I had a conversation with my GOP cousin on facebook after Paul Ryan's Speech

[KBlagburn]

her: am loving me some Paul Ryan, finally we have someone with adequate experience for Vice President!!! Dear Lord, I pray everyday for our President! I pray he will not be our president for four more years!!! Just in case anyone doesn't understand, I built my Own business, not a soul worked my 14 to 16 hour days, but, me, myself, and I!!! I will surely be voting for the Romney/ Ryan ticket!!!! Let's do this!!!!!

Me:I thank God for Aunt dot, and Alton, your teachers, govt that laid the highways, the customers that frequent your business. those people that made the goods that went into making your business. Thank God for all those people so that you could do well. I thank God than you are doing so well because of all those who have helped you.

her:That's right Kenny, they used my Momma & Daddy's tax dollars to build those road's and I am truly Thankful for my Clients!! Because their tax dollars are spent on those roads as well!!! When you own a small business, you can tell me that you didn't build that, and I'll say yay for the government for you!!! Are you really that dumb? That is so asinine!!!!!

me:all I was saying was that I thank God for your parents who gave you the ethics and moral character, your teachers who gave you the knowledge to run a business, the govt who built the infrastructure to support your business, the fire and
police dept who keep you safe. I thank God that you have all that, which enables you to have your business and be successful. I think that is great that you didnt have to do all that by yourself.

her:By the way, I have worked my fingers to the bone for what I have, I didn't get a handout from you, the government or anyone else for a matter of fact!!! I scrubbed toilets worked in concession stands to pay for my education!!! No one but, I BUILT THAT!!! So kiss my behind!!!!

me:BTW I spent the last 25 years running business's. So I know what it takes. and I know no one does it by themselves. Its impossible. Love ya!!

Tell me your thoughts

edited to add my last reponse.

[snappyturtle]

1. "They" just don't get it! nt

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. There are none so blind as those who will not see.

I'm afraid your cousin falls in that category.

You might as well save your breath, or your fingers!

[jaysunb]

3. It's not possible to have a debate w/ a strawman

your rel and the others know what was meant by the Presidents statement. But this sounds like a good enough "cover" for what's really motivating them.

[notadmblnd]

4. let her stew in it.

your conversation will play over and over in the back of her mind. She knows you are right.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Ask her:

If her place of business caught fire, who would put it out? Can she afford to employ her own firefighters?

If someone broke into her business or her home, who would investigate the crime, catch the criminals, prosecute them, conduct a trial, and send them to prison? If the government did not supply police, prosecutors and courts, who would? And if they didn't exist, how would she protect her business from crime?

On a similar note, if some other business fails to pay her bill, or doesn't perform a contract, or commits an act of fraud that costs her money, how would she handle that if there was no court system?

Where did the streets and roads come from that make it possible for her customers to get to her business? If the government had not built those roads how would they get there? Can she afford to build her own roads?

Who educated her and her employees? Did she go to a private school? If she went to college, did that college get federal funds? Did she take out a federally-guaranteed student loan? If her business employs people with particular skills, where did those people learn those skills?

If her business involves the production or sale of goods, how are those goods distributed? Do they travel by truck on federal highways? Are they flown to and from airports owned and operated by municipal or other governments? If she ever travels for business, who inspects the airplanes to be sure they are safe? Who controls air traffic to be sure planes don't collide with each other?

If she had to hire private entities and pay them for all of these services, would she be able to maintain her business at all?

You could suggest that she move her business to a country that has no regulations to speak of, no taxes, and almost nothing by way of a functioning government - that being Somalia - and just see how well her business does there.

[avebury]

20. Great comments! If your cousin persists, I would send

her Velveteen Ocelot's comments.

[mojo2012]

22. What happens if no one buys her goods or services?

If not for customers, where would her business be? Can she swear that the wealthy 1% will come and buy her goods or services because there will be no middle class that can afford anything? Can she swear that the wealthy will give more to charity and create more jobs for the U.S. and not use the extra money from the extra tax cuts to make more money in their Swiss bank accounts or buy that new yacht?

Will the Koch Brothers bail her out? Will Donald Trump? Will Mr. Adelson in Las Vegas?

Will she be happy that she will have no Medicare or Social Security when she retires? Life as she knows it will no longer be. As previously mentioned, public service (police, firefighters, schools) will be stripped to bare nothing. Yes, life will be good, won't it?

[progressivebydesign]

6. I would absolutely send her the FULL text of the part the GOP cut out for their attacks.

If she refuses to comprehend that, then she's even more foolish than she looks in your convo as posted. All you have to do is give here what the republicans hid.

[CBHagman]

8. Yeah, the people who transcribed that showed that in the sentence structure.

Fact-checkers at various media outlets have also pointed out the context for Obama's remarks and how the actual quote reads.

[Cha]

13. Absolutely, the Best Idea!

Thanks progressivebydesign~

[CBHagman]

7. I remember a time when Christians used to warn against self-absorption, as well as...

...the American obsession with rugged individualism.

After hearing Paul Ryan's talk tonight, I might also add that I remember a time when bearing false witness was considered a sin and not a sign of being a serious man.

[tjdee]

9. Stephen Colbert reminded me today that Ayn Rand is a moral leader to a lot of these people.

Particularly Paul Ryan.

It shows.

[Zoeisright]

10. You were way too nice.

She is an idiot. She did get a handout from the government: the schools, roads, health care, and all the other things this SOCIETY built. Tell her if she thinks she's so wonderful, to move to Somalia and build her business "all by herself".

And tell her she can kiss my ass because she's a lying jerk.

[Floyd_Gondolli]

11. They are incapable of understanding nuance

In their world everything is black and white. The concept that you can't run a business without roads, electricity, water etc. is completely lost on them. Their minds simply aren't capable of processing these things.

[Amonester]

12. Ask her this simple, very basic fundamental question:

If the government would not exist to help businesses get started and grow, how would she be successful without the MONEY the government 'produces' and 'distributes' through the government's (poorly, I'd give her that) regulated banking system?

You know, the MONEY (coins & paper) her customers (assuming they don't exclusively pay with credit- or debit-cards, that is) use to BUY her goods (or services), ask her HOW would she be able to be successful WITHOUT

it?

[ancianita]

14. It's really not just about convincing her of collective support, but

of how the country would look without commonwealth structures. We don't have to all live in a world that says, "If you don't work you don't eat." We don't have to have a Pottersville, with everyone the enemy and competitor of everyone else, and where we'd have to privatize our schools, fire, garbage, utilities and security services -- like the oil rich country of Nigeria that only affords school to kids who can pay $12,000 a year. That's the "F&*k you got mine world" that Romney/Ryan will "boldly" lead her to.

[Heather MC]

15. How does your Cousin begin with "...I pray" and end with "Kiss my Behind"????

Nothing you said was incorrect or disrespectful
And it goes deeper than people realize
I was thinking today how many people it took just for me to get up and get out the door in the morning and I got dizzy.

1. the people who built my bed.
2. My sheets and bedding I love
3. My Cell Phone/ Alarm Clock/ Life line
4. The robe I wear to head to the bathroom
5. Toilet Paper
6. Tooth brush
7. Tooth paste
8. Soap
9. Water supplu
10. the plumbers
11. electricians
12. Electric company
13. The Heater I use because i like the bathroom extra hot
14. the Hair dryer
15. Deorderant
16. the SINK, Toilet, Mirror Ok out of the bathroom
17. The farm that sold the eggs to the store that I got my breakfast from
18. The Stove that I love nice black stove with ceramic top
19. Ok you are starting to get the Idea
20. and as the door closed behind me and I headed to the van I didn't build I thought about builders of my house
and the President, not President Obama, but Franklin Roosevelt. See I live in one of his New Deal Condos from 1948.
And in my town they are all over the place, you can't throw a rock and not hit a New Deal complex in Arlington VA.

I wonder if someone will be able to say that about George W. Bush in 70 years, Or President Obama?

There are so many people who made it possible for me to even get out of bed today. and I tried to thank them all this morning I really did. This is what the Republicans don't understand. We don't do it all ourselves because it's impossible to do all ourselves. and if we understand that we are actually in a very small community known as the human race, if people see the world in terms of we are all floating on the same rock in space together. Maybe we will realize we all have common struggles and needs that we can help each other with, Daily.

You Cousin is a very sad person, if she really believes she is all alone, I think she is the one who needs the most prayer.

[agentS]

16. Let's see her try to run a business in a third world country that lacks decent infrastructure

Then she can TALK about how "I BUILT THAT" nonsense.

[woolldog]

17. Ask her how far her hard work

would get her if she were in Somalia and not the US. Probably not very

[The Doctor.]

18. I find it sometimes more effective...

To be a smart ass:

"Wow! I'm so proud you built all of that by yourself! I can't imagine the effort it took you to lay the plumbing for your business all the way from the water treatment plant you also had to build! I can't express my amazement that you somehow managed to raise the money and go about contracting crews to build the city infrastructure that lets your employees and customers get to your business! That you single-handedly created and manage to enforce the safety standards by which the products and equipment you use are made is absolutely fantastic to me!

Since I haven't a clue how to go about doing all those things, perhaps you could help me put an entire municipal, oops! I mean 'MEE-nicipal' infrastructure for MY business too!

Thanks!"

Why?

Because it confronts them from their own POV rather than an 'outside' one. You are forcing their ownership of "I built it" right back on them. There's no retreating from that without the tacit, or at least private, admission that they indeed use resources they didn't 'build themselves'.

You did great, btw, but unfortunately, she came away thinking she 'won'.

[Scuba]

19. I'm pretty sure god had nothing to do with it, but your cousin is a moran regardless.

[onenote]

21. Ask your cousin this:

If she didn't get any business from customers that are employed in the public sector (i.e., military, fire/police, federal, state, local agencies, public school teachers/officials) and didn't get any business from those who are employed in the private sector but who do a substantial amount of business with the government (selling their products/services to the government), how successful would her business be? I would bet that a lot of her customers who use her business obtain the funds that they spend on her product/service from salaries that ultimately trace back to the government and to taxes.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

23. Greed is Good

The modern GOP has become the party of Gordon Gecko who was (let's remember) the villian in Oliver Stone's film "Wall Street."

But modern Republicans are so in love with their own "getting and spending" that they've completely lost sight of the concept of community. The pay a certain lip service to "small town values" but forget that those values are about communities that support each other. They forget that there is such a thing as the common good -- there's only MY GOOD.

It really started with Ronald Reagan in 1980. "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" he asked. Note that he didn't ask if the nation was better off or if your neighborhood was better off. Those don't matter. What mattered what you. Your personal wealth. And let others be damned.

So when people like your cousin say "I did this" and ignore everything else that went into their success, they've simply bought into the Republican/Randian philosophy of greed.

[SmittynMo]

24. No offense, but

You can't fix stupid. It still amazes me that the right is still talking about something that was totally taken out of context. Perhaps cuz should listen to the whole speech. Nevermind, it will never happen. This just confirms the ignorance of the right and their hatred for Obama.

[MatthewStLouis]

25. The "I built it" BS is all based on something taken out of context and an extreme reaction to it.

They act like Obama hates/resents individual success. How idiotic. Right wing minds must be small, because it appears if you ever admit government can do any good then you must be a socialist. They can never admit government does anything well or their whole argument crumbles to dust. Tell your cousin to move to Somalia and try and be successful there. No man is an island. WE built those fucking roads. WE bleed to death on those battlefields where our forefathers fought for capital "F" Freedom. WE fought for workers rights, weekends, and living wages. WE made those public universities with giant land grants. WE supported those public schools. Hell, WE bailed out those big banks after they got into trouble. WE saved the nation from another depression and now they are trying to tell me they "built something". Whoop De Doo! What utter fucking BS.

Now for my two cents worth of free think. I think we need to turn the argument back to Freebaggers and ask them why they want everything for free, without paying their fair share in taxes? Ask them how George W. was paying down the debt by giving tax cuts to the rich and starting 2 wars with his credit card?

Remind people how the rich are still gaming the system and then ask what Mitt is hiding by not releasing his tax returns?

...

[cilla4progress]

26. Vowing to stay away from provocative

conversations on FB. Esp. anything negative. Plan to post positive during the Dem convention next week!

[peace13]

27. I would send this ignorant soul a link to the entire 'Didn't build it' quote

and watch her face as she realizes that she is a baboons ass for believing anything the rethugs tell her. Sorry but after the lies last night my elasticity is gone!

[Kalidurga]

28. What kind of business does your cousin have?

It can't be anything that requires a lot of thinking.

[Lucy Goosey]

29. Maybe you should use more exclamation points!!!!!!

Also be Sure to randomly capitalize a few Words!!!!!!!!

Seriously, though, I take exception to this: "finally we have someone with adequate experience for Vice President!!!" There is no intellectually honest way for a person to believe that Biden is not experienced enough to be VP and also believe that Ryan is experienced enough. Ask her how she's dealing with the cognitive dissonance.

[mnhtnbb]

30. Your cousin is probably helpless--and hopeless--to acknowledge that NO ONE

gets anywhere without help from others. I'm sure it's very satisfying to her
ego to believe the lies spouted by Ryan and the Republican party.

Ask her what "No man is an island" means to her.