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Monday, April 21, 2014

Fifty States?

The United States still consists of fifty states, but they no longer have fiscal independence (hat tip to Asylum Watch):

Percent of budget coming from the feds went from 37% in 2001 to 45% in 2012. Federal money per person went from $1,352 in 2001 to $2,603 in 2012.  The darker the color, the more federal monies the state receives.

For more details, please scrutinize this. The graphic is interactive; see the legend at the bottom of the graphic.

At Asylum Watch, Jim writes the following:
Our nation, as constitutionally formed, is The Republic of the United State of America. In theory, a republic is where the supreme power is vested in the citizens who elect people to represent them. Do you feel that we are living in a republic? Do our elected officials really represent their electorate? And, what about the words: United States? Are we, a constitutional union of states, where all power rest with the states except for the enumerated powers constitutionally assigned to the federal government? Our nation may have started out as The Republic of The United States of America but it has evolved into something quite different. Some of the changes came about through constitutional amendments and, thereby, the citizens of each state did have a voice in those changes. Most changes, in my opinion, have come about by either judicial fiat or by congress passing laws that no one asked for or by Executive Orders of a sitting president. The laws passed by congress have often created federal programs, which states must implement with partial or full funding from the federal government. When states accept those funds, the find they must comply with the strings, which are firmly attached. Those federal funds and the attached strings have given the federal government much power over the states that was never envisaged in our constitution.

[...]

...Louisiana receives 44% of their budget from Washington and New Mexico 37% and Idaho 35%....
The destruction of the principles of federalism!

Your comment on the above data?

26 comments:

  1. This seems to be a federalized version of "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need "; a phrase popularized by Karl Marx. I'd like to know more about how much each state contributes as compared to what each state get back. I'm certainly not against federal help for disasters but the current situation seems to be more like institutionalized blackmail to force states to acquiesce to the whims of "Big Brother" in Washington D.C.!

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  2. Dependency is a bummer. But that is the method to control a countries citizens. Good luck America.

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    1. Deliberately rendering people IGNORANT and MISINFORMED is another classic method of controlling the masses. Why else do you think public education has become what it is? the so-called 'dumbing down' process has been ruthless and completely intentional. Portraying it "MORAL" was a stroke of genius n the part of The Enemy.

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  3. Political power has been flowing from the states to the federal government for the past 150 years. The whole impetus is to consolidate the country under the massive power of a central government. We lose more and more freedoms daily.

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    1. It certainly looks that way, Stogie. The problem, unfortunately, is that "the masses are asses." But then there are masses of horse's asses among the elite corps of super-rich, and the "Intelligentsia" as well, because their thinking has been polluted and tarnished by over a hundred years of insidiously seductive Marxian propaganda presented in myriad forms and styles.

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  4. First of all, it's not "federal" money. It's our money being spread around for political power. It's proof positive that federal taxes are too high. If they have money to bribe states and give to foreign countries for any manner of nonsense, then they collected too much.

    Just wait and see how much of our money goes to bail out the Detroit pensions.

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    1. Yes, and that is exactly how "Collectivism" is supposed to work -- "from each according to his ability, to each according to his need."

      In the New World Order no one will be permitted to OWN anything. All decisions about how our lives are to be led will be made by some sort of POLITBURO. Every one of us will be regarded as a Servant of Society as a Whole. Doctors and Creative Geniuses will be considered the equivalent of Street Cleaners and Garbage Collectors and paid accordingly. We will not be permitted to even to have dreams and aspirations of our own that do not conform to perpetuating the best interests of the Almighty and Ever-Living State -- as determined by the "POLITBURO."

      We will just LOVE it, because at ong last everybody will be EQUAL.

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    2. Orwell made it clear in Animal Farm that members of the oligarchy are always "more equal than others."

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  5. Thanks for the bump and the quote, AOW! The trend is for states to progressively accept more funding from the fed. In a few decades, the fed will virtually own the states. It's time to flush that toilet in Washington, D.C.

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  6. We seem to have started our nation with a mutual compact; now it is a matter of the federal government shoving crap down our throats. This is what we should have expected the federal government to do—but as Stogie mentioned above, the states have failed miserably to uphold their sovereignty. A pox on them, and a pox on the citizens of states who have been sitting back taking no interest in the management of their states. This is what you get when you dumb down education so that everyone can get an “A”.

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  7. What amazes me is how LITTLE some of the most LIBERAL states apparently receive from Uncle Sam and vice versa!

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  8. This says more:

    'Red State Socialism' graphic says GOP-leaning states get lion's share of federal dollars:

    http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/jan/26/blog-posting/red-state-socialism-graphic-says-gop-leaning-state/

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    1. As the link says, it's mostly true, but the data doesn't tell us why.

      If a state has many social security recipients and military retirees, it will get more federal money in the for of paychecks to pensioners.

      You call that socialism?

      States with national parks, military bases and federal facilities and government workers will get more federal money.

      You call national parks, military bases, federal installations and the military and federal workforce socialism?

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    2. Nope, there are mostly states where GOP policies has created rampant unemployment.

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  9. Federalism may in fact have failed but when was it ever a success?

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  10. SF,

    Good points and also sparseness of population v. infrastructure & utility needs as well as farm subsidies (including the ethanol farce) could be other factors.

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    1. John, you have the beginning of a very good case for the continued existence and enhanced respect for the Electoral College. The closer we get to Direct Democracy the closer get to Mob Rule. The Founders very rightly feared and chose to circumvent rule by what Alexander Hamilton called "The Whim of the Vulgar Populace." The Marxists, of course, aim to dupe the vulgarians into believing that THEY will be in charge after "The Revolution" when in fact they will be ruled by the arbitrary whims of a DICTATOR or OLIGARCHY.

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    2. FT,
      Our Founders did indeed fear the rule of direct democracy. The Electoral College was one safeguard; the appointment by state legislatures of U.S. Senators was another.

      U.S. Senators serve a term of 6 years. State legislators serve a term of 2 years most of the time.

      Something our Founders SHOULD have included in our Constitution: term limits for members of Congress.

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    3. I think the Founders believed that ELECTIONS would act effectively as "term limits." Unfortunately, I have come to believe they greatly over-estimated the intelligence of The People, and underestimated that of the Evil Geniuses who came to these shores as darkly oreign elements diametrically opposed to American Ideals as formulated by the Founders. These highly undesirable "elements" have succeeded in turning this nation upside down and inside out. Their methodology has made spectacularly successful use of the Little Man's infinite capacity to feel Envy, Spite and Malice towards his economic and social betters.

      The Evil Geniuses, you see, have managed vey skillfully to seduce an increasing majority to believe that what-we-know-to-be SIN ought to be regarded as VIRTUE, and thus made sacrosanct.

      "Beware the little foxes ..." and all that.

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    4. FT,
      I'm in complete agreement with your comment at 8:44 AM EDT!

      The dumbing down of America -- a dumbing down that is apparent in oh-so-many-ways -- has been complete enough to bring about inversionism.

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  11. In the end game, it will surely evolve into a situation where productive portions of our country will have to either isolate themselves from the vampire which is socialist USA or throw up their hands and join in. That's when it all falls apart. What will the libtards do at that point? They haven't been trained nor have the gained the slightest experience in taking care of themselves. It will be like a giant Superdome where everyone shows up with no water, no diapers, no nothing waiting for FEMA to arrive. After a day or two of that it will go home invasion on a massive scale. Hungry people are capable of anything.

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    1. YUP! The widespread acceptance of Marxian cant and rhetoric has put us on the express route back to Barbarism and The Law of the Jungle.

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  12. Tennessee is #35. Perhaps we need to stand up against the government like folks out West are doing with the Bundy situation

    Debbie
    Right Truth
    http://www.righttruth.typepad.com

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  13. Kid,

    " What will the libtards do at that point? They haven't been trained nor have the gained the slightest experience in taking care of themselves. It will be like a giant Superdome where everyone shows up with no water, no diapers, no nothing waiting for FEMA to arrive."

    What will the libtards do? They will BLAME BUSH, of course! Bear in mind that they are unhappy little children, in perpetuity. Should [they] ever take over [everybody] will suffer; including [them]!

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  14. About the demise of the electoral college...

    I just found this over at Political Clown Parade:

    ... This bill is an end run around the regular constitutional amending process. Instead of requiring a two-thirds majority of each house of Congress and three-quarters of the states, this proposal would take effect when a simple majority approves it.

    And the Electoral College system, which has been part of our representative republic, will be modified and converted to a pure democracy.

    This proposal would encourage even more voter fraud in more populated, left-leaning states; and provide more incentive to allow illegal immigrants to vote.

    It would effectively end “one man, one vote” and dispatch our republic to mob rule....


    More at the above link.

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