Tag: socialism
42% of Democrats are in favor of socialism
Just 17% of Republicans have a favorable opinion of the ideology
Reuters
Many Democrats are feeling the love for socialism.
More than four in 10 Democrats say they have a favorable opinion of socialism, according to a survey of 1,000 U.S. adults released in January by data and research firm YouGov; this percentage is nearly identical to what the researchers found in May of last year. Meanwhile, only about one in three say they have an unfavorable opinion of the ideology.
The polling comes as Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-described “democratic socialist,” is considered the front-runner to capture the New Hampshire primary on the Democratic side. Sanders has described the term as meaning that we “create a government that works for all and not just the few.”
Among Republicans, those numbers look significantly different: Just 17% of Republicans have a favorable opinion of socialism, while 71% have an unfavorable opinion of it. And for the most part — no matter what the party — it is young people who are most in favor of socialism. Fully 49% of people ages 18 to 29 have a favorable opinion of socialism, compared with just 23% of those 65 and up.
On the whole, nearly half of all Americans say they have an unfavorable opinion of socialism, the YouGov survey revealed.
That may explain why, in a separate survey, less than half of Americans said they would vote for a socialist president (sorry, Bernie). Indeed, only 47% of Americans said they would vote for a president who was a socialist, according to a survey of 1,500 adults released by Gallup last year, which looked at 11 types of candidates people would be willing to vote for, including a woman, gay or lesbian, Muslim and evangelical.
Among Democrats, 59% would do it, while among Republicans just 26% would. “Republicans and Democrats differ most in their willingness to vote for a socialist candidate, by 33 percentage points,” according to the Gallup data.
Table: Who are Americans willing to vote for?
| Democrats | Republicans | |
| Evangelical Christian | 66% | 84% |
| Mormon | 79% | 84% |
| Jewish | 92% | 95% |
| Catholic | 95% | 93% |
| Hispanic | 94% | 91% |
| Black | 96% | 90% |
| Woman | 97% | 91% |
| Atheist | 64% | 45% |
| Gay or lesbian | 85% | 61% |
| Muslim | 73% | 45% |
| Socialist | 59% | 26% |
| Source: Gallup |
HOW GOOD IS SOCIALISM?
Sweden: “No Apartments, No Jobs, No Shopping Without A Gun”
Submitted by Ingrid carlqvist via The Gatestone Institute,
- The Swedes see the welfare systems failing them. Swedes have had to get used to the government prioritizing refugees and migrants above native Swedes.
- “There are no apartments, no jobs, we don’t dare go shopping anymore [without a gun], but we’re supposed to think everything’s great. … Women and girls are raped by these non-European men, who come here claiming they are unaccompanied children, even though they are grown men. … You Cabinet Ministers live in your fancy residential neighborhoods, with only Swedish neighbors. It should be obligatory for all politicians to live for at least three months in an area consisting mostly of immigrants… [and] have to use public transport.” — Laila, to the Prime Minister.
- “Instead of torchlight processions against racism, we need a Prime Minister who speaks out against the violence… Unite everyone. … Do not make it a racism thing.” — Anders, to the Prime Minister.
- “In all honesty, I don’t even feel they [government ministers] see the problems… There is no one in those meetings who can tell them what real life looks like.” – Laila, on the response she received from the government.
The week after the double murder at IKEA in Västerås, where a man from Eritrea who had been denied asylum grabbed some knives and stabbed Carola and Emil Herlin to death, letters and emails poured into the offices of Swedish Prime Minister (PM) Stefan Löfven. Angry, despondent and desperate Swedes have pled with the Social Democratic PM to stop filling the country with criminal migrants from the Third World or, they write, there is a serious risk of hatred running rampant in Sweden. One woman suggested that because the Swedish media will not address these issues, Löfven should start reading foreign newspapers, and wake up to the fact that Sweden is sinking fast.
 Carola Herlin, Director of the Moro Backe Health Center, was murdered on August 10, along with her son, in the IKEA store in Västerås, Sweden. |
Continue reading “Sweden: “No Apartments, No Jobs, No Shopping Without A Gun””
Happiness in Our Golden Age of Envy
Hat tip Francis Marion
Guest Post by Robert Ringer
Envy is an emotion that all human beings possess to one extent or another. It has no doubt been around since “civilized” man first arrived on the scene. But today’s envy is much more extreme than it was just a few decades ago.
I believe we are now in the midst of what historians may someday look upon as the Golden Age of Envy. I am convinced that envy is, in fact, the motivating force behind most of the world’s evils. So the question is, how did America and the Western world devolve to such a low point on the moral scale?
I believe the answer is the advancement of democracy and government, which are the twin drivers of envy. Like a parasite, envy leaches onto democracy and disfigures its noble intent, while government is its chief enabler.
That’s why the Founders were so apprehensive about democracy. They were well aware that democracy could lead to tyranny of the majority, which in turn would lead to socialism. And socialism, by definition, is a loss of freedom.
But today, it’s even worse than tyranny of the majority. What we now have is something I doubt ever occurred to the Founders: a democracy that has led to tyranny of the minority. With impunity, the minority now steals from, bullies, and makes demands on the majority to conform to its moral standards (or, more properly, immoral standards) and values.
The First Amendment is alive, but certainly not well, as it can no longer be used as a protective shield for those who are accused of offending any self-proclaimed minority. The Supreme Court, in effect, writes laws to accommodate the minority, notwithstanding the fact that it is specifically forbidden by the Constitution to do so.
Socialism v Capitalism
The debate for socialism is simply that they regard it as unfair when anyone has more than another does. The solution is always to rob someone else to improve your own life. If you take this philosophy as your own, then you rob others because they have more, which is no different than robbing someone on the street or breaking into their home (a crime resulting in you living tax-free in prison). However, if you vote for politicians to degree the very same act as law, it somehow makes robbing other people legal. If they complain or assert rights, then they are greedy capitalists who worship their money more than your desire to rob them in claims of fairness.
Socialism violates the Ten Commandments which prohibits anyone from coveting what their neighbor has. Well, God must have had a bad day for he does not understand what is fair. If someone is smarter than others are, that is OK and God’s Will, but he should not have more material things. God obviously cannot be all knowing since Marx must be right. God clearly can’t understand what is fair. It was Julius Caesar who said man will believe only what he wants to believe. There is no changing his mind.
From Denmark With Love
By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton
An interview with a Dane for America:
Bernie and Hillary are in love in with socialism. Both of them want a romantic affair with Socialism from Denmark. However, they do not tell the American people the parts of the romantic deal that will ruin many American families financially.
Jonas Christensen is a Conservative Dane, who has lived all his life in Denmark. He does not recognize the paradise-like picture that is painted by Bernie and Hillary concerning Denmark. Nothing in Denmark is free, regardless of what Bernie has stated several times. Jonas goes on to say that they do not have free healthcare and they do not have free education. These institutions are paid for by taxes… taxes that are defined by the OECD as the highest taxes in the world.
We have not heard from Bernie or Hillary on how they will pay for the healthcare system or the educational system they have in Denmark. Let’s look at how the Danes pay for those systems. Here are some of the taxes Americans are going to pay, so the Democratic love affair can become a reality:
– 180% car tax. If you want to buy a car in Denmark, you have to pay 180% more than the actual price.
– Death tax. If you die, your heir must pay a tax to inherit.
– 25% consumption tax on all goods. When you go to the supermarket and buy groceries, you have to pay 25% more than the actual price.
Those are just some of the taxes that you are going to pay if Bernie or Hillary is elected president. Income taxes are also very high. Danes pay an average of 45% in taxes and some of the wealthiest pay up to 70%.
Jonas says, “I want to send this warning to the American people, so they do not choose Hillary or Bernie as President. I love Denmark. However, I hate Socialism.
Democracy Is More Than A Right to Vote
The first thing government and the majority of academics try to hide is the business cycle for they argue only their policies will eliminate something that is part of nature. We must understand that the origin of all business cycles is humanity. I named one report which has become pretty famous “It’s Just Time” in honor of my friend Margaret Thatcher. When we were talking about politics, she said John Major would lose long before we knew for sure even whom his opponent would be. When I asked her why, Margaret, who instinctively understood cycles, said, “It’s just time.”
Margaret and I became friends. I visited her office in London frequently and she even invited me to her home for her annual Christmas party. She instinctively knew that public attitudes change, and with them, the political winds from among the people. She addressed our conference and stated publicly that politics looks at things in terms of trends, but perhaps they should look at the world in terms of cycles.
Somehow, someway, robbing other people has become the justified political agenda. There can be no equal justice or freedom of thought, religion, or anything as long as we discriminate against others for race, creed, sexual orientation, beliefs, or possessions. One of the Ten Commandments even states that you should not covet thy neighbor’s possessions and clearly condemns this agenda. Yet, forcibly taking what others earn is seen as fair. This is very strange; when an individual does that on their own, it becomes a crime. We let politicians discriminate and rob others of what they have, and somehow it is a badge of honor.
It’s Not Your Money
Jeremy Corbyn, the new head of the British Labour Party, is really a Communist. He is not championing a minimum wage, but a MAXIMUM WAGE. He is advocating that no individual should be allowed to earn more than whatever he feels is appropriate. These people view one simple fact: whatever money you earn is not yours, it belongs to the state. I was in Canada and there was some socialist woman on TV being interviewed and she said that openly. It is not your money, it belongs to the state. They merely decide how much you are allowed to keep. I was dumbfounded she actually said that in public whereas I hear that all the time behind closed doors. Nothing belongs to you is their actual true belief.
How I was personally affected by Chavez-Maduro socialism in Venezuela
First, let me clarify that I am an average citizen – working class, born in the 70s when my country Venezuela was called “Little Arabia”, for the flow of money at that time came through oil. Unfortunately this has changed in the last 15 years.
My family are people who work for a living and sacrifice what little they have to achieve home ownership (acquired in those years before the socialists came to power) and even though today we are employed professionals, there is no possibility of getting credit to purchase property.
I was 23 when Chavez arrived in power and already had an independent life and a degree in marketing. I worked, was independent in almost all my needs, had credit cards and I was able to buy vehicle – a 1998 Opel Corsa. In those days if you had a good job you could go to a credit agency and would have credit or cash in 72 hours maximum. After choosing the model, colour, equipment and going through a short administrative formality you could enjoy your vehicle.
To remember that a guy like me with a salary as an editor at a TV channel (I’m a publicist) could have the “luxury” to have new car is now ridiculous. In 1998 the cost of the car was about the same as my yearly salary, with bonuses in December. I cannot dream of buying a car now, because the prices are exorbitant and the currency devaluations of recent years have ended our purchasing power.
There is no market for new vehicles except trucks and a couple of brands that still survive the onslaught of socialism (Toyota which has plant in Venezuela and make lucrative contracts with the government and Ford also has a plant which has crippled its operations on several occasions due to the crisis). Other brands only exist to sell spare parts (what few are available).
Equally, it is almost impossible to travel abroad, one because of the price, two because the Venezuelan government owes foreign airlines at least US$4 billion (here I leave a link to a Venezuelan newspaper to understand this situation regarding air tickets in Venezuela. Sorry if you don’t read Spanish)
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MEANWHILE….IN BRAZIL
I’m sure the Olympics will run as smooth as silk. It seems socialism has failed again. What a surprise.
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets across Brazil to demand the removal of President Dilma Rousseff from power. The protesters blame the president and her leftist Workers’ Party for economic problems in the country.
READ MORE: http://on.rt.com/6p7g
CHOICES
Who do you prefer to steal your money? Liberals, Unions, Global warmists, and the Free Shit Army? Or mega corporations, Wall Street, the military industrial complex, and the health industry complex?
The sad part is that today the working middle class is getting robbed by both.
Why is it So Hard for the West to See Everything is Connected?
I think it is all part of the idea that we can alter society forcing it to do as we desire. Politics is based upon this. Socialism is all about robbing one class to benefit the other. There is no comprehension that everything is connected and this permeates analysis as well. This is not my personal discovery for many have seen these connections in Eastern Philosophies. I think in economics, politicians are not interested in such realizations for it means they are not the masters of the universe.You take Obama’s policy against Russia. He has effectively been disrupting everything around Europe and the consequences are pouring in refugees to Europe and his sanctions have hurt European farmers and the economy. It is not deliberate, but it is reckless for there is no recognition of how everything is connected.
Every action has a consequence. We have the Fed lowered rates to help the banks. But that crisis is over and the consequence has been to create the next crisis – the defaults of pensions and insurance companies that required high interest rates. So many regulations required pension funds to own government bonds. The regulations have set the stage for the next crisis.
We cannot escape this connectivity. Whatever action we take has a consequence. It is impossible to manipulate markets and the economy for there will always be unintended collateral damage. We are living in the era that will bring about a collapse of socialism precisely as took place in communism. Government is incapable of ever managing society for they cannot escape the inter-connectivity.
The Rich, The Poor, & The Trouble With Socialism
Authored by Bill Bonner (of Bonner & Partners), illustrated by Acting-Man’s Pater Tenebrarum,
Rich Man, Poor Man
Poverty is better than wealth in one crucial way: The poor are still under the illusion that money can make them happy. People with money already know better. But they are reluctant to say anything for fear that the admiration they get for being wealthy would turn to contempt.
“You mean you’ve got all that moolah and you’re no happier than me?”
“That’s right, man.”
“You poor S.O.B.”
We bring this up because it is at the heart of government’s scam – the notion that it can make poor people happier. In the simplest form, government says to the masses: Hey, we’ll take away the rich guys’ money and give it to you. This has two major benefits (from an electoral point of view). First, and most obvious, it offers money for votes. Second, it offers something more important: status.
…and ending up moping.
After you have food, shelter, clothing, and a few necessities, everything else is status, vanity, and power. Extra money helps us feel good about ourselves… and attract mates. It’s not just the money that matters. It’s your relative position in society. From this point of view, it does as much good to take away a rich person’s money as it does to give money to a poor person.
Either way, the gap closes. Never, since the beginning of time up to 2015, has government ever added to wealth. It has no way to do so. And no intention of doing so. All it can do is to increase the power, wealth, or status of some people – at others’ expense.
Continue reading “The Rich, The Poor, & The Trouble With Socialism”
MEANWHILE….IN SOCIALIST FRANCE
Pope Francis leading the new American (Socialist) Revolution
ReutersYes, Pope Francis is encouraging civil disobedience, leading a rebellion. Listen closely, Francis knows he’s inciting political rebellion, an uprising of the masses against the world’s superrich capitalists. And yet, right-wing conservatives remain in denial, tuning out the pope’s message, hoping he’ll just go away like the “Occupy Wall Street” movement did.
Never. America’s narcissistic addiction to presidential politics is dumbing down our collective brain. Warning: Forget Bernie vs. Hillary. Forget the circus-clown-car distractions created by Trump vs. the GOP’s Fab 15. Pope Francis is only real political leader that matters this year. Forget the rest. Here’s why:
Pope Francis is not just leading a “Second American Revolution,” he is rallying people across the Earth, middle class as well as poor, inciting billions to rise up in a global economic revolution, one that could suddenly sweep the planet, like the 1789 French storming the Bastille.
Unfortunately, conservative capitalists — Big Oil, Koch billionaires, our GOP Congress and all fossil-fuel climate-science deniers — are blind to the fact their ideology is on the wrong side of history, that by fighting a no-win battle they are committing suicide, self-destructing their own ideology.
The fact is: The era of capitalism is rapidly dying, a victim of its own success, sabotaged by greed and a loss of a moral code. In 1776 Adam Smith’s capitalism became America’s core economic principle. We enshrined his ideal of capitalism in our constitutional freedoms. We prospered. America became the greatest economic superpower in world history.
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