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[pigeon]

All we've seen though is a proliferation of tax deductions for varied interest groups. There's also something to be said for simplicity in the tax code itself.

Every government action can, with sufficient motivation, be understood as a handout to an interest group. For example, the biggest tax deduction, mortgage interest, can be analyzed as a handout to the interest group of "people who want to own houses." But I don't think that analysis is particularly meaningful and I would say that's not a correct understanding of the tax code. The vast majority of deductions exist specifically to incentivize behavior Congress thinks is important to society, like buying real estate, investing capital rather than leaving it lying around, giving to charity, etc., etc.

You might dispute the importance of incentivizing a particular behavior, or dispute that a particular incentive is working correctly, but it seems pretty facile to dismiss the whole policy set as handouts to interest groups and suggest that the government just shouldn't incentivize behavior with the tax code.

Frankly I think if the goal is to reduce complication as experienced by the citizen Warren has the right idea. Just have the IRS do your taxes for you unless you're super rich or complicated, and send them to you to sign off on.

 

[Abinash117]

It is going to be real funny once the primary is all said and done, that Sanders outspent Hillary and still lost.

 

[The Lamonster]

I won't use $20 bills unless they put Bernie's face on them.

#financialpurity #bernieorbust

 

[VendettaRed07]

I wonder if the people saying they're voting for Jill Stein even know some of the Green party's anti-science nonsense like anti-flouride in water and GMOs and stuff.

I don't think people who vote for Jill Stein really care very much what she even believes or supports. Voting for Green is just a way to feel special/different and be "above" the "system"

 

[Dubbedinenglish]

I won't use $20 bills unless they put Bernie's face on them.

#financialpurity #bernieorbust

Then Bernie would literally be inside the big banks' coffers?!?

 

[Trancos]

So this video of the Illinois BOE meeting that some people are circulating as proof of fraud.
They are basically objecting the 5% audit that they do before making the final results official.

In a ideal world the official results would match 1:1 what people voted, but that never happens for so many reasons.
Poll workers are not trained enough, Votes get lost, people miscount, people forget to sign, people suck at math, people want to go home etc.
I'm not justifying unethical or negligent behaviour. I'm just saying out of the thousand of poll workers it happens every time.

My point is that ALL elections have counting errors.
I'm sure that you can recount any election 3 times and you will get 3 different results. 99.99% of the time not even enough to move a 0.1% of the vote.
The fact that there was issues doesn't prove that there was massive organised fraud or that there was enough of it to change the winner or the number of delegates.

heck, even in congress most of the time there is more votes than people attending the session.

I think the moral is that candidates know that there is always a margin of error.
At some point of the video the chairman of the BOE inform people that the right path to dispute an election result is through a court order and not at that meeting.
None took the court route. Nor did the candidates.

I hope we can get to a point where people vote with TOUCH ID on their phones and there are no errors at all.
But until then expecting an election with 0% errors means that no election official results will ever be approved.

 

[Iolo]

I won't use $20 bills unless they put Bernie's face on them.

#financialpurity #bernieorbust

In the spirit of breaking up the bank, let's put him instead on four $5s.

 

[BotoxAgent]

I won't use $20 bills unless they put Bernie's face on them.

#financialpurity #bernieorbust

LOL

 

[plagiarize]

That would be pretty inefficient though. Cap and trade or a carbon tax would be better.

How would that incentivize people to buy electric cars or to make energy saving improvements to their home though?

There is already federal tax credits and deductions for such items. I don't want that behavior to have its incentives taken away. So if you want to simplify taxes... move those things to point of sale rebates. There has already been attempts to change the electric car tax credit into a point of sale rebate, but it was blocked thanks to dealerships lobbying about the extra paper work it would generate for them (really though, dealerships generally don't like EVs for various reasons and would be happier if they weren't incentivized).

 

[Plinko]

Anyone else notice that Trump toning down his rhetoric and staying out of the spotlight almost coincided with him bringing in a new campaign adviser?

 

[VendettaRed07]

But seriously is there actual wedge issue that would prevent someone with supposed ambition like Jill Stein from running as a democrat and actually winning a seat somewhere? There are plenty of states where more Green Party values are viable. Bernie is proof of this.

It just comes across to me that the only real application of the Green party and people in is the desire to be the face of a protest vote.

 

[Aaron Strife]

Gwen Graham is giving up her seat in Congress, "strongly considering" a run for governor in 2018.

I mean, she's already demonstrated she can win some pretty heavily Republican areas even in a midterm election, so that's a solid get.

 

[Prodigal Son]

Bernie & Hillary - Bad Lip Reading

 

[FiggyCal]

While I definitely praise the move to put Tubman on the 20, I'm personally in favor of moving to these for our currency:

It removes individuals from our currency completely and shifts to the essence of what America is: the geography and our scientific and economic accomplishments. Plus, it looks badass.

I'm not really a big fan of the different sizes for bills.

 

[Spoiled Milk]

Gwen Graham is giving up her seat in Congress, "strongly considering" a run for governor in 2018.

I mean, she's already demonstrated she can win some pretty heavily Republican areas even in a midterm election, so that's a solid get.

YEAAAAAAH Rick Scott can eat me! Now all we need to do is find a new Ann Richards and we'll have the governships of the four most populous states.

 

[Captain Pants]

I'm not really a big fan of the different sizes for bills.

It'd be nice for blind folks, I imagine.

 

[blackaroni]

I had no clue there was a town hall today.

 

[kess]

It removes individuals from our currency completely and shifts to the essence of what America is: the geography and our scientific and economic accomplishments. Plus, it looks badass.

Where are the eagles and engravings and heavy typefaces god

 

[teiresias]

Someone I know who hasn't voted in her entire life said she wasn't going to vote for Hillary on my Facebook.

So at least I get some ease from noticing that nearly all of the Bernie or Bust people either never voted or voted for Ron Paul, so their lack of a vote doesn't really seem like it'll matter.

On that same episode of Diane Rehm, some 60-something man from Texas called in, who was planning to vote for Trump, and went on about how the system was broken because of the electoral college and how his vote won't count and how this country needs change badly.

Of course, this man complaining about everything and how we need change said he'd never voted in his entire life.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

Yeah, I've always interpreted voting Green as nothing more than a protest vote. Nobody who votes for them thinks they could win. And I'd imagine not many of them know the platform beyond and vague notion of "third party that's more liberal than dems." It's just a way to feel above the system.

 

[Aaron Strife]

YEAAAAAAH Rick Scott can eat me! Now all we need to do is find a new Ann Richards and we'll have the governships of the four most populous states.

Wendy Davis, baby!

(As much as I love her, a candidate whose primary fame was for supporting abortion is probably the wrong kind of candidate to run with in Texas)

Yeah, I've always interpreted voting Green as nothing more than a protest vote. Nobody who votes for them thinks they could win. And I'd imagine not many of them know the platform beyond and vague notion of "third party that's more liberal than dems." It's just a way to feel above the system.

Judging by my friends who went from "If every Bernie supporter writes his name in in November, he'll win!" to "I'm voting for JILL STEIN" I would be very surprised if there was literally no one delusional enough to think she could win.

 

[Spoiled Milk]

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/04/michelle-obama-on-hillary-clinton-222211

Michelle calls Hillary a phenomenal woman. I thought she hated her and thought the Clintons were all about money and power.

Wendy Davis, baby!

(As much as I love her, a candidate whose primary fame was for supporting abortion is probably the wrong kind of candidate to run with in Texas)

YEAAAAAAAH BABY Wendy Davis!!

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2014/governor/tx/texas_governor_abbott_vs_davis-3596.html

20 point spread

...oh...

 

[Macho Madness]

IN poll early next week.

 

[CCS]

Serious talk: since we were talking about GMOs, is any company more undeservingly reviled by pretty much everyone than Monsanto? I'm not saying they're perfect, but you'd think they were single handedly trying to end the world given how much people seem to have them.

 

[Spoiled Milk]

Serious talk: since we were talking about GMOs, is any company more undeservingly reviled by pretty much everyone than Monsanto? I'm not saying they're perfect, but you'd think they were single handedly trying to end the world given how much people seem to have them.

Wal-Mart, British Petroleum, Goldman Sachs.

 

[Anoregon]

Man I can't get over that Cruz anti-Hillary video. Just everything about it. Fine-ass fake Huma, super scowly Clinton, the entire implication that her campaign would be so stymied as to essentially give up due to Cruz just like, existing.

"Oh well I guess we better pack in it, he has a proven track record."

Unintentional parody is best parody.

 

[Ophelion]

Comic Book Villain Hillary

lol Cruz

Oh man, that was great. I just imagine one final scene where after it cuts to black, the camera pans down to see Cruz dreamily looking up from the direction the camera came from. You realize the whole thing was a daydream Cruz was having when he was supposed to be answering the questions the press are putting to him about how he's losing the primary to a reality TV show host.

I legitimately laughed out loud at the, "How do we stop Ted Cruz?!" bit. The Pulp Fiction glow on Evil Hillary's face when she opened the folder was a nice touch too. Haha, so stupid.

 

[Macho Madness]

You know how the video isn't based in reality?

When she saw Ted Cruz's picture, she didn't burst out laughing.

 

[CCS]

Wal-Mart, British Petroleum, Goldman Sachs.

Last two I'd accept. Wal-Mart, although it is sometimes overblown, are genuinely shitty though.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

Serious talk: since we were talking about GMOs, is any company more undeservingly reviled by pretty much everyone than Monsanto? I'm not saying they're perfect, but you'd think they were single handedly trying to end the world given how much people seem to have them.

I'll tell you in a few days. My checks from Walmart haven't come in yet.

 

[Fenderputty]

Serious talk: since we were talking about GMOs, is any company more undeservingly reviled by pretty much everyone than Monsanto? I'm not saying they're perfect, but you'd think they were single handedly trying to end the world given how much people seem to have them.

I've heard that their seeds of death thing was overblown as are a lot of the attacks against them. My vegan brother in law, who questioned getting vaccines for their children, is convinced they're the devil and hates GMO's and also their products. Curious if anyone knows of any good sources of material (besides that SLATE article) that kinda refutes a lot of the mud slung their way.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

this whole money thing has been kind of a disaster.

Just axe Jackson, stick Tubman on the 20 and change some of the art on the 5 and be done with it.

They're just making everything worse here trying to compromise.

Maybe that's why they announced it 14 years in advance. Who is going to remember to be outraged for over a decade?

Also, I'm fine with completely redoing the money. Washington and Lincoln were great men, sure, but we've also done a fair amount to honor them; we've built them monuments, named schools and roads and cities and states after them, we even carved their faces into a goddamn mountain. No one is going to forget who they are if they no longer adorn our most disappointing currency ("sweet there's cash in this pocket... oh, it's only a dollar"). There are too many important people in American history to decide "nope, only these 5 guys will be on currency forever."

 

[CCS]

I've heard that their seeds of death thing was overblown as are a lot of the attacks against them. My vegan brother in law, who questioned getting vaccines for their children, is convinced they're the devil and hates GMO's and also their products. Curious if anyone knows of any good sources of material (besides that SLATE article) that kinda refutes a lot of the mud slung their way.

This one is quite good I think.

 

[Holmes]

I have a feeling today will be a little slow.

 

[pigeon]

Yeah, I've always interpreted voting Green as nothing more than a protest vote. Nobody who votes for them thinks they could win. And I'd imagine not many of them know the platform beyond and vague notion of "third party that's more liberal than dems." It's just a way to feel above the system.

I think this is largely true but not particularly problematic. Voting Green is a very clear way to communicate to the Democratic Party that you are generally liberal but think the Democrats are too centrist. It's a protest vote, but it's an easily understood and recorded protest vote. If the Green vote starts growing towards 5% you can expect the Democrats to make a move in order to recapture those voters. It's a lot better than not voting or voting for Roseanne Barr or whatever.

 

[TyrantII]

But seriously is there actual wedge issue that would prevent someone with supposed ambition like Jill Stein from running as a democrat and actually winning a seat somewhere? There are plenty of states where more Green Party values are viable. Bernie is proof of this.

It just comes across to me that the only real application of the Green party and people in is the desire to be the face of a protest vote.

Yes, it's absolutely ego.

Growing a constituent within a major party, changing minds, and governing is hard.

It's easier to just to protest, go home, and pat yourself on the back.

 

[Mael]

So this video of the Illinois BOE meeting that some people are circulating as proof of fraud.
They are basically objecting the 5% audit that they do before making the final results official.

In a ideal world the official results would match 1:1 what people voted, but that never happens for so many reasons.
Poll workers are not trained enough, Votes get lost, people miscount, people forget to sign, people suck at math, people want to go home etc.
I'm not justifying unethical or negligent behaviour. I'm just saying out of the thousand of poll workers it happens every time.

My point is that ALL elections have counting errors.
I'm sure that you can recount any election 3 times and you will get 3 different results. 99.99% of the time not even enough to move a 0.1% of the vote.
The fact that there was issues doesn't prove that there was massive organised fraud or that there was enough of it to change the winner or the number of delegates.

heck, even in congress most of the time there is more votes than people attending the session.

I think the moral is that candidates know that there is always a margin of error.
At some point of the video the chairman of the BOE inform people that the right path to dispute an election result is through a court order and not at that meeting.
None took the court route. Nor did the candidates.

I hope we can get to a point where people vote with TOUCH ID on their phones and there are no errors at all.
But until then expecting an election with 0% errors means that no election official results will ever be approved.

Wut?
Is that an american thing?
I'm not even sure I understand how that is even possible to get errors on ballots!
You have a list of people voting, you have the ballots cast and you have a range of people making sure that only 1 ballot is cast by 1 person and you can explain the differences.
You can have your overly complicated ballot sheet with 15 boxes to fill as long as you put the ballot in an envelop that you then cast into a clear box there should be no issue AT ALL.
how can there be miscounts in such a simple system?
If you're that scared about voter fraud or something just require to provide a valid verified address to the list and prosecute the people that try to cheat the system.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

Maybe that's why they announced it 14 years in advance. Who is going to remember to be outraged for over a decade?

Also, I'm fine with completely redoing the money. Washington and Lincoln were great men, sure, but we've also done a fair amount to honor them; we've built them monuments, named schools and roads and cities and states after them, we even carved their faces into a goddamn mountain. No one is going to forget who they are if they no longer adorn our most disappointing currency ("sweet there's cash in this pocket... oh, it's only a dollar"). There are too many important people in American history to decide "nope, only these 5 guys will be on currency forever."

George has been on our money since the 1800s. George on the one dollar is just way too iconic. It's basically a universally understood symbol for money

The rest they can replace, but I really do think George needs to stay.

 

[soul creator]

Thought this was an interesting old Supreme Court case, in reference to the NY primary registration dates: http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/410/752.html

register me as American Independent Party if old/already discussed

 

[Trancos]

Wut?
Is that an american thing?
I'm not even sure I understand how that is even possible to get errors on ballots!
You have a list of people voting, you have the ballots cast and you have a range of people making sure that only 1 ballot is cast by 1 person and you can explain the differences.
You can have your overly complicated ballot sheet with 15 boxes to fill as long as you put the ballot in an envelop that you then cast into a clear box there should be no issue AT ALL.
how can there be miscounts in such a simple system?
If you're that scared about voter fraud or something just require to provide a valid verified address to the list and prosecute the people that try to cheat the system.

PLEASE don't turn this thing into 'Stupid Americans, let me explain democracy, progressive ideas and welfare to you'

I can assure you that every country that has humans handling any part of the polling process have errors.

 

[Macho Madness]

Monmouth

Maryland

Clinton 57
Sanders 32

Van Hollen 52
Edwards 36

 

[Lucky Forward]

Comic Book Villain Hillary

lol Cruz

That reminded me of the 1988 Dukakis ad that took us inside Bush campaign headquarters:

http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/commercials/1988/crazy

 

[Trancos]

Comic Book Villain Hillary

lol Cruz

BTW I just love this. Please Cruz make more, moaaaaaaare.

Monmouth

Maryland

Clinton 57
Sanders 32

Van Hollen 52
Edwards 36

MD looking like a 'deep south' state margin isn't?

 

[kess]

I'm for bringing back Six Pack Lady Liberty

 

[Loudninja]

Monmouth

Maryland

Clinton 57
Sanders 32

Van Hollen 52
Edwards 36

Damn.

 

[Mael]

PLEASE don't turn this thing into 'Stupid Americans, let me explain democracy, progressive ideas and welfare to you'

I can assure you that every country that has human handling any part of the polling process have errors.

polling? absolutely.
Voting? off course not!
there shouldn't be an issue with counting votes and making sure there hasn't been an issue on if someone voted or not!
This isn't "Stupid american" thing either and it's not about being progressive or even related to welfare at all.
If you hold up an election there shouldn't be an issue demonstrating that you can explain all errors away (the null votes are null for a reason after all).
If we're talking about polling that's something else entirely.

 

[Holmes]

Damn, so it's Van Hollen.

 

[Orbis Tabula]

I think this is largely true but not particularly problematic. Voting Green is a very clear way to communicate to the Democratic Party that you are generally liberal but think the Democrats are too centrist. It's a protest vote, but it's an easily understood and recorded protest vote. If the Green vote starts growing towards 5% you can expect the Democrats to make a move in order to recapture those voters. It's a lot better than not voting or voting for Roseanne Barr or whatever.

Yeah, very good point. Agreed.

 

[Fenderputty]

This one is quite good I think.

Thanks!

 

[blackaroni]

I have a feeling today will be a little slow.

Does Bill have any campaign stops today? I'm sure he can help change that.