You Socialist! (Whatever That Is)

The word “socialism” has been kicked around a bit in the past several months, thanks largely to the election of a certain Democrat to the presidency of the United States.

It’s been mostly spouted as a scare word, synonymous with “un-American.” The people who use it—like those at the recent “tea parties”—use it to define a loose set of policies that include higher taxes (even if those tax rate boosts don’t affect them personally) and high deficits (though I’m not sure many of those folks also opposed the Bush-era deficits, though those were admittedly a bit smaller).

Even so, Obama still appears to be pretty popular with most Americans. And that may be why some old socialists (and here) have been cautiously coming out of the closet.

Back in my college days in the late ’70s—I went to a school that one college guide of the time termed “placidly liberal”—to call yourself a “socialist” was to self-define as a cool person. I did it myself once or twice, until a friend said, “Whatever that is.”

As for the tea partisans and others who toss around “socialist” to anything they don’t like, I’ll admit that's why some of them come off as a bit goofy (like blending the term with “Nazi”—it’s all bad!).

So, are we heading down the road to socialism—or the road to serfdom, if you prefer?

No to both. Citizens want a bit more government involvement in the economy, but they don’t really want the feds to run things. They may want some form of Scandinavian-style “social democracy”—universal health coverage, stronger economic safety nets, better regulation (or at least enforcement of existing ones). But they don’t want an Ontario-style nanny state.

And as Obama itself recently noted, Sweden is a lot smaller country that the United States. And for a country whose marketing slogan is “E Pluribus Unum,” we’re not all that unified about what constitutes the public good. As always, we’ll have to find our own route—and we’re a nation of backseat drivers.

Comments

[Dave]

A self described "socialist" because it was cool, living in a capitalist country thinks conservative "Tea Party" participants are "a bit goofy"!!!!!!! Laughable. Read the Constitution and then re-evaluate who is goofy!

Socialists must be lacking math skills. The two newspapers in town said there were a couple hundred at the Tea Party, but if you look at the pictures, there were thousands. To call Bush's deficits compared to Obama's mega trillions in spending "a bit smaller" is Goofy math?

[Mike]

Social-democracy works in Sweden because they are culturally more virtuous. That being said, Sweden however is beginning to see the social costs of dependency. Can you imagine for one minute the looting during the L.A.riots occuring in Sweden? It is an absurd notion. What this country needs, is to relearn virtue. A lesson that can only be taught through hard struggle and effort. There is no short cut. Maybe then, after we have relearned the discipline of individual responsibility, we dare open up the public treasury.

[Tom Johnson]

It is amazing that today people simply water down terms like Socialist, what will be the next "oh well its not so bad" style of Government. The scary reality is that there are so many items on the new administrations docket like "gun control" "redistribution of wealth via small business taxes" "engaging terrorist nations" in my mind these items are an embarasment to our free nation.

Our new administration is also crossing the new artfully smudged lines of socialism. A Canadian friend of mine laughs at me and asks me why quite a lot of Canadians come to the United States for medical treatment, where are we going to go for good and dont forget prompt treatment when we have adopted a socialistic style of Government controlled Health Care.

Ronald Reagan had a great quote and its message is, "Freedom is only one generaltion from extinction" and I have a bad feeling that that generation might be closer than anyone cares to admit!

[Nick Ehrman]

I do not want a single bit more of government's involvement in the economy. - nick