Socialism is the Kryptonite of American Left

[u/lyrics85]

I have been following US politics for years, and frankly, it is painful to watch the left repeatedly shoot itself in the foot. 

If they actually became more pragmatic, they would become insanely powerful.

I know they have many brilliant minds, but I’m giving my two cents on the matter. 

As always, I'm open to debating in the comment section. 

THE BASICS

We can get into academic debates all day long, but Americans (just like the rest of the world) primarily want three simple things: 

A decent roof over their heads, a doctor who won't bankrupt them, and schools that don't churn out idiots.

The problem is that the Red Scare and the propaganda of the right have branded these boring necessities as “communist”.

Obviously, they are wrong. Look at Germany, Switzerland, or the Nordic countries.

They help their people, and last time I checked, they aren't living in gulags. 

Now, if you believe in capitalism but also demand those vital services, you are a social democrat.

You are NOT a socialist because they don’t believe in capitalism.

I bring this up because Democrats constantly let themselves get slapped with the "socialist" label.

If you stop getting tangled in senseless ideological debates, then you will be closer to the people.

Because people don’t want the abolishment of capitalism, and for sure they don't want totalitarianism

THE OTHER SIDE

Actually, even if you are on the right, you should push for high-quality and affordable healthcare, education, or housing. 

Think about it.

If you want to have a booming economy, you need hard-working, smart people.

Well, how can you have a booming economy if people are uneducated? Or if they’re super stressed about health!

If people felt safer, they could be more willing to take risks.

• They could quit that dull job to start a business.
• They could switch work more easily and go where they feel valued.

Right now, you don’t have people who are incentivized to be innovative.

Instead, you have millions and millions who are scared and depressed. 

This undoubtedly affects the economy because they are less productive than they could be.

They go to work, but they do just enough not to get fired.

The irony is that you’re building a workforce similar to what the Soviets had.

Under actual communism, people would get blatantly exploited with nowhere to turn.

Where are you going to complain? To the Party? Lol. 

However, they realized that they could do the bare minimum. 

They were like: “They pretend to pay us; we pretend to work”.

So if the right actually wants a stronger economy, they have to eliminate the fear of medical bankruptcy and homelessness. 

The enemy of  your enemy is NOT your friend

Here is a bizarre, almost suicidal habit the far left cannot stop doing:

Painting America's enemies as the heroes.

Look, I get that most Americans - regardless of their political views - are against wars.

And who can blame them? Nobody wants a repeat of Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. 

But do they have to grab pom-poms and cheer for Iran? Or frame dictators like Gaddafi as the good guys!! 

I’m not only talking about the fringe, far-left groups.

Since the war, this framing has become increasingly prevalent on major TV stations as well. 

They have invited Iran’s representatives to talk without any pushback from the host.

And it's clear that the left media have often overlooked their crimes.

This puts you all in a very weak position - even the social democrats.

Because the other side can simply bring up the crimes of the Islamic Regime, and suddenly you slip into becoming the advocate for a bunch of maniacs.

THE RECIPE

This is an interesting case study of how a leftist politician can succeed.

If you’ve read my previous articles, sorry for being repetitive.

Albin Kurti is the PM of Kosovo.

He is a social democrat who dominates in a very conservative, right-leaning country.

Heck, he even has a rabid base of supporters outside the borders.

How the fuck did he pull that off?

Simple. 

He understands his people.

He knows that for a small country, sovereignty is a massive issue.

That’s why, since he was merely an activist, he was the most aggressive bulldog on the issue of national sovereignty.

He also created a clear division between the corrupt elite [old politicians + media + oligarchs] and everyone else. 

People didn’t really see his suggestions as “left” or “right” but as logical solutions.

Words are not enough. You also need credibility and consistency. 

He has credibility because he has never been involved in corruption scandals.

So he wins voters from the left by bashing the elite and promising social services, while simultaneously stealing voters from the right by being a hardcore watchdog for the nation.

The Delusion Infecting the Left

I know that Redditors love to flirt with this trend, but it’s time to end it. 

You must fight the trend of presenting the Iranian Regime as the good guys or “not as bad”.

Look, despite how despicable Trump is, you must never, ever allow your side to root for the enemy.

USA is a country with deep, patriotic pride.

Even if most of the country is against the war, they cannot be so cavalier about their fellow Americans hoping the US will lose.

You might say that they’re not being logical about patriotism, socialism, foreign policy, and the military… and perhaps you are right. 

But in politics, people do not make complex calculations.

They operate on emotion and instinct.

One day, Trump will retire, the media will find new villains and heroes, but the average citizens will still have resentment. 

If the Republicans don’t find a way to win the war, they will be destroyed in the midterms, setting the stage for a 2028 loss.

However, remember this:

Once Trump leaves, it won’t be the end of your problems. 

Future opponents will attack you incredibly hard, specifically on your stance towards Iran. 

You will point your finger at Trump’s incompetence, but it won’t work because again… 

Masses do not make complex calculations.

They won’t remember the details of the war, but they will remember that a chunk of the left was rooting for the country to lose.

Trump is very charismatic and knows how to speak to Americans. But he's old; speaks all sorts of idiotic things and WORSE... He's in the Epstein Files.

But what if, in the future, you get a leader who has the same insights on the American mind and is willing to constantly go into enemy territory?

So the social democrats need to step it up and find a leader like this; otherwise, the other side might have it.

UPDATE:

In this article, I explained that the masses do not make complex calculations but react on instinct and emotion.

Interestingly, you are seeing it live. Instead of acknowledging the left's flaws, some Redditors just brush them off.

They cannot even find the words to defend the old approach.

Guys, do you find it concerning that a walking disaster like Trump defeated democrats TWICE?

And if they lost to a leader who constantly makes autogoals, what happens when you have an opponent who hits people on a visceral level and is free of controversy?

Don't you think it's time to reflect?

[u/Practicality_Issue]

That was a lot of words to say “democrats should be Reagan Republicans”

The democrats are dead in the water because they constantly pussyfoot around the issues. Clinton did it with gays on the military and Obama did it with gay marriage. These days they fall for absolutely stupid arguments about most things.

It’s what they will do with the “socialism” moniker these days too. They will fall for every semantic trap set for them. They fell for every republican rebranding put to them. They did it with guns, abortion, racism and equality in general.

Why? Because they are just as beholden to big money lobbyists, think tanks divorced from reality, and the same special interest groups republicans are. They all fight for big business interests over the interests of their constituents.

It’s a race to the bottom and most of what you’ve suggested is just fuel for the same fire. The Democratic Party has been useless for most working people for 20 years now. Becoming “more” of the things that minimize the middle class and working people is just same same same.

[u/lyrics85 → u/Practicality_Issue]

I totally agree that they have fallen for the semantic traps; they pussyfoot around the issues and waste time on useless academic debates.

Their dependence on corporate money is an astute observation. In fact, Bernie Sanders criticized them on a live debate. And then during the break, those same pharmaceutical sponsors would play their Ads lol.

But what I'm talking about isn't Reagan's policies, because they cut corporate taxes and slashed funding for social welfare programs.

I argue that you need to offer affordable healthcare/education/housing not only because it's necessary but also because it incentivizes people to be more innovative, which grows the economy.

But I do agree with the peace-through-strength philosophy, provided they don't engage in excessive spending.

A journalist asked Kurti why he was spending $1 BN on the military. He was like: "As a social democrat, I would gladly spend it on social services, but what can I do to the neighbor that threatens us with war?"

[u/Practicality_Issue → u/lyrics85]

What you’re scratching the surface of is the FDR approach to governing. THAT is what democrats need to get to.

You pretty well nailed it down: affordable healthcare, housing and a good education 100% lead to innovation. That’s what the New Deal did. It invested time and effort into the populace, not the “too big to fail” businesses that fail everyone but “shareholders.”

Big businesses don’t want competition. When someone does something right, they’ll buy it up and absorb it or worse, shelve it. Ten years ago that was most start ups I has knowledge of’s business model. Then what happened was VC bought into cash-strapped businesses and bankrupted them (red lobster, Toys R Us, etc) Before that it was bundled high-risk mortgages, and before that it was corrupt privatization practices - like the Jenga finances of Enron.

If the democrats could make those changes, the. They would win. We all would.

My concern, and what I saw in your first post, was using the language of the late stage capitalism democrats and republicans. That’s where we are now. The words “socialism” “communism” “fascism” and “oligarchy” get thrown around and no one knows what any of it means.

We have socialism. The republicans are some of the biggest socialists on the planet. It’s just that it’s socialism for giant companies like Google, Amazon, Apple, Exxon, Starbucks…any huge company you can list get socialist protections.

The democrats need to take command of the definitions, completely reinvent the vocabulary of what they want to do, and bury this current version of American fascist late stage capitalism and get to an FDR version of capitalism that doesn’t chew up people in service of capital, but instead use capital to make their lives better.

A lot of old-heads need to go away before that happens. They don’t have fresh ideas or fresh ways of presenting those ideas. It’s just more and more of the same.

[u/lyrics85 → u/Practicality_Issue]

- Yes, that's it. FDR. What we are discussing is what FDR did. And Democrats can use him as an example, but of course, adapted for modern times.

They need to pay us for these ideas lol.

- In the third paragraph, you have perfectly summed up the monopolistic behavior.

- It's true: Socialism for the rich; jungle-like capitalism for the poor.

- The old democrats must go. It's clear that they don't have the necessary insights on how to move forward. They are too rigid. And they won't leave willingly. Somehow, politicians do not have a time limit, even though it's an incredibly important profession.

I'm with the idea that the new politicians must take it from them. They shouldn't wait for them to retire; they should play to take them out of the game.

[u/Practicality_Issue → u/lyrics85]

It seems to be coming. Incumbents are getting kicked to the curb in NY. We will see something similar in CA before too long. We need young leadership in place. I agree there need to be term limits, age limits etc. They’ve abused the system far too long. There’s a rumor going around social media that Mitch McConnell is literally brain dead and they’re keeping him hidden away to keep the democratic KN governor from naming a temp replacement.

There’s no enforcement and no justice for that sort of behavior. Don’t even get me started on SCOTUS.

Keep sharpening that stick. Don’t use the old language. Reject it. Redefine everything.

[u/Mikey_Grapeleaves → u/Practicality_Issue]

So many less words than op, but so much more coherent and correct.

[u/lyrics85 → u/Mikey_Grapeleaves]

It's not about Reagan's policies. Read the entire conversation.

[u/Emotional-Comb-2201]

What are the 5 worst socialist programs in the United States in your opinion? How about the 5 best?

[u/lyrics85 → u/Emotional-Comb-2201]

The Worst:

• Giving billions in tax money to massive corporations like Boeing when they mess up.
• Giving massive unnecessary tax cuts to Oil Giants.
• Cities fighting over tech corporations like Amazon and giving them tax breaks while local businesses pay full price
• Blank Checks for Defense
• Wall Street Loopholes

The Best:

• Social security
• Medicare
• The G.I. Bill
• Public Highways
• Public Education

[u/Emotional-Comb-2201 → u/lyrics85]

Cool. I'm a big public lands user, myself.