denying that our system has made it harder for black families to gain wealth is simply absurd. there were very small gains under Obama but no extremely substantive changes. Interestingly, expanding Medicaid has actually helped poorer whites more due to the states that have refused to expand and those who did.

I can see that Obama was the best president of my lifetime and also think that's not a very high bar to have achieved because of how terrible the rest of them have been.

Netanyahu is a thug; a well-educated and articulate thug, but a thug nonetheless.

pacino wrote:denying that our system has made it harder for black families to gain wealth is simply absurd. there were very small gains under Obama but no extremely substantive changes. Interestingly, expanding Medicaid has actually helped poorer whites more due to the states that have refused to expand and those who did.

I can see that Obama was the best president of my lifetime and also think that's not a very high bar to have achieved because of how terrible the rest of them have been.

I am going
1. Clinton
2. Bush I
3. Reagan
4. Obama
5. Bush II

The Republican leader for Mayor of Philly has a lot of bad ideas, but I do like how open she is with her struggles with mental illness. I just wish she wouldn't include stuff like it being 'god's plan' for her to be mayor

her primary opponent is running as Trump.


The real race will be Kenney vs Anthony Williams. The latter would really hurt the move forward Kenney has made with the public school system since he's in the pocket of charter schools.

WilliamC wrote:

pacino wrote:denying that our system has made it harder for black families to gain wealth is simply absurd. there were very small gains under Obama but no extremely substantive changes. Interestingly, expanding Medicaid has actually helped poorer whites more due to the states that have refused to expand and those who did.

I can see that Obama was the best president of my lifetime and also think that's not a very high bar to have achieved because of how terrible the rest of them have been.

I am going
1. Clinton
2. Bush I
3. Reagan
4. Obama
5. Bush II

I think you forgot one.

the ghost of WilliamC posted that.

Country comes to Mar-a-lago last night by the Trump Girls, or whatever they call themselves, last night. Bringing Donnie's people to the club. Money for charity? Not these gals, Donnie deserves a successful business is their operational agenda. All cash taken by Eric. $500-$20,000 per table.

Good old profiting from the Presidency. Isn't that the very definition of emoluments?

WilliamC wrote:

pacino wrote:denying that our system has made it harder for black families to gain wealth is simply absurd. there were very small gains under Obama but no extremely substantive changes. Interestingly, expanding Medicaid has actually helped poorer whites more due to the states that have refused to expand and those who did.

I can see that Obama was the best president of my lifetime and also think that's not a very high bar to have achieved because of how terrible the rest of them have been.

I am going
1. Clinton
2. Bush I
3. Reagan
4. Obama
5. Bush II

Listening to The Dollop episode on HW. He was an awful human being.

pacino wrote:denying that our system has made it harder for black families to gain wealth is simply absurd. there were very small gains under Obama but no extremely substantive changes. Interestingly, expanding Medicaid has actually helped poorer whites more due to the states that have refused to expand and those who did.

I can see that Obama was the best president of my lifetime and also think that's not a very high bar to have achieved because of how terrible the rest of them have been.

The income of married AA couples is within 16% of Whites. The key is the lifestyle. Wealth follows income.

It is disingenuous to say that AA couples make less than 16% as much as whites. From that will follow wealth when they make a similar amount, if they choose to do so.

AA have lost in the wealth area. Wealth has to do with personal choice if you are making enough money. Single male and female AA do not make enough money. However, they are working. You need to focus on income and then wealth. Wealth will follow income if you make the right choices.

Lifestyle choices go along with choices of all sorts.

Then there is racism.

Income and employment are improving. I see that every single day. The numbers bear that out. Married AA couples are making 65K per year on average. I do not think that is much or enough, but it is if you decide that it is.

Buy the SPY. Take charge of your life.

seems to me like you are all but discounting the generational affects on wealth. Once income normalizes it will take several generations for wealth to catch up.

joboggi wrote:

pacino wrote:denying that our system has made it harder for black families to gain wealth is simply absurd. there were very small gains under Obama but no extremely substantive changes. Interestingly, expanding Medicaid has actually helped poorer whites more due to the states that have refused to expand and those who did.

I can see that Obama was the best president of my lifetime and also think that's not a very high bar to have achieved because of how terrible the rest of them have been.

The income of married AA couples is within 16% of Whites. The key is the lifestyle. Wealth follows income.

It is disingenuous to say that AA couples make less than 16% as much as whites. From that will follow wealth when they make a similar amount, if they choose to do so.

AA have lost in the wealth area. Wealth has to do with personal choice if you are making enough money. Single male and female AA do not make enough money. However, they are working. You need to focus on income and then wealth. Wealth will follow income if you make the right choices.

Lifestyle choices go along with choices of all sorts.

Then there is racism.

Income and employment are improving. I see that every single day. The numbers bear that out. Married AA couples are making 65K per year on average. I do not think that is much or enough, but it is if you decide that it is.

Buy the SPY. Take charge of your life.

the fuck is this? also *citation needed*

CalvinBall wrote:That Feinstein video is bad. So many people were like the clip is just edited! You have to see the whole thing! But the whole thing is worse, so...?

I just had an opportunity to watch this. Democrats like Feinstein are why we have a national embarrassment in the WH now. I wonder if she saw that video afterward and was like

@realDonaldTrump

Be nice if Spike Lee could read his notes, or better yet not have to use notes at all, when doing his racist hit on your President, who has done more for African Americans (Criminal Justice Reform, Lowest Unemployment numbers in History, Tax Cuts,etc.) than almost any other Pres!

Spoken like a pro. Who need notes for racist hit jobs? Sounds like you are speaking from the heart with racist ramblings. lol

My crazy people @ the office are comparing notes about their taxes. They both got totally F'd because they expected to hit the jackpot based on their favorite president. They've decided that it is either something wrong with the way they calculated their deductions (lol), or that the company accounting department did something wrong without telling them. This is pretty rich stuff. Not sure if they live in VA, but state taxes are expected to get totally borked by federal changes in the Old Dominion (those are due in May).

thephan wrote:My crazy people @ the office are comparing notes about their taxes. They both got totally F'd because they expected to hit the jackpot based on their favorite president. They've decided that it is either something wrong with the way they calculated their deductions (lol), or that the company accounting department did something wrong without telling them. This is pretty rich stuff. Not sure if they live in VA, but state taxes are expected to get totally borked by federal changes in the Old Dominion (those are due in May).

I know you'll explain to them that fucking citizens of blue states was not a bug, but a feature, of the new tax law.

I gave them the big three:

1) The loss of personal exemptions. The itemized deductions is definitely a minus for a lot of people.

2) The itemized deduction piece for taxes is now limited to $ 10K, which gets tricky in a heavy tax state like VA (we have a personal property tax that costs up to 50% of the blue book value, and housing is expensive in NVA) so it will cause lost.

3) The big culprit is the reduced withholding which nobody seems to have figured out which ate their expected refund! (psst, you already got the good stuff)

The only ray of light is that changes to AMT should have a tax reducing effect.

The answer: There is a bug in Turbo Tax, and they expect an update any day. I told them I hope they are right, then I double timed it down the hall.

thephan wrote:Meet William Happer, Trumps pick to chair the climate change panel to refute the Pentagon and IC assessment that climate change is a serious threat to national security. He also once argued on CNBC in 2014 that “the demonization of carbon dioxide is just like the demonization of the poor Jews under Hitler.”

https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/02/trump-climate-advisory-panel-structured-to-avoid-public-records/

Building the group to attack the climate change report, and to be constructed so that there is little to no record of its basis.

thephan wrote:I gave them the big three:

1) The loss of personal exemptions. The itemized deductions is definitely a minus for a lot of people.

2) The itemized deduction piece for taxes is now limited to $ 10K, which gets tricky in a heavy tax state like VA (we have a personal property tax that costs up to 50% of the blue book value, and housing is expensive in NVA) so it will cause lost.

3) The big culprit is the reduced withholding which nobody seems to have figured out which ate their expected refund! (psst, you already got the good stuff)

The only ray of light is that changes to AMT should have a tax reducing effect.

The answer: There is a bug in Turbo Tax, and they expect an update any day. I told them I hope they are right, then I double timed it down the hall.

My view of this is that:

1. Many taxpayers along the NE I-95 corridor (and along the entire West Coast states) are going to see federal tax increases this year because of the 10K limit on itemized deductions for State and Local Tax (SALT). And those taxpayers have a legitimate complaint and should be angry.

2. If, however, someone's taxes were lower but their refund is smaller because they didn't pay attention to what was being withheld, then I don't feel sorry for them at all. Your taxes were lowered. Stop using the federal government as your will power to save and be an adult.

3. As someone who is profoundly affected by it I think the SALT tax limitation is here to stay. The R's won't repeal it because it primarily affects Blue States. And the D's won't repeal it either because, by definition, it really only affects upper income taxpayers.

Tillis will vote to block the emergency declaration

any idea how toomey will vote?

Is he still conducting his telephone town halls?