Mr Behrend,
re: “For Americans reading this note, do you realise that at least 70 percent of your post-1945 taxes have been spent on world domination? Do you know why Hawaii and Alaska were made U.S. states? Why Americans work longer hours with half or less the amount of holiday time than any other Western workforce? Why you have the most inequitable distribution of wealth than any other OECD country? Why less of the nation’s wealth is devoted to matters of social equity, fariness and justice? Why your society is so afflicted by lawyers and lawsuits? Why your working class so completely identifies with the ideology of the wealthy few against their own interests? Why so few of you have even formed, to say nothing of contemplated, these sorts of questions?”
No, 70% of our post-1945 taxes have been spent on our national debt. You are incorrect there. Our military budget has been around 50% of our discretionary spending for years. That is, around 50% of what is spent when the national debt service is paid for. How can that be “70% of our taxes”?? Get your facts straight.
Alaska and Hawaii: the people living there voted to ask. We voted to allow them to be states.
Americans work longer hours: Maybe because we aren’t as lazy as those in some other socialized places. Maybe because we don’t believe that the government exists to give us a guaranteed life, and we choose to take responsibility for ourselves.
Inequitable distribution of wealth: Ever been to Korea? Ever looked at who make up the “wealthy” in the US? (hint: most are “newly” wealthy – here, you have the ability to go from low income to high income, merely because you choose to work hard or smart).
Matters of “social equity, fariness and justice”: Yeah, right. “Social equity” seems to be, to you, a euphemism for “transfer of wealth”.
Too many lawyers and lawsuits: No argument from me. Maybe because we are FREE to do so?
“Working class” identifies with the values of the wealthy: Possibly because here, they know that they CAN BECOME wealthy? And because legalized theft by the government is immoral?
