Dr. Billings' Run for Congress

[sword]

An estimated 45% of American households (roughly 77.5 million) pay no federal income taxes. Regardless of who becomes president this number is likely to go up not down. If I implied anything different then it was not my intention.

Under Clinton's plan I would pay more. Under her plan most small business owners would also pay more and they create almost 70% of the new jobs in the U.S. since the 90's.

If you plan to raise taxes you are for higher taxes. Some feel higher taxes are good as long as it does not include them.

 

[LongGone]

An estimated 45% of American households (roughly 77.5 million) pay no federal income taxes. Regardless of who becomes president this number is likely to go up not down. If I implied anything different then it was not my intention.

Under Clinton's plan I would pay more. Under her plan most small business owners would also pay more and they create almost 70% of the new jobs in the U.S. since the 90's.

If you plan to raise taxes you are for higher taxes. Some feel higher taxes are good as long as it does not include them.

If you raise taxes on one group and off set it with tax relief for another group you are not for higher taxes. You are for a different distribution of taxes.  I don't doubt most of us will pay more tax no matter who is president but that is not what prompted the discussion. This discussion started because I pointed out that you paraphrased the Democratic platform. This appears to have been done with your opinion rather than what the actual platform states.

 

[sword]

An estimated 45% of American households (roughly 77.5 million) pay no federal income taxes. Regardless of who becomes president this number is likely to go up not down. If I implied anything different then it was not my intention.
Under Clinton's plan I would pay more. Under her plan most small business owners would also pay more and they create almost 70% of the new jobs in the U.S. since the 90's.
If you plan to raise taxes you are for higher taxes. Some feel higher taxes are good as long as it does not include them.

If you raise taxes on one group and off set it with tax relief for another group you are not for higher taxes. You are for a different distribution of taxes.  I don't doubt most of us will pay more tax no matter who is president but that is not what prompted the discussion. This discussion started because I pointed out that you paraphrased the Democratic platform. This appears to have been done with your opinion rather than what the actual platform states.

Actually it was written based on what I read & on a discussion I had with a democrat party big shot in my area that was very proud of the things in their platform. We discussed them one by one at length and he was not shy about any of them. He talked at length about single payer and about how Clinton & her friends in congress will propose it as the solution to the extremely high cost of ACA. He also said they would like to see everyone over 50 on Medicare and they want to see Medicaid greatly expanded to give the ACA some relief. He also stressed they are for reasonable emigration, not open borders, but his definition seemed anything but reasonable. He wants all undocumented emigrants to be made citizens within a year and anyone with a direct family member here should get a visa to join them in the U.S. ASAP. He also talked a lot about the rich paying their fair share to allow Washington to help those who have been ?left behind?. He said those who are successful got that way on the backs of the common man. He called them the forgotten citizens.  Sounds a lot like tax those who work 70 to 80 hrs. a week running their business to pay for those who choose not to work at all. I am all for disabled S.S. and a sensible safety net but in many places it has become a safety hammock. You don?t want to know what he thinks about the police or our current justice system.

Just for sake of discussion if you take out taxes, borders & religious freedom, it still leaves a whole bunch of un-biblical junk they are proudly for.

 

[sword]

Long Gone why don't you take a stab at the Republican platform. What do you think of it or why don't you compare them for us.

I don't sing the praises of the Republicans either but since the 1980 there have been few fiscally or morally conservative democrats in any office. I would say Georgia Senator Zell Miller was the last and he's been gone 10 years or more. The rest switched to Republicans as their party fell off the liberal cliff. There was a day in my childhood when there were many conservative democrats in all levels of government. 

I think the Republicans have been the party of the rich, supported every bad trade deal that came down the pike, over spent on too many poorly planned wars and have bent to the political winds over and over but they still stand for most of the things I hold near & dear. If you compare each platforms to the bible standard and find the democrats to be much closer to the bible then we must have a different bibles.

I will give smellin some slack on Gods command to care for the needy but the bible does not say take from the rich and give to those who refuse to work. He expects us all to do our part. The bible speaks of love and charity but it should always be voluntary. Smellin is for taking from me to give to others as long as he does not have to participate. He considers it charity on his part to force others to give while he just watches. I don't know how much he gives but I do know I give as God directs and I give as Washington insists. 

 

[LongGone]

Long Gone why don't you take a stab at the Republican platform. What do you think of it or why don't you compare them for us.

I don't sing the praises of the Republicans either but since the 1980 there have been few fiscally or morally conservative democrats in any office. I would say Georgia Senator Zell Miller was the last and he's been gone 10 years or more. The rest switched to Republicans as their party fell off the liberal cliff. There was a day in my childhood when there were many conservative democrats in all levels of government. 

I think the Republicans have been the party of the rich, supported every bad trade deal that came down the pike, over spent on too many poorly planned wars and have bent to the political winds over and over but they still stand for most of the things I hold near & dear. If you compare each platforms to the bible standard and find the democrats to be much closer to the bible then we must have a different bibles.

I will give smellin some slack on Gods command to care for the needy but the bible does not say take from the rich and give to those who refuse to work. He expects us all to do our part. The bible speaks of love and charity but it should always be voluntary. Smellin is for taking from me to give to others as long as he does not have to participate. He considers it charity on his part to force others to give while he just watches. I don't know how much he gives but I do know I give as God directs and I give as Washington insists.

My friend...you started this by stating your opinion of the Democratic Platform as if you were being accurate. I just noted that you were paraphrasing rather than be accurate about what the platform actually states. I pointed out to you that I thought you were paraphrasing and you asked me to point out where which I did.  I haven't taken the time to completely make to a comparison between what you said and the platform said. What I have compared demonstrates you presented it with your bias rather than a accurate description.

As for your "big shoot" friend my guess is that what he would like to see happen and what happens are two entirely different things.

You talk about giving benefits to people who do not work. I spent 28 years in Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare.  My last year of the 2.2 million people who got benefits from us less than 500,000 got cash and over 50% of those were children. That means the remaining folks either were working and still eligible for Medicaid or SNAP or were disabled. I know from experience that many of the folks getting cash have issues with mental illness that makes it difficult to provide for themselves and their families. The system is far from perfect but much better than having no safety net at all. The most radical change to the welfare system in the 28 years I was there was Welfare Reform until President Bill Clinton.

I may not agree with things in either platform but the candidate that you have chosen would appear to me to be the least Biblical or Christ-like that I have ever seen. Hillary is not my first choice...I actually started on your side of the fence wanting John Kasich.  I happen to think that your candidate is a disaster waiting in the wings. Should he be elected (which I doubt) I could be proved wrong but I doubt it.

 

[Route_70]

I drove Dr. Billings' campaign bus during the election.

I was a poll watcher, and the Democrat in charge of the polling place and I called the police on each other.

I remember listening to the radio that night: "And Billings' campaign just ran out of steam."

You remind me of Bubba...You've been everywhere and you know everyone!  8)

I, too drove the campaign bus.  I was supposed to drive the bus in a parade, but I could not find the parade; so I just took a joy ride in the thing all over Hammond and Chicago.  The fact that Dr. Billings was running in Indiana didn't matter to me.  Driving that "rear-ender" was a lot of fun!

And yes, Vince knew a lot of people from that era -- more than I did, even!

How well I recall Dr. Billings' announcement: "God told me to run!"

 

[LongGone]

Old timers will remember Dr. Billings unsuccessful run for congress. The election was 40 years ago today. Jimmy Carter was elected as President. I remember the ringing of hands by some that the Lord's return must be soon if Carter would be in the White House   Was a poll watcher in Gary.

Carter was a terrible president, but at least he was a born again Christian and was a moral and honest man. I disagree with much of his politics, but I believe he was a good person and thought he was making the right choices for our country..

I don't think either of our current choices are good people & think they will be self serving. I suspect neither is a christian and I am very likely to disagree with the positions of which ever one gets in. That being said I feel the current Republican platform to be far more christian friendly & biblical than the other party.

Current Democratic Platform
Gun control, abortion rights with public funding, expanded LGBTQ rights, open borders & unlimited Immigration, expanded social programs, single payer healthcare, legalization of drugs, higher taxes, expanded government, reduction of military, pro Islam agenda, expansion or refugees into the US, expanded affirmative action, pro green agenda, anti traditional energy, appointing progressive judges, anti charter and private school, anti home school, and they are for limiting religious freedom for Christians.

Was curious how you decided that the platform was anti-private and anti home school since neither was mentioned. The platform is self in not anti-charter school put is anti-for profit charter schools. The platform itself goes on to describe the features charter schools should include.

 

[LongGone]

I have been wrong many times in life but I must admit that I am surprised and stunned that I am listening to CNN saying that Hillary called Trump to concede the election. Congratulations to Sword and my Republican friends. Donald Trump is now our president-elect and those of us who supported other candidates need to put our disappointment behind us and hope for the best for our President-Elect and our wonderful country. God bless the USA!

 

[sword]

I have been wrong many times in life but I must admit that I am surprised and stunned that I am listening to CNN saying that Hillary called Trump to concede the election. Congratulations to Sword and my Republican friends. Donald Trump is now our president-elect and those of us who supported other candidates need to put our disappointment behind us and hope for the best for our President-Elect and our wonderful country. God bless the USA!

I will admit Trump is the least presidential & appears to be the least Christian of any Republican candidate in my lifetime.
We can only hope he will choose good advisers and that he will listen to them.

 

[Baptist City Holdout]

Click Indiana - See "Candidates" in 1st District

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections,_1976#Indiana

 

[Smellin Coffee]

I will give smellin some slack on Gods command to care for the needy but the bible does not say take from the rich and give to those who refuse to work. He expects us all to do our part. The bible speaks of love and charity but it should always be voluntary.

Really? Have you read the OT at all, about how Israel was to take care of the immigrants, widows and poor through their tithes (which was a "tax" in the original theocracy)? How they were to "circle the fields" leaving food for poor reapers? How the prophets called out the nation time after time for not adhering to benevolence to the marginalized? Capitalism was not mentioned. In fact, the OT instructed capital punishment on those who charged interest to people who borrow:

...he lends money on interest and takes increase; will he live? He will not live! He has committed all these abominations, he will surely be put to death; his blood will be on his own head.

I believe you mean well, but I don't think you have thought it all through.

Smellin is for taking from me to give to others as long as he does not have to participate. He considers it charity on his part to force others to give while he just watches. I don't know how much he gives but I do know I give as God directs and I give as Washington insists.

Is that really a fair assessment considering you don't know me? Just because I refuse to blow trumpets on the street corner doesn't mean I don't have the substance to brag if I chose. I think Jesus said something about "getting their reward" here on earth instead of heaven, so I choose to remain mostly silent about specifics.

FYI, my taxes would go up as well and I most definitely pay taxes. And I for one, DO NOT claim charitable donations as non-taxable income when I could use the tax break. I do use the child care credit but I believe I should give to God what is His and the government what is his. For me (not anybody else), that would mean my giving to churches, non-profit organizations (one of which my wife and I literally started and financially support), cash disbursement to those in need with whom I come in contact, overseas child sponsorships, etc., none of those gifts are ever deducted from my taxes because I believe it would be against what Jesus taught. So don't think I am for raising everyone else's taxes while I am not doing my share either inside or outside the tax system.