Don’t Go Left, Young Man

The Slow Road to Socialism

There are some who say that Conservative commentators are overreacting when they say that President Obama and the Left are pushing America toward a Socialist state. Well, Comrade, I am here to tell you it is happening right in front of your eyes. What is most discouraging is that this policy is considered “Progressive” despite the fact that Socialism has NEVER worked. It did not work in the Soviet Union; China only became a world financial player when it privatized business and began running on Capitalistic principles; and Cuba…well, now there is a shining example of the efficacy of Socialism.

"Oh, you crazy Conservative, the reason why those systems never worked is because the people in those countries were oppressed." Wrong! In fact, I would argue that the only time Socialist societies were productive is when the people were most oppressed. Follow me on this one…

Socialism creates a society in which people are dependent on the government for all of their needs. Health care…free. Cost of a higher education or training…free. Everyone makes the same amount of money so there is no gap between rich and poor...redistribution of wealth. All homes are similar and provided by the government…free. Food…free. Sounds great, right?

If you got all this stuff from the government, no matter what you did or didn't do, why would you get up and go to work every morning? Why would you try to invent new things or come up with new ideas? There would be no incentive to do such Capitalistic things...unless of course Uncle Joe would have you shot or sent to the Gulag for not doing those things.

Then, Stalin died, Mao and his successors realized there were not enough places to hide the bodies, and Castro went soft—Socialism around the world collapses. The only incentive for people in these countries was the fear instilled by their government. Once that fear was gone there was no longer incentive to work, invent, or to strive for greater things.

Liberals point to European nations as “model” examples of a progressive society…a place where Socialism thrives. Unemployment rates in France and Italy are above 12% and consistently stay there-- the unemployment rate in Spain is 23%. European leaders realize that the reason their respective economies cannot create jobs is because of the demands of the welfare states that have been created. And yet, Liberals in this country are still under the deluded idea that Socialism can still work…because they are smarter than anyone else who has tried.

Was She With Michael Phelps?
The other day Nancy Pelosi said that every day the economic stimulus package was not passed 500 million Americans lost their jobs…hmmm…if the population of the United Sates is 300 million, then…oh, never mind. I am sure it was a slip of the tongue…

Perhaps, it was just another shot in the hyper-fear campaign that President Obama and the Left are conducting to get their Economic Stimulus package passed without scrutiny. Do we need an economic stimulus…probably. But not this one and never without the scrutiny any spending bill deserves.

Nationalization of Banks and Business
Talk this week also escalated about the creation of a National Bank with the sole purpose of purchasing bad loans. Rumors such as these have not been heard in these parts since the Jackson Administration. Why? Because a National Bank is a bad idea. Banks are businesses that create revenue and stimulate economic growth by loaning money to entrepreneurs and people who need money to purchase items such as automobiles and homes. This transfer of capital creates growth in the economy. By centralizing this capital the government now becomes not only the entity that creates monetary policy, but also an entity which trades massive amounts of capital based on this monetary policy. The opportunity for corruption and/or incompetence is exponential. Additionally, such a bank is funded by the taxpayers, which means your hard earned money would be used to pay off bad loans and bed debt. Your wealth redistributed to others.

This week President Obama announced, in a most righteous tone, that executives from companies that received federal bailout money would have a cap placed on their salaries. So apparently now the government is determining how much people are allowed to earn. This should be a good lesson to all Americans…there is no such thing as a free lunch. If the government provides you with money, they can (and will) mandate how you use that money. Essentially, then, the government has exerted an inescapable control and influence over you…or your company. Remember, what the government giveth, the government will taketh away.

Fairness Doctrine
Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) said recently on Bill Press’s morning radio show that she believes the Fairness Doctrine should be passed into law again. For those of you who don’t know, the Fairness Doctrine was a law passed in the 1940s as a way to guarantee that opposing viewpoints were heard by the public on public airwaves. The law was deemed unconstitutional by the FCC 1987.

Talk about grabbing the First Amendment by the neck and slapping it silly. If passed, this law would require radio stations that air shows such as the Sean Hannity Show or the Rush Limbaugh Show to air Liberal viewpoints an equal amount of the time. Essentially, the opposition would be silenced (or at least drowned out by the Left’s propaganda).

There is a reason why Air America, the Liberal talk radio station started by Senator* Al Franken, failed…because nobody wanted to listen to it!!! Liberal newspapers around the country such as the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer are failing because everybody is tired of reading the news as presented by the state-run Leftist media outlets. Fox News continually outpaces the Clinton News Network (CNN), and the Messianic Savior Named Barack Channel (MSNBC) because the American people don’t want to listen to the Liberal message. Frustrated by that, Comrade Stabenow and others are recommending a law to force Americans to hear their socialist message.

Make no mistake about it, the Left will not call this new bill the Fairness Doctrine. In the same manner as Mao, Lenin, and Chavez they will cloak the bill with a noble sounding name like: “The Media Accountability Measure” or “The Radio Transparency Bill”…or maybe they’ll just call it the “Shut Rush Up Bill”. Explain to me how such a measure is essentially any different from Iran or other totalitarian governments shutting down opposition newspapers. You can’t…at least not without being disingenuous.

Barack Obama Starring as Harvey Dent
No, I am not calling President Obama “Two-Face”…yet. Harvey Dent, of course, is a character in the Batman franchise. He is a politician who promises change and results in a city that has lost all hope in its politicians and policymakers. The problem with Harvey Dent is that things don’t go exactly the way he planned, he goes berserk, and betrays the faith the people have in him. President Obama is well on his way to becoming Harvey Dent.

He has promised the people change:
No lobbyists in his government: Failure
A better sort of politician in his administration (no tax cheats): Failure
Bi-partisanship…including Congress: Failure
Transparency: Failure
Making the country safer: Failure (see the “Be Nice to Terrorists Executive Orders”)

In all fairness, it is still very early in President Obama’s administration. And also to be fair, some of the things the President promised on the campaign trail he is finding impossible to do when actual governance is required. However, Mr. Obama, the country cannot afford a failure of faith. The United States needs a leader who understands the severity of the economic crisis we are in and the willingness to fight anyone who wants to pass spending bills that will worsen it…even if that means fighting your own party. The United States needs a leader who will not shy away from the threats that continue to mount around the world in the name of a peace that cannot be achieved…some people just like to watch the world burn…there is no negotiating with people like this. The United States needs a leader who has strong moral backbone and is willing to protect the Constitution as it is written, not as it has been interpreted by Liberal judges.

Make no mistake about it, the people of the United States did not elect President Obama because they supported a liberal agenda (multiple polls show overwhelming resistance to Liberal policies and Socialistic tendencies). The people elected President Obama because they wanted something new from their politicians. They wanted Harvey Dent to save them. They wanted to have faith again in their government. How can President Obama be successful and avoid becoming “Two-Face”?

Don’t go LEFT young man!


Footnote: Since Senator Franken clearly stole the election in Minnesota, an * will always be placed beside his title.