“Opportunity ” means the potential to achieve with a probability correlated with one’s ambition, skill set and perseverance. This must be distinguished from ”assurance” (or a guarantee) of achievement. Such guarantees are only made by government to privileged groups in the form of services and products.
This is yet another way to distinguish between forms of government: capitalism (with “opportunity”) and statism (with “assurance”); or between their moral codes: the right to the pursuit of happiness vs. happiness itself (via guarantees/force).
In illustrating this point, focus should not be on those who, through no fault of their own, cannot provide for themselves - do not have any “opportunity.” There will always be (preferably non-government) financial support for them.
If you are looking for a fundamental difference between the Tea Party and the OWS protestors, look no further: it is about “opportunity” vs. “assurance.” The Tea Party wants government to better uphold our rights, eliminate unessential spending and strengthen our “land of opportunity.” The OWS protestors want to redefine “opportunity” to mean “assurance”; they want:
Economic equality: that goes far beyond our founding documents that call for “equal rights” - equal opportunity. One does not have a right to the wealth of others. There is absolutely nothing wrong with wealth disparity, as long as wealth is earned and everyone has the opportunity to profit from the economic system. The latter is only possible under capitalism; today’s mixed economy places many restrictions on individuals with some being irrationally disadvantaged.
Jobs: they require effort, not sitting in a park. Employers provide opportunities to work for those who earn them; jobs are not a handout. The better jobs require education and a competitive edge; and the unemployment rate for those with a college education is as low as 1/3 the rate for the non-educated. While everyone cannot afford such education, there are many opportunities to be trained pre or post-hiring for those with sufficient desire and ambition.
Health Care: as noted before, no such product or service can be a right. Our problem is one of high cost due to government intervention in that industry. The focus needs to be on creating the broadest opportunity to purchase HC insurance; and that requires a free market that can enable reform of the system to make insurance affordable for all, retain high quality of care, and minimize such intervention. To retain any semblance of freedom and opportunity, the Supreme Court must overturn the ObamaCare mandate.
Thanksgiving thought: be thankful that only a fraction of 1% of us are pretending to represent the 99% protesting against the top 1% (of wage earners). Stop expecting the unearned and envying the top 1%, respect individual rights, and take advantage of this land of opportunity to be productive.
