Post Archive
Region: The Confederacy of Free Nations
Take your time, great one
"Dearest" seems like a stretch. Almost an insult.
But, I digress.
Vista Major, Andromitus
Sorry, didn't realize you were in the military?
I'm not familiar with how the national guard works in the US, do they have something similar to the reg force GI bill?
Nat Guard has all military benefits, it's just not active duty.
Active duty Air Force who has worked with plenty of guardsmen
Oh neat, is Nat Guard considered to be the reserves?
I am sometimes too lazy to read the issues and answer randomly hoping that it will come out the way I like.
Sometimes it doesn't come out the way I like
Jaslandia
The Guard has to do more to get things like the GI Bill because you only work a weekend a month and two weeks in the summer. Guard answers to the state government, while the Reserves answer to the Federal government.
MOS?
It's kind of like a reserve force, but it's more active duty for state.
It's AFSC in the Air Force, but I am an Ops. Manager for Civl Engineering.
Yukona
[spoiler=Today is July 27 and today are:]
Today is July 27 and today are:
- Buddha's First Sermon (Bhutan)
- Day of Victory in the Great Fatherland Liberation War (North Korea)
- Iglesia ni Cristo Day (Philippines)
- José Celso Barbosa Day (Puerto Rico)
- Martyrs and Wounded Soldiers Day (Vietnam)
- National Chili Dog Day (United States)
- National Creme Brulee Day (United States)
- National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day (United States)
- National New Jersey Day (United States)
- National Refreshment Day (United States)
- National Scotch Day (United States)
- National Sleepy Head Day (Finland)
- Take Your Houseplant For A Walk Day
- Walk On Stilts Day
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=This day in history:]
This day in history:
- 1054 Siward, Earl of Northumbria invades Scotland and defeats Macbeth, King of Scotland somewhere north of the Firth of Forth.
- 1189 Friedrich Barbarossa arrives at Ni, the capital of Serbian King Stefan Nemanja, during the Third Crusade.
- 1202 GeorgianSeljuk wars: At the Battle of Basian the Kingdom of Georgia defeats the Sultanate of Rum.
- 1214 Battle of Bouvines: Philip II of France decisively defeats Imperial, English and Flemish armies, effectively ending John of England's Angevin Empire.
- 1299 According to Edward Gibbon, Osman I invades the territory of Nicomedia for the first time, usually considered to be the founding day of the Ottoman state.
- 1302 Battle of Bapheus: Decisive Ottoman victory over the Byzantines opening up Bithynia for Turkish conquest.
- 1549 The Jesuit priest Francis Xavier's ship reaches Japan.
- 1663 The English Parliament passes the second Navigation Act requiring that all goods bound for the American colonies have to be sent in English ships from English ports.
- 1689 Glorious Revolution: The Battle of Killiecrankie ends.
- 1694 A Royal charter is granted to the Bank of England.
- 1720 The Battle of Grengam marks the second important victory of the Russian Navy.
- 1775 Founding of the U.S. Army Medical Department: The Second Continental Congress passes legislation establishing "an hospital for an army consisting of 20,000 men."
- 1778 American Revolution: First Battle of Ushant: British and French fleets fight to a standoff.
- 1789 The first U.S. federal government agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, is established (it will be later renamed Department of State).
- 1794 French Revolution: Maximilien Robespierre is arrested after encouraging the execution of more than 17,000 "enemies of the Revolution".
- 1816 Battle of Negro Fort: The battle ends when a hot shot cannonball fired by US Navy Gunboat No. 154 explodes the Fort's Powder Magazine, killing apx. 275. It is considered the deadliest single cannon shot in US history.
- 1857 Siege of Arrah begins: 68 men hold out for 8 days against a force of 2,500 to 3,000 mutinying sepoys and 8,000 irregular forces.
- 1865 Welsh settlers arrive at Chubut in Argentina.
- 1866 The first permanent transatlantic telegraph cable is successfully completed, stretching from Valentia Island, Ireland, to Heart's Content, Newfoundland.
- 1880 Second Anglo-Afghan War: Battle of Maiwand: Afghan forces led by Mohammad Ayub Khan defeat the British Army in battle near Maiwand, Afghanistan.
- 1890 Vincent van Gogh shoots himself and dies two days later.
- 1900 Kaiser Wilhelm II makes a speech comparing Germans to Huns; for years afterwards, "Hun" would be a disparaging name for Germans.
- 1917 The Allies reach the Yser Canal at the Battle of Passchendaele.
- 1919 The Chicago Race Riot erupts after a racial incident occurred on a South Side beach, leading to 38 fatalities and 537 injuries over a five-day period.
- 1921 Researchers at the University of Toronto, led by biochemist Frederick Banting, prove that the hormone insulin regulates blood sugar.
- 1929 The Geneva Convention of 1929, dealing with treatment of prisoners-of-war, is signed by 53 nations.
- 1940 The animated short A Wild Hare is released, introducing the character of Bugs Bunny.
- 1941 Japanese troops stationed in Tonkin occupy the southern portion of French Indochina.
- 1942 World War II: Allied forces successfully halt the final Axis advance into Egypt.
- 1949 Initial flight of the de Havilland Comet, the first jet-powered airliner.
- 1953 Fighting in the Korean War ends when the United States, China, and North Korea sign an armistice agreement. Syngman Rhee, President of South Korea, refuses to sign but pledges to observe the armistice.
- 1955 The Allied occupation of Austria stemming from World War II ends.
- 1955 El Al Flight 402 is shot down by two fighter jets after straying into Bulgarian air space. All 58 people onboard are killed.
- 1964 Vietnam War: Five thousand more American military advisers are sent to South Vietnam bringing the total number of United States forces in Vietnam to 21,000.
- 1974 Watergate scandal: The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee votes 27 to 11 to recommend the first article of impeachment (for obstruction of justice) against President Richard Nixon.
- 1975 Mayor of Jaffna and former MP Alfred Duraiappah is shot dead.
- 1976 Former Japanese prime minister Kakuei Tanaka is arrested on suspicion of violating foreign exchange and foreign trade laws in connection with the Lockheed bribery scandals.
- 1983 Black July: Eighteen Tamil political prisoners at the Welikada high security prison in Colombo are massacred by Sinhalese prisoners, the second such massacre in two days.
- 1987 RMS Titanic Inc. begins the first expedited salvage of wreckage of the RMS Titanic.
- 1989 While attempting to land at Tripoli International Airport in Libya, Korean Air Flight 803 crashes just short of the runway. 75 of the 199 passengers and crew and 4 people on the ground are killed, in the second accident involving a DC-10 in less than two weeks, the first being United Airlines Flight 232.
- 1990 The Supreme Soviet of the Belarusian Soviet Republic declares independence of Belarus from the Soviet Union. Until 1996 the day is celebrated as the Independence Day of Belarus; after a referendum held that year the celebration of independence is moved to June 3.
- 1990 The Jamaat al Muslimeen attempt a coup d'état in Trinidad and Tobago.
- 1995 The Korean War Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C..
- 1996 In Atlanta, United States, a pipe bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Summer Olympics.
- 1997 About 50 people are killed in the Si Zerrouk massacre in Algeria.
- 2002 Ukraine airshow disaster: A Sukhoi Su-27 fighter crashes during an air show at Lviv, Ukraine killing 77 and injuring more than 500 others, making it the deadliest air show disaster in history.
- 2005 After an incident during STS-114, NASA grounds the Space Shuttle, pending an investigation of the continuing problem with the shedding of foam insulation from the external fuel tank.
- 2015 At least seven people are killed and many injured after gunmen attack an Indian police station in Punjab.
[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Famous Birthdays:]
Famous Birthdays:
- 1824 Alexandre Dumas, fils, French novelist and playwright
- 1835 Giosuè Carducci, Italian poet and educator, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1870 Hilaire Belloc, French-born British writer and historian
- 1881 Hans Fischer, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1882 Geoffrey de Havilland, English pilot and engineer, founded the de Havilland Aircraft Company
- 1928 Joseph Kittinger, American colonel and pilot
- 1929 Jack Higgins, English author and academic
- 1940 Pina Bausch, German dancer and choreographer
- 1965 José Luis Chilavert, Paraguayan footballer
- 1969 Triple H, American wrestler and actor
- 1975 Alex Rodriguez, American baseball player
[/spoiler]
Quote of the day
The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it.
- Jean Paul -
Note: Penguania_And_Antarctica assumes no responsibility or guarantee for correctness of any given information. Any recourse to courts of law is excluded.
Jaslandia, The United Providences Of Perland, Percyton, Neo-Icelandic Commonwealth
Oi, Handland, since you're active duty and anecdotes are the only form of evidence a family member of mine accepts, what would you say to the statement?:
"The Police are the same as the military. If military bases should be shut down, so should police stations."
(This statement comes from the family member, whom of which works for DoD/DFAS. This arose when she was railing about the recent transgender ban in the military saying it was the right thing to do. She claims that it cuts costs, to which I told her we can cut more costs and not be considered discriminatory by simply shutting down some of the military bases we have in foreign countries.)
'Allo there, fancy meeting you :P
The United Providences Of Perland, Yukona
We spend numerous times more money on Viagra than we do trans healthcare in the military. So ravioli ravioli they're ignorantioli
The following missiles I am willing to sell:
https://www.nationstates.net/nation=peoples_liberation_republic/detail=factbook/id=860035
If you would like to have PLR missiles, then please TG me with what you would like to buy and a price you are willing to pay
The United Providences Of Perland
I'd disagree with the police/military statement. Two different things. The military goes to war, not crime scenes.
Are you going to endorse me, dude? I endorsed you.
The United Providences Of Perland
Rofl this guy so worried bout endorsements.
Andromitus, Magnatronia
hah the Internationale an enemy region
You guys were better off when you were a dead region.
But they are filthy Bolsheviks.
Meh, it's general courtesy in my eyes
Rainbow Space Cat Founder regards his refugees, and indeed all of his citizens as his kittens. Rainbow Space Cat Founder guards his refugees, and all of his citizens with the force of ten thousand exploding K Class stars. He feeds them fattening cakes, and sugary drinks. One day he might eat their children as sacrifice. One day. Rainbow Space Cat Founders refugees, and all his citizens are his, and Rainbow Space Cat Founder does not appreciate any of this.
Jaslandia, Andromitus, Kalaron, Penguania And Antarctica, The United Providences Of Perland
I like endorsements.
Who doesn't?
Yukona
Praise! Pets*, leaves offering of yarn and a $150 scratching play thing that will likely be used once*
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica
*Scratches the thing twice before unceremoniously patting it off a table. Hugs the yarn.*
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica
The drugs kick in? What are you on? LSD? Crack?
Penguania And Antarctica
The Warp of Space Time, but mostly the nip.
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica, Yukona
California is the fifth-largest economy in the world, much, much larger than most of the countries touted for having single-payer systems. Colorado has roughly the same sized population as Denmark, Finland and Norway. If liberal states with decent economies overwhelmingly reject single payer, then there is no way the federal government, which is corrupt and inefficient enough as it is, will be able to handle it. Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security have been disasters as is. Frankly, the federal government is not very good at doing things, be it the War on Terror, War on Drugs or the War on Poverty that's put blacks in economic bondage to the state. Imagine the economic and social destruction resulting from an even bigger transfer of wealth.
And here's another fact: single payer is illegal. The federal government has no authority whatsoever to intervene to such a scale. If you want single payer, lobby your state for it; please don't impose your utopian visions of the world on the 67% of the population who oppose nationalisation (Pew Research, 2017).
Neo-Icelandic Commonwealth
*Prepares poisoned apples*
Penguania And Antarctica
Ooh, let me add a little bit to the recipie. *adds liquid VX*
Penguania And Antarctica
I'd hardly call it 'utopian', consider basically all developed nations besides the U.S. have single-payer, universal healthcare, or something similar. And I think the federal government is far more effective than you give it credit it for, but seeing as you're a libertarian, I don't think I can convince you of government's effectiveness.
And I fail to see how single-payer is illegal/unconstitutional. The Constitution has already been stretched and expanded through things like the general welfare clause, and stuff like NASA and telecommunications regulations hardly have any basis in the Constitution (for understandable reasons). I fail to see how single-payer is more unconstitutional than those things, and if the Supreme Court does rule it constitutional, than I'd be just fine with a constitutional amendment to enact it.
And considering I live in Florida, which is currently dominated by Republicans at the state level, lobbying for single-payer would be about as effective as yelling at a brick wall.
Nuremgard
Pssst I know who you are. Hail Sithis.
I live in one of those "developed countries" that you are talking about and let me tell you, it would be best if the government would just stay out of healthcare.
I live in one of those "developed countries" that you are talking about and let me tell you, it would be best if the government would just keep control of healthcare.
Nuremgard, Jaslandia, The United Providences Of Perland
https://www.numbeo.com/health-care/compare_cities.jsp?country1=Iceland&country2=United+States&city1=Reykjavik&city2=Jacksonville%2C+FL
See? the only thing that our system is good at is "staff friendliness"
Hey look at that something me and Yuk agree on. :P
Nuremgard, Jaslandia, Yukona
Where do you live?
People have different personal stories of course, but the facts and statistics indicate that universal healthcare works and is comparable to the U.S.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/medical/canada.asp
https://youtu.be/_yF69KVbUaQ
https://www.forbes.com/sites/danmunro/2014/06/16/u-s-healthcare-ranked-dead-last-compared-to-10-other-countries/#7bf5cdcf576f
He lives in the UK and like me, he loves the NHS.
I work for the NHS
Nuremgard, Tserra
What do you do?
Interesting
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/446689/canadas-single-payer-health-care-system-cautionary-tale
It didn't seem to work very well when I was in England in feburary
Of course it didn't. How convenient.
What?
Hey, you're the one who loves evidence. Anecdotes don't count. I could tell you several stories of the NHS doing excellent work, as could countless other Brits. But anecdotes don't mean jack-sh!t.
Toot toot :)
Jaslandia
Do tell. I am just telling what I experienced, and there is no need to get mad like you always do
I like in one of those "developed countries" that you are talking about and let me tell you: it would be best if we all just sat down and enjoyed some Tim Horton's coffee and beavertails while listening to the Wilkinsons.
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica, Yukona
Anecdotal evidence is not good enough. Just because it didn't work well for you doesn't mean that it hasn't worked for millions of more people. What makes this worse is that your personal account of this incident isn't very detailed, which is an already good enough reason to discard it.
Jaslandia
Are beaver tails savory? Do they make good Rainbow Space Cat Founder treats?
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica
I do get mad when people try to bad mouth the NHS.
A few years ago I suffered from a heart condition. I was taken to hospital and spent three days there. I received excellent care from dedicated, friendly staff. Had I been in the US, the hospital bills would have financially crippled me. That's the price of not having a government-funded and controlled health service.
Jaslandia, Friedensreich
They're sugary pastries, but there's nothing stopping us from stuffing them with Fancy Feast, I suppose.
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica
That's one perspective, and I see where it's coming from, but here's another:
http://www.aarp.org/politics-society/government-elections/info-03-2012/myths-canada-health-care.html
And besides, Canada is just one example: France is considered to have the best healthcare system of the world, and unlike Canada, you can't claim the U.S. is merely propping up France's healthcare system.
Neo-Icelandic Commonwealth
Yet just another reason to love France.
Jaslandia
I can has?
Jaslandia, Penguania And Antarctica
What the devil are the other reasons?!?
The language, the food, the cities, republicanism, secularism, liberty etc. Plus I'm Scottish. I have a sentimental attachment to the Auld Alliance.
Look, I get what you are trying to say and I am happy that you are feeling better but it is important to look at the bigger picture when it comes to making such important decisions that affect millions of people
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkwiClimcJI
One hundred percent curious. What bigger picture?
Kalaron
And looking at the bigger picture means bringing in an insurance system that punishes people for being ill, prevents the poor from receiving quality healthcare, makes people pay an absolute fortune for their healthcare while companies make billions in profits. What? All because you don't like paying taxes for the government to run a system that treats everyone fairly?
If you don't like public healthcare, fine. Use private healthcare. And if there aren't any options in Iceland, move somewhere that does give you the option.
The NHS is not perfect but it's a treasured national institution. I love it, as do millions of other Brits, and I am bloody glad we have it.
Like you know, the health of millions of people and how we are going to pay for it
I say we nationalize all Kitten-Related industries, so as to appease our Rainbow Cat God Founder with unlimited offerings!
Jaslandia, Kalaron, Penguania And Antarctica
I have seen the other side. I have seen what happens when private companies rule the roost in terms of healthcare. I have no empathy for it. Only disgust.
We pay for it through general taxation like we do for other public goods.
Often misquotes, Nathan Hale actually said "My only regret is that I have but one world to give to our Rainbow Cat God Founder."
Fact.
Jaslandia, The Empire Of Handland, Penguania And Antarctica
Except for the fact that it doesn't. You see, when companies compete with each other, we end up with higher quality products and lower prices. The only reason why that doesn't happen is because of government.
You mean we are being robbed
LOL. Yeah, that's the theory, not the reality. Ask any American who is uninsured. Or even ask one who is insured. They're lucky if their company covers their illness.
Oh, here we go.
Yeah, sweetie. You're being robbed. If you say so.
Goddamn it stop pretending to be dumb! American healthcare is far from private and you know it
Private companies have a monopoly on it. There are public programmes of course. But their healthcare system is a complete disgrace.
It's not "if I say so", it's a fact. If I don't pay the government 40% of my income, people are going to come to my home and take me against my will, then they are going to isolate me from society. If that's not extortion then I don't know what is
Easy. I will give you a very basic example. One dollar.
Just one dollar from every single paycheck in the United States is some 330 odd million dollars. Most people get paid two to four times a month. I am what you would call poor. I sit close if not in the poverty level. I will tell you right now, no one is going to miss 2-4 dollars out of their paycheck a month, especially to be able to go to the hospital anytime they need it, and not have to worry about staggering bills.
My insurance gets cancelled Monday due to forces I cannot control. I have a horrible ear ache right now that I would love to go see the doctor for, but there is no way I can get in to the doctor before Monday. What I would not give for the NHS right now.
Nuremgard, Jaslandia
Cough cough Obamacare cough cough
Cherry picking Canada's horrible situation with waiting times doesn't mean that single-payer causes long waiting times. The Netherlands and Germany are about on par with the U.S. regarding wait times that are less than 4 weeks, with the former country having fewer cases of wait times being over two months. Additionally, regarding some of the countries that are at around 50% for wait times, a lot of that can be blamed upon rationing for elective surgeries, which of course should be prioritized less. In countries like the U.S., health care is rationed by your wallet, while healthcare in countries with single-payer and multi-payer systems is rationed by need.
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/interactives-and-data/chart-cart/survey/2013-international-health-policy-survey/wait-times-for-specialist-appointment
Jaslandia
Poor baby. Has to pay to be part of a civilised society.
Man, I thought people in the Middle East were oppressed. Turns out you're the truly downtrodden one.
Why not move to a tax haven then?
Go buy your own road then, and pay for your own military and police.
I for one will continue to enjoy being "robbed"
Nuremgard, Jaslandia
See? Over here, you'd have no worry. You could see your doctor without fear of costs. And if you live in Scotland, you get the added bonus of getting your medicine free too.
It doesn't matter if it is just one dollar if it is without my consent. Just like forced intercourse for 10 seconds is still rape. These 10 seconds might not be important to you, but it's still rape right? And I am sorry that your insurance is going to get canceled and I really hope you get better but again, you are not looking at the big picture
Ah, no. Righties love the police and military. Guns and killing brown people give them a hard on. Helping people through universal healthcare? Not so much.
I am sure a rape victim would appreciate you comparing their trauma to paying tax. Get some perspective.
Jaslandia, Yukona
How would the society not be civilized if you didn't have to pay income tax? Just asking. And I don't have to move sh!t, do you tell black people to go back to where they belong if people are being racist against them? I don't think so
Love the empty platitudes too. "Oh I'm sorry and I hope you get better. Just please don't ask me to pay taxes to help you. That's rape. Sort it yourself."
Tell me how it is different. Would you rape a person if that would get all poor people out of poverty?
What's your opinion on abortion? Just a random question, don't mean anything by it.
Yukona
Again, you are making the most ridiculous analogies. Paying tax is not the same as being raped or suffering racial discrimination, no matter how hard you try to make it so. Stop trying to play the victim.
I would be happy to help him but that is voluntary, unlike taxes
I am pro-life
INB4 Individual citizens must buy the M1A2SEPv3 TUSK to continue being safe from overseas threats.
Truly nothing else could be closer to what our god-fearing founders meant. :p
No but really Taxation is a sensible thing and it's the reason most of us haven't died from staggering mortality rates by now.
Jaslandia
K thx
Why are you asking such a stupid question. Paying tax is the price one pays for being part of a modern society that has such things as roads, schools, hospitals etc. Rape is when a person's body is sexually violated. Paying some tax might make you tut and have a moan. Being raped would physically and psychologically scar you for life.
See the difference?
It is the same goddamn thing here. Why am I supposed to move just because I don't like it how things are run?
LOL
Man, you should be a comedian.
Well for one thing it would leave people who are happy with universal healthcare in peace. If you tried to change things, you'd make things worse for them.
But hey. You stay home and fight for your right to not pay to help your fellow man! You bloody patriot!
No you are not looking at the big picture. You are literally only looking at yourself. Its not robbery. Its a tax. I hate taxes I will have you know, but we are not talking about 40 percent of a persons income. We are talking miniscule ammounts that no reasonable person would object to. It in no way equates to rape, and the use of rape in your reply is quite frankly offensive. Rape is an act of violence. It is physical harm against another person.
Taxes pay for the common good. That is the whole point of them. Your tax money pays for the roads that you use. And you do use them. Any public service that you use, you have to pay for. The only way you get to cop out of this is if you live on a farm in the middle of nowhere, draw your own well water, grow your own food, and completely...100 percent...isolate yourself from the rest of society.
That is the big picture.
Yukona
Assembled with Dot's Region Saver.
Written by Refuge Isle.