Living the Life of Riley

A political commentary

Stew Richland

The phrase originated in the Irish community in New York around 1911.  The phrase was much used in World War I and II to indicate that our troops serving overseas were “living the life of Riley.”  This phrase was used in order  to reassure the folks back home that our service men serving in the war zones were living well.  With hindsight we know that to  those that served in WWI and II it was no picnic.

The Urban dictionary defines the term “Life of Riley” as an easy life without chores or responsibilities.  This is the basis of some of the propaganda that is being projected on the public by the candidates running for the presidency. What the liberals are offering us can be summed up in the following quote, “What I want is to live the life of Riley, enshrouded in my own little world of delightful oblivion with others to take care of my needs and wants.”

Now that the field of contenders has been winnowed  down to three and the nominating conventions are just around the corner,  those left standing will resort to using the tried and true devices that politicians often resort to.  Charlie Chan once observed, “Bad politicians like dead fish – cannot stand test of time.

 Chester Riley (William Bendix in the sit-com The Life of Riley) used as his stock answer to every turn of fate, “What a revoltin’ development this is!)

Well Riley you hit the nail on the head. Bernie Sanders is a Socialist.  He supports Socialist economics. Socialism defined is . “An economic system in which the production and distribution of goods are controlled substantially by the government rather than by private enterprise, and in which cooperation rather than competition guides economic activity.”  Sanders is preaching a somewhat different kind of socialism. Most  young supporters of Bernie Sanders don’t have a clue about what socialism is and the potential impact it would have on their lives. Young people don’t know what socialism is. Recent polls have suggested that millennia’s are far more positive to socialism than older cohorts. For instance, the Pew Research Center found that 43 percent of 18-29 year olds had a positive reaction to the word socialism, compared to 33 percent of 30-49 year olds, 23 percent of 50-64 year olds, and 14% of 65+. The older you get the more you hate socialism.

There is evidence that support for socialism and a government-managed economy rises when millennials attend college and then recedes after they graduate.

Some enterprising TV news people took their cameras  to college campuses and asked students to explain Socialism. The majority could not define the idea in any rudimentary fashion.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz was asked by Hardball host Chris Mathews, “What is a Socialist.” She did not know and kept on stammering when questioned.  (www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTjCnfkMX5E) 

It’s the platitudes that supporters hear and see from Bernie Sanders, its like a mirror, its what you see based on what you know.  Most of his supporters just don’t understand what the Sanders is selling.  They are buying a doughnut without knowing that it has a big hole in it.

Just what is the leader of the alternative to Hillary Clinton  offering as a platform to run on?  He supports economic equality.  Tax the rich and pass the bucks on to those who are the “under class.”  One of the first American proponents of this idea was Huey Long. In his “Share the Wealth” plan of 1934 his  program was designed to provide a decent standard of living to all Americans by spreading the nation’s wealth among the people. Long proposed capping personal fortunes at $50 million each (roughly $600 million in today's dollars) through a restructured, progressive federal tax code and sharing the resulting revenue with the public through government benefits and public works.  Long also proposed free higher education, pensions for elderly veterans, a yearly payment to those families that fall below the poverty line which they can use to buy a home, a car and a radio.  He stated that the nations economic collapse was due to the great disparity between the rich and the poor. He said that it was morally wrong for the government to allow people to suffer. His slogan was “Every Man a King.”  It struck a cord with the public desperate for change similar to what Bernie Sanders his preaching.

Meanwhile, the conservative national media dismissed Long’s program, lampooning Long as a "hick", "buffoon", "communist", "socialist" and "fascist dictator". Long countered that the national newspapers were the pawns of the wealthy Wall Street financiers who were threatened by his program.  Liberal journalists alleged that a prominent Wall Street bank hired a public relations firm to plant negative stories about Long in the media. How times have changed. Now the newspapers are pawns of the liberal establishment and attack Wall Street firms as the enemy of the common man.

In the late 1930s, Dr. Everett Townsend proposed his plan to help the elderly. His proposal was an old age pension program.  His movement gained so much strength that F.D. Roosevelt was forced to propose his own old-age plan which evolved into the our current Social Security program.  Townsend disliked Roosevelt and pushed for greater benefits.  Townsend’s program was augmented by a California group called the “Ham and Egg movement,”  that helped upgrade the Social Security and old-age program.

Huey Long, known as the “King Fish” was assassinated in 1935.  With his death the “Every Man a King” movement ended.  By the end of the 1930s, the war in Europe began to take center stage and the Socialist movement was relegated to the balcony.

Digging into the marrow of the Sanders Campaign, Climate Change seems to take center stage.  I am sure he believes that this is so, but in the world we live in and all the threats to the United States, is this the gut issue that Americans should lose sleep over? Tell this to the coal miners of West Virginia who have lost their livelihood to the climate changer supporters.

Free college education for all.  How does Sanders expect this to be funded?  Raise taxes!  If a person wants to go to college, let them pay for it by getting a job, sacrifice, that’s what economic initiative  is all about. Establish priorities,  enroll in a less expensive university or become a part time student.

Sanders emphasizes the rebuilding of our infrastructure.  Great!  Yes, jobs will be created, however, where will the money come to pay for the rebuilding?  You got it!  Tax the rich.  Where will the work force come from?  Unemployed persons who want to work and who are motivated.  Unfortunately the way our welfare system is structured, there is little incentive for a person to trade in their food stamps for a pick and shovel.  

The labor department just announced that the number of people who are defined as middle-class has shrunk.  There many reasons for this condition.  Factory jobs that provided a good income and retirement benefits have shrunk.  Partly as a result of companies moving their factories outside of the United States. Government regulations, and tax codes worked against a company’s profitability and hence, encouraged small and large employers to seek more favorable environments.  Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have not provided any concrete solutions to this issue.

We are told by Sanders that our criminal justice system is rigged against minorities. There are approximately 1.7 million prisoners in state prisons. 37% of those incarcerated are white while the other 60% and either Hispanic or African American.  Sanders says this is unfair. That minorities are targeted by law enforcement and that explains these statistics.  This argument has great appeal to the “Black Lives Matter” and “La Raza” and other activist groups, and so called spokespersons for minority groups such as Jessie Jackson,  Al Sharpton  and Jeremiah Wright. The fact is that more blacks and Hispanics commit crimes than whites and that is why they are in jail.

I have not heard Bernie Sanders make reference to the drug problem that is endemic to many minorities or the fact that the number of children born out of wed-lock is a major cause of crime in minority communities.  These are very touchy subjects and most probably cause a great deal of back lash so both Sanders and Clinton have avoided these subjects on the campaign trail. 

Sanders has claimed that  “Child poverty is higher in America than any other major country.”  According to the United Nations this is not true.  However, the argument does get your attention. America has spent more on welfare than defense since 1993. The War on Poverty has cost $22 trillion -- three times more than what the government has spent on all wars in American history. Federal and state governments spend $1 trillion in taxpayer dollars on America's 80 means-tested welfare programs annually. Then why do we still have poverty in America?  I am waiting for Bernie Sanders to explain why this is so and his plan to do something about it.

Bernie Sanders just keeps on plugging away.  Young people identify with his message. It touches a nerve.  Yeah I am going to get goodies without working.  The Wall Street Wolves are going to get what they deserve.  Who cares if the Hollywood types makes billions and contribute to the decline of our moral and cultural values.  They are our heroes, the trend setters their role models. 

Digger O’Dell, the friendly undertaker on the Life of Riley show remarked,  You may not like flowers at first, but eventually they'll grow on you.”  Well that’s what is happening with the Bernie Sanders platform. 

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