To listen to the way Republicans and conservatives throw around the word "socialism," you would think that anyone with a social consciences (e.g. Democrats) all steeped in Marxism and want to take away all the rich people's riches.
Here's an interesting little snapshot. I was friended a while back by a guy I went to school with who, it seems, is a conservative. He posted this as a Facebook status last night:
Due to wasteful spending in Washington & overall market conditions, The Light at the End of the Tunnel has been turned off. I apologize for the inconvenience.
I had to respond...
...and posted:
Indeed, they sure screwed things up the last six or eight years. But those days are over, thankfully. So the light is just kinda dim, but it's there.
That drew a few other comments...
You are right! This new administration sure is putting the screws to us and our kids! Talk about elitists!
:::
I agree. We lost so much in so short time and a shot was never fired. I never would have guessed Americans would embrace socialism so quickly & without a fight. Question is...where do we go from here?
There were a few other comments, and I wasn't the lone liberal voice in the thread. But those last two I cited above were rather thought provoking. I wonder if the man who thinks we are "putting the screws to us and our kids" was vocal about the rampant waste of blood and treasure during the misguided Iraq war. Most thinking people realized that our leaders bamboozled us into that conflict, and took a nice healthy surplus and turned it into the trillion dollar deficit left for the new administration to fix. And, following this man's logic, we left the war tab to our kids to pay off. (I recall Dick Cheney saying back then that deficits don't matter. Unless it's one under Democratic management, apparently.)
Remember how all the conservative pundits and politicians told us that to question the President at a time of (needlessly created) war was at the very least unpatriotic, and was even called treasonous? We spent a shitload of borrowed money on Bush's war, and it lived outside the budget so as to mask the real cost. This happened with no-bid contracts that charged ridiculously high amounts of money on outsourced stuff the military could have done for far less money. Good for KBR, Halliburton, Blackwater, oil companies and other war profiteers; bad for the rest of us. But, hey, we did build the Iraqis some new schools and power plants... to replace the ones we destroyed.
Let's now look at that last comment I included above... the one that suggests Americans "embraced socialism so quickly and without a fight." Well, ma'am, there was a fight. It was called the November 2008 General Election. People voted for a change from the policies that mostly enriched the rich and beat down the middle and lower classes. But this woman seems to think that "socialism" is something that just got sprung on us, and it's a bad thing. I wonder if she drives on any of the public roadways or walks on public sidewalks. Might she have ever visited a public library? Do her children attend a public school? Has she ever visited a national, state or local park, forest or monument? Is her home on a municipal water and/or sewer system? All of those -- every one of them -- can be called socialistic, can they not? Monies are collected and redistributed through various government agencies so we have roads, schools, parks, and other infrastructure elements we so often take for granted. (Of course, when the snow plow doesn;t come by soon enough or the kids' school drops art classes, how much do you want to bet those who oppose "socialism" bitch up a storm?)
To me, what has over time made this country great, and makes some societies and nations stand out among the rest, is how the population as a whole is supported. Not everyone has the means or even the basic opportunity to obtain a good education. Not everyone had a grandmother leave them a educational trust fund and parents who pretty much made up the difference so they could go to college (like I did). But not everyone who is mired in economic hopelessness is a lazy bum or a welfare queen. Not everyone whose job was outsourced to a distant land is just not trying hard enough to find a new one.
This reminds me of a bit of bumper sticker philosophy I remember reading on some car (probably a hybrid): Liberals treat dogs like people. Conservatives treat people like dogs. A sweeping generalization, to be sure. But in my view, what it comes down to is this: some people care as much about others as they do about themselves. They see a healthy and secure society as a way to ensure their own health and security. At the other end of the scale are people who think of themselves, and perhaps their family, but care little about the rest of society as long as that society doesn't' interfere with their lives. "Society" is not their concern, for that would mean they are socialists. It's a polarizing set of positions, and it is reflected in our current Congress. When every one of the Republican members of the House of Representatives vote on ideology, they affirm the position of party over people. They would rather see the country and the current administration fail than take a wider view of society.
So to that woman who asks above, "Where do we go from here?" I suggest developing a modicum of compassion, empathy and understanding of the society in which you live and from which you draw your wealth, security and children's future. Try to look beyond yourself and care about the rest of your fellow citizens for a change. Believe it or not, you'll likely end up ahead, both financially and -- dare I say it -- spiritually as a result.
[cross-posted at Kerfuffle]