mitt romney: americans are not entitled to food, shelter, medical care

In case anyone is somehow not aware, the man who wants to lead the country believes that roughly half of the people in it do not deserve basic life sustaining food. They don't deserve shelter or medical care either, apparently. Mitt Romney has confirmed and doubled down on the horrible screed recorded at one of his millionaires only fundraisers:

There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax.

The Crommunist was reminded of a scene from American Psycho upon hearing it, and so was I. Romney's extreme wealth, lack of self-awareness, and contempt for gays and women fit right in to the characterization, too. 

It is worth noting that his figures aren't accurate at all, but it is somewhat beside the point.

Funny how people who pay into the system their whole lives and cannot work anymore are lumped in with the "victims" in Romney's mind. I am struck with the sense that republicans, who keep calling themselves "pro life", are not interested in helping anyone actually stay alive once they are born. They also seem to have no problem completely disobeying what their team mascot says regarding the poor and underprivileged, all while calling atheists evil and immoral. None of this is new, but its still infuriating. What really bothers me is that so many people are so ignorant of history that they may like the sound of romney's comments. 

The historical amnesia required to think like Romney and his ilk astounds me. It is as if they think that the social programs of government sprouted up out of no where, that they were put in place because lazy people somehow quit being lazy long enough to get these programs enacted, ultimately with the goal of never working again. Or perhaps they think FDR was some kind of radical who ruined the country despite cries of protest from Real Americans. The truth is that government social programs came to be because people were dying in the fucking streets from preventable causes. There is not any alternative system in place to take care of people if these programs go away, and the fight will have to be won all over again, with all the casualties falling on one side. 

It reminds me of another group with terrible ignorance of the past: anti vaccine activists. They don't seem to fully understand the situation that spawned vaccine schedules or how close we are to returning to such a fate if the system isn't kept in place. I doubt that any of them would keep their resolve about "too many too soon" after actually witnessing the horror of preventable death from say, polio. I also doubt the majority of people who buy into the republican social darwinist line of bullshit would keep with it if they had a realistic representation of the results of such policies available. You would have to be a fucking sociopath to see people who need medical care and refuse to give it to them, for any reason. Ditto for food and shelter. Most people aren't sociopaths; we just live in a society that champions their values. 

Its also worth noting that Romney's position in the mormon church included deciding who was "worthy" of aid (after paying 10% of their income in tithing for years and years, of course). Unless mormons are automatically considered to be better than half of the country, it is hard for me to imagine him doling out food and assistance with much compassion. He has had endless opportunity to work with poor people and help them, and he has an attitude devoid of empathy despite all that. 

There is more to come from the undercover tape, though I am not sure how it could get any worse.