The Half Ashed Cigar Forum

This is completely out of left field but it was so shocking that I wanted to share it. I was catching up on current events on Twitter this morning and saw someone comment that the $221M sent to Palastine by former president Obama was an abomination because there are 91 MILLION (!) Americans unemployed.

Let that sink in.

Providing aid to a polarizing country
Providing $221 million to a polarizing country instead of giving it to the citizens of America.
Providing $221 million to a polarizing country instead of giving it to the Americans who are out of work.
Providing aid to another country instead of giving the 91 MILLION Americans out of work (Again, I have to highlight that number) $2.40 each.
$2.40.
THIS PERSON THINKS THERE ARE 91 MILLION AMERICANS UNEMPLOYED!

Let me break that down. Not only does our country have around 310 million (estimated, it's been a few years) but MANY of them are not of the age to work. 74.2 million children in america (based upon a study just after the census). 66 million Americans are retired (current SSA benefits summary) leaving aprox. 140 million Americans ineligible for the workforce. Therefore, of the 310, only 170 are of working age. THIS PERSON IS TRYING TO SAY THAT AMERICA HAS 53.4% UNEMPLOYMENT (best case) IF EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN OF WORKING AGE IN THAT 53% CHOSE OR WAS HEALTHY ENOUGH TO WORK.

How unfortunate is your cause that it's not even worth the 10 minutes it takes to check basic facts before using skewed numbers to insult another person? I just cannot fathom how some people think that breaking others down, no matter how, casts a positive light upon themselves. It is baffling to me.

Now, for those of you aware of the number floating around about the ACTUAL "92 million" number of Americans NOT in the workforce, I am aware of that. Assuming the original comment was aware of that number they A) screwed it up anyway B) didn't check the actual fact that they were referencing and instead spewed a jaded descriptive word like "unemployment" to describe the number and C) support my exact points about an unfortunate cause or the irrational need to break others down at the cost of your own integrity.

Unfathomable.
I am almost left thinking the absolute that the person tweeting my inspiration is not mentally stable; that there could be no other logical explanation. I am shocked.

I am trying to think of something to say here, but I have got nothing.
This just looks like someone with an agenda....

The real head scratcher is the giving of that $221 million to a people's who wants to kill our most important ally in the Mid East...



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f.sinagra wrote:The real head scratcher is the giving of that $221 million to a people's who wants to kill our most important ally in the Mid East...
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It's funny. Well, ironic is probably more appropriate.
This idea sounds more in line with our current administration than the past. I don't mean so much about Isreal and Palastine but the idea of not abiding by the commonplace assumptions of what is thought to be a current alliance. That being said, this amount of money isn't enough to be a massive help to any government, but it is perplexing on the surface. I await confirmation on any of the reasons for said funding.

Your math and reality has not place in politics or political agenda!

On another note 68.4% of all statistics are made up on the spot!

jledou wrote:Your math and reality has not place in politics or political agenda!

On another note 68.4% of all statistics are made up on the spot!

....And 11/9ths of the population doesn't understand fractions.

Sent from cigar country via smoke signal...

Living in broke state where I hover around the poverty level yet am expected to have my tax dollars pay for people that don't want to work- I coulda used a chunk of that change. Hell splash it into the national debt just to slow the bleeding. Or you know what? Put it into Veterans programs -at over 4 million dollars per state maybe the roof leak could finally get fixed at the VA home? Or the nurses could get equipment that isn't cobbled together and barely working. How about getting your vitals read by a machine that "kinda worked yesterday"-fun times. Maybe another facility could expand to help with an ever growing wait list in this country? While I am down this rabbit hole, why are veteran homes run by state governments instead of the Fed anyway? Its not the Illinois Army.. its the US Army.

815DC wrote:Living in broke state where I hover around the poverty level yet am expected to have my tax dollars pay for people that don't want to work- I coulda used a chunk of that change. Hell splash it into the national debt just to slow the bleeding. Or you know what? Put it into Veterans programs -at over 4 million dollars per state maybe the roof leak could finally get fixed at the VA home? Or the nurses could get equipment that isn't cobbled together and barely working. How about getting your vitals read by a machine that "kinda worked yesterday"-fun times. Maybe another facility could expand to help with an ever growing wait list in this country? While I am down this rabbit hole, why are veteran homes run by state governments instead of the Fed anyway? Its not the Illinois Army.. its the US Army.

You won't get an argument from me about how our funds should be spent. You bring up things that I hope will improve under the current administration. It's funny, I don't like trump. At all. I do like some of his ideas. There is no denying that. Running the country like a venture capitalist will have its long term benefits. The thing is, it will also have its failures, but that's not at all what I want to get into here. Back on track...
$221 million dollars would fix a lot of lives. It would repair a lot of leaks. People would receive better care. There is no doubt about any of that. BUT, just as I stopped myself from traveling down a personal rabbit hole, I'll stop you as well. No one said it couldn't help things here. It just didn't make sense that an empathetic cry would be surrounded by such ignorant (at best) or deceitful (at worst) rhetoric. Let your yes be your yes, people. Don't cloud the facts with fiction. It overshadows your point.

Unemployment in my home is 80%. Darn wife and kids!

IWinchester wrote:Unemployment in my home is 80%. Darn wife and kids!

Don't let her hear you say that or you will be out sleeping in the barn!