"An economics professor at Texas Tech said he had never failed a single student before but had, once, failed an entire class.
Students in that class had insisted that socialism worked and that no one would be poor and no one
would be rich, a great equalizer. The professor then said ok, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism.

All grades would be averaged and everyone would receive the same grade
so no one would fail and no one would receive an A. After the first test
the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The students who studied
hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy. But, as
the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had
studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a
free ride too; so they studied little. The second test average was a D!
No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average was an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame, name calling all
resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of
anyone else. All failed, to their great surprise, and the professor told
them that socialism would also ultimately fail because when the reward
is great, the effort to succeed is great; but when government takes all
the reward away; no one will try or want to succeed.

Could not be any simpler than that...."

I have gotten that email many times, and I fully agree with it.

Ya, me too. I just thought it was appropriate right now with the direction that our country seems to be going towards....

If you "get rid" of all the rich people, who will pay to support the poor?

Nice post.

Do you realized that the story in this email never happened? There are a few red flags right from the beginning, like no naming the professor. I also find very hard to believe that a whole class of economics college students, in Texas nonetheless, are socialists...and it goes on and on.
This email was written to strengthen the opposition to socialism and to, obviously, stir your minds to the so wrongfully called Obama's socialist agenda. Obama's agenda could not be farther from socialism but the right have been working, successfully so, on spinning the meaning of the word socialism so that the word means everything, from the democrats trying to pass healthcare reform to a dictatorship. The email never explains which type of socialism the students were talking about, as if there was only one. This email simplifies a much more complex issue to reassure conservatives on their believe that Obama and democrats are bad for the country.

Jandemore, that email has been circulating since Clinton was in office...

It is NOT pointed towards Obama. Don't start this crap. We don't need to hear it.

I think most people realize emails like that are not based on real occurrences. I do think it is a nice anecdotal story, which happens to be pretty relevant to todays' political climate.

This email simplifies a much more complex issue to reassure conservatives on their believe that Obama and democrats are bad for the country.

You don't need this email, or any complex issues to know that. All you need is common sense.

Socialism != Communism

Furthermore, socialism is an economical model, not a political one. Japan is a socialist democracy. Many european countries are socialist democracies. And guess what? America is a socialist democracy! Yep, remember that whole thing about the US existing to "promote the general welfare." When resources are used to provide services for everyone, that's socialism! Socialism can by tyrannical, run by an oligarchy or a by a representative body. Without some degree of socialist thinking, there would be no national defense, no national law enforcement, no consumer or environmental protection agencies, no highways, no coast guard...

People like to associate socialism with communism- the idea that from one what they can do, to one only what they need. And further, that socialism and communism mean that individuals cannot choose what to do with their lives. This is a very inaccurate view of socialism.

Amber, it might be old but the reason it's being recirculated is Obama and the democrats.

http://www.snopes.com/college/exam/...ialism.asp

Loki,

I have an abundance of common sense, and I do not come to the same conclusion...

You can't compare Japan's health care system to that of the United States.  Well, you could, but it's like comparing apples to oranges.  The Japanese have a completely different work ethic and social ethic than that of Americans.  In Japan, people are brought up to believe that the welfare of everyone is more important than that of the individual.  In America, we are brought up that "numero uno" is the most important. 

The "American Dream" is what made our country grow so fast over the years and become the great nation that it is.   Many of us hold the belief that if you work hard and take a certain amount of risk, than you too can achieve that "American Dream."  When the gov't decides to "spread the wealth," they take away from that American Dream, and make one less inclined to work as hard to achieve that level of greatness (just as the story above illustrates so beautifully.)

I definitely believe that the U.S. needs to reform health care.  However, I don't trust our government to take over 1/6 of the economy.  The government has proven time and time again that they are fiscally irresponsible when it comes to such large programs.  If the gov't does take over, we risk facing the same problems so many other countries are facing with their health care system. 

This article is from the UK.  It talks about how obesity could bankrupt the NHS in the UK.  Think about what obesity could do to us in the United States :

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/2008/02/10/fat-patients-could-bankrupt-nhs-78057-20314822/


Although I believe the health care system in Japan works to a certain extent, it is not without its weaknesses.  However, the United States is not Japan.  So, what works here, will not necessarily work in the U.S.


The Side effects of Universal Health Care in Japan:

http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/661-a-side-effect-of-universal-healthcare-in-japan

Sorry 'bout all the crazy smiley faces below the last url!  I tried to get rid of 'em, but can't.   


------------------------------Thanks for fixin' it Adam!!!------------------------

I normally make it a rule not to comment on religion or politics, but I really an enjoy anecdotal story. I love the one where a person has his neighbors taken away one by one and he does nothing as it is none of his business, only to discover that there was no one left to speak up when they came for him. (the story I heard involved Nazi Germany).

I lived in the UK and was a patient of the NHS. I had surgery and a kid.. all for free. Well not entirely free, ask a Brit how much tax they pay each year. It's far more than Americans pay. I could write a lot on all the bad experiences I had with them- which almost always came down to money over care. Most of the NHS Trusts are nearly bankrupt, many are closing hospitals and wards, rationing care, prohibiting life saving medicine because it's too expensive. I know our prospective new system will not mirror the NHS, but the NHS is scary enough I don't want anything even close to it.

The NHS is also one of the worlds largest employers. Not because it has so many doctors and nurses, but because it needs to hire hundreds of thousands of people to push papers and attend to all the red tape and bureaucracy.

I don't disagree our system has flaws and needs some fixing. I'm like Yoko-girl, I DO NOT trust our government to take over such a huge portion of our economy. And when have they EVER EVER come in under budget estimates? What is $1 trillion now, will be $6 trillion in reality. And once we've given people an entitlement, you will never, ever be able to take it away. I think a free economy would do a great deal to help the insurance problem... open it up to free trade. Look at how it works with our beloved electronics? They are getting fancier and fancier, but the prices are coming down... all because there is competition and a free market.  I know it's probably a simple-minded line of thought, but I'm not a politician, a scholar, an economist... just an American who is scared about the future.

Sorry 'bout all the crazy smiley faces below the last url! I tried to get rid of 'em, but can't.

I got rid of them..

Forget healthcare reform. Reform the regulations placed on the INSURANCE industry. Do away with state line restrictions, get some tort reform, etc... that's all we need to do.

Posted By Loki on 07 Mar 2010 10:08 PM
Forget healthcare reform. Reform the regulations placed on the INSURANCE industry. Do away with state line restrictions, get some tort reform, etc... that's all we need to do.

A-freaking-men.

I am comforted to read some posts from informed Americans, too many people still have their head in the sand, and think ignoring what is going on makes it "not real". Mothers who would step in front of a train to save their children, say "I don't have time to keep up with politics, or watch the news". People better WAKE UP, knowledge is power, get involved, fight for America, so she can remain the home of the free and the brave. If you don't think the news is "fair and balanced", read the Constitution, read the Declaration of Indpendence" and teach it to the youth of America. Big government and entitlements are out of hand and it started way before Obama. We the people need to make sure that Washington doesn't continue to take away our individual liberties, more government is not the answer. Govt is taking the money you earned and putting in a big pot, and doling it out to those who don't put anything in the pot. By the time you add up all the taxes, IRS is getting about 50% of your pay (income, sales, real estate, tanning (LOL), etc.). They've spent our social security money, do you think your 401k retirement money and your ROTH IRA's are safe? Whoops, just like SS, a big ponzi scheme that will be gone when we are 65, or 70, or maybe they'll raise the age even higher, and then reduce the health care for us old people, then they can keep it.
People, please CARE, pay attention and inform your family and friends; listen to common sense. This is no longer politcs as usual left vs. right, this is about the current "transformatin of America", and quite frankly, I don't think America needs to be "transformed", nor do I know anyone who does. The founders of the great country knew that the power belongs to the people, not to the goverrment, they put their LIFE on the line for this, is it too much to ask that this current generation just to be informed? NEVER in the history of America has any generation saddled so much debt on their children and grandchildren. I just cannot imagine what life is going to be like for my elementary aged children 10 years and 20 years from now if we don't reduce the power of GOVT, and their spending. God help us!

"...a wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government."
-- Thomas Jefferson

Somehow I don't think today's big government is what Thomas Jefferson envisioned when he helped lay the foundation for our country.