Thanks for the clarification. Very well stated.

Well, you're a thinker, that's good. But, you need a few more facts. You're blinded a bit by your youth, you haven't been alive long enough, nothing wrong with that at all but be careful when you draw firm conclusions and be open to more information so you can review your beliefs.

For starters, Omabacare is a nightmare. It has INCREASED healthcare costs and it's designed to collapse private insurance and force people into government controlled exchanges and eventually into a single payer system where the government decides what people get and when. It was an utter lie from day one. Obama promised you could keep your current health care if you liked it - lie. When a company drops it's health care program you're tossed out in the cold and have to find your own. Obama promised it would reduce costs - lie. Costs have gone up. Simple solutions like torte reform which would reduce costs were left out intentionally because the program is designed to blow up the system to force everybody into socialized medicine. He's on record with the SEIU saying it would take 10 years to bring about single payer. Obama even said that when you get to old a pain pill makes more sense than treatment. Why you want government panels deciding what you get and when I'll never understand. Obama has pushed the economy to the breaking point. Companies are now taking full time employees and making them part time to deal with Obamacare. The company I work for has let hundreds of people go because of Obamacare. It needs to be repealed and something sensible put in place.

Your stand on the "rich" is sadly misguided. For where you are in your life 100K might seem like big money. In many parts of the country 100K is more like a base line for the middle class. Also, and this is very important, MANY MANY SMALL BUSINESSES file in such a way that they will be hit by an increase in taxes and in 2013 they'll be hit by Obamacare. The double whammy will cause many to let people go and certainly to not expand and grow. The very engine that employs people, that brings in tax dollars in being killed. You don't grow an economy by taxing people to death. You can not tax yourself into prosperity. How much money do you think people have or business has? The so called "rich" already pay over 90% of the taxes. The money DOES NOT belong to the government, it belongs to the people. Compassion is not how many people are on welfare but how many don't need it. Why is this so hard to understand? Why do liberals seem to think there's unlimited money in the hands of the rich who are hoarding it? Even Obama admitted before that increasing taxes in a recession is bad but NOW he's using class warfare, trying to make people think the evil rich aren't paying enough (after they already pay 90% of the taxes), trying to whip up anger, just to grab votes. Meanwhile Obama and family jet around the globe, he vacations in the most expensive places in the country while people have problems making rent, he wasted his first two years on Obamacare rather than jobs, he rubs elbows with Hollywood stars, he's more celebrity than leader, he appears to be the first BILLION dollar candidate (wouldn't that money be better spent elsewhere?) and people are supposed to believe he cares about the poor and the middle class? Really? You're being lied to and used.

Liberals are not your friend, they believe in some utopian fantasies. They do believe in socialism. America is rotting from within. Another 4 years of Obama and you won't even recognize America any longer because we'll be headed in the direction of Greece but there's not enough money in Heaven to bail us out.

I just wanted to be clear, I appreciate your clarification of your position.

I don't think you're blinded by your youth. It sounds like arcadiagrim is blinded by his ideology and cynicism. Obama passed a huge jobs bill early in his term which is credited with preventing the recession from turning into a depression. Keep thinking, and don't let cynical old farts get you down. You are eminently qualified to have an opinion about the coming election, and I wish more people were as thoughtful as you.

arcadiagrim is missing the clear difference between a Stimulus (US did a Moderate Stimulus) and Austerity (Greece) ... Argentina had a Massive Stimulus and their country GDP has been from 5-9% while ours is hovering around 2-3% ... People still believe the stimulus was wrong should be looking at Europe (mainly Greece) to see what could have been.

My taxes started to go down again when my income crossed $60k. I find this completely scandalous. It is true however that in some places, $100k isn't a very good salary. Doesn't mean there aren't plenty of people who earn less, but some places are very expensive, and you don't get anything extra for your money, aside from the privilege of living there. Living in the San Francisco Bay Area on $100k a year means you will never own a home. In New York City, $100k/year won't pay the mortgage and monthly fees on an 800 square foot co-op apartment, unless you bought a long time ago, or got the downpayment (at least 25%) from your parents.

New York is probably worth the sacrifice, but I left the San Francisco area because I just didn't see the point in spending so much to stay there.

Great blog! The euro is a great academic concept . . . but the divergent cultures and individual economies of the european nations seem to make the union all but impossible. The pittance that is funded to public broadcasting, shouldn't even be a discussion item. God forbid, that we should support broadcasting that's educational or informative. Shame on the America that watches Honey Boo Boo.
Hurray for your stand on socialism and abuse of well intentioned support systems. How about a flat tax? Elimination of loopholes and shelters? I paid the maximum into Social Security for many years. My deductions stopped every year, mid year. I would support paying Social Security on total wages, in an effort to increase the funding. I would like to see all the money that was stolen from the Social Security and Welfare funds, and put into the general budget, put back! And start policing who is eligible for various support programs . . . why and how long! Vote for term limits, and no special deals or benefits for public representatives. Congress and the Senate were never intended to be careers. Serve your constituants, do your job, go home and go back to work!
Ugh! So much that needs to be fixed . . . . and no good candidates in sight!
Bless you for your honest thinking!