Posted by Long Hair In Albany (other posts) on February 11, 2014 at 16:40:15 Previous Next
In Reply to: Re: Hair and Ideology posted by Dave_ AR on February 11, 2014 at 14:25:55:
: What does "freedom" really mean to you?
: For instance, the US is known as "the land of the free" (for those who are rich, of course).
: If you're poor you're not entitled to :
: - access university education (and therefore, a better quality of life)
: - access to a doctor , therefore, to health (unless you have the money to pay for a doctor).
: - If you're not straight, you cant marry the person you love (Unless you live in some of the few countries where same sex marriage is allowed).
: And these are just a few examples that came up to my mind... I am sure there should be more.
Gene Burns had an old saying when he was on the air, "Politics
doesn't work, you have to work it."
The rich and powerful run the government in the US of A. The middle class and the poor haven't figured out that if they want
to change things they have to 1. get themselves elected to public office and 2. make their voices heard by their elected
officials. Too many of the middle class don't bother to vote,
and they don't make their opinions heard. The squeecky wheel gets the greece and in this instance it is the rich who get the grease.
In other countries people are dying for the right to vote. Here in the US of A too many can't be bothered to vote or find out about the candidates and the issues.
: "I think it is important to note that North Korea is a very closed society. It is a country that can't afford to feed it's people but spends a ton of money on the military. "
I would mention that North Korea is a totalitarian country,
You do what the government wants when they want it or you'll
end up in prison/in jail/etc. North Korea is not a democracy.
: Well, the US is a country that CAN afford public health and public university education to every citizen, but instead, the government preferrs to spend that money on the military.
That is becuase voters are passive and often don't bother to
let their views be heard at the ballot box.
: So, what is really the difference between the North Korean Society and the American Society?
North Korea doesn't have the right to vote. The US of a has the right to vote but too many can't be bothered to vote or
make their opinons know to their elected officials.
: What is the perspective Americans have on their own country?
The US of A has the best politicians money can buy. The system is completely corrupted by money.
: Anyway, no offense to anyone. Just my point of view.
The founding fathers of the US of A envisioned a government made of the common people. They envisioned farmers/blacksmiths/etc.
going to participate in the government for a short period of time
and then return home to be a farmer/blacksmith/etc. They did not
envision "career" politicians who had to be millionaires to get elected. And it is those millionaires who have lost touch with the common people who strugle to pay their mortgage, put food on the table, fill the gas tank, heat their house, etc.
Finally descent is tolerated in the US of A, descent in a country like North Korea is not. Just ask Kim Jong Un's uncle.
Oh wait you can't, he got brutally killed under Kim Jong Un's orders. That is what happens when you dare to disagree with the
leaders in North Korea. Thankfully the US of A isn't that
bad.