Socialism then (World War II) vs Now – An indictment of the American Education Establishment
Bottom Line: Surveys, even accredited ones, can only go so far in explaining the challenges/issues of the day. For example, simply taking an approval poll of a politician rarely tells the complete story of what people think of that politician's performance. Polling on President Obama the person was widely favorable. Polling on President Obama’s policies was largely negative. Ironically enough, we’re generally seeing the opposite with President Trump. But some recent work by Gallup is highly instructive of how we nearly ended up with Democratic-Socialist in semi-hiding, Andrew Gillum as Governor in Florida, and why Bernie Sanders appears to be positioned to run for President again as a perceived front-runner for Democrats going in. Our education establishment has failed to educate multiple generations of Americans as to what Socialism is as a system of governance. Gallup’s polling for historical perspective is especially useful for comparison's sake because they’re the oldest running accredited firm in the country – dating back to the 1930’s. In 1949, when Gallup surveyed Americans on what Socialism was, the Greatest Generation having just saved the world from Socialism years earlier most commonly answered:
Government ownership or control, government ownership of utilities, everything controlled by the government, state control of business
All told only 15% of Americans answered with a response that could be interpreted as positive or favorable towards Socialism. And where are we today? Here’s the most common answer:
Equality - equal standing for everybody, all equal in rights, equal in distribution
All in 40% of Americans answered with a response that could be viewed as favorable. What’s most alarming about this wide-swath of Americans viewing Socialism favorably are the notable examples of Socialist governments destroying lives and societies today. Whether it was Hitler in Germany in World War II, or Maduro in Venezuela today, there are no shortage of examples of how destructive and evil that form of governance is – yet 40% of the country views it as a positive? Aside from this being the latest example of issues with our education establishment, it’s also another example as to why I think many – legal – immigrants from countries like Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, etc., will be critical for the future of freedom in this country. They, their families, understand what Socialism is...they fled it. Too many Americans lack perspective and the proper education that Socialism is Communism’s cousin and is responsible for the 2nd most death and destruction of any form of government in modern civilization. Details, right?