Thursday, August 25, 2005

Lobbing the "Socialist" water balloon to protesters and the like.

I've been seeing that a lot again.
People that protest the war or the President are called "Socialists" by some of the crazed Right Wing.

I'm sure there are some people that one would call "lefties" that might be considered on some level to be Socialists, but to level the label Socialist on everyone that does not agree with the policies of the current Prez. is just plain stupid.

I consider myself to be relatively liberal and progressive on a lot of issues, fairly conservative on others.
However, I am using the words are they were meant to be used and I understand the definition of them.

I refuse to call President Bush a conservative because I don't think he is one. Spending under Bush is out of control and with just the Highway bill alone, the pork flowing through Congress is staggering.

I'm certainly no Socialist as I respect the rights of private property and I don't think the government should contol the means of production.
That being said, that doesn't mean that corporations should be able to do whatever they want and "self regulate" because they won't.
They will pollute the air and water, they will force down US wages and they will cheat both workers and shareholders if they can get away with it.

And owning a home comes with responisibility as well.
You can't do whatever you want on your property in your neighborhood for good reason. Because it's a neighborhood and the things you do can affect others.
While I'm not one to try and impose Drakonian rules on homeowners, I'm all for ones that keep the place intact or just looking decent.
I have no problem with city laws that say you cannot park your car on the lawn like a fucking rube.

And do not forget the words of a previous president:

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
--Theodore Roosevelt, 26th US President (1858-1919)



5 comments:

neal gardner said...

"I refuse to call President Bush a conservative because I don't think he is one. Spending under Bush is out of control and with just the Highway bill alone, the pork flowing through Congress is staggering."

so true.

"I'm also not very analytical. You know I don't spend a lot of time thinking about myself, about why I do things." Bush, aboard Air Force One, June 4, 2003

I don't think he knows what to call himself, either.

Mike's America said...

Perhaps you prefer "mainstream" or "progressive" All part of the Orwellian delusion that is evidence of a serious reality deficit.

So Code Pink is not a socialist group? How about neo-Marxist? Would that be a better description? Since their founder praises Castro, the Viet Cong, Sandistas and just about every commie on the planet I think the Socialist label perhaps doesn't go far enough.

Oh, and would you please tell me how you feel about harassing injured soldiers with political propaganda outside a hospital? And how do you feel about using the honor and memory of fallen soldiers for the protest of crosses without the permission of the family?

It appears there is no low that is too low when you take on the mantle of "absolute moral authority."

http://mikesamerica.blogspot.com/#112498988078055255

Mike V. said...

what does one have to do with the other?
you're arguments are the same old tired ones that came around the same time as the Vietnam war.

apparently you missed the point that you cannot paint every person that disagrees with the president with the same brush.

the modern republican party has become a mouth piece for the religious crazies in order to make reality their vision for America which is a return to the Gilded Age here and an Imperial presense around the world.
and it's all spelled out quite clear on PNAC's web site (not the religious thing, the latter).

there is nothing you can point to from this current administration that would be viewed as a positve for average working people in this country.
and that is the bulk of America. the middle class. which is shrinking, FAST.

Mike's America said...

The point of your post was the definition of "socialists" and now you move the bar to "the bulk of America. the middle class>"

How nice for you... Just ignore the incongruities of your prior post and launch into a new cannard.

Well sorry bud... not going to work.

Besides, is the middle class shrinking? If so, WHERE are these folks going? Down? Don't think so... Try UP.

I'm humming that theme song from "The Jeffersons" a sitcom from the 70's. Your parent's probably didn't let you stay up late enough to watch it.

But here's a sample:

Picture black couple working all their lives in a Dry Cleaning business. Finally get things going:

"Well we're moving up UP! To the East Side... To a DEEE Luxe apartment in the Sky. Yes, we're moving on UP, to the East Side, we finally got our piece of the pie."

But of course you socialists want a bit out of that pie before any of these middle class types get their first taste.

Mike V. said...

You appear to have some sort of reading comprehension problem.
I was very clear:
You cannot paint every person that doesn't like the Prez with the same brush.

What color is the sky in your world where you actually think that the world is getting better for working people.
When wages have been falling for the middle class for just about the last 20 years, how is that movin on up to the east side.
With the rush of good manufacturing and white collar jobs overseas, how is that helping as well?
In the retail sector, with the very fast movement of good paying union jobs to places like Wal Mart that pay nothing, how is that good for the middle class? Or my community?
Great, I can (but have never and will never) go into a Wal Mart and save 50 cents on a jug of Tide.
What's the real cost to my community if the people there have no benefits and can't even afford to live in my city or neighborhood?
If I wind up having to pay for someone's visit to the emergency room because they cannot afford insurance, who benefits?
Besides about 10 of the largest stockholders of Wal Mart.

Thankfully, there is Costco.
Run by a man that knows the REAL benefit of having well paid and taken care of workers.
His company helps to lift up the community as opposed to Sam Walton's gift to the US which creates nothing but a downward spiral of the working class.