https://pjmedia.com/richardfernandez/2010/03/05/blue-plate-special/feed/PJ Media is a leading news site covering culture, politics, faith, homeland security, and more. Our reporters and columnists provide original, in-depth analysis from a variety of perspectives.en-usWed, 10 Jun 2026 01:01:55 -0400<![CDATA[Congressman Paul Ryan has had considerable success lately explaining the main problem with health care &#8212; and with &#8220;social democracy&#8221; &#8212; in general: it&#8217;s unsustainable. It&#8217;s an old message which has until recently taken a back seat to the idea that the welfare state was the wave of the future. OpenLeft argued that the hidden message of Star Trek was that in the future humanity would establish a socialist paradise. &#8220;The most familiar utopian socialist society would be that of the United Federation of Planets in the popular television series Star Trek &#8211; particularly that depicted in The Next Generation. There is no money, no want, no poverty, no crime, no disease or ignorance in human society; everyone works for the advancement of all humanity &#8212; as well as the rest of the Federation.&#8221;]]>Fri, 05 Mar 2010 04:35:58 -0500<![CDATA[Richard Fernandez]]>https://pjmedia.com/richard-fernandez/2010/03/05/blue-plate-special-n189654