Posts Tagged ‘“William Thien”’
Why socialists and Democratic/Republican/Uniparty Socialists try to tell you how to live your personal life all the time
Posted by: William Thien on: December 27, 2023
He/she who does nothing does no wrong. They do no wrong because they do nothing. And that’s what many socialists do, nothing, aside from receiving some form of tax payer funded subsidy.
By the same token, he/she who does less will do less wrong. They do less wrong because they do less and make up for it with some form of government subsidy. Because they do less, they do less wrong.
It is a sort of mathematical/political conundrum I have been considering for some time. You are statistically less likely to do wrong if you do nothing at all and socialists have us all cornered in that regard.
Of course not all socialists “do nothing” or do less even, but unless you are independently wealthy, the only way to get away with doing nothing and survive in America is to be a socialist.
Yet, if you are an active person, if you have served in the military, if you write books, if you like to travel, if you have your own business, whatever, the aforementioned socialist classes, those who do nothing and those who do less, will almost always have something to say about how you are living your life. Yet they have done little or nothing with theirs. Most have accomplished nothing.
By doing less, by being socialist, for example, socialists are in a particularly advantageous position to act like they are superior to the rest of us because since they don’t do anything, they do less wrong and they tax us at the same time.
In order for socialists to justify what are today significant levels of taxation, they have to point to the public’s shortcomings. It is taxation through guilt. They all know what they are doing at the top of the socialist pyramid. The media is in on it, too.
That is why socialists are always telling you how to live your life.
Copyright © 2023 William Thien
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An observation on cross party infiltration
Posted by: William Thien on: July 26, 2023
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve listened to a candidate and said to myself, ‘geez, he or she sounds just like a candidate from the other major party.’
It is the reason you often hear pundits comment that the two parties are not all that much different, “ideologically.”
Were I approaching the matter from an analytical perspective, perhaps say working for our The State Department and examining candidates in an election overseas, in order to understand how to approach a regime for example, I would conclude that one party has installed fake candidates in the other party to throw the election in their favor.
I think that is happening today and to support my position, I bring up the political career of Ronald Reagan. Prior to joining The Republican Party, Ronald Reagan was a Democrat. “Whaaaaat,” you ask? “No,” you say.
Yep.
Reagan was also head of the largest union in Hollywood, The Screen Actors Guild, and he was considered a devout liberal. Now, I don’t confuse the work of unions with socialism. They are not the same. Though many socialists find refuge in union ideology, unions are not by definition “socialist.” Socialism involves a redistribution of wealth at the state level using tax payer dollars. Unions are aggregates of employees with common interests. There is a significant structural difference in the two. Though conservatives often say they are one and the same. They are not.
So I ask, how is it that a Democrat can completely change his political composition, his philosophical presence and shape so easily, and win the presidency after migrating from one party to another?
In Reagan’s day such political maneuvers were pretty much done on the up and up. Today, I wonder.
The key will be to determine the origin of their belief system, aside from the size of their donor base and campaign spend. Money is huge in politics. Without it, there is only one other option to win an election.
Copyright © William Thien 2023
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An observation on a meeting with some Third Party Conservasocialists
Posted by: William Thien on: August 6, 2021
Not finding refuge from excessive taxes or restrictive laws that clearly penalize the single tax payer making him or her a “tax surrogate,” I attended a gathering of members of a third party political organization the other night at a local eatery. It was a small group, though it was only I and another person who spoke almost the entire time.
What I discovered is that even these members of a third party are rather ignorant of the very things of which they seek refuge and when I explained that my circumstances were far worse with regard to taxation, they became defensive of the benefits they receive from what is clearly an unfair tax code.
To me this indicated the lack of empathy of at least some of them and this to me also indicated that no refuge from the tax code could be found by falling in with the political party of which I speak of here.
Furthermore, there is some cross-party ideological pollination which contaminates their very political platform.
Case in point: when I brought up the fact that someone with a number of children clearly benefits more from the tax code in comparison to a single “tax surrogate” such as me, one person in particular became very defensive of the large stimulus check they received.
When I said if any stimulus is provided, it should merely be based on one payment per tax payer and children and those not paying taxes should not receive any stimulus, the response was “well maybe you don’t know what it is like to “feel the pinch” of having to pay for a family”, or something quite nearly that.
I thought this was funny for reasons beyond your immediate interest in the matter, but what was clear to me is that this person, who claimed to be a “conservative,” and who has in fact run in an election posing as one in the Republican Party, suddenly was defending socialism, the hefty stimulus check he received, and was willing to even suggest I was being callous about the system of taxation that from which he benefits rather thoroughly as a father and a family man and I do not as a single tax payer with no children. The implication was that fatherhood, or motherhood for that matter, should be taxed at a different rate than individuality.
I will not reveal the name of the third party to you but in the two times I have met with them I am disappointed at the true element that runs within them and to me it seems they are merely shills for The Republican Party with such evidence being that one of the attendees of the gathering was in fact a Republican in the recent past (2020) and began a campaign as one and had no idea what even the most obvious characteristics of socialism are, with socialism supposedly a political system that all Republicans abhor. Yet, here we see direct evidence to the contrary.
Driving home I concluded that this is the case in most circumstances. Such definitions as that of socialism are not discussed in schools with any thoroughness because in many schools today socialism is the method of operation. Furthermore, parents receive tax breaks for their children and each cost the tax payer $15,000 or more to educate, and feed, yet those with no children receive no tax break and use no such expensive services. Single tax payers are “tax surrogates.”
When I brought up the subject of a “flat tax,” that subject too was frightening to the so-called conservatives as in such a tax there is no refuge from the common burden of taxation. The so-called conservatives not only thought it was right and proper to receive the stimulus checks but also thought they should escape all taxation. I began to wonder if I was chatting with political charlatans (politicians of a rather common type) or merely ignoramuses who were unable to understand the true nature of their actions. For their benefit I shall conclude it was the latter so as not to charge them with something for which the only available evidence is their inability to make the distinction between conservatism and socialism, an intellectual distinction I doubt many in this country could even make.
Secretly I gave some of them who spoke that night a name: Conservasocialists.
I left disappointed and determined to continue my search.
Copyright © William Thien 2021
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Why did Canada legalize marijuana so much sooner than The United States?
Posted by: William Thien on: July 30, 2019
Many believe that Canada legalized marijuana much sooner than The United States because Canada has a “more liberal” government.
Perhaps.
But I believe Canada legalized marijuana because Canada has a socialized system of medicine and marijuana is much better than alcohol or pills if you want your population to remain healthy and to keep the costs of the socialized medical system under control.
You can still get alcohol and have pain pills prescribed in Canada but usage of pain pills is down in Canada and they do not have the problem with opioid related deaths that we have here in The United States. I wonder why? Hmmn. Let me think. Hmmn.
We have socialized medicine here in The United States as well. It is called Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security has a medical component to it as well. If we want to control the astronomical costs of those systems, one way would be to legalize marijuana here, too.
Copyright © William Thien 2019
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One of the primary focuses of my writing at this venue is how the tax code affects me as an individual and I for one as an individual who owns no property or that has no dependent write-offs am waiting to hear about the new tax plan.
During the campaign promises of increases in deductions were made to families with dependents and to property owners as well but little if anything was mentioned about single tax payers with no dependents or property, what I have called “the indentures” to the US tax code.
Even if the only change for single tax payers is a decrease in the tax rate, I will find that quite satisfying as someone making the same as I do and that has dependents or that owns their home receives a substantial tax refund compared to my taxes and pays less throughout the year as well on their paychecks. The government has in effect given them a raise, a raise with my tax dollars.
As I’ve stated before I do not begrudge the other tax payers. They should take the tax write-offs. I would do the same. But that is blatantly unfair tax policy and if the tax code should be one thing and one thing only, the tax code should be fair.
Copyright © William Thien 2017
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Why is the media so anti-Trump?
Posted by: William Thien on: January 23, 2017
The last couple of days there have been numerous articles at online news sites and in the mainstream television news talking about The Trump administration’s belief that they are being treated unfairly by the media. After reading the news online and watching the television news this morning I would have to agree. But why are the media treating Trump so unfairly.
Is it because the media had hoped that Hillary Clinton had won the presidency? No, I believe the media could care less if Clinton had won.
Are the media treating Trump unfairly because women are upset Clinton lost the election? Doubtful. Though the media like all of the hullabaloo and the marching going on because it makes for an interesting story, that’s not why the media are treating Trump unfairly.
Is it because the mainstream media is liberal? Perhaps, but that plays only a marginal part in this matter.
Then why, why treat The Trump administration differently than other administrations?
It is quite simple. All of the other candidates spent hundreds of millions of dollars on campaign advertising while Trump on the other hand won the presidency using a free social media account on Twitter.
Trump spent a small fraction of money on advertising dollars compared to all of his Republican rivals during the primary and then a relatively small fraction of advertising dollars defeating Hillary. The media makes money selling advertising space. Trump bought hardly any media time in comparison to his rivals and now the media feels it must make an example of Trump.
Instead of spending all of his money on campaign advertising, Trump had the media reporting about his use of a free social media account. The media spent half of its time trying to suggest that Trump’s tweets were inappropriate. Why? Because the media realized that Trump’s free Twitter account represents incredible competition to their own system of message control. The media want to control the message and it is through control of the message that they can force you to buy airtime to run your campaign ads.
The media are treating The Trump administration unfairly because they have lost control of the message. There is a new kid in town in mediaville and it is social media.
In treating The Trump administration unfairly the traditional media are committing a great disservice to the public by not allowing The Trump administration the same latitude provided to other administrations.
Keep that in mind when you switch on the television next time.
Copyright © William Thien 2017
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A Follow Up Observation on Illegal Immigration from 2013
Posted by: William Thien on: December 20, 2016
In 2013 I published this observation on illegal immigration and what can be done about it. It is interesting to see how things have transpired since. Instead of opting for one of my suggestions, that of a North American Union, something similar to a European Union with NAFTA as the economic framework, the country is proceeding towards the other option, an emplacement of what amounts to a fortification. I don’t want to say I predicted the recent events, but…
from June 1, 2013
A co-worker of mine asked me rather indirectly to address the matter of illegal immigration in the United States. I’ve been putting it off.
So I’ll get right to the point. We only have two choices really. Either seal off the border and do it right…or we will have to implement a European Union type solution.
Already with NAFTA (North American Free Tree Agreement) we are trading amongst North American countries for all practical purposes tariff free. Because of NAFTA, which of course devastated the job market in The United States, the framework is already there for a North American Union of some type. Our industry profits from the close proximity of foreign countries but the citizenry pays thoroughly in the form of taxes for benefits obtained by illegal immigrants while industry covers none of those costs, AND at the same time our citizenry endures loss of employment as jobs leave for both our southern and northern borders yet the citizen still pays in the form of taxes for the benefits obtained by illegals. Again, industry gets off scott-free.
Let me say right now I see no reason why industry should benefit from such an arrangement while the citizenry should suffer so drastically, not only in terms of high taxes to cover the cost of benefits for illegals or a loss of jobs, adding also the massive cost to man the border.
Therefor I believe there are really only two solutions. Either seal off the border completely, do it right, and leave it at that. Or, create a North American multi-country government much like The European Union. Perhaps all of the countries who are governed or chartered within NAFTA could be members of The North American Union. The one sticking point with that is that the dollar is worth so much more than all of the other currencies and backs so much more in terms of value, capital, and liquidity, that in order to have a North American Union, you would have to have a North American currency. You could call it “The Americana” instead of the dollar, or something to that effect. But I don’t know if that is advisable.
England joined the EU but kept its currency, which has turned out to be a wise choice as it has not seen such a devaluation as the Euro nor has it suffered continual, repeated and spasmodic economic crises.
So there you have it. That’s the way I see it. To date estimates to man the border range from $100 Billion dollars to $250 Billion dollars. In 2011 the average annual salary of a Customs and Border Patrol Officer was $75,000. In 2012 there were an estimated 21,394 agents. They of course have support teams and there are most certainly office staff to perhaps a larger extent. Just the cost of manning the border with little or no effect is tremendous. The logistical costs must be incredible. I could find no information as to that expense. So, not only is the issue one of taxation to pay for the benefits of illegal immigrants and the loss of jobs due to NAFTA, there is a tremendous cost to man the border.
We really only have two choices. To leave the matter without a solution much longer would of course be typical of Washington.
Without a solution our southern border is just a sieve for terrorism, illicit trafficking, and a wound bleeding tax dollars to the south. So, a North American Union type solution would mean no more costs to maintain a so-called “secure border.”
Of course there is one other solution which I believe is not advisable at this time. You can guess what that is and we will just leave it at that.
More on why I believe the country has chosen to proceed with the construction of a wall rather than with the idea of a North American Union later.
Copyright © William Thien 2013, 2016
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What’s Next for Conservatives?
Posted by: William Thien on: December 6, 2016
Personally I don’t believe the incoming administration is going to be as conservative as the media and all of the left wingers would have the country believe.
Already the Washington elite have begun hacking away at Trump’s campaign positions. A softening of just about every position he had during the campaign, that which put him where he is in the first place, appears inevitable. He will be made to realize that his ideas were (as in past tense), “a bit too much.”
Trump’s Tweets have even become less terse, more diplomatic. Though less profound in Trump’s case, it is clear that what everyone feared would happen is in fact happening. President-elect Trump is being brought into the political fold he fought so valiantly against during the campaign.
I think instead it is quite possible that you will see a great deal of the real legislative and perhaps “physical” activism rise out of the House and Senate, both populated by a majority of Republicans after the election, something nobody predicted, also.
Yet the massive political shifting doesn’t stop at the federal level. Well over 40 states now have elected Republican governors and Republican majorities in the house and senate.
So what’s next for conservatives?
Opportunity. Opportunity like conservatives have never seen before at the national level to the local.
Though I don’t entirely equate conservatism with Republicanism directly, and I’ve written to that effect before, if there ever were a time for conservatives to activate and incentivize the elected in their favor, now is that time. There is in fact no time to waste.
With Clinton winning the popular vote during this election, there may not be another ‘what’s next for conservatives?” like this one, for some time or even ever.
All those estimated millions of people who said they were going to leave the country if Trump were elected are still here. I don’t see a massive exodus happening anywhere, do you?
Copyright © William Thien 2016
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This is a reprint from 2015. I’m just reprinting it because I think it has a certain contemporary significance to it.
Last year one of my favorite sports personalities came clean about his use of “performance enhancing drugs.” It was a big deal in the media.
To me what was really disturbing about the episode, though, was not so much that he used steroids, or whatever he was using, but that almost immediately a regional convenience store and gasoline chain dropped its endorsement of the guy.
At first I suppose you could say, “Well, I guess he had it coming to him.”
But at the time the price of gasoline was well over $3 a gallon, closer to $4 a gallon, and it had remained at that level for several years.
It occurred to me that the convenience store chain’s move to drop their endorsement of the guy was a bit hypocritical.
Here they were raising the price of gasoline when someone sneezed in a foreign country or when the weather changed one way or the other (they used both as excuses), or when there was a tropical storm in some other part of the world, or when one single fuel truck somewhere ran off the road, or when some politician was caught for infidelity, or when some little war somewhere flared up, or when the seasons changed, or when there was a holiday and people were traveling, or when global warming was announced, then climate change, then it was determined that global warming might not happen, then only when climate change happened some times, then when baby boomers started retiring, when some volcano somewhere fired up, when it flooded somewhere, when there was a drought, when it snowed, when it rained, when the sun was shining, on cloudy days, when birds started migrating, when the birds returned, and the list goes on and on.
Here and everywhere else the gasoline station/convenience store chain was giving it pretty thoroughly to everyone up the you know what along with all of the others who sell gasoline and totally mucking up the economy, eating up everyone’s discretionary income, and THEY, yes THEY were dropping the endorsement of some guy who used performance enhancing drugs so he looked a little better on the field.
I tell you what!
Why don’t they take the ethanol out of my gasoline because that definitely doesn’t enhance the performance of my car and it is driving up the cost of food, too. Why don’t they stop adding water to the gasoline? That would help, particularly at this time of year. And take all of those varnish type solutions out of the gasoline so I can store it for a couple of years like I used to be able to do. If you ask me, America’s fuel supply could use some “performance enhancements” itself, particularly now that the price of gasoline though down recently is going right back up.
Needless to stay I stopped buying my gasoline from that convenience store chain.
Copyright © William Thien 2015, 2016.
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William Thien 
A very brief observation about the country’s very long and arduous path to socialism
Posted by: William Thien on: December 21, 2023
I thought all of the social programs and all of the additional taxation to pay for them was supposed to end the epidemic of homelessness, the tent cities, and the hunger in America that we are seeing in the news today, particularly in the larger cities all across the country. Instead, all of the socialism and extra taxation to pay for the social programs seems only to have amplified the human condition it was meant to solve.
With the way our government continues to tax us, though, I am sure we will continue to do things over and over the same way while expecting a different result.
Copyright © 2023 William Thien
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