A short war? I suspect not.

[Bikini Mod]

I can see what you are saying completely. But think about this. If those Brazilians (and whomever else does this) were truly unhappy with life where they were, they were allowed to come here and make mad USD, then why would they return home? Would they not stay here?

I know of many Europeans that come here, work for a while and decide that it is just not worth sacrifice to come here. True, we might have a larger selection of cheeses at 3AM at Walmart but this is better how?

I was aghast at how "rude" waiters and waitresses in France were this summer past. My French friend explained to me that that service person was not rude at all. That they were paid MORE THAN ENOUGH of an hourly wage that they did not HAVE TO KISS EITHER MY AMERICAN ASS OR HIS FRENCH ASS in order to make enough money that evening to pay his bills. That service person's job was to take my order and bring me my food. PERIOD.

And yes, I am fully aware of the French "35 hour" rule. And I don't view this as being restrictive at all. What could possibly be wrong with being paid enough to support yourself to live with more than enough "things" and more than enough "free time" in working THIRTY-FIVE HOURS P/WEEK?! Why on earth would I want to work longer hours unless I could not suport myself OR my family?

 

[Lift Chief]

Not a very long or hard war we now see... interesting theory though, hansnz.

 

[vixenbabe]

pe-shaw. I heard there are only a few brigades of official Iraqi army units left. The Rep. Guard has about 10 tanks now. The only city not under coalition control is Tikrit. All that exist now are the dumbass terrorists and guerella fighters.

It could take ONLY one brigade to do some serious damage to our men and women, Nord. I fear the prospect of Tikrit being his final stand with these terrorist pricks! He may have something NASTY waiting for our masses there. Tirkrit is, after all, his birth place and the Ba'ath parties rat nest/center.

It's not going to be over in my eyes til EVERY last one of our troops are HOME and safe from these pricks!

 

[Lift Chief]

It could take ONLY one brigade to do some serious damage to our men and women, Nord. I fear the prospect of Tikrit being his final stand with these terrorist pricks! He may have something NASTY waiting for our masses there. Tirkrit is, after all, his birth place and the Ba'ath parties rat nest/center.

It's not going to be over in my eyes til EVERY last one of our troops are HOME and safe from these pricks!

From a military standpoint we have won this war. Some of our troops still may die, certainly, but the bulk of the fighting is clearly over.

 

[vixenbabe]

From a military standpoint we have won this war. Some of our troops still may die, certainly, but the bulk of the fighting is clearly over.

Agreed..But...I still fear that he's going to have something waiting for us there. I just have this sick feeling.

As far as the bomb dropping and "war"..I agree we kicked their ass...But...We have soooo much work to do yet!

Anyone recall Haiti? AND...We still are not done in "Bin Laden Land" either....

Nothing like this plan from our gov. is gonna come easy...We got a lot of work to do there.

PEACE!

 

[ariolanine]

This paragraph just showed that the US is superior in freedom of opportunity (right of pursuit of happiness). If Brazil was equal to the US, then there would be no need for Brazilians, or any other citizens, to come to the US, work for a strong currency and then return home where the buying power of the dollar is greater. This shows that the ability to ATTAIN possessions, security, leisure, etc. is not as great as in the US. Any American can do this same thing, it is just that countries such as Brazil do not offer the same protections to civil liberty that the US affords.



The countries that you speak of, mainly European, do alot their citizens many privileges of leisure, at the cost of regulation and reduced freedom. The conditions of overwork and stress that you mention are self-inflicted, they are not due to forced labour, they are a by-product of man's desires. But in the US, you are free to pursue work for whatever motivation you have. If you desire more money, then you can work for more, although the US is modeling itself on the European system with its tax disincentives, and reducing this desire . Many European countries are restricting their citizens from working overtime, France is actually penalizing those who do this. Is this freedom? Is this the right to pursue happiness and property? You stated that these country's citizens have "MORE than enough", what is "more than enough"? How do you decide what is enough for another person. This is the mentality of socialism, which states that people should only have their needs met, not their desires.

Talking to co-workers from Germany, they criticise Americans for our work ethic and "greed" for material possessions, and they believe that they have consciously chosen to avoid this lifestyle, yet upon further questioning it becomes obvious that they have not chosen this, but are prevented from "want" because it is often placed outside of their reach. The cost of living is much higher in many European countries than in the US: homes, cars, gas, etc., all through government restrictions. Land regulations increase the cost of building homes, which increases the cost of available homes. The cost of gas is higher, due to government regulations on pollution, plus added taxes, which reduces the desire of one to travel or have several cars.

Visiting Germany, one can see the benefit of government distribution of wealth and cradle to grave security: lack of work ethic and reduced availability of goods. Go to Germany and try to find a store comparable to a Super Walmart. You can't find a store that is open after 6:00 pm, not to mention on some days the government does not allow stores to open, and if you do find one open your choices are menial. A German co-worker visiting the US was astounded at how many cheeses WalMart carried!!! Is that the freedom of the socialist market? Visit a restaurant or cafe and see how long it takes to be waited on. Workers take 20-30 minutes to wait on a customer, yet locals see nothing wrong with this.

People need to realize that each man is dependant on his own happiness and possessions, not the responsibility of the nation. With freedom comes responsibilty. If you desire security, that you do not provide yourself, government will grant it at the expense of liberty.

Excellent Post!!!!!!!!!!

 

[dawookie]

I can see what you are saying completely. But think about this. If those Brazilians (and whomever else does this) were truly unhappy with life where they were, they were allowed to come here and make mad USD, then why would they return home? Would they not stay here?

I know of many Europeans that come here, work for a while and decide that it is just not worth sacrifice to come here. True, we might have a larger selection of cheeses at 3AM at Walmart but this is better how?

My girl works in the same profession you do, and we have friends from other countries that come here, save, and go back... Im sure many of our friends in the same situation as the people you know.

The reason most go back is because they are not legal to stay here longer or they have family that they will be bringing the money back to support. If they could stay they probably would.

That and chances are they do not have the education or experience to get a job other than "dancing" that will supply them with enough money to live comfortably here in the US. In Brazil they can buy a house for their entire family with savings from working in the US.. If they did decide to stay, much of the money they made would be sent back home to support the rest of their family..

And the people in Brazil, Costa Rica, and other S. American countries look up to these people that come to the US to work/live. Many have this dream but do not have the desire/means to move here..