Dear Friends,
Please distribute this message. Why? Because the only way to defeat any bad idea, is to replace it with a better one. It is critical that everyone understand the ideas behind destructive public policies.
The excellent article below is from one more of a growing list of thinkers who have identified the true nature of tax-funded Entitlement policies. More and more people are discovering the ugly truth that these amount to "coercive charity".
For the record: Neither I nor any responsible thinker denies the virtue of charity. Nor do we deny the humane ethics of emergencies. Noble, voluntary charity is under attack by the “Progressive” ideology behind coercive “Entitlement” policies. The core issue is the word “coercive” -- “coercive charity” is an oxymoron.
With the single exception of real emergencies, how can their be any virtue (and thus, value) in coercively funded “charity” (by taxes collected at what amounts to gun point). In reality, such policies are driven by profound evil: a blatant, shameless means of buying votes from the recipients (both current and prospective) of “Entitlement” – a policy that produces its intended effect: dependency!
On the individual level, it's pretty clear that people who aggressively or passively support America's current entitlement quagmire, are demonstrating a perfect example of sociopathic selfishness!
Liberals Outsourcing Morality
By Frank Ryan
In the Book of Matthew in the New Testament, Pontius Pilate symbolically washes his hands of the responsibility for the crucifixion of Jesus. This symbolism has carried on through the centuries as the mark of someone who is complicit in something yet wishes to distance himself from the appearance of responsibility. The person effectively "washes" away the guilt.
In much the same way, 21st-century liberalism uses the tax code to absolve itself of the moral responsibility to truly care for the very citizens they claim to be protecting. The tax code has become the means by which supposedly caring citizens symbolically fulfill their moral duties to care for their fellow citizen. They fulfill this responsibility by electing politicians to pass taxes forcing others to pay for social programs they want but do not wish to pay for themselves.
Having just seen a "liberal" state cut off funding for developmentally disabled children for budgetary reasons with no moral concern for the welfare of those children disturbed me. Under the revised program, the children were to receive treatment in six months or be forced out of the program. This cut off from aid convinced me that social program proponents are often willing to support the poor only if they can get someone else to pay for it. They effectively "wash" away their responsibility and complicity by passing legislation requiring others to pay for those programs they want but do not wish to pay for using their personal funds.
Other citizens with more sincere motives of caring for one another make the conscious decision to support their fellow citizen in need by using their own funds to care for the poor rather than merely forcing others to do it. Many do this through their church affiliation or by personal involvement and volunteering.
The disparity of thought processes of those who demand government involvement in social programs with those who foster personal responsibility to support one another is profound. This disparity and the consequences of that disparity are critical to understanding why our Founding Fathers framed the Constitution the way that they did.
In Article 1, Sections 8 and 9 of the Constitution we proclaim what Congress can do and is prohibited from doing. These very boundaries were intended to guide us in an incredibly wise way in which the "unintended consequences" of an intrusive government were spelled out. Our Founders knew precisely that one cannot legislate morality nor legislate personal responsibility.
Passage of laws protecting those in need does not absolve you of your responsibility to truly care for one another. Any moral society understands compassion for those in need.
Unfortunately to presume that those claiming to be in need as defined by a law are truly in need is a horrible mistake. Laws passed to "protect" with the intent of winning reelection merely creates an entitlement mentality which will not benefit the person nor their family in the long run but it will get the politician reelected.
When you care for those in need because of your personal desire, you are following your moral conscience. Your moral compass is guiding you. You become involved and personally responsible.
When you "care" for someone involuntarily through taxes you may feel that you have fulfilled your responsibility because you paid the taxes required. The potential for abuse of and dependency in the program are ever present as well. The "entitlement" becomes a right rather than a need.
I often wonder if some misguided citizens who demand government solutions to all problems really want to encourage dependency because it feels good to be needed. Do they like having someone totally dependent on them?
The need to be needed may compel many people's actions but the resultant involuntary dependency of one person on another is not healthy in my mind. Such dependency creates an atmosphere of fear of those truly in need that they may be abandoned whenever a new cause comes up that is more fashionable or should taxes run short as in a recession.
True social justice requires us to be personally involved, personally responsible and personally accountable. But then our Founding Fathers knew that. Our Founding Fathers never washed their hands of their responsibilities. Instead they fought for our freedoms against a tyrannical king so that we could have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Unrelenting government intrusion in our lives is our tyrannical king. To retain our national culture we must get involved and get our government back under control. We must become personal responsible and accountable. Now!
FRYAN1951@aol.com
Monday, June 20, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
SHOCKER! Leftmedia attempt to dig up dirt on Sarah has exploded in their insolent faces!
Top level LeftMedia editors were so giddy over the prospect of combing through Sarah Palin's 'treasure trove' of emails from when she was governor, that some outlets enlisted the help of 100 'researchers' to find items that will 'hopefully lead to further investigation.' They were certain scandal after scandal awaited, but what they found was the exact opposite. Not only were there no scandals, the emails actually show Palin is funny, honest, consistent, compassionate, likable -- it all amounts to another humiliating defeat in the relentless quest to destroy Sarah Palin.
[SIDE NOTE: The paragraph above describes the classic behavior of people who pretend to be "objective", but in their "heart of hearts", are the exact opposite -- people who actually lie for a living!]
After constant political harassment, 24,000 pages of emails were released from Sarah's time as governor of Alaska. Most of these messages were written long before her nomination for Vice President, and were intended to be private emails about her work as governor.
Yet, even after the media actually solicited everyday people to scour the emails for something to “investigate”, editors were baffled when political enemies and opposition research produced exactly zero interesting material proving her supposed Satan-like private persona.
I do not know if Sarah is a proper candidate for president, but the very fact that she causes such hysteria among Leftmedia apparatchiks, is a huge clue that she possesses something fairly rare among all plausible candidates. This phenomena demonstrates what should be considered axiomatic by now:
Indeed, refusal to calmly discuss critical public policy issues, while simultaneously perpetrating toxic ideologies, can only be interpreted as the behavior of anti-life forces.
Curiouser and curiouser!
Comments welcome.
-- Cato
[SIDE NOTE: The paragraph above describes the classic behavior of people who pretend to be "objective", but in their "heart of hearts", are the exact opposite -- people who actually lie for a living!]
After constant political harassment, 24,000 pages of emails were released from Sarah's time as governor of Alaska. Most of these messages were written long before her nomination for Vice President, and were intended to be private emails about her work as governor.
Yet, even after the media actually solicited everyday people to scour the emails for something to “investigate”, editors were baffled when political enemies and opposition research produced exactly zero interesting material proving her supposed Satan-like private persona.
I do not know if Sarah is a proper candidate for president, but the very fact that she causes such hysteria among Leftmedia apparatchiks, is a huge clue that she possesses something fairly rare among all plausible candidates. This phenomena demonstrates what should be considered axiomatic by now:
One of the most reliable indicators that you are revealing actual “Progressive” motives, is when they stomp away in anger and refuse to continue any dialog.
Indeed, refusal to calmly discuss critical public policy issues, while simultaneously perpetrating toxic ideologies, can only be interpreted as the behavior of anti-life forces.
Curiouser and curiouser!
Comments welcome.
-- Cato
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
CONSEQUENCES of "ENTITLEMENT"
In this post, I humbly share a portion of my conversation with a long-time friend. Your comments are welcome.
The following is a series of message exchanges between myself and a long-time friend, in chonological order, oldest to newest:
Message 1:
Dear ... ,
I hope you interpret this message as I intend it: an expression of admiration and respect for your in intellectual integrity, because that’s what it is!
I challenge you to read this book about a fellow who has led an
amazing life inside the belly of the Hollywood and Broadway beasts:
If you wish, I’ll gladly buy the Kindle download version for you, but only if you promise to read it within the next 60 days.
Message 2 (response to 1):
Message 3:
Dear ...,
Excellent response!
RE, your comment: “In the US, we have lost our compassion and respect for our fellow man. We are no longer able to objectively listen. There isn't any such thing as actual communication anymore. Once this is lost, all is lost.”
Agreed. This phenomena appears even more true in western Europe, where the “cradle-to-grave” entitlement notion has grown far beyond what we have in America (so far). Dennis Prager is one of the most well travelled people on earth. No honest person must share his belief in God to see that much of what he says is absolutely demonstrable! Over the last 40 years, Dennis has visited every country and continent on Earth for extended stays. He has re-visited most of those countries multiple times. He and others have observed the overall quality of compassion and sense of interpersonal responsibility in the so-called “civilized” cultures of western Europe. From this experience, Dennis recently described what is almost certainly a fact, because I’m seeing it happen more and more each day in America:
Any ideology that empowers the notion of
“entitlement”, makes the whole society meaner!
After all ...
“Why should I care about voluntary charity,
if so much of my earned wealth is confiscated
to ‘care’ for the ‘less fortunate’?
I say, let government care for them.”
Until I learn otherwise, I am pretty sure that’s the dynamic behind a very interesting statistic that has been confirmed over and over by numerous research groups, both “liberal” and “conservative”:
Those who reject the alleged virtue of entitlement
tend to be far more generous to their fellow man,
than those who embrace it!
Somewhere, there’s a lesson in that. What do you think it is?
On another issue, I agree that “We are no longer able to objectively listen.” However, most people have not “lost” that ability, because they’ve never had it to begin with. The ability to think logically, dispassionately, with one’s mind (as opposed to “heart” OR “feelings”), is a learned skill – it can be taught. With very rare exceptions, objective listening, observation and analytical skills are no longer taught in most of our so-called, “public schools” – probably because that institution has been co-opted by a “Progressive” agenda. That agenda stresses “compliance”, “self-sacrifice”, “equality” (of outcome), “groupism” and a host of other, equally pernicious notions.
However, to the salvation of humanity, some of us can be objective when and where it really counts! If not for a tiny minority of disciplined thinkers, we would all still be living as tribes of migrant hunter-gatherers and most human technology would not exist. I suspect, at least 90% of all humans depend for their very lives, on the wisdom, insight and creative impulses of a tiny minority of intellectual giants. Motivated by enlightened self-interest, that minority figures out how the universe actually works (as in Quantum Mechanics, the laws of Physics, Microbiology, et. al) then the rest of us just copy them like so many monkeys.
Unfortunately, since the dark days of 1908 – 1913, America has been grotesquely twisted into a culture where those intellectual giants are literally punished for their gifts to humanity. IOW, the monkeys are whipping the goose that lays the golden eggs on which they depend! Go figure! That, dear friend, is a direct result of the Collectivist (“Progressive”) ideology behind “Entitlement”. Use whatever labels you wish in place of mine, but the effect is the same.
The following is a series of message exchanges between myself and a long-time friend, in chonological order, oldest to newest:
Message 1:
Dear ... ,
I hope you interpret this message as I intend it: an expression of admiration and respect for your in intellectual integrity, because that’s what it is!
I challenge you to read this book about a fellow who has led an
amazing life inside the belly of the Hollywood and Broadway beasts:
If you wish, I’ll gladly buy the Kindle download version for you, but only if you promise to read it within the next 60 days.
Message 2 (response to 1):
I appreciate the sentiment. I am sure it is interesting. You don't need to buy it for me.
I do get the whole left=evil, right=good thing. My position is: left = evil, right = evil.
Each side tries to outdo the other, and then use the media to fling crap at each other like monkeys.
All of this left vs right crap is coming from the "street magicians" or global media manipulators, who use it to distract us from the really bad shit that is going on.
You frequently mention Judeo-Christian values. One thing I find kind of funny are the politicians that refer to themselves as Christians. In no way whatsoever are they like Christ. You can take any random statement or action from a Christian politician, and then ask yourself, "Would Jesus have said or done that?". This is a topic I can't even begin to properly cover right now.
I have to fly today, I will chat with you again this weekend.
I do get the whole left=evil, right=good thing. My position is: left = evil, right = evil.
Each side tries to outdo the other, and then use the media to fling crap at each other like monkeys.
All of this left vs right crap is coming from the "street magicians" or global media manipulators, who use it to distract us from the really bad shit that is going on.
You frequently mention Judeo-Christian values. One thing I find kind of funny are the politicians that refer to themselves as Christians. In no way whatsoever are they like Christ. You can take any random statement or action from a Christian politician, and then ask yourself, "Would Jesus have said or done that?". This is a topic I can't even begin to properly cover right now.
I have to fly today, I will chat with you again this weekend.
Message 3:
Dear ...,
Excellent response!
RE, your comment: “In the US, we have lost our compassion and respect for our fellow man. We are no longer able to objectively listen. There isn't any such thing as actual communication anymore. Once this is lost, all is lost.”
Agreed. This phenomena appears even more true in western Europe, where the “cradle-to-grave” entitlement notion has grown far beyond what we have in America (so far). Dennis Prager is one of the most well travelled people on earth. No honest person must share his belief in God to see that much of what he says is absolutely demonstrable! Over the last 40 years, Dennis has visited every country and continent on Earth for extended stays. He has re-visited most of those countries multiple times. He and others have observed the overall quality of compassion and sense of interpersonal responsibility in the so-called “civilized” cultures of western Europe. From this experience, Dennis recently described what is almost certainly a fact, because I’m seeing it happen more and more each day in America:
Any ideology that empowers the notion of
“entitlement”, makes the whole society meaner!
After all ...
“Why should I care about voluntary charity,
if so much of my earned wealth is confiscated
to ‘care’ for the ‘less fortunate’?
I say, let government care for them.”
(Notice the implied absolution for failure to choose the admitted greater value.)
Until I learn otherwise, I am pretty sure that’s the dynamic behind a very interesting statistic that has been confirmed over and over by numerous research groups, both “liberal” and “conservative”:
The total number of after tax dollars voluntarily
given to charities, is vastly greater among
self-described “conservatives”,
than it is among self-described “liberals”.
(The average of the various studies shows a discrepancy of more than 80%!)
given to charities, is vastly greater among
self-described “conservatives”,
than it is among self-described “liberals”.
(The average of the various studies shows a discrepancy of more than 80%!)
In other words:
Those who reject the alleged virtue of entitlement
tend to be far more generous to their fellow man,
than those who embrace it!
Somewhere, there’s a lesson in that. What do you think it is?
On another issue, I agree that “We are no longer able to objectively listen.” However, most people have not “lost” that ability, because they’ve never had it to begin with. The ability to think logically, dispassionately, with one’s mind (as opposed to “heart” OR “feelings”), is a learned skill – it can be taught. With very rare exceptions, objective listening, observation and analytical skills are no longer taught in most of our so-called, “public schools” – probably because that institution has been co-opted by a “Progressive” agenda. That agenda stresses “compliance”, “self-sacrifice”, “equality” (of outcome), “groupism” and a host of other, equally pernicious notions.
However, to the salvation of humanity, some of us can be objective when and where it really counts! If not for a tiny minority of disciplined thinkers, we would all still be living as tribes of migrant hunter-gatherers and most human technology would not exist. I suspect, at least 90% of all humans depend for their very lives, on the wisdom, insight and creative impulses of a tiny minority of intellectual giants. Motivated by enlightened self-interest, that minority figures out how the universe actually works (as in Quantum Mechanics, the laws of Physics, Microbiology, et. al) then the rest of us just copy them like so many monkeys.
Unfortunately, since the dark days of 1908 – 1913, America has been grotesquely twisted into a culture where those intellectual giants are literally punished for their gifts to humanity. IOW, the monkeys are whipping the goose that lays the golden eggs on which they depend! Go figure! That, dear friend, is a direct result of the Collectivist (“Progressive”) ideology behind “Entitlement”. Use whatever labels you wish in place of mine, but the effect is the same.
The Law of Identity: A = A.
“A” is never equal to X, simply because
some of us “feel” like it “should” be!
“A” is never equal to X, simply because
some of us “feel” like it “should” be!
As I’m sure you know, Objectivity is a learned skill in which one first acknowledges the human tendency to be subjective about everything. To offset that tendency (and thus master the physical world), we must apply the rules of logic and clear, rational analysis. The Empirical Method is just one of several time-tested disciplines that empower diligent, honest people to filter out subjective perceptions. Maintaining and enhancing this skill is a lifelong task that requires, among other things, constant, brutally honest self-examination. All of this comes under the heading of ”Epistemology” – my favorite hobby! Naturally, no one is 100% consistent in applying objective perception. This is why an honest scientist wants his theories disproven more than anything else.
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