Germany Second

[cronus]

The only problem with socialism is caused by the sort of people who'd carry it's mandate out. And on a global scale you'd find out to your cost that Donald Trump isn't the only one to seize power via a miracle of Machiavellian cunning and pure evil intent.

[pErvinalia]

There's actually a whole lot of these videos coming. Each European country with a late night show will produce one. They will all be listed on http://everysecondcounts.eu

Whoever it is that does Trump's voice is brilliant.

[NineBerry]

There's actually a whole lot of these videos coming. Each European country with a late night show will produce one. They will all be listed on http://everysecondcounts.eu

Whoever it is that does Trump's voice is brilliant.

Except for the guy in the Lithuanian version. He sounds terrible. They somehow also didn't put a single joke in the video.

[JimC]

Humour is forbidden in Lithuania.

[Tero]

They had some limited visits to the Baltic states in the Gorbachov years. I believe the hit item for tourists to Lithuania was metal pails.

[NineBerry]

I just read there will also be an Australian version on Wednesday by some Charles Pickering

[Svartalf]

Humour is forbidden in Lithuania.

but it is mandatory in Curonia (Courland, modern Latvia)

[JimC]

I just read there will also be an Australian version on Wednesday by some Charles Pickering

Charlie Pickering is quite an amusing lefty comedian on our ABC. He should do a good job...

[Forty Two]

Nine you are talking to somebody that cant envisage anything that is socialist.

I can envisage it. Not supporting it is not the same as not being able to envisage it. You're someone who cannot envisage people living any other way but the Dutch way. I certainly can envisage an economic and social system where the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned by the State. I simply don't agree with it. I am absolutely able to entertain that notion, without accepting it.

It is about time the EU returned to its social democratic roots and the UK leaving will give once again an impetus to such a move which was finally realised in Malta. May made a complete fool of herself but it did trigger the other 27 to think about the future and their answer to Trump.

Social democracy is not the same thing as socialism.

[Forty Two]

It's not fair to count the VAT as part of an import tax, because the same tax applies to products produced inside the EU.

If so, then you still have a 19% import tax. Surely Germany wouldn't want to oppose a 19% import tax on their vehicles coming into the US. I mean, build better cars, indeed. That sort of snark when their own country imposes 19% tariffs is rather laughable.

And as I said I don't have a problem with import taxes, generally.

Me neither, and neither did Democrats much, until Trump was elected.

As an evil lefty, I want things like a good social system, high income taxes, and a hell lot of regulations to protect worker rights, the environment, consumer rights, and so on.

You don't have to be a lefty to want most of that. I would say that "high income taxes" is not an end to strive for. It's a means to an end. It's a means to raise tax revenue, and it's not a good in and of itself to have high taxes. Most everyone wants a good social system. Most everyone wants regulations to protect workers (safety, basic rules, etc.). These kind of things are not "leftist" - they are quite liberal and even conservative -- although various political positions have various ways of getting there.

Free trade means that countries with all these nice lefty things are disadvantaged compared to countries who don't give a shit about such things. So I don't have a problem with countries having high standards with regard to social system and regulations to have import taxes.

those aren't "lefty" things, per se. People on the left can want those things, but they aren't leftist things by definition. A moderate liberal wants most of those things too. Maybe a leftist wants high taxes for their own sake. I'm not sure about that, but the rest of it is basic mixed-economy, liberal democratic state stuff. Not "leftist." A leftist is generally at least a socialist, if not a communist, in economic and social theory. That ideological wing has successfully coopted what was once just thought of as "liberalism," even though they are completely different. it's like when "conservatives" are defined as including libertarians, when the two are generally diametrically opposed on most important issues.

The best thing surely would be to have a one-world-government that enforces all these nice lefty things everywhere equally...

that all depends what kind of government it is. If it's modeled on the ideas of Thomas Paine and the French Revolution and American Revolution - Enlightenment values - limited government - with good, strong protections built in that separate powers and respect the dignity and liberty of the individual, then yes. If it's some sort of oligarchical regime that isn't effectively answerable to the people, or which concentrates power too much centrally, or generally which controls the means of production, distribution and finance centrally, then it would be a recipe for tyranny.

[pErvinalia]

What a load of horseshit. A leftist is'nt "at least a socialist, if not a communist, in economic and social theory". And show me where any authoritative definition or proponent of liberalism supports more rather than less import taxes. Black is clearly white in your world.

[NineBerry]

There's a video from Morocco now. But again, I couldn't find any joke. Is my humour broken or is Moroccan humour broken?

[pErvinalia]

You're German. Germans don't really do humour.

[NineBerry]

[Forty Two]

What a load of horseshit. A leftist is'nt "at least a socialist, if not a communist, in economic and social theory". And show me where any authoritative definition or proponent of liberalism supports more rather than less import taxes. Black is clearly white in your world.

You clearly were unable to understand what I wrote - or, you, again, read part way and then assumed you knew what I wrote without finishing most of it. That is what you do, as we've seen before.

So go fuck off.