Dragged, Kicking and Screaming—Socialism in America

It’s been said many times, but things said many times are often

true: Socialism for the rich, democracy for the poor. Too big to fail

infers that the small are the natural inheritors of that tiresome chore.

Yet things said many times are

often not true, even by very wise men: “The inherent vice of

capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of

socialism is the equal sharing of miseries”—Winston Churchill

And yet another: “The law, in

its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under

bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread”—Anatole France

These were of course the quotes of wealthy and well regarded

men, but we Americans are already socialists and our most cherished

institutions are socialistic to their core.

·

Would anyone seriously undo the Eisenhower

interstate highway system and its ubiquitous opportunity to dine on fast-food

at every junction?

·

Are social security, the national power grid,

public schools and the world’s largest military a bore?

Unless you are a worker, perhaps you would fancy worker’s

compensation laws abolished and retirement programs for teachers, police officers,

and fire fighters done away with as well.

And although the national fury on

the right is directed at our less fortunate, the homeless and mentally ill

continue to pile up. Coronavirus will no doubt clear the streets of some and they

will no doubt look upon that as a victory.

And yet…government subsidies—welfare—abounds for big

business, with total silence from the righteous right. Time and space limit us

to but a peek at the top performers…

8. Nike — $2.03 Billion, paid

less in 2017 than it did six years before, even though its profits doubled to

$4.2 billion. To accomplish that extraordinary decrease, Nike funneled $12.2

billion in earnings offshore and out of the reach of the U.S. tax man.

7. Royal Dutch Shell — $2.04

Billion, paid no U.S. taxes.

6. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

— $2.06 Billion and paid no U.S. taxes.

5. Ford — $2.52 Billion, paid

U.S. tax only 3 of the past 10 years.

4. General Motors — $3.58

Billion, hasn’t paid U.S. taxes in decades.

3. Intel — $3.87 Billion, paid

no federal income taxes.

2. Alcoa — $5.64 Billion, no

taxes paid.

1. Boeing — $13.18 Billion, earned

$5.2 billion last year, but got an $82 million tax refund…

…but in some minds the homeless and

the jobless and the students and whoever is unfortunate enough to be poor in America

are the real enemy.

Which of course poses the obvious questions…

…why did the Elizabeth Warren and

Bernie Sanders campaigns fall apart and leave the Democratic Party with a nice

enough guy whose only credentials were being Barack OBama’s vice president? And

why do Democrats think voting for a comfort-food-candidate is a progressive way

forward for the country?

Was Bernie’s definition of

socialism that far out?—"Democratic socialism means that we must create

an economy that works for all, not just the very wealthy.”

Did Liz Warren scare you to death

when she said, “You built a factory out there, good for you. But I want to

be clear. You moved your goods to market on the roads that the rest of us paid

for. You hired workers that the rest of us paid to educate. You were safe in

your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid

for.”

I don’t want to be unkind, or radical, or over-the-top with

an opinion, but with our economic and environmental and (now) medical

challenges across the globe, Joe Biden thinking isn’t going to get us out of

the woods.

If you yearn for the good old days,

I’m sorry—more sorry than I can put into words—but they are gone. And if Joe,

by some miracle should win against Trump, we’re going to be faced with a nation

so deeply split that anarchy is not beyond possibility.

Liz and Bernie are dedicated to

healing the same wounded Americans that Trump brought to his side. His

supporters are not idiots and not radical and not wrong—they

are very badly wounded and scared to death, with good reason.

America is always slow to react, but with economic chaos, environmental disaster and a looming pandemic, capitalist socialism is

where the future resides.

It has so much to offer—a Green New

Deal to employ the frightened and wounded at union wages, environmental

progress and an electric-powered future, desalinization and a reconfigured

agricultural system before Monsanto poisons the planet into silence.

There is

still time for optimism.

We must not let it slip.