America’s capitalist, sometimes referred to as “mixed,” economy creates the economic liberty we enjoy today, and changing our economic system to a government controlled one could have detrimental effects on our already struggling system.
The American Dream remains just as much a fixture in our culture today as it was when this country was founded. The ideas of liberty, equality, democracy, rights and opportunity entice people from around the world to come to America and follow their dreams. With a self-proclaimed democratic socialist named Bernie Sanders in the presidential race, everyone should understand socialism’s impact on our American Dream.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, socialism is “a way of organizing a society in which major industries are owned and controlled by the government rather than by individual people and companies.”
People don’t have a right to private property under an extreme socialist government, and all means of production are under the state’s control. Socialism would end our freedom to choose our own jobs and bargain for wages without government intervention.
I realize that democratic socialism is slightly different. It incorporates a democratic political system with socialist economics, but the economic aspect of it is where the problems begin.
Supporters of the democratic socialist presidential candidate love his “Robin Hood” style economics, but this idea takes away the liberty and freedom the American Dream offers. It does this through taking even more from those who worked hard to become wealthy or create a company.
Corporations have become the enemy, and part of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ tax plan is to raise the corporate tax rate, which is already one of the highest in the world at around 39.1 percent as reported by the Tax Foundation.
According to the 2014 corporate tax rate report, our rate is 16.5 percent higher than the worldwide average. Sanders said in an interview with Bloomberg Politics he intends to raise it to more than 50 percent.
What people need to realize is many American corporations were built by Americans just like us. We are punishing our own people for becoming successful and forcing them to do business elsewhere.
Would you like it if the government took nearly 40 percent of your company’s money after you worked years to create a successful corporation that provides hundreds of jobs?
As we all know, our country is trapped in a debt that never stops growing. The plans stemming from our democratic socialist candidate involve taking more money from those who fall into the category of “the top 1 percent” in order to provide free stuff, like tuition-free college.
Even if the government took in all the money from “the top 1 percent,” it still couldn’t cover these new programs, and we’d be in even greater debt. In fact, Sanders recently said he would raise taxes on the middle class to pay for his intended programs.
By giving away things for free and raising taxes on the wealthy, the American people lose the incentive to become wealthy, and it will force large businesses and corporations to cut jobs.
As Margaret Thatcher once said, “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.”
Our economic system is not perfect, but nothing ever is. Neither socialism nor democratic socialism will allow anyone to climb the economic ladder. Once socialism moves in, it’s here to stay. The American Dream will only exist as long as American citizens are given the opportunity to achieve their goals and become successful without the fear of being penalized.
Charlie Bonacquisti is a 20-year-old mass communication sophomore from Dallas, Texas.