A letter to our local paper...

[jmowreader]

This is what kind of people we have here...

I just turned on the TV to see John Kerry. He is the favorite of the European press. They want him to beat and oust President Bush. Let's examine why, shall we?

You must know that there is a struggle going on right now. If Democratic leaders in this country had their way, we would be a socialist country just like all of Europe is, with 1.25 percent economic growth, a much higher rate of unemployment than we have, no incentives for entrepreneurship, taxes that are around 60 percent for all, health care for everyone, cradle-to-the-grave government services, empty cathedrals, breakdown of civil society with more cohabitation and fewer marriages, more children who become wards of the state, fewer personal liberties because the state is what matters most - not your personal journey.

* * * * *

Who wants to rip this shit apart? I'll start:

This guy makes it sound like universal health care is a bad thing.

[rwenos]

1. Attack the Values Beyond Each Statement

1. The writer thinks economic growth is contingent on low taxation. This is very debatable. Ask the Boeing executives you know how much of their business is selling things to the Pentagon.

2. The writer thinks health care for everyone is bad, but empty cathedrals are worse.

The writer is a doctrinaire right winger.

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. I aslo wonder if this

Letter is a form letter from the RNC.. and we have seen this happen already

[Lorien]

8. Low taxation

you mean like the low taxation in Honduras or Afghanistan? Maybe the author of that letter would prefer to live in one of those countries, since he obviously doesn't love America enough to give back to it. No great Nation ever got that way without a fair amount of taxation.

[Union Thug]

3. Empty cathedrals...

...are a bad thing?

BTW, I'd much rather be unemployed in Europe than unemployed or working at a MacJob in the states. Strange how that works.

[Union Thug]

4. oh.. and what...

the hell is that new agey personal journey mantra tagged on to the end??? Geezus, who wrote this - Shirley Maclain or Robert Novak?

[drhilarius]

5. Taxes around 60% for all?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't most European countries have progressive tax scales?Also, breakdown of civil society? culturally, I think the Europeans are a little better off.

[wildwww2]

6. All 535 useless congress critters have universal health care.

We the people pay for that but let ourselves and fellow Americans be screwed. We need 535 new congress critters who care about our well being and chance for the pursuit of happiness. IMHO.
Peace
Wildman
Al Gore is My President

[Union Thug]

7. And another thing...

The golden age of the American middle class just so happened to correspond to 70-90 percent income brackets from the wealthiest Americans. That, and a strong labor movement.

[theoceansnerves]

9. empty cathedrals?

yeah, thats why germany has state mandated hours for stores, including not allowing them to be open at all on sunday. because, we all know the german gov't doesn't want the people to have time to spend with their families, in church, etc. no, we need it to be more like here where everything is open 24 hrs, people work 80 hr a week jobs and have no health care, and no time to spend with their families, because your family and your health has nothing to do with your "personal journey," right?

[Union Thug]

10. right on, bro

I hear ya there... In america, it's a 24/7 commodity fetish. Our children are indoctrinated by the time they go to kindergarten, we are raised to believe credit cards can buy the american dream and wonder what the hell happened when we file for that first bankruptcy. Capitalism cheapens everything, whether it be art, spirituality or anything else. A price tag is the measure of worth.

[NJCher]

11. $ and cents--is that all there is?

Good one, theoceansnerves.

Ask the writer of this letter if it makes sense to spend $550 billion on national defense when 18,000 people a year die in the U.S. because they have no health insurance. Tell him the closest runner up in nat'l defense spending is China, at $46 billion--a far cry from our bloated defense budget.

Ask why we spend so much for death and destruction and so pitifully little to prolong or improve life? Why do we invest so little in our people--our own human resources?

In the U.S., we are nothing but potential consumers. There is no value placed on a human life other than that of mall rat.


Cher

[rockymountaindem]

12. Read "Had Enough" by Carville. He does a good job.