patrick.net

Just one: monogamy. But I've got over that lie ten years ago and have been making up for loss time.

I've fallen for College, War, and Voting. I have NOT fallen for houseownership...yet.

In case the above link doesn't work:
http://www.jamesaltucher.com/2012/08/the-trillion-dollar-lies/

I fell for college and homeownership.

Regarding Iran: http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/117290.html

Homeownership: Not yet, but it's coming. I don't think people fall for this so much as they're forced into it by the wife.

College: With scholarships and community college, this can still be done affordably. Left college with a good degree at a good school loan free.

War: I think all of us fell for it after 9/11, but that's mostly because of the "weapons of mass destruction" lies.

Voting: I refuse to vote until the two party system is abolished. I will not drive over there and wait in line to pick between two different styles of shit. If votor turnout gets low enough, perhaps honest people will start running under their own beliefs instead of their parties' beliefs and the funders wish list.

StoutFiles says

Homeownership: Not yet, but it's coming. I don't think people fall for this so much as they're forced into it by the wife.

lol! What is it with women and houses? Too much HGTV?

StoutFiles says

College: With scholarships and community college, this can still be done affordably.

Community college is like a disco with books. "Give me five dollars so I can get my learn on!"

StoutFiles says

Voting: I refuse to vote until the two party system is abolished. I will not drive over there and wait in line to pick between two different styles of shit.

Amen.

freak80 says

Community college is like a disco with books. "Give me five dollars so I can get my learn on!"

Haha I agree. To be fair I never went; had a full ride scholarship and worked at the same time to cover my housing.

However, community college is very smart if you go for two years and then transfer to a good four year school. Your degree is under the fancy school and you just saved almost 50% of the total cost. It'd be really difficult to convince a kid to do this though, those schools aren't fun like the four year ones.

Does Santa Claus count?

Won't be popular, but both college and home ownership have worked out well for me. Especially college. I'm on the elder end of Gen X, but back then college was pretty much the only escape from rural midwestern lower-working class roots. I'd say that well over 90% of my high school class who went on to college also went on to escape the region and have substantially higher standards of living today than those who stayed behind.

For me the big lie has been pretty much anything uttered from the mouth of a Baby Boomer.

I did not fall for Weapons of Mass Destruction. The biggest Republican lie to date.

The biggest lie of all isn't mentioned in the article. Retirement. Up until this century, that word had a different meaning. When you grew old, and retired, they toe tagged your ass and had a little ceremony prior to burying you. Now its supposed to have been redefined,,,,that if you follow the rules of their game, sock away some of your labors into 401ks and mutual funds and the like, they will take care of you when your old and at the end of the life cycle.

Who's trillion dollar agenda is that?

I can tell you this much, I ain't buying that boondoggle, and either does much of my generation, at least thru my observations

Homeownership ... hmm, bought in western MA, not Boston area, thus stayed within the 3:1 mortgage:income barrier of antiquity. Now, it's paid off. Will never, I repeat, will never buy around Boston metro. Many persons there, who are not executives/retired well off, will suffer in the years ahead with decreasing job opportunities, as jobs move to Texas. The towns which are now affordable, are seeing more and more crime over time, and it's spilling into more affluent suburbs in terms of home burglaries. The housing bubble has ruined the region and now, there's little incentive to expand headcount locally.

College ... well, 12-15 years ago it was affordable and my scholarships, etc, covered 50%. I had no outstanding loans, 2 years post-graduation. I wouldn't do it again, at today's prices. It's el cheapo London Univ online for the next generation.

War ... nope, had relatives/friends in 'Nam and I suspected that when John McCain flipped out on the reporter in '03, regarding the Tonkin Gulf resolution of the mid 60s, that this current conflict was something similar.

Voting ... stopped after my mid-20s.