Seriously, can we just ship Berkley to N. Korea?

[green1]

And since when are the Marines a business?

Since George W. Bush used the completely errant war as a blank check for businesses like Haliburton and Blackwater.

er·rant:
1. deviating from the regular or proper course; erring; straying.
2. journeying or traveling, as a medieval knight in quest of adventure; roving adventurously.
3. moving in an aimless or lightly changing manner: an errant breeze.


All three of those variations of the meaning of "errant" define the Bush "war on terror" as concerns Iraq.

So, how exactly are the Marines a business? You spouted off some sketchy assertions relating to the Dems talking points about corporations in Iraq, but you never stated how the Marines a business. Then you quoted the dictionary (ridiculous, and insulting actually) and tied that to your view of the War on Terror as what? Further evidence of the Marines being a "business"? Or were you just venting?

[TropicalTroubador]

At least Berkeley doesn't have the homicide rate of neighboring Oakland and Richmond. The half-trillion dollars we've p*** away on wars the last five years has done jack-you-know-what to make those cities safer. I think there were about ten people shot and at least three killed in the past 48 hours in Oakland; I might not have those numbers exactly right.

Our stupid, selfish neocons have gotten us into a war that we didn't need to fight, at the cost of diverting resources away from more significant terror threats, that there is now no good way out of. Staying there won't make the world safer, and I doubt that pulling out will either. We're screwed.

But as long as the tequila holds out, thank Ghods for Happy Hour!

[green1]

At least Berkeley doesn't have the homicide rate of neighboring Oakland and Richmond. The half-trillion dollars we've p*** away on wars the last five years has done jack-you-know-what to make those cities safer. I think there were about ten people shot and at least three killed in the past 48 hours in Oakland; I might not have those numbers exactly right.

Our stupid, selfish neocons have gotten us into a war that we didn't need to fight, at the cost of diverting resources away from more significant terror threats, that there is now no good way out of. Staying there won't make the world safer, and I doubt that pulling out will either. We're screwed.

But as long as the tequila holds out, thank Ghods for Happy Hour!

And how exactly are those problems, and terrible problems at that, are the perogative of the federal government? They're not. Those problems are the fault of those cities governments. Not the US government. As such federal dollars would not be used in those situations.

[thebeachbumm33]

At least Berkeley doesn't have the homicide rate of neighboring Oakland and Richmond. The half-trillion dollars we've p*** away on wars the last five years has done jack-you-know-what to make those cities safer. I think there were about ten people shot and at least three killed in the past 48 hours in Oakland; I might not have those numbers exactly right.

Our stupid, selfish neocons have gotten us into a war that we didn't need to fight, at the cost of diverting resources away from more significant terror threats, that there is now no good way out of. Staying there won't make the world safer, and I doubt that pulling out will either. We're screwed.

But as long as the tequila holds out, thank Ghods for Happy Hour!

This war is costing my community, keep in mind this is just my community.

Taxpayers in Ocean City, New Jersey will pay $30.5 million for the cost of the Iraq War through 2007. For the same amount of money, the following could have been provided:

3,405 People with Health Care OR
42,678 Homes with Renewable Electricity OR
560 Public Safety Officers OR
379 Music and Arts Teachers OR
3,306 Scholarships for University Students OR
2 New Elementary Schools OR
121 Affordable Housing Units OR
12,149 Children with Health Care OR
3,487 Head Start Places for Children OR
448 Elementary School Teachers OR
431 Port Container Inspectors

If your curious about your own home town
http://www.nationalpriorities.org/tradeoffs

[blackjack]

At least Berkeley doesn't have the homicide rate of neighboring Oakland and Richmond. The half-trillion dollars we've p*** away on wars the last five years has done jack-you-know-what to make those cities safer. I think there were about ten people shot and at least three killed in the past 48 hours in Oakland; I might not have those numbers exactly right.

Our stupid, selfish neocons have gotten us into a war that we didn't need to fight, at the cost of diverting resources away from more significant terror threats, that there is now no good way out of. Staying there won't make the world safer, and I doubt that pulling out will either. We're screwed.

But as long as the tequila holds out, thank Ghods for Happy Hour!

Just wondering if the average income or other demographic issues have anything to do with the high murder rates? But maybe if we throw money at the problem...oh wait, it doesn't work in Iraq, why would it work here?

[TropicalTroubador]

At least Berkeley doesn't have the homicide rate of neighboring Oakland and Richmond. The half-trillion dollars we've p*** away on wars the last five years has done jack-you-know-what to make those cities safer. I think there were about ten people shot and at least three killed in the past 48 hours in Oakland; I might not have those numbers exactly right.

Our stupid, selfish neocons have gotten us into a war that we didn't need to fight, at the cost of diverting resources away from more significant terror threats, that there is now no good way out of. Staying there won't make the world safer, and I doubt that pulling out will either. We're screwed.

But as long as the tequila holds out, thank Ghods for Happy Hour!

And how exactly are those problems, and terrible problems at that, are the perogative of the federal government? They're not. Those problems are the fault of those cities governments. Not the US government. As such federal dollars would not be used in those situations.

On the surface, you've sort of got a point. However, Federal dollars are made available for infrastructure, including schools. There are Federal laws and directives regarding educational standards, for which no Federal money has been sent - either they should pay, or they should say "it's none of our business." Federal grants help pay for law enforcement, for vocational training, for correctional programs and what few rehabilitation programs exist. The loss of Federal funding for mental illness during the Reagan administration is often cited as a prime cause of a significant increase in the long-term homeless rates.

Going another level deeper, Federal taxes at all levels drains money out of local communities that could be used by those communities to fix their own problems. If the Feds didn't spend so much money, perhaps we might convince 'em to stop sucking so much of it out (yeah, right).

Of course it's not just Federal taxes sucking money out of our local economies, but it's one major point source.

And yet another level down, the whole tax system is upside down. I wouldn't mind seeing all taxes collected locally, and then local government deciding how much to pass upstream after taking care of the local communities. But that's a long way off, and creates its own problems.

[TropicalTroubador]

At least Berkeley doesn't have the homicide rate of neighboring Oakland and Richmond. The half-trillion dollars we've p*** away on wars the last five years has done jack-you-know-what to make those cities safer. I think there were about ten people shot and at least three killed in the past 48 hours in Oakland; I might not have those numbers exactly right.

Our stupid, selfish neocons have gotten us into a war that we didn't need to fight, at the cost of diverting resources away from more significant terror threats, that there is now no good way out of. Staying there won't make the world safer, and I doubt that pulling out will either. We're screwed.

But as long as the tequila holds out, thank Ghods for Happy Hour!

Just wondering if the average income or other demographic issues have anything to do with the high murder rates? But maybe if we throw money at the problem...oh wait, it doesn't work in Iraq, why would it work here?

Unfortunately, that makes a scary amount of sense.

Conversely, if throwing money at problems doesn't solve them, maybe we shouldn't pay as much in taxes?

I'm getting this brainstorm that government should submit report cards to the people on how they've done with the money we gave them, and if they don't get passing grades, they have to give us money back. But I haven't thought this one all the way through yet, so I don't know what the side-effects and unintended consequences might be. It's viscerally satisfying though...