It seems that “Democratic Socialism” is the political flavor of the month. So what is it? if you listen to celebrities and other talking heads, DS is all about democracy. It’s all about social safety nets. It’s all fluffy-bunny awesomeness, giving the poor free stuff. Behold this article full of kissassery:
It quote Alexandria Ocasio-cortez, who defines Democratic Socialism thusly:
I believe that in a modern, moral, and wealthy society, no person in America should be too poor to live. So what that means is health care as a human right. It means that every child, no matter where you are born, should have access to a college or trade school education if they so choose it. And, you know, I think that no person should be homeless if we can have public structures and public policies to allow for people to have homes and food and lead a dignified life in the United States.
Well, now, that just sounds more or less like standard modern liberalism, right? “Just give people stuff.”
But the reality is, Democratic Socialism is far darker than that. From the same article, the author writes:
But despite significant advances, we’re still living with many of the despotisms that early socialists abhorred.
The American workplace is one of the most glaring examples. The place where most people spend the bulk of their adult lives, it’s also a place where workers relinquish the most basic of democratic freedoms. Bosses can fire their subordinates for nearly any reason. They can tell workers what to say and what not to say. They can decide whether to keep the worksite where it is or move it abroad. They alone determine how to spend the company’s profits and invest the resources the enterprise has generated.
Democracy says that people should have equal control over the decisions that affect their lives.
So what do socialists oppose here? Bosses being able to fire employees. Companies having some measure of control over the speech of employees (hello, James Gunn…). Someone who owns something determining where to put that something. Instead, Socialists want the *government* to make those decisions. Got a crappy employee? Tough, it’s a ten-year process to fire him. Got an employee texting horrifying things on the company Twitter account? Too bad. Is your factory ridiculously far from your vendors? Tough.
“But,” I hear you say, “That’s socialism, not Democratic Socialism.” That would be a good point… if the Democratic Socialists *themselves* made any such distinction. Let’s go to the Democratic Socialists of America webpage, shall we?
Doesn’t socialism mean that the government will own and run everything?
Democratic socialists do not want to create an all-powerful government bureaucracy.
Say! That’s a relief! Let’s hope they shut up right there and don’t say anyth…
We believe that the workers and consumers who are affected by economic institutions should own and control them.
Social ownership could take many forms, such as worker-owned cooperatives or publicly owned enterprises managed by workers and consumer representatives. Democratic socialists favor as much decentralization as possible. While the large concentrations of capital in industries such as energy and steel may necessitate some form of state ownership, many consumer-goods industries might be best run as cooperatives.
Well, shit.
Further, elsewhere the DSA states:
The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is the largest socialist organization in the United States. DSA’s members are building progressive movements for social change while establishing an openly democratic socialist presence in American communities and politics.
At the root of our socialism is a profound commitment to democracy, as means and end. As we are unlikely to see an immediate end to capitalism tomorrow, DSA fights for reforms today that will weaken the power of corporations and increase the power of working people.
The difference between Democratic Socialists and Socialists is that Socialists want complete control over the economy and an instant end to Capitalism, while democratic Socialists only want that same end… a little later, maybe.
The DSA wants the government to take over the major industries. This will no doubt go over well with the idiot class who think they’re stigginit to the Rich Pigs. But once the government gets a taste of that sort of power, who *honestly* thinks they’ll stop there? Smaller companies, mom & pop shops, privately owned farms, sol proprietorships… these are in many ways the bedrock of the American economy. Once the government determines that it has the right to nationalize a company with ten thousand workers, how long before they can take over companies with a thousand workers? A hundred? Ten? Are *you* going to start a business if you know that the moment you hire some dimwitted lummox to carry heavy boxes from one side of the shop to the other, you will be forced to share the decision making process with him? That you cannot fire him unless he votes to let you?
The Democratic Socialists want:
massive redistribution of income from corporations and the wealthy to wage earners and the poor and the public sector, in order to provide the main source of new funds for social programs,income maintenance and infrastructure rehabilitation
Uh-huh. That first year, when you soak the rich, the government coffers will be full to overflowing. What about year two? If the wealthy are no longer wealthy, how are you going to extract wealth from them?
Democratic Socialism is just a stepstool to full-up Socialism.
So the next time you see some idiot on the street tell you that the Democratic Socialists want social safety nets, or food for the poor, housing, that sort of stuff… keep in mind what they really want: EVERYTHING.
