Politics & Government - 21 August 2007

Situation: A boyfriend and girlfriend have been living together for less than one year. The two children do not belong to the boyfriend. They are the girlfriend's children. When it was time to file for '06, the boyfriend claimed both of the children (with gf's permission) on his tax form. Is this legal? Do you know anyone who has done this & then the IRS wanted the BIG refund back?? Is there a website that would say if this is legal? I searched on the IRS website but did not see anything. Thanks for your help!

2007-08-21 07:28:23 · 14 answers · asked by ? 3 in Law & Ethics

I am trying to find out what this means, my husband has his fathers St. Christopher's Cross and it has the stars and strips shield and air force wings on it. Please help me.

2007-08-21 07:25:40 · 3 answers · asked by lhuedepohl 1 in Military

I don't know what i've been told.... (Troops Repeat), then the drill sergant says something else, and troops repeat again.
what are the lyrics?

2007-08-21 07:20:10 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous in Military

This museum also claims the earth is 6000 years old. But dinosaurs became extinct about 65 million years ago. Is this a political assault on science?

2007-08-21 07:17:57 · 16 answers · asked by kia 3 in Other - Politics & Government

What's it like being a lawyer? Do you think it's a very stressful job and do you ever find time for vacations/family? Any information you have, please tell. Thanks to those who reply.

2007-08-21 07:16:13 · 8 answers · asked by Qu'est ce que tu penses? 6 in Law & Ethics

I have herd all the conspiracy theoris on 9/11 and im just wondering why people think that it was set up by the government, why they think that they would do that to there own people

2007-08-21 07:15:06 · 28 answers · asked by burx18 2 in Elections

2007-08-21 07:13:41 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Military

...detriment, because they expected the Federal Gov't. (via FEMA?) to bail them out after the tragedy?

Isn't that exactly what some people are saying about the people in the way of hurricanes? That they don't "prepare" or "remove themselves" because they expect Federal bailout?

Should we all work and live in buildings that we, ourselves, have made and are "responsible" for?

2007-08-21 07:13:12 · 14 answers · asked by Joey's Back 6 in Politics

All along she has maintained it has NOT been working but suddenly she does a complete 180 degree flip-flop! General Petreaus' report is due out and this will probably show greater success than previously thought, thus the "Hillary Flip-Flop"! Now we have to ask- was she intentionally lying to America all along???

2007-08-21 07:11:37 · 24 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

2007-08-21 07:10:37 · 5 answers · asked by kayla 1 in Law & Ethics

In an arguement over the net, i was the FIRST to make a rasist comment late on in a fuming arguement. Is it a crime?

2007-08-21 07:08:44 · 18 answers · asked by Wudolf 1 in Law & Ethics

Will the US ever recover its lost respect from others around the world?

2007-08-21 07:08:10 · 11 answers · asked by Dirk von Pelvis 1 in Other - Politics & Government

Mexico will undoubtedly require international aid to assist in their recovery following the devastation wrought by hurricane Dean.

It is only right that the United States join in this international effort and help the Mexicans recover after this disaster.

Clearly, Mexico has suffered tremendous human losses in this natural disaster, and it just so happens that the United States has roughly 11 million Mexican Citizens living in this country illegally.

By returning these criminals, we would help Mexico recover any population losses it may have suffered and remove countless, gang members, drunks, and other alien criminals from the United States. (If these "people" are as "hard working" as Mexico claims, they should be glad to have them back.)

This is clearly a win-win situation and should be implemented immediately.

2007-08-21 07:07:55 · 12 answers · asked by Anonymous in Immigration

By Ken Schoolland


I hear it from some of the nicest people one would ever meet. Some dear friends of mine, whom I respect very much, say that all illegal immigrants are criminals because they broke the laws that control who may come into this country. And since these immigrants are criminals, we don¡'t want that kind of person here.
Sadly, such accusations confuse what is legal with what is moral. American history is filled with people who broke unjust laws and were morally justified in doing so.


Legality ≠ Morality
The American Revolution was fought by men and women who broke the laws of England and of King George III. Had they been arrested, as was Nathan Hale, they would have been hanged for treason to the Crown. If breaking the law makes one a criminal, then the Founding Fathers were all criminals. But no one still believes that today.
Dred Scott and thousands of other slaves defied the Fugitive Slave Acts and ran away, "stealing themselves" from Southern plantation masters in the early 1800's. Those who were arrested were returned to their slave "owners," and anyone found trying to help them escape to Canada was prosecuted as well.
Thankfully, many juries exercised jury nullification. Declaring that the law was unjust, juries often refused to convict operators of the Underground Railroad. No one today would claim that a runaway slave was a criminal. Indeed, anyone who forcibly returned Blacks would now be considered guilty of having collaborated with the slave masters — albeit legal slave masters.
In the 1930's there were hundreds of Jews who came to American shores aboard the SS St. Louis, forcibly sent back by immigration quotas to perish in Hitler's concentration camps. Thousands or millions of potential refugees watched in desperate disappointment.
But suppose those passengers had defied immigration law and jumped ship in Miami harbor. Would anyone today call them criminals? I think not. Indeed, those who returned Jews to their persecutors might be considered guilty of collaborating with villainy — albeit legal villainy.


Treasures of the Earth
It may be illegal for people to seek freedom and opportunity in this country, but it isn't immoral. I admire the courage of immigrants who leave all that is familiar to them, risking life and limb on stormy seas and deadly deserts, in order to move to a strange land where everything is unfamiliar and potentially hostile.
Most of our ancestors moved for freedom and opportunity and we are the beneficiaries. Thank God they weren't arrested and sent packing, as were violators of the Chinese Exclusion Act. Indeed, we might wonder if we could have mustered the same measure of courage if we had been in their shoes.
It is convenient and simple to exclude new newcomers by calling them criminals. But the real reason is much more complex. For some people it is a fear of other races. For others it is a fear that newcomers might work hard and will "take" jobs. Others fear the opposite — that newcomers will not work hard and will take welfare.
In the first case, many immigrants are great entrepreneurs who offer jobs to Americans. Other immigrants take jobs, but they never "take" jobs that are not willingly offered to them by eager employers.
I often ask audiences: "Suppose you are an employer and you know only one thing about two job applicants in front of you: one is native-born and the other is an immigrant? Who would you expect to be the harder worker?" Audiences overwhelmingly favor the immigrant. Why? Americans are surely good workers. But the very act of migration is seen as proof of vigor, ambition, determination, and courageous self-reliance.


Choice: Employees Right, Employers Right
Americans have a moral right to make these choices for themselves — as employees and as employers. Says Robert W. Tracinski, a senior writer for the Ayn Rand Institute:


"The irrational premise behind our nation's immigration laws is that a native-born American has a 'right' to a particular job, not because he has earned it, but because he was born here. To this 'right,' the law sacrifices the employer's right to hire the best employees — and the immigrant's right to take a job that he deserves. To put it succinctly, initiative and productiveness are sacrificed to sloth and inertia.
"The 'American dream' is essentially the freedom of each individual to rise as far as his abilities take him. The opponents of immigration, however, want to repudiate that vision by turning America into a privileged preserve for those who want the law to set aside jobs for them — jobs they cannot freely earn through their own efforts....Any immigrant who wants to come to America in search of a better life should be let in — and any employer who wants to hire him should be free to do so."

To the legalist, however, who places law above moral right, the employer who hires as he pleases is a criminal. The legalist wants stricter penalties against employers who defy state mandates on hiring. Once again this is reminiscent of historic laws that were used to criminalize employers who dared to hire Blacks, women, and Jews. Violations were illegal, maybe, but not immoral.


Welfare Magnet?
But what of the immigrant who takes welfare? Isn't this a burden on society that must be stopped?
Yes, it is. But politically powerless newcomers are no more responsible for the welfare system in this country than they are responsible for the tyranny and corruption in a country that they are fleeing. Okay, stop the flow of welfare, but at the same time remove the plethora of [anti-] labor laws that make it difficult for newcomers to be hired.
It is wrong to assume that most immigrants come to America to get on the welfare gravy train. If this is true, then immigrants would be moving away from states with the lowest welfare and into states with the highest welfare.
My research (The Journal of Private Enterprise, Spring 2004) demonstrates that the opposite is true. In overwhelming numbers, both the native-born population and the foreign-born population through the decade of the 1990's moved away from states with the highest welfare and into states with the lowest welfare. While there are some high profile exceptions, most immigrants seek opportunity, not welfare.
The brilliant economist, Julian Simon, demonstrated that immigrants are a great source of productivity and economic growth. They always have been. Simon declares that most wealthy industrial nations will depend on the productivity of immigrants to provide revenues for the increasingly costly welfare demands of a native-born population.


Moral Principles
Governments do not decide morality. Governments behave morally when upholding moral action and behave immorally when suppressing moral action. Morality is based on principles far more constant and profound than the variant whims of majority votes.
The people who understood this best, were those rebels who defied the law of the day to pen these words: "WE hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men Are Created Equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."
To George Washington this meant, "...­the bosom of America is open to receive not only the opulent and respectable stranger, but the oppressed and persecuted of all nations and religions, whom we should welcome to a participation of all our rights and privileges."

2007-08-21 07:07:53 · 27 answers · asked by Anonymous in Immigration

2007-08-21 07:07:38 · 5 answers · asked by Guard_Junki 1 in Military

Female 1st Sgts are just as capable, even more so in some cases, as male 1st Sgts when it comes to the roles and responsibilities of a 1st Sgt, however, what are some of the opinions towards female first sergeants in any branch of service.

2007-08-21 07:04:05 · 13 answers · asked by ♥♥JDub♥♥ 5 in Military

a provocative action?

2007-08-21 07:03:43 · 23 answers · asked by Anonymous in Military

the warrant was put out at 4:00am at 2:00pm the same day will it for sure be seen or does it take time to show up

2007-08-21 07:03:40 · 5 answers · asked by Max 3 in Law & Ethics

the purpose of jail in a free society should be to detain people who are a threat to others why is it that people go to jail over traffic tickets or fines i thought debtors prison was immoral but our government can throw you in prison for non payment so why can our government here in the US practice something people all over the world consider immoral

2007-08-21 07:03:26 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Law & Ethics

I was wondering what perscription drugs were not allowed overseas. The kind of drugs I am interested in are anxiety, depression, stress, and the likes of those.

2007-08-21 07:03:23 · 2 answers · asked by ping102_1999 1 in Military

There will be lots of jobs in Mexico after Hurricane Dean moves through, do you think we could send a few thousand mexicans home to help out?

2007-08-21 07:03:15 · 20 answers · asked by photoguy1967 3 in Immigration

2007-08-21 07:02:47 · 4 answers · asked by jwetch64 1 in Law & Ethics

I don't . Never have and never will . I think it's a false sense of entitlement . I will of course address a medical doctor as 'doctor' but no one else . Simply because some people have PhD's does not mean they should be elevated or given any more respect than their fellow man .

I think about this from time to time and just saw someone refer to Ron Paul as 'Dr. Ron Paul' . Pffft . Means nothing . What does mean something is a man's standards and beliefs . His morals and convictions regardless of academic achievement within a university .
I find that teachers abuse this or expect this more often than others who have achieved a PhD .
This is nothing more than elitism , imo .

BTW , My screen-name is a combination of a couple of jokes and reality . I'd never expect or ask anyone to refer to me as 'Doctor' .

Where Do You Draw The Line ?

2007-08-21 07:01:51 · 41 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

Message to the Liberal Democrats that now its time to Convert to Islam?You Helped but Now its time to show your true Alliance.

2007-08-21 07:01:48 · 10 answers · asked by john 2 in Other - Politics & Government

I have an 81/2 year old son. Am I allowed to have a deadly weapon in my house?
It is a Masaii spear from Africa. Long and pointy, it probably could kill someone. My son never plays with it. My mother told me I need to get rid of it. I want to know what you think. She said "I could be reported". I had it in the living room but now it is in my bedroom. I will probably get rid of it but I want some feedback please.

2007-08-21 07:01:43 · 10 answers · asked by Thurston Howell III 4 in Law & Ethics

Despite Bush's repeated promises to "get" bin Laden "dead or alive", and to "smoke" bin Laden "out of his hole", Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind two successful attacks on the WTC, an attack on the Pentagon, an attack on a US Navy Destroyer, the USS Cole, and several embassy bombings around the globe, remains free and at large. The latest intel surmises bin Laden to have rejoined his family in Saudi Arabia, apparently free of fear of being extradited to the US by our Saudi 'allies'.

2007-08-21 07:00:40 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

2007-08-21 07:00:31 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Elections

Yes and the Neo Con base of the govemant is behind it
1.The placing of Blacks, poor whites and hispanics in ghettos, aka the projects(get it projects) for poor whites it is trailer parks.
2.MedicaId- Program made to study new meds on these groups of people
3.AIDS= American Govermant made Chemical weapon used to kill blacks and gays
4.Capatalism= The one system that the american govermant(neoCons) knew that poor whites, blacks, and hispanics could not prosper under, but could out do midddle class and rich whites under socialism

2007-08-21 07:00:28 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics

are the poor in america responsible for their poverty?
among whites, there are a lot of young people who claim to not care about money and call the people "greedy" for wanting a comfortable life. they dress in colorful clothes and claim to be "rebels" of society(hippies). theyre mostly artists or drug addicts. but when they find themselves with no college degree and no job, they expect the government to pay for everything.
among blacks you have drug dealers and people who think the rich somehow "stole" from them something that was never theirs, yet they get welfare(which you can call "reparations"). not to mention the hip-hop culture of shooting people and calling women "b*tches" and "hoes".
a lot of them just don't want to work or have unrealistic expectations from life. and when things start to suck they victimize themselves and always want government(tax-payers) to bail them out. if immigrants like myself can make money here, so can they.

2007-08-21 06:58:43 · 25 answers · asked by blank 1 in Politics

and send everyone back to the Old Country who had ancestors from somewhere else that did not have the proper documentation? I don't speak Norwegian. Can someone translate for me?

2007-08-21 06:56:24 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Immigration