Doppy also wrote:

Personally, I don't think the government should be bailing out the airlines. They're private businesses. I think the government gives out money to way too many people, like people who don't have the foresight to buy insurance.

My reply:

He we do agree of something J Yeah!!!

Doppy also wrote:

But I maintain my point about everyone having a stake in security. You have failed to prove that people on the ground don't get any benefit from not having a plane crash into them, nor have you shown that country folk don't lose money and possibly their jobs when there's a stock market or economic downturn as a result of a major terrorist activity. Finally, you should also note that but for 9/11, the US wouldn't have spent billions of dollars on a war against Afganistan and wouldn't be planning on spending billions of dollars on a war with Iraq. Another sign that non-travelers do have a stake in security.

My reply:

You make a good point. I cannot prove that people don’t benefit from a plane crashing into them because there is no benefit to those people The only benefit might accrue if you carefully selected your target, and then only society as a whole might benefit.

So…let’s try it this way. I’ll maintain that it is the very liberal think tanks, originating in the city, that took over our education systems, combined with a liberal vein in the Government that transformed us into a welfare state (you do realize that last year we passed a very important milestone. That milestone was that 51% of the populace did not pay any net tax and were subsidized in one form or another by the 49% who did) and preach a mantra of what amounts to National stupidity that lead us into this position in the first place.
Frankly I don’t see any impact in my community. Unless you mean the illegal alien population that is now draining our public services and overloading our school systems. They live out here, hours form the city, because they cannot afford to live in the city in which they work. So you see, the suburbs and the country is providing another subsidy in the form of cheap housing so people can work at the fancy hotels in the city at below living wages.

In my community we have a diversified base, and those harmed by this recession are basically those that should not be here in the first place. The state on the other hand is in dreadful shape. Most of that stems form trying to maintain the incredible net of social services that serve as transfers from net producers to net users.
Anyway, I genuinely respect your opinion on this, and give weight to your words.

TFB