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As I say every single time this thought comes up, right wingers never bring up the Scandinavian countries when talking about the failures of socialism - -
Because they are not socialist countries. Keep trying.
Wait a second. If many on the right think Obama and the Dem's are communists, doesn't that mean we are communists right now anyways? I love cognitive dissonance.
Communist leaning and influenced at least. Kind of like Putin, or Obama's buddies the Castros.
"Throughout his life, Obama worked with and for a variety of prominent communists and socialists. He served on numerous boards – such as the Woods Fund — with Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers, who calls himself a “small c communist.”
Obama launched his first campaign with a fundraiser at Bill Ayers’ house.
In Obama’s own biography, he says his main mentor from age 8 to 18 was Frank Marshall Davis, a card-carrying Communist Party leader (Party #47544) who hated everything America stood for. Davis practically raised Obama since, contrary to popular mythology, his father NEVER lived with him and his mother pretty much abandoned him. Moreover, Davis was involved in espionage against the West, as his FBI file indicates.
Once out of college, Obama worked for and with a number of groups associated or founded by Saul Alinsky, a nationally renowned socialist community organizer.
The Communist Party USA called Obama “a friend” and has boasted that many of those around him have communist backgrounds. Obama was very close to Communist Party leaders Addie Wyatt, Vernon Jarrett, and Bea Lumpkin. The Communist Party actively campaigned for Obama’s 2004 U.S. Senate race and for his 2008 presidential race and wrote a glowing endorsement of Obama in its People’s Weekly World newspaper.
The Young Communist League USA (youth wing of the Communist Party) also endorsed Obama and worked hard for Obama’s 2008 campaign.
Given that the planet has 7 billion people and counting, why do you see low birth rates as a bad thing?
Sure, if birth rates get too low there are problems with demographics (not enough young to support the old, etc). But otherwise, low birth rates are good on an overcrowded planet. Don't you agree?
No, I do not agree.
I do not subscribe to the notion that the Earth is overpopulated. It's development has been skewed by predatory people, but that's not due to reproduction.
Biological populations that begin to shrink do not reverse. Worse, if neighbors do not reduce in kind, but grow, they will inevitably expand and displace the shrinking population. It's going on right now, in the news. Depopulating countries are being "invaded" by countries with surplus population.
I do not advocate depopulation. I'd rather we begin to plan for the arrival of the seventh generation yet to come.
Just think - if population doubling rate remains constant at 50 years, humanity may pass 6.520 E+21 in 4000 A.D.
That's 6.52 Sextillion people. Woo-hoo.
As a cornucopian, I advocate a hopeful future, where humanity can geometrically expand without fighting over resources, power or volume.
My solution is to boost productivity, thicken the life bearing volume to accommodate the coming billions, substitute space colonization for incessant war over resources, and thus establish world peace. For without space colonization there can be no world peace, and without world peace we cannot afford space colonization.
Based on preliminary surveys of system resources, there's probably enough to support humanity for another 4000 - 6000 years. By then, we will undoubtedly need to migrate to other star systems, and repeat the process.
Addendum:
Futuristic Visions
[] Instead of genocidal “environmental preservation,” seek environmental amplification. Re-engineer the surface to “thicken” the life bearing volume, to accommodate the future billions. Multiply the habitat for man, agriculture, and for wildlife. Increased surface area will also decrease the temperature. (Compare the climates of deserts versus forests at the same latitude and insolation)
. . . Build down, across, under, up, through, terrace mountains, tunnel, reclaim wetlands, extend shores, add greenspace to every structure possible
. . . Engineer waterways
[] Colonize outer space, via massive space colonies in orbiting habitats.
Since prosperity is based on production, trade and enjoyment of surplus usable goods and services, not the amount of money tokens, it is self evident that to do GIANT PROJECTS requires a prodigious amount of production. Ergo, we NEED billions and billions whose labor, multiplied by machines and tools, will accomplish our goals.
Last edited by jetgraphics; 08-26-2016 at 12:56 PM..
The Heritage Foundation 2016 index ranks Denmark #2 in the world for Business Freedom and Finland is #8, Sweden #11 and Norway #12. Compare that with the US at #18 and Canada at #22.
Business freedom is incongruent with socialism, so no, these countries are not socialist.
As I say every single time this thought comes up, right wingers never bring up the Scandinavian countries when talking about the failures of socialism - - you know, countries that always rank higher than us in livability and are heavily influenced by socialism.
Let's take a look at how the Scandinavian countries manage to pull that off...
Everyone earning about the average income in Scandinavian countries falls into the very high top income tax bracket. In the U.S., the top income tax bracket doesn't kick in until one earns 8.5 times the average income. (Source: OECD) Plus, Scandinavian countries have a 20-25% VAT tax that everyone pays in addition to their income tax.
The way to fund what statists/liberals/Dems want is to charge the average American income-earner and above the top marginal income tax rate AND charge everyone a 20- 25% VAT tax on top of that.
No, I do not agree.
I do not subscribe to the notion that the Earth is overpopulated. It's development has been skewed by predatory people, but that's not due to reproduction.
Biological populations that begin to shrink do not reverse. Worse, if neighbors do not reduce in kind, but grow, they will inevitably expand and displace the shrinking population. It's going on right now, in the news. Depopulating countries are being "invaded" by countries with surplus population.
I do not advocate depopulation. I'd rather we begin to plan for the arrival of the seventh generation yet to come.
Just think - if population doubling rate remains constant at 50 years, humanity may pass 6.520 E+21 in 4000 A.D.
That's 6.52 Sextillion people. Woo-hoo.
As a cornucopian, I advocate a hopeful future, where humanity can geometrically expand without fighting over resources, power or volume.
My solution is to boost productivity, thicken the life bearing volume to accommodate the coming billions, substitute space colonization for incessant war over resources, and thus establish world peace. For without space colonization there can be no world peace, and without world peace we cannot afford space colonization.
Based on preliminary surveys of system resources, there's probably enough to support humanity for another 4000 - 6000 years. By then, we will undoubtedly need to migrate to other star systems, and repeat the process.
Unfortunately, nature does not bend to the wishes of ideologues. There's not enough farmland and water to support the population numbers you wish to see. We can barely feed the people we have now, let alone billions more.
AGW will eliminate much of the farmland and water resources we have now. Let me guess, you think that AGW is a conspiracy by Al Gore?
I'm going to take a moment to define the process of how nations become communist and the key factors of:
Phase One: A revolution takes place from the workers against the 1% based on class inequality. This would lead to severe change of the political system in which the ones who were previously powerful are no longer so. Marx emphasized in his texts that the political system must be booted out and a new one placed in in order for the next step.
Phase Two: This is when socialism comes in. Over the course of time, the government takes control of the means of production and ownership. Collectivization occurs. Over time, the government becomes more stronger and more centralized.
Phase Three: This is the "achievement of utopia" phase in which Marx claimed the society would become classless AND STATELESS. This would have to be achieved by the whole world in order to work, which he wrote in his texts.
As we can see, some countries are in Phase Two. In the transition phases still, so again not true communism.
Ten essential tenets of communism by Marx (listed in some of his texts):
- Centralized banking system
- Government controlled education
- Government controlled labor
- Government ownership of transportation and communication vehicles
- Government ownership of agricultural means and factories
- Total abolition of private property
- Property rights confiscation
- Heavy income tax on all citizens
- Elimination of rights of inheritance
- Regional planning
As you can probably see, we actually have some of these programs implemented in the United States. We mostly participate in regional planning, property rights confiscation can occur (public domain)...
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