Originally Posted by Sangetsu
Too many people complain that the "system" opposes them as an excuse. Life is only as difficult as you allow it to be. Drop-out rates among minority high schools are above 50%, but students aren't "oppressed" into quitting. They quit because their parents don't care, not because someone forces them to leave school. Then when they grow up and find they can't get a job doing anything but flipping burgers or washing cars, they then say that "the system failed me".
Obama's father failed him. Fortunately he had a mother and grandmother who didn't. For those who don't know, Obama's grandmother (the white one) was an executive with at a bank (part of corporate America, where hard work and education are highly valued). Obama's grandmother paid for his private education, and set him on the path for success. Were it not for her caring about him and his education, Obama himself might have been a burger flipper or car washer.
People can only be oppressed if they allow themselves to be.
It is not the government's job to take care of people, but to create an environment where people can take care of themselves. People who are always taken care of lose the ability to take care of themselves.
Socialists have never been able to grasp that concept. They feel that it is the responsibility of the state to take care of people, and that all of a state's wealth should be spread around for everyone to use equally. The only problem with that idea is human beings aren't like farm animals or parts of a machine. Human beings find pleasure in creativity, work, and success. When the ability to do these things is taken away, they become unhappy or miserable, and don't bother to work hard. Why bother? Anything you make will get taken away and given to someone else. And even in socialist systems, they aren't truly socialist, there is always the ruling elite, who get to exercise their innate needs to create, work, and be successful.
When America was created, it was a most unusual experiment. People nowadays can't grasp the mentality of the men who wrote the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The beliefs and virtues of the founders of America are pretty much forgotten now.
All of you have probably heard about the "Pilgrims" who arrived in America in the Early 17th century. The pilgrims were actually "Puritans", who fled the corruption and political strife in England to live lives of freedom in the New World. The Puritan spirit came into existence during the time of Queen Elizabeth, and reached it's peak during the Commonwealth period (after King Charles was executed, and Cromwell and the Parliament ran the country). When the monarchy was restored, Puritans were persecuted as enemies of the king and the Church of England.
Most people think of Puritans as religious fundamentalists, but that is not entirely true. Puritans were believers of "salvation through grace". That is, getting to heaven by living honest, virtuous lives. They were not followers or believers of organized religion. They believed in ultimate freedom, that those who lived properly, honestly, and with virtue had no need for organized religion or government.
This Puritan spirit was still alive and well when the founding fathers of America were around, and this spirit was used in the formation of the government. America was a "free country", a level playing field where all could work hard and succeed.
But, even in a free country, those who don't work hard will not succeed.
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