this post was submitted on 28 Nov 2023
2094 points (96.8% liked)
Political Memes
5228 readers
1992 users here now
Welcome to politcal memes!
These are our rules:
Be civil
Jokes are okay, but don’t intentionally harass or disturb any member of our community. Sexism, racism and bigotry are not allowed. Good faith argumentation only. No posts discouraging people to vote or shaming people for voting.
No misinformation
Don’t post any intentional misinformation. When asked by mods, provide sources for any claims you make.
Posts should be memes
Random pictures do not qualify as memes. Relevance to politics is required.
No bots, spam or self-promotion
Follow instance rules, ask for your bot to be allowed on this community.
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Sorry if you're being sarcastic, but why then do the workers with the guns have the least rights?
The bourgeoisie takes rights away from the proletariat. The bourgeoisie have outlived there usefulness and the proletariat should rise up against them.
Yeah but how come workers in Europe, who don't have guns, have 100X the rights of workers in the US, who do have guns?
Is it because people with guns are scared little pussies?
Because, to be honest, that's how it looks!
In the US the bourgeoisie is so powerful and have brain washed the people so much that the bourgeoisie feels comfortable letting the proletariat fuck around with guns. All the gun owners are so caught up with being scared of the people the bourgeoisie told them to be scared of that they don't realize that lgbtq+ community and other races are still more or less in the same bloat and that the bourgeoisie harms them all. One day the tools of the oppressors will be used by the oppressed to gain control.
I'll be honest mate, I'm old and I've been hearing this for forty years.
All that's happened is that public shootings have increased, dramatically
I unfortunately agree with this take. Blips of independence here and there get crushed by inexorable legal/monetary punishment of those who disagree with the system.
I wait quietly for the right opportunity, but am concerned I'll be waiting for a long time.
What rights do you think European workers have that American workers don't have?
Basic healthcare for one
That's a national issue, not a worker's rights issue, unless you're saying that employment is required for you to have healthcare. All citizens should have healthcare, regardless of their employment status.
It’s a worker’s rights issue when your healthcare is tied to your employment, as is the case for the majority of Americans.
And I'm saying it shouldn't be tied to your employment. Every citizen should have universal healthcare options, regardless of their employment status. Therefore it's a national issue, and not an worker's rights issue. If someone is disabled, or unemployed, or a small business owner, or whatever, they should still have healthcare. Life saving services should be completely unrelated to your work, or lack thereof.
Edit: and as far as I know, that's how it works in Europe, so it's not a right that European workers have, it's a right that all citizens have. Hopefully that clarifies why I said it's a national issue and not a worker's rights issue.
Vacation, illness/disability benefits that pay you for sick days regardless of your job, livable retirement benefits which don’t require investment…
I wasn't aware that Europe has such a thing. Which European countries? All of them? Certainly it's being paid for somehow. Americans get retirement in the form of social security. That does require that you pay into it, but I'm assuming the European version does as well, just as a general tax instead of a specific charge. Is the European version based on how much you made while working? What is the program called?
I said livable. Social security is not livable.
It’s paid for in Germany through a tax, but not personal investment in a retirement account (maybe my phrasing was unclear). The level of retirement pay is dependent on the time you worked and your pay, but it’s complicated. Someone who works full time for minimum wage will still get enough for healthful survival into old age. Each European country handles things differently.
Also, parental leave, I don’t know how I missed that one.
I was pretty shocked when I learned that Germany offers 6 months of paternity leave, fully paid. When my son was born I got half a Friday off and was back at work on Monday. That isn't most people's experience here though. Most decent jobs have similar benefits to all the ones you mentioned, but they're attached to the job, not workers rights. So those were some good points you made.
I’m an American immigrant in Germany, and in my work experience in the US, it’s hit or miss. I worked as a server, in a call center, and as an insurance adjuster. As an insurance adjuster, new fathers got two weeks, and new mothers got six months parental leave. As a server, I worked with a woman who came back the day after giving birth. I worked at three different restaurants, and not a one offered anything for parental leave outside of FMLA without pay (nor did the call center). New mothers have the option for disability, but that’s not full pay.
It’s definitely a good job vs. bad job thing, which is really fucked up, IMO, because the “bad jobs” are the ones where people actually need the money/time without paying for childcare. As an insurance adjuster, I could have relatively easily taken unpaid time off, as long as I had warning, because my pay was pretty high for my area (for heavily litigated, high value commercial liability claims, like asbestos exposures- an auto or homeowners insurance adjuster doesn’t make as much). As a server, missing one shift was difficult.
I’m currently working part time in a bakery in Germany, while getting my master’s degree. They just made me a wedding cake for free, which blew my mind. Most of the Germans I’ve told about it feel like it’s expected. That’s not a right that Europeans have, obviously, but workers here are generally valued more by their companies, even in bad jobs (which a part time student job almost always is in the US).
For another example, my boss changed the schedule last week, and I asked in our group chat if anyone could cover my new shift. My boss realized she hadn’t asked me first, and took me off the schedule for that shift. I’ve been called in for a shift in the US with two hours notice and told that if I couldn’t make it work, I would be fired. They can’t do that here because everyone has contracts. They could only fire me without three months notice if I committed a crime against them (because it’s a bakery, but a teacher convicted of, say, pedophilia which occurred outside of their work hours or a heavy equipment operator with a DUI could still be fired for those, because they’re relevant crimes to the job).
How much paid time off does your job give you?
What rights do you think we don't have in the USA? I can do whatever I want, and I do every day in the USA.
Get hurt and get treated at a hospital without paying.
I actually have done that in the USA. Emergency departments have to provide medical treatment to anyone who needs it regardless of their ability to pay.
Additionally, when I was in poverty I was able to get very discounted health services at the county health department. They provide healthcare with an income-based rate, so that poor people can afford it.
Your attempt has been debunked, good day.
Yup, I guess all those people with medical debt are just fuckin liars, and we actually do have free healthcare
The problem is that both are telling the truth. Some hospitals have discounts for low income people and others don't. Some medical emergencies are easy to write off while others aren't. If you don't have decent insurance in the US it becomes kind of a lottery system, which in the end makes it harder to change voters opinions.
Or if you do have decent insurance and also have cancer.
Medical needs extend far beyond the occasional emergency
It is "free" healthcare if you just don't pay! Tapping head.
Just waiting for the day when my Dr hands me a screen and tells me it's gonna ask me a question before looking away like a dip shit right before writing a prescription
How about getting good healthcare outside of emergencies or living in poverty?
I have always had access to good healthcare in the poorest part of the USA actually. My health needs have all been taken care of well, as have the health needs of every member of my family.
I don't understand why all you people think we don't have good healthcare in the USA. We literally have the top doctors in the world here, and the best medical technology that exists.
Kinda funny how some Americans always confuse "having" and "having access". But I guess you're the one person in the whole country who gets good healthcare, because pretty much everyone else tells a different story. Good for you I suppose.
Depending on which state your in, determines your individual freedoms.
In Michigan:
I can light up a joint on my porch and wave to the passing cop car.
I cannot legally operate an unlicensed vehicle on city streets.
I cannot launch my own aircraft.
I cannot turn Right on Red.
I'm fairly certain that you do not have the freedumb to cook meth in your kitchen.
I will concede the "I can do whatever I want; once." argument. Kind of like how I could go outside and fire off a few rounds into the air. Sure, I CAN do it, but it's illegal for me to do so for public safety reasons.
Also, you cannot strike a member of Congress regardless of the state.
You absolutely can turn right on red in Michigan unless a sign prohibits it.
You may be right about some of that but I'm downvoting you for saying "freedumb" because I hate that dumb malapropism.
Freedom is never dumb. Dumb is being against freedom.
Getting an abortion 🤷🏼♀️
Abortion is legal in the USA actually. It might require a drive to a neighboring state for some states' residents but it is still something that Americans have the right to do.
Although many Americans do not have the means to do so. Also some states are trying to (already have?) outlaw this.