A Fathers Promise

A few weeks ago I had to cash a check, and of course it was a Sunday so the only place open very early in the morning was a local check cashing place. When I walked in a young man was standing in front of me with his young daughter in a small basket of sorts with a large handle. He could not be more than 22 or 23 years of age, and as I stood watching his transaction his conversation filled the whole room, which consisted of myself, the teller he and his daughter. It was not a loud or over bearing presence, nor was it a commanding presence. The young man stood confident, proud, assured. That was what made me stand and pay close attention. In this confidence was a weariness, which looking at the toddler sitting next to his feet was my guess the cause of the fatigue.

                                                                            The teller walked away from the counter for a moment and he turned to look at me.....I asked ......did she keep you up all night ? He smiled, and looked down with pride, no....she has slept soundly the last few nights, so it hasn't been that bad. Ya know he says to me as if we were long time friends, it's bad enough I have to pay these crazy fee's to cash a check, but then the TAXES taken out is enough to drive you crazy. Now clearly here was an opening of a conversation I could sink my teeth into, but I just wanted my money, and get the heck out of this place. there were people waiting on me to get this taken care of so we could take care of our business. So in an unusual fashion I simply say these taxes pay for services, and people depend on those services...........had he really known me it would have registered that this was pure sarcasm, however since he did not know me, it comes across as accepting the situation with some form of gratitude. The teller by now is approaching the window, but the answer I gave actually lit a fire........services ? what freakin services ? you mean like subsidizing farms ? or paying for a Congressman's hair cut ? or hey how about research into the mating habits of pond scum ?

                                                              So with a smile and a small chuckle I nod and say ..........look in all honesty you are preaching to the choir, in fact I am willing to bet that I would be more libertine in my opinions than you are.......I have been following this stuff for quite a long time, for example we are both here cashing a check but it is not real money. With that a toothy smile and a nod and this young man says you know you should read Ron Paul and his thoughts on this. I smiled ......and asked I have actually met Dr. Paul, are you aware of the foundations for his thoughts on money ? No I do not he replied, what are the foundations ? Mises I tell him Ludvig Von Mises, Dr. Paul is a big proponent of Austrian Economics. Wow ! he says......... that's really cool stuff, hey can I get your email address or something ? I would like to talk about this stuff some more if you don't mind. So I hand him a business card and tell him its alright and to call or email any time. I would be glad to go over this information any time.
                                                                    So he conducts the rest of his business with the teller gets his money, thanks her and apologizes for taking up too much of her time, and then he turns half way as if to speak to both of us and he says When my daughter was born, a apologized for bring her into such a screwed up world............and then I made her a promise....... that I would do everything in my power to make it a better one so she would not have to suffer.............

                                                                     That conversation has stuck with me for a few weeks now, not just for the devotion of a father to his child, which is quite admirable in and of itself; and not for the desire of a father to create a better place for his child which most parents want for there offspring, what really got to my heart was a father dedicating LIBERTY to an infant and proclaiming a lifetime of service for her chance to have it, and to know that there is still that dedication to the concept in the birthplace of liberty in a generation that will be here long after my life is gone. To see that and to experience a moment like that in person let's a person know that the IDEA of liberty is well worth fighting for and passing on. I hope there are more fathers like that out there somewhere.

First Impressions

Sometimes life will give us an opportunity that at the moment it happens may not seem like much, but after it's over the depth and meaning of it has a far greater impact than the surface will allow at the moment. Let me share.
                                                             I was in a parking lot yesterday afternoon of a major retailer, and in the back corner of this parking lot is a transit center. Of course at all various times of the day next to the other retailer's people are milling around going about their business. Coming and going, back and forth....... and of course waiting. For me at times like this especially early in the morning I spend time reflecting.......how else would I come up with the nonsense I do ????? Sitting in front of me is a young lady, on the ground staring at.....what else but an iPhone.........so far nothing unusual, after all this is the 21st Century. Of course I am a man,........and this is a young women, so.................. I notice she is sitting on newspapers on an asphalt parking lot.........rather unusual..........so as she is sitting with her knees up around her chin, and gazing at the iPhone she looks up and smiles........I tried not to pay any attention to this and turn my head. I look over her, and around her, but all the while studying. Okay, details. Small, long black hair, very slight build, the shirt is way to short, exposing the back and along with the ill fit jeans exposing just way to much of other stuff, blue baseball hat, and sneakers. Let's see......a folder, plastic bag with frozen food.......makes some sense, but the manners are not what we would call local. So far so good. Two people in a parking lot on a beautiful late afternoon. She looks across the parking lot and smiles at another man sitting on a bench. Let's see two guys.... two smiles........ what ?......you got to be kidding me...........here ???????????

                                                              I continue to passivley ignore here, but then I wonder.....visiting ? or living ? mmmmmmm I am leaning toward a visitor, but the manners are to comfortable for that, so I start to conclude lives here.....student, and mom has no idea where she is............and then she stands up. To my utter amazment starts to sweep the parking lot underneath her. I see know...... rocks....... ya that would hurt makes sense. She looks at me and starts laughing, I want to bust out because the whole thing looks ridiculous. She keeps clearing the rocks, and then just stands. She took a few steps toward a gargage can.....the first word in my mind is " manners " how refreshing, there goes the idea of her living here, because all the papers would be left to blow around the parking lot........... yep visiitor. So I start to think, wow how thoughtful a visitor who has manners for the surrounding she is in..........conclusion: has not been here long.

                                                                    She takes a few steps toward the garbage can with the papers in her hand, and now I see this long lost look of puzzlement. Searching all around, and I think, oh noooo....... nutjob.........out of her head........ had an encounter like this in San Franciso once........ WARNING ! WARNING !........... and then two steps toward me..........shit................
                  Excuse me sir ?  Ya...... I answered ..........Do you know where the Henry Ford is ? I smile .. Yes.......it is in Dearborn. Yes I know how do I get there on a bus ? ............it clicks.......no schedules posted, tourist, lost.......... no way to get the information........... ohh ... I say......... tahe the 275 north, get of at Michigan Avenue, and then wait for a bus marked 200 going east........ it will drop you off at the entrance, you can walk right in...........Can I get there from here tomorrow ? she politley asks........... sure........ anytime after say 6 a.m.
                                               Thank You............and I reply your welcome. Then comes the look.............................. another question is coming I know it. Do you know how to get to ..........ahhh my English not good.......... she writes C O R K T O W N....do you know where this is ? By Bus   ? I ask       ........yes please.......... well take the 125 from here to downtown and take the People Mover to Corktown.........she frowns ......I try the people mover yesterday it confuses me............ I smile ....me too and I live here.......... but I get confused for a different reason..........she tilts her head because she is confused........... I smile .......never mind it would take to long to explain. Where are you from I think Japan. NO...............CHINA! and right off the bat I think huh?????? here ? what a trip! So I proceed..........where in China are you from ? Near Hong Kong.......do you know Hong Kong ? I start laughing........why yes I have been there many times........ at least 6 I think or something like that......... but that was under British Rule............ you probably do not remember that..........she looked puzzled....... no I do not know that.........I was too young........ ohh I say no bother..... I still have coins with the queen on them..... but they are no good any more.........


                                                            So I proceed...... proud of myself .......and my knowledge..........Hong Kong is an autonomous region now is it not......... ? One China two systems ???????? is that correct ? mmmmmmmm Hong Kong is...........ohhh I do not know English word.......ahhh......... it's okay I say........ I understand....... and I am right............ do you know Hebei Province ? ..........I have clients that are from there...... they make fences, and have an office where I work..........do you know that province.......nooooo I do not......... where is it ? It is north of Bejing a few hundred miles northwest I believe......... there is also a city Named Hebei...... that is where there factory is.......... but they are not familiar with Hong Kong, because I mentioned it when I first meet them......... but China is a big country Yes ??????????

                                                            China is a very big country....... you should come back to Hong Kong..... you will like it............I frown.....no I do not think so ...........my experince there was not bad......... but not all that good......Americans were not very welcome........eveyone loved the British.....but that was a long time ago..........you know I keep up with the news in China I read the Peoples Daily about 4 times a week........ In English of course.......... she smiles ..........really ?????????? why ? I say........ well to keep up with the news there, especially concerning the riots in the outer regions, especially in Tibet...... are you aware of this ? .......no I do not she says, but I do not worry about that ...... I want to make money. i laughed so hard I almost cried...... so do I ........ so do I ...... well I have to go....... you have fun and be careful okay ? Yes...... okay she nods ........ thank you very much..........No problem...............


                                              I walked away.


                                                     In the end here is what strikes me, we in this country are visited every day with visitors from other countries, and cities from around the world, and it will always be our first impressions that will mark what people think of us in this country, of course that is what Tocqueville was all about in his journey. The difference today is information is immediate. One snapshot, one tweet.....and instantly available around the world to anyone..........is a real life perception of who we are and what we are all about. We have an internal contradiction of the mixed economy with limited freedom, versus the desire to be as free as possible. The end result of that is the loss of innovation, prosperity, and respect from not only within our own borders, but from those who visit us from abroad. My hope is that we settle that internal conflict and resolve as Americans, that we will adhere to the principles of liberty, for rest assured wether we are looking at ourselves or not, the rest of the world clearly has their eyes on us.

It's time to let the fat lady sing........

A once proud industrial giant is ready to fall. This process has been going on since the 1950's, but it has been a slow evolutionary process. Year after year, decade after decade slowly but surely the city of Detroit was crumbling to pieces. To assign blame at this point is absolutely ridiculous.What has happened, has happened, or to repeat a phrase now hated: It is what it is. For further amusement; the current Corporate Council for the city of Detroit is endeavoring to tell the State of Michigan who is trying to keep what little of what's left of the city alive, that they cannot enter into a contract with the city because the STATE owes the city money. Money only the corporate council, and right along with her members; of the city council believe the state owes the city, which in their particular point of view would end the deficit, and make null and void the current consent agreement that was put in place without the objection of the city council, or the corporate council.
                                                                                      If the anti conceptual stubbornness were not so serious it would be amusing, in fact it would be entertaining to encourage such behaviour. There is nothing more amusing than to watch non productive behaviour from the political class wasting time on nuance and formality, demonstrating procedural courage and standing up to the forces of fashionable wrong doing while the rest of us toil, and sweat, and compete in the global marketplace, assuring that brave class of politics that we their subjects will assure them a paycheck, and a seat at the table of power. That amusement however lasts only so long as we the hard working subjects are assured a great deal of prosperity in the process, and that is why the proverbial fat lady has been walking up to and demanding a place at the stage. She has had many years to warm up, and the vocal chords are primed. The City of Detroit, whether the council, and it's corporate lawyers want to admit it or not is broke. Flat out, face down cotton pickin broke. There is no way around it, and only the corporate council herself believes the city is owned money by the State of Michigan. No one else can find a bill, or an invoice for " services rendered".
                                                                                 How any elected official can drive down Grand River say from Lahser Road and 7 mile towards downtown, or travel Gratiot Ave. from Roseville and not be shocked by what they see, how any sitting Governor traveling down these same roads would not be immediate to declare that the National Guard needs to be put out on the streets and order restored is beyond comprehension. We are not talking about a downturn in the economy, or slightly depressed neighborhoods due to economic circumstances, we are talking about absolute destruction, and devastation. A kind of devastation that no previous generation of American has ever entertained to allow to exist, is now the norm for the city of Detroit, with those in power elected to protect the citizens fighting turf wars, and wasting valuable scarce resources trying to show how they are still in charge and calling the shots. Murder and destruction are ancillary to the political class right now, what is important is maintaining power at all costs. Local power, and only local power. No outsider dare intervene in local decision making, or inability to make a decision. If we decide to take a vote, in order to take a vote, well then by golly you stand by and watch us do that, because it's in our power to do just that !
                                                                                 There is an adage: he who has the gold makes the rules. There is some pretty compelling reasons that adage is true. We may not like it, we may want to fight it, we may even from time to time try to put our heads in the sand and try to ignore it, but try as we all might, the guy that's got all the coins in his pocket, tends to be the one that sets the tone for how things are going to be. It is one of life's little absolutes. Well the city of Detroit ran out of gold a long time ago, and now that it cannot borrow any more, it is no longer in a position to make any rules. It is time for the city to follow the rules. The first rule that it must follow is: you can only spend the money that you have. Start there, and the rest will begin to fall in place. Seeing that the current class of politicians don't want to follow that rule; reality needs to step in and force them. No one pays them any more, no one let's them borrow any more. Broke. Flat out, nothing in the pockets, broke. Declare bankruptcy, end all current contracts, dissolve the council, appoint a financial manager, and start all over again. The priorities should be police, fire, water, and garbage. All else is negotiable. Seeing that the police do not have a contract, and are afraid they will not get paid, the Governor should call in the National Guard to protect the citizens of the city, and maintain the fire houses. Let those entities sort out a salary the city can afford on today's  budgeting, and let the free market perform it's magic.
                                      But  before all of that can happen, the proverbial lady, with all her grace and glory needs to take center stage, grab the microphone, and just sing.

Principles

It was just a year ago that A World of Liberty was created. The purpose was intended to create a blog based solely on the perspective of the Liberty of the Sovereign individual, and it does not matter whether you believe your rights come to you from God, or from nature, both explain the premise quite well. And as our nation celebrates our Declaration of Independence today from Great Britain based on the idea that man being created from God, has inherent rights, and those rights do not come from permission from an organized body, but rather from the fact that God created all Man as equal, I believe we would all be well reminded of what that Declaration was intended to create.


                                                                                          Single acts of tyranny may be ascribed to the accidental opinion of the day; but a series of oppressions, begun at a distinguished period, and pursued unalterably through every change of ministers (adminstrators) too plainly proves a deliberate, systematic plan of reducing us to slavery
Thomas Jefferson

                                                               Liberty is a unique concept. The audacity to declare that you as an individual are your own master in society is so unique that it's conception is completely foreign to most of the created collections for governance formed by human beings . In fact the historical trend is that the individual is subservient to either the tribe, or an individual leader who plans for you what your fate is to be. Ownership of property, the most important, being your own body, is completely unacceptable to most ideas of forming organized groups of people. The absolute mandate that those who govern are the ones who have limits on their power is one of the most profound ideas the Declaration makes in it's assertion.

                                                                       Principles are what brings us to the table of liberty. Without the arguments for those principles then we as Americans are nothing more than serfs to the State just as those before us have always been. Life, Liberty, and Property are the basis of those principles. Those tenants proclaim that your life is your own, it belongs to no one else, and since that right is unalienable, your life cannot be proclaimed for the State. There is no recourse for the state to your life. It is not a power granted any government by an act of God. Unconditionally your life belongs to you, and no one else. When the creator made man in his image, it was not to serve any government, but to serve God and his will. That an institution created by man  feels that it can usurp its authority and dictate the context of your life and property is a violation of the nature of existence and should be rejected at every step.

                                                                 

                                                                                We have become a nation dependent on permission, as well as dictates. Our Supreme Court in it's latest decision on health care has taken the voluntary society, and transformed in into the requirement society, which given the course of our country over the last 80 plus years it is no surprise. Decisions made in Congress, signed by Presidents, and upheld by the Supreme Court are designed to uphold the sovereignty of government, rather than an individual. Our Social Programs have become institutions created for there own sake, and life blood at the expense of individual liberty, whose sacrifice has been laid waste at the alter of collective  power of the greatest minority in any society, the individual. Done so with the permission and acceptance of the American people. We have abandoned our principles of individual sovereignty, and replaced them with the Socialist concept of collective security, falsely and blindly believing that it is the inherent good.

                                                                On this 4th of July let us again beg to be governed as if we are indeed creatures of the almighty, sovereign, and free. Let us move forward for the benefit of future generations to live in a country where rulers fear the people, and can live lives that are free. A country that adheres strictly  to the principles of Life, Liberty, and Property so that those natural tendencies that all humans have, to live a life of peace, and pursue happiness can once again be the example to the world, and may those principles be on the tongues of every citizen to be repeated time after time so that when the forces of tyranny rise their head, we the American people are ready to defeat them in order to maintain a world of liberty .                                                                                                                                                                                        

More Than One way to skin a Cat......

As the saying goes........there is more than one way to skin a cat.............to illustrate a point. What freedom and prosperity means, but more importantly how does a society achieve freedom and prosperity ?  In our time, despite the rich history of the foundations of the United States, and following the models of more controlled societies, it is presumed that intervention, and regulation is the way to prosperity. China has achieved remarkable growth in the last 30 years, yet despite having a billion people, and the companies of the Western nations clamoring for a share of the market there, their economy has only managed to attain a GDP of 5 trillion dollars, as compared to the United States having 300 million people and achieving a GDP level of 14 trillion dollars. On paper.........to borrow another phrase, it would seem that the Chinese would far out produce the Americans, a fear that tends to creep into the American psyche, but as much as the majesty of the Chinese population commands, the important inherent difference between the two societies is that one version rests on imitation. The other rests on innovation. The other stark difference is that the Chinese system relies on control, whereas the American system at it's design was conceived on chaos, which is the mark of a free market system.
                                                           From a standpoint of prosperity, markets can only achieve full prosperity under two conditions primarily. One would be allowing for the consumer to have the freedom to seek what ever product or service they desire in an open market. The other condition is having the flexibility for the price mechanism to fluctuate to meet the needs of those products and services as the demands of the consumer dictates. In China the goal of their system has been to focus on production alone, without regard to the demand side of the equation. It is the classic misunderstanding of the interventionist mind set, premised on the perception that inequality exists in the capital order of things. Individuals or more to the point HUMAN BEINGS given the opportunity, will change their mind constantly. It is a universal truth, just as all of us need a heart beat in order to stay alive.
                                                             Given our election cycle, and daily anecdotal conversations with people at random, I have noticed a trend for Americans IN GENERAL to reach a conclusion that our prosperity lies in a plan.....a plan for our economy, a plan for our energy needs, a plan for manufacturing, there seems to be a need for a plan for our entire way of life. Planning is the way that government's control their people, which in the case of the Chinese system is necessary for a small self proclaimed elite to control a large population, however here in the United States I would encourage all to do away with the control mind set and seek the way of chaos. In other words let us vow as AMERICANS, to seek our economic roots in freedom. There is more than one way to skin an economic cat......but there is only one way to seek freedom and economy, and that would be to throw off all the shackles of planners, and regulators in our economy, and return this country to A WORLD OF LIBERTY......

A Word of Advice

It has been rather amusing............ no strike that. It has been rather sad and disappointing to me in our current political discourse. As an advocate of Liberty, there can be no mistaking that the battle that exists is one of the free individual versus the advocates of tyranny. Although those that advocate the interventionist state of affairs clearly are not able to see the mistakes they have made in their desire to alleviate those who are more misfortunate, what becomes more pathetic is the reliance on an argument that rests solely on anti conceptual statements that offer neither ideas or solutions. Statements such as the Orwellian occupiers " we are the 99 % " reminds me of Animal Farm and the resolution that " Four Legs good, Two legs Bad" ...........actually has intrinsic meaning at some level. Neither statement in and of themselves means anything, neither statement conceptualizes anything more than base, collectivists group think. A mass exodus into blind obedience into the following of one tribe, one group, one race type thinking that has no more validity in logic than the observation that " wet toilet paper does not fly " Ahhhh thank you, ........you are so insightful.

                                                                                    For my own amusement, and to offer a lending hand I will offer a few solutions that hopefully will give our Collectivist antagonist some ideas that will at least give them the pretense of intelligence. Which is another reason I have given this so much thought, for once upon a time the Socialists actually envisioned themselves as the intellects of Society. The creators of ideas, the activists who solved social problems. What has become of this presumed leadership is a vacuum of ideas and action. In fact the only thing left in there arsenal is confiscation. The transfer of wealth in the global society. Destruction of creative ability has become the only tool left for the Socialist. Devoid of intellectual capital, and with the rise of awareness that politically the State can only transfer wealth that can be created ( thus forcing the creators to move that wealth ) the Socialist are literally on there last intellectual leg. The solutions around the globe of the socialist movement has been consistent, that is: form more trade unions, demand higher wages and benefits, and use the tyranny of government to enforce massive redistribution programs  for those damaged economically by these absurd and devoid policies. Here then are my contributing ideas on how to be a good Socialist, as I have learned, that in order to defeat one's opponent one must know how their opponent thinks, and since I feel I have a good grasp on the current group think, I personally have concluded that without some outside help, the embarrassment will continue. If I were viewing the Socialist from a military point of view it would be best to allow them to continue on their present intellectual course, so that they could implode on the ignorance of their own ideals. However the people who espouse many of these ideas truly believe in what they are trying to accomplish, and the ends of these desired accomplishments are indeed meant to benefit mankind for the good.

                                                                               So in the spirit of cooperation let's all be good Socialists :

1) Cash for clunkers;      One of the largest mistakes made with this program is it takes old cars off the road to encourage purchases of new ones. The subsidy gives auto manufacturers the ability to ignore the market conditions for production of vehicles, and causes misallocation of resources for raw materials for parts on older, and even fairly new vehicles. The other problem is it takes vehicles that are in reasonably good working order straight to the scrap yard. The person that is left out;  are those in society of limited and meager means. They are  a segment of society that are not able to purchase a vehicle for transportation, and become dependent (that is once again dependent  ) on public transportation. In fact one of the greatest crimes to the poor is that to get, or continue to receive public assistance your transportation must be done primarily on the public system. It creates a double dependency. Furthermore, when Welfare to Work programs are advocated, one of the largest inhibitors for success is transportation. So rather than the government(s) creating and subsidizing ever more programs why not solve a multitude of problems with one subsidy. That is continue the cash for clunkers idea, but reform it so that the older fleet goes directly to the poor when a new vehicle is purchased. The purchaser of the new vehicle gets a subsidy say in the order of $ 10,000 to $12,000 dollars toward the purchase. The older vehicle then gets to become property of the State. Then you title that vehicle to an individual that is on public assistance, the insurance will be pooled under the vehicles owned by the State ( i.e. such as the State Police, the Federal Government, or even County Government ) with this idea we then alleviate the need for large public transportation projects that do not get the full ridership that they are built for, the savings can go to the insurance pools, and the rest.......... can go back to the taxpayer. Everybody wins, every ones need is meet. And no one is left being dependent on archaic and outmoded thinking.

2) Farm Subsidies;      One of the greatest mistakes we make is to pay farmers to grow crops and then to plow them under. It makes no sense what so ever to have people anywhere in the world go hungry when the farmers of developed nations alone of the world can feed the entire population of this planet many times over. If there is going to be a subsidy for growing, again an invitation to misallocate



3) Fresh Water;    The market has provided fresh clean ( Spring ) water to the extent that a case of good clean bottled water is less than $ 6.00 a case. This water is available everywhere. With a relatively small subsidy governments the world over could encourage a slight overproduction of this resource, and ensure a steady, and safe clean drinking water supply for everyone on the planet. Western Nations have been able to not only provide local water supplies via a public system, but the market has also been able to allocate more than adequate supplies of bottled water for consumption at very relatively cheap prices, the low price is in fact the indicator that there is an ample supply, however once there becomes a direct allowance to those in poorer conditions and it is deemed to be free ( which since it is by design a giveaway) there will be a greater misallocation of the resource because of the greater demand placed on the system by the government allocation. Again by a voucher system in defined quantities the overproduction can be calculated by the amount of subsidy that will be granted by the governments allocating the resource. This gives the producers the proper signal for the amount needed to meet the needs of the poor, and also allows for the proper monetary resources necessary for production.
                            


                                                                             By addressing Human basics in a way that meets market efficiencies, and the profit motive the modern Socialist could accomplish the goals they often seek to alleviate, the largest failure as Hayek, and Mises demonstrated time and again was the failure to understand the importance of the price indicator within the economy. Subsidies by their nature cause overproduction, that overproduction can be utilized for the benefit of those of meager means. It can also be done for the benefit of the producer, the real problem is that these " benefits " are often short lived. The free economy is by far the most successful way to solve the needs of individuals in a society, but since the socialist is not interested in the free economy, and actually tends to conclude that a command and control economy " a planned economy "  is the path to meeting the needs of all in society at the very least what should be addressed from that perspective is the waste that is always incurred through the bureaucratic process, particularly in the United States where political processes create enormous waste of natural resources and capital. Then again at least in this country it is not about creating greater benefit for the citizens, but rather a process intent on creating a power broker structure, a structure that benefits the power brokers rather than the people....... then again as Ayn Rand once pointed out in her book " For The New Intellectual " anyone who speaks to you about slaves and masters........ intends to be the Master. The power brokers who speak of redistributing wealth in this nation have one purpose in mind, and that is to be the ones that are wealthy........ but that has been the goal of Socialists Since the creation of the Socialist movement. Okay then ......... along the way;  let's at least pretend that we know how to take care of those in need, rather than perpetuate the continued suffering, and bastardize those that are really meeting the needs of society. The slogans are getting old, and rather boring, and in the mean time real human beings are still suffering it's appalling, and unnecessary........ and if collectively we are going to all be socialists....... let's at least pretend to be good at it.............