It amazes me that people believe that they can tax and regulate themselves into prosperity. Ask any proponent of this philosophy to explain the basics of how it works and their eyes will glaze over as if they had just snorted a line of pure mescaline. Usually, though, the question is met with the recipient valiantly attempting to explain the virtues of leveling the playing field by taxing the rich, saving the planet by punishing achievers, and guaranteeing outcomes by curbing individual freedoms. But defending the notion that government gets to call the shots concerning lives, liberties and pursuits of happiness is a tough sell. Eventually, the great guardian of the cause will become frustrated over the magnitude of the endeavor and lapse into a tirade that ultimately blames Bush, Jesus or both. As the church lady used to say, "how convenient".
And the truly insidious aspect of all this is that Americans are accepting this arrangement without so much as a whimper. Every time I see the scene in Animal House where Chip Diller is spanked as part of Omega's initiation, I can't help but think - that's us. We have become a nation of "thank you sir may I have another" sycophants eagerly awaiting the next governmental paddling. Pretty soon we'll be perpetually bent over begging for more taxes, more regs, more income redistribution, more earmarks, more bailouts...more misery.
Going Galt seems the natural progression of action for free thinking people. The alternative is to develop a glassy eyed stare and babble incoherently about the need for change; while ignorantly disregarding the aberration of freedom that comes with said change. From wherever she is, Ayn Rand is saying in a voice made raspy by cigarette smoke, "I told you so".
Well, I never COULD understand why Patricia Neil played the female lead in FOUNTAINHEAD..Now I guess it was because she looked so much like Ayn Rand! "raspy by cigarette smoke" is like music to my ears..thanks. Ah, for the days when people could do whatever they wanted to do and not risk the wrath of the left.
ReplyDeleteThere IS A WHIMPER....I swear! There's a groundswell coming, Larry! And I'm THINKING it could be led by Dems! Robt Byrd castigated obama for having "too many czars...too much power in the Exec branch" but our media barely covered it....Feingold begged obama to not sign the omnibus, and Gibbs is out there destroying the careers of those who dare dissent. people are waking up.
I think!? good post, thanks!
Most of the time, when I try to engage liberal Democrats on the Obama plan, I am not able to get into specifics with them. It's not because I don't want to, but because they don't want to.
ReplyDeleteYou ask a legitimate question: How does it work? An answer requires both knowledge of the details and a willingness to discuss them. The only thing I can conclude is that most of the supporters of the Obama plan are not supporting it because they like the plan, but because they trust the man. (Move over, Jesse Jackson and Joseph Lowery, I can rhyme too.)
You and I know that it is the details that count. It is not enough to trust uncritically, but it is important to study and analyze. And the more I study and analyze the details and the man, the less I like what I see. Am I surprised? No. The signs were there for anyone willing to be objective about President Obama while he was still a Senator. But I have a feeling that those that trust blindly are avoiding the details because they're afraid they won't like what they see.
Z is right - there is a groundswell out there. I don't know how long it will take to bubble up to the surface, but there is hope that Obama shall start getting some grief from the center, as well as the right.