For once Lisa Benson makes rare sense. The hiker is carrying backpacks representing the Green New Deal, Medicare for all and a Democratic win in 2020. These are all noble ideals to aspire towards, but the hiker is facing to the RIGHT! The Democratic donkey (a direct descendant of the one Jesus rode into Jerusalem) is pointing out that the hiker is going the wrong way. You won’t get to the promised land by going right, but by going LEFT, as the donkey is pointing.
But of course, Lisa could never get it completely right. The only quibble is the one labelled “Free Stuff.” This demonstrates that Lisa still doesn’t get it.
Democratic socialism is NOT about getting “FREE STUFF” any more than you expect law enforcement, emergency first responders or “free” public schools through high school to be “free stuff.”
We all contribute and we all benefit.
As was recently noted on The Last word with Lawrence O’Donnell:
There is good socialism and bad socialism.
Good socialism (helping those who actually need it):
• Universal comprehensive no-fee health care
• Universal tuition-free public education through college
• Guaranteed secure retirement program
• Job training, job placement
• Proactive social services to PREVENT crime
• Infrastructure
• Law enforcement, firefighting, disaster relief
.
Bad socialism (giveaways to the few richest elites who already have the most):
• Corporate welfare (socialism for the rich)
• Socialized professional sports (all benefit goes to people that are very rich)
• Tax exemptions for churches that non-believers have to make up for (socialized religion)
• Example of worst kind of bad socialism (cited by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez): Trump has a country club / golf course in her district. It was developed with public funds, but HE gets to keep all the revenue.
As I work on my taxes I found out what the Trump Tax Cut was all about. These big companies bought back their shares. That meant I had to sell it all to them, No choice about it. Now I have to pay lots of tax on the capital gains from the sales. The rich get tax cuts, the ordinary guys pay more tax to make up for that. Cheers all.
Bad, bad, bad Democrats trying to divert money away from our great CEOs.
" … Researchers at Bloomberg have conveniently reduced global CEO pay trends down to a simple index. These researchers have looked at major corporations in 22 nations around the world. CEO pay for all these nations combined last year averaged $3.55 million. Bloomberg gives this average an index value of 100.
CEOs in Canada turn out to take home almost twice this global CEO pay average. Their average $6.49 million take-home gives them an index value of 183. UK CEOs make a little bit more than twice the global average. They average $7.95 million in pay, enough for a 224 index value.
What about CEOs in the United States? They top the Bloomberg global CEO charts. U.S. CEOs average over quadruple the global major corporate CEO average, with $14.25 million in annual pay and a 401 index value.
…
U.S. workers labor under the world’s highest-paid bosses. These workers turn out to have smaller paychecks than wage-earners in 11 other major nations. Average workers in Switzerland made $70,835 in 2017. Average workers in the United States made $52,988.
Swiss corporate CEOs, remember, make less than 60 percent of what U.S. CEOs earn.
The Swiss, by the way, happen to feel that their own CEOs are grabbing much too much, well more than their fair share. Voters in Switzerland have actually passed a national referendum designed to moderate top executive pay.
While we can say that Lisa is just being Lisa, a Repub nutcase, she does bring out some salient points. In this case, it may be true that the Dems Green New Deal may be a hard road to hold due to the nature of our US society. We exist in a consumer society that wastes things like no tomorrow, literally. There is a growing recycling movement and many are getting into repurposing, too. But, I still see rampant waste beside the road even from those that recycle.
The Green New Deal is a great idea and often it is necessary to promote new concepts in an extreme manner to get people’s attention. Actually, I think the whole renewable energy concept needs to be framed as a great way to improve business wealth with its job and manufacturing growth. Coal miners can come out into the sun and put up solar panels and wind turbines. The growth of renewable energy production is just starting.
Okay, what’s that you were saying about the Trumpublicans and alt-right not braying about too much socialism on the left…that only Dotard can protect us from becoming another Venezuela?
Ms. Benson? You’ve left out the $22 trillion national debt incurred under this administration and laid on the back of the the lower 90% of American taxpayers (with another $30 billion added in February alone). That is a real and present burden, not some hypothetical encumbrance of the future.
Capitalism is an economic system. Socialism is a system of government, in which the government supports various components of society. Socialism and Capitalism can exist at the same place, independently of each other and in different configurations in every place in which they exist together. It is the decision of the voters how much socialism they want with their capitalism, if any at all. Any benefits of capitalism that exist in our current society may be maintained with the introduction of the improvements to the life of the average American that would come with the socialistic programs proposed. To argue that we would be required to give up any aspect of capitalism we might choose to keep is either dishonest, shows a misunderstanding of economic structure, or is designed to maintain economic inequality by confusing the voters who have been taught by right wing politicians to fear socialism, with no clear idea what it is.
Re: dagnabbit, alwayswrong, Et al.: “Never argue with an idiot. They will just drag you down to their level, and beat you with their years of experience at BEING an idiot!”
So the question remains, whether one likes it or not…..how do you pay for all that? You cannot raise enough taxes to pay for it all.
Regardless of how noble I do or do not think a lot of the ideas of the left are……there is never an answer as to how to pay for it all.
Additionally, why must it all be done at the federal level? The local, county, and state governments don’t do a whole heck of a lot of this stuff because they know that the can can be kicked to the next higher level up and the money flows down.
As an example, we’ll look at FIRE Act grants and COPS grants from the feds. And no I am not against police or firefighters. Just the notion that I pay my taxes from the state I live in, so that we can put police officers on departments, and buy new ladder trucks for a community on the opposite side of the nation. It’s just ludicrous. I have seen fire departments let their apparatus go to the end of the line and not appropriate money to replace it…..until they have applied for the federal grant to get a new truck. Never broached the idea with their town/city council. It would be far more efficient and speedy to do this at the lowest level possible.
I am not necessarily against most of these ideas, even as a conservative, however I just see it as not being a federal government issue – and would be better suited and more efficient at the state or county level.
I have to hand it to Ms. Benson: 72 comments and counting; many substantive comments, the usual bicker content. So far, for my money, the most informative, substantive comments, in no particular order: Superposition, MatsDhalgren, VadimUzdhensky1, DD Wiz. I am sure that I left some people out.For my two cents, and from my experience in the US and many countries throughout the world: 1. The US could and should be doing a lot better by it’s citizens. Right now, if you are not in the upper middle class income zone or higher, then you are hurting, physically and financially. You probably can’t afford what you need for healthcare because you have been monetized. 2. What we hear about “this is the best way to do it” simply is not correct, unless, of course, you are Bill Gates, or, even, Donald Trump. Other western countries (eg much of western Europe have proven that, and, they still have rich people(!). I could go on, but I might start yelling. Something that I find really ugly and nonproductive.
Do you consider roads “free stuff”? How about firefighters, clean water, clean air, schools, police protection, the military. Is all that “free stuff”? ‘Cuz that’s the same idea, you know; deciding our priorities for the health and advancement of the nation and then choosing, collectively, to pay for them. There’s your free stuff.
@Dagnabbitt — Yes, when the “Left” points out that we need better health care, better infrastructure, affordable housing, more educational opportunities, less income inequalities … these are all such hate-filled comments!
RAGs about 5 years ago
It seems that Lisa is still on the GOP script; gross exaggerations R us (when we can’t think of an outright lie).
Say What Now‽ Premium Member about 5 years ago
This is what we are going to get from the conservative cartoonists for the whole campaigning process. Ridiculous slams against ‘socialism’.
DD Wiz Premium Member about 5 years ago
For once Lisa Benson makes rare sense. The hiker is carrying backpacks representing the Green New Deal, Medicare for all and a Democratic win in 2020. These are all noble ideals to aspire towards, but the hiker is facing to the RIGHT! The Democratic donkey (a direct descendant of the one Jesus rode into Jerusalem) is pointing out that the hiker is going the wrong way. You won’t get to the promised land by going right, but by going LEFT, as the donkey is pointing.
But of course, Lisa could never get it completely right. The only quibble is the one labelled “Free Stuff.” This demonstrates that Lisa still doesn’t get it.
Democratic socialism is NOT about getting “FREE STUFF” any more than you expect law enforcement, emergency first responders or “free” public schools through high school to be “free stuff.”
We all contribute and we all benefit.
As was recently noted on The Last word with Lawrence O’Donnell:
There is good socialism and bad socialism.
Good socialism (helping those who actually need it):
• Universal comprehensive no-fee health care
• Universal tuition-free public education through college
• Guaranteed secure retirement program
• Job training, job placement
• Proactive social services to PREVENT crime
• Infrastructure
• Law enforcement, firefighting, disaster relief
.
Bad socialism (giveaways to the few richest elites who already have the most):
• Corporate welfare (socialism for the rich)
• Socialized professional sports (all benefit goes to people that are very rich)
• Tax exemptions for churches that non-believers have to make up for (socialized religion)
• Example of worst kind of bad socialism (cited by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez): Trump has a country club / golf course in her district. It was developed with public funds, but HE gets to keep all the revenue.
SpaceBuckaroo about 5 years ago
Great Cartoonist. Cartoonist Nailed It.
Daeder about 5 years ago
Unless the ultra rich minority get to continue to rob more and more from everyone else, regular folks like you will SUFFER THE MOST!!!
That’s the Republican message.
brit-ed about 5 years ago
The shovel is overpriced? Compared to meds under the current system? I don’t think so.
INGSOC about 5 years ago
The United States of America will go backwards through the obsolete Marxist socialist ideology that the left is embracing..
Masterskrain Premium Member about 5 years ago
Poor Lisa. The new meds haven’t kicked in yet, I see…
greyolddave about 5 years ago
As I work on my taxes I found out what the Trump Tax Cut was all about. These big companies bought back their shares. That meant I had to sell it all to them, No choice about it. Now I have to pay lots of tax on the capital gains from the sales. The rich get tax cuts, the ordinary guys pay more tax to make up for that. Cheers all.
superposition about 5 years ago
Bad, bad, bad Democrats trying to divert money away from our great CEOs.
" … Researchers at Bloomberg have conveniently reduced global CEO pay trends down to a simple index. These researchers have looked at major corporations in 22 nations around the world. CEO pay for all these nations combined last year averaged $3.55 million. Bloomberg gives this average an index value of 100.
CEOs in Canada turn out to take home almost twice this global CEO pay average. Their average $6.49 million take-home gives them an index value of 183. UK CEOs make a little bit more than twice the global average. They average $7.95 million in pay, enough for a 224 index value.
What about CEOs in the United States? They top the Bloomberg global CEO charts. U.S. CEOs average over quadruple the global major corporate CEO average, with $14.25 million in annual pay and a 401 index value.
…
U.S. workers labor under the world’s highest-paid bosses. These workers turn out to have smaller paychecks than wage-earners in 11 other major nations. Average workers in Switzerland made $70,835 in 2017. Average workers in the United States made $52,988.
Swiss corporate CEOs, remember, make less than 60 percent of what U.S. CEOs earn.
The Swiss, by the way, happen to feel that their own CEOs are grabbing much too much, well more than their fair share. Voters in Switzerland have actually passed a national referendum designed to moderate top executive pay.
…"
https://inequality.org/great-divide/grasp-horror-ceo-pay-america-today-look-global/
https://read.oecd-ilibrary.org/taxation/taxing-wages-2018_tax_wages-2018-en#page22
preacherman about 5 years ago
While we can say that Lisa is just being Lisa, a Repub nutcase, she does bring out some salient points. In this case, it may be true that the Dems Green New Deal may be a hard road to hold due to the nature of our US society. We exist in a consumer society that wastes things like no tomorrow, literally. There is a growing recycling movement and many are getting into repurposing, too. But, I still see rampant waste beside the road even from those that recycle.
The Green New Deal is a great idea and often it is necessary to promote new concepts in an extreme manner to get people’s attention. Actually, I think the whole renewable energy concept needs to be framed as a great way to improve business wealth with its job and manufacturing growth. Coal miners can come out into the sun and put up solar panels and wind turbines. The growth of renewable energy production is just starting.
Real Joel about 5 years ago
Okay, what’s that you were saying about the Trumpublicans and alt-right not braying about too much socialism on the left…that only Dotard can protect us from becoming another Venezuela?
Librarylady about 5 years ago
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. Humor and conservatives = oil and water.
dandye about 5 years ago
“Socialism is great until you run out of other people’s money to spend.” Margaret Thacher
Bookworm about 5 years ago
Ms. Benson? You’ve left out the $22 trillion national debt incurred under this administration and laid on the back of the the lower 90% of American taxpayers (with another $30 billion added in February alone). That is a real and present burden, not some hypothetical encumbrance of the future.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/national-debt-effect-americans-223401667.html
Diane Lee Premium Member about 5 years ago
Capitalism is an economic system. Socialism is a system of government, in which the government supports various components of society. Socialism and Capitalism can exist at the same place, independently of each other and in different configurations in every place in which they exist together. It is the decision of the voters how much socialism they want with their capitalism, if any at all. Any benefits of capitalism that exist in our current society may be maintained with the introduction of the improvements to the life of the average American that would come with the socialistic programs proposed. To argue that we would be required to give up any aspect of capitalism we might choose to keep is either dishonest, shows a misunderstanding of economic structure, or is designed to maintain economic inequality by confusing the voters who have been taught by right wing politicians to fear socialism, with no clear idea what it is.
Radish the wordsmith about 5 years ago
The USA wants that stuff, Republicans hate it.
Masterskrain Premium Member about 5 years ago
Re: dagnabbit, alwayswrong, Et al.: “Never argue with an idiot. They will just drag you down to their level, and beat you with their years of experience at BEING an idiot!”
"It's the End of the World!!!" Premium Member about 5 years ago
So the question remains, whether one likes it or not…..how do you pay for all that? You cannot raise enough taxes to pay for it all.
Regardless of how noble I do or do not think a lot of the ideas of the left are……there is never an answer as to how to pay for it all.
Additionally, why must it all be done at the federal level? The local, county, and state governments don’t do a whole heck of a lot of this stuff because they know that the can can be kicked to the next higher level up and the money flows down.
As an example, we’ll look at FIRE Act grants and COPS grants from the feds. And no I am not against police or firefighters. Just the notion that I pay my taxes from the state I live in, so that we can put police officers on departments, and buy new ladder trucks for a community on the opposite side of the nation. It’s just ludicrous. I have seen fire departments let their apparatus go to the end of the line and not appropriate money to replace it…..until they have applied for the federal grant to get a new truck. Never broached the idea with their town/city council. It would be far more efficient and speedy to do this at the lowest level possible.
I am not necessarily against most of these ideas, even as a conservative, however I just see it as not being a federal government issue – and would be better suited and more efficient at the state or county level.
Alberta Oil Premium Member about 5 years ago
Take away all the free stuff the 1% ers get and you could pay for that load and more.
mourdac Premium Member about 5 years ago
The beast of burden carrying ’Cons and corporate socialism programs collapsed on the trail.
6.6TA about 5 years ago
I have to hand it to Ms. Benson: 72 comments and counting; many substantive comments, the usual bicker content. So far, for my money, the most informative, substantive comments, in no particular order: Superposition, MatsDhalgren, VadimUzdhensky1, DD Wiz. I am sure that I left some people out.For my two cents, and from my experience in the US and many countries throughout the world: 1. The US could and should be doing a lot better by it’s citizens. Right now, if you are not in the upper middle class income zone or higher, then you are hurting, physically and financially. You probably can’t afford what you need for healthcare because you have been monetized. 2. What we hear about “this is the best way to do it” simply is not correct, unless, of course, you are Bill Gates, or, even, Donald Trump. Other western countries (eg much of western Europe have proven that, and, they still have rich people(!). I could go on, but I might start yelling. Something that I find really ugly and nonproductive.
Kurtass Premium Member about 5 years ago
Better than the socialist tax dollars given to corporations. The man would be flattened by the banks, factories ,etc. on his back.
jqmcd about 5 years ago
Do you consider roads “free stuff”? How about firefighters, clean water, clean air, schools, police protection, the military. Is all that “free stuff”? ‘Cuz that’s the same idea, you know; deciding our priorities for the health and advancement of the nation and then choosing, collectively, to pay for them. There’s your free stuff.
DrDon1 about 5 years ago
@Dagnabbitt — Yes, when the “Left” points out that we need better health care, better infrastructure, affordable housing, more educational opportunities, less income inequalities … these are all such hate-filled comments!
Jimathai Premium Member about 5 years ago
How insulting and condescending is it to call it “Free Stuff” … as if we all don’t pay taxes to the government.
Radish the wordsmith about 5 years ago
The federal deficit ballooned at start of new fiscal year, up 77 percent from a year before
Washington Post
1 day ago
Federal deficit up 77 percent so far this budget year
NBCNews.com
1 day ago
Following Trump tax cut, federal budget deficit up 77 percent so far this budget year
USA TODAY
20 hours ago
Thanks to Republicans