It looks to me like the things it takes to live a productive life in our

[madokie]

America should includ the basic's. No one should have to worry about housing, food, heat, health care or taxes. Excuse me but isn't that what America is all about.

[MissWaverly]

1. Let's shift things a bit

Instead of the mortgage companies, loan companies, credit card companies, drug companies
making a jillion percent profit, make a reasonable profit and let the rest go to the
consumers, it would benefit the country because greed is currently driving everything
and making us less competitive.

[madokie]

2. Somehow the stockholder's have precedent

somehow

[MissWaverly]

7. I read the top 2% is only 130,000

130,000 people should control 70% of the resources in this country? What justification
is this, I am not saying we can't have profit margins, just don't give them the plate
as well as the cake and throw in the knife and fork as well & don't give them our
tax dollars with faith based initiatives. There used to be
laws against price gouging and government bidding and government grants, much of that
is gone.

[OffWithTheirHeads]

3. Well, in Cuba

as I understand it, housing is guaranteed. No folks living on the riverbanks like in my town (San Jose, Ca.) It may not be great housing, but shelter from the elements, nonetheless. Medical care is free. Unlike our capitalist system of "don't get sick", if you get sick in Cuba, you have a right to medical attention. Education: If you have the ability, education is also free. Even if your parents are not rich, you can go to the best schools simply because you deserve to. What a concept!

[Sammy Pepys]

9. Housing is guaranteed, but...

No one owns their own home there....they're all state-owned. People "move" by bartering property with one another, as I understand it.

And the quality and condition of housing in Cuba just wouldn't be tolerated here in the US.

[OffWithTheirHeads]

10. I didn't say it was perfect

I just think it bears examination juxtaposing our "capatilist " system of if you have the cash, you can go to Yale, even if you are as stupid as Bush where, if you don't have the cash, you could be Einstein but not get an education cause you can't cover the cost. Seems to me that Cuba has a better idea. If you are smart enough, the government will cover the expense. You want to be a doctor, no problem. An engineer, no problem. If you have the ability, the education is not only available, but free! What a concept! Now that's a plan for a better world!

[MadHound]

4. Nice sentiment, but a bit unrealistic on the face of it

When you say no one should have to worry about taxes, are you talking about abolishing them? And if so, how are we going to pay for the rest?

Secondly, how do you divide up the qualititative resources like food and housing. Divvy equally, each family unit regardless of size gets two bedrooms, one bath condo unit. What about people who want to live in a house, say in the country. Do we all get the same food? If so, that almost automatically means corporate food supply, GM crops, Roundup ready beans, all that garbage. What if somebody wants only organic heirloom produce?

Finally, with the basics provided for, what is going to be the incentive to get at least a certain percentage of people off their couch and being a productive, tax paying citizen? Frankly, especially when I was younger, if you were giving me food, shelter and utilities, with or without the health care, I wouldn't be working for long periods of time. You get even a relatively small percentage of the population sitting on their ass like this and your tax revenues go down significantly, to the point where you possibly couldn't provide these basics anymore.

Providing universal health care for all is an achievable goal, and would go a long ways to benefitting this country. However providing what you ask for, though a nice pie in the sky, becomes economically impossible. Money, for either corporate or general welfare programs like you propose, comes from the sweat of the worker. Too many people get comfortable with the basics and either slow down or even stop working will soon prove to be a huge, horrible drag on the economy

[EC]

5. I think a living wage would solve all except the health care

that has gotten so over the line and insurance companies now pretty much make you get a lawyer just to get your claims paid, that universal health care is the only solution. Which will also help bringing back the good jobs...

[seabeyond]

6. i think that is a bet extreme. and where did you get the idea that is

what america is about. and if we dont have to worry about taxes how are we going to get these houses food heat healthcare..... oh and education, infrastructure yada yada

i am hardly thinking this post is serious

[leftofthedial]

8. commie

What's the use of being rich if I can't laugh at the starving, sick, freezing poor people?

ha ha ha

(I hate using the sarcasm smilie. It's like I'm insulting all of you who actually have a brain.)

[SammyWinstonJack]

11. Only for those who "can pull themselves up by their bootstraps".

So I was wondering to myself a short while ago this: Countries who actually care about their citizens enough to offer social programs to take care of all, regardless of a lack financial means, such as France, Germany, Spain, Canada, Italy, et. al., those Countries must have rich people, right? Rich Americans and not so rich Americans feel they shouldn't have to provide for the "lazy" among us who are not fortunate enough to have the benefits these greedy Americans have. :eyes: Is greed a "uniquely" American thing? Why do these Western Countries who obviously have rich people, care more about their unfortunate citizens, when Americans of all financial status don't care about the lest among us? And why do these Americans who won't lift a hand to help out their fellow citizens, expect us to believe they give a rat's ass about Iraqis' freedoms? It would be laughable if it weren't so unbelievable.