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Because for fifty-ish years the narrative in the US has been Communism is the enemy, and Socialism is the path to Communism, therefore Socialism is the enemy to

Because for fifty-ish years the narrative in the US has been Communism is the enemy, and Socialism is the path to Communism, therefore Socialism is the enemy too. We're going to have to wait until the baby boomers die off to have any reasonable chance of getting a proper safety net in place.

fivestar 9y ago
I don't think the Boomers are the major impediment there--for decades it's been all about one generation and they have done nothing but suck the life out of everyone else while at the same time pulling up all the ladders. Why do you think high taxes and "safety nets" are the way to go? Why can't we just be free? How many times must collectivism be exposed for the fraud that it is before we stop re-visiting that waste of time?
- FussyZeus 9y ago
  The problem is when we were totally and completely free within a few decades the entire means of production was owned by a few insanely large companies, and due to the relative laxness of their regulations, they operated with near total impunity. It was only after the uprising of labor and organization into unions that the real "golden age" of America arrived for someone besides the ultra-rich. Since then the media narratives and corporate propaganda have steadily demonized all collective bargaining entities, brought forth the scourge of the "gig economy" where businesses get to have multitudes of low-skill workers competing for a small fixed pool of work, all of whom jump at the chance to earn $20 because they'll starve otherwise, and carry none of the expenses of real employees (those annoyances like "a living wage" and "healthcare" and "retirement savings." And that's just the actual jobs, with automation eating more jobs ever faster, fewer workers are now producing more than ever meaning there are fewer salaries doled out and even less money making it away from the wealthy. Communism did fail, but I think it arrived too early. I really think there's some merit to the idea that once the machines have eaten all the jobs, and once we're free to our own time, that there's no reason to keep up the illusion that we must remain employed for seemingly little reason other than "that's the way it's always been done."
  - thatwebdude 9y ago
    I don't know. We've been doing a 40 hour workweek because that's the way it's always been. We're more efficient now, but still cling to this idea. I mean, look at how many people are on this thread instead of work...
  - fivestar 9y ago
    When was that? And how much do we know about it outside of a narrative that was written by people with statist tendencies?
sidlls 9y ago
I've got some bad news for you. My generation (gen-X) seem to have a strong affinity for Gordon Gekko types. It might actually get worse once people in my cohort start assuming more positions of power.

fivestar 9y ago

I don't think the Boomers are the major impediment there--for decades it's been all about one generation and they have done nothing but suck the life out of everyone else while at the same time pulling up all the ladders. Why do you think high taxes and "safety nets" are the way to go? Why can't we just be free? How many times must collectivism be exposed for the fraud that it is before we stop re-visiting that waste of time?

FussyZeus 9y ago
The problem is when we were totally and completely free within a few decades the entire means of production was owned by a few insanely large companies, and due to the relative laxness of their regulations, they operated with near total impunity. It was only after the uprising of labor and organization into unions that the real "golden age" of America arrived for someone besides the ultra-rich. Since then the media narratives and corporate propaganda have steadily demonized all collective bargaining entities, brought forth the scourge of the "gig economy" where businesses get to have multitudes of low-skill workers competing for a small fixed pool of work, all of whom jump at the chance to earn $20 because they'll starve otherwise, and carry none of the expenses of real employees (those annoyances like "a living wage" and "healthcare" and "retirement savings." And that's just the actual jobs, with automation eating more jobs ever faster, fewer workers are now producing more than ever meaning there are fewer salaries doled out and even less money making it away from the wealthy. Communism did fail, but I think it arrived too early. I really think there's some merit to the idea that once the machines have eaten all the jobs, and once we're free to our own time, that there's no reason to keep up the illusion that we must remain employed for seemingly little reason other than "that's the way it's always been done."
- thatwebdude 9y ago
  I don't know. We've been doing a 40 hour workweek because that's the way it's always been. We're more efficient now, but still cling to this idea. I mean, look at how many people are on this thread instead of work...
- fivestar 9y ago
  When was that? And how much do we know about it outside of a narrative that was written by people with statist tendencies?

sidlls 9y ago

I've got some bad news for you. My generation (gen-X) seem to have a strong affinity for Gordon Gekko types. It might actually get worse once people in my cohort start assuming more positions of power.