Adapt or Die
This article basically shows what I think is fundamentally wrong with the Republican party. I should make this note... I'm not a Democrat.
I'm a capitalist and I'm a realist.
I believe that everyone should be able to pursue their dream, make a good living, contribute to the creative world, and do it all with as little government involvment as possible. I run into some problems with the idea of social programs. As a small business owner, I believe that we have an ethical obligation to pay a good living wage, provide health care coverage, and retirement and savings options for our employees--BUT I think that what I do as a business owner should be dictated by my ethical ideas of what I should do... not by legislation. In the world that is in my head... everyone would do the right thing because (a) you should always do the right thing and (b) because people should support the companies that share those philosophical ideas. And I do try to live out this concept of corporate/capitalist democracy.
- I look at the HRC Equality Scorecard each year, and I avoid companies that are yellow or red. I think that it's important for me to support companies that have proactively taken a position to recognize value of the GLBT community and the diversity of their employees. This directly links my thoughts on what a business should do with what my business does do like provide complete family health coverage (I use that phrase instead of 'partner' benefits because I already have a business 'partner,' but when I have someone I'm going to spend the rest of my life with and raise children with and sit in a rocking chair on my front porch when we're 80 with... well that's a family, so I call it a family).
- I shop at Costco instead of Sam's Club because they pay their workers a living wage. good article
- I shop at Lowe's instead of Home Depot because I believe in 'value added service' and hiring people who know what they sell. good article
- I shop at Target instead of WalMart because they have cool stuff and I think that good design has more value than the mundane. good article
But to pull this post back to where it started... the Republicans have basically refused to show that they are anything except the white, Protestant party. The reality is that America has always been a country of immigrants. 100 years ago, the irish were cleaning the houses, not the Mexicans. That's what's awesome about America is that we keep changing. Everyone started as a minority and eventually blended to become 'American.' By refusing to acknowledge blacks or hispanics as an important voting demographic is just dumb. Adapt or die, because the people you think don't matter, will matter.
3 comments:
I almost left this alone. They say never discuss politics with a friend. Before I comment I want to say you have a right to your opinion and I respect that. You say your a realist and yet don't want government involvement? (we had this discussion in my Business class) Your a single, white, healthy, gay man who owns their own business and treats your employees very well. Some Governments regs don't affect it. The only minority group you belong is gays but then again that doesn't affect you since you own your own business, but I want you to consider something for a second..I am a native American. I can write Native American on application and not even get called back for interview. I can wait 2 months reapply and put white on an application "white" and get called instantly for an interview. I live in a Republican control state that refuses to acknowledge that tribes exist when there is a few dozen tribes with tens of thousands living out in East Texas. Texas will never enforce the Equal opportunity act and affirmative action but never will since it is illegal to be a Native American in the state of Texas, because of a Bill that Bush passed as governor that makes it illegal to recognize any tribes here. Government action does need to be taken in this case.
A gay man can be fired from the job for being unethical cause he is he gay. This is clearly another area where Government needs to get involved.
People like me cannot get health care due to the tight restrictions on health care. No preexisting conditions will be accepted unless you pay more than the insurance is worth. I applied with (I won't mention their name here) who said I would have to pay for a full year of the insurance, but could not use the insurance I am paying for a year. Kinda defeats the purpose. It's very clear that government needs to do something with these insurance companies. I support socialized medicine because I cannot get insurance. I am having 2 surgeries that I am paying for out of pocket that will come close to bankrupting me cause the costs of health care are so outrageous.
The Americans with Disabilities Act I am sure you love this act, and it prolly costs you a lot of money to make sure your business is handicapped accessible. This is one government regulation I wouldn't give up cause it affect me the most since I have a service dog, and have to deal with apartment managers who hate this act.
My point is without being argumentative is give examples how government regulations affects the life of others in a positive way. My point is you don't want regulation that doesn't affect you personally. You don't see a need for something you have no need for. I am not saying that is bad. I am just saying that maybe you haven't looked it from the point of a minority.
I hate the Republican Party with a passion. I will never vote for another one as long as I live. Think personally That Romney and Thompson are fools. I think the entire Republican Party is going to get bit in the ass in this election cause they forgot about the people and what they want. No one cares about gay marriage anymore except for the Right Wing fanatics. No one wants an amendment to the constitution is equal to the Jim Crow laws of the 60's. Our leaders would rather ignore than to become to known a discriminatory bigot. So it makes Romney and Thompson look like fools for even taking it own. Neither candidate will make it to the election for this reason. The republican Party doesn't listen to the will of people. What matters to them is getting the troops home, health care and everything else but what the candidates are addressing. The republication Party are good are just ignoring issues all together. I write Senator Hutchinson and Coyrn every week to the point they are tired of my letters. They simply do not want to hear what the public wants. I also don't understand how a gay man could support a party that refuses to include him. There are so many things wrong it I can go on hours. Unfortantly for the Senators I have..lol To no avail. One of these days I will show you a letter from her that she wrote that says she doesn't care what the people think that voted her in she is going to vote what she THINKS IS RIGHT not what we think is right. Okay this has gotten to long. I hope I made you think and I hope I didn't piss you off. It was fun entry that gave me great insight into you as a person and where you are coming from.
Hey Brian, thanks for reading my blog.
Well, here we go . . . I'm assuming you want comments on this. I think in theory we have similar beliefs and I think it's great that in your own personal life you follow through with your convictions. I'm an independent first of all, so this isn't a pro-Dems plug or anti-Republican plug, I'm too idealistic for either party.
But I have to say, I don't think you can have both a government that leaves you alone and a civil society that functions well. My best analogy is gardening -- let a garden do its own thing, with little or no regulation, and you get a bunch of very tall, aggressive weeds and very few of the plants you really want. Getting good fruits requires a lot of work and a some regulation -- tomato plants need caging, cucumbers something to climb on, strawberries protection from predators. Obviously there has to be some kind of happy medium, because if you extend the analogy then you could argue that some regulation is like pesticides -- well-intended but ultimately producing all kinds of bad side-effects. Ideally you have a gardener who is very closely involved and willing to do the hard work of looking carefully at each situation as it arises rather than either sitting back and doing nothing and letting the weeds grow (Republican ideal), or a top-down approach where you set the sprinkler times and use massive amounts of pesticides and hope that then it will take care of itself (Democrats ideal). Grover Norquist, a major Ayn Rand disciple and Republican party theorist, said he wants to take government and "drown it in the bathtub." I saw his quote on top of a picture of post-Katrina New Orleans . . . basically, that's what you get without government. A civil society has some basic needs and when they're not met you get anarchy.
Ok, that's my soapbox! Ignore at will and forgive me if I offended! I like your blog; will keep reading . . .
"Adapt or Die" is a great title.
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