Selling Socialism

[vraiblonde]

The thing about Europe: it’s the actual land of the free now

Europe’s very real problems don’t look so bad by comparison

www.economist.com

^^ the Economist piece is behind a paywall (because nothing says "Socialism" better than hiding news unless people pay for it). But the pertinent text is at Twitchy:

The Economist DRAGGED for Claim Europe (Where They Jail You for MEMES) Is Now Land of the Free

twitchy.com

The thing about Europe, the sneerers say, is that it is over-regulated. Mounds of red tape and punitive taxes mean there are no trillion-dollar entrepreneurial ventures in France or Germany to match Amazon, Google or Tesla. But that is not all Europe is lacking. Also absent from the continent are the broligarchs who sit atop such behemoths, some of whom have a tighter grip on power than on reality. There are thus no European Rasputins pumping untold millions into political campaigns, getting pride of place at leaders’ inaugurations or their own new-minted government departments to run. There are few unicorns in Europe, alas, and too little innovation. That said, there are absolutely no tech executives boasting on social media of spending their weekends feeding bits of the state 'into the wood chipper.'
...
The thing about Europe is that it lacks an absolutist attachment to free speech. See how judges in Romania and France derailed the careers of hard-right politicians, who have convinced themselves (with little evidence) that it was their ideology rather than their lawbreaking that got them in trouble. Yet to many Europeans the idea that free expression is under threat seems odd. Europeans can say almost anything they want, both in theory and in practice. Europe’s universities never became hotbeds of speech-policing by one breed of culture warrior or the other. You can express a controversial view on any European campus (outside Hungary, at least) without fear of losing your tenure or your grant. No detention centres await foreign students who hold the wrong views on Gaza; news outfits are not sued for interviewing opposition politicians. Law firms are not compelled to kow-tow to presidents as penance for having worked for their political foes.

tldr; "Europe is great because nobody is divided on politics. You do what the leaders say and think what they tell you to think. Zero conflict! And THAT is freedom!"

He's also wrong because a guy in Germany just got tossed in jail for sharing a meme, and uni profs get fired all the time for wrong-think. Kids get kicked out of school for daring to ask questions.

But this is the Socialist mindset - "obedience is freedom." And no doubt any number of mush brains will read that piece and be all, "Heck yeah! I want some of that freedom!"

 

[stgislander]

The Economist.

 

[vraiblonde]

The Economist.

For real It's like an episode of the Twilight Zone.

 

[DaSDGuy]

Next they will tell us to purchase a book titled "My Struggle"

 

[BOP]

For real It's like an episode of the Twilight Zone.

"1984," apparently, was a textbook. Who knew?

 

[LightRoasted]

For your consideration ...

tldr; "Europe is great because nobody is divided on politics. You do what the leaders say and think what they tell you to think. Zero conflict! And THAT is freedom!"

He's also wrong because a guy in Germany just got tossed in jail for sharing a meme, and uni profs get fired all the time for wrong-think. Kids get kicked out of school for daring to ask questions.

But this is the Socialist mindset - "obedience is freedom." And no doubt any number of mush brains will read that piece and be all, "Heck yeah! I want some of that freedom!"

No idea why you ended your post with the crazy emoji. Since Europe is a democracy you should be happy. And it is not, as you say, a "socialist mindset", it is democracy in action. Just like we have here, right? Right? Right?

 

[BOP]

Speaking of selling socialism, this guy, a Brit, argues that Walmart is effectively socialist. Or that capitalism is; I'm a little fuzzy on that. Apparently, the Germans and the Brits - socialists all - didn't see it that way. Walmart lost something like $3B in Germany alone.

From the transcript:

Walmart's proved capitalism is the best form of socialism. So even if you're a diehard commie who avoids shopping at your local store sooner or later you'll have to spend your money in a Walton owned outlet. Or worse you might have to earn your money in a Walton owned outlet.

That's because to some people Walmart has proved planned economies can work even if lefties and right-wingers could never admit it. So put on the bib and start doing the happy clap dance.

You won't escape the People's Democratic Republic of Walmart forever.

The flaw in his thinking is that Walmart still depends on the taxpayers to subsidize their workers. Cf. Not Just Bikes' video about Walmart.

 

[glhs837]

No detention centres await foreign students who hold the wrong views on Gaza;

No, its detention centers for those who raise money for terrorist organizations.

There are thus no European Rasputins pumping untold millions into political campaigns, getting pride of place at leaders’ inaugurations or

news outfits are not sued for interviewing opposition politicians.

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/12/eu-warns-elon-musk-ahead-of-trump-interview-to-keep-hate-speech-off-of-x-.html

 

[Hijinx]

You couldn't sell Socialism if not for the buyers.

America is filled with socialism purchasers. When they outnumber us like those in Europe we too are finished.

 

[vraiblonde]

You couldn't sell Socialism if not for the buyers.

America is filled with socialism purchasers. When they outnumber us like those in Europe we too are finished.

The problem is that most humans are lazy and not very bright. They like to say things they heard other people say because that way they don't have to do any work to come up with thoughts themselves. Bonus points if you parrot some academia propagandist. When challenged, they can't defend their so-called viewpoints because they never understood them in the first place, so they scream in your face and threaten to kill you.

What's fascinating me right now are the progbots screaming in the streets about Harvard losing federal funding. Our tax dollars shouldn't be funding Harvard in the first place, but besides that they're up in arms over the *checks notes* stifling of free speech. Because pro-Hamas terrorists have a right to lob death threats against Jews and prevent Jewish students from attending classes....



Should you be foolish enough to try and point out their cognitive dissonance, they get quite abusive.