Roosevelt's Second Bill Of Rights

On January 11, 1944, President Roosevelt gave this proposal for an economic second bill of rights during his annual State of the Union Address. Among the rights listed were the right to a job, the right to adequate housing, the right to fair trade, the right to national healthcare, the right to social security and the right to an education.

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• Second Bill Of Rights

[EmpperorIng]

Copy-pasted RIGHT out of the Soviet Constitution. How well did that go?

[n4mwd]

@EmpperorIng Other than the right to work, I was not aware that the soviet union constitution gave the people any rights. But the right to decent medical care is the law in numerous countries - both communist and free - just not in the US because the health insurance lobby is too powerful and the politicians are well bribed.

[n4mwd]

-cont-

Regarding education - I don't think this should be an absolute right. Students should have to take a test to see if they are smart enough to go on to the next level. If they are, then they should be able to get as much of an education as they can - all free. i believe that this is how they do it in India.

Kids that aren't smart enough to get into high school should be trained in a trade and put to work.

[n4mwd]

I think 'decent living' is somewhat hit on by the minimum wage act. However, I think that this wage should be tied to something tangible such as the average price of a gallon of gas in the last quarter rather than be set arbitrarily by a special act of congress.

Regarding 'decent home', I don't think that anyone should be forced to sleep out in the cold. A literal 'warehouse' with railroad car style bunks would be better than sleeping outdoors. 

[EmpperorIng]

@n4mwd You can look it up, these include right to work, rest & leisure, healthcare, housing, education, and "cultural benefits," whatever those are. To be fair, this is the 1977 soviet constitution, so the copy-pasta was probably in reverse. Still, that doesn't bode well for FDR in my opinion. But thank God we still have privatized health care. The problems with it are that it's one of the most heavily regulated industries in America, but we have a chance and a political will to reverse course.

[coolbreezed]

This Second Bill of RIghts is ridiculous and it is dangerously vague. How could anyone possibly define things such as "decent living", "decent home", "adequate medical care" or "good education"? Not to mention the massive injustice of forcing the successful among us to serve the unsuccessful through government coercion.

The first BOR doesn't impinge on individual liberty in ANY way. This second BOR forces others to do things. Very destructive to individual liberty.

[gosciu555]

@akesling

How about Scrouge? This is the type of person who's teaching "economics" in collageses today.

[HoGraz]

@akesling They're stupid. There's a lot of rhetoric and fearmongering to get through to the truth. Some people spend their whole lives believing total bullshit.

[akesling]

I can't believe ANYONE would be against these rights.

[TrafficoneMan]

it says alot that this vid only has 948 view at this time