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Lamborgotti, Good explanation. I'd also add MR is the candidate who far and away, appears to have the most difficulty talking about himself in any positive way..too much modesty. Bain for example was awesome, as it did not act as the vulture firms did, rather it fostered growth whenever possible, and when corps are in trouble, w/o a Bain, a vulture will be able to buy them. The vultures would have sold off Staples in its first year or two, not allowing 90,000 to now be employed there. I'd love to hear MR talk about the cultural difference b/w Bain and the vultures. I bring it up, for his work amongst the poor w/o the ability to smoothly articlulate it ala BC or RR, is astounding. This is the most modest candidate I have ever seen..to a fault.
We all have to remember (and most of you are not old enough to remember) there was a time when welfare assistance was handled through churches and private charities. The govenment gave very little in the form of assistance. We don't expect to go back to those days, nor should we, but we can reach a happy middle of the road. That is more what Romney is saying.
We all have to remember (and most of you are not old enough to remember) there was a time when welfare assistance was handled through churches and private charities. The govenment gave very little in the form of assistance. We don't expect to go back to those days, nor should we, but we can reach a happy middle of the road. That is more what Romney is saying.
Nita
Charity was completely inadequate to handle the problem of poverty.
What would you envision as your "happy middle of the road?"
Charity was completely inadequate to handle the problem of poverty.
What would you envision as your "happy middle of the road?"
Actually, the more-developed regions of the nation had advanced beyond private charity well before the onset of the Great Depression
In my native Pennsylvania, these measures took the form of "Poor Districts", administered by "Overseers of the Poor"; my paternal grandfather was one of the last.
If you lost your basic source of income, you applied at the local Poor District, which would assign you either some sort of temporary job or non-cash assistance in the form of staple food, bag coal, etc. The work was about as menial as could be found -- mucking out dairy barns and the like.
Not very appealing, but it gave the recipient as stronger incentive to find something bettter -- ASAP; and it was when the Democrats came to power in the mid-1930's that the overseer system was replaced with the first cash assistance. Want to guess what sort of people were the first to ditch real work in favor of a handout?
In the industrialized world. the inventory of "jobs nobody wants" is increasing rapidly due to non-relevant "education" (courtesy of the public school unions) and unrealistic expectations. Meanwhile, some overseas economies are growing and providing better jobs at home for their citizens. Sooner or later, our chronic ne'er-do-wells and underachievers are going to be forced to take up the slack, and local control is the way the job will have to be done.
Charity was completely inadequate to handle the problem of poverty.
What would you envision as your "happy middle of the road?"
Did I say totally? Of course I didn't. Cut some of the entitlements. I could detail the welfare system 50 or 60 years ago, but it would do no good for those of you who think private charities will not come close to handling the need. One thing that should be a must: no additional welfare for moms after the 2nd illegetiment child. I can sight case after case of moms deciding to stay at home, not even get their highschool deploma because they can live with mom and dad and get so much help from the government there is no reason or incentive to work or get an education. Many church run food banks are completely supported by donations or 80% by donations. Our church is one of them.
No one is saying no welfare or claiming everyone can and should take care of themselves, but if we cut funding by 30% you might be surprised how many people end up back in the work force. Welfare and entitlement programs were meant to help over short periods of time, not as a free for all. As the saying goes, life isn't always fair.
Right now my husband is going through cancer treatment. We are lucky to have wonderful doctors and caring ones, but are they, probably the best in the field? Maybe not, why? Because we can't afford to travel all over the country to find the best nor could be afford the best. That is life and we accept it.
Did I say totally? Of course I didn't. Cut some of the entitlements. I could detail the welfare system 50 or 60 years ago, but it would do no good for those of you who think private charities will not come close to handling the need. One thing that should be a must: no additional welfare for moms after the 2nd illegetiment child. I can sight case after case of moms deciding to stay at home, not even get their highschool deploma because they can live with mom and dad and get so much help from the government there is no reason or incentive to work or get an education. Many church run food banks are completely supported by donations or 80% by donations. Our church is one of them.
No one is saying no welfare or claiming everyone can and should take care of themselves, but if we cut funding by 30% you might be surprised how many people end up back in the work force. Welfare and entitlement programs were meant to help over short periods of time, not as a free for all. As the saying goes, life isn't always fair.
Right now my husband is going through cancer treatment. We are lucky to have wonderful doctors and caring ones, but are they, probably the best in the field? Maybe not, why? Because we can't afford to travel all over the country to find the best nor could be afford the best. That is life and we accept it.
Nita
I thought conservatives are for less government? Now you want the government to sanction births, as long as they are "legitimate."
I don't know what you think welfare is but it is not a permanent program that existed in the 1960s. You should really read up about the changes in the 1990s. It's temporary, so let me be a bit skeptical of your assertion that you "can sight case after case of moms deciding to stay at home, not even get their highschool deploma (sic) because they can live with mom and dad and get so much help from the government..."
Public assistance is not as generous as you make it seem.
I'm sorry about your husband's condition. These cases are why the nation should have national single-payer health insurance -- but that's another issue.
I thought conservatives are for less government? Now you want the government to sanction births, as long as they are "legitimate."
I don't know what you think welfare is but it is not a permanent program that existed in the 1960s. You should really read up about the changes in the 1990s. It's temporary, so let me be a bit skeptical of your assertion that you "can sight case after case of moms deciding to stay at home, not even get their highschool deploma (sic) because they can live with mom and dad and get so much help from the government..."
Public assistance is not as generous as you make it seem.
I'm sorry about your husband's condition. These cases are why the nation should have national single-payer health insurance -- but that's another issue.
Thanks for your thoughts on national insurance. I will tell you one thing: we took a cruise last fall, about 1/2 the people were from Canada and ranged from liberal to conservative: eveyone of them said the health sytem sucks. I have a friend who's brother in law (In Canada) is going through the same thing my husband is: he lives in a large city, we live in a small town. To get his treatments he has to drive over an hour because there is no closer cancer center, we are about 25 or 30 minutes from our oncology center. Thus this all we needed to know to convince us we have a good system. Is it perfect? Of course not, but I will take it anyday over what is available in Canada.
When you have a guy who made hundreds of millions as a corporate raider, ruining businesses and peoples lives, how could he care about individual poor people? It's just not possible, a complete contradiction in terms so to speak. Companies like Bain capital operate without any kind of moral compass at all. If it makes us money, it's good. If it loses us money it's bad. That's the extent of their morality. EVEN A COMPANY THAT MAKES MONEY. Let's sau a widget company in Pa. Always nade a fair return and supported an entire town and region with the spinoff. A cpmpany like Bain sees that much more $$$$ could be made by closing this down and moving all production to China. Wat do you think they are going to do???? It's a no brainer for them because the persuit of more and more $$$$ is their entire reason for being.
I wouldn't single out Romney. I think that there is an increased level of detachment that ordinary people have from those who are less fortunate than themselves. People seem to be buffered by technology and the comforts of modern civilization.
I think the thing that needs to be pointed out in the comparisons to FDR and JFK is that FDR and JFK both lived through periods of shared hardships. FDR lived through two or three major economic crises, including the Depression and he lived to see two world wars. JFK lived through and served in one global conflict and lived through the depression. Even if they were secured from the effects of these crises themselves, they could still see the effects of them with their own eyes.
Romney and frankly a lot of the rest of us, by contrast, haven't seen anything of the sort. Only in recent years have I witnessed the growth of people living out of their cars or moving their RVs from one side of town to the other. And if you're Romney or others like him, you probably don't even notice these things at all. It's just another day behind the computer.
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