Products of "evil capitalism".
And yet company towns and company stores mostly adhered to the socialist model.
Another store was not allowed in town because the government (the company) owned everything, including the land on which a competing store might build on.
The housing, the source of income, the currency (scrip was money that could only be spent in the company store).
You couldn't leave the economy because the scrip you were paid in, if you could save any, was only valid in the company town.
You see some anti-capital film like Matewan, and it’s a screed against “capitalism” with the people yearning to be free… from the same conditions you find in Cuba!
Good points, all. There's no freedom at all in that scenario, nor in Cuba, no matter how the media tries to spin it.
ReplyDeleteBut the fact that Sanders is currently the leading Dem candidate for President is proof that modern-day voters have no clue at all.
Rhetorical question: How did it ever come to this?
DeleteYou're part way there, Ed.
ReplyDeleteLaissez-faire capitalism and communism are indeed two sides of the same coin. As I say, Ayn Rand is just communism with a different politburo.
Now your task is to do a little study on socialism and the idea of worker ownership and control. If you manage to catch a clue you will realize it is potentially very supportive of freedom.
In that regard Sanders is not a socialist but rather an advocate of an extended social welfare state. Not a completely satisfying solution to problem of wealth distribution but worth understanding before you start on who does and doesn't have a clue.
I should be noted that Cuba is no worse off than other Caribbean nations such as the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. It's better off than many completely failed Central American states.
Just as an aside. The fringe right likes to bring up Cuba exclusively rather than being intellectually honest about the history of the entire region.
One. What did I say in that post about someone having a clue?
DeleteTwo. Why do you feel that you need to insult me by insinuating that I might find it difficult to manage to catch a clue.
I have always shown a willingness to listen to you and have even credited you in that regard (TPP).
Three. I guess you would be more attuned to the nuances of being a socialist as opposed to being an advocate for a social welfare state than I would. It escapes me.
Four. Cuba is worse off than many of the surrounding nations, with the exception of Haiti, in that the political freedoms of say Puerto Rico far outway those of Cuba. Freedoms.
Outweigh.
DeleteIt as Rev. Paul who decided to start on the "get a clue" trail.
DeleteIf I insulted you I apologize but it's not your intelligence I question but in fact, your willingness to accept the arguments of the left as at least being offered in good faith.
As you posted on the queen bee's blog:
1. The difference between Liberal and Communist?
The spelling.
Seems extreme to me.
Seems funny to me.
DeleteSorry.
And that was a general statement, not an attack on any particular person.
I might have said something to Jersey a few days ago, but that was retaliatory.
Some folks yearn to wear the yolk of government control while others insist on freedom. I have yet to meet a liberal progressive socialist who wasn't a jacka$$ and the streak lives on.
ReplyDeleteFreedom means the company doesn't supply your job and your home, eh? Whether the company is your government or not.
DeleteCompany towns were the bane of the miners and those that supported them. You couldn't win... Ever...
ReplyDeleteAlways holding the short end of the stick.
Delete"Vote with your feet".
ReplyDeleteThat goes for wealth, and for bodies.
If I don't like my circumstances, economic or cultural, I have the ability to take my money elsewhere, or take my body elsewhere.
Cuba? Not so much, huh?
Exactly. Cuban pesos travel as well as company town scrip.
Delete