screw the french

[pattbateman]

Practice What You Preach

Tuesday, January 27, 2004

By Neil Cavuto

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: I will never give you diet advice. I mean, do I look like a guy who should be piping up at a restaurant, "Hey, buddy, try the salad?"

No, I don't think so.

So imagine my shock at learning the European Commission (search) is set to fine Microsoft (search) for anti-competitive behavior.

The Europeans say Bill Gates and Co. broke European competition law and should be punished.

Let me see if I get this straight. The socialist governments that cradle their companies are going after an American success story that cradles its windows.

This, from the people whose idea of free trade is keeping American products out and their own grossly subsidized products in. And whose Airbus industry is a consortium, largely financed by and supported with European government money. No wonder these guys can bid so low on plane contracts.

This from the people who bemoan our deficits but don't say boo about their own.

Who say we should watch our economic recovery, when we're growing three times faster than they are.

Who say our tax cuts are too much, while their long-suffering people endure taxes too high.

Yes, we have our problems. But who the hell are you to judge?

The way I see it, unless I'm Bruce Jenner, I won't tell you what to eat. And Europe, unless you're the envy of the world, quit lecturing to our part of the world.

Because news flash, Jacques ... no one cares!

We are many things in this country, but smarmy, lying, jealous, sycophant-ish, afraid-of-competition, socialists we are not.

We have a saying in this country: If you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. I say, stay in the kitchen. Right now, food is just about the only thing you are good at.

Watch Neil Cavuto's Common Sense weekdays at 4 p.m. ET on Your World with Cavuto

[siceone]

I love Cavuto

[pattbateman]

his comments at the end are great

the other one i posted just as good

[DiscoProJoe]

One fact that the "anti-trust" fans never mention is that Standard Oil had already lost 1/3 of its market share to competition before the government forced it to break up in 1911. The free market was working just fine.

The only monopolies we need to worry about are the real ones, such as the Federal Reserve System, the U.S. Postal Service, etc., which are protected by guns rather than private "anticompetitive" practices.

[pattbateman]

i agree i think of the post office as obsolete

unless anyone can point me differently

well i guess that would be a lot of jobs lossed but then again there would be two other companies exploding ups and fed x

then you have a oligopily watch obviously leads to price fixing which could be better then prices now or worse and if they get really bad you are fucked???

who knows i can go either way

so i guess i was taught to leave well enough alone

i have just changed my mind as i wrote this

it just seems like a huge problem to dismantle th epostal service??

[DiscoProJoe]

Originally posted by pattbateman

it just seems like a huge problem to dismantle th epostal service??

Don't dismantle it; just privatize the Postal Service and abolish the laws the ban competition against it.

Initially there'd be three companies competing, but with first-class mail there would be a plethora of small businesses entering this marketplace.

And in cases of collusion, each of the colluders would have a tendency to "cheat" on each other, so the plot would crumble eventually.

[pattbateman]

but then the prices could go way up

im sure the government is not making a huge profit like an investor with that kind of money. he (investor) would expect huge returns

and without upping the price he wouldnt get them

[DiscoProJoe]

But private companies tend to operate far more efficiently than government bureaucracies. Furthermore, more competition would spawn great innovation in the industry to drastically improve the quality of service and to make the service cheaper and better.

When's the last time the Postal Service reduced the price of its stamps?

[mr mahs]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

But private companies tend to operate far more efficiently than government bureaucracies. Furthermore, more competition would spawn great innovation in the industry to drastically improve the quality of service and to make the service cheaper and better.

When's the last time the Postal Service reduced the price of its stamps?

Good point.

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

When's the last time the Postal Service reduced the price of its stamps?

TRUE...i read somewhere that the US Postal Service is hurting bigtime b/c most people have "wised up" and are now using E-mails instead of writing letters...

[jamiroguy1]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

But private companies tend to operate far more efficiently than government bureaucracies. Furthermore, more competition would spawn great innovation in the industry to drastically improve the quality of service and to make the service cheaper and better.

When's the last time the Postal Service reduced the price of its stamps?

This is something I'm in favor of...Privatization of the US postal service.

[DiscoProJoe]

With this big media frenzy over the whole Janet Jackson Superbowl saga, I bet the French are laughing their asses off at how culturally stupid we Americans are for being offended about the public display of a woman's bare breast.

Why are women's bare breasts considered "obscene," but not men's? Don't we see giant cow tits on the Discovery Channel with people milking them?

Maybe this whole circus will spark a national debate on this issue.

I've also heard that the stage act was planned. Maybe a high-ranking media executive wanted to set off this kind of national debate in order to move the country toward legalization of female bare breasts in public? Who knows....

[pattbateman]

its embarrasing when your family is sitting around watching it.

and again we are not french,

hense they can keep there culture

i really do not give a fuck what the french think even if they are laughing their ass off

[siceone]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

With this big media frenzy over the whole Janet Jackson Superbowl saga, I bet the French are laughing their asses off at how culturally stupid we Americans are for being offended about the public display of a woman's bare breast.

Why are women's bare breasts considered "obscene," but not men's? Don't we see giant cow tits on the Discovery Channel with people milking them?

Maybe this whole circus will spark a national debate on this issue.

I've also heard that the stage act was planned. Maybe a high-ranking media executive wanted to set off this kind of national debate in order to move the country toward legalization of female bare breasts in public? Who knows....

you are quite possibly the dumbest indivdual to grace the listeserv

[DiscoProJoe]

Originally posted by siceone

you are quite possibly the dumbest indivdual to grace the listeserv

Hahahahahahaha..........I'm glad I pissed you off, too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:D

[marksimons]

"We are many things in this country, but smarmy, lying, jealous, sycophant-ish, afraid-of-competition, socialists we are not."

"We are many things in this country, but smarmy, lying, jealous, sycophant-ish, afraid-of-competition, decietful capitalists we are."

--

hmmm

privatising the postal service? not a good one, we tried it, first thing royal mail did spend millions on changing their logo... then try and cut back staff...

privatisation isn't always the best, and markets are definetly not always free...

also, when defending the virtues of american free trade, microsoft is NOT the best example to use...

microsoft want to be a monopoly, they have a monopoly, an artificial one, not even the best one for the consumers, but they have it, and they'll do their damnedest to keep it.

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by pattbateman

i really do not give a fuck what the french think even if they are laughing their ass off

who cares what the French think? how can u take any country serious when they think Jerry Lewis is a god...

[mursa]

The french were apparently right on the issue on IRAQ , and here are some still talking bad about them ..

WTF ?!!

[DiscoProJoe]

Originally posted by marksimons

privatising the postal service? not a good one, we tried it, first thing royal mail did spend millions on changing their logo... then try and cut back staff...

What's wrong with an organization cutting the "fat" and becoming more efficient?

When the services get cheaper and better, consumers will have more time and money left in their pockets to spend on other things. This leads to job creation in other industries.

Therefore, those postal workers who got laid off should soon find new jobs somewhere else. In other words, it would be a win-win situation for everyone (except politicians and bureaucrats, of course).

Besides sports and games, do you believe in a win-win world? Or do you think that one person's gain always equals another person's loss (i.e., a win-lose world)? Just wonderin'.

[guyman1966]

Originally posted by mursa

The french were apparently right on the issue on IRAQ , and here are some still talking bad about them ..

WTF ?!!

So, I guess you belive that it was OK for Saddam to murder thousands of his own people? I guess Iraq was a wonderful place to live.

Do you realize that our little counter culture music underground would have been illegal in Irag and Saddam would have killed you for your after hours party in Lauderdale?

[DiscoProJoe]

What about all the other 50 dictatorships in the world -- many of whom are more oppressive than Saddam was? Should the U.S. government go after them as well, on a mission to rid the world of evil-doers?

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

What about all the other 50 dictatorships in the world -- many of whom are more oppressive than Saddam was? Should the U.S. government go after them as well, on a mission to rid the world of evil-doers?

NO...just do one more "ridding the world of evil-doers" plan...and finish what u "tried" to start in Cuba....

[guyman1966]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

What about all the other 50 dictatorships in the world -- many of whom are more oppressive than Saddam was? Should the U.S. government go after them as well, on a mission to rid the world of evil-doers?

If they support terrorism - Like Saddam did (He funded the PLO and other Palestininan terror groups). Then Yes. Kill them all and let god sort them out.

[DiscoProJoe]

Speaking of Cuba, just lift the embargo and allow unilateral free trade. This would give the ordinary Cuban citizens a chance to increase their wealth a little bit more. When that happens, the slightly-stronger citizens there will have a better chance at being able to overthrow Castro. I believe one big reason why Castro has remained in power for more than 40 years is because of the embargo keeping the Cubans more impoverished than they would otherwise be.

In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Castro has secretly bribed U.S. Presidents for the past 40 years to keep the embargo in place, since it helps keep him in power.

[DiscoProJoe]

Originally posted by DiscoProJoe

Besides sports and games, do you believe in a win-win world? Or do you think that one person's gain always equals another person's loss (i.e., a win-lose world)? Just wonderin'.

Let me add a point of clarification. When a dictator oppresses his own people, those people can't invent as many things and will produce far less than they would otherwise. This includes new life-saving medicines.

So when the dictator dies of so-called "incurable" diseases, then he, too, will lose in this "lose-lose" scenario. His people's loss becomes his loss as well. And in the postal service example, the politicians and bureaucrats must contend with lower-quality mail delivery and the resulting less-efficient economy, so in a sense, they also lose out.