As promised, here is my post that looks into whether Obama is a socialist or not.
So when all else fails for the GOP what do they do? They drop the "S" bomb. So and so is a socialist, they are the boogeyman-Boo!
But why do they do this? Because for older Americans who were adults during the cold war their was a very clearly defined enemy-the Soviets. Politicians know that for the average middle aged to mature every day Joe, who lacks a deep appreciation and understanding of economics, that the slightest any mention of the "S" word invokes a no questions asked emotional panic or fear reaction.
But are these politicians accurate when they try to link Obama, Democrats, or far left liberals to socialists?
If we look at some of the recent events which have unfolded for example it would seem as if these GOP politicians either have very short memories or maybe they just like contradicting themselves because Bush just enacted some several state interventionist-(read socialist policies) and his GOP colleagues barely blinked an eye. Yet when Obama talks about rolling back the Bush tax cuts to the same levels that they were at during the Clinton era he is a socialist-how? This is simply double talk. And as Obama said this is the sad state of Washington politics today.Mccain himself voted for the bailout and even suggested the government get deeper into the banking business by purchasing distressed mortgage notes.
So to set the record straight we do not live in a capitalist system. We in America have what is referred to as a mixed economy-meaning that capital is created by businesses engaged in the pursuit of profit, while the government is able to exert certain protections and interventions to protect property owners and individuals. So institutions such as the SEC, Social Security Administrations, FDIC, FDA, FTC, and etc act as a cushion to offset the lack of protections offered in pure capitalism.
But here is something to consider...America will never go completely to the left of the center in terms of trade-because our system is one that is designed to gravitate towards balance or equilibrium. Likewise, take a look at the most socialist countries in the world (those where individuals do not own property) many of these-such as China are becoming more capitalist. [In fact the worlds most capitalist system exists in Hong Kong.]
So what has Obama said that would qualify as socialist? Absolutely nothing. If you ask the most extreme conservative they will say-spreading the wealth. But spreading the wealth and socialism are almost mutually exclusive. Pure socialism is a system in which there is no wealth because ownership in the pure socialist model is permitted by only the state. By this definition Obama has proposed nothing that is anymore socialist or interventionist than hat we already have in place. And frankly this is what happens in an economy that is suffering. We didn't become a mixed economy until Franklin Roosevelt's first and second terms-when he enacted the New Deal to help keep the economy from sinking even lower. Once things pick up again, things will again sway to the right and the country will again become more conservative. But today that is not the case. Today we live in an America that has become very fiscally liberal because of the economy. As such, whether it is Obama or Mccain that becomes the next president we will see more interventionist trade policies. To let things continue to spiral and wait for the invisible hand of the free market to respond is just plain irresponsible.
Don't believe the hype-America has already adopted socialist policies-medicare is one of them. The federal government buying into banks (which Bush enacted is another). Therefore to say that Obama would bring socialism to America is a phony attempt to ignore where we are at this juncture and to scare Americans. Message to Mccain, its not working and come on...Fortunately, we know better-Obama is not a socialist.