SOCIALISM, COMMUNISM, AND THE AMERICAN DEMOCRAT PARTY
by F. Eric Saunders © 2003
First of all, it should be mentioned that the following facts are not meant to indict all persons who now or ever did identify themselves as Democrats. One does not have to go too far back in history to find good and noble Democrats. Whether those good and well intentioned people espoused ideas that were correct for their time, or whether those honestly held ideas were, even then, incorrect, but not yet demonstrably so, could be debated at length without profit. However, it is now readily apparent to all (with the possible exception of Fidel Castro) that many of the early socialist ideas and ideologies are bereft of an ability to achieve their stated goals.
At the extreme, it might be said that all Democrats today are divided roughly into three groups. The first group comprises those who are so naïve (either because of their youth, their innate inability to deal with reality, or left over effects of ‘60s chemical experimentation) that they really believe the human condition to be amenable to the manipulations of socialism, and the second is comprised of those who know better but choose to profit by pandering to the first group (read “politicians”). The third, but largest (and rapidly growing), group of Democrats consist of those who have no political ideology or world view at all. Rather, they choose to be Democrats simply because they believe that the Democrat party can benefit them personally. Those who perceive that they benefit from big government, those who perceive that they will benefit from a government mandated “effortless” redistribution of wealth (as opposed to the continual redistribution of a vital economy), and the like, tend to vote for Democrat candidates. (Note that the word “perceive” is used advisedly here, since the facts have tended not to support such beliefs, but that is another story.)
Whatever the motivation of the membership of the American Democrat Party, there would seem to be little disagreement about the current general philosophy of the Party, either among supporters or detractors (although there is, undoubtedly, some disagreement about how that philosophy should be characterized).


In recent history we have seen an attempt to socialize major portions of the economy, including but not limited to the health care industry. We have seen continued reluctance to support even the most modest and important privatization efforts of current government monopolies, including but not limited to the Social Security system and educational institutions. We have seen continued and increasing support for the mandatory redistribution of wealth, despite increasing evidence that most such efforts harm, rather than help, the intended beneficiaries. In short, the American Democrat Party has gone over entirely to a socialist philosophy. There remains no conclusion but that the only distinction between a Democrat and a Socialist lies in their respective degrees of success at achieving the goals common to both.