TomAiello
-
Content
12,507 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
2 -
Feedback
0%
Everything posted by TomAiello
-
The real debate is not between the donors and the recipients. It's between the "donors" and the people who finance it. I'm tired of paying for this crap. Why must I continue to do so? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Yes. We're so far in debt that we can't afford to pay the rent--why are we giving money out to people halfway around the world? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Do you mean, are the benefits of the aid to me (a US taxpayer) worth the cost (in my tax dollars)? Or, do you mean, are the benefits of the aid (to the beneficiaries) worth the cost (to me, in my tax dollars)? In either case, I'm going to have to say no. I'm not getting my money's worth from this purchase. I am not given a choice (like getting married, or buying a car) about giving out this aid. If I don't pay my taxes, men with guns show up and take me to jail. Where's the choice? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Did you miss my last post? I, a taxpayer of the United States of America, would prefer not to be forced to pay for the "aid" being given out to third world strongmen and petty dictators. Your repeated "do you want the aid?" makes absolutely no sense in this context. I am not eligible for the aid, I don't want the aid, and I am never going to get the aid. Regardless, I will still be paying for the aid (or rather, my children will, when they try to pay off the loans taken out to provide it). -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Did they tell you that the reason was because your views on nanopower were "not helpful"? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
"Planting doubt" is the basis of scientific advancement. Stifling doubt is the basis of religious orthodoxy. Regardless of motivation, the two actions are not equivalent. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Was I the only one who read about the polar bear expert not being invited to a conference because his views were "unhelpful"? Sounds to me like there are people who are trying to stifle scientific evidence that might lead people to different (political) conclusions than their own. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I'd prefer not to have to pay for it. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Sure. It's also pretty unfair (and arrogant) to assume that someone with "more" life experiences is likely to come to a particular set of views. Sonia Sotomayor definitely had some challenges growing up. But compare her biography with Clarence Thomas, and you'll notice that assuming a particular set of life experiences will lead you to specific conclusions (or even that they will somehow make you "wiser" or "better") is likely erroneous. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Wootton Bassett has the coolest population
TomAiello replied to shropshire's topic in Speakers Corner
Not totally on point, but perhaps related video: http://blip.tv/play/AYGJ5h6YgmE This was apparently a largely spontaneous demonstration. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com -
Actually, knowing Adam, I bet he'd love to do that. He just doesn't want the government (any government) to come into his country, take his things, and then say it's all for the "greater good." You seem to be under the mistaken impression that this is some kind of nationalistic pissing contest about who's country is "better." That's just not so. I have no idea what Errico's point is (honestly, I have trouble deciphering the point in the vast majority of his postings). But I think Adam is making the point that government "aid" is often a double edged sword which is used to subjugate people and reward petty dictators for doing things that "we" want. It's rarely actually simply a desire to help. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I'm sure there are more questions. Things like: What factors contribute to global warming? Are those factors under our control? Can they be changed? Is global warming undesirable? Will the system stabilize itself, or become unstable in the long term? The list goes on.... It seems to me that this is a massively complex topic, and that both sides are trying to make it seem simple--which is the mark of politics, as opposed to science. In politics, you make things seem very simple so that you can sell your position to the public. In science, it would help if there was a bit less political posturing, and a bit more critical thinking. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
He's only changed his face. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
The issue here is not the scientific debate about the actual process of global warming. The issue is that a global warming "orthodoxy" has taken hold and stifles scientific inquiry for political reasons. I don't really have a view about the science of global warming yet. And if real science continues to be stifled by the AGW orthodoxy, I'm unfortunately going to have a great deal of trouble actually seeing various expert opinions, to help me form my own thoughts. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Aside from it's total irrelevance to Adam's point, you mean? Adam calculated the budget for USAID, then divided by the number of people you had said it saved from starvation, to come to the result that it spent $5 per person per year. He implied that this was obviously not enough to be solely responsible for their not starving. Turtle replied that USAID had been around for longer than 1 year. That's factually correct, but a total non sequiter. It has nothing to do with the budget calculation that Adam had made. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
I believe it can be found just north of Virginia. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
GM is Out of Bankruptcy, Will You Buy a GM Car Now?
TomAiello replied to Gawain's topic in Speakers Corner
Any idea how much each American is paying for those cars, whether or not they actually get one to drive? Not quite sure I understand what you are asking. I was asking what the cost per taxpayer is of the current GM production. How much does each American pay for those cars, which they will not get to drive (unless they pay even more to "buy" one of the cars which they've already paid for)? Based on that logic, we should all buy GM cars. Sure. The more we can pump up GM sales, the less it will cost the taxpayers. Do the patriotic thing, and buy GM (and Chrysler)! Unpatriotic Fords should be avoided, though. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com -
GM is Out of Bankruptcy, Will You Buy a GM Car Now?
TomAiello replied to Gawain's topic in Speakers Corner
Any idea how much each American is paying for those cars, whether or not they actually get one to drive? Not quite sure I understand what you are asking. I was asking what the cost per taxpayer is of the current GM production. How much does each American pay for those cars, which they will not get to drive (unless they pay even more to "buy" one of the cars which they've already paid for)? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com -
That's a tremendously bigoted statement. Stereotype much? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Please desist from making personal attacks on other posters. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
In the final analysis, we are all foreigners (or not) depending on where you draw the borders. Are the chinese "foreign occupiers" in Tibet? What about Xinjian? Manchuria? Would national guardsmen from Connecticut be considered foreign occupiers if they were deployed to New Orleans? -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Kallend is a professor, in the sense that he has a career as an instructor at the college level. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Waiting on the chorus of denunciations we hear whenever someone uses a name like that for the current president.... Like, for example, Obushma? Sure, if you like. Although "Obushma" is a bit more than a pejorative. It encapsulates nicely the idea that Obama is simply following along, and enlarging, the Bush agenda. If you prefer, though, I might consider calling him "Peach." -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Estrada didn't make it that far, so it's possible they are correct. On the other hand, there is something to be said for the Hispanic heritage of Justice Cardozo. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com
-
Honestly, she's far from my favorite for a seat on the SCOTUS (I think I'd go with Chip Mellor, followed closely by Robert Levy), but with the current President and Senate, I think we could have done a hell of a lot worse. I think this is a losing issue for the GOP, and they ought to stick to real inquiries, make their doubts known, and then get to a vote so they're all on record. The outcome isn't in doubt. -- Tom Aiello Tom@SnakeRiverBASE.com SnakeRiverBASE.com