Terrible Editorials, Opinion Pieces and Letters to the Editor

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Borneo Jimmy: Feb 27, 2007; by Smythe

http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentaries/171252671.html

quote:

I do not agree with how Mitt Romney delivered the message about the "47 percent." But the truth is, many of us have had similar conversations with friends. The difference is that we were not secretly filmed.

Having nearly half of American households receiving some type of government check is simply not sustainable. Yet that number will continue to rise. More and more baby boomers are entering retirement. I am in my early 40s, and my generation is the smallest out there and will be depended on, along with Gen Y behind us, to carry a big burden. Where is the money going to come from?

It is about time these issues get talked about. Romney and his running mate, Paul Ryan, risk losing votes talking about these things, and I am sure President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden are smiling. But we are bankrupting ourselves, partly with programs that were designed to be short-term and help those in need for a short time.

Too many healthy American adults are on disability who should not be. I have heard it all -- my back hurts, I was in an accident, I get tired too easily, etc., etc.

Why do I not have compassion for them? Two reasons. First, when I go into my local Target store, I often run into a store employee who is in a wheelchair, a man who cannot walk or even use his arms or hands very well. He has trouble speaking clearly. Yet he manages to put on his Target badge and proudly ask me if I need help finding anything. Twice he has led me to what I was looking for. If he can do it, I think most can, and I think most employers are very accommodating for those with disabilities.

Second, my back hurts from time to time. I am tired. I work long hours. And frankly, my health is not perfect. But I work, and I do it proudly, and do not expect someone else to take care of me.

Having nearly 50 million Americans on food stamps is a tragedy. This number has grown tremendously, and the benefits have increased. We all know this is a problem but don't want to address it. The program is being abused, plain and simple. Fraud is occurring; recent articles noted that Minnesota has one of the highest levels of fraud on electronic benefit transfer cards.

Grocery stores across the nation open at midnight, when EBT cards get loaded, and run sales. Store managers and department managers will tell you (though not on a microphone or in front of a camera) that carts get loaded with lobster tails, crab legs, steaks, shrimp. This is abuse. If you need food stamps, great, but use them to buy flour, cereal, chicken, fish, fruits and vegetables and milk and cheese. Someone who is working hard and struggles to buy ground beef certainly does not need to see someone on the dole buying steak and lobster. It is an insult.

Medicare and Social Security were designed to supplement income upon retirement and for those who lost a spouse and have children to take care of. Two good programs with great intentions. However, over the past 60 or so years, things have changed.

People are living longer. The average American lived to about 65 at the end of World War II; today, the average is near 80. A 15-year increase, and 15 more years per person of cost. The age is now rising for full benefits, and for my generation we are looking at 70, with likely another increase coming before we retire. That will partially solve the problem, but remember, we are a much smaller generation. To fix a problem, you have to go after everything and get to the heart of the matter. Current recipients of these programs are rising fast, and those claiming benefits are living longer.

The big argument rises here: "I earned it." "They earned it." There are clear and hard-to-take answers for this: "No, they did not, and no, you did not." I know it hurts. It hurts to say it. I don't like it. But few have paid enough taxes into the program to sustain their benefits much beyond five years, in particular those in poor health requiring a lot of medical attention.

Today, when someone is 88 and their knee starts giving out, we give them surgery -- often expensive, major surgery and aftercare. I remember, growing up, seeing many elderly walking with canes; today, those canes have all but disappeared. Please do not misunderstand me, I want our seniors to be comfortable and live well. But I also want to make sure we can pay for it and do not bankrupt ourselves in the process.

Ask yourselves a hard question: Would you rather see a few more canes, or would you rather see America bankrupt and a situation like Greece's or Spain's emerging? I think we all know the answer is obvious; it is just hard to say. It is even harder to debate and discuss and solve, but it needs to be done.

----------------------------

Will Nagle lives in Apple Valley.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 16:46

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# ? May 27, 2024 18:56

Malmesbury Monster: Nov 5, 2011

Borneo Jimmy posted:

gently caress THE DISABLED

My grandmother went through knee surgery a few years ago so that she could walk period. She still uses a cane, in part because she didn't take her physical therapy seriously, but in part because she has really bad knees and surgery can only do so much.

This guy exemplifies conservative whining. "How dare people who aren't me get things from the government?" The irony in their bootstrapping rhetoric is that they always sound so jealous of the people who aren't working. They put no more value in labor than the people they hate, they just don't seem to know how to get those sweet welfare bucks.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 18:24

Leon Einstein: Feb 6, 2012; I must win every thread in GBS. I don't care how much banal semantic quibbling and shitty posts it takes.

Ah, so we're going bankrupt because old people don't use canes anymore. Seriously, this is the level of discourse in today's America. What in the gently caress.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 18:39

Ghost of Reagan Past: Oct 7, 2003; rock and roll fun

88? Why aren't you working, you goddamn parasite?

# ? Sep 26, 2012 18:50

Frog Act: Feb 10, 2012

Man why would anyone hold up a severely disabled person having to work at Target for just over minimum wage as an positive example of American character? That's seriously depressing as hell.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 20:02

Mo_Steel: Mar 7, 2008; Let's Clock Into The Sunset Together; Fun Shoe

^^^ More importantly, that person is probably on disability too, or would be if they didn't earn more than the ridiculously low cap on SSDI of $1,010 a month. That's right, if you earn more than $12k annually you cannot collect SSDI anymore because that's too much "meaningful gainful activity" to be disabled. It's like throwing a drowning person a life preserver that only just barely keeps their mouth above the water. Look, you're not drowning anymore! What, help you get to shore? I already helped you!

Borneo Jimmy posted:

http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentaries/171252671.html

Oh thank god I'm not the only one who saw this today and almost swore at the newspaper in disbelief. The part that annoyed me the most was the false dilemma at the end. Let grandpa suffer with terrible knees or go bankrupt are not our only two choices, particularly when tax rates are at a decades-long low point.

Mo_Steel fucked around with this message at 20:07 on Sep 26, 2012

# ? Sep 26, 2012 20:03

Ytlaya: Nov 13, 2005

Borneo Jimmy posted:

gently caress people with health problems

This sort of opinion is one of very few things that makes me consider someone a genuinely Bad Person. Stuff like violent crimes and what have you almost always have mental illness as a factor, but the decision to actively prioritize the punishing of "bad/lazy people" over helping people in need is completely inexcusable. If the person with these views is well off/privileged themselves, it makes them even more detestable.

To put this in perspective, I virtually never get mad about anything. I never get angry while driving, etc because I always assume that maybe the person was distracted because they were having a hard time in their life or something. I think that even the most terrible murderer deserves treatment if they suffer from a mental illness. But I can't think of any way to excuse the sort of view expressed by that letter writer (and unfortunately a large portion of other people).

# ? Sep 26, 2012 20:40

Boxman: Sep 27, 2004; Big fan of

Mo_Steel posted:

^^^ More importantly, that person is probably on disability too, or would be if they didn't earn more than the ridiculously low cap on SSDI of $1,010 a month. That's right, if you earn more than $12k annually you cannot collect SSDI anymore because that's too much "meaningful gainful activity" to be disabled.

Actually, that's true for DIB, the insurance side of things too (you qualify for DIB by having paid in FICA taxes and what not). SSDI is resource tested, which means (i think - this is a bit outside my range of knowledge) if you own too many things, the system won't pay out.

But yeah, the criteria for social security disability is pretty strict, and as someone who's job it is to know that criteria, screw anyone who thinks millions are getting paid just because one day they go "hmm...my knee has been acting up lately. Better go on the dole!"

# ? Sep 26, 2012 21:58

MaxxBot: Oct 6, 2003; you could have clapped

you should have clapped!!

Jesus loving christ, I know food, housing, and quality education is far too much to ask for in America without being branded a lazy parasite but I didn't think "ability to walk" was going to be added to the list.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 22:13

Kugyou no Tenshi: Nov 8, 2005; We can't keep the crowd waiting, can we?

Boxman posted:

SSDI is resource tested, which means (i think - this is a bit outside my range of knowledge) if you own too many things, the system won't pay out.

SSI (supplemental) is means-tested, not SSDI (disability).

Also, SSDI is a horrible clusterfuck to get sometimes. The SSA office has absolutely no obligations to the people that apply for benefits to actually follow even their own guidelines. If they lie to you, too bad - hope you can afford a doctor's visit to get new medical evidence to disprove their bullshit. Guess what? Most cheap doctors and clinics won't make a statement of disability. Heaven forbid you be poor enough to not be able to afford a doctor who will, and you live in a state in which you can not get disability without it (despite the fact that the SSA does not require it to begin with). Also, most big-name disability attorneys (like Binder & Binder) literally will not take your case unless you have that statement. At least disability attorneys can only get paid out of your back-owed benefits...

I'm on year four of trying to get disability.

Kugyou no Tenshi fucked around with this message at 22:21 on Sep 26, 2012

# ? Sep 26, 2012 22:15

Boxman: Sep 27, 2004; Big fan of

Kugyou no Tenshi posted:

SSI (supplemental) is means-tested, not SSDI (disability).

Proving that I'm still pretty new to this. Stupid government alphabet soup. :argh:

The Substantial Gainful Activity thing does apply to both, though.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 22:21

Mo_Steel: Mar 7, 2008; Let's Clock Into The Sunset Together; Fun Shoe

Boxman posted:

Proving that I'm still pretty new to this. Stupid government alphabet soup. The Substantial Gainful Activity thing does apply to both, though.

It's all good, the nuances of the various programs that exist to help people can be easy to mix up, particularly when it's similar programs from the same overarching header.

# ? Sep 26, 2012 23:48

Kugyou no Tenshi: Nov 8, 2005; We can't keep the crowd waiting, can we?

Mo_Steel posted:

It's all good, the nuances of the various programs that exist to help people can be easy to mix up, particularly when it's similar programs from the same overarching header.

poo poo, even SSA employees sometimes get that wrong. Had someone from my local office (accidentally) try to tell me that SSDI is means-tested when I was applying, which is probably the only reason I already knew it isn't. But yeah, the whole SSA is a huge bureaucratic clusterfuck that often can't find its rear end with both hands, a map, and a service animal. But this isn't the thread for me to go on any more tirades about it.

# ? Sep 27, 2012 00:14

Womyn Capote: Jul 5, 2004

I love people who think people on food stamps are going out eating lobster and steak all the time and coming back to their free section 8 housing. I know people who think this, and when I ask them if its so great why not quit your job and get those benefits. They tell me its because they are too ethical or some bullshit and don't want to set that kind of example for their children. They are just dumb.

# ? Sep 28, 2012 14:24

Limbo: Oct 4, 2006

DONT CARE BUTTON posted:

I love people who think people on food stamps are going out eating lobster and steak all the time and coming back to their free section 8 housing. I know people who think this, and when I ask them if its so great why not quit your job and get those benefits. They tell me its because they are too ethical or some bullshit and don't want to set that kind of example for their children. They are just dumb.

I wish I could get in on this sweet steak and lobster action. I'm on food stamps and all mine seem to go for cheap cuts of meat, pasta and staples. Sometimes we really splurge and buy all the stuff for dirty rice. I really need to find out the code for the all luxury food level I suppose.

# ? Sep 28, 2012 15:47

Johnny Cache Hit: Oct 17, 2011

Limbo posted:

I wish I could get in on this sweet steak and lobster action. I'm on food stamps and all mine seem to go for cheap cuts of meat, pasta and staples. Sometimes we really splurge and buy all the stuff for dirty rice. I really need to find out the code for the all luxury food level I suppose.

Maybe if you spent less money on staples you could afford better food. Just fold the corners of the paper together. :downsrim:

My parents never played the "steak and lobster" card about food stamps/welfare but have talked about how "wealth redistribution is socialism." Same sentiment, really, just couched in different words. My dad was a farmer in the 1990s who relied on federal crop insurance and federal farm subsidies to help run his business. Still, farming is really hard, so me and my sisters ate thanks to WIC. The only moral welfare is my welfare, I guess. It reminds me of a scene from Mississippi Burning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlzaBi_QxPw

# ? Sep 28, 2012 16:31

Nintendo Kid: Aug 4, 2011; by Smythe

The lobster part is especially hilarious because of http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=63543

Lobster literally was considered trash food to be given to the poor as charity and prisoners as basic food, while the normal folk ate "real" seafood and other foods.

And in most of the Northeast lobster is still pretty darn cheap too.

# ? Sep 28, 2012 18:50

VideoTapir: Oct 18, 2005; He'll tire eventually.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2012/09/daily-chart-13#comments

quote:

dave.wane@gmail.com Sep 27th, 16:03

Australian beer prices, like fuel and so many other everyday commodities are way too high - mainly due to greedy BIG Australian governments taxing and charging to pay for their big, bloated and mostly unnecessary bureaucracies. Little wonder that tourism numbers are dying up. Here in the US (where I am now)almost everything is far cheaper than Australia - even when considering state taxes. Australia is rapidly taxing itself out of existence by taxing the dwindling numbers of wealth producers to pay for the ever increasing numbers of people feeding at the taxpayer-funded-trough as government employees. Socialist Labor governments have destroyed the finances of all states and territories and of course the catastrophic Rudd-Gillard Socialist Labor has trashed our nation's once healthy balance sheet. One cannot talk about the cost of any commodity without talking about the root cause: Big Greedy Bloated government.

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Fuel prices and declining disposable incomes couldn't have anything to do with a drop in tourism.

Speculation, what's that?

# ? Sep 29, 2012 04:05

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

VideoTapir posted:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2012/09/daily-chart-13#comments

Fuel prices and declining disposable incomes couldn't have anything to do with a drop in tourism.

Speculation, what's that?

He's also not factoring in the socialism we have in the US, like farm subsidies and tariffs on foreign goods (including sugar and alcohol), which are what allow goods and services to be so comparatively cheap in the US. It's not really fair to make a big poo poo deal about how much better it is to be in the US due to better prices and lower taxes when you aren't factoring in all the direct and indirect government intervention which makes those goods and services cheaper.

# ? Sep 29, 2012 05:12

Malmesbury Monster: Nov 5, 2011

Another day, another incoherent letter to the editor!

A few weeks ago, someone wrote us a letter comparing Mitt Romney with Mr. Potter and Obama with George Bailey I guess, referencing "It's A Wonderful Life." It's not terrible, but it does provide the context for our recent submission:

quote:

If you think this election is about a war on coal, the right to life, the pro�tection of marriage, a government takeover of health care, or a culture of entitlement, you are wrong. This election is about a choice between two very different personal philoso�phies.

This difference is best represent�ed in a scene from �It�s a Wonderful Life�. Midway through the movie, Mr. Potter, after disparaging how little George Bailey has to show for all his ambition and efforts, offers George a job. While tempted, George counters by pointing out that while wealthy, Mr. Potter is morally bankrupt, and refuses the job offer.

I do not claim that Mitt Romney is as evil and self-serving as Mr. Potter or that President Obama is as good and selfless as George Bailey. I am convinced that the Potters of this world will vote for Mitt Romney and the George Baileys of this world will be voting for President Obama. Those of us in between must decide which side of this divide we fall on. Given the history of suffering and deprivation visited on West Virginia by the likes of Mr. Potter, President Obama should win this state in a landslide.

But Karl Rove and his disciples have made recent elections about anything except the truth about their plan for America. Their goal is to starve the federal government into collapse, and when the last bulwark of protection the American people have against greed and avarice is gone, we will all wake up in Pottersville.

Maybe a little unseasonable, but hey! At least it's interesting. And then there's this guy. Bold added for emphasis.

quote:

I agree with the recent submission to the Readers Write that this elec�tion is about two different personal philosophies.

However, what President Obama�s personal philosophy really entails wasn�t presented. Unfortunately for America, the mainstream media also failed to fulfill its civic responsibili�ty four years ago and tell America the truth about then presidential can�didate Obama and his socialist beliefs.

After four years we have seen President Obama�s personal philoso�phy forced upon America and it is failing miserably. Forget asking whether we as adults are better off than we were four years ago. Our children are the ones we should be worried about. Thanks to President Obama�s personal philosophy, our future generations are facing a poten�tially insurmountable public debt. They can�t afford four more years of Obama�s personal philosophies being transformed into public policy.

The bottom line is that the current administration under Obama�s guid�ance believes that they know better than you how your hard-earned money should be redistributed.

In addition, President Obama fails to demonstrate true leadership by taking responsibility for our coun�try�s current condition. Instead, he continues to be divisive and to play the blame and demonization game. His re-election campaign isn�t based upon his record of success because it is non-existent.

Conversely, presidential candidate Romney�s personal philosophies are quite simply based on freedom and capitalism. He believes in empower�ing the public and providing oppor�tunities for everyone to better them�selves and their personal situations.

Mr. Romney�s personal philoso�phies mirror those that our great nation was built upon and have sus�tained its success for well over two centuries.

In closing, I reiterate that our choice for the upcoming presidential election is a choice between two per�sonal philosophies. The clear choice for Mr. Romney will turn this coun�try around and present every American with the opportunity to live their wonderful life in any American town such as Bedford Falls, United States Of America. On the contrary, the wrong choice for President Obama will put us one step further down the path of living out a mediocre existence in some town maybe called Bedford Falls, Some New Socialist Republic.

SOCIALISM

# ? Sep 29, 2012 20:16

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

Malmesbury Monster posted:

Another day, another incoherent letter to the editor!

A few weeks ago, someone wrote us a letter comparing Mitt Romney with Mr. Potter and Obama with George Bailey I guess, referencing "It's A Wonderful Life." It's not terrible, but it does provide the context for our recent submission:

Maybe a little unseasonable, but hey! At least it's interesting. And then there's this guy. Bold added for emphasis.

SOCIALISM

Any Republicans who try to criticize others in relationship to the national debt should be legally obligated to preface what they say with the admission that the vast majority of the debt was racked up by Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. I'm really loving sick of them purposely obfuscating these facts while simultaneously blaming Obama for any and all increases in the national debt.

# ? Sep 29, 2012 22:14

Salvor_Hardin: Sep 13, 2005; I want to go protest.; Nap Ghost

Bruce Leroy posted:

He's also not factoring in the socialism we have in the US, like farm subsidies and tariffs on foreign goods (including sugar and alcohol), which are what allow goods and services to be so comparatively cheap in the US. It's not really fair to make a big poo poo deal about how much better it is to be in the US due to better prices and lower taxes when you aren't factoring in all the direct and indirect government intervention which makes those goods and services cheaper.

Wait, why would tariffs result in cheaper prices? They raise the price of cheap foreign imports in order to give local business a competitive advantage. Without them the cheap foreign goods would be the norm.

# ? Sep 29, 2012 22:44

Nintendo Kid: Aug 4, 2011; by Smythe

Yeah and all forms of sugar are more expensive in the US than globally, specifically as a result of the sugar tariffs locking out cheap foreign sugar. HFCS isn't even cheap as a sugar compared to the global sugar market, it's only relatively cheaper than other sugars are due to the tariff.

# ? Sep 29, 2012 23:40

SMILLENNIALSMILLEN: Jun 26, 2009

VideoTapir posted:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2012/09/daily-chart-13#comments

Fuel prices and declining disposable incomes couldn't have anything to do with a drop in tourism.

Speculation, what's that?

People like that are the absolute worst. They take every advantage of living in a modern welfare state on their way up only to turn around and try and tear the whole structure down when they've got all their use from it instead of paying it forward. Yeah let's copy the US, less rights and more wage slavery please. Cheep beer will be no small comfort when it's all we can afford to live on.

SMILLENNIALSMILLEN fucked around with this message at 03:24 on Sep 30, 2012

# ? Sep 30, 2012 03:19

occipitallobe: Jul 16, 2012

VideoTapir posted:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2012/09/daily-chart-13#comments

Fuel prices and declining disposable incomes couldn't have anything to do with a drop in tourism.

Speculation, what's that?

gently caress yeah, I've always wanted three times the student debt with three or four times the interest, not to mention my potential minimum-wage job to pay a third as much.

Seriously, people who assume that the US is the land of milk and honey need to pull their head out of their arse and maybe go visit, or at least read a loving newspaper.

# ? Sep 30, 2012 05:25

VideoTapir: Oct 18, 2005; He'll tire eventually.

Foreigners get their ideas about American life from TV and movies. I usually recommend they watch Breaking Bad and Squidbillies for a more accurate portrayal.

# ? Sep 30, 2012 06:27

FlamingLiberal: Jan 18, 2009; Would you like to play a game?

katlington posted:

People like that are the absolute worst. They take every advantage of living in a modern welfare state on their way up only to turn around and try and tear the whole structure down when they've got all their use from it instead of paying it forward. Yeah let's copy the US, less rights and more wage slavery please. Cheep beer will be no small comfort when it's all we can afford to live on.

We have one of these people on the Supreme Court. Clarence Thomas has long been an advocate of abolishing Affirmative Action and other similar programs aimed at helping minorities succeed, but he himself benefited from Affirmative Action when he got into college. He's also always going to be a monster in my book for writing a dissent in a case claiming that schools should have the right to strip-search children at will, for any reason they deem necessary. Thankfully no one else on the Court voted with him in that case.

# ? Sep 30, 2012 07:58

Pththya-lyi: Nov 8, 2009; THUNDERDOME LOSER 2020

VideoTapir posted:

Foreigners get their ideas about American life from TV and movies. I usually recommend they watch Breaking Bad and Squidbillies for a more accurate portrayal.

It cannot be overstated how much American television exaggerates our quality of life. No, we don't all live in spacious, well-furnished apartments in New York or Los Angeles.

# ? Sep 30, 2012 08:06

KomradeX: Oct 29, 2011

Hell not even the people in NY or LA live in apartments like that

e: Or at least most of them

# ? Sep 30, 2012 22:01

Nathilus: Apr 4, 2002; I alone can see through the media bias.

I'm also stupid on a scale that can only be measured in Reddits.

VideoTapir posted:

Foreigners get their ideas about American life from TV and movies. I usually recommend they watch Breaking Bad and Squidbillies for a more accurate portrayal.

Your life is like Breaking Bad? I am so loving sorry, you might want to consider moving. I can't particularly think of any movie my life has been like. An even less funny Kevin Smith movie where less happens than usual and the cast is a shade more socially acceptable? IDK. Or perhaps Ferris Bueller's day off except middle income and Ferris plus the wild adventures are just a fantasy of his whitebread best friend.

Actually I lie. Just thought of one. Though it was meant for a generation previous to mine, Stand By Me evokes the feeling of childhood where I grew up in the 80s.

Anyway I had a point before I started rambling. A big problem with the views foreigners who have never been here have of America is that they think it can be easily encapsulated. Breaking Bad might be like some peoples lives... a very small minority. America is so vast and diverse, it's hard to imagine what it's like unless you live somewhere similarly vast and diverse. India and China come to mind. My state, Texas, often gets vilified for dumb poo poo people out in the boonies do. While I've visited small East Texas towns and have a bit of experience with that kind of behavior, having grown up in big cities; I can't identify with it. In many cases I have more in common with people from a city a thousand miles away than people from a small town a few hundred miles away. But the gulf in culture of cities where I live, deep South metropolises, East and West Coast, etc. are similarly vast.

# ? Sep 30, 2012 22:16

Choadmaster: Oct 7, 2004; I don't care how snug they fit, you're nuts!

Nathilus posted:

Your life is like Breaking Bad? I am so loving sorry, you might want to consider moving.

Maybe he meant as far as the generic suburban home / crappy job / mounting healthcare debt is concerned. But as long as we're on the subject of Bryan Cranston and lovely suburban American living, there's Malcolm in the Middle.

# ? Sep 30, 2012 22:28

dumpieXL: Sep 7, 2007; redacks

Found this after it was reprinted in today's local paper...

quote:

Let's be blunt, Obama is a Socialist with a well suppressed, virtually unknowable background. We've reached the point where an incumbent Socialist president with no history may rule with impunity, and almost half of America is OK with that.

If re-elected, I believe he will change our current state of partial freedom and liberty, to a state of certain serfdom. When the Government owns our property and controls our income, we become serfs. Once freedom is lost, it is lost forever.

So let's examine life under Obamic Socialism. At first, he will certainly increase taxes on �the rich� , increase taxes and regulations on industries, and cut our military capabilities to 2nd class status, endangering us and the world. Our children will continue becoming indebted wards of the state, evermore dependent on government for meals, daily activities, and indoctrination from womb-to-tomb, like �Julia� on Obama's website. Then, some emergency (riots against entitlement cut-backs, terrorist attacks, whatever) will cause him to �temporarily� suspend the Constitution. At that point we're doomed. We will then be assigned jobs �according to our abilities� . We will all be given food, housing, and health care �according to our needs� . Read �They Thought They Were Free� by Milton Mayer for firsthand accounts how Hitler accomplished this after his election to power.

Why does Socialism have such allure? Many Americans believe that having government bureaucrats controlling our personal resources will somehow be more just and fair than controlling them ourselves. That bureaucrats will execute this responsibility with altruism and benevolence. That pooling all resources together will allow fair and just re-distribution of wealth to all �according to their needs� . This is classical Socialism, and assumes we'll all be happy working for the common good. But because of human nature, it just doesn't work. People work for their own benefit first, and for others secondarily. In 1884 William Lecky said it best. �The desire of each man to improve his circumstances, to reap the full reward of superior talent, or energy, or thrift, is the very mainspring of the production of the world. Take these motives away, cut off all the hopes that stimulate, among ordinary men, ambition, enterprise, invention, and self-sacrifice, and the whole level of production will rapidly and inevitably sink.�

Unfortunately the imposition of Socialism requires force. This force will at first be threats and fines, but failing this, will evolve into real force � imprisonment, beatings, torture, and killings. It will all be legal since the Constitution will be gone.

�Oh you're exaggerating, that can't happen in America, we're educated and enlightened� you say. Think again. Our public school system has been turning out undereducated unenlightened Socialists for decades, and they're now in positions of authority.

As Socialism was imposed on Russia, China, Cuba, Venezuela, and others, the inevitable results were that the economy collapses, and they ended up with bread lines, grey cinder-block cities, and universal corruption and destitution. And what did they do with their dissidents, homosexuals, intellectuals, mentally ill, and other misfits? They killed them, or interned them for �re-education� . Read �The Gulag Archipelago� for firsthand accounts of how this worked in Russia � the enlightened, highly educated, first into space, Russia.

So what's different about voting ourselves into Socialism under Obama? Only that it's peacefully self-inflicted instead of by violent overthrow. The end result is the same, universal serfdom, and worse, there will be no America left to rescue us. We are the only ones that can rescue anyone, but we must first keep ourselves free. Please vote to keep America free in November. It may be our last chance to do so.

V: A good effort, but he missed an opportunity by not name dropping 'FEMA death-camps'. 8.5/10

# ? Oct 1, 2012 21:11

Guilty Spork: Feb 26, 2011; Thunder rolled. It rolled a six.

quote:

and cut our military capabilities to 2nd class status, endangering us and the world.

Wikipedia has a handy list of countries by military expenditure. The US could cut its military budget by a TRILLION dollars and still be ahead of China.

I love how the people who are the loudest cheerleaders for the U.S. military are also the ones who make it out to be so amazingly fragile that the repeal of DADT or the modest cuts that Obama _might_ try to get through could be enough to ruin it somehow.

# ? Oct 1, 2012 22:28

Shipon: Nov 7, 2005

dumpieXL posted:

Found this after it was reprinted in today's local paper...

V: A good effort, but he missed an opportunity by not name dropping 'FEMA death-camps'. 8.5/10

Laughing at the idea of socialist serfdom. Of course, these are the same sort of people who equate Tsars with Soviet Russia.

# ? Oct 1, 2012 23:55

Boxman: Sep 27, 2004; Big fan of

I really like the phrase "Obamic Socialism."

# ? Oct 2, 2012 16:41

Ghost of Reagan Past: Oct 7, 2003; rock and roll fun

Boxman posted:

I really like the phrase "Obamic Socialism."

I really wonder if editors just publish letters because they're insane, sometimes.

This leads me to believe so.

# ? Oct 2, 2012 17:27

Chief McHeath: Apr 23, 2002

Ghost of Reagan Past posted:

I really wonder if editors just publish letters because they're insane, sometimes.

Yes, yes they do. From the Lexington Herald Leader on Sunday, this ran under a LTE from Rand Paul:

quote:

I'm very sorry for the medical situation that caused the creator of Cul De Sac to end the comic strip's run. But, the paper's additional termination of Daddy's Home leaves me sad and disappointed.

Daddy's Home is a very timely comic, with the interactions between father and young son, as well as the philosophical connections with his next-door neighbor. I plead with you to bring it back.

If something has to go, I'd suggest Dilbert which has run its course and is no longer funny. Doonesbury is yet another comic that has never interested me.

I imagine they read this and thought, "Holy poo poo, who would waste their time? We have to publish this one!"

# ? Oct 2, 2012 17:54

Presto: Nov 22, 2002; Keep calm and Harry on.

George Will has an absolute peach today. Why is Obama winning the polls? Because he's black.

George Will posted:

Perhaps a pleasant paradox defines this political season: That Obama is African American may be important, but in a way quite unlike that darkly suggested by, for example, MSNBC�s excitable boys and girls who, with their (at most) one-track minds and exquisitely sensitive olfactory receptors, sniff racism in any criticism of their pin-up. Instead, the nation, which is generally reluctant to declare a president a failure � thereby admitting that it made a mistake in choosing him � seems especially reluctant to give up on the first African American president. If so, the 2012 election speaks well of the nation�s heart, if not its head.

# ? Oct 2, 2012 19:48

Guilty Spork: Feb 26, 2011; Thunder rolled. It rolled a six.

These days I read enough stuff where people of color relate their true real life experiences with racism that I occasionally forget that a lot of (white) conservatives inhabit a fantasy world where racism isn't a problem anymore.

In 2008 I saw a clip of an old white lady saying she didn't want Obama to win because then "the blacks would take over," but I'm sure being (half) black helps Obama more than it hinders him. :rolleyes:

# ? Oct 3, 2012 00:29

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# ? May 27, 2024 18:56

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

Guilty Spork posted:

Wikipedia has a handy list of countries by military expenditure. The US could cut its military budget by a TRILLION dollars and still be ahead of China.

I love how the people who are the loudest cheerleaders for the U.S. military are also the ones who make it out to be so amazingly fragile that the repeal of DADT or the modest cuts that Obama _might_ try to get through could be enough to ruin it somehow.

The best part is that the defense budget has actually increased every year since Obama became president. At most, the defense department just shifted resources around to different programs, but the amount of money available to it has increased. The people who are arguing about Obama destroying the military are either lying scaremongers, ignorant and stupid, or bigots who equate letting gays serve openly as "destroying" the military.

Presto posted:

George Will has an absolute peach today. Why is Obama winning the polls? Because he's black.

The worst part is him using his florid prose to say the same conservative tropes without specifically using the phrase "Playing the race card." It's like he thinks people who aren't conservative white assholes won't notice him dog whistling because he used big words.

I'm still surprised at how George Will is set up as the example of intelligent, refined conservatism just because of his diction, when, in reality, he's just saying the same stupid bullshit as less educated assholes like Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, and Rush Limbaugh.

# ? Oct 3, 2012 04:45

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Terrible Editorials, Opinion Pieces and Letters to the Editor

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