When the time comes for cuts, there are plenty of pure-fat organizations and state-federal redundancies (DoEnergy, DoEdu, DoHS, the NEA...) that we could make a pretty big chunk of the 40% go away if we really wanted to. But it's so easy to make a bad guy out of someone who wants to cut a program. All it takes is the town organist crying "think of the children!" Even though every state has a department of education, we still have to have a federal one? Even though every state has building codes, we have to have federal ones? It's ridiculous.

The efficiency technology brings makes accomodating more people easier. Citing the last 200 years as some sort of failure of the market is ridiculous. As soon as flush toilets were available, for example, people started buying them. It wasn't a government act--they don't invent the things that make life better.

uber, Stossel is not a conservative. He is a libertarian. Marx was a communist/socialist. Those are diametric opposites. But you already knew that. You're just trying to get people upset so you feel better about yourself. Really, you just give people a chance to review the facts. Thank you for giving us a bad example not to follow.

You are prejudiced against about a third to half of the population. And yet, John Stossel is not in that half. He's not a conservative. He's a libertarian. He wants equal rights for all. You want special rights for some. That's all. Stossel doesn't despise handicaps. He wants us to emply them more. To do that, we need to repeal the ADA. Don't you want disabled people to have jobs?

That is, until we've had a 2.11 replacement rate AND a manageable non-working elderly population. And liberals certainly are working on that by supporting abortion and euthanasia. (Dig)

You are slightly wrong. People pay a certain PERCENTAGE of their income up to $106,800. Mr. Gates, if he still receives "income" at all, pays 7.65% of $106,800 toward SS = $8170.20 The cleaning lady pays 7.65% of 20k or whatever she earns, which is obviously less than $106,800. (Or if it's not less, more power to her.)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'm happy to pay a reduced FICA for the people retiring. But I don't want social security. I am young. Insurance is dirt cheap for me, and I have lots of it. If I became permenently disabled right now, my wife and I would be sitting on a pile of ingots. By the time I'm old, I'll switch over to savings, diversified to include commodities, debt instruments, equity instruments and land. I do not want social security. I'll pay your part, old-timer, but they should re-jig the thing so I don't have to participate in full.

They'll print it. Inflation devalues former debt along with the dollar. It's a sick game, but they'll do it, damn the consequences.

China is doing the American Oil Trick with T-Bills. America has a huge oil reserve we're not touching on purpose. Eventually, when oil is $500/barrel or whatever, the flood gates will open and we'll be fithy rich again. China's counter-balance to this is to buy our T-Bills until it's convenient for them to stop, leaving us addicted... and high and dry. Every country that's been around for a couple centuries or more while is playing the Long Con (including Persia). You gotta have an ace in the hole.

uber, nice to see you again. You'll catch a lot of fish again today as always. Damned cannibal.