Apparently there is a lot of pressure on the WH to intensify the military campaign against ISIS. You can verify this from a variety of sources- here is one I picked after 5 seconds of Googling:
Look, I can dig it. There are some genuine, actual bad guys spreading mayhem like wildfire, threatening our allies (the Kurds), regional stability, our interests (oil), and possibly our personnel as well (blowing up the Mosul dam). I’m not starting this thread to claim that a ‘more aggressive stance’ against ISIS is absurd- I specifically don’t think that.
However, war is expensive, and our country goes further into debt every day. Can America learn even one thing from history, namely that fighting wars on a credit card a la W Bush is a terrible idea?
Anyone who has paid any attention during the Obama administration knows how much hue and cry has been howled at the topic of the national debt- OMG, we have to cut food stamps! We have to cut medicare! We have to cut education! We have to cut Social Security! Because after W’s wars, we’re further in debt than ever, and this can’t continue! There has probably been enough yak-yak on this topic to double the size of the Library of Congress.
Well, now it looks like those very same people are advocating something potentially very, very, very expensive. How are we going to pay for it? I propose 1) raising taxes on the wealthy. The rates are too low as it is- we can’t balance the current budget if you haven’t noticed. 2) abolishing tax inversions- the practice by which American companies buy foreign companies, then claim the foreign company as their headquarters in order to evade paying taxes as an American company, while continuing to do business here. This practice is blatant tax evasion and has to stop. 3) A more aggressive stance against tax shelters such as the Cayman Islands, similar in most ways to point 2 really.
Now, if you advocate an expanded military role, but are against paying for it via raising revenues, then you need to STFU. I know, we could cut Social Security to pay for more wars, but I think that proposal deserves a hearty ‘fuck you, asshole!’ We don’t need to cut anything that isn’t fraud in this country right now- we have major problems within our own borders that aren’t being addressed as it is. Pro-vulnerable-citizens policies on the part of government are not the same as Socialism, and I think every honest, non-stupid person knows this.
In short, if you aren’t willing to pay for the war, then you need to STFU. Unwilling to compromise with the President? Fine, you don’t get what you want, asshole. Now STFU already!
