The big lie of socialism

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I’m sure I don’t have to tell you, we are witnessing a raging socialist movement in America today. This should scare the hell out of anyone with any sense. A recent Gallup poll says more Democrats now have a “positive view” of socialism (57%) than capitalism (47%), even though socialism is full of nothing but failures. 

The failures include: Peoples Republic of China, Cambodia, Cuba, East Germany, Ethiopia, North Korea, Poland, Romania, USSR, and, the most current example of failure, Venezuela.

Three U.S. Senators have proposed a new plan to guarantee every American a government job, even though we currently have what is considered full employment. The only people not working are those who can’t work, don’t want to work or are in between jobs. This is evident from the number of help wanted ads running in our newspapers with rates of $15 per hour or more.

America’s new political star, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is pushing for free medical care, free college, and 70% tax rates on the rich.

Socialism is sold to the ignorant with promises such as these that are never fulfilled.

In 1998 Hugo Chavez promised the citizens of Venezuela health care for all. He had it written into their constitution which stated: “Health is a fundamental social right, an obligation of the state.” He also promised to “overcome poverty” and increase wages for all. At that time liberal Democrats in America, including Sean Penn and Michael Moore praised Chavez and his policies.

Today the Venezuelan health system is a disaster with hospitals lacking basic medicine. Higher wages for all has not helped Venezuelans with many starving due to extreme poverty. 

Before Chavez changed Venezuela to a socialist economy, that oil rich country was one of the most wealthy and successful countries in South America.

Ocasio-Cortez is concerned about millionaires and billionaires that our capitalist society has created. The lie that is being perpetuated is that everyone is equal in a socialist society with no wealthy class.

Here is the difference. In a capitalist society those with wealth have power. There is no denying that. In a socialist society those with power have all the wealth. A decade ago, Forbes estimated the socialist leader of Cuba Fidel Castro’s personal net worth at $900 million.

Socialist revolution leader Hugo Chavez’s oldest daughter Maria Gabriela is rumored to be Venezuela’s richest woman, with a personal fortune of more than four billion dollars, hidden in European bank accounts.

Chavez’s successor, Nicholas Maduro earns just over four thousand a month, or 12 times the Venezuelan minimum wage — which is set by law. According to CelebrityNetWorth.com, Maduro has a net worth of two million dollars. How did that happen on just four thousand a month?

On his TV program in 2005 Chavez said “Being rich is bad, it’s inhuman.” Someone forgot to tell his daughter and his successor that. This is the same rhetoric that Ocasio-Cortez is spouting.

In a capitalist economy, such as ours, when entrepreneurs like Bill Gates build a successful company everyone benefits. Including Gates, Microsoft created three billionaires plus an estimated 12,000 millionaires.

Google has a median yearly salary of $125,000 and according the New York Times they have more than 1,000 people with a net worth of over $5 million. 

Salaries at Amazon.com Inc range from an average of $58,578 to $147,825 a year. 

The point is this: entrepreneurs who create successful companies make others wealthy besides themselves.

This does not happen in a socialist economy because the only way to become rich under socialism is to gain power. You get power by knowing others in power or eliminating your competition.

And finally, never forget, those who are now trying to sell us on socialism are comparing our imperfect capitalist society with a perfect “theoretical view” of socialism, not the imperfect socialist economies that have and do exist. 

All economies are imperfect, ours included. So the socialist society Bernie Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez are trying to sell us on would never happen.

We live in the greatest country on earth. Let’s keep it that way.

If you want more information on socialism try “Why Socialism Failed: A 2018 Update” by Mark J. Perry, professor of economics and finance at the University of Michigan’s Flint campus, found at: http://www.aei.org/publication/why-socialism-failed-a-2018-update-part-i/