Bernie Sanders calls
himself a “democratic socialist,” a provocative label in neo–Cold War America. Most
people still probably associate socialism with the Soviet Union and the Eastern
Bloc – a centralized authoritarian government with a planned and
state-controlled economy that is the antithesis of America’s vaunted free-market
capitalism. The two ideologies are usually considered mutually exclusive. That
was the assumption when Anderson Cooper, in the first Democratic Party debate, asked
Sanders to confirm that he’s “not a capitalist.”
In his
explanation, Sanders adduced the example of Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries
as models of more equitable and compassionate societies. They have larger
public sectors than the United States has; they have higher taxes and greater
income redistribution; they have cooperation between labor organizations and
business management. In short, they have more social security in the broadest sense,
a stronger safety net.
Capitalist welfare states
These are social welfare states, like most of Western Europe, but they’re not socialist countries. They are commonly known as “social democracies,” and they consider themselves more capitalist than socialist. They limit economic inequality and promote social “solidarity” within open, market economies. Social Democratic political parties are found throughout Europe. They led the development of the welfare state, but more recently they’ve sometimes turned centrist, as in the UK and Denmark.
These are social welfare states, like most of Western Europe, but they’re not socialist countries. They are commonly known as “social democracies,” and they consider themselves more capitalist than socialist. They limit economic inequality and promote social “solidarity” within open, market economies. Social Democratic political parties are found throughout Europe. They led the development of the welfare state, but more recently they’ve sometimes turned centrist, as in the UK and Denmark.
This seems to be
the model Sanders is espousing, and his positions appeal to a significant
portion of the electorate in these troubled times. But regardless of how
feasible his platform may or may not be in the United States, he has given himself
an unnecessary handicap by calling himself a socialist and encouraging the
perception that one must choose between capitalism and socialism.
Sharing all the wealth
There are avowedly socialist parties in the European parliaments that are always agitating to enlarge the public sector. The Red-Green Alliance in Denmark advocates true democratic socialism. It was created in a merger of three small far-left parties, including the Danish Communist Party, in 1989. During the 2011 election campaign, when it was trying to broaden its appeal, someone dug up its platform, which apparently hadn’t been updated recently. It called for wholesale revolution, including the abolition of private property, the armed forces and the police. The reaction in the mainstream media was an eye-rolling smirk: “After the revolution, can I keep my toothbrush?” It was seen as a relic of 1970s utopianism and a PR gaffe.
There are avowedly socialist parties in the European parliaments that are always agitating to enlarge the public sector. The Red-Green Alliance in Denmark advocates true democratic socialism. It was created in a merger of three small far-left parties, including the Danish Communist Party, in 1989. During the 2011 election campaign, when it was trying to broaden its appeal, someone dug up its platform, which apparently hadn’t been updated recently. It called for wholesale revolution, including the abolition of private property, the armed forces and the police. The reaction in the mainstream media was an eye-rolling smirk: “After the revolution, can I keep my toothbrush?” It was seen as a relic of 1970s utopianism and a PR gaffe.
Faux extremist
I doubt Sanders is plotting to confiscate personal toothbrushes or the means of production. But despite his surprising inroads against Hillary Clinton, the S word is a disadvantage as he tries to broaden his appeal. If he would simply reverse the order of those two words in his epithet, demoting the bugbear to an innocuous modifier, signaling reform instead of revolution and thus aligning himself more clearly with the mainstream European ideology he admires, he might get more people to listen to his message.
I doubt Sanders is plotting to confiscate personal toothbrushes or the means of production. But despite his surprising inroads against Hillary Clinton, the S word is a disadvantage as he tries to broaden his appeal. If he would simply reverse the order of those two words in his epithet, demoting the bugbear to an innocuous modifier, signaling reform instead of revolution and thus aligning himself more clearly with the mainstream European ideology he admires, he might get more people to listen to his message.
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