"Objecting to having my life siphoned from me at gunpoint,"

That's a joke. At best. Or pathetic.

The slavery reparations are an example of what will happen if there is a large underclass which feels disenfranchised. The French Revolution was another. What's happening in Zimbabwe right now is another. The Russian revolution, the rise of Unions in the US, examples are all over the place. And conservatives never seem to learn. Never.

For this world to work, there cannot be a large disparity between rich and poor, between the haves and have-nots. Period. The Truman (Democratic) sponsored Marshall Plan is an example of enlightened self-interest trying to get more folks involved.

Doesn't matter if you think Third-world folks should do what you do, and get off their asses, scrawny as theirs are because there is nothing to eat, get an education as schools which don't exist, and go to work for companies which don't have any business.

Since they don't, you sit conservatively by and tut-tut them, because they are lazy. And stupid.

(Some of you think you can do 'em a favor - kill a few and throw 'em some goodies. They're used to it.)

It's not charity, it's enlightened self-interest to have everyone in the world as involved as possible.

Or, you can follow the conservative philosophy, and greedily amass all the resources in the world, get some poor people involved to the extent of being your policemen and soldiers, and live in bunkers. And laugh at the people who are hungry, tired, beaten.

Compassion is good business, good for the haves, but it takes being able to look past the next buck to see that.

In the meantime, this is the only world we have. Just because we can afford the poisons to screw it up doesn't mean we have the right to buy and spew them.

Sorry, Charlie. The greed which drives conservativism isn't good for people, or the world. It's only ego-gratifying short-term for the unenlightened, who then feel sorry for themselves when hungry people look for food. And the worst kind of greed is that of oil interests.

Arf