Liberals are not all bad people. Like most everybody, they truly care about the world around them, and want to do whatever it takes to make it a better place. Unfortunately, liberals have been exposed to a pernicious idea, utterly compelling yet disastrously misleading, and this idea permeates every facet of their philosophy.
That lie is called Entitlement.
At the heart of every liberal program lies the idea that we are entitled to something just because we have a heartbeat. Liberals tell us that we are entitled to these things not because we've earned them, worked for them, or sacrificed for them; we are entitled to them because we have a pulse.
"As human beings, we have rights," the libs cry. "We have a right to this and a right to that, and it is our God-given right to demand the other thing too, (unless we're atheist, in which case we can still demand the other thing, we just don't try to determine the basis for it.)"
Like the grasshopper in Aesop's fable, liberals believe that the government owes them a living. It exists to meet their every need, regardless of their own efforts, or lack thereof. It is only through the confiscation of wealth from the productive members of society that the government can support the entitlement lie, which leads us to "progressive taxation," and "making the wealthy pay their fair share," which are both euphamisms for confiscation of earned wealth. (This dynamic is being caried out on a global scale today, particularly in the UN. The Kyoto Treaty was another good example.)
Put simply, modern liberalism is based on a lie which is propped up by theft.
So what are rights? How do we distinguish between true human rights, and the parasitic privileges of a wealthy culture? In the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson wrote,
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Note the essentially limited nature of those rights. True rights delineate opportunities, not outcomes. Health, wealth, and happiness are not rights; the pursuit of them is. Jefferson tells us that we have the right to struggle, nothing more. Compare this with the liberal laundry list of rights, most of which define outcomes, not opportunities.
Somehow, we've switched from protecting opportunities to directing outcomes, which in practice actually reduces our real rights and freedoms, as demonstrated by the recent SCOTUS decisions on afirmative action. By defining an outcome, a diverse student body, as a right, the right to equal protection under the law, as well as freedom of association is diminished.
It has been said that a civilized society takes care of those less fortunate, and that is certainly true. The problem comes when that compassion becomes mandatory, or when those less fortunate believe they have a right to that compassion. The productive members begin to shoulder more and more of the burden, while the rest of the population gets more demanding. Not only do they demand the right to high wages (unions), they demand to be paid when they're not working (FMLA benefits). Conditioned to expect their needs to be met by the governement, they become less willing/able to take care of themselves, creating a downward spiral which ends when the load exceeds the ability of the productive class to carry it, leading to societal collapse. It is the inevitable outcome of the Entitlement lie.
Posted by Rich at June 29, 2003 2:34 AM | TrackBackUnfortunately, liberals have been exposed to a pernicious idea, utterly compelling yet disastrously misleading, and this idea permeates every facet of their philosophy.
That lie is called Entitlement.
At the heart of every liberal program lies the idea that we are entitled to something just because we have a heartbeat. Liberals tell us that we are entitled to these things not because we've earned them, worked for them, or sacrificed for them; we are entitled to them because we have a pulse.
Put simply, modern liberalism is based on a lie which is propped up by theft.
Rich is simplistic AND misleading when he talks about entitlements
Rich says we liberal think:
1) We have a right to a good job at a good wage.
In the history of the United States we have moved from the gross exploitation of workers & child labor and sweat shops to collective bargaining and work place safety with the wealth of the wealthy management/ownership growing faster than the wages of workers. For a good business environment there has to be a balance of power between management / ownership and the work force. We know the history.
Does Rich want to return to the days of the Robber Barrons and child labor?
2) We have a right to a free basic education and a low cost college education.
The education systems that people have paid into and expect to have their children and grandchildren educated. Education is paid for by the residents of the community and with federal funds. It is in the best interest of the country to have an educated work force. Does Rich want to end the public school system?
3) We have a right to medical care.
Entitlements continued with Medicare and people have paid in and they expect to be taken care of like any other insurance program. FICA and SSI payments from everyone’s paycheck pay for Medicare. I have paid into it most of my working life and I am entitled to it because I paid into it.
4) We have a right to perscription drugs.
If the government decides that as part of medicare we can afford a drug program yes and it appears that the Republican Conservatives have decided it is a good idea.
5) We have a right to have the gov't look after us when we've finished working.
Entitlements started with Social Security a system where people have paid in for their working lives and expect to draw out in their retirement. America made a contract with workers and tax payers where we have paid into social security all our lives and we are entitled to the payments we have made after we retire.
Questions that arise for communities, states, and countries involved in government of the structures and systems that surround us and sustain us and the various positions we as common residents of those communities, states and country take in deciding what to do or not to do are one place where liberal and conservative social and economic divisions exist.
Conservatives typically like more prisons and police
Liberals typically like better schools and health facilities.
Liberals like head start programs, cultural improvements, and stricter environmental standards.
Liberals think government can improve the entire state, country and community by collectively spending more of the wealth of the country taken in taxes and that typically they can increase the wealth of the wealthy so they benefit more even with the larger tax bite.
Conservatives think that security and military protection are the only purposes of government. I ask Rich this question. 98% of the wealth in this country is controlled by a very small percentage of the people. That wealth is what is primarily protected by the more than 50% of every tax dollar we pay. This includes Veteran’s entitlements like VA care and payments to wounded soldiers, the Homeland Security department, and the Billions we just spent in Iraq.
Why should those Americans with so very little to lose pay disproportionate amounts of their income to protect the wealth of the very wealthy? Are the wealthy entitled to that protection?
Sure the wealthy think sales taxes and other regressive taxes are better along with a flat tax on income. But that does not account for the vast difference in the ownership of wealth and the growth of that wealth as its value increases. Ownership and equity are where great wealth is accumulated in this country and it is what we spend most of the discretionary funds to protect. That is the biggest entitlement in America. The entitlement of wealth and privilege.
The entitlements you mentioned are paid for by those entitled to them.
You are the one who is caught up in the lie Rich
The lie that there is no corporate welfare
The lie that there is no entitlement in wealth and privilege
The lie that liberals think they are owed something for nothing.
I missed the part where I was not only a liar but a THIEF because I am a liberal who has paid into Social Security and Medicare and taxes for education all my life and I think I am entitled to have my SS payments and medicare payments in my retirement. How is it that makes me a thief Rich?
Posted by: Barry Bozeman on June 29, 2003 9:49 AMI missed the part where I called you a liar and a thief Barry. A careful reading reveals that I did no such thing. Instead, I said that liberals have been taken in by a lie, and proceeded to illustrate it.
If you honestly believe that gov't exists to ensure that all our needs are met, then you are not a liar, even though that premise is a lie. If you honestly believe that it is okay to confiscate and redistribute the wealth of those who create it, then you are not a thief, even though is is theft of property.
See the new post for the rest of the reply
Posted by: rich on June 30, 2003 1:05 AM