Exactly. Those who know how to accumulate wealth will still accumulate wealth and those who don't will not. Reality. Redistributing wealth will not create equality. Equality is when everyone has the same opportunity and America is the best place on earth for that. You don't see poor people risking their lives to get into Cuba or China to make a better life.

I'd risk my life to get into Cuba so I could kill Fidel and make a better life.

Alias said "people", not "savages".

Good enough.

The simple fact of the matter is this, countries which have embraced the free market ideal have higher standards of living than countries that still insist upon the great socialist utopia. If socialism is so great why is this, should they not be the countries with the higher standard of living.

The "invisible hand" articulated by Adam Smith exists and has been proven time and time again. Microwaves, computers, refrigerators, and the list goes on and on. All these inventions were created with one simple intent, to earn money for the inventor, manufacturer and retailer, however, they have made every inidividual life in this country better.

The standard bearer for the socialist dream was the former USSR. The country had more fertile farm land than any other in the world, yet year in and year out they could not feed their own people, our country thanks to the inventiveness of the greedy business man not only can produce enough food to feed our country, but many other countries as well, actually pays farmers not to grow. But those dirty nasty rich folks. Rockefeller, made the cost of lighting ones home drop considerable, thanks to Standard Oil, more people were able to come home after a hard days work and actually spend time with their family, read or write, you name it, but that greedy Rockefeller, he made millions and millions while others remained poor, he must be evil.

dmk

sgt, Socialism does seem to work better than Communism though, which is what the USSR was. The kicker is that Socialism can really only support smaller countries such as France (bad example), Sweden, etc. When you have a country as large as the US, the support system just isn't there to keep the country running. Otherwise, a Socialistic government would be grand. I just wouldn't want to be paying 60-70% income tax in order to keep it going (i.e., Sweden).

As posted earlier, if you redistribute the wealth, the smart people will regain it again, and the idiots will have spent it all. That's the beauty of Capitalism: It seperates fools frmo their money (can't remember the author of the quote). In the end you'd be wasting already thin taxpayer dollars for a few years of feel-goodness before people again amass wealth.

If you decide to keep redistributing their wealth so that doesn't happen, then you lose the motivation that makes entrepreneurs take risks...and then like I said before, everyone with an idea will leave the country and go somewhere where they can get more money for their invention or company.

...and those who can't leave the country will turn to Vodka & "quickies" - as evidenced by the rampant alcoholism & explosion of AIDS in the former USSR.

No, I meant inventors and businesspeople will take their business out of the country, where they can keep the money they earn. Most of those people will be able to afford to leave the country.

This is true.

...but what of the people who CAN'T? That's what I'm talking about.

THIS is a PERFECT EXAMPLE of why the poor remain poor.

Wasting money on STUPID things - especially government/welfare money.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060614/D8I7RQ7O1.html