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What Republicans and Billionaires Really Mean When They Talk About ‘Freedom’


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2019 Mar 20, 5:40am   2,745 views  36 comments

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America is having a heated debate about the meaning of the word socialism. We’d be better served if, instead, we were debating the meaning of freedom.

The Oregonian reported last week that fully 156,000 families are on the edge of homelessness in our small-population state.

Every one of those households is now paying more than 50 percent of its monthly income on rent, and none of them has any savings; one medical bill, major car repair or job loss, and they’re on the streets.

While socialism may or may not solve their problem, the more pressing issue we have is an entire political party and a huge sector of the billionaire class who see homelessness not as a problem, but as a symptom of a “free” society.

The words freedomand liberty are iconic in American culture—probably more so than with any other nation because they’re so intrinsic to the literature, declarations and slogans of our nation’s founding.

The irony—of the nation founded on the world’s greatest known genocide (the systematic state murder of tens of millions of Native Americans) and over three centuries of legalized slavery and a century and a half of oppression and exploitation of the descendants of those slaves—is extraordinary. It presses us all to bring truefreedom and liberty to allAmericans.

But what do those words mean?

If you ask the Koch brothers and their buddies—who slap those words on pretty much everything they do—you’d get a definition that largely has to do with being “free” from taxation and regulation. And, truth be told, if you’re morbidly rich, that makes a certain amount of sense, particularly if your main goal is to get richer and richer, regardless of your behavior’s impact on working-class people, the environment, or the ability of government to function.

On the other hand, the definition of freedom and liberty that’s been embraced by so-called “democratic socialist” countries—from Canada to almost all of Europe to Japan and Australia—you’d hear a definition that’s closer to that articulated by Franklin D. Roosevelt when he proposed, in January 1944, a “second Bill of Rights” to be added to our Constitution.

FDR’s proposed amendments included the right to a job, and the rightto be paid enough to live comfortably; the rightto “adequate food and clothing and recreation”; the right to start a business and run it without worrying about “unfair competition and domination by monopolies”; the right“of every family to a decent home”; the rightto “adequate medical care… to achieve and enjoy good health”; the right to government-based “protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment”; and the right“to a good education.”

Roosevelt pointed out that, “All of these rights spell security.”

He added, “America’s own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for our citizens. For unless there is security here at home there cannot be lasting peace in the world.”

The other nations mentioned earlier took President Roosevelt’s advice to heart. Progressive “social democracy” has kept Europe, Canada, and the developed nations of the East and South Pacific free of war for almost a century—a mind-boggling feat when considering the history of the developed world since the 1500s.

Just prior to FDR winning the White House in the election of 1932, the nation had been treated to 12 years of a bizarre Republican administration that was the model for today’s GOP. In 1920, Warren Harding won the presidency on a campaign of “more industry in government, less government in industry”—privatize and deregulate—and a promise to drop the top tax rate of 91 percent down to 25 percent.

He kept both promises, putting the nation into a sugar-high spin called the Roaring ’20s, where the rich got fabulously rich and working-class people were being beaten and murdered by industrialists when they tried to unionize. Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover (the three Republican presidents from 1920 to 1932) all cheered on the assaults, using phrases like “the right to work” to describe a union-free nation.

In the end, the result of the “horses and sparrows” economics advocated by Harding (“feed more oats to the horses and there’ll be more oats in the horse poop to fatten the sparrows”—that generation’s version of trickle-down economics) was the Republican Great Depression (yes, they called it that until after World War II).

Even though Roosevelt was fabulously popular—the only president to be elected four times—the right-wingers of his day were loud and outspoken in their protests of what they called “socialist” programs like Social Security, the right to unionize, and government-guaranteed job programs including the WPA, REA, CCC, and others.

Speaking of “the grave dangers of ‘rightist reaction’ in this Nation,” Roosevelt told Americain that same speech that: “[I]f history were to repeat itself and we were to return to the so-called ‘normalcy’ of the 1920s—then it is certain that even though we shall have conquered our enemies on the battlefields abroad, we shall have yielded to the spirit of Fascism here at home.”

Although right-wingers are still working hard to disassemble FDR’s New Deal—the GOP budget for 2019 contains massive cuts to Social Security, as well as to Medicare and Medicaid—we got halfway toward his notion of freedom and liberty here in the United States:

•You’re not free if you’re old and deep in poverty, so we have Social Security (although the GOP wants to gut it).

•You’re not free if you’re hungry, so we have food stamps/SNAP (although the GOP wants to gut them).

•You’re not free if you’re homeless, so we have housing assistance and homeless shelters (although the GOP fights every effort to help homeless people).

•You’re not free if you’re sick and can’t get medical care, so we have Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare (although the GOP wants to gut them all).

•You’re not free if you’re working more than 40 hours a week and still can’t meet basic expenses, so we have minimum wage laws and the right to unionize (although the GOP wants to gut both).

•You’re not free if you can’t read, so we have free public schools (although the GOP is actively working to gut them).

•You’re not free if you can’t vote, so we’ve passed numerous laws to guarantee the right to vote (although the GOP is doing everything it can to keep tens of millions of Americans from voting).

More: https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2019/03/what-republicans-and-billionaires-really-mean-when-they-talk-about-freedom.html

#Freedom #GOP #Billionaires

Comments 1 - 36 of 36        Search these comments

1   GNL   2019 Mar 20, 9:13am  

I believe $$ is the only answer for those who want a decent life. You cannot have a decent life without $$.

The more income/wealth inequality, the louder the cries for socialism. We WILL be getting more and more socialism. You can bank on it.

The problem is, nothing will change. The poor will still be poor. Free healthcare? Sure, if there are any doctors.

For the record...wealth/income inequality is causing much problems. What is the answer?
2   FortWayneAsNancyPelosiHaircut   2019 Mar 20, 9:42am  

It’s amusing how much Russian bots stir anti government stuff.
3   Goran_K   2019 Mar 20, 10:18am  

1. Screaming about income inequality making people poor (big fat lie). Check.
2. Holds FDR on a pedestal even though all of his programs were, in hindsight, big fat failures. Check.
3. Quote someone who has never been right about anything, Paul Krugman. Check.

Democratic Socialism 101. Check.
4   Bd6r   2019 Mar 20, 10:27am  

Goran_K says
Holds FDR on a pedestal

Even though he incarcerated all Japanese...racism not seen in US since 1860's
5   AD   2019 Mar 20, 10:31am  

Goran_K says
Democratic Socialism 101. Check.


Its all a semantics via propaganda game.

Yes, there is socialism that works like military, public roads, public libraries, public schools, safety nets (i.e., social security, etc.).

And the benefit to costs are sometimes understated like having an educated population due to public schools.

However, its all about metrics and scorecards. One example is the property tax in Los Angeles is slated to go up 7% to accommodate recent demand of public school teachers. Costs are increasing at the LA County schools and the tax revenues are not keeping up ? And why is that ? Nobody ever points to the oversupply of poor and uneducated immigrants who live many families under one household roof.

Nobody will recognize the Kaiser Family Foundation statistics that show in California that almost 65% of non-elderly Medicaid users are Hispanic/Latino. Pretty soon once the Democrat Socialists get further power, they will enact a law to stop any demographic tracking like this. That is exactly what France did, and look at now the French yellow vest protests against the government and its tax policies.
6   AD   2019 Mar 20, 10:34am  

If you do have them simultaneously, then you have a successful Cloward Piven Strategy.

7   Nobody   2019 Mar 20, 12:02pm  

It is so sad. The middle class to low class young people are sacrificed to defend the freedom defined by the rich. Look at Japan at the end of WWII. We didn't have to drop two atomic bombs which killed many innocent children and infants. Or have you seen a weapons of mass destruction discriminate kids from adults? Russians were beginning to invade Japan, and we had to end the war quickly in order to protect the financial interest. So Russians are still keeping the lands that they took at the end of WWII. So when some people say that we had to sacrifice our soldiers to end the war, that is absolute false. We had to end the war, because we needed Japan from both financial and strategically.

If you are stupid enough not to see this, then take a look at the Pearl Harbor attack. We already knew they were about to attack us. And one hour before the attack, we sank Japanese submarine by the Pearl Harbor, and yet we were not on the alert? If we have to sink the submarine by the military base, the Norad will put us on the highest alert. You think we shed our blood to protect our lives and freedom? That is the biggest bullshit of them all. It is all in the interest of the rich people and money.
8   Heraclitusstudent   2019 Mar 20, 12:09pm  

Kakistocracy says
The Oregonian reported last week that fully 156,000 families are on the edge of homelessness in our small-population state.

Every one of those households is now paying more than 50 percent of its monthly income on rent, and none of them has any savings; one medical bill, major car repair or job loss, and they’re on the streets.


This has nothing to do with capitalism or socialism or billionaires. It's a simple consequence of average people refusing to build enough housing units.

Otherwise homelessness would be much more limited and indeed be a simple consequence of not having the state handhold everyone.
9   AD   2019 Mar 20, 12:21pm  

Heraclitusstudent says
This has nothing to do with capitalism or socialism or billionaires. It's a simple consequence of average people refusing to build enough housing units.


Its the smug liberals (asian and white) who engage in clever tactics of not-in-my-backyard.

Do you think those tiger-mom asians who send their kids to public schools with very high average test scores wants to see rows of government subsidized and/or low cost housing built in the same school district ?

I wish Iwog would return and give his views on this.

I also wish Patrick would be more vocal and visible in responding to posts like this.
10   AD   2019 Mar 20, 12:33pm  

jazz_music says
Activism will be required to bring about meaningful changes.


Okay, what about demographics driven by an open border ?

You do realize the military spending has decreased as a % of GDP for over 50 years, and that Medicaid is almost on par with defense spending ?

You want to keep cutting military spending even more like Germany but look at how Germany still has as much debt as the USA !

You will not get the rich and solid to upper middle class onboard if you want all of this without putting in immigration enforcement and stopping the abuse of the asylum system.
11   AD   2019 Mar 20, 12:36pm  

jazz_music says
Several essentials have been turned into a racket such as healthcare and education.


Good point. So you mean university and college spending and salaries have gone up because of the great increase in demand due to student loans availability ?

Healthcare Industrial Complex (HIC) is going to be a more difficult one to strangle or bleed the air out of compared to Military Industrial Complex. I say this because a lot of Democrats are affiliated within the HIC whereas the MIC is mostly Repubs and neo-cons.

If you have been long on Vanguard Healthcare Fund (i.e., since the early 1990's) then you would have seen an annual return of about 17%.
12   AD   2019 Mar 20, 1:25pm  

jazz_music says

I'm not going to look up a bunch of stats today, but I've already seen enough to make up my mind.



Well you want no defense spending, and any of that money spent on defense to be spent on social welfare. You likely are okay with China annexing the USA or the USA becoming its proxy state and emulating its authoritarian socialist government.

Hence, when you say "military spending is out of control", you rather have it go to zero or have a "shell of a military" that is really an armed Peace Corps.

Examine the statistics regardless if they are the Inconvenient Truth.
13   MisdemeanorRebel   2019 Mar 20, 1:38pm  

They certainly don't mean Freedom of Speech. Although I remember that used to be the Neoliberal excuse for American "Hegemony". Now they love censorship.
14   MisdemeanorRebel   2019 Mar 20, 1:40pm  

AD says
Nobody will recognize the Kaiser Family Foundation statistics that show in California that almost 65% of non-elderly Medicaid users are Hispanic/Latino. Pretty soon once the Democrat Socialists get further power, they will enact a law to stop any demographic tracking like this. That is exactly what France did, and look at now the French yellow vest protests against the government and its tax policies.


"We wanted workers, we got people" - Swiss Minister.

And all these "Benefit to Soc Sec because they contribute under Fake SSNs" will be demanding those benefits in 10-20 years when they become old and/or disabled.

And in California (at least), they'll vote those who promise them, too.
15   AD   2019 Mar 20, 1:47pm  

MisterLearnToCode says
Benefit to Soc Sec because they contribute under Fake SSNs


I am not sure about that. A lot work for cash or under the table, and do not contribute to the federal tax rolls, and state income tax rolls. Read below as far as Obama executive order that unlawfully issues social security numbers to non-citizens. I don't know how they prove their past 3 year salaries since it was likely paid in cash and with no official documentation (i.e, W-2's).

"Undocumented immigrants who qualify to stay in the US under President Obama’s executive action will be eligible to collect tax benefits — and could file for past credits, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said. Once they are issued Social Security numbers, the newly-authorized immigrants can receive federal tax breaks and seek benefits dating back three years. “The program allows you to file for Earned Income Tax credits,” Koskinen told the Senate Finance Committee.

Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa was aghast immigrants could be rewarded for work done illegally in prior years. The Earned Income Tax Credit targets low- and moderate-income families, especially those with children. The maximum credit for 2015 is $6,242 for a couple with three kids earning no more than $53,267.
16   Goran_K   2019 Mar 20, 2:00pm  

jazz_music says
Activism will be required to bring about meaningful changes.


Ha no.
17   MisdemeanorRebel   2019 Mar 20, 2:42pm  

AD says
I am not sure about that. A lot work for cash or under the table, and do not contribute to the federal tax rolls, and state income tax rolls. Read below as far as Obama executive order that unlawfully issues social security numbers to non-citizens. I don't know how they prove their past 3 year salaries since it was likely paid in cash and with no official documentation (i.e, W-2's).


Oh don't worry AD, the under the table workers will be demanding Social Security too, and voting in California (and elsewhere) elections to get it.
19   RWSGFY   2019 Mar 20, 2:57pm  

Nobody says
Look at Japan at the end of WWII. We didn't have to drop two atomic bombs which killed many innocent children and infants. Or have you seen a weapons of mass destruction discriminate kids from adults? Russians were beginning to invade Japan, and we had to end the war quickly in order to protect the financial interest.


This is, folks, a line from Soviet-era history textbooks, practically verbatim save for English translation and addition of "we" in place of "Muricans". Bravo!
20   RWSGFY   2019 Mar 20, 2:59pm  

jazz_music says


Russia and China are fudging their numbers hard. The rest of NATO members not paying their fair share into common defense are the reason US spending is so high.
21   NDrLoR   2019 Mar 20, 3:41pm  

Good to see it--the first purpose of government.

22   MisdemeanorRebel   2019 Mar 20, 3:42pm  

Hugolas_Madurez says
Russia and China are fudging their numbers hard. The rest of NATO members not paying their fair share into common defense are the reason US spending is so high.


Yup. That and I'm sure China and Russia aren't exactly paying First World Wages or Benefits, a (if not the) major cost of any large institution.
23   FortWayneAsNancyPelosiHaircut   2019 Mar 20, 3:46pm  

Russian bots promote socialism, and funny enough jazz supports it. Might as well be an npc.
24   Shaman   2019 Mar 20, 4:06pm  

WineHorror1 says
believe $$ is the only answer for those who want a decent life.


No, it’s purpose. Without a purpose, people perish. With one, a person can overcome any obstacle. Without one, he will lose all that he has and overcome nothing, not even himself. Life without purpose is suffering without purpose, pointless and painful and unendurable. Money has very little to do with it.
25   Booger   2019 Mar 20, 4:34pm  

Freedom means responsibility. If you are too fucking lazy or stupid too create enough wealth to support yourself, you deserve to starve, as nature intended.
26   AD   2019 Mar 20, 6:09pm  

jazz_music says
YOUR TURN

Let's see you provide somethin


I know that you are pro-ChiCom, so you'll promote their propaganda as much as you can like on how little they spend on defense. And by the way, I say bullshit also on the Soviet Russian's budget as they spend a lot more than they are advertising.

for 2017:
Food stamps accounted for $70 blllion (https://www.cbpp.org/research/policy-basics-the-supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap)
Medicaid: accounted for $350 billion for federal and $203 billion for states (https://www.hhs.gov/about/budget/fy2017/budget-in-brief/cms/medicaid/index.html)
Public housing: $190 billion (https://www.cbpp.org/research/housing/chart-book-federal-housing-spending-is-poorly-matched-to-need)

Total just on federal outlays for just housing, food stamps and medicaid = 190 + 350 + 70 = $610 billion

That is $610 billion compared to $590 billion on the Pentagon.
27   WillPowers   2019 Mar 20, 9:24pm  

Kakistocracy says
the nation founded on the world’s greatest known genocide and over three centuries of legalized slavery


To be accurate and fair, the nation wasn't founded on three centuries of slavery. It is unfair to put on this nations shoulders what proceeded it's birth. The founders grappled with the question of slavery and the only way they could unite the original states in the south with the north was by allowing slavery. Do not judge men by the morals of our time. Judge them by the morals of their time, and the circumstances of that time.

Kakistocracy says
FDR’s proposed amendments


Roosevelt also wanted to pack the Supreme Court with justices because they were ruling against his socialist policy, most of which they considered unAmerican.

Kakistocracy says

He [Harding] kept both promises, putting the nation into a sugar-high spin called the Roaring ’20s,


That is why Glass—Steagall legislation was instituted, to provide a mechanism in the law to prevent another melt down, like the one the U.S. had in 1929. Then Bill Clinton came along and struck down part of the bill, which some economist said led to the 2008 melt down. If we are in for another melt down, then Trump will own it, but of course, the sad truth is, this is exactly what the Dems want, and they are hoping it will happen before 2020. Don't count on it. Read about Glass-Steagall:https://mojomorning.blogspot.com/2017/07/glasssteagall.html

Kakistocracy says
Progressive “social democracy” has kept Europe, Canada, and the developed nations of the East and South Pacific free of war for almost a century


Fact Check: Canada was involved in the Vietnam war as a NATO ally, and how many wars have the Europeans supported the U.S. in? Since WWII, NATO was involved in the Korean war, Vietnam war including Laos, South Korea and Philippines, the first Gulf War, involving Canada, UK and others, the Iraq War, a coalition triumph and all the wars in between and after: List of wars involving U.S. and allies: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wars_involving_the_United_States
It has been continual war and nothing is going to stop that. And if it isn't a war with guns, it is a war on drugs or crime or whatever.

Kakistocracy says
Medicare and Medicaid


Here I agree with you. Some socialism is good and these plans should be preserved. Republicans go too far in one direction: towards free enterprise because Democrats go too far in the other direction toward socialist policies that want to dictate how you think and what you can and cannot say, and while Democrats accuse Trump of playing identity politics, that is exactly what the left is doing. Instead of discussing the issues, they would rather call Trump a racist and end all discussion. That is not how a Democracy is supposed to work.
28   AD   2019 Mar 20, 9:44pm  

WillPowers says
while Democrats accuse Trump of playing identity politics, that is exactly what the left is doing


Yes, and the Democrats play Identity Politics which causes tax increases, reduction in quality of life, etc.

Republicans play Identity Politics to stop that.
29   MisdemeanorRebel   2019 Mar 20, 9:54pm  

WillPowers says
Kakistocracy says
the nation founded on the world’s greatest known genocide and over three centuries of legalized slavery


That can't be.

The Liberty Bell, the White House, and Fort McHenry weren't built out of cotton and tobacco.

Nor was it the greatest genocide. The 1600 population of Native Americans in the entire USA was probably 2M or less. Remember, successive waves of Smallpox, Varicella, Plague, etc against which Natives had absolutely no genetic defense. And most simply interbred with Blacks and Whites. Nor would it be unique if true.

The Turks expelled 2M Greeks from Anatolia, Thrace (European Turkey), etc. after WW1, and there were at least 500,000 deaths. While Greeks don't like the Turks, they don't blame everything since the 1920s on the Young Turk's expulsion. This followed several genocides of Greeks and Armenians before and during WW1.

Equally horrible was that Europe allowed Turkey to keep their Imperialist, Colonialist conquest of Constantinople.

If it ain't done by Whites, It's All Right.
31   Goran_K   2019 Mar 20, 10:13pm  

Yes because all the prospering nations in Africa are evidence of their nation building success.
32   Expat01   2019 Mar 21, 9:12am  

The rich don't give a rat's ass about the poor except as a source of taxes. The rich rely on the US sytem to get rich and stay rich. That means education, transport, infrastructure, finance, USD and defense. They think that just because they pay a lot of taxes, they should not have to pay more than a certain amount ("Why should I pay 10% taxes if that means $50 million a year when some immigrant pays only $2k a year and gets all the same benefits?") . Since the rich control the country, that is the policy we have in place.
Freedom. Freedom is just some bullshit word spewed out by someone who wants to live his own way without consideration for anyone else or the notion of society. We have a right to bear arms (as stupid as that might be) but we have no right to fire guns indiscriminately in public. We have the right to privacy in our home but we can't kidnap children, bring them home and rape them. So we know that freedom is relative.
Take away rich people's money for ten years. They mostly stole it anyway. Then see what social changes are made.
And for those who are not rich and who defend the wealthy because they think they will be part of that group one day, you are delusional. If you want socio-economic mobility, move to Sweden or France. In America, the only way to get rich is to be born rich.
33   Shaman   2019 Mar 21, 9:18am  

Expat01 says
The rich don't give a rat's ass about the poor except as a source of taxes.


You get partial credit. The rich also want labor from the poor. And adulation. That’s why they virtue signal in tweets and tax deductible charitable contributions to refugee funds. Not because they care about the dirty refugees, but because it makes them look good to the dumber section of society, and they won’t be having to live with the consequences of letting a bunch of third world barbarians run amok in their gated neighborhoods of splendor. Of COURSE we don’t need a wall! They have all the properties they care about walled in already!
34   GNL   2019 Mar 21, 11:09am  

Expat01 says
The rich don't give a rat's ass about the poor except as a source of taxes. The rich rely on the US sytem to get rich and stay rich. That means education, transport, infrastructure, finance, USD and defense. They think that just because they pay a lot of taxes, they should not have to pay more than a certain amount ("Why should I pay 10% taxes if that means $50 million a year when some immigrant pays only $2k a year and gets all the same benefits?") . Since the rich control the country, that is the policy we have in place.
Freedom. Freedom is just some bullshit word spewed out by someone who wants to live his own way without consideration for anyone else or the notion of society. We have a right to bear arms (as stupid as that might be) but we have no right to fire guns indiscriminately in public. We have the right to privacy in our home but we can't kidnap children, bring them home and rape them. So we know that freedom is relative.
Take away rich people's money for ten ...

Dude, a bit right and a bit delusional.
35   WillPowers   2019 Apr 5, 5:29pm  

AD says
Yes, and the Democrats play Identity Politics which causes tax increases, reduction in quality of life,


No, by calling Trump and his supporters racists and white nationalists, Nazis and other unproductive ad hominem arguments that solve nothing, but keeps the fight going.
36   WillPowers   2019 Apr 5, 5:41pm  

WineHorror1 says
We have a right to bear arms (as stupid as that might be)


The right to bear arms is the second amendment for a reason, because right after being able to say what I want without being sent to a reeducation camp, like members of the radical left support, and the reason it is the second amendment is because it is the most important right after your freedom of speech, because if some asshole decides I should die because he thinks I'm a MAGA racist, for saying something he disagrees with, then I should have the right to defend myself with a gun, if necessary.

Go live in a gun free zone. I hear those spots are the favorite places to visit for mentally disturbed shooters.

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