Socialism   

“The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.” - Margaret Thatcher 

     As a child, I listened as my great grandparents talked about how bad the hyper-inflation was in Europe before they boarded a ship to come to the United States around 1905.  They spoke often about needing a wheelbarrow full of money just to buy a loaf of bread.  Of course, at the time, I thought they had somewhat exaggerated the situation.  However, they all insisted that it was literally true.   

     My great grandparents lived in European countries where socialism ruled their lives and impoverished its citizens.  No matter how good and compassionate it may sound, a nation built on socialism always devolves into a society where the government eventually controls every aspect of its citizens lives.  Nearly every country that has ever embraced socialism eventually sank into a pit of poverty. 

     What is Socialism? According to Wikipedia - Socialism is a range of economic and social systems characterized by social ownership and democratic control of the means of production, as well as the political ideologies, theories, and movements that aim at their establishment.  Social ownership may refer to public ownership, cooperative ownership, citizen ownership of equity, or any combination of these.  

     Study the rise and fall of nations past and present.  Which countries have historically declined both socially and economically to the point of an all out political and economic disaster - and why?  Those that embraced socialism.  Socialism on its surface sounds far more appealing and compassionate than capitalism but it actually erodes a nation’s economy, suppresses entrepreneurialism for personal gain, discourages and destroys its citizen’s incentive to build and manufacture therefore becoming weak - not strong both personally and professionally.  Those that do dream to build and become wealthy through their hard work are eventually deemed criminals of society.  They are forced to work for the common good of the state; to give away their money; to conform.  

     Although I absolutely do not agree with Ayn Rand’s religious philosophy, her books, however, The Fountain Head and Atlas Shrugged, are monumental in describing a world where Socialism is striving to take control and the affects thereof.  She was born in 1905 and left Russia for the United States in 1926.  I highly recommend these novels and wish that all young people were required to read them. 

     Unfortunately, most of our young people, even into their thirties, do not seem to understand how socialism slowly but surely destroys a nation from the inside out.   If you want to see the end result of socialism, just click on the link below to read about the economic collapse that is currently going on in Venezuela right now.   

     Many claim that without government interventions and incentives, our nation’s poor would suffer.  What they fail to realize is that those same incentives creates a society of apathy, not empathy.  Before government intervention, men aspired to work, to profit, to climb the latter of success in order to support their families.  Now, our young have learned only to take without having earned a penny.  Many believe that it is their right to expect the government to support them and feel that welfare is equivalent to an actual pay check.   

     In the past, the poor were taken care of by means of various true compassionate charities, such as grassroots giving through individuals, families, churches, foundations and private associations.  It worked.  However, as our government has become increasingly involved by creating more and more social relief programs, its incentives have actually created the incentive for its citizens to rely more and more upon the government to support them.  Private charities have thus become less and less effectual in its efforts to support the ever increasing poor and unemployed.  Read the following article, The Robin hood Syndrome by Marshall Foster, that describes these very concepts. 

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-27/venezuela-faces-its-strangest-shortage-yet-as-inflation-explodes 

http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=654

"Capitalism is not the system of the past; it is the system of the future - if mankind is to have a future." - Ayn Rand

"The right to agree with others is not a problem in any society; it is the right to disagree that is crucial." - Ayn Rand

© 2016 G. R. Workman  

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