Two Republicans Announce The Bill To De-Fund Public Broadcasting

[Teejay13]

Here's a quick photochop I did that sums it all up

 

[londonfog]

wait on macduff. what is it you're going to have done to me, have my "horticultural rights" suspended for accurately portraying the liberal mindset? the powers that be here at riu may decide to ban me if i should step over the line, but i've seen where that line lies and i seldom even come close to passing it. i've been insulted and degraded on these boards many a time and have never even considered this pitiful whining you're so quick to resort to. this is the politics section, where matters are discussed that often inflame the participants. if you can't stand the heat, i'd suggest you get out of the kitchen. you are an advocate for an ideology that i find tyrannical and repulsive and i'll be damned if i'm simply going to say "gosh, you're wrong".

just what rights are we giving up when we decide to quit forcing the taxpayer to fund a redundant information/entertainment medium? the content that is available through public broadcasting is available through a variety of other self-supporting sources. the most that can be said is that we are ending the privilege of some to spend the wealth of others, without their consent, toward some dubious end.

do you speak so quickly ( and type so much) when your tax dollars are used for meaningless wars ?????

 

[Rob Roy]

Here is what I have to say.

It's much easier to give up rights than it is to get them back.
Re-Legalization is an example.

I want a world of abundance not one of shortages. We all die, after all, so material things are meaningless in the long run.

What is meaningless to one person may not be meaningless to another. All we should do is respect every persons right to define their own existence if they are not imposing on anybody else. You and I may want similar things but it's not up to you to make it happen for me, nor I for you. There is nothing stopping us from being charitable, but when we impose it on somebody as a "must do" it is no longer charity is it?

Since you seem interested in rights, I commend that thought. What right does anybody have to impose their will on another?

 

[PeachOibleBoiblePeach#1]

Hmmm,,,That O'sullivan born and bread conservative snitch bitch,,,I think it's time to fight fire with fire IMO.

 

[GreatwhiteNorth]

According to Ron Schiller, a receintly retired major fundraiser for NPR "Very little of our funding comes from the government, but they act as if all our funding comes from the government... it is very clear that in the long run we would be better off without federal funding".
Now I'm not sure what "Better off" means, but its clear that as a major money man for the organization he's confident NPR does not need our $$, and I for one say good riddance.
I would prefer my hard earned tax dollars are not frivolously spent, and even tho this is a pittance at only 430 Million this year - thats still an ass load of money that we don't need to spend. Lets just put that back in the black column.
On another note, it is quoted by the Philidelphia inquirer (and others) that this 430M is only 2% of NPR's budget - that gives them a total annual budget of $ 21.5 Billion? I had no idea that kind of money was moving through this "Public" radio station.
BTW, it is fairly hypocrytical to say that NPR is unbiased when even their top executives are saying

"The current Republican Party is not really the Republican Party. It's been hijacked by this group that is ... not just Islamophobic but, really, xenophobic," Ron Schiller said in the video, referring to the tea party movement. "They believe in sort of white, middle America, gun-toting , it's scary. They're seriously racist, racist people."

Thats my take on the whole mess.
Peace

​

 

[Ernst]

What is meaningless to one person may not be meaningless to another. All we should do is respect every persons right to define their own existence if they are not imposing on anybody else. You and I may want similar things but it's not up to you to make it happen for me, nor I for you. There is nothing stopping us from being charitable, but when we impose it on somebody as a "must do" it is no longer charity is it?

Since you seem interested in rights, I commend that thought. What right does anybody have to impose their will on another?

I disagree you don't appear to have super powers. Unless you can live for ever then you face the same end I do.
Think of yourself as special; Make up a religion that empowers you.. It's all an illusion.
More than likely we are not independent beings with an immortal soul. More than likely we are just part of the equation of existence and nothing more.. No different than the animals we slaughter. No different then the atoms of the Universe.. We are all Star Stuff..

So are you immortal? Can you take it with you when you go?
If not why not try and be compassionate to the rest of the living while you can.
What is the point of making the earth a living hell when it could be paradise.

 

[Ernst]

You crossed the line when you labelled me.

Not gonna let you do that. Nope..

wait on macduff. what is it you're going to have done to me, have my "horticultural rights" suspended for accurately portraying the liberal mindset? the powers that be here at riu may decide to ban me if i should step over the line, but i've seen where that line lies and i seldom even come close to passing it. i've been insulted and degraded on these boards many a time and have never even considered this pitiful whining you're so quick to resort to. this is the politics section, where matters are discussed that often inflame the participants. if you can't stand the heat, i'd suggest you get out of the kitchen. you are an advocate for an ideology that i find tyrannical and repulsive and i'll be damned if i'm simply going to say "gosh, you're wrong".

just what rights are we giving up when we decide to quit forcing the taxpayer to fund a redundant information/entertainment medium? the content that is available through public broadcasting is available through a variety of other self-supporting sources. the most that can be said is that we are ending the privilege of some to spend the wealth of others, without their consent, toward some dubious end.

 

[doc111]

I disagree you don't appear to have super powers. Unless you can live for ever then you face the same end I do.
Think of yourself as special; Make up a religion that empowers you.. It's all an illusion.
More than likely we are not independent beings with an immortal soul. More than likely we are just part of the equation of existence and nothing more.. No different than the animals we slaughter. No different then the atoms of the Universe.. We are all Star Stuff..

So are you immortal? Can you take it with you when you go?
If not why not try and be compassionate to the rest of the living while you can.
What is the point of making the earth a living hell when it could be paradise.

My friend, if none of it matters, then what difference does it make if the earth is a living hell or a paradise?

 

[mindphuk]

You crossed the line when you labelled me.

Not gonna let you do that. Nope..

Grow some thicker skin man and quit whining about how others perceive your rants. It appears to me that your complaining is merely a way of avoiding and dodging the comments that UTI made.

 

[hazorazo]

Agree with pretty much everything except the solider bonuses.

The NPR issue and Republicans pushing for students to have a harder time voting are separate issues, but connected by a need for the Republicans to control voters and information.

 

[Ernst]

My friend, if none of it matters, then what difference does it make if the earth is a living hell or a paradise?

Did I say it doesn't matter? No, Why make the Earth a living Hell?

I think the thing that ties us all together is that we are here in this here and now.

Back to Rob, I didn't read your post well..

Rob we are stuck on this planet. If we could leave and just go some place and start over I'd think we wouldn't be having the issues we are.
In allowing some to have control of massive resources while denying resources to others has created a situation where we can never have peace we can only have submission to a plutocracy.

I guess this is a test of the Human to see if he can evolve to a higher level of average intelligence or will he be reduced to a simple animal to be used for labor and allowed nothing else?

Look at what Nazi Germany did to the Trade Unions, The Jews and in the end The German people.

Can this happen to the USA?

So My life is a humble one. My net worth has always been based around a job so I am aware how little a life of service to corporations is worth now.
It used to be that we all said if people just get up and go to work they can succeed but that isn't what we are being told now. We are hearing we have to accept less.
So where is the bottom for the poor in this unjust economic situation we call Disaster Capitalism now.

Perhaps for us to make it 500 year more we have to change how the resources are managed and perhaps that means more of a democratic administration of those resources with a goal of managing the Planet over the collective exploitation of the Planet.


The question I have is what will the planet look like in 500 years?
If the wealth keeps being accumulated at the top, and since we see we are being told with the Anti-Worker rights issues that we must continue to expect less then in 500 years do we think it will be "Heaven on Earth" for the workers or the wealthy?


back at ya Doc111..

What ever is the reality of the nature of existence we are here to be what we are. What we do with that is the only question. Perhaps since, as a wise man said "No one gets out alive", and I add "No one writes from Heaven" We should believe in the here and now rather than the Here after.

So more food for thought.. I wish I could share these Bogo seeds with y'all really really up..

Wow .. Things are moving really fast in the world..

 

[Ernst]

Grow some thicker skin man and quit whining about how others perceive your rants. It appears to me that your complaining is merely a way of avoiding and dodging the comments that UTI made.

And you are doing it.

First off there is no whining. That is all in your head.

Second you are not contributing just picking a fight. Lame..

Things are happening really fast in the world.. Faster than I have ever seen. Open your eyes, share some news..

 

[GreatwhiteNorth]

We seem to have seriously veered into the weeds, the original theme of this thread concerned the "De-funding of NPR".
Earlier I threw some numbers out there & have yet to see the op or anyone even comment on so I'll try again.
The federal government only provides 2% of NPR funding, which NPR itself has stated they could (and would even prefer to) do without.
So, NPR is willing to do with out the federal funds.
I (and others apparently) don't wish to fund NPR.
So where's the problem?

Ernst, I don't think you will lose your bert & ernie show because of this.

 

[Rob Roy]

I disagree you don't appear to have super powers. Unless you can live for ever then you face the same end I do.
Think of yourself as special; Make up a religion that empowers you.. It's all an illusion.
More than likely we are not independent beings with an immortal soul. More than likely we are just part of the equation of existence and nothing more.. No different than the animals we slaughter. No different then the atoms of the Universe.. We are all Star Stuff..

So are you immortal? Can you take it with you when you go?
If not why not try and be compassionate to the rest of the living while you can.
What is the point of making the earth a living hell when it could be paradise.

Sigh...Strawman argument my friend. Please let me define MY point of view. I never said I am immortal or have super powers or implied it. I care for animals, raise them and sometimes eat them. Yes, we are star dust. As far as soul goes, I like a good James Brown or Temptations tune now and then....but anyway you never answered my question did you?

I AM compassionate. However, I DON'T require others to do what I WISH they would or ask government to be my strongman. You do.

So point blank.....I ask you again. What right does anybody have to impose their will on another?

 

[undertheice]

Things are happening really fast in the world.. Faster than I have ever seen.

is this really the default position you wish to choose; that things are moving so fast, we should simply be thankful for the bounty of the state and grab what we can for ourselves? i thought such unenlightened self-interest was supposed to be the position of us capitalist/conservative/republican/right-wing miscreants. i've got news for you, things always move fast. there have always been people who have been confused by the hectic pace of their day, that tried merely to maintain the status quo for the sake of their own survival. we've always managed to muddle through. it was never authority or the state that provided the means for the people to advance, but the innate quality of mankind to quickly adapt.

the current status quo is the gradual enslavement of the people. it's an unchanging theme that you'll find on the first page of every government's playbook. this era's chosen method is to throw the people crumbs, while economically shackling them from behind. while we are diverted by the pettiness of class warfare and and the emotional pleas of naive cause-heads, the private sector, the realm of the people, is being restrained and dismantled by the power of those we have set to protect it. while we squabble over the right to watch nova and masterpiece theater on the taxpayer's dime, we are supposed to forget that the other ninety cents of that dollar is being used against us.

beneath all the populist propaganda and the entitlement mentality lies the master's whip. behind the smokescreen of rich vs. poor, black vs. white and citizen vs. illegal immigrant hides the bureaucracy whose only purpose is control and its own growth. it is incapable of doing anything for the people. it produces nothing, it owns nothing and it adds nothing to society. it can only either protect our ability to do these things for ourselves or destroy it. the authority of the state is the "them" in us vs. them. this is something that every revolutionary has always known, but something our illusions of comfort and security seem to have allowed us to forget.

does it really matter that big bird and carl sagan's ghost might have to pay their own way in this world? of course not. just like the rest of us, they should have been doing it all along. if there is value in such content, they will find backing and supporters and they will succeed. if not, their time has come, they will be relegated to the past and replaced by some more viable programming. if they are unable to stand on their own, forcing the taxpayer to support them is a waste we can ill afford and an abuse of the power of the state. everything provided by the state is something that must be taken from someone else. the free rides, the handouts and the entitlements are all making someone else money at the expense of the individual and society at large.

 

[Rob Roy]

^^^ Well said, UTI.

 

[Ernst]

We seem to have seriously veered into the weeds, the original theme of this thread concerned the "De-funding of NPR".
Earlier I threw some numbers out there & have yet to see the op or anyone even comment on so I'll try again.
The federal government only provides 2% of NPR funding, which NPR itself has stated they could (and would even prefer to) do without.
So, NPR is willing to do with out the federal funds.
I (and others apparently) don't wish to fund NPR.
So where's the problem?

Ernst, I don't think you will lose your bert & ernie show because of this.

Eh, the conversations weave in and out of topic in all threads. It seems to be working by allowing folks to follow side-tracks.
It gives those who feel they were defeated in one to rally in another. So I am watching this and learning.
I agree that our public broadcasting is doing good and that many many people support it however, some places in the USA are under served and the largest portion of funding for some public broadcasting instances such as rural areas and also even equipment such as repeaters are dependant on our contributions through public monies.
Our public funds support provides access to public broadcasting where without public funding there would be no access.
It is important that even in the poorest and most rural areas that there is a choice of information just as high speed access to the internet is important to bring to rural areas.

And isn't the total for public broadcasting under $600,000,000 a year?
Are we not spending $2,000,000,000 a week on war?

The amount we spend to educate is far out spent by what we spend to kill.
I think the pro-public broadcasting people are not asking much.

 

[GreatwhiteNorth]

Eh, the conversations weave in and out of topic in all threads. It seems to be working by allowing folks to follow side-tracks.
It gives those who feel they were defeated in one to rally in another. So I am watching this and learning.
I agree that our public broadcasting is doing good and that many many people support it however, some places in the USA are under served and the largest portion of funding for some public broadcasting instances such as rural areas and also even equipment such as repeaters are dependant on our contributions through public monies.
Our public funds support provides access to public broadcasting where without public funding there would be no access.
It is important that even in the poorest and most rural areas that there is a choice of information just as high speed access to the internet is important to bring to rural areas.

And isn't the total for public broadcasting under $600,000,000 a year?
Are we not spending $2,000,000,000 a week on war?

The amount we spend to educate is far out spent by what we spend to kill.
I think the pro-public broadcasting people are not asking much.

The funding numbers are difficult to nail down - every search seems to turn up more conflicting information.
The long and short of this conversation is that they don't need our funds to continue.
Get it?
It will still be there despite the lack of govt funds.
Now, in light of that, WTF are we arguing about?

 

[doc111]

Did I say it doesn't matter? No, Why make the Earth a living Hell?

I think the thing that ties us all together is that we are here in this here and now.

Back to Rob, I didn't read your post well..

Rob we are stuck on this planet. If we could leave and just go some place and start over I'd think we wouldn't be having the issues we are.
In allowing some to have control of massive resources while denying resources to others has created a situation where we can never have peace we can only have submission to a plutocracy.

I guess this is a test of the Human to see if he can evolve to a higher level of average intelligence or will he be reduced to a simple animal to be used for labor and allowed nothing else?

Look at what Nazi Germany did to the Trade Unions, The Jews and in the end The German people.

Can this happen to the USA?

So My life is a humble one. My net worth has always been based around a job so I am aware how little a life of service to corporations is worth now.
It used to be that we all said if people just get up and go to work they can succeed but that isn't what we are being told now. We are hearing we have to accept less.
So where is the bottom for the poor in this unjust economic situation we call Disaster Capitalism now.

Perhaps for us to make it 500 year more we have to change how the resources are managed and perhaps that means more of a democratic administration of those resources with a goal of managing the Planet over the collective exploitation of the Planet.


The question I have is what will the planet look like in 500 years?
If the wealth keeps being accumulated at the top, and since we see we are being told with the Anti-Worker rights issues that we must continue to expect less then in 500 years do we think it will be "Heaven on Earth" for the workers or the wealthy?


back at ya Doc111..

What ever is the reality of the nature of existence we are here to be what we are. What we do with that is the only question. Perhaps since, as a wise man said "No one gets out alive", and I add "No one writes from Heaven" We should believe in the here and now rather than the Here after.

So more food for thought.. I wish I could share these Bogo seeds with y'all really really up..

Wow .. Things are moving really fast in the world..

How existential! You are correct, you never said "None of this matters" but I believe it was implied with the "slaughtered animals" comparison. That aside, I find it peculiar how we all, for the most part, seem to want the same things, we just disagree how to achieve them. Look at how diverse the opinions of the people posting in this thread are. Now multiply that times about a billion and you begin to see how enormously complex the problem becomes. It's simply not possible to feed, clothe, provide medical care, shelter, etc. for every person in the world. It's a very noble thing to apsire to, but it just won't work. Some people are so passionately opposed to any form of socialism or wealth redistribution that they are willing to die to see to it that it doesn't happen here. Yes, we all know that already is happening to a degree and yes, we have socialist elements to our government. There are numerous fundamental problems with making sure everybody has enough and that nobody has too little. Who gets to decide these things? How is it fair to have some lazy schlep who won't get a job and pay into the system to reap the same benefits from the system that I receive? I always see liberals gasp and say how selfish a view that is. Perhaps, but that is just the beginning. When too much power is turned over to the state, when they get to make all or most of our decisions for us, that is TOO MUCH POWER for any one person or group to have over another person or group! I could go on and on, but I'm fairly confident you've heard most of these arguments.

 

[Uncultivated]

Screw PBS they don't need any taxpayer money! How much fn money does all that Sesame Street merchandise generate? $millions!

PBS and NPR can and should compete on their own merits.

And if you consider them to be unbiased sources of information, then I want some of whatever you're smoking!