We are Not Socialists! We are . . .

In the United States of America, our economic system is a mix of free market capitalism and socially funded programs. Our form of government is a Federal Republic and a Constitutional Representative Democracy.

We use our Representative Democracy to choose together what markets we want to operate with free market capitalism and what programs we want to socially fund. We, The People, are always debating the correct mix and we always should. Our needs change over time.

There is really nothing scary about this. But the Right wing is currently trying to scare people into thinking we are turning into a socialist state. Socialist states force economic equality and shared ownership of production.

Force is the key word. In a Democracy there isn't a person at the top forcing socialism on The People. Instead, democratic systems allow The People to choose together what socially funded programs they want. And if The People don't like what they chose last election, they can make a new choice the next election. The People can then adjust the funding method of their markets to match their current needs.

Socialism is Force
Socialism is top down controlled and The People have no choice. These governments don't last long because they don't respond to The People's changing needs and The People soon become dissatisfied.

Democracy is Freedom of Choice
Democracies are flexible and responsive to The People's needs. This makes them stronger as The People can constantly adjust the laws and tweak the economic system to remain satisfied.

• We are not Socialists.
• We are not Democratic Socialists.

We are Americans using our system of Representational Democracy as our founders intended.

What we should really be scared of is the threat to our elections. Because without secure elections our choice is taken away.

#ProtectDemocracy
#ProtectChoice
#ProtectTheVote

Warning Signs in a Democracy 

What if we are currently in a democracy and most of The People are dissatisfied? That is our current situation. That means that democracy isn't working correctly. It means that The Will of the People is not being exercised in Congress. There are many things the majority of Americans want that they are not getting. Most Americans want some gun legislation reform, improved schools and affordable health care.

When the Will of The People is being subverted, The People must identify how that is happening. Right now I can identify the following problems:

• Foreign, Corporate and Special Interest Group influence in our elections.
• Dark money financing our elections.
• Gerrymandering of our voting districts.
• The Majority Leader in each Chamber can refuse to bring a bill to vote. This acts like a defacto veto power.
• Many of The People are not educated on how the government works and they are not informed of what their rights and responsibilities are, as part of a democracy. The whole system is a black box to them.

Democracy Threatened

A democracy is designed to serve the needs of The People. In a country as financially flush and powerful as the United States, we can expect corrupt and greedy individuals to always be attempting to subvert our democracy to serve their individual desires. We, The People, must remain ever vigilant, and work together to preserve and strengthen our democracy.

Our problem is not socialism, or the lack-there-of. Our problem is that our democracy is being subverted and the Will of The People no longer rings through the Halls of Congress.

Preserving and strengthening democracy must be the priority of every American.