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Oops! People like a more equal distribution of wealth!

Posted by Anok • 11/01/08 • Subscribe to this Discussion [RSS] • Report This Topic
Topics: hypocracy, socialism, wealth

This article from Alternet is pretty funny:

www.alternet.org/democracy/105652/

Charges of socialism are especially discordant coming from the McCain campaign. The top marginal income tax rate held steady at 50 percent for five years under McCain's hero, Ronald Reagan. His other hero, Teddy Roosevelt, was a fierce and early booster for federal income and estate taxes. And Sarah Palin? It wouldn't be all that surprising to see her turn up at a commemoration of this year's 70th anniversary of the Fourth International. As Hendrik Hertzberg noted in one of many recent New Yorker pieces debunking the newest GOP attack line, the redistributive principle is practiced with particular gusto in Palin's Alaska, where the governor spreads the oil wealth like creamy butter around the state's absorbent white bread. "One of the reasons Palin has been a popular governor," notes Hertzberg, "is that she added an extra $1,200 to this year's (government) check, bringing the per-person total to $3,269." Earlier this summer, Palin boasted to journalist Philip Gourevitch, "Alaskans collectively own the resources. We share in the wealth."

McCain has run the worst campaign ever. Good for Obama, though

User Comments

11/01/08

clioandme

It finally occurred to me what all the socialist BS was about. At the end of the Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels made some rather quaint political demands. The fulfillment of these wouldn't lead to the socialist revolution they wanted, but Marx and Engels found them desirable. One was a progressive income tax. Another involved nationalization of certain industries.

Many of these things happened later in Europe, and we've had the progressive income tax in the US for many, many decades. None of that amounts to the socialism they describe in this and other texts, but the fact that they mentioned the term can give some conservatives an excuse to make the socialist claim. To accomplish this fact they have to ignore historical context, but that's nothing new.

Hat tip to Pat Buchanan for making his warped logic clear to me: www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=29302

[reply]
1. 11/01/08
  
  Anok
  
  Yup, that's exactly it.
2. 11/02/08
  
  RuinousRight
  
  Plus socialism is a negative buzz word here in the states that motivates a lot of ignorant and low-info voters.
  
  People who actually follow the issues and understand the tax plans know that Obama's plan is more fair and simply not socialism.
11/01/08

210betty

Whoa! Why haven't we all moved to Alaska? I knew that they received a check of some sorts I didn't know it was that much. This is really funny Anok, thanks.

[reply]
1. 11/01/08
  
  clioandme
  
  Only oil prices are going down now, so . . .
11/01/08

RenalFailure

In socialist Alaska, wealth spreads you!

[reply]
11/01/08

csiunatc

1. Anok,
You don't see the difference between a concession tax and personal income tax?

2. Mark, "at the end of" is an interesting way to reduce the importance of the statement. When you deal with a Manifesto, we normally call that the conclusion to the argument. Which makes the "end" of it more or less the most important part...

You really should read it cover to cover, it's an interesting piece of litterature.

[reply]
1. 11/01/08
  
  clioandme
  
  The German Ideology makes the theoretical underpinnings of their work clearer, but this one is a good pamphlet for teaching the subject. It was also the most widely read one.
  
  It's a mistake to see those policy stances as a conclusion. They are almost incidental to the larger point Marx and Engels were making about what they considered to be the historically inevitable path of history.
  
  And if you really want to go with a BS definition of "back of the book" = "conclusion", then you'd still not be with the material I cited above. You'd still have a couple short chapters to read after those policy stances. Go ahead. Take your own advice. Read the thing. www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/index.htm
2. 11/01/08
  
  Anok
  
  Well, actually, all I did was repost what the polls have reported, and what others have done.
  
  But I understand, it's not socialist redistribution of wealth to you unless it's taxing the rich at a different rate than the poor.
  
  Oh, wait, that's what we've always done!
  
  But taking "hard earned profits" from a company and redistributing all around isn't, amazingly enough.
11/01/08

loverofjazz

@anok
they know that what palin did was wrong according to their stated principles, but that's the great thing about her apologists: they have no real principles!
their tactics are to throw anything at the opposition and pray that something sticks, logic and consistency be damned.

[reply]
11/01/08

clioandme

Anyone ever read Teddy Roosevelt (Republican and a hero in McCain's eyes) on taxes? www.teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=501
(Use your browser's search feature to find tax.)

[reply]
1. 11/01/08
  
  Anok