Replies

I'll explain. Single parent households. Segregation. Sexism, Racism. These things do exist, perhaps not for you but they do influence your likelyhood of poverty.

Maybe I should give up here. As I see it poverty doesnt benefit any of us. In a global economy when you have ghettos in this country with people who are living in poverty you won't be as competitive as you would be if everyone had access to a decent education. The way out of poverty should be hard work, but the way out should be highlighted by conservatives.

If education is the way out then don't you think we need to pay for that? If you don't think people in poverty should ever get out of it then how is the ownership society going to work?

Anyway I feel like I'm wasting my effort here. I try to stay calm and have a civil discussion about the core philosophies but many people here insist on tossing insult after insult. I'm not saying progressives wont act the same but we can never fix this country when we can't even debate the merits of the philosophy of both progressives and conservatives.

Most people here seem libertarian. All I want to say is that if you voted for Bush and anything bad happens in these next 4 years, please take responsibility for it. Don't blame liberals this time because Republicans are conservatie right?

I have my doubts about Republicans being conservative. I see government getting bigger, too big, and I see our freedoms being removed. But if you all are comfortable with this then I'll shut up and let the majority have what they want.

I was a single parent household with young 3 kids. I worked full time, got an engineering degree without child support or government handouts. And I'm by far not a genious. I'm just your average American. It can be done if you are willing to WORK HARD to improve your own situation, or you can wallow in missery, whoa is me. I took control.

We already pay for public schools. Isn't if funny when the average price per student in public schools is somewhere around the neighboorhood of 8-9 thousand per student, yet, you can put your child in a good private school for less than half of that. If all schools were privatized, and our money returned to us, all parents afford to send their kids to a private school with money left over for a decent education, not some liberal indoctrination camp. And, that savings would be passed on to renters in the form of lower rents since the landlord would have less of a tax burden. Or, you could homeschool your kids.

In response to reply #212:

Poverty? When most of the "poor" here in America have cable TV, Air conditioning, access to the best hospitals in the world (even if only via emergency rooms), food stamps, cash payments from the gov't, taxpayer-supported education, the availability of college scholarships, social security, etc, I doubt we could consider that poverty the same way a young person in Calcutta would.

If you define poverty as not having a BMW in the driveway of your 4 bedroom home in the ritzy suburb of your choice, then you have a skewed notion of what poverty is. The problem is that you believe that people should have these things given to them, because they're probably too stupid to get it on their own, rather than demanding that everyone work to achieve that standard individually.

Instead of believing that human beings are basically hapless, why don;t you ever think about the notion that perhaps they all have some capacity for success? You dont because to do so would endanger the rest of your utopian ideals.

I repeat; grow up.

Ok sweetie, I can't take this anymore.

"Single parent households. Segregation. Sexism, Racism. These things do exist, perhaps not for you but they do influence your likelyhood of poverty."

You are correct, they do exist. What are YOU doing to eradicate these problems?
Are you a single parent? I was. It was not something I had intended. Sometimes the choice to raise your children alone is the better alternative. An elementary school principal, discussing the self confidence and assertiveness of my girls, commented that children from "broken homes" often display these traits. My immediate response was, our home was broke, it is now fixed. I never received any form of government handouts. When I needed more money to feed my children I got another job! I taught my girls it was not a sin to come from a single parent home, it was a sin to expect the government to take care of us.
Are you a segregationist? If so stop it. That does not help.
Are you a racist? If so stop it. Try treating everyone EQUAL. I did not get jobs that I was overqualified for because I was not a minority.
Are you a sexist? If so stop it. These self defeating attitudes get us no where. In the 70's I did not receive equal pay, even when I outperformed all males in the company.
Are you poor? Get a job. You do not need to start out on the top wrung of the ladder in position or salary. If you are young start a lawn mowing business, or snow shoveling, or babysitting (for reasonable rates). If you have no skills try adjusting your ATTITUDE. In many ways attitude will take you further than over education.
Speaking of education and your desire for me to pay for it, let me say this, if you can read you have all the tools you need. Go to a PUBLIC LIBRARY, read about history, as many on this thread have suggested, read the Constitution of the USA, read a couple books on economics and civics. After that come back and tell us what you have learned.

Single parent households. Segregation. Sexism, Racism. These things do exist, perhaps not for you but they do influence your likelyhood of poverty.

Yes, those things do exist, and they will ALWAYS exist. It's that human nature thing, you know.

poverty doesnt benefit any of us. In a global economy when you have ghettos in this country with people who are living in poverty you won't be as competitive as you would be if everyone had access to a decent education. The way out of poverty should be hard work, but the way out should be highlighted by conservatives.

The way out of poverty IS hard work, desire to succeed and education. People have to WANT to be educated, they can't be forced. Government is taxing us to pay for schools and teachers, it is up to the individual to take advantage of them. And how should conservatives highlight the way out?

If education is the way out then don't you think we need to pay for that? If you don't think people in poverty should ever get out of it then how is the ownership society going to work?

We are paying for schools (K-12) now, and state colleges are heavily subsidized by the taxpayers. There are grants and loans available for those who want to continue and can't afford it. Many people also work and save to pay for their own college expenses. I worked summers and saved money for tuition, and had a part-time job during the school year. Yes, my parents helped, but had they not been able to, I would have found a way. My husband had to borrow heavily to get through college and medical school; he came from poverty, and the government didn't pay his way through college. And yet, here we are - hubby has an MD degree. How is that possible without the taxpayers paying for his school? It is not my husband's nor my responsibility to pay for higher education for others.

I see government getting bigger, too big, and I see our freedoms being removed. But if you all are comfortable with this then I'll shut up and let the majority have what they want.

The government IS too big and getting bigger, and our freedoms ARE being taken away. But the answer isn't voting for "progressives". From what I've seen of progressives, they want to control more of my life, and take more of my money for even bigger government programs.

Segregation. Sexism, Racism.

Segregation is practically non-existent now; racism is at an all-time low. Sexism - whatever. All of these were much more problematic in the 50's, yet we didn't have the kind of behavior you see in the black community now. Why? The family was intact. Black businesses thrived. Illegitimate births were much lower than they are today. Black churches formed the backbone of the community. What happened? LBJ and the Great Society. Liberals tore the black family apart with social programs. You broke it. You fix it.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To: Mr. C I'll explain. Single parent households. Segregation. Sexism, Racism. These things do exist, perhaps not for you but they do influence your likelyhood of poverty. Maybe I should give up here. As I see it poverty doesnt benefit any of us. In a global economy when you have ghettos in this country with people who are living in poverty you won't be as competitive as you would be if everyone had access to a decent education. The way out of poverty should be hard work, but the way out should be highlighted by conservatives. If education is the way out then don't you think we need to pay for that? If you don't think people in poverty should ever get out of it then how is the ownership society going to work? Anyway I feel like I'm wasting my effort here. I try to stay calm and have a civil discussion about the core philosophies but many people here insist on tossing insult after insult. I'm not saying progressives wont act the same but we can never fix this country when we can't even debate the merits of the philosophy of both progressives and conservatives. Most people here seem libertarian. All I want to say is that if you voted for Bush and anything bad happens in these next 4 years, please take responsibility for it. Don't blame liberals this time because Republicans are conservatie right? I have my doubts about Republicans being conservative. I see government getting bigger, too big, and I see our freedoms being removed. But if you all are comfortable with this then I'll shut up and let the majority have what they want.

See, you want to cut and run because we don't agree with you. Why don't you stick around and really listen to what people have to say. Sure, you are taking some heat, but not near as much as one of us would at DU for instance. People here have actually been pretty civil. You sound like a pretty sane liberal who honestly wants answers. We are trying to give you those answers.