Government Shutdown

[IndigoErth]

Well, as I posted in the gear grind thread a little bit ago, I just found that, should I need to file a possible medical identity theft with the FTC because I got a bill in the mail from VSP vision care who I am not a customer of, I can't because that part of the FTC's website and services are closed down.

I hope calling that company's customer number or their fraud number I found via their site will be enough. But how can I ever really know that someone isn't trying to use my info.



edit: And should the shutdown last for "months" as Trump has proudly claimed if he has to.... well, then no one is getting their tax refund when they would normally expect it, so sooner or later all will notice. (But you still gotta file.)

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by IndigoErth

edit: And should the shutdown last for "months" as Trump has proudly claimed if he has to.... well, then no one is getting their tax refund when they would normally expect it, so sooner or later all will notice. (But you still gotta file.)

Not true.

[IndigoErth]

Well good. I see that article is from today. Others prior were saying it would be delayed.

[Autbot_Benz]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

So the government has been (partially) shut down for a couple of weeks now. Thoughts?

All because of Trump and his stupid Border Wall. I feel for all those government workers who are furloughed who won't get paid because of the orange Idiot.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by Autbot_Benz

All because of Trump and his stupid Border Wall.

Or conversely, because of the Democrats and their unwillingness to budge on a meager 5 billion dollars for border security.

I feel for all those government workers who are furloughed who won't get paid because of the orange Idiot.

They'll get paid eventually. It sucks, but this is part of the risk in working in government. As with the last shutdown, and the one before that. This isn't some new concept at play here.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Or conversely, because of the Democrats and their unwillingness to budge on a meager 5 billion dollars for border security.

Support the wall or not, we should NOT be throwing around the word "meager" when it comes to billions.

The national debt, combining the populace and the government, is upwards of $20 trillion. That bubble's gonna burst sometime... throwing $5 billion for anti-Mexican bricks isn't gonna help matters.

[Voltron]

$5 billion is way too much money.

AMERICANS SHOULD NOT PAY FOR THE WALL.

I was assured, time and again, that Mexico would not only pay for the wall, but they'd be happy to do so. Where are the pesos?

[Andrew NDB]

But even when well over 100 billion is spent yearly on deporting illegal immigrants that are caught, or the 90% of "asylum seekers" whose claims are deemed by a judge to be invalid are sent back with bed and breakfast and free airfare to their country? You're telling me 5 billion is a lot in this equation?

Even if 10% is staved away by this in a given year... we've saved money.

[Mayhem]

Walls don't work. Unless you are going to patrol and monitor and arm it along the entire length like they did in Berlin. Thing is, the Berlin Wall was magnitudes shorter than the proposed wall here, and people got through. You put just a wall up, nothing else, people are still going to go over and under it.

Besides, the majority of illegals in the US came in through legal routes and have overstayed and/or never gone back.

So I'm not surprised the Democrats are objecting because it will be a waste of money.

And I'm really not surprised by this either: http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/...-not-know.html

[Candy Kappa]

Originally Posted by Mayhem

Besides, the majority of illegals in the US came in through legal routes and have overstayed and/or never gone back.

This.

A wall isn't going to fix anything, and 5 billion dollars are not "meager"... jesus ****ing christ how out of touch you gotta be to write that. Either math is hard or you're Scrooge McDuck

[Voltron]

Yes, I'm telling you $5 billion is a lot to spend on a wall to stop airplanes. That's exactly what I'm saying.

There's plenty of other, non-ridiculous things we could be doing to stop this problem.

I'd also like to point out that this isn't really a huge deal, since illegal immigration is at an all time low according to all reports.

On top of that, we have a crumbling infrastructure. We could easily put a bunch of money towards updating the highways, roads, and bridges in the United States. This would create tons of jobs AND benefit all Americans. It'd make our lives safer and, in time, easier if it eased congested traffic areas.

We could put that money towards scientific research. That's always proven to be a wise investment. I read somewhere that every dollar invested into NASA yields $6-$7 in return.

The wall is a broken promise. The American people were PROMISED Mexico would pay for it. And now WE have to cough up a $5.7 billion.

There's a gofundme right now where all of his supporters can throw away their cash. Me? I'll keep my hard earned money in my pocket and wait for a politician who isn't full of crap.

Again:

AMERICANS SHOULDN'T PAY FOR THE WALL.

[Candy Kappa]

wow, speaking of the gofundme, it's at $19,558,343. This Brian guy is getting loaded

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

But even when well over 100 billion is spent yearly on deporting illegal immigrants that are caught, or the 90% of "asylum seekers" whose claims are deemed by a judge to be invalid are sent back with bed and breakfast and free airfare to their country? You're telling me 5 billion is a lot in this equation?

Even if 10% is staved away by this in a given year... we've saved money.

Looking at it from that perspective, that's a fair point I hadn't considered.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by Mayhem

Walls don't work.

That's simply not true. There exist a flotilla of examples of walls that have and do work throughout the world.

"But if it's not manned there's no point!"

Of course there is. You can't walk through it, unless you brought a tall ladder with you or metal cutting equipment and have a Cenobite-like fetish for razor wire... so I wager that reduces the people willing or able to cross by at least 75%. And as long as there's an actual wall in place instead of just little 2 feet tall bars you can hop over or nothing at all, proximity stuff can be installed at some point to alert the nearest Border Patrol -- this is Step One.

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by Candy Kappa

wow, speaking of the gofundme, it's at $19,558,343. This Brian guy is getting loaded

Interesting.

I'd say I'm about average when it comes to keeping up with politics, and I'm a little behind on the exact details of this particular issue.

Would this Go Fund me actually get the wall built? In other words, is cost the main roadblock when it comes to getting this wall built? I know Trump wants it, wanted Mexico to pay for it, etc, but with the money raised, what else is standing in the way?

I mean it can't be that simple, but is it? I know there's much more to be discussed regarding the eligibility of the wall, besides how much it costs, but I'm not exactly tuned in on what those other major factors are at the moment.

[Autbot_Benz]

Can't wait for Trump's Address tonight. I can already smell the BS and lies he is gonna spew.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by Autbot_Benz

Can't wait for Trump's Address tonight. I can already smell the BS and lies he is gonna spew.

It's pretty annoying the number of people on my social media who are making posts just to let the world know that they won't be watching the address. It's like the people who make it a point to say proudly (or post memes thereto), "I've never watched Game of Thrones/Breaking Bad/Walking Dead."

Nobody cares.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

It's pretty annoying the number of people on my social media who are making posts just to let the world know that they won't be watching the address. It's like the people who make it a point to say proudly (or post memes thereto), "I've never watched Game of Thrones/Breaking Bad/Walking Dead."

Nobody cares.

If you've never watched Breaking Bad, you're a terrible human being. Fight me.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

If you've never watched Breaking Bad, you're a terrible human being. Fight me.

Everyone needs to see that show. At least give it two episodes to see if it's for you. I was leery about the show but I was hooked right away with the first episode.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Everyone needs to see that show. At least give it two episodes to see if it's for you. I was leery about the show but I was hooked right away with the first episode.

I am relieved to hear that you are not a terrible human being.