Another Civics Lesson

[SDEngineer]

[quote=jpinpb]I understand the two different scenarios. However, look at Obama. Single mom. There are many people that struggle but still have choices. [/quote]

And there always will be those success stories.

However, in the U.S. (one of the most capitalistic of the industrialized nations), vertical class mobility is far lower than in most of western Europe (where most of the nations have a more socialistic capitalist system). In other words, which economic class you are born into in the U.S. is more likely to determine where you will economically end up than in other industrialized nations.

Opportunity is there, but it’s harder to take advantage of in our system compared to many others.

[Anonymous]

If you design an experiment to prove that a particular philosophy is a failure, you will succeed, without regard to the merits of such philosophy.

For instance, if the teacher had wanted to prove the inefficacy of socialism, he could assign the smartest students only half their grade points and give the other half to one of the dummies. How long do think it would be before the smart students rebelled?

Pure Capitalism is a miserable system, but it’s better that ALL the other systems because it takes into account the diversity and fallibility of human nature and free will.
None of the other systems, such as socialism, take these factors into consideration. Socialism can only work (without being extremely oppressive) where the population is small and homogenous: Sweden, for example. Where the population is large, like China, socialism requires that the government not allow for much in the way of individual liberties. All large, strongly Socialist (communist) countries become very oppressive, very quickly. That is because Socialism is rule by the weak and ignorant.
The corruption of capitalism is a walk in the park by comparison.

I would rather live on the streets and be free, than live in a mansion and owe my life to the government..

If we keep creating and supporting weak people, if we continue to reward bad behavior, we will only create more weak people and bad behavior.

I say this as I figure out how to pay taxes on my $30,000 a year job.

[Anonymous]

If you design an experiment to prove that a particular philosophy is a failure, you will succeed, without regard to the merits of such philosophy.

For instance, if the teacher had wanted to prove the inefficacy of socialism, he could assign the smartest students only half their grade points and give the other half to one of the dummies. How long do think it would be before the smart students rebelled?

Pure Capitalism is a miserable system, but it’s better that ALL the other systems because it takes into account the diversity and fallibility of human nature and free will.
None of the other systems, such as socialism, take these factors into consideration. Socialism can only work (without being extremely oppressive) where the population is small and homogenous: Sweden, for example. Where the population is large, like China, socialism requires that the government not allow for much in the way of individual liberties. All large, strongly Socialist (communist) countries become very oppressive, very quickly. That is because Socialism is rule by the weak and ignorant.
The corruption of capitalism is a walk in the park by comparison.

I would rather live on the streets and be free, than live in a mansion and owe my life to the government..

If we keep creating and supporting weak people, if we continue to reward bad behavior, we will only create more weak people and bad behavior.

I say this as I figure out how to pay taxes on my $30,000 a year job.

[Anonymous]

If you design an experiment to prove that a particular philosophy is a failure, you will succeed, without regard to the merits of such philosophy.

For instance, if the teacher had wanted to prove the inefficacy of socialism, he could assign the smartest students only half their grade points and give the other half to one of the dummies. How long do think it would be before the smart students rebelled?

Pure Capitalism is a miserable system, but it’s better that ALL the other systems because it takes into account the diversity and fallibility of human nature and free will.
None of the other systems, such as socialism, take these factors into consideration. Socialism can only work (without being extremely oppressive) where the population is small and homogenous: Sweden, for example. Where the population is large, like China, socialism requires that the government not allow for much in the way of individual liberties. All large, strongly Socialist (communist) countries become very oppressive, very quickly. That is because Socialism is rule by the weak and ignorant.
The corruption of capitalism is a walk in the park by comparison.

I would rather live on the streets and be free, than live in a mansion and owe my life to the government..

If we keep creating and supporting weak people, if we continue to reward bad behavior, we will only create more weak people and bad behavior.

I say this as I figure out how to pay taxes on my $30,000 a year job.

[Anonymous]

If you design an experiment to prove that a particular philosophy is a failure, you will succeed, without regard to the merits of such philosophy.

For instance, if the teacher had wanted to prove the inefficacy of socialism, he could assign the smartest students only half their grade points and give the other half to one of the dummies. How long do think it would be before the smart students rebelled?

Pure Capitalism is a miserable system, but it’s better that ALL the other systems because it takes into account the diversity and fallibility of human nature and free will.
None of the other systems, such as socialism, take these factors into consideration. Socialism can only work (without being extremely oppressive) where the population is small and homogenous: Sweden, for example. Where the population is large, like China, socialism requires that the government not allow for much in the way of individual liberties. All large, strongly Socialist (communist) countries become very oppressive, very quickly. That is because Socialism is rule by the weak and ignorant.
The corruption of capitalism is a walk in the park by comparison.

I would rather live on the streets and be free, than live in a mansion and owe my life to the government..

If we keep creating and supporting weak people, if we continue to reward bad behavior, we will only create more weak people and bad behavior.

I say this as I figure out how to pay taxes on my $30,000 a year job.

[Anonymous]

If you design an experiment to prove that a particular philosophy is a failure, you will succeed, without regard to the merits of such philosophy.

For instance, if the teacher had wanted to prove the inefficacy of socialism, he could assign the smartest students only half their grade points and give the other half to one of the dummies. How long do think it would be before the smart students rebelled?

Pure Capitalism is a miserable system, but it’s better that ALL the other systems because it takes into account the diversity and fallibility of human nature and free will.
None of the other systems, such as socialism, take these factors into consideration. Socialism can only work (without being extremely oppressive) where the population is small and homogenous: Sweden, for example. Where the population is large, like China, socialism requires that the government not allow for much in the way of individual liberties. All large, strongly Socialist (communist) countries become very oppressive, very quickly. That is because Socialism is rule by the weak and ignorant.
The corruption of capitalism is a walk in the park by comparison.

I would rather live on the streets and be free, than live in a mansion and owe my life to the government..

If we keep creating and supporting weak people, if we continue to reward bad behavior, we will only create more weak people and bad behavior.

I say this as I figure out how to pay taxes on my $30,000 a year job.

[patientrenter]

When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.

[patientrenter]

When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.

[patientrenter]

When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.

[patientrenter]

When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.

[patientrenter]

When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.

[CA renter]

[quote=patientrenter]When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.[/quote]

It’s entirely possible for some people who come from rough backgrounds to succeed in this country. Both of my parents did exactly that.

That being said, there is no denying that sheer luck has at least as much to do with success as “hard work” does. I can show you many, many people who work tremendously hard, long hours and are some of the most productive workers in the world, but still live in poverty. A look at many of our illegal immigrants will show that. There is also no doubt that many people who occupy the top levels of wealth and income are NOT there because of “hard work” but rather, because they have the right connections.

[CA renter]

[quote=patientrenter]When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.[/quote]

It’s entirely possible for some people who come from rough backgrounds to succeed in this country. Both of my parents did exactly that.

That being said, there is no denying that sheer luck has at least as much to do with success as “hard work” does. I can show you many, many people who work tremendously hard, long hours and are some of the most productive workers in the world, but still live in poverty. A look at many of our illegal immigrants will show that. There is also no doubt that many people who occupy the top levels of wealth and income are NOT there because of “hard work” but rather, because they have the right connections.

[CA renter]

[quote=patientrenter]When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.[/quote]

It’s entirely possible for some people who come from rough backgrounds to succeed in this country. Both of my parents did exactly that.

That being said, there is no denying that sheer luck has at least as much to do with success as “hard work” does. I can show you many, many people who work tremendously hard, long hours and are some of the most productive workers in the world, but still live in poverty. A look at many of our illegal immigrants will show that. There is also no doubt that many people who occupy the top levels of wealth and income are NOT there because of “hard work” but rather, because they have the right connections.

[CA renter]

[quote=patientrenter]When I was a teenager, my family income was less than the modern equivalent of $30,000 a year, and I had only one parent – my Mom (who never finished high school). I went to a school where avoiding gang fights at break was a major priority.

I now earn over $1/2 million a year, and have enough money to buy a home for cash etc.. I got there by working 100-hour weeks for many years, and pouring energy into improving my skills over decades, and applying them to the most financially rewarding jobs.

Most people complaining about how society is very unfair made far fewer tough choices. I just have no sympathy, except in a very few cases. I’ll listen more carefully to someone after they’ve spent 2 decades of 100-hour weeks working at the most financially rewarding jobs available to them.[/quote]

It’s entirely possible for some people who come from rough backgrounds to succeed in this country. Both of my parents did exactly that.

That being said, there is no denying that sheer luck has at least as much to do with success as “hard work” does. I can show you many, many people who work tremendously hard, long hours and are some of the most productive workers in the world, but still live in poverty. A look at many of our illegal immigrants will show that. There is also no doubt that many people who occupy the top levels of wealth and income are NOT there because of “hard work” but rather, because they have the right connections.

[Author]

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