Biden's address to Congress

[Tom Sawyer]

MSNBC just reported Biden's speech has a 85% approval rating among Americans. That must chap these GOP morons' asses big time.

Or, as FOX puts it, "Millions of Americans disapprove of President Biden's speech"

 

[Patooka]

GOP eedjit Stephen Miller "Biden's speech lacked human warmth".

Then he is probably right. Miller is an expert on the subject of not displaying empathy. I certainly defer to his judgement.

 

[Treedbear]

...
GOP eedjit Stephen Miller "Biden's speech lacked human warmth".
...

Actually he made no reference to "human warmth". That would have been strange coming from him. Just the kind of unctuous, pandering warmth that Trump exudes.

 

[Politesse]

...
GOP eedjit Stephen Miller "Biden's speech lacked human warmth".
...

Actually he made no reference to "human warmth". That would have been strange coming from him.

https://news.yahoo.com/stephen-miller-mocked-criticising-biden-164740118.html

"So far, this speech is written in the “laundry list” style — the least inspired format for a congressional address," he wrote on Twitter. "It is striking just how tedious & unoriginal the rhetoric was in Biden’s speech. Also, no outreach, no bipartisanship, no surprises, no warmth — a lifeless and dry address."

Yeah, he just said there was no warmth. Not, no human warmth. It would not occur to an alien lizard-person to ascribe "human" to something they like.

He seems to be complaining, in fact, that Biden didn't shout, or try to whip up violence in the streets of the nation. I, for one, am grateful for that. Who the hell wants a "surprise" in a presidential speech? Trump supporters, I guess. Is never knowing what batshit insane thing he's going to say next actually part of the appeal for this crowd?

 

[Elixir]

Is never knowing what batshit insane thing he's going to say next actually part of the appeal for this crowd?

Is that a question?
Four years of lowbrow slapstick and reality-defying stupidity brings roars of approval, and you wonder if it's part of his appeal?
A better question would "what else would appeal to that crowd?".

 

[Derec]

That's ok. The purpose of posting the topic was to provide Derec with a forum to spew his venomous hate.

What hate? I just think people with children are getting enough benefits as it is.

Nothing to do with the actual speech. Carry on.

Did Biden not propose many billions of dollars in additional entitlements for people having children?

 

[fromderinside]

Did Biden not propose many billions of dollars in additional entitlements for people having children?

Do you not observe the money lost by not training our children to operate effectively in our societies? Seems to me a function of social management is to find ways to improve how and why we use resources.

But it's all about your freedoms isn't it.

 

[Derec]

Yes! BLM and Antifa are just like white supremacist and Islamic terrorist groups! (with the exception of all the murders, death, torture and other mundane things!)

Islamic terrorists are in a league of their own, so let's leave them on one side. #BLM/Antifa rioting in 2020 caused a lot more damage, and deaths (so not just "property damage", Elixir!) , than the January 6th riot, which media and posters here like to pretend is the only riot that matters. And even when it comes to the Congress, before this year the most recent attack on it was by a Leftist May 19th group (affiliated with Weathermen and Black Liberation Army), which exploded a bomb back in 1983.

I stand by my view that extremists on the both sides of the horseshoe need to be condemned.

 

[Derec]

Do you not observe the money lost by not training our children to operate effectively in our societies?

We've had free K-12 for a while. I would approve of more funding for tertiary education (but I disapprove of the racist Sanders-Jayapaal bill)

Seems to me a function of social management is to find ways to improve how and why we use resources.

Yes, and I think additional $3-3.6k per child entitlement with no phaseout based on number of children is a very poor way to use finite resources. Especially since we already have gazillion entitlements benefiting people with children.

But it's all about your freedoms isn't it.

It's about balance. Biden's proposals are not balanced at all.

 

[Derec]

also oppose the increased child tax credit. "Fuck your snot-nosed shitty kids", I always say. There should be a tax PENALTY for having more than 2 kids, not a tax CREDIT for fucks sake.

I would not go quite as far, but I'd reduce the marginal benefit past 2 children, as marginal costs go down too. Past 5, benefit should go to zero, as there is no reason for the government to subsidize huge families.

I have no idea what you are talking about regarding terrorism... that was not a topic, or is was so brief I sneezed and missed it.

Unfortunately, I was not able to watch the actual speech, but was watching

The other things were about investing in America First (making it illegal for the Feds to buy foreign before attempting to buy American), allowing medicaid to negotiate drug prices to lower prescription cost for everyone (not just those on medicaid).

Sensible, even if "America First" sounds Trumpian. No matter, Trump sometimes had good ideas, but was woefully horrible at implementation.
I also agree on drug negotiation. Other countries do that, and so we end up subsidizing R&D for the whole world. Pharma needs a lot of money for R&D, but if we lower our prices, the companies will have to increase prices in Canada et al to compensate.

Most interestingly, JOBS. JOBS, JOBS, JOBS. Millions of new jobs, 75% of which do not need a college diploma, and 75% of those do not even need an associates degree. All of these jobs will be in construction to build bridges, fix roads, and build up "green" infrastructure.

A great line from the speech, "There is no reason windmill blades can't be built in Pittsburg instead of Beijing".

I agree on all this in principle. Energy infrastructure is legit infrastructure.
And my beef with GND wasn't about principle but about the unrealistic timetable, being loaded with "tofu" that had nothing to do with climate or the environment (like federal jobs guarantees) and dogmatic issues like rejection of nuclear power or desire to do away with air travel.

That said, I am not a big fan of wind. They require huge windmills and parks that clutter up the landscape, or increasingly, seascape.
I think PV is a much better candidate. They need no additional area because they are flat and downwardly scalable - so you can put them on rooftops, make parking lot awnings or even use them in glass curtain walls.
And since they can be installed close to point of use and not 100s of miles away, that cuts down on required transmission lines and transmission line losses.

 

[Derec]

And as a dual income two kids family I can tell you I’m definitely not making money from having kids, even with the tax credit.

Just because you are not making a profit, doesn't mean it's impossible. Just depends on how much money you spend on them.

 

[Derec]

It's always about race, for racists.

Like yourself, you mean?

If you're not punishing minorities for destroying property in response to being murdered, you're attacking white people.

Elixir: if you condemn non-white people for rioting, you are a racist.

Letting them procreate is an assault on the rightful order of things.

Letting who procreate? Nobody should be barred from procreating on account of their race.
And nobody should be rewarded for having a lot of children either, regardless of race.

(never mind about those cat-lickers and their dozens of spawn)

I do not think cat licking is an activity conducive to procreation.

 

[Derec]

What about the thuggish Catholics with their dozen children?

This trope is not that common anymore, except for Latin American Catholics.
It is still very much active for Muslims of all races.

But seriously, I do agree this is a benefit that should phase out with more children, but you know what would happen. The religious right would say they are being told how many children to have: “only communists have child quotas”, “only god can determine how many children I will have” and such...

I disagree with the religious right too.

 

[Derec]

White America is angry! Very angry! Furious about the lie that the government continues to forget them as Biden just gives help to the blacks.

I don't know if Biden supports the bill, but the Sanders-Jayapaal free college bill would give free tuition for private black colleges. Free tuition to Morehouse or Spelman, but not Emory. Why?
And of course, the Dems are digging in on their support of racial preferences in college admissions and hiring, despite even California voters rejecting it. So yes, many of their policies benefit certain races more than others.

This isn't about race!

That particular proposal isn't and I never said it was.

This about a Government that is starting to recognize that workers in America aren't compensated as much as they were,

But not all workers have children. Having (a lot of) children is a personal choice, and should be primarily a personal responsibility.

because not everyone is bright enough to be a doctor.

Or has the right skin color to get admitted despite middling grades and MCAT.

This isn't about race. This is a struggle for tens of millions of Americans (not whites or blacks), and assisting Middle Class Americans that are doing everything they can but any assistance they get would provide opportunity for either a second worker in the family or that money just flushes right back into the economy (and again, Middle Class... any race).

What about people who have no children or have a reasonable number of children? Why should we subsidize somebody who has 10 to the tune of $30-36k a year?

 

[Derec]

Is this the rule or the exception to the rule?

I have noticed that those killed by police tend to have a lot of children for their age. Have not run a statistical analysis, but I suspect they are at least two sigma above the mean.

Is it only drug dealers with 7 kids who benefit from this?

Of course not. It was just a particularly egregious example, as drug dealers do not pay taxes but he would still be eligible for this benefit.

What bout the Mormons I see walking around here with their 8-9 kids? Fuckin thugs.

Not many Mormons in my neck of the woods. Lots of Hispanics and Muslims though, and I do not think your Mormons are any worse.

 

[Shadowy Man]

And as a dual income two kids family I can tell you I’m definitely not making money from having kids, even with the tax credit.

Just because you are not making a profit, doesn't mean it's impossible. Just depends on how much money you spend on them.

I guess it’d depend on where you live but spending only $3k on a kid in a year would be close to child abuse in a lot of places. Not that child abuse doesn’t happen so I guess it’s possible.

 

[Gun Nut]

Have not seen the speech, but I have heard that he
- is pushing new entitlements for irresponsible breeders in addition to the already enacted $3000-$3600 per child reward for unprotected sex. I do not see why my tax dollars should pay to reward other people for having many children!
- is blaming everything on "white supremacist" boogeyman and ignoring Islamic terrorism and left-wing (#BLM and Antifa) extremism even though the former were responsible for 9/11 among many other attacks and the latter caused billions in damage and many deaths during last year's violent "George Floyd" riots. All extremism should be condemned. To ignore and downplay certain extremists just because they are your constituency is very Trump-like.

What else was he talking about?

I also oppose the increased child tax credit. "Fuck your snot-nosed shitty kids", I always say. There should be a tax PENALTY for having more than 2 kids, not a tax CREDIT for fucks sake.

So three kids is excessive?

Also, the cost of daycare is so high, it can literally be a situation of someone being unable to afford to work for a second income. This is 2021 economy and people need to stop thinking this is the 1980s or 1960s, people need to throw out the "when I was that age" bullshit as when they were that age, minimum wage wasn't quite the joke it is today and manufacturing jobs existing in the US... and people weren't forced to drive as a taxi to try to make 'a little extra money'. People can't afford to work, others aren't able to afford getting paid what they get paid. That is absurd!

Yes. 3 is excessive. In America, you are free to be excessive... so have at it if you wish. I am of the opinion that unlimited reproduction is not a right. I do not feel it is the responsibility of society support ANY amount of children that someone may wish to have, or irresponsibly have.

 

[Gun Nut]

Did Biden not propose many billions of dollars in additional entitlements for people having children?

Do you not observe the money lost by not training our children to operate effectively in our societies? Seems to me a function of social management is to find ways to improve how and why we use resources.

But it's all about your freedoms isn't it.

No. It's about supporting people in need without supporting egregious social irresponsibility.

 

[Shadowy Man]

Many tax benefits phase out. It is not unreasonable that the child tax credit do so as well.

However, in the current political climate it is difficult to find reasonable solutions to many issues.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

What can the child tax credit do for me? A person not overstretched economically with just one child?

• Well, it can pay for my daughter's speech therapy.
• I can be near reckless in spending on books.
• It'd pay for her annual uniform clothing.
• Stem out the wazoo! A couple camera add-ons for the expensive telescope we got to teach her more about astronomy and provide her experience with camera optics.
• Maybe buy a small television to be a monitor for a Raspberry Pi computer for her, to establish real computer skills.
• Membership to the Cleveland Children's Museum?
• It'd help pay for one of our three zoo memberships.

In general, this was where I was putting money anyway, but having a little support to help expand both her access to therapy she needs and the STEM she is incredibly intelligent enough to absorb sets aside the money I would have spent there to go elsewhere in the economy now (and later) as I save more in her own account. I realize that yes, I'm not "one of those people", so the threat of waste isn't as big of a "deal".

So three kids is excessive?

Also, the cost of daycare is so high, it can literally be a situation of someone being unable to afford to work for a second income. This is 2021 economy and people need to stop thinking this is the 1980s or 1960s, people need to throw out the "when I was that age" bullshit as when they were that age, minimum wage wasn't quite the joke it is today and manufacturing jobs existing in the US... and people weren't forced to drive as a taxi to try to make 'a little extra money'. People can't afford to work, others aren't able to afford getting paid what they get paid. That is absurd!

Yes. 3 is excessive. In America, you are free to be excessive... so have at it if you wish. I am of the opinion that unlimited reproduction is not a right. I do not feel it is the responsibility of society support ANY amount of children that someone may wish to have, or irresponsibly have.

You are aware that daycare for 1 child is ridiculously expensive too, right?