Nothing is free.
Ever since Obama has been in office, there has been a lot of talk about getting things for free, like free health care, free college tuitions, and exedra.
But if you look all around us, everything that has built our society was done through work. Nobody gave us things like the automobile, electric lights, the paved roads to drive on, the skyscrapers, the trains to ride in, all of those came from work - hard work.
You know the idea that people can get stuff for free, that comes from a sense of entitlement. And I've got news for you, but nobody is entitled to anything. Nobody owes you the right to a meal, nobody owes you the right to have shoes on your feet, or a car to drive, or anything like that.
And when you're living at home, you may feel that your parents owe you stuff. Guess what, they don't! They have already put the bill for you, by changing your diapers and powdering your ass when you were a toddler, putting shoes on your feet, and making sure that you have a school you can go to, and then later working hard so that you can go to college.
So the reality is, you over them. Now most parents will never expect their children to pay them back for all that they have done for them. But as their child what you do owe them is your gratitude and respect. And if you aren't giving them that, then you should be ashamed!
So just remember, your parents don't owe you a damn thing. And when you are getting something for free, just remember that there is somebody else out there somewhere who had to pay so it could happen.
And when the government start talking about giving out stuff for free, that tells me that they're about ready to take it from me in some other form, then repackage it and turn around and give it right back to me, and acting like they're doing me a big favor.
Or, they are going to take it from somebody who has worked really hard, and who thus earned it because of his hard work, and turn around and give it to somebody who has not worked for anything.
When the government says free, they mean for free them. They mean when they are going to give you something for free, but they're going to take it from somebody else so they can give it to you. The government in itself doesn't produce anything, but rather it leaches off the American people - and that's how it gets its resources.
And want to comes to taking care of the Veterans, as I have previously talked about and other threads and whatnot, the government sends these guys over to the fight its Wars, with the assumption that when these guys return, if they return that they will receive help in exchange for the service. But as soon as they come back, and try to get that help, the government runs them through a bunch of red tape calm enough and often times and never get it.
And in the meantime the government runs away with the money that we put out in taxes so that these guys can get the help that they need. by doing so, the government betrayed both the people that fight to protect its interests, and the people that those men fight to protect.
That's just further proof that the government in itself does not care about you or me. It's interested in its own power and how it can increase that power. And if it has to, it will violate the Bill of Rights, violate our civil rights, in order to obtain its goal.
I digress - in short, if you want something in life, and it doesn't matter what it is, you have to be willing to work for it. The idea that you can get stuff for free is a lie. It's an allusion!
And the sad part is, is that it's quickly becoming the American dream, and the thing about a dream is, is that you have to be asleep to believe that it's real.
NOTICE: If you would like to reply to this discussion, please feel free to do so. All I ask, as I put some work into this thread, is that you keep your comments and replies civil and respectful. I would hope that we can all have a rather civil and calm discussion about this thing. Thank you!
Comments
In Defense of Free Stuff. (A piece I wrote about this a few weeks ago)
What’s that you say, a sense of entitlement in America? I agree! But there’s so much talk about the poor and middle class moochers thar we’re forgetting about another group of people that deserves scrutiny: the rich. Landlords, hedge fund managers and other welfare queens who do nothing but leech off society while producing nothing of value. So, why not get rid of entitlements for everyone? Fair is fair, right?
Corporate bailouts? Heck no, if a company falls on hard times, they just need to dust themselves off and claw their way back on top. Maybe they can ask the church for some donations. While we’re at it, let’s get rid of those pesky laws that restrict workers abilities to strike! Get of the government teat, CEO’s!
Patent protection? It hurts competition, so let’s get rid of it! Military-Industrial Complex? More like Boeing Welfare Complex, SNIP! Transportation subsidies that allow corporations to ship goods for pennies on the dollar? What is this, a free money convention?! CUT IT! Another cut here, another cut there and….
Oh dear...it would seem the free market has eaten the rich and global capitalism is collapsing. I wonder why?
“Free stuff” isn’t a pipe dream. It isn’t socialism and it isn’t going to “ruin” the economy. Free stuff keeps our big ol’ dysfunctional capitalist system from imploding. It’s the American way. The entire American economy is on welfare, so tell me again: why shouldn’t the working class get their share?
Oh yes, the old American myth of hard work. If you just try your hardest, you too will make it rich. Nope, that's not how the economy, it's distorted by power, whether governmental or corporate, there is no such thing as the 'free market.'
Without getting into too lengthy of a discussion, there is no such thing as 'free stuff' - it gets funded by taxpayers, you're correct. But the other side of that is that wages, the rate at which people make money is not necessarily connected to their work. The minimum wage has not kept up with inflation, but it has had an even larger contrast with productivity. Should you necessarily be supplied with unlimited food stamps and unemployment benefits if you take no effort to find employment? Not necessarily, but the reality is that in fact far too many people work 'hard' - more than one full-time job, and still can't make ends meet. The 'free stuff' Republicans keep complaining about is the belief that if you put in your hard work - if you do your full time - you should have access to a decent standard of living, including healthcare, education, shelter, and food.
You say it's an allusion - I'm not sure if you're referring to the ant and the grasshopper, but while that works, the reality is more like a real ant colony - the workers are working their abdomens off and being exploited to keep the queen fed.
Btw, this hasn't been since Obama, it's been going on for at least 100 years, and if we're pointing to Aesop, thousands.
I know I may sound like the least informed one here but I still feel like I have to say something about this.
Personally I feel the system is so severely broken, that it leaves one side with benefits while the rest gets to feed off the dirt of the earth. My reason for saying this is because those in the corrupt political or business world gets to enjoy all the luxuries compared to that of like a homeless person. I mean when I look around myself: robberies nearly ever day, we need charities to support others for little support it makes as a whole, people unable to get medical support because they can't afford, many people are unable to live in a home because they are unable to cope with the system, and hardly any progress was done with diseases and third world countries who continues to suffer and live in poverty, and money continues to go up because of damn oil and other nonsense. I know money was created to keep brawls over items cuz of stupid human nature, but it's become something for centuries now as something where you have to pay-to-live.
Quite frankly it sickens me, WE DON'T NEED TO RELY ON MONEY TO DEAL WITH EVERY GODDAMN ISSUE. If many people just get their heads out of their asses, especially the elitist assholes at the top, many issues would not still be prominent. Just helping third world countries who suffer, help lift it off its feet o support itself. Saving lives in the medical ground without being greedy fucks. Creating permanent housing for homeless communities. Just working on a cure without the thought of fucking money would probably lead to better results. Everyone's currency, every country, is balanced and the same so there's loopholes. Less incentive to rob because the system would be properly re-established. This is how I feel it should be.
I would be a Politician and try to do these things, but these are only ideas and I dunno how to execute them, so that's why I don't bother trying to be one. Ideas are useless if you dunno how to make them happen...
But yeah, that's my rant on money in general.
"Not necessarily, but the reality is that in fact far too many people work 'hard' - more than one full-time job, and still can't make ends meet... Btw, this hasn't been since Obama, it's been going on for at least 100 years."
Sadly, that is true. And it's just further proof that the government doesn't really care. And what strikes me as odd is that so many people in this country seem to feel that big government is indeed their friend.
A real friend wouldn't steal your hard earned savings, nor misappropriate the money you spend in taxes - it wouldn't be taking your tax money that you pay for certain things, and use it to pay for something totally different - particularly on something you never agreed to in the first place.
The government is NOBODY'S friend - period!
I've known men who work two jobs, and they still have a hard time putting food on the table. Honest, hardworking, ambitious, and driven men who work their fingers to the bone, and who can never come out ahead.
And then again I also know men who are basically living off of the Government, and who try to keep up the appearance that they're looking for work, so the Government doesn't cut them off. And that makes them basically "paid for bums."
There's nothing wrong with welfare for those who are out of work and who are having difficulty finding a job. But you also can't help people if they won't help themselves. Then it's enabling.
And it's because of men like this is just one reason why hardworking men can't get anywhere.
The idea that your actions effect only yourself is a lie. We are all living in one pond, and when someone splashes around, everyone else gets engulfed by the rippling effect.
Men need to work hard. And everyone should work for what they get. But you are also having to work within a corrupt system - one that is designed to take away from the working man and give it to these wealthy fat-fuck politicians, and corrupt businessmen.
It's sad that so many Americans have been conditioned to think this way. Truly a testament to the power of propaganda. I have an uncle who's been getting fucked like this for years and he just blames it on any group he can. Ghetto families, illegals, trailer trash, etc. it's just impossible for him to consider the idea that the "job creators" might not have his best interests at heart. I should add that I'm not an enlightened soul who's above all this either. I still get a lot of the same spiteful feelings when I see how much of my paycheck goes to taxes. It's sadly part of our culture.
Honest hardworking men aren't being dragged down by the bums, they're fucked to start with. Those men can't get ahead because they're being ruthlessly exploited by a system that sees them as human resources instead of human beings. The grand "class compromise" that allowed their working-class parents to survive and prosper has been stripped away and replaced with the insane notion that if we just cut taxes on the rich, maybe some of their prosperity will trickle down to our level. It's a false hope.
Unlike the middle-class, the ruling class likes the poor. In fact, they like the poor so much that they get worried when the unemployment rate drops below 6%. How's that for enabling? The unemployed, welfare recipient serves an important purpose in Capitalism. They're a handy scapegoat for the our problems and a reminder of what will happen to them if they dare step out of line.
Workshy bums piss me off too, but their impact on us is marginal. The impact that business and government has on us is huge. Don't buy into the propoganda. It's just rich people paying rich people to tell working people that their problems are caused by poor people.
You keep saying governement, I notice no mention of the other side of the equation - employers. What about your friends who work two jobs? How do you think that happened?
Nobody thinks that the government is their friend - I, at least, think government has greater responsibility to the public than private corporations. You can put pressure on the government to enact the necessary changes far more you can the private sector, especially given the oversupply in the labor market.
I agree the system is completely corrupt, but what would your solution be? For me, I see a popular movement to push for liberal reform and jobs programs are perhaps the only viable solution. 'Getting government out of the marketplace' is really just going to create a vacuum for large businesses to become even larger and use their weight to distort the market to their own benefit. There's a reason there are and need to be antitrust laws.
On a side note, you keep going on about hard working men, there are a lot of very hard working women too. I know you're not saying there aren't, but I just keep reading 'men, men, men,'
I know what this thread is about but you said that "no one is entitled to anything", but what about their rights? Are people not entitled to their birth given rights? Is that another thing you must fight for?
You also mentioned veterans, the noble souls giving part of their life, or sometimes all of their life to protecting the assets of America. I have a lot of respect for our veterans and soldiers, but at the same time, the things we want to give to them...Well, isn't that stuff coming from taxes? As some people say, "The government leaching off of the hard workers"?
Here's the thing about these "free things", you're living in an advanced society, you have societal responsibility. As we progress, so will our rights and freedoms which give more leave way to smaller things being taken into account. Sure, we could just say "We're not changing anything" but that simply isn't the American way, we must progress. If to progress it's a single payer healthcare system where your taxes is raised so people aren't put into poverty, homelessness, bankruptcy, and out of the job market due to small or large scale injuries, then don't you think that is worth it? You could say no, that you must work for everything, but no one is asking for anything free. People are asking for affordable things, systems where they can achieve the American Dream without being put under and destroyed through debt.
Also, these "hardworkers" that you're mentioning...I'm curious who you think they are. Some people would say the billionaires and millionaires, but that simply isn't the case, some of those people truly are hard workers but face the facts, a lot of them aren't. They were either born into money, the real entitled people, or people who got their way up the economic ladder by manipulation and making other people fall. I have major respect for the true entrepreneurs of the world, but not as much for those who cheat their way to the top. They're the entitled generation of America. The real hard workers are those in the middle class and in the lower class, in poverty, working several jobs to get by but ending up not getting higher positions than minimal wage. That's the America we live in, as much as we wouldn't like to admit it, that is. Things change, we must face it.
I hate people for free.
Yes there are hardworking men and women. I must have that Two And A Half Men theme song stuck in my head. Lol!
You know quite frankly I don't know what the solution is. And I don't think it matters what kind of reform you pass, because as long as you have greedy and corrupt men and women in office - you're gonna have corrupt laws.
And the businessmen own them, as they often give then the necessary financial support in order to get into office. So that means they have a strong barring on how these politicians vote.
And term limits ain't gonna do you any good, as you're just gonna end up with a brand new batch of corrupt politicians.
How many of these threads are you going to make before people figure you out?
Who ever told you that there is stuff that is free lied to you
So here's where ole dragonfire suggests we all just listen to Alabama's I'm in a hurry(and don't know why) Sums up this thread perfectly! Can't find a link or I would!
Give me your soul, give me your freedom, and I will grant you free housing, free food, free water, free electricity. Who needs civil rights anyways. coughs
Has anyone actually bothered to read all of this?
I know I didn't.
It's like one second I read the first bits of the lines and then ahhh...
Ya' lost me.