The “super classification” of information began under Reagan to an absurd degree. It hasn’t gotten better as appointees to “security” and “intelligence” agencies have been converted to Civil Service, and hang around forever, and getting more paranoid all the time.
AS to the “government” doing what’s good for you, or “ruining” lives? Next time you need rescuing in the woods, or in a burning building, or trapped in a car starting to burn after an accident, call Rush Limbaugh or a dittohead, they’ll be right there.
YES there are indeed problems with “transparency” , and maybe “W” adding 33 brand new agencies and directors in creating “Homeland Security” greatly streamlined things, right??
Well—I have to say that when I need something from the county, I just contact my supervisor’s field deputy and she makes sure it gets done. Any higher than that is a toss-up.
Back in 1990, the government seized the Mustang Ranch brothel in Nevada for tax evasion, and as required by law, tried to run it. They failed and it closed. Now the same characters who couldn’t make money running a whore house and selling whiskey are running ObamaCare.
When was the last time government actually did something that’s good for you
Let’s see. Last time I drove on the interstate highway system. Last time I flew on a plane. Last time I ate and my food was safe. Last time I was able walk safely around town. Last time I was able to flip on the TV or radio and get a weather report.
Not all government is bad. It is not necessarily bad for people and it is not necessarily bad for business. Yes, excessive government is bad, but not enough government is equally bad.
funny how Obamacare is Romneycare. from the seeds of hate to flowers full of death and graft. Profits over Peoplethe Republican way. with Democratic help of course.
Yeah, I too would prefer to live in a country with no services – no police, no fire fighters, no roads, no public education, no military, no Medicare, no unemployment support, no aviation authority, no oversight of food or drugs, no parks, no regulations, NO GOVERNMENT AT ALL. Then I could enjoy my freedom without being bothered by rules and regulations. People are basically good and kind and honest and need nobody to answer to but themselves and their basic good nature. I prefer anarchy over civilization. And I totally agree with almost every comment on this comics page…
Got to love all this anti gov comments……perhaps these folks should go try living in Somalia and then they might find out what “No Gov” is like.My experience in a Big Corporation would indicate that Gov is no worse than any large organisation…..and at least we can vote for who we want as CEO!
I love how most commenters decry the problems with government, but even suggest elimination of an agency and the screams are deafening. Bunch of hypocrites we are.
The debate on the size and scope of the federal government is about its’ role in peoples lives.Local government provides emergency help and policing. The school board is also local and should stay local. There should be no federal Department of Education trying to tell a rural Wyoming county school what to do.What the TEA (Taxed Enough Already) party, Libertarians and conservatives in general want to do is restrict the size of the federal government and return those powers not granted in the Constitution to the States. You know, like the Tenth Amendment states. Democrats, the party of mob rule, wants a one size fits all template that doesn’t fit anyone imposed on everyone.
What a totally idiotic and irrelevant thing to say.-——I’ve found most comments here are (1) idiotic and (2) irrelevant. Which is why I usually don’t read them.
When entering the beasts lair, it is always preferred to hold the knowledge of how it’s skin is attached ti it’s carcass. So that should you have to peel away a layer, you know where to start or how to find help.
If lack of government is good, the Somalia must be paradise on Earth. Just imagine, a country with a central government that’s virtually nonexistent, and where the purest forms of capitalism and social Darwinism are practiced unfettered.
Now it’s done on phones. You can make long phone calls and push loads of buttons, and never talk to anyone. Used to be able to press “0” to at least get the operator.
Many times my government, this government has come to my aid and that of my families due to the many outstanding government employees that work on the front line help American citizens.
The other side of that coin:
What the common person and the intellectual seeks is a Government small enough to remain civil and yet a positive, productive part of their civilization, both parochially and Nationally, and also a Government large enough to do what needs to be done on a National and International level while still answering to its people.
Find me person who knows how to accomplish the above and I’ll show you a potential Noble Prize winner and a marked person; religious and political entities fear such a person and will go to no end to disappear them.
I guess you installed your own sewage treatment plant and water plants, built your own road and airport, inspected your own food, installed your own water hydrants and used them to put out the fire in your house, and, if someone tried to rob your damaged house, I guess you arrested them, jailed them and tried them.-Congratulations.
Dour Scotsman: In the US, you don’t vote for the “ceo”, you vote in a gerrymandered district for an anonymous someone, not bound to respect you instructions, who will vote for president. In other “democracies”, it is the head of the winning party. In neither does the majority of the people decide..Hardthought: you read the tenth like the second – leave out an important half. Like guns are for a well-regulated militia, not psychos; and unenumerated powers going to The People, not a state dictatorship under a power-mad governor.
Let’s see. Government educated my parents, me and my kids. Government paved my roads and cleaned my water. Government takes care of the people who make too little money to survive (because they have sleazy, cheap, private sector corporate employers). Oh yeah, government provides protection – which works out pretty well most of the time.
They inspected the meat that I ate last night so that I wouldn’t have to eat sawdust or rat feces a la Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, or get sick from e. coli or some other horrible food-borne illness. They regulated the dairy that produces the milk that I drank this morning so that I wouldn’t get sick from that. They regulate the water treatment and pumping facility where I live so that I won’t get sick and die from cholera or any other water-borne illness. They inspected the chicken that I’ll be having in my soup for dinner so that I don’t catch any horrible diseases from that.
So, yeah; I think that the Government’s been doing some pretty good things for me lately, so STFU you ungrateful twit.
The government has not built roads or sewerage or schools or hospitals or anything else. It has not rescued hikers or put out fires or arrested criminals. It has been charged with the responsibility to engage labor to do these things. And it fails miserably even then, throwing the money intended for these purposes down various rat holes and leaving so much undone that it must increase your cost of living by taxing production and industry that you require to live. The love of government is no more sensible than the love of money, and is similarly the root of all evil, with all being a relative term, though if you had a Venn diagram of modern evil, much of that created by the love of money would overlap with that created by love of government, since money is only a means to power, the same as government.
Reppr: Ebola was “brought” to this country by a Liberian who came to marry his fiancée. The fact that he was misdiagnosed by a hospital caused two nurses to become infected. They were treated successfully, as was a doctor in a different case. End of “epidemic” although too late for the Liberian.
Similar to when GW was running in 2000 promising not to use American troops as nation builders. Hypocrites abound on both sides of the political aisle.
hsawlrae almost 10 years ago
E X A C T L Y !!!
JimT8 almost 10 years ago
Anyone seen Iriku?
Meh~tdology, fka Pepelaputr almost 10 years ago
What?No one’s collecting the Exit Fee?
Boots at the Boar Premium Member almost 10 years ago
But ruining lives *is* the job of government. If you take that away, what’s left? Brainwashing kids? That’s not as much fun or ego fulfilling.
Wasbluskies almost 10 years ago
The new exercise program seems to be working…
Dtroutma almost 10 years ago
The “super classification” of information began under Reagan to an absurd degree. It hasn’t gotten better as appointees to “security” and “intelligence” agencies have been converted to Civil Service, and hang around forever, and getting more paranoid all the time.
AS to the “government” doing what’s good for you, or “ruining” lives? Next time you need rescuing in the woods, or in a burning building, or trapped in a car starting to burn after an accident, call Rush Limbaugh or a dittohead, they’ll be right there.
YES there are indeed problems with “transparency” , and maybe “W” adding 33 brand new agencies and directors in creating “Homeland Security” greatly streamlined things, right??
lmonteros almost 10 years ago
Well—I have to say that when I need something from the county, I just contact my supervisor’s field deputy and she makes sure it gets done. Any higher than that is a toss-up.
RichardM333 almost 10 years ago
Back in 1990, the government seized the Mustang Ranch brothel in Nevada for tax evasion, and as required by law, tried to run it. They failed and it closed. Now the same characters who couldn’t make money running a whore house and selling whiskey are running ObamaCare.
Say What? Premium Member almost 10 years ago
Wonder if the NSA offices are off-panel.
dadoctah almost 10 years ago
There’s a very fine line between “transparent” and “invisible”.
Plumbob Wilson almost 10 years ago
To be REALLY authentic, the “in” door should have said NJDMV.
geometeer almost 10 years ago
Perhaps when it stopped Ebola from becoming rampant in the US?Perhaps when it built and inspected roads and bridges and foods?
One difference from private enterprise is that (unlike, say, health insurance companies) it has started to _try be transparent. Way to go…
Reppr Premium Member almost 10 years ago
Stopped Ebola from coming to this country? They BROUGHT it here.
Bob O'H almost 10 years ago
If only they were so efficient that each desk would actually have such a sign.
Varnes almost 10 years ago
Excuse me, is this the way to The Department of Redundancy Department?
uniquename almost 10 years ago
When was the last time you drove on a road?
twhalen almost 10 years ago
When was the last time government actually did something that’s good for you
Let’s see. Last time I drove on the interstate highway system. Last time I flew on a plane. Last time I ate and my food was safe. Last time I was able walk safely around town. Last time I was able to flip on the TV or radio and get a weather report.
Not all government is bad. It is not necessarily bad for people and it is not necessarily bad for business. Yes, excessive government is bad, but not enough government is equally bad.
Beleck3 almost 10 years ago
funny how Obamacare is Romneycare. from the seeds of hate to flowers full of death and graft. Profits over Peoplethe Republican way. with Democratic help of course.
rkoper almost 10 years ago
Yeah, I too would prefer to live in a country with no services – no police, no fire fighters, no roads, no public education, no military, no Medicare, no unemployment support, no aviation authority, no oversight of food or drugs, no parks, no regulations, NO GOVERNMENT AT ALL. Then I could enjoy my freedom without being bothered by rules and regulations. People are basically good and kind and honest and need nobody to answer to but themselves and their basic good nature. I prefer anarchy over civilization. And I totally agree with almost every comment on this comics page…
Dour Scotsman almost 10 years ago
Got to love all this anti gov comments……perhaps these folks should go try living in Somalia and then they might find out what “No Gov” is like.My experience in a Big Corporation would indicate that Gov is no worse than any large organisation…..and at least we can vote for who we want as CEO!
dsom8 almost 10 years ago
I love how most commenters decry the problems with government, but even suggest elimination of an agency and the screams are deafening. Bunch of hypocrites we are.
dr_dolittle_rwc almost 10 years ago
At least stateside, you can do it all in one building! Everywhere else, they send you all over the city, or better yet the whole country!!
dabugger almost 10 years ago
Sure can ‘see through’ all that.
Hardthought almost 10 years ago
The debate on the size and scope of the federal government is about its’ role in peoples lives.Local government provides emergency help and policing. The school board is also local and should stay local. There should be no federal Department of Education trying to tell a rural Wyoming county school what to do.What the TEA (Taxed Enough Already) party, Libertarians and conservatives in general want to do is restrict the size of the federal government and return those powers not granted in the Constitution to the States. You know, like the Tenth Amendment states. Democrats, the party of mob rule, wants a one size fits all template that doesn’t fit anyone imposed on everyone.
That’s the difference.
Can't Sleep almost 10 years ago
What a totally idiotic and irrelevant thing to say.-——I’ve found most comments here are (1) idiotic and (2) irrelevant. Which is why I usually don’t read them.
Varnes almost 10 years ago
LadyKat, “Let’s not forget the wine….”
Strod almost 10 years ago
I guess you mean Ikiru, Akira Kurosawa’s film from 1952?In my opinion, one of the best movies ever made.
Right Tackle almost 10 years ago
When entering the beasts lair, it is always preferred to hold the knowledge of how it’s skin is attached ti it’s carcass. So that should you have to peel away a layer, you know where to start or how to find help.
grannyK almost 10 years ago
did anyone notice that the people and their desks are “dithered”……??
celeconecca almost 10 years ago
My husband passed in November so I’m going through this now. Feels like a hamster wheel sometimes.
Alabama Al almost 10 years ago
If lack of government is good, the Somalia must be paradise on Earth. Just imagine, a country with a central government that’s virtually nonexistent, and where the purest forms of capitalism and social Darwinism are practiced unfettered.
ladylagomorph76 almost 10 years ago
Now it’s done on phones. You can make long phone calls and push loads of buttons, and never talk to anyone. Used to be able to press “0” to at least get the operator.
leweclectic almost 10 years ago
Many times my government, this government has come to my aid and that of my families due to the many outstanding government employees that work on the front line help American citizens.
The other side of that coin:
What the common person and the intellectual seeks is a Government small enough to remain civil and yet a positive, productive part of their civilization, both parochially and Nationally, and also a Government large enough to do what needs to be done on a National and International level while still answering to its people.
Find me person who knows how to accomplish the above and I’ll show you a potential Noble Prize winner and a marked person; religious and political entities fear such a person and will go to no end to disappear them.
Argy.Bargy2 almost 10 years ago
I guess you installed your own sewage treatment plant and water plants, built your own road and airport, inspected your own food, installed your own water hydrants and used them to put out the fire in your house, and, if someone tried to rob your damaged house, I guess you arrested them, jailed them and tried them.-Congratulations.
hippogriff almost 10 years ago
Dour Scotsman: In the US, you don’t vote for the “ceo”, you vote in a gerrymandered district for an anonymous someone, not bound to respect you instructions, who will vote for president. In other “democracies”, it is the head of the winning party. In neither does the majority of the people decide..Hardthought: you read the tenth like the second – leave out an important half. Like guns are for a well-regulated militia, not psychos; and unenumerated powers going to The People, not a state dictatorship under a power-mad governor.
cdward almost 10 years ago
Let’s see. Government educated my parents, me and my kids. Government paved my roads and cleaned my water. Government takes care of the people who make too little money to survive (because they have sleazy, cheap, private sector corporate employers). Oh yeah, government provides protection – which works out pretty well most of the time.
reynard61 almost 10 years ago
@ Sombodyshort: Lessee…
They inspected the meat that I ate last night so that I wouldn’t have to eat sawdust or rat feces a la Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, or get sick from e. coli or some other horrible food-borne illness. They regulated the dairy that produces the milk that I drank this morning so that I wouldn’t get sick from that. They regulate the water treatment and pumping facility where I live so that I won’t get sick and die from cholera or any other water-borne illness. They inspected the chicken that I’ll be having in my soup for dinner so that I don’t catch any horrible diseases from that.
So, yeah; I think that the Government’s been doing some pretty good things for me lately, so STFU you ungrateful twit.
Varnes almost 10 years ago
ENG8INE, thanks! I was hoping someone would post that…..Greatest Movie ever made IMHO
Brass Orchid Premium Member almost 10 years ago
The government has not built roads or sewerage or schools or hospitals or anything else. It has not rescued hikers or put out fires or arrested criminals. It has been charged with the responsibility to engage labor to do these things. And it fails miserably even then, throwing the money intended for these purposes down various rat holes and leaving so much undone that it must increase your cost of living by taxing production and industry that you require to live. The love of government is no more sensible than the love of money, and is similarly the root of all evil, with all being a relative term, though if you had a Venn diagram of modern evil, much of that created by the love of money would overlap with that created by love of government, since money is only a means to power, the same as government.
Varnes almost 10 years ago
Plumbob, Thanks. I had to Google him….I appreciate the reference…Sounds like a cool guy….I’ll look for him in the movie…..
hippogriff almost 10 years ago
Reppr: Ebola was “brought” to this country by a Liberian who came to marry his fiancée. The fact that he was misdiagnosed by a hospital caused two nurses to become infected. They were treated successfully, as was a doctor in a different case. End of “epidemic” although too late for the Liberian.
FireMedic almost 10 years ago
Similar to when GW was running in 2000 promising not to use American troops as nation builders. Hypocrites abound on both sides of the political aisle.
Tgross999 Premium Member almost 4 years ago
It was the bankruptcy trustee, not the government…but I guess that’s close enough for people who decide issues based on politics.