Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:12:19 AM
From: locogringo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224749

HO HUM.................... Next turkey.............

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:13:05 AM
From: steve harris	2 Recommendations Respond to of 224749

The average Bush tax cut in 2011 for a taxpayer in the richest one percent is greater than the average income of the other 99 percent ($66,384 compared to $58,506). Wow! You can cut and paste parroting Soros. thinkprogress.org

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:15:42 AM
From: longnshort	5 Recommendations Respond to of 224749

Hey Obama! ‹^› ‹(•¿•)› ‹^›

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:18:49 AM
From: longnshort	1 Recommendation Respond to of 224749

Local Media Targets Ben Cardin’s (D-MD) Questionable Trading Practices

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:24:17 AM
From: longnshort	5 Recommendations Respond to of 224749

Company Policy: Not Hiring Until Obama Gone

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:43:27 AM
From: Hope Praytochange	2 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224749

working as ambulance chaser, kennytroll never gets to 20% top - kennytroll was born to be at the bottom

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 10:55:28 AM
From: Sedohr Nod	4 Recommendations Respond to of 224749

Bush is still cutting taxes nearly three years after leaving the White House? Not to mention that brief stint where the lefties had total control.....Either he is very macho or you lefties are the wimps we believe you to be....pitiful. Speaking of wimps....Will this story turn out to be the one that completes the Obama/Jimmy Carter sissified circle? guardian.co.uk Iran has arrested 12 American CIA agents, according to an influential Iranian politician quoted by the country's official news agency. Parviz Sorouri, who sits on the powerful committee of foreign policy and national security, told the IRNA that the arrested agents planned to strike at Iranian interests with the aid of Israel. Sorouri said the spy network aimed at damaging Iran in the security, military and nuclear sectors.

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 11:34:32 AM
From: Carolyn	7 Recommendations Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 224749

Go away, Kenneth. You are not pertinent.

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 12:23:06 PM
From: joefromspringfield	5 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224749

"The average Bush tax cut in 2011 for a taxpayer in the richest one percent is greater than the average income of the other 99 percent ($66,384 compared to $58,506)." First of all the Bush tax cut expired on 31 Dec 2010. The 2011 tax code belongs to Obama. He also cut the payroll tax (FICA) for 2011. You need to add another $4,000 to your $66,384. This that hope and change you voted for in 2008. A majority of those 99 percent you talk about are actually in the top 1 percent of wage earners in the world. Anyone making more than $36,000 is in the top 1 percent.

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/24/2011 1:06:47 PM
From: lorne	2 Recommendations Respond to of 224749

ken...This is you, this is what you want and support...There are to many photos and type here to post all...BUT THIS IS YOU AND ALL LIKE YOU! Looking at the Left Zuccotti Utopia: Portraits of The New Revolutionaries The Rise and Demise of the Zuccotti Park Commune November 23, 2011, by El Marco lookingattheleft.com

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/25/2011 8:33:07 AM
From: lorne	1 Recommendation Respond to of 224749

ken... Looney lib Washington state...You might want to be first in line to defend this poor worker who wants to charge a four year old. Security guard in hot water over treatment of 4-year-old shoplifter By Joel Moreno Nov 24, 2011 komonews.com Video of this dangerous offender komonews.com EVERETT, Wash. -- A Safeway security guard is taking heat for the way he questioned a 4-year-old shoplifter in Everett. Little Savannah Harp recently took a trip to the grocery store with her dad. While they were shopping, Savanna took a package of dried fruit from a shelf. "She grabbed a bag of apricots - dried apricots - opened them, ate a couple, put it back and the security guard watched her do it," said the girl's mother, Alissa Jones. Savannah's father didn't notice his daughter's sticky fingers, but a store security guard did. The guard stopped the pair as they left the store and led them back to a break room. "He proceeded to tell them, 'Your daughter stole and she's banned from the store, and we're pressing charges. And she needs to sign this form saying she understands she can't come into any Safeways,'" Jones said. Savannah can't read or write, but the guard, whom Safeway had hired under contract, had her scribble on the paper just the same. "It's pretty troubling," Jones said. "It's not like she even knows what she was doing." Savannah's parents aren't the only ones concerned about the way the situation was handled. Company officials said they are outraged by the incident and have fired the security guard. "Our policies on shoplifting are intended to protect our customers, but built on common sense. And everyone understands what common sense is," said company spokesperson Cherie Myers. "We are as appalled as the parent is. Our division president was absolutely appalled, called the mom and apologized."

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/25/2011 9:29:08 AM
From: joefromspringfield	3 Recommendations Respond to of 224749

It looks like Ken has a chance to get his wish. His state needs to raise taxes or cut services. Higher taxes may be coming his way. Hope you get what you want Ken. "California, the nation's most populous state, and others such as Washington are now considering dramatic cuts in areas where they have already hacked away at spending for years now, including education and healthcare." cnbc.com

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (118212)	11/25/2011 9:31:54 AM
From: Hope Praytochange	3 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224749

Ex-Judge's Disability Rulings Probed By DAMIAN PALETTA Federal prosecutors in West Virginia are investigating a former Social Security Administration judge who awarded disability benefits in nearly every case that crossed his desk, according to people familiar with the investigation. Enlarge Image Close The Herald-Dispatch Former Social Security Judge David B. Daugherty, shown in early 2009. As part of the probe, the U.S. attorney in West Virginia's southern district is looking into whether the judge, David B. Daugherty, received any improper payments in exchange for awarding disability benefits, one person familiar with the probe said. Mr. Daugherty said in an interview he didn't know anything about a federal grand-jury investigation or any improper payments. Federal prosecutors have already presented some details of the case to a grand jury, one of the people said. The probe comes after the Social Security Administration's inspector general spent months investigating Mr. Daugherty, seizing computers and documents from the agency's Huntington, W.Va., appeals office. The agency's move followed a page-one article in The Wall Street Journal that documented Mr. Daugherty's record. The Social Security Administration referred questions to the U.S. attorney's office. Earlier Doctor Revolt Shakes Disability Program (11/21/2011) Social Security Judge Retires Amid Probe (07/18/2011) Disability Program Faces Probe Of Benefits (06/18/2011) Disability Judge Spurs Benefits Investigation (05/20/11) Disability-Claim Judge Has Trouble Saying 'No' (05/19/2011) "We can neither confirm nor deny an investigation into any current or former officer of the Social Security Administration here in the Southern District of West Virginia," said Booth Goodwin, U.S. attorney for the southern district, in a written statement. "However, generally speaking, we are always concerned about any threat to the public fisc and will work to hold individuals accountable if wrongdoing is found and able to be proven." The country's two major disability-benefit programs administered by the Social Security Administration are seeing a rising number of applicants, in part due to the prolonged economic downturn. More than three million people are expected to apply for benefits this year. Enlarge Image Close Social Security judges weigh appeals from applicants for federal disability benefits who have been denied at least twice. Judges are under pressure to handle more cases quickly as part of a broader effort by the Social Security Administration to clear the growing backlog of cases. Efforts to speed up the system have led some judges to approve an unusually large number of cases. The Social Security inspector general is looking into a series of judges who award benefits in a high percentage of cases, people briefed on the review said. The inspector general hasn't alleged any wrongdoing or made its findings public. Mr. Daugherty retired in July after being placed on indefinite leave following the Journal's May article. In 2010, he awarded benefits in all but four of 1,284 decisions. In 2011, before he was put on leave, Mr. Daugherty awarded benefits in all but two of the 1,003 cases he decided. Typically, judges award benefits in about 60% of their cases. Other employees in the Huntington office complained for years about Mr. Daugherty's high award rates and the number of cases he would assign himself from a Kentucky attorney, Eric C. Conn. The Social Security Administration in 2010 paid Mr. Conn $3.8 million in fees for winning benefits for his clients, ranking him third in the nation, according to data obtained under a Freedom of Information Act request. Disability attorneys typically are paid only if their clients win benefits, with the government paying the lawyers' fees and then deducting that from money that would go to the claimant. Both Messrs. Daugherty and Conn have denied any wrongdoing, and neither has been charged with any crime. It couldn't be learned whether Mr. Conn is a subject of the grand-jury investigation. Mr. Conn didn't respond to requests for comment. Administrative-law judges are hired by the government after a lengthy screening process. Their terms are often the equivalent of lifetime appointments, as they are very difficult to fire because they are protected by judicial-independence laws. Social Security administrative-law judges traditionally operate with broad independence but have come under scrutiny in recent months because of a wide disparity in the rate at which they award benefits. Social Security Administration Commissioner Michael Astrue has said that judges who award benefits more than 85% of the time cost taxpayers roughly $1 billion a year. About 130 of 1,500 Social Security judges awarded benefits at that rate in 2011, according to federal data. Lawyers for those seeking benefits complain there is another group of judges who disproportionately deny benefits, making the process uneven and unfair. "Inevitably there are going to be some cases that two reasonable people could differ on, but to have such a large number in this gray area is incredible," said Mark Duggan, a professor of business and public policy at the University of Pennsylvania. "It invites the sense that if I just get lucky, if I try enough times, I'll just get one of the easy judges."