JMO - When Socialism isn't

I get a kick out of republicans. One of the mainstays of their political philosophy, logic and rhetoric is about socialism. They're against it. Completely and whole-heartedly. Except that is when it's for and benefits corporations. The recent bailout of the automobile industry with the government investing in and even assuming partial ownership (60% in the case with GM) has them on the spot about the term.

The government is simply doing for corporations what it does for people and organizations who help people, give them money to live, work and be a productive member of society. In short, socialism. But it's not the same type of socialism to republicans. They want to use "capital" or other words to qualify it as anything else. But it's still the same.

If the government didn't bailout GM and Chrylser, they would be in full bankruptcy, hemoraging massive debts, angering investors, and frustrating creditors. But now they can survive, probably prosper under reorganization, and still be a productive member of our society. What? That's not socialism?

To the republicans it's not because it's not people, but corporations. Except corporations are people, the employees with all their salaries and benefits, the investors, the creditors, the dealers in the case of the auto industry, and most importantly, the customers. It's all about people, but they like being blind to that fact and reality.

They like being blind because it allows them to give government money to corporations under the guise of investing and ownership without using the socialsim word. And they can continue their normal rhetoric that government's help to people and families is socialism. It's pure and simple bullshit. Yeah, like distinguishing between cow and bull manure. The animal isn't important as the end result.

The republicans are going through a phase of reinventing themselves, but they always seem to go back to their basic tenets which don't and can't be sustained and has never been followed by any republican president. And worse, some of those presidents, eg. Reagan and JWH Bush, increased the size and cost of government more than democratic presidents. But they continue to believe what they think.

Being mentally blind has advantages. We've all seen that in politicians, especially in the last 10 years under Mr. Bush and co-horts. What they don't want to see doesn't exist, or so they think and say. But it doesn't change the facts, the truth and the reality. They can argue all they want about what they believe, because it's not what they do.

The records and history are always there, no matter how much they classify or hide. History has shown and will continue to show how empty their rhetoric is and always will be until the take off the blinders and see the whole world as it is, and not how they want it to be or think it is.

The reality is that we could lose the Republican party and nothing would be hurt. Many Democrats are conservative or moderate enough to assume the republican ideology while maintaining their democratic ideas. That's the neat thing, the democrats can easily move right but republicans can't move left. They're stuck in their own rhetoric, for themselves and the many republican pary members.

So when republicans spout the bailouts of the financial, banking, auto and other industries isn't socialism, ask them the tough questions why they distinguish between a government check to a person versus a corporation for the same purposes, survival.