[Mazer]

To conservatives, if you're poor it's because you deserve it, you're not disciplined enough to get ahead. Conservative doctrine requires that there be an elite: the people who thrive in the free market have more money, and they should.

Is he telling me that since I'm poor I should be a liberal?

Progressives say, "No, that's not fair. Maybe some should have more money, but no one should live in poverty. Everybody who works deserves to have a reasonable standard of living for their work."

That makes some sense, but only to people who work hard (or smart) for a living. The beauty of a free market is that people earn exactly what they are worth according to the effort they put into their lives. The flaw I see in both conservative and liberal thinking is that they assign value to people in dollar amounts, but that is only one part of it. Money is rewarded for some kinds of work, but other things that people do are rewarding in and of themselves and are invaluable. A person's ability to use his talents and skills to make a profit are important for survival, and that should come first, but lets not judge people solely on that basis.