The Virtue of Selfishness vs. The Morality of Altruism

[dogtowner]

Why would you think it was Marxist bankers? That is quite silly.

because hufpo tells them so

 

[OldTrapper]

As long as you ignore reality the country will end up in one of two places.

"Animal Farm" with the socialists, or "1984" with the technocrats.

 

[Gipper]

Liberals and progressives always blame capitalism for all economic ills. This is common practice and has been in use for decades.

I bet our lefty friends believe Herbert Hoover was a laissez faire president who along with The Crash on Wall Street caused the Great Depression. They likely believe FDR saved the nation from the Great Depression. And now, many lefties today blame our economic situation on the private sector, when it is abundantly obvious that government caused the problems. They conclude that we need more government to fix the problems that government caused, which only further compounds the problems. This is madness!!!!

Their minds are full of misinformation and lies. How does one have a logical conversation with such people?

This from the Great Walter Williams...here is what every liberal should read and accept, but I have little faith. When one fails to accept the truth in favor of lies, one is delusional!

Hanke says that the most repeated statement about the cause of the U.S. Great Depression is that it was caused by the October 1929 stock market crash. How could that be? By April 1930, the stock market had recovered to its pre-crash level. What is not taught in history books is the Great Depression was caused by a massive government failure. The most important part of that failure were the actions by the Federal Reserve Bank that led to the contraction of the money supply by 25 percent. Then, the name of saving jobs, Congress enacted the Smoot-Hawley Act in June 1930, which increased U.S. tariffs by more than 50 percent. Other nations retaliated and world trade collapsed. U.S. unemployment rose from 8 percent in 1930 to 25 percent in 1933. In 1932, the Herbert Hoover administration and a Democratic Congress imposed the largest tax increase in U.S. history, raising the top tax rate on income from 25 percent to 63 percent. The Roosevelt administration followed these destructive policies with New Deal legislation that massively regulated the economy and extended the Great Depression to after World War II.
How about a bit of history? Between 1787 and 1930, our nation has seen both mild and severe economic downturns, sometimes called Panics, that have ranged from one to seven years. During that interval, there was no thought that Congress or the president should intervene in the economy to enact stimulus packages, jobs programs or massive corporate handouts. Probably, the reason that no one thought to do so was that there was no constitutional authority to do so. It took the Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt administrations to massively and unconstitutionally intervene in the economy and, with the help of a frightened, derelict U.S. Supreme Court, turn what might have been a two- or three-year sharp downturn into our longest depression.

http://townhall.com/columnists/WalterEWilliams/2009/11/04/economic_myths_and_irrelevancy

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[GenSeneca]

I'm just curious if so much as one single person here would admit to being an Altruist...

Anyone willing to admit they are selfish?

 

[GenSeneca]

No one is willing to admit to either?

Every single person here is selfish but none of you will admit to it...

 

[OldTrapper]

No one is willing to admit to either?

Every single person here is selfish but none of you will admit to it...

Is there anything wrong with a certain amount of "selfishness"? Is it not required for one to allow himself that which is needed to survive?

IMO, it is when selfishness turns to greed, or coveting, that it becomes sin, or error.

 

[GenSeneca]

IMO, it is when selfishness turns to greed, or coveting, that it becomes sin, or error.

Where do you draw that line?

Do you think it's in a different spot for every individual?

Is it something you think the government can legislate?

 

[GenSeneca]

I guess the Radical Leftists really are Immoral, they certainly cannot cite a morality they openly adhere to...

 

[Mr. Shaman]

Selfishness denotes the precedence given in thought or deed to the self, i.e., self interest or self concern. It is the act of placing one's own needs or desires above the needs or desires of others.

See: Jim Bunning

 

[GenSeneca]

See: Jim Bunning

Are you not selfish?

 

[GenSeneca]

What do you call it when someone is altruistic with other peoples money?