Community | October 29, 2008 | 50 comments

Like, Socialism

source: http://www.newyorker.com/talk/comment/2008/11/03/081103taco_talk_hertzberg

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bedeboop
For her part, Sarah Palin, who has lately taken to calling Obama “Barack the Wealth Spreader,” seems to be something of a suspect character herself. She is, at the very least, a fellow-traveller of what might be called socialism with an Alaskan face. The state that she governs has no income or sales tax. Instead, it imposes huge levies on the oil companies that lease its oil fields. The proceeds finance the government’s activities and enable it to issue a four-figure annual check to every man, woman, and child in the state. One of the reasons Palin has been a popular governor is that she added an extra twelve hundred dollars to this year’s check, bringing the per-person total to $3,269. A few weeks before she was nominated for Vice-President, she told a visiting journalist—Philip Gourevitch, of this magazine—that “we’re set up, unlike other states in the union, where it’s collectively Alaskans own the resources. So we share in the wealth when the development of these resources occurs.” Perhaps there is some meaningful distinction between spreading the wealth and sharing it (“collectively,” no less), but finding it would require the analytic skills of Karl the Marxist.
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50 comments // Like, Socialism

  • XlntJoyce
    • 0
      XlntJoyce  

    • Sarah Palin is fantastic... She can ruffle up the congress here and be fair at the same time. Clean out the good ol' boys club that has been in there messing things up longer than you think Bush has. Actually, my life hasnt gotten worse since Bush has been in office... Still have my freedoms, and our country has never been attacked since 9-11 thanks to Bush! McCain and Palin are Patriot Americans!! They will do what is good for this country ... McCain has stood up against many through the years in trying to do what is right for this country. Sarah has been very bipartisan in running her state.

      I sure dont think COMRADE Obama will or can make any change in this country for the better. He's already voted for every tax raising presented while he has been in the senate for two years. No experience and more taxes .. that's Comrade Obama...besides him running this country into the ground deeper than you can even imagine... My opinion.... And that's why I voted for McCain/Palin last week! And if you had any common sense, you would too!

    • 3 years ago
  • Katanajon
    • 0
      Katanajon  

    • You underestimate Palin, she is a stick of Dynamite. Don't believe everything you hear in an election cycle. The reason she has been made out to look dumb is because she scares the crap out of the Democrats. She will be the first woman President. JUST watch my friend.

    • 3 years ago
  • XlntJoyce
  • benjamingon
    • 0
      benjamingon  

    • cool as for palin thats a no-no she is not all there ... i can see about mccain has some experience but he is like bush and i really dislike bush and his thought process , i know about pelosi and well its better than before...............

    • 3 years ago
  • Katanajon
    • 0
      Katanajon  

    • Can't you see it in his face? He wan't to shake the crap out of Washington. And well Sarah.........She can kick ass. I think their the REAL change in this election. Obama always VOTES the partyline. That means PELOSI calling the shots. Think about that for a minute my friend. And about his time in NAM. I heard of McCain before he ran for office period. I was a Nixon kid, I remember thinking he might be president someday when he was still young. He went through HELL for this country. Man why doesn't your side understand that WAR is a fact of life? Peace is optimum but the world is an ugly place, and we are it's leader. If we don't stick up for injustice you will? MEXICO? I harbor no ill will against my American friends on the left, at all. I know they have a better life in mind. It is just a question of getting there first. Respectfully Nobamajon.

    • 3 years ago
  • benjamingon
    • 0
      benjamingon  

    • lies on both sides, i prefer an educated man over a war hero . its nice to see grandpa running for president but he really dosent have an idea of whats going on and war just takes him back to his "youth" and i dont want him in charge because he is not going foward with change rather investing in old dead technologies and to privities companies and less regulation leads to corruption.......... tell me something besides money and lies, where he hasnt done wrong .... and what he will really change ........................ im really listening

    • 3 years ago
  • Katanajon
    • 0
      Katanajon  

    • Maybe you could get an interpreter or something? I couldn' make sense of what you were saying. McCain/Palin are the only choice, Obama has lied to you about all the free money. He won't be able to deliver.

    • 3 years ago
  • benjamingon
    • 0
      benjamingon  

    • being in a capitalist and a war hero dont make you qualified , his whole idea of the U.S. is out dated and unrealistic -WAR, TERRORISM always will exist i dont like our country going to war without a helmet and shit hes old and this isnt 1945 ........... all political parties really just want change ........ shit make Bill president.......... keep god out of America

    • 3 years ago
  • Katanajon
    • 0
      Katanajon  

    • Who Cares?????? That's what economist are for. John McCain is a LEADER. And a honest man. And a Capitalist. And a WAR HERO. He has Judgment, and he doesn't pander to everyone.

    • 3 years ago
  • benjamingon
  • jahrootz
  • Katanajon
    • 0
      Katanajon  

    • How can McCain admit Obama is not a Socialist????? That is stupid, Yes McCain has his stupid moments, but, Obama has more SOCIALISTIC moments. Couple that with his mentors and favorite authors and I would say NO he is not a Socialist, HE IS A COMMUNIST!!!

    • 3 years ago
  • Acara
  • jahrootz
  • PoliticalGeek
  • NO_BALLADS_MIKE
  • ShagBag
  • mmob221
    • 0
      mmob221  
    • NO_BALLADS_MIKE:

      The point is that it is silly to the point of being unpatriotic for any one of us who benefit from living in one of the best nations in the world to complain about investing in us... the US when we give so much to other nations like Iraq who have their own bankroll...

      we are over there building infrastructure for then and the same in Afghanistan yet we have a problem with tax cuts for working Americans?

      I think that might be the point...

    • 3 years ago
  • unimatrix0
    • 0
      unimatrix0  

    • Socialism is a recognition of the good. It is right for those with plenty to share with those who want. If the government needs to enforce this truism then so be it. Our shared humanity demands that we take care of one another.

    • 3 years ago
  • ShagBag
    • 0
      ShagBag  
    • unimatrix0:

      You Liberal dreamers are all the same! You need to get a Job, or two jobs, or maybe three___and make 250K___ then give me some___get real or move to Sweden.

      P.S. Is Obama spreading his campaign wealth with
      the poor blacks he did not help when he was a Community Organizer? or, why does Biden not contribute more to charity___he has plenty but, only contributes $300.___a mere bag of shells! They are both real Patriotic Slugs!

    • 3 years ago
  • INRBCA
    • 0
      INRBCA  
    • unimatrix0:

      socialist communists marxists have infiltrated democratic party and people are so incredibly STUPID they are actually being easily DUPED to vote for a socialist to put their hands in your pockets and take your money and dictate to you what charity you give to or not and fine you fees if you don't do what the governments says. Get the -- out of my pocket you sickos. You have ruined America with your stupidity. I hope you all lose your jobs you idiots.

    • 3 years ago
  • Quiahuitl
  • damnneargenius
  • ShagBag
    • ShagBag  
    • This comment was removed by its owner.
  • mmob221
  • mmob221
    • 0
      mmob221  
    • ShagBag:

      Actually that would be a great lesson for the little kids because those who have too much candy will probably get fat or tooth decay... so yeah having too much is not good.

      Besides I don't know anyone who lets their kids eat all the candy anyway... it is senseless excess. Great idea... I think it is well time we teach our kids about the dangers of greed. Thanks for the suggestion

    • 3 years ago
  • jahrootz
  • jroballer
  • NEwsNuT888
    • 0
      NEwsNuT888  

    • Ooooh maybe now i can stand up in front of a thousand people and do "air-quotes" and say "Sarah Palin" wants to "share in the wealth"!

      "Sarah Palin the Share in the Wealth-er"

      Booooo! Commie Socialist wealth sharer!
      Give me a break.

      " "

    • 3 years ago
  • uppityprogressive
    • 0
      uppityprogressive  

    • "Private citizens" earning more than $250,000 per year have gotten "their" money from exploiting underpaid workers who often work full time yet live in poverty, or they got it bequeathed to them from other who did. Sometimes they got it from exploiting the market, like in banking or oil. But in any case, those "private citizens" have not been paying their share since before Reagan yet they use the roadways, the education system and every other commonly held asset of the country.

      Our infrastructure is crumbling, our ed system is struggling, our citizens are left out in the cold because the "private citizens" who don't want to pay their share are stealing from the rest of us. America was never more prosperous than during and after the policies of FDR. The Republicans have been busy trying to undo every one of those policies since FDR's time.

      Let them eat cake, right?

    • 3 years ago
  • jahrootz
    • 0
      jahrootz  
    • Image
    • uppityprogressive:

      Have you ever started a multi billion dollar business. Have you ever put your life on your credit card to struggle and make a dream become something.

      Alienware, Zappos, Venture Frog. All companies started by people who struggled and went through "poverty" and rode on the backs of other people?

      Your quote comes from a person who thinks everyone is Paris Hilton and got where they are by birth. People who made it to their wealth...don't put anything back into the economy?!! Dell Computers hires how many people in Texas? How much money do they pump back in?

      You have got to be kidding me....

    • 3 years ago
  • Elevator
  • BEHLibTeach
    • 0
      BEHLibTeach  

    • 1.) There is no such thing as a 'corporate tax'. These are unrealized losses that are passed along to the end consumer - us.

      2.) By passing high tax penalties on the oil companies, Palin is 'redistributing' the wealth from other states who purchase the taxed oil to her native Alaskins.

      My point - by taxing the oil companies to provide an annual check to the citizenry of Alaska, Palin is taking wealth in the form of increased prices to the 'lower 48' and putting it squarely in the pockets of her constitutes.

    • 3 years ago
  • bedeboop
  • jahrootz
    • 0
      jahrootz  
    • Image
    • BEHLibTeach:

      lol. What was the percentage of the oil that came out of Alaska that is distributed across the lower 48?

      You think it was enough to be the cause of oil price hikes?

      How about this quote from FactCheck.org

      "Alaska's share of domestic energy production was 3.5 percent, according to the official figures kept by the U.S. Energy Information Administration."

    • 3 years ago
  • mmob221
    • 0
      mmob221  
    • BEHLibTeach:

      I have heard that the oil produced by Alaska is miniscule but the point may still be valid that any amount of money the oil companies are forced to pay they just roll up in the price... or are you suggesting that oil is just more expensive in Alaska.

    • 3 years ago
  • jahrootz
    • 0
      jahrootz  
    • BEHLibTeach:

      @ mmob221

      No matter where the oil is removed from...the oil companies do not own the land. It is common practice to pay a fee for drawing the black gold. Only difference...

      Alaska gave it back to the people. Only reason anyone can be upset. They are jealous of a 3k check they don't receive on top of their tax return. That isn't spreading the wealth. Alaska is such an under populated state... you tell me why it can't return some of the wealth back to the people?

      What affected our oil prices... is greedy futures. People predicting their end is near...and milking it for everything that was left.

    • 3 years ago
  • PBVSSHMU
  • HolyCity2012
  • the_Jack
    • 0
      the_Jack  
    • PBVSSHMU:

      "[T]his is not the same as taking money from a private
      citizen who spent many hrs working hard to earn it"

      So the oil company employees don't work hard? Surely some of that money Palin took from them could have gone to better salary or benefits, not just for the CEOs but everybody from the oil rig workers to the accountants to the people in the mailroom. If nothing else, more profits would have meant higher stock value, which means better stock dividends and 401k retirement savings for all those hardworking employees.

      ...I actually support taxing oil companies more when their profits are inflated at the expense of the rest of us, but I'm not unrealistic about the effects of doing so.

    • 3 years ago
  • the_Jack
    • 0
      the_Jack  
    • PBVSSHMU:

      "[T]his is not the same as taking money from a private
      citizen who spent many hrs working hard to earn it"

      So the oil company employees don't work hard? Surely some of that money Palin took from them could have gone to better salary or benefits, not just for the CEOs but everybody from the oil rig workers to the accountants to the people in the mailroom. If nothing else, more profits would have meant higher stock value, which means better stock dividends and 401k retirement savings for all those hardworking employees.

      ...I actually support taxing oil companies more when their profits are inflated at the expense of the rest of us, but I'm not unrealistic about the effects of doing so.

    • 3 years ago
  • rainbowryan420
    • 0
      rainbowryan420  

    • OK so i have come to the conclusion that there is no way that Palin is as dumb as i think she is

      so i think she is really a democrat and she is just pretending to be republican so she can be vice president.

    • 3 years ago
  • bedeboop
  • XlntJoyce
  • rainbowryan420
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