Disqus - Friends of pogden297

Re: Government study finds corporations pay less than 13 percent in taxes

Steve de Kater — Tue, 02 Jul 2013 13:51:11 -0000

So a company pays basically $1 out of every $8 to the government...I don't really have a problem with that....if anything, it is too much!

Re: Bob Costas: Redskins Name 'an Insult, a Slur'

Steve de Kater — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 11:18:00 -0000

Bob Costas said that the term Redskins was an insult and a slur, and insinuated what the equivalent slur would be against African-Americans, and we all know where he was going with that. Using the same logic that was used in the Paula Deen situation, shouldn't Bob be immediately fired, since he used the term repeatedly over the years? He can't claim that it was any less offensive in years past, or it was OK back then, because everyone was saying it. It seems like those on the conservative side are not allowed even one minor slip-up, no matter how far in the past, yet when the shoe is on the other foot, the standards seem to change.

Re: ALEC takes aim at rooftop solar industry

Steve de Kater — Mon, 09 Dec 2013 14:16:40 -0000

This may be a bad analogy, but what if you had a well on your property and the water company said they would buy any excess water that your well produced? They sure aren't going to pay you the same price that they turn around and sell it to your neighbors for; they would soon go broke. It would be even more foolish if the government gave you a tax credit to partially reimburse you for the cost of putting in the well. On the other hand, if you came to the conclusion that you could pay the entire cost of installing the well, and even if you were paid a lower rate for the excess water it produced you would eventually turn a profit, then everybody wins.

Re: A Success Story – Obamacare

Steve de Kater — Sat, 05 Apr 2014 00:45:36 -0000

Mary- If the ACA merely addressed the needs of those who were uninsured, and offered protections to those with pre-existing conditions, that would have been fine. But why was there the need to mess with so many (thousands? millions?) that were happy with what they already had? Isn't that what President Obama promised?

Re: Oppose Obamacare? Give it Up, Turn it Loose

Steve de Kater — Sat, 05 Apr 2014 00:59:43 -0000

Just keep making up stuff...You claim that a ".... record turnout of ....voters cast their ballots for Obama..." That is absolutely false. Despite winning over Romney, there were far fewer votes cast in 2012 than in 2008, and Obama received over 3 million fewer votes in his re-election campaign.
And time will tell if that number of 7 million newly insured Americans will prove to be an accurate number. I can say with almost absolute certainty that it will be about as accurate as your voter turnout statement.

Re: A Success Story – Obamacare

Steve de Kater — Sat, 05 Apr 2014 17:57:02 -0000

But what about those that had policies that had decent coverage, and are now presented with ACA policies that have rates significantly higher, along with higher deductibles. They should have been left alone!

Re: A Success Story – Obamacare

Steve de Kater — Sat, 05 Apr 2014 23:56:23 -0000

I am simply astounded by your way of thinking. Maybe if my car needs major repairs, or if I need a new roof, or a new furnace, I'll just send you the bill...would that be fair in your fantasy world?
If Obamacare is such a good deal, why are there any losers at all?

Re: Rainblown: near-miss ends jackpot tries

Steve de Kater — Wed, 28 May 2014 22:02:47 -0000

Ron- I have a copy of what was posted about the pool where it does mention the 5% "limit for Sat. & Sun. but it was dated on Sat (5/24). My recollection is that was the first I heard of it, and by that time, the pool was pretty much filled To tell you the truth, I was blown away when I saw the $200K cap; I was really curious if their strategy was to try and take it before Monday, or design their Monday tix to take as many consolations as possible with the hope that they might strike lightning and take it all.
I have long taken issue with their strategy of singling horses in these pools; my thinking is if you single a horse (or even use just two runners) it had better come in, Unfortunately, their track record (sorry!) has been pretty poor in that respect- not only do the horses not win; they usually don't even finish in the money! The guy who won used just two horses in a nine horse field, (kind of odd since he hit the ALL button on the other 5 races!) but he must have known something, because it worked. He followed my rule.
As you alluded to in another post, it's easy to pick apart a ticket after the races have been run; I can do it as soon as I see the tickets, and usually have a pretty good idea of how things are going to shake out. On Sunday, I figured that 90-95% of the tickets were toast after the first two races; the pools singles and the 2 5 7 three times gave me very little confidence even though all four of their tickets were live after scoring with the two upsets.
When you look at the odds of the final four races, and the size of the fields, it still amazes me that there was, indeed, an exclusive winner.

Re: Churchill Downs Foster Night All-Graded-Stakes Pick 4

Steve de Kater — Sun, 15 Jun 2014 12:39:36 -0000

$90 ticket paid $1429...nice ticket

Re: How to Follow the Money…

Steve de Kater — Fri, 18 Jul 2014 10:20:28 -0000

I am surprised, and disappointed, that you would stoop to the level that you did by insulting Sarah Palin in the manner that you did. You may not agree with her politically, but not everyone shares your views, and simply because you don't agree with her does not make her "utterances" "moronic".

Re: A contemptuous level of disrespect

Steve de Kater — Sun, 05 Oct 2014 23:54:14 -0000

The remarks made about the fighter pilot were a poor attempt at humor and there were two apologies made after the remarks were on the air. If you can't accept those apologies, that's on you. Shame on you if you wrote this article after those apologies were offered.
As far as some of the comments made about Mr. Obama, I find them both despicable and somewhat juvenile, but for you to apparently make the assumption that the majority of those who disagree with the president share those type of sentiments is ignorant, at best.
I'd feel a little more comfortable with your comments had I also seen criticism directed at Harry Reid, Debbie Wasserman Schultz (sp?) and some of those on the liberal side of the commentary spectrum that have said equally bad, or far worse things about Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney, and others.
To IndyJEF, you made far too many statements that I can take issue with; suffice it to say that almost every single one of them can be argued to the contrary.
Finally, to the president's "coffee cup" salute. Maybe too much has been made of it, but it is just one more in a long line of minor things the president has done that have both embarrassed himself and the office he holds. The sad part, for all of us, is that he doesn't seem to realize when he does these things, which only compounds the original error. That, probably more than anything, is what upsets people.

Re: A contemptuous level of disrespect

Steve de Kater — Mon, 06 Oct 2014 12:20:28 -0000

Pretty extreme statement to make, don't you think? What was your opinion about the personal attacks made about not just candidates Palin and Romney, but about their families? Keep in mind that many of these attacks were not merely Facebook attacks, or made, as Mr. Carpenter stated, "in the safety of darkness" but by well known commentators, comedians, celebrities, and went not only unchallenged, but were laughed at, lauded, and applauded. I also note that your comment was made anonymously.

Re: Young women who vote

Steve de Kater — Fri, 31 Oct 2014 13:05:45 -0000

Access to birth control? Are you that ignorant? There is no problem with access to birth control; there is only a question of who is going to pay for it. Does your intelligent, accomplished 24 year old daughter have the means to pay for her own birth control?
Speaking of your daughter, how much does she make at her job compared to the men she works with? That 79 cent number has always been a load of crap and I will prove it to you. The first bill signed by Obama was Lily Ledbetter, and the number cited then was the 77 cents number as the difference. During the 2012 campaign, the same number was used, as it was earlier this year by Obama. That means one of three things; either the law isn't working, wasn't needed, or the number isn't correct. Which is it? I am now retired, but I never worked with a woman that wasn't paid at least the same as I was paid for the same work. And yet, many, many times, I was asked to assist a female co-worker with something that was a little too heavy or hard for them to handle...equal pay for "equal" work...not in my experience.
Finally, it is obvious that you don't like Fox News...thumb your nose all you want at them, but I'll give you some advice that I'm pretty sure that you will ignore. Watch the Fox business block Saturday mornings, and watch the Fox opinion shows each evening for a week. You will be surprised at how much you can learn, how much you don't hear about on the mainstream media, and overall, how balanced they can be. Also, they feature quite a few females on their staff that are, like your daughter, intelligent and accomplished, and that is giving them far less praise than they deserve. There may be a "war on women", but it is not being waged by the Republicans, it is not being waged by Fox, and whether you realize it or not, it is being waged against you by those claiming to be fighting on your behalf. If your daughter has half the intelligence you think she does, she will realize this soon enough, if she hasn't already. A good start for her would be to take my advice, and, at the same time, quit reading your columns.

Re: How a Republican Congress would replace Obamacare

Steve de Kater — Mon, 03 Nov 2014 12:43:01 -0000

One thing that has to be done is to sever the relationship between your employment and your health insurance. Health insurance should be available and purchased in the same manner as any other type of insurance. Premiums should not be deductible (no other insurance premiums are) and people should be able to purchase a "cafeteria" type plan; I would love a plan that only covered hospitalization, ER visits, rehab, etc. I will gladly pay for routine visits, lab work, and prescriptions, as I am fully capable of shopping around and negotiating a fair and better price for services.

Re: Final path of I-69 to Indianapolis could be 3 years away

Steve de Kater — Mon, 03 Nov 2014 13:40:33 -0000

You might want to put some fresh batteries in your calculator. Your "math" is way off...not even close.

Re: How a Republican Congress would replace Obamacare

Steve de Kater — Tue, 04 Nov 2014 12:44:09 -0000

I don't agree with premiums being deductible; you are now getting into an issue of fairness. Two families of four paying $10K for insurance- the first taking the standard deduction would get no benefit; the second in the 25% bracket that itemizes would, in effect, be subsidized to the tune of $2500; this is where problems with tax fairness begin.

Re: This Is The Most Delicious Video You'll See All Day. - Chicks on the Right

Steve de Kater — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 14:00:55 -0000

I was as happy as anyone to see the results last night. However, it was just two years ago when the shoe was on the other foot. Conservatives and Republicans were absolutely convinced that Romney had the election won...do all of you gloating today remember that? Most of the polls were wrong, most of the experts were wrong, and I think many woke up the next morning thinking "What the heck happened?" Enjoy the victories, but the battle is far from over. You can't blame them for hoping against hope that they might pull off a miracle; just as conservatives believed they couldn't lose in 2012, Democrats believed that they could win last night. Deep down, they knew they were doomed, but they still had to hope.

Re: Voters give Obama no credit on economy

Steve de Kater — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 11:22:47 -0000

"The U.S. economy has added 4.6 million jobs since President Obama won re-election..." "...but voters....give him no credit..." Why should they? Doesn't it take roughly 200,000-250,000 new jobs EVERY MONTH just to keep pace with normal attrition? At that rate, the economy "creates" 5-6 million new jobs every two years on it's own.
Admittedly, Obama inherited a horrible economy, and things are greatly improved, but that is in spite of his leadership, not because of it. He and his supporters just don't realize it.

Re: Voters give Obama no credit on economy

Steve de Kater — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 12:18:28 -0000

We can disagree, but you do present a strong case.

Re: Overthrowing the rule of reason

Steve de Kater — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:16:53 -0000

Yes, Obamacare has helped millions; it has also hurt millions, and the number of uninsured (the main goal, was it not?) has not changed all that much. And it what way has it boosted business?
The unemployment rate is down, but the number of unemployed, and underemployed, is up. Compared to the date of Obama's election, my income is down considerably (having been laid off) and my wife was reduced from full time to part-time, while having her health care and 401K plans dropped. According to the Labor Dept. we are both counted as employees; our situations are certainly not as good, are we are far from alone. By the way, we are looking at premium increases of about 75% next year under the AFFORDABLE Care Act, with HIGHER deductibles and HIGHER co-pays than we are currently paying.
Gas under 3 bucks? True, but it was under 2 bucks when he took office. Keep these successes coming! This is the problem with Obama and, mainly, his supporters. They hear these numbers, blindly accept them, and if someone challenges them, come back with a brilliant response such as, "Oh, you must watch Fox; don't believe everything they say...they hate Obama."
Dan, you say you wouldn't bury Obama based on facts. If facts are your main criteria, you never would have voted for him.

Re: Overthrowing the rule of reason

Steve de Kater — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:26:20 -0000

Mass communication of disinformation? You're kidding, right? How about the lack of communication of information? Fast and Furious? Benghazi? The IRS? ("Not a smidgeon of corruption") The Bergdahl swap? This was supposed to be the most transparent administration ever...what happened to that?
Well, at least we got that incident in Cambridge straightened out! Actually, that's when I first realized that Obama was in way over his head. Up until that point, I was keeping an open mind about him. When he stuck his nose in that situation, I realized that he had no idea what being the president was all about.

Re: Overthrowing the rule of reason

Steve de Kater — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:29:46 -0000

There were even some reports that there may have been some Republican ads that might have been slightly misleading.

Re: Overthrowing the rule of reason

Steve de Kater — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 12:41:56 -0000

To the contrary, I am concerned mainly with fairness and equality. Your comment about mass communication of disinformation is certainly accurate, as was your statement about ignorance of what the government does and how it operates. Nothing frustrates me more than people on both sides who express opinions on a variety of issues, who really have no idea of what they are talking about. It's bad enough when my neighbor (figuratively speaking) does it; it is infuriating when it is an elected official.

Re: Group takes time zone debate to state educators

Steve de Kater — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 15:03:31 -0000

Please stop.

Re: Out Of The Wilderness

Steve de Kater — Fri, 07 Nov 2014 18:12:32 -0000

Actually, this sounded like an answer Obama would give at one of his rare press conferences. A lot of words, but didn't really say much. And what was with the "y'all", especially when talking about schools?