Is Bernie Sanders a communist?

American said:

Democratic Socialist is nothing more than a politically correct term for someone that wants complete government control of everything, down to when you're allowed to take a ****. All these people need to be rounded up, citizenship annulled and thrown out of the country.

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cite needed to assure this post is not both hyperbolic and stupid

haymarket said:

Sanders is NOT going to be nominated. If he were to be nominated, we would hear the word SOCIALIST screamed loudly thousands of times every hour of everyday from the time of his nomination speech until election closings in November. And the more dense of the scare mongers would at some point transition to RADICAL SOCIALIST and eventually to COMMUNIST by time the kiddies dress in their goblin and super hero costumes.

It would be one single message beaten to death.

And it would work perfectly.

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If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and what never will be. ~ Thomas Jefferson
*

We are largely a country of suckers, dummies and fools. If you are reading these words take your right hand put it over your left shoulder and pat yourself on the back. You are an exception.

Most Americans do not read newspapers. Most don't read news sites on the internet. Fewer read political news in newspapers or on the internet. Most Americans are not news junkies and of those who are most get their news spoon fed to them via cable news programs. That isn't news and most cable and broadcast news are less informative and more biased than newspapers.

*Reported in surveys, only 69% of Americans can name the vice president. Even Joe Biden got the answer to that question wrong. Something like only 16% can name 3 Supreme Court Justices. Most Americans cannot name their state representatives. Most cannot name their congressmen/women. Name the three branches of US government? Almost 50% of Americans surveyed can't name all three.

Americans are ignorant. Recently in a survey of general American brain functioning, when asked how many feet are in a yard, Ray Neal Scoggins of Elkhart, Indiana replied, "Whose yard are you talking about?" Ain't that America, land of free.

All of the above spells difficulty - not doom - for a guy like Bernie Sanders, a Democratic Socialist. Sanders and his people know that. They have done well in reaching willfully uninformed citizens in a non-functioning democracy.

"HE'S A SOCIALIST, A SOCIALIST! RUN AWAY!"

Does it matter that in survey after survey most people support the positions Sanders takes on issues? Yes, and Sanders campaign people are helping Americans connect the dots.

Is Sanders a socialist?

A socialist compared to what? :shock: Many Americans don't know. Sadly, people never consider the question. The concept of a political spectrum is confusing to Americans like Ray Neal over there in Elkhart. Spectrum sounds like rectum and well, he'd prefer not to think about it.

Is your local self-employed hardware store owner a capitalist? Of course.

Is Madoff a capitalist?

Unfortunately, yes.

Are these two people the same kind of capitalists? Many Americans don't think to ask themselves. Many Americans don't think. They can, but they don't.

Unfortunately this is the kind of American ignorance that Sanders must overcome. He is making steady headway. Sanders will defeat any Republican. Sanders is gaining on Hillary as people begin to realize that Hillary is being financed, backed and supported by Wall Street, Big Pharma and Big Money. Hillary is very much a part of the government few people trust.

Sanders is moving forward with voters.

haymarket said:

Sanders is NOT going to be nominated. If he were to be nominated, we would hear the word SOCIALIST screamed loudly thousands of times every hour of everyday from the time of his nomination speech until election closings in November. And the more dense of the scare mongers would at some point transition to RADICAL SOCIALIST and eventually to COMMUNIST by time the kiddies dress in their goblin and super hero costumes.

It would be one single message beaten to death.

And it would work perfectly.

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And similar to President Obama before even being installed in office, the goal would be to 'stop him'!

Bush is the only communist president we have had. His nationalization of american banks is indeed communist.

American said:

Democratic Socialist is nothing more than a politically correct term for someone that wants complete government control of everything, down to when you're allowed to take a ****. All these people need to be rounded up, citizenship annulled and thrown out of the country.

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The Donald would be proud!

I really liked that part of the debate when Bernie talked about assigning people to worker collectives, mentioned the ensuing state takeover of private enterprise and where he envisioned a world where each gave according to their abilities and took according to their needs.

His mentioning he would waste no time establishing the gulags, too, I found especially inspiring.

The wealthy know socialism. They have it in spades if you make it into their club. They pool their money together to make even more money, all the while fostering rugged individualism onto the poor.

Bernie just wants the poor to have a chance to know what that feels like. Imagine a board of directors staffed with welfare recipients.

Crovax said:

So according to you kindergarten logic something tiny can't be small

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Ah, irony. I love it.
Thanks.

American said:

Democratic Socialist is nothing more than a politically correct term for someone that wants complete government control of everything, down to when you're allowed to take a ****. All these people need to be rounded up, citizenship annulled and thrown out of the country.

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Where you gonna throw them to? And don't look up here! We don't need any more NDP voters.

Gardener said:

I really liked that part of the debate when Bernie talked about assigning people to worker collectives, mentioned the ensuing state takeover of private enterprise and where he envisioned a world where each gave according to their abilities and took according to their needs.

His mentioning he would waste no time establishing the gulags, too, I found especially inspiring.

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Had to read that one a second time before I realized it was pure sarcasm.

Helix said:

no. he's not even a real socialist. he doesn't support giving the means of production to the workers.

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that's probably because what he really believes in is holding office

Gardener said:

I really liked that part of the debate when Bernie talked about assigning people to worker collectives, mentioned the ensuing state takeover of private enterprise and where he envisioned a world where each gave according to their abilities and took according to their needs.

His mentioning he would waste no time establishing the gulags, too, I found especially inspiring.

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I believe this is quite a mischaracterization.

Can you reference your claims via transcript or minute markers in video?

Chomsky said:

I believe this is quite a mischaracterization.

Can you reference your claims via transcript or minute markers in video?

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Pssst -- Chomsky -- I'm going to whisper this so it stays just between you and me, but you should read post #60 in this thread.

Gardener said:

Pssst -- Chomsky -- I'm going to whisper this so it stays just between you and me, but you should read post #60 in this thread.

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Sorry 'bout that.

Sometime's it's hard to tell, around here.

But thanks for bringing that to my attention in a 'quiet' manner.

Are we done whispering, now? :mrgreen:

Chomsky said:

Sorry 'bout that.

Sometime's it's hard to tell, around here.

But thanks for bringing that to my attention in a 'quiet' manner.

Are we done whispering, now? :mrgreen:

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it's ok
nobody heard y'all's conversation

TurtleDude said:

that's probably because what he really believes in is holding office

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Holy ****. A person who is running for president wants to hold office. No way. Mind blowing analysis.

Chomsky said:

Sorry 'bout that.

Sometime's it's hard to tell, around here.

But thanks for bringing that to my attention in a 'quiet' manner.

Are we done whispering, now? :mrgreen:

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Don't worry about it, dude.

I'm not sure if most people get my politics, but I am one of the few people here who is more or less in alignment with Bill Maher on most things if that provides a reference point. I get called lots of names for doing so, though, which makes it tough to tell.

Gardener said:

Don't worry about it, dude.

I'm not sure if most people get my politics, but I am one of the few people here who is more or less in alignment with Bill Maher on most things if that provides a reference point. I get called lots of names for doing so, though, which makes it tough to tell.

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Being in Bill Maher's camp is not a bad place to be.

Merry Christmas!

How should I know?

Ask him.

Grand Mal said:

Ah, irony. I love it.
Thanks.

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What irony?

skq said:

Bernie Sanders said he is a "democratic socialist" and according to the poll in the isidewith-thread a lot of people here agree with Bernie Sanders. Do you think that he is a communist?

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No, and anyone who thinks that he is doesn't understand what the word "Communist" means.

reinoe said:

Bernie Sanders is a communist in the same way that a shark is a bird. Only the most ignorant and uneducated would call Bernie Sanders a communist. The same people who say Bernie is a communist are the same people who say that Hillary and Obama are communist. There's a lot of dunces throwing terms around when they don't even know what the terms mean.

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Exactly. "Communist" is what some "adults" use where kids would use, say, "poopy head."

TurtleDude said:

that's probably because what he really believes in is holding office

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he is pretty much the only consistently pro-labor candidate in the field. unfortunately, the Democratic candidate has been already chosen without a vote being cast.

The rabid right desperately wants to label him a communist. Why would it make a difference if he was?

Manc Skipper said:

The rabid right desperately wants to label him a communist. Why would it make a difference if he was?

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more than a few democrats think he is a far leftwing loon