Has anybody else seen this?

[Lex1775]

Sorry if this was posted before, it just showed up in my email (relative sent it to me), with the tag "Obama supporter gets clued in". (The relative in question voted for W twice and thinks anyone without an R after their name wants to tax them 9000 percent and give it all to "welfare moms")

"Today on my way to lunch I passed a homeless guy with a sign that read "Vote Obama, I need the money." I laughed.

Once in the restaurant my server had on a "Obama 08" tie, again I laughed as he had given away his political preference -- just imagine the coincidence.

When the bill came I decided not to tip the server and explained to him that I was exploring the Obama redistribution of wealth concept. He stood there in disbelief while I told him that I was going to redistribute his tip to someone who I deemed more in need--the homeless guy outside. The server angrily stormed from my sight.

I went outside, gave the homeless guy $5 and told him to thank the server inside as I've decided he could use the money more. The homeless guy was grateful.

At the end of my rather unscientific redistribution experiment I realized the homeless guy was grateful for the money he did not earn, but the server was pretty angry that I gave away the money he did earn, without his consideration of whether I should have even have done that; though in my opinion the actual recipient needed the server’s money more.

I guess redistribution of wealth is an easier thing to swallow in concept than in practical application."

[liberalmuse]

1. Never happened.

There's no way a Republican would ever give money to a homeless person. And they don't tip, either. Asshats.

[rurallib]

12. Last year in Iowa I went to a Huckabee meet&greet

at a family owned restaurant in a very small town nearby. Huckabee sprung for soup & sandwich for the crowd. Mrs. Lib and I hung around afterward talking to the owners. As we left the owner found the $5 tip I left. She thanked me and said I was the only one who tipped. I told her I was the only Democrat in the crowd.

[unpossibles]

2. please

not only would a Repub not tip, they definitely would not tip $5.

No need to spread rightwing emails here, unless you have some discussion about it.

[AllieB]

5. There have been lots of these kind of posts recently.

:eyes:

[Lex1775]

7. Not into spreading

I was just wondering if anyone else had seen this or knew of it actually being documented somewhere. I didn't want to write the return email and then get slammed by it being true.

[Snotcicles]

8. You need to hone your bullshit spotting skills. nt

[AllieB]

10. You were wondering if an urban legend was documented?

Priceless.

[aquart]

15. You thought it might be true?

REALLY?

[unpossibles]

3. dupe

...

[AllieB]

4. Yet Republicans have no problem with redistribution of wealth to the rich.

they present these stupidly false dichotomies in order to slam the middle-class, working poor, and homeless.

[tabatha]

6. This is total crap - and simplistic drivel.

You appear not to understand Obama's plans - but Warren Buffet does, and thus supports Obama.

[Swamp Rat]

9. pfft!

[ProfessorGAC]

11. Sophist Economics Lesson From A Simpleton

Completely idiotic. The people who promote these emails are FAR less clever and understand thing FAR less than they think they do.

Emails like this are evidence.
The Professor

[Believing Is Art]

13. On a microscale, this is actually something a Republican would do.

Deny money to those who have worked and earned it (the middle class) and give it to those who find themselves bankrupt due to their own risks*. Now in real life those that receive the money are bankrupt investors, but it still fits the GOP practice of denying earned income to those that actually do the work to keep the country going.

* I don't think all or most homeless people are lazy, nor do I think that the blame for their situation rests solely on their shoulders in most cases. I'm being facetious for the sake of being facetious.

[rurallib]

14. Tells me that instead of seeing lots of countrymen in need

the republican sees another opportunity to be an asshole and laugh at others misfortune.
Didn't Dante say something about a special spot in Hell for.....

[LisaLynne]

16. Yeah, I think my response would be ...

the then the homeless man could take that $5 and go buy a nice hot meal that the server in the restaurant takes for granted probably three times a day. Still, the homeless man would NOT be able to afford a bed to sleep in that night or a roof over his head to keep him dry, something that the server has every day of the week. So, how could someone begrudge someone with so little the tiny bit of comfort that five dollars might bring?

See, that someone would even think that story would in some way stump liberals shows how little they understand the underlying argument.

Plus, what McCain is attacking Obama on is that Obama is talking about making things fair. Things have been horribly UNFAIR to the middle class -- the actual workers in this country, including the hypothetical server -- under Republican rule. Who has been benefiting? The corporations and the very wealthy, and dispite RW talking points, these are not people who do the majority of the work in this country.

[rebel with a cause]

17. The problem with this message/fairy tale is that the main

character/protagonist takes from the working poor and gives to the below poverty line poor. Redistribution of the wealth means taking a little from those that have the wealth and redistributing it to those who are in need. If this story had any depth, the main character/protagonist would have went to a well to do/well paid lawyer/doctor/banker and refused to pay for their services and gave that to the homeless man or the server. If one is stupid enough to think a restaurant server is a member of those who make over $250,000 a year then they need to get in line at some school offering sociology classes. Preferably 201 introduction classes because they know squat about society.

edited to add: feel free to send this response to the sender of the email.

[ColbertWatcher]

20. Agreed. But, we're dealing with GOPers here.

What matters is how they define redistribution of wealth, not what it really is, or how it really works.

For a GOPer, "redistribution of wealth" means having to pay taxes. Period. That's it.

Since they don't understand what taxes do, or have done (or could do), or how to get involved in the system that decides how they're spent, they just complain because they have to pay them. It's what the teevee and radio tells them to do.

[rebel with a cause]

21. then tell them to quit driving on our roads.

Calling the police or fire departments, or any other social services that our taxes pay for. I don't want these services privatized.

[madmom]

18. First if the server was making a living wage there shouldn't have been a problem, second my SO and

I frequent a tavern for lunch, there is a reserved table there for a group of local business men 5 or 6 usually. They always get separate checks and never leave a tip!

[GinaMaria]

19. since when are tax cuts for the middle class

a redistribution of wealth? The top 1% had tax cuts for the last 8 years. No one called that redistribution of wealth. It also did nothing for the economy. Now that it's time for middle class tax cuts people are screaming 'redistribution of wealth' and 'socialism'. These are just scare tactics used to get the middle class to vote against their best interest. Let's give the middle class a shot at helping the economy before bashing the tax cuts. The top 1% had 8 years to try. Let's see what the middle class can do in 4.

[and-justice-for-all]

22. That is just ignorant...

That is not redistribution, that is a clear display of stupid.

The under lying element to Obama's tax plan is: PAY YOUR SHARE. The riches people in America, can in fact, afford to contribution a little more to the 95%. You must also keep in mind that Obama's tax plan is conservative compared to Clintons, but Clinton gave a surplus while still creating jobs.

Shrub/McFucked; will continue spending while not creating jobs. If 95% of America has extra cash, what do you think they will do with it? They will spend it; thereby creating more demand product and services with a result of creating more jobs.

Obama's tax plan is not going to harm business, AT ALL. They incentives for not moving a business over seas is good too, just how unAmerican is it for a company to move over seas and damage the country that gave them their start? extremely.

Any company should be willing to contribute rather then rob.