R.I.P. America 2009

[ChaosControl]

Just 53% Say Capitalism Better Than Socialism

Only 53% of American adults believe capitalism is better than socialism.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 20% disagree and say socialism is better. Twenty-seven percent (27%) are not sure which is better.

Adults under 30 are essentially evenly divided: 37% prefer capitalism, 33% socialism, and 30% are undecided. Thirty-somethings are a bit more supportive of the free-enterprise approach with 49% for capitalism and 26% for socialism. Adults over 40 strongly favor capitalism, and just 13% of those older Americans believe socialism is better.

Investors by a 5-to-1 margin choose capitalism. As for those who do not invest, 40% say capitalism is better while 25% prefer socialism.

There is a partisan gap as well. Republicans - by an 11-to-1 margin - favor capitalism. Democrats are much more closely divided: Just 39% say capitalism is better while 30% prefer socialism. As for those not affiliated with either major political party, 48% say capitalism is best, and 21% opt for socialism.

(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls.) Rasmussen Reports updates also available on Twitter.

The question posed by Rasmussen Reports did not define either capitalism or socialism

It is interesting to compare the new results to an earlier survey in which 70% of Americans prefer a free-market economy. The fact that a “free-market economy” attracts substantially more support than “capitalism” may suggest some skepticism about whether capitalism in the United States today relies on free markets.

Other survey data supports that notion. Rather than seeing large corporations as committed to free markets, two-out-of-three Americans believe that big government and big business often work together in ways that hurt consumers and investors.

Fifteen percent (15%) of Americans say they prefer a government-managed economy, similar to the 20% support for socialism. Just 14% believe the federal government would do a better job running auto companies, and even fewer believe government would do a better job running financial firms.

Most Americans today hold views that can generally be defined as populist while only seven percent (7%) share the elitist views of the Political Class.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/general_politics/just_53_say_capitalism_better_than_socialism


America is dead.

[newbitech]

This really tells me that Obama is winning the hearts and minds of the youth in this country (on the whole). Seriously who the hell are these people?

[pcosmar]

FU Frank

[NMCB3]

Not so much Obama winning hearts and minds, more like highly effective brainwashing through the government school system and the media. Hand over your children in their most impressionable years to the state and what do you expect will happen, your child growing up as a free thinker?....hardly. The government propaganda camps are all about conformity, the status quo, and doing as your told. In other words raising docile serfs to service the state. :)

[newbitech]

well here is a nice link that sums up arguments on both sides rather nicely. I just asked someone in the 20-30 age bracket. It seems like there is a small lack of understanding on what the arguments are either way. However, the basic principle of individuality was recognized by this person as an undertone for capitalism and ultimately he said capitalism is better because it allows him to be his own person and not rely on others for success. But he did struggle a little understanding the arguments.

Here is the link.

http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=400

[Crash Martinez]

after a century of nearly universal government education, i think it's a testimony to the natural popularity, resiliance, and common-sense logic of free-market capitalism that it retains even a plurality of support in this country, let alone this slight majority!

[Young Paleocon]

America fuck yeah comin again to save the motherfuckin day yeah, merica fuck yeah what you gonna do when they come for you yeah

[newbitech]

after a century of nearly universal government education, i think it's a testimony to the natural popularity, resiliance, and common-sense logic of free-market capitalism that it retains even a plurality of support in this country, let alone this slight majority!

The other thing to notice is that as people grow older, the appeal of socialism fades. I see this as being evidence that the more real life experience one gains, the more they recognize the failures of socialism. I am disturbed that we would have enough socialism going on for folks to actually have experience with it.

[NMCB3]

America fuck yeah comin again to save the motherfuckin day yeah, merica fuck yeah what you gonna do when they come for you yeahAre you a 21st century paleocon rapper? :)

[A. Havnes]

Not so much Obama winning hearts and minds, more like highly effective brainwashing through the government school system and the media. Hand over your children in their most impressionable years to the state and what do you expect will happen, your child growing up as a free thinker?....hardly. The government propaganda camps are all about conformity, the status quo, and doing as your told. In other words raising docile serfs to service the state. :)

+1 I came out of high school 5 years ago, and I actually didn't think socialism was too terrible a thing at the time. I blame my economist teacher for shoving all that crap down our throats and then blaming it on the Smurfs.

But, yeah, public schools are definately teaching the benefits of a socialistic society nowadays.

[Young Paleocon]

Sometimes I just randomly bust out into the Team America theme song.

[ChaosControl]

I'm glad I attended private school basically my whole life, I was never naive enough to believe in socialism. It is amazing what these brainwashing centers do to our youth, it is child abuse. I've said it before, any parent who sends their kid to a public school is committing child abuse. It is one of the worst things parents can do to their kids.

[Reason]

I recently wrote the following in response to a friend that had sent me some anti socialist propaganda. (He is also an avid Wal-Mart shopper)

--------------------


You can't support the extremes of capitalism (Wal-Mart)

and support the government who supports the extremes of capitalism (United States) by removing all the tariffs and trade restrictions forcing all our jobs overseas

and then act surprised or upset when people are unhappy with our shitty economy and then mistakenly blame capitalism as a whole.

In the end we have no one to blame but ourselves.

The people will always get the governement they deserve.

And that is exactly what we are getting right now and what we have been getting for the last 50 years.

If American's want to look at who is to blame they need only find a mirror.

If we wanted capitalism to work we could do it. We did for quite a while. Then we let it go nuts, greed and unrelenting self interest exploded.

Considering the political intelligence of the average voter in the US it is not even remotely surprising that capitalism gets blamed as a whole rather than a deep logical analysis of how we dug the hole in which we currently reside.

Our so called "representatives" now have to raise thousands and thousands of dollars EVERY DAY that they are in office for their next campaign,
and we wonder why their loyalty resides with the lobbyists?

Everyone wants to cry rivers about Bernie Madoff's ponzi scheme yet they apparently haven't taken much of a look at social security...

I will leave you with a quote from Winston Churchill

"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter."

[Minlawc]

The way I see it is, a lot of people now mistake Capitalism for Corporatism. Liberals tend to relabel, and we have Neoconservatives(Liberals disguised as Conservatives) blurring the lines between them.

[Original_Intent]

I wrote a letter to the editor today asking how people can vote whether they like capitalism when they have never seen it in their lifetimes. If it is published, I will link it.

[RedStripe]

The difference between actually-existing "capitalism" and actually-existing "socialism" is so small that these results really don't tell us a whole lot about people's feelings regarding government economic intervention.

You could say that the United States has had a capitalist economic system, but you could also argue that the United Stats has had a socialist system! I think it's a legitimate interpretation of the two terms, in the context of our economic history, to say that "capitalism" is intervention on behalf of the ruling economic class and that "socialism" is intervention focused towards helping the lower class. I certainly don't think that either one is a good idea, but assuming those operating definitions, I can't blame someone for favoring "socialism" in that context. I would personally favor a bailout of homeowners than Wall Street, for example.

My personal opinion is that libertarians should abandon the word "capitalism" because most people don't attribute the same definition to that term that free market advocates do. The term "free market" is much more explicit and meaningful. There is state-capitalism, and then there is free-market-capitalism. Most people attach the general term "capitalism" to the former.