Socialism is no longer a dirty word, and here's why Opinion

[DirtEdonE]

I identify politically as a Democratic Socialist but, unlike many capitalists I know, I realize that there is no perfect economic system. I believe no economic system is perfect and each economic system needs components from other systems. I've seen charts of U.S. economic activity that reveal a boom and bust cycle that capitalists would NEVER condone in a socialist system! Yet this cycle is perfectly fine with them in a capitalist system.

https://www.thebalance.com/the-history-of-recessions-in-the-united-states-3306011

Not to mention the capitalists Fat Cats who declare economic warfare on any socialist system that dares rear its head in the Western Hemisphere.

I know for a fact that our current style of American capitalism doesn't work on its own. Proof? See: America 2019. The wage and wealth disparity in our economic system is at levels last seen during The Great Depression - another capitalist high point.

However, socialism is just fine for giant record profit making American corporations who get tax incentives for doing what they're supposed to do on their own - run a profitable business and employ people to do the necessary labor - while they pay ZERO in corporate income tax and while their billionaire owners get billions more in tax breaks at OUR expense.

That's the definition of Socialism, IMO. But in reverse Robin Hood fashion. OUR money is being transferred to the top!

But when it's universal health care, living wage, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, etc. - THAT SOCIALISM IS NO GOOD FOR WE THE PEOPLE! It's too expensive. lofl

Who do they think they're kidding?

US. That's who.

Here's an opinion piece from New Jersey's largest newspaper for all you Fat Cat capitalists to ponder while you horde OUR resources for yourselves.

Socialism is no longer a dirty word, and here’s why | Opinion

"Months before Donald Trump’s strange attack on socialism during the State of the Union address, the White House Council of Economic Advisers did something even more bizarre. It released a 72-page report in October called “The Opportunity Costs of Socialism,”which acknowledged the 200th anniversary of Karl Marx’s birth and noted that “self-declared socialists are gaining support in Congress and among much of the electorate.”

The administration was clearly worried — and for good reason.

As Bloomberg reported as early as November 2017 under the headline “Get Rid of Capitalism? Millennials Are Ready to Talk About It,” socialism was already a hot topic, with a debate about economic philosophies drawing a sellout crowd in New York. Since then, the enthusiasm has steadily grown. The Democratic Socialists of America, which had already seen a surge in its membership during the Bernie Sanders campaign in 2016, saw another surge last fall with the election of New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. According to a Gallup poll in August, only 45 percent of Americans aged 18 to 29 viewed capitalism positively, compared with 51 percent for socialism.

And, along with Ocasio-Cortez and Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, dozens of other self-proclaimed socialists were swept into office at the state and local levels in the midterms. But perhaps most worrying to the powers that be, more Americans are embracing socialist policies. Medicare for all, which was widely portrayed as radical by the mainstream media when Sanders promoted it just a few years ago, is supported by 70 percent of the public, including most Republicans, according to recent polls. Taxing the rich also polls well with most Americans, as do the $15 minimum wage and tuition-free public colleges and universities. And, with the release of the alarming report by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change last October, a majority of voters now worry about climate change and recognize the human hand in it, giving hope to supporters of a Green New Deal."

Read the rest.
https://www.nj.com/opinion/2019/02/socialism-is-no-longer-a-dirty-word-and-heres-why-opinion.html

[marylandblue]

1. I don't think it's capitalism we want to get rid of, so much as neoliberals

Which I define as government of, by, and for corporations. Corporations are excellent servants but terrible masters.

[3Hotdogs]

3. Actually, the description in your text is that of fascism: Government, run by business.

[DirtEdonE]

5. And that's what we have in America today

A fascist state run by a worldwide cabal of oligarch criminals.

[dlk]

2. Given that Every Single Government in the World is a Mixture of Socialism and Capitalism...

Politicos who demonize socialism are preying upon voters' ignorance of that fact.

[DirtEdonE]

4. Exactly

Without a socialist component here, they Fat Cat Capitalists have turned democracy into capitalism and capitalism into a game of Monolopy.

They own the board, run the bank, Chance and Community Chest. And they all get lifetime Get Out of Jail Free cards.

They win.

We get to sit on the sidelines, powerless, and watch them enjoy "playing" the rest of the "game" - with our lives in the balance.

Then we lose everything.

Boom and bust Monolopy capitalism isn't an economic system. It's a game they're running on us where the booms and the busts are nothing more than carefully engineered events allowing them to take their "winnings" every so often while clearing the table of we the suckers.