Gimme Five

[NWPATSFAN]

Oh damn I thought I was only going to fart

Oh damn the 70s was 50 years ago

Oh damn that wasn't a girl, glad I only looked

Oh damn the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and now are one of our closest allies

Oh damn why did I walk into this room

 

[YankeeRebel]

Oh damn I thought I was only going to fart

Oh damn the 70s was 50 years ago

Oh damn that wasn't a girl, glad I only looked

Oh damn the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and now are one of our closest allies

Oh damn why did I walk into this room

1. LOL

 

[nefansince75]

So you'd like to teach the world to sing?

It could only hurt if I teach them to sing like me.

 

[YankeeRebel]

Gimme Five: Gimme Five things past present that would change, it can be personal or on a world level

1. Personal, I would have and should have pursued my degree in forestry. When I got out the Army and ended up in Florida, I just sort of lost the luster that for that. I was not and still am not enamored with the Florida woodlands had I stayed in NE I likely would have moved to Maine after I got my degree.

2. Personal, I would have been a better son, of course this is a what I know now scenario, but I did not make things easy on mom and dad. I think my dad understood me more than my mother and while I was sort of the black sheep of the family my dad did and does see it more as a free spirit willing to stretch the boundaries of societal norms.

3. Term Limits and Senators and Congressmen. I would set the same term limits as the POTUS, and I would not allow for a lifetime pension for your terms as senator or congressmen. I personally feel this would allow for more cohesive talks and bilateral support to do what is best for the country. Less time would potentially equate to less political favors owed and might allow for the potential to vote across party lines and more with what they feel is best for the people they serve.

4. Taxes On churches, while I understand the separation of church and state, I think it's a fool's errand to pretend the church does not affect decisions made by politicians and seeing as they have that influence it feels fair they should be treated like any other lobbyist group. Additionally, these churches have huge profits, and I do not believe they are not for profit groups.

5. Young men and women for one year between the ages of 18 and 25 must somehow serve our nation. This of course can be military service but not limited to military service. It could be volunteering to sponsor foster programs, service to a national park, clean trash from highways and inner cities, youth mentor for trouble kids etc.

 

[cdumler7]

Gimme Five: Gimme Five things past present that would change, it can be personal or on a world level

1. Personal, I would have and should have pursued my degree in forestry. When I got out the Army and ended up in Florida, I just sort of lost the luster that for that. I was not and still am not enamored with the Florida woodlands had I stayed in NE I likely would have moved to Maine after I got my degree.

2. Personal, I would have been a better son, of course this is a what I know now scenario, but I did not make things easy on mom and dad. I think my dad understood me more than my mother and while I was sort of the black sheep of the family my dad did and does see it more as a free spirit willing to stretch the boundaries of societal norms.

3. Term Limits and Senators and Congressmen. I would set the same term limits as the POTUS, and I would not allow for a lifetime pension for your terms as senator or congressmen. I personally feel this would allow for more cohesive talks and bilateral support to do what is best for the country. Less time would potentially equate to less political favors owed and might allow for the potential to vote across party lines and more with what they feel is best for the people they serve.

4. Taxes On churches, while I understand the separation of church and state, I think it's a fool's errand to pretend the church does not affect decisions made by politicians and seeing as they have that influence it feels fair they should be treated like any other lobbyist group. Additionally, these churches have huge profits, and I do not believe they are not for profit groups.

5. Young men and women for one year between the ages of 18 and 25 must somehow serve our nation. This of course can be military service but not limited to military service. It could be volunteering to sponsor foster programs, service to a national park, clean trash from highways and inner cities, youth mentor for trouble kids etc.

I can speak to #4 a little here. I am a pastor of a small town church with about 50-100 members. Most churches in America would fall into this category and I can tell you do not have huge profits. Over the last few years with insurance sky rocketing (we are now paying double what we did 2 years ago for worse insurance than what we had) we have actually been operating in the negative. There is a reason thousands of churches are closing their doors every year here in America. You see in the news these megachurches that yes are bringing in millions and I would agree that is a whole different place to be. Some of them that then start mixing with politicians should absolutely be taxed. And if the church is using their influence to sway people in elections one way or the other then I would agree tax them. Most don't operate in that way though.

 

[YankeeRebel]

I can speak to #4 a little here. I am a pastor of a small town church with about 50-100 members. Most churches in America would fall into this category and I can tell you do not have huge profits. Over the last few years with insurance sky rocketing (we are now paying double what we did 2 years ago for worse insurance than what we had) we have actually been operating in the negative. There is a reason thousands of churches are closing their doors every year here in America. You see in the news these megachurches that yes are bringing in millions and I would agree that is a whole different place to be. Some of them that then start mixing with politicians should absolutely be taxed. And if the church is using their influence to sway people in elections one way or the other then I would agree tax them. Most don't operate in that way though.

If you were operating in the negative, then there would not be a tax as there was not a profit. And as you said there are thousands of small churches across the country, 1000s of tax revenue not being paid. And perhaps the small churches have less or no political influence the church as an institution does. I agree small churches are closing at almost alarming rates, I live in the South I see it. I do question if it's because of financial failure or people are losing faith or have decided they do not need an institution between them and God.

 

[nefansince75]

If you were operating in the negative, then there would not be a tax as there was not a profit. And as you said there are thousands of small churches across the country, 1000s of tax revenue not being paid. And perhaps the small churches have less or no political influence the church as an institution does. I agree small churches are closing at almost alarming rates, I live in the South I see it. I do question if it's because of financial failure or people are losing faith or have decided they do not need an institution between them and God.

Or they are smartening up and making "the church business" less lucrative for conmen pretending to be devout.

 

[Yankee Traveler]

Gimme Five: Gimme Five things past present that would change, it can be personal or on a world level

1. Personal, I would have and should have pursued my degree in forestry. When I got out the Army and ended up in Florida, I just sort of lost the luster that for that. I was not and still am not enamored with the Florida woodlands had I stayed in NE I likely would have moved to Maine after I got my degree.

I would have studied harder in school. So many things came easy for me that I could get by without studying. If I had been more involved with getting good grades instead of liquor and whores I would be so much more successful later in life.

2. Personal, I would have been a better son, of course this is a what I know now scenario, but I did not make things easy on mom and dad. I think my dad understood me more than my mother and while I was sort of the black sheep of the family my dad did and does see it more as a free spirit willing to stretch the boundaries of societal norms.

I would have never smoked.

3. Term Limits and Senators and Congressmen. I would set the same term limits as the POTUS, and I would not allow for a lifetime pension for your terms as senator or congressmen. I personally feel this would allow for more cohesive talks and bilateral support to do what is best for the country. Less time would potentially equate to less political favors owed and might allow for the potential to vote across party lines and more with what they feel is best for the people they serve.

I like this. I would set it at 12 years to assure overlap with different Presidents. Also freeze their ability to invest during and shortly after their time in office. Sweeten the retirement benefit to make up for it. And the same healthcare market as everyone else.

4. Taxes On churches, while I understand the separation of church and state, I think it's a fool's errand to pretend the church does not affect decisions made by politicians and seeing as they have that influence it feels fair they should be treated like any other lobbyist group. Additionally, these churches have huge profits, and I do not believe they are not for profit groups.

Good one.

5. Young men and women for one year between the ages of 18 and 25 must somehow serve our nation. This of course can be military service but not limited to military service. It could be volunteering to sponsor foster programs, service to a national park, clean trash from highways and inner cities, youth mentor for trouble kids etc.

Good one. First Responder count? Serving you local community if not your nation?

 

[Yankee Traveler]

I can speak to #4 a little here. I am a pastor of a small town church with about 50-100 members. Most churches in America would fall into this category and I can tell you do not have huge profits. Over the last few years with insurance sky rocketing (we are now paying double what we did 2 years ago for worse insurance than what we had) we have actually been operating in the negative. There is a reason thousands of churches are closing their doors every year here in America. You see in the news these megachurches that yes are bringing in millions and I would agree that is a whole different place to be. Some of them that then start mixing with politicians should absolutely be taxed. And if the church is using their influence to sway people in elections one way or the other then I would agree tax them. Most don't operate in that way though.

I worked with one and had another that was a fellow dad on our travel soccer team that were ministers of their own churches. Their families and a couple friends or cousins were their whole congregation. Everything they had was a tax right off. My coworker drove a Jag XJ. and the soccer dad switched back and forth between his Navigator and an Audi Q8.

I believe that you are a good guy as you always seem to offer wholesome opinions here, but not everyone that claims to be religious does it for the right reasons.

 

[cdumler7]

If you were operating in the negative, then there would not be a tax as there was not a profit. And as you said there are thousands of small churches across the country, 1000s of tax revenue not being paid. And perhaps the small churches have less or no political influence the church as an institution does. I agree small churches are closing at almost alarming rates, I live in the South I see it. I do question if it's because of financial failure or people are losing faith or have decided they do not need an institution between them and God.

I guess this is one of those agree to disagree moments. I work with lots of churches doing incredible things as a non-profit that if taxed would struggle like crazy to keep their doors open. Our church for example during covid had hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of food get passed out through our doors because we have an incredible group of volunteers that would come weekly to help out. We just got done last week passing out close to $75,000 worth of food and toiletries to surrounding communities. We are in the process for gearing up for a half million grant that our community got for helping bring healthy food to surrounding communities and our own that will be passed out over the next 6 months.

I know what most people see on tv is the Joel Osteen's buying $10 million homes and churches that own private planes. Those are not true people serving the Lord as we see Biblically they are called to serve. They are using the name of God to line their own pockets and I think the government should come down hard on them looking exactly how their money is being spent. I just know most churches are more like the one I work for of operating on razor thin margins yet serving people in dire need of someone being there in their greatest time of need. I have no problem with the government looking at church budgets and seeing how many is being spent and if they find some of it is going towards political things then by all means tell them taxes are coming their way. If they are doing what a true non-profit is supposed to be doing then continue to allow them to operate in such a way.

 

[Yankee Traveler]

conmen pretending to be devout.

This.

 

[cdumler7]

I worked with one and had another that was a fellow dad on our travel soccer team that were ministers of their own churches. Their families and a couple friends or cousins were their whole congregation. Everything they had was a tax right off. My coworker drove a Jag XJ. and the soccer dad switched back and forth between his Navigator and an Audi Q8.

I believe that you are a good guy as you always seem to offer wholesome opinions here, but not everyone that claims to be religious does it for the right reasons.

And this is why I don't mind if the government would require a detailed breakdown every single year of where money is going. I would want this for all non-profit organizations to show they are operating the way they should be. Too many non-profits even outside the church have used their foudations/organizations to help funnel money back into their own pockets. I have no ignorance to the idea that many churches would fail if audited in this way and in so doing should be punished with losing their 501(c)3 status.

 

[YankeeRebel]

I would have studied harder in school. So many things came easy for me that I could get by without studying. If I had been more involved with getting good grades instead of liquor and whores I would be so much more successful later in life.

I would have never smoked.

I like this. I would set it at 12 years to assure overlap with different Presidents. Also freeze their ability to invest during and shortly after their time in office. Sweeten the retirement benefit to make up for it. And the same healthcare market as everyone else.

Good one.

Good one. First Responder count? Serving you local community if not your nation?

Yes serving your local community would count for sure. In fact more political involvement at lower levels would go a long way in this country. I laugh at people that vote for POTUS but not in their local elections.

 

[YankeeRebel]

I guess this is one of those agree to disagree moments. I work with lots of churches doing incredible things as a non-profit that if taxed would struggle like crazy to keep their doors open. Our church for example during covid had hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of food get passed out through our doors because we have an incredible group of volunteers that would come weekly to help out. We just got done last week passing out close to $75,000 worth of food and toiletries to surrounding communities. We are in the process for gearing up for a half million grant that our community got for helping bring healthy food to surrounding communities and our own that will be passed out over the next 6 months.

I know what most people see on tv is the Joel Osteen's buying $10 million homes and churches that own private planes. Those are not true people serving the Lord as we see Biblically they are called to serve. They are using the name of God to line their own pockets and I think the government should come down hard on them looking exactly how their money is being spent. I just know most churches are more like the one I work for of operating on razor thin margins yet serving people in dire need of someone being there in their greatest time of need. I have no problem with the government looking at church budgets and seeing how many is being spent and if they find some of it is going towards political things then by all means tell them taxes are coming their way. If they are doing what a true non-profit is supposed to be doing then continue to allow them to operate in such a way.

So, a lot of what you are doing is community service based which is good. I agree you are not and no one should be gaining from communing and helping others. But again, if you're not gaining profit you're not being taxed. You and your church choose to serve which is admirable, but you are still granted an option others are not because it's easy to hide behind a bible.

 

[BigKen]

Gimme Five: Gimme Five things past present that would change, it can be personal or on a world level

1. Personal, I would have and should have pursued my degree in forestry. When I got out the Army and ended up in Florida, I just sort of lost the luster that for that. I was not and still am not enamored with the Florida woodlands had I stayed in NE I likely would have moved to Maine after I got my degree.

I got my Associates on the GI Bill after I got home. Then went to another college to start going after my Bachelors. Moved to Mass. and went to Central NE College for three years at night. I was within 6 hours of my Bachelors in Business/Economics. I signed up for my last two classes and the school shut its door for good. It took three years before another school would pick up all of records. I moved to NH and UNH wanted me to take 12 courses to meet their requirements. I was finally able to find a school that would accept 145 credit hours and require only one course. I wish I had just kept going at the Univ. of Maine originally.

2. Personal, I would have been a better son, of course this is a what I know now scenario, but I did not make things easy on mom and dad. I think my dad understood me more than my mother and while I was sort of the black sheep of the family my dad did and does see it more as a free spirit willing to stretch the boundaries of societal norms.

I'm glad I was able to buy my dad a car before my last tour in Nam. He was sick and I went home on emergency leave. That was October and I went back home the following April to bury him.

3. Term Limits and Senators and Congressmen. I would set the same term limits as the POTUS, and I would not allow for a lifetime pension for your terms as senator or congressmen. I personally feel this would allow for more cohesive talks and bilateral support to do what is best for the country. Less time would potentially equate to less political favors owed and might allow for the potential to vote across party lines and more with what they feel is best for the people they serve.

Been begging for this for years.

4. Taxes On churches, while I understand the separation of church and state, I think it's a fool's errand to pretend the church does not affect decisions made by politicians and seeing as they have that influence it feels fair they should be treated like any other lobbyist group. Additionally, these churches have huge profits, and I do not believe they are not for profit groups.

I don't have a problem with the main church getting a break. I do have a problem with them not paying property tax on apartments and condos as well as business buildings owned. Same for thousand acre summer camps on prime property on lakes where poor kids spend two weeks and the rest of the summer is rented out on Air B&B.

5. Young men and women for one year between the ages of 18 and 25 must somehow serve our nation. This of course can be military service but not limited to military service. It could be volunteering to sponsor foster programs, service to a national park, clean trash from highways and inner cities, youth mentor for trouble kids etc.

Agree 1000%. Male and Female. Only make it two years. Unless it's military, minimum wage. No exceptions, no exemptions. Failure to comply should be an automatic, no legal BS, 2 years in federal prison for that person. If a parent or relative (political) attempts anything, automatic loss of seat in any office and automatic 2 years in federal prison.

5A. Stop requiring the all foods provided to federal and state prisons meet the highest quality. Make every prison grow their own vegetables and provide only the lowest acceptable quality of meats and fish.