Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

homestead - [Homestead] Fw: Atlas Shrugged - Fiction to fact in 52 years

homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Homestead mailing list

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Wendy" <crazygardens AT verizon.net>
  • To: <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [Homestead] Fw: Atlas Shrugged - Fiction to fact in 52 years
  • Date: Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:08:38 -0500

This went to Bob personally and I meant it to go to the list.
Wendy
----- Original Message ----- From: "Wendy" <crazygardens AT verizon.net>
To: <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2009 5:11 PM
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Atlas Shrugged - Fiction to fact in 52 years


Thank you. President Reagan was clueless on a lot of things. He was personally responsible for the demise of the electronics industry in America. I'll explain. It is all because of apples. Not Apple computers, but the fruit. I saw this in his press release speech when it happened and yelled at the TV, "OH NO! You stupid ASS!" Japan was concerned about their traditional apple farmers. Japanese apple farmers take great pains to ensure that their apples are perfect. It is one of those traditional, ritual-like things. As a result, apples are very expensive and considered a special treat. The Japanese Prime Minister (can't remember his name right now) was concerned that because of the influx of cheap American apples, the traditional Japanese apple farmers would be forced out and they would see the end of something that is revered as part of traditional Japanese culture. Reagan offered to limit the export of apples to Japan if the Japanese would offer to limit the export of something to our country. The Japanese Prime Minister offered to limit the export of microcircuits to America. Reagan excepted and was all proud of himself for negotiating a trade treaty all by himself. ASS! Let me explain. As most of us are aware, the Japanese people love their high-tech gadgetry and have been the driving force for just about all of it from cameras, to cell phones, to HDTV, to well, you get the drift. Almost all of the revolutionary advancements in telecommunications (especially since Reagan also broke up Bell Telephone and put an end to Bell Labs, America's think tank for telecommunication technology and research) have been funded by the Japanese government. The fruits of their research was offered freely to anyone in the world who could put it to use. Like I said, the Japanese people love their gadgets and they don't care who makes it. And the more people who like to tinker, the faster technology advances. Reagan's little apples for microcircuits trade effectively put an end to our ability to play in that game. In the early '90s, while working at NASA, I tried to procure some CCD camera arrays from a Japanese company and could not even receive documentation on them because I had a USA address. That was when it really hit home how much damage Reagan did to the American electronics industry. Today there are almost no electronics made in America. Even our military electronics is made via over-seas firms and incorporated as modules. Component level design/assembly of state-of-the-art equipment is no longer an option for us. There are no TV's, cell phones, satellite systems, digital camera's, camcorders, etc made in the USA today thanks to Ronald Reagan.

Wendy


----- Original Message ----- From: "bobf" <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>
To: "Wendy" <crazygardens AT verizon.net>; <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Sunday, January 11, 2009 8:42 AM
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Atlas Shrugged - Fiction to fact in 52 years


You make a very good case , Wendy. One correction is that I think President Reagan wanted to get the government off the backs of 'all' business --big & small--not just big business. He also wanted to keep the government off 'my' back and yours, something I do find appealing.

Unfortunately, he didn't account for the rapacicious greed and hubris inherent in this present generation of moneychangers invilved in big business and banking; not to the degree that the Congress would become nothing more than their errand boys. And had he know that most all of the titans of banking and industry would become and support liberal democrats, he might have been red-faced.

I liked your critique, though, as much as I liked the original article. I think that thousands of bankers; big business CEOs and board members; and other various moneychangers 'and' politicians should be under federal and state indictment , right now.

It will not happen, though. They own or frighten almost all of the politicians, regardless of party identification. Only Ron Paul, Dennis Kucinich, Jeff Flake and a few others will stand up to them, and those who do are considered 'fringe' or 'nuts'..........

---------------------------------------------------------------------


--- On Sat, 1/10/09, Wendy <crazygardens AT verizon.net> wrote:

From: Wendy <crazygardens AT verizon.net>
Subject: Re: [Homestead] Atlas Shrugged - Fiction to fact in 52 years
To: bobford79 AT yahoo.com, homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
Date: Saturday, January 10, 2009, 8:19 PM
Mr. Moore draws parallels to Atlas Shrugged that do not
exist. Atlas Shrugged is about economic collapse due to the
imposition of socialistic policies (an attempt to even out
everyone and their status in society). What is happening
today, is a result of Reganomics -- give the wealthy the
freedom to do what they do best (i.e. make money) and wealth
and prosperity will "trickle down" on everyone
else. This crisis is NOT the result of too many
regulations, but the result of insufficient oversight and
regulation of the flow and use of money at the very top of
our economic structure. Remember "Get the government
off the backs of big business"?The real wealth of our
economy was sucked up and pocketed by those at the top.
Nothing "trickled down" and no one at the bottom
experienced any prosperity. Small businesses were bought
out by the giants. Common folk were tricked into turning
over their money to brokers and "investors" who
gave them worthless pieces of paper and artificially
inflated properties. Small businesses are gone and the
common folk are bankrupted. After Common Joe was
financially raped, they took those notes which were backed
by Bankrupt Joe and repackaged them as another sellable
commodity (money markets, hedge funds, etc) (think making a
silk purse out of a sows ear) and marketed them to those who
were only marginally wealthy or wanted to pretend that they
were. Completely opposite scenario.

Wendy


> >From this am WSJ . I am a fan of Rand, as are
many others. But, I am >one (rarely mentioned, but
'is' mentioned in this editorial); that has a
>problem with a seemingly lack of compassion in her
ideology. Anyway, >this is an interesting commentary of
how today's events seem to mirror >much of the
fictional plot lines in Atlas Shrugged....bobf
>http://cartoonbox.slate.com/stevekelley/
>
>
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> OPINION: DE GUSTIBUS JANUARY 9, 2009
>
> 'Atlas Shrugged': From Fiction to Fact in 52
Years Article
>
>
> By STEPHEN MOORE
>
> Some years ago when I worked at the libertarian Cato
Institute, we used to label any new hire who had not yet
read "Atlas Shrugged" a "virgin." Being
conversant in Ayn Rand's classic novel about the
economic carnage caused by big government run amok was
practically a job requirement. If only "Atlas"
were required reading for every member of Congress and
political appointee in the Obama administration. I'm
confident that we'd get out of the current financial
mess a lot faster.

>












Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page