Suggestions for how to reduce spending, balance the budget, and pay off the deficit

[scooterbug44]

The Post Office lost $8.5 billion this year - my suggestion is to severely cut back on indirect advertising (why does a money loser need to sponsor a cycling team?) and crank up the rates for standard mail (advertising, political fliers etc.) - both from an environmental and economic perspective.

 

[30ashopper]

I guess the new level for the RNC is $500,000.00+ to play.

Big government is expensive.

 

[Elephant Child]

Cut the ridiculous military budget. Bring home the troops from Iraq and Afghanistan, followed by closing military bases in any country other than the US. Combine the Navy's Air Force with the Air Force. Stop producing machines of war that were last used in World War II. I can live with a readiness level that's only 1000% above the next militarized country.

Instead of simply discontinuing military personnel when they come home, retrain them to start dismantling our nuclear stock pile and offer those personnel to other countries willing to dismantle theirs.

The money savings would be huge initially, but I would also advocate 50% of those savings be spent on veterans to provide housing, health care, rehabilitation, and education primarily focusing on veterans with mental and physical disabilities.

if we did everything you suggest, then your closet would be filled with thobes, ghutras, egals and bishts. Not sure that is the fashion statement you wish to make SWGB. Without funding our defense we leave ourselves wide open.

 

[futurebeachbum]

Here's a good suggestion from Bloomberg that should save a significant amount of money. "Full Frontal Nudity Doesn?t Make Us Safer: Abolish the TSA"

In the spirit of bipartisanship and sanity, I propose that the first thing on the chopping block should be an ineffective organization that wastes money, violates our rights, and encourages us to make decisions that imperil our safety. I?m talking about the Transportation Security Administration.

Bipartisan support should be immediate. For fiscal conservatives, it?s hard to come up with a more wasteful agency than the TSA. For privacy advocates, eliminating an organization that requires you to choose between a nude body scan or genital groping in order to board a plane should be a no-brainer.

It is mind boggling to me that we spend the amount of money that we do on the TSA (annual budget $7B) and give them the absolute power that they have over us when the odds are far far greater that we'll die in a car wreck or in our own bathtub than in a terrorist attack on an airliner.

 

[scooterbug44]

I don't think we should abolish the TSA, just put someone with common sense in charge.

I got a full 10 minutes from Papa Scooterbug about the dumbarse new restrictions on printer cartridges. :roll:

Scan everyone and everything for explosives. Done.

P.S. Papa Scooterbug loves the new scanners - much easier for him as he's full of metal. But common sense should prevail there too - he's got a giant surgical scar and a special ID card but still has major hassles all the time.

 

[Lynnie]

The Post Office lost $8.5 billion this year - my suggestion is to severely cut back on indirect advertising (why does a money loser need to sponsor a cycling team?) and crank up the rates for standard mail (advertising, political fliers etc.) - both from an environmental and economic perspective.

The USPS sponsors a cycling team? Huh! Who knew? It was created as an Agency and relieved of that in the 70's, I think.....but, still doesn't have to pay Federal taxes like traditional private enterprise.

I recently went through the new millimeter scanner and as a result, scored myself a full pat down.....underwire bra was the culprit. I think TSA has improved dramatically since its inception in 2001. I respond better to a pat down if you're actually nice to me, than being a jerk, sportin' a badge with authority like the early days.

 

[scooterbug44]

Common sense seems to be lacking very frequently - I've gotten stopped for a gum wrapper in my pocket on one occasion and walked through with a battery operated pedometer and several pounds of jewelry on others.

They tried to claim my underwire bra was setting off the wand once - but since I wasn't even wearing a bra, I questioned that one. :roll:

Would certainly love it if they changed the rules so incompetent and unhelpful airport personnel couldn't use the TSA as a weapon against customers. If they put half the effort into helping that they do threatening people with the TSA the skies would run a lot better.

 

[BeachSiO2]

Would certainly love it if they changed the rules so incompetent and unhelpful airport personnel couldn't use the TSA as a weapon against customers. If they put half the effort into helping that they do threatening people with the TSA the skies would run a lot better.

After more than 100+ legs flown this year, I can say without a doubt that some of the worst TSA officials are in the smallest airports. I am in and out of Reagan National in DC at least twice a month and it is night and day to some of the small airports. The small airports drive me NUTS!!!

 

[Bob]

a robust economy solves 80 percent of our problems. business must be incentivised to invest in the united states.

 

[Bob]

Big government is expensive.

wall street out of control is worse