I promised a while back that I would write about the democratic socialists of America’s manifesto published on their website. It’s been so long that I’m sure you forgot or gave up hope that I would ever keep that promise. Well, here you go – promise kept.
I linked to their manifesto in part one but since it’s been so long, here it is again. I will do my best to break it down for you here though so you don’t have to.
The recurring themes throughout this manifesto are social justice, globalism and government control of, well, everything; markets, local resources, corporate profits, etc. They call their organization the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), but there is nothing democratic about them. However, that doesn’t stop them from tossing that word around and using other euphemistic language throughout the manifesto and other DSA documentation. They do this to try and fool people in to glossing over the “Socialists” part of their name. They unequivocally state in this manifesto that they reject private profit and envision “market mechanisms to achieve an equitable distribution of resources”. There’s that euphemistic language again. Market mechanisms, suggests a free market, but throughout the document, they advocate for government control of markets. I’ll circle back to that later. The DSA also has a globalist agenda. They want to promote “global solidarity” with the stated goal of raising the living standards of the poor around the world. They claim that equality and democracy can only be achieved through international political and social cooperation focused on guaranteeing that everyone benefits from a global economy. An admirable goal, but a government takeover of private enterprise to redistribute wealth in order to achieve that goal is dangerous and sinister. It is a totalitarian philosophy that invariably leads to the deaths of millions.
The DSA’s vision of socialism is not just economic, but has a social justice component to it as well. Gender equality and combating racism are also part of their platform. The left has always seen racial injustice as a pervasive throughout society; but to paraphrase Ronald Reagan, the left knows many things that simply aren’t true. The DSA believes that racism is deeply ingrained in the institutions, social patterns, the very fabric of this country; which means that in their utopian world, the government would legislate racism right out of everyone. Because that’s realistic. Of course, if their platform had any grounding in reality, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez would never have found a home there. They are endeavoring to usher in a society that doesn’t discriminate on the basis sexual orientation, whatever the fictitious orientation du jour might be. Full engagement in their vision of socialism requires a fundamental transformation of our socioeconomic structure as well as “relationships between men and women and adults and children”. That phrase is taken right from their manifesto, so I’ll just let you ponder that for the time being.
The Social Justice aspect of the DSA’s version of socialism part of their two pronged approach. Obviously, the second component is moving away from a capitalist economy to a socialist one. Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the other socialists always like to tell us that socialism hasn’t actually been implemented properly in this country. Sanders was the only leftist for a long time that was actually honest about his desire for government control of the marketplace. It’s only recently that the left has gone so far left that they are now admitting that they want to abolish capitalism. This environment has given rise to the phenomenon that is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as other members of the DSA like Andrew Gillum, Stacey Abrams, Julia Salazar and Rashida Tlaib. They still gloss over that part of their platform because they know the majority of the country is not yet ready for that. In case some of you are not familiar, let’s establish the definition of socialism. The left hates definitions that don’t fit their agenda, therefore, they love to redefine words. We will not let them get away with that. Nevertheless, socialism is defined as “a political and 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.” Now look at this quote from Section 2 of their manifesto:
“Regulated markets can guarantee efficiency, consumer choice and labor mobility. However, democratic socialists recognize that market mechanisms do generate inequalities of wealth and income. But, the social ownership characteristic of a socialist society will greatly limit inequality.” There it is, right there in their “Who we are” document. But I’m confused…they say they believe in liberty, but they want to regulate markets in order to provide guarantees of efficiency and consumer choice. That is the exact opposite of liberty.
Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one’s way of life, behavior, or political views. According to the DSA’s version of liberty, if they were in charge the government would regulate the market, protect the environment and ensure equality and equity for every citizen. Actual liberty and their version of it are diametrically opposed.
The American dream is not about everyone having the same income, the same bank account, the same size house or anything like that. The American dream is about everyone having the same opportunity. Will someone who grows up in an affluent neighborhood suburban Connecticut be better positioned than someone born in the Appalachian mountains of west VA? Sure. But the beauty of the promise of the American dream is that the kid born in Appalachia can work him or her self out of poverty in to the middle class or even become wealthy. Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The American dream is no guarantee of happiness, just the guarantee of the freedom to pursue it. The DSA calls the American dream a chimera. What they offer in exchange for us forfeiting the American dream is a nightmare.