Comments on: Not Spencer: Socialism? No. Social Responsibility.

By: grace

grace — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:07:14 +0000

I have been struggling to keep up with all these Not Spencer posts! They’ve all been so good, and it’s really cool to see so many different commentaries in one spot. Kristen, I couldn’t agree more with you.

So, here I am writing from the future. My friends, your long national nightmare is over. We got our Redistributionist in Chief, and I hope Joe the Plumber has been properly flushed away once and for all.

This morning (afternoon?) I look back over these long eight years, and I think, the past eight years have felt like I’ve been suffering from one or all of these things:

- An 8-year head cold
- An 8-year relationship with a dumbass boyfriend
- An 8-year toothache
- Eight years of working in that half floor office in Being John Malkovich
- Eight years in pants that are too tight, shoes that are too big, socks that got wet when I stepped in a puddle, the wrong prescription lens in my spectacles, and that disturbing schlick of petroleum that coats your tongue after eating McDonald’s french fries

And now, I’m cured! Refreshed even!

And I’ve already checked my mailbox today. No wealth has been spread yet. But I’ll keep checking.

By: Cyn

Cyn — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:57:42 +0000

I’m really selfish and it’s fun! (What? A Democrat can’t say that too? Alright…I’m often selfish, and I occasionally feel guilty about it! Phew, that’s better.)

Anyway, Kristen, I agree wholeheartedly.

I’m restraining myself from a rant about why, as a citizen firmly entrenched in the middle class, I should feel sorry in the least that someone with an income of over $250,000 might have to pay more taxes. There is a wage disparity in this country that is nearly obscene…people who work their asses off for a far smaller fraction of a million than 1/4.

Point is (I think I have one) if you are prosperous, it is not done in a vacuum. If you provide a service (practical or intellectual) no matter how unique, special, hard-working you are — you wouldn’t be paid for it unless there was a market…and the market involves us lower-earning peons who need/want whatever you are selling. We’re all part of the same economic organism (which I guess is just another way of saying “spread the wealth” is ultimately fair.)

By: merujo

merujo — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:16:43 +0000

Kristen, thank you for this post. I get worried when politicians – with ruthless awareness – throw words like “socialism” into a debate that’s only about taxation, not the upheaval of our system of government. People who don’t have enough time in the day to work and get their kids fed and educated are going to cling to unfair sound bites, and that freaks me out.

High hopes for tomorrow!!

By: radiocynic

radiocynic — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 16:19:20 +0000

A fine ending to the “Not Spencer series”. Yes, absolutely. There IS a middle ground. It’s still capitalism, but with social responsibility. It’s a FAIR tax system where it’s still okay for the rich to be rich, and yes, even the super-rich to be super-rich, but we ALL pay a fair and proportionate amount to keep society going, and hopefully thriving.

OF course, most of the far right fear-mongers wouldn’t know a real Socialist if they fell over them. It’s nothing but another “scare word” these days.

It’s hard to believe, and a little bit amusing, that the best the Republicans can come up with as a mantra these days is “I’m really selfish and it’s fun!”