I love this tirade about Obama, & people who call him a Socialist:
To be sure, they looked like complete jackasses before the speech, but now that the man’s actually done the deed, people feel more comfortable saying so. One wonders why they felt they had to wait; perhaps they were expecting this least spontaneous of all recent presidents to have the head of Eugene Debs erupt from his collarbone, take control of his body, and snatch and bloodily consume members of the audience while howling about the Pullman Strike. It did not happen, unless the live television cameras of the liberal media were somehow able to mask the gory sight of Obama Possessed By Undead Eugene Debs feasting on the tender young bodies of our nation’s youth. WHICH THEY MIGHT HAVE.
& not just because of the Obama/Socialist part, but for the plea for the accurate use of words. Fascist & Socialist mean different things. The Nazis called themselves Socialists but were not, in fact, socialists. Fascism was an actual political movement, out of Mussolini’s Italy, & is not a generic slur against anyone who is an authoritarian jerk. &c.
Helen,
I enjoy your blog and respect the fact that you have strong opinions, but are not closed minded based on your desire to question and observe. Socialism is defined as government ownership of industry including capitol, and this includes the relationship of cooperative ownership. This is what the current US administration is attempting with the banks, auto industry and now healthcare.
Both Hitler and Mussolini were considered far out radicals that made amazing things happen by socializing their nation under direct leadership (fascism). Back in the Nineteen-thirties, Mussolini was all the rage in the USA with a name mention in a song and statues in his honer. His style of socialism unified the country and supposedly made the trains run on time. Sweden is often used as an example of socialized medicine at its best. In fact the system is failing do to the economic problems and slump of competition the country has been facing, but their health care is under independent leadership based on communities that act autonomously. Fascism would have simply created a ministry for healthcare that answered directly to the leader and acted upon his will. Socialism very much operates well under fascism. What amazes me is how much Hitler despised the Soviet Union when he and Stalin were mirror images of one another. Stalin’s USSR was also a fascist state, even though they didn’t call it that.
I just listened to someone from Carter’s administration (sorry I wasn’t paying attention when he was introduced) talk about when socialistic left wing, or capitalistic right wing go to the far reaching extreme they actually meet around the back end of the circle and become the same dangerous system. Our country has sacrificed blood and treasure to combat these regimes time after time, and the main concern for many in the US is that we don’t ever become that model.
Your style of writing and vision is also enjoyable to read. Keep up the good work.