And this was written with a straight face, of course.
Posted on 08/29/2004 6:17:59 PM PDT by Hank Kerchief
(If you want on or off this list please freepmail me.)
Hank
And this was written with a straight face, of course.
I was a Gulcher in the '70s, convinced that society was about to collapse. At least, I missed disco. ;^)
As Disraeli said, "There's a lot of ruin in a nation."
bump
The surest way to work within the system is to change our tax system to encourage accountablity. There is no accountablity now in our tax system because only 5% of the population pay almost half the load, while 50% of the people (democrats mostly) pay NO tax.
How can we control the cost of goverment if we don't share the burden so that everyone is intested in how it is run? When this happens we start electing people interested in running an efficent government. Right now our taxes are so high because only a small minority pay significant taxes.
John
Clair Wolfe sounds like another self-important space cadet.
This assertion makes me believe the author is viewing a markedly different version of FreeRepublic than the one I'm viewing . . .
Hows the weather on your planet?
Granted a few manage to avoid paying Federal Income Taxes, but the truth is almost everyone pays more than they should have to and if you factor in the myriad of hidden taxes on fuel, phone, bread, housing etc... EVERYONE is forced to pay more than they should. Damn man, half the price of a new home is taxes, then payment of those taxes are financed for 30 years.
Our taxes are so high because of an overly large, unbounded Central Government inserting itself into areas it has no right to be, and running redistribution programs in an effort to effect social engineering. The Central Government is now by and large only a tool of force for those who desire to control others.
There are the conservatives—who may or may not be for freedom, depending on whether they ever figure out what it is.
There is an extremely successful conservative forum, Free Republic which is very active and has over 100,000 signed members. They say in their welcoming page, "Free Republic is an online gathering place for independent, grass-roots conservatism on the web. We're working to roll back decades of governmental largesse, to root out political fraud and corruption, and to champion causes which further conservatism in America."
So far so good.
In a personal statement of the founder it says, "In our continuing fight for freedom, for America and our constitution and against totalitarianism, socialism, tyranny, terrorism, etc., Free Republic stands firmly on the side of right, i.e., the conservative side."
If that is what "conservatism" is, we applaud it. The problem is, most "political conservatives" are not for freedom at all. In most cases, they defend "economic" freedom, but otherwise have an agenda which includes some set of moral behavioral standards they believe ought to imposed on everyone by force of law. What they mean by, "conservative," is "Republican," and actively defend anything a Republican administration does, however outrageous, oppressive, or tyrannical.
Some percentage (probably not large) of posters to Free Republic really do want freedom and know what it is. The rest think freedom means freedom from temptation, or risk, or worry, or responsibility—which is how most Americans today think of freedom.
Short list. Anyone ever wonder why it's a short list?
Thanks for the ping; I'll come back later to read it again - gotta get to work for a while.
I'd say the writer came here, said some blatantly liberal garbage, got banned, and is bitter about it.
Clair Wolfe is a very wise woman. And very, very well informed. She had a regular column in the 90s; but some of the email she was getting was pretty scary; some threatening. She has never struck me as self-important. She has also seemed to me to be a person of her own mind and has opinions. She was certainly a vanguard in leading this culture revolution back to sanity. But no, I don't think "self-important" describes Clair Wolf. None of her thoughts is about her ego; but instead; about what she thinks whether people agree or not.
The time for possible reform from within has long passed. That leaves only the gun and bloodshed. This nation was given birth via a revolution, with guns and bloodshed, perhaps again.
IT was close during Klamath. I'm hoping that it won't come to that but sure seems like it is headed in that direction.
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Claire Cool.........she never killed Kenny !
After any successful revolution, one of the first acts passed by the new government is a law prohibiting new "revolutions".
Ours is no different. The state has become God or will soon declare itself thus.
A friend wanted to expand his trailer park, and got licensed to add additional septic field. He was told by the county that he would have to pay a fee of $2000 for each additional trailer hook up. His comment was that we no longer live in a free country.
Bruce Willis was just fined over $20000 and had to restore an island in a pond on his acreage because he sodded it. (Thus changing the wetland nature of his land.) We no longer live in a free country.
Being mobile, I live freer than many, but look at the rules and regulations around us. Think about this the next time you allow a vote for more seatbelts, madatory insurance, or no smokeing zones. I believe that voting for democrats is moving in the wrong direction. Republicans are only a shade better. Voting for various fringe candidates who really support freedom also is not the answer. And the revolution, if it comes, will not be the answer. (Revolutions tend to feed on themselves if they win, and if they lose, well, they lose.)
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