Mad(e)off is the scum of the earth. He really screwed over a lot of people. BUT, that having been said, I DON’T believe the government should pay one cent to anyone who was defrauded. That is what the court system is for and we have fraud laws in place for that. And to see these people asking the government for help and members of congress agreeing to pursue that avenue for these people is absolutely immoral on both sides.

NO AUTO BAILOUT!!! Why? Because MUCH OF (if not the majority) of the screaming for an auto industry bailout is coming from NEW CAR DEALERSHIPS around the country. THAT’S RIGHT…The same people who have been trying every trick in the book to screw us over for decades. Buying a new car without getting screwed is nearly impossible, and ENTIRE BOOKS and WEBSITES are devoted to helping buyers navigate through the onerous new car buying process. These dealerships are just this side of criminal in their behavior towards buyers and NOW they want US, the TAXPAYER, to give the auto industry a $25 Billion dollar bailout, so that they can keep all the salesmen employed. Let them go get REAL jobs. There probably are SOME scrupulous car salesmen out there—but I’ve never found one. Also, the BUSINESS MODEL of the auto makers is FLAWED, and THE BUYERS HAVE SPOKEN WITH THEIR WALLETS. That’s how free markets work. GM workers average $70.00 per hour in wages and benefits. Toyota is around $40.00. Do the math. These wage agreements are CONTRACTS the companies make with their UNIONS. They AGREED to pay that much, so why should WE—American taxpayers—be penalized to keep these unreasonably high wages in place??? In my world, car companies don’t get a DIME of our money. They won’t disappear (THAT’S JUST A SCARE TACTIC—like Paulson used in the 1st bailout), but they WILL have to restructure their business models and become smaller, more efficient, and more reasonable sized organizations. We in the AIRLINE industry took our medicine and agreed to a 30% pay cut. We never asked for government money. WE DIDN’T DESERVE IT, and neither does ANY OTHER INDUSTRY. IT IS IMMORAL and a FRAUD on the hardworking, innocent AMERICAN TAXPAYER. ONCE AGAIN—-NO AUTO INDUSTRY BAILOUT. If you agree with me…study the beautiful philosophies of Congressman RON PAUL for the PROPER ROLE OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT in our lives. If you don’t agree…you probably work in the auto industry.

Well said Susan, You are enlightened on this subject. You sound like a good Ron Paul supporter! Like me! pb

GB, You wrote that you dislike hearing “people believe that government should take care of them.”and that “it just doesn’t sit well with you.” But sadly this is where we are today with much of the populace. The recent IMMORAL bailout bill which was supported by BOTH major party candidates is an example of this. We (the taxpayer) will be paying the price for bad decisions made by individuals, banks, insurance companies, mortgage lenders, brokerage houses etc. because “people believe that government should take care of them.” This is called a “MORAL HAZARD” which will give people the idea that future wrongdoings will be forgiven and there will be no consequence. Poor decisions by some should not be covered by those who didn’t make those same bad decisions. Yet that is exactly what is happening here. Consider this quote: “A democracy can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves money from the public treasury. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most money from the public treasury.” I understand your point about us paying taxes and salaries for government officials. But government has gone FAR beyond the role originally intended. The Federal Income Tax is IMMORAL and should be abolished. Why? Because it does not go to run the government, but rather is used only to pay the interest on the debt which is charged to us by the Federal Reserve (Which should also be abolished). MANY government agencies should be shut down like; Dept. of Education, IRS, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Dept of Energy, FEMA (One of the worst), National Endowment for the Arts, HUD, DSHS, etc. etc. Then we should pull our military back from many of the 130 countries and 700 military bases around the world. Finally we should cease ALL FOREIGN AID. This government forced transfer of wealth from Americans to foreign nations like Saudi Arabia (who hates us) and countless other countries is IMMORAL to the highest degree. And much of it goes to foreign military expenditures which is often seen by other countries as a hostile move by us. These changes would eliminate the need for Income tax and many other taxes. It would reduce federal government to its proper role of DEFENDING OUR LIBERTIES as our Constitution states. BOTTOM LINE: If you want to help people, then you have every right to do so. It’s called CHARITY, and it is a great thing for all of us to do voluntarily. But no government should FORCE us to do so. A sad example of how Socialism does’t work is our Indian Reservations where if they remain on the reservation, they collect free money, but if they leave they lose the money. This is why you don’t see too many American Indians in the general populace because the government “takes care” of them to the point that they just stay there—many of whom are drug addicts and alcoholics without motivation to better their lives. Thanks for the input. Paul B

Thanks Sibelle, You one of the few who understand it. Paul B

Here is the only sentence in your post that is correct: “I expect my Government to represent the interests of my country and those that live there.” Well said, but the rest of your post is woefully wrong. WHY??? Because this is what our Declaration of Independence says is the ONLY proper role of the federal government: “…All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unailienable rights, that among these are LIFE, LIBERTY and the PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS, that to secure these rights, GOVERNMENTS ARE INSTITUTED AMONG MEN, deriving their just powers FROM THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED.” You are NOT born with a RIGHT to dental, education, homes, food etc. as you imply. You have a RIGHT to PURSUE these things, but not a right to HAVE these things because THAT is called COMMUNISM or SOCIALISM. In a free society you have the right to EARN these things, but if it is determined that you have a right TO these things, that means that someone had to work to provide these things TO you for NOTHING. Remember it doesn’t say you have the right to a home but rather the “puursuit of happiness” which means the right to earn a home. BIG DIFFERENCE. I hope this helps. Paul B

Ayn Rand most certainly would have been completely AGAINST a private organization like the “Federal Reserve” which is neither Federal (It’s PRIVATE) nor Reserve (Implies they have gold reserves backing the money in circulation WHICH THEY DON’T). The “FED” artificially dictates interest rates, which should be determined only by the market, just as other prices are set by what free markets dictate. So if Greenspan was such an Ayn Rand supporter, WHY would he EVER have agreed to take the job as Fed chairman??? Sounds hyppocritical to me, so when he speaks, forget about any credibility in his words. Ayn Rand (who came here from the Soviet Union) was one of the greatest minds of all time. She loved the United States and warned about the direction we were going (even in the 1960’s) with more government control of the populace. Coming from a Communist nation she had a clear vision of how governments take over the people if they are not kept under constant restraints by the people. Ayn Rand’s basic message was that individuals know far better what is best for their lives than governments. But we are fast coming to a point where the people believe that the government should take care of them. Just remember—- WHENEVER A GOVERNMENT TAKES FROM ONE INDIVIDUAL AND GIVES IT TO ANOTHER, IT GETS CONTROL OF BOTH.