wretchard writes:
Socialism is possessed by the idea that however many times it has failed in the past, one day it will succeed under the guidance of a more forceful, charismatic leader.
Yes. And what they fail to consider is that even if that day does come, who will succeed that wonderful leader? If the proponents of socialism happen to win the lotto, what are the odds of them winning it two times in a row? Or three? Or four? They’ve spent their philosophical money on the lottery so many times before and they haven’t ever won. But they are sure that if they win that one single time they will win forever after.

They need to go to Las Vegas and test that theory with their own personal fortunes. After its done I would be happy to throw them any spare change I have when they’re begging on the street corners with their “Will Work for Food” signs.

Its like the notion that the best form of government is the wise philosopher king. That may well be, but what happens when he dies? The history of the Roman Emperors may give us a clue and the image is not pretty. And considering the number of communist regimes that have existed in the 20th century a very good case can be made that the odds of anyone fitting the “benign philosopher king” model is pretty low. And until it is done we don’t even know that it is possible at all; it may be like striving to build a perpetual motion machine.

5. ConfederateH writes:
Come to think of it, Carville would fit right in as chancellor in the Chavez regime.
Yes—they are identical mindsets reflected through different cultural prisms. At the core, without the prisms, they are the same.

8. Peter Boston writes:
The middle class is the ultimate killer of socialism.
Yes and no–an independent middle class is the ultimate killer of socialism. But today a lot of the middle class consists of what I call the “synthetic” middle class–government workers who are paid middle class wages for doing virtually nothing, and absent their status as government workers they would probably sink towards the bottom of the economic pile. If you’ve ever worked for the government you know who I’m talking about.