State of the Union

[Kaos]

All hat.   No cattle.

It absolutely sickened me to watch that motherfucker up there wallowing in applause while saying absolutely nothing. 

When his campaign started I called him an empty suit full of hot air.  That's what he was there and what he is now. 

Standing there with his head cocked back and his eyes closed while applause from morons washed over him; looking every inch like he thought he was the motherfucking emperor...

It made me physically ill.  It concerns me greatly that this country is so fucking stupid as to elect a clueless bag of gas like Obama.   He offers nothing but empty rhetoric and useless catch phrases.  No substance at all. 

[AUTailgatingRules]

"Continuing on a track of endless deficits is unsustainable" but we need to invest in XYZ.  Does he think we are morons????

How about we go back to what the founding fathers envisioned.

What sickens me is the over reaching federal government.  Get the hell out of the way and watch what we can do.

[Townhallsavoy]

He's full of hot fart air.  Just like every other president since Nixon that has claimed to put a stop to our dependence on foreign oil.

These scumbags are all alike.  Corporate.  Greedy.  Corrupt.  Their hands are so deep in oil they can feel the heat from earth's core.

[CCTAU]

I heard it described this way:

In the State of the Union address tonight, President Obama focused his speech on how to bring prosperity back to America. It basically involves all of us convincing Oprah we're her half sister. That's the plan.....724.....

[GH2001]

"Continuing on a track of endless deficits is unsustainable" but we need to invest in XYZ.  Does he think we are morons????

How about we go back to what the founding fathers envisioned.

What sickens me is the over reaching federal government.  Get the hell out of the way and watch what we can do.

Agree 100% Autr. It's the exact way the country came to being. Letting people do what they do best with no shackles.

[AUTiger1]

I didn't feel like watching it.  I will read opinions, articles and then give it a listen on the youtubes a little later.   

Hate bush all you want.  Call him a war-monger, stupid, whatever you want, I didn't like him either for the most part, but he was light years ahead of this fucking guy we got now. 

[Snaggletiger]

Does anyone ever really say anything in those speeches?

[Tarheel]

No, I did not watch it.  My time is way too valuable and it's College Basketball Season.  I do not have time for FedGov's version of Hollywood's self-congratulatory Oscar Night.

I did skim through Chairman Maobama's speech in written form.  More vacuous rhetoric about the future.  Nothing to solve today's problems other than more government and more spending investments.  It would have made John Maynard Keynes (not to mention Lenin, Trotsky, and Marx) very proud.  It illustrates to me that The ONE is out of gas and lacks any intellectual understanding of the reality of government being the problem and NOT the solution. 

He is still married to the idea of high speed trains and cars.  The notion that high speed trains will work in this country is laughable in my opinion.  They are assumed to be quicker than planes but the reality is they need their own track system to work properly which would take decades to build and trillions more in spending...we already have planes that work fine.  And the idea of putting over a million electric cars on the road misses the point that Americans don't want them if they only go 80 miles before needing a 24 hour recharge.  (I drive 100 plus miles a day just to and from work alone!)  An electric car or high speed train is about as useful to me as tits on a boar.

I think that he also called for critical improvements in America's education system but proposed nothing.  Typical.  How about lets close the Department of Education and leave that social service to the states, counties and cities where it belongs?  Just a thought.

The best thing about this speech was something critical that I missed seeing by not watching it and that was seeing Speaker of the House John Boehner sitting behind The ONE instead of Pelosi.  Good riddance to her and welcome to Speaker Boehner.

[AUTiger1]

He is still married to the idea of high speed trains and cars.

Not totally against that.  If we went Nuclear as our main source of energy, replaced our current rail system to electric it could actually work.  Do all our shipping on high speed rail, until it comes time to move it cross town, travel a high speed train from Huntsville to New Orleans, I would do it, if it were cheaper than a plane ticket.  I would think others would to.  It would take a lot of man power to convert the rails, build the Nuke plants and to run the plants (which are some really good high paying jobs).  Now if there was a good set plan I think it could work and pay for itself in no time.   We could build enough plants that we could sell electricity on the cheap, and also export it to Canada and Mexico for more $$$$$.  If the french can take American engineers and become the worlds largest exporter of electricity, why can't we? 

Also with the shipping it takes a lot of the big trucks off the road (sorry teamsters, but I don't really like you anyways)  and planes flying cross country (FedEx, DHL, UPS) and that in turn allows us to purchase less oil and it is less wear and tear on the highways, in time, with the right people in charge, less taxes to fix roadways.....etc...etc...etc....

Pipe dream I know and the enviro kooks hate me, but whatever.  A guy can dream.


EDIT:  I think I also read that, again with American engineers, the french are re-using spent fuel rods in the plants, which cuts the amount of waste tremendously. 

[Tarheel]

Not totally against that. 
...

I meant to write 'electric' cars.  Sorry about the lapsus cavis.

I really think that the trains are indeed a pipe dream.  No offense AUT1.  AmTrak is simply terrible I have no confidence in FedGov's ability to make a high speed rail system based on that track record (pun totally intended). 

And, besides, I like to drive my own car where I can enjoy my own music or talk radio entertainment along with a fine adult tobacco product when I want it!

On the subject of nuclear energy I'm all for it.  I have to give The ONE credit where credit is due in this regard because without his support through the Energy Dept. Plant Vogtle over here in Georgia would not be building the first nuclear reactor in America in most of our Xer lifetimes.  If the Phrench can do it then by Allah so can we!

[CCTAU]

Actually we have the best cargo rail system of any country in the world. New diesel engines produce cheaper cargo transportation now more than ever. Truck trailers are shipped cross country cheaper and then trucks are used to take them locally. High speed rail is for people only. Cargo is doing just fine.

[AUTiger1]

Actually we have the best cargo rail system of any country in the world. New diesel engines produce cheaper cargo transportation now more than ever. Truck trailers are shipped cross country cheaper and then trucks are used to take them locally. High speed rail is for people only. Cargo is doing just fine.

Electricity would be cheaper than diesel if we produced enough of it, IMO.  Anything we can do to buy less foreign oil is a + in my book.......and no, I am not a green freak. 

[CCTAU]

Electricity would be cheaper than diesel if we produced enough of it, IMO.  Anything we can do to buy less foreign oil is a + in my book.......and no, I am not a green freak.

I'm not sure you understand the infrastructure cost of setting up the electrical network. The cost of wiring alone would override any savings you might incur for many years to come.

The only way for electricity to actually take 1st place in transportation for the US is to invent an entirely new power source. We are too large a country to actually do that. To accomplish what you propose, we would at least have to increase the number of electrical plants (nuclear) to a huge amount.

Now if we were able to convert all of the high population centers to electric and use fossil fuels only for rural and long distance, then we might have a chance.

It is just too large a project with he current technology.

Maybe with a few ZPMs or a fairly large contingent of dilithium crystals? Even then.............

[AUTiger1]

I'm not sure you understand the infrastructure cost of setting up the electrical network. The cost of wiring alone would override any savings you might incur for many years to come.   <--- I don't expect to see one benefit from it.  We are fucked as taxpayers.  I would rather my taxes go to something that makes sense. Fuck foreign oil, If it hurts those that hate us and it will benefit my kids and grandkids, then so be it. The amount of jobs that would be created will contribute to the tax pool, so some of that will be offset.  It will still be expensive, but if I am paying a ridiculous amount now,why not for something better.  Personally I don't feel like I get my monies worth.

The only way for electricity to actually take 1st place in transportation for the US is to invent an entirely new power source. We are too large a country to actually do that. To accomplish what you propose, we would at least have to increase the number of electrical plants (nuclear) to a huge amount. <--- Read what I said about nuclear in the above post to Tarheel.  I want us to the the #1 exporter of electricity and there is no reason why we can't do it with nuclear.

Now if we were able to convert all of the high population centers to electric and use fossil fuels only for rural and long distance, then we might have a chance. <--- I mentioned a well laid out plan, that would be a great start, I am not saying we completely eliminate petroleum, but if we can eliminate our need to pay for it and use our own, then great.

It is just too large a project with he current technology.

Maybe with a few ZPMs or a fairly large contingent of dilithium crystals? Even then.............

[Kaos]

There's only one real answer and it's not tied to electric trains or floating spaceships or plastic sleds that use farts for fuel. 

For anything to have any long-term impact, we have to get people off the federal dole and back to work. 

It's probably already too late, but we need to repeal NAFTA.  Need to tax the raging fucks out of imports.  Need to bust up unions.  Need to get manufacturing and supply jobs back here. 

Then we need to de-incentify people living on the dole.  Make it so that the government helps you MORE if you work than if you don't.  Make it so that someone who takes a job at a small factory doesn't automatically lose medical insurance and assistance.   

Not going to happen. 

[Townhallsavoy]

There's only one real answer and it's not tied to electric trains or floating spaceships or plastic sleds that use farts for fuel. 

For anything to have any long-term impact, we have to get people off the federal dole and back to work. 

It's probably already too late, but we need to repeal NAFTA.  Need to tax the raging fucks out of imports.  Need to bust up unions.  Need to get manufacturing and supply jobs back here. 

Then we need to de-incentify people living on the dole.  Make it so that the government helps you MORE if you work than if you don't.  Make it so that someone who takes a job at a small factory doesn't automatically lose medical insurance and assistance.   

Not going to happen.

When Australia is king of the world in 500 years, their high school students will write papers comparing and contrasting the demise of Rome with America.

[GH2001]

Every empire falls.....and has throughout history by their own hand. Implosion. We are doing it right now.

[Kaos]

Every empire falls.....and has throughout history by their own hand. Implosion. We are doing it right now.

What shocks me is how accelerated our demise appears to be.  Rome lasted for several hundred years.  You're looking at an American "empire" that's only lasted what, 220 so far? 

By rights we should just be starting to see the crest.  But I'm afraid it passed us 40 years ago.

[AUTiger1]

What shocks me is how accelerated our demise appears to be.  Rome lasted for several hundred years.  You're looking at an American "empire" that's only lasted what, 220 so far? 

By rights we should just be starting to see the crest.  But I'm afraid it passed us 40 years ago.

It became kosher to not care anymore........about anything.   It's easier to let someone else deal with the mess you have caused and your problems than dealing with them on your own.

[GH2001]

It became kosher to not care anymore........about anything.   It's easier to let someone else deal with the mess you have caused and your problems than dealing with them on your own.

A pampered entitlement society where there is no adversity, breeds this type of mentality.

Everyone makes the team.
Disciplining kids is now frowned upon.

And so on and so on.....