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From: jbtubman@water.UUCP (Jim Tubman )
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Socialism -- Where Are You Looking?
Message-ID: <280@water.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 5-Feb-85 10:57:26 EST
Article-I.D.: water.280
Posted: Tue Feb  5 10:57:26 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 6-Feb-85 03:51:58 EST
Distribution: net
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 41

Some astounding things have been said about socialism on the net lately,
often concerning lack of freedom and massacres.  I wonder if the people
who are giving such opinions have ever bothered to look at anything besides
Nazi Germany or the Communist countries (which aren't really examples of
what socialism is generally considered to be).

In Canada, the socialist party is called the New Democratic Party (a
perfectly meaningless name).  It has never formed the national government,
but it has formed governments in a number of provinces.  I had the
opportunity to live in the province of Saskatchewan (north of North Dakota;
a kind of cold Kansas) under their rule for about 10 years.  Some of the
people in that administration were extremely bright and capable; the premier
himself was a Rhodes scholar.  The characteristics of socialism, as I
experienced it, were: nationalization of foreign-owned industry (in this
case, the potash industry); the confusing attitude that enterprises owned by
the government were owned by "the people"; a varying amount of anti-American
rhetoric; labour laws that generally favoured unions over businesses; a big
emphasis on the funding of the health care system; and a general attitude
that one shouldn't have to pay one's way in the world.

Within the context of what they felt their social goals to be, they managed
the province fairly well (with the notorious exception of the Department of
Northern Saskatchewan).  Budgets were usually balanced and the province
enjoyed (and still enjoys) a high credit rating.  The percentage of people
unemployed was the lowest in the country.

In 1982, the NDP was dealt a crushing defeat by the Conservative party.
The Conservatives have made some changes in style and substance, but it is
interesting to note that the Conservatives have retained a lot of what the
NDP did, such as retaining control of the potash mines (but not buying any
more), and pouring a lot of money into the health care system.  Altering
some of the socialist programs would be political suicide.

I myself am a conservative, but I don't like seeing ridiculous lies being
spread about anyone, even a socialist.  Most of the ones of my acquaintance
are rather good people who earnestly want to solve real problems in society,
by spending other people's money.  

						Jim Tubman
						University of Waterloo
						...!watmath!water!jbtubman