Contributors

Saturday, December 11, 2010

WTF Has Obama Done?

Signed the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act, the first piece of comprehensive legislation aimed at improving the lives of Americans living with paralysis.

One of the main reasons why I am a Democrat is because they seem to understand (in giant leaps and bounds) that helping people is a good thing. And that it's OK when the government does it. Apparently, the only "help" that the government is allowed to do in GOP Land is related to guns and blowing things up. Certainly, I have no problem with this if the situation presents itself where that is necessary but their mindset seems awfully narrow.

Surprise, surprise...

5 comments:

Larry said...

You're a reflexively mindless spambot when it comes to promoting Democrats and denigrating Republicans, Mark. The link you yourself presented says that it enjoyed bipartisan support and ans specifically thanks several Republicans that were key in getting it passed. Did you even read your own link? Sheesh.

GuardDuck said...

Beat me to it Larry.

Way to go Mark - GOP sux even when they support what you want? Do you consider it bi-partisan only if the other side surrenders unconditionally?

Just can't win with you....

Flat Earthers said...

One of the main reasons why I am a Democrat is because they seem to understand (in giant leaps and bounds) that helping people is a good thing. And that it's OK when the government does it.

The problem with government "doing it" is that it compels the participation of those who don't believe in whatever cause you're supporting. If whatever "welfare program" the ruling party dreams up (imagine bailing out BP, if you like) gets 60% support, the 40% who think it's destructive policy are forced to help pay for it anyway. If a private concern raised money to bail out BP, they'd only get it from people who wanted BP bailed out.

And yes, I know you're thinking of your usual argument that some people don't like supporting the defense budget either. But there's a difference. By refusing to support the defense budget, you downgrade the quality of the military for everyone in the country, not just yourself. It's not like you're allowed to form a non-profit to buy tanks and donate them to the military, whereas you are perfectly free to contribute whatever you like (time, money, expertise, whatever) to the poor, or the paralyzed, or gay people, or black people, or...

So you tell me... if a Republican administration passed a bill taxing everyone to form an agency to "help" gay people "become straight", would you be okay with it? Of course not. But once you concede that "it's OK when the government does it", you concede to whoever is in charge the authority to define "helping", don't you?

For someone who claims to be "reflective", you are incredibly shortsighted sometimes.

Damn Teabaggers said...

...that helping people is a good thing. And that it's OK when the government does it.

So if a far right Administration wanted to add to your taxes to pay for a program to "help" gays "become straight", you'd be okay with it? Of course you wouldn't, and neither would I.

That's the point. Any form of "government help" gives whoever is the ruling party the authority to define what is "helpful" and what is not, who is eligible to be "helped" and who is not.

You sure as hell wouldn't willingly concede that kind of power to a conservative Republican or, Gawd help you, libertarian administration... yet you act shocked and outraged when conservatives and libertarians make the exact same choice you would if the positions were reversed.

Go figure.

juris imprudent said...

If M actually fears the day there is a Libertarian Administration he is more irrational than even I believed.

And he will never grasp that the rope he and his beloved liberal Dems are manufacturing will one day be used by his most hated enemies to hang them all.

I honestly don't know which part is more pathetic.