“How do you tell a Communist? Well, it’s someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It’s someone who understands Marx and Lenin.” – President Ronald Reagan, 1987
The Socialist mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani, has been in office for nearly seven months now. During his campaign, Mamdani boldly professed and displayed his radical views. Thus far, his mayoral reign includes implementing rent control to squeeze landlords in an effort to create government control of housing, as well as telling average citizens to set their thermostats on a sweaty 78 degrees while parts of City Hall parked their thermostats at 54 degrees. He is a prime example of “rules for thee but not for me,” an illustration of “Animal Farm’s” “some animals are more equal than others” mantra.
By now, you probably know that I’m a proud Gen Xer who is nostalgic for the ’80s, the Reagan years, and the awesome synthesizer music of that era. Yearning for the past isn’t wise, but learning from it is. With socialism rising in America, Generation Z and Generation Alpha desperately need to listen to some old speeches by President Ronald Reagan, where he masterfully communicates the virtues of capitalism and the destructive vices of communism and socialism.
Socialism, at its core, is a political and economic system in which property and the means of production are collectively owned, primarily by the government. As Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, and Mamdani have all stated, it’s about setting aside people's rugged individuality and embracing the warmth of collectivism. Unfortunately, the collectivism they speak of is often at the expense of the very people they claim to serve.
According to the Adam Smith Institute, socialism has historically led to government tyranny and persecution for a variety of reasons. Socialism often abolishes private property. Taking property from private citizens reduces the incentive to work hard, resulting in a decline in productivity and economic stagnation.
Need examples? In the Soviet Union, Stalin seized private farms, forcing them into government collectives, while millions of his own people starved and died due to famine when food production collapsed.
In China, Mao Tse Tung implemented his “great leap forward,” putting farms under community control. Between 15 and 55 million people starved to death.
According to the BBC, Zimbabwe’s government, led by Robert Mugabe, took over white-owned farms in 2000 and distributed them to black Zimbabweans. The result was economic disaster and food shortages.
Last, but not least, once wealthy Venezuela nationalized farmland, factories and businesses. As a result, Venezuela’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) collapsed by nearly 80% and millions fled the country.
Government-controlled economies lack the flexibility and efficiency of the free market system. Socialism requires government control over employment, wages, production, and even personal choices. Those in control become corrupt, using their positions to enrich themselves and suppress dissent.
How can we combat the mind-virus that is socialism? According to the Financial Policy Council (FPC), average Americans can start by educating the next generation. Public schools have wrecked our nation by not teaching accurate history, and many liberal-leaning schools teach socialism as a fair, judicial system. They fail to teach the historical treachery of socialism, so children remain unaware of its devastation. Thus, it’s way past time for parents to educate their children. According to FPC, parents would do well to explain to children how socialism can lead to resource misallocation and economic inefficiency, while also destroying personal freedoms. Fellow parents, we have the internet at our fingertips and all it takes is some help from Google to tell our kids about historical failures and modern examples of socialism’s failings.
Next, we must use clear, accurate language and examples to help our kids distinguish between socialism and capitalism. It is okay to discuss modern-day problems with our capitalist system – it’s not perfect. The question is, which system enables personal liberty? Which system promotes excellence? Which system encourages policies that benefit humans? That’s an easy answer if you study the history of nations plunged into despair by socialist policies.
Finally, children must be educated about the value of personal property rights through personal experiences. Parents can get creative with this. Over the years, our kiddos earned money by doing chores. They had permission to use their hard-earned money to buy video games or sports paraphernalia. The things they spent their money on were often well cared for, whereas something that was given to them might not fare as well. There was not as much value attached to the item if they hadn’t worked for it. The warmth of collectivism kills work ethic.
Those of us who grew up under Reagan understand the fight. We saw societies crumble under the failed policies of socialism and communism. It is way past time for us to share this wisdom with anyone who will listen. The United States of America is the last global bastion of freedom. If we fall, there is nowhere else to go.
Kristin Landers is a substitute teacher and freelance writer. Landers' previous work includes serving as Communications Director for the Alabama Policy Institute and working for Citizens Against a Legalized Lottery (CALL) to defeat legalized gambling in Alabama.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to [email protected].
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
