Dixie - In Memoriam
New member
Hmmm.. I am having difficulty finding the Democrat proposal for Social Security reform, I am sure this is just an oversight on my part, since you assure me this is what Democrats want, but for the life of me, I can find absolutely nothing online about it. I even did a search on the Congressional website, to see if maybe a bill had been introduced but killed by those mean old republicans, and as of yet, I can't find anything.
But let's set that aside for a moment, Social Security was not originally intended to "help the poor." It was originally intended to be a social safety net for old people, so they wouldn't end up being a burden to their children. It had nothing to do with charity for the poor.
Well, the capitalist system has never said "to hell with everyone else." In fact, the capitalist system is responsible for our standard of living being light years ahead of everyone else in the free world. ("Free world" is a term often used to describe capitalist-loving free democracies.) Didn't you ever watch a PBS special? You know the part where the announcer says... This program is made possible by a grant from [insert capitalist here] and your donations? Have you never noticed, every year, billions of dollars worth of scholarships are handed out by capitalists? Even when a hospital builds a new wing and dedicates it to some rich old coot, that coot was probably a capitalist who gave money to the hospital. Most primary and secondary schools in America have a "Partner in Education" which is typically a local capitalist, who routinely participates with the school, in a myriad of activities. Not to mention, the largest contributors to all charity organizations, are in fact, capitalists.
Take unemployment. The main rule-makers are the businesses (remember, businesses are people)who pay a large portion of the cost. One can’t do “this”, they have to do “that” or they are disqualified. The same applies to other government programs.
My plan would be to get rid of the majority of government programs and have a guaranteed income. From unemployment and welfare to tax credits to special medical accounts to….combine government benefits/entitlements into one package. Everyone receiving income contributes and everyone without income receives an amount to cover life’s necessities. The vast majority of human beings are not satisfied to merely survive. The small percentage that is inevitable would not be a burden on the whole of society. Food, shelter, clothing, medical care. Life’s necessities. That’s about it.
You can't have a guaranteed income and not effect capitalism. Reason being, everyone's work is not of the same value. Brain surgeons make way more income than envelope stuffers, because what they do is worth more. The guy who engineers the roads makes more than the guy who bags your groceries, because the engineer's job is more important and requires more education and intelligence than a grocery bagger. Generally speaking, this is how it is across the board, people are paid on the basis of worth in the capitalist system, not some arbitrary mandate which has nothing to do with capitalism.
Again, show me one example of a human who died because they lacked a piece of paper? While you are at it, show us how a piece of paper can FORCE someone to get medical care and follow the doctor's advice in all cases? If you can do that, I might entertain your notion, but you aren't giving me anything more than SPECULATION.
In a sense, yes they do.
You see, the government doesn't have any means of creating revenue other than taxation. Taxation comes from Capitalists. Every penny the government spends, is the result of some capitalist initiative at some point. Some capitalist provided someone a job, paid their wages, and from that, taxes were derived. Or maybe the capitalist made profit, to which tax was collected? ...In YOUR model, capitalism is killed off, and replaced with a centralized government, who makes all of our decisions for us. As I pointed out, this system has never worked, and has always ended in abject corrupt and often heinous disaster.
Well, progress shouldn't change or alter what is "adequate and essential" to live. Humans don't suddenly need more to sustain life because more is available. I have never had a problem with helping those who are truly in need, but that isn't what liberal socialists are about at all, and that's not what you are about. You exploit the human condition in order to garner sympathy for the Socialist systems you wish to replace Capitalism with. You pull on our emotions to do something to help the poor and needy, when we already give more to the poor and needy than any other people on the planet. What is mad, is how your proposed system has, time and time again, proven to NOT help the poor and needy, but rather, further enslave them to the state as peasants and proles. In the process, the only people who are able to provide economic prosperity, the capitalists, are eliminated... one by one... piece by piece... they are replaced with Socialist programs. In the end, there are no true capitalists, only government brown shirts, who now control all the wealth and power, along with everything else. Gone is Liberty, Freedom, and Capitalism... Forever!
I don't have time to get to the rest of your post, my baby is graduating college today, and I have to get the monkey suit on. This will be enough for your brain to chew on while I am gone.
