Brad Thor - Full Black

“It would effectively lower them.”

“Which means, through no fault of your own, the equity in your home has been diminished. So, what would make more sense? Losing your equity? Or everyone chipping in together to make sure everyone succeeds?”

The woman looked at him. “You’re offering a false choice.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Of course you are, Mr. Standing. If I have worked hard, saved my money, and paid off my mortgage, I shouldn’t have to bail out another homeowner.”

“Not even if they have fallen on hard times?” he asked. “Imagine if you were in their shoes.”

“I have no doubt that it would be terrible, but it isn’t the government’s job to take money from one group and give it to another.”

Standing smiled again. “Really? What do you call taxes, then?”

“I disagree with a lot of how the U.S. government spends my money, but we’re not talking about taxes.”

“In a way, we are. What happens when the family in our scenario doesn’t pay their share of the fees and assessments of the homeowners’ association?”

“I would imagine that their property would end up getting a lien placed on it,” she replied.

“But in the meantime, the association’s expenses still need to be paid for, and that burden falls more heavily on the other owners. They have to dip into their reserves, or if the reserves are too thin, they have to pay more in order to cover those who can’t. We can push those who have the most to give more, but as increasing numbers of homeowners go under, sooner or later the burden to make up what they cannot contribute will be overwhelming. We won’t be able to collect enough from the wealthiest homeowners to make up for it.

“Wouldn’t it be better, not to mention easier, to simply rebalance the scales? The sooner you can get that family who is in default back into a job and working, the better it is for everyone. The prosperity effect, as I like to call it, inures to everyone’s benefit. This is about recognizing people’s dignity.”

“And in no place on earth,” she said, “have the freedom and dignity of the individual been more available and assured than in America.”

“Human dignity is a global concern,” replied Standing. “There can’t be social cohesion as long as there is such a vast chasm between rich and poor in the world.”

“And you see dismantling capitalism as the answer?” she asked.

“I see unfettered capitalism as the reason the chasm exists. Human dignity cannot be realized without equitable income distribution. Because human dignity and social cohesion matter to all of us, this is an issue that transcends national sovereignty.”

“Therefore it should be dealt with by international law and international governing bodies,” she replied, repeating his earlier statement.

“Exactly,” said Standing. “This is why a global reset would be so good for so many nations, including the United States. As with the homeowners’ association, everyone would benefit. It would give every nation the chance to be rid of its debts and to start fresh.”

“But what you fail to realize is that one person’s debt is another person’s asset. I look at my mortgage much differently than my bank does. To me it’s a debt, one that I took on willingly, by the way, and one that I’m morally obligated to pay back. To the bank it’s a business transaction, which it took on willingly, and from which it rightly expects to profit, thereby serving the interests of its shareholders. No one put a gun to either of our heads.”

“So the housing bubble all happened by accident?” asked Standing.

“No,” Julia replied. “The housing bubble happened for a multitude of reasons. One of the biggest was the government strong-arming banks into providing mortgages to people who didn’t qualify.”

“People have a right to a place to live.”

“You’ll forgive me, Mr. Standing, but I think you and I have a very different view of what rights are.”

“Rights should be what an enlightened government decides is best for everyone.”

The reporter shook her head. “As Americans, we hold that we have been endowed by our creator with our rights. These rights cannot be taken away or limited by any government. We have the right to-”

“Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” Standing said with a wave of his hand. “I know, but tell me how anyone can be happy without a place to live?”

“There’s nothing in the founding documents that says the government owes you a house. There’s also nothing in there that says the government owes you a job, an education, or medical care.”

“Those documents you love so much were written over two hundred years ago,” he replied. “There is no possible way America’s founding fathers could have seen how complex society would become.”

“And if they had been able to see into the future, you think they would have felt it best for people to be ruled over by an elite group?”

“Government should provide opportunity.”

“I agree, but government isn’t the solution to our problems,” Julia stated. “Government is the problem.”

“I wouldn’t have figured you for a radical, Ms. Winston.”

“I’m not.”

“Really? It sounds to me as if you’d like to do away with government.”

“I don’t want to do away with government,” she replied. “I want to make it work.”

“So do I,” said Standing. “And if we all started over together, the global economy would instantly rebound.”

“But once we start over, how would you prevent disparities from growing again? It’s a fact of life that some people will work harder than others. Some people even will choose not to work.”

“We’d need a universal set of rules applied to everyone equally.”

“These rules would also govern capitalism?”

“Absolutely,” he replied. “Capitalism is the source of all that’s wrong in the world. It has become too big for any one nation to regulate. People are hurting and it is within our power to stop that hurt. We are a noble species. It is our duty to lift people out of despair. The only way to do that, though, is to challenge global capitalism head-on, with redesigned international institutions and far more encompassing international laws.”

“All overseen by a global governing body,” she said.

“For collective issues like human dignity and things that affect it? Of course. Individual rights have to take a backseat for the good of everyone’s collective rights.”

“Is there anything this global governing body wouldn’t have control over? It seems that almost anything could be placed beneath the umbrella of human dignity and collective rights.”

“I see what you’re doing,” replied Standing with a wry grin. “You’re trying to box me in.”

The journalist shook her head. “I just find it interesting that a billionaire, someone who has so benefited from capitalism, should be such an outspoken proponent of socialism.”

Standing bristled at the remark. “You’re an attractive woman, my dear, but you had better wise up. Big tits and a pretty smile are only going to get you so far.”

Julia was stunned by his vulgarity. “Excuse me?”

“You have no idea how offensive I find that remark. Do you have any clue, any clue at all how fatiguing it is to be committed to doing good, only to be hammered for it day in and day out by people like you?”

“People like me?”

“Yes, you free-market zombies. All you do is complain about government intervention. You lie to anyone who will read your columns, listen to your radio programs, or watch your TV shows. You tell them we need less government regulation. You tell people that capitalism works precisely because people pursue their own self-interest. You don’t want any checks on that self-interest at all. Every man and woman for him- or herself. No accountability.”