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Originally Posted by LazyHippy
I respectfully disagree.
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That is very provincial of you and I appreciate it.
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Originally Posted by LazyHippy
Look where most of the money is - banking, insurance, energy, arms - are the majority of those industries honest?
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Right, but you are endorsing punishing everyone regardless of their industry. What you are subscribing to is not attacking evil, but anyone who comes into the vicinity of evil. You're saying that people who do well, create value, attain prosperity, by virtue of being a success, must be corrupt.
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Originally Posted by LazyHippy
I'm not saying penalise many for the crimes of a few - in fact I'd rather see 100 guilty men on the streets than lock up one innocent one - but Big Business should be held financially and morally accountable and it isn't going to do it of it's own accord. Unfortunately our governments are too much in the pocket of these industries to have the desire to take any action, as recent events prove.
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If government is in the pocket of business, why would we want more government? That's like trying to cure a heroin addict with a heroin overdose.
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Originally Posted by LazyHippy
I agree that government has been part of the problem, but - if done correctly (big if, I know) it can be part of the solution. We are one world - like it or not - and while it is the rich west (and China and others) that benefit from keeping half the world in poverty it cannot be left to so-called free markets to stop the injustice.
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Government has never self-corrected without a revolution. And even that is temporary. The socialist view is that we are always on the road to perfection and utopia. That denies history and reality.
You'll never reform a government that has served the monied interests since day 1. If you even get close, elections will be suspended and martial law imposed. Voting itself is a joke. You're allowed to make a false choice from a pre-defined list of alternatives. The every day man does not become a politician or get close to power without totally compromising the values that encouraged him to run in the first place.
Regardless, stealing from people while we daydream about unattainable and unrealistic reforms is not acceptable behavior.
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Originally Posted by LazyHippy
I would be in favour of free markets if it was truely free - no subsides, import tariffs, tax breaks, unfair loans and all the other things that tip the balance in favour of one country or business over another. We would also need to start from a level playing field and that is very unlikely to happen.
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Excellence deserves a larger share of the balance. Equality is not mans condition. Some are fatter, taller smarter, more coordinated etc. All men and women are not equal, and it is ridiculous to insist that unequal contributors should have equal rewards. If you believe in freedom and justice, reward those who produce, and punish those who do not. In a free market. Trust me, the people with the intelligence and passion to produce in a free market, will have the moral fiber to also look out for the unfortunate, instead of the parasitic leeches at the top now, who lie and cheat their way, and thus lack any moral compass.
As far as a level playing field, I'd like to see the fucking Brits give back all of the prosperity their empire sucked from the world. Just kidding, but I hope you get my point. We can't fix the past, but we can provide for tomorrow.
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Originally Posted by popeye
I would bet 1k that you live with your mom.
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Or he is a looter, who takes more than he contributes. Most people in the middle class are trying to get ahead, but being milked to pay for the people above and below them in the system retards mobility.
Why do people never ask questions like "why give XX billion in foreign aid, when there are 20 million people on foodstamps at home?"
Because the system doesn't work for the people. It works for the agenda of a financial and political elite. All the more reason to deny these moochers any more money than you absolutely have to.