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Originally Posted by dksuddeth
oh no, he's only attacked groups opposing him, thrown out capitalist ventures, and is pursuing a 'benevolent' (I use that term very loosely)dictatorship.
at the risk of bringing the thread to a godwins end, I seem to recall that hitler was in the same position of ideals....at least until he reached that position of ultimate power.
Host, the day the voters realize that they can vote themselves money from the coffers of the wealthy, is the day that democracy dies. Chavez knows this and is exploiting it to full advantage over his 'people' in order to remain in power. <h3>Socialism fails because it destroys personal freedom in pursuit of an economic balance, or as you term it, wealth redistribution. This is nothing more than politically correct words for legalized theft by a government.</h3>
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...a comparison of the "numbers"...France vs. the US, and the CIA's own critique of the wealth distribution in the US, indicates a profound contradiction between what you believe, and what is happening in the economies of the social democracies in western Europe, vs. in the US today.
While the numbers and trends in the US... poverty rate, income/wealth distribution, declining fixed investment rates, trade deficit, indicate a direction towards crisis.....
....France seems stable economically, with numbers in the four categories described above, that the US could only hope to achieve....some day.....
...and the unemployed in France are buoyed by a social "safety net" that is the envy of the working poor in the US.
The US political/economic "model" seems to have failed 80 percent of the population, by the CIA report's own admission, and this is backed by the numbers. What do you offer to support the last part of your post?
https://www.cia.gov/library/publicat...s/fr.html#Econ
.....France's leaders remain committed to a capitalism in which they maintain social equity by means of laws, tax policies, and social spending that reduce income disparity and the impact of free markets on public health and welfare. The government in 2006 focused on introducing measures that attempt to boost employment through increased labor market flexibility; however, the population has remained opposed to labor reforms, hampering the government's ability to revitalize the economy. The tax burden remains one of the highest in Europe (nearly 50% of GDP in 2005). The lingering economic slowdown and inflexible budget items probably pushed the budget deficit above the eurozone's 3%-of-GDP limit in 2006; unemployment hovers near 9%. With at least 75 million foreign tourists per year, France is the most visited country in the world and maintains the third largest income in the world from tourism.....
https://www.cia.gov/library/publicat...s/us.html#Econ
.....The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development of a "two-tier labor market" in which those at the bottom lack the education and the professional/technical skills of those at the top and, more and more, <h3>fail to get comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households.....</h3>
...US business firms enjoy greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products.....
....Long-term problems include <h3>inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade and budget deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups.</h3> The merchandise trade deficit reached a record $750 billion in 2006.
Unemployment rate:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= 8.7% (December 2006 est.) US= 4.8%
Population below poverty line:
Definition Field Listing
France= 6.2% (2004) US= 12%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Definition Field Listing
France= lowest 10%: 3% US= 1.8%
France= highest 10%: 24.8% (2004) US= 30.5% (1997)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
Definition Field Listing
France= 26.7 (2002) US= 45
Investment (gross fixed):
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= 20% of GDP (2006 est.) US= 16.6%
Public debt:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= 64.7% of GDP (2006 est.) US= 64.7%
Imports:
France= $529.1 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) US= $1.869 trillion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Current account
balance:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= -$38 billion (2006 est.) US= -$862.3 billion (2006 est.)
Exports:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= $490 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) US= $1.024 trillion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= $98.54 billion (2006 est.) US= $69.19 billion (August 2006 est.)
Debt - external:
Definition Field Listing Rank Order
France= $3.461 trillion (30 June 2006) US= $10.04 trillion (30 June 2006 est.)