Excellent find Sparky.........worth repeating, as it reflects my thoughts exactly.
As a former drug addict, my take on this issue might be a little different.
Many Americans are addicted to government. They are far beyond mere acceptance of government largess. They are intimately dependent upon government programs, money, and subsidies to live, and have been for so long that they have forgotten how it was to live without the mother’s milk of taxpayer money.
We’re at the end point of that lifestyle now - the same place when the individual drug addict has exhausted his savings, sold his belongings, frayed his relationships, and sees only the next fix tomorrow. Whether or not the party of government, the Democrats, are the addicts or the pushers is not relevant, since the Democrats are obviously addicted to government excess along with their supporters. What is scarier is the great mass of Americans and organizations also addicted to government excess who are users of taxpayer money and regulatory power but don’t recognize how deep they’ve sunk into the lifestyle. In this group I’d put all those businesses comfortable with manipulating regulation, middle-class folks trying to game the system, and limosine liberals thinking that they’re all right as long as they’re friendly with their Democrat dealers.
In any case, there’s nothing left in the stash box. The alternatives are stark - try to steal it from your nonaddicted neighbors or go cold turkey. As a country, if you go the first route, we have civil war; if we go the second route, we have chaos.
Like all addicts, though, we have to hit bottom to recognize the severity of the situation. Those of us who are sober can see that bottom rising up as we fall towards it. For the rest, the shock will leave them with the two alternatives above. Unfortunately, when the individual addict goes on his private crime wave, the police intervene. When a country decides to engage in wholesale theft by redistributing wealth, though, either people fight or the government takes everything - and it’s never enough.
When the individual addict goes cold turkey, their problems from the addiction don’t vanish, though. It’s a long struggle to reclaim your life, for others to trust to your judgment, for you to restore what was lost in the addiction. Our country faces this prospect, in my opinion.
I didn’t mention the idea of intervention because it seems as if that moment passed us by about 30 years ago - in the form of Ronald Reagan. He tried to intervene. I don’t know if it would be possible to confront those addicted to government money today without a violent response.
It looks like interesting times ahead. I really, really hope I’m wrong.
12 posted on Wednesday, July 07, 2010 12:24:57 PM by redpoll
The day of awakening for my wife and myself came with hurricane Katrina, and NOLA........prior to that, we had some modicum of empathy for the "poor", and underclasses in America.
As we watched the situation in NOLA unfold we suddenly became painfully aware of the hidden effects of rampant liberalism, particularly on the black community, and from that point forward, we no longer really cared about people who were either too stupid, too government dependent, or too lazy to get out of the way of a 150 mile-wide freight train that was coming at them, when they had two days advance warning.
We watched the survivors turn the Superdome into the world's biggest toilet, we watched them whine and cry for handouts and assistance from the government and the private sector, then spend our taxpayer and contribution dollars on frivolities and booze. We watched them as they were relocated to other cities, and promptly "bit the hand that fed them" by turning portions of those communities into the same cesspools that NOLA was........some of them (12 actually) came here to Kansas City, however, they didn't stay long......as soon as we midwestern folk caught a bit of their "attitude", they were promptly sent packing. Many of our churches sent relief to the area, but being pragmatic as we are, we sent only food, water, medical assistance, and clothing.......no money.
Our sympathy for the "poor" died during those days, we discussed it, and came to the conclusion that we were going to send our aid contribution dollars to the ASPCA, and animal rescue groups, as we knew that the animals had no choice as to where they were, and no awareness of what was unfolding around them, unlike the people. The "citizens" of NOLA didn't get a dime from us (except for our tax contributions), and should a similar event occur, we can be counted on to take a pass again...........
In this area, we annually suffer through tornadoes, floods, and windstorms, and the people here seem to always pitch in and help our neighbors rebuild, replant, and recover.......we don't stand in the path of the event, whining for the government to bail us out.......we survive, and do so without the news media making a circus out of our misfortune.
Therefore, when some "bleeding heart" like Laelth comes to this forum, spouting nonsensical liberal talking points about redistributing our hard-earned resources to the "poor".......not only does it seriously piss me off.....but in the immortal words of Rhett Butler........."Frankly.....I don't give a damn........"
doc
