A kinder, gentler Marxism

The worldview of the "Social Democracy" America is heading toward | Gene Edward Veith

Illustration by Krieg Barrie

Barack Obama is not a socialist, explained Eric Etheredge of The New York Times. He is a "social democrat." The administration's attempt to control private companies and the free market should not alarm us, according to Etheredge and other pundits. European nations do this all the time. It is simply an application of the European political and economic theory known as "social democracy."

If social democracy is America's new governmental principle, we should know a little about it. To avoid biased spins and inflammatory rhetoric, let us consult basic, objective sources such as dictionaries and encyclopedias.

Here is the definition of "social democracy" from Merriam-Webster's online dictionary: "1 : a political movement advocating a gradual and peaceful transition from capitalism to socialism by democratic means 2 : a democratic welfare state that incorporates both capitalist and socialist practices."

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May 09, 2009, Vol. 24, No. 9

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