Both Ron Paul and Rick Perry making sense!?

Ok, let’s start out with claifying my position on both Ron Paul and Rick Perry.  Ron Paul is a guy, who applies logic and libertarian philosophy to issues and expects a higher level of thinking from people.  That makes him an interesting guy to listen to and an unelectable candidate for President of the United States, particularly as a Republican and there ever more conservative platform.  Rick Perry appears to me to be a better looking, dumber and more dangerous version of George W. Bush. 

In the last week both of these guys have taken heat for saying something that seems utterly controversial but at the end of the day is really much ado about nothing.  First, Ron Paul actually suggested the radical idea that actions may have consequences.  He didn’t say as has been reported that America brought 9/11 on itself, what he said was that our actions (foreign policy) has consequences and one of the consequences of our foreign policy is that it has made people hate us.  Some of those people turned out to be evil, devious bastards who took over airplanes and caused the tragedy on 9/11.  For saying that he was roundly booed at a debate and is being villified by just about everyone.  Only one problem with all of that, he’s absolutely correct.  The mistake he made is that the only thing anyone wants to hear from a presidential candidate is the American Exceptionalism arguments.  America is the greatest country on earth and people hate us because they are jealous, we never do anything wrong.    They hate us because of our freedom, hell if freedom is what they hate they’d be bombing the shit out of Finland.

Now Rick Perry, never to be one uped in the press once again called Social Security a Ponzi Scheme.  Given the recent Bernie Madoff case people actually know what a Ponzi Scheme is these days and so they went crazy.  How dare he suggest that people my age and younger, may be pay into Social Security fund our entire working adult lives and never see a check.  Wait, no only how dare he, but he’s probably right!  I’ve thought about this most of my adult life, so what are people actually pissed about?  Hell, there’s plenty to dislike about Rick Perry, but telling the truth about Social Security shouldn’t be one of them.

Today is a very sad day, the American Dream is dead

Today is a very sad day, the American Dream is dead.

So today at work I found out that a 30+ year employee of the college had died, her name was Cleone.  She was the prototypical lunch lady in many ways and worked as a cashier in the cafeteria.  She was older, probably in her 60’s and worked hard for what little she was making in her job.  She was a very nice woman, although she routinely put up with a lot of lip from students, staff and faculty she kept a generally positive attitude. 

I usually buy breakfast at the cafeteria on Thursdays and she would be working the register, we’d stop and chat for a time and we always made each other laugh.  Hell, occasionally she’d even cut me a break on the price of my breakfast burrito.  She was a nice person; it makes me sad to know she won’t be there this Thursday morning.

What makes me even sadder is the realization of how many people in this country, like Cleone, work right up until the day they die.  Good people, hard-working people who cannot afford to retire because of the realities of the costs of housing and health care.  The American Dream is dead, we were told when we were young that we could be anything we want.  We were shown a model where you go to school, get good grades and work hard and you’ll be rewarded.  Your company will give you a gold watch and a nice retirement check, you’ll be able to take cruises or go fishing, Social Security and will make up the difference.  You’ll be taken care of in old age between Medicaid and your retirement benefits. 

Conservative commentators like to tell us that the reason people like Cleone are in the position they are in is because they just didn’t work hard enough, or weren’t motivated enough.  If you believe them, anyone with wealth in this country is essentially just better than those who haven’t achieved it.  There are no twists of fate or unfortunate circumstances, if you work hard you win, if not you lose.  Bullshit to that, my buddy Cleone worked hard and she lost, the asshole commentators in their suits and ridiculous hair are not better than her, or you, or me, do you hear that Limbaugh, Hannity, Beck.

The dream is dead and Cleone is just one of the first wave, there are a lot of baby boomers who will make out fine, but my generation, many of the people I grew up with are heading for Cleone’s fate, hell, I may be heading for Cleone’s fate, like I said when I started, it’s a sad day today.

Fun Friday: My new favorite idiot might be going to Congress; Sharron Angle is neck and neck with Harry Reid

 

So what if I told you that your congressional representative said and/or believed the following:

 “entitlement programs (are) built to make government our God”  and this is a “violation of the First Commandment”

 http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/aug/06/angles-view-rooted-biblical-law/

That first we should transition out of having a Social Security program, oh wait now that I won the nomination, Social Security should be a lock box.

 http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/08/12/4875847-angles-180-degree-turn-on-social-security

Nevada scribe Sharron Angle believes that the color black is satanic! Or at least she used to before her campaign advisers started telling her to appear more tolerant. Senator Harry Reid also is satanic, which is why he’s making t-shirts which mock Angle for once campaigning against black high-school football jerseys full of Devil Power.

This whole incident stems from Angle telling a football coach how the evil spirits contained inside black jerseys would make the team lose their game and their souls.

 http://wonkette.com/417576/harry-reid-taunts-black-hating-sharron-angle-with-new-campaign-fashions

Yes Nevada, congratulations because of rampant anti-government sentiments right now the idiot who made all of the comments and statements above maybe be your next congressional representative, and they say craps is a gamble!