RCB said:
There is an old say that goes:
“If you are not a liberal by the time your 20, you have no heart!
If you are not a conservative by time your 40, you have no brain!”
[Off Topic]
That old saying always irks me. I was a staunch conservative at 20, and have become quite the liberal at 33. I can't prove it without relying on complex equipment, but I'd bet big bucks there's a brain in my head.
I was always a social liberal -- that's just me. But what made me "go liberal" from a fiscal perspective was the fact that I see how challenging it is to own-a-nice-house / save for retirement / save for kids's college on the combined salaries of two lawyers, both of whom make well above the median lawyer salary. I don't see how families can "make it" on far less if they're being taxed to death and killed by health care costs. What the heck are all of these people going to do when they get old? Even a million dollars in the bank will only earn you $60,000 a year in your retirement (assuming it's invested conservatively). That's only a bit higher than nation's median family income. How does the average Joe save a million dollars?
So sure, tax folks like me more. I can afford it. But if you do, don't tax families making less than $50,000 per year at all. They can't afford it.
Ironically, it's middle America -- the folks who I think need tax relief -- who SCREAM for taxes to be cut on people like me. "Thanks," I guess. I suppose if I had a brain I'd understand.
[On Topic]
Nobody's mentioned the biggest flaw in Brokeback Mountain. Early on, nothing in the movie indicates that these two cowboys share any attraction at all. They simply ignore the heck out of each other. No sidelong glances, no wistful smiles.... Nothing. Then one night, one of them happens to roll over in his sleep and drape his arm over the other. They wake up, recoil to opposite sides of the tent in horror, and then.... Yank off their pants and have sex? Are you kidding me? No courtship? No foreplay? No discussion about who's going to take what position? And this was their first time! To make it worse, THESE GUYS HAD TO BE HUNG OVER after drinking themselves to sleep. What kind of freak feels amorous with a hangover??
You want realism? Blond cowboy rolls dark-haired cowboy over in the tent and then yanks of his pants. Dark-haired cowboy rolls back over and shoots blond cowboy with his rifle. Run credits.
Bad, bad writing.
