When ‘Freedom’ And ‘Choice’ Are Neither
by John RomanoThe doublespeak coming from Washington these days has Orwell twirling in his grave. Although he did not coin the term, Orwell is the father of all things, well Orwellian. Today’s political climate is the closest we’ve come to Orwell’s vision of 1984.
We’ve had the old doublespeak standby of “choice” in abortion around for decades. Of course the only one making the choice is the women involved, the father and baby don’t get a choice, they get an outcome. However you come down on the abortion issue, “choice” is an odd word for the procedure.
The Democrats have offered up some new “choice” examples of doublespeak recently. Obama talks of a new “era of responsibility” and then makes a few moves to the basket that increase the deficit more in two years then GWB did in eight. He offers “tax cuts” to those not paying taxes. The list goes on and on.
However, nowhere in modern life is Orwellian doublespeak louder than in the debate over the “Employee Free Choice Act” (EFCA).
The act is anything but a free choice for employees. Employees against unionization will be singled out and one by one intimidated into signing. Names will be taken. That means you Simpson in sector 7G, dohhhh!
EFCA is more about expanding Union Power and the Democrat party base. And expand it will. America works best with a strong two-party system. The Democrats seem intent on those two parties being the neo-communists and the old-school socialists.
Below is a list of five more aptly named bills I predict we’ll see before congress over the next few years.
“The Gun Use and Guarantee Act” restricting gun ownership to BB and paint guns only while expanding the sales outlets of said “guns.”
“Legal Immigration Penalty Act” granting all illegals citizenship while restricting legal immigration for doctors and engineers.
“School Freedom To Learn Act” destroying the voucher system and taxing families that send their kids to private schools at a higher rate.
“Religious Tolerance Act” prohibiting all Christmas decorations in the public square.
“The Military Strength and Independence Act” ceding most of our ability to act militarily to the UN while cutting military spending by 33 and 1/3%.
One could spend all afternoon naming bills that will deliver the exact opposite of their title. Whoever names these things must think the American public are a bunch of rubes.
I’m off to do the “Non-Good Fathering Act of 2009.” I’m taking my daughter to ballet and then ice cream. I may even buy her a new Barbie. I’ll throw in a few extra kisses for good measure.
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101 Comments
but of course the father & child have a choice about abortion…the choice to obey . Period. Welcome to 1984…remember to say hi to george orwell while you're here. All political correctness is a cover for "do as we say or else". Just another strategy from marx & stalin. We all must remember Jefferson…"When governments fear the people there is liberty. When the people fear the government there is tyranny." Here's another… "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure.” Just one more fromthe author of the declaration of independence…"I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it." If school kids were well versed in the actual words of our founding fathers we would not even need to have these discussions!!
Amen, brother!
It's all about nomenclature. Sadly, most people never look behind the mask. So if you give something a nice sounding name, they'll never question what's behind it. Even more interestingly, the latest tactic is to accuse the other side of the very things you're doing. Welcome to the world of leftist rhetoric. It's what you have to do when you can't sell your ideas to the populous.
Nice article, thanks for pointing out the bills to look out for.
It is so damn important for folks like us to become involved in being a part of the voices that point out this manipulation of the language, and help pull back the curtain. BH is a great place, we have terrific discourse and very lively exchanges of ideas. To say nothing of the great humor and tons of laughs. But we have to do more….much more. When we read stuff from the news sources and writers on the Right that helps to expose the truth of this doublespeak BS, we need to help push these counter arguments to a wider audience. And I'm not talking about just posting a link. Most of my lib friends won't navigate to it. But when I cut and paste the salient points of an article by V.D. Hanson, or Mark Steyn onto my Facebook "What are you doing Now" publisher, they can't help but read it. More…..
And this usually gets a back-and-forth going. Sure sometimes it turns into the libs just throwing back talking points, but the important thing is this. Other folks, not involved in the discussion will follow the comments, and see who is making sense and who isn't. I once heard a preacher teaching on why it is important to live outwardly in a manner that will exemplify your faith to others. Because you don't know who is watching. You don't know who will be influenced by your behavior. We all have learned things from people who never knew that we were watching them. And putting the conservative POV, from any source, (even our own) and engaging the libs wherever and whenever we can will have a positive effect on people we don't even realize are listening……more
I’m in my office working today(Saturday) and as a business owner I think that it would be a good idea to start, “The Conservative Retribution Movement.” Align small businesses to react to the liberal onslaught. Determine who your liberal employee’s are and fire them first, deliver these morons to their Messiah. For every percentage of a tax increase fire a commensurate number of employee’s. We can’t take a gun and demand money but we can sure as Hell shrink the size of our companies. Just an intemperate thought?
We conservatives are always talking about how the more people learn about the principles and tenets of conservatism, the more they will come to our side. Well for us who don't have syndicated columns or radio shows, or not Blog contributors, this is a way to use those who have those things as a tool to spread the word. We can be "force-multipliers" to use the military term. We should do it. We need to do it. Question O-thority.
Stan, you are really on to something. Great idea!
You guys are all morons. When a family of 4 with income of 60k spend ALL their disposable income to survive, they pay a Sh&Tload of sales tax and never have the ability to accrue capital gains.
8 years of GWB burning down the house and 30 years since Regan pissed on the working poor and 50 days into a new regime you think the world had ended. Crybabies. I hope you never face bankruptcy because your cancer treatment isn't covered by your health insurance, and I hope you never lose your job because your position was outsourced to a 20 year old college graduate in Malaysia. Only then will you learn that 'compassionate conservatism' is just a fancy name for 'rich getting richer' on the backs of everyone else.
When the real conservatives (libertarians, non-interventionists, religious agnostics) cleave off the mad hatters of the GOP, this country will be thankful.
last I checked, libertarians have their own party (Losertarian- good for 2%) isolationists can talk to Pat Buchanan for solice, and a religious agnostic is what? Reagan raised the 'working poor' to a level of affluence never before seen, and 'W' did the same. I do not know an insurance plan that doesn't cover life threatening diseases, and the only problem with 'compassionate conservatism' is ti isn't really conservative- so stop trying to blow smoke up other people's butt and pretend you are that which is not…
ABC, the problem is that most of those struggling families only struggle with food, health care, etc. They never seem to have to struggle with DVD players, nice clothes, video game consoles, cell phones, and other luxuries. I could spend several hours telling you all the people I've worked with who've had to go on food stamps or sell plasma to make ends meet…but those same guys have cable, electronics, expensive shoes, and go out drinking every weekend.
There are extreme cases, real poverty, and the real solution is to let charity do its job (unless Obama's proposal to penalize charitable giving goes through). But in most cases–when "the poor" have nicer clothes and better-appointed houses than I do–screw em. If having a bigscreen and Tivo and an XBOX 360 is more important to you than health insurance, you can die of rickets for all I care.
George Orwell was considered quite left wing in his time yet '1984' now reads as a conservative warning tale.
His widow will not allow the showing of the Edmund O'Brien/Jan Sterling version, which is a shame- it's powerful stuff; as an early cold warrior it was a mantra to many… read the book and think 'The One'..
The politicians (mostly on the left) are always coming up with more and more new rules and guidelines to tie down freedom and values, this is to be expected and is nothing new. What is more frustrating is when so-called 'artistic realms' like the movies begin pushing an increasingly ridiculous definition of what is 'politically correct' and don't want to make a move that might offend some obscure sub-sect of society. Being Free to Choose between Michael Moore and Sean Penn is not freedom or choice.
ABC, Michael Jackson called…
He needs the song back; he's kicking off his European Molestation tour….
[...] March 14, 2009 in Language Tornadoes | Tags: freedom, language The first paragraph of this post from Big Hollywood Blog expresses my attitude exactly: When ‘Freedom’ And ‘Choice’ Are Neither [...]
"Compassionate conservatism" is one of those oxymorons that belong in the liberal pantheon. And, in keeping with this thread, it's Orwellian. Conservatives voted for Bush because the alternative was even worse (twice). Our failure was at the nominating level, leaving us with no "choice" in the general election. McCain didn't fool anyone, so I at least consider the 2008 election a defeat for Republicans, not for conservatives. And if we don't get our conservative house in order, soon, we will be faced with another non-choice choice in four years. Sort of like "would you prefer cancer or a heart attack?" Orwellian.
And "1984" isn't the only Orwell that applies to Obama. Considering the quality and dodginess of his cabinet appointments, "Animal Farm" works pretty well, too.
You talk like none of us are poor and that we all have 100% medical coverage. How about this: at present my husband makes $50,000. The most we've ever made, by the way. And we provide our own health coverage, which is hospitalization only. You think we've never worried about money? But providing an honest, independent living for ourselves would be much easier if we weren't taxed to death. I don't want the government to take care of me and mine. I want the government to stay out of my life so I can take care of myself.
Yes it's Nineteen Eighty-Obama out there where thanks to the Teleprompter-on-Chief, DUMB IS THE NEW SMART.____Doubleobamaspeak____Obedience is Freedom. Subervience is Required. Ignorance is Encourged.
Rahm does resemble one of those dogs, doesn't he?
If you've probe the mind of an obamatron – it's downright discouraging. Either the national psyche is as dumb-as-a- stump, or something else is going on here. Not being a conspiracy nut, I'll choose the first. "Why did you vote for BO" – "I wanted change." "Has anything changed" – "well, we can hope." Duh! It's excruciatingly moronic. They're still droning the mantra. The media filters are still in force. It is absolutley Orwellian
Regan? Who's that? "Religious agnostics"? What's that?
"Regan pissed on the working poor." Ha, ha! That's a gem.
I love when someone says, "you guys are all morons," and then proceeds to demonstrate he is even more of one.
It's hard to have compassion for someone when they begin by stating, "You guys are all morons".
If this is indeed your situation, then I can only hope your treatments are successful.
Falling back on the "rich get richer" theme tells me you're a glass-half-empty kinda person. I don't think most conservatives (I guess I should only speak for myself) live with that negative mindset. It suffocates personal creativity and ingenuity. Where's my piece of the pie? I'll make my own pie, thanks.
Don't call me a CRYBABY.
I certainly agree with you on "compassionate conservatism" – listen, Dubya was a conservative guy; more so than pops… he just wasn't a 'movement' conservative like Ronlado Maximus. We have to stop dumping on a guy who had, as any expert will tell you, a very difficult presidency. Next time around, however- you will see a red-blooded conservative run- and win. That's why the MSM is so terrified of Sarah. By the by, 'Animal
Farm' does work as well…
ABC, Divide & Conq dirty tricks only work if we are as dullwitted as The One party thinks. We Viet vets know a phony when we see one; the Winter Soldier thing was KOOL wasn't it? The real libertarians, non-interventionists, lifers, valuists and such know that they lost the consensus majority because they allowed themselves to disrespect each other, we divided ourselves and were beaten. As some of the posters pointed out, the cancer thing was fraudulent disinformation; no provider in the US can deny code listed life saving protocalls as they would not only be appealed but the provider would lose any court case that resulted. By the way, ABC, you should edit what you get from Podesta and Soros, Ronnie's name was ReAgan, not Soros Regan from Soros Nazi collaborator days
My husband, a minister, asks people what they think of Obama and the ones that voted for him always say, "we can only hope" or "I guess we'll wait and see" or some such rot. Sounds like they don't really have much faith. Only hope.
ABC does not even sound like a libertarian, so please do not let the idiot taint our good name. Smells more like a liberal troll to me, or one of those fake libertarians that just joins along because of their stance on legalization. Libertarians are for globalization, and are not protectionists, so that little comment about jobs going to Malaysia give him/her away. So does the rich getting richer comment, as we real libertarians, like conservatives, believe that a person is entitled to the fruits of their own labor, and if someone is getting rich off of your labr, then it's yoru own fault for not merketing your abilities into a higher salary. And you don't have to be a religious agnostic to be a libertarian. Libertarians also do not consider themselve's "the real conservatives" either. Libertarians actually represent the classic definition of liberals, but the "progressives" hijacked the label.
And as far as libertarians having their own party, like conservatives, sometimes that party doesn't fully represent the ideology.
"They never seem to have to struggle with DVD players, nice clothes, video game consoles, cell phones, and other luxuries."
Don't forget booze and cigarettes
Big Brotha is watching you.
I would argue that being to the right of Bush The Elder is not exactly the definition of a conservative. But I am not a W hater by any means. As the confession says, we are as guilty for those things undone as those things done. And W's failure to find his veto pen until the very end speaks to those things undone. If his Supreme Court appointees were all his administration had to show for his eight years in office, I would say that his administration was a roaring success. Unfortunately, that was simply not enough. Fifty years from now, I think history will be a great deal kinder to W. than to O.
Yep! The mangiest one.
A small nitpick. It's Doublethink, and Newspeak. But your post IS doubleplusgood!
Democrats Good! Republicans Baaad!
The Two Minutes Hate. The Democrats and their media spent 8 years whipping the people into a frenzy of hate towards Bush. Then they put Big Brotha in front of them and the people fell in love.
As the politics of race, gender and leftest control get harsher, look for a backlash against them. It doesnt take much to imagine how violent this could be. Of course this will play right into their hands about how backward and racist this country is and the need for ever more government oversite. Most people under 30 really do believe in a more socialist USA. We killed the indians and oppress anyone not white. We use all the worlds resources and pollute the air. Che shirts are all the rage and communist horrors have been replaced with Nazi stories that have been succesfully tied to anyone right of center. He who controls the youth controls the future and when most kids get their news from Jon Stewert and their slanted school books and union teachers, well what would you expect.
Part 2-The far left has been at this since the 1960's. Their singular purpose of mind and spirit to change the fundamentals of the USA has marched on unppposed by the traditional side of America. We have only ourselves to blame. Maybe if we manned the soup lines, walked skid row to pass out meds, got teaching degrees, became journalists and such we could have done something about it. But we did like most Americans did, got a job and raised families. When i worked in DC during the Bush years i watch burnt out hippies marching in front of 400 youths down Mass Ave and knew what the future was bringing. Lord help us if these same youths take up the European youths way of doing things-with molotovs and burning.
Look above "Although he did not coin the term"
Dude. lighten up.
Lets look at this logically. Lets take California, which is what OBAMA thinks the US should be. Right now, 10% of the taxpayers pay 70% of the bill. How much SHOULD they pay, 90%? If so, why? If you have more than me, can I come over to your house and take it? If not, why not?
The question to really ask is, why does govt take so much of yours and my taxes and give so little in return? Since 32% of all US taxpayers paid not taxes in 2006, who SHOULD pay the tax and why?
I keep seeing the statement that conservatives need to get the message out. I don't think this will work. Do we really believe that the majority of US citizens would prefer to pull their own weight, rely on themselves and get the govt off our backs? I think the majority is now convinced that it will be OK if the govt simpy borrows and/or takes from SOMEONE ELSE in order to give to them.
Sad but true, the majority rule means, what;s yours is mine!
Now I know what is meant by "Simple as ABC."
Are we going after the taxes that illegals arent paying? They arent just here illegally, they are cheating the system. as well. Not long ago, here in NY a bunch of Chinese workers sued for back pay and tips. Some were illegal. They were awarded a large amount of money and not one mention of them paying back taxes. Travesty.
"Lord help us if these same youths take up the European youths way of doing things-with molotovs and burning."
Ummm…[uncomfortable pause]…it might come to that.
Just do as I do, I don't hire them to begin with. I refuse to spend my time, energy, effort, and any part of my day, with people who I despise. Right now, the only perk of being the owner of a small business.
In 1975, the average income for middle class was $25,000. In 2007, it was $75,000. The only defense of W I have is the fact the man ran as a new kind of conservative, a "Compassionate Conservative." He never said he was in the Reagan model, I think most of us, just wanted him to be, more than he wanted to be. He repeatedly said in his speeches and debates that he had always worked successfully with the Democrats in his state, and planned to bring that to the White House. I think most Republicans weren't paying attention. I were.LOL, I worked on his campaign. I worried about it then, and was never really surprised by anything he did, disappointed yes, surprised no.
Cigarettes went up $8.00 a carton in GA last week. So, around $42.00 a carton. I asked the girl at the Quikshop if it had cut down on their business, and she said, no, why should it? So, maybe it's priorities?
Not quite, Jake, at least 45% of them are stone cold ignorant, and would vote for a turnip. And yes, there are about that number on the right.
I agree, too many percentage points to add. I wrote upthread about the Compassionate Conservatism, and how most didn't understand exactly why this was a bad idea, and didn't pay attention to the premise. I think more of Animal Farm, actually, than I do 1984. But it may be because I just re-read it twice with my kids a few years ago.
The brilliance of the Democratic Party is that they have done nothing but adopt policies designed to expand their base over the past 70 years. They appeal to the common man by playing the altruist. How can these people not see that Democrats are only after power? They (as a party) could care less about the individual. They only want to expand their base so they can have ultimate authority.
Unfortunately that law is up for a vote in the UN. With the new administrations sudden acceptance and understanding of Islam I'm afraid of what the US vote might be.
How about an 'end islamic terrorism act' which makes it illegal to say the words 'islamic' and 'terrorism' in the same sentence.
last I checked, libertarians have their own party (Losertarian- good for 2%) isolationists can talk to Pat Buchanan for solice, and a religious agnostic is what? Reagan raised the 'working poor' to a level of affluence never before seen, and 'W' did the same. I do not know an insurance plan that doesn't cover life threatening diseases, and the only problem with 'compassionate conservatism' is it isn't really conservative- so stop trying to blow smoke up other people's butt and pretend you are that which is not…
don't forget all the "fargin iceholes" Roman Maroni. Excellent name.
Remember, the @$$holes who are trying to do this are in office because people actually voted for them. Fifty-two percent of the country wants this to happen.
"Freedom of choice
Is what you've got
Freedom from choice
Is what you want" — Devo
Yes he is, and hopefully he'll heed the warning of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto and remember there's a lot of blades of grass out here in flyover country.
To the Butlerdidit
That increase in cigarettes was done by the manufacturers. Wait til April 1st when the 61 cents per pack kicks in. This was snuck into the Schips bill that Barry Soetero (D-Kenya) signed. Yes I call him that until he proves otherwise which he does not have the ethics and integrity to do.
Even worse the Commuist legislature of Kentucky added another 30 cents per pack on top of the 61 cents also effective April 1st. As long as people favor taxing the heck out of smokers I am for $10.00 a gallon for gasoline. If you don't like that cut back on the cigarette taxes.
Another thing, do you know why Congresscritters do not listen to the people? they have their staffs to intercept and screen your calls and comments. Best to get a few hundred people and surround their house in your district and then see if they hear you.
What a brilliant idea — to fire people who do good work for you, to ruin their lives and bankrupt their families, all because you don't agree with their politics. No wonder the Republicans are doing so well with the American people these days. Because hate and spite are really what the country needs!
Excellent point about California but I think you could also tack on New York just to double up.
At what point does a society or state have to implode from these bad liberal ideas before liberals themselves see the folly of their ways? No longer are they a "progressive" movement but a regressive establishment. Shame on you liberals and all of your "forward" thinking crap.
That's exactly true — if by $75,000 you mean $43,000 dollars. And if by dollars you mean 2007 dollars versus 1975 dollars. In the real world, working people's incomes have declined, particularly over the last eight years. But yes, we all heard this phony statistic on talk radio, so it must be true.
Good. Stop driving on the roads. Stop depending on the police to keep crooks away from you. Swear off fire protection. Refuse to eat anything that's been inspected by the FDA (God knows that's easier to do after 8 years of Bush). That's a start.
The only "change" I believe in is the change in my pocket. So far it still holds the most actual value far beyond rhetoric.
Very Nice John.
Hey Don. I don't know what we can do. I'm hoping over time that people come up with ideas. I think I'm starting to hear some interesting proposals. And hopefully, as the community grows, we can connect thinkers and doers. The influex of new contributors is a good sign (especially the politicians), though so far they haven't stuck around to show us any love (still feels like pandering, but give it time — the BH community isn't that old.
Go away troll. You're wasting your time. We wouldn't believe you if you told us the Earth rotated around the sun.
DFTT
Yeah, but it's like hearding cats. They are a party only in that they all hate the same people. That does not a governing philosophy make.
I've had clients who have their electricity shut off every month, but they won't give up the cable, the cell phones, the cigarettes, or the booze. It's amazing. They simply will not prioritize.
You still here. DFTT
AP,all true. But like I said, BH is an excellent place. ABreit really set up a winner here. Even some of the Dem/Lib/twit/iceholes (take your pick) seem a bit more on-the-ball than the HufPo, Kossacks, etc. And you're right again saying how new it all is. But the 2010 elections are closer than we realize. And the sooner we "grunts" get busy, the more we can accomplish. There's an old Italian saying that goes "little and often fills the pot." I say an idea that is legal, educational, humorous, or intelligent, and isn't vulgar, violent, immoralor just plain stupid should be acted upon. In this way, though we may be small but growing, we will seem more than that. Then you'll see the poli's showin' some love. Question O-thority.
Like a true liberal, you don't understand moderation. Or the true purpose of government.
The problem with "compassionate conservatism" is that it is a redundant phrase. Conservatism IS compassionate:
-Lowering taxes increases economic activity, creating more jobs and raising the standard of living.
-Creating a strong defense decreases the likelihood of violence.
-Allowing the market to determine prices guarantees that services are brought where they are needed with greater speed and efficiency, and at the price that people are willing to pay.
-Recognizing rights rather than inventing them guarantees the innate human dignity of all people.
The "compassion" of liberals is all worn on the sleeve:
-Making taxes "fair" punishes the poor with higher prices for goods and services, and loss of entry level jobs.
-Mandating "affordable" housing always leads to fewer, more expensive housing options, again hurting the poor.
-Raising the minimum wage makes mininum wage jobs scarcer, again hurting guess who?
-Inventing new "rights" displaces authentic rights, particularly for the most vulnerable and powerless.
Wish we could make Tom Sowell's BASIC ECONOMICS mandatory reading for all high school seniors.
You are correct "wr!". After the last eight years, the country has had enough hate and spite.
I would absolutely love it if the only things the government was spending money on was roads, police and fire.
A couple years ago, my work had a charity drive at Christmas time to collect presents for needy kids. Guess what was on the list of things they wanted…
Xbox games.
I did not donate.
80% of the world gets by on less than $10/day. (http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-fa...
There is no poverty in America. You can't have running water, electricity, a phone, a tv, four walls, a roof and food and be "living in poverty".
If you want to see real poverty, go to India, Africa, Iraq. Heck, just go down to Mexico. Try telling the guy whose family lives in a house that only has 3 walls and no roof that Americans making "only" $20,000/year are living in poverty.
We don't have poor in America. We just have people who are "less rich".
Actually Gregorovitch, that was were I was meaning to go, and lost my train of thought. LOL. Thank you. Yes, if cigarettes are that expensive now, add on the SCHIP bill tax, and we are talking big money for peeps who smoke 2-3 pks a day. I was surprised, (though why, I'm not sure), when I heard the Quikshop girl telling people the price had went up so much, I expected to see some major balking, but people just griped, muttered, and paid. That's when I asked about sales, and she seemed genuinely befuddled why the sales of smokes who have gone down. Uh, I dunno, I guess somewhere in my little brain I imagined if times were hard, people out of work, cigs costing a lot more, people would have said, hey, wait a minute, I just can't afford these! Silly me! But remember, smoke 'em if ya got 'em, it's for the children!!!!
Say "Amen!" somebody!
Now I know where my old clients went.
But when would they have time to read Keynes and Marx (not Groucho, the other one)? In a fair-minded educational environment, they would be exposed to all of them. That will happen about the time wombats write sonnets. Why should they be exposed to Sowell when EVERYBODY KNOWS that socialism is the answer for everything, including hemmorhoids?
Eric Blair, ironically, was a socialist earlier in his adult life (read his Essays). 1984 was mostly what could happen to humanity when the language is corrupted–controlled–by power. Gotta run to my "two-minutes hate" of BIG Banks and capitalism. It will be noticed if I am not there.
"Liberal: a power worshipper without power."–Eric Blair
Had enough for what? I don't seem to recall libs complaining about "all the vitriol" against Bush when he was in office. Look, those are real (imaginary) dollars the left is stealing from everyone, including conservatives, and nicey-nicey time is over. You a-holes want to go for the big power grab and turn this country into a kleptocratic banana republic, crashing the economy, and growing government to unprecedented levels – you're not going to get ra-ra from people who work for a living, obey the laws, and pay the taxes. You are going to get it in your face, non-stop, all day long until the bad behavior stops. Democrats are not only messing with the citizens here and now, they are messing with the future of this country. This is unacceptable and I don't advise the Democrats to keep it up.
I think people would change if they realized the Dems' policies were crashing the economy. A few more years of economic pain and people would flip. But the Fed will provide window-dressing for the Dems' disastrous policies until the next crisis; then we we will "need" more 'bailouts,' 'rescue plans,' and welfare handouts.
Libs: I'm not going to hold your hand for you and explain why the current economic crisis is not a "free market" failure for the umpteenth time.
Good point Lawhawk. How about exposing the fallacies of Marx in a straightforward way and providing counter-arguments like from von Mises and Hayek? But I guess it is too much to ask for our educational institutions to train people to think for themselves. Hell, they don't even believe in that concept.
Thanks WR, I thought so too. You work 60-80-100hrs a week for nearly 30yrs, and have some nar-do-well community organizer come along and tell you he wants more, more, more, and see how it sits with you! It doesn’t have anything to do with hate, it’s business and as arbitrary as the Magnificent “O” ‘s plan to further eviscerate small business people, you know the one’s that pay the freight. You fight so vociferously WR, what’s in it for you?
Please, oh please let us not forget the thousands of dollars many of them spend on "tricking and pimping out their rides."
As a SSgt (E-6) in the Marine Corps, I consider myself Middle Class (because I don't live outside of my means), yet I see people using foodstamps in the grocery store, then putting their groceries in brand new Cadillacs with hydraulics, rims, and every other imaginable luxury. Meanwhile I drive a 1998 Saturn SL.
"One could spend all afternoon naming bills that will deliver the exact opposite of their title. Whoever names these things must think the American public are a bunch of rubes."
Rubes? Obama knows his supporters are total idiots and he plays them beautifully. He doesn't ever have to do anything. All he has to do is say something and it magically becomes real!
Obamatons don't bother with the facts or the truth.
Had enough for what? I don't seem to recall libs complaining about "all the vitriol" against Bush when he was in office. Look, those are real (imaginary) dollars the left is stealing from everyone, including conservatives, and nicey-nicey time is over. Libs want to go for the big power grab and turn this country into a kleptocratic banana republic, crashing the economy, and growing government to unprecedented levels – they're not going to get ra-ra from people who work for a living, obey the laws, and pay the taxes. You are going to get it in your face, non-stop, all day long until the bad behavior stops. Democrats are not only messing with the citizens here and now, they are messing with the future of this country. This is unacceptable and I don't advise the Dems to keep it up.
When the tax rates already dictate that someone who works hard works four days for his family and one for government and then leftists want to change that ratio to 2 out of 3 or 3 out of 2. I can't possibly imagine why the hardworking folks on the right might object. Who in their right mind works to support their own families anymore these days?
Don't worry. When healthcare is socilized we'll be denied cancer treatments regularly.
Exactly, I grew up across the street from a welfare family. Able bodied adults who had no jobs. They did have Harleys, a big screen TV, the latest game consoles, and name brand clothing.
We didn't have cable TV or a VCR until I was in junior high or high or high school, never wore name brand clothing, never had a video game console, but my folks worked for a living and took nothing from the government and we always had healthcare.
And remember the vast majority didn't care enough to vote at all. So really, only about 1/3 of the actual country voted for this and many of them didn't bother to actually figure out what it was they were voting for.
The things W did well, he did very well. I will defend his national security stance probably until I die, but socially, there were some big issues. He was like Huckabee: he felt he should use big government to advance God's work which really works out to the same end that BO is trying to achieve and would be just as destructive for us nationally.
ABC: The rich get richer by providing products that people want to buy. The glaring weakness of Marxism is that he predicted that the people would get poorer, not richer under a "capitalist" system. Certainly those capitalist countries from his day to now that have most embraced the free market have had a standard of living increase across the board. The poor are rich in the United States by world standards. Those countries that are exceptions to the rule are small and resource rich or specialized export-oriented countries, which, not coincidentally, have relatively low capital gains and corporate taxes (Sweden – capital gains tax of 18%, U.S. was 15% in 2008; corporate tax of 28%, U.S. is second highest in the world at almost 40%; e.g.).
There is also a misconception that capitalism is "out of control" or "harms the environment." Socialist and communist countries tend to degrade their country's habitats much more egregiously than capitalist ones, because there is a major difference in approach. Socialist countries misconceive economy as a "pie to be redistributed," and capitalist ones see it as labor transforming resources and materials to add utility, or facilitating "production." Scarcity of resources is inherently a part of the capitalist system through pricing (as opposed to command economies), and most resources are not "consumed" but redistributed or transformed (oil being a notable exception: the restriction of oil production is largely unnecessary, since solar, wind and geothermal will replace oil as prices go up). You remove pricing and you remove a barrier to state action and exploitation. The U.S. has gotten around this barrier by producing imaginary currency, which is not "money" or what Mises defined as a "store of value."
The point is, that to support their welfare systems, countries need to stimulate real production, not just print out paper currency to be redistributed. Of course, those who see this as a great way to "break" the capitalist system, from which a miraculous (necessarily state-dominated) socialist paradise will rise as if a phoenix from the ashes, will be greatly disillusioned.
The appropriate response to poverty is not to penalize the producers for providing products that people want to buy, but by cultivating a charitable inclination, which Americans, on the whole, tend to have. As far as the gap between the "haves" and the "have-nots" this can more accurately be described as a disparity between the "dos" and the "do-nots." You cannot reward idleness, or impatience, and expect the economy to grow the wealth that can be marginally taxed for a modicum of a safety net needed for those who have difficulty supporting themselves. As Dennis Miller says, "we'll gladly help the helpless, just not the clueless."
Politicians with zeal, ouch. Yeah, both parties are driving this country to waste. One’s in a bigger hurry than the other, but invariably the same result. W, was good on national security and judges, taxes, but domestically in my mind just another Washington politician meddling in peoples lives.
Compassionate Conservatism, as many understand it, is not the answer. Nor is coming up with some grand scheme to expand the GOP tent. Republicans must adhere to their principles and convictions or else they were never principles at all.
http://www.isthisthechangeweneed.com/webblog/admi...
Republicans need a leader who can make the tent attractive, not bigger. They need someone who is articulate, intelligent, and not ashamed of his convictions; one who is not willing to sacrifice principle for the sake of popularity.
Most importantly, he needs to be able to explain WHY IT WORKS. As it stands right now, it seems the only ones who understand the benefits of Republicanism are those who practice it.
I was responding to wr's assertion that, when times are tough, hate and spite are not needed.
He seemed to forget that during the tough times while Bush was president, the Left offered us nothing but hate and spite.
As for opposing Obama, I am all for it. But, I think we can do it without all the hate and spite.
I agree on W's national security stance. As a lawyer (retired) I tended to focus on the Supreme Court because so many of the necessary security assets and operations could be undone by the addition of one new liberal seat on the court. Even the currently moderately conservative constructionist court managed to find a dubious habeas corpus right for wartime detainees which had never existed before. Like you, I have an innate distrust of "true believers" in political office. I want my pastor to be doctrinaire, but a doctrinaire religious President may just have the wrong doctrine in mind.
No, those are in real dollar amounts, the inflation has already been accounted for in the amount. Working incomes HAVE NOT declined, this is a myth.
AMEN!!! I wouldn't even give them the d@mn roads. Bid it out to contractors. Install tolls, viola. Police? Fire? Maybe. I could probably come up with a better system than local government BS fairly easily, also. I am sure all of us could.
Thank you!
you're only right… his acquiescence to Congress was regrettable; be it Republican or Democrat. History will indeed be kind, and it will not take 50 years… just a few of this loser…
interesting and fairly well-reasoned reply… as a cconservative I find myself much more in concert with libertarianism than any other competing ideology. My only problem is the abdication of societal responsibility; the laissez' faire approach to drug use and abortion send bad signals to our innocents whom we are tasked to protect. It is admittedly a small but real difference- understanding how difficult a moral code is to justify. Still, libertarians are my brothers (and sisiters) and we stand united… just wanted to smoke out the nitwits who claim to be that which they are not…
Hell, I already miss "W!"
[...] Big Hollywood » Blog Archive » When ‘Freedom’ And ‘Choice’ Are Neither bighollywood.breitbart.com/jromano/2009/03/14/freedom – view page – cached The doublespeak coming from Washington these days has Orwell twirling in his grave. Although he did not coin the term, Orwell is the father of all things, well Orwellian. Today’s political climate is the closest we’ve come to Orwell’s vision of 1984. — From the page [...]
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