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POPSWhy George Orwell wrote 1984 Orwell served in Burma as a member of The Indian Imperial police, saw poverty and failure, but the Spanish Civil War and the rise of Hitler, and the NAZIs, gave him a political direction, and his work after 1936, was to warn against the establishment of a totalitarian state. There is more at the site, with more background. Orwell died Seven months after 1984 was published, due to the effects of tuberculosis, and an allergic reaction to a new medication. While he was in Hospital, writing 1984 they took away his typewriter, but he continued to write longhand with a ballpoint pen, despite his failing health
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POPSClippers, get over it I see clips that forecast everything from Socialism to return of Hitlers third Reich. Go outside look up and see that the sky is not falling, your family is not in chains. Time to return to life or get one.
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POPSRemedial Fascism for Confused Conservatives Hitler said Germany had collapsed because of loose morals, religious tolerance, the liberal media and all the usual boogeymen that we hear about today from conservatives. What we see with Jonah Goldberg and his entourage of pseudointellectuals is an effort to destroy the meaning of the word "Fascism" and to reduce Hitler to a buffoonish anti-Semite, rather than a devious master propagandist.
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POPSSelf Proclaimed Elites and Tyranny
"there’s little or no distinction between Nazism and socialism. Even the word Nazi is short for National Socialist German Workers Party. The origins of the unspeakable horrors of Nazism, Stalinism and Maoism did not begin in the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s. Those horrors were simply the end result of long evolution of ideas leading to consolidation of power in central government in the quest for “social justice.” "Few Americans have the stomach or ruthlessness to do what is necessary to make their governmental wishes come true. They are willing to abandon constitutional principles and rule of law so that the nation’s elite, who believe they are morally and intellectually superior to the rest of us, can have the tools to implement “social justice.” "Those tools are massive centralized government power. "It just turns out last century’s notables in acquiring powerful central government, in the name of social justice, were Hitler, Stalin, Mao, but the struggle for social j
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POPSWho is the greediest? Communists or Capitalists?
Although I do not believe that socialism and capitalism necessarily conflict, this article raises a very interesting point. To talk about a slightly different point, I think Communism definitely does make people more greedy and materialistic. Communism (and to be more specific, I refer specifically to Marxism, and large-country model Communism, namely Stalinism and Maoism) is much more complex than simply being the opposite of capitalism, thus it doesn't offer a true counterpoint to capitalism free of other complicating variables. But, even if its not perfect, it provides some valuable insight. From my experience studying the Chinese culture and the way it changed in the last 50 years, communism breeds nothing but greed, materialism and elitism. Most alarmingly it creates a sense of entitlement without the sense of responsibility. It is the freedom of capitalism that saves it. We should be very careful to ensure that our markets are in fact free. Otherwise we are no differen
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POPSKnow what your Senator pays for insurance? Compare a 64-year-old Senator with a typical 64-year old Iowan. The Senator has government insurance, and it is outstanding - a different world from what you and I can get - and at a fraction of the price. It's a government-run program, it's one of the best insurance plans in the country, and it's a bargain. Chances are your Senator doesn't think you should have it.
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POPSThe New Socialism: Global Collectivist Society Is Coming Online From the article: "We underestimate the power of our tools to reshape our minds. Did we really believe we could collaboratively build and inhabit virtual worlds all day, every day, and not have it affect our perspective? The force of online socialism is growing. Its dynamic is spreading beyond electrons—perhaps into elections." Interesting thought.
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POPSThe New Socialism: Global Collectivist Society Is Coming Online A worthwhile article , KK explores the newly arising power of social networks, adhocracy and the newly emergent cyberculture. Though I do not resonate with his use of the term 'socialism', a deep forray into the web event of collaboration provides a different view of the potential for a change we all hope for. Open source is definitely the way to go.
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POPSCapitalism – the Gift That Keeps on Taking Or maybe capitalism is just a willingness to work hard, using your brain, brawn, or talent to get ahead? Enriching yourself by the honest sweat of your own brow, or hard earned intellect? Ummmm…no.
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POPSHow Dare They Call It Socialism! We spend more than double than the entire rest of the world, taxpayer dollars given to a government entity "for the health and "safety" of all citizens." "Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes … known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few.… No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare." — James Madison, Political Observations, 1795
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POPSMcCain plan redistributes wealth upward To be scandalized by "share the wealth around" is especially hypocritical from those who consistently demand the middle class shoulder a greater share of the tax load than the rich.
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POPSAre You Too Rich? "If charity balls, chauffeured limos, a household staff and private jets feel like necessities rather than luxuries, you're too rich. And if you've come to feel you have a God-given right to feed at the government bailout trough, but you denounce it as creeping socialism when you're asked to show some personal financial self-discipline in exchange, then yes, you're too rich."
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POPSRage Against Bad Captalism is Good
The "bad news" is really an opportunity for progressives, unions and Democrats to build a bottom-up populist alternative to the "greed is good" politics of Wall Street, which has infested both parties. Obama should privately welcome "populist rage" as a stimulus to reform. If he does not, he may see right-wing populism making a comeback as soon as 2010. Some progressives, including even Warren Beatty, think it's time to introduce a discussion of socialism, if only to point out that our present course is one of socialism for the banks and corporations. Obama himself says good things about Sweden's nationalization of banks, but quickly demurs that Americans are not "culturally" ready for such an option. At the Washington Post, Harold Meyerson, a democratic socialist in the tradition of Michael Harrington, prefers re-regulation to either nationalization or socialism at this point: "to avoid socialism (to whatever extent throwing public money at banks is socialism) you need liberalism (
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POPSSen. Shelby bids reality farewell on Sunday TV The Obama admin is "obviously" turning the USA into a socialist nation, he claims. OK, let's count the evidence: How many companies has the government taken over (of America's 26 million)? Um, one? General Motors? A few more if you count the ones with loans (which is a stretch)? And the banks that Bush bailed out. OK, let's grant them all and say ten. 10 of 26,000,000. And we're a socialist nation. One divided by 2,600,000, to express it in a percentage of total businesses. My, my. Sound the alarum! Break out the hammers and sickles! Or call the men in white coats.
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POPSWeren't Repubs protecting bonuses 2 weeks ago? TNR has collected an assortment of quotes from leading Republicans on the hill about executive bonuses and boy are they a doozy. Remember how just a few weeks ago the thought of limiting executive compesation for corporate executives was pure socialism for Republicans?
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POPSGreen Communism
Owning a car opens up possibilities to a person that is beyond their reach otherwise, it opens up a freedom that many millions do not currently enjoy. The ability to find work at further distances from their homes than ever gives them more choices to find lucrative employment opportunities, the ability to find markets and entertainments are also greatly expanded. All this greatly expands individual freedom. If many millions more of the people of India (and around the world) find themselves able to afford this new car, it will incredibly improve their standard of living. It will also force the government to redirect their own efforts to internal improvements to accommodate this rise in cars that will add even more to raising the standard of living in once poor countries. Green communists do not care about people and these two stories add to the ever growing proof that enviro-communists have gravitated to environmentalism as a replacement for an overt espousal of communist ideals.
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POPSAnthem by Ayn Rand - LibriVox Audio book Written in the third person, by 'Equality 72521' The story is one of a search for freedom, where the meaning of the word has been lost. Today there is often talk of the value of capitalism. As time passes, it is becoming a privilege of the very few who have it by the throat, and allowing the life to pass from any other's opportunity. It is becoming a dirty alibi. Anyone beneath the elite is subject to the principles of socialism. Ayn Rands Magnum Opus is 'Atlas Shrugged, where she explores political themes which would subsequently develop into the Philosophy of Objectivism
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POPSNobody in this election is a true "leftist" Both candidates - and nearly all American politicians - fall within a narrow band of center-rightists. Nobody in this election is even on the same side of center as socialism is - and raising the socialism alarm is pretty un-informed. Here's a graph from the primary days that explains it well. By the way, Ron Paul is not the most libertarian of the early candidates, either!
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