Dear Society,
Socialism has been a part of our world since at least the French Revolution. It has adopted a few other names in that timeframe such as Fascism, National Socialism (i.e. Nazism), Communism, Marxism, etc. As a result, the topic often appears in politics, especially by some groups that disdain capitalism. I have seen this topic risen a few times within the past few weeks, but not one has examined the main question that proponents assume the answer to; Can socialism make you happy?
To answer that question, let's take a look at a few factors. First, the primary evil of capitalism and socialism's promise of rectification. Second, the viability of a socialist nation. Third, the concept of equality and how it relates to love. Fourth, how it affects our individual happiness. Finally, we will examine if socialism really is the answer to our problems.
The evil of capitalism
The primary evil of capitalism is greed. Greed is evil to begin with, but capitalism feeds it by promising rewards to those who fully embrace it. Because of this, many evil actions are done and improper desires created all to fill the pockets of a few men. And it's not even the rich stealing from the rich. Rather it's often the poor that are swindled or robbed from. The promise of the market regulating itself is just a dream that only takes effect after many people suffer and the government threatens regulation.
Socialism essentially promises that there will be regulation for everything. At the same time, it promises to take from the rich and distribute to the “people”. But if we think about it, that is still greed. If not greed, then it's envy and that is a powerful poison to society and it won't even touch its promises.
Maybe some of the poor will receive money, but that won't be enough. This is because “to the people” is code for “to the government” which in turn means “to top bureaucrats”. Even the money that does not end in the hands of politicians will not be put to good use and the nation will sink.
The viability of a socialist nation
Governments are notorious for wasting money. This is in part because they are politicians rather than economists, but also because they feel like they have money to spend and no care that they accrue debt. Very few politicians actually act on reducing the debt, which would actually help our credit to borrow when we need it. At the same time, companies take advantage of the government's weakness here and massively overcharge for services.
It might be helpful to also consider which socialist countries are thriving. Most fall for economic reasons. Even Communist China has become Capitalist economic-wise in order to grow. This is not a new thing either as it started in the 1970’s. As one of my Chinese co-workers put it, they are taught that China is politically Communist, but economically Capitalist.
The concept of equality
What does it mean to have equality? Is it that everyone is treated fairly? That definition is actually for Justice, but the word is not used for some reason. My theory is that because the goal of the people who are trying to control the meaning of equality know that they want to use unjust means or create a system that is unjust.
Most often, socialist leaders try to take property by force to distribute among their favorites. No equality is present here. They steal from people who rightfully earned their property and made sound choices. Then the thieves give to those who did not deserve it.
This bias already exists in the United States in the form of political parties. It should be well-known that both parties prefer to act for the sake of their party rather than the good of America. Would anyone be surprised or care if Watergate happened again? I doubt it as parties even sabotage their own primaries as was shown with Bernie Sanders in 2016 elections.
It's also important to look at how is “equality” reached. Typically the answer is by persecutions. Anyone who doesn't abide by the ruling party’s ideals is persecuted. Even if they aren't killed, they would treated as lower class and therefore not equal. After the French Revolution, they attacked the countryside because they supported their local church. And the basis of these productions is due to strongly held beliefs, such as the kind that gave a certain group their power. Can you imagine if anyone who supported abortion would be killed for that ideal? Or how about the other way around? Or if anyone who volunteered for PETA were unable to get jobs because of that volunteer work? This would be evil, because we're attacking someone for their strongly held beliefs on what is right.
If we consider what love is, the purpose of life, and what our path to perfection is, then we must realize that of we have hatred in our souls, then we are flawed. If we hate someone that we want to kill them because of their ideal, we are perhaps even more evil than we perceive that person to be. Otherwise we open the door that someone is fair to hate us for our own ideals. Again, we must strive for Justice, then true equality will follow.
Will socialism make us happy?
Let's be fair. Pure socialism cannot make us happy, but some aspects can help if implemented properly. Health is an important aspect of our happiness. Affordable healthcare should be a reality, but it cannot as long as medicine, hospital prices, and insurance are left to their own private books, no nation can afford it. This is especially true of a government that does not know how to be economical. The man who bought a life-saving drug so as to inflate it to more than 1000 times its price did not break any written laws, but he certainly did break the natural law. Then again, whether it's private or government that provides the healthcare didn't matter as long as it's good and adorable.
At the same time, our core rights are also of great importance to our happiness and we should not surrender then for any lesser right. For if we lose our core rights, what's to stop the government from taking away the lesser rights? We must remember that the core rights help keep the government in check and that is one reason why the United States have thrilled for so long.
If you hate Trump, wouldn't you hate it even more if he had even more power and would persecute you for speaking out? Elections in the US are decent because the power changes regularly as people are allowed to speak out. This is not the case in countries were elections are just a disguise for corruption. Crimea was under military control by a foreign power and not moderated by the UN when they “voted” to join Russia.
We should also be careful not to dismiss the improvements capitalism has bestowed upon us. Are not many inventions done by individuals and entrepreneurs? Would we have airplanes if the government was the sole driving force?
The government certainly needs to protect citizens from other citizens. That's why we have the police. And yet, if we go back to China, persecutions are still occurring. I asked another one of my Chinese co-workers if it was true and he said he would not be surprised by that. There is a balance to things and it's never good to go from one extreme to another. The only guarantee in that situation is that many people will be unhappy.
Is socialism the answer to our problems?
Socialism may sound like a simple solution to a wide variety of problems, but it is not. The escalation of bureaucracy would frustrate everyone. The incompetencies will also frustrate, especially when it comes to economics. There are too many issues that are far too complex. That is one reason why there is such strong political divides.
Gun control is an example of one complicated topic to finding the right balance and conditions to work. After all, if we don't trust the cops, why let only them have the guns? If even cops lack guns, then gangs will naturally be better equipped and rule. If armed cops were present at shootings but do nothing, why should we depend on them versus letting a teacher defend her class? Then again, are children really safe if there is always a gun around them? And then I think everyone can agree that mentally ill and drunks should not hold a gun, but how is that determined? What if a tyrannical government just claims all Democrats are mentally ill and therefore unable to buy a gun to defend themselves?
There certainly is a balance to freedom of the market and government involvement. Arguably, capitalism is what allowed the tobacco industry to thrive, despite how it harms everyone around it. The greed it promoted also caused some wars. And yet, governments with too much power also persecute innocent people and create unnecessary wars. Perhaps the ideal solution is making sure everything is properly checked and balanced, but that itself is another topic.
With love,
N. D. Moharo
