It's as though he was ordered to maintain the stance of objection. On the surface it seems like this would be something he would normally support.

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D'A SNFJGKAHNDS;LFK'JNV BDKHYUHOPRIJAFNGN BHYBSDURNFG;KF;TRUHG ;LADKFJA;LSFKH; LJNBVASFD;LK

MOTHERFUCKERS! THESE ARE PEOPLES LIVES THEY ARE PLAYING WITH! FUCK THE WHOLE LOT OF THEM. SELFISH, DISCONNECTED, BLOATED, WRINKLING, RICH, OLD, GRAY HAIRED, POMPOUS, FUCKING WIND BAGS.

RRRRRRAAAAGGGGGGEEEEEEE

It's a good thing Caps Lock was invented.

>> ^peggedbea:
A;LDKFJA;LDKJFA;SDLKFJADS;LKFJASVMHTGEROSIFLJNBSGTRPOAE;LJBVLVKNKJHGITUOWIARFNLB HOYITWPOERG;LAKNFGSFBNVBKGHTEWIOPG;ALCKGNSADF;KGJBG;;HKB ;YNKUHJT;RLWANFS;BKNSA'F
D'A SNFJGKAHNDS;LFK'JNV BDKHYUHOPRIJAFNGN BHYBSDURNFG;KF;TRUHG ;LADKFJA;LSFKH; LJNBVASFD;LK
MOTHERFUCKERS! THESE ARE PEOPLES LIVES THEY ARE PLAYING WITH! FUCK THE WHOLE LOT OF THEM. SELFISH, DISCONNECTED, BLOATED, WRINKLING, RICH, OLD, GRAY HAIRED, POMPOUS, FUCKING WIND BAGS.
RRRRRRAAAAGGGGGGEEEEEEE

I would have said much the same, Bea. But I don't think I could be that coherent on the topic right now.

There are times I wonder if the goal -is- to push people into violence...

What a dickhole.

They didn't include video of him saying why he's blocking it? Good form.

Anyway, from what I can gather his basic argument is that the extension should be paid for rather than just tacking it onto the deficit (sorta like pay-as-you-go). He specifically wants TARP money to pay for it, though I'm not sure if it would be at the expense of other programs.

This isn't to defend him, I just like to hear a person's reasons before judging their actions.

The benefits will likely expire before anything can be done to circumvent his objections. I doubt he cares about the political ramifications since he is retiring soon. If nothing else, his example will be a great one for Dems wanting to bypass the filibuster on health care reform through reconciliation.


Edit: Some other fun tidbits.
-Bunning is the only Republican trying to block this measure (that I know of at least).
-When Jeff Merkley (D) asked him to drop his objection, Bunning's reply was "tough shit".
-Bunning is upset that these proceedings caused him to miss a basketball game.

i got the sack from my job in august, so i spent sometime on unemployment.
heres the deal with unemployment:

1. you're supposed to do a set number of job searches each week, my number was 5, my friends number was 3.. so somewhere between 3 and 5.
you're supposed to keep track of these job searches on a log sheet they provide you, but those are easy enough to lie on and i was on it for months and noone ever asked to see them, they could at any moment i understand but still, easy enough to lie about... or to just randomly call businesses in the phone book, ask if they're hiring and write down who you called and when.. that would count as a job search... even though you aren't honestly trying to get a job.

2. you get 26 weeks of regular unemployment at what is supposed to be 80% of your normal wage, up to $400/wk (it might vary state to state depending on cost of living, not sure). $400/wk is less than 80% of my regular wage so i maxed out at $400/wk. not at all what we were accustomed to living on, i was lucky enough to make decent money before the lay off and had a hefty bit of savings, which i had to break into. not everyone makes enough money to have any savings to speak of. but i was very very grateful for that $400/wk and it kept us afloat.

3. IF your 26 weeks runs out AFTER febuary 20th, you're fucked, that its. no extensions (maybe they fixed that and texas hasn't updated its website). the first tier of emergency extensions was set into place by Bush... extending it another 20 weeks, then obama extended into a second tier going yet another 13 weeks untop of that. are you following the numbers? we're up to 59 weeks. but only if you got laid off before about august 1st 2009 and received no severance package. (i was laid off a week later with a severance package, i wouldn't be eligible for ANY extensions)

4. IF your regular unemployment runs out before febuary 20th , you get tier 1 and 2 extensions, THEN after you use those up, that is to say AFTER you have been on unemployment benefits for OVER 59 weeks, you are eligible for emergency unemployment extensions determined by your individual state, paid for by stimulus moneys. those benefits are the ones set to expire on febuary 27th. the people who are going to be affected by this have been receiving unemployment benefits for WELL over a year.

this is where my mixed feelings come in, i know the economy is really bad, i know there are millions unemployed and there are not enough jobs. i was lucky to find a really awesome job that pays very well, the problem is that instead of working 40 hours a week, im only working 10. so really great hourly wage, very few hours. i'm under employed. im very lucky to be qualified for relatively high paying jobs and im lucky enough to be really really cheap, have had a savings account, a 401k and, if i need it (thank god i havent yet) a wealthy family i could ask for help, i'm not sweating too much. millions are in much worse situations.

BUT unemployment has to end at some point, you can't stay on it forever. especially considering how easy it is to just claim benefits and not actually be looking for a job. the people who are affected the febuary 27th deadline have been on unemployment for well over a year. i don't know when the right time to cut off benefits is. a year seems like plenty of time in an economy that is not in recession. but im not sure about right now.

what they need to be focused on (and maybe they've already done this and i just haven't heard about it) is all the people who lost their jobs after august and are eligible for NO extensions what so ever.

what infuriates me about this is congress seems to just be playing games right now. with EVERYTHING. everything is crumbling, peoples families are falling apart and it seems that on every piece of legislation, on every fucking issue, they're just playing and posturing. they're not getting anything done because of pompous wind baggery and showmanship and reelection campaigns. and it fucking pisses me off! and the only people screaming about anything in my part of the country are the fucking tea bagging dipshits who aren't even pissed off about anything REAL and encourage this kind of political bullshittery. AND IT FUCKING PISSES ME OFF!

RAGE!

soooooo *quality this raging fit and dipshittery.

I'm two days short of a year on unemployment myself. First time I've collected unemployment in my life, and after paying into the unemployment funds for 35 years, I don't feel bad in the slightest for collecting it. Especially since it doesn't actually cover our cost of living (which went up nearly 30% when I had to start paying the insurance that used to be paid by my employer). I worked for a fraction of the market value of my position, because I tremendously enjoyed the work and the people I worked with. Apparently I was just foolish and I should have been far more mercenary. Our finances are within a few weeks of bottoming out...the savings (admittedly not large) are gone. The 401K comes next, but after taxes and penalties, that'll last no more than a few months. And I'm beginning to suspect that I'm not going to get another job in the high tech field I've been working in for the last 25 years, apparently due to being 50+.

So, I'm more than a bit lost as to what to do next...compete with even more people for jobs that pay next to nothing? If I can't get work in my field, I don't think downshifting to other fields is going to be better. Funnily enough, according to our government, I can do a better job of taking care of my wife if I was dead. At least then, she'd be able to collect my social security, which would keep her from having to live in a cardboard box. My country...what a crock. "My" country clearly doesn't give a fuck about me, or anyone like me.

The next time someone tells me again how Joe Stack had it so rough...with his nice house and private fucking plane, I'll be hard put not to explode. I won't even begin to discuss Republican politicians. If I were to meet one face to face, I probably -would- end up with assault charges (if I could maintain control, it'd just be for spitting). I do understand rage. I still don't support violence, however tempting it may be.

I'm by no means a violent person, however some people need to get their teeth kicked in.