What is democratic socialism? It’s not communism. The word “socialism” has been maligned by the billionaire class for decades to create a fear in the minds of the working classes of becoming communist. But the U.S. has always been a democratic socialist nation. Socialism is when everyone pays a fair share of taxes to help fund government social programs, like: public schools and teachers (free education); police and firefighters; public parks and beaches; public libraries and museums; public roads, highways and freeways (toll-free); universal health care, Medicare, Medicaid; Social Security offices; the Veterans Affairs Department, veterans benefits and cemeteries; food programs for the poor, needy, or sick (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program); the armed forces, their weapons and facilities; NASA and space exploration; airport traffic control, airport security control; pandemic control; the funding of government employees, buildings and hospitals; affordable child care; subsidies for people with low incomes, the sick, and low-paid working needy; grants for research and development; the infrastructure needs of your state (so you pay less state tax); and, natural disaster support.
Suppose the federal government stops funding the state government. Every state must then increase state taxes to cover the loss of federal support.
The super-rich use politics to frighten you of the socialism that funds public/social entities, many of which are amenities that working-class families treasure. Ever since Roosevelt’s New Deal, the rich have whittled down their fair share of taxes to the society from which they have derived their wealth, forcing working families to pay more. Public amenities make life a little easier and more manageable for the working class. Voting for lower taxes hasn’t worked for the working class, but it keeps helping the billionaires.
Gerald Staack
Wilmington, North Carolina
Former Santa Clarita resident
