Socialism is a much-maligned term in America. Many use it in a derogatory manner, hurling the word out to paint politicians and their legislation in an unsavory light. When Fox News refers to Obama as a socialist, it is not done in a complementary manner. It is instead used as a pejorative because to many, it is synonymous with communism and the abridgement of freedom. However, socialism and communism are not synonyms and socialism does not denote a lack of freedom. Socialism is an exceedingly broad term that lacks one specific definition everyone agrees upon. The most common definition of socialism states that it is a political and economic theory that calls for government control of large businesses and expanded benefits for the people. Communism is more extreme as it calls for the abolishment of private property and, in theory, eventually the government itself. Socialism and communism may be of the same ilk, insofar as they are both political and economic models that attempt to evenly distribute wealth, but they are still drastically different.
This fact does little to lessen the disdain most Americans feel towards socialism. A recent Gallup poll conducted earlier this year showed that less than half of Americans would vote for a socialist candidate. At face value, this is fine. Perhaps Americans inherently disagree with the principles of socialism. Yet this theory loses its validity when you consider a study conducted by Harvard University in 2011. Researchers had people look at three different pie charts depicting the wealth distribution of America, Sweden and one that was equally divided. The American pie chart was skewered towards the rich, while the Sweden one was more equal with the top 20% of the population owning 32% of the wealth. The participants were asked to choose which country they would want to live in and 92% of the people selected Sweden as the preferred distribution. Sweden has a more egalitarian distribution of wealth, a product of their socialist policies. Based on this, it appears that although Americans dislike the word “socialism,” they actually agree with the principles the term describes. Even though many want to live in a society that is effectively socialist, Americans still champion capitalism as the preferred economic system.
But unadulterated capitalism has been proven ineffective at producing a stable economy that benefits all of society rather than just the financial elite. This is evident in America’s currently flawed financial landscape. Surely a system that results in the top 20% of people owning 84% of the country’s wealth is not the best model for the United States. More striking is that America is the only industrialized nation to not offer universal health care and paid maternity leave (both hallmarks of a socialist platform). As a country that prides itself in equality, democracy, and progressive ideas, it is startling that our nation lack basic social welfare. Faced with a staggering degree of income inequality, it is time for socialism to be considered.
Many Americans do not understand that socialism is a viable economic system that has been at least partially implemented in countries all over the world. Even here in America, Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps and other forms of social welfare have been providing a safety net for ten of millions of people. These programs have not resulted in financial ruin. Many European countries have socialist aspects to their economy, which have yielded positive results. The quality of life for people living in these countries is actually higher than that of an average American. Taxes may be higher, but more services are provided. Although high taxes seem antithetical to our modern perception of American values, consider this: the current tax rates on the richest bracket of taxpayers is historically low. In the 1950’s and 1960’s, the top bracket income tax rate was over 90%, while the economy boomed and the middle class expanded. Socialist policy has been shown to work.
Disagreements about how to organize and run the economy have been a facet of human civilization. It is fine to hold a negative opinion on socialism so long as it is an informed opinion. However, most Americans dismiss socialism without having enough knowledge to actually do so. Simply rejecting something without understanding it is a moronic way to conduct one’s life. Research the issue, learn the facts, and hopefully give the S-word a chance.