As I am writing this, the country is in the process of re-electing Barack Obama as President of our dying republic.
Now is a good time to let you know that I will be taking a break from my blog for awhile. Like many of you, this election season has been very stressful for me and I could use some time to decompress.
Before I go, I would like to point out two immutable facts concerning what has just happened in America.
First, we need to establish a clear picture of just who voted for Barack Obama. Then, we need to understand why the Republican party is now officially on the endangered species list.
Obama voters:
1. Hispanic-Americans who were turned off by the Republican view of immigration. Hispanics are the fastest-growing group of Americans. Hispanics made up ten percent of the national vote for the first time and killed Romney in Florida, Colorado, Virginia and North Carolina.
2. Young female voters who want to reserve the right to end the life of the unborn. The Republican platform scares them.
3. African-Americans who, according to The Wall Street Journal supported Mr. Obama with 97% of their votes. In 2008 Mr. Obama won 95% of the African-American vote. It is very much worth noting that African-American unemployment is higher now than in 2008. It is not real clear exactly what Mr. Obama did to give black people a clearer path to good jobs over the past four years, but it did not matter to 97% of black voters.
3. African-Americans who, according to The Wall Street Journal supported Mr. Obama with 97% of their votes. In 2008 Mr. Obama won 95% of the African-American vote. It is very much worth noting that African-American unemployment is higher now than in 2008. It is not real clear exactly what Mr. Obama did to give black people a clearer path to good jobs over the past four years, but it did not matter to 97% of black voters.
4. Public sector unions. This means public school teachers and other folks (not as much police officers) like utility workers, firefighters and more. These folks want the right to retire young and live off of budget-busting pensions with no regard to the taxpayers who they think owe them something just because they chose to teach young people or put out fires.
5. Private sector unions. What overpaid, underproductive member of our nation's unions would ever want to see a right to work-type businessman running our country. Just because Toyota produces better cars than General Motors with non-union, less-expensive labor this does not mean we should adopt this model for other industries, does it? I mean, why mess up a system where union workers in the Northest and upper Midwest can demand ever increasing pay and pensions and health care benefits even if it is no good for their companies or the nation?
6. Welfare recipients. During his first four years, Obama made it easier to collect food stamps, public housing assistance and 99 weeks of unemployment benefits. Fewer Americans are looking for work than at any time in the last several decades. Bastiat was right when he said, "In our natural state, man seeks to avoid pain and will live at the expense of someone else if he can." People on welfare see Obama as their collector of private property from the bank accounts of the greedy rich. This includes an inordinate number of women. 40% of American babies are born with no dad around. To these women, President Obama is the financial daddy to their offspring
6. Welfare recipients. During his first four years, Obama made it easier to collect food stamps, public housing assistance and 99 weeks of unemployment benefits. Fewer Americans are looking for work than at any time in the last several decades. Bastiat was right when he said, "In our natural state, man seeks to avoid pain and will live at the expense of someone else if he can." People on welfare see Obama as their collector of private property from the bank accounts of the greedy rich. This includes an inordinate number of women. 40% of American babies are born with no dad around. To these women, President Obama is the financial daddy to their offspring
7. Over-educated liberals. Listen, I work with people like this. The latte-drinking, New York Times reading elitists who have all the economic common sense of a tree stump. These people actually drive nice cars, eat good food and wear nice clothes without a clue as to where these items come from. They think that government is wonderful and that there should be more of it even though everything they own comes from the private sector.
8. The elderly who don't care much about their posterity. I hear older Americans say, "I am just getting back what I paid in" when it comes to Social Security and Medicare. Hogwash. Many empirical studies prove that today's seniors, in less than five years on average, get back all of their taxes, adjusted for inflation, in retirement and health care benefits. Everything after that is simply a transfer from their children and grandchildren. Transfer is another word for welfare, which another word for stolen property.
9. Young people with limited life experience and even more limited brain power. Look, when you are 18 you are naturally pretty dumb as to how life works. You have lived with Mommy and Daddy for 99% of your life so you are used to a form of government providing you with security. You don't own much property, pay little to no taxes, do not own a business, do not have a mortgage or kids, etc. Therefore, when some slick, American Idol candidate like Barack Obama asks for you vote in a smooth voice and radiant smile, you get really excited because he makes you feel good. Then, when he does nothing to help your chances of having a job for the last four years, since all you do is text, mess around on Facebook and play videogames, you still do not have enough sense to figure out that the pretty guy with no economic knowledge whatsoever is still not going to help you for the next four years.
10. Crony capitalists. Farmers, alternative energy companies and other companies that line their pockets with taxpayer dollars are also Obama voters. Why should someone who picked corn farming vote for Romney, who might tell them, "Hey, sometimes it does not rain." Why would a windmill company in Iowa tell its workers to vote for Romney after Romney says that if wind is a great source of energy, windmill companies don't need subsidies. As more and more companies line the halls of Washington, D.C. to get your money, they won't want to see a real capitalist elected.
11. Special interest groups who want special considerations, or money. Gay people want government to leave them alone if they decide to engage in something they call marriage. Global warming alarmists want government to push us towards wind-powered bicycles. Drug addicts want an expansion in Supplemental Security Income. Add to this group animal rights activists, rich actors and actresses, assorted athletes and Warren Buffett and you have the perfect ingredient for Obama's re-election.
12. The ignorant, lazy masses. Ben Franklin said that the moment voters realize that they can vote for themselves money from the public treasury, it would "herald the end of the Republic". Our country has simply decided that we want to live off of one another. We want freedom without responsibility. We do not care about the Founding Fathers, the Constitution, the meaning of true liberty and we do not understand economics and what it takes to make an economy grow. We envy those who have worked hard and demand their property through legalized plunder. We demand fairness without caring about unfair acts imposed on our fellowman. We have, in short, become a nation of ignorant, selfish individuals who could care less about what our nation was supposed to be.
Now for the part on why the Republican party is facing extinction.
See 1-12 above.
I'm trying to reconcile nos. six and eleven here--it's bad to be ignorant but it's bad to be educated. Anyway, this is an exhaustive list. I'm happy that I'm able to be more hopeful (because I'm ignorant as a tree stump?) than you are about the future of the country.
ReplyDeleteWe face huge challenges, no doubt. But the ignorant, lazy, uneducated, over-educated masses have spoken. You're probably right about the fate of the Republican party, if they can't begin to acknowledge the changing demographic they supposedly represent.
Several of my students told me yesterday that they'd stood in line for hours to vote. I guess you'd include them in #8 above, but they too are part of the mix that the Mittster had no clue about. I don't really know how they voted but I'm proud of them for doing so.
I am a student who also voted yesterday but i was lucky enough to have mr. Chambless as my professor some years ago. he would most likely not include ALL of your students in the listed #9. sadly though, he is correct, my generation is too selfish, uneducated, and shortsighted to make a decision for their country and not for themselves. we are a generation of "i need it now", but we don't understand the difference between needs and wants. nor have we been taught the correlation between hard work and pay off. undereducated or overly educated in the wrong manner this is the generation i will share america with.
DeleteYou are correct. I can now go back to my tiny Libertarian party and look, in amazement, at the Republicans who stupidly hammer away at immigration and gay marriage as the country becomes more racially and socially diverse. They better adapt (even though they don't believe in evolution) or they will politically die. Congrats on Obama's win. I hope he does at least a few things that will help my children have a better future.
ReplyDeleteFor your kids' sake and for mine I hope so too. But he won't be able to do it alone. He and the House will have to find some way to work together. I'm not holding out a lot of optimism for that but we'll see. Meanwhile, the country creaks forward. Thank god for work and health.
DeleteThank you for your thoughtful bluntness. I can't really disagree with anything you've said.
ReplyDeleteMy girlfriend and I were watching the election results with dismay and shaking heads last night. It's a shame that we are at the mercy of so many people that can't think or choose not to think for themselves and make the rest of us pay for their ignorance and shortsightedness.
One question though and pardon my own self-admitted ignorance on this. What would need to happen for the Libertarian Party to become more mainstream and politically relevant as far as the Electoral College is concerned?
Have a good break from blogging and I'll be sure to look forward to seeing you start posting again.
Scott
Evolving? No, we are devolving when we allow partial-birth abortion and call it freedom of choice. We are devolving when hedonism supersedes ethics.
ReplyDeleteChanging demographic? Those are just kind words for social breakdown. We reward failure by stepping in to save those who refuse to take action to save themselves. We punish success by taking more from those who take action to earn more and support themselves. We encourage people to limit their families and control population but the only ones listening are the ones we want to propagate.
There is a movie called "Idiocracy" that pretty much follows your talking points, Jack. That is where we are heading.
The incredible things I heard Wednesday morning made me sick of the stupidity of people. One woman said she didn't care about the economy or other things cause obama was going to fill her fridge with food. Those rich people are finally going to pay their share and it should be taken from them.
ReplyDeleteMy father was 1 of 14 kids who grew up picking cotton. They struggled for every cent they had. Some of his brothers never went past 5th grade educations. My father served in the military and did many things to put food on the table till he found his niche. He became the white version of Sanford and Sons. Junk was his game and he became a big player to the point he retired in his early 60's from it and has his dream house on a river and a second home in Florida. With his assets he's a 1%'er but his only income is really his social security check at this time and still some part time junk dealing. But, he's expected to pay the higher taxes cause he's evil for working 14 hour days 7 days a week for years to have his dream home (which he built by himself). Instead of being applauded for creating the American dream of growing up in poverty and creating his destiny he is being condemned cause he isn't doing enough for those who will not work their ass off as much as he did. Even now at 75 he can outwork any 20 something.
This is what our country is about now.
It just doesn't make sense how the Republican party still is so loud about these social issues that will NEVER change. Women will ALWAYS perform abortions. Gay people will always do their thing. Accept it, why fight it?
ReplyDeleteI work at Disney World, with a large population of homosexuals that work there, and a great deal voted for Obama, just on THAT social issue. I look at Mitt and the Republican party dumbfounded by their inane social views and bringing them into a political platform. Imagine how many votes he would have received had he just piped it down on his views and literally would've said, I see no reason why this needs to be a Federal Issue.
It drives me nuts.