Occupy Oakland...The Pictures Dont Lie

[Blue]

Defend this...

http://zombietime.com/occupy_oakland_10-22-2011/

[Dale Ellis]

pieces of human debris.

[cleller]

They all look very capable of solving complex problems, and entrusting the future of the country.

Pelosi should feel very comfortable.

[Boomer.....]

I haven't really been paying too much attention to the whole "Occupy ____" movements. What exactly do these hippies think is going to happen by them camping out and making signs?

[Dale Ellis]

I haven't really been paying too much attention to the whole "Occupy ____" movements. What exactly do these hippies think is going to happen by them camping out and making signs?

They're the hippies from the 60's, free sex, free drugs, if it feels good to it crowd. They have no real ideas. I would be willing to bet that well over half of them do not work, and contribute nothing to society. They do not represent the majority of people. They are the outcasts. They are the kids in high school, that dressed like bums, didn't bathe then wondered why everyone called them "stinky bums".

[AlboSooner]

I think they are losing any chance for support by the moderates/ independents. Look, communism has been tried and it failed in a costly manner to human lives, and decades of economic underdevelopment.
Pure socialism, or 70% socialism 30% capitalism has also failed as we see Greece drown in its own debt.

The solution is very simple, if it were not for the wretched condition of the human heart. You can't pass laws to change the heart.

[Midtowner]

So clearly there are some folks there who are just there for the party. A few cherry picked photos of some of the more colorful individuals really doesn't prove any point.

Albo, your 70/30 whatever is just a silly reference to nothing. Can you really quantify ideals? I mean clearly, in certain areas, socialism works pretty darn well, e.g., police and fire departments. The Romans had a capitalistic fire department. They'd show up at your house when it was on fire or in the path of a fire and offer to buy it from you for pennies on the dollar... but hey.. capitalism is the answer to everything, right?

I mean.. instead of police, we should all be able to pay private security firms. And if we want someone locked up for stealing our stuff, why should big government pay for that? That's socialism. If we're victims (or think we are), we should be in charge of paying what it costs to keep the bad guys locked up out of our own pockets, or if we don't think they're that big of a threat, maybe we could just cut 'em loose? Let the markets decide.

And how about municipal water and sewer? Those services are always highly subsidized. Does subsidy = socialism?

I mean clearly, socialism isn't the bogeyman you make it out to be. Without some degree of it, we'd more resemble the world of Mad Max than any sort of organized society. Socialism takes advantage of economies of scale and accomplishing tasks without a profit motive, which is something only the government can really accomplish.

But hey.. if you want to live in a 100% capitalistic society where the markets decide everything, beautiful Somalia awaits.

[Dale Ellis]

So clearly there are some folks there who are just there for the party. A few cherry picked photos of some of the more colorful individuals really doesn't prove any point.

Albo, your 70/30 whatever is just a silly reference to nothing. Can you really quantify ideals? I mean clearly, in certain areas, socialism works pretty darn well, e.g., police and fire departments. The Romans had a capitalistic fire department. They'd show up at your house when it was on fire or in the path of a fire and offer to buy it from you for pennies on the dollar... but hey.. capitalism is the answer to everything, right?

I mean.. instead of police, we should all be able to pay private security firms. And if we want someone locked up for stealing our stuff, why should big government pay for that? That's socialism. If we're victims (or think we are), we should be in charge of paying what it costs to keep the bad guys locked up out of our own pockets, or if we don't think they're that big of a threat, maybe we could just cut 'em loose? Let the markets decide.

And how about municipal water and sewer? Those services are always highly subsidized. Does subsidy = socialism?

I mean clearly, socialism isn't the bogeyman you make it out to be. Without some degree of it, we'd more resemble the world of Mad Max than any sort of organized society. Socialism takes advantage of economies of scale and accomplishing tasks without a profit motive, which is something only the government can really accomplish.

But hey.. if you want to live in a 100% capitalistic society where the markets decide everything, beautiful Somalia awaits.

dumb *** liberal rant of the year...

[Ton Loc]

dumb *** liberal rant of the year...

Followed with dumb**** retard reply of the year

Yeah! (This is still better than 90% of what's being said in the football area right now)

[KantoSooner]

Just as a thought experiment, try to imagine the response to the Occupy movement in:

1) A Communist Country (Try the old Soviet Union, China or North Korea as possible examples)
2) A theocracy (say, oh, Iran or Saudi Arabia)
3) A dictatorship (I'm thinking Argentina under Peron, but you could try Zaire under Mubutu)
4) A traditional monarchy (Czarist Russia, Iran under the Shah or Pre-WWII Japan)

The Occupy folks are very, very lucky that they live in a horrible representative democracy/market economy country. Otherwise they'd be, well, dead.

I have little sympathy for our current generation of bankers. They are incompetent and have managed to get paid to be incompetent.

Still in all, everytime I see street protests, something deep down inside wants to see hundreds of mounted Cossacks, sabres drawn, assembling in the alleyways.

[Zin]

Barack Obama supports and encourages these people and their behavior. Disgusting.

[Dale Ellis]

Followed with dumb**** retard reply of the year

Yeah! (This is still better than 90% of what's being said in the football area right now)

look if midtwn wants to carry this out to it's conclusion with his analogies about police and fire services, this conversation is gong to go to hell in a hand basket.

Here, allow me to make a similar analogy:


Lets outlaw all internal combustion engines vehicles and machinery. Let's close down any and every business that has a carbon footprint. I mean if reducing emissions is a good thing, then surely getting rid of ALL emissions must be a great thing.

His argument and analogies are ignorant and have no real word application.

[oudavid1]

If I told you that you had a better education and worded harder in life than 90% of the people you see in those pictures, would you have sympathy for them?

[Midtowner]

look if midtwn wants to carry this out to it's conclusion with his analogies about police and fire services, this conversation is gong to go to hell in a hand basket.

I didn't make an analogy and if what you posted was supposed to be responsive to me pointing out that government services like police and fire are socialist, then you don't understand what an analogy actually is.

Here, allow me to make a similar analogy:

Lets outlaw all internal combustion engines vehicles and machinery. Let's close down any and every business that has a carbon footprint. I mean if reducing emissions is a good thing, then surely getting rid of ALL emissions must be a great thing.

I'm just going to assume that you don't even know what an analogy is.

If you think socialism is the same thing as extreme environmental protectionism, then you're wrong. Extreme environmental protectionism might be something accomplished through socialism and it is definitely not the sort of laissez-faire capitalism you might want to see, but environmental protection is not the same thing as socialism.

Let's talk about that though. Let's talk about the EPA. Before the EPA, the only thing you could do against a coal company spewing pollutants like lead into the air and mercury into your drinking water was to sue on a common law claim of nuisance. You'd actually have to prove that you were injured, which even if it actually happened, it's tough to prove scientifically, especially in the days before the EPA was created.

The EPA actually mandated that corporations had to limit or cease emitting certain harmful pollutants. Before the EPA we had burning rivers, mining with no regard given to contamination of ground water by lead, etc. After the EPA, it's indisputable that the public health and safety have been benefited. But again, you'd call that socialism.

But to compare what I said versus what you said, Washington, nor the EPA are in any danger of outlawing the combustion engine, but it's a fact that police and fire departments are socialist constructs.

His argument and analogies are ignorant and have no real word application.

Ah, like your apparently suggesting that anyone is seriously considering the elimination of the combustion engine?

[Mississippi Sooner]

Some people don't stay gone for very long.

[Dale Ellis]

I didn't make an analogy

If you really believe that, then it is you my little friend, not I that needs to look up what the definition of "analogy" is.

if what you posted was supposed to be responsive to me pointing out that government services like police and fire are socialist

It was responsive and it makes perfect sense if taken in the context of your post.

Ah, like your apparently suggesting that anyone is seriously considering the elimination of the combustion engine?

There's that word again "apparently". I never suggested combustion engine should be eliminated, ever. I simply pointed out if we are too carry YOUR logic to it's final conclusion, it must be a good thing.

Who in here ever argued that everything within our society has to be based 100% off of the capitalist model? It certainly wasn't the person who started this thread.

[Dale Ellis]

Some people don't stay gone for very long.

Yes and some aren't gone long enough.

[yermom]

If I told you that you had a better education and worded harder in life than 90% of the people you see in those pictures, would you have sympathy for them?

i have sympathy for anyone that has worded harder than me

[Dale Ellis]

Mid, you seem big on the socialist aspects of your society. Let me ask you a yes or no question (which I know damn good and well you will not answer), are you a socialist?

[Mississippi Sooner]

And here we go again.