tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post6206484803495286526..comments2014-02-02T13:38:25.603-05:00Comments on Whiskey Tango Foxtrot: Are We Losing It?Lawrence Blackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12634783674023971441noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post-87789446315768516822012-07-06T19:13:15.909-04:002012-07-06T19:13:15.909-04:00Remember, Obama and all of his adherents on the le...Remember, Obama and all of his adherents on the left continue to maintain that the mandate is NOT a tax, but a permitted function of government.Lawrence Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12634783674023971441noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post-47261870631721584702012-07-06T19:03:12.811-04:002012-07-06T19:03:12.811-04:00Patrick--
I remember the Napoleon Hill story abou...Patrick--<br /><br />I remember the Napoleon Hill story about the welfare mob. Kinda sounds like a preview of "Occupy", doesn't it? If you're interested in another "old" book that seems to have been almost eerily prescient, check out Ray Bradbury's "Farenhiet 451".<br /><br />In that story, television (video media) has become the supreme source of entertainment and information and it was the job of "firemen" to burn books, particularly the dangerous ones that contradicted the "official" news. Part of the path the people took to get to their state was the appearance on TV of make believe "families" doing the most outrageous things, captivating the audience and distracting the public from the actions of the government. Sounds like a pretty good description of "Reality TV", eh?<br /><br />As for participation in public assistance ever being made mandatory, at risk of being penalized......I never saw it as a chance that the government would tell people that if they didn't take the money (participate in the program) they'd be taxed more. I was projecting into the future what this could lead to, now that the idea of the federal government mandating any individual's behavior has been broached. I can certainly see some lawmaker (in California, maybe?) proposing just such a law. I'm sure they could justify it under the auspices of HHS or the State Dept. of Child Protective Services.<br /><br />Let's just file that with my prediction about the potential for the smart grids to lead to State control over people's access to energy in the not-to-distant future. We can come back and revisit the predictions in 10 yrs or so. Hope you guys had a good time on the 4th.Lawrence Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12634783674023971441noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post-81526262373946372722012-07-06T18:39:04.982-04:002012-07-06T18:39:04.982-04:00Anonymous (you could at least provide a name, just...Anonymous (you could at least provide a name, just so I know who was so ill-raised by parents that never instilled a proper sense of decorum in their apparently wayward child):<br /><br />Not that it's really any of your business, but no, I didn't "marry someone from my mother's generation". My (now ex)wife, through a series of poor decisions, got herself into an abusive situation and ended up with 4 children by age 18. I met her when I was 24 and she 31 (7 years isn't all that far apart, is it?), inheriting 4 teen step-children.<br /><br />I like to think it was partly due to my influence that those kids didn't have children of their own until they were at least 17 and out of school (they are all either married or in long-term relationships). My step-grandaughter didn't have her first until she was 19 (she is now 23 and a married mother of 2).<br /><br />A couple of the kids did, in fact, spend some short time on public assistance. The duration was brief, and none of them ever considered remaining on welfare and living off the system. They have ALL worked for the majority of what they have received.<br /><br />As an aside, they often worked much harder, and received much less, than some of the "do-nothing" welfare recipients that shared space in the apartment building we lived in (the law required that a percentage of housing be set aside for "low-income"). THOSE POS regularly set up the grill on the first and third weekends of the month, grilling steaks, burgers and dogs that my tax money paid for while they bitched about "how expensive" it was.<br /><br />And to answer your final question: YES. I can assure you that none of my grandchildren or greatgrandkids are receiving public assistance. If they are in need of help, they get it the old fashioned way, they rely on their family and, occasionally, friends. Not that I believe it's any of your business as, judging by the tone of your post, I judge it likely you are one of the one's on the dole, not a contributor. But, hey, you have a nice day and enjoy your fourth.<br /><br />P.S. I apologize for the delay in my reply to your post and for making you wait. You see, I work for a living and had to make a run to Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and back to Pennsylvania and just now got back. I sincerely hope my reply to your post was worth the wait.Lawrence Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12634783674023971441noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post-19259208756322614862012-07-05T00:39:20.416-04:002012-07-05T00:39:20.416-04:00You have great grand children? What, did you marr...You have great grand children? What, did you marry someone from your mother's generation? Do you have an Oedipus complex? <br /><br />And can you assure us that ALL of those children, grand children, and great grand children are NOT on some kind of government program? (i.e., WIC, Medicaid, food stamps, Section 8 housing, Doctor Dinosaur, etc.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post-29235006833781961022012-07-04T23:38:10.197-04:002012-07-04T23:38:10.197-04:00The post puts me in mind of two things:
The movie ...The post puts me in mind of two things:<br />The movie "Cinderella Man" starring Russell Crowe. In it he plays a depression era boxer who initially refuses to go on relief. While he finally does so to keep his family together, as soon as he is able, he attempts to repay the money.<br />The second is a story in Napolean Hill's "Think and Grow Rich". He describes a mob of people on relief going to a courthouse to protest. Their protest? The felt it unfair that the mail carriers were delivering their relief checks so early and wanted a judge to order that they would not be delivered before 10 am.<br />I fear that we have definitely moved more towards the latter sentiment being the more usual.<br /><br />On the mandating welfare acceptance, I am not too worried. Given how the health care law was upheld, I think it would be difficult to achieve. It doesn't make a lot of sense, even by government standards, to have a law that says take this money or we will tax you more.Patrick Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03322645569799125257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4018628005987004136.post-55116667281862059292012-07-04T18:24:12.855-04:002012-07-04T18:24:12.855-04:00I just thought of something. Now that Obamacare h...I just thought of something. Now that Obamacare has been deemed "constitutional", I wonder how long it'll be before some social-justice, Progressive "child-advocate" will start to agitate for the cause of making participation in government welfare programs mandatory, under the theory that "malnourished" children face greater health risks and don't perform as well in school. Maybe they'll even make failure to seek benefits a crime! (Child abuse/neglect)<br /><br />Some people just need to be encouraged to do the right thing. After all, "it's for the children".Lawrence Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12634783674023971441noreply@blogger.com