61% of Liberals Favor Socialism

[PoliticalChic]

If I may conjecture that American ideas and ideals are more closely associated with self-reliance, free enterprise, and entrepeneurship, what is one to make of the latest Gallup poll?

"Americans are almost uniformly positive in their reactions to three terms: small business, free enterprise, and entrepreneurs. They are divided on big business and the federal government, with roughly as many Americans saying their view is positive as say it is negative. Americans are more positive than negative on capitalism (61% versus 33%) and more negative than positive on socialism (36% to 58%).

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.

Exactly how Americans define "socialism" or what exactly they think of when they hear the word is not known. The research simply measures Americans' reactions when a survey interviewer reads the word to them -- an exercise that helps shed light on connotations associated with this frequently used term.

There are significant differences in reactions to "socialism" across ideological and partisan groups:

A majority of 53% of Democrats have a positive image of socialism, compared to 17% of Republicans.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

 

[sboyle24]

I doubt 10% of Americans could define socialism as something other than "just like communism! Commie Bastards!"

 

[Gadawg73]

100 % of wealthy seniors love socialism.

 

[Yukon]

You people don't have any idea what you're talking about. None whatsoever. You are the atypical uneducated American. No wonder your FF's established the Electoral College. You are really too stupid to decide on your own who should be in charge.

 

[Gadawg73]

"Know wonder"
and you claim we are uneducated.

 

[Yukon]

"Know wonder"
and you claim we are uneducated.

You are....................

 

[PeterS]

If I may conjecture that American ideas and ideals are more closely associated with self-reliance, free enterprise, and entrepeneurship, what is one to make of the latest Gallup poll?

"Americans are almost uniformly positive in their reactions to three terms: small business, free enterprise, and entrepreneurs. They are divided on big business and the federal government, with roughly as many Americans saying their view is positive as say it is negative. Americans are more positive than negative on capitalism (61% versus 33%) and more negative than positive on socialism (36% to 58%).

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.

Exactly how Americans define "socialism" or what exactly they think of when they hear the word is not known. The research simply measures Americans' reactions when a survey interviewer reads the word to them -- an exercise that helps shed light on connotations associated with this frequently used term.

There are significant differences in reactions to "socialism" across ideological and partisan groups:

A majority of 53% of Democrats have a positive image of socialism, compared to 17% of Republicans.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

So include it. As a liberal that is certainly fine with me.

 

[Meister]

I doubt 10% of Americans could define socialism as something other than "just like communism! Commie Bastards!"

If your number IS even close to being true. It makes it that much more troubling to me, that 61% of democrats view socialism as favorable.

 

[Care4all]

Maybe they should have given examples of socialism in order to clarify what it means...

Like,
-do you want to keep social security retirement as a program or eliminate it?
-Do you think unemployment insurance is a good measure for those losing their jobs?
-do you want to keep Medicare for the seniors or do you want to let them all try to fend for themselves when it comes to their own health?
-Do you want your government to keep up the roads and highways in your area?
-Do you want to eliminate school lunches for the poorest children among us?

Then maybe these idiots would have their answer to what socialism means to them...

guaranteed, there would be A LOT MORE republicans saying yes to 'socialism'.

 

[PoliticalChic]

I doubt 10% of Americans could define socialism as something other than "just like communism! Commie Bastards!"

I was hoping that someone would make that point, so that I was able to include

an indictment of the US school system, erroneously referred to as an education system.

Since the Gallup Poll so clearly indicates the large positive approval of free market, etc., and yet a sizeable portion of the citizenry, at least those polled, have a positive view of socialism, someone must have dropped the ball somewhere.

I think an argument could be made, though, that many of those folks who signed on to socialism, merely view the term as Democode for the Democratic Party-

but I am not saying that most are not Wilson-Dewey-Obama-Progressive-Liberals.

They probably are: note one of the above posts, a poster who syncretically attempts to claim to be a happy socialist, yet, it seems, has not moved to the EU yet.

 

[Meister]

Maybe they should have given examples of socialism in order to clarify what it means...

Like,
-do you want to keep social security retirement as a program or eliminate it?
-Do you think unemployment insurance is a good measure for those losing their jobs?
-do you want to keep Medicare for the seniors or do you want to let them all try to fend for themselves when it comes to their own health?
-Do you want your government to keep up the roads and highways in your area?
-Do you want to eliminate school lunches for the poorest children among us?

Then maybe these idiots would have their answer to what socialism means to them...

guaranteed, there would be A LOT MORE republicans saying yes to 'socialism'.

Perhaps we should also point out that the government takes over private sectors like banking and lending.
Take over of the auto industry
Take over healthcare.
Take over Insurance industry.
Regulate wages.
Take over manufacturing.
I'm sure I can come up with a lot more, but this will do for now.

I wonder if the democrats and the republicans would really be saying yes to socialism?

 

[Samson]

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

Only 1/3 Americans have a positive image of socialism?????

I thought there were more teachers than that in America.

 

[Care4all]

Maybe they should have given examples of socialism in order to clarify what it means...

Like,
-do you want to keep social security retirement as a program or eliminate it?
-Do you think unemployment insurance is a good measure for those losing their jobs?
-do you want to keep Medicare for the seniors or do you want to let them all try to fend for themselves when it comes to their own health?
-Do you want your government to keep up the roads and highways in your area?
-Do you want to eliminate school lunches for the poorest children among us?

Then maybe these idiots would have their answer to what socialism means to them...

guaranteed, there would be A LOT MORE republicans saying yes to 'socialism'.

Perhaps we should also point out that the government takes over private sectors like banking and lending.
Take over of the auto industry
Take over healthcare.
Take over Insurance industry.
Regulate wages.
Take over manufacturing.
I'm sure I can come up with a lot more, but this will do for now.

I wonder if the democrats and the rebublicans would really be saying yes to socialism?

Those are FASCIST measures, not what Democrats would see as socialism imho...

The Oil/gas industry being subsidized for the last 80 years by our government could be added to your list as well....

oh, and what is the taking over of manufacturing about? the auto industry you already mentioned???

Care

 

[PoliticalChic]

Maybe they should have given examples of socialism in order to clarify what it means...

Like,
-do you want to keep social security retirement as a program or eliminate it?
-Do you think unemployment insurance is a good measure for those losing their jobs?
-do you want to keep Medicare for the seniors or do you want to let them all try to fend for themselves when it comes to their own health?
-Do you want your government to keep up the roads and highways in your area?
-Do you want to eliminate school lunches for the poorest children among us?

Then maybe these idiots would have their answer to what socialism means to them...

guaranteed, there would be A LOT MORE republicans saying yes to 'socialism'.

I don't believe that is the case at all. Once the machinations of politicians are exposed, folks like President Obama watch his poll numbers plummet. Educate the American public, and you get Tea Parties.

Folks have strong opinions on subjects ...

like:
-do you want taxes to be confiscatory
-do you think government should attempt to control the free market
-do you want healtcare to have inane mandates that inflate the costs
-do you want schools to teach, or to have 'social justice' as the main priority
-do you want capitalism and opportunity or government that 'levels the playing field'

I guess we have each exposed our biases.

 

[PoliticalChic]

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

Only 1/3 Americans have a positive image of socialism?????

I thought there were more teachers than that in America.

I don't know whether that is more funny, or more ironic.

 

[California Girl]

If I may conjecture that American ideas and ideals are more closely associated with self-reliance, free enterprise, and entrepeneurship, what is one to make of the latest Gallup poll?

"Americans are almost uniformly positive in their reactions to three terms: small business, free enterprise, and entrepreneurs. They are divided on big business and the federal government, with roughly as many Americans saying their view is positive as say it is negative. Americans are more positive than negative on capitalism (61% versus 33%) and more negative than positive on socialism (36% to 58%).

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.

Exactly how Americans define "socialism" or what exactly they think of when they hear the word is not known. The research simply measures Americans' reactions when a survey interviewer reads the word to them -- an exercise that helps shed light on connotations associated with this frequently used term.

There are significant differences in reactions to "socialism" across ideological and partisan groups:

A majority of 53% of Democrats have a positive image of socialism, compared to 17% of Republicans.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

There are plenty of socialist countries that they are welcome to move to. I'll help them pack.

 

[MIPS]

Maybe they should have given examples of socialism in order to clarify what it means...

Like,
-do you want to keep social security retirement as a program or eliminate it?
-Do you think unemployment insurance is a good measure for those losing their jobs?
-do you want to keep Medicare for the seniors or do you want to let them all try to fend for themselves when it comes to their own health?
-Do you want your government to keep up the roads and highways in your area?
-Do you want to eliminate school lunches for the poorest children among us?

Then maybe these idiots would have their answer to what socialism means to them...

guaranteed, there would be A LOT MORE republicans saying yes to 'socialism'.

From a specific issue standpoint defining whether this thing or that thing is "socialist" is highly subjective and always subject to a lot of debate. There is no purity of socialist ideology in practice today and there never really has been therefor the practical definition is going to vary widely depending on the circumstances and the point of view of the person being asked.

The fact of the matter is that any centralized government of scale has a tendency to become more authoritarian in terms of central economic planning (socialism is after all an ECONOMIC philosophy not a political one) as time goes by since those in power are after all human beings and as such gravitate toward that which secures and increases their power. Nothing works better toward the securing and consolidation of power than economic control and wealth redistribution (buying votes), this tendency was something the founding fathers anticipated and thus designed the Federal Government in the best way that they knew how to stifle it (Republican form of government, checks & balances, limited Federal Authority, etc..,).

That being said , your examples are all red herrings since each of your questions is prefaced by something that would make it appear that anybody answering in the affirmative is some sort of "scrooge" , when the fact of the matter is you do not appear to take into account that GOVERNMENT is not the only solution to the problems that the "programs" you point to attempt to solve, in fact history has shown that GOVERNMENT is more than likely the least efficient solution to them, or have you not caught on to the fact that thanks to all these half assed federal attempts at problem solving the country is now broke and on the verge of a banana republic AND the "problems" remained unresolved?

 

[Samson]

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

Only 1/3 Americans have a positive image of socialism?????

I thought there were more teachers than that in America.

I don't know whether that is more funny, or more ironic.

Actually, I was hoping to bait you into asking Ann Coulter what proportion of Americans are employed in Public Education.

 

[Samson]

If I may conjecture that American ideas and ideals are more closely associated with self-reliance, free enterprise, and entrepeneurship, what is one to make of the latest Gallup poll?

"Americans are almost uniformly positive in their reactions to three terms: small business, free enterprise, and entrepreneurs. They are divided on big business and the federal government, with roughly as many Americans saying their view is positive as say it is negative. Americans are more positive than negative on capitalism (61% versus 33%) and more negative than positive on socialism (36% to 58%).

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.

Exactly how Americans define "socialism" or what exactly they think of when they hear the word is not known. The research simply measures Americans' reactions when a survey interviewer reads the word to them -- an exercise that helps shed light on connotations associated with this frequently used term.

There are significant differences in reactions to "socialism" across ideological and partisan groups:

A majority of 53% of Democrats have a positive image of socialism, compared to 17% of Republicans.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives."
Socialism Viewed Positively by 36% of Americans

It seems that socialism should be included in pantheon of Democrat beliefs.

There are plenty of socialist countries that they are welcome to move to. I'll help them pack.

WHOA!!!

If Cali-girl "helps me pack," then I might become a socialist!!!!

 

[Care4all]

Maybe they should have given examples of socialism in order to clarify what it means...

Like,
-do you want to keep social security retirement as a program or eliminate it?
-Do you think unemployment insurance is a good measure for those losing their jobs?
-do you want to keep Medicare for the seniors or do you want to let them all try to fend for themselves when it comes to their own health?
-Do you want your government to keep up the roads and highways in your area?
-Do you want to eliminate school lunches for the poorest children among us?

Then maybe these idiots would have their answer to what socialism means to them...

guaranteed, there would be A LOT MORE republicans saying yes to 'socialism'.

From a specific issue standpoint defining whether this thing or that thing is "socialist" is highly subjective and always subject to a lot of debate. There is no purity of socialist ideology in practice today and there never really has been therefor the practical definition is going to vary widely depending on the circumstances and the point of view of the person being asked.

The fact of the matter is that any centralized government of scale has a tendency to become more authoritarian in terms of central economic planning (socialism is after all an ECONOMIC philosophy not a political one) as time goes by since those in power are after all human beings and as such gravitate toward that which secures and increases their power. Nothing works better toward the securing and consolidation of power than economic control and wealth redistribution (buying votes), this tendency was something the founding fathers anticipated and thus designed the Federal Government in the best way that they knew how to stifle it (Republican form of government, checks & balances, limited Federal Authority, etc..,).

That being said , your examples are all red herrings since each of your questions is prefaced by something that would make it appear that anybody answering in the affirmative is some sort of "scrooge" , when the fact of the matter is you do not appear to take into account that GOVERNMENT is not the only solution to the problems that the "programs" you point to attempt to solve, in fact history has shown that GOVERNMENT is more than likely the least efficient solution to them, or have you not caught on to the fact that thanks to all these half assed federal attempts at problem solving the country is now broke and on the verge of a banana republic AND the "problems" remained unresolved?

Let me remind you...the one social program that has put this country on the brink since it has passed is the Medicare Pill Bill...the Conservative/Republican....medicare pill bill passed by President Bush during his term....

the conservatives or republicans were in power for 12 years straight....WHAT did they do to eliminate these social programs that I mentioned above....

I have NEVER used the term "socialist" NOR DID THE ARTICLE....it used the term socialism, and all I did is show you guys what Democrats consider socialism, or "social" programs, and these are the things I mentioned, or at least some of them....thus trying to explain why the percentage is higher on Democrats than republicans.... The repubs have used an all out propaganda war on the term "socialism" for well over a decade....while never telling their constituents the definition of the term and what programs they are against.....

All I was doing is suggest to the op, that maybe they need to list the things I mentioned and even add the things Meister mentioned to a list and have the people vote yeah or nay to each of them, and we would have MORE republicans and democrats agreeing with eachother on each one of the measures than one would think, than with the half assed non descriptive pole that was done to divide us instead of unite us.

Care