I'm sticking my toe in the water... [View all]

Hi, I'm a socialist, but socialist/socialism is a broad term and there seems to be different degrees, if you will, of socialism, so I'm not sure if I fit here.

I'm 69 and retired from the federal government. Out of high school I worked in a factory that was represented by the UAW. I was a member for a few years. I also spent four years in the military then used the GI Bill to get a degree and then got a job as a cartographer with the government.

I believe every worker should be a member of a union. That right should be encouraged, facilitated, and protected by the federal government. That should be one of liberal's/progressive's highest priorities. Another high priority should be educating voters on the true meaning of capitalism, and what socialism really is. The American public is woefully ignorant of capitalism, especially. In other words our first order of business is education. We must convince workers that joining unions is in their best interests and that, of course, the wealthy and corporate America will do anything to convince them otherwise.

As for capitalism, I believe it does some things better than socialism, but only if highly regulated, with diligent oversight, and a mechanism for modifying regulations at a moment's notice because capitalists have high paid legal experts constantly looking for loopholes to exploit. Which means we will have to have a large, flexible government able to nimbly regulate, investigate, and prosecute when necessary.

As for socialism, we are already, in many ways, a socialist nation. The government provides far more services and goods than anyone knows. The Internet, GPS, weather satellites, etc., etc., all developed by or provided by our socialist government. How come no one in power has the guts to point this out? My wildest dream is that someone running for Congress would ask their Tea Party opponent if they would search out and eliminate any and all socialist programs in government. If they said yes!, then pull out a six-foot long list of government services and programs that they can start with.

So my version of socialism would allow a highly regulated form of capitalism, with workers unionized, and the government would ensure everyone has adequate food, water, shelter, health care, day care for those who need it, free public education (including college), a secure voluntary retirement at an appropriate age, etc., etc.

I'm not sure if this group envisions a government that allows a capitalist component or not. I have a hard time envisioning a happy, successful, progressive society without allowing for some measure of capitalism. If that violates one of the requirements of this group let me know. I'll understand.