Socialism

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[–]DffrntDrmmr 9 insightful - 7 fun9 insightful - 6 fun10 insightful - 7 fun -  (2 children)

It only works because...

Socialism doesn't work, though.

But the pic's still fun.

[–]useless_aether[S] 6 insightful - 3 fun6 insightful - 2 fun7 insightful - 3 fun -  (1 child)

by 'work' they mean it provides the proper environment for mass murders and slave labor.

[–]Jesus 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Yes, by crony-capitalists. Socialism CAN create a state, authoritarian, in many ways which neoliberalist Capitalist states can exploit for products, labour, and resources. However, not all socialist like programs are bad. The welfare program set up by the FED for the rich with 0% interest rates is basically socialism for the very rich.

[–]AnarchySpeach 5 insightful - 4 fun5 insightful - 3 fun6 insightful - 4 fun -  (13 children)

The socialist cheese is free.

To the 2nd mouse.

[–]beermeem 3 insightful - 7 fun3 insightful - 6 fun4 insightful - 7 fun -  (6 children)

THE CHEESE IS A LIE, MAN

[–]AnarchySpeach 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (5 children)

The cat builds the mouse trap.

Cheese is offered.

With a quick snap the cheese is exchanged for a life and the other mice care not for the murder, because in a sick, twisted way, the cat kept their promise. A mouse did receive cheese. The 2nd mouse.

Those who are willing to standby and watch as nature takes it course are rewarded greatly.

[–][deleted]  (1 child)

[deleted]

    [–]AnarchySpeach 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    oh my god if you want to see the insanity that human design look no further than the 1000+ mouse trap designs in the patent office. Each one more fucked up and efficient than the last.

    [–]beermeem 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

    look at socrates over here

    [–]AnarchySpeach 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

    It sucks being this wise, smart, and awesome./s

    [–]beermeem 1 insightful - 3 fun1 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 3 fun -  (0 children)

    It do that.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (5 children)

    How come no one is talking about how the trap is free? (ie. the government, want it or not, you got it)

    [–]AnarchySpeach 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

    We built the trap together, so that one of us would sacrifice themselves. Wasn't taxes. Wasn't at gunpoint. We built it ourselves because the cat (government) promised us free cheese if we did so... so we did. All the cat did was tell us how and offer reward.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

    Naw. I didn't build it. I want nothing to do with it. No one asked me. And now it's forced upon us.

    Cats can't talk or promise, much less produce cheese. The cat is not even in the picture and is certainly not the government. Governments are smaller than the masses they exploit. If anything anthropomorphic, the government would be bloodsucking flees.

    Government is the trap.

    As an anarchist you should see this.

    [–]AnarchySpeach 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

    Naw. I didn't build it. I want nothing to do with it. No one asked me.

    Where do you live? Out in the middle of the woods? Living in the society is consenting to the gifts and nightmares that come with it. It's hard to be against Target when you shop there.

    Every penny taxed goes towards building the mouse trap. Where does the cheese really come from? How is it made? These are things people don't really want to know the answer to. It's better to look the other way. Wait for the snap. Ignore the cries. Take the cheese and go about your normal day.

    Anarchy fails quickly when people are unwilling to take action. Become a politician. Try to break the system from the inside. Pray you don't get desensitized to the horrible stuff kept from the public.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

    Living in the society is consenting to the gifts and nightmares that come with it.

    Says who? This unwritten rule needs to be written down somewhere so I can decline it in writing.

    I like your summary of the plebs.

    It took me a long while to appreciate the pros and cons of all the political ideologies I've heard about. Ultimately I'm a Anti-Corporatocracist/Voluntarist/Minarchist until something better comes along.

    [–]AnarchySpeach 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    Says who? This unwritten rule needs to be written down somewhere

    If you really care that much start readin' and tell us what you find.

    I believe economic anarchy, localized to areas with controlled boundaries, allows for the best spread of monetary growth as different areas produce better situations for business. So long as companies are allowed to move around they can continue to grow. My problem starts when any company gains a stranglehold over an area. If a company like Amazon doesn't care about profits in one category they sell, they can afford to produce at a loss, making up the rest from a different product source. Small start ups and little companies cannot compete with someone doesn't care about profits. These monopolies stagnate economic growth, create unemployment, and need to be destroyed.

    I have no beef with corporations. Monopolies are the true enemy that prevent us from starting our own businesses. They ruin the American dream and should be stopped. More taxes aren't the answer when the smaller companies can't afford to pay and the monopolies are indifferent.

    It's one of the reasons bitcoin and other digital crypto-currencies look so promising to me. If the government can't stop these run-away monopolies, then the answer is to let the people do it with their own spending choices. No "Bank of America" to tell us who we can and cannot buy from.

    [–]zyxzevn 5 insightful - 3 fun5 insightful - 2 fun6 insightful - 3 fun -  (1 child)

    The US:
    Everyone is free equally,
    but the criminal rich are more free than others.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

    There is a lot of truth to this.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 3 insightful - 5 fun3 insightful - 4 fun4 insightful - 5 fun -  (12 children)

    Did you know that "the free market" is a social-capitalist term?

    The era of American Social-Capitalism was the most prosperous time in the US. 1940's - 1960's.

    Eisenhower and FDR were both social-capitalists.

    Just saying...

    [–]DffrntDrmmr 5 insightful - 2 fun5 insightful - 1 fun6 insightful - 2 fun -  (11 children)

    Now you're just making up stuff.

    Neither were "social-capitalists."

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 4 insightful - 4 fun4 insightful - 3 fun5 insightful - 4 fun -  (9 children)

    The new deal is a socialist program.

    Also, FDR was proposing a Second Bill of Rights

    Roosevelt suggested that the nation had come to recognize and should now implement, a second "bill of rights". Roosevelt argued that the "political rights" guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights had "proved inadequate to assure us equality in the pursuit of happiness". His remedy was to declare an "economic bill of rights" to guarantee these specific rights:

    • Employment (right to work[notes 1]), food, clothing and leisure with enough income to support them
    • Farmers' rights to a fair income
    • Freedom from unfair competition and monopolies
    • Housing
    • Medical care
    • Social security
    • Education

    Here are some socialist Eisenhower quotes:

    Workers have a right to organize into unions and to bargain collectively with their employers. And a strong, free labor movement is an invigorating and necessary part of our industrial society.

    Republican support for labor.

    Only a fool would try to deprive working men and women of their right to join the union of their choice.

    Times have changed. Currently, there are plenty of foolish politicians on both sides of the aisle.

    Should any political party attempt to abolish Social Security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things, but their number is negligible and they are stupid.---Republican President Dwight Eisenhower

    He recognized that some groups would try to undermine the american working class, and he held them in low regard.

    These ideas are very similar to what Bernie Sanders is saying. This is a very real part of American history. We have all been brainwashed to believe otherwise.

    Hopefully, you find this interesting.

    I'll update this comment with some additional history to back up my assertion(s).

    [–]DffrntDrmmr 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (4 children)

    The new deal is a socialist program.

    No, it was not. The New Deal was a US president's reform plan in capitalist America. I repeat: It was NOT a socialist program.

    Grasping what socialism is and what it is not is where we should start. Capitalist countries (where wealth and the means of producing wealth are primarily in the hands of the private sector) have social programs and regulations. They are not "socialism."

    Socialism is a socio-economic system in which wealth and the means of producing wealth are primarily in the hands of the government. (Though socialist dogma purports it's in the hands of "the people," "the worker," etc, it is not literally — it is under government control).

    Reducing these president's words, plans and policies — designed to better the lives of Americans — as "socialism" is an insult to these leaders and capitalism's amazing success.

    You're taking anything that can be described as social or beneficial and attributing it to socialism. Stop that!

    Socialism has a horrible history of economic stagnancy that has never been able to compete with capitalism — and never will. There's good reason that the two largest countries that tried socialism (Russia and China) abandoned it for versions of capitalism.

    There has never been an economic model that has bettered the lives of so many as capitalism, as practiced in 'Western' countries (including Western Europe, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Israel, Australia, etc) — ALL representive democracies with capitalism. NONE are socialist countries.

    Please learn what socialism really is and better understand your own country's form of political and economic structure.

    At least take the time to read just paragraphs in encyclopedias. Don't listen to the false, revisionist rhetoric of ill-informed people on social media.

    Again, everything that can be considered beneficial for society is not socialism. Socialism now rots on the trash heap of history for a reason — it sucks! At best it's inefficent and results in poor quality goods and half-empty store shelves, and people starved and suffered in countries where their leaders imposed socialism. It's biggest heroes are Joseph Stalin, Mao Tse Tung and Pol Pot, for Christ's sake! They killed millions of their own people.

    I do appreciate you offering such a well-written response. But for the mis-application of the word "socialism," it's unconvincing.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

    Please learn what socialism really is and better understand your own country's form of political and economic structure.

    Would you agree that if an economic theory doesn't make reliable real-world predictions, then it should be abandoned?

    [–]DffrntDrmmr 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

    Please expound on your question, perhaps with an example.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    The whole focus of classical economics is to tax wealth not income, and obviously, the tax burden was going to fall on the wealthy, on the landlords first and foremost, then on the bankers and then on the monopolists.

    That was what socialism was, the idea of creating an economy with a circular flow that the taxes would be paid by the wealthy and the government would use this tax revenue to spend on infrastructure, schools, productive credit to help the economy and to make economies more competitive. It seems that in that sense socialism was going to be the most efficient capitalist economy.

    The Vocabulary of “Economic Deception”. Dr. Michael Hudson

    Currently, real world economic scenarios are called "special cases". Literally.

    This is because modern economic theory's do not predict what actually happens in the real world.

    So, in classrooms alleged economic theory is supposed to be "reality", and what happens in the real world is a "special case". Special cases need to be cherry picked for use in the classroom.

    Modern economics is nonsense.

    The original concept of socialism was hijacked and demonized by the oligarchs, because it threatened their position of power.

    FDR and Eisenhower were social capitalists, because this was the best strategy for overall economic progress.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    Do you still disagree with my argument?

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

    Too bad that Russian painter poisoned him.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

    Actually, Churchill's assassin's got him. FDR's son went on record stating as such.

    FDR had committed to helping the Soviets rebuild after the war. Stalin had little to gain, and much to lose.

    Many opposed friendly relations between the US and the USSR.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

    This Churchill thing is new. Tell me more. Maybe it's the same person?

    I thought it was a Russian painter lady who's paint kit was never searched and likely contained something, possibly radioactive, that could have been easily utilized over a lengthy painting session. I recall that she was Russian but don't recall that she was actually working on their behalf. There were many in the USA and Europe who wanted FDR put down, including psychos with A-bombs.

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    Stalin Admitted Knowledge Of English, Roosevelt’s Son Says

    Was Roosevelt Poisoned by Churchill?

    [–]Tom_Bombadil 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    I'm not making it up. ;-)

    [–]BorrowedLadder 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

    Workers run the workplace. That's socialism. That's it. No bosses. No CEOs as we currently know them. Fucking brainless bootlicker

    [–]Chipit 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

    The same workers that were so stupid as to vote for Trump and Brexit?

    Look, they tried it like you said under socialism. Turns out the workers don't know shit about how to run a factory. You need specialists to order materials, make schedules, find customers, the list goes on. You think workers know how to do all that?

    No. No they don't. Workers are dull minded morons whose idea of fun is watching the Jerry Springer show. The Left dumped them in favor of identity politics over a decade ago. Maybe you didn't get the memo?

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    Half of everyone is stupider than average.

    Not all of them.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

    That's only 1 of 3 types of socialism. Socialism of the workplace, which I'm all for. Worker Co-ops, aka Worker Directed Enterprises.

    The other 2 involve big government, which I'm against regardless how socialist or capitalist they are.

    [–]beermeem 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

    Yup.

    [–][deleted] 1 insightful - 4 fun1 insightful - 3 fun2 insightful - 4 fun -  (0 children)

    That mouse is smart! It wore a helmet so its skull wouldn't get crushed in by Socialism.

    Plus that cheese could be fake. Many socialist countries are full of fake cheeses like China so that bad-ass mickey is also a scientist on top of the dare-devil truth seeker! Stay lit! Hard-core hairy!

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (4 children)

    Socialism is in every single nation to some degree, just like capitalism. The government takes your taxes and does what they want with it. Whether you want a government or not, a military or not, etc etc etc.

    It's naive to pretend that socialism is good or bad with it's just a tool, like science, education, technology, courts, etc. - all can be used for good and evil and often both simultaneously.

    Memes can be like mousetraps.

    I want less "free" government!

    [–]Jesus 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

    Exactly, the people in teh US don't realize we are a socialist stte in many ways, and have many socialist programs. Classical Liberalist Capitalism does not exist in the US anymore. We have been gutted dry and people continue to believe that we are a capitalist country with freedom.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

    Most understated comment in SaidIt history!

    IMO

    [–]Jesus 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

    with spelling errors and poor grammar.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    I guess Jesus wasn't perfect after all. :P

    If we could get the rest of SaidIt to fully comprehend that statement, or the world for that matter... I suppose a lot of the arguing would have to be about something else.

    [–]JasonCarswellVoluntaryist 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

    The cheese is the military? I don't want no free military! Cut its budget!!!