What Would a "Democratic Socialist" United States look like?

[SonOfDaedalus]

I know only what the historians put in their books.

Except for the "communist" part...I get that straight from the horses mouth.

You see; my mother and father were both born on the dark side of the "Iron Curtain".

My father was actually an officer in the Russian Navy.

But this thread is about "Democratic Socialism"...Could you teach me anything about that?

The USSR just called itself socialist. It's propaganda. You fell for it.

Is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea really democratic? Do you get it now?

 

[Quag]

The USA already is a form of social democracy with socialist programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, social security, education (up to high school) police/fire depts., food stamps, subsidized public transit, road construction, air traffic control (though there is talk of privatizing it like they did in Canada, a country that is considered far more socialist than the USA) etc etc.

 

[Master PO]

They're major ****ing changes.

Stop digging.

these are not changes of government, and for your info the constitution does not have civil rights human rights or woman rights

stop trying to save France, its a mess and it always will be because of the government they seek to practice

 

[SonOfDaedalus]

The USA already is a form of social democracy with socialist programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, social security, education (up to high school) police/fire depts., food stamps, subsidized public transit, road construction, air traffic control (though there is talk of privatizing it like they did in Canada, a country that is considered far more socialist than the USA) etc etc.

Exactly, the difference between the U.S. and Scandinavian Democratic Socialist countries is a few social programs here and there. It's no a difference of economic philosophies.

The confusion is that people associate the word "socialism" with the USSR which was not really socialist.

I think this is a good discussion of capitalism, socialism and communism.

 

[SonOfDaedalus]

And the horrors associated with the Communist branch of Socialism has been well documented by such examples as the totalitarian regimes of the USSR and Red China.

What do you think of Noam Chomsky's view of the USSR? Do you agree that it wasn't even remotely socialist?

 

[danielpalos]

Solving simple poverty once and for all.

 

[EMNofSeattle]

I don't think you understand the differences between socialism, communism, and nazism in the slightest.

The differences are irrelevant, they're all based in the same philosophy of opposition to property rights and the free market and destruction of the individual to be subjugated to the state power, and thus the only differences are in severity, but they all leave us less free.

 

[danielpalos]

We should be eliminating homelessness through unemployment compensation for simply being unemployed.

 

[LowDown]

:lamo

It's never another option like Denmark, Canada, or Sweden; it's always Venezuela. It would be an interesting approach to everyday life:

"Hmmm...I was in the mood for some mussels."

"Yeah, you could eat it but you'll get some type of poisoning and die"

If the United States were a small, ethnically homogenous nation then Denmark or Sweden might be an appropriate comparison, but it's not. If the left gets that much power here then we're going straight to Venezuela or worse.

 

[Helix]

What Would a "Democratic Socialist" United States look like?

it would look like the rest of the first world. for example, when you break an arm, it would be the same treatment except you wouldn't have to risk going broke depending on your specific employment. you could also do things like get cancer without selling your house and having half a dozen local fundraisers to cover part of the bill. spooky, i know.

 

[Moderate Right]

it would look like the rest of the first world. for example, when you break an arm, it would be the same treatment except you wouldn't have to risk going broke depending on your specific employment. you could also do things like get cancer without selling your house and having half a dozen local fundraisers to cover part of the bill. spooky, i know.

LOL. Methinks you have an extremely narrow definition, only looking at healthcare. Socialism has not worked out ANYWHERE it has been tried.

 

[Moderate Right]

I have a fairly good understanding of the basic concept of 'Socialism' as created by Karl Marx.

And the basic ideas and goals of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party, made 'National Socialism' forever infamous.

And the horrors associated with the Communist branch of Socialism has been well documented by such examples as the totalitarian regimes of the USSR and Red China.

So; considering the dark history of "Socialism" can anybody explain what makes "Democratic Socialism" different?

And; what would the United States look like if the 2020 election resulted in a total Democratic Socialist government?

My main thought is that leftists, socialists, progressives, liberals, or whatever you want to call them, are never happy with the status quo. They are always, ALWAYS, on the warpath for going farther and farther. It never stops and it never ends. So, whatever Democratic Socialism would be defined as in 2020, it would never be enough for these people. It would only be the tip of the iceberg for an ongoing plan that would never end until the "Democratic" part of the terminology is dropped and we eventually evolve into total and complete socialism.

 

[VanceMack]

It should not be lost that the wealthy leftists that bleat on about socialism do not practice socialism, and the only true proponents for socialism are those that are already dependent on the government, or their mommies.

 

[Helix]

LOL. Methinks you have an extremely narrow definition, only looking at healthcare. Socialism has not worked out ANYWHERE it has been tried.

the rest of the first world isn't truly socialist, as the means of production have not been turned over to the workers. most of what Sanders was proposing has been status quo in other first world countries for decades. as for what has worked,



https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/quality-of-life-full-list

 

[Moderate Right]

the rest of the first world isn't truly socialist, as the means of production have not been turned over to the workers. most of what Sanders was proposing has been status quo in other first world countries for decades. as for what has worked,

View attachment 67237560

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/quality-of-life-full-list

I repeat, socialism has not worked out anywhere it has been tried. I for one, would not want to live anywhere in Europe so I hope you're not trying to convince me that they are first world countries. Even their healthcare sucks. I wouldn't trade the healthcare I have for theirs any day, let alone any of their other crap. Anyone who prefers Europe to us, I highly recommend that they leave and go there to live.

 

[Helix]

I repeat, socialism has not worked out anywhere it has been tried. I for one, would not want to live anywhere in Europe so I hope you're not trying to convince me that they are first world countries. Even their healthcare sucks. I wouldn't trade the healthcare I have for theirs any day, let alone any of their other crap. Anyone who prefers Europe to us, I highly recommend that they leave and go there to live.

did you miss the first part of the post?

as for the "love it or leave it" bull****, i highly recommend that government minimalists move to Somalia. i will stay here and support progress and improvement.

 

[Acadia]

:lamo:lamo:lamo

I knew this was coming. Only leftists know the meaning of words, right?

The Left tries over and over to control language. They redefine words, make up new words, give words a totally different meaning, tell you what words you can't say and compel you to say words you don't want to.

 

[Deuce]

I repeat, socialism has not worked out anywhere it has been tried. I for one, would not want to live anywhere in Europe so I hope you're not trying to convince me that they are first world countries. Even their healthcare sucks. I wouldn't trade the healthcare I have for theirs any day, let alone any of their other crap. Anyone who prefers Europe to us, I highly recommend that they leave and go there to live.

"Europe does not contain first world countries" :lamo

I mean jesus christ. Go jack off on another flag.

 

[danielpalos]

It should not be lost that the wealthy leftists that bleat on about socialism do not practice socialism, and the only true proponents for socialism are those that are already dependent on the government, or their mommies.

The right wing has no Faith in Capitalism and prove it with their non-market friendly public policies.

 

[VanceMack]

The right wing has no Faith in Capitalism and prove it with their non-market friendly public policies.

:lamo

Capitalism carries your ass through life. Capitalism facilitates your very existence. Leftists that bleat about the virtues of socialism do it under the protective an gracious shelter of the capitalist umbrella.

 

[ataraxia]

If the United States were a small, ethnically homogenous nation then Denmark or Sweden might be an appropriate comparison, but it's not. If the left gets that much power here then we're going straight to Venezuela or worse.

The only reason would be that we are racist. That's something that is within our own power to fix. It's a problem only if we let it.

 

[ataraxia]

:lamo

Capitalism carries your ass through life. Capitalism facilitates your very existence. Leftists that bleat about the virtues of socialism do it under the protective an gracious shelter of the capitalist umbrella.

Modern social democracies all have capitalist economies. Many of the people in the top 100 wealthiest people in the world are from those countries. I think the founder of IKEA, from Sweden, is in the top 10. The only difference is they have social safety nets, and don't believe social Darwinism and the "natural freedom" of the jungle, where the strong get to eat the weak and vulnerable for lunch, is a proper way to run modern civil societies.

 

[ataraxia]

The differences are irrelevant, they're all based in the same philosophy of opposition to property rights and the free market and destruction of the individual to be subjugated to the state power, and thus the only differences are in severity, but they all leave us less free.

That boat sailed in the US when exploitation of child labor by factory owners got so bad that laws had to be instituted against it. That was over a century ago. You're a little late if you are trying to save the US from socialism.

 

[ataraxia]

LOL. Methinks you have an extremely narrow definition, only looking at healthcare. Socialism has not worked out ANYWHERE it has been tried.

The US, despite spending more than other OECD countries, does not do anywhere as well as most of them- by any public health metric you use.

Thailand, on the other hand, on recently passing a system of Universal Healthcare, dramatically improved its public health, while in the meantime completely eliminating its extreme poverty. It turns out, most of the people hitting that bottom rung were entire families losing everything because a family member who was uninsured faced unexpectedly faced catastrophic illness. It ahs been a resounding success any way you look at it.

www.theguardian.com/health-revoluti...-healthcare-ucs-patients-government-political

 

[Jredbaron96]

The differences are irrelevant, they're all based in the same philosophy of opposition to property rights and the free market and destruction of the individual to be subjugated to the state power, and thus the only differences are in severity, but they all leave us less free.

Oh please.

The only difference between a communist state and a libertarian state is whether the guy who rules over you is called a "Premier" or "CEO".