Happy holidays to everyone !!!

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Well... it's only been a 53 hour work week, (plus drive time)... so I have some time to respond. Sorry I didn't get back sooner folks. Seems I have stirred up a bit of a sh!t storm. I'm going to backtrack from the most recent post,,, so here goes.

LSFrank and LS4me,

I use self checkouts too,,, only when I am in a hurry... but NEVER swipe my card at a gas pump. Too many thieves able to break into gas pumps and install credit card "skimmers" to steal personal information. I have collected many types of keys over my lifetime, (and a few professions), and while I have never tried them at a gas pump... I'm sure I could find one that fit. Only need then would be to buy a "card skimmer" off the internet. If you pay "cash",,, or by "account"... then no worries for you. Safest bet is to go inside the store,,, whether cash, credit, or debit.

Most of the time I go through normal cash registers at the stores,,, and watch the item prices as they are scanned. You may be surprised to see how many times you are actually being charged "full price",,, when an item is on sale. Granted,,, I am a bachelor... so I notice this more than if I had a wife doing the shopping. But at the same time,,, I use my time with the cashier to strike up a conversation, and try to make sure they have a good day, (especially if the person before was a "grumpy ass").

WWJD???

Not gonna comment on the person that told you you couldn't swipe your car at the pump. As far as the station next to you that appreciates you filling up your own cars... all I have to say is that most people nowadays would bitch, and whine, and cry... if they had to go out in the elements,,, and actually pump someone elses gas for a living.

Back "in the day" there were 2 of us, (most of the time), pumping "full service" gas, running our asses off during rush hours, while at the same time trying to take care of the "self serve" at the register. The only time I got irritated,,, was when a certain person pumed their own gas... and then drove up to the curb,,, and stuck their money out the window of their car for one of us to collect and return change... (when most would walk inside and pay).

The other was the older couple that wanted me to get EVERY bug off their windsheild,,, while in the middle of "rush hour". I always tried to keep a smile on my face,,, and in the end they were thankful. Now I get the "generation" they were coming from,,, and I'm glad they were so picky about their windsheild!!!

God forbid one of us would have to break off from pumping gas,,, to change a tire,,, or a belt,,, or do an oil change. Most of the time the customer "in the bay" would have to wait,,, and was okay with that... because they understood the circumstances. That doesn't happen very often now... because we want everything at our convenience. A "sign of the times".

---Mike---
 
A bit more rant about being spoiled.

A few months back,,, my 20 year old "screw drive" garage door opener quit. I upgraded to a "silent" belt drive with a light that automatically comes on when you walk in the garage. Boy did I feel spoiled. However,,, when I tried to sync the "homelink" visor with the new opener,,, it wouldn't work. After some internet research... I realized that the "homelink" side of the LS,,, wouldn't "interface" with the "homelink" side of the opener. Homelink want's $30 for the interface,,, but i may be able to get it for free, (if I can find the tinme and priority to call them).

So yeah,,, I have to take the time to call homelink, (not a priority), in order to make the LS visor compatible with my new door opener. it would be nice to use the visor,,, and at the same time noit bitch about having an extra "clicker" on my visor. Been there for a few months now,,, and it's not killing me to have an extra button. but then a buddy of mine bitches when his smart phone won't open his garage door at times.

Whaaa... whaaa
 
homelink is a major feature that I look for when buying a new car (or acquiring the homelink part and putting it into the car) having another opener on the visor would set my OCD off real quick!
 
LS4me, Telco, Loud.

You all make valid points about minimum wage,,, but ask yourself... what was the ORIGINAL purpose of minimum wage. It was to establish a minimum livable wage that a person was able to barely survive on. Has that changed since instated??? Debate on TV now. Be back in an hour or 2.
 
Telco said:
Jack in the Box had a little scandal where one of their meat suppliers apparently put horse meat and kangaroo meat into their Jack in the Box shipments. Did they really sell horse meat burgers? Who knows, but it stuck.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_in_the_Box
Click to expand...

My son worked at Taco Hell for a while. He told me that they use Grade C meat. Grade C meat is what is used in cat food. I have to believe that most fast food restaurants use Grade C. It's how they keep the costs down. If Google isn't lying to me,,, the price of a McDonalds hamburger hasn't gone up since the mid 80's. Keep in mind that the meat you buy in the supermarket is one of several types of Grade A.
 
1LoudLS said:
mechanical parts can also fail without warning... not to mention chevy has been using the fully electronic door latches for over a decade now starting with the C6
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The only time I have had a door handle fail without warning... is when it snapped off in my hand in -60(with wind chill)temps. Actually both of them did,,, and I was very gentle with the second one. It was just too dam cold.
 
04_Sport_LS said:
If Google isn't lying to me,,, the price of a McDonalds hamburger hasn't gone up since the mid 80's. Keep in mind that the meat you buy in the supermarket is one of several types of Grade A.
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That wouldn't be a problem... Just charge more for other items. I used to be able (in the Dark Edges) to get 3 cheeseburgers for the price of a Big Mac. Around here a Big Mac combo is around $8! The biggest money-maker in any restaurant are the beverages. A $2.50 drink costs the establishment about $.10! Even factoring in refills!
 
1LoudLS said:
I dont want to get started on minimum wage... its never supposed to be supporting an entire family on it for their life.


honestly I haven't made that low of money since the job I had while still in high school ( and was making a couple of dollars more than that by the time I graduated)... minimum skills deserve a minimum wage, if you want to make more than that, go out and make some changes to your own life... learn a skill, trade, or go back to school and get training to make some real money. honestly minimum wage jobs are there for people to do while they are still in high school, after that if you are still making minimum wage, you fukced up somewhere...

also can you imaging how much they would charge for a combo meal if every body in the joint was making $15 an hour!
Click to expand...

Loud,

I agree completely with what you are saying... except for the last 2 sentences. With the major "economic downturn" we suffered a few years back,,, some households losts 2 decent paying jobs. In the end they both took minimum wage jobs just to try and make ends meet. They didn't necessarily F-up. Sometimes sh!t just happens.

Raising minimum wage is actually much cheaper than you might think,,, and better for the economy. Sure, prices on some things will go up,,, but only in percentage to the extra disposable income that can be spent.

It's much better than what SandersSocialism wants to do. Bernie wants to tax major corporations at up to 54%. What do you think THAT will do to the economy. US Corporations will be running for the borders to get out!!! More jobs will leave the country "en masse" to escape paying the taxes. The economy will then completely shut down,,, and all of us will be fighting for a greeters position at Wally World.
 
It's been proven that lowering wages, (or keeping wages low), doesn't do anything but put more money in the fat cats wallets. Look at General Motors. They got rid of their highest paid workers, (through buyouts),,, and hired people off the streets, (with little experience) for $15/hr... because most of the equipment at the factories is now automated.

When GM cut their wage and health benefits payouts in half... did the prices of their vehicles go down??? HELL NO!!! So where did that saved money go??? My bet would be corporate bonuses.

Dana tried this to a more extreme measure many years ago,,, when they moved their parts production to Mexico. That choice bit them in the a** big time. Dana eventually moved production back to the US.

Now... If Bernie gets his way,,, it won't be the production jobs that suffer,,, because most of the companies in this country are now service related. If the corporations move out due to a 54% tax,,, they will be taking the "white collar" jobs with them. People will either have to move to a foreign country,,, or lose their job. But at the same time,,, some "blue collar" jobs will be lost too,,, so the effect acoss the board will be a shut down economy in the US. Then the govenemnt will have to shut down again... because of NO TAX BASE,,, and will aging borrow more money from China!!!
 
Telco said:
No need for a wall, just need a few laws and high profile trials. Throw a few illegal employers in prison for a few decades and nobody will hire them. Immigrants are also not a problem, it's the illegals that drive down wages.

On that 15 bucks an hour, the folks who want it think prices will remain the same. Fact is, double minimum wage, and your taxes go up, plus prices go up a bit more than double since products must also make up the extra taxes, not to mention people who are rich don't want to see their own buying power go down. You were making 7.50 an hour and now make 15 an hour? Your 400 a month apartment is now 900 a month. Jacking up minimum wage isn't the same as increasing normal business costs because minimum applies to everyone equally. Your competition's costs are going up by the same amount, so you KNOW they are going to increase prices as well. The end result is the rich get richer, the government makes more in taxes, the poor get poorer and those who were lower middle class are poor again as everyone who was making between 7.50 and 20.00 are now right back down to barely making it if not failing to make it.

On the Avista, I kinda like that one but agree, I want a mechanical means of getting out of the car in case the electronic fail. It's not just getting in the car, it's getting out.
Click to expand...

You know as well as I do,,, that no corporations will go to trial for hiring illegal immigrants. Years ago Home Depot got busted trucking in illeagals from Mexico to build houses in California. They got a slap on the hand, and were told not to do it again.

You are definitely right about the rich not wanting to lose their buying power. But not sure how the rich get richer with increasing prices to cover an increase in minimum wage,,, unless they over-increase their prices.

Yes... taxes go up with a wage increase,,, and the government gets more tax base. That is actually a good thing,,, because then the govenment doesn't need to shut down,,, or borrow more money from China to keep operating. A good tax base keeps this country running,,, but over taxing corporations to give free college and health care to everyone,,, will have the opposite effect.
 
LS4me said:
NO one is supposed to live on minimum wage. I have said; and will always say; ANYONE that stays at minimum wage is an abject LOSER!!! Even I at my entry-level unskilled burger-flipping job got a raise after 6 months. Raising minimum wage also raises EVERYONE's wage. The guy that makes $2 an hour less than I do gets a $2 raise, so do I. Same with those above me. Also, where does it stop; $10?, $15? $20? Why not $100? ANY job is only worth the skill required or the value of that work. I'm (not) sorry, but there's NO WAY someone that can't understand me or get my order right at The Golden Arches earns $10 an hour! They should be happy they have a job! I would (and have) fired this type of employee.

Sorry.... Sore spot with me.
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Not sure how you figure raising minimum wage increases everyone's wage. When my son worked at Taco Hell,,, he got a few raises through hard work. When the last minimum wage increase happend... people were getting hired in at what he was currently making. THAT was a sore spot for him,,, because he woked for a year to get what new hires were getting. I had the same thing happen decades ago. It sucks,,, but it is a fact of life.
 
The original purpose of minimum wage was for ONE person to barely survive, not one FAMILY. And yes, when minimum wage goes up, everything else does too. As I said, when it's a government mandate it becomes a fixed cost for all businesses, which means it's a safe price increase. Also remember that an employee's pay is not an employee's cost. An employer must pay not only the salary, but also various taxes that the employee never sees. Pay a person 10 bucks an hour, the actual cost is more like 14 or 15 bucks. Make it 15 an hour, and the employee costs more like 20 to 22 an hour. I don't know the exact amount, but I do know that it's measured as a percentage and not a fixed rate. The reality of it is, minimum is a starting point, not a career. If you need more money than minimum pays, it's on YOU to do something about it, not me or anyone else.

Now if anyone here wants to be a bleeding heart here and thinks that minimum wage should pay enough for one person to support a family of 8 today, don't be surprised tomorrow when that Big Mac value meal starts costing you about 50 bucks then all of a sudden minimum wage is suddenly barely enough for one person to survive again, and oh noes your own salary no longer pays enough to pay your new bills.
 
04_Sport_LS said:
When GM cut their wage and health benefits payouts in half... did the prices of their vehicles go down??? HELL NO!!! So where did that saved money go??? My bet would be corporate bonuses.
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don't forget, for a good while, due to some(a lot) of bad decisions, GM was losing money and lots of it... remember, they had to file bankruptcy.

after they made tons of those kinds of cuts (among other cost saving changes) they stopped hemorrhaging money and actually started making money.




as for the families that did lose two good jobs and had to do what ever to make ends meet... you are correct, they did not F up, they did get screwed and needed a TEMPORARY solution to get them by until they could use their educations or learned skills/trades to get new jobs. they were not trying to have a minimum wage career for their whole life.




personally for me, a sore spot is the cost of education... too many people are graduating with tens and tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars in dept, and a lot of people cant (or at least think they cant) even afford college or specialty schooling... the problem is that minimum wages jobs are NOT WORTH more than 7 or 8 dollars an hour. we should be focusing on making it easier and more affordable to get the necessary training/schooling so people can go out and get a good job, that pays good money and has benefits so they can actually provide for their families and not struggle to get by.

but then again, we cant even afford to get people a decent elementary and high school education...
 
1LoudLS said:
personally for me, a sore spot is the cost of education... too many people are graduating with tens and tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars in dept, and a lot of people cant (or at least think they cant) even afford college or specialty schooling... the problem is that minimum wages jobs are NOT WORTH more than 7 or 8 dollars an hour. we should be focusing on making it easier and more affordable to get the necessary training/schooling so people can go out and get a good job, that pays good money and has benefits so they can actually provide for their families and not struggle to get by. but then again, we cant even afford to get people a decent elementary and high school education...
Click to expand...

And that's a direct result of the government's college loans guaranteed for all, no bankruptcy allowed drive. The end result is you can borrow 100K for a basket weaving degree. If the government got out of the business of guaranteeing college loans and put a special bankruptcy chapter in for college loans, banks would only loan to people who were going for useful degrees with grades good enough to pass them. Colleges would also no longer be able to jack up their costs whenever they felt like it since they'd have to justify these cost increases to the banks that would be on the hook for the loans. Since this would cut available money by about 90 percent, this would also eliminate industry demanding college degrees for jobs that don't need it. I've been turned down for plenty of jobs in my field because I don't have a degree. I do have military and civilian certifications and 28 years experience, but because I never went to college they say no. I do work with plenty of degreed people though, and having a degree doesn't make them better techs.

MY biggest complaint about colleges is how the sports program costs so much money. For example, Oklahoma University last year or year before one announced that they were raising tuition about 20 percent, AND at the same time they announced that they were giving the head football coach a pay raise. He was making 4 million a year, now he makes 4.5 million a year. A half million a year pay raise at the same time as a 20 percent tuition increase? No justification at all for this.
 
yeah... blame the government for guaranteeing that you (or anyone) can get a loan for college, instead of holding people accountable for taking out large loans on useless degrees...
 
1LoudLS said:
yeah... blame the government for guaranteeing that you (or anyone) can get a loan for college, instead of holding people accountable for taking out large loans on useless degrees...
Click to expand...

You don't understand what happens when the government guarantees something, do you?
 
Telco said:
You don't understand what happens when the government guarantees something, do you?
Click to expand...

http://blog.credit.com/2015/07/are-student-loans-causing-college-tuitions-to-skyrocket-120860/

Still, that doesn’t mean the laws of economics are suspended, and the more money made available to college consumers, the easier it is for colleges to raise prices. And through a number-crunching formula designed to tease out these effects, the Fed comes up with this depressing conclusion: Pell Grants and subsidized loans create a passthrough effect of about 55-65 cents on the dollar. That means for every additional $100 the federal government gives or loans a student, colleges raise tuition $55-$65.

Tax dollars flowing right to colleges, funneled through (mostly) borrowing students.
 
Thanks for the link Joe. It just proves further to me... that we can't survive another 4-8 years of "Billary". The posters at the bottom of the page make some good points also. Interestingly... there was this Link at the bottom of the article.

http://blog.credit.com/2016/01/5-wa...fected-by-a-bernie-sanders-presidency-135434/

Loud,

Don't forget that GM took the "bailout" in 2008... at the same time they were re-tooling some of their facilities. The old machinery was sold for pennies on the dollar... and many of the buyers took the machinery to the scrap yard for a major profit. (of couse the machinery was melted for scrap and sent to China).

Supposedly... GM paid back a major portion of the bailout ahead of schedule,,, but a large portion of GM was still "government" owned.

http://www.factcheck.org/2010/05/general-motors-debt/

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...-ends-as-u-s-sells-last-of-government-motors-

So GM recovered... and the workers suffered a permanent 50% wage cut,,, and any new hires are subjected to a "tiered" pay scale. Don't get me wrong. The UAW has had it's flaws,,, but at the same time corporate greed has had a major part in the downfall of GM also.

Then... with the threat of a govenment shutdown in 2010,,, the U.S govenment sells a controlling interest of GM to SAIC, (owned by the Chinese govenment). Of course this was only part of a temporary fix,,, and the govenment crisis returned even worse a year later.... and we go further in debt to China.

http://archive.fortune.com/2010/09/21/news/international/SAIC_GM_stake.fortune/index.htm

I don't agree with the midset of the above article,,, but it offers alot of food for thought.

Story-------------------------------------

IIRC, a "supplier" was building rearends for GM sometime a few decades back. Come contract negotiation time,,, GM said they could not afford to give the workers a pay raise,,, and actually asked the workers to take a 50% pay cut. There was a strike,,, but eventually the workers conceded. At the end of the year... the GM CEO gave himself a 1 million dollar bonus.
 
Telco said: "The original purpose of minimum wage was for ONE person to barely survive, not one FAMILY. ... thinks that minimum wage should pay enough for one person to support a family of 8 today, ..."

Depends on the size of the family. Back in post #39, I said: "Back in the 1980's,,, it took a couple, (with child), making minimum wage,,, to pay rent and their bills... plus manage a car payment on a decent car,,, to get by."

So that was 2 minimum wage incomes... one small family,,, just getting by with the bare necessities. I never said it was meant to support a family of 8.

Thing is,,, because minimum wage has not kept up with the cost of living,,, it doesn't cover what it used to.
 
On the college thing...

It seems to me that colleges have drummed up useless degrees in the interest of making more money. On top of that, the general public has been told for the last few decades,,, that to really secure a good job and make yourself more employable... you not only need to have a "major",,, but also a "minor" degree in something.

I know a woman that did this years ago,,, at Kent State,,, with her major in "finance". I forget what her "minor" is. Almost 20 years later... she still has close to 60 grand in student loans,,, and has not been able to secure a high paying position in the corporate world. However,,, she mostly tries to apply at larger/higher income corporations. She struggles to get by,,, by repeated 2 year contracts through temp services.

In contrast,,, I have a close high school buddy,,, that just after high school,,, worked 2 jobs and went to a local community college at the same time to get an Associates Degree in "finance". Shortly after getting his degree,,, he went to work for a local family owned business and now pretty much runs the company. He's no millionaire... but does well enough to support his wife and kids,,, have a nice house in the "burbs",,, pays for his step daughters college,,, and trades in his vehicles every 7 or so years and buys new ones.

Then there's me... I went to the same community college my buddy did to get a degree in CAD/CAM. I enjoyed it in high school,,, but then realized that I couldn't see myself sitting behind a desk indoors all day. So I switched over to an automotive Cerificate. Got bored with that because I was re-learning what I did my last 2 years of high school,,, and at age 18 or 19,,, took the ASE tests and became fully certified. I worked at a few small shops,,, and a dealership,,, but got tired of the BS and politics after a few years. I ended up working for a family member at a car wash for a while,,, while I "re-evaluated" my life. It was during this time I had a wife and child... and temporarily swallowed my pride to make sure we survived. I then found a career that "fits" me,,, and have been doing it for the last 25 years. While I do sometimes still work in a shop,,, I let my "certs" expire sometime back.

I guess my point is that not everyone is cut out for college,,, and just because you go to college doesn't mean you will be successful. On top of that each person needs to find a career that "fits" them. PLUS... hard work and applying yourself goes along way to being successful. Something that many people don't want to do in this day and age.

What IS being succesful anyway???

I now look around at everything I have acquired over the years,,, and the house and acreage I have as a bachelor... and ask myself "why". I have no intention of starting a "new" family. I love it here,,, but am actually starting to consider downsizing. Somebody tell me it's just mid life crisis... and to go out and buy a sports car :-D


The whole Sanders idea of free college for everyone,,, is just going to cost this country more money,,, and make the higher learning institutions richer. Is it possible that the backers behind Sanders,,, are the higher learning institutions???

Besides,,, most colleges now are providing ways for people to go to college without taking out large student loans. People that wouldn't normally have the oppoutunity to go to college.

The government and banks didn't fully think through the whole idea of student loans.... and the higher learning institutions didn't care as long as they got their money. Student loans are just another form of unsecured debt,,, no different than credit cards. When push comes to shove... people will pay their house payment/rent , car payment/lease, utilities and groceries... before paying unsecured debt.
 
04_Sport_LS said:
Telco said: "The original purpose of minimum wage was for ONE person to barely survive, not one FAMILY. ... thinks that minimum wage should pay enough for one person to support a family of 8 today, ..."

Depends on the size of the family. Back in post #39, I said: "Back in the 1980's,,, it took a couple, (with child), making minimum wage,,, to pay rent and their bills... plus manage a car payment on a decent car,,, to get by."

So that was 2 minimum wage incomes... one small family,,, just getting by with the bare necessities. I never said it was meant to support a family of 8.

Thing is,,, because minimum wage has not kept up with the cost of living,,, it doesn't cover what it used to.
Click to expand...

Yes, I realize YOU didn't say that, but that's the expectation of the poor today. They expect to be able to buy a Mercedes and a McMansion on a Mcpaycheck. Guess what doesn't happen? Where I am, minimum wage will cover the bare minimum for 1 person. Two people living together on minimum wage don't live great but if they're careful with their money they can do OK, and even put a couple of bucks away.

Or at least they could until Obamacare caused minimum wage jobs to cut hours to 20-28 hours a week, that is. With Obamacare's requirement that all jobs with 30 hours or more per week be given medical insurance, those jobs cut back and they put on a little more staff to cover the hours. Add in the weekly variable shifts (my daughter was working a minimum wage job until a couple of weeks ago, mainly working around college scheduling) that keep you from easily working two jobs, and you're even worse off than you were before. And even if you do manage to land two coordinated minimum wage jobs that work you 28 hours a week, that means you now work 56 hours a week, no overtime. How did the Democrats but themselves help anyone with THAT move?
 
Originally by Telco:

"Or at least they could until Obamacare caused minimum wage jobs to cut hours to 20-28 hours a week, that is. With Obamacare's requirement that all jobs with 30 hours or more per week be given medical insurance, those jobs cut back and they put on a little more staff to cover the hours. Add in the weekly variable shifts (my daughter was working a minimum wage job until a couple of weeks ago, mainly working around college scheduling) that keep you from easily working two jobs, and you're even worse off than you were before. And even if you do manage to land two coordinated minimum wage jobs that work you 28 hours a week, that means you now work 56 hours a week, no overtime. How did the Democrats but themselves help anyone with THAT move?"

Actually Telco,,, Wally World was doing this long before Obamacare. 28 Hours a week was considered "full time". Also, a local grocery store chain my ,(now ex wife), worked for had a similar program. I pushed my now ex ,(back then), to get the required 32 hours per week for 8 weeks... to get "true" full time status. She did,,, and has been 40+ hours a week since. Don't have the proof,,, but I think with Wally Worlds 28 hour "full time" deal... the employees were given a reduced benefits package,,, while still meeting some sort of government requirement for minimum number of "full time" employees.

To everyone,

I've had the priviledge of working with a woman from Danmark over the last couple of years. In light of the recent discussion in this thread,,, I have asked her about the economy and government in Danmark. Danmark is a Socialist-Democratic country. The work week is only 37 hours. Basically,,, the whole country "rolls up it's sidewalks" like most small towns do here. Overtime is allowed in certain parts of the workforce,,, but at a severe premium to employers. Minimum wage is $20/hr... and all jobs are through a national Union. All health care is free,,, but the tax rate on income is 45% on the first $40,000 and goes up to 60% on higher incomes, (with the first 40 being taxed at 45%). There is a welfare type program,,, but you will pay back the money when you get a job. There is also housing assistance for the elderly,,, but they are not allowed to have more than one spare bedroom in there house/apartment to qualify for the assistance. All forms of religion, (Traditional Christian), are funded by the government... (so much for the idea of separation of Church and State). Everone is considered,,, and made... equal. College education is free,,, and funded by the government,,, but in recent years... the govenment funding of college is putting a strain on the Danish economy.

All of this is based on The Law of Jante. For a basic understanding,,, check this out.

https://ourhouseinaarhus.wordpress.com/2014/05/15/standing-out-in-denmark-discovering-the-jante-law/

All of a sudden... I'm hearing the old Coka-Cola commercial... "I'd like to teach the world to sing, in perfect harmony.................."

It doesn't matter if "Billary" or Sanders gets in the Whithouse,,, because thier agenda is both the same. "Billary" is just less outspoken about it.

I recently heard on the radio,,, that Indiana is going to lose almost 1800 manufacturing jobs by the year 2018. Guess where they are going to??? Mexico! Seems the 35+% tax on private and corporate incomes of $250,000+ is already causing panic. "Billary isn't offering much of anything different. I'm sure however,,, that through private monetary pursuasion... that this will be filtered down to the middle class. After all,,, the first step to a socialist country is to make sure there is no middle class. Take a look at the USSR and China. China is Socialist-Communist,,, so most of the money goes to the government. The poor remain poor,,, and the rich get richer.

Now is where things get interesting... Trump recently won Nevada,,, with 48% of the "Latino" vote. Why do you think that is? Is it possible,,, that even the current LEGAL latinos in this country,,, feel their jobs threatened by "illegals" coming into the USA. Again... I'm NOT a Trump supporter. I think Trump has enough EGO,,, that if he were to bump heads with Putin... we would end up in a situation worse than "The Cuban Missle Crisis" of 1962. I definitely DO NOT trust Obama's decision to re-open relations with Cuba. I doubt Raul has had a "change of heart". Maybe the 48% Latino vote is afraid of the Castro regiem.

http://www.biography.com/people/raul-castro-183536#early-life
 
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