How would you fix the United States' budget problem?

[Yes Im Biop]

Legalize most Rec Drugs, Regulate, Tax.
Pull out of All foreign countries, Stop buying from The rest of the world, and reinforce American Industry

[Atalem]

I'd sell the Pacific islands and get back those businesses Castro never returned.

Also, nationalize all theme parks, including EVERY DISNEY PARK EVERYWHERE.

We'd be rolling in dough.

[Parpolitic Citizens]

We could also be supporting Solar energy. It'll be at parity nation wide by 2020 and we could actually have a chance of becoming energy independent.

I would consider establishing a proper energy sector part of "public works".

Within that energy sector plan, I have an additional five steps:

1. End oil subsidies.
2. Start a campaign to educate people about nuclear power. It isn't dangerous as long as you don't employ horrible staff.
3. Invest in solar, wind, geothermal, biofuel, and nuclear.
4. Push companies like Better Place to start developing an electric car infrastructure. Invest in battery tech to increase range (the only real downside of electric cars).
5. Start a campaign to encourage electricity conservation.

I'm anti-nuke and anti-biomass. Nuclear energy can't exist without a massive insurance subsidy. And biofuel, depending on the source, removes arable land and water that could be used for food.

[Rio Cana]

Do away with Social Security (temporarily),

The millions of seniors on Social Security retirment and the millions of peoples on Social Security disablity would not even tolerate temporarily. It would be like putting your hand in a hornets nest. Best not to do it.

[Divair]

I would consider establishing a proper energy sector part of "public works".

Within that energy sector plan, I have an additional five steps:

1. End oil subsidies.
2. Start a campaign to educate people about nuclear power. It isn't dangerous as long as you don't employ horrible staff.
3. Invest in solar, wind, geothermal, biofuel, and nuclear.
4. Push companies like Better Place to start developing an electric car infrastructure. Invest in battery tech to increase range (the only real downside of electric cars).
5. Start a campaign to encourage electricity conservation.

I'm anti-nuke and anti-biomass. Nuclear energy can't exist without a massive insurance subsidy. And biofuel, depending on the source, removes arable land and water that could be used for food.

Nuclear: Elaborate.
Biofuel: Food tech is only getting better. We've got way more land than we need. We just need to cut food subsidies (or anti subsidies, rather)

[Bacilli]

Why not sell some stuff? You've got Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska, Hawaii, Manhattan, a massive nuke surplus, NASA...

Multiple reasons not to. First off all these locations have massive tourist industries that contribute alot to the US economy. Alaska has massive un-exploited oil reserves. All these locations have millions of US citizens who would not be happy that they are being sold off to other countries. And why on earth would we sell manhattan? it is only one part of NY city, the largest US city, a major source of NY economics. and mainly its on the US mainland, never was a territory, and was part of the original 13 colonies. And who would we sell nukes to? everyone hates us and we would be placing weapons in others hands with the potential to kill us. and who would we sell nasa to? any country that has desires of space has their own space agency. and also, how would you sell an agency to another country? its not like they can just pack up and go with all their facilities in the US. and also im sure selling an agency of the United States of America which holds many secrets of the US government is illegal. clearly your economic plan needs alittle re-thinking

[Divair]

Why not sell some stuff? You've got Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska, Hawaii, Manhattan, a massive nuke surplus, NASA...

Multiple reasons not to. First off all these locations have massive tourist industries that contribute alot to the US economy. Alaska has massive un-exploited oil reserves. All these locations have millions of US citizens who would not be happy that they are being sold off to other countries. And why on earth would we sell manhattan? it is only one part of NY city, the largest US city, a major source of NY economics. and mainly its on the US mainland, never was a territory, and was part of the original 13 colonies. And who would we sell nukes to? everyone hates us and we would be placing weapons in others hands with the potential to kill us. and who would we sell nasa to? any country that has desires of space has their own space agency. and also, how would you sell an agency to another country? its not like they can just pack up and go with all their facilities in the US. and also im sure selling an agency of the United States of America which holds many secrets of the US government is illegal. clearly your economic plan needs alittle re-thinking

Someone doesn't understand what a joke is.

[Parpolitic Citizens]

I'm anti-nuke and anti-biomass. Nuclear energy can't exist without a massive insurance subsidy. And biofuel, depending on the source, removes arable land and water that could be used for food.

Nuclear: Elaborate.
Biofuel: Food tech is only getting better. We've got way more land than we need. We just need to cut food subsidies (or anti subsidies, rather)

Any insurance company that insures a conventional nuclear power plant would go bankrupt if the shit hit the fan. The only reason nuclear power plants can get insurance is that the government caps the amount of money they could be sued for. I personally consider that a massive subsidy, especially if it was my house that got irradiated.

And with biofuel: Most of the time it isn't a net producer of fuel when you count all that goes into it. It's almost entirely a gimmie to the corn farmers is Iowa.

[Kazarogkai]

1. Slash the active duty military down to only 300,000 active soldiers, and place the soldiers we slashed into reserve units.
2. bring about a flat Proportional tax of 20% on every one.
3. cut foreign aid except to most essential cases.
4. negotiate another treaty with russia but also include other countrys that have nuclear arsenals to sighn a treaty that reduces there and are nuclear stockpile by 50%
5.raise age when people become eligble to medicare and other age benefits to 70 years
6. make cuts to non essential departments
7. cut all military research spending(are military is advanced enough).
8. do not raise the debt ceiling
9. Reduce the requirements for making political parties and get rid of the electorial college thus allowing for a more multi-party democracy
10. reduce the dutys of the federal government and allocate more powers to the states.
11. implement a policy where as people with more than 2 kids will have to pay extra taxes
12. if you are on social security and your getting child benefits you will only be given child benefits for your first 2 children and not for anymore after that(to discourage welfare queens)
13. reduce pay of politicians
14. introduce a pay freeze to federal employees until the economy gets on track
15. Cut immigration
16. do not give social security or any other benefits to non citizens within borders
17. change Natural born citizenship requirements to making it so that you need to have both parents be citizens, also eliminate the policy "that if you are born in the united states you become a natural born citizen"
18. remove from both NAFTA and NATO, and raise tariffs, and do away with all this free trade bullshit.(viva protectionism)
19. penalize businesses for manufacturing and hiring over seas by making them pay the same tariffs as any other foreign business.
20. send subsidies to local small and medium sized businesses
21. get rid of corporate welfare and subsidies
22. eliminate Patriot act


As you can see I'm a Paleo-Conservative and i hate big businesses, i wont go down as the most popular(probably most hated:lol:) but still i think i did at least OK.

[Divair]

Nuclear: Elaborate.
Biofuel: Food tech is only getting better. We've got way more land than we need. We just need to cut food subsidies (or anti subsidies, rather)

Any insurance company that insures a conventional nuclear power plant would go bankrupt if the shit hit the fan. The only reason nuclear power plants can get insurance is that the government caps the amount of money they could be sued for. I personally consider that a massive subsidy, especially if it was my house that got irradiated.

And with biofuel: Most of the time it isn't a net producer of fuel when you count all that goes into it. It's almost entirely a gimmie to the corn farmers is Iowa.

Nuclear: So we find some way to cover insurance. Maybe multiple companies can cover parts of the plan to share the cost of the damage. Nuclear plants don't mess up as long as we train proper staff anyway.
Biofuel: I'm sure that it would be a net producer if we kept researching the tech. What about stuff like algae and other plants we haven't tried yet?

[Parpolitic Citizens]

Any insurance company that insures a conventional nuclear power plant would go bankrupt if the shit hit the fan. The only reason nuclear power plants can get insurance is that the government caps the amount of money they could be sued for. I personally consider that a massive subsidy, especially if it was my house that got irradiated.

And with biofuel: Most of the time it isn't a net producer of fuel when you count all that goes into it. It's almost entirely a gimmie to the corn farmers is Iowa.

Nuclear: So we find some way to cover insurance. Maybe multiple companies can cover parts of the plan to share the cost of the damage. Nuclear plants don't mess up as long as we train proper staff anyway.
Biofuel: I'm sure that it would be a net producer if we kept researching the tech. What about stuff like algae and other plants we haven't tried yet?

I really wouldn't see the need though. Solar Thermal, Solar photo-voltaic and natural gas could cover all out energy needs.

[Divair]

Nuclear: So we find some way to cover insurance. Maybe multiple companies can cover parts of the plan to share the cost of the damage. Nuclear plants don't mess up as long as we train proper staff anyway.
Biofuel: I'm sure that it would be a net producer if we kept researching the tech. What about stuff like algae and other plants we haven't tried yet?

I really wouldn't see the need though. Solar Thermal, Solar photo-voltaic and natural gas could cover all out energy needs.

Diversity in the energy sector only adds to its stability.

[Kazarogkai]

Seems like everyone here agrees the USA need to become more Non-Interventionist right?

[Divair]

Seems like everyone here agrees the USA need to become more Non-Interventionist right?

Of course.

[Parpolitic Citizens]

Seems like everyone here agrees the USA need to become more Non-Interventionist right?

Absolutely, we're wasting trillions of dollars for jack squat.

[Laissez-Faire]

Raise the retirement age for certain professions, Cut back on Medicare and Medicaid coverage (Part D would be first), Reduce federal worker salaries and benefits to match private market benefits and salaries appropriately, eliminate inefficient administrative positions, merge research and policy offices in the White House (makes good PR), merge each military branch's intelligence services into one, eliminate the Transportation Security Administration, Put the Coast Guard back in the Department of Defense, create a unified border security and customs/investigation force, merge security and intelligence agencies in the Department of Homeland Security, significantly draw back the roles of regulatory agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (all the while cutting, gutting and firing), eliminate 'non-violent crimes' from the Federal legal portfolio, expedite the end of the War in Afghanistan (we have more important issues to deal with at this point, not just stopping at our budget).

However, I would fund Defense R&D and NASA, for starters, for job and research incentives- of course, keeping tabs for oversight without all the administrative BS.

[Kazarogkai]

Seems like everyone here agrees the USA need to become more Non-Interventionist right?

Absolutely, we're wasting trillions of dollars for jack squat.

Yay Someone agrees with at least one of my political beliefs!!!

also just asking how do you think of my budget control plan.

[Laissez-Faire]

Seems like everyone here agrees the USA need to become more Non-Interventionist right?

Of course.

We need more a foreign policy check. We don't need to become "uninvolved", we just need to find other tools in the matter of diplomacy. Not, of course, that we've been overusing the 'war' button.

[Parpolitic Citizens]

Raise the retirement age for certain professions

How old though? What happens to a 60 year old long haul trucker who gets laid off.

Cut back on Medicare and Medicaid coverage

Sure, if you want doctors to not see Medicare and Medicaid patients. They hardly break even with the current rates.

Reduce federal worker salaries and benefits to match private market benefits and salaries appropriately

Reasonable.

eliminate inefficient administrative positions, merge research and policy offices in the White House (makes good PR), merge each military branch's intelligence services into one, eliminate the Transportation Security Administration, Put the Coast Guard back in the Department of Defense, create a unified border security and customs/investigation force, merge security and intelligence agencies in the Department of Homeland Security,

We're getting along fine.

significantly draw back the roles of regulatory agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (all the while cutting, gutting and firing)

No way in hell. I don't much like benzene in my drinking water.

eliminate 'non-violent crimes' from the Federal legal portfolio

What about financial fraud? Bernie Maddoff has destroyed far more lives than any one murderer could.

expedite the end of the War in Afghanistan (we have more important issues to deal with at this point, not just stopping at our budget).

However, I would fund Defense R&D and NASA, for starters, for job and research incentives- of course, keeping tabs for oversight without all the administrative BS.

We seem to agree on a lot. But to be honest it doesn't seem like your ideas wouldn't do much to reduce the debt.

[Andonland]

1. Eliminate all government subsidies to the coal, oil, and natural gas industries.
2. Reform welfare by making drug tests mandatory and instead of just giving the money away we actually help them get jobs.
3. Abolish all price floors on medical care which is why medicine is super expensive here so we won't have to subsidize it anymore.
4. Deport all illegal immigrants which are a drain on the system.
5. Reduce federal funding to education and put it back in the care of the states.

[Rio Cana]

1. Slash the active duty military down to only 300,000 active soldiers, and place the soldiers we slashed into reserve units.
2. bring about a flat Proportional tax of 20% on every one.
3. cut foreign aid except to most essential cases.
4. negotiate another treaty with russia but also include other countrys that have nuclear arsenals to sighn a treaty that reduces there and are nuclear stockpile by 50%
5.raise age when people become eligble to medicare and other age benefits to 70 years
6. make cuts to non essential departments
7. cut all military research spending(are military is advanced enough).
8. do not raise the debt ceiling
9. Reduce the requirements for making political parties and get rid of the electorial college thus allowing for a more multi-party democracy
10. reduce the dutys of the federal government and allocate more powers to the states.
11. implement a policy where as people with more than 2 kids will have to pay extra taxes
12. if you are on social security and your getting child benefits you will only be given child benefits for your first 2 children and not for anymore after that(to discourage welfare queens)
13. reduce pay of politicians
14. introduce a pay freeze to federal employees until the economy gets on track
15. Cut immigration
16. do not give social security or any other benefits to non citizens within borders
17. change Natural born citizenship requirements to making it so that you need to have both parents be citizens, also eliminate the policy "that if you are born in the united states you become a natural born citizen"
18. remove from both NAFTA and NATO, and raise tariffs, and do away with all this free trade bullshit.(viva protectionism)
19. penalize businesses for manufacturing and hiring over seas by making them pay the same tariffs as any other foreign business.
20. send subsidies to local small and medium sized businesses
21. get rid of corporate welfare and subsidies
22. eliminate Patriot act


As you can see I'm a Paleo-Conservative and i hate big businesses, i wont go down as the most popular(probably most hated:lol:) but still i think i did at least OK.

You want to raise retirement age. Why not wait until the retirees are no longer around to spend the money. How cheap can the richest nation on the planet be.

Cut immigration. They say immigration is what is helping move along the economy. Also, new migrants pay into the retirement plans of those already retired. Also, those immigrants who are legal residents but still not citizens should be allowed to collect Social Security. Afterall, they are paying into it.

Get rid of Free Trade treaties. US is Capitalist and has been pushing Free Trade so you cannot do part 18. It would also increase prices of many things. Many people are not made of money.

Part 18 and 19 would start a trade war.

[Laissez-Faire]

Raise the retirement age for certain professions

How old though? What happens to a 60 year old long haul trucker who gets laid off.

70+ for professions that allow it. And I'd assume something similar to others who are laid off, considering said trucker is 60.

Cut back on Medicare and Medicaid coverage

Sure, if you want doctors to not see Medicare and Medicaid patients. They hardly break even with the current rates.

I said coverage, not funding. Although, to be honest, they should fall hand in hand to a degree.

significantly draw back the roles of regulatory agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (all the while cutting, gutting and firing)

No way in hell. I don't much like benzene in my drinking water.

Who the hell would want to put that in your drinking water? No one sane if they want to avoid lawsuits out the rear end. If anything, government supports industry putting that in your water, whether directly or indirectly, with subsidies and other market intervention.

eliminate 'non-violent crimes' from the Federal legal portfolio

What about financial fraud? Bernie Maddoff has destroyed far more lives than any one murderer could.

Financial fraud is liability to those who were cheated. Did I say "blast every court in the nation to the heavens?"

Sue his ass until he goes bankrupt. Government has no role in the matter. It's a damage between private parties.

This imperative that government should "act for the collective betterment" is the damaging one.

However, I would fund Defense R&D and NASA, for starters, for job and research incentives- of course, keeping tabs for oversight without all the administrative BS.

We seem to agree on a lot. But to be honest it doesn't seem like your ideas wouldn't do much to reduce the debt.

If it didn't, I'd make the cuts tolerably more severe, and I might move to the extent of eliminating Departments.

- Homeland Security
- Agriculture
- Commerce
- Housing and Urban Development

Choose from the list. Starting with Homeland Security.

[AiliailiA]

Do away with Social Security (temporarily),

What the fuck?

Social security is not a handout. Social security is, by design, a contract. A contract offered by government to inviduals, and only accepted by individuals in the very indirect way of some of them voting for it, and few of them voting against it, over successive governments since it was implemented more than half a century ago. A "social contract" which was written down, and signed by at least one party to it: government.

Yes, it's probably necessary to rewrite that contract, with or without the consent of the direct beneficiaries. People who've been paying in for all their working lives, accepting costs in the expectation of future returns, will get somewhat screwed.

There's no right way to do that. Government programs shouldn't be made that way in the first place. Government should not make promises it cannot keep. It would have been better to simply institute an Old Age Pension, and a range of charitable handouts for those in need. For no more reason than it's the decent thing to do, and without any implied promise to continue it forever.

There's no right way to contain the growth of social security costs. It was a promise made by government, which government just cannot keep. Someone's going to get screwed.

There is no right way. But there is a wrong way, and it's what you just said. "Do away with Social Security".

slash the military budget, use the money not going towards those departments to pay the debt. Improve education, give companies incentives to relocate to America, where they can provide jobs, and legalize same-sex marriage.

Whatever. Cut military spending, increase education spending, some rubbish about being a business haven with some implied trickle-down nonsense, and be nice to you.

It's all inconsequential, after the horrendous breach of trust you suggested first up. You might as well bin government. You've certainly binned your own reputation as someone who thinks before they post.

"Do away with Social Security" ... it doesn't matter what you say after that. Nothing can make that right.

[Laissez-Faire]

You want to raise retirement age. Why not wait until the retirees are no longer around to spend the money. How cheap can the richest nation on the planet be.

Look at our budget numbers and answer that question for yourself.

Cut immigration. They say immigration is what is helping move along the economy. Also, new migrants pay into the retirement plans of those already retired. Also, those immigrants who are legal residents but still not citizens should be allowed to collect Social Security. Afterall, they are paying into it.

Get rid of Free Trade treaties. US is Capitalist and has been pushing Free Trade so you cannot do part 18. It would also increase prices of many things. Many people are not made of money.

Part 18 and 19 would start a trade war.

I disagree with the sentiments of protectionism, but NAFTA/WTO/etc. far from support an unregulated free trade sceme that would keep costs low. Costs are kept low due to some involvement of free trade, but would be much lower and more competitive if the WTO and other organizations didn't give governments avenues to regulate and manipulate the international economy.

[Parpolitic Citizens]

1. Slash the active duty military down to only 300,000 active soldiers, and place the soldiers we slashed into reserve units.

Sounds good.

2. bring about a flat Proportional tax of 20% on every one.

No, no, no, nonononono. Just because something is fair on paper doesn't mean it's fair in real life. The utility of 20% is vastly different between someone who makes 40000, the median, and someone who makes 500,000.

3. cut foreign aid except to most essential cases.

Why, it's good foreign policy when you get down to it.

4. negotiate another treaty with russia but also include other countrys that have nuclear arsenals to sighn a treaty that reduces there and are nuclear stockpile by 50%

5.raise age when people become eligble to medicare and other age benefits to 70 years

No.

6. make cuts to non essential departments

too vague

7. cut all military research spending(are military is advanced enough).

No. We still need some military advancement.

8. do not raise the debt ceiling

9. Reduce the requirements for making political parties and get rid of the electorial college thus allowing for a more multi-party democracy

No, we don't have a multi-party system because of the spoiler effect. We'd have to change out voting system.

10. reduce the dutys of the federal government and allocate more powers to the states.

Vague.

11. implement a policy where as people with more than 2 kids will have to pay extra taxes

There is no point. The birthrate is naturally coming down.

12. if you are on social security and your getting child benefits you will only be given child benefits for your first 2 children and not for anymore after that(to discourage welfare queens)

I don't see the point, only people who can't do math would have children for the measly benefits you'd get in America.

13. reduce pay of politicians

I disagree. It would discourage people who aren't rich from trying.

14. introduce a pay freeze to federal employees until the economy gets on track

Sounds good.

15. Cut immigration

Sounds good

16. do not give social security or any other benefits to non citizens within borders

That already exists.

17. change Natural born citizenship requirements to making it so that you need to have both parents be citizens, also eliminate the policy "that if you are born in the united states you become a natural born citizen"

I'd change it to just one parent.

18. remove from both NAFTA and NATO, and raise tariffs, and do away with all this free trade bullshit.(viva protectionism)

Agreed.

19. penalize businesses for manufacturing and hiring over seas by making them pay the same tariffs as any other foreign business.

Agreed.

20. send subsidies to local small and medium sized businesses
21. get rid of corporate welfare and subsidies

You can't have your cake and eat it too. Pick one.

22. eliminate Patriot act

Agreed.