|
Random Politics & Religion #00
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-27 17:21:42
Guess you've never heard of the movie Zero Dark Thirty Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden
Server: Siren
Game: FFXI
Posts: 2020
By Siren.Lordgrim 2015-01-27 17:23:07
i gave you all the proof and i quote a famous movie line in saying this " You can't handle the Truth" Where? In your mind?
Also, movie quotes are fine and dandy, but have no place in an argument.
Just like Hydra is not historically real.
I guess you do not count undocumented citizens who have been living here a long time. Blame the Census then
its on this site, you just have a major problem of selective reading. I never claimed a mythical creature was real, you got be one of the biggest trolls. i'll let you have the last word
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-27 17:23:36
Oh, btw Vic.
You are wrong about the 2009 Fiscal Budget
Quote: The United States federal budget for fiscal year 2009 began as a spending request submitted by President George W. Bush to the 110th Congress. The final resolution written and submitted by the 110th Congress to be forwarded to the President was approved by the House on June 5, 2008. The final spending bills for the budget were not signed into law until March 11, 2009 by President Barack Obama, nearly five and a half months after the fiscal year began.
Who signed the 2009 federal budget again? Do you want me to hold your hand while you read the bolded part again?
This happens to every incoming President. It was Bush's budget. Period. Thats why every graph lists every President's budget years 1 year after they take office to one year after they leave. Obama's fiscal years are 2010-2017. Period. Its not a debate. I cannot believe it. The deniability is so strong with you Vic that it is off the charts.
I have given you undeniable proof that you are wrong, and you still think you are right!
Budgets are normally signed before the fiscal period begins, not 5 and a half months afterwards! Also, this was not Bush's budget, there was several months where the budget changed from what Bush proposed to what Obama wanted.
This is Obama's budget. This is not Bush's budget. Bush did not sign this budget to law, Obama did. He is responsible for it, not anyone else. It is his name on the piece of paper, not Bush's, not Clinton's, not Reagan's, but Obama's.
Why don't you accept the fact that you are wrong and have no clue as to what you are talking about.
You didn't give me anything. You posted Bush's budget, good job. Clinton's fiscal years are 1993-2001. Bush's are 2002-2009. Obama's are 2010-2017. Common knowledge. You can shout, bold, underline, jump up and down, its all very entertaining, but it isn't going to change anything. Quote: The United States federal budget for fiscal year 2009 began as a spending request submitted by President George W. Bush to the 110th Congress. The final resolution written and submitted by the 110th Congress to be forwarded to the President was approved by the House on June 5, 2008. The final spending bills for the budget were not signed into law until March 11, 2009 by President Barack Obama, nearly five and a half months after the fiscal year began.
Just in case you missed it:
Quote: The United States federal budget for fiscal year 2009 began as a spending request submitted by President George W. Bush to the 110th Congress. The final resolution written and submitted by the 110th Congress to be forwarded to the President was approved by the House on June 5, 2008. The final spending bills for the budget were not signed into law until March 11, 2009 by President Barack Obama, nearly five and a half months after the fiscal year began.
Here it is, the condensed version
Quote: The final spending bills for the budget were not signed into law until March 11, 2009 by President Barack Obama, nearly five and a half months after the fiscal year began.
Here's the most important part
Quote: were not signed into law until March 11, 2009 by President Barack Obama
Just in case you missed it again
Quote: were not signed into law until March 11, 2009 by President Barack Obama
[+]
By Bloodrose 2015-01-27 17:23:55
Ah, I stand corrected then. That would be the documentary style movie?
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-27 17:25:36
i gave you all the proof and i quote a famous movie line in saying this " You can't handle the Truth" Where? In your mind?
Also, movie quotes are fine and dandy, but have no place in an argument.
Just like Hydra is not historically real.
I guess you do not count undocumented citizens who have been living here a long time. Blame the Census then
its on this site, you just have a major problem of selective reading. I never claimed a mythical creature was real, you got be one of the biggest trolls. You claimed that the Nazi Operation Code-named "Hydra" which comes from a comic book series called "Captain America" and recently portrayed in the movies "Captain America: The First Avenger" and "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" was real. Should I post it from your BS thread again?
Edit: Why not?
I laughed when you showed that picture of Captain America. Hydra is historically real we had American families and corporations deal with Nazi Germany before during and even after the war. When we have granted safe harbor to those snakes within our own country. Don't believe me ? Look it up there is facts and sources. I guess we can say Hollywood did not lie all the time just a half truth lol.
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-27 17:25:57
Ah, I stand corrected then. That would be the documentary style movie? Yeah.
Server: Shiva
Game: FFXI
Posts: 8022
By Shiva.Viciousss 2015-01-27 17:28:05
The Bin laden shooter is still alive, I know. Pretty sure a couple of the other guys are alive as well. I know they lost a few guys, but like I said, it happens.
By Bloodrose 2015-01-27 17:32:39
Seal Team 6: The Raid on Osama bin Laden was a televised movie based on the documentation of events which were neither confirmed or denied.
Zero Dark Thirty is essentially the same thing, but looks at the events in a broader timeline since the September 11 attacks, but was shown across the cinema spectrum instead of simply being televised.
There was controversy about Zero Dark Thirty and it's portrayal of "enhanced interrogation techniques" as a "pro-torture" agenda.
So, that makes two movies about it.
[+]
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-27 17:38:48
Seal Team 6: The Raid on Osama bin Laden was a televised movie based on the documentation of events which were neither confirmed or denied.
Zero Dark Thirty is essentially the same thing, but looks at the events in a broader timeline since the September 11 attacks, but was shown across the cinema spectrum instead of simply being televised.
There was controversy about Zero Dark Thirty and it's portrayal of "enhanced interrogation techniques" as a "pro-torture" agenda.
So, that makes two movies about it. And none of them are on Youtube, so therefor doesn't exist in Lordgrim's mind.
Well, full movies I mean. You can probably find parts of the movies in piecemeal on Youtube...
Server: Phoenix
Game: FFXI
Posts: 3686
By Phoenix.Amandarius 2015-01-27 23:18:42
YouTube Video Placeholder
Oops.
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-28 07:40:18
Phoenix.Amandarius said: »YouTube Video Placeholder
Oops. So, wait, did somebody actually plant a bomb in a casket?
How low can these extremists get?
Server: Phoenix
Game: FFXI
Posts: 3686
By Phoenix.Amandarius 2015-01-28 07:53:11
As I read the story it was a suicide bomber that was shot dead before by Israeli soldiers before he could detonate himself. And in their haste to celebrate his "martyrdom" they never thought to remove the bomb before wrapping him up and parading him through the streets.
Oops.
Server: Shiva
Game: FFXI
Posts: 8022
By Shiva.Viciousss 2015-01-28 20:46:48
Obama approval rating continues climb, hits 50%.
I guess thats what happens when you are overseeing a booming economy while being the only one doing any work in Washington.
Bahamut.Ravael
Server: Bahamut
Game: FFXI
Posts: 13638
By Bahamut.Ravael 2015-01-28 21:19:14
Server: Shiva
Game: FFXI
Posts: 8022
By Shiva.Viciousss 2015-01-28 21:20:32
Mmmhmm.
By Enuyasha 2015-01-28 21:33:53
Obama approval rating continues climb, hits 50%. I guess thats what happens when, in spite of oppositional sandbagging, you're lucky enough to be in charge when things get better largely on their own despite said sandbagging, improving your approval rating from "still better than Bush" to "Way better than Bush".
ftfy reftfy
Bahamut.Ravael
Server: Bahamut
Game: FFXI
Posts: 13638
By Bahamut.Ravael 2015-01-28 21:39:04
Obama approval rating continues climb, hits 50%. I guess thats what happens when, in spite of oppositional sandbagging and your own bad policies, you're lucky enough to be in charge when things get better largely on their own despite said sandbagging and bad policies, improving your approval rating from "still better than Bush but sucky nonetheless" to "Way better than Bush because it's not like that's hard". ftfy reftfy
rereftfy (keep it going!)
[+]
By Enuyasha 2015-01-28 21:45:04
Obama approval rating continues climb, hits 50%. I guess thats what happens when, in spite of oppositional sandbagging and your own bad policies, you're lucky enough to be in charge when things get better largely on their own despite said sandbagging and bad policies, improving your approval rating from "still better than Bush but sucky nonetheless" to "Way better than Bush because it's not like that's hard". ftfy reftfy
rereftfy (keep it going!) Youre not my real mom! I DOS WHAT I WANTS!
[+]
Bismarck.Magnuss
Server: Bismarck
Game: FFXI
Posts: 28615
By Bismarck.Magnuss 2015-01-28 21:53:54
Siren.Mosin
By Siren.Mosin 2015-01-29 10:52:21
[+]
Ragnarok.Nausi
Server: Ragnarok
Game: FFXI
Posts: 6709
By Ragnarok.Nausi 2015-01-29 10:53:41
Loretta Lynch meets Ted Cruz, and it pretty much goes as you would expect.
YouTube Video Placeholder
Lakshmi.Flavin
Server: Lakshmi
Game: FFXI
Posts: 18466
By Lakshmi.Flavin 2015-01-29 11:09:18
Your link to the WSJ requires some kind of membership to be able to even read it lol.
Siren.Mosin
By Siren.Mosin 2015-01-29 11:11:29
Your link to the WSJ requires some kind of membership to be able to even read it lol.
gdi, it worked the first time >.<
I'll try to find another link......
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-29 11:15:06
Your link to the WSJ requires some kind of membership to be able to even read it lol.
gdi, it worked the first time >.<
I'll try to find another link...... Here you go
Quote: Five years ago, Quadrant Homes churned out starter houses in the Seattle area with an average sales price of $269,000 and the marketing slogan, “More House, Less Money.”
But facing a debt-burdened middle class and rising land prices, Quadrant has since exchanged entry-level buyers for customers free of credit worries and ready to splurge. Its new slogan, “Built Your Way,” accompanies homes with vaulted ceilings and gourmet kitchens that last year sold for an average price of $420,000. “We used a lot of market research to tell us that our old model wasn’t going to work,” said Ken Krivanec, Quadrant’s chief executive.
The emergence of a two-tiered U.S. economy, with wealthy households advancing while middle- and lower-income Americans struggle, is reshaping markets for everything from housing to clothing to groceries to beer.
“It’s a tale of two economies,” said Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin, a real-estate brokerage in Seattle that operates in 25 states. “There is a high-end market that is absolutely booming. And then there’s everyone in the middle class. They don’t have much hope of wage growth.”
The recession blew holes in the balance sheets of all U.S. households and ended a decadeslong loosening of credit for middle-class borrowers. Now, credit is tight, and incomes have been flat or falling for all but the top 10th of U.S. income earners between 2010 and 2013, according to the Federal Reserve.
American spending patterns after the recession underscore why many U.S. businesses are reorienting to serve higher-income households, said Barry Cynamon, of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Since 2009, average per household spending among the top 5% of U.S. income earners—adjusting for inflation—climbed 12% through 2012, the most recent data available. Over the same period, spending by all others fell 1% per household, according to Mr. Cynamon, a visiting scholar at the bank’s Center for Household Financial Stability, and Steven Fazzari of Washington University in St. Louis, who published their research findings last year.
The spending rebound following the recession “appears to be largely driven by the consumption at the top,” Mr. Cynamon said. He and Mr. Fazzari found the wealthiest 5% of U.S. households accounted for around 30% of consumer spending in 2012, up from 23% in 1992.
Indeed, such midtier retailers as J.C. Penney, Sears and Target have slumped. “The consumer has not bounced back with the confidence we were all looking for,” Macy’s chief executive Terry Lundgren told investors last fall.
In luxury retail, meanwhile: “Our customers are confident, feel good about the economy in general and their personal balance sheets specifically,” said Karen Katz, chief executive of Neiman Marcus Group Ltd., last month. Reported 2014 revenues of $4.8 billion for the company are up from $3.6 billion in 2009.
Revenue for such luxury hotel chains as St. Regis and Ritz-Carlton rose 35% last year compared with 2008, according to market research firm STR Inc. Revenues at midscale chains such as Best Western and Ramada were down 1%.
On grocery aisles, the recession and its aftermath boosted sales of economy brands. At the high end, Whole Foods Market Inc. reported record sales per gross square foot last year.
“Demand bifurcated,” said Jason Green, chief executive of the Cambridge Group, a growth strategy firm that is part of Nielsen NV. “The familiar stuff my middle-class family had in the pantry, those are under significant pressure.”
In the grocery market’s middle tier, Safeway Inc., the second-largest supermarket chain in the U.S. was purchased last year by the private-equity group that owns Albertsons, the fifth-largest grocery retailer. Company officials said the deal would allow the companies to reduce costs—and lower prices for customers—as they fend off competition from low-price outlets and high-end stores.
In the cold case, sales of premium lagers are up 16% since 2007 after adjusting for inflation, while sales of economy brands grew 8%, according to research firm Euromonitor International. Sales of midprice beers are down 1%.
The trend hit auto makers some years ago, when BMW AG’s former chief executive Helmut Panke described the U.S. market as an hourglass: lots of demand for budget and luxury brands but little in between.
Steve Bates, general manager of BMW Seattle for the past 12 years, said new-car sales at his dealership were up 25% last year, while used-car sales were flat. The M4 series, a sporty coupe priced from $64,000, has been “selling out as soon as it touches the ground,” he said.
Then there are consumers like Vicki Oliver, 68 years old, of Temecula, Calif. She bought a used Hyundai Sonata last year to replace a wrecked 1995 Ford Explorer. Ms. Oliver and her husband, a real-estate agent, added onto their home two years ago so her daughter and son-in-law, a general contractor, could move in with their family.
“That was a way to make things work in hard times,” Ms. Oliver said. Caribbean cruises and trips to Florida are now memories. “We haven’t done that for years,” she said.
The housing market illustrates how weakness among middle-class consumers holds back the U.S. economy. Homes are generally the biggest purchase Americans make. Housing dollars ripple through the economy by triggering spending on appliances, furniture and landscaping.
For the first time, U.S. builders last year sold slightly more homes priced above $400,000 than those below $200,000. As a result, the median price of new homes exceeded $280,000, a record in nominal terms and 2% shy of the 2006 inflation-adjusted peak.
Total sales last year, however, were up just 1% compared with 2013, and more than 50% below their average from 2000 to 2002, before the housing bubble.
New homes are also getting bigger. The median U.S. home was more than 2,400 square feet in the third quarter of 2014, a 20% increase from early 2000 and a 10% increase from the peak of the housing market in 2006.
In Seattle, the median new-home size topped 2,500 square feet last year, a record, according to research firm Metrostudy Inc. Since the market hit bottom in 2011, sales of new homes priced above $600,000 have tripled, while sales below $400,000 are down 16%, according to CoreLogic DataQuick.
Builders boost profits selling more expensive homes. But less construction overall means fewer new jobs and reduced total spending.
“Over the long haul, I worry that you can’t run our housing market, which depends on volume, on affluent buyers alone,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial in Chicago.
Young households have been slow to buy homes because of the tough job market. Many would-be buyers can’t save enough for a down payment or don’t earn enough to qualify for a mortgage. Student debt holds others back.
A typical household, for example, would need around $60,000 in cash to make a 20% down payment on the median-priced new home in the U.S. To qualify for a mortgage, they would need good credit and to show an annual income of about $45,000, assuming little other household debt. A government-insured loan in this example could call for an $11,000 down payment but would require an annual income of $60,000.
Lisa and Nathan Trione are looking for a house in Denver big enough for their five children. But there is little in their price range: $250,000 and under.
“You’re already intimidated by the process,” said Ms. Trione, a 28-year-old paralegal and office manager. “And then you see this huge price, and you say, ‘I’m not ready to do that right now.’”
Ms. Trione is paying off debt she incurred while earning her associate degree. She also is trying to raise her credit score, which, she said, fell during a series of early financial missteps.
Well-heeled customers, meanwhile, have their pick of mortgages. At the same time, some banks have pulled back from federally insured loans that allow for smaller down payments.
“We would like to build a smaller, higher-quality and less-volatile business,” Marianne Lake, chief financial officer at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., told investors last year.
With fewer potential customers, builders have largely abandoned the entry-level market. “If a builder can make money on something, he’ll build it. The problem is that they can’t make money at the entry level,” said John Burns, of Irvine, Calif., a consultant to builders.
But rentals, the low-end of the housing market, are booming. Apartment construction has neared its fastest pace since 1989. Two of the nation’s largest home builders, Toll Brothers Inc. and Lennar Corp., have both launched multifamily construction divisions, each with around 5,000 units in the pipeline.
“We all wished we had a big apartment portfolio through this downturn,” said Douglas Yearley, Toll’s chief executive, during an earnings call last year.
With sales plunging in 2009, Quadrant called in a research firm that concluded more buyers might materialize if the company built more expensive homes. “When it’s data driven, the courage to make a remarkable change is easier than when you’re using your gut,” said Mr. Krivanec, the company’s chief executive.
Quadrant, a unit of TRI Pointe Homes Inc., was finishing seven homes per workday in 2004. They now finish less than two of the more expensive houses a day. But the share of buyers who back out of a deal, typically because they can’t get a loan, is down 10% since 2010.
To serve more higher-end buyers, Quadrant opened a design studio two years ago that lets buyers choose from dozens of cabinets, countertops, tiles and flooring. Some new buyers spend nearly twice as much on such upgrades, the company said, which adds to the profitability of home sales.
Common design features now include a walk-in closet and bathroom nearly as big as the master bedroom. Kitchens have a walk-in pantry.
On a recent Tuesday afternoon on Little Bear Creek Place, a cul-de-sac in this Seattle suburb, electricians, landscapers and framers worked on some 23 Quadrant home sites.
Nearby, Nick and Adriana Stoll unpacked boxes in their new four-bedroom home. The home is twice the size of the 1,200-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment they rented in nearby Bellevue.
The Stolls customized almost every feature and finish, including hinges on kitchen cabinets that prevent the doors from slamming shut. “I’m typically the kind of consumer where I make a quick decision,” Mr. Stoll said. “But when it comes to your home, well, we stared at 100 countertops for an hour.”
The Stolls survived the recession and have prospered. Mr. Stoll purchased a Seattle condominium in 2008, the day before learning he was losing his job at Washington Mutual, the thrift sold to J.P. Morgan after it was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
Mr. Stoll changed jobs twice before he was recruited in 2011 to work at a technology company. He broke even on the sale of his condo last year. “Other people encountered problems where maybe it’s student loans or credit cards or car payments,” he said, “and we have none of that.”
The couple put 20% down on their new home, which cost $579,000. Ms. Stoll works as a client associate for a large financial services company.
Growth in new home sales this year will depend, in part, on whether builders revive their interest in first-time buyers.
Two years ago, D.R. Horton Inc., the nation’s largest home builder, launched Emerald Homes, a luxury division. Last year, the company rolled out Express Homes, a division that pioneered no-frills housing for the entry-level market.
Mr. Krivanec, Quadrant’s CEO, said he doesn’t see a return to his company’s former model. There are enough people with good-paying jobs in the area—at Boeing, Amazon and Microsoft—to keep sales going, even it means building fewer homes. “We like where we’re at,” he said.
[+]
Siren.Mosin
By Siren.Mosin 2015-01-29 11:15:47
thanks.
Server: Shiva
Game: FFXI
Posts: 8022
By Shiva.Viciousss 2015-01-29 11:16:51
Loretta Lynch meets Ted Cruz, and it pretty much goes as you would expect.
Yeah, he wasted 10 minutes of her time.
Server: Asura
Game: FFXI
Posts: 34187
By Asura.Kingnobody 2015-01-29 11:17:52
By charlo999 2015-01-29 11:46:24
It's pretty much the same in the uk.
Rentals are huge now and the average house price is about £250k to £300k.
Not like 30 years ago when you could get a house for £30-80k
Obviously even with the costs of materials going right down to build most of these homes in the UK, ie; most internals are now plaster board and cheap tin frames. I work in the building industry. The cost has gone up 400-800ish%.
Crazy.
As the demand is still there. Just inflation has pushed the poorer out.
Ragnarok.Nausi
Server: Ragnarok
Game: FFXI
Posts: 6709
By Ragnarok.Nausi 2015-01-29 12:22:30
Loretta Lynch meets Ted Cruz, and it pretty much goes as you would expect.
Yeah, he wasted 10 minutes of her time. Watching you carry buckets after buckets of water is pretty entertaining.
Server: Shiva
Game: FFXI
Posts: 8022
By Shiva.Viciousss 2015-01-29 12:28:38
Loretta Lynch meets Ted Cruz, and it pretty much goes as you would expect.
Yeah, he wasted 10 minutes of her time. Watching you carry buckets after buckets of water is pretty entertaining.
Watching you flail around is hilarious.
First question was how much can prosecutioral discretion expand? Obvious answer: Its up to the prosecutor.
Second Question: Have you ever issued work permits as a prosecutor?
Obvious Answer: No, and neither has any other prosecutor. How is this relevant to my job?
Third Question: Lets drum up some wild conspiracy theories!
Answer: Um, lets not? Ok, next senator!
Random Politics & Religion is for topics that aren't thread worthy on their own and do not have their own existing thread.
Rules and Guidelines
Forum Rules and P&R Section Guidelines still apply.
Satire is tolerated.
If your topic covers a story over 6 months old (Watergate, Benghazi, 2012 Election, etc.) post it here.
Discussions on racism, homophobia, transphobia, and the like are allowed, targeted insults based on these will not be tolerated.
Political debates get heated and are meant to be intense, if you take offense to being called or proven wrong, you don't belong here.
If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen; if you prove you can't handle the criticism you bring upon yourself in this thread, you may be removed from it. You are responsible for what you post.
Along those lines, heat is fine, but sustained, clearly personal hostility is not okay. The personal attack rules still apply. Attack positions, not posters. Failure to adhere to this will result in your removal from the thread.
This thread is NOT the Flame Core.
These rules are subject to change and modification where and when needed.
Random Politics & Religion may be mained or demained depending on the activity within at a Moderator's discretion.
With that out of the way, let the debates begin!
/bow
|
|