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Submit your OVERTIME question now for Bill and his roundtable guests, and selected questions will be answered on the HBO.com website, immediately following the Friday premiere of Real Time on 2/27/09.
Please be aware that concise, single-topic questions have the best chance of being selected.
Refresh the Bill Maher homepage right before midnight if you do not see the "Watch Overtime" video link.
Please note: Video is optimized for use with Windows Media Player. Mac users will need Flip4Mac to view the stream.
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Edited by HBOAdmin5 at 02/23/2009 4:24 PM PST
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Posts:
12
Registered:
2/28/09
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(1044 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 23, 2009 8:21 AM
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> The poster who said that renters send their kids to
> public school for free because they don't pay
> property taxes must be smoking weed with Maher.
>
> First of all, renters do pay property taxes.
> axes. They're included in the rent. Tenants do not,
> however, get to write that tax off against their
> income. So much for getting services for free.
>
> Second, you say your property taxes went up $2000
> 00 over the last four years. Do you think rent never
> goes up? That's the worst part of being a tenant. You
> have no chance of stable pricing unless you're in a
> rent-controlled jurisdiction -- and even then your
> rent always goes up, probably more than property
> taxes do.
>
> My one-bedroom apartment in White Plains went up
> up $50 a month each of the last three years (Jan
> 06-Jan 08. That's $7,800 in increases over less time
> than your property taxes went up $2,000. Something
> tells me that I more than covered my landlord's
> property tax increases.
>
> On top of this, tenants will never get six-figure
> re capital-gains writeoffs, will never have equity
> loans for college educations and may even be forced
> to subsidize the college degrees of kids whose
> parents own an expensive home. Home values are not
> counted toward financial aid eligibility. So a parent
> who had to move around a lot to get good jobs might
> not be eligible for aid while the person who didn't
> have to move and got to buy a house that appreciated
> by a half-million dollars gets financial aid because
> his or her wages are slightly lower.
>
> Do not complain about subsisizing renters; you've
> ve got it backward.
You raise some valid points but in the final analysis there are pluses and minuses on both sides of the rent or own issue. If renting was best for all there would be no owners and vice versa. Lets agree that housing is expensive in whatever form for anyone who is not "blessed" with great wealth.
I am having a little trouble with the $7,800 figure based on your rent increase of $50/month for 3 consecutive years.My figuring says that's $600 extra for the first year, $1200 for the second and $1800 for the third over the base cost of what the rent was in '05. That totals $3600 which is not small change but am I missing something?
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Posts:
5
Registered:
9/21/08
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(1043 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 22, 2009 12:29 PM
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I think it is irresponsible for a show with the liberal tone of Real Time to dismiss the Reagan era plan to set up FEMA camps to house left wing dissenters and Central American immigrants on the eve of the then planned invasion of Nicaragua. The NSC incarceration plan was called Rex 84/Night Train and was spearheaded by Louis Giuffrida, Oliver North and George H.W. Bush.
I know the Maher show is more geared toward glib entertainment, but documentation on this matter is available from the National Security Archive here in Washington DC. Under a FOIA requested by the Christic Institute I read executive branch memos outlining the FEMA plan. The documentation stated that plans were implemented at least to the point of selecting 12 sites. Us lefties used to joke about how much time we?d have to read and play ball once we jailed.
Of course, the invasion never occurred except in proxy. However, several hundred American advisers and intelligence personnel who were on the scene, mostly the Miskito coast on in the north, were in violation of Congressional mandated policy.
Of course, the danger of flippantly dismissing this plan is that it allows the far right to have free reign to exploit Rex 84/Night Train to terrorize its base without ever having to mention it was the far right itself that conceived of a plan to incarcerate American citizens and deny them their liberty simply for dissenting and that a close friend of that great patriot Ronald Reagan, Giuffrida was at the center of the program and helped set it in motion.
I strongly suggest the Maher show contact the National Security Archive. Also see
http://www.vermilion-sands.com/music/rex84.html
for a brief chronological overview.
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Posts:
5
Registered:
9/21/08
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(1042 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 22, 2009 12:28 PM
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I think it is irresponsible for a show with the liberal tone of Real Time to dismiss the Reagan era plan to set up FEMA camps to house left wing dissenters and Central American immigrants on the eve of the then planned invasion of Nicaragua. The NSC incarceration plan was called Rex 84/Night Train and was spearheaded by Louis Giuffrida, Oliver North and George H.W. Bush.
I know the Maher show is more geared toward glib entertainment, but documentation on this matter is available from the National Security Archive here in Washington DC. Under a FOIA requested by the Christic Institute I read executive branch memos outlining the FEMA plan. The documentation stated that plans were implemented at least to the point of selecting 12 sites. Us lefties used to joke about how much time we?d have to read and play ball once we jailed.
Of course, the invasion never occurred except in proxy. However, several hundred American advisers and intelligence personnel who were on the scene, mostly the Miskito coast on in the north, were in violation of Congressional mandated policy.
Of course, the danger of flippantly dismissing this plan is that it allows the far right to have free reign to exploit Rex 84/Night Train to terrorize its base without ever having to mention it was the far right itself that conceived of a plan to incarcerate American citizens and deny them their liberty simply for dissenting and that a close friend of that great patriot Ronald Reagan, Giuffrida was at the center of the program and helped set it in motion.
I strongly suggest the Maher show contact the National Security Archive. Also see
http://www.vermilion-sands.com/music/rex84.html
for a brief chronological overview.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
3/17/09
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(1041 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 17, 2009 7:56 AM
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How did The New Deal and everything that came from it suddenly become a stain on US history?
Sure, it's worth criticising and discussing the approach to the GFC on its merits. But the conservative commentariat are dumping on The New Deal, and by extension the current approach, without pausing for breath or thought. Where are their bright ideas?
~~~~~
Peter Singer is right; Aussies love someone who cuts the bulls*** and asks the tough questions. And I hadn't heard of Steve Irwin until I saw him on South Park, sticking his thumb up the bum holes (he wouldn't have said "buttholes") of animals. (Not the one with the stingray hanging from his chest.)
I love the show, but I get the podcasts 2 weeks before I see the episodes... so I have to guess what the sight gags are about 
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Posts:
13,119
Registered:
2/5/06
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(1040 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 10, 2009 9:46 PM
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Wrong thread.
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Edited by infoseek at 03/10/2009 6:47 PM PDT
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Posts:
28
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10/25/08
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(1039 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 03/06/09
Mar 6, 2009 5:37 PM
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When george bush first got into office many stars and regular people got into trouble for saying anything that seemed negative towards the president. Why has it become ok for rush limbaugh (a spoiled drug addicted trust fund baby who has no idea what it's like to struggle) to hope the president fails when so many americans need him to succeed.
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12
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10/17/08
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(1038 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 3, 2009 6:11 AM
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Whatever happened to ?HELL NO, WE WON?T GO?? . . .
. . . Don?t get me wrong I?m all for eradicating Osama Bin Laden and his merry band of suicide men ? but why do we have to shed another drop of American blood?
. . . There was an ancient Chinese philosopher named Sun Tzu who wrote an extraordinary book two and a half thousand years ago, now known as ?The Art of War.? The consummate leader wrote, ?True excellence is to plan secretly, to move surreptitiously, to foil the enemy?s intentions and balk his schemes, so that at last the [hostile state submits] and the day may be won without shedding a drop of blood.
Why are our military and political leaders not studying this work of genius?
. . .It ceases to amaze me . . . how many religious fanatics continue to advocate ?pro-life? and yet they have no compunction over sending someone else?s child off to war. Those pro-lifers are oxymorons. Isn?t war a form of gender birth control?
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Edited by daveets at 03/03/2009 3:12 AM PST
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Posts:
1
Registered:
3/3/09
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(1037 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 3, 2009 1:59 AM
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The poster who said that renters send their kids to public school for free because they don't pay property taxes must be smoking weed with Maher.
First of all, renters do pay property taxes. They're included in the rent. Tenants do not, however, get to write that tax off against their income. So much for getting services for free.
Second, you say your property taxes went up $2000 over the last four years. Do you think rent never goes up? That's the worst part of being a tenant. You have no chance of stable pricing unless you're in a rent-controlled jurisdiction -- and even then your rent always goes up, probably more than property taxes do.
My one-bedroom apartment in White Plains went up $50 a month each of the last three years (Jan 06-Jan 08. That's $7,800 in increases over less time than your property taxes went up $2,000. Something tells me that I more than covered my landlord's property tax increases.
On top of this, tenants will never get six-figure capital-gains writeoffs, will never have equity loans for college educations and may even be forced to subsidize the college degrees of kids whose parents own an expensive home. Home values are not counted toward financial aid eligibility. So a parent who had to move around a lot to get good jobs might not be eligible for aid while the person who didn't have to move and got to buy a house that appreciated by a half-million dollars gets financial aid because his or her wages are slightly lower.
Do not complain about subsisizing renters; you've got it backward.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
3/2/09
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(1036 of 1044)
Re: What Happen to years 2000 to 2008
Mar 2, 2009 3:12 AM
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Mr. Bill Maher, first hand I salute you and your staff for bringing topics of importance to
Light without a regarding governmental issues. With the crowning of your new Commander and Chief, our new President Barack Obama, with the small of time since his Officially taking office, he has already made massive advancement in showing a plans to restructuring Healthcare, bringing the troops home with a ten month plan, putting a packet to reformat education and making the teachers stand up and be a teachers, my simple question to you and the panel, was our former president sleep walking while in office, or did he not receive the Duty statement for the position ???.ha,ha,,ha,ha,ha, and the fact that he had eight years, was he out back in the governmental Trailer park
Our new President Barack Obama has not sat down since taken office, his mountain
Of unresolved issues to high, the state current status trying to heal, some how that
Deep gash has just got a couple of stitches.
I live in a state where we have George Bush still lives on through his foreign son Arnold ( I can?t say California) Schwarzengger, We call him in Sacramento George Bush Junior.
We thought that Gray Davis was bad with the state. would some one let this doff ball know this is not a movie; you can?t cut and do a re-take, your try is he is screwing up people?s lives. And this is the same butt crack who stated if he could change the ruling that a non- born citizen can run for President of United States, if he turn California into a damn near homeless shopping cart, what he would drive the country into.
This is just my perception, if your staff would do a HBO search on Arnold?s Movie
on a given week or month I sure you will see somewhere between 30 or 40 plus movies
listed somewhere between HBO & Cinemax channels, I think he is trying to make people
like him all over for the work he did in Hollywood and trying to make the people forget about the work he did to their wallets.
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Posts:
8
Registered:
2/26/09
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(1035 of 1044)
Mar 2, 2009 1:23 AM
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> I could not agree more! Living in NJ, we moved into
> our home almost 4 yrs. ago, and our property taxes
> have gone up by $2K+ per year, which the renters are
> not affected by. Our income taxes increased yearly
> under Bush, which were choking us as long-time
> middle-class renters [since we were told we didn't
> have any tax write-offs like a mortgage]. But we now
> endure BOTH high income & high property taxes, on top
> of the mortgage. And Bill... as a NJ-native, you
> know our property taxes fund the schools in NJ. The
> renters send their children to these schools for
> free, whereas us mortgage / property tax payers pay
> their "tuition" (and I don't even have children
> yet).
>
> I'd like to see you address issues more balanced when
> you discuss them. Perhaps the distraction to the
> details of this conversation were PJ O'Rourke.
> Please do not bring him on as a guest again.
> . Conversations occurring him his presence are not
> possible, and it only annoys the viewer. He thinks
> he is tremendously funny, but his comments are
> unintelligent -- unhelpful to all sides of any
> conversation (he's an idiot!), he does not know when
> to stop [before he makes a fool of himself], thus
> preventing the other [more intelligent guests] from
> getting a word in edgewise. I have still yet to sit
> through this week's entire show yet. I have to keep
> walking away when PJ is on. I will wait until the
> show appears "ON DEMAND" where I can fast-forward
> past him [as best I can].
so what your saying is if your property taxes went down you would lower the amount you charge for rent
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Posts:
11
Registered:
9/8/08
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(1034 of 1044)
Re: Don't Pay enough taxes ?
Mar 2, 2009 12:14 AM
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No shit. There is actually a seperate address that you can send extra money to the government. It's the Bureau of Public Debt. Just google that when you get a chance and feel extra patriotic. Also, why the hell does Bill always wear a narrow tie while all political figureheads go with the the wide tie? Just curious.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
3/1/09
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(1033 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 1, 2009 7:52 PM
Rate this post:
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Bill: I'm your fan and most of the times agreed w/your concepts. However on 2/27 some's statements weren't right:1) Between 2003 and 2007 it is impossible that only 33% of americans had a Mgt; counting the-never-seen fist time buyers, the owners who bought a replacement house or/and a second property, plus the 100's of thousand who got a loan on Mgt-free homes, the numbers should show 50+%. Therefore, even considering a 33% of renters, the net Mgt-free population can't exceed 15%. Other wise, we shouldn't have a worldwide financial crisis caused for bad loans.
2) You made a big -unexpected mistake from you - criticizing the troops increase in Afghanistan/Pakistan:
a] you ignore the nuclear capacity of Pakistan, which is the final objective of Taliban. If we let that happens, the world security is at stake. b] It is a winnable war and necessary; you can't compare Iraq with Afghanistan: the first was an unbelievable crazy decision funded on corruption and Special Interests to make a lot of people, including Bush and Cheney, by richer.
I agree w/ you is ridiculous we waste money keeping 500+K military personal in so many countries and, I applause you for your final statement about the Government. Now, this is what we need from youin the coming weeks/months: the next inside war is in Washington between The Executive Branch, The Congress and the Special Interests lobbyists for the Medical, Pharmaceutical Industries and Insurance Companies. They won against the Clinton's but we, The People, must brake The Mafia that winning unfairly billions and billions, causes so too many millions of people -including children-been denied Health Care. You have such great and conscious audience that you influence that, please, you MUST BE PART OF THIS WAR TO HELP OBAMA -your man - and BUILDING PEOPLE'S ANIMOSITY AGAINST THE SPECIAL INTERESTS: PEOPLE OF ALL AMERICAN LEVELS MUST WAKE UP AND STAND AGAINST THE CORRUPTION AND SPECIAL INTERESTS.
Unless you are against your people or you will be paid by the "Special Interests" to silence the subject.
SINCERELY. OMAR S. NIETO - San Diego, Ca.
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Posts:
12
Registered:
2/28/09
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(1032 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 1, 2009 2:36 PM
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You ask if Pres. Obama ran as a liberal and has now moved to the center. Probably. As president he has to make some compromises to be able to survive in the DC "meat grinder" and accomplish anything. I am reminded of the issue of slavery at the time of the American Revolution. There was strong support for abolishing slavery so that the words of equality in the Declaration of Independence would be true. The slave owners, with a few notable exceptions, refused to accept that slaves were people and not property and threatened to vote against the Declaration unless the issue of slavery was removed from the document. Reluctantly the abolitionists, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson (himself a slave owner) had to choose whether to delete the "offending" language or lose on the issue of independence. They took the language out.
By the way, does anyone have a good working definition of what a liberal is and what a conservative is? The terms are thrown around all the time but I do not think the words mean the same thing to all of us. And if we are using the same words but understanding them to mean different things it makes it kind of hard to have a meaningful discussion. Maybe we should try to find definitions for these words that all can agree on and then talk about whether someone is liberal, conservative or whatever.
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Posts:
1
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3/1/09
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(1031 of 1044)
Mar 1, 2009 2:29 PM
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I could not agree more! Living in NJ, we moved into our home almost 4 yrs. ago, and our property taxes have gone up by $2K+ per year, which the renters are not affected by. Our income taxes increased yearly under Bush, which were choking us as long-time middle-class renters [since we were told we didn't have any tax write-offs like a mortgage]. But we now endure BOTH high income & high property taxes, on top of the mortgage. And Bill... as a NJ-native, you know our property taxes fund the schools in NJ. The renters send their children to these schools for free, whereas us mortgage / property tax payers pay their "tuition" (and I don't even have children yet).
I'd like to see you address issues more balanced when you discuss them. Perhaps the distraction to the details of this conversation were PJ O'Rourke. Please do not bring him on as a guest again. Conversations occurring him his presence are not possible, and it only annoys the viewer. He thinks he is tremendously funny, but his comments are unintelligent -- unhelpful to all sides of any conversation (he's an idiot!), he does not know when to stop [before he makes a fool of himself], thus preventing the other [more intelligent guests] from getting a word in edgewise. I have still yet to sit through this week's entire show yet. I have to keep walking away when PJ is on. I will wait until the show appears "ON DEMAND" where I can fast-forward past him [as best I can].
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Posts:
90
Registered:
3/8/08
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(1030 of 1044)
Re: Submit Questions for Overtime: 2/27/09
Mar 1, 2009 12:05 PM
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> Bill, this last show sucked! It is time to elevate
> the discourse.
> Your first show was great. All the women were
> respectful and allowed all to talk. The viewership
> could follow the discourse.
> Your last show was brought down by a Republican
> comedian who would not support discourse. PJ
> O'Rourke looked drunk, has nothing to contribute and
> has been overexposed. Certainly your producers can
> do better.
> The election provided you an easy path to follow.
> Post-election governance is extremely complex. Now,
> , we need far more than just jackasses vs.
> elephants.
> Most of us were happy to join the "Yes we can" train.
> However, now the route is at best confusing. There
> e is no longer a clear "Yes we can" route. How can
> we keep these people engaged? How can they make a
> constructive contribution?
> I am glad you get to smoke your joint in the hottub
> and you have your anti-religion book. However, given
> all the problems and challenges, I can not see that
> your pet issues of leisure or belief rise to the
> present challenges we face.
> How about dedicating a show to informing the John or
> Jane Doe how he/she can meaningfully hold their
> government accountable. How about putting the email
> address of each member of Congress on your web site.
> How about giving the politico's a rest and bringing
> other guests, such as scientists to discuss global
> warming policy or engineers to discuss smart-grid
> policy. How about a drum-beat for universal health
> care.
> Bill, it is time to find your way again and continue
> the significant contribution you made during the
> election.
A few suggestions:
**Candace Clement - Free Press.org
**Danny Schechter - News Dissector, "In Debt We Trust"
**Greg Haegele - Sierra Club
*Dan Lucus - 21st Century Democrats
**Robin Williams - The Most Excellent Actor/Comedian
**Leonardo DiCaprio - Actor and Environmentalist
*Charles Gibson - ABC News Anchor (for the Right Wingers)
I'm sure your viewers & audience could expand this list, and if you were successful in obliging our panel requests, I'm sure it would promote more viewer/fan loyalty.
Best to you, Mr. Maher!
Aquaria
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Aquaria
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Edited by Aquaria at 03/01/2009 9:07 AM PST
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