(Please take a moment to read. There is no hate or insult in this comment. It is sincere). I know what you are thinking about that article: “This is all lies.” And yet I know that in your heart you know it’s true. You are realize you’ve been deceived over the last 30 years. It’s ok, we all were. Please take some time to reflect on the arguments of the other side. We love America, too. More so, as we are willing to look deep and try to fix what’s wrong. “My country right or wrong — when right to defend her, when wrong to correct her.” That’s the whole quote. There’s a lot wrong. Please don’t let pride get in the way of understanding. Everyone (or most of us) were deceived by these men. It is not a crime to be deceived, nor does it mean you are stupid. They sold us a bill of goods. They promised it would lead to prosperity, and it ended in financial, moral, and political bankruptcy. The wealthy really do control our government, some parts more than others, some parties more than others. We’ve seen the largest transfer of wealth upward in the history of mankind in the last 30 years. Members of the Bush administration had been looking for an excuse to retake Iraq’s oil fields since 1994 (google: Project for a New American Century). They didn’t cause 9/11, but they took advantage of it. And 5000 young Americans are dead, along with hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. The Bush tax-cuts stole money from your pocket, and your children’s pockets, to give more money to those who already had it all. Under Republican beliefs, therefore, we should have 20% growth and 0% unemployment. We tried it. It failed. Further, there will not be enough demand if no one has a job. The tax cuts have been in place for 10 years. Where are the jobs? Where, indeed, is any Republican “jobs bill”? They never enacted one in 2 years. Do you really believe that simply refusing to take any action during an economic crisis is appropriate, simply because the other party controls the White House? Isn’t that damaging the American people for the sake of politics? What would you label that if the situation were reverse: A Democratic controlled-house refused to do anything during a crisis because the President was a Republican? What would you call it then? That’s what happened, and I’m sure you know that.

Further, social safety net programs provide peope with disposable income that they will spend because they have to. When the poor are given money, they spend it. When the rich are given money by the government through tax cuts, they ship it to foreign bank accounts to avoid paying taxes here. That means your taxes have to go up. In any event, if people who need it have disposable income, they will create demand. The more demand, the more jobs. Thus the less money 98% of the country has to spend, the less demand there is, and so jobs numbers fall. In that way, social programs, and even welfare fraud — which exists, but is not rampant — is actually better for the economy than tax cuts because that money will be spent and it will create demand. The poor do not stash their welfare checks in overseas trust funds. They spend it — on whatever, but they spend it. I know this sounds strange — it did to me at first. I promise that if you think it through you’ll see my point. It surprised me as well. Tax cuts have been tried for 30 years. They have resulted in the wealthiest among us getting more and more wealth, while the rest of us endure taxes and fees, and government now owes $16 trillion. When Carter left office in 1981, the US debt was $1 trillion, which is a normal amount for a nation to have, and it had built up over all the years since 1776. Under three Republican Presidents and two Democratic Presidents, (but 9 Republican terms and 3 Democratic terms, I remind you) the debt shot up. Most of this came during Bush II, 2001-2009, and you know that. 2 wars and tax cuts led us to insolvency, along with lax regulation of Wall Street (the fault of both parties) and most especially the repeal of the Glass-Steagal Act. Both parties are at fault, but the Republican policies are the ones that failed and caused this crisis. I know that it’s hard to accept that, but I promise you have I have no other reason to say this to you than it is very obviously true. It you forget the hate and the propaganda for a minute, and sit back, and contemplate, I know you will find lots to agree with me on, but naturally not all. I love this country. My father fought for this country in Viet Nam, and my 3 great uncles in World War II and my cousin in the First Gulf War. Liberals don’t hate this country, I promise you — we only know that it could be so much better. The Republican case, and platform, are honestly contrary to reality. You will see it if you bother to look. Please, please try. That’s all I ask. Forget everything and just look at the numbers. It’s ok to admit you were deceived, we all were. It’s sad but it’s true.