American Pride

Well everybody, just to show that I'm not a pro capitalist Glenn Beck zombie, after looking at this, I have to concede that Gartth may have a point.

However, I can't jump to the conclusion that anything that resembles socialism, government take overs or blatant confiscation and redistribution is the answer. In fact I'm sure that it's not. I also can't say off hand that the people at the top didn't earn it. Anyway, here's some interesting info:

http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html

Disclaimer: This did come from the university in Santa Cruz, CA. I lived there for 11 years, and it's extremely progressive/liberal, but I believe the info is factual.

In an ironic twist, a large part of what enables the people in Santa Cruz to have their snobby, elitist, progressive/liberal views, is the influx of corporate money that comes from just over the hill, in Silicon Valley.

An interesting thing about progessives.....redistributing money is a good idea, as long as it's not theirs.

I know we're not actually very far apart on most things & I also know you can dish it out & take it, which is part of why I'm responding to your posts :D

I'm also aware I was overstating the case when I refer to 5% owning 80% of this country.

I'm not in favor of redistribution either, but the playing field can be tilted to favor more regional manufacturing. the days of large numbers of blue collar jobs are gone, automation has made sure of that...

Bottom line is......I'm worried.

I've never seen anything like this, I don't think anyone here in the US has, at least since the depression.

I've always contended, that anyone that wants to work, can. That is no longer the case and the worst part for me is, I don't see anything happening that's going to change that anytime soon. For the US, business as usual is no longer going to make the cut.

Maybe I'm over reacting and basing my opinions on my own work slowdown, and the rest of the country is humming along nicely, that would great, but I know better.

I feel your pain, really. I'm retired but I was downsized three times and as a supervisor I followed my subordinate colleagues into the job market. Back then, they said on average, the time out of work was about one month for each thousand of annual income. It did take that long.

Al Franken took President Obama's car analogy further. I don't know if it is a good metaphor or not, but in the circumstances, I hope it is. Franken's metaphor

There is plenty of blame to go around, I wish it was that simple.

I came up with an analogy yesterday that I think fits the situation and has been going on for some time.

Republicans- (catch phrase) We believe in putting people to work and creating a strong business climate. (real meaning) We are bought and paid for by powerful corporate lobbies.

Democrats-(catch phrase) We believe in fighting for the little guy and stopping greedy powerful corporations from screwing you. (real meaning) We are bought and paid for by powerful union lobbies.

In the meantime, both sides are spending billions in tax dollars, (bacon), as a diversion to convince us common idiots that they're doing a good job. I'm not buying it anymore......the numbers don't lie, only the people in charge do.

Like I said, it starts with the politicians and it ends with the politicians, all of them.

Both sides have worked together to bring American productivity to a stand still. China and others around the world are busting their a$$es to fill the void........successfully, I might add.

I'm sorry I brought up this topic. I should have realized it involves too many other topics, like unions, government, politics, class and even religion. The topic is just too controversial.

Don't be sorry, this has been a good conversation, I think.

I'm hoping tomorrow will bring in a new group of people, (not professional politicians), that are not owned by anyone, and will actually do what's right.

Maybe wishful thinking on my part, I hope not.

American Pride is not controversial.

There's new people running in your area? That would be a change!

A few new ones and they are still politicians and most have been for many years.

Many just changed seats from one office to another while making wild claims about being new.

The rhetoric is always the same, we'll see if this bunch follows through.

For American Pride I have an idea. Maybe most manufacturing has left the country, but the country has not left manufacturing. We have the best growing climate and farmland in the world. We still have great farm machinery manufacturers and great fertilizer and pest control companies. We have good rail and highway distribution, and ports on three coasts.

If America decided to concentrate on growing food for the world, there would be good jobs for many. We have a large immigrant worker population that can fit right in to a mega-farm America. We should treat them fairly, most are just looking for a decent life.

As the world overpopulates itself, farmland in many countries will disappear, and they will need our food supply. Farming is a renewable resource, and it can be done without polluting.

Just like we built a superhighway system, we can build a country-wide flood control/irrigation system. Water that is flooding one area can be diverted to drought areas, we should not waste good water.

Let other countries pollute themselves making steel and such, we can clean our air with agriculture.