Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 05, 2016, 03:52:37 PM
Bottom line is the topic of the thread is "Are Boomers the political problem".

My answer to that is yes. Yes they are.

The "greatest generation"  may have taken the first steps but, the Boomers are the ones who went off the cliff.

That is my opinion.

Generation X (my generation) has done nothing to fix the problem and the millennials..... they are the worst of all. They feel entitled to that which they have not earned and put more value on their cell phone than they do their fellow man.

The fact millennials support that socialist pig "free stuff" Bernie Sanders should tell you all you need to know about them.

Not to sound insulting, but your opinion is solely based on what you've grown up with, in other words, you lack historical reference.
My parents gave us crap like the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, or the  Emergency Banking Act, Federal Emergency Relief Act,  National Industrial Recovery Act, and by 1935 created legislation that would become essentially the first truly socialist move, the Social Security system.
Then onto the New Deal, and yes, LBJ continued the socialist promise, and no, us Baby Boomers weren't yet old enough to vote.
Not to mention cultural degradation like the character Rosie the Riveter and yanking the mother out of the house to do mans work, essentially the beginning of what would become the argument of femininazi, which in truth was just another commie plot to divide and conquer.
The behemoth that Govt has become, is all thanks to their gen. I watched my liberties slowly slip away in the 60 and 70s and pick up steam like a runaway train under the Marxist, but it all started with the worst gen of all, the WWII gen.
It was they that gave up our Liberties, a move they had no right to, and now we have kids coming of voting age thinking their Rights come from govt.

Quote from: Solar on June 05, 2016, 05:09:03 PMNot to sound insulting, but your opinion is solely based on what you've grown up with, in other words, you lack historical reference.

I don't get insulted when people speak the truth. However, that is exactly my point. My generation inherited this mess as a norm, the Boomer generation should have known better. Instead they embraced it.

Quote from: Solar on June 05, 2016, 05:09:03 PMI watched my liberties slowly slip away in the 60 and 70s and pick up steam like a runaway train under the Marxist, but it all started with the worst gen of all, the WWII gen.

I think we agree more than you would like to admit Solar.

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 06, 2016, 02:57:01 AM
I don't get insulted when people speak the truth. However, that is exactly my point. My generation inherited this mess as a norm, the Boomer generation should have known better. Instead they embraced it.
I think we agree more than you would like to admit Solar.

What one generations tolerates, the next accepts as the norm.
I remember when I was just a kid of 12 with a paper route and was told I needed a SSN#, for me it was a coming of age, a recognition of adulthood even though I was only 12, but I'd be the only kid in school with a social security card.
I was proud, my dad was furious, that a child had to report wages to the govt, he explained I was being tagged for the rest of my life and would be tracked at every turn, that I had to report to an faceless entity at the point of the gun.
Remember for him Social Security was still just 20 years prior, so it was still a fresh wound to him.

No, for me, it meant responsibility, but to my father, it was a loss of freedom and liberty, which is why I say your dad is wrong, it's not our fault, we willingly accept it for the way it is because we know no other version of society. Granted he's correct that the next generation abuses it as an entitlement, but the next will see govt as the great provider and move into Communism...
Essentially we are born into slavery, tagged with a SSN# for life and like slaves, accept it as a part of our life. Think about that, you are not allowed to feed yourself unless you get permission from the govt first, you can't get a job by law.....
If one looks at it from the perspective that a man answers only to himself, one realizes just how much we've lost, and with enough years under your belt, realize the potential for yet even more loss ahead......

I agree we're on the same page, it's just that your dad and I come from the same era. I look at the source of the problem, he only sees the symptom, and you can't cure a patient if you only treat symptoms and don't cut out the cancer.
TEA...

I think it's fair to say it TEA party was started by the Boomers and X'ers jumped on board.... however, there are plenty of those from across the spectrum that ARE the real problem.

Politically, they are out-to-lunch, thinking it's too complicated, or confusing and coming up with excuses like "they're all corrupt!".  Same goes for the folks who think you can elect someone, expect them to do what they say, and never, ever need to pen a letter, send an email and remind them of their pre-election promises..  The MSM is really good at showing the worst of the worst, the least engaged, and most Socialist - probably because it best represents who "they" are - and the goal is to portray US as a small fringe group. 

The LAST thing they want, is organization - TEA, best represents their fear and our strength.

I'm thinking ... the Boomers are split from liberal to conservative, Gen-X, I don't know, Millennials seem to be at extreme ends of the spectrum (few in the middle).   "Kids" I know as Millennials are Ultra-conservative & politically active, realizing a heck-of-a-lot earlier than Boomers, "If you want a future - better get on-board NOW!"   I'm hard pressed to identify a "political middle" those without a political opinion are the "apathetic middle"....  naturally, nobody gets involved until they feel it financially.

Boomers have the benefit of seeing decades of the effects of Liberal Incrementalism, and finally - with the advent of the internet - a method to communicate and organize a greater number of people besides a neighborhood block.   All those following behind us have this great tool at their disposal, this forum, and some not-so-free places to reverse Socialism. 

Before I would lay most of the blame on any generation, I'm inclined to place it on those in the MEDIA - who should have just stuck to the who-when-where-what-why of reporting - and quit trying to spin Socialism in such a favorable light.  They controlled the flow and content of information, the stuff that shapes and energizes the electorate - as American Citizens .... you'd think they'd toss away those notions of "changing the world" and adopt a "Freedom and Liberty via the Constitution" mindset.   Interesting how the MSM gets a "pass", while we get "pissed on".   One thing I like about Trump, he's not afraid to take on the MSM, or paint them for the "A"holes they are.

The MSM had the tools / weapons to promote peace and social responsibility - yet, they have done the opposite, casting the USA as the evil ones, and within our borders, portraying the worst of the worst, the most degenerate as mainstream - creating issues out of thin air.... and then giving each other awards to the most destructive, hailing them as cutting-edge leaders of a new age.   Grrrrrrr...!   Was it CBS who labeled Walter Cronkite as "the most trusted man in America"?   He is more responsible for the 60,000 deaths in Viet Nam than any other individual - when we had it won, and the enemy on the run, it was Cronkite who convinced America we had lost.  Dan Rather, his replacement, was just as crooked.   The MSM likes to elevate the most left of the leftist.   If I sound a bit pissed, explain to me, why Al Shaprton was given even a second of Air Time, let alone a national commentary!  Sharpton represents THEIR values, not ours.

The majority of the Boomer Blame is because of the Main Stream Media, this new, shiny box, which streamed TRASH into our homes, called "Programming" (quite descriptive, eh?).   When the news wasn't enough, then the drama and situation comedies ... on and on, they kept up the programming to reshape American values and turn us away from our Constitutional Liberties.   They should have known better - and we Boomers should have caught on faster!

I will compliment the Gen-Xers and Millennials, those who did catch on, figured it out at a much younger age than my generation.   Whether it was US warning them, or seeing their paychecks shrink through excessive taxation, the age of Constitutional Awakening seems to be getting younger and younger ... until the Internet is restricted.  I'm also GLAD to see the MSM grip slipping away, competition has been GOOD for us.   Best of all, as RADIO has been losing it's audience, we're finally getting conservative voices, not many, but a few.

Why not be optimistic?   We've had such BAD news and verbal abuse from the leaders who should have been encouraging, it's about time for some sunshine!   Limbaugh called it Liberal overreach, I'll say it's the Silent Majority waking up.... maybe a little sooner would have given Ted Cruz a clear shot at the GOP nomination.

TEA is just the beginning, this nation will turn around, the Washington DC drain plug has been pulled - we may lose a few of our own, but nobody ever said cleaning up this kind of mess wasn't going to have some collateral damage.  IMO, just vote for the best of the best - nobody will be elected with a "mandate" to govern - don't let the rhetoric fool you, the next POTUS is likely to have a bad 2-3 years ahead of them.

Quote from: Solar on June 06, 2016, 06:15:59 AMEssentially we are born into slavery, tagged with a SSN# for life and like slaves, accept it as a part of our life. Think about that, you are not allowed to feed yourself unless you get permission from the govt first, you can't get a job by law.....

Illegals do it all the time.

We ought to be looking at the vote today with great interest....   As much as the MSM media says it's all over, even a protest vote is noteworthy, and by which demographic!

I'd love to see Cruz with a huge showing, followed by Sanders  - both as a protest vote, if nothing else.

OK, so Punkin the Pollster is texting me, and drops this bombshell.   Let me set it up, first....

WHY... is Donald Trump reaching out to Bernie Sanders supporters?  It's had me scratching my head, thinking... these kids don't vote half the time, is it Donald's political bent towards socialism - yeah, that makes sense, he's not a Conservative, but kids...?   What about the riots in CA...  I wonder if the MSM is spinning this to make it look like Bernie supports hate Trump... instead of Hillary...  Maybe so...

New Flash!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFwdvMQHmOI

I ask, "The girls in the video, are they all Millennials?"

"Yeah.  Couple are in early 30s."

"Perfect!   Some Gen-Xer claims all the Millennials are Sanders supporters.  Nice work, mildly funny, very true!"

"Hmph.  Nope.  Sanders lost because his young fans didn't vote.  Fun Fact."

"What demographic voted for him?  Old Commies?"

"Yeah."

WOW!!!!  I thought - The college age kids didn't turn out, or Bernie would have displaced Hillary.
That explains why Donald Trump is hot on the trail of Bernie - he's trying to appeal to his own demographic and older (the Greatest Commie Generation)... dang, I thought they were all dead!   Nope, were it not for Bernie, they'd already be with Trump.

Trump is courting the Old Commie vote, and casting aside the Conservative vote... chew on that awhile!

Credit SOLAR, he called it right again - they're the FDR hanger-oners, the LBJ Great Society types, still thinking SOCIALISM is better than Capitalism.

...and I'll take credit, the Millennials are more conservative than the Boomers, they figured it out a heck of a lot quicker than we did, and got politically active sooner.  I've read they are better savers too.

To me, the future is looking better and better - but, unless Ted Cruz gets in, we're gonna keep riding this Liberal Train to Commie Town.... ugh!  4 more years. 

Wouldn't it be funny if,

after at least a generation of politicians
promising conservatism and delivering socialism,

we get a politician who
promises socialism and delivers conservatism?

Quote from: je_freedom on June 10, 2016, 08:31:04 PM
Wouldn't it be funny if, after at least a generation of politicians promising conservatism and delivering socialism,

we get a politician who promises socialism and delivers conservatism?

I think that's what we're all secretly hoping for, especially for the SCOTUS!   A closet Conservative who masquerades as a liberal, gets put on the bench by a liberal POTUS and BOOM!  Becomes the greatest Constitutional Conservative ever - and lives for 100 years, returning America back to greatness....

My favorite comix book character is Flash ...  growing up on a farm, you wish daily chores could be completed in 2 minutes, but, alas... the animals don't move that fast... unless you're falling off a horse, or running a bicycle into a hedge row, then it seems like it's all happening in slow-motion, except you're not a spectator!  I call it 'God's sense of humor' - "Told you that was a dumb idea, now I'll let you live it in s-l-o-w motion!"
............

There was a time in my life, when we said, "Never trust anyone over 30!"  We Baby Boomers were going to change the world, musicians wrote songs about 'changing the world', how evil WAR was, and general discontent over the way THE OLDER FOLKS were doing things.  Yup, the 1960s & 70s.  Then came Disco, ABBA and changed everything.  Some of us would say it was some of the best music, love songs, unity (Everything is Beautiful [Stevens]; He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother [Hollies]), on one side - yet another side was WAR protest songs (War, what is it good for) - and the drug songs (The Pusher; Magic Carpet Ride; [Steppenwolf]).   We grew up during a time of so much GOOD potential, and so much crap happening all around us...   Kinda like today.

So, what's the big difference between then and now?

My parents, although politically active, hardly talked about ANYTHING political, sounded the warnings of Marxism, Socialism, Liberalism to us kids.  We're not making the same mistake.  Another reason why I see a bright future for America.  Even the conversations on this Forum rarely took place in my early years - it was Conservative -good-... Liberal -bad-.   We're blessed with Mark Levin in an old-style media outlet, Radio, but he's wisely using all the social media outlets too!  We need to get the message out, while we can, expand and take advantage of the opportunity.

IMO... our greatest enemy is the Liberal Main Stream Media machine.   People don't give up a healthy income easily - you can bet they're looking at forums like this, plotting, how can we ... a. Infiltrate, b. Regulate or c. Shut it Down.  We're not the only ones out here, as they see influence slip away, decentralized and spread over a broad spectrum, they see us, collectively as a huge unruly mass!  Once they controlled it all, could take Americans anywhere they wanted politically, move public opinion, create causes out of thin air.  Their competition were their classmates from the same liberal colleges.   

What's going to happen 'when' the MSM get's their man (or woman) in place, a little "back room deal" is cut, and we become like North Korean Internet?  I'll still have HAM Radio to work with, but, that is a momentary communication, this can be read anytime, and multiple times, responded to, mulled over, etc.  Not at all paranoid here, just suggesting our "Internet freedom" could change with an election. I'll also add, the big 3, the "Internet Backbone" - AT&T, Verizon & Level3 are in "bed" with the government.  It's foolish to imagine this medium as some kind of magical communication that "just gets there over hundreds of tiny links across a vast network of privately owned computers".   They "own" the fiber, the communication "path"... they don't own the airwaves - as in HAM Radio / Short Wave if you wish to call it that.  It is EASY to get your license, easier than a CCA - you should have both.  The more people with permits, the better.

Here's the point of all this.   At our disposal is multiple means of "open communications", some of it completely free.  We Boomers have a golden opportunity to "educate" - whereas our Greatest Generation parents FAILED, we can succeed.

Are Boomers the political problem?   YES - if we do nothing and kick back, expecting those following us to pick up the reins and "guess" at political solutions.

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 04, 2016, 04:37:42 AMIf you adjust for inflation and ]market conditions, American labor is cheaper now for most companies than it has been in the last 30 years, UNION or not.

I see nobody wants to touch this. Do you all not agree that when adjusted for inflation wages are the lowest they have been in 30 years?

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 04, 2016, 04:37:42 AMLet me ask you this, have you EVER seen a company significantly lower prices after offshoring a factory to reflect their lower cost of production?

Check out this story.

http://wbay.com/2015/03/16/vera-bradley-moves-all-manufacturing-outside-u-s/

"He confirmed that lower wages for workers, cheaper raw materials and lower operating costs all impacted Vera Bradley's decision to move the last of its manufacturing to Asia. Wallstrom said it costs 90% more to manufacture goods domestically than it does overseas."

Do you think Vera Bradley is going to drop their prices in the American market to reflect their lowered cost?

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 04, 2016, 04:37:42 AMCompanies want to charge American prices and pay Chinese labor. Apple wants to sell stupid people a phone for $600 that probably cost them $50 to manufacture, package, and ship from China.

To say that UNIONs are driving this behavior because of wage demands and not exponentially increasing profit margins driven by American stupidity is pure fiction.

I believe in free market, but when stupidity is driving a 1200% percent markup it's time to get a little perspective.

Do any of you want to comment on this at all?

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 16, 2016, 12:36:59 PM
I see nobody wants to touch this. Do you all not agree that when adjusted for inflation wages are the lowest they have been in 30 years?
Check out this story.

I see you did not add all the benefits some company's pay for you.  These all the thing I got before even going company.  The only thing I paid taxes on was the Paid vacations and sick leave.  As I did not need sick leave I was able to donate to people that run out of sick leave. I was able to donate over 170 days of sick leave before going company.     

Health insurance.   For the family not just yourself
Life insurance.
Paid Vacations leave.
Sick leave. 
Health clubs

True when did go company I got even more.

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 16, 2016, 12:36:59 PM
I see nobody wants to touch this. Do you all not agree that when adjusted for inflation wages are the lowest they have been in 30 years?
Check out this story.

http://wbay.com/2015/03/16/vera-bradley-moves-all-manufacturing-outside-u-s/

"He confirmed that lower wages for workers, cheaper raw materials and lower operating costs all impacted Vera Bradley's decision to move the last of its manufacturing to Asia. Wallstrom said it costs 90% more to manufacture goods domestically than it does overseas."

Do you think Vera Bradley is going to drop their prices in the American market to reflect their lowered cost?
Do any of you want to comment on this at all?

Let's start at the base point. The purpose of a corporation is to deliver stockholder value to stockholders. It is not to provide high paying jobs to employees.

That being said many things must go into that equation to deliver stockholder value. As Walks pointed out part of that is employee benefits as it is necessary to provide those to attract valuable employees who deliver a valuable product. I worked for a very large corporation for over forty years. That company delivers a quality product that the market desires. It never asked me to do anything illegal, immoral or unethical. It rewarded me quite well for my efforts as I added value to their goals. However, the bottom line was to deliver stockholder value.

It is called capitalism, and it works!

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 16, 2016, 12:36:59 PM
I see nobody wants to touch this. Do you all not agree that when adjusted for inflation wages are the lowest they have been in 30 years?
Check out this story.

http://wbay.com/2015/03/16/vera-bradley-moves-all-manufacturing-outside-u-s/

"He confirmed that lower wages for workers, cheaper raw materials and lower operating costs all impacted Vera Bradley's decision to move the last of its manufacturing to Asia. Wallstrom said it costs 90% more to manufacture goods domestically than it does overseas."

Do you think Vera Bradley is going to drop their prices in the American market to reflect their lowered cost?
Do any of you want to comment on this at all?

Whats your point, that wages stagnate, that the marxist created an environment where it's cheaper to employ part time workers and do away with full time, or move most to salary?
That Unions aren't the sole problem, that govt regs are majority of the blame, that business does what it can to survive?
If your contention is that Unions are not solely responsible for wage increases, you would be correct, but allowing govt to artificially set wage standard above the value of the free mkt, as driven by Union wage increases via the Dim party, then you are missing the entire picture.

Yes, Unions push for min wage increases to justify their own wage increases based on a false living wage.
So yes, if your point is govt fucks everything up, then you'd be correct, but something tells me you would rather blame corporations.
Truth is, it's the leach/host symbiotic relationship between business and govt, where govt sets artificial rules of free mkt and the consumer suffers, all because people are too damned stupid and keep putting socialists in power.

Quote from: ZQuickSilverZ on June 16, 2016, 12:36:59 PM
I see nobody wants to touch this. Do you all not agree that when adjusted for inflation wages are the lowest they have been in 30 years?
Check out this story.

http://wbay.com/2015/03/16/vera-bradley-moves-all-manufacturing-outside-u-s/

"He confirmed that lower wages for workers, cheaper raw materials and lower operating costs all impacted Vera Bradley's decision to move the last of its manufacturing to Asia. Wallstrom said it costs 90% more to manufacture goods domestically than it does overseas."

Do you think Vera Bradley is going to drop their prices in the American market to reflect their lowered cost?
Do any of you want to comment on this at all?

Yeah, it's called hi-jacking a thread.  This belongs in the financial section, not the political section.

I did some more poking around, the video clip really doesn't contain any Libertarian women...
Several worked in Republican campaigns.  "Reason" ... apparently lacks well spoken, Libertarian women.

This is TYPICAL of Libertarians, trying to sound like conservatives, claiming to fight for individual liberty - yet, their policies undermine the moral fabric of society and the principles this nation was founded upon.

While discussing this point with my daughter, I mentioned over the years I've known MANY of the John Mcafee types, they mouth the same lines, but are so stoned ... they can't understand what holds us together as a nation, individual personal responsibility, based on a Judeo Christian Ethic.  Libertarians like to think we can survive as a nation without any moral restraints - until they themselves come to depend upon the goodness of their fellow man.  If you have the time, watch John Stossel struggle to moderate 3 buffoons debating the merits of Libertarianism.   He asks leading questions, desperately trying to cast them in a positive light, Peterson is the only one who sounds "reasonable".  But, for the Libertarian, Johnston (Dope company exec) is their candidate, while McAfee comes off sounding like the guy high on drugs, the cops hauled off your front lawn at 3am... Peterson probably you young & soft for the Republican debates.

BTW... Megyn Kelly & John Stossel self-identify as Libertarian, not a Conservatives.   After I read that, it is no wonder to me, why Mark Levin stands out so clearly & his audience is growing - Constitutional Conservatism resonates with people.   

I think the MSM -is- the political problem, more now than ever before.
Case in point, the election of Barak Obama, and re-election.