Kenneth Durden: "Mitt Romney Is Right...And Wrong"

Mitt Romney

The libertarian-conservative blogger discusses the moderate-conservative Republican presidential candidate's provocative comments about government dependency in America: "Mitt Romney was right in saying that some in the U.S. feel entitled. This sense of entitlement goes  far beyond the number of people who pay no federal income tax and beyond those who receive welfare payments. Victimhood is all too common. Too many people see their station in life as attributable to someone else's actions. They do this at a time when the nation is more free and more equitable than it has ever been. They do this at a time when people continue to immigrate to this nation and prosper."

However, Mr. Durden argues that Mr. Romney didn't take the argument far enough though: "The federal government has so inserted itself into every area of life that it's hard not to get some kind of redistribution. That's the problem. Promises have been made that cannot be kept. So most of the redistribution is happening from future generations to today. Those who vehemently defend and try to separate programs like Social Security and Medicare miss the point. Both of these programs pay benefits from taxes on current workers. Both programs pay benefits far beyond anything that was 'paid into the system.' Republicans are now going right along with Democrats is writing a trillion dollar farm bill. This is madness. Agribusiness must compete on its own. So should the auto business. If foreign countries are 'cheating' then we should trade with others that do not."