I don't think socialism is a bad idea, and it has been proven succesful in many of the countries of the world. I think everyone being equal is not a bad thing at all. We have proud traditions in this country though and most of them don't incorporate socialism. As long as we can be a free people, socialism is not a bad idea. Socialism is not communism.
And really a feudal system is not that different than the way Bernie describes the 1% now. Part of the reason he is so attractive to young people is because most of them have more experience with Canada and Europe than they do with the Red Scare or USSR. In another election cycle or two, even among the Rs ´socialism´ isn´t going to be seen as the devil, but just the opposition. A word only has power if it can scare people, and it really doesn´t scare people like it did 20 years ago.
In this country it is constantly linked to the Nazi party. The term rings the loudest when thinking of Hitler's Nazi Germany, and people have a fear anything related to socialism. It is a warning of the past that leaves people on edge even if the form of socialism being instituted is not the same.
Blame your historians. In the past propaganda was put out that communism was wrong and against the very ideals your forefathers founded the country on which were freedom, justice and liberty. In a way it was created to recruit soldiers in the war against the British and even now in the Middle East.
Blame the Koch Brothers. There has been a war against any sort of collectivist ideology for the last few decades. America, much like every other modern prosperous nation uses a system that's a blend of democracy, socialism, individualism and capitalism. The educated tend to refer to these as "liberal democracies. It's common sense that when you have any system that's far to heavy on either capitalism or socialism things don't work very well. So, like much of everything else in this world, moderation and pragmatism are needed. The debate rages on as to which one should be more influential. I personally feel socialism should be very limited, but I still appreciate it's importance. Anyone who tells you "socialism is always bad, our country should have 0 socialism" is dumb, or blindly by ideology. A capitalistic society with a completely lassie-fair/non-existent government is the stuff of dystopian nightmares. You need the government to collect taxes and then to provide the backbone and the infrastructure for capitalism and individualism to thrive. Things like roads, municipal services, an educated society, the military, courts and systems of law, research (the internet was a government research project,) a social safety net, labour laws, environmental laws and on and on.
I believe, Not any word is totally bad or good. It depends on Politicians. Politicians who are promoting that in any country, who are using that ? how they used that ? where they used that ? What are results ? 1 Patient's life can be saved by little dose of poison too. This way poison becomes medicine.so, I want to say, Democracy, Communism, Socialism, Capitalism etc. all these have their positive and negative points same like Religions. but when it reach at extreme levels, It becomes poison for society. How to neutralize these words is in hands of Politicians, but at extreme levels, sometimes choices get less or somewhere politicians, citizens lacks optimism. Democrats against Communists, Communists against Democrats. these words and religion have no difference, after all, Democracy, Communism, Capitalism etc. all are ideology based system.I will not get surprised if Tomorrow, we heard words like 'Democratic Terrorism' or 'Communist Terrorism'. After all its 'battle of Ego', Ego can offer nothing except terrorism, wars, poverty etc. Competition is good thing, if it make you proud.
