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

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (123087)	2/2/2012 8:58:24 AM
From: TideGlider	2 Recommendations Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 224648

We will have to let the IRS sort that out. Like Geitner and Kerry, mistakes are made and taxes are paid later if that is the case. You shouldn't get your Ganny panties in a bunch over it.

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (123087)	2/2/2012 9:17:22 AM
From: TideGlider	2 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224648

Kenneth, wasn't there a debate when the rules were made? I wonder what Buffett paid on his gifts to his children? Why should the government claim money that would obviously go to the selected heirs? The idea is obscene. Perhaps we should have a debate and possibly end all taxes between family members dead or alive. BTW Geitner and Kerry don't fall into that. They were just cheating. lol

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (123087)	2/2/2012 9:21:03 AM
From: Hope Praytochange	3 Recommendations Respond to of 224648

did tim tax cheater paid his income taxes ?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (123087)	2/2/2012 9:21:26 AM
From: Hope Praytochange	2 Recommendations Respond to of 224648

Gov't Hits Businesses With More Job-Killing Rules By ERIC SINGER Posted 06:34 PM ET The nation was recently treated to a decision by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that certain employers may not require employees to have a high school diploma because it might violate the Americans with Disabilities Act. Clearly, the EEOC has lost its marbles. During the weakest "recovery" in the economy since the Great Depression, with the longest sustained high unemployment, the EEOC has created a new Gotcha Game to make employers ever more hesitant on hiring. It is astonishing that the EEOC can engage in such nonsense. That said, it is truly unfortunate that there are students suffering hits to their self-esteem. In fact, American high school students are falling behind countries such as Jordan in math skills and recently ranked 15th among 16 developed countries in math and dead last in physics. I am particularly concerned that this syndrome has continued into college years. I suppose it's a lot like "The Wizard of Oz," where the Scarecrow was given a diploma because that was only difference between him and great thinkers. Since we seem to be living in the Land of Oz, it's time to follow through on the real wrong that the EEOC was addressing: how to prevent the loss of self-esteem that one suffers when one is unable to graduate from high school. To this end, it is essential for the president to establish a national surplus grade bank, particularly at the college level. Students with GPAs over 2.0 (that's a C average for those of you unused to grades) would have their excess GPAs swept into a surplus grade bank in order to help those students suffering the self-esteem issues that come with, say, failing to graduate from high school. Obviously, this would help us the most in physics, where we rank dead last among developed countries. And just in the nick of time, because physics has something to do with inventing the next iPhone. This breakthrough in the proper reallocation of grades would also help us in the foreign policy arena. U.S. students could supplement the grades of, say, students of the Indian Institutes of Technology, where only one of 50 applicants is accepted. When it comes to donating self-esteem, why stop with our borders when we can do so much to help those overseas? In fact, one could argue that the drift toward federalized mediocrity in American education at least has the side benefit of making other countries less concerned about us as a long-term competitor. As with our standing among international cricket competitors, this is also likely to generate valuable goodwill. Our persistent failure to show a meaningful presence in cricket has only served to remind the world just how committed we are to social justice. Reallocating our surplus grade pool would also give our students a valuable insight into time management. Given the chance to help the less fortunate, most students will understand that it is important to allocate more time to personal growth and supporting the less-fortunate students than it is to engage in the elitism of grinding out boring grades. The additional free time for students should also be a boost for the economy as they can spend more money when they're not studying. If we're lucky, it may also provide a boost for population growth. The students will have to find something to do with all that excess time. One thing I'm very concerned about is grade inflation, a problem building the past 100 years. Given the ease with which we all share information now through the Internet, everyone is an A student. Now anyone can know which day Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Knowing that the excess grades will be swept into a surplus grade bank should help to prevent those apple polishers from piling on the way they used to get good grades. Those of you reading this know to whom I am referring. Yes, that means you. Less apple polishing will mean less grade inflation. Taken as a whole, creating a surplus grade bank is consistent with the EEOC's recent initiative and would have wider benefits. It would also provide rhetorical support for changing the EEOC's name to the Equal Employment Outcome Commission. Ben Franklin once said, "The U.S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself." Thanks to the EEOC, we can all do that at a leisurely pace, and no one will be allowed to get too overexerted.