VICTORY! Schumer-Reid amendment defeated!!

[FEMINAZIHATEMARTYR]

Haha shot down in flames. Eat that NARAL. Bloody douchebags.  :2up:

http://www.naral.org/about/newsroom/pressrelease/pr03082005_bankruptcydefeat.cfm

Senate Votes to Let Violent Criminals Escape Punishment


Right Wing Pressure Defeats Law and Order Consensus


Washington, DC- NARAL Pro-Choice America, the nation’s leading advocate for personal privacy and a woman’s right to choose, said Americans are outraged that the Senate voted today to protect offenders convicted of violent acts against women’s clinics.
On a vote of 53-46, the Senate voted down an amendment to bankruptcy legislation sponsored by Sens. Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Harry Reid (D-NV). The Schumer-Reid amendment would have prevented individuals convicted of violent acts against women’s health clinics, patients, and doctors from evading punishment by claiming bankruptcy in order to avoid paying court ordered fines.

Nancy Keenan, President of NARAL Pro-Choice America, said: "This amendment should have passed unanimously – even people who oppose a woman’s right to choose should be outraged at violent criminals who use bombings, murder threats, vandalism and other such tactics, and appalled at them evading punishment by declaring bankruptcy. It’s a simple issue of law and order. But the hardline far-right lobby holds more sway than the American people in Washington today. When the far right says ‘jump’ this Senate asks ‘how high?’ "

The need for the Schumer-Reid clinic-violence provision is clear. Since 1993, three doctors, two clinic employees, a clinic escort, and a security guard have been murdered. In addition to these seven murders, seventeen attempted murders have also occurred since 1991. Two of these murders, as well as one attempted murder, occurred in 1998. Since then, one attempted murder, two bombings, 18 incidents of arson, 298 acts of vandalism, 642 anthrax threats, 121 bomb threats, and 27 blockades have occurred at clinics.

Ms. Keenan added: "We’re grateful to Senators Schumer and Reid for taking this commonsense stand – and thankful for the 46 senators who resisted political pressure and sided with the American majority."

[scarbo]

Two comments:

1. This reminds me of the old saying: "Those who love both sausages and the law should not ever look to see how either of them are made."

I had heard of this "bankruptcy" bill on the news. I had no idea how much the special interests were clammoring to hang crap all over the bill. I'm sick and tired of that stuff.

2. I hadn't ever heard of people using bankruptcy to "protect themselves" from paying court-ordered fines. But anyway, this proposed amendment would have kept ONLY PEOPLE CONVICTED OF VIOLENT ACTS AGAINST WOMEN'S CLINICS ETC from claiming that protection? Oooooooookay, what about those convicted of violent acts against me? Or my daughter's school? Or the local supermarket? Or the postman? According to those who wrote the amendment, it would be Okee-dokee for those people to get out of paying fines by claiming bankruptcy? Just not those who attacked women's clinics.

Yeah. Got it.

What a bunch of freaking losers we have in Washington.

Frankly, I don't think bankruptcy should be able to be claimed by ANYONE who is given a court-ordered fine to pay. You owe it. Period. It never goes away until you pay it off.

And a big "get a life" to NARAL, who only cares about one thing, obviously.

[fezzik]

I had heard of this "bankruptcy" bill on the news. I had no idea how much the special interests were clammoring to hang crap all over the bill. I'm sick and tired of that stuff.

The whole bankruptcy bill is for the benefit of the credit card industry. The bill itself is a special-interest law. Garbage weighed down with garbage.

When was the last time Congress passed a law that did anyone any good?

[Alpha Male]

The whole bankruptcy bill is for the benefit of the credit card industry. The bill itself is a special-interest law. Garbage weighed down with garbage.

Exactly. Here is my beef with them. Even if you send your payment in on the same time every month, the time it takes for them to post your payment varies. In our experience, and we paid very close attention because we were starting to realize we were being taken for a ride, it took them anywhere from four to thirteen days to post. If they posted after your due date, it was counted as a late payment because they did not get your check in time.

WHAT?!? You were the lame asses who took 13 days to post it!

Doesn't matter. It is a late payment and per the terms of the contract we can now raise your interest rate and you have no say in it. (In our case they doubled it to 24%.)

If they can arbitrarily raise your rate and you have no say, that is a contract of adhesion. At least in insurance the courts are going to rule/lean in the direction of the person who must adhere. There isn't that kind of protection with credit cards. Thus, you should be able to file bancruptcy. Credit cards are not a requirement and companies have the option of whether they issue them or not. How about they show some discretion in who they issue them to? Wouldn't that be something!

Honestly, we oughta just boycott those as well. I was reading an article and the author was pointing out that at the beginning of this century 95% of the population were debt free and 5% weren't. Having a debt was a social stigma. Today the percentages have reversed and having credit card debt is considered normal. Many places won't even rent to you without having a credit card. In my job, you can be a perfect driver and you will still pay higher rates if your credit sucks. I pay higher rates because I simply have no credit rating. I stopped using the things except for dire emergencies. I am about 1 1/2 to 2 years out from being completely debt free. I hate credit cards. In fact, I hate them so much that the thousands that I got back in my tax return this year, every last penny of it, went to the balance of the last card we have. I didn't even take the family out to dinner on it.

[fezzik]

My main credit card is a Citibank card, and I use the electronic payment option from their website to authorize a check each month from Bank of America. If Citibank can't do an electronic transfer from BoA in a couple of days, something has gone seriously wrong way beyond the control of a mortal customer.

[Alpha Male]

I am aware the option exists but I refuse to give access to my account to anybody. *I* will determine who gets paid what and when.  I don't trust others not to f@#$ it up. It costs me money to not allow them to do it. I take the hit and excercise great dilligence with making the payments.
I suppose I am a bit retro in this respect.