The Biden Presidency

Dr. Dwayne

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Crackers said:
A few of my American colleagues are into guns and one is adamant about bringing me to a gun range if I ever visit
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Oh yes, you should definitely go. If you find yourself in Toronto again I will extend a similar offer but you will be able to have a bit more fun with your American colleagues .
 

WI_Red

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Dwazza Gunnar Solskjær said:
Oh yes, you should definitely go. If you find yourself in Toronto again I will extend a similar offer but you will be able to have a bit more fun with your American colleagues .
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I abhor guns, but I can offer "shots (actually more like sips)" of a different nature. Mmmmmmm.......Bourbon.........

That being said, if the Boebert's of the world start doing Boebert things we are driving to Toronto.
 

Dr. Dwayne

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WI_Red said:
I abhor guns, but I can offer "shots (actually more like sips)" of a different nature. Mmmmmmm.......Bourbon.........

That being said, if the Boebert's of the world start doing Boebert things we are driving to Toronto.
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:lol: No worries, I've got enough straps for everyone!
 

WI_Red

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Crackers said:
I visited in March and we got shit faced at Top Golf and then a karaoke bar so I'm sure it'll be fun if we go :)
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Top golf, especially on an expense account, might be the best thing that ever was. Feck you COVID!
 

WPMUFC

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amazing, no matter the result of an election, GOP win or loss, they are always setting the narrative.
 

edcunited1878

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WPMUFC said:

amazing, no matter the result of an election, GOP win or loss, they are always setting the narrative.
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EVERYTHING is that is any shade of blue or a millimeter left of center is deemed "radical" or "liberal". The narrative is insane. The thing that drives me up the wall the most is that the right also have radicalism and liberalism in their own way, yet they don't dare acknowledge it.
 

Cheimoon

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MTF said:
This all emanates from a problem that goes beyond just the defense industry and beyond just the US, despite being quite pronounced in the US. Which is that there is a gap in the prestige-to-pay ratio (I'm making up the term a bit but have read about the concept elsewhere) of the public sector vs private.

So if we look as Lloyd Austin as an example, as a 4-star General he had very high prestige and power. He spoke on behalf of the United States and the US Army on a daily basis. He had thousands of personnel whom he would direct, and probably also a considerable personal entourage to help him do his daily job. Whenever he was in a room, if the Secretary of the Army, Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of JCS, or the President himself wasn't there, he was probably the most important person in that room (there's other people more important than him in govt but don't want to get exhaustive). But meanwhile his bank account only saw some $200K annually, minus tax. That's by no means poor, but its also what an Investment Banker 3 years out of college might make, and its a fraction of what even someone in charge of any division at a Raytheon makes (not that he was a division head at Raytheon, just an intra-industry comparison).

This situation is the same at virtually every equivalent post in government. A US Attorney for SDNY can investigate and take down a global football corruption scheme, organizing arrests to happen simultaneously in numerous countries around the world. But they make as much or less than a 2nd year lawyer at a white shoe firm makes. When these people leave government they are almost immediately tempted by offers to make in just a few years what they made in the public sector for decades. They are often both competent, which is why they rose to the top of their fields in govt, and have very high prestige in their field. Companies are willing to throw millions of dollars at them depending on the role, and the companies figure its a good deal.

So the question is what to do about it. Just continue with the present regulations that at least force them to sell out of their private sector interests when going back into government service? Prohibiting senior government officials from ever serving in the private sector? But wouldn't you have to increase pay to still see a pool of competent applicants? Increase pay regardless so that private sector works is less attractive in a relative sense? I don't have a firm view on the solution, but I think the problem here another symptom of what I described.
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Yeah, I know the principle. Income differences are bigger in the US, but the same principle applies everywhere most likely. The usual defense of public service jobs is that their secondary conditions are excellent (pensions, for example; certainly here in Canada); but a much higher wage can buy you any of that easily.

In general, I most certainly know where I stand on this. I know am a government employee who probably makes an above-average government wage, and I think it is very generous and allows me a very comfortable life. I see no justification to raise my wage, I don't know why my bosses would need to make much more, and therefore I see lots of justification to increase taxes on above-median incomes to do a lot more wealth redistribution and give the lower classes some of that comfort as well. That would remove a lot of the wage incentive.

I know that's not going to happen any time soon though, and I don't know what the realistic solution is. As far as I can tell, however, at least here in Canada, they never have trouble hiring government employees, and we have very competent and strong people at the top jobs. (Top bureaucrats, I mean. Ministers must be MPs over here, so you can't just appoint those straight out of the private sector, you have to get them to run for parliament in a riding first.) So I'm not sure if there really is an issue in that sense. As far as I can tell, by just ignoring the people that want to keep their high wages, the government does just fine. But I don't know to what extent that may be different in the US, of course.
 

AaronRedDevil

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Dwazza Gunnar Solskjær said:
Revolvers are lovely things. Although the magnum calibres are a bit much indoors. The shockwave is a bit like getting hit with a shovel.
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I went to Vegas during the Kabib v Conor fight and went to a gun range. Fired the Thompson, BAR, Sig, HK and a Sniper. Goddamn I’d do that once a month if I lived in America. Should have firing ranges over here. Was really fun.
 

Raoul

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Vlad is probably pissed because he no longer has a stooge in the WH to look the other way.....

 

WI_Red

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And so it begins. WV might be a great place to live for the next 2 years.

 

Drifter

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Four more years of stalemate. Corporate Democrats, paid to lose.

Democratic Sen. Sinema Comes Out Against Ending Filibuster: ‘Not Open to Changing Her Mind’


Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (AZ) has become the second Senate Democrat to come out against efforts to eliminate the chamber’s filibuster.

Sinema is “against eliminating the filibuster, and she is not open to changing her mind about eliminating the filibuster,” her office said in a statement obtained by The Washington Post.

Eliminating the legislative filibuster, which Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is keen on protecting, would allow legislation to pass by a simple majority vote.

Democrats now control the House, Senate and White House, which lead to conversations about voting to eliminate the filibuster, but any calls to do so will likely get rejected without Sinema’s vote, as Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has also said he will not support the vote.

McConnell warned against earlier calls to end the 60-vote filibuster. Some Democratic senators had suggested the chamber should eliminate it if they won the majority during November’s elections.

“We have a moral imperative to the people of America to get a whole lot done, if we get the majority, which God-willing we will, and keep it in the House, and Biden becomes President, nothing is off the table,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said during an August interview on the The Joe Madison Show. “We will do what it takes to get this done. I’m hopeful, maybe if Trump goes and McConnell is leader no longer, some Republicans might work with us. But we’re going to have to get it done whether they work with us or not.”
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