The Briefing Room
Archives => GOPBR Media Room => Topic started by: ABX on February 04, 2016, 01:23:11 am
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We have our first assignment request. Who would like to write an article on the differences between Communism/Socialism and Capitalism; think in context of the current election cycle and practical impact in modern society.
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How we do things, these days.
https://www.google.com/search?site=webhp&q=economic+systems&oq=economic+systems&gs_l=serp.12..35i39j0i131j0l8.19698.20891.0.24995.6.6.0.0.0.0.122.699.0j6.6.0..3..0...1.1.64.serp..0.6.687.6XVafurAGns
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This article will be published here and a few other places which I will link back to here...
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How we do things, these days.
https://www.google.com/search?site=webhp&q=economic+systems&oq=economic+systems&gs_l=serp.12..35i39j0i131j0l8.19698.20891.0.24995.6.6.0.0.0.0.122.699.0j6.6.0..3..0...1.1.64.serp..0.6.687.6XVafurAGns
We are looking for your unique thoughts, not just 'Google facts'.
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Actually the article at the link below is really good! I doubt I could do much better.
http://www.shmoop.com/economic-systems/types.html
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We have our first assignment request. Who would like to write an article on the differences between Communism/Socialism and Capitalism; think in context of the current election cycle and practical impact in modern society.
Rather than an academic discussion of Communism/Socialism vs Capitalism, maybe a conversation of our evolution from a Republic to semi-socialistic government.
Since the Civil War our country has been trending towards our current situation, some due to the likes of Carnegie, Rockefeller and Vanderbilt and their enormous abuse of power which led to a call for congress to get involved and break up the monopolies.
Even in recent history, the corporate raiders of the 60's and 70's like Carl Icahn who would buy controlling interest in a company, strip it down and sell of the parts for a profit, then take all the remaining corporate assets and stuff them in their pockets, including pensions. This, on the surface, looked fairly innocuous, but the impact was millions of retirees lost their retirements so eventually companies moved away from pensions and employees were forced into 401K type programs. Companies maintained pension funds as a source for "venture" capital at a low interest rate, the company benefited because they had funding for growth, the employees benefited because the companies were stable and continued to grow and the pension funds grew from the interest paid. Now that companies no longer use pension funds companies must go thru the big banks for expansion capital. In 1976 Jimmy Carter signed legislation establishing the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation, PBGC (a federal agency) to monitor the financial health of all companies with pension funds and anytime one of these companies show signs of "failing" the PBGC races in with a team of lawyers and seizes the pension fund to protect it.
In the 1960's we realized the big corporations were dumping toxic waste into our environment and were making people sick, killing the fish and wildlife so we established the EPA.
This is sorta random but I think we need to look at these topics more from an angle of how we got here and how do we return to a Republic form of government.
My own view is, we all have to take responsibility for our actions (personal, business and government) and stop "raping" the system.
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Rather than an academic discussion of Communism/Socialism vs Capitalism, maybe a conversation of our evolution from a Republic to semi-socialistic government.
Since the Civil War our country has been trending towards our current situation, some due to the likes of Carnegie, Rockefeller and Vanderbilt and their enormous abuse of power which led to a call for congress to get involved and break up the monopolies.
Even in recent history, the corporate raiders of the 60's and 70's like Carl Icahn who would buy controlling interest in a company, strip it down and sell of the parts for a profit, then take all the remaining corporate assets and stuff them in their pockets, including pensions. This, on the surface, looked fairly innocuous, but the impact was millions of retirees lost their retirements so eventually companies moved away from pensions and employees were forced into 401K type programs. Companies maintained pension funds as a source for "venture" capital at a low interest rate, the company benefited because they had funding for growth, the employees benefited because the companies were stable and continued to grow and the pension funds grew from the interest paid. Now that companies no longer use pension funds companies must go thru the big banks for expansion capital. In 1976 Jimmy Carter signed legislation establishing the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation, PBGC (a federal agency) to monitor the financial health of all companies with pension funds and anytime one of these companies show signs of "failing" the PBGC races in with a team of lawyers and seizes the pension fund to protect it.
In the 1960's we realized the big corporations were dumping toxic waste into our environment and were making people sick, killing the fish and wildlife so we established the EPA.
This is sorta random but I think we need to look at these topics more from an angle of how we got here and how do we return to a Republic form of government.
My own view is, we all have to take responsibility for our actions (personal, business and government) and stop "raping" the system.
You have made a VERY astute observations there that NEED desperately to be discussed! But I will guarantee you that if we embark on that endeavor this place will explode in arguments like no one here has ever seen before!
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Rather than an academic discussion of Communism/Socialism vs Capitalism, maybe a conversation of our evolution from a Republic to semi-socialistic government.
Since the Civil War our country has been trending towards our current situation, some due to the likes of Carnegie, Rockefeller and Vanderbilt and their enormous abuse of power which led to a call for congress to get involved and break up the monopolies.
Even in recent history, the corporate raiders of the 60's and 70's like Carl Icahn who would buy controlling interest in a company, strip it down and sell of the parts for a profit, then take all the remaining corporate assets and stuff them in their pockets, including pensions. This, on the surface, looked fairly innocuous, but the impact was millions of retirees lost their retirements so eventually companies moved away from pensions and employees were forced into 401K type programs. Companies maintained pension funds as a source for "venture" capital at a low interest rate, the company benefited because they had funding for growth, the employees benefited because the companies were stable and continued to grow and the pension funds grew from the interest paid. Now that companies no longer use pension funds companies must go thru the big banks for expansion capital. In 1976 Jimmy Carter signed legislation establishing the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation, PBGC (a federal agency) to monitor the financial health of all companies with pension funds and anytime one of these companies show signs of "failing" the PBGC races in with a team of lawyers and seizes the pension fund to protect it.
In the 1960's we realized the big corporations were dumping toxic waste into our environment and were making people sick, killing the fish and wildlife so we established the EPA.
This is sorta random but I think we need to look at these topics more from an angle of how we got here and how do we return to a Republic form of government.
My own view is, we all have to take responsibility for our actions (personal, business and government) and stop "raping" the system.
Great idea. Thanks for volunteering. :)
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You have made a VERY astute observations there that NEED desperately to be discussed! But I will guarantee you that if we embark on that endeavor this place will explode in arguments like no one here has ever seen before!
:beer:
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Great idea. Thanks for volunteering. :)
:thud:
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Well done! Glad we have another "volunteer!" :tongue2:
If you want it to be run through the editing mill, PM me when you've written it and we'll work out something for that.
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Well done! Glad we have another "volunteer!" :tongue2:
If you want it to be run through the editing mill, PM me when you've written it and we'll work out something for that.
I really gotta learn to keep my mouth shut.... :nometalk:
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I really gotta learn to keep my mouth shut.... :nometalk:
I agree, Ed (not with the :nometalk: part!), but that your topic would make a great piece!
It sounds like you've been mulling over a lot of this in your head for some time!
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Tell me about it! :laugh:
It'll be fun.
For people who want to dip their toes in in a less dramatic manner -
Conservatives are - wrongly - often considered cold and uncaring. I'm thinking of a series of articles based on the statement "What Conservatism Means to Me." Not necessarily a grand scale national and international thing, but you personally. How do conservative values inform your day to day life? Why are you conservative in the first place? Which leg of Reagan's three legged stool is propped up with a book to stop the stool wobbling, in your ethos?
Anyone interested, drop me a PM. Again, if you are worried about writing, I don't mind editing for you (and in this case advising if something maybe should not be included. That's something I've not got to yet in the writing series of posts!)