It occurs to me

After sleeping, that the gist of Mr. Obama's speech is that his vision of the United States is one of continued (if not expanded) Socialism.

He stated that he will not allow any decrease in government assistance to those folks who, for whatever reason, cannot take care of themselves. He feels that it is the responsibility of those who are, shall we say, more successful, to provide for those who are....not successful. There is no provision made for, or consideration of, why there is a relative difference in the level of "success". Forward planning, life choices, levels of saving, etc. have no bearing.

Further, he stated that he would remove "spending reductions in the tax code"....."newspeak" for increased taxes and reductions of exemptions in order to increase tax revenues at the expense of those of us who actually pay federal income tax. He will punish those who have chosen to invest in their future by purchasing a home, or working harder in order to advance in their field in order to increase their earning power to create a solid, secure future for themselves and their descendants in order to provide for those who for whatever reason, are unwilling or unable to provide for themselves

As Marx said: "From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs"... The issue is what we each feel are needs, and the choices that we make in order to meet those needs, both in the present and in the future.

Ultimately, it comes down to the philosophical difference between those of us who feel that it is the responsibility of the individual to provide for his or her needs, and those who feels that it is the responsibility of the State to provide for our needs....much less decide what those needs might be. He somehow finds meaning in the Constitution that I miss....that it is allowed that the State do things that I do not see in that document with taxes.....More than roads, and military, and coinage and such.

Would that I could give up the future help from the State (providing, of course, that I get the money that has been taken from me by force I have already contributed (with appropriate interest)) and be allowed to opt out of the system that Mr. Obama envisions.

What Mr. Obama has stated, if only in veiled words, is that it is appropriate action to take from those who make good decisions and invest in their future, and give to those who make poor decisions and live in the "now", without a thought for the future.

And let us not forget that it appears that he finds the bloated, inefficient government departmental bureaucracies to be a Good Thing, if only because they provide jobs for many people who would otherwise not be as successful in private industry. He thinks that there will be no innovation which is not provided for, and financed by, government oversight (with your tax money). DOE, etc will do the job that (in his belief) private industry can't or won't.

His vision of our country is in opposition to mine. He appears to be, at heart, a Statist, and a redistributionist, and a Socialist.

And I am none of those.