What have "LIBERALS" done for America?

Time and Time again I hear these awful talking points and it's usually by paranoid fixated minds on the world of the "LEFT"

But what has the "LEFT" done for this country? The Republican faction would like you to believe they have done nothing good for this country. Which is an outright lie. Liberal causes have made our country a bit more easy going. Robber Barons, anyone?

Apparently the right wing does not have it's history correct and they bought too many talking points. This letter is legendary for being passed around. It's by a man named Clint Gold who challenged talking points that hold no evidence of the Right Wing being "JUST" and "RIGHTEOUS" for America

I thought I would share it with my fellow progressives. Remember: Those that constantly demonize others have nothing else to fall back on. While those who have the facts have everything.


Print this and Fwd this out:

We "Progressives" have been silent for too long.


Take these encouraging words of Mr Gold to heart and mind and remember History is on our side about this country. But how easily we forget. Apologies to the moderators I do not have a original link where this letter is from. So I am quoting the entire op-ed because it's important.

CLINT C. GOLD 10/24/1999 Tulsa World Not too long ago, my wife and I attended a TV football party in south Tulsa. With a lopsided score, the conversation turned to a livelier subject -- politics. The crowd was, of course, top-heavy with Republicans. With each point expressed their faces became more flushed, eyes bulging a little more and veins popping in their foreheads as they railed against the liberal programs.

Finally a lone, liberal voice asked: "Will you people name me one bill your party ever passed to help the working man of this country?" The question created much din and clamor, and someone sputtered, "Well, what have the Democrats done?"

The liberal responded with a few programs and was interrupted by howling and disdain. He noted that he had not promised they would like the programs and he asked to complete his statement -- a difficult task to ask of Republicans.

He spoke of Social Security; Medicare-Medicaid; Peace Corps; unemployment insurance; welfare (for the poor and corporate); civil rights; student grant and loan programs; safety laws (OSHA); environmental laws; prevailing wage laws; right to collective bargaining (which brought about paid medical insurance, paid vacations, pensions, etc.); workers' compensation; Marshall Plan; flood-disaster insurance; School Lunch Program; women's rights.

He spoke of the Fair Labor Standards Act, which established a minimum wage, instituted child labor laws, and set up time-and-a-half pay for over a 40-hour week. He mentioned FHA-HUD with its public housing, urban renewal and 44 million residential homes (before WWII almost 70 percent of our nation were renters; by the 1970s this had been reversed). And farm-conservation subsidies -- USDA programs, Farmers Home Administration (the bankers didn't want to make rural loans), small flood-control lakes (more than 3,000 in Oklahoma alone), rural water districts, rural electricity (REA).

The GI Bill was passed, which the Republicans at the time bitterly opposed. They were salivating over millions of returning veterans to hire as cheap labor. More than 8 million have used college benefits, creating millions of entrepreneurs; most of us had never dreamed of college. For the unemployed GI, there was $20 a week for 52 weeks to help get started (a lot of money in those days).

The Veterans Administration provided more than 2 million home loans. For the bankers at the football party, it was pointed out that the liberals saved their industry with the creation of FDIC and FSLIC, insuring their deposits, and saved Wall Street with the establishment of the Securities Exchange Commission.

The oil men came on bended knees to FDR at a time when East Texas oil was 4 cents a barrel and begged him to save their industry. He did; prorationing overturned the rule of capture and the days of flush production were over. Prorating has served this great industry (and nation) well.

And the list went on and on, but of course this group didn't let him get halfway through. He noted they were weary, inattentive, so again he challenged them to offer up any Republican legislation examples. "I'm sure your party has authored one or two comparable bills from time to time, but I can't think of any, and apparently you can't either. What it boils down to is this: the liberals dragged you into the 20th century scratching and screaming with your heels in the mud, fighting anything that's progressive, everything that's made this country great. You Republicans have never understood that the spending power of blue-collar workers, obtained through Democrats and unions, is what really made this country great. You really believe "The Good Life" was obtained from your own endeavors. You cloak your greed in religion and patriotism, railing against any form of tax, never comprehending that these programs have benefitted all of us and our country." Well, I almost didn't make it out of the house. My wife and I didn't even get to see the end of the football game.

If Reps. Steve Largent or J.C. Watts had been there, perhaps politics would never have come up, only the game plan ... pity.


Clint C. Gold is former mayor of Moore and a retired savings and loan executive.

This is a K.O. on all levels







[edit on 14-6-2007 by MRGERBIK]

didn't liberals end slavery? it was the status quo, abolishing the status quo is liberalism.
and the republicans were the liberal party at the time.

didn't liberals work for the 8 hour workday? and child labor laws? and truely universal suffrage?

yeah...
so what have liberals done for this country?

Liberals have such people like Washington, Lincoln(Democratic Republican Party, alter shortened to Democrat) from the old days.

But in the 200+ years of existence the Liberals have been the one benefitting America and the conservatives hurting it. It wasn't the conservatives giving women the right to vote. Blacks the right to be treated as humans. Conservatives were against saving the country from the NAZIs and even sent Hitler money AFTER we declared war on him. Grant had to save the country from conservatives by disbanning Habeas Corpus so he could lock them up before they killed anyone else. Prohibition lead to the rise of the Mafia and Mob in America that caused thousands of deaths from Mafia wars and poison bathtub rum.

But it is like this everytime in history. We'd probably have a middle age of 65 and have flying cars and cure for cancer if it wasn't for conservatives. Heck we'd probably have landed on the moon in the 1700's if conservatives never existed. Just imagine a world where the Catholic Church never existed. It never killed people for pointing out the Earth was round. it never killed people for using medicine. It didn't destroy the Alexandrian Library that had maps to oil wells and of lands that wasn't discovered until hundreds of years later. It didn't destroy science for centuries putting us back to the stone age in some places. If Galileo hadn't been threatened with death over proving planets revolved around the sun and had been allowed to discover more. If Leonardo had been allowed to present more of his inventions without fear of death.

I can only read and think what a great story!!

I will not leave my root stance that both parties are the same but upon the right and left this piece is a great power for those who are being surrounded by the right. But I still see only one party that branches out into politics like a bad germ infecting everything it touches.

[edit on 14-6-2007 by tsloan]

On the other hand, why have Republicans screwed up America to the point we are at now??????????

Mainly, those at the White House????

What kind of question or better yet , what kind of response do you want to hear???

This is one of those inflamatory threads. Sorry, but it is.

Ask and ye shall receive.

What have they done? Depends on how you define "Liberal" but I'll go with the common use.

They've increased the power of government, gotten us into wars, destroyed our liberties, and turned us into a state of welfare and progressive taxation with no cares for the economy that keeps us fed.

Originally posted by Johnmike
What have they done? Depends on how you define "Liberal" but I'll go with the common use.

They've increased the power of government, gotten us into wars, destroyed our liberties, and turned us into a state of welfare and progressive taxation with no cares for the economy that keeps us fed.

ok, i'll agree with increased the power of government to an extent... but gotten us into what wars?
destroyed which liberties?
and why do you say liberals don't care about the economy?

and you say progressive taxation like it's such a bad thing...

Originally posted by Lightstorm
Liberals have such people like Washington, Lincoln(Democratic Republican Party, alter shortened to Democrat) from the old days.

This makes no sense. Washington wasn't officially part of any party, but he was more closely associated with the Federalist Party, not the Democratic-Republicans. Lincoln was the founder of the modern Republican Party, the Democratic-Republican Party had already become the Democratic Party years before his time.

Which wars? Which liberties?



en.wikipedia.org...
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en.wikipedia.org...
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en.wikipedia.org...
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en.wikipedia.org...

I could go on, but this is good for now.

[edit on 14-6-2007 by Johnmike]

Uh, FDR saved America, Clinton created the greatest economy this country ever had...

Also, Washington was an evil liberal. The loyal British were conservative, sorry. That's right, if Bush&Co were around back then we'd still be a British Colony. Speaking of King George...

Also, look at this!
img45.imageshack.us...

Hmmm, republicans in office, economy destroyed, Clinton into office the economy skyrockets to all time highs, Bush43 gets in and destroys it. So who is good and bad for the economy?

Originally posted by Johnmike
What have they done? Depends on how you define "Liberal" but I'll go with the common use.

They've increased the power of government, gotten us into wars, destroyed our liberties, and turned us into a state of welfare and progressive taxation with no cares for the economy that keeps us fed.

Your mind is warped by talking points,John Mike. Look at the spending of welfare through Republicans. Of course I am talking about Corporate Welfare that get billions and hundred of billions swindled upon us. But for some reason you have a fetish against just the poor which is just another distraction to never have a discussion about "CORPORATE" welfare which has helped bankrupt us. Taxation?

Face it The G.O.P. are the biggest fraud of the century and want to take you for a fool. I noticed no one touched the G.I. Bill point. The republicans DID oppose it. The Republicans were never for the soldiers and that's the biggest lie especially in a place like Iraq and Afghanistan. Just look what they have in store for our military and their families. All for what? Oil Contracts and Private Business not for Freedom. You don't enslave people in fear and expect Freedom. It's just completely ignorant.

\

Originally posted by Lightstorm
Uh, FDR saved America, Clinton created the greatest economy this country ever had...

A tyrant who got us into one of the worst wars known into mankind, had people sent to concentration camps because of RACE (NWO anyone? and you guys whine about FEMA!), took the first steps toward the destruction of electronic free speech and second amendment rights, tried to abolish the system of checks and balances (through court packing), attempted to make us a socialist country, and prolonged what's known as the worst depression in U.S. history saved America?

You can't really blame a president for the health of the economy, since the only thing someone in that position can do is worsen it by trying to control it. Instead, I'd look at other factors. Though Clinton didn't damage things too badly (as opposed to some other presidents), so we did well.

Originally posted by Lightstorm
Also, Washington was an evil liberal. The loyal British were conservative, sorry. That's right, if Bush&Co were around back then we'd still be a British Colony. Speaking of King George...

The fact that you don't know the difference between classical liberalism and the Liberals shows that you're either trying to mislead people (propaganda, disinfo, etc), or are ignorant of what you're talking about. Washington was a classical liberal, meaning he believes in the rights of people to govern themselves and whatnot. The "Liberals" are those today who advocate big government, a socialist economy (to varying degrees), and corporatism (though they hate corporations, apparently) since they want the government to give subsidies.

Originally posted by Lightstorm
Also, look at this!
img45.imageshack.us...

Hmmm, republicans in office, economy destroyed, Clinton into office the economy skyrockets to all time highs, Bush43 gets in and destroys it. So who is good and bad for the economy?

Well, first of all, I'm not sure if you're trying to further mislead me by trying to make me believe that budget deficits have anything to do with the health of the economy or if you're just unaware of your own ignorance of the subject. So, I'll say it: the health of the economy isn't measured by budget deficits, or pretty much any related figure. If anything, you can look at income and GDP (do you know what those are?).

And read this if you want to learn about Bill Clinton and the budget figure you posted.
www.cato.org...

Originally posted by MRGERBIK
Your mind is warped by talking points,John Mike. Look at the spending of welfare through Republicans. Of course I am talking about Corporate Welfare that get billions and hundred of billions swindled upon us. But for some reason you have a fetish against just the poor which is just another distraction to never have a discussion about "CORPORATE" welfare which has helped bankrupt us. Taxation?

I didn't post anything related to "talking points." In fact, I posted little opinion at all - it was a list of acts and executive orders that I hate by Democrat presidents. There are some pretty horrific acts in that list if you click on them (Sedition Act, Japanese concentration camps, etc.).

Originally posted by MRGERBIK
Face it The G.O.P. are the biggest fraud of the century and want to take you for a fool. I noticed no one touched the G.I. Bill point. The republicans DID oppose it. The Republicans were never for the soldiers and that's the biggest lie especially in a place like Iraq and Afghanistan. Just look what they have in store for our military and their families. All for what? Oil Contracts and Private Business not for Freedom. You don't enslave people in fear and expect Freedom. It's just completely ignorant.

I wouldn't say that at all. Instead, I'd say I like maybe half, or less than half, of the Republican Party - the rest I hate (though admittedly less than I hate most Democrats). You have the authoritarian Republicans who like things like wiretapping and foreign intervention, then you have those are a bit more libertarian. I think it should be two parties, but apparently that's not going to happen any time soon.

I will answer this... as a lifelong Republican (recovering Republican, that is).

Liberals have changed the course of white man history.

They created the Bill of Rights

They ended slavery

They ended control over women (abortion, credit, employment)

They ushered in integration

Need I go on?

Liberals also saved this nation with FDRs recovery programs. That's why Dems held the majority for so long. Folks remembered what FDR did for them.

Right now, the shape our nation is in, its gonna take another FDR to pull us back into a healthy flight pattern. Al Gore is the one guy who could be that audacious in hope and recovery for this nation.

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
I will answer this... as a lifelong Republican (recovering Republican, that is).

Liberals have changed the course of white man history.

They created the Bill of Rights

They ended slavery

They ended control over women (abortion, credit, employment)

They ushered in integration

Need I go on?

Liberals also saved this nation with FDRs recovery programs. That's why Dems held the majority for so long. Folks remembered what FDR did for them.

Right now, the shape our nation is in, its gonna take another FDR to pull us back into a healthy flight pattern. Al Gore is the one guy who could be that audacious in hope and recovery for this nation.

Absolutely wrong. Learn to read the posts above yours and maybe, just maybe, you'll learn something.

Modern day "Liberals" are NOT liberals! Hilary Clinton is a Liberal. Thomas Jefferson was a liberal. If Jefferson saw what the Liberals are today, I am certain that he would have been sickened.

And no, saying that FDR saved us from ANYTHING is sheer stupidity and shows that you know nothing of economics.

Originally posted by Johnmike


They've increased the power of government, gotten us into wars, destroyed our liberties, and turned us into a state of welfare and progressive taxation with no cares for the economy that keeps us fed.

Gotten us into wars?

Destroyed our liberties?

turned us into a state of dependence?

Who got us into Iraq and Afghanistan?

George W. Bush and his NeoClown sycophantic pushers.

See: PNAC (you can do a google search)

Destroyed our liberties? Two words: PATRIOT ACT

The last time I checked, Bush instigated that (and signed it). But don't worry, I'm not just a GOP ballbreaker, I actually believe the Clinton admin. had that legislation sitting on a shelf ready to go. It just didn't happen under him, for some reason. (Freeh's people wrote it.)

As far as the dependency state: Poverty happens and there are alot of people who fall into it and can't ever seem to get out. No matter what. Poverty is growing in the U.S. as the gulf between the rich and poor grows. I find myelf (as a Christian) gravitating towards John Edwards' two americas message. He's running on something solid.

I think Republicans should embrace the issue of reducing poverty in America. IT may not be corporate (read: bottom line), but it sure is winning (and good for our nation).

Originally posted by Johnmike

Absolutely wrong. Learn to read the posts above yours and maybe, just maybe, you'll learn something.

Modern day "Liberals" are NOT liberals! Hilary Clinton is a Liberal. Thomas Jefferson was a liberal. If Jefferson saw what the Liberals are today, I am certain that he would have been sickened.

And no, saying that FDR saved us from ANYTHING is sheer stupidity and shows that you know nothing of economics.

Learn to read...? I was answering the question the author of this post asked.

Sorry you didn't get that.

Ronald Reagan was a liberal , too. Betcha didn't know that. lol

What exactly would Jefferson be sick about? What is so liberal about Hillary?

YOu don't think FDR pulled our national nuts out of the fire?

I'd love to see some facts to back up you 'points.'

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
Ronald Reagan was a liberal , too. Betcha didn't know that. lol

Yes. Learn to read.

Capital L Liberals are not lower case l liberals. Capital L Liberals are the big government socialists, mostly democrats. Lower case l liberalism is a vague term that's more geared toward classical liberals such as Jefferson.

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
What exactly would Jefferson be sick about? What is so liberal about Hillary?

Not liberal, Liberal.

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
YOu don't think FDR pulled our national nuts out of the fire?

Not at all. Read anything at all by Milton Friedman. Do you know who he is?

Originally posted by Johnmike

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
Ronald Reagan was a liberal , too. Betcha didn't know that. lol

Yes. Learn to read.

Capital L Liberals are not lower case l liberals. Capital L Liberals are the big government socialists, mostly democrats. Lower case l liberalism is a vague term that's more geared toward classical liberals such as Jefferson.

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
What exactly would Jefferson be sick about? What is so liberal about Hillary?

Not liberal, Liberal.

Originally posted by EastCoastKid
YOu don't think FDR pulled our national nuts out of the fire?

Not at all. Read anything at all by Milton Friedman. Do you know who he is?

Congratulations Political Science student. You said a whole lot of nothing.

And just for the record, the biggest big government whore is George W. Bush and his blow*ob rubberstamp congress.

Look at today's deficit. There's nothing more to know.

Now, what were you talking about...?

I am not a political science student.

But okay, you've thoroughly derailed the thread.