It is called capitalism.
On 11/21/2015 12:33 AM, Abby Vincent wrote:
What Bernie and others are talking about isn't really socialism. It
makes sense for tax payers to pool their money to accomplish what we can’t
do alone and doesn't work for the common good if private companies do it. I
want our taxes to pay for schools, roads, courts, jails, police, and yes,
medical care. I'm fine with corporations making my iPhone, stereo and TV,
Appliances, and clothes. I also want the government to regulate the system
so that our common resources, that is, taxes aren't used as an ATM machine
by the greedy. What should we call this system?
Abby
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Miriam Vieni
Sent: Friday, November 20, 2015 7:41 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: vBernie Sanders' 12 Best Reasons for Being a
Democratic Socialist
Roger,
Bernie Sandeers says he's a Social Democrat. He uses the Scandanavian
countries as examples of the kind of economic system he advocates. He calls
them social democracies. He has not once advocated in any speech that I've
heard or read about, that America become a socialist country. He would be
insane to advocate such a thing if he is attempting to organize a large
following in the US. He has, upon occasion, used the word "socialist"
loosely, to describe himself, but it has always been very obvious to
everyone that he didn't mean it literally. Now, there are a number of people
who are angry at him for not being a socialist, including Chris Hedges.
There is one piece in which Hedges rants about why Sanders doesn't fit his,
that is, Hedges', definition of what a socialist is. But like many people,
Hedges has his own unique definition of what a good socialist is. I noticed
that among the requirements is that one must be opposed to the legalization
of prostitution. Now, having read the book written bhy his interviewee, I
know why he has taken that position. However, it is hardly a prerequisite to
be called a socialist. It's his prerequisite. Having said all this, there
are a lot of people who want a welfare state or who want all businesses run
as cooperatives, or mixtures of these models, who do not trust the state as
being any better at owning and controlling all business, than the big
corporations. And, many of these people call themselves socialists, even
though, according to the dictionary definition, they're not. This is like
all those American Indians who insist on calling themselves American Indians
even though the name was first given to them through error. In spite of the
geographicallly erroneous error, in spite of the fact that there is a more
accurate name, Native Americans, they want to use an inaccurate name. So,
we just understand and accept.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Roger Loran
Bailey (Redacted sender "rogerbailey81" for DMARC)
Sent: Friday, November 20, 2015 9:27 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: vBernie Sanders' 12 Best Reasons for Being a
Democratic Socialist
I would think that at least once in the first dozen times I say something I
would be paid attention to. However, it looks like it is time for me to
repeat myself again. Again! Again! Again! I do not require that anyone be in
any kind of agreement with "my" party to be a socialist. I do not require
that someone be in any party to be a socialist! The definition of socialism
- if you insist, "my" definition of socialism - is very broad. It includes
political tendencies that I am in extreme disagreement with. Again, it
requires only that one be in favor of an end to the private ownership of the
means of production and its replacement with public ownership and control of
the means of production. AT the very least it requires that. If you do not
favor that then you are not a socialist and if you claim to be a socialist
you are making a false claim. Again, even with such a broad definition as
that it still means something. If you allow a word to mean everything it
means nothing. Remember when I was expressing a distaste for using the word
awesome for every piddling thing that came along? I said that the problem
with that is that when something comes along that really is awesome then you
have nothing to call it. If you call it awesome then you will only be
communicating mild approval instead of what you really want to express. The
same thing applies to the word socialism. When you call those who advocate
capitalism socialists then what do you call it when you want to discuss a
real socialist? Now, I suppose that by tomorrow what I have just said will
be completely ignored again and I will be told again that socialism means
the same thing as awesome or the same thing as what Ted Cruz advocates. When
Sanders said that he was not as much of a socialist as Dwight Eisenhower
that shows no understanding of the word either. I am sorry, though,
?Eisenhower was not a socialist and Bernard Sanders is not a socialist. Read
some history! Look in a dictionary! Words have to mean something or there is
no reason to have words!
On 11/20/2015 5:05 PM, S. Kashdan wrote:
Roger,the Left.
I am sure you know that there are and have been several different
socialist parties. Eugene Debbs was not a socialist in the same sense
as your party would define it, and his party was not your party.
Different groups and parties also define democracy differently.
For justice and peace,
Sylvie
----- Original Message -----
From: "Miriam Vieni" <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, November 20, 2015 12:54 PM
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: vBernie Sanders' 12 Best Reasons for
Being a Democratic Socialist
Roger, I knew you were going to have a reaction to this. He is not
being dishonest. He is defining "social democracy" as he understands
it. His definition is different from your's. Language is very fluid.
The word, "liberal", has very bad connotations both for the Right and
for
He's talking about reinstating a social welfare state, but a moresystem!
inclusive one than we had under FDR.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Roger Loran
Bailey (Redacted sender "rogerbailey81" for DMARC)
Sent: Friday, November 20, 2015 2:54 PM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: vBernie Sanders' 12 Best Reasons for
Being a Democratic Socialist
He would be a lot more honest if he just called himself a liberal.
On 11/20/2015 11:52 AM, Miriam Vieni wrote:
I heard the first part of his speech last night and it was rivetingnot in the video I heard.
enough so that I didn't go to sleep when I should have. I think that
what kept me listening was my sense that he really means what he says
and that the things he says about today's economic situation, are not
being said by any other public figure. The part about foreign policy
was
Miriam60, 70 hours a week.
Published on Alternet (http://www.alternet.org) Home > Bernie Sanders'
12 Best Reasons for Being a Democratic Socialist
________________________________________
Bernie Sanders' 12 Best Reasons for Being a Democratic Socialist By
Steven Rosenfeld [1] / AlterNet [2] November 19, 2015 In a highly
anticipated speech, Sen. Bernie Sanders passionately detailed what
being a democratic socialist means to him and would mean for
Americans if elected president.
After listing many metrics showing Americans today are working harder
than ever yet facing undue pressures to pay for necessities like
housing, healthcare, higher education and retirement, Sanders said
democratic socialism means reviving the wisdom and policies behind
President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, Lyndon Johnson's Great
Society and Rev. Martin Luther King's call for economic justice.
"Real freedom must include economic security," Sanders said, quoting
FDR's
1944 speech calling for a second Bill of Rights for economic justice.
"That was Roosevelt's vision 70 years ago. It is my vision today. It
is a vision that we have not yet achieved. And it is time that we did."
"People are not free," he continued. "They are not truly free when
they are unable to feed their family. They are not truly free when
they are unable to retire with dignity. They are not truly free when
they are unemployed, underemployed or when they are exhausted by
working
People are not truly free when they don't know how they are going totheir children, their sick and their poor."
get medical help, when they or a family member are sick."
"So let me define for you, simply and straightforwardly, what
democratic socialism means to me," Sanders said. "It builds on what
Franklin Delano Roosevelt said when he fought for guaranteed economic
rights for all Americans. And it builds on what Martin Luther King,
Jr. said in 1968 when he stated that, 'This country has socialism for
the rich, and rugged individualism for the poor.' My view of
democratic socialism builds on the success of many other countries
around the world, who have done a far better job than we have in
protecting the needs of their working families, their elderly
citizens,
Sanders repeatedly reminded the Georgetown University audience thathis 100-minute speech.
there was an epidemic of childhood poverty and other unmet needs
across America, while the richest Americans are accumulating
unprecedented wealth. He said the solutions could be funded by
wealthly individuals and corporations paying a fair share of taxes.
What follows are a dozen excerpts from Sanders' speech of what
democratic socialism means to him and could mean for the country. It
is a vision of a better world that starts with improving the
economics and the dignity of Americans at home, which in turn Sanders
said would better position America to face challenges from abroad,
such as the terrorist threat posed by ISIS, which he addressed in the
final quarter of
1. Major political and economic reforms. "Democratic socialism meansdo..
that we must reform a political system which is corrupt, that we must
create an economy that works for all, not just the very wealthy.
Democratic socialism, to my mind, speaks to a system, which for
example during the 1990s-and I want you to hear this-allowed Wall
Street to spend $5 billion, over a 10-year period, in lobbying and
campaign contributions in order to get deregulated. They wanted the
government off of their backs. They wanted to do whatever they wanted
to
"Then, 10 years later, after the greed, recklessness, and illegal
behavior led to their collapse, what our system enabled them to get
bailed out by the United States government, which through Congress
and the Fed, provided trillions of dollars in aid to Wall Street. In
other words, Wall Street used their wealth and power to get Congress
to do their bidding for deregulation, and then when Wall Street
collapsed, they used their wealth and power to get bailed out. Quite
a
else.""And then, to add insult to injury, we were told that not only werejail.
the banks too big to fail, we were told that the bankers were too big
to
And this is the system. Young people who get caught possessing
marijuana, they get police records-and many many hundreds of
thousands have police records that have impacted their lives in
serious ways. On the other hand, Wall Street CEOs who help destroy
the economy, they don't get police records, they get raises in their
salaries. And this is what Martin Luther King, Jr. meant when he
talked about socialism for the rich and rugged individualism for
everyone
world.2. An end to corporate welfare. "It is time that we had democraticidea. It is a conservative idea.
socialism for working families, not just for Wall Street billionaires.
It means that we should not be providing welfare for corporations. It
means that we should not be providing huge tax breaks for the
wealthiest people in this country or trade policies, which boost
corporate profits while they result in workers losing their jobs. It
means that we create a government which works for all of the American
people, not just powerful special interests. It means that economic
rights must be an essential part of what America stands for."
3. A national public healthcare system. "It means that health care
should be a right of all people, not a privilege. I know that there
are some people out there who think this is just an incredibly
radical idea-imagine, in the United States of America, all of us,
having health care as a right. But I hope all of you know this is not
a radical
It is an idea and a practice that exists in every other major countryprescription drugs."
on earth.
"Not just in Scandanavia-in Denmark, in Sweden, in Finland or Norway.
It exists in Canada-I live 50 miles away from Canada; not a radical
idea. It exists in France, Germany, Taiwan. All over the world,
countries have made the determination that all of their people are
entitled to health care, and I believe the time is long overdue for
the United States to join the rest of the world. And by the way, what
a Medicare-for-all system will bring about is ending the absurdity of
the American people paying, by far, the highest prices in the world
for
4. Tuition-free public colleges and universities. "Now, when I talk
about democratic socialism, what that means to me, is that in the
year 2015, a college degree today is equivalent to what a high school
degree was 50 years ago. And what that means is that public education
must today allow every person in this country, who has the ability,
the qualifications and the desire, the right to go to a public
college or university tuition-free. Is this a radical socialistic
idea? I don't think so. It exists today in many countries all over
the
grandchildren."You know what, it used to exist in the United States of America.New York, were virtually tuition-free."
Great universities, like the University of California, the City
University of
5. A government that creates jobs, not prisoners. "Democraticincarceration."
socialism means that our government does everything it can to create
a full employment economy. It makes far more sense to me to put
millions of people back to work rebuilding our crumbling
infrastructure, than to have a real unemployment rate of almost 10
percent. It is far smarter to invest in jobs and educational
opportunities for young people who are unemployed, than to lock them
up and invest in jails and
6. A living minimum wage and real family leave. "Democratic socialismleast three months of paid family and medical leave."
means that if someone works 40 hours a week, that person should not
be living in poverty; that we must raise the minimum wage to a living
wage-$15 bucks an hour over the next several years. It means that we
join the rest of the world and pass the very strong Paid Family and
Medical Leave legislation now sitting in Congress.
"I want you to think about this, and I want you to really see what
goes on in our country today. It's not only that every other major
country-I'm not talking about Europe or Scandanavia-virtually every
country in the world, poor countries, small countries, reach the
conclusion that when a woman has a baby she should not be forced to
be separated from that newborn baby after a week or two and have to
go back to work. Making sure that moms and dads can stay home and get
to love their babies is a family value that we should support. And
that is why I want, and will fight, to end the absurdity of the
United States being one of the only countries on Earth that does not
guarantee at
7. Stopping climate change-causing industries. "Democratic socialism
to me means that we have government policy, strong government policy,
which does not allow the greed and profiteering of the fossil fuel
industry to destroy our environment and our planet. And it means to
me that we have a moral responsibility to combat climate change and
leave this planet healthy and inhabitable for our kids and
years.8. The wealthy must pay a fair share of taxes. "Democratic socialismsupport.
means that in a democratic, civilized society the wealthiest people
and the largest corporations must pay their fair share of taxes. Yes,
innovation, entrepreneurship and business success should be rewarded.
But greed for the sake of greed is not something that public policy
should
"It is not acceptable to me that in the period of time, the last two
years,
15 of the wealthiest people in this country-15 people-saw their
wealth increase, in this rigged economy, by $170 billion. Got it? Two
world.'"Fifteen people, $170 billion increase in their wealth. That is morequote.
wealth than is owned by the bottom 130 million Americans. Let us not
forget what Pope Francis has so elegantly stated and I quote: 'We
have created new idols. The worship of the golden calf of old has
found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the
dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any truly
humane goal.' End of
"In other words, we've got to do better than that. It's not aworking-class people have given up on the political process entirely.
political issue. It's not an economic issue. It's a cultural issue.
We have got to stop worshipping people who make billions and billions
and billions of dollars, while we have the highest rate of childhood
poverty of any major country."
9. America's political system must be a democracy. "Democratic
socialism, to me, does not just mean that we must create a nation of
economic and social justice and environmental sanity. Of course, it
does mean that. But it also means that we must create a vibrant
democracy based on the principle of one person, one vote. It is
extremely sad-and I hope all of you will pay a lot of attention to
this issue-it is extremely sad that the United States, one of the
oldest, most stable democracies in the world, has one of the lowest
voter turnouts of any major country, and that millions of young
people and
"In the last midterm election, just a year ago, 63 percent of theolder is registered to vote: end of discussion."
American people didn't vote, 80 percent of young people did not vote.
Clearly, despite the efforts of many Republican governors, who want
to suppress the vote, to make it harder for people of color and old
people to participate in the political system, our job together is to
make it easier for people to vote, not harder to vote. It is not a
radical idea-and I will fight for this as hard as I can as
president-to say that everyone in this country who is 18 years of age
or
10. Democratic socialism is not a government takeover. "The next timeshould go up, not down.
that you hear me attacked as a socialist-like tomorrow-remember this:
I don't believe government should take over the grocery store down
the street, or own the means of production. But I do believe that the
middle class and the working families, who produce the wealth of this
country, deserve a decent standard of living, and that their incomes
"I do believe in private companies that thrive and invest and grow in
America, companies that create jobs here, rather than companies that
are shutting down in America and increasing their profits by
exploiting low-wage labor abroad. I believe that most Americans can
pay lower taxes-if hedge fund managers who make billions manipulating
the marketplace finally start paying the taxes that they should."
11. Equal treatment by government, not racism. "I don't believe in
special treatment for the top 1 percent, but I do believe in equal
treatment for African Americans who are right to proclaim the moral
principle that black lives matter. I despise appeals to nativism and
prejudice, a lot of which we have been hearing in recent months. And
I do proudly believe in immigration reform that gives Hispanics and
others a pathway to citizenship and a better life.
"And while I am on that subject, let me say a real word of concern to
what I have been hearing from some of the Republican candidates for
president in recent months. People can have honest disagreements
about immigration or about anything else. That's called democracy.
But people should not be using the political process to inject racism
into the debate. And if Donald Trump and others refer to Latinos,
people from Mexico, as criminals and rapists, if they want to open
that door, our job is to shut that door and shut it tight."
12. Do not become cynical; work for change. "Do not, do not, do not
become cynical. I am running for president in order for all of us to
be able to live in a nation of hope and opportunity, not for some,
but for my seven grandchilden, and for all of you.
"Nobody understood better than Franklin Delano Roosevelt the
connection between American strength at home and our ability to
defend America around the world. And that is why he proposed a second
Bill of Rights in 1944, and said in that very same State of the
Union, and I quote again, 'America's own rightful place in the world
depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have
been carried into practice for all our citizens. For unless there is
security here at home there cannot be lasting peace-lasting peace-in
the
in sight."Foreign Policy and the Use of Force
The final section of Sanders' speech concerned foreign policy and
whether the U.S. should use military force abroad. Sanders said, "I
am not running for president to pursue reckless adventures abroad,
but to rebuild America's strength at home. I will never hesitate to
defend this nation, but I will never send our sons and daughters to
war under false pretense, or pretenses about dubious battles with no
end
interests.Sanders said George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq and war of choice wasentire regions.
one of many examples where a foreign policy decision led to serious
unanticipated consequences that unfolded over many years and
destabilized
In that context, he said ISIS must be defeated by military and otherrole for America.
policies, but, "we cannot, and should not, do it alone." He said that
could only happen when other Muslim countries in the region,
especially wealthy nations like Saudi Arabia, became more involved
and see this as a fight for "the soul of Islam," which is not an
appropriate
"While the U.S. and other western nations have the strength of ourU.S.
militaries and political systems, the fight against ISIS is a
struggle for the soul of Islam, and countering violent extremism and
destroying ISIS must be done primarily by Muslim nations-with the
strong support of their global partners," Sanders said.
Unlike any of the other 2016 presidential candidates, Sanders said
the
must learn from past mistakes and not repeat them-such as usingin Iran in 1953: Mossadegh was the president.
military force or intelligence agency coups for short-term political
gains that backfire in the long run.
"Our response must begin with an understanding of past mistakes and
missteps in our previous approaches to foreign policy," he said. "It
begins with the acknowledgment that unilateral military action should
be a last resort, not a first resort, and that ill-conceived military
decisions, such as the invasion of Iraq, can wreak far-reaching
devastation and destabilization over regions for decades. It begins
with the reflection that the failed policy decisions of the
past-rushing to war, regime change in Iraq or toppling Mohammed
Mossadegh
The CIA and others got rid of him, to protect British petroleum
system!The Shah of Iran came in, a brutal dictator, and he was thrown out bycontinued.
the Islamic revolution, and that is where we are in Iran today.
"Decisions have consequences, often unintended consequences," he
"So whether it was Saddam Hussein, or Mossadegh, or Guatemalanlearn."
president Árbenz in 1954, Brazilian president Goulart in 1964,
Chilean president Allende in 1973-this type of regime change. This
type of overthrowing governments we may not like, often does not
work, often makes a bad and difficult decision even worse. These are
lessons we must
Steven Rosenfeld covers national political issues for AlterNet,Citizen's Guide to Voting"
including America's retirement crisis, democracy and voting rights,
and campaigns and elections. He is the author of "Count My Vote: A
(AlterNet Books, 2008).60, 70 hours a week.
Share on Facebook Share
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emocratic-socialist
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http://www.alternet.org/ [5] http://www.alternet.org/%2Bnew_src%2B
Published on Alternet (http://www.alternet.org) Home > Bernie Sanders'
12 Best Reasons for Being a Democratic Socialist
Bernie Sanders' 12 Best Reasons for Being a Democratic Socialist By
Steven Rosenfeld [1] / AlterNet [2] November 19, 2015 In a highly
anticipated speech, Sen. Bernie Sanders passionately detailed what
being a democratic socialist means to him and would mean for
Americans if elected president.
After listing many metrics showing Americans today are working harder
than ever yet facing undue pressures to pay for necessities like
housing, healthcare, higher education and retirement, Sanders said
democratic socialism means reviving the wisdom and policies behind
President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, Lyndon Johnson's Great
Society and Rev. Martin Luther King's call for economic justice.
"Real freedom must include economic security," Sanders said, quoting
FDR's
1944 speech calling for a second Bill of Rights for economic justice.
"That was Roosevelt's vision 70 years ago. It is my vision today. It
is a vision that we have not yet achieved. And it is time that we did."
"People are not free," he continued. "They are not truly free when
they are unable to feed their family. They are not truly free when
they are unable to retire with dignity. They are not truly free when
they are unemployed, underemployed or when they are exhausted by
working
People are not truly free when they don't know how they are going totheir children, their sick and their poor."
get medical help, when they or a family member are sick."
"So let me define for you, simply and straightforwardly, what
democratic socialism means to me," Sanders said. "It builds on what
Franklin Delano Roosevelt said when he fought for guaranteed economic
rights for all Americans. And it builds on what Martin Luther King,
Jr. said in 1968 when he stated that, 'This country has socialism for
the rich, and rugged individualism for the poor.' My view of
democratic socialism builds on the success of many other countries
around the world, who have done a far better job than we have in
protecting the needs of their working families, their elderly
citizens,
Sanders repeatedly reminded the Georgetown University audience thathis 100-minute speech.
there was an epidemic of childhood poverty and other unmet needs
across America, while the richest Americans are accumulating
unprecedented wealth. He said the solutions could be funded by
wealthly individuals and corporations paying a fair share of taxes.
What follows are a dozen excerpts from Sanders' speech of what
democratic socialism means to him and could mean for the country. It
is a vision of a better world that starts with improving the
economics and the dignity of Americans at home, which in turn Sanders
said would better position America to face challenges from abroad,
such as the terrorist threat posed by ISIS, which he addressed in the
final quarter of
1. Major political and economic reforms. "Democratic socialism meansdo..
that we must reform a political system which is corrupt, that we must
create an economy that works for all, not just the very wealthy.
Democratic socialism, to my mind, speaks to a system, which for
example during the 1990s-and I want you to hear this-allowed Wall
Street to spend $5 billion, over a 10-year period, in lobbying and
campaign contributions in order to get deregulated. They wanted the
government off of their backs. They wanted to do whatever they wanted
to
"Then, 10 years later, after the greed, recklessness, and illegal
behavior led to their collapse, what our system enabled them to get
bailed out by the United States government, which through Congress
and the Fed, provided trillions of dollars in aid to Wall Street. In
other words, Wall Street used their wealth and power to get Congress
to do their bidding for deregulation, and then when Wall Street
collapsed, they used their wealth and power to get bailed out. Quite
a
else.""And then, to add insult to injury, we were told that not only werejail.
the banks too big to fail, we were told that the bankers were too big
to
And this is the system. Young people who get caught possessing
marijuana, they get police records-and many many hundreds of
thousands have police records that have impacted their lives in
serious ways. On the other hand, Wall Street CEOs who help destroy
the economy, they don't get police records, they get raises in their
salaries. And this is what Martin Luther King, Jr. meant when he
talked about socialism for the rich and rugged individualism for
everyone
world.2. An end to corporate welfare. "It is time that we had democraticidea. It is a conservative idea.
socialism for working families, not just for Wall Street billionaires.
It means that we should not be providing welfare for corporations. It
means that we should not be providing huge tax breaks for the
wealthiest people in this country or trade policies, which boost
corporate profits while they result in workers losing their jobs. It
means that we create a government which works for all of the American
people, not just powerful special interests. It means that economic
rights must be an essential part of what America stands for."
3. A national public healthcare system. "It means that health care
should be a right of all people, not a privilege. I know that there
are some people out there who think this is just an incredibly
radical idea-imagine, in the United States of America, all of us,
having health care as a right. But I hope all of you know this is not
a radical
It is an idea and a practice that exists in every other major countryprescription drugs."
on earth.
"Not just in Scandanavia-in Denmark, in Sweden, in Finland or Norway.
It exists in Canada-I live 50 miles away from Canada; not a radical
idea. It exists in France, Germany, Taiwan. All over the world,
countries have made the determination that all of their people are
entitled to health care, and I believe the time is long overdue for
the United States to join the rest of the world. And by the way, what
a Medicare-for-all system will bring about is ending the absurdity of
the American people paying, by far, the highest prices in the world
for
4. Tuition-free public colleges and universities. "Now, when I talk
about democratic socialism, what that means to me, is that in the
year 2015, a college degree today is equivalent to what a high school
degree was 50 years ago. And what that means is that public education
must today allow every person in this country, who has the ability,
the qualifications and the desire, the right to go to a public
college or university tuition-free. Is this a radical socialistic
idea? I don't think so. It exists today in many countries all over
the
grandchildren."You know what, it used to exist in the United States of America.New York, were virtually tuition-free."
Great universities, like the University of California, the City
University of
5. A government that creates jobs, not prisoners. "Democraticincarceration."
socialism means that our government does everything it can to create
a full employment economy. It makes far more sense to me to put
millions of people back to work rebuilding our crumbling
infrastructure, than to have a real unemployment rate of almost 10
percent. It is far smarter to invest in jobs and educational
opportunities for young people who are unemployed, than to lock them
up and invest in jails and
6. A living minimum wage and real family leave. "Democratic socialismleast three months of paid family and medical leave."
means that if someone works 40 hours a week, that person should not
be living in poverty; that we must raise the minimum wage to a living
wage-$15 bucks an hour over the next several years. It means that we
join the rest of the world and pass the very strong Paid Family and
Medical Leave legislation now sitting in Congress.
"I want you to think about this, and I want you to really see what
goes on in our country today. It's not only that every other major
country-I'm not talking about Europe or Scandanavia-virtually every
country in the world, poor countries, small countries, reach the
conclusion that when a woman has a baby she should not be forced to
be separated from that newborn baby after a week or two and have to
go back to work. Making sure that moms and dads can stay home and get
to love their babies is a family value that we should support. And
that is why I want, and will fight, to end the absurdity of the
United States being one of the only countries on Earth that does not
guarantee at
7. Stopping climate change-causing industries. "Democratic socialism
to me means that we have government policy, strong government policy,
which does not allow the greed and profiteering of the fossil fuel
industry to destroy our environment and our planet. And it means to
me that we have a moral responsibility to combat climate change and
leave this planet healthy and inhabitable for our kids and
years.8. The wealthy must pay a fair share of taxes. "Democratic socialismsupport.
means that in a democratic, civilized society the wealthiest people
and the largest corporations must pay their fair share of taxes. Yes,
innovation, entrepreneurship and business success should be rewarded.
But greed for the sake of greed is not something that public policy
should
"It is not acceptable to me that in the period of time, the last two
years,
15 of the wealthiest people in this country-15 people-saw their
wealth increase, in this rigged economy, by $170 billion. Got it? Two
world.'"Fifteen people, $170 billion increase in their wealth. That is morequote.
wealth than is owned by the bottom 130 million Americans. Let us not
forget what Pope Francis has so elegantly stated and I quote: 'We
have created new idols. The worship of the golden calf of old has
found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the
dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any truly
humane goal.' End of
"In other words, we've got to do better than that. It's not aworking-class people have given up on the political process entirely.
political issue. It's not an economic issue. It's a cultural issue.
We have got to stop worshipping people who make billions and billions
and billions of dollars, while we have the highest rate of childhood
poverty of any major country."
9. America's political system must be a democracy. "Democratic
socialism, to me, does not just mean that we must create a nation of
economic and social justice and environmental sanity. Of course, it
does mean that. But it also means that we must create a vibrant
democracy based on the principle of one person, one vote. It is
extremely sad-and I hope all of you will pay a lot of attention to
this issue-it is extremely sad that the United States, one of the
oldest, most stable democracies in the world, has one of the lowest
voter turnouts of any major country, and that millions of young
people and
"In the last midterm election, just a year ago, 63 percent of theolder is registered to vote: end of discussion."
American people didn't vote, 80 percent of young people did not vote.
Clearly, despite the efforts of many Republican governors, who want
to suppress the vote, to make it harder for people of color and old
people to participate in the political system, our job together is to
make it easier for people to vote, not harder to vote. It is not a
radical idea-and I will fight for this as hard as I can as
president-to say that everyone in this country who is 18 years of age
or
10. Democratic socialism is not a government takeover. "The next timeshould go up, not down.
that you hear me attacked as a socialist-like tomorrow-remember this:
I don't believe government should take over the grocery store down
the street, or own the means of production. But I do believe that the
middle class and the working families, who produce the wealth of this
country, deserve a decent standard of living, and that their incomes
"I do believe in private companies that thrive and invest and grow in
America, companies that create jobs here, rather than companies that
are shutting down in America and increasing their profits by
exploiting low-wage labor abroad. I believe that most Americans can
pay lower taxes-if hedge fund managers who make billions manipulating
the marketplace finally start paying the taxes that they should."
11. Equal treatment by government, not racism. "I don't believe in
special treatment for the top 1 percent, but I do believe in equal
treatment for African Americans who are right to proclaim the moral
principle that black lives matter. I despise appeals to nativism and
prejudice, a lot of which we have been hearing in recent months. And
I do proudly believe in immigration reform that gives Hispanics and
others a pathway to citizenship and a better life.
"And while I am on that subject, let me say a real word of concern to
what I have been hearing from some of the Republican candidates for
president in recent months. People can have honest disagreements
about immigration or about anything else. That's called democracy.
But people should not be using the political process to inject racism
into the debate. And if Donald Trump and others refer to Latinos,
people from Mexico, as criminals and rapists, if they want to open
that door, our job is to shut that door and shut it tight."
12. Do not become cynical; work for change. "Do not, do not, do not
become cynical. I am running for president in order for all of us to
be able to live in a nation of hope and opportunity, not for some,
but for my seven grandchilden, and for all of you.
"Nobody understood better than Franklin Delano Roosevelt the
connection between American strength at home and our ability to
defend America around the world. And that is why he proposed a second
Bill of Rights in 1944, and said in that very same State of the
Union, and I quote again, 'America's own rightful place in the world
depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have
been carried into practice for all our citizens. For unless there is
security here at home there cannot be lasting peace-lasting peace-in
the
in sight."Foreign Policy and the Use of Force
The final section of Sanders' speech concerned foreign policy and
whether the U.S. should use military force abroad. Sanders said, "I
am not running for president to pursue reckless adventures abroad,
but to rebuild America's strength at home. I will never hesitate to
defend this nation, but I will never send our sons and daughters to
war under false pretense, or pretenses about dubious battles with no
end
interests.Sanders said George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq and war of choice wasentire regions.
one of many examples where a foreign policy decision led to serious
unanticipated consequences that unfolded over many years and
destabilized
In that context, he said ISIS must be defeated by military and otherrole for America.
policies, but, "we cannot, and should not, do it alone." He said that
could only happen when other Muslim countries in the region,
especially wealthy nations like Saudi Arabia, became more involved
and see this as a fight for "the soul of Islam," which is not an
appropriate
"While the U.S. and other western nations have the strength of ourU.S.
militaries and political systems, the fight against ISIS is a
struggle for the soul of Islam, and countering violent extremism and
destroying ISIS must be done primarily by Muslim nations-with the
strong support of their global partners," Sanders said.
Unlike any of the other 2016 presidential candidates, Sanders said
the
must learn from past mistakes and not repeat them-such as usingin Iran in 1953: Mossadegh was the president.
military force or intelligence agency coups for short-term political
gains that backfire in the long run.
"Our response must begin with an understanding of past mistakes and
missteps in our previous approaches to foreign policy," he said. "It
begins with the acknowledgment that unilateral military action should
be a last resort, not a first resort, and that ill-conceived military
decisions, such as the invasion of Iraq, can wreak far-reaching
devastation and destabilization over regions for decades. It begins
with the reflection that the failed policy decisions of the
past-rushing to war, regime change in Iraq or toppling Mohammed
Mossadegh
The CIA and others got rid of him, to protect British petroleum
The Shah of Iran came in, a brutal dictator, and he was thrown out bycontinued.
the Islamic revolution, and that is where we are in Iran today.
"Decisions have consequences, often unintended consequences," he
"So whether it was Saddam Hussein, or Mossadegh, or Guatemalanlearn."
president Árbenz in 1954, Brazilian president Goulart in 1964,
Chilean president Allende in 1973-this type of regime change. This
type of overthrowing governments we may not like, often does not
work, often makes a bad and difficult decision even worse. These are
lessons we must
Steven Rosenfeld covers national political issues for AlterNet,Citizen's Guide to Voting"
including America's retirement crisis, democracy and voting rights,
and campaigns and elections. He is the author of "Count My Vote: A
(AlterNet Books, 2008).
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