[SK in CV]

[quote=AN] I would hope the Dem have their chaos one day too. There are way too centrist on both side to allow the extreme of both party dictate the party platform. This whole, running to the left/right during the primary and run back to the middle for the general election is retarded to me.[/quote]

There are no policy extremes on the Dem side. The only real differences are the paths to getting there.

[SK in CV]

[quote=flyer]
Not at all. I’m saying that it doesn’t surprise me that, based upon the inequality of wealth in this country, perhaps the desperation of 90% of the population has led them to look for a political savior–which possibly explains the level of chaos and bs we are witnessing in the political arena on– both the right and the left.[/quote]

I was with you until the last few words. There is no chaos on the Dem side. There is the establishment candidate that was expected to have an uncontested run to the nomination. There is a challenger. That part wasn’t expected. But there is no chaos.

[SK in CV]

[quote=njtosd]Why doesn’t anyone look around for some info? Like here: http://www.wsj.com/articles/fact-checking-the-figures-on-anchor-babies-1441963800

The automatic citizenship seems to be a red herring – but the numbers are interesting, roughly 300,000 babies born to at least one undocumented immigrant each year. There are only 4 million babies (overall) born each year in the US – so it is a relevant discussion.[/quote]

I agree. It might be relevant. Except that the net migration from Mexico has been zero for the last 5 or 6 years. (Thanks Obama) So there may be a steady stream of babies born to at least 1 undocumented parent. But the number of new undocumented is remaining unchanged.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl]Again, SK, you’re being recalcitrant, here. I DO have longtime contacts in the medical field around here and have been around these folks all of my adult life. I NEVER STATED here that hospitals could close. I stated that SOME ( a few) of the local public SCHOOLS could close if all the “illegal” students and those “anchor baby” students who were current residents of MX suddenly stopped attending them every day. This would only happen if they were unable to cross the border every morning to do so. I don’t HEAR about anything. I SEE it, my kids have SEEN it and we have SEEN it all with our own eyes. In addition, I am a local criminal justice retiree. You can’t take that experience away from me. The difference between you and me is that you apparently lived in a “bubble” when you resided in SD and obviously didn’t realize these things were going on to the degree that they actually are. And that’s okay. There are a lot more of you out there so you aren’t alone :=0[/quote]

You don’t get it. I’m pretty sure you will never get it. Your personal experience is not data. It isn’t even a data point. You don’t know how things are, regardless of your experience. You have proven that over and over again on this board.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl] I’ve lived, breathed and worked in the situation I’m describing here for 30+ years.

[/quote]

That’s exactly my point. You know your experiences. You know what other people tell you. What you don’t know is actual facts. You have no idea what goes on outside of your little, tiny, miniscule world. You hear of 3 women crossing the border to have babies and think every woman is crossing the border to have babies. You hear about a few families that live in Mexico and send their kids to school in the US and think it’s happening thousands of times. Your experience is not the rest of the world. Your experience may not the slightest resemblance to the rest of the world. You have “opinions” about why hospitals might close. No actual facts. Every little brown kid isn’t out to steal your milk money. You, and Trump, are railing against the wrong boogeyman.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl]My point, SK is that many/most? older illegal immigrants initially housed in the US by younger family members were supported by US taxpayers.

It it was known by the family member(s) who brought them over to live with them that they wouldn’t have been eligible for any benefits as an “illegal immigrant” and would not be able to be treated at US hospitals, ask yourself if the older family member would have decided to come to live in the US under those circumstances.

In short, the US laws and lack of immigration enforcement made it easy for illegal immigrants to come over and take advantage of us.[/quote]

Just stop it. You have no f’ing way of knowing what this woman did or didn’t do. And Senator Graham didn’t assume he did either. She’s brown, you assume she must have done something horrible, because you know someone who knows someone who told a story about something. I don’t think sneaking across the border and having children, and raising them to be fine participating members of society is horrible. You apparently do. So you jump to every possible bad conclusion without actually knowing anything. Neither legal nor illegal immigration is ruining this country. Giant corporations that don’t pay a living wage are. Wall Street, that sucks more than a trillion dollars a year out of the economy while providing absolutely nothing, is. Every brown person isn’t stealing your milk money.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl][quote=FlyerInHi]Wow, Lindsey Graham was pretty scathing in his criticism of Trump.

[/quote]

I listened to the video, FIH. Among other inaccuracies, he states (in essence), “We cannot deport the grandmother of an American citizen who (may have) served in the military when they’ve done nothing but violate the immigration laws of this country …. and still retain the `Hispanic’ vote. Many `illegal aliens’ have been here a decade or more …”

Umm, the bolded portion of that statement (among others he made on the video) is highly inaccurate. That “illegal-alien grandparent” very likely did not have 40-quarters (or any quarters at all, for that matter) of bona-fide “work” in this country to qualify for OASDI (Social Security). Thus, many in this country illegally have successfully applied for and NOW RECEIVE Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments every month and could very well have been doing so for well over 20 years by now!

. . . UNDER WHAT CONDITIONS MAY A “QUALIFIED ALIEN” BE ELIGIBLE FOR SSI BENEFITS?

If you are in one of the seven “qualified alien” categories listed above, you may be eligible for SSI if you also meet one of the following conditions:

1. You were receiving SSI and lawfully residing in the U.S. on August 22, 1996. . .

see: https://www.ssa.gov/ssi/spotlights/spot-non-citizens.htm

Also, who has been paying the medical bills of this group who ostensibly lived with relatives (some in the US legally) over the years? Did those residing in SoCal go back to Tijuana for routine medical care? Where did they go if they had a medical emergency? The following article, dated December 2014, explains the recent “amnesty law” applicable to members of the group Graham is referring to who apparently are now eligible for Medicare and Social Security without ever working one day in this country or putting one red cent into the “system” (never had any FICA deductions due to either only working “under the table” or never working at all):

. . .In a speech to the nation on November 20, the president extended amnesty to approximately five million illegal aliens who have been in the country more than five years, and/or have children who are American citizens, pass a criminal background check, and pay their fair share of taxes, although it’s unclear how the latter would be calculated.

The Department of Homeland Security is already seeking to hire 1,000 new permanent employees in Virginia to process millions of amnesty applications from illegal immigrants, which will culminate in their receiving Social Security numbers and green card work permits. Obama’s amnesty would be unprecedented if, unlike most government programs, it actually stays within its original cost and scope parameters. . .

see: http://www.inquisitr.com/1658495/amnesty-illegal-immigrants-eligible-for-social-security-and-medicare/

The millions of dollars (billions?) in SSI, OASDI and Medicare benefits being paid to (undeserving) “illegal aliens” who are now “senior citizens” is not “nothing” as Graham indirectly alleges in the video. Of course, in his position, he must know better but is attempting to appeal to the emotions of the low-information voter.

The “Mexican grandparent” example made by Graham in the video is just the tip of the iceberg. There are other groups of senior-citizens and almost senior-citizens who came here legally in the last 40 years by the tens of thousands off the “sponsorship” of the military-member former spouse of their child. (The sponsor is now a “former spouse” because the American citizen military sponsor was often discarded AFTER the green card paperwork was successfully processed for 2, 4, 6 or even 8+ relatives of his foreign spouse (whom he “sponsored” for US citizenship with his SSN).

I know this from plenty of IRL experience and also the fact that Rep Bob Filner employed a clerk in his longtime office in South County SD for many years when he was our Rep in Congress. Her primary duty was to assist these (mostly Filipino) “constituents” with their applications for SSI and follow up on them until they began to receive payments. Many of these aging immigrants had been rendered homeless by the divorce of their child from the sponsor and/or foreclosure of the family home they were all residing in and had no means by which to support themselves.

So much for the the “sponsors” (including the newly-naturalized wives legally bringing over as many relatives as possible) being held to their sworn statement to the INS that they will support their parents in the US until they die (as a condition of bringing them here legally). Practically speaking, it seems that no sponsors are held to that promise, leaving US taxpayers to foot the bill for their support.

Many of the rules and regs of Homeland Security/INS need to be fixed and the loopholes closed up tight. They’re patently unfair to the US-citizen worker who has been making legitimate FICA contributions their entire lives and may never see a payback coming their way when they most need it due to the OASDI fund running out before they age into the program :=0[/quote]

JFC, did a brown person steal your milk money when you were 6? Graham was not inaccurate. The woman in question may have been a serial murderer, but Senator Graham would still not have been inaccurate.

[SK in CV]

[quote=La Jolla Renter]For the life of me, I can’t figure out why this does not bother the left even the slightest. She is 100% bought. Corporate America is not paying the Clinton’s a couple hundred million dollars because they give good speeches. It is hard to claim your a servant to the people from your $50k a week Hampton vacation rental. etc. etc. etc.

[/quote]

Your comment begs the question. But the left, nonetheless, is bothered by Clinton’s relationship with Wall St. And lest the two be confused, it is Wall St., not corporate America, that has the relationship with Clinton. Wall St is that giant machine that sucks a trillion dollars a year out of the economy, while providing absolutely no useful service. Bernie Sanders is proof that the left is bothered by that relationship.

[SK in CV]

[quote=moneymaker]Could Hilary pick Nancy Pelosi as a running mate?[/quote]

She could. She won’t. Pelosi is 75 years old. No upside. She adds absolutely nothing to the ticket.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl][quote=SK in CV][quote=bearishgurl]The only other reason for this phenomenon is big manufacturing plants moving to other countries, leaving the longtime “nativist” population (in some areas, there has been very little, if any, immigration over the years) chronically unemployed and stuck with homes that don’t have any resale value. We’ve seen this scenario play out repeatedly in the news along the recent “campaign trail” in rust-belt and other midwestern and southern states.

Those are the only cases where immigration has not played a part in American “nativists” losing their longtime jobs, IMO. Ironically, these coveted jobs (formerly occupied by US “nativists”) went to foreign workers in their own countries for the express purpose of “Big Manufacturing” being able to get away with paying them 1/10th (on avg) the hourly rate their American employees were getting (plus being able to eliminate benefits and pensions).[/quote]

Huh? What “phenomenon” are you talking about? The lack of data to support your silly claims? This isn’t the least bit responsive to what I said. If there is evidence to back up what you said, I’d love to see it. I’ve looked. There isn’t any. Stories on the news are not data.[/quote]Are you not understanding that a good portion of the US auto plants and steel plants have moved to MX or overseas and (presumably) two more Ohio steel plants will be closing at the end of this month? Have you been paying attention to the many towns on the news who have hosted rallies for the candidates and the TV cameras touring around the decimated, idle former factories with the former workers and union reps who were interviewed?

It’s been all over the airwaves for about two months now.

Maybe you’re not paying attention to the campaign trail? That’s okay, but don’t act surprised now because you may be unaware of any of this.

edit: I recently read somewhere that the avg auto worker working in for an auto mfr in MX receives $2.22 to $2.70 hr (in US dollars). I’ll try to find that piece again and post it on this thread.[/quote]

What I’m not understanding is why you’re talking about manufacturing jobs when my original comment was in response to your claim that “full employment of the “nativist sector” of the U.S. population has dropped significantly in the past 20 years due to massive immigration into the country.” And now you’re railing on about lost auto jobs to mexico. Are you blaming lost mfg jobs to mexico on H1B workers from India in the US?

[SK in CV]

[quote=enron_by_the_sea][quote=poorgradstudent]

Julian Castro and Tim Kaine seem like reasonable picks.[/quote]

I think it will be Sen. Sherrod Brown. He will help with Bernie’s voters and it doesn’t hurt that he is from Ohio![/quote]

That would be a great choice. I’d hate to lose him in the Senate.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl

It’s that simple. If you could put yourself in our shoes for even one moment, SK, you would think twice about signing up for “obamacare” in CA. I’m glad to hear that you found an acceptable off-exchange healthplan to purchase in your state. I am in hopes that at least one off-exchange carrier will offer at least ONE silver (or greater) PPO plan for 2017 in SD County this fall. We’ll see what happens.

And yes, this discussion is ALL RELEVANT to this thread![/quote]

No. It’s not relevant to the discussion about socialism. If it was, you could explain why it is relevant. You cant. I have had insurance purchased on healthcare.gov. it worked great. Most of your arguments make no sense. There is no requirement to supply any income information. If someone doesn’t want medi-cal, they don’t have to have it. Nobody has to purchase insurance on the exchange. If there are insufficient choices, it’s not the fault of the law. It’s the fault of the insurance companies. They design the plans. None of them had to change any of their plans until next year. They chose to.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl][quote=SK in CV][quote=bearishgurl]
In short, the large “Trump Village” complex appears in the photos to be well-built, well-located and well-landscaped and far from ever being considered a “slum.”[/quote]

Do you think one photograph today of a trump building, built decades ago, is proof that he wasn’t a slum-lord? Fred Trump was a racist slum-lord. This idea isn’t a current invention. Woody Guthrie wrote about it more than 60 years ago.[/quote]sk, I’ve seen “tenement slums” in my life …. many times. I’ve seen them in Denver (they were starting to clear them out due to an “urban renewal” plan adopted by the city in the mid-late ’70’s) and I’ve seen them in Oakland … blocks and blocks of them … now razed (some due to BART track being laid). I understand “slum.” “Trump Village” most certainly is not one. If it was, it would have been razed decades ago as that land is too close-in and valuable to waste on “slums.”

And, except for a former infamous Navy Housing complex with metal trash cans and their lids chained to the sidewalk in Paradise Hills (now completely rebuilt), SD never had any “slums.” Not in Barrio Logan, not in Shelltown, not in Grant Hill, not even in Encanto or Lomita Village … or anywhere, for that matter. As a SD “native,” you are well aware of this, SK, and I’m sure you must know what a “slum” is … and isn’t.

Of course, I didn’t know Fred Trump and neither did you. I was thinking of ordering a kindle version of one of the (several) Trump family biographies currently available on Amazon. I’d be interested in learning more about the early years, when Trump and his siblings were kids.[/quote]

I’m not sure what you’re responding to here. I said Fred Trump was a racist slum-Lord. Evidence that one of his buildings wasn’t a tenement doesn’t disprove my argument.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl]The only other reason for this phenomenon is big manufacturing plants moving to other countries, leaving the longtime “nativist” population (in some areas, there has been very little, if any, immigration over the years) chronically unemployed and stuck with homes that don’t have any resale value. We’ve seen this scenario play out repeatedly in the news along the recent “campaign trail” in rust-belt and other midwestern and southern states.

Those are the only cases where immigration has not played a part in American “nativists” losing their longtime jobs, IMO. Ironically, these coveted jobs (formerly occupied by US “nativists”) went to foreign workers in their own countries for the express purpose of “Big Manufacturing” being able to get away with paying them 1/10th (on avg) the hourly rate their American employees were getting (plus being able to eliminate benefits and pensions).[/quote]

Huh? What “phenomenon” are you talking about? The lack of data to support your silly claims? This isn’t the least bit responsive to what I said. If there is evidence to back up what you said, I’d love to see it. I’ve looked. There isn’t any. Stories on the news are not data.

[SK in CV]

[quote=bearishgurl]
In short, the large “Trump Village” complex appears in the photos to be well-built, well-located and well-landscaped and far from ever being considered a “slum.”[/quote]

Do you think one photograph today of a trump building, built decades ago, is proof that he wasn’t a slum-lord? Fred Trump was a racist slum-lord. This idea isn’t a current invention. Woody Guthrie wrote about it more than 60 years ago.

[Author]

Posts