Re-published by ZNet and Toward Freedom and The Rag Blog. Available in print by the Defenestrator. Also translated to Dutch for GlobalInfo. cool!
Anti-Capitalism Goes Mainstream
Michael Moore’s New Film Names the System and Presents a Radical Democratic Critique
Alex Knight, October 16, 2009
Capitalism: A Love Story, which opened in 962 theaters earlier this month, is Michael Moore’s most ambitious work yet – taking aim at the root cause behind the injustices he’s exposed in his other films over the last 20 years. This time capitalism itself is the culprit to be maligned in Moore’s trademark docu-tragi-comic style. And by using the platform of a major motion picture to make a direct assault at the root of the problem, Moore has created space in the political mainstream for a radical conversation (radical meaning “going to the root”).
It’s a conversation that is desperately needed as the economic crisis continues to devastate low- and middle-income Americans in spite of President Obama’s and Congress’ efforts to stop the bleeding by throwing trillions of dollars at the banks. Yesterday, Democracy Now! reported that while the Dow Jones topped 10,000 for the first time in a year, foreclosures have reached a record level of 940,000 in the third quarter. But with this film airing in major chain cinemas across the nation, the normally taboo topics of how wealth is divided, who owns Congress, and how vital economic decisions are made are now open for discussion in a way they haven’t been in the U.S. for decades.
In Capitalism, Michael Moore features the reality of the economic crisis for America’s usually-invisible poor and working class. The movie begins with a family filming their eviction from their own home. In a terrifying scene, we watch from inside their living room window as 7 police cars roll up to throw the ill-fated family onto the street for failing to make their payments. Moore explained in an interview, “You see [a foreclosure] really for the first time from the point of view of the person being thrown out of the house.” This same bottom-up viewpoint carries the audience through the rest of the film, from the stories of kids in Pennsylvania sent to private detention centers for minor offenses by judges who received kickbacks from the prison company, to airline pilots whose wages are so low they have to go on food stamps.
By grounding the viewers in the human costs of out-of-control capitalism, Moore finds firm footing for launching his attacks on the Wall St. firms who he believes are responsible for this crisis. As the film points out, the richest 1% of Americans now control more wealth than the bottom 95%, a sorry state of affairs that has grown steadily worse since the 1980s. Ronald Reagan, Alan Greenspan, and his two buddies Larry Summers and Robert Rubin are implicated in Capitalism as responsible parties behind the gutting of regulations and the deliverance of the federal government into the hands of the bankers.
Michael Moore’s conversations with congressmen and women about the $700 billion bank bailout passed last October best illustrate this transfer of sovereignty. The congresspeople are remarkably candid in their dismay at what was essentially a blank check to Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and Citigroup. Representative Baron Hill from Indiana recounts that the bailout bill was pushed through Congress in a similar manner as the Iraq War authorization, under threat of catastrophe and terror. Marcy Kaptur, congresswoman from Ohio, however, does one better. “This was almost like an intelligence operation,” she laments. And when Moore asks her if the bailout represents a “financial coup d’etat” by the bankers, she responds, “I could agree with that. Because the people here [pointing to the Capitol] really aren’t in charge. Wall Street is in charge.”
We also see Kaptur’s courageous honesty on the floor of the House, urging Americans to resist foreclosure by remaining in their homes. Detroit sheriff Warren Evans stands out as another hero in the film when he announces he will cease foreclosure evictions in his jurisdiction because of the damage to the community caused by making more houses vacant and more families homeless. Moore also features grassroots organization Take Back the Land, which has dramatically responded to the crisis by moving evicted families back into their homes in the Miami area.
Regular folks fighting back against a system that is depriving them of income, housing, health care and other basic needs is inspiring stuff to watch, and it’s not something we’re used to seeing up on the big screen. Capitalism displays this grassroots defiance surprisingly well by humanizing those on the bottom of the pyramid. One man whose farm is foreclosed angrily warns, “There’s got to be some kind of rebellion between people who’ve got nothing and people who’ve got it all.” His words are buttressed by a behind-the-scenes look at Republic Windows & Doors, where laid-off workers occupied their Chicago factory and refused to leave until receiving their promised severance pay. For Moore this represents the kind of direct action that everyday people must now begin to take to protect themselves from having to pay for the misdeeds of the wealthiest one percent.
This call to action is well taken. However, one piece lacking in the film’s analysis of capitalism is how the system of economic power interlocks with other structures of oppression, for example U.S. imperialism, patriarchy and white supremacy. Capitalism affects different people in extremely different ways, and while some fear losing their jobs, others fear imprisonment, rape, or even being hit by a drone attack. But Michael Moore seems to avoid a conversation about racism, sexism and homophobia in order to appeal to a mythical homogeneous American working class. And besides a brief comparison to Rome, the movie also shies away from discussing the U.S. role in the world and how a militaristic foreign policy serves the interests of corporate and financial elites – even though opposition to the wars in Afghanistan/Pakistan and Iraq have never been greater.
Another weakness is how Moore handles Barack Obama with kid gloves. Even while his economic advisers are skewered in the film, President Obama’s role in the bank bailouts is downplayed, and he comes out looking like a champion of the people, or at least a potential champion. In this respect Michael Moore bestows honors like the Nobel Committee, not so much for what the president has done, but for the “hope” of what he might do.
So what does Michael Moore propose as an alternative to capitalism? Not socialism, but a kind of economic democracy – an opportunity for average folks to have a say in how their money is used, from the workplace on up to the government. Moore takes us inside co-ops in America where workers vote on decisions about finances democratically, and where salaries are equal and adequate for everyone in the company. In one factory, assembly line workers and the CEO each make about $60,000.
To reinforce his economic prescription, Moore even dug through archives to recover lost footage of FDR’s long-forgotten proposal for a “Second Bill of Rights,” which called for guaranteeing meaningful work and a living wage, decent housing, adequate medical care, and a good education for every American. It is striking how such common-sense ideas in our current political climate appear dangerously radical, even coming from the lips of a U.S. president. It seems the overriding purpose of Capitalism: A Love Story is to flip these expectations on their heads. For Michael Moore, guaranteeing basic economic security is as American as apple pie; what is radical is a system that would deny such prosperity to bolster the wealth of a tiny few.
If there is to be any solution to the economic crisis that doesn’t involve millions more people thrown out of their homes or dropped from their health care, it will have to involve a sharp break from a system that values private profits higher than meeting people’s basic needs. To this end, Michael Moore has done a great public service by making a film that is essentially an invitation for views outside the bounds of established mainstream discourse to propose what might be done about the economic quagmire we now find ourselves in. It is time for an American Left to come out of the wilderness and speak out with proposals for better ways of organizing our economy. I see no reason to be any less bold than President Roosevelt was 65 years ago.
Here is an excerpt from President Roosevelt’s 1944 “Second Bill of Rights” speech:
“We cannot be content, no matter how high that general standard of living may be, if some fraction of our people—whether it be one-third or one-fifth or one-tenth—is ill-fed, ill-clothed, ill-housed, and insecure.
This Republic had its beginning, and grew to its present strength, under the protection of certain inalienable political rights—among them the right of free speech, free press, free worship, trial by jury, freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. They were our rights to life and liberty.
As our nation has grown in size and stature, however—as our industrial economy expanded—these political rights proved inadequate to assure us equality in the pursuit of happiness.
We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. “Necessitous men are not free men.” People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.
In our day these economic truths have become accepted as self-evident. We have accepted, so to speak, a second Bill of Rights under which a new basis of security and prosperity can be established for all—regardless of station, race, or creed.
Among these are:
- The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;
- The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;
- The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;
- The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;
- The right of every family to a decent home;
- The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;
- The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;
- The right to a good education.
All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals of human happiness and well-being.”
16 comments
Comments feed for this article
October 24, 2009 at 7:28 am
Concerned Citizen (Independent)
First, any radical fundamental change in our nation, such as, turning our backs on capitalism, would surely give way to socialism or even full-blown communism. It would spread like a virulent disease. If that were the case, you probably wouldn’t be able to speak out against national policies like you are now.
President Bush, and Obama, and the 111th Congress have put hard working Americans on the hook for trillions of dollars, that’s true. Remember it was so urgent when President Obama asked congress to pass the remaining roughly $400 billion that was left. They didn’t even read the bill and passed this massive 1300+ page legislation basically overnight. After it passed, President Obama left it on his desk unsigned, and went on vacation. Pretty urgent and important, huh? Last I heard maybe 20% has been spent over a year later. Do you honestly believe that the stimulus package was designed to help the American people? Free-markets will correct themselves, but they cannot correct corruption, government inference, and abuses.
The amount of people losing their homes is terrible. But lets be honest here, corrupt politically driven organizations pushed Congress to pass legislation, and banks to lower their lending standards. Financial institutions yes Wall Street, were then allowed to package these doomed loans into portfolios, where they sliced them up and sold them around the world. I am not a Bush fan, nor am I a fan of the Democrats or the Republicans for that matter, but Bush and a few other republicans did come to congress and warn them of the future financial and real estate troubles we would have if we didn’t get Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under control.
Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank, vehemently denied that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were in any kind of financial trouble. Youtube the democrats blasting republicans about Fannie and Freddie. Their motivation is pretty obvious. I believe President Obama was one of their biggest recipients in campaign donations.
I live paycheck-to-paycheck; I have no health insurance because I can’t afford it, because I work part-time while I pursue a college degree. After saying that, I still know that capitalism is the only truly free financial system. I also do not support the massive healthcare reform. You see, I love my country, and I do not want to see her financially destroyed. I would rather not have health insurance and live paycheck-to-paycheck until I earn my degree, than watch our chance for a successful future burn away.
The idea of the ‘economic democracy’ doesn’t sound bad on an individual basis, but horrible as a mandate for the citizens of the freest country in the world. Anyway, something like that already exists, its called a corporation. If you and 10 of your friends have an idea, invention, or process to bring to the market, you could make a capital investment of $1000 ($100) each, and you each have equal say, vote, and earnings. As far as deciding where the government spends your money, vote for someone who will listen to the people and is not corrupt; then our house members will apportion our tax money accordingly.
As for Roosevelt, a lot of people believe WWII, not his ‘New Deal’ brought us out of the Great Depression, and that his plans would have deepened and broadened our depression. Unfortunately, just as Bush’s plan has, and if we allow it, Obama’s plans will destroy our economy, and the best qualities of America.
Self-Evident Rights? I am aware of the ones our forefathers spoke and wrote of. But what’s this?
• The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;
o So if their isn’t enough jobs for people looking for work, because there isn’t a market demand for it, then the government must create useless and unnecessary jobs? Manufactures, retailers, farms, etc. are going to be churning while there isn’t necessarily a need? What would we do with all that excess? It would drive down prices, and unfortunately our dollar. We can look forward to a financial future as great as Mexico.
• The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;
o What’s enough? What’s adequate? Does it have to be name brand? What is recreation? Some people smoke pot for recreation, will that be covered too? We must have vacations right? Twice year maybe, the wife and six kids.
• The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;
o I completely agree, as far as agriculture’s importance and there are government subsidies to help farmers. I question again your definition of decent. Should the farm animals be part of the farm team and make decisions on where their slaughtered parts are going to go, and where the PROFITS shall be spent?
• The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;
o Well you pretty much explained capitalism. True there is possibility for and existence of ‘monopolies’. Do you intend to restrict monopolies in your ‘Michael Moore’ utopia? What is unfair competition? If you want high wages, and low prices on consumable items that are not foreign made, do you realize that’s virtually impossible? The price of the product is proportionate to its cost of production. You can’t pay high wages to workers and then sell the widget they make for cheap prices. I don’t like seeing American jobs go overseas either, but if they still made tennis shoes in America, and we lived in this apparent utopia of yours, those $100 Nike sneakers would probably cost us $500. So your high wages would be devastated by the high prices and you would be back to square one.
• The right of every family to a decent home;
o Who pays for this? Even in your utopia, it would bankrupt the nation and destroy our financial standing in the world. Millions of Americans would be financially devastated by the loss of their home value.
Not everybody works and pays taxes + everybody gets a home = financial collapse.
• The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;
o Doctors and pharmacies across America are increasingly turning patients away who solely depend on the government to pay for their medical needs. Why? Because the government doesn’t pay their bills timely or even entirely. What do you mean by opportunity? Does everyone get a monthly membership to a fitness center? Bye-Bye technology and great doctors. Hello long lines, month-long waiting lists, and good ‘ole rationing.
• The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;
o That is very broad. So another failing financially destructive program like Social Security? Hand-sanitizer for all. More unnecessary jobs, even if the markets will not support it?
• The right to a good education.
o You have that now. It’s called a Stafford Loan. It is backed by our government and everyone is entitled to borrow $7500 per year. I borrow that, plus an additional loan, because the school I attend is more expensive. So everyone has that right now. Unless you mean we shouldn’t have to borrow the money. Is that another “Self-Evident Truth” in your proposed Second Bill of Rights?
All these policies spell destruction. They will drag us down, lessen our opportunities, prohibit innovation, and take possibly the greatest liberty we have, to control our own destinies. You seem to have a good heart, and that is admirable.
One more very important factor which I relates to every point. Whose is going to pay for this? We already established that not everybody works and pays taxes. So that’s not enough to do the extravagant programs you have proposed. That leaves us with borrowing from foreign countries or worse printing money and destroying the value of our currency. I forsee one benefit that we will have in your utopia that we cannot afford now. You will be able to wipe your backside with $100 bills, because of your now worthless money, it will cheaper than buying toilet paper.
I have read and considered your opinion. Please be fair and do the same for mine. If you erase this, then you are not being objective in your cause. Play devils advocate on every subject you consider. It is the only way to be honest with yourself. Thank you for your time and consideration.
`Concerned Citizen (Independent Illinoisan) KM
October 25, 2009 at 10:54 pm
alex
hi concerned citizen,
your comment was very long so forgive me for not responding to every part of it.
i’m sorry you disagree with FDR’s proposal for a second bill of rights that guarantees every American economic human rights. perhaps you cannot see the many Americans who would greatly benefit from these proposals. for example the 200,000 being thrown out of work every month for no good reason, while much-needed work is not getting done.
for example, i hope we can agree there’s a desperate need to ‘green’ the economy, so that our planet doesn’t melt under a fried climate. that’s going to require an entirely new way of powering the economy, moving beyond highly-destructive fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas. so there’s consequently a huge need to produce wind and solar power on a large scale. but capitalism isn’t producing these because of its singular focus on the profits of huge corporations and stockholders. the people running the show can make more money by wrecking the place than by cleaning it up.
you worry: “who’s going to pay for it?!” but it seems you also cannot see the massive, completely unjustifiable and disgusting wealth of a tiny handful of corporate Americans, some of whom are worth literally billions of dollars, own yachts and drive around in HUMMER limousines, while others starve to death. i don’t see any reason why the wealthy 1% shouldn’t pay for the re-tooling of our economy. after all, they made the mess. they should clean it up. and as Michael Moore’s film rightfully points out, in the 1950s the top tax bracket paid 90% income taxes. and STILL lived in luxury! so i don’t know how anyone could justify a wealth disparity that has grown to extreme proportions with time.
the choice is clear: protect the profits of the wealthy, or build an economy that puts people to work and doesn’t fry the planet.
i’m all for the second option, but we’ll have to give up capitalism to do it!
thanks for writing and thinking
alex
October 26, 2009 at 2:31 am
Concerned Citizen
Nice talking to you Alex, maybe we can each take away points from each of our views.
Capitalism, like any other institution, can suffer from fraud abuse, and corruption. To make the changes you propose, we would have to count on our government. I can’t think of a more corrupt entity, not even Enron; you trust them to implement and regulate what should be our choices to make; you may not see these choices as liberties, but once you relinquish them, and go down that path of big government beaucracy, its hard to come back. Our government seems to be the polar opposite of King Midas—everything they touch turns to fraud, abuse, and crippling debt. Look at the Post Office, Social Security, and Medicare, and hopefully not soon to be Obama-care.
Every goal in life is based on incentives. To take away the very system that paved our path of success as the number one financial and military superpower of the world would prove devastating. We may now be losing some status in both categories, but the issues we face are because of problems in our system, not the system itself. Classes of wealth are necessary, like it or not. In this equal utopia of yours, where everyone has the same decent car, home, income, job or not, and especially education, who is going to serve you hamburgers, clean the toilets, pick the fruit, sweep the floors, etc. People of equality are not going to say, ok, I’ll take the shitty job. You will lose individuality, culture, creativity, incentive, etc.
How much does a decent house cost—$150,000+? How much is a decent education—$60,000? How much is adequate health coverage—$1500/yr? Add that up with the cost of your other proposals, and I doubt that everyone included in your proposals would contribute that same value to our national GDP. Maybe Mexico would buy up the charred amber of what was once a great capitalistic society.
I agree with your concerns, I just completely disagree with your solutions. Lets talk about fixing our problems, not creating new ones. Bush ignited a fire, and Obama is carrying the torch. We need to fix our government and stop this crippling debt and deficit spending. I urge you to turn to our nation’s forefathers, and really soak in what they have already contemplated. Remember, they fled here from Britain’s tyranny. Our system of society and rule is a spectrum. One side is anarchy and the opposite side is tyranny. Our forefathers knew, the best system for us was one as far away from tyranny as possible, just enough prevent anarchy. I would rather defend myself in anarchy than suffer through tyranny.
Each of the fundamental changes you propose is moving our nation down the spectrum toward tyranny. You set precedence as you dismantle the very carefully thought out plan our forefathers bore us over two-hundred years ago. If you think they’re outdated, read some of their quotes and you will see their understanding of government, economics, and liberty, and how it relates to the very problems we speak of today.
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety. – Benjamin Franklin
“The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground. – Thomas Jefferson
Government at its best is a necessary evil, and at its worst, an intolerant one. – Thomas Paine
Congress has not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare, but only those specifically enumerated. – Thomas Jefferson
Our legislators are not sufficiently apprized of the rightful limits of their power; that their true office is to declare and enforce only our natural rights and duties, and to take none of them from us. – Thomas Jefferson
If people let government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny. – Thomas Jefferson
My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government. – Thomas Jefferson.
To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude. .I place economy among the first and most important of republican virtues, and public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared. – President Thomas Jefferson
The Constitution only guarantees the American people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself. –Benjamin Franklin
November 3, 2009 at 10:44 pm
Concerned Citizen
Alex,
Where are you? Just because I do not agree with your intentions on this website doesn’t mean we cannot have civil discourse. I am curious about your input from my comment. If you are waiting to speak to those whose views only align with yours, you may forgo the important learning lessons of debate. You seem like a good person and I understand where you are coming from, but I just happen to believe that our current system, all though flawed, is the best possible choice for independence, innovation, and success. I agree that we should go ‘green’ soon, and I am aware that we haven’t done much to get there, but I have reservations due to some of the people and organizations pushing for it. I also believe that this administration’s plans for a green economy are bogus and ulterior motives are the biggest factors driving their legislation, not our precious planet.
Do you disagree with what I say? Were you born in America? Did you feel this way before watching Michael Moore’s documentary? How old are you? These are things I’m curious about. I was born in America, I used to be liberal and I am currently a conservative libertarian, and I am 27 yrs. old. I struggle pay-check to pay-check, cannot at this time afford health-insurance, and am close to earning my bachelors degree in college. I had to make severe sacrifices to go to college, including a pay-cut, loss of insurance, and eventually losing my job. I do not regret it, I do not support ending capitalism, and I do not support this administration’s health-care reform. I also grew up dirt-poor. I just wanted to let you know, that what I’m telling you is from my heart, just as I’m sure your comments are, but if we cannot discuss our differences, then we cannot expect to make progress. If you do not want me to post again, just let me know.
Sincerely,
Concerned Citizen
November 5, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Jill Barraclough
Capitalism : The New God
Trinity:
Individual Satisfaction – Father
Exploitation – Son
Purchasing power – Holy Spirit
10 Commandments
* I will make sure I maximise my profits at the cost of everything else
* Individual satisfaction must be 100% satisified even if it means I cheat on my marriage, destroy my childrens lives and end up divorced
* Exploit whoever you can for whatever you can, its survival of the fittest
* You are what you can afford
* Love thy cheap goods even if you don’t know they came from a child sweat shop
* Thou shall not worship false Gods: socialism, communism, et al
* Though shall be faithful and not lie with another man’s wife unless our wife failed to deliver for a few days now or I see something else I want in the street round the corner, like the latest purchase from that tv store down the road.
* Individual success and power are everything crush all enemies that stand in your way.
* Avoid giving money to charity it is rescuing and people should be responsible for their own problems even if they are not self inflicted or were originally caused by our neoliberal economic and political policies.
* Lend support to wars and support dictators if there is cheap oil or cheap access to valuable resources to be gained as our country has to be the most wealthy and powerful.
New Testament Most Important of all these Commands not love thy neighbour :
Love myself and everyone else can have the breadcrumbs that fall from my table
12 Disciples – Enablers, Message Delivery Systems, Promoters
* World Bank & IMF
* Companies that exploit developing nation producers with low and unfair prices
* Advertisements that promote materialism with irresponsible marketing messages
* Pride
* Greed
* Ego
* Vanity
* Banks that don’t support and help small businesses, yet provide huge overdraft facilities to big organisations who really do not need that support .
* Lenders who throw credit cards at people that they can’t afford to have or use
* Banks that wont lend to people who actually need the money and provide the financial support they are supposed to so these people turn to loan sharks and charge huge profitable fees for bounced Direct Debits and unauthorised overdrafts.
* Politicians with delusions of grandeur that want to control the world
* Judas Iscariot – Enlightened invididuals that try to inform people (whistleblowers)
The Evil One
Devil – Socialism and anything resembling socialist systems
Lord’s Prayer
Our Individual Satisfaction
That art all over the world
Hallowed be thy buy one get one free
Thy autumn sales come, Thy supreme shopping experience be done
On earth as it is in the stores
Forgive us for missing the winter sales and we will forgive the stores for closing on Sundays
Give this day our daily buying
Lead us into cheating, sleeping around and not looking after our children
Let us not be tempted to really care about other people
Deliver us from socialism
For thine be the kingdom, the power and the glory, for as long as we practice this awful economic concept
Amen
Note: writers note this is a criticism of capitalism in an attempt to make a few points and is no way shape or form supposed to represent the real bible and the Word of God within it.
Copyright @ Jill Barraclough 2009 Please feel free to circulate this article with the copyright notice, authors name, contact details and Note above included. Writer can be contacted @ loventruth@hotmail.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or jillb@jillb.me
November 5, 2009 at 4:08 pm
Jill Barraclough
To supporters of capitalism please contemplate the following
Did we not just suffer a huge financial crisis that rocked our world economies for almost a year now. Creating havoc and destitution to hundreds of thousands of people who lost their homes and their jobs. I think people’s memories seem to very short as soon as signs of recovery appear they forget the evils of yesterday.
I am more in favour of cooperative ventures, mixed economies and social
enterprises. They promote family and community and eliminate the sole objective of profit maximisation, they tick all of Maslow’s boxes on an individual level, which coincidentally capitalism doesn’t therefore are the best option for individual wealth optimisation (using wealth here as a loose term to signify what is valued by and success for the individual and not just monetary in value) and way forward on an individual level.
Thinking has not yet developed to accept this yet, its just a matter of time before this point of realisation is actually reached. (you may want to consider that a lot of professionals sacrifice a lot for careers and are actually very unhappy, ill with stress and pressure and end up committing sucicide from depression when it all goes wrong, or cheat on their wives and end up in divorce as they do not have time to enjoy their family due to long working hours and work pressures just to maximise profits for the bourgeois)
The main point to highlight that not only is this system our economic system but our once faith based countries are now built on it and our political systems follow these ideologies importing them wholesale with a twist to exploit weaknesses in other nations where possible. Its infiltrating every part of our lives and its not causing positive results in any sphere of functionality.
Hope that you can see in the longer term we are going to end up paying with a lot more for capitalism than we think as it undermines our value systems and ruins our families and communities.
To me capitalism is not the optimal choice for humanity, nor is it the most logical, progressive or best for humanity as a whole, being a humanitarian that is my primary bone of contention with capitalism. This is all before we even discuss the hypocrisy of political systems, neoliberalism, unfair trading platforms and so on and so on.
Peace and blessings
Jill
November 7, 2009 at 2:48 am
alex
thanks so much for posting “concerned citizen” and jill!
i love what jill has written, nice poem! very amusing
concerned citizen, please don’t take my silence as a sign of disrespect. i’ve been busy and cant always respond to comments.
some of what you say is good, for example all your Jefferson quotes. another good one of his, perhaps you know it, is as follows: “I believe that banks are even more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.”
Jefferson and I are good buds when it comes to dismantling oppressive institutions, it seems.
i’m with you on not trusting government to solve our problems or fix everything. i’m right with you on the anti-authoritarian kick. but can you really trust the massive banks and corporations to solve our problems and control our economy?
cause they do right now, and unless we see a massive change in who has power in this country, the crooks who bankrupted us and then stole $Trillions from us when their crooked schemes collapsed, will continue to run the show.
do you realize that Goldman Sachs essentially controls the Treasury Dept. and Federal Reserve? a few incredibly wealthy bankers make the economic policy that the rest of us have to live with, working our whole lives away only to have our pensions cut and health care taken away. how can this be justified by any stretch of the imagination?
$700 billion bailouts for the wealthy, nothing for health care. trillions for war, nothing for the environment. this is the face of capitalism. not Jefferson. he would be out protesting if he were alive.
you talk a lot about what i supposedly support, but i don’t know that you actually know my views. i would suggest reading my Synopsis, all 5 parts, starting here: https://endofcapitalism.com/about/1-is-this-the-end-of-capitalism/
and if you believe that capitalism is the only system that can lead to a functioning economy, think again. Yes! Magazine, ZNet’s Michael Albert, and countless others have been doing great work laying out alternative paths for economics that could make us all much better off, without the crippling gap between rich and poor, or the devastation of our planet. the KEY is Who has power? the wealthy few deciding what happens to everyone, or communities of people making decisions that affect them?
here’s a good intro article by Yes! Magazine’s David Korten called “Why This Crisis May Be Our Best Chance to Build A New Economy”:
http://yesmagazine.org/issues/the-new-economy/why-this-crisis-may-be-our-best-chance-to-build-a-new-economy
and since you asked about myself, please read my bio here: https://endofcapitalism.com/alex-knight/
thanks!
alex
November 30, 2009 at 7:32 pm
No King But God
Dear Alex,
I think your heart is in the right place, but you are putting your faith in the wrong place. You see many of the problems we suffer today, but you are failing to see the true causes of those problems.
Concerned Citizen is very close to the truth – he seems to understand that greater government power is not the answer for several reasons, the first of these being that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Someone must pay for your utopian dreams. To this truth you reply that we should just eat the rich! At this point you move from a morally sound call for justice (i.e., those elites who stole from the masses should repay) to a call for further injustice based upon feeble marxist class-warfare (i.e., those elites who stole became rich, so make ALL rich people repay). Tell you what, I once saw a guy with red hair steal from some lady with gray hair, so let’s get a majority of voters to impose 90% tax rates on all men with red hair. Is that justice or simply more theft? Justice is correcting a violation of someone’s rights, and must be done on an individual basis. When “justice” is imposed by the state with a broad stroke, even when blessed with the supposedly sacred touch of democracy’s will of the people, and even when carried out against a politically unpopular group in favor of a politically popular group, this simply causes more injustice.
And please don’t say that just because someone was subject to legalized theft by draconian tax rates and still had money to spend, that this somehow justifies the theft. If I steal one of your kidneys, is that ok because you can still live? You have to look at whether rights were violated, not whether you happen to sympathize more with one party than the other, or even whether some nebulous “greater good” was served.
Alex, the problem is not rich people. It is not business people, nor money, nor profit motive. The problem is the state. It is granting someone a monopoly on the initiation of violence, even if it takes 50% plus 1 to exercise that violence. Call it capitalism if you wish (crony capitalism or corporatism or mercantilism would be more accurate), but the problem is the state using its force to grant unjust privileges to someone. (Although I must admit that I see the state as only half the problem; the other half we can discuss if you have interest and ears to hear and eyes to see.)
You talk about Goldman Sachs and Wall Street taking over government institutions, such as the Treasury and the Fed, and abusing the agency’s power to enrich themselves. Again, the problem is not the business people, it is the government agency having that power in the first place. Ever see Lord of the Rings? The problem is not the people of Middle Earth, but rather the consolidation and centralization of power in the ring. You must destroy the ring because as long as it exists, it will corrupt those who possess its power – no matter how full of integrity the current bearer may be! So you want reform? Destroy our government’s money monopoly. Some may call it letting the free market supply our money, but it really just amounts to letting little people like you and me decide what money we use.
You link to an article by David Korten. He makes the same mistakes. He calls for government issued money (which we already have!), calling it “debt-free”. So what is it backed by? Gold, silver, or oil? Or is it simply backed by the future taxing capacity of the government? Sounds like debt-based money to me. I always thought of debt being defined as a promise to repay something from the future earning capacity of the borrower. He then later talks about prohibiting the issuance of financial securities not backed by a real asset, yet the issuance of such fiat securities is the very solution he is proposing for our monetary woes! It is not a promising sign when your solution involves having the law-makers become law-breakers. Korten also incorrectly suggests the estate tax operates like a Biblical Jubilee. However, with God’s design of the Jubilee, the transfer of wealth operated voluntarily between private parties, not imposed by force from a private party to the state! This is simply more theft, and will not restore social balance. Just several sentences later, Korten denounces the concentration of power and the existence of monopolies that become too big to fail. Yet he advocates ever greater concentration of power in the biggest monopoly of all – the coercive state!
Alex, I share many of your concerns. I too mourn for the plight of the poor and oppressed. Their cries seem to grow louder every day. But you advocate more hair of the dog that bit them, i.e., you want them to have less liberty and more tyranny! You talk often of love. Love does not seek to impose its will through force, and that is what the very existence of the state implies – the initiation of violence. Instead, love seeks to give of itself (i.e., not to steal from others to give to others, no matter the charitable motives) and to change others from the inside out (i.e., to voluntarily change the heart of others, not to impose your judgment upon them through force).
Sorry this is so long winded, but I think you are well-motivated and well-positioned to do great good. Best of luck to you in your search for truth.
No King But God
December 1, 2009 at 2:27 am
alex
hi “no king but god”, thanks for posting on my site!
you are right not to trust the State. i agree with you that it is at the heart of our social problems, and i certainly do not want to see it strengthened.
but perhaps what you don’t see is that the government provides many billions of dollars to large corporations every year, even terribly violent and destructive ones like Blackwater, Exxon, Wal-Mart, Lockheed Martin, and on and on. not to mention the “too big to fail” banks who have received trillions. this is corporate welfare, and it’s much more significant than the small amount spent by the government on necessary social services like education or health care.
so is it fair to tax the rich? yes, it would be, because unlike your analogy, all rich people are complicit in the poverty of billions and the devastation of our planet, they are not innocent bystanders. i hope you understand that my “eat the rich” proposal was tongue-in-cheek. i dont actually advocate killing anyone, or even using violence against folks unless in self-defense. i’m with you 100% on appealing to people’s morality to cause the changes we need.
nevertheless, i stand by my illustration of the richest 1% of Americans as the Ruling Class, because yes, these folks do run the show, and they’re running the rest of us right into the ground – with 10%-and-growing unemployment and the global climate crisis standing out among a long list of catastrophes. in other words, the theft has already occurred, and it’s occurring daily – we’re paying for their crisis! holding the folks responsible for this is not a new injustice, it’s common sense.
Paul Kivel wrote a very good book introing the Ruling Class, called “You Call This a Democracy?” i reviewed it here: https://endofcapitalism.com/2009/04/21/review-of-you-call-this-a-democracy-who-benefits-who-pays-and-who-really-decides/
i agree with you that we need to destroy “the ring of power”, but don’t ignore that the government is responsive to the folks who own it. government is an instrument, and the folks calling the tune are the ones who run the corporations and banks that control our economy.
the answer i think we may largely agree with – a decentralization of power so that regular folks in their communities have control over their economic future, or as you say “letting little people like you and me decide what money we use.” just keep in mind that this cannot occur so long as we are dependent on those at the top for a measly paycheck. we have to break their monopoly on property, just as we break the state’s monopoly on the use of force.
thanks for writing, keep thinking fighting and loving!
alex
January 10, 2010 at 1:33 pm
Usdating
Blogged about it, linked to it, and for good measure threw in a Digg as well. Thanks for the effort.
January 19, 2010 at 9:49 pm
Concerned Citizen KM (Independent)
To: Jill Barraclough and those Americans who wish to end capitalism and/or embrace socialistic, communistic, Marxist, fascist, etc ideologies; otherwise any American who doesn’t emphasize individuality and liberties along with our Constitution as our most precious and sacred gift—not the ‘Nanny State.’
I feel sorry for those who lost their homes and/or jobs due to no fault of their own, but not for the large portion of the people who lost their homes due to their own irresponsibility. For one, adjustable rate mortgages are a trap. Those who purchased expensive homes that were unrealistically deemed affordable have no one to blame but themselves. It is the responsibility of the individual to understand past rate hikes, their job status, and income—and make sure they can weather future storms. There is no excuse for irresponsibility. The bailout of the financial industry, the auto industry, and the push for sub-prime home loans are all important factors concerning our economic woes. These are all liberal, progressive and socialistic policies—they are not capitalistic or conservative in any way. Massachusetts democratic senator Barney Frank should have resigned, and at the very least, should not be re-elected in any political office. Charges should be brought against all politicians, financial executives, SEC members, etc. who were complicit or grossly negligent in these acts.
How do these cooperative ventures, mixed economies, and social enterprises “promote family and community and eliminate the sole objective of profit maximization?” You would still have corruption and greed. It would just be a different kind of company with many participants in the same kind of corruption and greed. Do you really think changing our economic system would change the humanistic nature of greed and the pursuit of self-interest that all humans share? Why do you naively blame capitalism for this inevitable greed and corruption? These are moral choices every individual has a right to make. Same thing goes for infidelity, suicide, etc. There are always going to be immoral people, and what you consider immoral may not be interpreted as immoral by another. These are choices we all can indulge in or refrain from, but capitalism has nothing to do with it. Hopefully you are not recommending taking away our choices and liberties, because you cannot police immorality without destroying our rights and liberties. How greedy and arrogant is it for people to want to destroy our way of life in order to push what they interpret as better?
Capitalism has absolutely brought us positive results. It has brought America to the forefront of nations. It has also enabled America to free, save, feed, clothe, educate, fight and die for more people than any other nation on the planet. You should appreciate that as a humanitarian. None of this would be possible in your crippling debt-laden third-world-esque utopia. America set record breaking donations to the people in Haiti who were recently devastated by an earthquake. China sent a whopping $1 million dollars, Saudi Arabia offered nothing; where’s the socialistic dictator Hugo Chavez—He sent one plane of goods.
As capitalists, Americans are the most generous people on the planet. People have the ability to make immoral choices under any economic system. Therefore, your accusation that capitalism hurts our value-system is completely inaccurate. The only way we would be able to even approach a system like the models that progressives want, is by dismantling our nation’s most sacred document, the US Constitution. To embrace these ideals is to break the highest law of our land and to advocate treason. Assuming you’re American, the very document you apparently care nothing about, ironically is the very thing that protects you from your verbal anti-American rhetoric. In other countries that do not promote the value of individuality, especially those who model progressive’s socialistic and/or communistic ideology, you may not be afforded such rights.
You use text-book sociology points mentioning ‘Maslow’s Hierarchy’ and ‘bourgeois.’ That’s pretty common vocabulary for people who share your point of view. My college sociology book blatantly leaned toward anti-American sentiment, and Marxist, socialist, and progressive ideology. It turned my stomach. I was happy however, to argue opposing points with the teacher, and on many occasions proved that a lot of the books final opinionated conclusions were false or shallow at best. This goes to show that Americans need to care more, get involved, and demand changes in our educational system to stop breeding this anti-American sentiment.
The unfortunate fact is that when the people of a nation no longer make individuality the priority, and follow the cult-like mentality of any form of socialism, the people inevitably suffer. History proves this, and the few countries who you may argue are now doing well, obviously have not fully reached the pitiful and even horrific conditions that this ideology inevitably brings. Once the status-quo becomes “the ends justify the means” and “it’s best for the collective” –anything goes. That’s why our Constitution must be adhered to and defended at all costs.
The continual high number of dead coal miners in China is not due to lack of technology—it’s because it’s cheaper for China to allow this devastation to individuals than to pay the cost of properly protecting them—“it’s best for the collective (China).” It’s the same reason they allow large amounts of toxins in the products that they sell individuals. It’s the same reason Hitler, Mao, Stalin, etc were able to be morally content with their atrocities. They believed in their socialistic ideology and the people allowed their leaders to dictate policy based on the same progressive reasoning that people like you support—“the ends justify the means” and “it’s best for the collective”
I am not trying to be rude, but I bet I can speak for most Americans when I say to the other Americans who want to take away our identity, individuality, culture, rights, and liberties—therefore our Constitution—we will all be willing to pay a temporary increase in taxes to fly you anywhere in the world you want to go; even first-class. This of course is contingent on you relinquishing your US citizenship. You can pick any one of the socialistic or communistic countries in the world. We will even give you a little spending cash as a goodbye token.
The greediest, most selfish and arrogant thing I can think of is to force your perceived utopia on those who do not want it. I cannot understand anyone who calls themselves a humanitarian yet advocates ideology that deemphasizes individuality and liberties and moves down the spectrum toward eventual tyranny and oppression. Once you lose that protection of individuality and set precedence toward the collective, it is only a matter of time before the obvious shortcomings, failures, and atrocities of socialism begin to enslave the people who may or may not have once propagated it. You still will have greed and corruption, even without capitalism, and worse, this ideology is well suited for crazy brutal dictators to exploit this and commit terrible injustices, genocide, and destruction—just as they have repeatedly in the past. Again this is why our Constitution must be adhered to and defended at all costs.
Recent polls show that 60% of Americans consider themselves conservative and 20% liberal. Americans are not going to let this happen at this moment in time. The influx of immigration from countries whose cultures are very different from ours will ensure that one day, you will probably have your perceived utopia. Americans must demand stricter guidelines and lower numbers of immigration from countries who embrace socialism or anything that deemphasizes the individual. We need like minded people here, not those who experience culture shock or those who may one day outnumber us and finally defeat our Constitution, and therefore, humanity’s last great hope for freedom.
Americans must demand intense but fair investigation and/or prosecution of our congressional leaders and our executive administration (current and past) those who knowingly have committed treason by proposing, supporting, and voting for unconstitutional legislation after taking oath to support and defend our constitution. They are not just making poor, honest decisions. It is very obvious that regardless of the people’s voice, they are intentionally collapsing our economy, buying up the private industries, devaluing our dollar, slowing job growth and economic recovery, taking our rights, etc. all for what seems to be an eerily similar ideology to yours—along with good ‘ole corruption. ‘Fundamental Transformation’ and/or ‘Redistribution of Wealth’ and/or ‘Environmental Justice’ will not make our nation stronger or our people more prosperous. It’s B.S. code for socialism.
What’s worse is when you look at the key players involved in movements like ‘Cap and Trade (Tax) you can very clearly recognize the corrupt infrastructure that seems to link it all together, and this will make big oil abuse and corruption seem miniscule.
It seems Obama-care will employ the aforementioned principles, giving tax exemptions to particular union employees for 5 or 6 years. ‘The ends justify the means’ and ‘it’s better for the collective.’ In this case, the collective is the particular unions that supported and campaigned to elect Obama, the rest of us that do not fit that description will be forced to carry the burden. Americans are tired of two-faced legislation, like affirmative action. Even hate crime laws discriminate. They elevate one class and offer them more protection and rights than those who do not fit that description. Why not have laws to protect from violence and guarantee jobs for fat people, ugly people, red haired people, etc. Yes, that is just as ridiculous as the laws our government have duped us with. As unfair as that is, that is what this type of ideology fosters. Under the guise of so called good, wrong is done to others.
We understand your concerns; we just reject what your solutions will inevitably deny us and also force upon us. I do not apologize for the length of this response. The message is too important.
Here are some of my own quotes concerning what I consider “Self-Evident Truths”.
“Dependency is a vice which, until broken, will always restrict your potential, and therefore your prosperity.”
“Do not take for granted the opportunities of the free markets, and the liberties of our republic, for if you do, they will no longer be granted for you to take.”
“Humans behold instinctual capitalistic desires to own, barter, profit, and serve self-interests, and therefore, enjoy greatest utility from capitalistic societies.”
“Legislation which places duplicitous injustices upon the people under the guise of justice is the worst form of injustice possible.”
“Acknowledgement of failure is essential for the realization of success.”
“Trumping experience, skill, and extraordinary rhetoric—honesty, modesty, and conservative values should be the virtues sought whilst electing any politician.”
“Debate is the best tool for crafting productive decisions.”
“Time and personal liberties are the most precious gifts in life; invest them wisely for maximum return.”
“A republic cannot truly elect representatives if they know not what the representatives represent.”
“Even the most horrific historical atrocities must be taught and we must never forget the lessons learned. If you do not know what a landmine is—you may just walk into one.”
“The more you dilute a culture the closer it comes to extinction.”
February 1, 2010 at 2:58 am
alex
hi concerned citizen,
you write very long essays, but i’m not finding much truth in them. instead i’m seeing a lot of that same old right-wing propaganda that has successfully served the interests of the ultra-rich to divide and conquer the rest of us for hundreds or even thousands of years.
it’s not the fault of the bankers and corporations who’ve bankrupted our economy! NO! blame the poor, the weak, the people of color, the women, the queer folks! it’s THEIR fault!
our system isn’t to blame for taking away our jobs, income and health care! NO! blame the people who want to change it!
people are inherently evil, selfish, greedy, and terrible! we need to control them with markets, police, prisons, armies, etc. etc. .. otherwise we’d have CHAOS!
and on and on..
sorry if i’m being disrespectful but these kinds of sentiments are really tiring and old. worse, they’re ideological tools for the wealthy and powerful. so i have no stomach for them.
is it so hard to imagine a system that actually works for people, rather than the wealthiest 1%? why can’t we encourage the free development of all, rather than the benefit of the few at the expense of the many? i for one believe that we can, and should. i recommend the book “The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community” – https://endofcapitalism.com/2009/11/25/giving-thanks-to-inspiration-review-of-the-great-turning-from-empire-to-earth-community/
and next time you threaten someone with kicking them out of the country for having different views than yourself – stop to consider, who is the fascist???
alex
p.s. please stop confusing fascism with progressive or socialistic views. they are opposites. fascism was created as a response by elites to destroy the labor movement and socialists. that’s why Hitler sent them to the concentration camps. if we’re not careful it will happen again, this time riding the propaganda of Fox News and the teabaggers into the White House.
February 3, 2010 at 3:06 pm
Concerned Citizen
Alex,
Here again is another long right-wing essay. I didn’t think you would find much truth in a viewpoint that you obviously are blindly dead set against from the beginning. You liberal/progressives or whatever you people consider yourselves, always argue the same way; attack, call names, but no substantial thought out arguments against the conservative points. You took everything I said out of context, bundled it with your liberal garbage spin, and gave no significant rebuttal. Do you want to debate this issue or are you just looking to feel all warm and fuzzy inside by having dialogue with only people who share your brainwashed views? You are the one who sounds like a left-wing propagandist, serving the interests of brutal dictators and those who want to take away individual liberties in order to benefit the masses. All because you watch a Michael Moore movie and suddenly you want to destroy our way of life.
You are right about our system taking away jobs, income, and healthcare. Again you’re right about greed and corruption in Wall Street. But again you blatantly overlook the fact that some of the instruments they were selling was the inevitably destructive and risky sub-prime mortgages pushed by liberal/progressive democrats like Barney Frank and colleagues who thought similarly to your naïve way of thinking. They told us for years that Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac wouldn’t have severe financial problems and pushed for increases in sub-prime lending (because everyone deserves a home, even if they have no savings for tough times). I am a pretty responsible person, and I even came close to bankruptcy and possibly losing my home. I would have been horrified, but I would have blamed no one but myself. That is the difference between people like you and people like me. You say we’re selfish because we understand that everyone cannot have a home, and you push for a progressive lie that devastates families when it inevitably collapses. You want to bring others down because you must feel you personally will never have the ambition to rise up. That is your fault, not ours. Please don’t give me that B.S. that not everybody has an opportunity. Yes you do. You just have to work hard, save, educate yourself and/or improve skills continually, and bring a product or service that can compete in the market.
I have been a registered Democrat my entire life. In the last few years, my eyes have been opened to see beyond the B.S. liberal/progressive education and media that is shoved down our throats and I do now consider myself a conservative, tea-bagging, racist, redneck or whatever the hell you guys call us (I am not racist or redneck; tea-bagging is none of your business). I used to watch CNN and MSNBC, but after the last election—it was blatantly clear how biased and untruthful they were. So I checked out Fox, and have been a lot happier while finding after checking their news against other sources, they are the only channel that is even remotely fair, honest, and relevant. If you deny this you are either a liar or you do not really watch both to see for yourself.
I have no agenda other than that I love this country, it’s citizens (not liberal/progressives), the U.S. Constitution and I would fight until death before I would ever let the Constitution be taken from the people. If you are too damn blind to see the infrastructure that was set up by Bush, while being executed at appalling speed by Obama, then you are part of the problem, not the solution.
I wasn’t speaking of stopping immigration in particular to color, queers, women, etc. I was speaking of countries who embrace societal values that do not emphasize importance of individual liberties. I am not getting fascism confused with socialistic/progressive views, I was again speaking of any form of societal governing in which it is about the masses or collective rather than the individual. You really have no idea what you’re talking about when it comes to history, do you? That is a sad reminder of what the liberal/progressives have done to our education system. Adolph Hitler was not an elitist. He was a WWI vet and failed revolutionary whose charisma allowed him to take over an organization which became the National Socialist German Workers Party—a labor movement. They were against Jews, capitalists, socialists, and Marxists. Fascism, Socialism/Progressive, Communism, etc. all have one thing in common—they do not offer the important individual liberties that our U.S. Constitution provides and history shows they end in financial collapse or horrific atrocities.
Hitler believed in Eugenics—take a look at Obama’s Science Czar and how he has considered the idea of putting sterilizing chemicals in our drinking water to control population count. Research the proposed legislation that Obama said he would sign, before it fell apart, that would obligate the United States taxpayers for billions and billions of dollars that we do not have, to go to third-world countries to help them ‘Green their economy’ and reduce global warming, woops, I mean climate change during the coldest winter we’ve had in over 20 years. Look at the CEO of GE, Jeff Immelt, they invested heavily in green technology and he has driven their stocks in the ground over the last few years. Do you find it more than a coincidence that he also runs NBC and MSNBC who clearly gave Obama a free pass and hardly if at all covered controversial legislative policies that he proposed? Do you still find it ironic that he has been seated at our Federal Reserve Board? All this after news leaked about top climate scientologists from around the world admitted in altering data to reflect a warming trend. Look up ‘Cap and Trade’, it will be possibly the final blow to our economy. Obama is still pushing for that and healthcare while most Americans are against it. More things we cannot afford.
How about the self-avowed communists, admirers of Mao, Marxists, US domestic terrorists, anti-American black theologist, progressives, and socialists Obama has surrounded himself with his entire life. How about giving terrorists the right to immediately lawyer up instead of getting valuable information to keep citizens safe from the next attack. How about Obama appointed Eric Holder, who said we are a nation of cowards, and there is an unfair number of blacks in the prison system. Unfair, that is bullshit. I guess you buy into that one too. More liberal/progressive propaganda to keep us divided instead of united.
I didn’t threaten to kick anyone out of this country, I simply said there are many Americans who would gladly foot the bill to relocate you to a country of your choice. There are plenty of places in the world you would fit in well, yet you would rather destroy the way of life that we Americans have cherished for centuries. Of course, certain bankers and corporations are complicit in our financial decline. That’s not the fault of capitalism, we need to demand prosecution and pursue severe punishment.
You say that I said something about ‘prisons, armies, etc. and that would lead to CHAOS. You need to understand the spectrum of the right and left. Toward the right is less government and more individual liberties. Toward the left, including liberal/progressives, there is more government and less individual liberties. It is a SPECTRUM. The NAZI’s were far, far left with a nationalist twist of an Aryan race. If this tyranny you speak of does come to America, it will be because of people like you who jump on a bandwagon that you obviously don’t completely understand, or at least not the consequences of these policies. Obama and his deep ties to SEIU, AFL-CIO, ACORN, etc. is more typical of a fascist movement, yet while not being complete nationalists. Do yourself justice and research these things and then we can talk about what our country needs to do. Please Alex, if you actually believe in what you say, then answer my first round of questions concerning the ‘Second Proposed Bill of Rights’. Argue the points, you’re the one with the weak argument for your cause. Look at Venezuela under Hugo Chavez. Do you really want America to resemble that?
The progressive ideology that you follow, the same one that for centuries have tried to attack our Constitution and have slowly succeeded, is much to blame for some of the serious problems we face today. Your progressive politicians have eroded the U.S. Constitution for the last century with the wonderful “Income Tax”, “Prohibition of Alcohol”, the “Federal Reserve”, “The New Deal”, etc. Exxon Mobile, with the largest corporate earnings in the world, was beat this year by almost a billion dollars—by the U.S. Federal Reserve (Obama’s cabinet and advisory is full of those associated with Wall Street, Goldman Sachs, Federal Reserve, Media, etc. all who have recently negatively affected our country). You may believe that Roosevelt’s “New Deal” pulled us out of the soon to be known as the Little Depression, but many economists believe that it would have prolonged the depression. It was WWII that spurred our economic growth with production; not our government spending fiat money that is conjured up or borrowed to pay for socialistic/progressive policies, which Obama is continuing.
If it all does go to hell, and I see you on the street Alex—I will still hold out my hand to you and help if I can. Please step out of your progressive realm and at least consider what I’m saying. The truth shall set you free. God Bless all Americans.
“If the freedom of speech [and truth] is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.”
-George Washington
-Concerned Citizen
September 7, 2010 at 6:55 pm
Take Back the Land, Give Root to Democracy « The End of Capitalism
[…] Land therefore becomes increasingly relevant and inspiring. As Michael Moore’s latest film Capitalism: A Love Story highlighted, the group has gone from taking over one piece of land to moving many homeless families […]
July 30, 2011 at 12:42 pm
Mark R.
I hope to get more time to look at the posts here more comprehensively. As for what brought America out of the Depression, WWII stimulated America because of its urgent necessities. Other destroyed economies of Europe and Asia which recovered show that it isn´t war itself that creates economic power.
The New Deal created the ethical basis for a sustainable economy, which was lobbied away by the banks.
February 16, 2014 at 3:32 pm
danyulengelke
Great review!
Linking the article for our Michael Moore Thursday at SeminalCinemaOutfit.com
Keep up the good work!