Yes, and we must be free to make mistakes in order to learn from them.

Fred, I don't know what to make of your reply because it is filled with a conclusion without an argument.  How do you know what I am involved in?  What is the "arrangement of an imperialistic exploiters mob"?  You and I may agree that a "respectable situation" would be ideal — but without defining what that is, it is just a subjective generality, commonly spoken by 'imperialistic exploiters' to gain support without actually explaining what it means. 

I totally agree to the notion of an honest day's pay for an honest day's work — as agreed by both parties.  Let those that agree or not determine if the work is dignified.

There are just too many subjective generalizations in your posts, and not enough real substance or clear argument to have an intelligent conversation with you.  You spout platitudes — this is not conversation. 

Treat people the way you'd like to be treated.  No one wants to be preached to.  Make your argument clearly without projecting upon others your opinions as fact, please.  That will go a long way to being understood.  Be prepared for a dialogue of alternate perspectives.  If the intent is to find common ground, I believe we will find it.  If the intent is just to preach and judge others, treat them as mentally disturbed, children, etc. while ignoring your own childish and illogical rants, then you are just flapping your gums trying to sound intelligent.

I'm sure you have some insight in there somewhere, it's just hard to recognize amidst such posturing.  Sometimes less is more...

Whenever I hear the phrase "our democracy" I cringe.  It is a fallacious description of American government.  Freedom to read and freedom to publish does not necessarily promote freedom.  Lies, misdirection, opinions stated as facts, banned books all play a part in the "programming" of a people.  Be discerning with the programming offered you — it is no accident.

Good luck with ALL that...

I would say the same for Christians — the seven deadly sins come to mind.

And "think" not "thing" ... ;-)

Mike, I don't think 'THE Socialist' is ever going to get it, nor does he want to.  He's merely the devil's advocate — it's the only reason he is here.  Never rates a quote, never agrees with classic philosophers or founding fathers — calls them delusional.  I used to feel sorry for him, even tried to engage with him in simple terms, but he defends his delusion with words he has no idea of the meaning.  Most likely he is posting from a mental institution living off government subsidy — he so often has to tell us what mentally ill is that he must be closely associated with psychologists and mental health practitioners daily.  He doesn't even call himself a socialist, he calls himself "THE" socialist and that no one has ever known his version of socialism (including himself, I would wager).  Yet everything he professes is straight-up authoritarian, progressive liberal hypocrisy.

I don't know who is more insane, Fred or you and I for even trying to navigate his mental mine field. ;-)

Ingersoll was a brilliant orator who could speak extemporaneously for hours in the days when those that mastered rhetoric ruled.  Would that we had such today.

You are confusing Freedom with Power, Fred (as most atheistic socialists do...)

Good grief, now Samuel Adams is delusional?  I suppose the rest of the Continental Congress, too?  You truly are a socialist, Fred, an ungrateful, petty, ignorant, arrogant and foolish socialist.

Talk about mentally ill...

Because the game is rigged, Joe.  It has been for a long time.  Either the people will wake up and rise up, or more debt and oppression will be laid upon us.

"Name one depressed and cowardly Socialist you've met."  All of them, Fred, and quite frankly, your ranting inspires little.  You place yourself above us all, have expressed that we deserve only the freedom we have "earned" by your own measure.  Your comments express arrogance, ingratitude, cowardice, envy, blame, conceit and never fail to mock those who are your total and complete opposite.  You, sir, are a hypocrite of the highest order.  Your narcissism stinks to high-heaven — all the signs of a depressed and cowardly individual.

"I am simply trying to express that the laws of humanity entail any appropriate distinguishing behavior that promotes the health and longevity of the human species designation."  Huh?  If that is a simple expression, I'd hate to see a complex one...

Can you speak plain English, please.  Your response is nothing but "I feel" followed by unintelligible generalities.  If you are looking for "agreement," you are going to have to be specific.  Stop generalizing and speaking in tongues.  Use a vocabulary that the rest of us are familiar with — I frankly don't understand a word.

Do you realize you are saying nothing?  Is this really Kamala Harris?

It is truly a travesty that this is what the common people have been led to believe — that the bank is loaning out a portion of deposits of its customers.  A damnable lie!  That is what banks USED to do when they held gold and silver in their vaults that their customers deposited, but true no more.

Once a hard currency is no longer used for commerce and a 'fiat' currency is used in its place, the bank becomes the creator of the currency rather than a store house of real hard assets.  Fiat currency or 'paper money' (and soon to come, digital currency) is created when it is 'loaned' — otherwise referred to as 'credit' i.e., an IOU.  Every dollar in your bank account is an IOU that someone somewhere has 'borrowed' and is paying interest on.  When a 'loan' or the 'credit' is paid back (with more credits, mind you), that 'money' is taken out of circulation.  That's how we get booms and busts — too much money in circulation creates a boom that later busts when the borrowed currency is paid back.

Just a few years ago, interest was so low it was practically 0% interest being charged, so that trillions of dollars could be pumped into circulation — remember QE1, 2, 3, 4, etc.?  Quantitative easing is just a fancy word for printing money at interest, which the government puts on its books.  Currently the annual interest payments due on all the money that has been printed up over the last 5 presidents is more than we spend on defense, health care, social security combined.  Plus the massive inflation that soon follows devalues the currency even further because there is more money chasing fewer goods.  The only way to bring prices down is to reduce the money supply — i.e., reduce the deficit.  

But since all the money in circulation has been borrowed, if we reduce the deficit too much, there aren't enough 'tokens' to trade with and then people and companies default on the debts and their very real property used as collateral is taken.  The end result is that the banks end up owning everything and then sell it back to us or rent it back — either way, they profit off the issuance of money they never had — it was created out of thin air.

Taxes are needed only to keep the poor and the middle classes from rising up, keeping them in perpetual servitude to the process while their 'owners' are laughing their way to the bank.  The government works for the central banks that issue them all this money — should any of them expose the scam, they will be vilified, cast out, or murdered.  Every presidential assassination is connected to the preservation of this system.

If the father of all lies is 'Satan' then we can safely conclude that the governments of this world have become Satanic, and it is not hard to see as we learn of even more horrendous crimes against humanity committed by those who promote and protect the lies.  God help us all!

Classic!

Nearly 15 years later we see that the Socialists have the most billionaires, are the primary neo-cons behind government coups worldwide, are the benefactors of corporatism and further authoritarian control of the people — i.e., FASCISM.  Never forget that the NAZI's were socialists by every definition of the word, they were just not communistic.  "Liberals" no more.  The right vs left paradigm is a fallacy as both are forms of collectivism.  It is top vs bottom, Liberty vs authoritarianism of all stripes. 

OK, I'll bite, what are the "laws of humanity"?  Please be specific and provide a source other than your arbitrary opinion.  Don't you mean the "laws of nature"?

In other words, without Liberty, what's the point?  We should not be beholden to any government that does not protect the liberty of its people as PARAMOUNT.

I was recently reminded that most Americans were home-schooled a century or two ago.  Government education is primarily a socialist endeavor.  The brilliance of the founders (like Jefferson, Washington, Adams, etc.) has not been seen in America's government representatives in ages — and all they really had were books and simple tools that could be home-made.  My guess is that they had great mothers to guide them!

That's a shame...  Come to think of it, I have never met a happy and courageous socialist.  Depressed and cowardly mostly, as well as  ungrateful, arrogant, envious, mocking, blameful, conceited, 'superior' ... It's no wonder they do not value freedom; they want POWER.

There is no freedom without taking responsibility, that's why most men dread it.  Compelled compliance is not responsibility but servitude "for your own good."  Taking responsibility is good, as long as you are not usurping another's responsibility.

Mencken clarifies that liberty "in the field of government" is the invention he refers to.  Unlike the others in which people are 'governed' by those claiming superiority.  As far as I know, a republican form of government is the only form that respects the liberty of the people, specifically individuals, rather than the power of ruling classes.

Indeed!  The Golden Rule is golden for a reason!