Life is a Highway

Life is a Highway
Source: Haiku Deck

Saturday, October 31, 2015

Stand Apart Comedy: Bob Newhart On The Jack Paar Show (1965)

Source:Stand Apart Comedy- Good Job, Bob!
Source:The Daily Review

I'm personally not crazy about flying myself. But not because I'm worried about the plane crashing, but because I'm 6'5 and 220 pounds or so and even in economy plus, I'm generally not that comfortable on an airplane. And besides generally when I fly I'm going from the East Coast to the West Coast which is a six-hour trip going out West. This is going to sound horrible, but not liking flying is a hell of an excuse for not seeing my family out there. Because I can always say that is a long way to fly for just a few days, or even a week and then to fly back.

As far as bathrooms, or food on the plane, I think I rather do those things in jail. Not that I want to do those things in jail, but if its a choice between one or the other, well maybe I would lean towards the plane. Because I know I'll getting out of there in hours, instead of years. And I won't be in jail, it will just feel like it.

As far as having more accidents in the bathroom than on a plane. Sure! For people who aren't potty-trained yet. Oh, you mean people slipping on wet floors and that kind of thing. Well maybe they're not bath, or shower-trained yet either. Seriously, how hard is it to keep all of the water to take a bath or a shower in the tub? We're humans, not horses. There's only so much water that a human needs (assuming they shower on a regular basis) in order to bath and shower themselves. And if water gets on the floor anyway, because I don't know you're just coming back from Africa, or perhaps someplace where showers are illegal, or water is not available, or maybe you weigh over three-hundred pounds, just waking up from a coma from watching a Jean-Claude Van-Damme movie marathon, or something and you need a lot of water to bathe yourself, here's a tip. Dry the floor before you get in the shower and use a mat to step on when you get out.
Source:Stand Apart Comedy

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson: Jim Garrison (January 31st, 1968)

Source: David Von Pein- New Orleans DA & JFK assassination conspiracy theorist Jim Garrison.
Source The Daily Review

I always found it interesting about Jim Garrison and why would a New Orleans District Attorney be investigating the assassination of a U.S. President who was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Which is about a thousand miles or so from New Orleans. And spend ten years of New Orleans taxpayer dollars on this investigation an investigation that was under the jurisdiction of the Dallas PD and the FBI. And I don't believe Oliver Stone's JFK movie from 1991 which I've seen several times, has ever made that clear. If you want to know why Oliver Stone is such a conspiracy theorist, is because of serious people like Jim Garrison who come up with these incredible theories. Maybe its just me, but you would think a big city District Attorney like Jim Garrison would have enough crime cases of his own to investigate.

The only conspiracy theory that I believe is worth considering, that any serious person with respect on these issues, someone like Robert Blakey, who was the Chief Counsel of the House Assassinations Committee in the late 1970s that looked into the JFK assassination, is the theory involving organized crime. Especially the Italian Mafia in America in Dallas and Chicago in particular. They clearly wanted President John Kennedy killed and would have had the access and power to pull it off. And Lee Harvey Oswald, who wasn't interested in his own personal safety and freedom, would have been the perfect assassin for them. Not saying that the Italian Mafia did have Kennedy assassinated, but they could've done it if they wanted to pull it off. And the Jack Ruby and Lee Oswald connections, I believe give this theory credibility.

I think its obvious that Lee Oswald was the assassin who killed President Kennedy. It was his gun, he worked at the Dallas Book Depository, he had the means, motive, access, he could pull this off and was a good enough shooter to do it. The only question here is did anyone put him up to it. Was this a one-man operation, or were there others involved. Like members of Chicago or Dallas organized crime. Jack Kennedy, had plenty of enemies on the Far-Right in Dallas and perhaps Texas as a whole. The Far-Left especially Communists like Lee Oswald, hated him as well. The Italian Mafia hated Kennedy, because his administration was serious about putting them out of business. After the Mafia helped Kennedy get elected president especially in Chicago in 1960. With all of these factors its hard to believe that one little loser could have pulled off this assassination by himself. Which is how these conspiracy theories come about.
Source:David Von Pein

Sunday, October 25, 2015

New York Giants Fans: Cowboys-Giants Rivalry


Source:The Daily Review

The NFC East division is the best division in the NFL, because every team hates everyone else. Maybe only the AFC North can say that about their division. You got Giants-Eagles, Redskins-Cowboys, Redskins-Giants, Eagles-Cowboys, these are all great rivalries. The Redskins-Eagles rivalry has been very good over the years especially the last thirty years or so. But the Giants-Cowboys even though it is a rivalry and both teams respect and get up for each other, might be the last rivalry in the NFC East. Both teams are separated by about 2000 miles. Other than this century both teams haven't been good at the same time for the most part. The Cowboys were great in the 1970s, the Giants perhaps the worst franchise of the 1970s. The Giants were good in the mid and late 1980s as the Cowboys were in decline. The Cowboys were the team of the 1990s, while the Giants were struggling to make the NFC Playoffs for the most part.

The Giants, might have a bigger rivalry with the Chicago Bears and San Francisco 49ers over the years, if you look at all the great games they've had with both franchises. Especially the 49ers which goes back to 1981 and where they seemed to be playing each other on Monday Night Football every year in the 1980s, or in the playoffs. As you see in this video most of the great games that the Giants and Cowboys have played against each other has been in the last 5-10 years or so. So you might be able to say that the Giants-Cowboys rivalry has been great during this period, or is one of the best rivalries in the NFL right now. Similar to the Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers, or the Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals. But historically the Giants main rivals have been the Eagles and Redskins and then after that the 49ers and Bears, as far as the big games that they've played. With the Cowboys it has been the Redskins and Eagles and then the 49ers as well.

To me at least great NFL rivalries are historic. They survive through the years with people being able to say, "remember that great game against them thirty years ago when we beat them for the division? Reminds me of that game last year when they beat us for the division." Just because a rivalry is hot, or sexy, or however you want to phrase it, doesn't make it a great rivalry if no one cares about it 3-5 years from now. Because both teams have moved on, or perhaps are struggling now, or just one team is struggling with other getting the better of their games. And yes since both the Cowboys and Giants have been regular playoff contenders the last ten years or so and generally have both been in the NFC East race, they've played a lot of big games against each other and have done that in prime-time. But that doesn't put it in the same class as the Redskins-Cowboys, Giants-Eagles, Redskins-Giants, who go back forever against each other and have played a lot of great games against each other going back fifty-years. The Cowboys first big rival was the Redskins. Then the Eagles and then the Giants.

Saturday, October 24, 2015

NFL Network: NFL 1986- America's Game: New York Giants

Source:NFL Network- New York Giants head coach Bill Parcells.
Source:The Daily Review

As someone who loves the Redskins and hates the New York Giants and if your'e familiar with that rivalry you know why, I have a lot of respect for the 1986 Giants. They're still one of the top 5-10 Super Bowl champions of all-time, but that is not why. They just represent exactly what NFL football should be. "We're coming after you. Try to stop us." It wasn't this made for reality TV, or Hollywood nonsense where everything is perfectly designed like you're trying to put a Broadway play together. With all sorts of sophisticated offenses and defenses. Actually, just sophisticated offense. If Roger Goodell had his way, tackling might become illegal in the NFL today. The 86 Giants, represent the opposite of New School football. And they're one of the best Old School NFL teams of all-time.

The 86 Giants, were a power-run ball-control team, that could basically tell the defense, "here we come, try to stop us." And if you paid too much attention to their running game, quarterback Phil Simms would go play-action and hit tight end Marc Bavaro down the middle of the field. Or Stacy Robinson, Bobbie Johnson, or Lionel Manuel deep on the outside. On defense, good luck running the ball against them. Because even though they played a 3-4, blocking nose tackle Jim Burt could be like blocking 2-3 men with one man. And then you got defensive end Leonard Marshall on one side and George Martin on the other. And if somehow you block those three guys, you got some guy named Lawrence Taylor coming off the edge. (Maybe you're old enough to have heard of him) Carl Banks on the other side. Great against the run and pass. Harry Carson in the middle, again who could play the run, or pass.

The 86 Giants were, a classic Blue-Collar in your face, "try to remove us" football team. That represented Blue-Collar New York and North Jersey as well as the 85 Chicago Bears represented Chicago. They just came at you and dared you to even fight back back, let alone try to kick their ass. The Redskins had opportunities to actually beat them in the 86 NFC Championship and they got a break playing the undersize Denver Broncos, instead of the NFC tough Cleveland Browns. But the 86 Giants were the best team in the NFL on both sides of the ball that whole year. And played their best football in Super Bowl after dominating the NFC Playoffs. And are a team that unfortunately wouldn't have sold too well with today's NFL fans. That only seem to be interested in offense and pretty boys. But that team would still dominate today and are still the best Giants Super Bowl team of all-time.
Source:NFL Network

Thursday, October 22, 2015

ABC: 20/20-Connie Chung: Interviewing Barbara Eden in 2003

Source:ABC News- Connie Chung, interviewing Hollywood Babydoll Barbara Eden. 
Source:The Daily Review 

" Barbara Eden 20/20. This aired in 2003." 

From ABC: 2020

I swear that Barbara Eden, Kim Novak, Raquel Welch and Jaclyn Smith, must all have the same workout plan and use the same facial cream, or something. I mean you look at Barbara when she was 50, 60, 70 and now which practically impossible for me to believe and harder to believe that she turned 60 and 70 and now 80 years old, she looks the same and not day older in any of those photos. It's as if the Barbie doll was invented for Barbara Eden.

I Dream of Jeannie, is of course what Barbara Eden is known for, but she's more than that. She's an ageless goddess and perhaps the cutest entertainer from her generation who even at 81 still comes off as a baby-faced adorable Hollywood Goddess. An 81 year old woman who is still gorgeous and baby-faced adorable.

When Barbara was in her early and mid thirties in the 1960s on I Dream of Jeannie, she had a tendency to come as a kid and even little girl. Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, had similar issues when they were working. But she made that work for her, because she's so adorably funny as well and sexy and gorgeous.

I think the Tony Nelson character on that show must at times must of felt that Jeannie was like having a daughter and big kid in the house even though Larry Hagman and Barbara Eden are only three years apart in real-life. On the show Jeannie is a couple thousand years older than U.S. Air Force Major Tony Nelson. But of course you wouldn't know that by looking at Larry Hagman and Barbara Eden on that show. Because in years she could probably pass as Hagman's daughter.

Despite the realness and realism of I Dream of Jeannie, with a Persian Jeannie with blonde hair and light complexion, who is a couple thousand years old and speaks perfect English and lives in bottle, (ha, ha) we are not talking about a great show. The show is simply not believable and looks like a sci-fi comedy, or Star Trek comes to Planet Earth.

But Jeannie, because she was freakin adorable and funny and was such an expert at getting into trouble and so overprotective of her Master Major Tony Nelson and with how funny Larry Hagman and Bill Daily were on that show, it worked.

And because of the success of that show it probably meant that Barbara Eden (or Baby Barbie as I like to call her) would never have to worry about working again. And its a show that has been in syndication for what what 45-50 years now. And she's made a great career for herself.

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Saturday Night Live: Democratic Debate Cold Open

Source: NBC- Governor Martin O'Malley, ( played by Alec Baldwin  ) Senator Bernie Sanders, ( played by Larry David ) and Secretary Hillary Clinton ( played by Kate McKinnon ) 
Source:The Daily Review

Larry David, of course was funny, but his performance up there looked more like he was impersonating himself, or Jerry Seinfeld, than Senator Bernie Sanders. The whole "what's the deal with this or that", classic Seinfeld, but not Bernie. But David did have Bernie's physical mannerism's down and he has the right hairline and physical stature and about the right age to play Bernie Sanders. The Democratic Socialist Senator from the Socialist Republic of Vermont. Not a Marylander making fun of Vermont, but that is what Vermonters actually call their state. They pay their taxes with huge smiles on their faces that could cure depression in Finland and always complain about their taxes being too low and government being too small.

Too bad Bernie Sanders first name is not David. Because then he could say it's David versus Goliath in this presidential campaign. He being David vs the Goliath's being the billionaires in the country. If the Sanders Campaign ever goes South for the winter, (ha, ha) Bernie might want to consider changing is first name from Bernie to David. And change their campaign theme to, "David vs The Goliath's." It is obvious why Republicans are hammering Hillary Clinton so much with toy hammers and paper nails, because they know they probably can't beat her right now. Unless the Christian-Right and Tea Party allows for them to nominate someone who hasn't spent time in a mental institution, (as a patient) and nominates someone real who can appeal to people outside of the Far-Right and even Center-Right of the country. Who knows who they are. Meaning someone other than Michele Bachmann, or Mitt Romney. Meaning John Kasich, or Marco Rubio.

So the GOP wants Bernie to do well. But how far would they take that? I mean do they really want to be seen supporting someone who is not only a Democratic Socialist, but a self-described Democratic Socialist? I mean how far would they go for that? Would they run national campaigns calling for government-run health care and health insurance? Government-run and financed college financing? Would they say the rich are under taxed? The Federal Government is too small? The states and localities have too much power? How far would they go to support a Democratic Socialist to try to defeat the Center-Left Democrat who has the best shot of being the next President of the United States. So of course the GOP wants Bernie Sanders to look good in these debates and Hillary to look bad. But how much do they want that.
Source:Saturday Night Live

Saturday, October 17, 2015

Johnny Carson: 'Best Moments on Politics on The Tonight Show'

Source:Sovereign Rebellion- The King of Late Night Johnny Carson, talking to CBS News's Mike Wallace, on 60 Minutes, in 1979.

Source:The Daily Review 

"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use.

In addition, the Center for Media and Social Impact (CMSI) has adopted a set of best practices as it relates to the copyright doctrine of fair use when making online videos. Specifically, any reproduction, reposting, or quoting in order to memorialize, preserve, or rescue an experience, an event, or a cultural phenomenon is an acceptable use of copyrighted material under fair use."  

From Sovereign Nation
Source:The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson- Some guy named Jim & President Ronald Reagan.

"Johnny Carson's Best Moments on Politics." From Johnny Carson. The video has since been deleted or blocked on YouTube.

I haven't seen them all, but I believe my favorite Johnny Carson political skit is the politician under the lie detector. Because that plays so well with today's American politics and I'm sure it played very well back in 1982 politics when that skit was done. Just imagine how many politicians would disqualify themselves from running for office, or would have to resign from office if they were always under a lie detector every time they spoke in public.

Imagine if politicians had to answer questions in public about their records under a lie detector test and here are some examples of what that could be like.

Question- "Senator Jones, why did you vote against the clean energy bill?" Answer-"Because Big Oil told me if I did, they wouldn't bankroll my reelection campaign.

" Question- "Representative Smith, why did you vote against the middle class tax cuts?" Answer-"Because I believe middle class Americans are too stupid to spend their own money wisely. Besides, it's not the people's money anyway, but the government's money."

American politicians have a bad habit of promising their constituents things from government that they don't want to ask the people to pay for. Because they know raising revenue, (another way of saying increasing taxes) or moving funds around, (another way of saying cutting popular programs) could cost them politically. So what they say is they'll give people free roads, or education vouchers, free health care, (to use as examples) instead the theory being if that government does it then the service is free. But anyone familiar with American politics, Milton Friedman and pays taxes, knows there's no such thing as a free lunch. At least when it comes to government.

Imagine if American politicians were asked to explain how they would pay for their new popular government programs and were under a lie detector and didn't know that.

Question- "Senator Wilson, how do you plan to pay for your national childcare program? Well, with the debt and deficit being as high as it is, we're going to have to increase payroll taxes out of people's paychecks, or ask wealthy people to retire later, or a combination of both." Unless Senator Wilson represents Massachusetts, or Vermont, two states that fills out their taxes with smiles on their faces and actually celebrates National Tax Day and sees it as a holiday, he can probably forget about reelection. Because his opponent would call him a tax and spender. Who thinks Americans are under taxed and that government should take more of their hard-earned money from them.

Lying politicians is as common in America as snow is as common in Canada and socialism is as common in Sweden. If a politician is asked at a party by someone who doesn't know them and has never seen them before, what they do for a living? And the politician tells them I'm a state senator, or U.S. Representative, or something like that, the politician might get a drink thrown in their face. And if the politician happens to be President or Vice President of the United States, the drink thrower would probably get tackled to the ground by a Secret Service agent. And be arrested for being so stupid as to not know who the President and Vice President of the United States are. Well, at least not knowing who the President is.

So a full-time lie detector at least for Congress, would throw out a lot of the trash that currently stinks up the House and Senate, because Members of Congress would no longer get away with lying. 

Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Lifetime: Lynda Carter 2000 Intimate Portrait

Source:Lifetime- Wonder Woman Lynda Carter.
Source:The Daily Review 

"A biography on Lynda Carter. Narrated by Mary Hart." 

From Lifetime

I'm sure Lynda Carter is more than Wonder Woman and has more credits to her life than that. I think the problem that she and its not a weakness on her part, but similar to Catherine Bach as Daisy Duke on The Dukes of Hazzard, she played Wonder Woman so well and doesn't have another role that comes close to the popularity of Wonder Woman, that she's not that well-known for anything else. Except for perhaps her most die hard fans. Which is a shame, because she might be the best looking and sexiest women on TV from the 1970s. A gloomy decade in a lot of ways, but her and that show gave millions of Americans a lot to be happy about and look forward to for about five years. In the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Lynda Carter, is one of the top Hollywood Goddess's of all-time. I'm not sure a better looking women has ever been on TV, to be frank about this. A gorgeous and yet baby-faced adorable brunette, 5'9, 130 pounds or so, great body. Built like a great tennis player. You can see why the creators of Wonder Woman wanted her so much and wanted her in that outfit so much. She truly looked like a goddess  and played one on TV as well. I don't know of another women at least from that era, who cold have played that role better, or as well. When you're talking about her physical presence and the fact that she's a hell of an actress as well. She made a guest appearance on the hit police detective show Starsky and Hutch in like 1975 or 76 , before Wonder Woman and you could see then that she was going to be a star.

I'm surprised that Wonder Woman didn't lead to other great roles for her on TV and in the movies. I could easily have seen her on a hit cop show in the 1980s where she plays a detective or detective sergeant, kicking ass and saving the day. (So to speak) I think she would have been great in roles like that on TV, or doing action/comedy movies like that. And perhaps even having another hit show. Similar to Angie Dickinson with Police Woman in the mid and late 1970s. But she has made a very good career for herself doing other movies, as well as putting together a pretty successful singing career. But even being typecast as this Wonder Goddess from Paradise Island, (of all places) I believe even with that she should have had other opportunities like that in the 1980s and 1990s. And had more great credits on her resume.

Monday, October 12, 2015

The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson: Ronald Reagan's Funny Return to California (January 4, 1989)

Source:The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson, talking about Ronald Reagan's "funny return" to California in 1989.
Source:The Daily Review

I think Johnny's best line here was about President Reagan reaching a deal with Random House to write his presidential memoirs and getting a big advance for it. If you're familiar with Ron Reagan's second presidential term and I am even though I was a kid for his entire presidency and had just started junior high when he left office, you know that President Reagan claimed to not remember a lot of key parts of his second term. Iran Contra, being a perfect example of that and claiming if he didn't know if he had agreed to the arms for hostages deal in 1985-86. And his own Vice President, his first officer in his administration, a man who was a very active and responsible VP who was in on everything that the President did, George H.W. Bush, claiming to know nothing about Iran Contra. Even though he was at all the meetings.

Johnny's joke being that, "funny how a big advance from Random House to write your memoirs can jumpstart your memory." In this case the memory about Iran Contra and a lot of the key moments of his second term as president. There are only a few ways this could have gone down.

President Reagan, came down with alzheimer's as President of the United States and that is why he forgot so much about his presidency even as President. And if you believe that I have a ski resort in Los Angeles where they get the best snow that I would like to sell you.

President Reagan, was too much of a delegator and not on top of things that were going on at his National Security Council. Which is very believable.

Or of course he knew what was going on the whole time and didn't want Congress to know about arms being traded for hostages in Iran. Because he didn't want to get into trouble for it. Which is also very believable.

A good line Johnny had about Vice President Elect Dan Quayle, who of course was President George H.W. Bush's Vice President. Dan Quayle, was a young U.S. Senator who had only been in Congress for less than twelve years between both the House and Senate by the time Vice President Bush selected him in 1988 and didn't have much a resume before Congress and was 41 at the time, was viewed at the very least by the national media to be not ready and immature and not real bright. He got a bad wrap as being known as an idiot and perhaps immature, but he didn't do much as Vice President to show anyone outside of him that he was up for the second ranking position in the U.S. Government. And Johnny making the crack that Ron Reagan will be having dinner with talk show Merv Griffin. While he will be having finger food at Jack in The Box. (A California fast food joint)
Source:Johnny Carson

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

Sargon of Akkad: 'Hipster Racists'


Source:Sargon of Akkad- probably crossing a line by comparing OWS with Adolf Hitler.

Source:The Daily Review 

"Progressive hipsters have decided that "racism" is no longer a concept but a "structure" or "system" as a rationalisation to see racism against non-white people everywhere or in turn be prejudiced against white people.

Which, incidentally, is exactly the opposite of what Martin Luther King Jr wanted, but I'm sure they know better than he does."


When did race and color blindness become "like so not awesome and old school", or whatever with the New-Left in America? I mean how can someone call them self an admirer of Dr. Martin Luther King when they don't get his basic messages of non-violence and color blindness. 

And let's be clear about what color blindness is and what I'm talking about here is race blindness. Only blind people don't see race and color. So thats not what this is about. What I'm talking about is not judging people based on their complexion and race. I don't think Joe is better than John, or anyone else, because I like his complexion and race, or that we share those things. Their race and color has nothing to do with how I feel about Joe, or John, Mary, Sally, whoever the hell it may be.

"People of color", there's a great hipster term that I hate. As opposed to people who don't have color? Well, if that was true how would you describe people of olive complexion? Which includes Mediterranean-Europeans, Southern Slavs, Jews, Arabs, and other people's? They obviously have color and so do people of Anglo and Nordic descent and Germanic descent. We all have color, just not as much color as other people of color like Africans and South Asians. (To use as examples) 

Again, it goes back to color blindness which is another way of saying not judging people by color, race, or ethnicity. Hipsters don't have a problem with judging people by color and race. Just as long as they aren't Caucasian. Because in their little Pluto size world of the hipster New-Left there's no such thing as racism against Caucasians.

I guess what is called hipster racism and I call it ignorance, because I'm not ready to label all leftist hipsters as racist and I imagine most of them aren't, but hipster ignorance is another example of one things. How tragic the death of Dr. Martin Luther King's was who was the ultimate leader when it came to racial tolerance and equality where he truly wanted an America where Americans weren't judged by race and color. And had the New-Left bothered to study MLK instead of, gee I don't know, Karl Marx, or Che Guevara, well for one, the New-Left in America wouldn't be the New-Left. Because they wouldn't be so far out on a marijuana trip ideologically. 

The Far-Left in America would be a lot smarter and not making people on Left in general look like bigots. But good tolerant people who believe in opportunity and freedom for all. Where we aren't judged by race and color.

Saturday, October 3, 2015

Ayn Rand Institute: 'James McConnell- Interviews Ayn Rand About the New Intellectual (1961)'



Source:Ayn Rand Institute- Objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand, being interviewed by James McConnell, in 1961.

Source:The New Democrat 

"In this interview, which took place upon publication of For the New Intellectual, Ayn Rand discusses the nature of cultural leadership, the influence of Plato, Aquinas and Kant, the creeping mysticism infecting science and the lengthy process by which individuals become the “new intellectuals” of tomorrow.

Recorded May 15, 1961." 


One thing I would give Ayn Rand credit for is her consistency. She believed the same things when she became well-known in the 1940s or so all the way up until she died. We agree when it comes to individual freedom that people should have the power to live their own lives and not be interfered with government as long as they aren't hurting any innocent person. This is something that Liberals have in common with Libertarians and Objectivists. 

But I guess the reason why objectivism has never caught on anywhere in the world and why libertarianism has just become  a major movement in America and Canada in the last ten years or so is because even though a lot of people tend to believe in both personal economic freedom now, we also tend at least in America believe in a public safety net for people who truly need it.

Canada and Europe, are a bit different where they don't believe that individuals should be left to take care of themselves and go further than just a social insurance system, which is what a safety net is. And have welfare states there to meet the basic needs of the people. Mixed in with private enterprise to fund those social programs and a good deal of personal freedom as well. As least for a social democracy. 

I like to call Americans Classical Liberals, or Social Liberals at least in the sense that we go further when it comes to both personal and economic freedom then Social Democrats. But one thing that separates us from Libertarians is that again we want a safety net for people who truly need it. Not a welfare state to manage people's economic affairs for them. But social insurance for people who truly hit hard times.