411 Comments

The Biden "legacy" is being cemented. The passing of this Infrastructure Bill will be remembered as part of a series of efforts by his administration to improve the quality of life in America. Of course, the legacy will be recapped starting with the efforts to save life itself...as many millions of Americans became vaccinated. The lovely side effect of being alive and being able to go back to work was that the economy was boosted faster than anyone expected. Apparently, being alive and not being afraid of death by disease were helpful factors in such mundane issues like stats about unemployment, GDP, etc. Wall Street loved it, too.

As to socialism as a term, what else would we expect from the people of Party Q? They have perverted, twisted and wrecked other perfectly normal words. If "socialism" now means all the evil that a Democrat does, then doesn't "Conservative" now mean authoritarian liar? And then there is our favorite: "Liberal". It used to mean tolerant, open minded.

For a very long time I thought of myself as a fiscal conservative with liberal values. Now that sounds like some sort of maniac based on today's usage. So I give up. Just call me a socialist and be done with it.

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I wish that Republicans would stop driving on our Socialist highways and sending their children to our Socialist public schools. It's been my hope that Republicans burn their Medicare cards in a great public protest of that creeping Socialist movement that grows as Boomers come of age.

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Yes, socialism is a dirty word to Republicans. They also seem to equate it with communism to make it sound even worse. Yet the true socialist countries like the Scandinavian have the best well-being in the world. I'm tired of Senator Manchin talk about "entitlements" when people pay into social security and medicare their entire careers. The benefits in retirement are simply return on one's investment. If the income disparity wasn't so extreme, we wouldn't need to be talking about big social safety nets. I'm tired of the zero sum game where if white males will get less if they have to share it with minorities and women. When I started my career women got 59 cents on the dollar to men in salaries. It is now about 79 cents to the dollar and for minority women it's worse. why can't we just be fair, work together and make more pies rather than bickering over the existing pie.

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HST knew them well “Socialism is a scare word they have hurled at every advance the people have made in the last 20 years. Socialism is what they called public power. Socialism is what they called Social Security. Socialism is what they called farm price supports. Socialism is what they called bank deposit insurance. Socialism is what they called the growth of free and independent labor organizations. Socialism is their name for almost anything that helps all the people.” Harry S. Truman Oct 10, 1952.

Republicans are no longer the party of Lincoln, haven’t been for 100 years. When he died, they pretty much died too. They like to hang “socialism” around every Democrats neck,” maybe a good word for them would be “Hypocrits,” until we can agree whether traitor, seditionist, insurrectionist, or cult nut describes them best.

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Republicans behave more like "communists" that is Stalin or Moscow communists in that they believe in a one party totalitarian government that demands total loyalty to the party and a handful of militant leaders. They use the same tools: lies, misinformation, secret police, partisan judges and party controlled media. They prefer to see the nation deteriorate as they force themselves into controlling every activity, than to see any other group, method or idea thrive. They undermine all forms of education, books, reading, writing and religion except where they control it. Everyone and everything is a potential enemy. And even if it's not, saying it is, is a useful political tool.

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"Regulation of business and promotion of infrastructure is not, in fact, the international socialism today’s Republicans claim. According to Abraham Lincoln, who first articulated the principles of the Republican Party, and under whom the party invented the American income tax, the 'legitimate object of government, is to do for a community of people, whatever they need to have done, but can not do, at all, or can not, so well do, for themselves---in their separate, and individual capacities.' Those things included, he wrote, 'public roads and highways, public schools, charities, pauperism, orphanage, estates of the deceased, and the machinery of government itself.'"

When will Republicans -- and Democrats alike -- learn the definition of socialism?! I find it so disconcerting that so many in the US are incapable of making an effort to truly understanding this socio-economic theory. Thank you, Heather, for bringing this issue to the fore.

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Thank you for this wonderful and illuminating American history lesson.

Abraham Lincoln must be turning in his grave that the nihilistic GOP calls itself the Republican party.

I'm sure the majority of middle-class, working-class and poor Americans would be thrilled to have the safety net benefits major industrialized European counties and Canadians take for granted.

If corporate media stopped mimicking conservative talking points, our country would be more receptive to socialism.

It seems the American political system is only amenable to socialistic redistribution when corporations asked to be bailed out.

Thanks again.

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The R’s have done a stunning job at characterizing *everything* D’s do as “socialism” and simultaneously made that term the boogie man. They have been quite good at that. The D’s have done a poor job pointing out that what the opposing party is doing is basically promoting a religious (Christian) autocracy with a shot of oligarchy…

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Before the Biden election, people were terrified of his turning the country into Venezuela because of Republican propaganda. Bernie Sanders made the mistake of using the term ¨Socialism¨ rather than ¨Democratic Socialism¨ which is practiced my many countries here in Europe. He never took the time to educate the public. He never called the Republicans on the inaccuracy. The Democrats need to begin doing this with smart marketing. This is what needs to be taught to Americans. There was something I read a week or so ago. An article about how Americans live such lives of poverty, but don't realize it. They are the frogs sitting in the pot of water which they think is warm. It isn't. No government is perfect, but the government in the U.S. needs an overhaul. The people in the U.S. need fact based education. Too many are leading lives of Quiet Desperation or Rage.

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Now, the recent GOP faux tropes… like pseudo socialism… should be taught in historical context in courses in 8th through 12th grades, and in college, with skilful and increasingly analytical and sophisticated use of the OED along with contemporary interpretation coupled with current examples.. with vigorous class discussion, repetition and comparative analytics, starting with the definition of latter day socialism, of early 1920s communism and latter half of the 21st century wokeness, new and subtle woke racism, and modern sophisticated intolerance, all this should be compared with fascism, totalitarianism and pre antitrust capitalism with frequent guest lectures from Timothy Snyder… of Yale. Parents should be allowed to observe if they will remain quiet.

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WHY is most of GOP soooo against spending $1.2T over 10 years on American infrastructure and yet happy to spend $2.26T in Afghanistan nation building and $5T in Afghanistan and Iraq over 20 years? WHY does no one mention the absurdity of this fact? WORSE yet, many in GOP complain we are not STILL spending money in Afghanistan.

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Republicans strategists are fine with middle class and low income citizens paying a higher percentage of their income in taxes than millionaires and billionaires. They are horrified at the thought of tax dollars helping ordinary Americans and call that “socialism”, knowing it is not, but they are fine with corporate socialism.

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"men of wealth insisted these programs meant a redistribution of wealth through tax dollars"

Exactly. That is what they are meant to do. Redistribute *to* the nation, the wealth *of* the nation - which powerful men, through preference and privilege, through exploitation and greed, have funneled into their private nosebags and corporate troughs. When the nation's wealth is put to work for the general welfare, the wealthy also benefit not only morally but practically.

As Rawls describes it, if I understand correctly, a role of government in a just society is to distribute benefits fairly - in such a way as to mitigate the unearned privileges of some and the undeserved burdens of others. If we act behind 'a veil of ignorance' as to our own relative positions then we can designate how benefits can be distributed fairly - which ups all our chances.

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Funny how nobody ever mentions the fact that we spend half our tax dollars on defense, though. I guess "socialism" for the Pentagon is just fine.

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The message of this and other letters need to be popularized in bites that the general public can digest. What most needs emphasis is the benefit that ALL Americans get from it, that is, roads, bridges, schools, hospitals etc. which enable the many things we all need and want. It would mean a truthful explanation of what socialism, American style, would mean to their daily lives.

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What is frustrating to me is that the next gen is oft to say, as soon as the boomers die off, then all the nonsense about race will go away. The next gen is not afraid of white minority. They are interested in all color majority. I, for one, agree with this. To me, the difference in skin color was a last minute challenge by the creator. “Will your separateness from the Creator manifest in a scramble for hierarchy?” How convenient to use skin color; a visual, definitive manifestation. It’s a travesty. In any conversation I have in discussing the threat to democracy or the common good, any discussion of racism (and may I clarify, not race) is met with discomfort, confusion, and dismissal with anyone that feels a shred of guilt in their souls. And quite frankly, it’s white people. That it all almost went to shit after the Civil War when reconstruction was a concept and not an actuality and it’s upon us again? Really?

Look. The original download from the Creator remains. “We are all in this together. There is enough to go around.” It’s so simple but so difficult if greed is insisted.

I choose simple, my optimism of the human race stems from this belief, I only plead that like minded can change a mind every minute, and that we can flourish and not fade. The Universe counts on us.

Love and Light.

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