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"Much of the ongoing debate in political, business and social/cultural arenas is rooted in an underlying disagreement about what best serves national interests and individual lives -- is it promoting the common good, or serving self-interest?"
I think the article is a decent advocacy for one side of thinking, but the other perspective has substantial validity too.
I'd summarize this as a cooperative vs competitive view of society. I would argue that the liberals favor a high degree of cooperation, which I kind of see advocated in this article, while conservatives prefer a competitive environment. The cooperative may result in more even distribution of benefits, but I'd argue that the competitive would result in larger gains and benefits to society as a whole.
Yes, it certainly is a one sided advocacy (though I would not associate that with decency).
Socialists/communists have one fatal flaw ... their memories, They can't recall anything beyond 24 hours, so they don't consider the utter failure of such policies as having never delivered on a single promise throughout history... while also ignoring the consistently delivered, uniform oppression and suffering of the masses .... often culminating in mass murder of large segments of the populations the moment those populations show signs of revolt, and throwing off the oppression.
The same thing is happening right here .. RIGHT NOW.
But it's going to be OK ... trust us. Drink your fluoridated water. Eat Monsanto's GMO poison food .... don't forget your flu shots ... and by all means, do what your doctor tells you to do ... take the medications he prescribes for your health. Got to keep down that cholesterol.
In the mean time ... we've got to give the Wall Street Boys Trillions of dollars to keep the economic recovery on track .... we've got to get rid of these privacy rights in order to protect you from the terrorists.
And, above all else ... we need to pass strict legislation and raise taxes to combat CO2 which threatens to destroy mother earth .... you don't actually want to destroy mother earth do you? Of course you don't ... which is why you need to eat the poison food, drink the poison water, take the poison medications ....
We'll all be much happier when the population is reduced to a "sustainable level" .... trust us ... it's for your own good .... for the "COMMON GOOD".
Yes, it certainly is a one sided advocacy (though I would not associate that with decency).
Socialists/communists have one fatal flaw ... their memories,
Well my Dad is not a card-carrying Communist, however he has been a Democrat for 66 years now. His memory is very sharp at 84, and knows why Democrats are necessary during depressed times like these. Heck during good times too. He also remembers the same Republican rhetoric against Social Security during his salad days.
Yes, it certainly is a one sided advocacy (though I would not associate that with decency).
Socialists/communists have one fatal flaw ... their memories, They can't recall anything beyond 24 hours, so they don't consider the utter failure of such policies as having never delivered on a single promise throughout history... while also ignoring the consistently delivered, uniform oppression and suffering of the masses .... often culminating in mass murder of large segments of the populations the moment those populations show signs of revolt, and throwing off the oppression.
The same thing is happening right here .. RIGHT NOW.
But it's going to be OK ... trust us. Drink your fluoridated water. Eat Monsanto's GMO poison food .... don't forget your flu shots ... and by all means, do what your doctor tells you to do ... take the medications he prescribes for your health. Got to keep down that cholesterol.
In the mean time ... we've got to give the Wall Street Boys Trillions of dollars to keep the economic recovery on track .... we've got to get rid of these privacy rights in order to protect you from the terrorists.
And, above all else ... we need to pass strict legislation and raise taxes to combat CO2 which threatens to destroy mother earth .... you don't actually want to destroy mother earth do you? Of course you don't ... which is why you need to eat the poison food, drink the poison water, take the poison medications ....
We'll all be much happier when the population is reduced to a "sustainable level" .... trust us ... it's for your own good .... for the "COMMON GOOD".
The "common good" is often at odds with at least some people's individual interests. To not promote the common good is to promote a tyranny, and tyrannies can often become self-perpetuating. That's not to say that the "common good" cannot also be a tyranny in and of itself. That's why a true capitalist society is not just impossible, it's also not desirable. Any more than a true communist society is not just impossible, but also not desirable. The key is balance. The best systems are balanced ones. And the challenge is finding ways to maintain the balance, because what's flowing into the system isn't balanced, it isn't a regular flow. The flow changes, so the balance is really a balancing act. It requires coordination and also grace. A true free market is not coordinated or graceful, it's brutal and uneven. A true free market doesn't just reward hard work and creativity and initiative. A true free market gives an extra advantage to those who already have capital. And in that sense, it thwarts innovation. All economic systems are built around the tried and true, and reward those who follow the conventional paths of achievement. It's a struggle for anyone to be truly original, to truly innovate. And yet successful innovation generally reaps the greatest rewards, no matter what the economic model.
Common Good sounds an awful lot like "General Welfare" clause of Our Founding Liberals
Liberals are either very shallow thinkers .. or they are expert at playing stupid ... (I really haven't decided which is the most likely possibility).
But it really doesn't take a great deal of insight to notice the similarity between Adolf's "Fatherland" and our very own "Homeland", or the striking resemblances between the brown shirts and the Obama-bots, does it?
A close examination of the rise of the 3rd Reich is eerily similar to what we see occurring here with the rise of the 4th Reich, lending additional credence to the adage ... those ignorant of history are doomed to repeating it.
Liberals are either very shallow thinkers .. or they are expert at playing stupid ... (I really haven't decided which is the most likely possibility).
But it really doesn't take a great deal of insight to notice the similarity between Adolf's "Fatherland" and our very own "Homeland", or the striking resemblances between the brown shirts and the Obama-bots, does it?
A close examination of the rise of the 3rd Reich is eerily similar to what we see occurring here with the rise of the 4th Reich, lending additional credence to the adage ... those ignorant of history are doomed to repeating it.
More fear-mongering. Why don't you outline all the similarities between the "Fatherland" and the United States that you perceive, explain how those similarities are the fault of President Obama, and what you think would be a better system. Then, perhaps, you could justly be denigrating others for shallow thinking, but at this point, you have not demonstrated that depth is your strong suit.
Well my Dad is not a card-carrying Communist, however he has been a Democrat for 66 years now. His memory is very sharp at 84, and knows why Democrats are necessary during depressed times like these.
Liberals are either very shallow thinkers .. or they are expert at playing stupid ... (I really haven't decided which is the most likely possibility).
But it really doesn't take a great deal of insight to notice the similarity between Adolf's "Fatherland" and our very own "Homeland", or the striking resemblances between the brown shirts and the Obama-bots, does it?
A close examination of the rise of the 3rd Reich is eerily similar to what we see occurring here with the rise of the 4th Reich, lending additional credence to the adage ... those ignorant of history are doomed to repeating it.
Words and slogans mean nothing. It's actions we have to be vigilant about. Corporatism is where fascism really comes into play, when corporations influence OUR government as much or more than WE do.
We generally agree here, and what you state is one of reasons I don't support replacing the income tax with any type of consumption tax. However, the baseline article in this thread espoused the rationale for the cooperative side of the equation, and I believe it was appropriate to bring up the benefits of the other side as well.
I too see it as a balancing act, with measured changes needed as situations evolve. Looking at the distribution of income today, and how the wealthiest folks have prospered the most during the past few decades, I'd be more in favor of some programs that provided benefits for those who haven't fared as well. However, I also find that often the proposed programs are excessive and/or misdirected relative to the problem, hence I have reticence in supporting many of these efforts.
Much of life is about balance, no? What if in order to achieve better balance, you need more of one thing than the other, even when it is contrary to ones own point of view. Do we then seek balance, or balance that leans in our particular favor?
In other words, after say 8,10-20 years whatever, of a given political factions majority, matters not which one, but we agree with it even if it is an out of balance that supports our particular view. Do you then support the weight of the counter, even if it contradicts ones personally held views for the sake of the greater good?
Because I can see where after many years of living under a particular influence from right or left, that when the pendulum swings back towards the middle and maybe even the other way that people think its the end of the world.
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