a nuanced relationship with truth

obvious cognitive dissonance among fundies who as Conservatives tout the holiness of personal responsibility while assuming that we are helpless against our human sinner natures

the normative thought seems to be "these criteria define appropriate ways of being human -- reality need not apply."

When you judge a group by the most egregiously extreme of their members, of course you will judge that group poorly.

Fighting to survive, responding to threats with aggressive action, does not jump to wars of convenience or even necessarily war at all. Of course the living will violently DEFEND themselves from perceived attack, or kill for food. We think through enough to build weapons, strategize, create armies. We could, with a better will, use that energy to strategize for peace. Certainly, thinking,communicating beings can develop

more useful strategies for dispute negotiations. That is once we get over this silly notion that armed conflict is honorable, or inevitable.

Everyone can be as successful as they want, if they define success as the stretch they get from reaching for personal goals.

science is a creature of culture; we see what we have the vision to see
economic thought and therefore policy is too dependent on unproven 

theory

It can be argued that more equitable distribution of access to resources is both more democratic as the majority of people can vote with their dollars for the kinds of goods and services we want, and better for economic growth and the optimal functioning of market economy.

Nobody is getting free stuff. This idea is a shared illusion. Everyone is getting paid. Those who produce and sell the products, those who work and pay taxes, those who are paid to contribute economically as consumers while keeping their dysfunctions out of the workplace, are all being paid. No one is losing. It's a win/win/win.

Many of the people reviled with concerned that they get "free stuff" are working very hard; and not getting sufficient compensation to pay for basic needs. Others are seriously disabled, requiring major accommodations to be effective employees. Most employers prefer not to make such accommodations (quite understandably), so these people can not be employed. Government or private concerns could develop special training and projects to employ those who could work, but rarely do.Others, though not traditionally disabled have such chaotic lives (for any of many possible reasons) that they are unemployable.
Others will be employed and able to make their own contributions to the general revenue; but for right now that has not happened.
Yet, these people are all actively contributing to the overall economy while their lives are sorting out. Fewer people are actively sick and destitute on the streets, and thus not bringing down property values, causing problems for local businesses, presenting disincentives for people of means to shop or enjoy public space, or presenting even greater problems for health care and crime industries.

There appears to be a spell long cast upon the people to integrate into our basic understanding of the world this idea of market based economy as a given. Economics, money, even mathematics, are human constructs, ideas, not reality. When economic systems, ideas we have joined in promoting, do not well serve human enterprise and needs, the people ought not feel it is we who must adjust to serve the economy. Rather, it is those ideas that need adjustment to better fit our purpose.

However, as the logical progression of market thinking dictates, those who have benefited, who have bases of power that serve them well by their lights, want the rest to live and die in thrall to the system that these powerful command. A useful subterfuge is to convince the bulk of us that the system is not only inevitable, but in our best interest if only they will work hard enough and cast our doubts and blame into burning hatred for the designated losers.

At this time business and social enterprises of all kinds are going through revolutionary changes thus that business experience of the past into the present will be irrelevant to enterprises of even the near future.

Until we get somebody born in space, we are all tied to Earth.

when most of us are complacent, or too busy trying to tread water to notice much beyond our immediate sea, those with ugly axes needing grinding or with excellent profit projections on destruction are going to set the scene.

If they were listening, I would say:

figure it out

but first, think about your precepts

and, most importantly,

where you want to be

(not where you should; or where you could)

on the other side.

So envious of the unwanted? Quit your lousy job, too taxed, too overworked, too ignored.

Surely you deserve better those under. Enjoy your natural bounty, and all that our country offers.

Taxes? Ever it has been so in our culture. Jesus was born, so the story goes, when his mortal parents

were on the road to pay required tithes of their livelihoods. For the privilege of doing business, trading

our time and skills for pay, the top takes their cut. We pay our homage and percentage to our lord,

and hope his armies will protect us from invading hordes.

If you don’t like the system developed over eons for the benefit of those who have forced their way

to be in charge, create a better one. Then (here’s the trick) sell it to a majority; and make them care enough

to follow through.

Money will never be out of politics. It’s too attractive a game. The only way around that is to make money

irrelevant. The people would need to understand and agree on better leadership, better policies, that are

personally meaningful to them. They need to feel a real stake, real reason to believe it’s not all fixed

beyond their ability to make a difference. And, it’s got to be easy to begin.

take the time to feel the music and dance where no one is watching