Socialism: Ruining America… Presumably

The recent assertion by some in the media is that Barack Obama and the Democratic Party are changing America into a more socialist country.  We have here another example of the Rigmarole Theatre.  Like most issues, it is too complex to fit neatly into any existing party slogan.  But that doesn’t stop them from trying.

I submit that the issue is not so simple as socialism vs. free market capitalism.  Indeed, America does not have a truly free market.  It has been regulated since before this nation was a nation.  And the money from that regulation has always been put forth, in some way, toward the common good. I freely admit that, since 1776, those elements have increased.  But many have benefited America.

Public education, though deeply imperfect, has its merits.  Only the staunchest libertarians would abolish public aid programs such as Medicaid and Medicare without any substitute.  Indeed, the professional soldier army is an example of public money serving the common good.  There are other programs as well.

So the issue becomes this: There is a spectrum from unregulated free-market corporate-run America to an Orwellian dystopian-socialist America.  Where on that spectrum are we?  And, at what point should we be approaching?  There must be somewhere that isn’t hyperbolically evil.

But the nations with the most unregulated markets are the most impoverished. I refer to some sub-Saharan African nations where “markets” are purely driven by greed, corruption, and violence and the government is too weak or morally destitute to intervene. “Regulation” is a factor of militia strength.

And no nations are pure islands of socialism. Even mighty communist China must ship its wares into a globally regulated market.  Yet even that forced market-capitalism has done little to crack their oppressive human rights abuses.  Indeed, American business in China has worsened the situation in some very measurable ways.

Most people have individual concerns with possible government policy.  In an interview, conservative talk show host Bill O’Reilly said, “You want a big government creating jobs. I want the private sector to create jobs.” (Friday, February 20, 2009)  This beautifully exemplifies the simplification inherent in the media.

The issue shouldn’t be with who creates jobs.  It should be that they are created at all.  Just as government has its excesses and corruption, so too does business.  And the media can argue all day about which is worse (they do that).  But it will not solve a thing.  If no jobs are created everyone loses.

So, as always, we must not let the perfect be the enemy of the good.  Get something good going, create jobs, and fix the problems as they show.  As always, this simplification is not a unique tool of Fox News.  But Mr. O’Reilly’s criticisms would be far more constructive if they were aimed at solving existing problems, rather than hypothesizing on a potential problem.

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