If you're a U.S. liberal, what makes you think some citizens have a RIGHT to other citizens hard earned money

Question

health care, prescription drugs, food, housing

Answer 1

First, look at the Party who kept Welfare alive and well AFTER it was suppose to have been a temporary fix for the days of the Depression.
The Democratic Party lost their 'right' to own slaves because of the Civil War. So, they enslaved people another way. They pander to people's lazy side.
In turn, they have a huge following of African, Mexican, and English Americans who traded in their self respect and potential for creating wealth for the path of least resistance.
I do resent Welfare in most cases, but on rare occasions, it actually helps people to get back on their feet and into the workforce.

Answer 2

cantcu,
That's a lame line of reasoning. Everyone has the same ability to "make it on the back" of something else. That doesn't mean that the ones who actually do should be put in a position to give to those who don't.

I'm all about giving to the needy in a voluntary way, and I do every year. I understand that once you're in a predicament, it's hard to climb out of. But I don't think anyone has the right to force me to give.

You also mention funding your local high school. Well, we all know that comes out of property taxes in most cities, and in some places, part of it comes out of income tax. So in that respect, yes, my parents did help fund my right to attend those schools a long time ago. I'm all about contributing to public education. I want the area I live in to have good schools, especially for my children's sake. College is another separate issue. There are many loans and grants available to make it easy to attend. This has nothing to do with being rich or giving to the needy. I'm just not sure how you are relating this argument to the topic that was asked.


Walter,
You have a good point about diverting tax money away from needless spending. However, it can be just as wasteful if it's not managed properly, regardless of what you spend it on. If there was a way to give more tax money to public institutions like shelters, health care, etc., then I'd want high accountability for results. We should fund only an amount that is necessary to get these national programs and institutions to thrive. Then, we should return the "excess" money you managed to save from poor spending, giving it back to the taxpayer through tax cuts.

In the end though, I don't feel that anyone should get a free ride. I do want some of those institutions to be well-funded, but I don't think we should EVER provide beyond the necessities. And those that do see help, need to show a willingness to become part of society - to get a job, obey the law, etc.


Pie's guy,
I followed your point all the way up to Iraq. As soon as you brought that up, your argument lost credibility. The topic at hand has nothing to do with Iraq, since it is a question that has existed long before the war. Democrats took us into WWII, Korea, and Vietnam - and we all know how the latter two turned out. But regardless of whether you agree with war, you have to recognize the importance of adequately funding your military. Arguably, it's the main reason why our nation has been able to persevere and progress for so long. It's the reason why we present a deterrence to rogue states like N. Korea, Iran, Syria, Cuba, etc., that have shown willingness in the past to be aggressive and threaten peace. You may "think" it's not important, but you have to put it in context to understand that it is of the utmost...

Answer 3

Hard earned? go to the factories in this country, to the farming communities, to all the places where menial labor is done...after doing this than you can say hard earned....not some CEO of some corporation. Taxes are paid by ALL, for the benefit of ALL...but in America it just doesn't seem to work that way...just look at Katrina and maybe you'll understand. Look at the minimum wage that hasn't budged since 1997, then look at the raises congress gives to itself in spite of it! To say this is a LIBERAL stance only, is to say that Conservatives are cold and callous.....which I'm sure most would disagree with. WE ALL have a right to good health care, affordable prescription drugs, food AND housing! Why is it o.k. then for ALL of our tax money to go to IRAQ, I'd rather help some down on their luck fellow citizen be able to feed his children.

Answer 4

It is because they feel the need to give your hard earned money to people who are perfectly capable but use their energy being lazy because they don't want a job, they just want to live off welfare and have kids out of wedlock with everyone they meet.

Rather than getting a job, some people see it better to not spend money on wars that protect our freedoms, take even more money away from our soldiers who risk their lives for those freedoms, gut your pay check, and they absolutely love to blow money on things like the Big Dig and global warming.

"We should have used the money from this war to build bullet trains everywhere and battle the global warming threat! With enough money and Al Gore, we can defeat global warming! He is the smartest man alive, he invented the Internet!!!"

So basically, for a short answer, they are ignorant. If you want to be a good smart person, look a Liberal and then do the opposite of what they do.

Answer 5

Wow I'm not a U.S. Liberal, so I guess, I hope I may express my views regarding the above mentioned question. I appreciiate the opportunity to do so and in return I will strive to answer said question honestly, intelligently with the best of my knowledge, without using any name calling , finger pointing or other forms of biligerantcy that so often does nothing but divide the citizens of these United States of America and compromises our understanding of each other.My Answer: My friend, not all citizens of this country are the same, on the contrary we are definately different. This melting pot of (citizens) do not have the same upbringing, family lives, education, religous beliefs, desires, strengths and motivations as the other fellow. The list could go on forever but the way I feel about providing health care, drugs, food, housing and other valuable consideration to certain citizens of this country is because of just that I mentioned. Lets face it, if I'm working hard, feeling well, making plenty of money for myself and or my family , but there are still citizens that just don't, won't, or can't help themselves these disabled citizens should be assisted in their survival! We have all seen such poor down and out citizens, and they are nothing to be jealous , hateful or demeaning towards . If life was a bowl of cherries for everyone, and everyone was prosperous, wealthly and wise, you can bet we wouldn't be surviving as well as we do.The reality is that if 70% of the people were down and out and our country had only to provide life's basic needs, to these folks, to keep them out of the opportunites gained by the 30% of us who were motivated, well hell, I could bust *** and get rich quick without much competition, heck I could retire extra early in life and cruise. Guaranteed! As I'm lying on the beach kicking back all happy and set for life, those poor folks that didn't have, wern't able to get, or figure out a way to prosper in life are still there day after day, eating semi healthy free food, receiving enough free health care to survive, or a complimentary roof over their head, should be , understood, acknowledged and accepted by those citizens that were able understand and side step the pitfalls that life in general can capture and trap.

Answer 6

Why do Republicans think my hard-earned money should go to build bridges in Alaska to islands that are home to only 40 people?

What makes Bush think $387 Billino of Americans hard-earned dollars should go to fund a war over WMDs that don't exist instead of actually defending me against a real terrorist who killed 3000 Americans roams free?

Why should my hard-earned dollars be spent on a campaign to out a covert CIA agent simply because her husband disagreed with the President?

Why does George Bush think that your hard-earned dollars should go to a Medicare Rx program that doesn't allow the government to negotiate discounts with Rx companies, thus giving said Rx companies billions in corporate welfare?

Why do our hard earned dollars go to a $6.7 billion tax break for oil companies at the same time they have the highest profits of any company in the world in the history of capitalism?

So, why do conservatives (if they can be called that) think their corporate friends have a right to the hard earned dollars of American citizens?

Just a few more legitimate questions you could ask along with yours.

Answer 7

That is a stupid question and the only reason I am saying anything, is because I want the 2 points.

I'm willing to bet you are not even a citizen who works hard for your money. You were probably born into money and have nothing to do all day but ask stupid questions.

Answer 8

a citizen works hard - and makes money - therefore he can say it is hard-earned money, cant he

yes, he can - and does

but is this the truth?

he cannot work more than twice as hard as the average worker, who works 50 hours a week

and how much harder PER HOUR can he work than the AVERAGE hardness per hour?

and yet he can be paid up to a million times the average hourly pay, in this great unjust-capitalist system of ours

he can put into the pool of wealth one hour's work and take out up to US$15 million an hour - [bill gates's peak workhourly increase of fortune, $18 billion a year, 1998 - in 2006 dollars, $27 billion]

now, that $15 million means $15 million of goods and services, made by others - puts one hour's labour into the pool, gets out about a million hour's labour - legal theft! madness!

and everyone will agree that if you give bill and 100 others the same tools, materials and knowledge to make the variety of goods and services bill might buy with his hardearned money, bill's productivity will not be remarkable, may well be perfectly average

so, hard-earned? - yes, worked hard - but every dollar hard-earned? or soft-earned, ie, a free lunch, money for nothing, legal theft, legal stealing, getting out what others put in by their work?

there are many many legal ways in which people get money for nothing, in which legal stealing exists and happens in our economy and every economy - it is obvious, just from the fact that you can take a cross-section of people who have worked very equally hard, and been paid very different amounts - it is obvious from centuries - and continents - of hardworking wealth and hardworking poverty

[the hardworking businessman squealing about taxes is keen on trotting out the wastrel, the slacker - how many people get a chance to slack at work?]

1% get 90% of world income - no one will attempt to claim that the 1% do 90% of the work - they do less than 1% of the work - because the super overpaid dont HAVE to work - the poorest have to work and 50 million of them starve to death despite working - being paid $1 a fortnight's work, $25 a year, $1000 a lifetime, with least power to resist oppression and exploitation

i wonder if the questioner is genuinely ignorant of the realities - it would be nice to think so - but unrealistic

but i bet he gets all emotional and angry just thinking of how hard he worked for every cent he - didnt make, but raked

there are wideopen legal ways for money to shift from earners to non-earners - why are the underpaid not more caring about it? - do they really not know? - isnt it obvious SOMETHING is DEFINITELY wrong with great wealth and poverty - even if you dont know exactly what - and you can get someone to explain it, to satisfy your curiosity - why has the american let liberty, equality, democracy, justice, social order, fairpay, safety and fraternity slip away?

is it that everyone who stood up for you was suppressed, by jail or assassination, like huey long? just as in communism and other fascisms?

or is it that the ordinary, hardworking, decent person is foOled by the businessman's sincerely selfdeceiving indignation at being tax-ROBBED?

'the poor man pays for all'

'the second million is easier to make [rake] than the first $1000'

'business is just selling for more than you paid for it'

'the merchant buys cheap, sells dear'

Answer 9

Because you make it on the back of someone else, or did you do ALL the work yourself??

Who paid for your HS Education? You? I don't think so! And neither did your parents. I bet you are still paying off our tax dollar loans to get you through College, unless you one of the rich!!

Answer 10

Well, we could always limit military spending, lower taxes and divert the money that would've been wasted on bellicose twits and give it to the needy.