Bob Herbert making great points on Majority Report

[LSparkle]

He's mentioning that idea behind *'s "ownership society" means that we're all basically on our own -- no more FDR-style programs to help one another. Taxing work and not wealth ... It's depressing but he's really telling it like it is.

[BlueEyedSon]

1. kick

[jean]

2. you break it - you own it. Couldn't we apply this to bush's ownership

society frame? That's the phrase Powell used to say we have to stay in Iraq since bush invaded and broke it.

Oh, you mean this is like Iraq where if we break it, or lose our job, or have a medical catastrophe, we own it?

[LSparkle]

3. It sounded to me like you "own" your poverty

The ultimate in "personal responsibility" (about which * knows absolutely nothing).

[Postman]

4. unless your name is Bechtel or Haliburton. In that case it's WELFARE CITY!

corporations love socialism.

[LSparkle]

5. America loves corporations more than people

Disgusting and uncivilized IMHO.

[oddtext]

6. Orwellian

in that as a democracy, the people already "own" the country. what this means to do, obviously, is to turn those ownership rights over to corporations so that they are the only real owners . . .

[LSparkle]

7. "Ownership society": society for the owners

He clarified and you're absolutely right. Materialism and ownership are all that matter to them. If you have nothing, you are nothing (in their eyes).

[AG78]

9. Which is normal

This whole middle class thing is very abnormal to human civilization.

It was a nice little human experiment while it lasted. Had a few good years where everyday people had a chance to experience some sort of comfort in existence. Not everyone of course. For a good amount of the middle class years, black people still weren't considered human. Women had some rights at least.

But after those 60's, where everyone started getting those rights, power got pissed. For 30+ years, they've been trying to right the ship. We're seeing that happen now in fast forward motion.

[LSparkle]

11. Is this same kind of "righting the ship" going on in other countries?

You don't hear about the growing gap between haves and have-nots in Japan, Europe, even some South American countries. It seems like, if anything, things are moving the other way -- toward work being more rewarded or at least the haves being made to pay their fair share of taxes (which may keep greed from running rampant). Most countries still at least consider health care to be a right, not a privilege, unlike in this country.

[gnofg]

8. Healthcare

First thing that will go is healthcare. When the Bush tax code changes occur everyone will be on their own for healthcare. It will cost the average family $1,000 per month. It is a sad case that we are the only western country where you only get healthcare if you can pay for it. Talk about being punished for not earning enough. I really believe that many of the repubs in charge think that it is great when old people eat dog food vs. getting drugs to sustain life because it is teaching them a lesson. They also love the idea of a poor house. These are bad people

[LSparkle]

10. It's true

I heard from a friend that when he was in a bar recently, a girl sitting next to him was drinnking heavily and confessed that she'd lost her job, her health care and she was suffering from terminal cancer. So she was just going to drink herself to death because .. what else does she have to look forward to? Absolutely, utterly pathetic. This is not the America I was raised to love. BFEE and their cronies are heartless; no empathy in them whatsoever.