Rand Paul: "There are no rich, there are no poor, there are no middle class."

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

"Here's the thing......... I am glad that you love your job. But if it isn't enough to feed your children, by all means DO SOMETHING ELSE. Why are you expecting others to help you when you are the one who chose to have your children, and chose the career path you have taken? Rand Paul and others like him aren't holding you back, you are. "



Kelly, there are only a certain number of jobs in each income bracket. With that in mind and the unemployment rate how do you expect EVERYONE to just work towards a different job in a better income bracket when they don't exist in the first place? How do you compete for something imaginary?

Isobel - posted on 11/06/2010

There's a reason that man is famous...cause it almost never happens.

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

"The example that really comes to mind is the "Pursuit of Happiness" story. That man NEVER gave up. That is the kind of tenacity and hunger that people need to have in life. Luck will eventually find you."

No, luck eventually found that one person. Oh and if you found a person sleeping in a public bathroom with a child what would your reaction be? I'm guessing it wouldn't be he's pulling himself up by his bootstraps to be a stockbroker, leave him be. At least judging by the news that's not how things work where I llive. It's more of an out of sight, out of mind attitude but I won't speak for you.

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Jenny, I kind of covered your first post with my answer to Krista..... As far as the second, I had a feeling you would see value in drug dealers :)

Of course I am not saying all teachers should quit their jobs. I know plenty of teachers that make a decent living doing it. I even have a few teachers in the "liberal wing-nut" side of my family. I can tell you that my sister who taught at an alternative school for a while made more than $330 a week. My aunt who taught college in California DEFINITELY made more than $330 a week. And my cousin who teaches in Texas public schools even makes more than that :)

I send my daughter to private school because I do value her education. It is a personal choice that I wish more families had access to. I know we have gone several rounds on that one........... My point to Mary was that she at some point needs to evaluate her own situation and decide what is more important to her. She is not limited to being a teacher. I just don't think that she should be whining about the "evil conservatives" trying to hold her down when she is doing a very good job of that all on her own.

Isobel - posted on 11/06/2010

$330 a week is what she said she makes per course...she also said that she's teaching 3 courses.

But this DOES bring up an interesting question. Do you guys really believe that everybody can CHOOSE their job?

I, for instance, borrowed money from the govt to go to hairdressing school...as it turns out, being a hairdresser didn't pay enough to raise my family AND pay my student loans and I fell behind. As it turns out, you cannot get a new student loan if you are behind.

So therefore (if not for extremely fortunate circumstances) I would have been stuck as a hairdresser, working mostly nights and weekends and never seeing my kids and barely IF making my bills.

If you are born into poverty, and you have no role models to show you HOW to succeed, and the only financially successful people you see are drug dealers and criminals...exactly who is going to tell you that you should go to school?

Do you really believe that everybody starts out on a level playing field?

I'm not saying that the end results should always be equal...but the starting point should be...no?

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

I am trying to keep up here, which is why I blew right past Kati's little temper tantrum. Trying to keep up with you Krista and Jenny, so bear with me a bit.....

Krista, I will keep with the acting theme since we have gone off on that example........ My little brother had/ has dreams to be an actor. He has always been artistic, and got his college degree in drama. (yes, I am the only one of the three of us without a college degree :) He moved out to LA after graduation and starting auditioning. He is cute, but no George Clooney. I really see him as more of an aspiring Adam Sandler. He got sick of waiting tables and being broke, and branched out. He ended up volunteering to throw his body through the wringer on a stunt type show for a week as a stunt tester. He was psyched to make $500 for the week. He ended up impressing the guys backing the show with his ability to navigate the courses, and when it got picked up by ABC they hired him to be their "stunt guy / crash dummy." He now is an associate producer making more in a day than he made that first week, they have been on air for a few years, and he helped pitch the show internationally. He designs and tests all the stunts, and this year had to join SAG because he is "on air" during the episodes. Was it luck? Maybe a little. But he certainly has suffered enough and eaten enough kraft and ramen to last a lifetime to get to this point. He now has a bunch of connections, and when Wipeout runs its course he will be able to move into the next project.

Long story short, he found his niche. Maybe if more "aspiring actors" were willing to change their course a little, they would find theirs too. I will concede that luck has a little to do with everything. But hard work plays a bigger part in being successful. The example that really comes to mind is the "Pursuit of Happiness" story. That man NEVER gave up. That is the kind of tenacity and hunger that people need to have in life. Luck will eventually find you.

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

Well Kelly, supply and demand,. Income is income. If people are willing to pay money for drugs, someone will be willing to supply. Capitalsim at it's finest.

Are you suggesting teachers should quit their jobs if they don't make enough money? Is education not something to be valued and invested in? Or since you put your kids in private school, should the rest of us pay for it too?

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Mary, you and I have always had a love / hate relationship so I think it is rather funny that you always take what I say out of context and then find it "insulting." You may have felt Diane was "crazy" but you are sounding just like her on some of these posts......... With a different message of course :)

Here's the thing......... I am glad that you love your job. But if it isn't enough to feed your children, by all means DO SOMETHING ELSE. Why are you expecting others to help you when you are the one who chose to have your children, and chose the career path you have taken? Rand Paul and others like him aren't holding you back, you are.

According to what you just put out there, you make about $330 a week and you are willing to just do that forever because you "love your job." Granted, your husband is hopefully supplementing that amount, but seriously, at what point does your family come first? I am sure you spent a pretty penny on all of your degrees, and you are satisfied with making $330 a week? Now I completely understand why you are a Socialist. You can live your happy little existence, and supplement your income with some of mine, and Christa's, Pamela's, Dana's, Kati's, and whoever else's you can get your hands on so that you can pay your mortgage and feed your family all organic.

And for the record, I don't own a bunch of fancy clothes, shoes, or handbags. I don't drive a fancy SUV. We don't even own a house anymore. The only "luxury" we really do is send our daughter to private school.

As for the rest, I just have to shake my head..... you are seriously comparing people who invest in the stock market with drug dealers? The "sickos" who just took over the house are trying to make it worse? How is that? By saying 2 years of unemployment is enough? By demanding a budget? By wanting to actually stimulate the economy with private business growth?

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

Ok, I shouldn't have said "into" as he didn't have it when you met him. But, it is undeniable that you, and I, have the standard of living we do because of our partners (yes I realise we are family units and work together but I'm not swinging wrenches and neither are you).



My partner is a journeyman fire sprinkler fitter. He works very hard, haul steel pipe up 8 flights of stairs to install it while bent over backwards up a ladder for 10 hours a day hard. He was gone for 6 weeks this summer working in the Yukon. I KNOW how hard a family works. I work 25 hours a week too and deal with all the house and kid stuff.



Kelly, I know where your coming from but I disagree that it makes us special in anyway. We really did get lucky, even when hard work is involved.



In my case, finding the job in the first place was luck. My partner bunnyhopped a curb on his bike, didn't make it, flew across a few lanes of traffic and it was his chiropractor (which was paid for from his welfare) that informed him of this company. He got the job and completed his apprenticeship but who knows where life would have led if it wasn't for that one incident. Saying luck awarded us a comfortable life doesn't discredit our hard work. i know many people who work very hard for less money. It's just the way the system works. There are only so many jobs available in each income bracket. and creating your own job (entrepreneurs) is too risky for those who need to keep a roof over their head and pay bills every month. The problem is in the system, not the people within it.

Krista - posted on 11/06/2010

You just have to figure out what you have that is of value to others. For actors or singers it is talent, for some it is a service, for others a product. The key is finding your value, and running with it.

Right, but there can still only be so much of something before the market is saturated. Hell, we'll use acting as an example, seeing as you mentioned it. There are some incredibly successful actors out there. There are also some actors out there who never, ever catch their big break, and wind up spending their entire lives waiting tables while trying desperately to get enough bit parts to keep their SAG membership active. Not every actor can be George Clooney. Hell, not every actor can even be the guy who plays the grapes in the Fruit of the Looms ads. Is George Clooney as successful as he is solely because he worked harder than all those poor slobs out there waiting tables? Not necessarily.

Look, I'm not saying that there is no value in hard work. I am not saying that hard work should not be rewarded.

What I am saying is that there seems to be this mentality among the right-wing that success is SOLELY attributable to hard work -- that luck has nothing to do with it at all -- and hence, those who are not successful are only so because they have not worked hard enough.

"Work hard and all your dreams will come true" is a really nice moral for a kids' book or a movie. But this is real life we're talking about. And sometimes, you can work your tail off, and still be miles behind the guy who just happened to know the right people, or be in the right place at the right time.

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

"You cannot succeed by redistribution, and the successful cannot carry the dead weight of the under-achievers forever."



You also cannot succeed in a society where there are only the very rich and the very poor...So...we have to find some middle ground, and what the Republicans are suggesting is no where near the middle!



...oh, and "carry the dead weight"...Really? This attitude is what is destroying this country...right here! You've said it perfectly!

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Krista:
Exactly. It's competitive. And by its very nature, a competition must have winners and must have losers. So even if each competitor worked equally as hard, we CAN'T ALL WIN. So it is really quite mean-spirited to then assume that the ones who DIDN'T win are just lazy and not trying hard enough.
(Sorry I still haven't figured out how to quote accurately)

I just don't see it that way. It's all about finding your niche. When my Hubby lost his Network Admin job, he tried for a year to find another one. He worked nights so that he had his days free to job hunt. In DFW, there were THOUSANDS of computer people looking for work. We made the decision to leave Texas, and relocate somewhere where he could find work. He ended up in the gas fields, and is a much happier person. For now, working for others works for us. His boss is a wonderful man who treats his employees like family.

One of my friends from H.S. is very successful. He is in investment management and wealth growth and retention. One of the things he firmly believes in, (and I agree with now that I have seen it in action) is that everyone has value. You just have to figure out what you have that is of value to others. For actors or singers it is talent, for some it is a service, for others a product. The key is finding your value, and running with it.

People seem to be scared to move outside their comfort zone. Whether it is relocating, switching industries, or some other reason, they are just unwilling to do whatever it takes to give themselves an edge. So I guess I do feel that those people aren't trying hard enough. I just don't see how the Left's idea of not having winners and losers is beneficial to anyone. You cannot succeed by redistribution, and the successful cannot carry the dead weight of the under-achievers forever.

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

"I am relieved that the people of this Nation have snapped out of the "Progressive" trance they were in in 2008."
There have always been progressives working hard to make this country a REAL land of equality...we aren't going anywhere!

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

to be fair, Laura, she WAS crazy ;-)

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

You people like to act as though all the "rich" people inherited their wealth. Some did yes, but is that really a crime?

It depends on how it was earned I suppose...I hear you can make a shit load selling drugs...You can also make a lot gambling in the stock market...doesn't seem like that's very virtuous either...
I am not "green" with envy...I don't want a big house, I don't want a gigantic and inappropriate suv, I don't want expensive clothes or coach bags or a closet full of shoes. In fact, I find people who live this type of life pathetic and sad; they clearly don't know the meaning of life..what I want is to be able to FEED my CHILDREN. I am teaching three classes this semester...that's 8 hours of teaching a week, probably 20-40 hours of grading (depending on the assignments) and 12-15 hours of prep work or more depending on the number of different courses. I make 1900 dollars per course over 17 weeks, and receive NO benefits...and that's pretty avg. for adjunct instructors...I love my job, and I'm happy to keep doing it and benefiting the lives of my students on a daily basis...all I ask is that I am treated fairly for my work. In addition to which, I am raising two very small children, one of whom is still breastfeeding and requires my undivided attention about 6 times a day for 20-30 minutes...I work just about as hard as humanly possible...people like r paul are pathetic, because he is incapable of compassion, or of imagining what it might be like outside of your fantasy land where the poor and unrepresented of this country have a "real chance" at "an american dream"...There's no dream for us out here...there's only pain, hunger, sickness, hard work and no relief...and the sickos who just won the house are gleefully trying to make it worse for all of us!

Isobel - posted on 11/06/2010

people used to call certain people in this group crazy every day...cool your jets Mary

ps...you know I love you ;P

Krista - posted on 11/06/2010

Okay, peeps....no name-calling or personal insults. Fix yer posts before I have to remove my belt...

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

"Mary Elizabeth, I fear you have gone off the deep end."
Wow...incredibly inappropriate and insulting...

Rosie - posted on 11/06/2010

first of all kelly, i'm not talking about raising your taxes, unless of course you're a billionaire. which i doubt, could be wrong i guess, i dunno. and second, without my poor uneducated ass you wouldn't be able to get half the shit you need to survive, so you can fuck off.



stop looking down at other people who provide services for you, and realize that if it weren't for the garbageman, or the retail clerk, or the farmer you wouldn't have half the shit you do now. for fucks sake, get YOURSELF an education and realize that without people like me, your bitchy ass would wither away.

Isobel - posted on 11/06/2010

I happen to know several (multi)millionaires and to say that they are all republicans is just silly...plenty of millionaires and billionaires are democrats (Bill Gates comes to mind). Yes you can make a lot of money by working hard but to say that inheritance and playing the stock market doesn't play a HUGE part of amassing that kind of wealth is incredibly short sighted.

And that list of people paying taxes still didn't come close to the percentage of the pie that these people earn.

The pie is not infinite! and the middle class has been shrinking for 50 years...the gap between the wealthy and the poor is coming back to a time when there were surfs and aristocrats...the American dream is NOT alive and well.

Krista - posted on 11/06/2010

You have to fight in a competitive workplace.

Exactly. It's competitive. And by its very nature, a competition must have winners and must have losers. So even if each competitor worked equally as hard, we CAN'T ALL WIN. So it is really quite mean-spirited to then assume that the ones who DIDN'T win are just lazy and not trying hard enough.

LaCi - posted on 11/06/2010

"You have to fight in a competitive workplace. You may have to *gasp* switch industries all together to find work. The way I see it, the left is full of excuses and reasons for failure. Hopefully the right will have the answers to get our economy back on track, and our spending under control. "


Didn't I get ripped a new one round these parts when I said "the jobs aren't coming back, go to college or stop complaining"

Except at least I believed that college to should be publicy funded. I mean that is what we need to get ahead in the world, or catch up at the very least, educated masses.

But that would be counterproductive to politicians and corporations.

Krista - posted on 11/06/2010

Why is it so hard for some of you to understand that the people that EARN the money deserve to keep it?

So does that mean that the people who HAVEN'T earned their riches do not deserve to keep it? If that's the case, then I'm assuming you would support a hefty estate tax, no?

Instead of sitting around complaining about how people have too much money and they likely don't deserve it as much as you, do something to become one of them. Or at least to better yourself from where you are.

That's a nice thought, but do you really think that our society is even set up so that EVERYBODY can better themselves? I mean, we CAN'T all be CEOs. I know you say that the pie isn't finite, but nor is it that easily expandable, either. Unfortunately, our economy does operate on the basis of having an awful lot of people working for very, very little. It's a lovely idea to think that if each and every single one of us works hard, we can all make enough money to have our nice house/two cars/family vacation dream life. But it's unrealistic. And not only is it unrealistic, it's dangerous, because it then leads to the attitude that the only reason that poor people ARE poor is because they just didn't want success badly enough. You might think that progressives are green with envy towards the rich, and many progressives think that conservatives are downright mean and contemptuous towards the poor. And let's say that you are right, and progressives are envious towards the rich. Do the rich suffer from this? Are they at risk of not being able to feed their families because of the envy of a bunch of progressives?

My guess is that the poor suffer a HELL of a lot more as a result of the conservatives' contempt than the rich do from the progressives' envy.

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

LOL thanks Kate........ I think :)

Kate CP - posted on 11/06/2010

Kelly: Don't worry. Wasn't referring to you.

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Pamela, the economy needs the middle class AND the wealthy. Who do you think employs the middle class?

Jenny, I didn't marry into a better standard of living. I happened to marry a man that believes in hard work. He joined the military at 17, never went to college and has worked constantly to make the money he does now. He has never been too proud. He has worked fast food jobs, valet parked, and mowed lawns during our marriage when he was laid off in the IT field. I went to college, but never graduated. I have worked since 13, gaining experience and talents that have helped me progress into better jobs. We are far from rich. And it is not luck. It is hard work and a can do attitude. It is being knocked down and getting right back up.

I can't speak for Canada, but the American Dream is alive and well here in America. The problem is some people these days think it needs to just be handed to them. When they lost their jobs, they felt a new one should just land in their lap apparently. It isn't enough to just submit applications online. You have to fight in a competitive workplace. You may have to *gasp* switch industries all together to find work. The way I see it, the left is full of excuses and reasons for failure. Hopefully the right will have the answers to get our economy back on track, and our spending under control.

As far as your question, every dollar is at one point earned. You people like to act as though all the "rich" people inherited their wealth. Some did yes, but is that really a crime? Don't we all strive to make our children's lives better than our own? You are somehow thinking these people need to be punished for their families success? Why is it any business of yours (or the governments) if a successful family passes down their earnings in the form of inheritance? The stock market has great rewards, but also great risks. You certainly like to pick apart the people who are successful in the market. What about the "rich" people that have a bum year and lose a shit ton? Do you not feel sorry for them because they still have plenty? Whether it is by inheritance, earnings from a job, or whatever, successful people have a right to ownership. Even marrying into money is earned in many cases. As much as I despise John Kerry, do you not think he "earns" the money he has being married to that nutjob Theresa Heinz?

Really the only money you could argue is not at some point "earned" is lotto winnings. And that is taxed at a VERY high rate. I am not sure what kind of an answer you were fishing for, but there is mine. Not sure what buzz words you were looking for Kate, have at it :p

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

As Krista said a few days ago: Boooootstraps!

Kate CP - posted on 11/06/2010

Jenny: Don't expect a coherent answer to your question. Expect the answer to be rather vague and include many buzz words.

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

"I think you all feel the economic pie is a fixed size, but it's not. It's a growing pie. "

Actually right now it's a shrinking pie but the rich still have most of it. The poor just get even less than before.

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

We do NOT all have the same chance of succeeeding in life. Read Malcolm Gladwell's The Outliers. Those who are truly successful in life generally had 10,000 hours of practice before they were able to reach the heights that they did. It was a combination of luck and circumstance. Bill Gates was lucky to have access to a computer at the time he did and he is the first one to admit luck played a factor. A young adult in Wisconson did not have the same chance that Bill Gates did.



Age can factor in, a large number of sports players are born in the earlier part of the year. Their size gives them an advantage earlier on so they received more of the coaching that benefited them later on in life. There are a unique set of circumstances behind EVERY success story.



The American Dream is a MYTH.

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

I'm pretty sure asking you what earn means is pretty straight forward. Do you feel any money that comes by is earned? Just money from a job? Is an inheritance earned money? Are people betting on deritivates earning money? That sort of thing. What is earned and what is not?

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

Kelly, just because you married into a better standard of living doesn't mean we all do. I happened to but if my partner didn't make the wage he does I would likely be under the poverty line as well. We are LUCKY and we best not forget that.

Pamela - posted on 11/06/2010

Wow. Really nice. I believe Kati's point is that working class people pretty much work their asses off. So perhaps don't be so insulting with snarky comments like "cry me a river". I will cry a river and so will you when the corporate agenda is put into effect.



You know what? This economy needs us working class people in order to run well. The middle class keeps a balance in a system that we're seeing systematically taken apart.



I love remarks of the wealthy telling people that if they want to get ahead they should go to college. That's great except college costs a lot of money...



These individuals whom apparently you feel deserve what they've "earned"? Many of them have INHERITED their wealth - golly, I don't call that earning...The ones who've genuinely earned their wealth - I hold nothing against them being able to enjoy that wealth. I do have a problem when they become discontent in their wealth and decide to take ours as well. We call that GREED.



Deserve - what a hellish word.



Now all that said, Kelly I don't disagree with you when you talk about people who start with nothing and work hard to get ahead and they get ahead. GOOD FOR THEM! I agree with you.



But let's be honest - they had opportunities that many in our culture don't necessarily have. Our country was formed on this idea of equal opportunity - regardless of social status, gender or color or whatever else. I believe the southern agenda of a Rand Paul is geared to destroy that equal opportunity which is why I am unable to support a man like that or an ideology like that.

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Thank you Christa :) And this needs to be repeated, maybe it will sink in a little........

"Anyway this has tangented from Rand Paul's point. And that was simply that we are all connected in this economy and if you punish any part of our economic cycle the WHOLE cycle suffers. You can't punish the rich or businesses and expect money to magically begin flowing to the poor (unless of course you just hand it to them and that’s unsustainable, see: the stimulus). The progressives need to study the basic principles of economics. Why do you think a bulk of top executives are republicans? I'm sure you think because that's who "takes care of them", but it's because they got to be successful business people because they understand business and economy therefore they know the correct way to be successful. For people who pride yourselves as being the "intellectual ones" and always look at the facts. You time and time again ignore the obvious."

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Cry me a river Kati. Really. So to you anyone who is successful in life got that way from the stock market? Get a fucking education if you don't like "serving" other people working retail. Seems to me you need to work "smarter" not harder. In order to make money in the market you have to HAVE money to invest. So yeah, most people that made money in the market worked hard to get there.

Are we sharing sob stories now? Because I am far from some elitist living off a trust fund. I have barely seen my husband in two weeks. He has worked (so far) about 140 hours out of a possible 164 this week alone. He works damn hard on the gas rigs to make sure our family is provided for, and I will be damned if his hard earned money is taken away from him to support someone that feels they are owed something. My Dad was the first in his family to graduate from college. He made something of himself, worked hard and eventually had money he could invest. So yeah, he made a little in the market. He is far from a billionaire, but he and my Mom are able to live a comfortable retirement.

We all started somewhere, and yes some of us have an easier start than others. The thing is, for every Kennedy, or Howard Dean who was born with a silver spoon, there are thousands of people that made something out of nothing and now have a lot to show for it. GOOD FOR THEM! All I ever see from those of you on the Left when we talk about taxes is that apparently you don't value the work that others do, and that you are green with envy.

**And nowhere in that clip did Rand Paul call anyone "lazy." Maybe you should work on your comprehension skills a little more.**

Jenny, please elaborate on your point, because I feel it is pretty obvious what the definition of "earn" is.

Christa - posted on 11/06/2010

Laura, I've posted this before but here is a link from the CBO showing that the top 1% make 18% of the pre-tax income but they pay 39% of federal income taxes. The top 5% makes 31% of pre-tax income while paying 61% of federal income taxes. So by your previous post the rich are already paying more then their fair share. http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/88xx/doc8885/...


To add to Kelly's post, she didn't mean that people aren't working hard at their jobs. Of course people work hard at their jobs, but what could they do to get to the next step? That's what she meant. Maybe "you" need to push yourself to get to the next level, whatever that may be. Instead of sitting around complaining about how people have too much money and they likely don't deserve it as much as you, do something to become one of them. Or at least to better yourself from where you are. Everyone of those rich people came from someone who started poor. I think you all feel the economic pie is a fixed size, but it's not. It's a growing pie. The rich are not going to eventually have ALL the pie.

Anyway this has tangented from Rand Paul's point. And that was simply that we are all connected in this economy and if you punish any part of our economic cycle the WHOLE cycle suffers. You can't punish the rich or businesses and expect money to magically begin flowing to the poor (unless of course you just hand it to them and that’s unsustainable, see: the stimulus). The progressives need to study the basic principles of economics. Why do you think a bulk of top executives are republicans? I'm sure you think because that's who "takes care of them", but it's because they got to be successful business people because they understand business and economy therefore they know the correct way to be successful. For people who pride yourselves as being the "intellectual ones" and always look at the facts. You time and time again ignore the obvious.

LaCi - posted on 11/06/2010

lol.





Those lazy poor people, they make such a big deal out of having to choose to have shelter or food. I say, from my 38 bedrooms mansion, they all need to get a fourth job, And since they'll be absent parents anyway, their children should go work in my sweatshops as soon as they can push fabric through a sewing machine. Of course, I'd like to get rid of the unions and minimum wage as well, I'll pay them in tokens they can use at my company store so they can be slaves again like the good old days. I'll give them everything they need to just get by, but not enough to have a life, definitely not enough for an education, we wouldn't want them thinking about how much they're getting fucked or trying to get out of my control. I don't need any real competition, I deserve so much mroe than this ridiculous amouont of money I already have. Look how hard I work! Fuck all those poor people. -Mr. elephant t moneybags.











I agree that the message was about everyone being in this situation together, he didn't intend for it to say poor people don't exist. But don't try to tell me that all of the rich EARNED their money. The VAST majority got rich off the backs of the poor and exploited.

Jenny - posted on 11/06/2010

@Kelly Define "earn".

Rosie - posted on 11/06/2010

how does playing the stock market well equal working hard, or earning money?

my best friend is a teacher, who has to work at 2 colleges to make ends meet. she teaches 2 classes at one school, drives an hour to get to the other and teaches 2-3 classes there, depending on the day. does she not work hard enough? my husband busts his ass 50 hrs a week printing a newspaper. but he's blue collar, apparantly he doesn't work hard enough. does he need to be covered with more ink, or limp more when he gets home from work?

i've worked since i was 14. detasseling corn, getting up at 3 am in the morning so i could be ready and at the place where the bus picked us at 4. walking miles upon miles through endless rows of corn, in hot, muggy iowa heat, picking tassels with my hands, getting cut up by corn leaves in the process so when i was in the shower at the end of the day around 2 or 3 pm. i would scream it hurt so bad. work harder? or now, when i do my best to make people feel that their shopping experience at my store was fabulous, and then get accused of "being sarcastic, and insincere" because i was SMILING at them. i put up with more verbal abuse than anybody should ever have to yet, somehow i'm lazy because i make less than a billion dollars a year. *eyeroll* FUCK him.

Isobel - posted on 11/06/2010

I just don't see why rich people shouldn't have to pay their fair share of the taxes...if you make 90% of the money...you should be paying 90% of the taxes.

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

Where did I suggest people weren't working hard? All I said was WORK HARDER if "you" feel you don't have enough money. Stop trying to take it from those that have EARNED it.

Mary Elizabeth, I fear you have gone off the deep end. I have to admit, I somewhat enjoy watching your head spin over the latest political developments, however you really are reaching a bit too far. Go ahead and be insulted all you want. I for one am sick of entitlement, and I am relieved that the people of this Nation have snapped out of the "Progressive" trance they were in in 2008. It doesn't surprise me that Paul "makes you sick" since he is all for personal responsibility. Instead of depending on the government to support them, people might actually have to get out and do it themselves.

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

This seems appropriate...

There is always more misery among the lower classes than there is humanity in the higher. Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885)

ME - posted on 11/06/2010

How incredibly insulting...who are you to suggest that people aren't working hard! Only a RICH person could possibly suggest that "there is rich, there is no poor"...F him!

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2010

WTF? Are we all watching the same clip here? I agree 100% with everything Paul said. He is right on. BOTH parties have shown fiscal irresponsibility and they all need to be curtailed. I really hope Paul, Rubio, West, Scott and the other "new bloods" can keep their passion and focus when they get to Washington. This really is something that could change our country for the better.

And I agree with Christa (big surprise there I know) that Paul was making a point about how we are all intertwined no matter what our tax bracket is. Why is it so hard for some of you to understand that the people that EARN the money deserve to keep it? It is not the Government's place to take what is not theirs. Instead of obsessing about how much money others make, if it means so much to you work harder to make more of your own.

Pamela - posted on 11/05/2010

Poor little rich people.

LaCi - posted on 11/05/2010

He really doesn't bother me that much. I found both the candidates less than satisfactory. he definitely doesn't bother me nearly as much as the guy who looks like a muppet I have to see all the time....

mitch mcconnell. He gives me the heebie jeebies.

Kate CP - posted on 11/04/2010

Christa: You're holier than thou attitude about this whole thing is REALLY starting to rub me the wrong way.

ME - posted on 11/04/2010

I can't watch him speak without getting physically sick!

Christa - posted on 11/04/2010

Wow you should write a campaign ad. Way to cherry pick words to give a certain impression that is totally not what the intent was. His point was we are all connected and you can't isolate a tax burden like that, it affects us all in one way or another. But I don't expect you to understand what he's saying, we've been there done that. . .

LaCi - posted on 11/04/2010

I'm not looking forward to seeing his face all the time.