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Messages - Jim Logajan

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1
Spin Zone / Re: Biden Calls for 44.6% Capital Gains Tax Rate
« on: April 25, 2024, 12:43:21 PM »
This is an economic nightmare
It would be a nightmare if enacted, but it comes from a socialist wish-list that has yet (fortunately) to make much headway. The article posted by Lucifer helpfully linked to the Administration 2025 revenue proposal document:
https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/131/General-Explanations-FY2025.pdf#page86

I found the same 44.6% marginal rate note in the revenue proposals for 2024:
https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/131/General-Explanations-FY2024.pdf#page86

Both contain the 44.6% sentence at the bottom of page 80 on the 2025 revenue proposals and page 79 on the 2024 proposals.

Could not find it in the 2023 revenue proposal document. The following link appears to be a repository for such proposals going back to 1990:
https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/tax-policy/revenue-proposals

2
Spin Zone / Re: More Ukraine Clusterfuck
« on: April 19, 2024, 01:57:56 PM »
So where will the troops come from to defend Ukraine?
That's for Ukraine to solve. Though with sufficient munitions they were holding their own, particularly with air defense weapons and artillery. (French President Macron has proposed putting French troops in Ukraine, in some alleged non-combat or support roles. Now that would be something if that happened.)
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Why does the Biden Regime refuse accountability for money sent to Ukraine?  What is there to hide?
When did this refusal take place? The DoD claims processes are in place: https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/3313904/defense-officials-us-ensures-accountability-of-systems-supplied-to-ukraine/
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Please justify the US borrowing billions to "give" to Ukraine while asking the taxpayer to repay principal and interest on the borrowed money.
I don't justify it. It is, however, an action already underway. Like the payments I was forced to make to Social Security. If I start taking SS am I then justifying the previous taking?
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Please justify giving this money to Ukraine while the US border is open and Americans go homeless and hungry, not to mention a crumbling US infrastructure.
China and Russia appear to be the only powers on the planet that pose any credible military threat to the US. The southern border presents a lower priority threat. Infrastructure and fiscal problems are best solved at the state and local level, not Federal. Unlike national defense, they aren't listed in the Constitution.
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Please justify the US depleting arms stockpiles to Ukraine. while admitting thousands upon thousands of single military aged invaders into the US.
See above. "Military aged" is a meaningless scare phrase. That cadre has been entering the US for work since the Mexican Revolution.
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Why is it so important that the Biden Regime wants Israel to ceasefire with Hamas, yet this same regime has hindered any ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine.
Ok, now you're asking me to defend the idiotic policies of the Biden Regime. I think Israel would be foolish to seek a ceasefire with Hamas just as I think it foolish for Ukraine to cede to Russia.
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You say Ukraine is not a dictatorship, yet Zelenskyy has cancelled elections,
Sorry, no. When Russia invaded he invoked Martial Law per the Ukraine constitution. It would last only 90 days unless renewed by Ukraine's parliament. And the parliament has been renewing it, not Zelensky. Their constitution is what dictates (not Zelensky) that elections be suspended during martial law. So legally Zelensky is not responsible for cancelling elections.
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shut down media critical of him, closed churches, outlawed opposition political parties, has jailed political opposition and conscripts men into his military by dragging them out of their houses and businesses against their will.    Yep, seems he sure loves democracy  ::)
I believe all of these are allowed by their constitution while under martial law. Not excusable, but their parliament can undo that authority at any time. Compare to our democracy during the American civil war: Lincoln declared martial law in all states and ordered the suspension of the constitutionally protected right to writs of habeas corpus in the state of Maryland and parts of the Midwestern states. As a result 13,000 civilians were arrested by the military and held indefinitely during the course of the war. Free speech was suppressed.

So because the actions you cite occur during war wherein the leaders are granted broad powers that they don't have in peacetime doesn't per se make them undemocratic or unworthy of support.

3
Spin Zone / Re: Key bridge
« on: March 26, 2024, 02:24:47 PM »
The majority of stuff posted here should be in green.

4
Spin Zone / Re: Cheating to win at the polls is good!
« on: March 25, 2024, 07:02:32 AM »
Curious what the subsequent commandments are.
We’ll never know.

5
Spin Zone / Re: 2024 Presidential "Election"
« on: March 10, 2024, 08:16:27 PM »
I found this interesting and thought it may interest some of you.


6
Spin Zone / Re: DEI in the sky
« on: March 10, 2024, 08:59:10 AM »
DIE was misspelled.
 ;)

7
Spin Zone / Re: Immigration.
« on: March 06, 2024, 09:36:11 PM »
I just did a quit net search for some history of U.S. immigration laws. Didn't bother with the wikipedia entry. Did find a "brief" history at the Cato Institute (a libertarian site):
https://www.cato.org/policy-analysis/brief-history-us-immigration-policy-colonial-period-present-day#conclusion
It covers the main changes in laws from pre-colonial times up to the beginning of Biden's administration. It seemed a long read and I got to about the 1950s before skipping to the end. I'll go back and read the skipped portion later.

Anyhoo, it seems that immigration laws changed with shifts in wind direction. Cultural fears and prejudices often shaped the laws, other times economic needs and desires. For example, if I understand correctly, Mexican migrants and immigrants were sometimes encouraged, sometimes not - so deported, sometimes both actions happening at the same time. The latter I think was when the Bracero Program and Operation Wetback were operating: "Some illegal immigrants took “a walk‐​around the statute” to gain a bracero worker visa—a process where they were driven down to the Mexican border by the INS or Border Patrol and made to take one step across the border and then immediately reenter the United States legally with a bracero work visa."

The article seems to conclude current immigration laws are an inconsistent patchwork of past laws in need of correction by congress.

8
Spin Zone / Re: Presidentuial Immunity?
« on: March 01, 2024, 09:53:42 AM »
  The communist are opening a can of worms if they can get the court to say Trump didn't have immunity during Jan 6th.   Now any setting president will have to think long and hard before doing anything, even if it benefits the country out of fear of being prosecuted.
I'm trying to think, from a libertarian view, why it's a bad thing to reign in presidential actions that would otherwise be illegal for Joe citizen. The whole immunity issue is, IMHO, beside the point since Trump didn't break any laws and was within his rights. Yeah, it sucks that he has to defend himself and the courts are biased/rigged, but if the supreme court does rule that presidents aren't immune in some cases I'll notch that as a small win against the imperial presidency. I don't see such a win as actually hurting Trump though. So maybe a double win by hanging threats over future presidents while Trump's actions are found legal.

9
Pilot Zone / Joining the ranks of airplane owners
« on: February 25, 2024, 12:10:53 AM »
A little story on how I came to buy an airplane:

Our flying club wanted a plane with more useful load than the C-150 we are leasing. We had four members for a few months but dropped back to three. We had set  a limit of about $5000 each toward the purchase. We'd borrow the rest and looked for something under $45k - $50k as a stretch. That meant something like  Cherokee 140 or the like. C-172 prices had climbed into the flight levels, so they were out of the question.

I volunteered to guarantee a bank loan to the club's nonprofit corporation. I decided to seek a loan via AOPA Finance and spent a couple weeks working with them but they couldn't find any lenders under any circumstances that would lend to a flying club, regardless of who signed a personal guarantee. I asked if they had any lenders who would finance a purchase by my wife and I in which case we would lease our plane to the club. This was a week before Christmas. AOPA Finance said they'd look into it but never followed up. I was getting antsy so decided to try lightstream.com on December 29. Their rates for a 12 year term on $30,000 were between 9.34% and 13.74% (their rates for something other than an RV/Boat/Aircraft were typically even higher. AOPA was claiming rates between 7.1% and 9.99%) My wife was good with us covering the difference.

I plugged in claimed income and assets and submitted a loan request to Lightstream. Within hours I got an approval at 9.64%. I expected them to ask for supporting proof of income and assets but they didn't. And there would be no lien on the airplane (they make clear the borrower should NOT list them as a lienholder on any vehicle registration.)

As it happened I found two C-172s for sale below our limit: N7303A (on trade-a-plane; located Los Alamos, NM; asking $50k) and N7305A (on one of the Facebook aircraft sales groups; locate West Liberty, KY; asking $42.5k firm) Asking prices were close to vref.com estimates. I found it interesting coincidence both came off the assembly line one airplane apart.

Anyway, after doing some comparisons and dithering made an offer on N7303A. Closed on Feb 9, flew United to Santa Fe on the 11th. Flew the plane from Los Alamos to Rapid City on the 12th.

I'm leaving it up to the other two members on whether the club should lease or buy the plane from us. It feels odd to finally own a plane after all these years of renting since I considered an ownership stake being too expensive for just a hobby thing. Even if sold to the club I'll still have an equity claim on the plane.

10
Spin Zone / Re: Tucker Carlson interviews Vladimir Putin
« on: February 09, 2024, 10:55:30 PM »
I don’t. Jim, why do you not want Putin to tell his side?
There have been plenty of English language translations on the Internet of Putin and the Kremlin's views and public goals. If Carlson wants to spread them beyond the wonks who read that stuff that's fine with me. I simply state that he is engaging in propaganda, not journalism.

At his noblest Carlson may be attempting to promote non-interventionism. An excellent goal - but the whole point of non-intervention is to remove foreign war triggers. Promoting non-intervention after wars start often seems to yield worse results than fighting them to win.

11
Spin Zone / Re: Tucker Carlson interviews Vladimir Putin
« on: February 09, 2024, 10:31:58 PM »
  So you are alleging the media Mr. Carlson uses doesn't constitute journalism?
He engages in propaganda - anyone who has watched his shows realizes that. Just because propagandists dig for and present dirt, er, facts, doesn't make them unbiased and thus journalists. I may agree with the goals of some propagandist but they are still what they are.
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I get why you don't like the interview in question taking place.  So are you in favor of the media controlling the narrative and not letting viewers see both sides of an issue?
I never said I didn't like the interview taking place. I simply indicated that an ideal journalist would have also  tried to interview Zelensky. But Carlson will likely not because he long ago indicated who he considers the worse side even before the secondary invasion of Ukraine:
https://www.businessinsider.com/tucker-carlson-asks-why-us-should-side-ukraine-over-russia-2022-1
Carlson has a specific opinion on Ukraine vs Russia and is acting to promote it. I consider it naive at best to label those actions as journalism in its most noble meaning.

12
Spin Zone / Re: Tucker Carlson interviews Vladimir Putin
« on: February 09, 2024, 02:27:08 PM »
Please provide your current list of journalists.
That is the empty set. The meaning that I use are:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/journalist
"journalist:
1 a: a person engaged in journalism
especially : a writer or editor for a news medium"

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/journalism
"journalism:
2 b: writing characterized by a direct presentation of facts or description of events without an attempt at interpretation"

13
Sorry to read of it happening. Sounds like he's been dealt a bad hand. Expect premiums on your RC airplane insurance to go up or even be denied for the next three years. He might be forced to fly naked.

14
Exactly. She is staying in on the hope Trump gets bumped off or otherwise blocked from being president.  Since DeSantis dropped out she would be the default nominee.  If that happens I will NOT vote for her. I will write in Trump or sit out the election.
More precisely, DeSantis says he put his campaign on hold.

15
Spin Zone / Re: 2024 Presidential "Election"
« on: January 17, 2024, 10:08:53 AM »
Haha!!! I just liked Lucifer’s post in green about moderating the forum, but thought that for Joe’s sake I should say that I liked it because of its sarcasm. I’m so thoughtful.  ;D
Lucifer's sarcasm doesn't have a target since no one has even hinted at moderation. Ironically his sarcasm is intended to stifle any further posts that note the use of insults. Deeply ironic, IMHO.

I've stated in the past that I have no issue with number7's style of posting. He has even admitted that insults are part of his M.O. So it is hardly newsworthy  when I replied that I expected his insults to my opinion on the Iowa caucus.

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