A friend told me this story:
“When my father was a student at the University of Michigan in the
1930s he lived in a cooperative house known as 'Socialism House.' 25
years later when I lived in the same house at the University of
Michigan its name had been changed to `Michigan house'.” In the
1930s the word “socialism” was associated with persons who
defended working people earning low wages and suffering grievously
during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Socialists were in favor of
greater equality and a decent standard of living for everyone. Today
Republicans are making the Democrats look bad by accusing them of
being socialists. “Socialist” has become a term of abuse.
This story reminded me of what
has happened to the word “liberal.” Around 1990, Liberals were
still the people who were defending freedom and equality for all.
They were good guys. I remember my shock when the elder Bush during
his campaign for the presidency started calling Democrats “liberals.”
All of a sudden, the word “liberal” had become a serious insult.
Often words change their
meaning by accident in the course of being used over and over. But
what happened to both of these words is instructive. From being the
name for people who were defending the most traditional of American
values – equality, fairness, liberty – they are now being used
for people who support an expansion of government activity. Why are
liberals and socialists considered such a threat to us? The power of
government, we are being told again and again, is an impediment to
private enterprise, to the expansion of American business which will
make all of us richer and richer.
Government actions most likely
have been threats to some businesses for a long time. But where
government stepped in to defend and expand equality and freedom,
Americans have, in the past, been willing to pay a price for that.
In the past, socialism and
liberalism, the defense of equality and freedom, may have has some
undesirable side effects, but they were thought to be legitimate
political projects because the pursuit of equality and freedom was
thought to be extremely important. Today the dominant political
perspective cares only about the health of our corporations, about
their profitability. As soon as there is a hint that wage and hour
legislation, worker protection, trade union organization, campaign
finance reform, and other efforts to safeguard equality and liberty,
large groups are up in arms because the defense of liberty and
equality might have a negative effect on corporate profits. Equality
and freedom count for very little; profits for a a great deal.
What I find truly alarming is
the evidence that so many Americans are more seriously concerned
about unfettered growth of business and very little concerned about
equality, fairness and liberty. Who are the heroes today? Steve Job,
Bill Gates – both people who have made huge sums of money and have
been known to be unpleasant persons. What matters to Americans is
making money. Their heroes are persons who make obscene amounts of
money. There are no heroes today comparable to Rosa Parks or Dr.
King.
Socialism and liberalism are
seen only as threats to some businesses making a enormous amounts of
money. Equality is of no interest. Neither is freedom. The public at
large watches passively while our democracy is sold to the highest
bidder.
The big businesses with their
huge profits are selling us down the river and I'm afraid that we
deserve every little bit of it. People who care more for money than
for freedom and equality deserve what they get.
