Capitalism vs Socialism

Capitalism vs Socialism 

"Democracy and Socialism having nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude." Alexis de Tocqueville 

Shortly after posting my Googtoon meme on my Facebook page, a good friend (and a deeply possessed liberal) posted his most insightful comment, "Plenty of bread in capitalism, if you can afford it!" To which I replied:

Once again, another American showing their stripes. So very sad, but I guess it’s what’s to be expected from decades of an eduction system telling children what to think rather than how to - independently. 

Capitalism vs Socialism - The 2016 Presidential Election (Googtoon ©2015 Mark Jordan Koeff)

We know from history that socialism has been the single most devastating cause of carnage and death. No other system or philosophy comes anywhere close. 

We also know that ALL political systems, being man conceived and implemented, are inherently flawed. There is no such thing a perfect system. No matter how noble and just one’s intent in devising an economic blueprint, someone or some group is going to suffer. There is no getting around it. Human beings are flawed and thus so are their designs. 

The real issue, however, is not so much that all political systems are imperfect, but rather EVEN IF God himself handed down the perfect system, it would still be run by…yes, you gessoed it, HUMANS!

So then, the question is not which system is flawed, because they all are, but which one is the BEST and has the most potential for advancing the human race. 

Again, Socialism is not only contrary to human nature, but has proven to be the most deadliest force on the planet. 

Capitalism, on the other hand has given the world the greatest years or prosperity the world has ever know. Though far from perfect, it has yet to be leashed in it’s purest form and it’s darn near impossible to keep the bloody hands of socialists from diluting and perverting it. 

To wit, for me, it seems that wisdom is found in actually trying Capitalism, unfettered by liberal intervention, and then tweaking it as we discover the facets that don’t advance freedom and property.

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Quickly now, a brief summary of the opposing economic systems:

CAPITALISM

Capitalism is an economic system in which trade, industry, and the means of production are privately owned and operated to maximize profit, with the price system providing price signals for the factors of production. Central characteristics of capitalism include private property, capital accumulation, wage labour and, in some situations, fully competitive markets. In a capitalist market economy, investments are determined by private decision and the parties to a transaction typically determine the prices at which they exchange assets, goods, and services. Since Capitalism presents its citizenry with enumerable life choices, it's cornerstone of the Declaration of Independence and the pursuit of happiness. 

SOCIALISM

Socialism is a social and economic system characterized by social ownership and democratic control of the means of production. It is also a political theory and movement that aims at the establishment of such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to public ownership, cooperative ownership, citizen ownership of equity, or any combination of these. Although there are many varieties of socialism and there is no single definition encapsulating all of them, social ownership is the common element shared by its various forms.

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The 1916 Presidential Election offers the American people a stark contrast in philosophical and political realities. While the Obama administration has always been far to the left of the Clinton administration, it apparently is nowhere near far enough for the current Democratic base. And two Democratic frontrunners are listening: Bernie Sanders and Hilary Clinton. They not only promise to shift further in a leftward drift but appear to be in a race for who can out-socialize Stalin.

The question is not if Democrats are moving left but whether an otherwise pop-culturized, indolent society is paying attention. My guess is that we are not. However, the election is still young and we have yet to dance. 

I promise to do my part to wake up the country. How about you?

Mark
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Thomas Jefferson Quotes

• A government big enough to give you everything you want, is big enough to take away everything you have.
• When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe. 
• The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not.
• It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world.
• I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.
• My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government." 
• No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms
• The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.
• The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. 
• To compel a man to subsidize with his taxes the propagation of ideas which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical. 
• I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." The Federal Reserve Bank (The FED) is a private bank.

WHEN ECO-THUGS KNOCK

Brian Sussman at American Thinker just posted a shocking article on what appears be to thug-like tactics being committed by the EPA. It's a fast read. Take a look: When Eco-Thugs Knock

Mark Jordan Photography has also posted it below for your convenience:
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When Eco-Thug Knock

By Brian Sussman

Larry Keller had no idea the Environmental Protection Agency employed agents fortified with deadly force until two such men showed up at his home, unannounced, to “question” him.

When Eco-Thugs Knock

Keller runs a computer consulting business from his Asheville, North Carolina home. On April 27 he sent an email to the EPA in an attempt to reach Al Armendariz, the EPA regional administrator who, two days earlier, had been caught in a gone-viral YouTube video boasting about his desire to “crucify” Big Oil executives. After watching the video, Keller told the Carolina Journal, he was troubled by the comments and wanted to express his concerns to Armendariz, a public official whose salary is paid by taxpayers. “I wanted to know why someone in his position would say what he did. I wanted to question his reasoning and principles. It’s all about freedom of speech,” said Keller.

In an effort to locate Armendariz’s email address, Larry Kelly contacted David Gray, an EPA director of external affairs and sent the following brief email:

“Hello Mr. Gray. Do you have Mr. Armendariz’s contact information so we can say hello? Regards, Larry Keller.”

Following the uproar generated by the video, Armendariz resigned April 30. On the afternoon of May 2, two EPA agents, accompanied by a six-foot-six armed police officer, knocked on Kelly’s door. According to Kelly, the agents “presented very official looking badges and asked if we could sit and chat awhile. We moved to the back porch and took our seats with the exception of the armed officer who stood by the door to the house the entire time.”

Keller was asked by EPA agent Michael Woods if he had sent an email to an EPA employee. Initially Keller answered “No,” but soon recalled the email to Gray. Woods then produced a copy of the email and asked if it was the email Keller sent. Keller answered, “Yes.”

According to Keller, the second agent said Keller’s email was very “suspicious” and could be interpreted in “many different ways.”

Keller asked the agent to be specific, saying he didn’t have anything to hide. He also pointed out that the email clearly revealed all of his contact information. Irritated, Keller told the agents “they have bigger fish to fry” than drive across the entire state to follow up on an unthreatening email. He also reminded them he is a taxpayer who helps provide their salaries.

Keller heard his wife arriving and asked the agents to remain so she could meet them and “see what all the fuss was about.” Immediately the agents announced they had to depart. Keller asked for their business cards, but they claimed they had none. Keller insisted they give him the name of their supervisor in Atlanta, and Woods wrote the name and number on a piece of paper. The agents promptly left without acknowledging his wife.

After the meeting with the agents, Keller made several attempts to reach the supervisor, Michael Hill. Finally, Hill returned Keller’s phone call and explained that orders had come from the Obama administration to check out every communication with Armendariz. Hill gave Keller the impression that everyone who had tried to reach Armendariz had received a visit from special agents.

Larry Keller is a patriot, who responded to a pompous EPA eco-thug. For that he was threatened with intimidating representatives sent at the behest of Lisa Jackson, administrator of Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA under Jackson has become Stalinist.

Recall, the EPA was originally established in 1970 via an executive order produced by President Richard Nixon entitled, “Reorganization Plan Number Three.” The action was meant to be an olive branch to the hippy movement as a sign that Nixon’s administration was going to be serious about fighting air pollution. The move was one of Nixon’s worst.

During the past four decades the EPA has morphed into bureaucracy that directly employs 12,000 people, and sucks up a budget of nearly $10 billion annually. Its goals have nothing to do with clean air or clean water–instead the EPA is on a regulatory conquest to vanquish personal property rights, diminish capitalism, alter consumption patterns, and recast the American lifestyle.

Keller calls the incident a “life changing experience."

I call it, Eco-Tyranny.

Mark Jordan
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