It seems to me in the case of an immediate disaster, it makes sense to attend to people affected by disaster and help those in distress right now, rather than be concerned about the debt to future generations. And if Romney is truly concerned about future generations, why does he preach, "Burn, burn, burn!" fossil fuels without a thought for what kind of world future generations will inhabit because of the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere? I expect Romney is still in denial about climate change, but I have no doubt that the increase in violent weather events like Sandy the Superstorm is due to climate change as a result of our unwillingness to move more rapidly to the use of cleaner sources of energy.
Watch the video.
From Think Progress.
I simply do not understand how it is "moral" to privatize disaster relief - moral to make a profit on rescue, to prey on those who have lost homes, jobs, lives to a storm???
ReplyDeleteProof positive that "vulture capitalists" have no core of decency, only greed piled on greed.
By the way, here in Ohio we are getting bands of Sandy, record high waves on lake Erie, flooding and power outages ... likely even this far from landfall many will be in need of that FEMA flood relief, not predatory insurers collecting premiums only to deny coverage later.
Thank god for all those who understand that looking after one another is not just a for-profit industry.
Marthe, Romney would say making a profit off people in severe distress is the American way.
DeleteSandy is huge, truly a superstorm. The satellite pictures show bands all the way into Ohio. FEMA will be very busy.
NOT the American way I was taught, nor anything even vaguely Christian ... there was a time when "war profiteers" were regarded with disdain, and those who did it hid their activities, demonstrating at least an awareness that their behavior was shameful ... now the Romneys of the world strut pridefully insisting their conscience free way is best and the rest of us are somehow "losers". The hand that offers help without expectation of return is the essence of holiness as far as I'm concerned and there is no lie big enough or repeated often enough to change my mind on that one.
DeleteMarthe, not my American way either. The colonists would never have survived to become the United States without some concept of the common good.
DeleteThe Tea Party doesn't seem to realize that their vaunted ideals of American individualism was originally practiced in a culture which modified it through the Christian understanding that we should all at least help our neighbor even if we can't rise to the level of loving them.
DeleteNow the 20th/21st century has morphed that into a creed in which 'love your neighbor' is a meaningless platitude, and anyone who attempt to practice it is condemned as a Socialist or something.
Sad, isn't it kishnevi? I've got mine; to hell with you. I found I couldn't live like that when we were the first in our neighborhood to have a generator during a hurricane some years ago. Our neighbors and family members asked to borrow the generator "for a short time", so it was mounted on the bed of Tom's pick-up and driven around so others could run their refrigerators and freezers for a while. I remember finally asking Tom plaintively, "When is our turn?" It doesn't do to have something that no one else has and not share when others need help.
DeleteIf Sandy does significant damage, we'll be hearing of this a lot the next seven days.
ReplyDeleteLapin, I see no way that Sandy will not do significant damage, and I hope Romney's statement is highlighted time and again.
DeleteIt seems incredible that something that is nothing more than a great deal of wind has the potential to cause so much damage and misery over so much of your country.
ReplyDeleteBut only if he's elected.
Do you know, I'd stake my last penny that when Romney made that speech about assistance, never in his wildest imagination would he have thought that it might just be his buddies in the financial heart of Manhattan that would be needing it. Let's see how quick he is to demand Goverment assistance if any of his rich friends suffer damage to their towering edifices.
And speaking of Sandy, I'm watching reports on the BBC news. It looks bad already, and I've just heard that New York is starting to flood, but the main surge has yet to reach land. I know that they are evacuating the low-lying areas, which will undoubtedly save many lives, but the wind is going to be a massive danger, even far inland. Please stay safe, everybody. There is nothing anybody can do now but to get somewhere safe and sit it out. Oh, and give the utmost respect to those men and women of the emergency, military, and federal services who will be putting their lives on the line through the worst of it.
Good Luck, America.
A great deal of wind that goes on for hours and hours, accompanied by rainfalls that cause flooding, and storm surge in the coastal areas. Water seems to kill more people in hurricanes than wind, although I did hear of two children in Westchester County, NY, who were killed by a falling tree.
DeleteI think and pray for the emergency workers who do their jobs under the most difficult circumstances.
Aargaah! What? He doesn't think those who are in distress are part of "the future" generations? He is an ABSOLUTE, absolute asshat. And since we know it's not his money that is supporting our government, Mr. Pay As Little Tax As Possible, he has a f*****g nerve telling the rest of us how to spend it. He is generating more wind than the storms.
ReplyDeleteThank you AoS. Very much like your comment: "never in his wildest imagination would he have thought that it might just be his buddies in the financial heart of Manhattan that would be needing it. Let's see how quick he is to demand Goverment assistance if any of his rich friends suffer damage to their towering edifices."
And also this. I hope all of those people in Massachusets (who paid this man's salary when he was governor--their tax dollars at work) are reading this and will vote for President Obama since it's pretty obvious that Romney doesn't care what happens to them now.
ReplyDeleteBonnie, Mitt is 15 points behind Obama in Massachusetts. They know him.
DeleteYeah Massachusetts! Hope the rest of the nation sees that fact, Mimi.
DeleteCiss, I hope so, too.
DeleteI worked for a state government for 20 years. It is a state that is fiscally conservative with a balanced budget and a rainy day account. They struggle every year to pay their share of Medicare. Despite all I have heard in all of these debates, when Romney talks about the answer to the federal deficit being to turn over everything to the states, I wonder why no one has brought up the fact that the states can't afford it. The states are heavily dependent on federal dollars to help ensure these programs continue.
ReplyDeleteAlso, without federal dollars there will be no federal oversight (regulation) which means the program and benefits would be different in every state. So as a US citizen my benefits or my children's benefits would not be the same as yours (assuming you live in a different state).
So that changes the nature of equality from state to state. So does that mean I should work in one state (where my taxes might be lower) and move to another when I retire (where - for example - medical benefits might be better)?
I meant to say Medicaid, not Medicare. Sorry.
DeleteJean, you are correct. I live in Louisiana , and I shudder to think what it would be like here to be on our own. Our governor, Bobby Jindal, one of the bright stars in the Republican political firmament, is in the process of privatizing and dismantling as many of our public institutions as possible before he moves on to what he hopes is a prominent role on the national scene. He will leave wreckage behind that will require decades to rebuild, if there is even the will to rebuild.
DeleteThe most recent havoc is in medical education, the training of doctors, which, because it is in such a state of disarray, is causing consternation amongst doctors, hospitals, and anyone in the state who cares and is paying attention.