Intermarkets' Privacy Policy
Support


Donate to Ace of Spades HQ!



Recent Entries
Absent Friends
Bandersnatch 2024
GnuBreed 2024
Captain Hate 2023
moon_over_vermont 2023
westminsterdogshow 2023
Ann Wilson(Empire1) 2022
Dave In Texas 2022
Jesse in D.C. 2022
OregonMuse 2022
redc1c4 2021
Tami 2021
Chavez the Hugo 2020
Ibguy 2020
Rickl 2019
Joffen 2014
AoSHQ Writers Group
A site for members of the Horde to post their stories seeking beta readers, editing help, brainstorming, and story ideas. Also to share links to potential publishing outlets, writing help sites, and videos posting tips to get published. Contact OrangeEnt for info:
maildrop62 at proton dot me
Cutting The Cord And Email Security
Moron Meet-Ups





















« Moron Mini-meetups: Atlas Shrugged Opens Friday Night | Main | Suckers: We Were Fooled; Budget Barely Cuts Anything »
April 12, 2011

Important Budget Stuff That's All Stolen From Hot Air

I've been avoiding this because it's embarrassing to keep linking and swiping but it's important stuff.

By a 20 point margin, the public favors the budget deal. 58% to 38%.

Now, here's the weird, frustrating thing:

By a 48 to 35 percent margin, the public thinks Democrats are more responsible than the GOP for the late Friday night agreement, which prevented a shutdown of some government services and offices.

What? Both sides came to a deal but by 48% to 35% they credit one side as responsible for it? This is a poll of adults, not likely voters, but it shows this continuing, frustrating identification with the Democratic Party that almost half the country has.

Now, as for the deal being popular: I would say that gives the GOP a green light to push for further cuts in the debt ceiling debate and 2012 budget. Maybe the country thinks $38.5 billion is the exact amount necessary to cut and will punish anyone seeking more, but there's no reason to think that's likely the case; it's more likely that if they liked $38.5 billion they'll like $60 billion or $100 billion or even a trillion even more.

I am frustrated with a certain segment of the public that is just apolitical and seems to have few strong opinions at all, other than their apparent belief that democratic processes are "disgusting."

A weekend survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Washington Post finds that “ridiculous” is the word used most frequently to describe the budget negotiations, followed by “disgusting,” “frustrating,” “messy,” “disappointing” and “stupid.”

Overall, 69% of respondents use negative terms to describe the budget talks, while just 3% use positive words; 16% use neutral words to characterize their impressions of the negotiations. Large majorities of independents (74%), Democrats (69%) and Republicans (65%) offer negative terms to describe the negotiations.

I can imagine that many political-attuned people might describe the negotiations that way because they're either frustrated that the other side won't give or their own side isn't fighting hard enough; that's an understandable thing.

But look at all the "independents" describing the negotiations negatively. Many independents -- and I mean here the apathetic, unexamined-life sort of people who are independent not due to a true informed choice but rather because they haven't even bothered figuring out what they believe -- are calling the negotiations "disgusting."

What do they mean? Presumably -- this has always been my sense -- they don't like political controversies because they tend to force them to take a position, which is what they don't want to do, and they want to be left out of it. They seem to like their politics in background, not fussing them. They don't like when there's news happening and people trying to persuade them; they want to just be left out of it.

So when a big issue is on the table, instead of actually taking a position, they tend to take the position that both sides are bad and they should just come to a compromise and shut up.

It's frustrating that they're like that. Sorry to bother you with great matters of national policy that will affect future generations for 100 years. So sorry we brought this matter to your attention.

On the other hand, this kind of doltish, uninformed voter (again, I speak of the lazy independents, not the true independents of considered choice) will tend to go along with anything once it's passed.

It's passed? Oh, no more arguing? Good, I'm in favor of it then.

This means that with this critical subgroup we can, as the hardliners say, do an awful lot of stuff they don't like, or don't think they like, but the moment the deal is done they'll tend to approve it, because they just tend to approve the status quo and whatever result is imposed on them. As long as they are spared the arguing.

The budget deal is only, at best, a tentative first step, but there are some boons in it I didn't know about.

The CR terminates funding for more than 55 programs, for a total savings of well over $1 billion. In addition, the bill terminates two programs funded in ObamaCare (the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO-OP) and the Free Choice Voucher programs).

Small-ball stuff, price-tag wise -- 55 programs eliminated but only $1 billion saved? Nevertheless, it's a good thing to start cutting back on all these government programs.

As for the ObamaCare stuff, that's important symbolically. It is some progress towards repeal, even if not much.

In addition, four "czars" were defunded -- Health Care, Climate Change, Automobiles, and Urban Affairs. Two of those are redundant and the other two are, what's the word I'm looking for, stupid.

Here's one more good thing in the budget: Defense's budget was raised by $5 billion increase from FY10.

Now, I actually think that even the DoD must face some cuts, so I'm not applauding the increase in spending per se. But if DoD actually got a $5 billion boost, that means the cuts to everything else are $5 billion higher, right?

If the total cuts were $38.5 billion, but defense got a $5 billion boost, the rest of the cuts would have to be $43.5 billion, right?

Still not a lot, still not enough, but it's something.


digg this
posted by Ace at 03:08 PM

| Access Comments




Recent Comments
Ben Had: "Pug, you will both be missed. I so enjoyed seei ..."

four seasons: " Internet has been out all day, so probably this ..."

Pug Mahon, Balding American: "It pains me and the missus that we won't be in Tex ..."

[/i][/b]andycanuck (hovnC)[/s][/u]: "She is bleeding badly in the working class SE of t ..."

TeeJ: " - Sagan and his ilk. He would have been so excite ..."

Dave in Fla: "Looking forward to that hug :) ..."

Stephen Price Blair: "[i]you do know what your obligation is, right?[/i] ..."

Dave in Fla: "Yeah, I was pulling ammo out of the gun safe for t ..."

Ben Had: "Stephen Price Blair, you do know what your obliga ..."

Stephen Price Blair: "[i]Then y'all can suffer through my bitching about ..."

Ben Had: "Dave in Fla, we are a respite for the road weary ..."

Eromero: "She is bleeding badly in the working class SE of t ..."

Recent Entries
Search


Polls! Polls! Polls!
Frequently Asked Questions
The (Almost) Complete Paul Anka Integrity Kick
Top Top Tens
Greatest Hitjobs

The Ace of Spades HQ Sex-for-Money Skankathon
A D&D Guide to the Democratic Candidates
Margaret Cho: Just Not Funny
More Margaret Cho Abuse
Margaret Cho: Still Not Funny
Iraqi Prisoner Claims He Was Raped... By Woman
Wonkette Announces "Morning Zoo" Format
John Kerry's "Plan" Causes Surrender of Moqtada al-Sadr's Militia
World Muslim Leaders Apologize for Nick Berg's Beheading
Michael Moore Goes on Lunchtime Manhattan Death-Spree
Milestone: Oliver Willis Posts 400th "Fake News Article" Referencing Britney Spears
Liberal Economists Rue a "New Decade of Greed"
Artificial Insouciance: Maureen Dowd's Word Processor Revolts Against Her Numbing Imbecility
Intelligence Officials Eye Blogs for Tips
They Done Found Us Out, Cletus: Intrepid Internet Detective Figures Out Our Master Plan
Shock: Josh Marshall Almost Mentions Sarin Discovery in Iraq
Leather-Clad Biker Freaks Terrorize Australian Town
When Clinton Was President, Torture Was Cool
What Wonkette Means When She Explains What Tina Brown Means
Wonkette's Stand-Up Act
Wankette HQ Gay-Rumors Du Jour
Here's What's Bugging Me: Goose and Slider
My Own Micah Wright Style Confession of Dishonesty
Outraged "Conservatives" React to the FMA
An On-Line Impression of Dennis Miller Having Sex with a Kodiak Bear
The Story the Rightwing Media Refuses to Report!
Our Lunch with David "Glengarry Glen Ross" Mamet
The House of Love: Paul Krugman
A Michael Moore Mystery (TM)
The Dowd-O-Matic!
Liberal Consistency and Other Myths
Kepler's Laws of Liberal Media Bias
John Kerry-- The Splunge! Candidate
"Divisive" Politics & "Attacks on Patriotism" (very long)
The Donkey ("The Raven" parody)
Powered by
Movable Type 2.64