A Trillion here, a trillion there

[rexreed]

A couple people here seem to have all the answers. Reminds me of the song "Mr. Hitler" by Jacob's Trouble.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8v9GAZ5AOM8
please excuse the image- I didn't post this, but it's the only public link I could find.

[executioner]

I've twice now posted at length about how the anecdotal evidence of abuses does not reflect the very real good such programs do for needy people. If you are unwilling or unable to read and retain that info, I'm not interested in rehashing it a third time. I recommend going back and reading them in the previous posts on this subject. You don't have to be convinced, but it sure would be nice if the argument changed once the data disproved your two examples.

Meanwhile, I'll gladly take a society in which kids don't die because their parents can't get help from those of us with enough money to buy Halloween costumes for our pets. If pretending those kids are middle-aged scofflaws watching big-screen TVs on the taxpayer dime makes you feel better, I'm happy for you, but my faith doesn't let me make those assumptions about the poor.

Your data disproved nothing, my examples are tried & true and I've had to face these items first hand.

[gman]

If you like big bloated Gov't, you give out all kinds of freebies; one way of justifying Govts' existence. Then, in what is another form of vote buying, when a politician comes along who campaigns on fiscal responsibility and reducing spending, you shout from the hills that said politician wants to starve the poor, take your child's lunch away, kill sick people, kick you out of your house, etc., etc., even though you know it's poppycock. Really, it's smarmy, but that's the political game. Unless we shed that and agree on some basic stuff, we'll never get anywhere. So many folks are stuck on my party has to win at any cost.

by smearing anything government-related as the next step to statist repression

How many steps do we have to go before we are at statist repression. Whether that was the intnet or not, continued growth and reach of Gov't will eventually get us there.
Do poor people watch flat screen tvs? I'm spanning the globe to find out.

[executioner]

If you like big bloated Gov't, you give out all kinds of freebies; one way of justifying Govts' existence. Then, in what is another form of vote buying, when a politician comes along who campaigns on fiscal responsibility and reducing spending, you shout from the hills that said politician wants to starve the poor, take your child's lunch away, kill sick people, kick you out of your house, etc., etc., even though you know it's poppycock. Really, it's smarmy, but that's the political game. Unless we shed that and agree on some basic stuff, we'll never get anywhere. So many folks are stuck on my party has to win at any cost.

by smearing anything government-related as the next step to statist repression

How many steps do we have to go before we are at statist repression. Whether that was the intnet or not, continued growth and reach of Gov't will eventually get us there.
Do poor people watch flat screen tvs? I'm spanning the globe to find out.

I don't have one, my newest TV was bought in 2002, and my computer is 8 yrs old and still runs XP.

[gman]

If you like big bloated Gov't, you give out all kinds of freebies; one way of justifying Govts' existence. Then, in what is another form of vote buying, when a politician comes along who campaigns on fiscal responsibility and reducing spending, you shout from the hills that said politician wants to starve the poor, take your child's lunch away, kill sick people, kick you out of your house, etc., etc., even though you know it's poppycock. Really, it's smarmy, but that's the political game. Unless we shed that and agree on some basic stuff, we'll never get anywhere. So many folks are stuck on my party has to win at any cost.

by smearing anything government-related as the next step to statist repression

How many steps do we have to go before we are at statist repression. Whether that was the intnet or not, continued growth and reach of Gov't will eventually get us there.
Do poor people watch flat screen tvs? I'm spanning the globe to find out.

I don't have one, my newest TV was bought in 2002, and my computer is 8 yrs old and still runs XP.

Wow. That's tragic and unacceptable. You can't fully appreciate the rising seas and the seniors eating their dog food, unless you have a new HDTV. And XP? How can you possible get anything done. The Gov't will get you Windows 7, as soon as they are done bringing broadband to the swamp lands.

[gman]

So, in your own reasoning, you concluded that broad sweeping Gov't programs, that help many who don't need the help, are the best way, because of their broad nature, to insure that the greatest number of truly needy folks get help. We could debate this all day, but I guess we can't apply scripture because we already reasoned it away in a previous thread.

[executioner]

So, in your own reasoning, you concluded that broad sweeping Gov't programs, that help many who don't need the help, are the best way, because of their broad nature, to insure that the greatest number of truly needy folks get help. We could debate this all day, but I guess we can't apply scripture because we already reasoned it away in a previous thread.

Is this meant for me?

[gman]

So, in your own reasoning, you concluded that broad sweeping Gov't programs, that help many who don't need the help, are the best way, because of their broad nature, to insure that the greatest number of truly needy folks get help. We could debate this all day, but I guess we can't apply scripture because we already reasoned it away in a previous thread.

Is this meant for me?

No. My bad. I'm pretty sure your past doesn't include any of the President's mentors.

[brent]

Exec...quit rubbing it in that you are running the more superior OS (over Visturd and 7).

Windows 8 is coming. It will be a game changer. Finally an OS that MS will not have to tell lies to get people to believe it is great. It WILL be great.

[executioner]

Exec...quit rubbing it in that you are running the more superior OS (over Visturd and 7).

Windows 8 is coming. It will be a game changer. Finally an OS that MS will not have to tell lies to get people to believe it is great. It WILL be great.

lol! I've never had any problems out of my XP, but its becomming hard to find updates for all the products I'm running. My 16 yr old will be getting a laptop over the summer because his schooling is moving in that direction; homework assignments are actually emailed to the students and parents, and most homework is done online and sent back to the school via email. If Brent is correct I wish he could wait until Windows 8 is available, but he really needs it for the start of the fall semister. I've considered getting one also but I'm thinking of sinning and getting a flatscreen TV instead.
What are the best options out there for laptops and flatscreens TV's with a price range up to $1,000 for each? What products and brand names do you all have? Also is Blue-Ray really that much better than regular DVD? Will I be able to play all my old DVD's on the Blue-Ray Player?

[adpetrafan]

What are the best options out there for laptops and flatscreens TV's with a price range up to $1,000 for each? What products and brand names do you all have? Also is Blue-Ray really that much better than regular DVD? Will I be able to play all my old DVD's on the Blue-Ray Player?

Laptops - there are so many options that you can get bogged down with. But here are two large generalizations that might help you get started. 1) If the laptop is not going to be used for modern gaming, than just about any of the ~$300 range laptops available in big box stores or online at newegg.com or amazon.com will be fine. 2) If the laptop is going to be used for gaming, then you want a dedicated video card, 8GB of memory, and at least dual core - so you are looking at ~$600 minimum imo.

Flatscreen - i did a LOT of looking before we finally replaced our 20 year old, barely functional tube TV and finally settled on a 42" passive 3D Vizio, purchased at Wal-Mart of all places. We can watch 3D using the glasses you buy every time you go to the theater and watch a 3D movie - no special (and expensive) shutter glasses! It also has built in Wi-Fi, so it can be used to watch netflix, amazon, hulu, vudu, etc, and has other apps available for weather, news, finance, youtube, etc, etc, etc. The picture is great, and it was relatively cheap - ~$600.

Blu-Ray - Yes, blu rays are generally much better than regular dvds. There are a few clunckers out there, but they are easy to see if you look online for reviews. The main thing to look for (imo) is a 3D blu ray player so you can watch 3D movies. They look FAR better at home than they do in the theaters. And yes, they can play regular dvds (and usually many more formats).

Hope this helps.

[brent]

Man, I did not type that. I must have quoted someone and then my quote was quoted.

I am an audio guy. I don't care about video . My TV is a 60" plasma (in a nice dark space), 720 because I cannot get antenna digital TV, and my provider barely does 1080. I have no BR, just DVD. I was kind of waiting for the next big thing to come around, which would be 4k or 8k streaming just like the theaters use. My bedroom TV is a 42" LCD because of the light, a cheap DVD player that seldom gets used. Now, if you wanna talk about a sound system, that's another story.

[executioner]

What are the best options out there for laptops and flatscreens TV's with a price range up to $1,000 for each? What products and brand names do you all have? Also is Blue-Ray really that much better than regular DVD? Will I be able to play all my old DVD's on the Blue-Ray Player?

Laptops - there are so many options that you can get bogged down with. But here are two large generalizations that might help you get started. 1) If the laptop is not going to be used for modern gaming, than just about any of the ~$300 range laptops available in big box stores or online at newegg.com or amazon.com will be fine. 2) If the laptop is going to be used for gaming, then you want a dedicated video card, 8GB of memory, and at least dual core - so you are looking at ~$600 minimum imo.

Flatscreen - i did a LOT of looking before we finally replaced our 20 year old, barely functional tube TV and finally settled on a 42" passive 3D Vizio, purchased at Wal-Mart of all places. We can watch 3D using the glasses you buy every time you go to the theater and watch a 3D movie - no special (and expensive) shutter glasses! It also has built in Wi-Fi, so it can be used to watch netflix, amazon, hulu, vudu, etc, and has other apps available for weather, news, finance, youtube, etc, etc, etc. The picture is great, and it was relatively cheap - ~$600.

Blu-Ray - Yes, blu rays are generally much better than regular dvds. There are a few clunckers out there, but they are easy to see if you look online for reviews. The main thing to look for (imo) is a 3D blu ray player so you can watch 3D movies. They look FAR better at home than they do in the theaters. And yes, they can play regular dvds (and usually many more formats).

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the info. I look at Consumer Reports alot and usually go by their recommendations, and also like getting knowledge from actual users of the products. I find Walmart has a decent selection and also good pricing, but they seem to take in lower end and out of date models on their flatscreens and computers. I think I'm probably either going with Samsung or Panasonic with the TV and either DELL or HP for the laptop.
Anyone here own any products from these brand names?

[rexreed]

In a nutshell you are on the right track if you are looking at Panasonic plasma or Samsung anything.

[executioner]

In a nutshell you are on the right track if you are looking at Panasonic plasma or Samsung anything.

My living area is way too bright(wall of windows) to have a plasma; I've been impressed with the reviews on the new Panasonic LCD or LED 40"-46" sizes and Samsung sells the most but I see alot of refurbished ones being sold at Amazon and Best Buy websites which I think means alot of broken TV's before the service warranty is up.