Socialism is doubleplusgood
Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it:
This year’s study showed increased favorability of the term ‘socialism’ (49%) among Gen Z compared to 2019 (40%). Opinions of capitalism declined slightly from 2019 to 2020 among all Americans (58% to 55%), with Gen Z (ages 16-23) slightly up (49% to 52%) and Millennials (ages 24-39) down (50% to 43%). 35% of Millennials and 31% of Gen Z support the gradual elimination of the capitalist system in favor of a more socialist system.
It also showed growing concern for Donald Trump as president, especially among younger generations of Americans, with 34% of Gen Z and 35% of Millennials seeing him as the greatest threat to world peace, up 8% and 7% from 2019, respectively. This sentiment held true regarding his handling of the pandemic as well, with 39% of Gen Z and 32% of Millennials believing Trump is more responsible for COVID-19 becoming a pandemic than Xi Jinping of China. Opinions of America’s inequality grew markedly from 2019 with 68% of Americans thinking that America’s highest earners don’t pay their fair share. Among these Americans, 57% of Gen Z and 60% of Millennials favor a complete change of our economic system away from capitalism — a 14% and 8% increase from 2019, respectively.
“It shocks the conscience that more Americans today believe the U.S. President is a bigger threat to world peace than the most brutal dictators in the world, and that four-in-ten Americans believe that their country is a ‘racist’ nation,” says Marion Smith, Executive Director of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. “This represents a total failure of our education system, not just in schools but also a basic dishonesty in our media and popular culture. When one-in-four Americans want to eliminate capitalism and embrace socialism, we know that we have failed to educate about the historical and moral failings of these ideologies.”
A few reminders:
I wonder what makes them think socialism would be beyter? It hasn’t worked anywhere it has been tried, not can it. Those who point to the socialistic policies of Europe tend to ignore that they only work to the extent that they, because the U.S. Is picking up their defense bill, and giving them that much money to squander.
The ghastly Kamala’s latest video (short and cartoonish) in praise of “equity” (which to her and to almost all other progressives has come to mean equality of outcome, such is the power of leftists to control the very words in which concepts and policies can be described) is attracting considerable attention, since it is the most blatant proof thus far of the revolutionary program (social engineering “on steroids”) to be enacted by a Harris/Biden administration in concert with AOC and the other three “Horsewomen of the Apocalypse.” No rational person should underestimate the threat posed to this republic by a victory for the senile and corrupt buffoon and his many malign handlers.
[…]34% of Gen Z and 35% of Millennials seeing him as the greatest threat to world peace, up 8% and 7% from 2019, respectively.
No new wars, normalization agreements all across the Middle East, and draw-down with an end in sight in Afghanistan.
There are none so blind as those who refuse to see.
Motte and bailey argument: “The arguer advances the controversial position, but when challenged, they insist that they are only advancing the more modest position.[2][3] Upon retreating to the motte, the arguer can claim that the bailey has not been refuted (because the critic refused to attack the motte)[1] or that the critic is unreasonable (by equating an attack on the bailey with an attack on the motte).”
The controversial position is micromanagement of the economy and massive limitations on traditional rights and liberties.
The modest position is “we just want a Euro-style welfare state that caaaares for people”.
Most people just see the “motte” (the modest position) even though the proponents are hardly secretive about the “bailey”.
“Marion Smith, Executive Director of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. “This represents a total failure of our education system, not just in schools but also a basic dishonesty in our media and popular culture. When one-in-four Americans want to eliminate capitalism and embrace socialism, we know that we have failed to educate about the historical and moral failings of these ideologies.”
I’m sorry but Ms Smith is mistaken. America’s ‘educational systems’ have NOT “failed”. To fail, one must have tried to succeed and fallen short of success. Indeed, the figures cited demonstrate a fairly high rate of success in indoctrinating America’s youth into the Left’s lies. Nearly everything our youth have been led to believe is a demonstrable lie and done so in the most disingenuous of ways.
As any politician can attest, the best way to lie is to tell only the part of the truth that supports your agenda. The media and ‘educational’ establishment long ago took that lesson to heart and have employed it to rape the truth.
As example, native americans were treated badly but in the aggregate not nearly as badly as they treated whites.
The american Indian had no concept of mercy and showed none to those they’d beaten and conquered. The norm among Indian tribes was to rape and torture to death their victims in the most horrific of ways. Babies were routinely slaughtered.
The accusation that whites “stole their land” is another lie. The American Indian had no concept of private property and constantly fought each other for control of territory. Their rule was “might makes right” and when they lost to greater might their descendants cried foul. Hypocrites.
The concept of the “noble redman” arose after their barbarism was no longer a threat.
Same thing with Mexicans. California Mexicans conquered California’s indian tribes and took the land. Which those tribes had taken from other tribes. Then whites took California from the Mexicans. More hypocrisy from sore losers.
As for racism, nearly all the founders are on record as opposing slavery. Black Africans brought to America were tribal and uncivilized and had been originally enslaved by their black “brothers”. Today, blacks in America are far better off than blacks in Africa. Finally, of all the races, whites have confronted their ancestral racism far more than have the other races.
As for socialism, where on the left do they publicly examine the horrific historical failures of collectivist ideologies?
Any ideology that relies upon evasion of its “fruits” invalidates itself. In embracing “false witness” it embraces evil.
The young are remarkably resistant to what their elders tell them when it suits them. How effective have D.A.R.E programs and abstinence education been? Little doubt that school teachers make things worse than they’d otherwise be, but one question one might ask is why mass entertainment and peer cultures develop the way they do, and what can be done about that.
One thing known is that fathers tend to be of far more influence than mothers in the politics and religion of the young. My contemporaries tended to be Republicans in our youth. Why are our children like this?
A few points: contemporary youth are rather more distant from subsistence than were their parents, who were in turn more distant than theirs. An alienation from practical life can be disorienting. Youths between the ages of 16 and 23 are typically still dependents in some measure. Many of the Millennials have repeatedly postponed or desequenced the advent of the important milestones of adult life, and many among them understand their discontents in ways that avoid addressing their source and making adaptive changes and instead scapegoat third parties or go off on odd tangents.
Terrible failure of schools, but starting in colleges. Where college Presidents and top admin folk, usually with Very High SAT scores (And Opinions Of Themselves), were secretly discriminating against Republicans for decades.
The same anti-discrimination laws used to improve the hiring of Blacks and women, against whites and men, should be used to improve the hiring of Republican professors.
K-12 is downstream of colleges, especially Ivies (+Stanford). Those which have been discriminating should lose all Federal funding.
America is good. Very good.
All too often, the Perfect is the enemy of the good.
And too many socialist professors (with their own little dictators inside, waiting and wanting and waiting and wanting to burst out) don’t like a capitalism which honors with limited status those who are successful creating wealth / making money more than those who study and are really smart.
“If you’re so smart, why aren’t you rich?” – so many college elite hate this. And envy those who got rich. They’re actually elite wannabees.
Some are envious “elite adjacents?” 🙂 🙂 🙂
Socialism, and Communism, has failed every time it has been tried, as measured against its own standard of success. The Left always says, “it hasn’t really been done correctly” to defend against these failures.
Great seeing Reagan again, those times seem so simple and pure now.
Even if you remember the past, Neo, you will still repeat it.
Watch me push the elite adjacents off a cliff of extinction. It’s time humanity learned humility.
As example, native americans were treated badly but in the aggregate not nearly as badly as they treated whites.
The american Indian had no concept of mercy and showed none to those they’d beaten and conquered. The norm among Indian tribes was to rape and torture to death their victims in the most horrific of ways. Babies were routinely slaughtered.
Things are always more complicated than that, GB, but I suspect you know that already.
As an example Trump Americans were treated badly, but in the aggregate not nearly as badly as they treated Biden Americans..
The Trump American had no concept of mercy and showed none to those they had beaten and conquered. The norm amongst American tribes was to rape and torture to death their victims in the most horrific of ways. Babies were aborted.
My point is simple. Are Americans bad or are Biden traitors bad? It helps to be specific and accurate, rather than stereotypical and generalized.
“contemporary youth are rather more distant from subsistence than were their parents, who were in turn more distant than theirs.” Art+Deco
A few months ago I ventured to my daughter and son-in-law the observation that people in rural areas tend to be more conservative than people who live in urban and suburban environments. And that I suspected a major factor was distance from the sources of food. To my surprise they readily agreed. I’m not at all sure they made the deeper connection. But they’re still fairly young, so one can hope.
Ymar,
Things are always ‘complicated’ when pointing out basic truths brings too much discomfort. The Left’s stereotyping of America’s irredeemable flaws requires a blunt rebuttal. When dealing with deceitfulness, nuance is counter-productive. Blunt rebuttals inherently stereotype but are necessary to disarming the deceit.
For those with eyes to see, Trump demonstrating how to handle the left should provide all the confirmation needed.
Maybe they are confusing social programs with socialism?
“It also showed growing concern for Donald Trump as president, especially among younger generations of Americans, with 34% of Gen Z and 35% of Millennials seeing him as the greatest threat to world peace, up 8% and 7% from 2019, respectively.”
Yet Trump got the U.S. out of the endless wars and has set the stage for Middle East peace.
Willful ignorance runs deep with Gen Z & Millennials.
“And that I suspected a major factor was distance from the sources of food.”
I wouldn’t disagree…but I’ve attributed it to the fact that rural folks tend to own their own property (even if it’s them and the bank) and city folks tend to rent. When you own, if there’s a problem, it’s _your_ problem. If you rent, you call the owner/manager and tell them to “fix it”. It’s not _your_ problem…its _theirs_. And if they don’t fix it to your satisfaction, you move. Just wait till your lease is up and find a new house/apartment. If you own your own property, you have to sell – have to fix it up to sell – and then come up with money to buy another. It’s _your_ problem and _you_ have to fix it – nobody else.
G.B. –
I applaud your statement on Indians, which is fact-based.
Ymar is always a waste of time, a constant source of delusions.
Example is what he wrote: “As an example Trump Americans were treated badly, but in the aggregate not nearly as badly as they treated Biden Americans..The Trump American had no concept of mercy and showed none to those they had beaten and conquered. The norm amongst American tribes was to rape and torture to death their victims in the most horrific of ways. Babies were aborted.”
If I were a member of the Yale psychiatric staff, I would declare Ymar psychotic. We see it in all his posts.
As a modest salvation, he is repelled by abortion, that most “Biden American” concern of “women’s health”.
100+Million corpses in the ground/tundra
for Communist China & The Soviet Union
alone. Add Red Cambodia Red Viet Nam, Red Laos, Red Cuba & Red Nicaragua and you’ll hit 110+Million cold dead votes for the Harvest of Sorrow of the radical left.
All last century and our ignorant youngers haven’t a clue.
Please , God, Liberty/Freedom need to be walked back from the cliff.