myiW Current Conditions and Forecasts Community Forums Buy and Sell Services
 
Hi guest · myAccount · Log in
 SearchSearch   ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   RegisterRegister 
FEMA under Romney
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    iWindsurf Community Forum Index -> Politics, Off-Topic, Opinions
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
mac



Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17744
Location: Berkeley, California

PostPosted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 11:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Managing general partner--with a tiny investment.

Maybe we should shout "Texas Rangers" every time Daryl Issa yells "Benghazi", or "IRS".

If Techno read more completely he might understand that I am a fiscal conservative that abhors social conservatives that want to control everyone's freedom.

There are a number of hidden subsidies involved in Federal policy that encourages home ownership--the FEMA insurance subsidy is not even the tip of the iceberg--maybe a snowball on the top. I do believe home ownership has substantial social value, contributing to stable communities and lower crime. But the benefits are disproportionately to those already able to afford housing, and are very large indeed. Reform of this fiscal policies was one of the things that Obama was willing to put on the table--but no Republicans were willing to sit down with Obama.

Here is information from two different think tanks that provide some idea of the magnitude of the subsidy.

Quote:
By Will Fischer and Chye-Ching Huang
Revised June 25, 2013

Costing at least $70 billion a year, the mortgage interest deduction is one of the largest federal tax expenditures, but it appears to do little to achieve the goal of expanding homeownership. The main reason is that the bulk of its benefits go to higher-income households who generally could afford a home without assistance: in 2012, 77 percent of the benefits went to homeowners with incomes above $100,000. Meanwhile, close to half of homeowners with mortgages — most of them middle- and lower-income families — receive no benefit from the deduction. Source http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=3948


The Pew Trust estimates the subsidies to be much higher, identifying a greater array of subsidies:

Quote:
This report estimates the aggregate housing tax subsidies to be $304 billion in 2010 (see Appendix B, Table B-1). This is the combined total of foregone tax revenue on net imputed rental income plus the value of the deductions for mortgage interest and property tax payments. Source: http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Economic_Mobility/Pew_Housing_Report.pdf


In addition to this we have subsidies for flood insurance, we have the ability of those in hazard zones to deduct losses to their homes from their income (a major factor in the urban development of places like Malibu, and fire-prone areas in the hills around Los Angeles and in Colorado), taxes building roads into undeveloped areas where it primarily benefits developers, and so forth.

The Tea Party goes after food stamps--and lets the gorillas in the room still sit on the couch. Maybe it is hypocrisy, maybe it is just incompetence. But some of the righties on this forum championed the election of the unqualified and the end to professionalism in legislators. Maybe this is what they had in mind?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
keycocker



Joined: 10 Jul 2005
Posts: 3598

PostPosted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 1:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Let me understand techno.
The denms supported it because they don't care about debt while the GOP supported it to avoid pissing off voters.
How admirable of the GOP to care about voters while Dems care nothing about debts.
Mac is a fiscal conservative liberal, along with nearly every liberal I have spoken to.
Can you name a liberal who is a real human being that told you they care nothing about debt?
Heard it on Talk Radio and that's good enough for you?
Supplying opinions to libs is a hallmark of talk radio conservatives. It makes the world seem so simple, but it makes talking to real liberals very confusing.
They almost never say the lines they are assigned .
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
techno900



Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4161

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 11:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

FEMA is $24 billion in debt.
keycocker said:
Quote:
Let me understand techno.
The denms supported it because they don't care about debt while the GOP supported it to avoid pissing off voters.
How admirable of the GOP to care about voters while Dems care nothing about debts.Let me understand techno.
The denms supported it because they don't care about debt while the GOP supported it to avoid pissing off voters.
How admirable of the GOP to care about voters while Dems care nothing about debts.

I guess I left out that the Democrats apparently were on the side of those paying for flood insurance, and to keep them happy, they voted to keep sinking the ship with more debt.

Legislation to block premium increases was passed by the house.

Premium increases would help stop the increasing debt, but that won't happen now. The government will continue to borrow money and spend our tax dollars to keep flood insurance premiums artificially low.

House Democrats overwhelmingly didn't want insurance rates to go up. Why is that? Apparently, keeping home owners happy won out over concern about the debt.

And enough Republicans went along with the Democrats to pass the bill. Why is that? I speculated that mid-term elections may have something to do with it, but I really don't know. I would have expected the House to vote down the bill and have homeowners pay more for flood insurance to offset the increasing FEMA debt, so what happened? Just like the Democrats, the Republicans also felt that votes were more important than the debt.

Most voters without flood insurance won't have a clue about all of this, but for those of us that are fiscally conservative, it pisses me off.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
mac



Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17744
Location: Berkeley, California

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 11:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What, no comment on the rest of the subsidies to housing? How much money does the real estate business contribute to both parties? And the benefits--like most--go primarily to the middle class? No comment?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
swchandler



Joined: 08 Nov 1993
Posts: 10588

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 1:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

You know what I think? This idea of the tea party, like techno900 thinks, is a imaginary conservative fantasy, with everything so right and purposeful.

In reality, the outcome is nothing like the dream. There is a complete lack of cooperation, and little gets done. Moreover, they're consumed with money and elections, and we all know who benefits from those. Yet, if they can gain enough control, they can remove government regulations and have a freer hand in using our natural resources for profit. Also, with full control of government, they can create a more morale Christian society.

Do you think that I'm wrong? Don't listen to what they say, just check out their actions and the outcomes. With enough Republican/conservative tea party wins in 2014 and 2016, I wouldn't be surprised if you see a bit more of the Confederate flag in North Carolina.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
KGB-NP



Joined: 25 Jul 2001
Posts: 2856

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 2:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Have to ask, why would they fly the confederate flag?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
mac



Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17744
Location: Berkeley, California

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 2:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Another posting from the fact free world:

Quote:
Personally, I would rather see politicians stand by their basic principals rather than playing games with upcoming elections. Many may not like the tea partiers, but they do stick to their principals.


So I checked the vote against the Tea Party caucus. Those members voted 19 in favor of the bill, 20 opposed, and 7 did not vote.

Two points here. First, the Tea Party is hardly alone in not sticking to their principals when it is not going to affect the outcome--most politicians do that at least occasionally. Nor is sticking to your principals, no matter the outcome, a good political approach. Politics is, at its very essence, a collective effort. It involves using the force of government to either sanction some type of behavior, or spend some money on some common goal. The inability to accept the need to act collectively is perhaps the greatest failing of the far right. Trailed closely by lack of competence.

I would rather have seen a compromise that eventually put the flood insurance program on a sound footing, with perhaps a hardship clause for the poor. But then I would rather see a bipartisan effort at reforming the tax codes to get rid of old tax incentives and provide a modest increase in overall revenue to lower the deficit. Despite their lip service to public service and fiscal responsibility, the Republicans are all terrified of Grover Norquist.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
swchandler



Joined: 08 Nov 1993
Posts: 10588

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 2:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

"Have to ask, why would they fly the confederate flag?"


In the South, the Confederate flag is still an important symbol of thought and defiance. In recent years there have been court cases about the right to fly the Confederate flag at state government facilities. Believe me, some folks aren't happy at all about restrictions forbidding the display of the Confederate flag.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
keycocker



Joined: 10 Jul 2005
Posts: 3598

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 5:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The Teas have proposed two bits of legislation. One was shutting down the gov. at a huge cost to Americans. The other is presenting bills to canceled Ocare .
Fifty times.
They are stealing their paychecks.
They already abandoned the idea of not taking lobbyist money and not attaching riders to unrelated bills. These two high principles attracted me to their agenda. They abandoned them in the first months after they were elected.

I agree with Glen Beck. They should stop waving racist signs at their rallies for Foxs cameras. That Tea party principle has plagued them from the first days, but they havent abandoned that one.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
keycocker



Joined: 10 Jul 2005
Posts: 3598

PostPosted: Sun Mar 09, 2014 5:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I support Tea Party principles. When I show them to libs or conservatives they mostly say the same.
The Tea politicians do not support them in any visible way. This fact has caused a big decline in their poll numbers esp. among independents and conservatives.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    iWindsurf Community Forum Index -> Politics, Off-Topic, Opinions All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6  Next
Page 2 of 6

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You cannot download files in this forum

myiW | Weather | Community | Membership | Support | Log in
like us on facebook
© Copyright 1999-2007 WeatherFlow, Inc Contact Us Ad Marketplace

Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group