MTG Salvation

Well, obviously I was exaggerating when I said 'every second person', but there's still a lot of people below the poverty line. I went and did like ten seconds of researching and according to this report almost 36 million Americans (12.5% of the population) was below the poverty line as of 2003. Not as dire as the 50% I embelished, I admit, but still not that great.

Anyway, back to the topic.....

Quote from Vegeta, The Revitalized »

It's a bad system. Basically, Congress does it on an incremental level. So, they take a look at last years appropriations, and increase it, instead of seeing exactly how much the agency/etc needs in the new year.

Example:

Random Agency/Department was appropriated $1 Million total for the agency/department. The new year comes, time to pass another Budget, so they just increase it to let's say $1.2 million. Next year, $1.4, and so on.

That doesn't seem very efficient to me. So they don't even try to see how much is needed, they just guess "more tthan last year" then go to town? I think taking stock of what is actually needed versus what's been budgetted in the past is smarter. But I guess then the agencies or whatever would get less money and where's the fun in that.

With a debt that big, no wonder it seems like every second person in America is hitting poverty.

Quote from bardo_trout »

The Outstanding Public Debt as of 14 Jan 2005 at 10:28:07 PM GMT is:
$7,609,961,192,797.66

Holy sweet Jebus!!!! Good luck with that. That much money is inconceivable to me. How did America get that much in debt?

I think when people say 'kiddish' when talking about Nintendo's games, they're talking about the style. Mario, Zelda, DK, old Pokemon junk, Nintendo has a history of making games that are cartoony, colorful and made to be directed (imo) towards the younger crowd. This doesn't mean the games aren't fun or not difficult, just that the style is decidedly less mature than say a Resident Evil, Halo or Metal Gear Solid game. There's nothing wrong with the 'kiddy' style, it's just not some people's cup of tea. Saying a game is kiddish doesn't mean it's bad, it just means exactly what it sounds like, the game is kiddish in style.

And while the other systems do have their own share of kiddy styled games (Ratchet & Clank, Jak & Daxter, etc), the Gamecube definately has a higher concentration of them. Pretty much every game that comes from Nintendo itself is kiddish so there's a lot more of them on GC than on PS2 or XBox.

They said it was okay!? After you got suspended for assaulting a teacher? True, that doesn't mean you'll ever use the knife on anyone, but still, are they thinking at all? Better safe than sorry, I'd say. Soon enough your classmates will start talking about the crazy kid who punches teachers and carries knives, and that will just not end with puppy dogs and sunshine. Then parents will start complaining cuz it just seems like you're in a place where parents would totally protest.

I'm just saying, maybe you should volunteer to leave the knife in the office anyway. Better that than to give everyone else something to use against you.

Quote from Washu »

Badman- They let a student who was working on a project for them, because they are too poor to afford contractors, so instead they give me resume references.

And then you almost used the knife they let you have in school to hurt a faculty member. Sure, you only punched him instead, but I think the school would be negilgent if they didn't at the very least reconsider allowing you to carry a knife in school. I still don't think it was such a hot idea to let any student carry a weapon on school property, no matter what the reason.

Quote from "Stax" »

Gay marriage does not open a 'window' for bestial marriages, and to say it does is disgusting and offensive to the homosexual community. People are people, and all people in the US get the same rights. Sheep and Horse's do not.

Exactly!!! I always hated that argument, like if I wanted to marry a guy it's the same thing as if I wanted to marry a penguin. Such a wierd and insulting argument.

Besides, gay marriage is legal in other countries and I don't think you see much people/animal marriages there.

Quote from "Highroller" »

... Ok, tell me you're kidding. FF8 is a decent game in terms of pure mechanics, but the game has nothing less than the WORST storyline I've ever had the misfortune of experiencing.

Agreement. Although I've heard FF3/6 is excellent. Never played it though.

Not kidding. I liked how a lot of the finer points in FF8's story had to be uncovered by the player because they weren't the focus of the game. Take for example Squall's parentage. I won't detail it here just in case, but the game never states exactly who his parents are, but if you dig at it you reveal it on your own. I liked the way Square did that instead of making everything fed right to the player. In the grande sceme of things, the main story is alright, but I'll admit it's not the best. I don't think it's the worst, though. I guess I just liked it cuz the main protagonist was such an identifiable character. At least for me.

And FF3/6 is really good, especially if you love massive parties (there's like 16 characters in all, I think). The story in that isn't all that good compared to CT, but it's still really good. You should pick it up, it was part of an Anthology set released for the PS1 a few years back. Worth getting, I think.

Quote from "Mark Rosewater" »

I have never set foot outside America and that is very unfortunate. I would love to travel the world and meet people from all over the place and check out their culture and their heritage.

Getting back to topic, here are a few reasons that are widely accepted as to why America is the best country:

1) We have the worlds largest economy
2) America is the only Superpower
3) We come to the aid of the world in time of need regardless of their attitude toward us

It's getting late for me so I am stopping the list there, but I will complete it further at a later time. Now as to the post that quotes me and then singles out the fact that I singled out Iran in my post: I was singling out Iran because of the quake that totally devastated some of their cities. I don't think France was affected by that quake and neither was any other country except for maybe "Irak". Iraq would be the correct spelling on that FYI. I do not believe that America needs any enemies at all. If we could work together peacefully and with as little discord as possible, there is no limit to what the world community could acheive.

1)So you have money, that's nice, but a lot of money =/= being better
2)Hey cool, you're a Superpower, but just like money; power =/= being better
3)You're not the only country who does that. Not like America alone is trying to help the countries crushed by the tsunami disaster.

I mean, Bill Gates has money and George Dubya has a lot of power, does that make either of them better people than those with less money or power?

You've outlined a few ways that America has power, but you haven't in any way proven how that makes you better than any other country. All you've proven is that America is powerful, which I don't think anyone would dispute. But that doesn't make the country better.

ETA: You said you list was "widely accepted", by whom exactly? I don't think many from outside America would agree, nor do I think everyone within America would either. So yeah, accepted by who?

Quote from "Mark Rosewater" »

I will concede your point that not everyone thinks this way. Everyone is absolutely entitled to their own opinion. Now as far as the FACT that we ARE the best country in the world, those paragraphs illustrate my point well. We are not perfect, however, you said it perfectly yourself: "The rest of us are just jealous because you're the boss? Check." The only thing I can say is that if your country was the best, they would be the most hated as we are. I know that the world's hate is not without foundation; Hell, I hate America most of the time and I have lived here all my life.

No, you misunderstood what I said. The statement that you quoted, which I have bolded for posterity, was supposed to be taken sarcastically. I was using what you said and apparently think to back up my point. I was saying you think everyone's jealous because you're the 'boss'. I personally don't believe that. That is part of the attitude of superiority I was talking about before, you just think we're all jealous cuz you're on top. The things I was "check"ing before are pieces of the whole attitude that I think is causing the Americans such grief.

Quote from "Mark Rosewater" »

There is no insult in being American. If you perceive someon who labels you American as an insult, that's your deal. I could care less what the world thinks of America, Americans, or myself. I do know that America is truly the greatest country in the world. Yes, we have many problems, but we are still better than any other country in overall terms. I do not say this out of arrogance, I merely state the truth. Every other country hates America because we are better. It is a term more commonly known as jealousy. Also, being that we are the de facto leader of the world, that basically makes us King of the Hill. If you have never played, the basic is it is all vs. 1 who is on top of the Hill. Everyone else attempts to overthrow that seat of power and undermine it's authority.

Let's see, thinking you're (Americans, not the singular your) better than everyone else and not giving one iota of crap what anyone thinks of you? Check. Saying this isn't arrogant because it's the truth? Check. The rest of us are just jealous because you're the boss? Check. Yup, great job, you've just provided an exact example of the attitude I said way back on page 1 is the root cause of anti-American sentiment.

Thing is, it isn't a fact that America is better than any other nation, it's merely your opinion. It's nice to be proud of your country, but to do so doesn't precipitate the need to call your country better than the rest. There is no absolute in this, it can never be truth. What would you say to those who don't think America is better than everywhere else and then provide reasons why they think so? Just jealous? There are many who don't think your country is that great but feel no jealousy of your position or your power, myself included.

And simply calling the statement that America is the best not arrogant because it's the truth is ignorant. You might really think it's the best, and good for you, but it's not true. There really can't be a best because everyone's take on the matter will be different. It's not like the entire world voted unanimously to crown America the best country in the world. It's just your opinion, and not one every American would share I might add. So to proclaim your opinion as the truth really is pretty ignorant, and it's also arrogant. You're better because you're just better and everyone else can shut up because they're jealous?

I maintain that there's no such nation as the best, simply the best nation for an individual to live in. I don't think Canada is necessarily better than any other place but I do love it here. But I might also love it in Australia or in France, I wouldn't know until I've lived there.

One man's trash is another man's treasure and one man's king is another man's pauper.

ETA: Weeeeee, 100 posts!!!!! Cool!

Hey, welcome! Don't be afraid to contribute, even if your opinion has already been touched on by someone else. In the end, everything's worth contributing.

So enjoy your stay here, even if it may only be a short one.

Quote from "ljossberir" »

Wow! You totally got me on that. I'm a bit confused. I've heard numbers from all around the world, but never one as high as that! Man, I just got pwnd!

Nevertheless, I still think the two factors I mentioned need to be taken into account. Canada has the luxury of sitting back and accumulating money for these kinds of purposes, whereas the US instead fights for the world. There is something to be sad for each side of the coin here.

Yay! I just pwned someone! Neat! But why do I feel so empty inside........:tongue3:

Canada's not exactly just sitting back and letting the money flow, a large bulk of that donation is coming from the public and not the government. $150 million, I believe. But even so, we're not exactly a well-off country, just ask anyone who pays Canadian taxes. It takes a lot to fund our health and education systems, and then there's our massive public debt that's currently somewhere in the billions. And fighting for the world is a hard thing for the country to do when we're not really about that. Canada has always been about peacekeeping endeavours instead of out and out fighting, not that we could summon much of a fighting force if we wanted to. We're about as tough/intimidating as a six-week old kitten, and only half as cute.

All in all, I don't think it's really fair to compare the two countries, we may seem very similar but we're so different in almost every way. Policy, economy, attitude, military, we're like distant cousins rather than close siblings.

But as I said before, any contribution is good, and I think it's wrong to disparage any country for how much they do or don't give.

Quote from ljossberir »

@35M: The last I heard, this was higher than Canada's donation. Infact, can anyone tell me of a figure submitted by any government that is higher than this? There's probably a few, but not many. Our figure here was much smaller at first, but that's how this always works I am told. Countries submit a 'bid' of sorts and then assess the situation and raise that 'bid' as needed. I have no doubts this number will continue to rise.

Not to harp on you but Canada has committed up to $425 million over the next five years. The exact details are here.

But I don't think who donated how much is as important as long as each country that is able to does something. No matter how much America gives, if its the biggest donor in the world or not, it's giving something. No one should be ragging on America, or any country, for not giving 'enough'.

Quote from "XxsurferbabexX" »

It sucks that we help out so much and people are like "you guys need to give more money or stay out of our business." I mean we are trying to help, instead of getting mad why dont you just accept our help and help us help you?

America really is damned if they do, damned if they don't. We get huffy when you refuse to help, but then we lay into you for "butting in" when you do help. Kind of a sucky situation.

Although one potential problem is that many places would rather deal with their problems on their own and America 'helping' becomes more like interloping. America has so much power that it's easy to see why it'd want to use it to influence things around the globe, but eventually other nations become resentful of that power and the way America uses it. Enter the 'World Police' moniker.

So it's not always as easy of 'letting America help', some nations really don't want it. It's like when you're 15 or 16 and you want to do stuff on your own but your parents insist on doing thinngs for you and how that feels like you're being treated like a child. I can see how some people would interpret America helping out as almost condescending like the other nation is so inept that America has to go in and get things done the right way. The action can easily be interpretted as coming from a place of superiority that I can see how the 'inferior' nation would resent it even if the aid was never meant to be taken in such a way.