61% of Liberals have positive view of Socialism

[songsmith]

In fact, overall, what is the term we use for a war for no reason other than self-enrichment and political gain?--->JMS

Political gain? I'd call that "failed intent."

It got the worst presidential administration in American history RE-ELECTED.--->JMS

[lonewolf]

What's it called when the vice-president's corporation gets a no-bid contract for billions in Iraqi oil rebuilds? --->JMS

Its called "the only company in the US qualified and pre-approved to drop into a war zone at a moment's notice to put out hundreds of oil fires".

Major government contract bids require a minimum 90 days process and evaluation time...many require more. Because of this, there are many companies that are pre-approved for specific tasks in case of emergency.

The oil fires in Iraq were not going to wait for the government bidding process.

So why were they still there until recently, when Iraq threw Xe out? 7 years is a long time for a temporary contract.--->JMS

1st of all Xe does not put out oil fires or engage in reconstruction, but to answer your question:

Because the only difference between the old administration and the new administration is which corporations get the gravy.

[lonewolf]

In fact, overall, what is the term we use for a war for no reason other than self-enrichment and political gain?--->JMS

Political gain? I'd call that "failed intent."

It got the worst presidential administration in American history RE-ELECTED.--->JMS

All parts of that statement are debatable...I happen to think the present administration is even worse. We get nice rhetorical speeches, but they are woefully inept at governing and even worse at legislating.

But anyway, it may have gotten Dubya a 2nd term, but it also turned the entire government over to his opposition party 2 & 4 years later.

[songsmith]

For those interested, here's some OTHER insight from that same Gallup.com article:

First the actual title of the article: "Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans"

Note also that the poll regarded the TERM "socialism," not the actual practice of it.

Americans overall still support capitalism, as long as it's not the predatory brand conservatives preach:
"Americans are almost uniformly positive in their reactions to three terms: small business, free enterprise, and entrepreneurs. They are divided on big business and the federal government, with roughly as many Americans saying their view is positive as say it is negative. Americans are more positive than negative on capitalism (61% versus 33%) and more negative than positive on socialism (36% to 58%)."


"Democrats and Republicans agree in their ratings of several of the terms, but differ significantly in their ratings of others -- in particular, capitalism, the federal government, and socialism.
In similar fashion, there is little distinction across ideological groups -- conservatives, moderates, and liberals -- in the ratings of several of these terms, but more significant differences in response to others, such as big business, the federal government, and socialism."

"Socialism

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.

Exactly how Americans define "socialism" or what exactly they think of when they hear the word is not known. The research simply measures Americans' reactions when a survey interviewer reads the word to them -- an exercise that helps shed light on connotations associated with this frequently used term."

Capitalism

"Capitalism," the word typically used to describe the United States' prevailing economic system, generates positive ratings from a majority of Americans, with a third saying their reaction is negative.

As was the case with "socialism," there are differences across population segments.

Republicans are significantly more positive than Democrats in their reactions to "capitalism," although majorities of both groups have favorable opinions.Opinions of the word by ideology are divided in an unusual, though modest, way. Conservatives have the highest positive image, followed by liberals. Moderates have somewhat lower positive ratings than either of these groups."


"Free Enterprise

Eighty-six percent of respondents rated the term "free enterprise" positively, giving it substantially more positive ratings than "capitalism." Although in theory these two concepts are not precisely the same, they are in many ways functional equivalents. Yet, underscoring the conventional wisdom that words matter, the public clearly reacts differently to the two terms. Free enterprise as a concept rings more positively to the average American than does the term capitalism."

"Small Business and Big Business

"Small business" is the most positively rated term of the seven included in the list, with a nearly universal positive rating of 95%.

In contrast, Americans were sharply divided when asked to react to the term "big business," with 49% of respondents rating the term positively and 49% negatively.

This contrast in images, based on whether the adjective "small" or "big" is placed in front of "business," confirms a number of previous Gallup findings. Americans have a strong tendency to react positively to "small" and negatively to "big" when it describes business entities.

There is remarkably little difference between Republicans and Democrats in their ratings of the images of small and big business. Both partisan groups are overwhelmingly positive about the former, and roughly half of both partisan groups rate the latter positively."

Gosh, I hope this little cut-and-paste project helped clear up the illusion attempted by the original poster.--->JMS

[Banned]

Because the only difference between the old administration and the new administration is which corporations get the gravy.

Political quote of the year!

[songsmith]

1st of all Xe does not put out oil fires or engage in reconstruction, but to answer your question:

Because the only difference between the old administration and the new administration is which corporations get the gravy.

Of course not, Xe is a hired mercenary force, free of the shackles of the Geneva Convention and other rules humans have. They don't BUILD or help anything, they destroy. They could be called an army, but armies fight for countries, Xe fights for PROFIT.

There are other more-important differences between the last admin and the current one... the last one had a far higher body count. The last one raped the American economy for 8 years, the new one had a month to fix it or die. The last one called me un-American, the new one allows moderate thought. The last one did,
utilize propaganda far better, though, you got me there. After all the damage done, their supporters can't even remember it a year later. --->JMS