Unsocial

On Sunday, in her rant about how her tour of the Jefferson home at Monticello mentions slavery more than she would have liked (though probably not as much as the slaves themselves and their descendants would have preferred) Fox “News” host Rachel Campos-Duffy also used it as an opportunity to refer to Democrats as “socialists.”  Not shockingly, she didn’t explain why Democrats are socials, and I wouldn’t bet a great deal of money that she could.  She might think she could, of course, but that doesn’t count.  Neither does “Just because!!!”

I'm now officially worn out reading Republicans, conservatives and those on the far right slam liberals as "commies" and "socialists" for the past 70 years without meaning, pretty much because, hey, it worked okay for Joe McCarthy for a few years until he was humiliated on national TV, censured by the U.S. Senate and died soon after in disgrace.  And because, hey, we don’t have a better argument, and it just sounds really bad.

There are many reasons this 70-year effort by Republicans is so pathetic, empty and disturbing, but two stand out above the rest.

The first is that during these past 70 years that Republicans have been trying desperately to paint Democrats as “socialists” and “commies,” Democrats have at various times controlled the White House, Senate and House of Representatives – a perfect time, one would think, to turn America commie.  But it still hasn’t happened.  In 70 years.  Yet over those same 70 years, Republicans keep warning and warning and warning the country that, watch, you just wait, Democrats want to make America socialist.  I know that the Democratic Party is fairly disordered (the great comic Will Rogers had a line all the way back in the 1930s, “I’m not a member of any organized political party – I’m a Democrat”), but they would have to be even more incompetent that Republicans think they are to keep blowing opportunities like that.  And the conundrum is that if Democrats actually were that incompetent, they wouldn’t periodically win control of the White House, Senate and House of Representatives – let alone at the same time.  And, of course, if they were organized enough, the country would have been made communist long again.  But instead, Democrats are fighting to save Democracy and keep Republicans from turning the United States fascist.

(And yes, they are very much fascist, by every literal definition of the word.  And unlike Republicans, I can defend my use of the word, as I wrote here in great detail.)

And that’s the second reason Republican efforts to wrongly smear Democrats as “commies” and “socialists” for 70 years is so pathetic, empty and disturbing.  Because it’s clear that they don’t have a clear what communism and socialism actually are.

And no, having social security does not make America “socialist.”  Nor does having Medicare.  Nor the Affordable Care Act.  Nor, for that matter, is it socialism when the government runs the military, police and mail service instead of private business. All of this may well be social programs or social services (which most Americans strongly support, by the way), but the government creating programs and running massive departments to protect the health and safety of its citizens is not socialism.  Nor communism.  It’s good government.  And a core part of democracy.

For Republicans too continued lazy to look up what they are, socialism is an economic or political theory based on government owning all industry and controlling production.  Communism is similar, it gets rid of private ownership, but also supports the collective and a classless society.

The government running some essential businesses because they can do it more efficiently to benefit the entire country is not the same as government owning all businesses and controlling all production everywhere.  Nor is private ownership where one can be as rich or poor or middle class as you are the same as a collective society.  I’d think that was pretty basic and clear and easy to understand.  But…well I thought getting vaccinated and wearing a mask during a worldwide pandemic was pretty basic and clear and easy to understand, too.

So, instead, we get the Rachel Campos-Duffys of the world spewing out “socialist!” because they don’t like it when slavery is pointed out.  And we gets unending tweets like one I recently came across from some Whiz Kid slamming ABC as "communist" because ABC News released a poll that had results they didn't like.

I now leave such discussions to "Please explain why that is communist" or "Please define socialism for us." Along with "Thanks!"

And when the spirit really moves me, I toss in the definition of fascism and point out that it is a conservative philosophy.)

But life is too short to keep debating it.  Especially after 70 years.