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| How "American Dream" has killed the middle class (Page 1/15) |
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fredtoast
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SEP 20, 07:04 AM
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If a group of 100 people worked in a system where $100 of wealth was split so that ten people got to share $90 and the other 90 had to get by on sharing $10 most of the people would say that the system needed to be fixed or adjusted.
But here in America the 90% are told that any form of financial equality is unfair and even "evil". They are sold the "American dream". Instead of caring about the entire population they are told that it is best for a small percentage to control a grossly disproportionate amount of the wealth, and that "anyone can make it". So the struggling 90% turn on each other and try to climb over each other to get to the top instead of working together to help everyone.
But what they are not told is that in The United States the wealth of an individual is affected more by the wealth of his parents than in almost any other industrialized country. The system in place here in America is not as much of a "meritocracy" as it is in other countries. Instead, it is much more of a "plutocracy" where the wealthy use money to make more money instead of working to make more money and the benefits of wealth are passed down from generation to generation.
We need a capitalist economy to promote efficiency and innovation. But "everyone" can not succeed in a capitalist system. By definition a capitalist system insures there will be both winners and losers. So it is unfair to sale "capitalism" to masses as a system where "everyone can succeed if they just work hard". That is not possible in a capitalist system. It is a blatant lie.
So we need a government to counterbalance the power of money. Every citizen is given an equal vote despite their wealth because "all men are created equal". And the job of the government is to protect citizens from exploitation by the wealthy. That is why every income tax in every country is "progressive" with the wealthy paying more than the poor.
I don't want "socialism" or "communism" in America. All I want is an honest government that admits that in a capitalist system the gains of the "winners" come from the "losers", and puts some systems in place to protect and care for the losers. Do things to balance the scales. If citizens see the system as rigged against them then they don't have as much incentive to strive for success.
But as long as 90% of the population is happier fighting over 10% of the wealth instead of implementing some sort of fair system to help their fellow citizens the 10% share will keep shrinking. Soon they will be fighting over just 5%, and then less. History proves that eventually wealth distribution will reach a tipping point and it will get very ugly. I just hope this country makes some changes before it comes to that.[This message has been edited by fredtoast (edited 09-20-2023).]
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olejoedad
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SEP 20, 10:21 AM
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olejoedad
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SEP 20, 10:48 AM
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jdv
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SEP 20, 11:11 AM
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Fred I think that there is more to the shut down than you want to see.
"On the House floor, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) declared he would not support a government funding package unless there was increased border security."[This message has been edited by jdv (edited 09-20-2023).]
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ray b
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SEP 20, 12:36 PM
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| quote | Originally posted by jdv:
Fred I think that there is more to the shut down than you want to see.
"On the House floor, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) declared he would not support a government funding package unless there was increased border security."
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yes the Gop contains some Real WANKERS
WHO PLACE THEIR Gop PROGRAM OF Idiocracy
over the real needs of the nation and it's people
she was a real profit when she said they are DEPLORABLE
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Doug85GT
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SEP 20, 06:34 PM
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Not all things are as you describe. Take a historic look at things. I don't mean just historic events but how people lived. My grandfather's parents were so poor they could not afford to raise him so he was raised on a farm by his grandparents. He grew up with no indoor plumbing. My father grew up with more material wealth as he had plumbing, a washing machine and a telephone. I grew up with all of that plus a television, dryer and microwave oven. My children are growing up with all of that plus air conditioning, cable TV, computers, the Internet, and cell phones. My family's historic wealth has significantly grown with each generation. It does not take much to look at a family today and compare it to an equivalent family x number of decades prior to see that today's family is better off.
There will always be people with more wealth than the middle class. That is part of the definition of middle class, they are in the middle. It is not the government's job to police the rich. If anything the bigger the government gets, the more the rich manipulate and control the government. Because a few thousand dollars in the pockets of some politicians can land a large corporation billions of dollars through favorable laws and government contracts.
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randye
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SEP 20, 09:22 PM
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| quote | Originally posted by fredtoast:
If a group of 100 people worked in a system where $100 of wealth was split so that ten people got to share $90 and the other 90 had to get by on sharing $10 most of the people would say that the system needed to be fixed or adjusted.
But here in America the 90% are told that any form of financial equality is unfair and even "evil". They are sold the "American dream". Instead of caring about the entire population they are told that it is best for a small percentage to control a grossly disproportionate amount of the wealth, and that "anyone can make it". So the struggling 90% turn on each other and try to climb over each other to get to the top instead of working together to help everyone.
But what they are not told is that in The United States the wealth of an individual is affected more by the wealth of his parents than in almost any other industrialized country. The system in place here in America is not as much of a "meritocracy" as it is in other countries. Instead, it is much more of a "plutocracy" where the wealthy use money to make more money instead of working to make more money and the benefits of wealth are passed down from generation to generation.
We need a capitalist economy to promote efficiency and innovation. But "everyone" can not succeed in a capitalist system. By definition a capitalist system insures there will be both winners and losers. So it is unfair to sale "capitalism" to masses as a system where "everyone can succeed if they just work hard". That is not possible in a capitalist system. It is a blatant lie.
So we need a government to counterbalance the power of money. Every citizen is given an equal vote despite their wealth because "all men are created equal". And the job of the government is to protect citizens from exploitation by the wealthy. That is why every income tax in every country is "progressive" with the wealthy paying more than the poor.
I don't want "socialism" or "communism" in America. All I want is an honest government that admits that in a capitalist system the gains of the "winners" come from the "losers", and puts some systems in place to protect and care for the losers. Do things to balance the scales. If citizens see the system as rigged against them then they don't have as much incentive to strive for success.
But as long as 90% of the population is happier fighting over 10% of the wealth instead of implementing some sort of fair system to help their fellow citizens the 10% share will keep shrinking. Soon they will be fighting over just 5%, and then less. History proves that eventually wealth distribution will reach a tipping point and it will get very ugly. I just hope this country makes some changes before it comes to that.
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 [This message has been edited by randye (edited 09-20-2023).]
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ray b
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SEP 21, 01:35 AM
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as usual no help from the RWNJ
and it is the RWNJ'S WHO TOOK OVER THE Gop and killed the middle class
with the gush up that never trickled down thanks ron
tax cuts and rump rate income tax on the 1% thank don
but full rate and no dodges for the middle class
good work RWNJ
AND no A PICTURE OF CARL AIN'T A FIX
not ever the usual thought and prey heavy on the prey
the Gop is good at prey not so much at government[This message has been edited by ray b (edited 09-21-2023).]
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fredtoast
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SEP 21, 07:48 AM
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| quote | Originally posted by Doug85GT:
There will always be people with more wealth than the middle class. That is part of the definition of middle class, they are in the middle. . |
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You completely missed my point. The current policies are shrinking the middle class. If something does not change the United Sates will eventually mirror third world countries with a very small upper class and a lower class.
| quote | | Originally posted by Doug85GT:It is not the government's job to police the rich. |
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Actually that is one of their most important jobs. See anti-trust laws, minimum wages, restrictions on child labor, laws against usury, OSHA regulations to protect workers, and on and on and on. The government is needed to protect the small individual from the power of money.
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fredtoast
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SEP 21, 07:53 AM
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| quote | Originally posted by randye:
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And Randye continues to prove what happens to "reading comprehension" when you live in an echo chamber.
| quote | Originally posted by fredtoast:
We need a capitalist economy to promote efficiency and innovation.
I don't want "socialism" or "communism" in America. All I want is an honest government that admits that in a capitalist system the gains of the "winners" come from the "losers", and puts some systems in place to protect and care for the losers.
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