Hear, Hear! I would add the DHS, Agriculture and Labor, at the very least. There are others I wouldn't exactly eliminate, but I'd scale them back so drastically that they'd be nearly eliminated.

Ron Paul is going in the right direction, if still somewhat confused. Some version of the single bracket income tax system needs to replace our current complex mess. One thing we don't need, however, is any form of a national sales tax. Whether called a fair tax or a valued added tax, the risk of ending up with both an income tax and sales tax is too high. Never trust the congress critters to do the right thing.

I can work with a sales tax as long as income and property taxes are abolished. Sales taxes seem to just always go up in my experience but they have a far far more immediate effect on people's wallets than other taxes. Thus politicians will be held to account more than on income/property taxes.

In the world, there are twenty aircraft carriers in service. The United States runs eleven of them.

I bet we could make do just fine with only five. Now there's some savings for ya'.

Ron has my vote even if I have to write him in. I suggest if you don't know much about his record, you should research. He also will only take approx. $35,000 as pay.

I think there shold be one tax and one tax only. Sales? Fine. Income? Fine. Both? Hell no, they will both just continue to go up.

@ Steve: I don't know of too many products and services that got cheaper, much less better by reducing the number of competitors in the market place.

Anyway. I like Ron Paul - a lot. This domestic economic plan is the best one put forth by a candidate so far - IMHO. His foreign policy, however, is a deal breaker for me. It's a non starter - and I say that because it is not realistic, more so than I disagree with it. Why oh why can't Gary Johnson get more debate appearances....just pisses me off.

Fair tax plans do weird stuff with allocation of capital and accounting rules for expensing for small business owners - e.g. property owners.

Flat tax is better, IMHO.

(Off Topic: Newt is cool. I couldn't stand him for the longest time. He did great in last nights debate).

"@ Steve: I don't know of too many products and services that got cheaper, much less better by reducing the number of competitors in the market place."

Uh, I'm not talking about a product or a service. I'm talking about nuclear powered aircraft carriers, with the carrier battle groups that go along with them. They are hideously expensive to build and maintain. Why does the USA need the ability to project that much power?

We could cut that part of the fleet in half and *still* be sailing more of them than any other country, and most of those other countries are our allies anyway.

"Why does the USA need the ability to project that much power?"

Because we fucking can?

Well said feebie

In the world, there are twenty aircraft carriers in service. The United States runs eleven of them.

I bet we could make do just fine with only five. Now there's some savings for ya'. -- Steve Daniels at October 19, 2011 8:42 AM

While true, I'd still like you to consult the U.S. Constitution. You'll notice that "To provide and maintain a Navy" happens to be listed as an Enumerated Power.

Then consult that same list and tell me where the Department of Ed is listed? How about the Department of Energy? How about the National Parks? Here's a really easy low flush toilets and banning incandescent lights?

You can't because they are not anywhere near responsibility of the federal government. This was further expounded on by the Tenth Amendment:

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

I want the government, at all levels, to be a small, part time job. Not touching every part of our daily life.

Dear Feebie,

"Because we fucking can" is probably the worst reason one could come up with.

We could stop the drug war in Mexico by carpet bombing the country with B-52 bombers, we could solve our debt problem with China by nuking them back to the stone age, we could . . .

you know, what you said was just so stupid I've lost interest in the conversation. Maybe you have a Kaln meeting to get to.

> I've lost interest in the conversation.

Yet you regained concentration for a heaving slash of sarcasm, a proud signature, and a clickity-click from Mr Mouse.

Y'know, if you really wanna cut the Navy in half, we can talk about it. But we'll need a convincing argument that our needs are so close to half our present deployment... Especially with all this panicky chatter about 'blue-water' Chinese in the air.

I love the United States' indisputable supremacy. A favorite military thinker spoke recently about some of our national fears from my youth... We'd always assumed some other nation was going to try to "build a bigger gun" than ours. But now I'm in my fifties, and it's obvious that no one's even going to try: It would require social cohesion and productivity far beyond those of any other culture on the planet. Of course we have enemies who can bloody us, but none with resources to squander against the totality of our might.

Who knows how many vaguely-corrupt nations have, in the shadow of our muscle, decided to pursue strength through education and consumer manufacturing instead of military development? What would the world be like if they'd not been so convincingly overwhelmed? For all you know, the peace we've enjoyed and hope to sustain is an enormous bargain.

Links upon request: In the last six years, each of two Presidents of the United States has found it useful to underscore diplomatic rhetoric by parking three carrier groups just off the northern shores of the Persian Gulf... Pointing towards Persia.

Two weeks ago, Ahmadinejad's top naval officer said Iran was planning a "powerful presence" at the borders of the United States.

Feebie is correct: It was was fucking well laughable.

I wanna be clear about that: Three groups AT ONCE.

BIG dick.

"Ahmadinejad's top naval officer said Iran was planning a "powerful presence" at the borders of the United States." Oh that's going to end very badly. It's going to start as a photo op for Iran and then they get turned into a laughing stock when the US has to rescue those sailors.

Someone help me, who the Fuck is Kaln?

Kaln= klan with a typo

Don't confuse Patriotism and legitimate actions in self preservation (peace through strength) with a bunch of Nazi's (socialists) in white bed sheets.

A group who, of course, was given preferential and privileged treatment (political and judicial shelter) by the "peace lovin'" Democratic party for the organized LYNCHINGS of blacks and REPUBLICANS in the South.

Ignorance is an ugly bitch.

The corporate tax rate would fall under Mr. Paul's plan, to 15% from the current 35%

Why would Paul tax corporations at all?