ANOTHER TOP 20 LIST TO ARGUE ABOUT

Over at Right Wing News, there's the fun (albeit grossly unscientific) poll results from a (non-random, not-statistically-significant) cross-section of bloggers on "The 20 Greatest Figures in American History". I tend to agree with the results, except I have 2 questions:

1) No Ayn Rand?

2) What the hell is that power-mad, Constitution-for-toilet-paper lunatic FDR doing in the top 10?

EGALITARIA

I found this in a book a few years back & thought it was interesting enough to save. It's also tangentially relevant to the last post, so I thought I'd share this, too.

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All Egalitarians are educated publicly up to the age of 21, with no opportunity at
this stage to earn enough to save. All men then work for the same wage till 65,
when they retire on full pay; women work for only 20 non-childbearing years, but
in those years get equal pay with the same pension rights. Inheritance is
forbidden. But all earners and all pensioners save exactly 10 percent of their
incomes, which savings are invested in state bonds yielding 10% compound
interest. This rather high rate perhaps compensates for the absolute embargo on
all capital appreciation. The roundness of the figure also simplifies the
arithmetic, as do two further stipulations: that the net reproduction rate has been
unity for the past 85 years; and that everyone dies on their 85th birthday. So
how much of the privately owned wealth in Egalitaria is owned by the richest
10% of the whole population? The answer seems to be that the wealthiest 10%
of Egalitarians (who by definition are all the men aged from 68 to 84, inclusive)
must now own about 74% of the privately owned wealth.”

-Antony Flew, “Thinking Straight,” p.91

DOG BITES MAN

I saw that headline again. I see it about once a year. Something about the growing gap between the rich & the poor, blah, blah, blah. Every time I see those words or hear someone quote that hoary old canard about the rich getting richer, etc., I get that same rough-hand-squeezing-my-intestines feeling and I just want to lay down until it passes.

Once, about 7 years ago, I was angry enough to bleat at the local newspaper about it. Now I'm just tired. But I'll share the angry part, for what it's worth:

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"I was disappointed to see your paper running yet another AP story lamenting the "gap between the haves & have-nots" and quoting some doom-crying academic type predicting "unmitigated disaster" if the situation doesn't change.

I see nothing to lament about. America's capitialist society is extrememly just. The reason the "haves" have so much is that they plan their lives long-term, make a habit of keeping their promises, and spend a portion of their leisure hours fine-tuning their job skills.

The "have-nots", by contrast, are usually also the can-nots, will-nots, plan-nots, and think-nots. Were they to put forth the same kinds and degrees of effort that the "haves" do, they would reap similar rewards.

A growing "gap" between the two groups means only that the rich are working more diligently, the poor are still sitting on their butts with their brains shut down, and both groups are getting exactly what they've earned.

Have-In-Training,

Harvey Olson"

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Seven years later, I'm still training hard, the "have-nots" are still glued to the idiot box, and everyone's still getting what they earn.

Some things never change, and honestly, I kinda like it that way.

JUST FOR FUN 2

I'm still waiting for my turn to come around on Frank's contest, so I thought I'd take a whack at the group B question to pass the time:

In 200 words or less, describe how bombing Paris will help Uganda's economy.

All France has going for it is it's lush, fertile wine fields. The only problem is that French wine, while good, is also annoying and cowardly as a result of being too near the French. My theory is that, if you bomb Paris just right (perhaps enlisting those devilishly clever boys at MIT for technical assistance), you can create an explosion that will peel up the wine country in one huge carpet and have it KER-FLUMPF into place in Uganda. Without the French influence, the grapes will grow brave and tasty, catapulting Uganda into wine-soaked prosperity. 

TODAY’S GRAFFITI CURRENCY

George was surprised by his after-life destination, until he remembered that, even though he'd confessed to his father about the cherry tree incident, he'd neglected to get that one cleared with the Big Guy Upstairs.