Saturday, September 09, 2017
Beating a Live -- and Dangerous -- Horse
I realize that most of this blog is one big rant against the nonsense...and horrors of socialism in its various permutations but, socialism can mean a lot of things. The latest B.S. regarding the horror that keeps on giving is to note the kinder gentler version of death camps through the slow slide into "Democratic Socialism." Bernie Sanders was quite effective in the last American presidential election in sneaking this marxist con scheme through America'a wide open door. He actually had a shot at the grand prize. The next time around, a like-minded Stalinist in sheep's clothing may be given the keys to the kingdom...while Millennials stare blankly at their Facebook feeds.
Socialism is a commune with compulsory membership. In fact it's a cult, which is why it bears a resemblance to one in so many ways. In spite of how one may wish to soften its image, the manifestation is always the same. Adding "Democratic" to the word is as accurate or honest as calling the North Korean dictatorship a "Democratic People's Republic." In spite of democracy's generic use as a label for free society it in fact describes a society that is decidedly not free. It has often been accurately compared to the concept of two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. In practice, "democratic socialism" can be likened to a few powerful wolves deciding to eat sheep and...other wolves (and never becoming full).
Even when elected democratically, socialists seek to maintain their grip on power through undemocratic means ("for the people" of course). They do this easily over time by regulating away free speech, packing their legal system with like-minded stooges, and using massive sympathetic bureaucracies like the tax system and Justice department to eliminate opposition. The fact that schools, universities, entertainers, and most journalists begin to move in monopoly lockstep with it certainly diminishes its claim to be "democratic" in the generic sense. When banal modes of entertainment like comedy and pop music become venues for inculcating the party line, a society is reaching the point of no return. A system with limited state authority is considerably less corruptible. A system where state authority permeates the entire culture is corrupt by definition.
Has anyone ever heard a "democratic socialist" say, "okay, we've got a good system now that takes care of everyone. We don't need anymore offices of state to compel compliance and we don't need to move any further left to achieve a more perfect order."? You're definitely not going to hear a "democratic socialist" take a pass on the "need" to "protect" their advances through censorship, coercion, imprisonment, or mass executions. After all, such opposition is the "counter-revolutionary enemy of the people." You supposedly "have to break some eggs to make [their] omelet."
In the U.S., and many other countries, an excessive and spendthrift regulatory environment has increased dramatically over the last few decades. We've spent literally trillions of dollars on a "war on poverty" with virtually no impact (a poverty rate of about 13%). And yet, the screech is repeated that "we're not doing enough" or, reducing the budget to levels of just eight years ago will somehow result in mass death, if not the literal end of the world.
Occasionally, in keeping with the pseudo-religious nature of these virtue signaling charlatans one will hear references the teachings of Jesus but, I don't recall Jesus having proclaimed the need for further compulsory funding to the "ministry of good deeds."
Socialism in all it's forms is a massive con to pull at the heart strings of the naive and solidify the gains of bureaucrats and control freaks. To be sure, Nazi's and the Khmer Rouge are some of the more horrid examples of the belief in practice (it's always worse than one can imagine in actual practice), but most people in Venezuela today would be uninterested in the left's debate points while a small clique of wolves devour the lives of citizens who were once stupid enough to embark on the fantasy journey into paradise once more. Now, they can ponder their errors...while they search for food.
