The GOP's next strategy, get rid of Sarah Palin.

[Nitro Express]

Fact of the matter is even massive budget cuts and government employee layoffs still won't come close to balancing the budget.

It just won't get us there.

Hate to say it, but at some point raising taxes has to happen if a balanced budget is the primary economic goal this country wants to meet.

The GOP would be better off letting Palin make a run for it. Her candidacy is the kind that might sound appealing to some in theory until the moment she declares she's running. Should that happen, her supporters will realize she doesn't have the juice to go the distance. Her poll numbers re: favorable are even lower than Obama's right now. The chances enough registered voters are going to change their minds between now and 2012 about Palin's capabilities...well, the phrase "slim to none" comes to mind.

California very would could go into default. I remember in the 1970's when New York City went broke. You could buy whole skyscrapers for $1 million. It was a mess. I've heard people talk about creating a California state bank but I don't think the confidence is going to be there due to the state's fiscal management. But the concept of state chartered banks issuing currency like they used to in the past is being talked about again. Finance will certainly get interesting in the next ten years. The major world currencies are all in a competition who can devalue themselves the most. This is spooking people.

[Nitro Express]

I'm reading what youve said, and consider the dozen-plus 250-pounders at the DMV and think gee, wouldn't it be a great idea to see them suffer like I have to because I worked hard and the reward I got last year was a 125-percent increase in my registration fees.

Fees not taxes, you fat fucks. They're so used to abuse now, I hear one shouting argument every 15 minutes when I go in there and the security guard doesn't come over anymore to break it up - he stays by the door and lets the shouting dissipate for 10 minutes between the client and tagteam of gorillas behind the safety glass.

We don't even have a Department of Motor Vehicles. I renewed my drivers license and just went to the sheriff's office and it was just me and the receptionist who took care of all the paperwork and took my photo. It took less than ten minutes. Registration for my daughters car including the new plates was $80. We don't pay any state income tax either. Winter might be cold here but it does have it's benefits. Plus, Wyoming is solvent. We are sitting on oil.

[GAR]

California's sitting on trillions in oil, but the State won't honor it's contracts going back to the early 70s they signed with Occidental Petroleum - a California company at the time, too!

Ever since the EPA became the psuedo-legislative arm of the Democrats' business ecoterrorism and corporate intervention, we can't get at the oil.

[FORD]

Nixon knew what he was doing with the EPA. He didn't want his home in San Clemente fucked up by the oil companies.