To the editor:
The rich are getting richer, the working poor can no longer feed their children or keep a roof over their heads, and the middle class is disappearing. And yet, many of these trusting souls are voting for Republicans. The Republicans have convinced the American people that if you give the money to the rich it will trickle down. When will we learn that the money given to the rich trickles into their pockets and the offshore free bank accounts.
The Republicans also have convinced the gullible public that if you vote for them you will be patriotic. Somewhere along the way we forgot where the term "patriot" came from. The first American patriots were poor immigrants who escaped from nations in Europe and the British Isles where the rich kept all the money and the poor couldn't feed their babies.
When they got to this great land they discovered that the English were promoting the same sick system here. But this time these simple people picked up pitch forks and rusty guns and chased these money-grubbing slugs back to England. These brave souls were the real patriots. How ironic is it that the party that promotes the notion that the rich should get richer and the common worker should get poorer are calling themselves patriots?
E. Kent Hayes,
Lawrence
Comments
LJWorld.com doesn’t necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy. Also, read about banned accounts and harassing comments.
craigers (anonymous) says…
Granted, I think that the rich should be a little bit more generous to those in need, but I don't think the money should be just stripped from them until it brings the poor to their desired level of comfort. The rich get richer for a lot of reasons. After you have a descent lump sum invested, it is just the simple rule of compounding interest that goes into effect and their money will grow faster than a middle-class citizen's investment account. Therefore, they get richer and at a faster rate than we all do. However, they did earn that money and I don't think we should take 50% of their paychecks to make the poorer people feel better. This fuels the notion that stealing from the store is okay because they already make all that money and we just can't afford these items, so we will steal them. I do feel that maybe we could mandate a salary floor for people that do work full time and try to support their family, but the moment we do that inflation will occur and then we are back to where we started. The only way to help the middle and lower class is to educate them and get them better jobs.
kansaskev61 (anonymous) says…
The rich get richer, because they know how to make money work for them. They are usually college educated and are focused on making money. They vote republican because history tells us that most of the monied class is conservative. It's like the old song says..."The rich get rich and the poor get children".
Those less fortunate need to stop whining and get smart about their situation and their money. You don't need a lot of money to make money. You just have to be smart with your money. Take an adult education course on investing thru the Parks and Recreation department. Audit a class at KU. Go to the library.
Get Smart!
Kookamooka (MJ Browne) says…
AAAH America! Home of the Free Enterprise System. That beautiful system of exchange that allows loopholes in our tax code and encourages average citizens to believe if you work hard and invest your money, you can get ahead. Honey, I don't know what planet you live on but I worked in high finance for years and know that the risks and rewards offered in the stock market are the same as the risks and rewards at Harrahs!! Don't TRUST brokers! I agree with KS Kev about educating yourself about money but do it so you can identify the crooks and those who cook the books!