The State of the European Socialist Utopia

Please read this article to see why I wrote this blog today.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2010/05/10/eu-sets-trillion-eurozoneimf-defense-package-protect-euro-disintegration/

It is time for all Americans to look towards Europe for our cue to start lowering our national debt and spend wisely. Europe's great experiment in socialism has shown that it is completely unsustainable. The Euro could easily collapse in value and send the world into more economic downturn periods. I am definitely not jumping for joy at the plight of our European friends, I simply have to say that spending money that isn’t there is utterly ludicrous. Debt in any form is a form of bondage that must be avoided – especially by nations. Of course there are times where deficit spending is necessary, but those instances are only for a war effort or an economic or natural disaster.
The IMF bailout package is a sure sign that Europe in general has some serious issues to deal with. We, under the leadership of this administration (and several Republican and democrat administrations before this) are heading down the same road that Europe is currently on. The dream of universal and free health care is unattainable. The national debt of Greece, Spain, Portugal and many other European nations is staggering and due in large part to socialistic governmental policies. Our national debt is staggering in dollar amounts, but theirs is staggering as a percentage of their GDP’s. That being said of course, that does not excuse our own staggeringly high national debt.
The health care boondoggle that just got rubber-stamped by the Congress will lead to only one end – universal health care and thus more out of control national debt. We have seen from the failed social security mess that government-run “social nets” are always colossal failures. I believe that the reason universal health care is unsustainable is that there is no incentive for citizens to stay healthy if they can go to the hospital any time they want to – for free. Also, the quality of the doctors and nurses in the system degrades because the financial incentive to gain more education or open new practices is removed. If health care is to be improved, than everyone has to be responsible for using it carefully and judiciously. This includes individuals, insurance providers and doctors. I don’t want to go into health care in depth here, but I believe that one of (or perhaps the main) reason for the state Europe is in is due to enormous social programs that are inefficient, counter-productive and unsustainable economically. Socialized medicine is obviously a large part of their social program pie.
We, like our European friends, have to look into the mirror and realize that sacrifices must be made if we are to survive as free nations. A good portion of Asia has set a good example by paying off national debt while we in the west have done the opposite. We must sit down, figure out what is costing so much and cut it. A close look at the readily available national budget shows exactly what the main culprits for our debt are: social security and Medicare/Medicaid. Again, I don’t want to go into these particular topics in depth individually now; but I will at a later date. Along with cutting national debt, we also need to encourage economic investment and growth.
One of the greatest assets we in the United States possess is a motivated and creative entrepreneurial work force. Even with all the gloom and doom stories of greatly undereducated Americans, the fact remains that the smaller hard-working group of afore-mentioned people is what brought America to the forefront of the world economic stage. I definitely think that education must be improved, but those who want an education will attain it no matter the cost. Also, simply being book-smart means nothing without having drive and determination. There are many people all over the world who are well educated, but it means little because they don’t (or can’t due to governmental interference) apply that knowledge for practical use.
If we as a nation would stop thinking that life should be fair and actually play the hands we are dealt, we would all be better off. The governmental pork that is pulling our economy down has to be cut now. If we take the hit in jobs, services and supposed safety of a bloated governmental apparatus now, we will fuel economic and social improvement later. Continuously passing our desire for instant gratification onto succeeding generations must stop here and now. This is precisely why the United States and Europe are so deeply in debt.
Dissolving Social Security, Medicare/Medicaid would cut our deficit drastically but hurt many people unfortunately. Our generation and the following generations must see the big picture and make the sacrifice to cut these programs now. Non-profit religious or non-religious organizations would step in to help those in need during the ensuing hardship for many Americans when these cuts were to be enacted. This is not all that I feel must be done however. After cutting these programs, we must lower taxes, provide growth incentives for business and analyze what regulations can be responsibly removed in order to fuel growth. Europe used to be a great capitalist powerhouse by and large, but has lost its edge due to an entitlement mentality and socialist governmental policies. We too will surely suffer the same fate if we do not contain spending and over-regulation now and encourage more sustainable fiscal policy by our government.

The False Belief that the American Dream is an Entitlement

It is an unfortunate occurrence as of late that many people believe this to be true. Personally I believe that there are very few things that anyone is entitled to – except your opinionJ. The only way we will remain a great nation is to believe in hard work and actually have hope and faith in its future. We did not get to where we are today as a nation by believing in entitlement or by leaching off of other people's efforts. The majority of previous generations of Americans worked hard and spent wisely to achieve happiness. Too many of us think that we should be able to have all of what our parents have instantly.
The American dream always involved working for your dreams and never involved the victim mentality we see too often today. The "bailouts" (i.e. colossal misuse of taxpayer funds) are a prime example of this "entitlement" mentality and will likely lead to another economic "meltdown." Inflation and interest rate hikes are soon to follow - mark my words. That is another subject all together though:)
Companies have to make the right decisions or be outdone by other more competitive ones. Capitalism will weed out those who do not achieve and the free market will encourage the growth and development of new businesses. This is the way it should be - not paying companies (and/or union bosses or CEO’s) for poor management and greed. The UAW and other unions have lost focus on what free enterprise and competition mean. They want all the benefits they can get without thought to the overall success of the company. Everything in life requires give and take. This was made very clear to me when the UAW would not budge on benefits even as the company failed. This mentality most of all is what brought GM and Chrysler to bankruptcy in my opinion. The UAW was not looking at the big picture. A successful GM and Chrysler would mean more well-paying and secure jobs and more access to benefits for all of their workers. They could then modernize and make vehicles more efficiently and with better work environments. Toyota, Honda and other car companies are more modern and efficient and make cars people want and thus are succeeding.
It is our generation and the ones to follow that must carry the banner of liberty, hard work, ingenuity and competition to get our country back on track. Life is hard and will never be fair. The sooner we all realize this and accept it, the faster we as a nation will be willing to do what it takes to keep our ideals and dreams alive. Each of us has to play the hand we're dealt and then capitalize on our abilities. I always wanted to be a fighter pilot, but could not due to health issues. Is this unfair? I used to think so, but I changed focus and now work doing something else. I am just as fulfilled now than I would have been if I had been able to be a fighter pilot. There are always other alternatives when roadblocks are placed in our paths. Playing victims only leads to excuse-making and stifles ingenuity and drive.
We as a nation are at an extremely important juncture. We can either choose to go down the tired road of failed socialist policy or renew our resolve to take what life throws at us. I personally will never submit to the idea that the government will solve all of our problems; nor will I give up on the true American dream. Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness is the true American dream, not a free house, car etc. Notice that it is the "pursuit of happiness," not simply happiness. The achievement of that dream requires effort and sacrifice. Though painful now, I believe that the bankruptcy of two of our auto manufacturers will re-kindle ingenuity and innovation and spur on totally new industries and technologies. Competition and drive are essential to our continued financial success and should be encouraged, not shunned.