Peter Coogan

@ChrisMartzWX Actually firefighting taxes if they are covering firefighting and not ems stuff actually can make good sense as a property tax assessed on the value of the property since protecting the property and that value from damage from fire is a major part of the idea.

I don’t want to hear anyone’s defense of the personal property tax. You should not have to pay any taxes on property you (allegedly) own after the sale of purchase. That’s the whole point of private ownership. Am I right? The police, firefighters, and schools can be funded through a consumption-based sales tax on optional purchases that are not required for actually living. And, if you don’t have kids that are in school, then you shouldn’t be forced to pay for public schools at all. For instance, I have no kids (yet), so why am I paying for others’ kids to go to school? Also, if everyone in a community uses the same basic services, why do people with more (or more valuable) land get taxed more to pay for the same things? And still, nobody has answered my other question. If we have to pay property taxes on land (and even vehicles in some states), then why is furniture not given a property tax? Why is your cookware not given a property tax? Why are clothes not taxed annually because that’s property too? Right? Why is it only land, motor vehicles, and equipment that get taxed on an annual basis according to the value the government determines it to be? The only fair tax to levy are consumption-based sales taxes (on non-essential items) at the sale of purchase and tariffs on imported goods. But if you insist that there mathematically must be an income tax (which I haven’t seen the evidence for because you’re really just admitting that government spending is out of control) to ensure that things get proper funding (assuming no fraud is occurring, which is naive), then it should be a flat tax. High income earners should not be punished because they’re successful. Estate tax needs to go. Inheritance tax needs to go. Capital gains tax needs to go. The payroll tax needs to go (along with the Social Security Ponzi scheme it funds). Annual registration fees also need to go. The property tax makes no sense because it is applied inconsistently and selectively. Again, why are land and vehicles taxed annually according to their value, but not other property? The income tax would only make sense if it were a flat tax applied to all income brackets at a low rate (<15% federal, and very small at the state level—or even nonexistent altogether where tourism is high, like it is in Florida where there is no state income tax). The sales tax is the only tax that makes fiscal sense. When other taxes are lower, people spend more because they have more disposable income. And, the rich would pay more because they buy more luxury items. The poor would not be hurt (like claimed) because most of the things they’d buy wouldn’t be taxed. Instead of defending the status quo, we should be looking for ways to downsize the government, reduce spending, and in turn give people more money in their pockets to spend at their will. That is true freedom in an American sense.

@cabsav456 @CindyCoops Disagreeing the with majority view on an important constitutional issue does not mean one should be disbarred even when one knows many or the majority take the other side of the issue.

@CindyCoops Yes, he 100% did.

For all the election deniers out there who think the truth is about to come out, the main lawyer behind all those efforts just got disbarred. It's about time. But John Eastman wasn't a "conservative attorney". He wasn't conserving the Constitution. He twisted the words of the Founding Fathers into crackpot theories to try overturning the 2020 election.

@CaseyMattox_ The president should support a constitutional amendment if he thinks it is worth giving up our constitutional rights.

I was a lawyer for 2 years when I first opposed FISA in a debate (which I probably lost badly). So here’s how I expect this to go. When Rs are in the minority they will suddenly recall why this is wrong and support repeal. At which time Ds will take the Trump position. Repeat.

@VadeadIesum Hopefully the GOP will be willing to stand for allowing Christian education and parental rights; and against abortion, so called gay marriage, and euthanasia and this can form the basis for the political support of Catholics.

@VadeadIesum My understanding is that MAGA has correctly always disagreed with the Catholic position on immigration. On some issue MAGA may agree with Roman anothers it disagrees. We are not a Catholic nation or party but the nation and party are open to citizen Catholics.

Pretty much all of MAGA is revolting against the Catholic Church. Good luck winning another election without the Catholic voting bloc.

@jackrwilkie It seems to me that believing that Christian's should not drink alcohol during the church age but rather be filled with the Spirit is consistent with a dispensational hermeneutic and understanding of Scripture.

I hate spending time on the alcohol/teetotaling debate, but it really is a great litmus test for one’s ability to be honest with the text

@nelson26141 @xwanyex That is believable. I do not believe it is always necessarily however. I think not using a professional license connected with one's degree that one is defaulting on would make far more sense than also prohibiting one from having a license not connected to the education.

@Peter_Coogan @xwanyex I spent a summer as a temp doing student loan collecting. You can get loans for truck school and beauty school. My day was: lawyer, lawyer, doctor, hairdresser, truck driver, lawyer, doctor, lawyer, lawyer…

I've softened on student loan discourse, but always thought they should be dischargeable, even when I took a harder line on it. You shouldn't lock people into debt with no way to start over. If that creates bad incentives, then that just means you should *stop making bad loans*.

@BladeoftheS However the radio frequencies and technology used by the carriers change in a shorter time than one's life expectancy.

The screen is the next most likely thing to break on your phone. The cpu and ram that runs your phone will last probably longer than you will live.

Batteries only last for 3-5 years. The other components in your mobile phone last 20-50 years. It's entirely to make you buy another phone.

@EigenGender I believe some would argue that affirmative action also makes race based protected classes asymmetric in practice in the US.

perpetual reminder that age is the only protected class that’s asymmetric where it’s legal to discriminate one way but not the other

@Btweet123454321 @charliebilello I thought it was an attempt to buy votes particularly in Nevada.

@charliebilello Yeah you're right. Thought it was itemized ded. that was often not realized. saw its schedule 3 deduction. Yes, no tax on tips is a gimmick to get votes like no tax on OT. The OT is even worse. "There's no incentive for OT of its taxed heavily". then what's the 50% bonus pay

Why should the Walmart/Costco grandma pay more in taxes than the DoorDash grandma? Another tax policy that makes zero sense.

@nelson26141 @xwanyex I do not think people need a degree for truck driving why prevent them from doing a job they could do without the degree because they cannot afford and were not helped by the degree?

@xwanyex I would support this if people who discharge student loans cannot hold a professional license for 10 years. Want to skate on paying for that law or medical degree? Fine, but you can’t practice law or medicine. Ditto teaching, truck driving, hair styling, social work…

@Jessethefree Sounds like it would cause major separation of power problems.

If a law is found unconstitutional, the lawmakers who passed the bill should be held liable.

@kristenmag Would you need enforcement of the Robinson Putman act also?

I, too, could open a city-run grocery store in NYC with lower prices for food than existing neighborhood grocery stores if I had $30 million in taxpayer dollars and no property taxes and reduced construction fees and favorable permitting and also the city would need to take away current subsidies from those existing grocery stores so they could subsidize my prices while manipulatively raising prices for my competition and oh yeah I’m also gonna need three years to build it. Ok cool, am I hired?

@JustinHHill @Mistatic_ @wolmanj @Alonso_GD To be clear I think sometimes a limited monopoly can be justified.

@JustinHHill @Mistatic_ @wolmanj @Alonso_GD It seems an objection comes from disagreeing with the statement ""Monopolies are bad. Copyright is a monopoly. Copyright is bad.”" (copyrightalliance.org/copyright-not-…) I however object to the first premise as not being universally true, while holding to the premise 2nd.

This is why streaming services have famously reduced their prices, not added stream quality tiers below HD and not added ads. The free market makes sure that if they all raise their prices a new streaming service will enter an-… Wait. [checks notes] No… no no no no, noooooo

@MrsCMFrancis Note the law has since been modified.

@MrsCMFrancis Where I lived growing up the homeschooling family had to provide the instruction in core subjects (at least according to a reading of the law). In that context often a co-op provided classes in other areas or provided supplemental instruction/enrichment in core subject areas.

It has come to my attention that not everybody means the same thing when they say “homeschool Co-op”. To me, it’s a semi-organized group of moms who get together once a week and go on field trips together. What does it mean to you?

@MrsCMFrancis @HanneloreDelor5 Often we call ones without classes a home school group or a home school support group.

@HanneloreDelor5 But you assume classes! We don’t even do classes!