You may not get to choose where you were born but you can choose where you live. There is no law or nothing in the Constitution that I have ever seen that says that you have to stay here. That's why I always say to the people that like Cuba or some other country, move there. Then you can live the way you want. You like Communism, move to China, heck if you are really nuts, move to North Korea.

Who was that, Danny Glover, that thinks Cuba is so great? Why doesn't he just load up his money and go to Cuba? He can surrender his US citizenship when he leaves and go be happy. Oh, he will surrender a LOT more when he gets there tho. He will be on the streets with the other poor folks. The Castro leadership will take whatever he brings with him that has any value. He may like the view from the US but he won't like the view when he looses everything. Sounds like the old saying about the grass on the other side. lol

Hi,

Not in this heat! Grass is brown on both sides.

Same here.

It is interesting to see that all of you (at least almost all) are exclusive in your beliefs. Do not forget that China is "One country - two systems". Hong-Kong is also part of China for several years now, and still capitalists and rich businessman also exist.

Also, you are looking at "poor" people on Cube like they have nothing. The fact is, they have more that they would have in type of capitalism and Batista dictatorship that was orchestrated by the C**I**A. not much but enough not to starve.

People of Cube starved to death, and now they have enough to eat, and Cuban government is concerned for health of their citizens:
And when you criticize Cuban economy and living standard you MUST account for 50-years of economic embargo of U.S. If embargo was not in affect, I believe their economical status would be much, much better. I do not say they would be economically sound, but even now they have 3 times lesser debt per GDP than USA (38% of the GDP in Cuba vs 92% of the GDP in USA)

There is excellent arithmetic example of grim future:

At 11:00AM place 1 bacterium that multiplies every 1 minute in the bottle that will be full at 12:00 noon.
Taking into account that bacterium doubles it's "population" every minute, at what time do you think bottle will be half full?

Answer is in 11:59 since last doubling will take it from half full to full. It would still have 3/4 of empty space at 11:58, and 7/8 of empty space at 11:57.

Question: If you were average bacterium in the bottle, at what time would you realize that you were running out of space?

And how many of you would, at 11:55, 5 minutes until the end, when 97% of the space was empty would realize that there is a problem?

Lets assume that at 11:58, when bottle is only 25% full, some of the bacteria realize there is a problem, and start searching for new space. An in their search they find whole THREE NEW BOTTLES!!!, which is THREE TIMES the space/resource they ever new about it.

So the question is:
How long can the growth continue as a result of the discovery of three new bottles;this quadrupling of the proven resource?

So,
at 11:59 1/2 of the bottle if full,
at 12:00 1 bottle is full
at 12:01 both bottle 1 and 2 are FULL,
at 12:02 ALL FOUR BOTTLES ARE FULL!!!!

Arithmetic at it's worst.

So if you do not have control of the resources, and Capitalism is all about unlimited growth and individualism/freedom to deplete resources as capitalists see fit, what comes to your mind as a logical solution?

All I ask of economic model is to give everybody EQUAL CHANCE to be content and happy. And you CAN be happy with MUCH less than you spend/waste now. The higher you are, the harder you hit the ground when you fall.

You are naive, and took my words way out of context.

A.) I wasn't tying Jesus to anything. I stated what I was and didn't promote they were interrelated. Stop pussyfooting your way out of legitimate conversation. Coward.

B.) That wasn't an attack on your intelligence, that is a real book. Read it.

C.) No person can speak for all Americans. All Americans have different views. I like Glenn Beck. So what?

D.) Who cares about the oil rig guy or Bill Gates? Different situations. Different opportunities. Oil Rig guy will make a guaranteed income. Bill Gates wasn't guaranteed that the personal computer would become as big as it became, if it became anything at all.

E.) I argue that Capitalism increases both good places and good times which multiply ones chance at being in the right place, at the right time.

Hi,

Drifting into politics or religion will always cause a thread to get hot. Almost as hot as it is outside now. I wish that I could cool things off here and outside.
Enough of both! Here and outside. I'll see if that works?

If you want to go on about this, then ask a moderator to split out this discussion and call it the "All-New Politics MegaSuperThread"!

You and I can choose where we live... but what about those born into countries controlled by regimes which do not allow "freedom of movement?"

Anyhow, what's with the tone? I am happy where I live, and at no point have I said otherwise.
You're assuming I live in America. I don't. I live in another great capitalist country - one which survived the GFC...
I hear you. People who draw these comparisons need to travel, and see what it is they're really comparing.
Is there any need for name-calling in legitimate conversation?

Wake me up when the politics and religious stuff is over...

Hibernating early this year?

And for a very long time too.

No, I am not hibernating.

It's a figure of speech.

linux is better than windows !

This thread is massive...it's part flame war, part intelligent discussion, and now it's part political argument.

Seriously though, can we get back to the original topic?

Linux > Windows; unless you're gaming.