Why is socialism viewed as so dirty in America?
924529
If you have ever lived under socialism and now live under capitalism you would not ask that question.
793572
Socialists are all about control. Charity is bad in their eyes b/c it isn't pre-set and socialists can't control it. In their mind they are delivering equal 'justice' to all ppl, but conveniently taking money from others and giving it to the poor with THEIR OWN NAMES ON IT.
910242
My understanding (from my college days), is that communism is a political system, and socialism is an economic system.\n\nSo socialism contrasts with capitalism.\n\nOnly those of us on the very far left in the US are socialists; most democrats and liberals are not -- though some believe in SOME socialism (such as Social Security and welfare for the poor, medicare, and other things).\n\nCompared to civilized countries, we don't really have much of a left here.\n\nWell, I guess the progressives are fairly left, and that's a growing group.\n\nBut most Americans, including liberals and democrats, are capitalists, with liberals and dems having slight socialist leanings.\n\nNo democrats or liberals are communist, as far as I know.\n\nThere is a communist party in the US, but it's tiny.
391909
The reason for poverty in America is the politics's of greed, or Repuglicans in general. I have mine and I want to make more therefore I do not want to pay taxes and to hell with anybody else. Being poor is no more a choice then homosexuality. It is thrust on 10% of the population by another 10% of the population the very rich. I wonder why of for what reason that a person needs every cent of their billion dollars and there are many billionaires here. There is also a thing with corporate greed. Move the good paying jobs with health benefits overseas to a place where people work for pennies. But do you see the price come down on anything because of it. The answer is a big NO. Socialized medicine is long overdue here it is needed by all, not just an elite few. Every one in the United States should have a birthright to three things food, shelter and health care.
464478
Because Most Americans have lost respect for their own country and their own bodies.  They don't respect themselves or anyone else.  They are lazy SOBs who sap money from the gov't because they are too lazy to work and then taxes go up so I get less for what I work for.  I worked in places where people use their food stamps for chips and dip and their cash allowances for beer and cigarettes.  IT'S SICK!  Forget their kids...forget why they even were allowed that money in the first place.  DISRESPECT, LAZINESS, AND SELFISHNESS are all the reasons why America is less fit than probably any other country in the world.  \n\n***Sorry...this is a touchy topic for me, if you can't tell...I've got stories and stories about this too...
927200
The first answer from lareddawg is as correct as the second answer is absolutely WRONG! The philosophy of the American left is socialists and anti theme to the concept of America as a republic.\nNote Art 4, Sec. 4, founded as a Republic...The founders detested the concept of democracy as a government form that has historically always failed.
637572
Because americans don't take anything as seriously as other countries. The USA is very culturally different than say... Japan or Russia. In those countries families are a lot closer and education is a very important thing, so in a way doing bad would be like a crime.
715688
I think you were asking for a reason why people consider the U.S. a "pure" democracy, rather than definitions of that, though they were very informative.\n\nI think that most Americans keep referring to this country's government as a democracy for two reasons:\n\nA) They're brainwashed to do so, from grade school on, continuing with media propaganda, which leaves out all the very NON-democratic aspects of our government in general and especially during the current administration.\n\nB) It makes them feel better about themselves as Americans, somehow morally superior in relation to other governments. It's easier to think that invading other countries is "okay" because the press and your prez tell you that they're "spreading democracy".
487189
One of the communist party's objectives in the middle 1960's was to infiltrate the American education system.  If you ask me they have succeeded.  Our education system is full of socialists and communist apologists.  They try to brainwash you by making you feel inferior if you challenge their ideas.  Unfortunately, many young Americans fall for their hogwash and carry those ideas on into maturity.  Thankfully, experience drives intelligent people towards the conservative perspective.  You know what they say, "if you are not a liberal when you are young then you have no heart and if you are not a conservative when you are old then you have no brain".
911961
Socialism is causing massive death, poverty, AIDS and slavery in the third world.  Because they have chosen to embrace marxist values, they are doomed.  This process is well underway, especially in africa and haiti.
1107177
I know alot of the Dems just push alot of really far left rhetoric, but I agree they are a bit too far left and sound more like European quasi-socialists. Our nation is so powerful, economy so strong, and standard of living so high because our system of freedom, capitalism, and INDIVIDUAL based opportunity and achivement is the best  in the world. Has flaws yes, but still the best.
440233
Socialism is a social and economic system (or the political philosophy advocating such a system) in which the economic means of production are owned and controlled collectively by the people. This control may be either direct, exercised through popular collectives such as workers' councils, or it may be indirect, exercised through a State. In the latter case, the issue of who controls the state is crucial. A primary concern of socialism (and, according to some, its defining feature) is social equality and an equitable distribution of wealth that would serve the interests of society as a whole.[1][2]\n\nHistorically, the ideology of socialism arose with the rise of organized labor, and the socialist political movement has found most of its support among the urban working class and, to a lesser extent, the peasantry. This has led to socialism being strongly associated with the working class and often identifying itself with the interests of workers and the "common people". In many parts of the world, the two are still strongly associated with one another; in other parts, they have become two distinct movements.\n\nPure socialists hold that capitalism is an illegitimate economic system that serves the interests of the wealthy and exploits the majority of the population. As such, they wish to replace it completely or at least make substantial modifications to it, in order to create a more just society that would reward hard work, guarantee a certain basic standard of living, and extend economic and cultural opportunities to all.[3]\n\nSocialist theory is diverse, and there is no single body of thought that is universally shared by all socialists. Rather, different socialist ideologies have arrived at similar conclusions by different paths. There are some common themes, however. One such theme is the idea that humans are inherently social beings that require social interaction and the companionship of others in order to survive and develop both physically and mentally[4]. Individuals cannot maintain their humanity if they are separated from the rest of society for too long. Thus, socialists believe that the individual and society are inseparable, and they reject individualistic schools of thought which assert that society is the voluntary creation of individuals who chose to interact with each other.[5]\n\nMarxism is an ideology which has had a powerful influence on socialist thought. For over 50 years, from the Russian Revolution of 1917 to the 1970s, the majority of socialists were Marxists of one kind or another. This has not been the case for several decades, but Marxist ideas - particularly notions of class struggle - are common themes across a broad range of modern socialist groups. Marxism itself continues to be a strong current in the broader socialist movement.\n\nMany Marxists, past and present, use the term socialism to refer to the form of society that is supposed to replace capitalism and later develop into communism.\n\nWithin the socialist movement, there are several different ideas on how to create a socialist society and economic system, and what form this society will take. As a result, the movement has split into several different and sometimes opposing branches, which are discussed further below.
373804
Our culture has become one of consumption and materialism.  Americans feel entitled to material wealth, and we value money above almost everything else, although few would admit it!  It's disgusting, really, when you look at the gap between rich and poor in this country.
154515
Communism is not all bad, America and many countries just don't like it because it's pretty much the opposite of freedom which is what America value so much.\n\nIn China, before they turned communists, there were a lot of starving people who became sick and died because there was shortage of food, shelter, and medicine.  The aristocrats were wealthy and it was easy for them to make money because they had connections.  \n\nAfter that there was a group that turned the country into Communism, that's when all the food, and other necessities are taken from aristocrats and are devided among everybody.\n\nYou can see that communism saved lives in this situation.
475728
Socialism seeks equality and reduction of poverty through communities that hold the capital and means of production. It seeks to answer the flaws in capitalism (monopoly, income ineauality, etc) which occur where imperfect competition exists in capitalist socities\n\nA lot of the cohesive traditions and laws that bind western societies originated in socialist ideals bequeathed by various relgious groups (eg the Quakers) and 19th century reformers\n\nDo not confuse socialism with communism, where the the government replaces the community (with all that implies in terms of totalitarianism)
497169
Maybe Socialism is better, but capitalism is more human unfortunately.\n\nsocialism is a great idea, but it has to be everywhere for it to work because if there is a capitalist nation next door then it begins dragging the socialist down.\n\nsorry I had to be practical
1167037
I always thought they were already buddies. Socialism and communism go hand in hand. The "odd" one out is conservatism. Socialism as far as I can see is only good for team sports. It has never worked for very long as a ruling force as a government.  No government should run a country. The country should run the government. I wish here in the U.S. all politicians worked in Washington for 6 months then had to go home and have a "real" job for 6 months. We would be able to handle poverty, care for our senior citizens and run our education system a lot better than a bunch of stuffed shirt fat a$$ ed hair sprayed ego maniacs who never see or  care what really needs to be done. But we have created a monster here  and we need to wake up and make some changes or further suffer the consequences of an ever growing government that can only grow by taking more and more of our freedom away.