Quote of the Day – Socialism

 

Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. – Winston Churchill.

We are seeing that illustrated with the transition from the Biden to Trump administrations. The Democrats are all-in on socialism, as we have seen the last four years.  It was a philosophy of failure. Degrowth and limitation were its hallmarks.  They preached envy, setting one group against another, depending on ignorance of history to sell their poisonous message. It seemed to them that inflation and disorder were features not bugs. They made everyone – except the privileged elite, to which their leaders belonged – miserable.

Yet in less than a month, it seemed everything had changed.  Optimism has swept the country. The majority of this county showed they want growth, not stagnation; excellence, not equity; achievement, not idleness; and victory, not defeat. We believe energy prices will come down because its production will not be hindered. We believe bureaucratic and regulatory obstacles to business activities will be reduced or eliminated. We now dare hope that the federal government may even shrink in size.

Things now seem possible that were previously unthinkable. Where we spent the last four years seeing the return to the Moon recede like the horizon, it now seems possible we may shoot beyond that over the next four years to reach Mars. This, due to Starship and American private enterprise.

The most remarkable part of all of this? Not that this will be accomplished by the Federal government and the Trump Administration. That it will be accomplished because the Federal government simply gets out of the way, stops being a roadblock, and lets the American people achieve the greatness they are capable of.

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  1. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Columbo (View Comment):

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pdR7WW3XR9c&t=55s&pp=ygUUVGhhdGNoZXIgcG9vciBwb29yZXI%3D

     

     

    If nothing else, I don’t think it will embed with the m. that probably comes from doing things on a phone or tablet.

    • #31
  2. Ekosj Member
    Ekosj
    @Ekosj

    • #32
  3. Jim McConnell Member
    Jim McConnell
    @JimMcConnell

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    Where did this guy Elon Musk come from?

    Out of Africa.

    via Canada.

    • #33
  4. Jim McConnell Member
    Jim McConnell
    @JimMcConnell

    Painter Jean (View Comment):

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Painter Jean (View Comment):

    Putting a socialist like RFK Jr. in charge of 25% of the federal budget seems an odd way to fight socialism. Also, his pick for Labor Secretary is co-sponsor of a bill that would strengthen public sector unions. I would temper your expectations…

    And you expect RFK Jr to expand Health and Human Services? That’s not his brief.

    What amazes me is that both Trump’s most ardent supporters and most ardent critics are both quick to insist that he must not make any mistakes, period, or it is proof that he is utterly worthless. He is going to make a few bad picks. I don’t think RFK, Jr is a bad pick, although I agree that the Labor Secretary is. Expecting perfection this side of heaven is silly, though.

    Oh, I know. I like most of his picks. It’s just that the stinkers are such stinkers!

    Let’s hope the Senate does its job!

    • #34
  5. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Ekosj (View Comment):

     

     

    • #35
  6. Lilly B Coolidge
    Lilly B
    @LillyB

    I am counting on energy prices coming down and being able to afford needed home repairs, at least sooner than later. 

    *****

    There is still a week of open dates for quotes, if you want to sign up here!

    • #36
  7. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Jim McConnell (View Comment):

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    Where did this guy Elon Musk come from?

    Out of Africa.

    via Canada.

    Yeah, I kinda know this background. My question was more rhetorical, if that’s the word to describe it. It just seems like Trump was not the only one to arrive at just the right time. We’ll see how it works out but I’m encouraged.

    • #37
  8. David Foster Member
    David Foster
    @DavidFoster

    Good related post: The battle between agency and envy.

    As Michael Gibson of the 1517 fund put it, “Greed may not be good, but envy is evil”

     

    • #38
  9. Seawriter Contributor
    Seawriter
    @Seawriter

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):

    Jim McConnell (View Comment):

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    Where did this guy Elon Musk come from?

    Out of Africa.

    via Canada.

    Yeah, I kinda know this background. My question was more rhetorical, if that’s the word to describe it. It just seems like Trump was not the only one to arrive at just the right time. We’ll see how it works out but I’m encouraged.

    I knew that, but the “out of Africa” response comes from a Latin adage: Ex Africa semper aliquid novi. (In English, Out of Africa, something new.) It really fits Musk if you think about it.  He really is something new.

    • #39
  10. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):

    Jim McConnell (View Comment):

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    Where did this guy Elon Musk come from?

    Out of Africa.

    via Canada.

    Yeah, I kinda know this background. My question was more rhetorical, if that’s the word to describe it. It just seems like Trump was not the only one to arrive at just the right time. We’ll see how it works out but I’m encouraged.

    I knew that, but the “out of Africa” response comes from a Latin adage: Ex Africa semper aliquid novi. (In English, Out of Africa, something new.) It really fits Musk if you think about it. He really is something new.

    And I kinda thought that was what you were doing. Yes, we have never quite seen anything like he presents.

    • #40
  11. Seawriter Contributor
    Seawriter
    @Seawriter

    Bob Thompson (View Comment):
    And I kinda thought that was what you were doing. Yes, we have never quite seen anything like he presents.

    Well . . . Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. A lot of the other inventors of the 19th and early 20th century.  For that matter, Steve Jobs in the late 20th century.  All were disrupters in their way.

    • #41
  12. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Painter Jean (View Comment):

    Putting a socialist like RFK Jr. in charge of 25% of the federal budget seems an odd way to fight socialism. Also, his pick for Labor Secretary is co-sponsor of a bill that would strengthen public sector unions. I would temper your expectations…

    And you expect RFK Jr to expand Health and Human Services? That’s not his brief.

    What amazes me is that both Trump’s most ardent supporters and most ardent critics are both quick to insist that he must not make any mistakes, period, or it is proof that he is utterly worthless. He is going to make a few bad picks. I don’t think RFK, Jr is a bad pick, although I agree that the Labor Secretary is. Expecting perfection this side of heaven is silly, though.

    No worries about perfection when somebody like RFK Jr is the candidate.  But it would be interesting to put him in the same box with Trump’s far-left, pro-vax-mandate, anti-free-speech Surgeon General. 

    • #42
  13. Stad Coolidge
    Stad
    @Stad

    Seawriter: The most remarkable part of all of this? Not that this will be accomplished by the Federal government and the Trump Administration. That it will we accomplished because the Federal government simply gets out of the way, stops being a roadblock, and lets the American people achieve the greatness they are capable of.

    This sounds like something Rush would say . . . well done!

    • #43
  14. Terence Smith Coolidge
    Terence Smith
    @TerrySmith

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Painter Jean (View Comment):

    Putting a socialist like RFK Jr. in charge of 25% of the federal budget seems an odd way to fight socialism. Also, his pick for Labor Secretary is co-sponsor of a bill that would strengthen public sector unions. I would temper your expectations…

    And you expect RFK Jr to expand Health and Human Services? That’s not his brief.

    What amazes me is that both Trump’s most ardent supporters and most ardent critics are both quick to insist that he must not make any mistakes, period, or it is proof that he is utterly worthless. He is going to make a few bad picks. I don’t think RFK, Jr is a bad pick, although I agree that the Labor Secretary is. Expecting perfection this side of heaven is silly, though.

    No worries about perfection when somebody like RFK Jr is the candidate. But it would be interesting to put him in the same box with Trump’s far-left, pro-vax-mandate, anti-free-speech Surgeon General.

    Sure a president deserves a certain amount of deference in his appointments.  If he is in your political party then the appointments should get an even bigger benefit of the doubt. Still  there is some minimum standard of demonstrated competance that the nominee should meet.  What that minimum is should be influenced by how much harm a bad appointee could do. (Thats why Gaetz went down).

    To me RFK jr is a mixture of good ideas and some wild ones. Hard for me to to know which is which but I think Makary (FDA) and Battacharya (NIH) will do a lot to filter out the bad and unsupported ones. So I don’t see much harm and possibly a lot of good coming from RFK appointment. Especially in reducing the conflicts of interest in the FDA. 

    As for the surgeon general what the heck do they even do when it comes to policy? I do hope DOGE takes a close look at that one. 

    • #44
  15. Bob Thompson Member
    Bob Thompson
    @BobThompson

    Terence Smith (View Comment):

    The Reticulator (View Comment):

    Seawriter (View Comment):

    Painter Jean (View Comment):

    Putting a socialist like RFK Jr. in charge of 25% of the federal budget seems an odd way to fight socialism. Also, his pick for Labor Secretary is co-sponsor of a bill that would strengthen public sector unions. I would temper your expectations…

    And you expect RFK Jr to expand Health and Human Services? That’s not his brief.

    What amazes me is that both Trump’s most ardent supporters and most ardent critics are both quick to insist that he must not make any mistakes, period, or it is proof that he is utterly worthless. He is going to make a few bad picks. I don’t think RFK, Jr is a bad pick, although I agree that the Labor Secretary is. Expecting perfection this side of heaven is silly, though.

    No worries about perfection when somebody like RFK Jr is the candidate. But it would be interesting to put him in the same box with Trump’s far-left, pro-vax-mandate, anti-free-speech Surgeon General.

    Sure a president deserves a certain amount of deference in his appointments. If he is in your political party then the appointments should get an even bigger benefit of the doubt. Still there is some minimum standard of demonstrated competance that the nominee should meet. What that minimum is should be influenced by how much harm a bad appointee could do. (Thats why Gaetz went down).

    To me RFK jr is a mixture of good ideas and some wild ones. Hard for me to to know which is which but I think Makary (FDA) and Battacharya (NIH) will do a lot to filter out the bad and unsupported ones. So I don’t see much harm and possibly a lot of good coming from RFK appointment. Especially in reducing the conflicts of interest in the FDA.

    As for the surgeon general what the heck do they even do when it comes to policy? I do hope DOGE takes a close look at that one.

    To my way of thinking this last sentence is what is key to the Surgeon General appointment. It’s a position for medical knowledge and expertise, not much else.

    • #45
  16. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    Terence Smith (View Comment):

    To me RFK jr is a mixture of good ideas and some wild ones. Hard for me to to know which is which but I think Makary (FDA) and Battacharya (NIH) will do a lot to filter out the bad and unsupported ones. So I don’t see much harm and possibly a lot of good coming from RFK appointment. Especially in reducing the conflicts of interest in the FDA. 

    I would like to see Battacharya take over RFK Jr’s job when RFK Jr self-destructs, which I don’t expect to take long. RFK Jr has been filtering out some of his own worst ideas recently, but how long can that last? Battacharya won’t be in much of a position to do any filtering of what comes from the cabinet head, except insofar as it touches the NIH.  

    As for the surgeon general what the heck do they even do when it comes to policy? I do hope DOGE takes a close look at that one. 

    He doesn’t do much, so doesn’t even need Senate confirmation as far as I can tell.  But the appointment is getting quite a bit of pushback from MAGA on my Twitter feeds.  

    • #46
  17. Ray Gunner Coolidge
    Ray Gunner
    @RayGunner

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Ekosj (View Comment):

     

     

    Q:  What did socialists use to light their homes before candles?

    A:  Electricity. 

    • #47
  18. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Ray Gunner (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Ekosj (View Comment):

     

     

    Q: What did socialists use to light their homes before candles?

    A: Electricity.

     

    • #48
  19. Mark Camp Member
    Mark Camp
    @MarkCamp

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Ray Gunner (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Ekosj (View Comment):

     

     

    Q: What did socialists use to light their homes before candles?

    A: Electricity.

     

     

    • #49
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