You know damn well I was not singling you out, that I was on a general rant.

It was cathartic to speak my mind, Robert…NOT my intention for you to feel like I personally attacked you. Oh good lord…never my intention.

Think hard before you reply. If general comments about “the left” are now considered personal attacks on liberals on this board, comments on “the right” must be considered personal attacks on conservatives on this board. As I said before, I can easily do a tally over the past couple of months.

I’m not your punching bag, Jody. I suggest you find a healthier way to work out your problems, one that doesn’t involve trying to transfer the pain to others.

As for the future I believe that in a hundred years or less there will be almost zero difference in our society and the Chinese society. There will be a Sino-American hegemony and a Eurasian-African hegemony competing in a World economy.

The Euros will be socialist leaning with a highly planned economy and the Sino-Americans will be a pragmatic system that resembles a corporate conglomerate. A multi-level society with ample upward mobility and a large content working class.

All this assuming there is no global disaster that sets us back a few hundred years.

I am not. It feels strangely cathartic.

I do not mind saluting the flag, or saying the Pledge of Allegiance, or singing the Star-Spangled Banner. But I really resent being instructed to do so by some holier-than-thou patriotic humbug. My philosophical and ideological convictions are secure, I do not need to go to strangers and have them reinforced on a daily basis.

Tom, you provoke these fights and then get pissed off because we have the audacity to respond. What do you expect us to do? Kowtow to your righteous wrath? Cringe before your political and philosophical certitude? Melt in astonishment and fear when faced with your ideological purity? It’s impossible to disagree with you in any detail because you will only accept total capitulation and political correctness in these matters. You can’t debate the finer points of theology with a Southern Baptist. They already consult with God on a daily basis. So I have learned that discussion is pointless, only ridicule serves any purpose.

I really don’t mind living in a capitalist country, in fact I actually prefer it. But I do mind being lectured and scolded for not being sufficiently reverent and humble about it, and failing to tug my forelock and knuckle my forehead every time I am prompted to do so.

As long as you insist on using this forum as your personal private dojo to hone your martial arts skills against the world socialist conspiracy, you’re going to find nothing but the derision and contempt you deserve.

Where do you get off telling me what I should or shouldn’t believe about how markets should be organized so they meet your rigid specifications? Don’t you see, it really doesn’t matter. And I’ll clue you in on another little secret: I really do not give a shit.

We now return you to your original programming.

People are learning who the thugs are.

You know damn well the author was not talking about dependents. Or successful investors.