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 Author Thread: Minimum Wage
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 346 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 1/9/2009 10:39:18 PM

No has to better themselves if they do not want to that is your opinion and only yours that people shoudl do that not the general publics. Poor people do not have the oppurtunities or the choices to make there situation beter. Saying anyone with drive can succed tells me you are stuck in your own narrow minded views and are not paying attention to the real world.


Listen... I've read some things from you that make me believe you are a good person... but... this... is hands down, the stupidest thing I have seen from you to date.

Are you honestly going to tell everyone, that you don't think people - regardless of their economic status - have the ability to make positive choices in their lives? That for the vast majority of these people, it's a go-nowhere situation for them, 100 percent of the time?

That my misguided friend, is the kind of BS garbage I'm talking about... that, right there.

The 'real world'?

You know what my dad always told me... and his dad told him before that? Life isn't fair.

My dad said that his father was one of the only people in his life that didn't try to screw him and he was an honest man.

I told my father that I agree... life isn't fair, but we can do the best we can to make it a better place for each other, but first, we have to make it better for ourselves.

If you can't see the truth in that statement, than you will never have true self-worth or true success and I don't just mean materially. This country was made on the backs and the brows of men like my father and my grandfather and they were never handed anything. The American spirit is something greater than a days pay or a chicken in every pot... its in the nobility of purpose.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 339 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 1/7/2009 11:46:37 AM

The both of you repeat, practically word for word, the BS Garbage of conservative talk radio. You do nothing more than parrot the likes of Rush and crew. Hard hitting thoughtful insights? That's laughable, nothing thoughtful about repeating what someone else has told you what to think. They can teach horses to add, too.


Sure, I listen to talk radio, but talk radio isn't just conservative. If you think that I agree with everything that every talk radio host says, you're a bigger douche bag than I first pegged you for. We have MPR here... I live in Minnesota... we have something called the DFL... it all balances out. You can either listen to one side whining about something or the other side whining about something. The end.

Hank, you come from a place of emotion. You go on and on about what is 'fair' and that's not even a ration basis for any argument. You talk about how your family are a bunch of ***holes and that's how you know how rich people are... You getting the picture yet Hank? Normally, this kind of argument wouldn't be made stronger by appealing to the man, but you invite it and it seems to have some impact on how you present your information and where your ideas come from.

artinjersey is just some guy on the internet, but he makes some good points and he backs them up with some semblance of knowledge. It's rational to understand that certain forces exist in direct proportion to other forces (market forces). It is rational to understand that certain needs will always be met as long as a system is in place to facilitate that. It is rational to understand that certain people will always be less able to deal with stress and challenges than certain other people. It is rational to get behind the concept of 'cause and effect'. It is rational to believe that if you show a person that there is worth in their labor and education (both self taught and institutional), that they will be more likely to attain and achieve than not. It is rational to want to protect your interests. It is rational to want people to be responsible and if you have responsible citizens, you are much, much more likely to have a responsible government.

Every system that has set about to create that most holiest of holies (fairness), has come crashing down around them... every time. The best you can do, is create a system that fosters near unlimited freedom, with a few caveats. That way, you can succeed beyond your wildest ambitions... or... you can fail beyond your wildest fears.

There's really nothing more to be said about that, because going any further than that, simply leads one down an infinite circle-jerk.

You also did not really refute anything I said with anything of value, you just reversed what I said, which generally means you come from a place of weakness.

BTW: I don't listen to Rush, I'm more of a Glen Beck guy...



There is more that causes raises in cost of living in an area then miminum wage. The minimum wage has been around the same for a while and yet cost of living has gone up so it has to be something else causing high cost of living.


Of course there's more to it than just minimum wage, I never explicitly stated otherwise, I was merely trying to point something out. The minimum wage has not been the same for awhile, as many States mandate their own minimum wage and that supersedes the federal wage when it's higher (and it always is, otherwise why would they have it).

There are a number of factors that determine cost of living, not the least of which is government interference. Others include the cost of attaining or supplying goods and services to a particular geographic area, the tax and fee burden in a particular jurisdiction, and of course, the median income plays a factor as well. Then there's the state of the money system, which is manipulated by some very stupid and highly educated people.

Real world example:

I work for a company that employs around 45-50 people. I know, more-or-less, what they bring in and what they pay out. This company generally pays more than their competitors to their employees. If they were to say... pay everyone 18 dollars an hour, and I mean everyone, they would half to fire about a third of their workforce, because they would not have the money to do it. That's even if they paid the people making more than that on salary. Why does that matter? This is your average run-of-the-mill business in America, that's why.

There is much too much emotional hullabaloo going on in this thread and unfortunately, politics generally becomes and/or plays to the least common denominator.

I just want to point out that fairness is antithetical to freedom in its purest form. Fairness is like saying we don't like that you have more, so lets change that.... in practice, that is no different than saying, 'MINE, GIMEE!" when you were a kid. You didn't earn it, you didn't achieve it through some kind of sacrifice directly proportional to your expectation... in essence, the quest for fairness creates an unfair environment by default.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 331 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 1/6/2009 11:26:51 PM
@artinjersey - I'm not going to say that I agree with everything you have said (only because I don't think I've read all your posts yet), but you obviously come from a place of knowledge. Most of what I have been reading in this forum is all emotional parroting of BS garbage that never bears useful fruit, but you give hard hitting thoughtful insights into this subject.

One thing I might add; whenever you increase the minimum wage, you have a correlating increase in cost of living in a given area. There have been numerous books written about this phenomenon... and it tends to render the increase moot.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 13 (view)
 
First meeting someone from Online
Posted: 1/3/2009 3:30:56 AM
I personally feel like I have nothing to offer anyone and that's what hold me back.

That doesn't sound like your issue.... I'm not sure how a person can be outgoing in person, but not over the internets or phone.

I've personally always been an anti-messenger and anti-phone kind of guy. Phone conversations to me, are like painful dry dumps that cause rectal tearing and lots of soft whimpers.

I just power through it (all -2 times).

Who am I kidding, I never contact anyone and when contacted usually blow it.

PS - I check out your profile, you seem to be just fine and not only that but you put 'a few extra pounds'... listen... I'm no expert, but I don't know where those extra pounds are. I guess if you consider that a few extra pounds, I should change my profile to 'big fat guy with fat parts'... actually, I wish they had that category in the drop down menu... I would totally use it.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 39 (view)
 
How do you feel about Congress voting itself a raise?
Posted: 12/27/2008 11:47:05 PM

I have no problem for Congress voting the next Congress a raise (ie: the 110th Congress voting a raise that starts in the 111th Congress). But to go along with this there should be term limits for members of Congress.


Well, that would be a little difficult to accomplish, as each house would have to vote that through.

Did you know that the Senate used to represent the States themselves (as sovereign powers) and not directly the people? They changed that, so now, the legislative doesn't really work like it suppose to. The House was suppose to directly represent the populations of each State. The knife goes deeper, lest it slip from shaky fingers.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 43 (view)
 
Does Our Choice of Pet Reflect Who We Date?
Posted: 12/27/2008 7:02:02 PM
They are just pets. I don't think what kind of dog, cat, or fish you have, generally determines other aspects of your life. But, I'm your classic 'easy-goer' and most of my pets have been stray/sick when we found each other.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 34 (view)
 
Overweight guys
Posted: 12/25/2008 10:21:30 PM
Wow.... and they rise from the thread dead.

It's a Christmas miracle!

Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to see just how much Christmas fudge one person can eat before going into some kind of shock.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 484 (view)
 
Can women really go without sex????
Posted: 12/24/2008 12:57:20 AM

hell no. Fuck that noise.


Best ever.

^^^ No, you just do what I did, you go back and edit it, because the parser is dumb like that.

 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 50 (view)
 
Do I lie?
Posted: 12/24/2008 12:52:04 AM
I agree with gary busey, err I mean pair o docs.

Basically, you have parents that don't know what love really is. You have parents that are ignorant of what being a human being is really all about. This is unfortunate, but it's their loss on a number of levels. The only problems is... in some ways, you and your child lose too. However, honesty is really the best way to go and should always be the best course of action in just about any situation.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 28 (view)
 
How do you feel about Congress voting itself a raise?
Posted: 12/23/2008 11:14:24 PM
^^^ Yes, I really did and it wouldn't surprise me if they wasted money on watching a concerned citizen. Just one more slap in the face from our habitually elected aristocracy. What's really interesting is that people used to write letters condemning this or that all the time and now apparently you are the next uni bomber if you do it today.

What a great age.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 26 (view)
 
How do you feel about Congress voting itself a raise?
Posted: 12/23/2008 12:56:45 AM
I just sent this to my Congressmen:

"I oppose giving Congress a pay raise this year because you are already
paid at a generous level above what an overwhelming majority of the people
make currently. You simply don't deserve it based on the fact you exist
in your place in government. A warm body serves no purpose, if it can't
even function in a healthy manner. You and just about everyone else in
Congress are an abject failure. Not only that, but the People continue to
vote your failures gravitas. I don't understand... I don't get it. It's
like you people don't have a soul or a sense of virtue. Why have you all
forsaken your duty? Limited and responsible government. Faith in the
People and faith in the Constitution. It seems to me that the majority of
those in Congress simply don't understand what it means to be a public
servant. You are suppose to represent the best of us and yet you shame us
all.

Your pathetic attempts at 'responsible legislation' are a mockery of
Constitutional Government.

Damn you and damn us for allowing this to happen. Damn your alliances and
damn your politics."

I'm sick of this shit and my voice and the voice of those who share my sentiments are only going to get louder.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 22 (view)
 
Does writing first actually lower your value to the opposite sex?
Posted: 12/22/2008 12:12:32 AM
Man, I don't know.

I prefer to think of myself as a failure instead of a loser... failures are temporary and losers are for life. I like to aim high.

I'm curious... are you just suppose to stare at each others thumbnail in the 'viewed me' section and play chicken?

Communication is overrated anyway, it just leads to happiness and who really wants that garbage anyway...

Also, what value do we have as it is? I mean, I would be curious what mine is, so if there's a website I could go to or something...and you know... check it out.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 45 (view)
 
He still gets a Christmas tree for the kids
Posted: 12/21/2008 11:45:43 PM
Hmmmm.... watch his own kids (which he obviously wants to spend time with and cares about).... or go to Christmas party with a bunch of strangers... Yeah.... I think he made the right choice.

As to the tree thing... he's doing it for his kids, not their mother.

I'm not saying you are an inconsiderate or unfeeling person... but, you need to reevaluate your situation.

I don't have kids (or any possibility of having any in the foreseeable future), but if I did, I would like to think I could be that kind of dad.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 27 (view)
 
He can't understand why I won't take him back
Posted: 12/21/2008 11:33:28 PM

And people wonder why I'm terrified of dating.......................


Genital herpes?
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 62 (view)
 
Should there be a cutoff age for playing video games?
Posted: 12/21/2008 12:14:02 PM
@geekybroad - People are not here on this planet to do things that matter to you. You are not the metric on which worth or time well spent is based on. What you think is simply what you think. If you can't understand that people go through large swaths of their existence being boring to many or even most people, and do things that are innocuous, that's your issue. If I cataloged your day-to-day activities, I'm sure I would find some of them to be boring and tedious. You say I missed the point, but I didn't. The point is, you feel superior and you want to project that superiority onto others and show just how inferior their lives are compared to what you believe is better for them. You might not look at it like that, but I can assure you, from my place at the table, that's exactly what it smells like to me.

I agree that gaming can be taken too far, but that's my opinion, not some hard fact. Honestly, if someone wants to sit in an internet cafe and play wow until they slump dead in their chair, that is unfortunate, but it is their choice. People don't have to publish papers on new ways to apply the laws of thermodynamics, or build a business empire in order to live their lives fulfilled.

You can't find a person out there that isn't boring sometimes, maybe even most of the time. Give and take has nothing to do with that. If you can tell me that most of your life consists of relatively boring activities and innocuous dribs and drabs, you are lying to yourself, or you are delusional. Take your pick, either way, you won't be much help to yourself or anyone else.

The fact you seem to ascribe so much worth to blind achievement and not simply living life as you see fit, is pretty telling.

Myself personally, I'm mostly boring, but I have my fits of 'genius'. That should be enough for any sane soul. If these were the times of Revolution, I might even be Franklin's cane holder, or if this were 1909, maybe I would have been Einstein's inkwell refiller. Who knows... It really doesn't matter, as people gravitate toward what interests them and that's something you can't control.

Just live your life with all peaks and no valleys(hell, not even any plateaus) and let the plebs alone.

PS- Gaming is a learned skill, some people are very much better at it than others. It, like many other things we do as human beings, develops muscle memory and can change the way our brain reacts to stimuli. They've even had studies that show doctors who play games on a regular basis, do better in surgery as a result. I don't feel the need to justify, I just thought that was interesting myself, and seeing how I'm generally so uninteresting, I figure I would spice up my rambling bullshit.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 170 (view)
 
I called my girlfriend a PIG by mistake... What do I do now?
Posted: 12/20/2008 9:12:14 PM

Msg 15 has my vote......


I agree with Gary Busey.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 20 (view)
 
How do you feel about Congress voting itself a raise?
Posted: 12/20/2008 4:58:43 PM
$169,300 is what each member of Congress makes per year. There are certain positions that make slightly more, like leader positions ect...

The members of the House can participate in a car lease program which allows them to lease any car they wish and it pays for the lease, all the fees involved in maintaining the car, the registration/tabs, and the gas. Many do participate in this program.

They get to be part of the lucrative federal government pension plan if in 'public service' for 20 years or more. This of course, fosters a desire to maintain those positions for long-term security purposes and not for the betterment of our country.

"Membership has its rewards. That holds true in Congress, even as new ethics rules are being applied in the wake of last year's lobbying scandals. Free meals and gifts from lobbyists will be curbed, and there'll be spotlight on the controversial practice of earmarking funds for pet projects popular back home. Lobbyists will also be required to disclose more information on who they make political contributions to and who their clients are. But that's where reforms will likely end.

A host of special perks will remain available to lawmakers, and there's little to no talk of trimming them back -- much to the ire of watchdog groups that claim the benefits prevent lawmakers from understanding the trials and struggles of ordinary citizens and small business owners.

A base lawmakers' salary, for instance, is now $165,200 (a little higher for House and Senate leaders). There is a cheap but excellent federal health care plan and life insurance. Plus free outpatient care from military hospitals. There is an inflation-adjusted pension plan that's almost three times as generous as the typical private sector pension, and there's a special thrift-savings accounts, a kind of 401(k) plan, that comes a one-to-one match up to 5% of a member's salary.
2
On top of that, they're given a sizable budget of $2 million to $4 million a year for office administration and staff expenses. There is a furniture expense account, subsidized mass mailings to constituents (known as the franking privilege) and free income tax-return preparation assistance. In addition to all that, members also receive a special tax deduction for maintaining a second residence, and yet more, there are the numerous foreign trips (spouses included) often to exotic places hosted by nonprofit groups. House members, but not senators, can also keep frequent flier miles they rack up on official travel and use them for personal trips later.

What's more, members have exclusive use of the Congressional Research Service to do their legwork. There is free use of broadcast taping studios, free reserved parking at the office and at Washington-area airports and a free member-only gym and pool, expedited passport services and of course the well-appointed and subsidized members' dining rooms. " -Kiplinger.com

Not only that, but there are things you can't really quantify, like special considerations and bribes.

Also, their salary is the basis for other federal employee salary rates, this causes a pressure to raise their rate of pay, so that other federal positions can get their.... fair share.

This whole business of politics is an abomination and anyone that says they deserve a cost of living increase is living in some kind of candy land I don't want to be a part of.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 3 (view)
 
He can't understand why I won't take him back
Posted: 12/20/2008 2:20:30 PM
Hmm, first off, I'm not really sure why someone would be voting for this thread to get deleted, as you are asking an honest question. So, whomever elected to start that bs, should go to hell and die. (Too harsh for you. I don't care)

On to your question; my personal feelings are that you should not be involved with this person. In fact, you should communicate with him only once more, whether that be through email, phone, whatever... tell him you are not interested. You no doubt can find someone whom will be interested in you, more than just as a sideline girl. When you pick potential guys to go out with, try looking for more than the physical and try and find someone who has a genuine soul (I know it's not easy). You will be better off and he might be too, because he might see that he needs to change his behaviors, because we as human beings need to have values and be virtuous.... not just opportunistic.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 26 (view)
 
Who's Lying or Not and How do you Personally try to figure it Out???
Posted: 12/20/2008 1:43:53 AM
Okay, see all this 'advice' you are getting from people... screw that noise. See, what you do is punch them in the face, for you see, punching people in the face equals truth. I know, I know, you're saying to yourself, 'but giggleparts (if that is in fact your real fake name), that's just crazy street hobo talk.

Shut-up.

Not only is what I've laid out for you the most truth that any human has ever been exposed to, but it actually works.

Also, everyone is real. It's just that some people are real fake.

If you follow my plan of striking suspect people in the face, you avoid embarrassing yourself with such social pleasantries as, 'getting to know them' with 'probing sets of tedious questions'.

I'm currently thinking about possibly writing down the possibility of typing a thesis on this subject. But, actually accomplishing things is just the lazy person's way of trying to justify their social inadequacies.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 12 (view)
 
What does it mean when she says....
Posted: 12/20/2008 1:27:06 AM

come on over to my place and butter my pancakes and dip your banana in her batter, then you know.


...... Father?.....
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 18 (view)
 
CSI now minus William Petersen, too
Posted: 12/20/2008 1:25:33 AM
God... why won't that show and all of its retched spawn die? I mean, what does it take to slay such a beast, that sprouts so many heads? The hydra would weep, as I have for my sanity.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 12 (view)
 
How do you feel about Congress voting itself a raise?
Posted: 12/20/2008 1:22:31 AM
"To bring the matter nearer home, have we not seen the greatest and most important of our offices, that of general of our armies, executed for eight years together, without the smallest salary, by the patriot whom I will not now offend by any other praise; and this, through fatigues and distresses, in common with the other brave men, his military friends and companions, and the constant anxieties peculiar to his station? And shall we doubt finding three or four men in all the United States, with public spirit enough to bear sitting in peaceful council, for perhaps an equal term, merely to preside over our civil concerns, and see that our laws are duly executed? Sir, I have a better opinion of our country. I think we shall never be without a sufficient number of wise and good men to undertake, and execute well and faithfully, the office in question." - Benjamin Franklin addressing Congress and talking specifically about George Washington.

Franklin then concluded his remarks by emphasizing that his plea for giving modest salaries to those filling public office was not motivated by a parsimonious passion for saving taxes, by simply to avoid the evils that go with high salaries. he said:
"Sir, the saving of the salaries, that may at first be proposed, is not an object with me. The subsequent mischiefs of proposing them are what I apprehend. And therefore it is that I move the amendment. If it is not seconded or accepted, I must be contented with the satisfaction of having delivered my opinion frankly, and done my duty."

This is just some ( and when I say some, I mean... very little) of what they had to say about remuneration for public service.

These people, by-and-large, are not in the positions they inhabit because they have virtue or a sense of public service... they are there for power and for money... or the chance to obtain more of either in the future.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 27 (view)
 
Emailing too much? Too quickly?
Posted: 12/20/2008 1:07:47 AM

As long as you gave it 24 hours or 48 hours its not creepy. But it sounds like you did it within the same day so yea just a little bit


Even though this is pure opinion, this person is incorrect.

Do we really need to be worrying about this shit? I mean, with everything there is to worry about in life, can't this just be a skip? If we could somehow work that out in concert as a people, that would be great.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 142 (view)
 
When they say Self Employed what does it really mean
Posted: 12/20/2008 12:57:47 AM
This is yet another (and an old thread) thread about how people are liars by default.

Yeah... you know what? Self-employed means what it means.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 11 (view)
 
Will Men Be Your Friend if They See You as Competition?
Posted: 12/20/2008 12:45:14 AM
I have no idea what you people are talking about. Why would I look at my friends as competition? Should they be? Would they be? If I'm meant to be with someone, does it matter?

Wow.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 28 (view)
 
Do you get offended when someone says Merry Christmas?
Posted: 12/18/2008 2:19:11 AM
Offended... yeah... you know, we really need to get off the 'offended kick' that everyone seems to be riding high on since the early Clinton administration. I'm not religious, but I say Merry Christmas. It doesn't matter to me that Christians took a pagan holiday and turned it into Christmas.... that's they way it works in life.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 59 (view)
 
Barbie gets sexed! Is She Going to Hell? Are we?
Posted: 12/13/2008 8:28:43 PM
I always thought it was immeasurably more disturbing that the Barbie dolls didn't have any identifiable genitalia. I mean, even if they don't, you still put them in awkward sexual positions... right?... I mean.... that's not just me, right?

oops.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 51 (view)
 
Would You Prefer to See Someone on Webcam Before Meeting?
Posted: 12/13/2008 4:27:10 PM
I think that it's unnecessary. That isn't to say you can't, but I don't really care. I didn't even have a web cam until recently. Personally, I would and have met someone without even a picture in their profile. The only reason I even got one was so I could talk about inane garbage and upload it to the net.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 294 (view)
 
He brought his Fanny with him...
Posted: 12/13/2008 4:21:26 PM
It's a means to carry things around. I don't see the problem. People who have to carry around shots in case they come in contact with things that cause violent reactions often times use them. If it bugged you so much, than yes... you can choose to not be with someone for whatever reason you want, obviously. I personally wouldn't break it off just because of that, though.

It is superficial, but again, it's your choice.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 55 (view)
 
Should there be a cutoff age for playing video games?
Posted: 12/13/2008 3:27:30 AM

I wouldn't go so far as to say that adults shouldn't play. But if you're doing it every day, long-term, it's a waste of a life, and frankly, that's not a turn-on.


I understand you have your own opinion, but this line sums things up on your end pretty well. Personally, I find it interesting that you would be willing to quantify another persons life worth.

I play quite a bit and I live like an adult. I have adult responsibilities and I take care of them. I also don't have children I can't support with multiple mothers, and I don't go to bars (or substitute bar with coffee house where guys with Mac Books sit around and write blogs about how awesome their new goatee is, until a neo goth chick starts coming on to him because he looks trendy and drinks his triple piece of shit mocha with his little finger up or some crap) to scam on women so I can feel like a big strong man. Being an adult can mean many things, but responsibility is perhaps the backbone of the experience.

Your assertion that a person should be a certain kind of 'interesting' is pointless. What is interesting to one, can be dull to another. Just because a person doesn't fit into a mold that society at large seems to want to cram you into, doesn't mean you don't have worth.

Who just has one hobby? Do you know people that just do one thing and one thing only, to the exclusion of all others? I know a lot of video game players(including wow players and they are some of the worst) and even they don't fit that category.

I'll tell you a little secret that few will admit to or even recognize, most people are boring and lead innocuous lives. And you know what? There's nothing wrong with that.

People generally don't play games to run away from anything, I mean that would be like saying anything a person does is running away. Oh, that guy spends hours carving wood, he must be running away from some life responsibility. Ah, that one spends time reading and writing poetry, I guess he's a douche who can't figure out his adult responsibilities. She likes to spend way too much time knitting and racing muscle cars, she obviously has issues.

This kind of bs is a big part of why people are alone, or they move from one relationship to another like a befuddled transient.

 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 302 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 12/12/2008 7:31:34 PM
@ lizbeth2: Stop saying 'stay in the present'... You don't get what I'm alluding to(or you simply don't care)... the past dictates the future. This has been proven time and time again. You use the term liberal and yet don't realize you are **stardizing the term. The founding fathers of the United States were liberals... classic liberals. The term has been bent and broken to fit conceptual molds of today, that have no connection with what was or is. I don't care if you are a 'bleeding heart liberal' Don't you see it doesn't matter? I personally don't fit into any of the main groups, because I don't think like the main groups. You know, if there was any party (and I dislike the party system) that most identified with the original intent of the forming of this country, it would be the Libertarian party. Hate to break some hearts with that, but it's true.

I think that the 'bailouts' are completely retarded and to reuse a word, antithetical to the concept of free and just society, let alone responsible government.

As to your comment on taxes... I'm always prepared for the government to think it's a good idea to tax people and businesses more... it's sort of expected with the way things are run. The two party system we have here in America (and it's not much different in your country or the UK), is strangling us to death. Government is a mob out of control.

On either side you have fascism.

As to your autoworker comment... I think you answered your own question.... just how many jobs could they get, making what they make working a line? I think the silence answers that quite nicely. As to the cab drivers... you can't substantiate that claim... it would be absurd to even think that possible... I mean, even half... even a 1/3... highly unlikely. There is always something else to be said about that, if it were true (which I doubt); they could always stay where they came from and try to make their part of the world better.... but... yeah. (and yes, I know that's easy for me to say, blah, blah, blah.)

I know your heart is in the right place, but you can't solve anything by making someone do something they don't want to do... that's tyranny.

And yes, I can be very arrogant at times... it's both a character flaw and at times a source of strength.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 49 (view)
 
Should there be a cutoff age for playing video games?
Posted: 12/11/2008 11:04:32 PM
Video games are no different than any other form of entertainment throughout the ages: Chess, checkers, cards, bones, dice, parcheesi... ect. People want to be entertained... even in the most down times and harsh times... entertainment is important to the human condition.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 300 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 12/10/2008 2:08:40 PM

BTW giggleparts....weren't the stable muckers and scullary maids made up of mostly slaves?.....try to stay in the present....


No.

Long answer: This was in regard to talking about society through the ages... stop trying to look witty. Besides that kind of thinking is pointless... how are you going to understand the present, if you don't examine the past? That kind of thinking is antithetical to an ability to argue your case or cause.

And no they weren't slaves per se, they were generally people who didn't have a skill, or didn't have a way to obtain training for one. There were slaves of course, but that wasn't always the case. Technically, if you were a subject of someone, you were doing what you do, at their pleasure. This hasn't changed much even in modern times, whether you realize it or not. Freedom can be considered an illusion, but I choose to look at it as a reality. Some people are slaves to their sloth, vanity, greed, or whathaveyou. Freedom is just like anything else, too much of it can be a bad thing. That might seem an odd statement to make, but if you review the history of man, it makes all the sense that anything can make in this world.


I am astonished that your view is so narrow minded about the reasons a person might be forced into working for minimum wage.
Perhaps you have not taken into consideration the recently divorced mother who needs a job, or a newly landed immigrant who's PHD is not recognized in the US or Canada. Maybe you haven't considered the reason a person would work for the pittance of minimum wage does so out of neccessity for the health benefits because of a sick child or spouse?


My view isn't narrow, it's realistic. Your small list of exceptions not withstanding, what I said was accurate. How many people do you think fall into the category of people from other countries with a 'phd' whom can't get a job in their field, or at least something that's not minimum wage? How many.... really? Also, you cite recently divorced mothers (what about fathers?) as part of this group... Did I not say people who make poor or bad decisions with their lives? That seems like they make a decision that didn't work out for them. Is it everyone's fault that some people don't choose to make themselves marketable?

Plus, how many minimum wage jobs offer health benefits? Even if they did, you would be paying a lot of your wage for them, making it moot; specifically if you are a single parent.

I wish everyone could make enough money to live, but that isn't our problem.

Government, much like the criminal element of society, thrives off of the compassion of its people.

This kind of bs is just a stepping stone to more and more. I think we would all be better off if we limited abuse of people in general, in any number of arenas, but I also think that these types of initiatives generally lead down ever slipperier and more winding roads. The same roads that render the very compassion that allowed them, moot.

Laws can hurt as much as they help... that is something so many people seem to forget in their clamoring to be compassionate. Reason can be the helping hand of the devil (and no, I'm not religious).
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 622 (view)
 
Why do Babes dig ugly guys?
Posted: 12/9/2008 12:36:24 PM

When did anyone think we like ugly fat chumps...?

oddness


Holy shit... I hope you meant that sarcastically. Otherwise... fail.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 36 (view)
 
How do I not lose a girl in a bar?
Posted: 12/8/2008 1:02:07 AM
My best advice is to stay away from bars... they are dens of vile BS and are the meccas of communists and delinquent school teachers.

Beware.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 296 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 12/6/2008 11:25:05 AM

Tell that to the thousands fo adults who are working these kinds of jobs because they have to. Society needs to stop looking down at the people whose jobs are seen as crappy jobs and see that the people who work them are contributing to society and have great worth because of this.


This has nothing to do with their worth as a person, it has to do with what their job is worth. There is a distinction. I don't look down on anyone in a sense of personal worth. Just because an adult has to work as a clerk in a gas station, doesn't mean we have to feel compelled as a society to pay them 25 dollars an hour. (I have a very, very good friend who works as a clerk at a gas station and I do believe he is worth more as a human being. But, those kinds of jobs don't pay what he's worth... it's just how it is. And no matter how much I love him (and I do), if I'm being honest, he just doesn't want to step outside of his comfort zone to do more with his life at the present time. He is a very talented artist and can do things that neither myself, nor most people can do.)

This isn't a new concept. What do you think a blacksmith made, in comparison to a stable mucker? Or how about a silversmith, in comparison to the guy who picked up horse dung on the cobblestone streets? Or how about a cooper or city watchman, in comparison to a kitchen scullery maid?

Do you think unions are a new idea? They aren't... guilds were very much the unions of their time. If you wanted to have a building constructed, you had to go through the masonry guild and they could charge whatever they saw fit and the market would pay(they used secrets arts and sciences, and bullying tactics).

If you weren't any good in any of the number of trades that existed and could thereby apprentice and you weren't a farmer of some kind... you were a stable muck.... not a stableman... a stable muck... there's a difference.

Is there a quantifiable difference between a person who can do something that others can't and someone who is doing something anyone pretty much can? Yes, there is. I understand this confounds and angers you, but that's really not going to change anything. As a person, in terms of human worth, in that I mean worth that you can't quantify, they are equal and are both human beings.

Who the hell are you or me to say what society should do? Society has been society for a lot longer than you or I have been darknight1984 and giggleparts. Society and the people in it have done quite well for themselves as it is throughout the ages.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 17 (view)
 
How do I not lose a girl in a bar?
Posted: 12/6/2008 12:49:45 AM
Listen pal, pardon my flowery prose, but it's a f@cking bar.

Get it yet?

This is why you don't go to bars to find someone...
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 292 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 12/4/2008 10:39:30 AM
@Annonimiss - I was under the impression that Canada has a form of socialized health care , and that you could walk right in if you needed care without paying (most of the time, if not every time), or paying very, very little. I mean, I've seen multiple articles and documentaries on this subject and every time, you see Canadians patting themselves on the back and talking down about their American cousins.

Also, to be honest, minimum wage positions are generally not for working adults, they are for the most base and unskilled of labor, which is generally teenagers or those below say... 25 years of age. If you are still making minimum wage when you are in your late twenties to older, you have some issues bigger than simply making minimum wage.

Most adults that are working at Subway(or any other job of that stripe) are either there because it's not their primary source of income(see second job), they are retired and trying to make some extra money, are going to school for some kind of training and need to make ends meet, or have made some really bad choices in their life and are now paying for them. That's just the way it is.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 288 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 12/1/2008 12:45:15 PM

Always a pleasure to watch a bunch of Christians talk about not helping the poor, even the poor who are doing their best to make ends meet through work. Seriously, look through the profiles and be amazed at the professed religions of these screw the poor types.


How do you know that they are doing their best? Really... I'd like to know how you know.

One of the greatest lies that was ever thrust upon this world, is that great old line, 'they did their best'. Did they?

And even if they did... so what?

The world does not feed those who simply do their best... if feeds those who do better than the next thing trying to eat something. Of course, we are human beings, and as such, supposedly the most advanced animals on the planet... but, we're still animals.

The entire fabric of our existence revolves around certain attitudes that were created by untold years of struggle and victory with and over ourselves, as-well-as our environment. It's hard to understand the enormity of it all...the weight of our genetic past is all around us. Nobody want to look at things the way they are, they only wish to look at them the way they want them to be... which isn't noble at all, I might add...

Nobility comes from the spirit to not just survive, but to grow as an individual. People do not have an inherent nobility... it is earned by the forge of will.

Whether that will be artistic or materialistic... it all has its place.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 270 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 11/29/2008 8:44:02 PM
@written by hank - I agree... sort of.

It's not just the rich and the wealthy that prey upon the most vulnerable... you can't possibly believe that to be true... I'm assuming you are saying that, because you feel it directly relates to the subject at hand. It's true that people who are in certain positions can affect more change... sometimes, that change can be completely self-serving. But, in many instances, people tend to be self-serving were necessary and altruistic when the conditions are right.

When you work for someone, you are told what you are going to be paid... sometimes, you can negotiate a slightly higher starting wage... I've done that before, even with jobs that were considered menial. It's all in how you present yourself. Some people just accept anything that's wiggled in front of their nose... some don't. Of course, that is situational.

Honestly, there is no reason to justify anything. I know that sounds bad to you, but why should someone have to justify something that the other party agrees to in advance?

You might have met rich people who think that things are owed to them... but, I've met plenty of not so rich people who think the same thing. I'm not trying to be contrary to just be contrary... I'm serious. You only deserve to be paid when you have an agreement to be paid for the work you do, with a prearranged amount based on hours put in... or quota.

That's the truth.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 267 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 11/29/2008 7:27:16 PM

I guess we have different ideas about what is deserved. I think the we do not deserve anything and everyone ought to make there own way is a selfish way of thinking. It it based primary on only looking out for yourself and if you want that kind of world were people die of hunger and die from war that is fine I do not. Maybe it is the way of your world but not mine. If you really believe that we have to work for liberty and happiness you have a skewed idea of life. There may be a lot of people satisfied with their life and where they are but people who have to worry about making just enough each week to survive are not doing okay. Maybe you can live like this but other people can not. If this society where people are homeless and killing each other is the best to offer then I do not want to see what the worse we have would look like.The kind of wage I am talking about has worked. In the 1950 it worked quite well until people got greedy.


We do have different ways of looking at things, but that's okay, that's life and that's the way it should be.

I'm a realist ( or whatever) and see the world as it is (not just how I would like it to be). I'm not trying to sound like a jerk, but why do you think the Constitution and Bill of Rights exist? It's because things like liberty and happiness were a crapshoot at best in those times and before. They had to spell it out... and they had to fight for it. We still to this day have to fight to maintain hold of it. They also knew that they had to put 'the pursuit of happiness' in the document, because there is no such thing as guaranteed happiness. If all you saw were the acts of cruelty, then all you would think of our race, is that we were cruel. If all you saw were the acts of kindness, then all you would think of our race, is that we were kind. If you go into the world with open eyes, you see both and know that our race is both... and we are a product of the systems (both natural and man made... which I might add, are a function of nature) of the planet we reside on.

In the 1950's, most women that were married, did not work and most women after a certain age were married. The family was a single income family and people had to save money in order to afford things like cars and so on. Things change... The more freedom people have, the more stipulations exist to facilitate that freedom.

You call it people getting greedy... I call it, people feeling they were entitled.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 265 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 11/29/2008 5:32:17 PM
@darknight1984 - I have never been, nor will I ever be a forum troll and your characterization of my views as such is ridiculous. I will not go away... and I will not tell you to, either. This is a clear and distinct difference between people of your mentality and people with mine.

I never said it was wrong to want more, I said it was wrong to feel you deserve more... See, you still don't understand the difference. As to being high on myself... you don't even know me or where I came from. You could be talking to someone who doesn't make that much... Did you ever think about that? The human decency part is just part of your larger ad hominem attack...



If everyone could better there life do you not think they would?

No, I don't. There are plenty of people out there that are just fine with staying in their 'place' in this world and simply sitting and complaining about it... never really putting themselves out there, in order to get there. I've worked with them... I know people just like that.

Your assertion that someone has to do it, even if it's cleaning out the toilet or scrubbing/cleaning the floor is pointless. We all know it has to be done... that's not the issue. The issue is, what requires more from the person doing the job?.... Did the person who scrubs the floor have to go to school for years to do so, devoting serious time, effort, and money to get where they are? The answer is staggeringly obvious... Then there's the issue of raw human ability...

It's one thing to want enough to live on, it's another to expect it... do you see the difference yet?

You or I do not deserve anything. It's the way of the world.

We don't even deserve to be alive... Things like life, liberty, and happiness have to be worked and fought for in order to achieve them, and once gained, they have to be held from the tide of time, inequity, ignorance, fear, and apathy.

Your idea of a decent wage may be wildly inaccurate and unsustainable. In order to do what some people want done, you would have to change the way we think about our place in the world. It would necessitate a change in eons of proven genetic motivation. I realize that you very well think that it's easy to do and change, but it's not. It could also lead to incredibly unfair practices. If you remove the motivation to gain by being better and doing better than your fellow men, you create an environment of malaise.

The feelings I have might seem cold and uncaring to some, but in my estimation, it could be the death knell of the human spirit. Of course, that is a much larger subject, with many more facets than just a minimum wage.

I think the way the system works now, is a balancing act. It's the best we have to offer and the best so far. It requires a certain level of self-regulation, as-well-as larger societal controls (unfortunately).

Now, if you'll excuse me, I guess I should go stomp on some puppies or something equally horrible, considering I'm such a horrible guy and all. <img src=http://www.plentyoffish.com/smiles/icon_201.gif border=0>
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 153 (view)
 
Does No Car Mean No Action?
Posted: 11/29/2008 12:23:38 PM

Some of the most successful men in the world with women
are ugly or have no money but they all have a life of purpose
and meaning, social skills, personal style, a social circle and
advanced approach techniques.


Yes, that might be true (and I stress might), but that wasn't what I was talking about.

I'm talking about the horde of men(and women) out there who are total A-holes, yet still get away with it... at least, for awhile.

See the difference?
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 262 (view)
 
Minimum Wage
Posted: 11/29/2008 3:59:11 AM
There has been a lot said on this topic... said here and in other places and discussions. Some of the things are pretty good... some are not... and some... are just interesting.

The real full meal deal of it is, knowledge is power.

The guy who cleans toilets and puts down the sawdust in the school cafeteria after little Billy Douchbag barfs up his tri-tater and corn dog, doesn't really do anything that requires a special knowledge. Most people know how do use a brush or rag...

Now... the guy who can reverse engineer the flight systems of a rival aerospace firm... that's a special kind of knowledge.

That's the truth.

If you don't like it... well... I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but that's not important and it won't change how things work.

Another thing I find interesting is this desire for people to think we 'deserve' things... You would be much less frustrated with the world and the people in it, if you changed 'deserve' to 'want'. There's nothing wrong with wanting something... but, deserving something just makes you an ***hole. Now, that might seem like semantics to some of the gentle readers out there, but it really puts things into context and gives you a more realistic and healthy view of the world.

Also, there is something to be said about cause and effect. In those states with the highest cost of living, they also generally have the highest minimum wage... now... what causes which? Your buying power as a minimum wage earner will always stay relatively the same. The end... I'm sorry, but it's how the game of life is played.

There will always be those out there who think that changing from one low-skill job to the next, entitles them to the same kind of money that someone gets who stays and perfects their craft... but, that's not realistic. There are also many out there who think that at the age of 35, if you are making 12 dollars an hour, you are doing okay... this is a personal choice and one I don't subscribe to. It's people like that, that will never go out of their way to achieve... and that is largely why they will stay in that range...

Why do you think that the largest percentage of monetarily successful people are not 'rocket scientists'? It doesn't matter how smart you are.... it's how much you want something... even those of us who are not so mentally gifted can achieve modest success by a normal person's metric and wild success by their own. Motivation and drive... the cornerstone to all true success stories.

The true enemy of your success is not the 'evil corporations' or 'ruling elite'... it is your own sense of entitlement and lack of understanding. Ignorance and pride has always been the biggest foils to humanity's ability to achieve and maintain those achievements. But, I suppose it's always easier to shift the blame...
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 39 (view)
 
Walmart Worker Killed by Holiday Shoppers...
Posted: 11/29/2008 3:19:56 AM
Hey... I know it's not the 'in thing' to do... but, how about we not go around blaming companies like Walmart and instead blame the people who rush in the door and stampede other people to death? I mean... I know this is radical and all, but hey, sometimes you need to think outside the box or something.

If Walmart has to quit this practice (because people can't control themselves), than all stores should have to quit. I mean, it's sort of like the gun argument... because a statistically small group of people kill themselves accidentally by discharging a firearm, all guns should be outlawed. And because a few people have mishaps with fireworks, all fireworks except for sparklers and those crappy snake things should be banned... right?

Yeah... I don't think so.

The truth is... it always comes down to responsibility... personal responsibility. Shit happens, that's life. It's sad and unfortunate, but it's still life and you can't go around banning things because a few people screw up. There's something fundamentally wrong with that practice.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 151 (view)
 
Does No Car Mean No Action?
Posted: 11/29/2008 3:05:55 AM
I want to preface this response with 'I don't think you are a loser'.

There are plenty of guys who don't have cars... they have never had a car... in fact, they don't have drivers licenses and they don't have jobs. These guys do, in fact, get plenty of action. Why? That's a good question... Is it because they have shining personalities and killer good-looks? In many, many cases... no.

I really don't understand this phenomenon...

It usually ends up with the women (girls) 'discovering' that they are really jerks.

As to your situation, the truth as I see it... no one can answer this question accurately. Your chances will be hurt in some cases and in others not so much.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 273 (view)
 
When someone has artist as their profession.....
Posted: 11/29/2008 2:55:23 AM
It makes me think they're an artist of some sort... that they do something considered in the artistic field for a profession.... that's about it. They could be living quite comfortably or not... Since I'm capable of supporting myself, I don't much worry about things, because I would assume they are as well, until proven otherwise.

The end.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 327 (view)
 
What is your favorite type of sex?
Posted: 11/16/2008 12:10:06 AM
The kind that involves a real live person... I know, my standards are pretty high... but, I think I'm worth it... Positive thinking.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 12 (view)
 
How many Purebreeds left in America?
Posted: 11/8/2008 3:31:15 AM
^^^ Actually, they came over on a land bridge a long time ago... from what I understand.
 giggleparts
Joined: 10/23/2004
Msg: 91 (view)
 
Taxing the rich guys - would it really work?
Posted: 11/8/2008 3:26:54 AM

If you want to talk about penalizations though. I feel that I am being penalized by the IRS for not having kids. Why should someone who has a child pay so much less in taxes, when they typically use so much more of the tax money because they DO have a kid?


The answer is quite simple... They are trying to make people think they care about you by politicizing the concept of burden (children) and they are trying to encourage the act of procreation. Because, it is something that benefits society.

As to your comment on my comment... What exactly do you mean by 'leveling the playing field'? Because, if you look at the tax brackets as they stand, the most wealthy pay the highest percentage on a larger amount of money... So, that certainly isn't 'fair' or 'equitable'. If you wish to say that you believe that if you make more, not only should you get more taken away by virtue of having more money to tax, but you should be taxed at a even higher percentage... you are talking about something that is inherently wrong. High taxation is morally wrong.

People have to get it into their heads that there are some things that are morally incorrect. You can't possibly believe that taking more money from someone that outperforms other people, is right... unless they want to give it up, in which case it could be considered charity. What some people that are proposing graduated tax brackets and higher across the board taxation are flat out incorrect on a number of levels.

Honestly, you should be taxed based on consumption... in that way, the rich will be taxed more (because they will no doubt spend more money) and no one can not pay... unless they don't consume.

Also, this idea that you can't get away with a 10 percent flat tax is incorrect.... it's easy... the government just has to be more fiscally responsible.... problem solved.

The creation of the income tax was probably one of the worst blunder of the 20th century, because it lead to something known as the general fund. The general fund is an abomination, as it gives way to horrible spending practices.

But who gives a shit, right? I mean, why should anyone care about our government screwing its citizens? Let's just go around blaming the rich people... I mean, class warfare is so much more interesting anyway and it gets so many votes! The reality is, there are only a few rich people that you should be worried about... and most of them are the old money families from Europe that have economic and blood ties to families here... the rest of them are just people trying to make a buck.
 
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