The Deuce Blog

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The New American Dream

Is it me, or are we losing our country to a group of people that have no sense of what it takes to make this great nation work? It should be impossible that a presidential candidate can say to a hard working American business owner that he “wants to spread the wealth so the people behind you don’t get left behind” and that it gets played again on national television, even by the mainstream media and still Obama is leading in the polls. Granted McCain has made Kerry’s campaign in 2004 look like a well-oiled machine, but that’s for another blog.

            What are the American people thinking? Have we lost that much pride in ourselves that we believe that we should take money from hard working American’s and give it to people that haven’t earned it. Don’t tell me that the rich can afford it, because that is a BS excuse. The fact is that 80% of people that are millionaires are self-made millionaires. They work hard for their money, working long hours, and being frugal. Maybe if some of us had been a little more frugal we wouldn’t have this collapse in the housing market that we are seeing today. Seriously, you make $40,000 a year and you think you can afford a $200,000 house? If you believed that then you deserve the mess you’re in.

            Back to my point, the point is we have no right to take money from those that have earned it and give it to those that don’t have as much. We already have something like that and it’s called welfare. Do those people really need more of our money to waste? I know I am tired of paying for people to get their vouchers for childcare, and food. Granted some people truly need the help and I am all for that, but many flat out abuse the system. Politicians keep on saying we are going to help the “middle class”, so my question to them is when the hell I am going to get my childcare vouchers. The answer is never because I actually believe in the crazy old “American Dream” when you should go to work and get what you earn so therefore I make too much money according to the government. Plus I wouldn’t take the vouchers anyway; I have more pride than that, I refuse to let the government take care of my family.

            Well now we have a choice this election. Now we can vote for Barrack Obama and vote for a man that wants to spread the wealth. Someone call the U.S.S.R and see how well that worked out for them, and while you’re at it give England and Canada a buzz about their Universal Health Care Programs to see how that’s going. Obama is selling this New American Dream, that government should solve your problems and hard working people that have wealth should pay for it, and for some reason the American people are buying it. Are we really that lazy in America that we aren’t willing to earn it ourselves? I am not saying that McCain is the answer, but I can tell you Socialism isn’t. McCain is a far better choice than Obama. As Earl Pitts would say “WAKE UP AMERICA”, if World War II veterans were known as the greatest generation, I am afraid we are currently staring at the worst generation if we are willing to rely on the government to take care of us all.

 

 

 

October 22, 2008 - Posted by | Politics | , , ,

4 Comments »

  1. Democrats and Liberals have never believed in the way our government was founded upon: a weak federal government and strong local/state governments. When the federal government is controlling people’s everyday lives, taking money away from hard working Americans, and giving free money to people without college educations or lazy asses…SOMETHING is wrong!

    You’re right. America’s millionaires are self-made millionaires and we have so many people that are blinded by Barack Obama’s illusion of spreading the wealth to realize that. Michael Dell, for example, started his business by building and repairing computers in his dorm room at college. He wasn’t born with, inherited, or just given millions of dollars for the hell of it…he earned EVERY SINGLE penny and worked long strenuous hours to get to where he is and his company is. Same goes for Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and hell…even Barack’s good ol’ buddy Warren Buffett.

    Every single election, the focus is on middle-class America. And every single time, nothing ever comes of it. Where’s my frickin’ vouchers or government checks?

    People in this country are so blinded and mesmerized by Barack Obama and his speeches that they really don’t see the big picture. “We need a change,” they say and “GOP is not the answer.” Really? From my recent memories, FDR was President during WWII and we went into a Great Depression. JFK was president during the start of Vietnam and the economy sucked and we went into a slim recession. Both were Democrats, and it’s common knowledge that when you go into a war, the economy will NOT flourish!! And the Democrat/Liberal “change” thing is nothing but a joke anyway. Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Liberal…those are ALL labels and mean absolutely nothing to anyone that has a lick of common sense.

    Ask the good men and women of the Armed Forces…which 68% of them support John McCain and barely 20% support Barack Obama. Who would be the better leader domestically and internationally, you reckon? Not to mention, Obama wouldn’t even be able to obtain a secret or top secret clearance because of his associations with radicals and criminals.

    We truly are in a sad state of mind thinking that a socialist is going to guide us along the path to prosperity.

    Comment by Rob Dicken | October 22, 2008

  2. Thanks for the invite to the blog. Now I get to smear it with my liberal nonsense. Ok, I’m actually independent b/c I have some very conversative views but regarding the topic of discussion here, I suppose I’m more liberal. Maybe I can keep u guys honest…you don’t want too much agreement on an opinion driven blog.

    Allow me to begin with a statement hopefully we all agree with – capitalism isn’t perfect. If it were the words Enron, bailout, AIG spa treatment wouldn’t mean much to us. With that said it seems that any deviation from our beloved capitalism is regarded as socialism, a word that’s been pretty recklessly thrown around in recent months.
    -Here’s Socialism: Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means of producing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that often plans and controls the economy-

    Taxing the top 5% of America doens’t exactly fit this description. Look, I understand what you’re saying and yes his words “spread the wealth” could have been more carefully chosen but let’s not over exaggerate here. Also, I’m making some asumptions here but none of us will be affected by this tax increase so whatever you’re paying now to sponsor vouchers and welfare you’ll continue to pay.
    My stance on this is based on the belief that 1) all of America needs to help bear the burden of our debt & getting our economy on track, 2) the middle class shouldn’t be taxed any more, we’ve paid more than our fair share and 3)taxing the poor would be pretty fruitless and a kick in the pants. So who’s left?

    Furthermore I believe that healthcare is a right, not a responsibility. In a ‘socialist’ world I’d probably think differently but since we’ve left our healthcare in the hands of people concerned primarily with profit, we must involve government to regulate the system. Look, I have family members and I’m sure you may know some people who routinely choose between doctor bills and mortgage bills and in the greatest country int he world, this shouldn’t be the case. And no these aren’t of the lazy, freeloading or unwise spending crowd. Please don’t think I’m advocating universal healthcare – thats just dumb. I am saying that reform is needed so it is affordable for people and that (gulp) may require govt being a little bigger.

    Quick fact check guys – the great depression started before FDR and his New Deal helped pull America out of it; vietnam started before JFK and its gotta be tough to screw up an economy in a 2 year term; when a country goes to war, often times theeconomy will flourish – in wartime, technology is heavily invested into and when the war is over, that technology goes into consumer products (see civil war, WWI or WWII). The most recent democrat, Bill Clinton, rarely gets a mention possibly b/c his Obama-like policies of taxing the wealthy led to a balanced budget and a federal surplus.

    Obama not able to obtain a clearance? Yea, he’s a muslim and a terrorist too I hear. Now we’re just being silly.

    Comment by Ryan Scott | October 23, 2008

  3. Ryan, thanks for leaving a comment, and I hope you leave many more in the future.

    A couple of quick points, when it comes to raising taxes on “big business”, they don’t pay taxes, they past that cost onto the consumer which is mainly the middle class.

    To think that the solution to health care is that the possiblity of government getting bigger is a acceptable way of solving the problem, I ask name one governmemnt entitlement program that is doing what it’s suppose to be doing and helping the people it was meant to help. How about we let insurance companies rate you like they rate you when you get car insurance. The people that are healthier, non-smoker types pay less than those that don’t take care of themselves.

    Finally, it is a widely accepted fact, and you eluded to it at the end, the only reason the Great Depression ended was because we got into WWII. Many have said that FDR’s policies actually made the Depression last longer.

    Comment by thedeuceblog | October 23, 2008

  4. It is easy to understand the knee-jerk reaction to paying higher taxes. Taxes is a bad word in America. There is this idea floating around that paying taxes is even “unpatriotic”. “Joe the Plumber” hasn’t paid his and he’s the conservative’s number one hero. What is hard to understand is that Joe the Plumber will vote against his own self-interest by voting McCain. He must have a plan up his sleeve that will increase his earnings from $40,000ish to the necessary $250,000 to qualify for the Obama tax hike. Otherwise, considering his open disdain for paying taxes, it seems that he’d be all for the lower taxes he’d receive under Obama’s plan. Now, if Joe is standing up for the rights of those who are far wealthier than him based on principle, then, you go, Joe. More power to you. I’m all for principles. However, I’m not sure McCain should be his guy. After the $700 billion government bailout was signed off on by the quintessential “non-Socialist”, John McCain, his cries of “Socialist! Socialist!” regarding Obama ring hollow and are hypocritical. Under this new definition of Socialist, how does John McCain escape scrutiny?

    Our tax system is progressive and is already set up in a way that taxes those with higher incomes at a higher rate. This is not a new idea. And if “Socialism” is what we want to start calling Obama’s economic plan, then we’ve been Socialists for a long, long time.
    These taxes, paid by everyone with taxable income across the board, are then used to fund things like the police force, schools and government programs. The wealthy guy and the guy earning minimum wage are each able to have the protection of the police force and send their kids to public schools, regardless of their income levels or who paid more taxes. That’s spreading the wealth. We all benefit in the end. The issue is that, as the wealthy grow ever wealthier while leaving the middle and lower middle classes behind, our tax system has not kept up.

    And, like using the term “Socialism”, “welfare” has taken on new meaning as well. If we want to call Obama’s tax credits for the middle class, which also applies to those that don’t pay income tax, “welfare”, then we have to apply that same logic to McCain’s tax credit of $5,000 per family as part of his health insurance plan. His plan would give $5,000 per family regardless of their income level or whether they pay income tax or not. I guess we’ll be doling out “welfare” no matter who gets elected.

    One problem with the discussion about the people who benefit from government aid is the way that we stereotype them with a specific character. They’re always lazy deadbeats who scam the system. Always. I can understand feeling angry and frustrated if those are the only people we’re helping out. The problem is that we’re leaving out the people who are truly in need. A significant portion of our country is made up of the working poor, the waitresses and janitors and check-out clerks at Walmart and the guy who wipes down the tables at McDonalds. Are these people just lazy? Are they not as good as the rest of us because they weren’t able to go to college? If they can’t make it on minimum wage, why is it our problem? We shouldn’t fool ourselves into believing that anyone who receives government assistance is lazy with no work ethic. We who have decent paying jobs that keep us above the poverty line need to be thankful for our own dumb luck. The luck that allowed us to be born into the right circumstances. We all like to believe that we “pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps” and it is only due to our hard work that we excel. But that leaves out the very real truth that the environment into which we’re born has a great deal to do with how we’re able to move on and contribute to the world. There are too many people who are born without “bootstraps”.

    I may not subscribe to the conservative ideology, but I do understand where you’re coming from. In the best of all worlds, things wouldn’t be as askew as they are in our society today. We’d have more balance and creating programs from taxes wouldn’t be an issue and we’d have the ability to keep government small. But, this is not that world. The sad truth in America is that the divide between the rich and the poor keeps widening, slowly eroding the middle class. And during our ongoing economic downturn, things will likely get worse. As gas and food prices increase and wages stay stagnant, the poverty-stricken are the people with the most to lose. It seems like it’s somehow popular these days to blame the poor for everything that’s going wrong. I think we should remember that it could easily be one of us struggling against all odds.

    If the Old American Dream is the one where we allow the rich to get richer while leaving the poor behind, I prefer the New American Dream.

    Comment by Scott Thierauf | October 24, 2008


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