I spent an afternoon talking to people who are ‘Occupying Chicago’. It felt like one large, calm conglomeration of informal debate and discussion groups. Everyone was passionate about the power of big corporations, banks, and government. Everyone wanted equity and change—usually for the benefit of others. No one had the same desired solutions, or even way of identifying the details of the problem. Opinions ranged from well thought out to wackily idealistic. I posted a report of some of the conversations and opinions I heard on a blog my family uses to keep up with each other. http://glassthefamily.blogspot.com/2011/10/v-behaviorurldefaultvml-o.html
Wiley’s cartoons must have a political Rorschach test effect on some people. I’ve thought this before, but today clinches it. A little bit of suggestion and people immediately ‘see’ whatever political slant they are looking for.
In the discussion above: have we forgotten our history entirely?
Yes pure communism failed miserably. I don’t think that there are many that would argue that point.
Pure capitalism wasn’t that great either: The rich ended up with plenty of money to hire people, but that didn’t work out the way most would want. It brought us monopolies that had no competition–coal miners weren’t even paid in real money, could only shop at the company store and the companies hired ‘sheriffs’ to ensure workers didn’t leave town.
Garment workers were locked in their place of work and wages weren’t enough to prevent malnutrition.
Only when we began to institute anti trust laws, and ‘social programs’ like Medicare and Social Security (socialist programs–Anyone want to give up these entirely?) did the middle class begin to grow.
For OVER ONE HUNDRED YEARS we’ve had a mixed system: Capitalist based with socialist programs such as a free road system, public schools, Social Security, Medicare, farm subsidies and more.
I spent an afternoon talking to people who are ‘Occupying Chicago’. It felt like one large, calm conglomeration of informal debate and discussion groups. Everyone was passionate about the power of big corporations, banks, and government. Everyone wanted equity and change—usually for the benefit of others. No one had the same desired solutions, or even way of identifying the details of the problem. Opinions ranged from well thought out to wackily idealistic. I posted a report of some of the conversations and opinions I heard on a blog my family uses to keep up with each other. http://glassthefamily.blogspot.com/2011/10/v-behaviorurldefaultvml-o.html