How about a mellow topic - like Immigration

[mikalalas]

Nope.

We need illegals to process our food. Figure out a way to make that work instead of punishing the people who put food on our tables.

I agree with all of the other entitlements - illegals were working here fine without having all the hand outs. It encourages immigration without the benefit of a labor force.

Robots are coming to do all that work anyway, so it won't be an issue in 50 years.

CORRECTION: LEGAL IMMIGRANTS(HISPANIC, MEXICAN, LATINO, etc)are needed.

Illegals ARE NOT needed. Create a path to LEGALIZE them, an or DEPORT the ones who won't take(EARN) the path to Legalization(Citizenship, Green Card, Visa, etc)

If you want to come to USA, we welcome you with loving arms AS LONG AS YOU COME HERE LEGALLY.

Also we need to make it easier for LEGAL IMMIGRANTS to come here to the USA.

 

[CougEd]

Pay attention Ed. My comment was a reply to Flatland's post, not yours. That was obvious.

BTW, did you happen to check the immigration status of all those foreign workers or were you just happy to take advantage of those poor illegal immigrants to save yourself a few bucks? Typical liberal elitist, not caring about those whose opportunities are being undercut but the illegal immigrants willing to work for less than a "living wage". Right?

Right …. Did I say they were illegal ? I had a GC handle the project. So no i didn’t check their VISA’s. And don’t worry stretch , Inhad a white guy who was originally scheduled to do the work on my house . The design was picked out June of 2021, hoping to start April of 2022, but firm date was 8/2022. Guy never calls, never tells me it is being delayed until 45 days later. Then tells me first of jan 2023. Again finally calls me on 1/31/2023. He is a client of mine .

I tell him i hired a guy to get several things done until he is ready to work on the project in May which was his next date. Sent me an email he is stepping away from the project .

 

[WillieThePimp]

I'm pretty confident that every person on this board lives within 50 miles of a place that makes the US look like a shithole country. We like to think that we're a shining beacon for the world, but you usually don't have to stray too far from the "nice areas" to find the town is a dump. Anyone been more than 2 blocks off the Vegas strip?

I understand what you’re saying but there are places in this world where the poverty is so extreme and on such a scale - look at Haiti or the slums of Rio or São Paulo for example. And they are extremely dangerous.

First time I was exposed to anything like that was about 25 years ago in Delhi: masses of people living in primitive conditions and profoundly poor. The kind of thing that forever changes your worldview. I’ll never forget taking an early morning train from Delhi to Amritsar and as the train was heading north through Delhi we literally watched people bathing outside their shacks next to the train tracks In full view of a packed train. Of course to the Indians this was normal.

 

[Stretch 74]

Right …. Did I say they were illegal ? I had a GC handle the project. So no i didn’t check their VISA’s. And don’t worry stretch , Inhad a white guy who was originally scheduled to do the work on my house . The design was picked out June of 2021, hoping to start April of 2022, but firm date was 8/2022. Guy never calls, never tells me it is being delayed until 45 days later. Then tells me first of jan 2023. Again finally calls me on 1/31/2023. He is a client of mine .

I tell him i hired a guy to get several things done until he is ready to work on the project in May which was his next date. Sent me an email he is stepping away from the project .

No, you didn't say they were illegal. That is why I asked.

Of course, if they were illegal and you didn't verify that they properly entered the country and had the papers to verify that, then you were aiding and abetting criminals. Did you ever think about that?

A dozen years ago when we were getting ready to move, we needed some work done around our place. Our agent had a guy that he used for various general labor and handyman type chores. Mexican guy, and he brought his twin boys out to play around while he worked. 4-5 years old, wife fell in love with them. Yes, he was legal, and was going through the long process to become a citizen. He was a second shift janitor at a Kent School, who did the side jobs during the day. He talked about how he would have discussions with some of the teachers that were there after the kids left, and he was amazed at how little those teachers knew about the history of the US that he knew due to his studying to take the citizenship test. And what does that say about those that are teaching our county's kids? Anyway, Jose is the kind of people that we need in our country, more than those that break the laws by entering illegally and then sucking up government benefits.

 

[CougEd]

No, you didn't say they were illegal. That is why I asked.

Of course, if they were illegal and you didn't verify that they properly entered the country and had the papers to verify that, then you were aiding and abetting criminals. Did you ever think about that?

A dozen years ago when we were getting ready to move, we needed some work done around our place. Our agent had a guy that he used for various general labor and handyman type chores. Mexican guy, and he brought his twin boys out to play around while he worked. 4-5 years old, wife fell in love with them. Yes, he was legal, and was going through the long process to become a citizen. He was a second shift janitor at a Kent School, who did the side jobs during the day. He talked about how he would have discussions with some of the teachers that were there after the kids left, and he was amazed at how little those teachers knew about the history of the US that he knew due to his studying to take the citizenship test. And what does that say about those that are teaching our county's kids? Anyway, Jose is the kind of people that we need in our country, more than those that break the laws by entering illegally and then sucking up government benefits.

First it “ain’t” my job to look at their passports? But I did hire this white guy from Canada who didn’t have his papers in order ….you know a guy from one of those shithole countries.

Second, if I turned in every person who did something illegal, half this board would be incarcerated.

Back in the day, ever know a person or people or groups of people who bought and snorted coke? Where do you think that came from and who brought that in the US? So acquaintances of mine I can tell “funded” illegal “bootlegging” back in the day and gave the S hole countries a place to dump their coke . US economy … supply and demand . Demand was in the US and the supply was south of the border.

 

[95coug]

I understand what you’re saying but there are places in this world where the poverty is so extreme and on such a scale - look at Haiti or the slums of Rio or São Paulo for example. And they are extremely dangerous.

First time I was exposed to anything like that was about 25 years ago in Delhi: masses of people living in primitive conditions and profoundly poor. The kind of thing that forever changes your worldview. I’ll never forget taking an early morning train from Delhi to Amritsar and as the train was heading north through Delhi we literally watched people bathing outside their shacks next to the train tracks In full view of a packed train. Of course to the Indians this was normal.

Yeah, I can imagine. Personally no desire to visit any of those areas.

 

[Loyal Coug1]

Nope. You can claim non-resident dependents, specifically if they are from Canada or Mexico. You're supposed to apply for an ITIN instead, but those expire after 3 years...so you can recycle the name and do it again.

I'd also be fine with revising the tax code to say that you can only claim dependents who actually live with you (that might handicap some non-custodial parents, but realistically...if a kid doesn't live with you, you probably don't provide half of their support).

Hmmm - I stand sort of corrected. But your 15 people angle is a bit of a stretch. Good thing we are cutting the IRS so that shit can slip through.

Claiming a Non-Citizen Spouse and Children on Your Taxes

When your spouse and children are U.S. citizens, claiming them on your taxes is simple: just provide their names and Social Security numbers. When they're non-citizens, though, things may be a little more complicated. But you can still claim them—and reap the tax benefits of doing so.

turbotax.intuit.com

 

[Stretch 74]

First it “ain’t” my job to look at their passports? But I did hire this white guy from Canada who didn’t have his papers in order ….you know a guy from one of those shithole countries.

Second, if I turned in every person who did something illegal, half this board would be incarcerated.

Back in the day, ever know a person or people or groups of people who bought and snorted coke? Where do you think that came from and who brought that in the US? So acquaintances of mine I can tell “funded” illegal “bootlegging” back in the day and gave the S hole countries a place to dump their coke . US economy … supply and demand . Demand was in the US and the supply was south of the border.

Yeah, that's what everyone says. "It ain't my job". Plausible deniability, right?

 

[95coug]

Hmmm - I stand sort of corrected. But your 15 people angle is a bit of a stretch. Good thing we are cutting the IRS so that shit can slip through.

Claiming a Non-Citizen Spouse and Children on Your Taxes

When your spouse and children are U.S. citizens, claiming them on your taxes is simple: just provide their names and Social Security numbers. When they're non-citizens, though, things may be a little more complicated. But you can still claim them—and reap the tax benefits of doing so.

turbotax.intuit.com

Maybe 15 was an exaggeration…but there really isn’t a limit on how many you can claim. You just need to be able to state that you provide 50% of their annual support. Pretty easy to hit that level if you’re sending money to the third world…and pretty hard for anyone to prove you’re not, or that those dependents don’t exist.

 

[Loyal Coug1]

Pay attention Ed. My comment was a reply to Flatland's post, not yours. That was obvious.

BTW, did you happen to check the immigration status of all those foreign workers or were you just happy to take advantage of those poor illegal immigrants to save yourself a few bucks? Typical liberal elitist, not caring about those whose opportunities are being undercut but the illegal immigrants willing to work for less than a "living wage". Right?

Less than a living wage? Do you mean the 18 states that still have the federal minimum wage of $7.25?

 

[Loyal Coug1]

I'm pretty confident that every person on this board lives within 50 miles of a place that makes the US look like a shithole country. We like to think that we're a shining beacon for the world, but you usually don't have to stray too far from the "nice areas" to find the town is a dump. Anyone been more than 2 blocks off the Vegas strip?

Not all of us can live in the Palm Springs of Washington like me.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

I'm pretty confident that every person on this board lives within 50 miles of a place that makes the US look like a shithole country. We like to think that we're a shining beacon for the world, but you usually don't have to stray too far from the "nice areas" to find the town is a dump. Anyone been more than 2 blocks off the Vegas strip?

Interesting comment about Vegas but it needs proper context. There are large areas of Vegas that are pretty damned sketchy and some of them are just a couple blocks off the Vegas strip. There is also over 100 square miles of Vegas with a lot of really nice houses and neighborhoods. I own a house in the northwest part of Vegas and the neighborhood is pretty decent. Two block south is an area that I'll drive through at night...but I wouldn't walk.

To your original point though, any decent sized city has areas of poverty and rundown conditions. When I first moved to Kansas, my cousin was mortified when I told him I had driven through one of the more dangerous neighborhoods at night. The majority of murders and violent crime in my town happen in three particular areas of the town. About 5 square miles of my city's 165 square miles are pretty dangerous.

 

[95coug]

Interesting comment about Vegas but it needs proper context. There are large areas of Vegas that are pretty damned sketchy and some of them are just a couple blocks off the Vegas strip. There is also over 100 square miles of Vegas with a lot of really nice houses and neighborhoods. I own a house in the northwest part of Vegas and the neighborhood is pretty decent. Two block south is an area that I'll drive through at night...but I wouldn't walk.

To your original point though, any decent sized city has areas of poverty and rundown conditions. When I first moved to Kansas, my cousin was mortified when I told him I had driven through one of the more dangerous neighborhoods at night. The majority of murders and violent crime in my town happen in three particular areas of the town. About 5 square miles of my city's 165 square miles are pretty dangerous.

Additional thing I was going to mention above - I imagine we’ve all seen the travel advisories the state department puts out for international travel, telling us where it’s dangerous to travel and what the dangers are. Has anyone ever looked at other countries’ advisories for the US? They’re often not very complimentary.

 

[CougInSpain]

One of the poorest countries I've been to was the Philippines from when I did time in the Navy. Imagine whole square blocks of poorly constructed shacks taking up some of the best beach front real estate in Manila. Once you get outside of Manila? I hope you like off-road adventures because who needs roads connecting points of interests right? My only experience though was the road from Subic City to Manila and that was in the late 90's. I am sure it has changed by now but still. I have since been to other poor countries such as Peru, Colombia & Mexico. Even these places have big beautiful cities that from one glance, you would think these nations are thriving. Step one foot outside of these cities and you see a very different story.