General Discussion
Showing Original Post only (View all)God, I am so tired of the confusion/discussion/obfuscation/ignorance about "socialism". [View all]
This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by JudyM (a host of the General Discussion forum).
Look, there are currently two flavors of the word:
Socialism == the workers control the means of production, the industrial proletariat overthrows the industrial bourgeoisie, up against the wall capitalist pigs, etc. etc.
This form of "socialism" is what everyone fear mongers on - it's the Cold War, it's left wing South American juntas, it's blah blah blah. It's why people think other people will be scared of "socialism", and why Chris Matthews thinks he's about to be executed.
And then there is
Socialism == paying to have civilization. Pulling resources together so that no one's life is a complete and utter miserable horror story just because they aren't heirs to fortunes. Paying for common goods like roads, courts, the military. Keeping people in poverty from dying of starvation or preventable medical crises. Making the rich pay their fair share for the wonderful society they live in.
This second form of "socialism" is also "society" or "civilization", or "building a world that's better to live in". It's the basis for a lot of government decision making in Finland, Sweden, Denmark, where people are happy and healthy. It's why when I hear "socialism", I get ready to hear about things I like.
The word has been ruined by its first sense. So, can we find a better term for the second sense? "Democratic socialism" is so-so as a label. The democratic part is great - people all need to help decide how we can pull our resources for a better life - but again, 'socialism' is pretty ruined. "Social Democracy" may be slightly better.
But what about "civilization"? or a "fair society" (echos of the "Fair Deal" )?
How about saying for example, that Democrats are running on a platform of "civilization"? If we can't get billionaires to help pay for things, civilization will go away.
I don't know. this nonsense is killing me. Back to your regularly scheduled programming.