“The goal of socialism is communism” – Vladimir Lenin

By Glen Reaux

Updated from June 2019

Democratic socialism, in America today is basically misunderstood.  The word socialism brings fear into the minds of the masses.  This fear is caused by the hostilities between NATO and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) which was led by Russia during the cold war era.  The cold war era began at the end of World War II (WWII), in 1946.  It ended in 1991 with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union.  This event brought about the oligarchy of today’s Russia and the eventual rise to power by Vladimir Putin.  The system of government that people of the USSR lived under during the cold war was communism.  The economic system was socialism. Socialism is foreign to America and Trump and the Republicans will confuse the issue by branding it communism. The mere mentioning of communism strikes fear in the hearts of most Americans. It’s time for Democrats to realize that “Trump is Acquitted and  Democratic Socialism Will Lose the 2020 Election” and keep Trump in power.

Without labeling or promoting either party, an evaluation of the current socioeconomic environment of this country has to be made to understand the problems presented by economic socialism.  There is a difference between Soviet styled socialism and democratic socialism.  And, herein lays the problem that will cause the Democrats to lose the 2020 national election if their presidential candidate espouses a democratic socialism agenda or brand.  The problem is not that democratic socialism isn’t a viable form of government for the future of the United States.  The problem is branding.  How do you overcome the fear of socialism and the confusion created by trying to explain to the American People the differences between communism, socialism and democratic socialism?  To further complicate the issue is the fact that, our system of government is a constitutional democratic republic, not a pure democracy.  Furthermore, all economic systems are not synonymous with the governmental systems that they operate under.  Socialism is not communism and capitalism is not democracy.  Back to the problem, political campaigns are about marketing a candidate by communicating a message in a 30 second TV commercial.  It’s even harder to craft such a message in an 8-second sound-bite or a catchy slogan like “Make America great again!”  Basically, you cannot teach a blind man what an elephant is in a 30 second TV commercial.  It is even harder if that blind man is in fear of losing his lifestyle.  If you try, you will lose miserably.  America is that blind man and economic deception and fear-mongering are Republican specialties.

Bernie Sander’s problem is not in what he wants to accomplish.  It is in his messaging.  To get a better understanding of the monumental task that putting forth a democratic socialist candidate such as Bernie Sanders  faces or, the insurmountable job of defending against the fear-mongering of being branded a socialist party by the Republicans, you need to know what all of these things are and understand the fear associated with socialism.  Here are definitions of the marketing, governmental and economic systems needed for you to analyze the problem.

1. Branding – the promotion of a particular product, company or person by means of advertising and instilling specific images or memories in a person’s mind.
2. Socialism – an economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.
3. Soviet – an elected local, district, or national council in the former Soviet Union or a revolutionary council of workers or peasants in Russia before 1917.
4. Oligarchy – a small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution.
5. Fascism – the merge of corporate and state interests accompanied by strong nationalism and racism
6. Confederacy – A union of sovereign states united for the purpose of common actions such as trade, defense, foreign policy or currency.  Each state is obligated to the other in areas of defense.  Other than that, the central government policies are subservient to those of the individual states.
7. Democracy – a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.
8. Republic – a state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch.
9. Monarchy – a government where a single individual or family constitutes supreme power over the entire population in a nation.
10. Capitalism – an economic system whereby a country’s trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.
11. Democratic Socialism – a socialist economy where production and wealth are collectively owned, but the country has a democratic system of government.  The government regulates the economy and ownership of private property such as businesses is limited.
12. Regulated Capitalism – An economic system where the means of production are privately owned and operated, but where the government exercises a level of control over what a person can do with their property, how they can run a business.

In the February 5th, 2019, State of the Union Address, President Trump stated:

“We stand with the Venezuelan people in their noble quest for freedom, and we condemn the brutality of the Maduro regime, whose socialist policies have turned that nation from being the wealthiest in South America into a state of abject poverty and despair,”… “Here in the United States, we are alarmed by the new calls to adopt socialism in our country. America was founded on liberty and independence, and not government coercion, domination, and control. We are born free and we will stay free. Tonight, we renew our resolve that America will never be a socialist country.”

On Monday, February 18^th, just two weeks later in a speech given in Miami to a group of Venezuelan Americans, he continued his attack on the Democratic Party.  Further labeling it a socialist party that will fail and only bring poverty, with these comments:

“Socialism promises prosperity, but it delivers poverty … Socialism promises unity, but it delivers hatred and it delivers division. Socialism promises a better future, but it always returns to the darkest chapters of the past. That never fails. It always happens. Socialism is a sad and discredited ideology rooted in the total ignorance of history and human nature, which is why socialism, eventually, must always give rise to tyranny, which it does.”

These quotes are a testament to Donald Trump’s ignorance of history, government and economic systems.  NATO, which was founded at the end of WWII, also known as the western block has been the ever-vigilant vanguard that has protected America and most of Europe since its inception.  Its purpose is to prevent a third world war which many leaders believed would be caused by USSR aggression instigated by communist Russia.  NATO has been very successful in accomplishing its goals.  The USSR stands for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic.  Until the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1991, it had a communist government coupled with a socialist economic system that failed due to totalitarian rule, corruption, and widespread poverty.  The USSR caused fear throughout the free world which included western block countries.  The fear was caused by the government’s aggressive and militaristic political stance along with its perceived desire for a nuclear confrontation with the west.  Because of the fear created by this communist country, people began to view communism and socialism as one-in-the-same.  This fear stands today and is a part of the generic code of this country.  This genetic fear is rooted in the ignorance of what socialism really is.  And, coupled with a powerful marketing campaign, a democratic socialist candidate will hand the Democratic Party its greatest defeat ever.

Vladimir Lenin Socialist head of Soviet Russia from 1917-24 and head of USSR from 1922-24

Socialism is an economic theory of social organization that advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.  Contrary to the ignorant statement of President Trump that declared it to be “a sad and discredited ideology rooted in the total ignorance of history and human nature, which is why socialism, eventually, must always give rise to tyranny, which it does.”, the evidence proves the contrary.  Of the 29 member countries in NATO, the following nations have socialist economies: Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, and Turkey.  Five of these countries are among the top 6 economies on the European continent with Germany being number 1 and France ranks number 2.  Aside from these NATO members, NATO partners with the following democratic socialist countries: Armenia, Bolivia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Moldova, Nicaragua, Northern Ireland, Norway, and Serbia.  Judging from the governmental and economic success of these democratic socialist countries, history has proven that socialist ideologies do not lead to failure and tyranny.  It is corruption and greed that fosters these diseases of humanity.  And, unlike in America, these countries have free healthcare, strong unions, government-sponsored pensions, free childcare, strong price controls, guaranteed vacations, mandatory paid sick and maternity leave, a living wage, better schools, free college or vocational education and a fraction of the gun violence and crime per capita than we experience here.

America is not Europe and that presents an even greater problem that the fear-mongering, Republican political machine will capitalize on.  Unlike its European counterparts, the U. S. was founded in a land that was thousands of miles from monarchies.  Because of that, it became impossible for a monarch to rule.  The economic system of the United States, from its very beginning, has always been capitalism.  And, when the people have only known capitalism, they fear the unknown and will fight change to the bitter end.  This fear of the unknown combined with the known history of the USSR and ignorance of the truth will doom any radical attempts to change what has worked in America for hundreds of years.  The Democrats have to face the facts.  Capitalism has worked well in this country.  But, in the middle of the 20^th century, a covert campaign to buy our elected officials and courts began.  This push towards corporatism has caused the failures that we are seeing in capitalism today.  This failure in capitalism has caused the American public to fear for their economic future, fostered a growing feeling of helplessness which is the motivating factor behind the illogical and radical ideas being promoted by some prominent Democrats.  When placed in the context of capitalism prior to the middle of the 20^th century, democratic socialism is illogical, radical and frightening.  In politics, only cooler heads will prevail.  So, some Democrats need to take a long cold shower.

For change to take place, it must be slow and multi-generational in its implementation.  Any revolution, including a socialist democratic revolution, is doomed to fail without the overwhelming support of the people.  The current state of this nation’s economy and its resultant political quagmire was not an overnight phenomenon.  It was an evolution and not a revolution.  For an effective change in this country’s economy to transpire, a very thoughtful and meticulous plan must be developed and implemented over a long period of time and it starts with empowering the people.  You empower the people by getting them to believe that they matter and that they can make a difference.  They must have hope.  They must have faith.  They must act.  They must have a brand that they will believe in.  “Give me liberty or give me death!” by Patrick Henry was the firebrand that brought freedom to America with its capitalistic economic system in tow.

To develop a brand, you first need a product to sell.  Established products that are familiar or have similar characteristics are often perceived as having credibility.  Credibility fosters belief.  Belief breeds power and energy.  Power and energy will propel a movement.  A movement will affect change.  Change is the universal constant and implementing a change will cause the needed evolution and yield the desired results.

The familiar product needed for change is capitalism.  Not the same old broken capitalism.  A new, improved and fresh approach that will empower the people and not raise the fear of the unknown or the branding problems that accompany democratic socialism is what is needed.   Give the people what they understand and want, a kinder gentler form of capitalism.  For lack of a better name, let’s call it Regulated Capitalism.  To market this brand, these 3 principles must be kept in mind:

1. “Marketing is telling the world you are a rock star.” – Robert Rose
2. “Less is more. Keeping it simple takes time and effort.” – Jeff Bullas
3. “The buyer journey is nothing more than a series of questions that must be answered.” – Michael Brenner

Regulated capitalism is basically an economic system where the means of production are privately owned and operated.  The government exercises a level of control over what a person can do with their property, how they can run a business.  Currently, this country has a regulated form of capitalism.  This form of capitalism has a history that garners bipartisan support.  Capitalism’s problems lay with the people’s failure to use their power of the vote to create and enforce regulations that will make the system work for all Americans.  Right now, Democrats need to develop a meaningful platform, bottle that platform, brand it smartly, effectively distribute it and give the power back to the people.  Here is a much-needed warning.  Democrats, give the people what they want or you will lose the 2020 national election!  Give them new capitalism.

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Copyright © 2019, Glen Reaux, all rights reserved