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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 1h

Except, of course, for that one day.

Oh, and every day since then.

Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 1h

I'm going to a No Kings march on Saturday where I will march in support of our Constitution, the Rule of Law, Due Process, and Equality Before the Law.

The people who oppose those ideas are the ones who hate America.

Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 1h

Oh no! Oh no!

Surely no one has ever mistreated a Capitol Police officer worse than this in the whole history of our nation!

Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 2h

Was it one of the Capitol police officers you refuse to honor with a plaque?

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 4h

Or buy one edition - you know, like people have always done at newstands?

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 5h

That would be the wing that wants affordable health care, right?

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 6h

This is becoming one of those

OP: I like dogs

Comment: Why do you hate cats?

kind of things.

If you're over 70 and support Medicare and UBI, then this wasn't about you.
Okay if you don't think Medicare is government paid or that Social Security isn't a UBI, but they are as close as we can get.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 6h

Clearly you're not one of them.

Today's Social Security benefits are paid out of today's OASDI tax collections.

If you don't think getting health insurance for $185 per month is government paid, you're welcome to pay $1,400 per month for a high deductible plan from a private insurer.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 7h

When the farmers lose, Wall Street wins.

Financiers will buy up U.S. farmland on the cheap and then sell it at a huge profit when Donald Trump is out of office and U.S. agricultural exports are restored.

Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 7h

How much Canadian potash will this money buy so Argentinian farmers can grow more soy beans for the Chinese market?

Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

Didn't President Trump say that breaking the cease fire would trigger U.S. intervention?

Oh, wait. That was only if Hamas broke the terms of the agreement.

Never mind.

Reposted by Charlie Mas

Rami Ismail (رامي) @ramiismail.com · 22h

Hey look, Israel broke the cease-fire, twice, in two different ways, within 24 hours - again.

Mondoweiss @mondoweiss.net · 1d

NEW: Israel informed the UN it will permit only 300 aid trucks into Gaza daily, not the 600 mandated by the ceasefire it just signed.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

And yet, despite your complaints, Social Security saves hundreds of millions of Americans from poverty.

In this world, it is a raging success for the vast majority of people. No system is perfect and it is unreasonable for you to hold it to that standard.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

Are you in the taxation is theft camp now?

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

Prior to the introduction of Social Security, the poorest demographic in the U.S. were the elderly.

All of those people have been rescued from abject poverty and many will rely on it in future, myself included.

It may fail to meet your ideals, but it succeeds for the vast majority of Americans.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

Let's not get bogged down in semantics.

Social Security functions as a UBI for retirees, survivors, and the disabled.

The fact that it fits into a capitalist culture does not eliminate that practical function.

Also, there is a minimum benefit for qualified participants who earned the least.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

None. Are there a lot of Americans who have never worked? What was this person living on before reaching age 67?

The fact that Social Security does not perform as a universal basic income in every single case does not disqualify it from functioning that way in the vast majority of cases.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 8h

I think they could if they tried.

Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 9h

Your argument would be stronger if your knowledge of Social Security were stronger.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 9h

The calculation of the Social Security benefit is aggressively front loaded.
90% of the first $1,226
32% of monthly earnings between $1,226 and $7,391
15% of monthly earnings over $7,391 up to the cap

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 9h

Actually, a widow gets all of the husband's benefit. The 50% benefit is for while he is alive.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 9h

A lot of U.S. consulates take up to a year to process a visa.
The U.S. just added a $250 per person visa integrity fee.
The U.S. is clearly hostile to foreigners.
Legal visitors with visas have been locked up by ICE.
They may be denied entry based on social media content.
Oh, and mass shootings.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 9h

Senator Murkowski gets it.

There is no point entering into an agreement when the other party has no intention of keeping the agreement.

Democrats have no reason to deal. The shutdown and the failure are entirely attributable to GOP bad faith.

It's also why we have no trade deals.

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Reposted by Charlie Mas

Andrew Weinstein @andrewjweinstein.com · 1d

Due process. Academic freedom. An independent judiciary. A free press. A professional civil service. A protected environment. These aren't partisan talking points; they are the pillars of a healthy nation. And every single one of them is under direct assault by the Trump administration.

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Charlie Mas @charliemas.bsky.social · 9h

There are not seven official trade deals, as the Fox host claims.

There are no trade deals. Zero.

Trade agreements are written documents and there are none.
Trade agreements are approved by Congress and none have been.

There are no trade deals at all. Zero.

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