via Alyssa Ahlgren
Posted on 04/18/2019 1:20:57 PM PDT by Bratch
My generation is becoming the largest voting bloc in the country. We have an opportunity to continue to propel us forward with the gifts capitalism and democracy has given us. The other option is that we can fall into the trap of entitlement and relapse into restrictive socialist destitution. The choice doesn’t seem too hard, does it?
via Alyssa Ahlgren
I’m sitting in a small coffee shop near Nokomis trying to think of what to write about. I scroll through my newsfeed on my phone looking at the latest headlines of Democratic candidates calling for policies to “fix” the so-called injustices of capitalism. I put my phone down and continue to look around. I see people talking freely, working on their MacBook’s, ordering food they get in an instant, seeing cars go by outside, and it dawned on me. We live in the most privileged time in the most prosperous nation and we’ve become completely blind to it. Vehicles, food, technology, freedom to associate with whom we choose. These things are so ingrained in our American way of life we don’t give them a second thought. We are so well off here in the United States that our poverty line begins 31 times above the global average. Thirty. One. Times. Virtually no one in the United States is considered poor by global standards. Yet, in a time where we can order a product off Amazon with one click and have it at our doorstep the next day, we are unappreciative, unsatisfied, and ungrateful.
Our unappreciation is evident as the popularity of socialist policies among my generation continues to grow. Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently said to Newsweek talking about the millennial generation, “An entire generation, which is now becoming one of the largest electorates in America, came of age and never saw American prosperity.”
Never saw American prosperity. Let that sink in. When I first read that statement, I thought to myself, that was quite literally the most entitled and factually illiterate thing I’ve ever heard in my 26 years on this earth. Now, I’m not attributing Miss Ocasio-Cortez’s words to outright dishonesty. I do think she whole-heartedly believes the words she said to be true. Many young people agree with her, which is entirely misguided. My generation is being indoctrinated by a mainstream narrative to actually believe we have never seen prosperity. I know this first hand, I went to college, let’s just say I didn’t have the popular opinion, but I digress.
Let me lay down some universal truths really quick. The United States of America has lifted more people out of abject poverty, spread more freedom and democracy, and has created more innovation in technology and medicine than any other nation in human history. Not only that but our citizenry continually breaks world records with charitable donations, the rags to riches story is not only possible in America but not uncommon, we have the strongest purchasing power on earth, and we encompass 25% of the world’s GDP. The list goes on. However, these universal truths don’t matter. We are told that income inequality is an existential crisis (even though this is not an indicator of prosperity, some of the poorest countries in the world have low-income inequality), we are told that we are oppressed by capitalism (even though it’s brought about more freedom and wealth to the most people than any other system in world history), we are told that the only way we will acquire the benefits of true prosperity is through socialism and centralization of federal power (even though history has proven time and again this only brings tyranny and suffering).
Why then, with all of the overwhelming evidence around us, evidence that I can even see sitting at a coffee shop, do we not view this as prosperity? We have people who are dying to get into our country. People around the world destitute and truly impoverished. Yet, we have a young generation convinced they’ve never seen prosperity, and as a result, elect politicians dead set on taking steps towards abolishing capitalism. Why? The answer is this, my generation has ONLY seen prosperity. We have no contrast. We didn’t live in the great depression, or live through two world wars, or see the rise and fall of socialism and communism. We don’t know what it’s like not to live without the internet, without cars, without smartphones. We don’t have a lack of prosperity problem. We have an entitlement problem, an ungratefulness problem, and it’s spreading like a plague.
With the current political climate giving rise to the misguided idea of a socialist utopia, will we see the light? Or will we have to lose it all to realize that what we have now is true prosperity? Destroying the free market will undo what millions of people have died to achieve.
My generation is becoming the largest voting bloc in the country. We have an opportunity to continue to propel us forward with the gifts capitalism and democracy has given us. The other option is that we can fall into the trap of entitlement and relapse into restrictive socialist destitution. The choice doesn’t seem too hard, does it?
***
awesome
Rush read this on his show today. There is a lot of reason to have hope.
...and no ring on her finger.
I wanna buy her father a beer.
I have a nephew about her age studying to be a doctor...I wonder if I can set them up on a date?
bkmk
This coffee shop is in MN CD-5, Ilhan Omar’s district.
Wisdom beyond her years.
Although she makes the common mistake of confusing democracy with republicanism.
Jeez, do you hate your nephew?
Bright young person. She proves that MN has the highest SAT scores.
“We encompass 25% of the world’s GDP. The list goes on.” Sure does. The list goes on and on and on.
Sad how all the good news in the work and the good news about the next world is blocked by selfish leaders and selfish media. Young people have tons of hope and yes, they need guidance.
She’s right, of course.
But she overlooks one thing, same as her parents.
The productive kids are still too busy getting a real education, working, being productive & paying taxes.
They simply dont have the unlimited time to organize, socialize, communalize & protest that the underemployed malcontents have.
Conservatives, by their nature, are self reliant, family oriented, & individualistic. Live & let live.
Lefties are 1st & foremost determined to destroy the nuclear family & replace it with the Commune. Which is why they’re all about organizing of every. damn. thing.
If we are going to successfully fight these people, we MUST learn to organize & mobilize.
I love my nephew, however, he does have some slightly leftest tendencies. I believe this young lady might be able to set him straight. She is grateful for and appreciates all that our capitalistic system has accomplished. That’s a plus in my book.
BTW...I know you comment was “just joshin” among friends, it make me smile when I read it.
Brit Hume linked to it on Twitter this morning.
;)
Boom!
No, my son!
He’s working on a Ph.D. and his new girlfriend cats are named Barack and Fidel!!!!!(and she’s from Poland. You would think she would know better!)
... and in over ten hours, the article gets sixteen comments. Is FR overrun with jaded couch potatoes who can only be aroused by cat pictures?
Naw, I like dogs. :)
There’s a red flag there, if you meet a lady, who has cats with such names.............. Hightail it out of there I would...........
Good luck my friend.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.