Economic mobility differs geographically
https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr_edge_featd_article_071414.html
"do not just “move up” but also generally “move out.” "
so move https://inequality.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/SOTU_2015_economic-mobility.pdf
Again:
"a huge swath of people in the U.S. have been left behind is because our politics written by race, written by regionalism long before Trump, has made us have the weakest welfare state and the weakest worker protections in the world for a rich country. And so, go across the border of Canada, go across the Atlantic to any Western European country, go the other direction to Australia or Singapore or Japan and workers have not been left behind as much."
https://ritholtz.com/2020/11/transcript-adam-posen/
It would help to vote for politicians that promote pro-worker policies
As a Canadian, I am repeatedly amazed and disappointed that Americans tend to see "socialism" as a bad thing. It is not a synonym for "Communism," but helps create a leveler playing field for all people. When your basic needs are guaranteed (at least more so that in the US), you can focus on making the most of your potential, whatever that may be, which in turn benefits the rest of society. Everybody wins. I don't understand how that is so difficult to see, except that there has been generations of brainwashing leading to reflexive fear and rejection of the concept. Unfortunately, often by those who would benefit the most by it. But maybe that's the goal of the brainwashing - keep the perks in the hands of a relative few and let the rest suffer. Which is so short-sighted. That's exactly the cause of social revolutions, and I fear that one is brewing in the USofA.
I'm one of the Americans who sees "socialism" as bad thing overall. The USA became a great and successful country because of the opportunity for individuals to start with nothing and work their way up to become a success. Both immigrants and native born Americans have been successful for hundreds of years through their hard work and perseverance. This has led to a country which has been widely acknowledged as the economic leader of the world. It's also the easiest place in the world to FIRE.
See the definition of socialism below:
Definition of socialism from Meriam Webster:
1 : any of various economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods
2a : a system of society or group living in which there is no private property
2b : a system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state
3 : a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done
My problem with socialism is that when the government owns and controls the property, goods and wealth there is a much less direct tie between how good a job someone does or how hard they work and how well they are paid (or rewarded). This results in much less incentive for individuals to work hard and be successful. The more each person can see a path to be rewarded for doing constructive things the more a society will flourish.
Now, I'm not such a hard core capitalist that I don't think we should have some government intervention that could be considered socialism.
- Social security is needed in our country because so many people don't save adequately for retirement. But, most of us won't get nearly what we should from it because the government has mis-managed and raided the funds.
- Welfare is needed in our country. Some people have major challenges and need support. (challenges like poor health, mental illness, extreme lack or privilege, etc) However, we should set it up so it's designed to be a short term solution as much as possible. Right now, people are penalized for working and rewarded for having kids who are raised to stay on welfare.
- I don't pretend to have the answer for healthcare. Simplified billing and transparency of costs prior to care would help. We may still need government intervention. Our system is clearly broken. Government run healthcare doesn't seem to be all sunshine and roses either.
Basically, I want to keep a system where an individual can work hard, "pull themselves up by their bootstraps" and be successful. Capitalism has a better track record of that than socialism. I recognize that not everyone has the same starting point and we need to help the underprivileged. We just need to be sure we keep a system that rewards hard work, innovation and creativity while we help them.
edit: I recognize that socialism at it's roots has good intentions. We all want (or should want) everyone to have shelter, food, medicine, clothing, etc. The difference comes in what we think is the most effective way to accomplish this. Socialism taken too far can bring the standard of living of everyone down in an effort to be "fair".
