Ezra Taft Benson, 13th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and former Secretary of Agriculture in the Eisenhower Administration, was both a prophet and a patriot. During the course of his life he served faithfully as a watchman on the tower warning of potential political and spiritual perils that threatened the United States of America. While most of his political speeches were given during the fifties and sixties, their messages are still very pertinent to America today. The following quote is a great warning about the present "Bailout" mania that seems to be putting the federal government on the road to owning large national companies, ie. GM, Chrysler, and AIG.
"I am unalterably opposed to socialism, either in whole or in part, and regard it as an unconstitutional usurpation of power and a denial of the right of private property for government to own or operate the means of producing and distributing goods and services in competition with private enterprise, or to regiment owners in the legitimate use of private property." From the speech--The Proper Role of Government
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3 comments:
Hey Shawn,
I have a few questions. The first is, when was the first bailout of the current bailout mania that exists now done? Who authorized it? Was that person then or is he or she now considered a socialist? What course of action do you think should be taken if not a 'bailout' or something similar? Finally, would you feel more comfortable with the idea of a bailout if the term 'recovery' was used instead or perhaps if legislation could be written to insure that government could not keep ownership of the companies they are rescuing?
Hey Bettie,
You are indeed correct that the first few bailouts occured during Bush's administration. As my earlier posts show I was not a fan of them either. Yes, I do beleive that Bush and any Republican and Democrat who supported those bailouts or any future ones that lead to the purchasing of businesses are indeed guilty of socialism.
Sometimes the best course of action is to let things run their course. If a company is poorly ran it should fail and be replaced by a new and better one. There are many small businesses that fail every year. To me the principle is the same. The market will determine what needs to happen. If someone has a mortgage they should never have entered into in the first place they should lose their home or sell it and then either buy a less expensive home or rent an apartment. There is no constitutional right to home ownership.
No, I would not feel better about the situation with euphemistic terminology applied to socialist behavior. When vice-presidential candidate Joe Biden stated that paying more taxes than other citizens is patriotic he was euphemistically making the case for class warfare and socialism
Hey Shawn,
I never mentioned Bush. :) I don't agree that the actions taken are acts of socialism. I think they are acts of desperation. Desperate times call for desperate measures. I think capitalism works. I believe that a culture of greed and entitlement has led to the current state of affairs. Because of this misuse of capitalism, our country is forced to do things that some may consider socialist. But I still think that is a stretch.
I agree with you that it should run its course. These mismanaged companies should bite the dust. In my rage at looking at the huge bonuses and elaborate retreats these CEO's are taking, I am all for just sort of torching the companies. But then I stop and think of all the ramifications of allowing these companies to go bankrupt. The CEO's will still be well off. But the people in the factories and their families do not have that same security. When I think of them I stop short and think some more. What is going to happen to all the 9 to 5ers. The shift workers. The minimum wagers. I am not an economist, but I think more folks will likely end up unemployed. Unemployed folks don't make money to buy things. Our economy is driven by consumers. There is a domino effect.
I don't believe the decisions as to what to do are easy. They are really difficult. We all can agree that something needs to be done. No one can agree on what needs to be done.
As far as paying more taxes than others being patriotic. I can't say I agree with that statement.
I do believe that some people are getting killed with taxes. If they had a lower tax rate, they could make it. It is hard for folks who are single with no dependents. I don't know that the rich should pay more, I just know they can afford more. I am for a fair tax. Everybody pays the same rate. If you don't want to pay a tax, then don't purchase anything.
I don't see class warfare taking a foothold in America. The rich and the poor stay too far apart from each other for that to happen.
Only during a photo-op will the two have an opportunity to 'clash'.
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