http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14468245/

what goes around comes around!

although with the reupping of the national guard troops there's been a de facto draft of sorts for years. poor schmoes doing like three tours of duty in a row, getting leave cancelled, having their SOs leave them while they're away.

war's hell... unless you do what bush did when it came his time to serve.

  The possibility of being recalled to active duty...

  It's in the contract and that is exactly what the IRR is for.  Inactive Ready Reservists are used to top off the reserve units, which are activated.  You're not "out" until your 8 years are up (8 years being the typical contract...).  It's very, very clear on paper and is explained to those recruits who raise their hand...

  My IRR expired in 1995 groove ;) on...

 

Oust the current gang of criminals serving as a sorry excuse for an executive branch and then those guys can go home.  As long as GWB is the Commander-in-Chief, they'll have to perpetuate the futile occupation of Iraq and the more Americans and Iraqis will continue to die.  It's that simple.

And for chrissakes, let's get rid of Joe Lieberman.  Cast him adrift on a garbage barge.
::)

Oust the current gang of criminals serving as a sorry excuse for an executive branch and then those guys can go home.  As long as GWB is the Commander-in-Chief, they'll have to perpetuate the futile occupation of Iraq and the more Americans and Iraqis will continue to die.  It's that simple.

And for chrissakes, let's get rid of Joe Lieberman.  Cast him adrift on a garbage barge.
::)
people should be heckling uncle joe wherever he goes. i don't get it. what a Chuck!

Add in the Army now too

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,110599,00.html

people should be heckling uncle joe wherever he goes. i don't get it. what a Chuck!

Did you mean schm*ck?  That one's flagged for some reason.  Anyway, I've had about all I can take of this LIE-berman.  Zell North.

Did you mean schm*ck?  That one's flagged for some reason.  Anyway, I've had about all I can take of this LIE-berman.  Zell North.
LOL! schm*ck is flagged!

im taking bets that he catches so much heat he has to give up on running. is zell still in the democratic party? they should drum that bastard out. let him go slink his sorry ass over to the other side, see how long THEY trust him since it's plain he'll switch allegiances in a heartbeat.

i hate that spineless crap. when he gave a speech stabbing his own party in the back at the OTHER PARTY'S CONVENTION... oh, man. don't get me started. what a CHUCK!

As a young person I hope they don't reinstitute the draft.  Its not just that I'm politically opposed to the war, but I would be too frightened to go.  I would not willingly go along with something that would put me in that position.

[quote author=Keyser S

why forget Canada they have not returned over 60 % of the ones that have gone AWOL up there.

why forget Canada they have not returned over 60 % of the ones that have gone AWOL up there.


  Which ones..?  What 60%..?

  Canada was signatory to the U.S.-Canadian Smart Border Declaration.  Treaty revisions have also ensured that U.S. draft dodgers will be extradited back to the U.S. for proper mistreatment.  The FBI now has offices in several Canadian cities and, since October 2002, the Canadian military is now a part of the Northern Command (Northcom).  Northcom is a unified command in which the armed forces of the Continental United States (CONUS), Canada and Mexico all report to an American four-star general groove ;) on...

 

All this talk about drafts makes me glad I'm a girl.

On May 15, International Conscientious Objectors Day, a delegation of concerned Californians visited the Canadian Consulate in San Francisco to appeal for sanctuary for U.S. war resisters in Canada. The visit was coordinated by Courage To Resist, Project Safe Haven, and the Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors (CCCO). The delegation included military veterans, a Catholic priest, an expert on international law, and resisters of U.S. wars, present and past. Four delegation members had lived in Canada during the Vietnam War.

The delegation delivered a letter to Peter MacKay, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Monte Solberg, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. The letter was received by Tristan Landry, Consul, Political/Economic Relations and Public Relations, who listened respectfully as each of his visitors stated their support for sanctuary for U.S. war resisters in Canada.

Delegation members gave a brief overview of the plight of U.S. war resisters in Canada, telling the Canadian Consul that several hundred AWOL GIs were estimated to be in Canada, and that 25 of them had applied for political refugee status. The first two, Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey, had their claims for refugee status denied, but their cases were being appealed in Canada’s Federal Court system.

Jacqueline Cabasso, executive director of the Western States Legal Foundation, argued that the U.S. war in Iraq was illegal. “It must be opposed not only as a matter of law, but as a matter of principle,” she said.


   Which ones..?  What 60%..?

   Canada was signatory to the U.S.-Canadian Smart Border Declaration.  Treaty revisions have also ensured that U.S. draft dodgers will be extradited back to the U.S. for proper mistreatment.  The FBI now has offices in several Canadian cities and, since October 2002, the Canadian military is now a part of the Northern Command (Northcom).  Northcom is a unified command in which the armed forces of the Continental United States (CONUS), Canada and Mexico all report to an American four-star general groove ;) on...

   
this is what I am talking about...
http://www.citizen-soldier.org/Canada%20Resisters.html
for the whole story. Some people should not talk what they know not about...And I was wrong more like 95% have not been returned...

And now France has declared any US Awol soldier  does not have to go back to the US...It has become the new Canada...
PARIS - The steady-stream of resisters, objectors and deserters against the illegal invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan continues to flow, but its terminus is now France, rather than Canada. Canada had been popular, because refuge to soldiers going AWOL, to protest illegal-conduct by the Bush Administration, was close at hand. But, although an estimated 1,000 may have crossed the border, the exact number is unknown, largely because deserters have gone underground. When combined with the number in France, which is estimated at about a thousand, as well, the percentage is significantly higher than at any time in American history. Approximately 2,500 American-mercenaries have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, roughly equal to the number of objectors. During the Vietnam War, some 20,000 fled, roughly one-third of the 58,000 killed.
http://www.nationalist.org/news/flashes/2006/032101.html

  I'm aware of, and sypmpathetic to the plight of any conscientious (or otherwise) refusers...

  Nevertheless, unlike the Vietnam era, you won't be able to duck across the border to Canada.  I should point out that while emigrating to Canada was one of the most publicized methods of draft evasion during the Vietnam era, in reality it was not all that heavily used.  Estimates of the number of persons actually fled to Canada vary from 20,000 to 200,000 and most of those were illegal...

  The easiest thing may be just to stay where you are, don't register, and keep your yap shut.  The government may never find you.  On the other hand, if they do find you, it's one of the easiest things to get a conviction on...



Some people should not talk what they know not about...



  You're not talking to me, are you, you suppurating pustule...
 

 

  
   You're not talking to me, are you, you suppurating pustule...
  

  

Please spare me the name calling. If thats what you need to resort to. I feel sorry for you. How unimaginative. I just said some people should  know what they are talking about.
If you had bothered  to read the links You would have seen that the Canadian government have not returned any. They are going to let their courts decide, which has been pointed out should end in about 2 maybe 4 years. And the way the Canadian government has been delaying their court dates makes me wonder. Unless the Canadian PM takes a hand and orders them out. As for the second link France has said that they have no intention of expelling any US servicemen. Matter of fact they have said any US servicemen that can make it to France will not be returned because they have declared our actions in Iraq to be an Illegal.
I do not approve of the AWOL'S nor do I condone it. It's not my war. I do not support it. But I will support the men and women over there.  To me this has the strange sense of Deja Vu all over again. In Nam you  could not tell the enemy from the friend, they would put hand grenades under the armpits of children just to kill Joe's. Plus many other tricks and traps. In Iraq the same thing, except it is even on a larger scale with all the development of compact explosives. In their case the fanatics really believe they are doing this for god and a holy war. Which in my opinion is far worse, I think anytime religion is involved it is much worse then the normal. It can be the Muslims of today. or the great and wonderful god fearing Christians.
I mean how many have died in the attacks against abortion clinics all the name of god.You want the federal stats on bombings and arson I can give you that too against the abortion clinics. over 200 bombings and arson against the clinics so please tell me again that god fearing people do not kill...that is not including the shootings at the clinics, stabbings and Butyric Acid Attacks.
The feds give a higher number. but either way it proves  the point.
Oh and you want the number of deaths due to hate crimes over years by the so called god fearing people....I mean the KKK have claimed to have killed over 10.000 blacks in the last 135 years alone. How many people did the Spanish inquisition kill all in the name of god? Did you forget that one of Englands Queens killed thousands to in the name of god or have you forgoten Bloody Mary? I mean over the years I think that Christians have done there fair share of butchery. How many did the Catholics kill in France  when they where butchering the Protestants. Trust me the terrorist would have to kill a lot more that what they have done up to date, to catch up to what god fearing people have killed over the years. All in the name of god...
http://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/violence/history_violence.html
Oh Davester Hey sarcasm earns some brownie points..:) I really do not let it bother me. This is what debates and disagreements about politics,religion and many other things.  We all have our ideas on what is right and wrong in the world just too bad we really can't fix it.
So Dave I await your rebuttal. except leave out the name calling.  Lets keep it somewhat clean...

All this talk about drafts makes me glad I'm a girl.


Don't get too comfy thanks to GI friggin' Jane.

Please spare me the name calling. If thats what you need to resort to. I feel sorry for you. How unimaginative. I just said some people should  know what they are talking about.



  Easier for me to take this one point at a time...

  One good turn deserves another, huh..?  You make with the subtle insult, then preach the virtues of clean debating...  Did I have you all wrong..?  Are you speaking from experience, here..?  Are you a vet..?  I ask just out of curiosity...

 
If you had bothered  to read the links You would have seen that the Canadian government have not returned any. They are going to let their courts decide, which has been pointed out should end in about 2 maybe 4 years. And the way the Canadian government has been delaying their court dates makes me wonder. Unless the Canadian PM takes a hand and orders them out. As for the second link France has said that they have no intention of expelling any US servicemen. Matter of fact they have said any US servicemen that can make it to France will not be returned because they have declared our actions in Iraq to be an Illegal.


  Yes, I read one of the links.  I'm not worried about France.  So, in your opinion, potential draft dodgers (should a draft actually occur) can rest easy in the knowledge that, if forced to flee the U.S., will be embraced by the good people of Canada and possibly shielded from extradition by the government.  The Hinzman and Hughey appeals could be precedent setting cases.  Sounds good.



I do not approve of the AWOL'S nor do I condone it. It's not my war. I do not support it. But I will support the men and women over there. 



  I approve of, nay, actively encourage any-and-all members of the armed forces, if struck by the impulse to do so (no matter what the reason), to lay down their arms and return home by the best means possible and with all dispatch.  To the rest, I support them wholeheartedly with the demand to my government to bring them home, alive, immediately if not sooner...



http://www.prochoice.org/about_abortion/violence/history_violence.html
Oh Davester Hey sarcasm earns some brownie points..:) I really do not let it bother me. This is what debates and disagreements about politics,religion and many other things.  We all have our ideas on what is right and wrong in the world just too bad we really can't fix it.
So Dave I await your rebuttal. except leave out the name calling.  Lets keep it somewhat clean...



  As to this topic, I'm still not sure what, exactly, we're disagreeing about.  Draft dodgers to Canada..?  I say, "Don't run to Canada. You'll get got..".
You say, "Run to Canada.  You'll be just fine...".  Here's hoping that you're the one who's right, or better still, an impending draft turns out to be another urban legend...

 

To be honest I would rather see no one run anywhere for that means a draft. I do not support a draft.
As for me being a vet aye.
And if a draft is in effect if they run to Canada, then they can get to France. Go to the French Embassy. They have said publicly 
that they will not turn any over to our government they consider all our deaths their to be mercenaries. And after  reading other sites,  have found out 4 more countries in the EU would  give our  people a place. So there is hope for some of our people if a drafts starts.

All this talk about drafts makes me glad I'm a girl.


You know, in Israel, military service is compulsory for all the country's citizens, both male and female.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Defense_Forces#Regular_Service


Women already make up a significant part of the US military, including the portion serving in Iraq. If the United States ever decides to re-introduce the draft, there's a very good chance it'll apply to women as well.

Women already make up a significant part of the US military, including the portion serving in Iraq. If the United States ever decides to re-introduce the draft, there's a very good chance it'll apply to women as well.



I'm aware of the Israeli military.


And correct me if I'm wrong, but unless you register for selective service, like males at the age of 18 have to do, they can't call your name in the event of a draft, right?  In that case, I won't get drafted because I didn't and won't sign up for anything.

http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~py3y-knd/Images/draftbeer.gif





Cat

Cat


  Good Idea - Draught...

  http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~py3y-knd/Images/draftbeer.gif

  Bad Idea - Draft...

  http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-6/1193336/draft_card_web.jpg

 

Syria warns against deployment of troops
They say that UN troops along the border will  be taken as a hostile act.
http://news.yahoo.com/fc/world/mideast_conflict
Ok everyone says to let the UN do the job. Now most want peacekeepers there.
But how the heck are they going to that without starting another war with Syria...


Ok maybe the draft is not that far off after all.

All this talk about drafts makes me glad I'm a girl.

Can you lift more than fifty pounds?  Can you do 10 push-ups? Can you run 3k?
If you said yes to all three, and we invade Iran, you're going!
:o

Can you lift more than fifty pounds?  Can you do 10 push-ups? Can you run 3k?
If you said yes to all three, and we invade Iran, you're going!
:o


  And when she ships-off to war, we'll support her, right..?  ::)

Can you lift more than fifty pounds?  Can you do 10 push-ups? Can you run 3k?
If you said yes to all three, and we invade Iran, you're going!
:o




I can't do any of that sh*t and proud of it.

Can you lift more than fifty pounds?  Can you do 10 push-ups? Can you run 3k?
If you said yes to all three, and we invade Iran, you're going!
:o


My new plan.

Gain 50Lbs and fall down the stairs a few times a day.

  And when she ships-off to war, we'll support her, right..?  ::)
i'll send her a supportive PM every day.

actually, i heard they've raised the enlistment age to 42. so i might be feeding the belt of 30-cals into her tripod-mounted BAR.

i'll send her a supportive PM every day.

actually, i heard they've raised the enlistment age to 42. so i might be feeding the belt of 30-cals into her tripod-mounted BAR.


  Now, wouldn't that be a picture...

  The two of you together in your foxhole saving the world from democracy...

  Dang, I feel a Dean Scream coming on... :P go ;)...

  P.S.-  I'm not savvy on exemption requirements, but are you an only son..?

  Now, wouldn't that be a picture...

  The two of you together in your foxhole saving the world from democracy...

  Dang, I feel a Dean Scream coming on... :P go ;)...

  P.S.-  I'm not savvy on exemption requirements, but are you an only son..?




Together, Mike and I would make the world safe for Kim Richards.

finally! a cause worth fighting for!

I'm aware of the Israeli military.


And correct me if I'm wrong, but unless you register for selective service, like males at the age of 18 have to do, they can't call your name in the event of a draft, right?  In that case, I won't get drafted because I didn't and won't sign up for anything.





its 17.

i'll send her a supportive PM every day.

actually, i heard they've raised the enlistment age to 42. so i might be feeding the belt of 30-cals into her tripod-mounted BAR.

If they start drafting 42-year-olds, then we're really f**ked!
My health is better today than it was when I was 18, but I'm a bit anomalous.  The bigger problem is with the "Hamburger Hill" charge.  You tell a platoon of 18-year-olds, "Go take that hill!,"  and it's "Sir, yes, sir!"
You tell a platoon of 42-year olds, "Go take that hill!," and it's "F88k that sh1t, man!  I'll go to the stockade, but I'm not getting blown to chopped liver so Uncle Sam can get some cheap oil!"
;D



I can't do any of that sh*t and proud of it.

You're safe for the foreseeable future, but if they need cannon fodder bad enough, you will be amazed at the things you'll be able to do after just eight-short weeks of boot camp!

And guys, if you're thinking about showing up in your sister's prom dress, that ain't gonna fly if there's a real draft!
Back in 'Nam, it was--
Draftee:  I can't join, I'm gay!
Draft board: So are we!

You could go to Europe, but that means you'll have to have a passport.  If the re-instate the draft they will revoke all your passports and won't issue you one if you fit the draft parameters.
You say, "they can't do that!"
Oh yeah, says who?

I'll just go to prison then.  Still better than going to war.

You're safe for the foreseeable future, but if they need cannon fodder bad enough, you will be amazed at the things you'll be able to do after just eight-short weeks of boot camp!


I can't do boot camp.  I am physically unable to do any of that, and no amount of screaming by some speed-freak drill sargeant is going to change that.

If I can't become an objector, what I'll probably do is just leave the country.

Canada doesn't look like that hot of an option anymore, frankly.

I speak Spanish, and Mexico is closer, so I'd probably head south and keep going. I'll go to f*cking Patagonia if thats what it takes. I don't die for anyone or anything.

[quote author=Keyser S

I fail to see how you will manage this considering you do not have a car and you're too lazy to walk six miles into town.


By the time the draft comes in I'll have a car.  Don't start sh*t, please.

[quote author=Keyser S

[quote author=Keyser S

Don't you get it?  it is un-American not to have a car!

a.  It is an economic crime to be too poor to afford a car.
b.  It is a social crime to decline to own a car if you can afford one.

The latter is far worse.



Max, quit.  He doesn't need to be needled about it, especially by you.

Max, quit.  He doesn't need to be needled about it, especially by you.


http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/13/iroc.gif

finally! a cause worth fighting for!



I pledge allegiance to The Kim

http://kimrichards.net/Kim/vidcaps/TuffTurf/gc-TuffTurf-176.jpg

I don't think Max was needling me. ???

[quote author=Keyser S

  Keep America strong!  Aquire heavy debt..!  http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-6/1193336/USA!!.gif

  go ;)...

 


I want to avoid credit cards as much as I can. 

I'm not going to even consider getting one until I'm at least 23 or so, and even then, it will just be a backup. If you can't buy it with cash, then most of the time you don't need it.

[quote author=Keyser S

Alex dosen't want a new computer then.  ;D

I walk around with a lot of cash on me pal, but.. ya know, there are times when I don't want $3000 in my wallet.


Checking accounts and debit cards come in handy...

[quote author=Keyser S

Yeah, but debit cards have limits in what you can withdraw from the account at any one time.  Hence why credit cards come in handy.  You can't use your debit card to pay for a $1300 new laptop, but you can use your credit card for that. 


Correctamundo.

[quote author=Keyser S

Credit cards: just say no.  I don't care what they tell you.  You don't need one.  The industry is one of the most powerful in the country.  They run enticing advertisements perpetually.  Their stealth PR industry runs reports on how necessary the privileges of having credit and credit cards are.  Even if it is inconvenient to go without credit.  Even if its a hardship to go without it, we must start refusing it.

Credit and cred cards made sense when we were a rich country.  We are not a rich country.  Aside from personal debts, every American reading this owes nearly $29,000 on the national debt and over $800.00 per fiscal year paying interest alone! 

The wealth of America is an illusion created by ignorance.  You'd be better off taking credit from Jimmy the Squirrel than from Visa. 

Don't go to college.

College made sense when we were a rich country and invested in students with grants.  For the past quarter century, it's been loans at usurious rates.  Thanks Ronald Reagan!  Now you graduate with $20,000 to $50,000 in debt, banking on repayment via a job that isn't there for you.  Learn a trade.  Be an electrician or a nurse.  If you want to read Plato or the history of the French Revolution, go to the library.  It's free. 

If your daddy's a millionaire, you don't have to worry about any of this, of course.  Get your 4-year liberal arts education if you can pay upfront.  Even if you're from a rich family, do your working class comrades a favor, and say no to the credit companies.

http://www.uwsa.com/uwsa-usdebt.html




I have a credit card and a Bachelor's degree in Marketing.  Does that make me a bad person or something?  Because you just basically insulted everyone here with at least one credit card and a college degree.  How dare you.

I have a credit card and a Bachelor's degree in Marketing.  Does that make me a bad person or something?  Because you just basically insulted everyone here with at least one credit card and a college degree.  How dare you.

I have a BA in Journalism, minors in Englsih and Political Science.  It's great to have the education.  Not the debt.  My credit is so destroyed I couldn't get a CC even if I wanted one. 
I did not intend my statements to be an affront toward my comrades of the working class.  You may say your middle class, but the middle class is also an illusion.  We all did what we thought was right.  I did what I needed to do.  I'm sorry you interpreted what I said as "insult."  National economic policy since the time you were born, Sister M., has been outright war on the middle class. 
You want to feel insulted?  Go watch television!  Heard about the new "Survivor" series, eh?  Eschewing a class war, the powes that be are trying to foment an outright race war. 
Meanwhile, Dubya vows to stay in Iraq as long as he occupies the White House, causing how many more Iraqi deaths?  How many more American deaths?  How much more national debt?
How dare I?  How dare I do what?  How dare I point out the economic devastation in America?  If you don't feel "good" about yourself for some reason, I can't help that. 
BTW, there is no native entitlement to "feel good" about oneself.  Sorry.

BTW, there is no native entitlement to "feel good" about oneself.  Sorry.
;D

that shoudl be on bumper stickers.

I have a BA in Journalism, minors in Englsih and Political Science.  It's great to have the education.  Not the debt.  My credit is so destroyed I couldn't get a CC even if I wanted one. 
I did not intend my statements to be an affront toward my comrades of the working class.  You may say your middle class, but the middle class is also an illusion.  We all did what we thought was right.  I did what I needed to do.  I'm sorry you interpreted what I said as "insult."  National economic policy since the time you were born, Sister M., has been outright war on the middle class. 
You want to feel insulted?  Go watch television!  Heard about the new "Survivor" series, eh?  Eschewing a class war, the powes that be are trying to foment an outright race war. 
Meanwhile, Dubya vows to stay in Iraq as long as he occupies the White House, causing how many more Iraqi deaths?  How many more American deaths?  How much more national debt?
How dare I?  How dare I do what?  How dare I point out the economic devastation in America?  If you don't feel "good" about yourself for some reason, I can't help that. 
BTW, there is no native entitlement to "feel good" about oneself.  Sorry.



I don't feel bad about myself, but I'm getting sick and tired of reading you CONSTANTLY putting everything down.  I'd ask what it is you like about this country, but I probably already know the answer to that.  I don't watch Survivor, so I have no clue what you're talking about as far as that goes. 

And not everyone who has a credit card uses it wrong, doesn't make payments on time, and is up to their eyeballs in debt.  Just because that may be the norm for some people, it's not the norm for me or anyone else I know.  I was taught how to use credit properly and I've never once had a problem with it.  As for debts incurred when going to college....what the hell do you think?  College should be free?  I have about $40,000 in student loans to pay off, but I'll pay it off gladly because that money went towards a great cause; my degree.  I don't mind paying off my loans....if not for them, I could never have gotten my degree and if I didn't get it, that would have been one of the greatest disappointments I'd have in life.

survivor is starting a new season where everyone's going to be racially segregated.

survivor is starting a new season where everyone's going to be racially segregated.



What?!  That's redonculous. 

I don't feel bad about myself, but I'm getting sick and tired of reading you CONSTANTLY putting everything down.  I'd ask what it is you like about this country, but I probably already know the answer to that.
about this country there's plenty to love. about the federal government, at least the part that gets any attention, they're virtually irredeemable. they've abdicated virtually every responsibility they have, their behavior in all the time i've been alive has just gotten more and more despicable. and this bush admin is gonna go down in history as the most shamelessly two-faced america's ever seen. and the right-wing angle, take your tax money and then tell you you should be taking care of yourself while they subsidize all their rich friends and neighbors, is particularly laughable. why can't exxon-mobil take care of itself? why does halliburton need to be subsidized with my tax money through fat-cat military contracts that they almost completely fail to deliver on? why do I have to take care of THEM?

i ask you: what do you LIKE about this government? ??? i'm down with the park service and the library of congress and the smithsonian and stuff but the real government is rotten to the core. after katrina and the incredible revelations about iraq i wonder about ANYone who hasn't noticed this yet. what's it gonna take?

I don't feel bad about myself, but I'm getting sick and tired of reading you CONSTANTLY putting everything down.
Yes, this is depressing, I agree.  I do believe we are economically and geopolitically in great peril at this time.  I believe it is more positive to point to a tornado headed our way and say, "Look out!," than it is to say, "Look at the gorgeous hues of the sunset!"  I don't put "everything" down, now do I?  Tia and I had a positive chat about the "Benji" movies the other day!
;)

  I don't watch Survivor, so I have no clue what you're talking about as far as that goes. 
I don't watch it either.  Thus, I thought what I was hearing was hoax, until it turned out to be horribly true:
http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,19833,00.html
Brought to you by Diet Coke..."I'd like teach the world to sing...in racist cacaphony!"

And not everyone who has a credit card uses it wrong, doesn't make payments on time, and is up to their eyeballs in debt.  Just because that may be the norm for some people, it's not the norm for me or anyone else I know.  I was taught how to use credit properly and I've never once had a problem with it.  As for debts incurred when going to college....what the hell do you think?  College should be free?  I have about $40,000 in student loans to pay off, but I'll pay it off gladly because that money went towards a great cause; my degree.  I don't mind paying off my loans....if not for them, I could never have gotten my degree and if I didn't get it, that would have been one of the greatest disappointments I'd have in life.

Whatever gets you through the night 'salright, 'salright
It's your money or life 'salright, 'salright
Don't need a sword to cut through flowers oh no, oh no...
--John Lennon

What do I like about this country?  Well, it's a disturbing question 'coz all the things I like about it are fading away fast!
It's like asking liberal German in 1938, "Well, then what do you like about the Reich?"
:o

What?!  That's redonculous. 
that's what max is saying wiht the fomenting race war angle. and yup, it's true. survivor next season's gonna be split up by race.

Whatever gets you through the night 'salright, 'salright
It's your money or life 'salright, 'salright
Don't need a sword to cut through flowers oh no, oh no...
--John Lennon


Ummmm, okay?

What?!  That's redonculous. 

Even though the sound of it is something quite...atronculous.
:-\\

Ummmm, okay?


Yeah, man, it's groovy.  I'm OK, you're OK!
:)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a8/I%27m_OK-_You%27re_OK.jpg

Yeah, man, it's groovy.  I'm OK, you're OK!
:)





People are sick of my sarcasm, and I'm tired of yours.

What do I like about this country?  Well, it's a disturbing question 'coz all the things I like about it are fading away fast!
It's like asking liberal German in 1938, "Well, then what do you like about the Reich?"
:o
why do you hate the reich, max? why do you have to be such a reich-hater?

People are sick of my sarcasm, and I'm tired of yours.
i love EVERYone's sarcasm. ::)

i love EVERYone's sarcasm. ::)



That's because you're the funny one here.

Credit cards: just say no.  I don't care what they tell you.  You don't need one.  The industry is one of the most powerful in the country.  They run enticing advertisements perpetually.  Their stealth PR industry runs reports on how necessary the privileges of having credit and credit cards are.  Even if it is inconvenient to go without credit.  Even if its a hardship to go without it, we must start refusing it.

Credit and cred cards made sense when we were a rich country.  We are not a rich country.  Aside from personal debts, every American reading this owes nearly $29,000 on the national debt and over $800.00 per fiscal year paying interest alone! 

The wealth of America is an illusion created by ignorance.  You'd be better off taking credit from Jimmy the Squirrel than from Visa. 

I have several credit cards.  The difference between your credit cards and mine is probably that A- I pay mine on time (always) and in full (whenever possible, but most of the time) and B- I have credit cards that give me reward points and cash back and other intangibles.  So the credit card companies don't make any money off me other than the merchant commissions.

The financial information is out there in all forms, in the newspapers' editorial sections, in Suze Orman's books, even at the financial institutions that you hate.  It's common sense to not spend more than you make.  It's also common sense to save when you can and pay yourself first.  You can find all kinds of advice that can pertain to you and other middle-income Joe Q. Publics that can help you squirrel away a few dollars a week, that you can then invest in the companies that you vilify so that you can retire.  401(k)?  Investments.  403(b)?  Investments.  IRA?  Investments.  Most of the time, especially with the big companies, they will allow middle-income folks to invest as little as $25 a month into their high-yield mutual funds.  You most likely make more than I do, and I have a wife and kid.  How come I'm able to find the $25 a month (Actually, more like $100+) and you can't?

The question I have for you is: what are you doing with your money?  Because if you, an admittedly single person with no responsibilities and no kids, can't save more than I with your disposable income, then there's something wrong with you, not the system.



Don't go to college.

College made sense when we were a rich country and invested in students with grants.  For the past quarter century, it's been loans at usurious rates.  Thanks Ronald Reagan!  Now you graduate with $20,000 to $50,000 in debt, banking on repayment via a job that isn't there for you.  Learn a trade.  Be an electrician or a nurse.  If you want to read Plato or the history of the French Revolution, go to the library.  It's free. 

If your daddy's a millionaire, you don't have to worry about any of this, of course.  Get your 4-year liberal arts education if you can pay upfront.  Even if you're from a rich family, do your working class comrades a favor, and say no to the credit companies.

http://www.uwsa.com/uwsa-usdebt.html


Get a scholarship.  My education thus far (bachelor's in molecular biology, master's in immunology, and in a few years, PhD in cancer biology) cost less than $10000 because of scholarships and fellowships.  My parents saved up the $10000 over a period of many years, and did the same with my brother.  Why is it my fault that your family didn't plan better?  My family isn't insanely rich either, so don't use that angle.

And about the liberal arts degree: You chose to study it, nobody else could have forced you to do so.  My degree path allowed me innumerable opportunities for subsidized apprenticeships and high-paying jobs.  I do not look down upon the degree, only the person that complains because he chose the degree and now can't get what he would consider a "decent" job because of his choice.


I have a BA in Journalism, minors in Englsih and Political Science.  It's great to have the education.  Not the debt.  My credit is so destroyed I couldn't get a CC even if I wanted one. 

What weird utopia did you think you lived in where you didn't have to pay for a higher education?  Even these days, public schools are subsidized, not free.  I thought you went to a UMass, that's a state school, right?  So already you saved $$ over going to Harvard or Stanfurd or something. 

I fully expected to have to work my way through college if my parents didn't have enough money and I didn't get a good scholarship.  I had jobs throughout high school and college to pay for books and help my parents offset the tuition that wasn't taken care of by the scholarships that I fortunately received.  And then I commuted an hour each way to school because I knew I could not afford to live on campus.  In the meantime, I built up my credit using my parents' advice and a credit card that was tied to their credit, but I paid my share.  Bad credit is sometimes out of the control of mortal men, but most of the time, it's the creditholder's fault for not using it correctly. 

Again, is it my fault you chose the degree that you did and got into debt afterwards?


BTW, there is no native entitlement to "feel good" about oneself.  Sorry.


I have to feel good about myself because I can't afford to feel bad.  The moment I feel bad is the moment I become a victim.