Ben I respect you and your views. You are like most people trying your best for you and your family. I think that you have it all wrong though. For decades communism was seen as evil ENEMIES by the USA. Commie was seen as a bad mouthing name to call someone. People spouted off propoganda about how bad things were behind the iron curtain. Sometimes they failed to see what was in their own back yard.

Capitalism is based on inequality and priviledge. Some of the most inneficient, wasteful and uncompetetive places I have ever worked are in private industry. Price fixing, obscene profiteering and monopolies are commonplace. Socialism does believe in competition. We believe that every person is equal as of right and should be paid their worth depending on how hard they work and the importance of their job and position. We also believe in making a profit. The difference is that the profit is shared amongst the workers rather than salted away by individuals.
Imagine your ideals about capitalism but the profits are shared equally. The sick are looked after and we retire on a decent pension provided by the state. That is what my socialist ideals are about. Too much right wing propoganda has clouded the real issues.

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