What Would a Socialist America Look Like?

[Miigwech]

The real question is ... who owns America? The corporations or the rest of the 99% that make up all Americans

Democratic socialism means democratic ownership over the economy.
Peter Gowan is a fellow with the progressive nonprofit the Democracy Collaborative.

A democratically elected government should own natural monopolies such as utilities and rail transport; provide social services like health care, education, housing, child care and banking; and create a general welfare state that eliminates poverty through guaranteeing a minimum income, with assistance for people with disabilities, the elderly and families with children.

But we have to go beyond that. We need measures to establish democratic ownership over the wider economy, and eliminate our dependence on industries that rely on pollution and war for their existence. There need to be strategies to allow workers in the defense, aerospace and fossil fuel industries to repurpose their facilities for more socially useful production, drawing on the example of the Lucas Plan in Britain, where workers designed and published a viable “alternative corporate plan” that included funding for renewable energy, public transport and medical technology. We need a mechanism to transfer corporate equity into sector-oriented social wealth funds controlled by diverse and accountable stakeholders, which would gradually transfer ownership away from unaccountable elites and toward inclusive institutions

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/09/03/what-would-a-socialist-america-look-like-219626

[Aristus]

1. Canada.

n/t

[PeeJ52]

3. On steroids

[CentralMass]

2. Bernie Sanders speaks of the Nordic Model.

https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/100714/nordic-model-pros-and-cons.asp
"INSIGHTS MARKETS & ECONOMY
The Nordic Model: Pros and Cons
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BY JAMES MCWHINNEY Updated Oct 7, 2014
Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark (collectively the Nordic countries) have a combination of high living standards and low income disparity that has captured the world’s attention. At a time when the growing gap between the rich and poor has become a political hot button in developed nations, the region known as Scandinavia has been cited by many scholars as a role model for economic opportunity and equality."

"The Nordic model is a term coined to capture the unique combination of free market capitalism and social benefits that have given rise to a society that enjoys a host of top-quality services, including free education and free healthcare, as well as generous, guaranteed pension payments for retirees. These benefits are funded by taxpayers and administered by the government for the benefit of all citizens. The citizens have a high degree of trust in their government and a history of working together to reach compromises and address societal challenges through democratic processes. Their policy makers have chosen a mixed economic system that reduces the gap between the rich and the poor through redistributive taxation and a robust public sector while preserving the benefits of capitalism."

[mwooldri]

4. Britain of the 1970s was close to this vision.

Utilities and public transportation was largely run by nationalized companies. Telecommunications were generally with the Post Office. Local authorities worked to make enough affordable housing for rent. Banking could be done through the post office. The auto industry was bailed out (British Leyland nationalized), coal and steel were nationalized with the view of keeping employment high, as was the shipbuilding and aerospace industries.

The way I think we can "socialize" things is to keep the private sector involved, but impose sensible regulations on them and with the threat of a government owned company being able to step in and take over should the private sector fail in its responsibilities.

[appalachiablue]

5. Not happening, no worries. Funny sketch, lol.

Last edited Wed Mar 20, 2019, 05:25 AM - Edit history (1)