Shikha Dalmia, senior analyst at the Reason Foundation, writing in the WSJ:
[...]Mr. Obama’s moral vision presupposes that the key to individual advancement is securing a larger share of a fixed social pie from those who control it. This posture, relevant in premodern patronage systems, is profoundly at odds with the modern, market economy in which individuals don’t have to wrest resources from others to prosper; they have opportunities to create their own. That requires a morality of independence and self-reliance — precisely what Mr. Obama downplays with his comments about the “individualistic bootstrap myth.”
Ah, but pre-modernity IS postmodernity — by way of the erasure of modernism.
And self-reliance and the “individualistic bootstrap myth”? Imposed on us by the thinking of rich white landowners and slave holders in powdered wigs.
No, the only way to show you really love America is to stand against its founding principles yelling “unfair!” “Racism!” “Sexism!” “Death to market capitalism; long live the redistribution of wealth!”
It’s a tough love, certainly. But embrace it. Because once you do, all your historical sins will be absolved, and we can all live equally.
And by “we can all,” that of course means “you can all.” I mean, it’s only fair that those who implement Utopia get a little extra piece to wet their beaks, right?
Right.
(h/t Terry)
Comment by dicentra on 9/15 @ 11:39 am #
I’ve heard some say that the reason the USSR failed is that their pie wasn’t big enough before they divvied it up, so if you socialized the U.S., you’d have a big enough pie for it to all work out.
Socialism: the economic equivalent of the perpetual motion machine.
Comment by MAJ (P) John on 9/15 @ 11:44 am #
Hyde Park mansions don’t build themselves you know. Somebody has to put a little labor in so the organizers of communities can be rewarded properly.
Comment by Sdferr on 9/15 @ 11:45 am #
Anti-pie divviers are inhuman monsters who will only donate 23% of their incomes to charity. Pro-pie divviers will give enormous sums of their income like .023% to charity. Jesus Christ was a Community Organizer! Pro-Pie divving, his mom baked FigPies for crying out loud.
Comment by bitchenFirebird on 9/15 @ 12:56 pm #
Mmmmmm….. pie!
Comment by Sticky B on 9/15 @ 12:57 pm #
My dad, who is in his seventies, has long advocated that the Ted Kennedy wing of the democratic party is basically longing for a return of feudalism. Except that everyone will be in serfdom to the government rather than to the landowners and congressmen and powerful bureaucrats play the part of lord of the manor. Your take on this is pretty damned close to his.
Why are people so damned blind? I guess maybe cause they want to be.
Comment by mojo on 9/15 @ 1:04 pm #
“Once the plebs discovered that they could vote themselves bread and circuses, the Republic was doomed.”
Always scribble, scribble, scribble, eh Mr. Gibbon?
Comment by Bob Reed on 9/15 @ 1:05 pm #
The political left won’t be happy until we adopt all of the same hallmarks as the socialist Euro-states…
What they’ll never realize is that the EU came about as an economic defense mechanism. In their socialist minds if that pie was made large enough then individually they would have to gain economic parity with the US.
The flaw is that Capitalist economies like ours are not zero sum games, to be divvied up like a pie amongst the crowd. The continued expansion comes from folks doing their own thing; creating new wealth and jobs.
Instead of hand wringing about how our lack of socialized medicine makes US buisness uncompetitive with the Eurozone and Asian concerns, they should worry more about the corporate tax rate; the second highest in the world. That is one of the major incentives for corporations to avoid the US, in spite of the American workers uber-productivity.
Comment by Percy Dovetonsils on 9/15 @ 2:32 pm #
“Hyde Park mansions don’t build themselves you know.”
As the great realignment of the parties continues – the Dems becoming the upscale urban douchebag/hedge fund manager types, the Republicans the downmarket Wal-Mart shoppers – the Democrats may want to re-examine that whole income redistribution thingy.
I, for one, am becoming increasingly attracted to the thought of legally taking the money from the million dollar homes with “Obama!” signs on them, and putting it in my pocket.
Comment by commander0 on 9/15 @ 3:15 pm #
I can only wonder if the ghost of David Foster Wallace has somehow infested your soul. Is their a rite that should be performed?
Comment by happyfeet on 9/15 @ 4:18 pm #
However, Mr. Obama believes — as he wrote in a 1990 anthology, “After Alinsky: Community Organizing in Illinois”
Here is that whole Baracky piece. I hadn’t seen that before. I guess at it’s noxious little marxy heart is this…
That’s all kinds of wrong. Baracky wants him some vassals sounds like.
Comment by happyfeet on 9/15 @ 4:37 pm #
*its* … but to be fair I guess he’s just talking about “the inner city” like he knows something about it cause he all hood like that. The inner city here in LA you don’t have a lot of people ditching their homeys for the “corporate ladder”. It would be nice if that were a problem really.
Comment by Mikey NTH on 9/15 @ 4:46 pm #
#10 haps:
To build their communities they can always join Rotary, or Kiwanis, or Lions, or Civitans, or…
Comment by mishu on 9/15 @ 8:34 pm #
As the great realignment of the parties continues – the Dems becoming the upscale urban douchebag/hedge fund manager types, the Republicans the downmarket Wal-Mart shoppers – the Democrats may want to re-examine that whole income redistribution thingy.
It makes you wonder what’s the matter with Santa Barbara.
Comment by Rob Crawford on 9/15 @ 8:45 pm #
From what I can see, that’s pretty much it. Toss in the unions to keep the workers in line, as well.
Comment by pan on 9/16 @ 12:26 am #
“Death to market capitalism; long live the redistribution of wealth!â€Â
Only no one is saying this.
I know it’s hard for many on the right to understand, but the belief that capitalism is the greatest creator of wealth in human history is not mutually exclusive with the idea that it works better with a little regulation. The notion that anyone who supports any level of regulation is some sort of communist is as intellectually dishonest as it is right-wing trite.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go scream “Death to market capitalism!” out in the streets, fist held high….
Comment by maggie katzen on 9/16 @ 12:55 am #
please, pay no attention to this or the proposed “Energy Rebate”. nope, nothing about redistribution of wealth in there.
Comment by Obstreperous Infidel on 9/16 @ 12:03 pm #
“a little regulation”
Yeah, there’s NO regulation in our government. Regulators! Mount up.
And, you’re just being an incredibly disingenuous person if you don’t think that “wealth redistribution” isn’t high on the list of progressives minds. It drives their being.
Comment by Rob Crawford on 9/16 @ 1:01 pm #
There’s a difference between “a little regulation” and “we’ll have to nationalize the oil industry”. Or health-care. Or the mortgage industry.
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