any sense to me. But, as time has passed and I've weighed the pros and cons, I'm leaning toward thinking that based on the trends of the recent past with the selling of our infrastructure, the fact that most of our ports are managed by foriegn companies, etc ... I'm beginning to think that is much ado about nothing ... speaking in relative terms. I think you're almost certainly right that this is going to wind up being much ado about nothing, I just can't figure out why the Administration seemed so unwilling to at least sit down with Congress and explain their reasoning & why they were so staunchly supportive of it.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:30 AM) Fortunately, that ended quickly. Hopefully someone will drop the hammer on this too, and get these VOIP providers to be held to the same standard for emergency services that the land line companies have to follow. I doubt it will take that long. If this story is more than just an isolated case...it's only a matter of time before someone dies while on hold with one of these companies and the lawsuits start. Heck, I bet it won't be long before this guy sues.

Ok...time to start taking bets on how long this thread stays open...

For those who are interested, Here's the first real polling I think I've seen on this issue, which pretty much is what you'd expect based on the way this issue has formed up.

By the way, didn't notice this Sun-Times blurb anywhere yet, but it's at least a start.

QUOTE(minors @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:22 AM) I can't even respond to this argument because it is so stupid it is blackmail at best. You condone murder with murder and it is a terrible argument. Wait, did he just argue against the death penalty?

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:20 AM) Point taken. At the same time, though, now I see why (taking out the bulls***, which I tried to do once) this thread is a lot longer. Plus I post a lot.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:18 AM) No, the Iraqi oil has been a target because they're trying to stop the flow of said money back into Iraq so we are not doing what we said we would. It's not to effect global prices per se - it's to effect the local economy there and keep it down just enough to start the 'civil war' people keep talking about because their lifestyle 'sucks so bad' because of the 'evil Americans'. I for one think there's a mix of both...if Iraqi oil started flowing, it would put a serious dent in the prices you guys are paying for gas right now. A SERIOUS dent in it.

QUOTE(southsider2k5 @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:10 AM) His family owns a large construction company that basically built Saudi Arabia if memory serves me correctly. Now adays most of his money comes from donations of like minded people, and shell companies that his followers run. Yeah, I think his original funding due to his own personal fortune was on the order of a few tens of millions in U.S. dollars...the majority of funding beyond that has come from things like Islamic Charities and donors in Saudi Arabia...who get a lot of their money either directly or indirectly from oil. So if the price of oil were to go through the roof...they'd hurt the U.S. and help themselves enormously. Which is almost certainly why the Iraqi oil system has been such a main target.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:09 AM) I believe legal abortions are more frequent than illegal ones. If the law changes, then again, the net result is the same. Crud, meant to type "Legal". Man, I'm off a bit this morning.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:08 AM) Not entirely true. He inherited most of his money and it wasn't from oil IIRC. Indirectly from oil...his family ran something akin to what Halliburton is in the U.S...a large scale construction firm which builds the equipment that oil companies use. The difference is that in the Kingdom, that company is there largely because of its connections to the ruling leadership.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:07 AM) Where do you think Bin Ladin gets his cash? If there were to be a significant attack on an oil facility...the price of oil would go absolutely through the roof. If that facility they almost hit today was shut down...we'd probably be talking $120 a barrel or even beyond that. Which would mean that the folks who are still pumping oil would make an absolute fortune.

QUOTE(jasonxctf @ Feb 24, 2006 -> 10:05 AM) on a side note, would you rather have abortions or babies found dead in dumpsters? just asking.... It's actually quite possible to argue that if both are murder...the worst one is whichever one happens more often...which would clearly be in the case of legal abortions.