Useful Idiots and the Theater of the Absurd
- Written by Dr Robert Owens
Recently I had the opportunity to spend some time with a person who would easily qualify as one of Lenin’s useful idiots. Here is a man who grabbed the brass ring. Not by government intervention. Not by being one of the bigtime crony capitalists who rig the system that chooses winners and losers. No, he had achieved success and fortune through his own ingenuity and hard work. And for this I have always respected and commended him.
Why would I call such a hard working successful entrepreneur a useful idiot? Because last night at a friendly meal he went on and on about how to be fair we needed to outlaw the law of supply and demand when it comes to housing, healthcare, and food. He went on and on and on, as he often does about how society should count more than individuals. He paused for a moment to cast damning accusations of heartlessness on real estate developers and the greed which infects others. Then he went on to his standard praise for other countries that take care of their people and aren’t soiled by the deplorable capitalism of America.
All this from a man who made his fortune by employing others to work in his factory, retired early, has a million dollar estate in an exclusive area of Norther California, an apartment in Italy, and enough money to live comfortably in both places. All this, from a man who benefited from the law of supply and demand in his own industry, a man who went to great lengths to regain the Italian citizenship his grandparents had forsaken so he could take advantage of EU citizenship but doesn’t pay his income tax in Italy to help support its failing social safety net.
Growing tired of the endless hypocrisy I asked if the law of supply and demand should have been suspended in his industry. No, he didn’t think that would have been right. Comparing that and suspending it for real estate developers was comparing apples to oranges he said not seeing the dichotomy or the conundrum such double think created.
I then asked if it was fair that the owner of a factory should get to retire early and live a life of leisure while the people who toiled in his factory to make him rich were still working. That was a different issue all together, he asserted. I then asked if we are talking about suspending the law of supply and demand for certain industries just to be fair why fairness wasn’t extended to the rewards people receive from their work. I was just trying to muddy the issue he protested.
I then asked why is it fair that one person who worked all their life got to retire with a 401K, a pension, and social security while another person only received social security. In the name of fairness shouldn’t we all receive the same thing, I asked. Yes, that would be fair said the man living off much more than social security.
As of now I haven’t heard that he is going to give up his intercontinental jet-set life style and join the 99% down here in Obama’s economy struggling to navigate the New Normal. I do however believe after actively supporting Bernie and his campaign for an openly declared socialist America he is now supporting Hillary and her stealth campaign for the same thing.
As a postscript suspending the law of supply and demand is about as possible as suspending the law of gravity. If there are two widgets they are worth this much. If there are 2,000 widgets they are worth that much. A follows B, just as sure as day follows sunrise. I wonder when the useful idiots will start arguing against that. Why should day always follow sunrise? That just isn’t fair to the night. Then again if they elect Hillary “The Nail in our Coffin” Clinton night might just begin to follow sunrise after all.
Wouldn’t that be fair?
I wonder if my socialist acquaintance enriched by capitalism has any rope to sell. I think Hillary is asking for donations to buy some. Wait, is that Goldman Sachs on the line?
Dr. Owens teaches History, Political Science, and Religion. He is the Historian of the Future @ http://drrobertowens.com © 2016 Contact Dr. Owens drrobertowens@hotmail.com Follow Dr. Robert Owens on Facebook or Twitter @ Drrobertowens / Edited by Dr. Rosalie Owens
Excerpt:
Suspending the law of supply and demand is about as possible as suspending the law of gravity.
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Supply and demand, Dr. Robert Owens, Hillary’s economic plan, Trump’s economic plan, socialist agenda, progressive agenda, Hillary’s agenda
