Posted on 12/08/2010 4:19:34 AM PST by Kaslin
Excellent post
An old man once told me, "You can't take people out of poverty until you take poverty out of the people."
Sorta like, The fruit of my labor belongs to me. The fruit of my creations belong to me. What a novel idea. I like it.
Thanks for posting this. So simple, but so easily taken for granted - the importance of property rights. We do, indeed, need to be reminded of what our “grandpappy” knew.
Because we pay them for that!!!
First post I’ve read this morning and it has the potential to be the best of the day.
bttt
John 12:8 “The poor you will have with you always...”
In the USA poor means you can't afford both Direct TV AND Highspeed internet for the 3 TVs in you 2500 square ft. plus McMansion you are buying and late on the payments because you have two late model SUVs you are also trying to make payments on while paying for your unlimited texting plan on all the famiiy member's cell phones...
However the answer to your question is easy and my Grandpappy answered it many years ago when I asked him the same question:
"Poor people have poor ways..." ---Paul Henry Gettles
If Uncle Sticky Fingers can take all he wants, how can we have property rights?
I’ve said it before on this forum, and I’ll say it again now. In America, you stay poor by being lazy and by doing the same stupid things over and over again. Show up for work drunk and punch my boss? No problem.
bfl
De Soto’s is a simple premise. When living in a “culture of corruption” folks don’t see the point in expending effort towards obtaining resources that will simply be taken away from them.
His book should be on the must read shelf of every American. "The Mystery of Capital" is one of the economics books I read faithfully, once a year.
This guy doesn’t seen to understand something about history.
Yes, back when our country was founded and settled people actually owned their private property.
Today, no individual in the United States owns their own property.
Don’t think so? Just fail to pay your property taxes and you will find out who REALLY owns your property!
In this age we simply lease our property from the local government, the state and the federal government depending upon the local tax structure.
Many people forget that if you have “owned” your house for more than 30 years, the monthly bill for property taxes today far exceed the monthly payments you made for those 30 years. So......for 30 years you paid both the bank and state and now that it’s paid off to the bank, you will NEVER finish paying the state.
It applies to more than just skyscrapers and factories. It applies to stock markets, which only work because of deed-like paperwork that we trust because we have the rule of law.
What came to mind was when Obama took over GM and left the share holders high and dry, and handed the company to the union. He seized property and destroyed the rule of law in one fell swoop.
Good, thought-inspiring article. The very first duty of government is to recognize and protect every individual’s rights.
TC
Tell that to the GM investors...
I wonder if you even read the article. John Stossel is talking mainly about the poor in third world countries not about the poor here, who are not really poor
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