Disqus - Latest Comments for Jim_Satterfield

Re: Why a Big CCC Won’t Work Today – But a little one might help

Jim_Satterfield — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:17:31 -0000

I agree with GreenDreams and Polimom. Lots of experienced construction workers are currently unemployed and if we started projects retrofitting older homes and commercial buildings to be more energy efficient it would be a double win for our economy. Our infrastructure needs are also tremendous and are being neglected to the point to where enough workers in those fields are out of work to positively impact our country by putting them to work. Then there is the multiplier effect as these newly re-employed people have money to spend.

Re: An Abortion Carried Too Far

Jim_Satterfield — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:19:15 -0000

JD, I cannot find a reference to the rescue of abandoned children in Roman times and their rescue except on Christian web sites. Do you know of a more general historical reference?

Re: An Abortion Carried Too Far

Jim_Satterfield — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:16:21 -0000

Do you really think they won't think of a way to target PP even more than they do now, JD? The Republicans of Missouri have been working really hard to make certain that no family planning money from the state can go to them under any circumstances.

Re: Droid Eris by HTC with Google

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 20:41:45 -0000

The real problem with what Topolsky was saying about how people will move to the smartphones in that interview is that I think he underestimates how much those expensive data plans will limit adoption.

Re: What Does the Lord Require of Republicans?

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 15:33:56 -0000

Several postings here show the problem. They attempt to say that how things are done now must be the same way they have always been done. It doesn't matter if those ways are no longer effective. ginnymac says that those who do not work shouldn't eat, or at least shouldn't have our help doing so. But is not working the same as not being able to find a job? This is one of my greatest problems with conservatives/Republicans. They blame the people who can't find work for not working, refusing completely to recognize that there are factors in the real world that are beyond the control of individuals. We are in the middle of the worst economic downturn since World War II. The official unemployment rate is 10.2% while the real number (Officially unemployed + discouraged workers + underemployed) is 17.5%. Yet the refrain continues. Government programs are bad. All charity should be private charity and that is good enough. Tell that to the food pantries whose shelves are empty because of the huge demand and the fall off in donations. If the conservatives did get their way and those evil social programs were wiped out do they really think that things would be just fine for the poor, working or not? Are they that far out of touch with reality because of their demonization of government programs?

I tend to think that the constant accusations of taxation being theft support my view, frankly.

Re: Media Wakes Up About the Obama Administration’s Middle East Failure (Guest Voice)

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 15:08:02 -0000

The Rubin piece is a very bad joke. The Israelis have been anything but flexible.

Re: Nothing Stops Political Demonization In America

Jim_Satterfield — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:20:36 -0000

Pushed it as a terrorism story? I think someone missed something. The post's title was "Possible Terrorist Attack at Ft. Hood". It was posted just as the story was breaking and that was the speculation of other news outlets.

Re: Quote of the Day: Rebirth of a Republican Moderate Path?

Jim_Satterfield — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:05:37 -0000

From what I've read of the Virginia governor-elect, it's more of a case of hiding what he really is and running like a moderate when he is anything but that. The proof will be in the governing.

Re: “V” for Villification: Liberal Paradise, Obama Nightmare (Guest Voice)

Jim_Satterfield — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:09:52 -0000

Could it be that some who see Obama in this show never saw the original mini-series and TV series? Just maybe.

Re: Going Rogue in Upstate New York

Jim_Satterfield — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:49:56 -0000

No, Shannon, you're not the only person who thinks that.

Re: Political Compass

Jim_Satterfield — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:05:17 -0000

Actually, JD, the 18th century solutions I refer to are those of the conservative's bastardized version of Adam Smith's writings and the beliefs of David Ricardo. The modern conservative acts as though all of the changes the world has gone through cannot change those economist's theories no matter how much it changes the environment economics operate in. What does comparative advantage mean when production and labor, whether that of manufacturing or many services can be moved anywhere in the world? Why does the writing of Adam Smith that praises laissez faire seem to be the only part that conservatives listen to while ignoring his warnings about how it can go wrong? Constitutionalism seems to go hand in hand with worship of the free market and refusal to recognize its flaws and the place that government is going to have to have unless we choose to ignore the fact that private charity no longer has the resources to ameliorate suffering caused by massive economic dislocations inherent in unfettered capitalism.

Re: So Much for Tort Reform

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 23:46:51 -0000

Do you really think that the current crop of Republicans would support those regulations, JD? Seriously? There are certainly some Democrats who join in on this foolish belief that corporations can be trusted to not repeat their previous mistakes or even create new stupidities such as computer programs based on mathematical models that have as their base unwarranted assumptions about home values and mortgages.

As far as tort reform, conservatives limit themselves (So far as I know.) to the idea of limiting awards. That's not enough. We need an entire new structure when it comes to anything that has to do with technical and scientific issues, including medicine. Techies want to tear their hair out sometimes because of software patents and patent trolls. No more jurisdiction shopping. No more competing paid experts. A pool of experts in various fields that are treated like someone drawn for jury selection. Then a second panel of "technical judges" would review the decision to see if they catch something that the first crew didn't. Don't limit awards since you've already taken major steps to eliminate the worst abuses of the current system. There needs to be a real threat of meaningful penalties in this field to avoid "cost benefit analyses" that lead to rationalizations of unacceptable risk. Purely partisan? I judge the Republican Party as I see the people with power in it act.

Re: Political Compass

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:57:56 -0000

Communism is even more foolish than libertarianism. I try to think outside of simplistic labels. I also recognize that we are heading towards problems that won't be solved by people who let themselves be trapped in those simplistic concepts. Conservatives, by their nature, don't have a clue when it comes to solutions to modern problems because they insist that 18th century solutions should work just fine for everything.

Re: White House: NY 23 Shows GOP Becoming More Extreme

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 14:30:33 -0000

Interesting. The twitter page that his name links to no longer exists.

Re: White House: NY 23 Shows GOP Becoming More Extreme

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 14:30:04 -0000

I wonder if this is the same Pat who showed up on Dispatches from the Culture Wars a while back. Though his language was even stronger.

Re: Political Compass

Jim_Satterfield — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 14:12:49 -0000

Economic Left/Right: -6.12
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -4.41

Make of it what you will. Of course my reasoning for some of my economic views is a bit different from most, I think.

Re: So Much for Tort Reform

Jim_Satterfield — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 19:36:23 -0000

Actually, Jazz, the foaming at the mouth hatred that Republicans and you have for actually reforming anything is what really knows no bounds. Have the "conservatives" ever proposed any real reforms to the system? No. Simply capping awards is not reform. Their proposals for what they consider reform of the rest of the system are designed to have loopholes so big that the Oasis of the Seas could sail through with a blind man at the helm. They would in do nothing to improve things in the real world. Only in the Republican fantasy land of what America is like.

Re: So Much for Tort Reform

Jim_Satterfield — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:47:47 -0000

jpe1 beat me to it. Not one of the upset conservatives here actually understood what they were reading. The entire section was about alternatives to the standard system of going to the courts. In other words, the so-called reform laws that you are defending have nothing to do with this section of the law. Did you really not recognize that? Any of you? Especially Jazz.

Re: Pat Robertson Is Not Happy About Hate Crimes Bill

Jim_Satterfield — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:41:53 -0000

The initial treatment, or more accurately, mistreatment of someone based on their affiliation with a particular group was that of the perpetrator of the crime. The law simply recognizes that. We do not live in an ideal world where people are all treated equally no matter what their differences from what is considered "normal". The law recognizes motive and intent in other areas such as the various degrees of assault and murder that are recognized and used to base sentencing of the criminal. Why shouldn't it be capable of recognizing raging bigotry as a contributing factor and sentence accordingly?

Re: The House Health Bill: Here come the taxes

Jim_Satterfield — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:05:20 -0000

Silly comment, AR. Grover Norquist, the would be drowner of government, just doesn't have much credibility in the book of anyone other than right wing ideologues.

Re: The House Health Bill: Here come the taxes

Jim_Satterfield — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:07:43 -0000

Americans for Tax Reform? How low can you go for sources, Jazz?

Re: Most Mortgages Are Probably Invalid And Courts Are Starting To Notice

Jim_Satterfield — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:56:33 -0000

If the institutions screwed up as badly as it appears they have then they get what they deserve if the owner gets the home free and clear. It will only happen to those who didn't follow the law, though, so maybe this will be a lesson learned by these institutions since it will hit the bottom line and that's all they understand.

Re: The Surge Worked; “We” Won the War

Jim_Satterfield — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:35:35 -0000

Whaddya know, a post I can agree with completely, JD. We can hope that the insurgency will leave/die off after we're gone. But one could redevelop if the current government continues its current ineptitude and corruption.

Re: Extensive Public Option: Pelosi Reportedly Can’t Find Votes

Jim_Satterfield — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 22:19:33 -0000

It has become important because it is increasingly clear that none of the proposals put forth with the goal of preserving the existing corporations and their profit margins will really fix anything. Personally, I'd like to see as a "compromise" the creation of a nationwide not-for-profit that can never do what Blue Cross did and convert most of their units to for-profits. It needs to be a health care organization, serving as a payer to existing hospitals that meet minimum standards for efficiency, helping those that don't change their old ways of doing things and where there is simply not adequate care providing it through new fixed facilities or mobile clinics. In addition I consider it vital that this system treat all health issues, physical and mental, equally. This means it would include psychological, dental and eye care while excluding purely cosmetic procedures. People need their teeth to eat a healthy diet. Oral infections lead to other illnesses. Why allow it to get that far? They need to see well to work at pretty much any job. Our country benefits when the greatest number of people are as healthy as possible, even if you can't just agree that compassion in a wealthy country should lead us to do these things.

Re: The Turkey from Cranberry Township; or, When a Conservative Attacks Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans

Jim_Satterfield — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:25:31 -0000

Really, PWT? Anyone who has a different opinion from Mr. Metcalfe or you concerning climate change is a traitor?