By accusing Barack Obama of being a Socialist and by conducting an unethical campaign of red-baiting John McCain and Sarah Palin have helped educate the American people about the reactionary nature of the Republican Party.
Barack Obama has responded in the best possible way towards charges of being a Socialist. He has said, "you call it socialism, I call it opportunity." In other words, I don’t care what you call me, call me a socialist or a communist if you must, but this is my policy, and it’s a policy that benefits 95% of the American people. As a socialist, I fully endorse this response. What this response allows is for political, social and economic policies that I would accept as reflective of my worldview to be couched in terms that are understandable and responsive to the needs of the vast majority of the American public. It opens up the opportunity to present ever more radical (in the sense of getting to the roots of the problems we confront) perspectives on what needs to be done to promote the democratic vision of Eugene V. Debs and other pioneers of American socialism. In standing up to the onslaught of 21st century red-baiting (charges of consorting with terrorists, of being a Marxist, a Muslim, a community organizer) Barack has thwarted the time-honored ploy of the right-wing to divide the people from its leadership.
The American people in their vast numbers do not know what socialism is or is not. Hell, the vast majority of political activists and academics can’t agree on a proper definition. Once we as a people get over our fixation with labels and begin to work for and implement our vision of a just and humane society, nothing will hold back our progress towards a nation that we can all be proud to be a part of and live in, at peace and in harmony with the world around us.