Intelligence is only correlated with income as higher levels of education tend to produce better job opportunities. It is, however, a logical fallacy to imply that correlation equals causation. People aren't less intelligent because they're poor, people who come from lower income areas and families and can't afford education are less likely to meet the rigorously defined study criteria for intelligence precisely because they can't afford the higher education that would allow them to meet such criteria.
This of course has nothing to do with their cognition, either.
The jobless aren't jobless because they're stupid, lazy, irresponsible, or don't want to work. They're out of work for a variety of factors, more than can just be brushed aside and chalked up to personal responsibility.
That kind of callousness toward those who need our support is exactly why Romney doesn't have my respect as political candidate. Frankly, I'm tired of what the Republican party has come to stand for. Big business, not big government. It's not a conspiracy theory. Republicans want free market capitalism. Well guess what, so do I. I love capitalism. It lets me eat fried chicken even though I know it's terrible for me. But FUCK IT. When that chicken eventually gives me a heart attack, I'd like the same government I've proudly given my tax dollars to, the same government I may be expected to defend in times of crisis, the same into community to which I was born and supported until my moment of crisis, TO HELP ME THE FUCK OUT.
How the FUCK is universal healthcare bad for the country? How the FUCK is a social safety net an affront to your personal liberties? We pay taxes that ultimately do FUCK ALL but go to bullshit spending programs enacted to make sure the funding doesn't stop coming in. Libertarians may tell me it was my fault for eating the fried chicken to begin with. It was. I respect that. I respect what Libertarians want, economically speaking. But if we're so hung up on personal accountability, on eye for eye justice, on putting ideology ahead of human beings, then we'll let people suffer and die simply for making the wrong decisions. Life is short, life is confusing. Some people are born with good circumstances, others in poverty. Some have strength, motivation, and drive. Others are fatigued, plagued, and frail. Some have access to education, others don't.
The government could compete directly with private corporations for healthcare. Better healthcare is available if you can afford it. If not, you won't be left without treatment because of your economic circumstances. Obama's healthcare plan hardly even goes that far, and yet it's derided by the right as "socialist", as if that phrase even holds weight as a pejorative.
Yet, the Republican Party is largely pro-life, anti stem cell research, pro-war on drugs, and devoutly religious to the point that it affects policies. So much for that constitution you all want to restore. So much for personal freedom from big govment. The Republican Party is a fucking joke. It's all about getting those precious Reagan years back. Libertarians have my respect, and unless the Republicans win this year or make drastic changes, they seem poised to take their place in some sense or another.
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