mroddy@enmasse.UUCP (Mark Roddy) (09/06/85)
> > I repeat: The western democracies, American and European, represent > ideological arenas where the actual policies are an amalgam of free- > market and socialist ideals. Socialists may not legitimately claim > any credit for the ameliorative effect of the resistance to their > programs. The Eastern European countries are valid demonstrations > of where those programs would lead without such resistance. > I invert: The western democracies, American and European, represent ideological arenas where the actual policies are an amalgam of socialist and free-market ideals. Free-marketeers may not legitimately claim any credit for the ameliorative effect of the resistance to their programs. There are no valid demonstrations of where those programs would lead without such resistance. Really, occupied Eastern Europe ain't much of an example of anything except the grim reality of statist oppression. You could choose any of the Western European countries where non-statist socialism has had a fairly free reign over the last 40 years or so (say Sweden for example,) but then things don't look quite so bad. It is a bit wierd to ignore the difference between democratic-socialist ideas implemented in a democracy, and marxist-leninist state socialism imposed on a society. -- Mark Roddy Net working, Just reading the news. (harvard!talcott!panda!enmasse!mroddy)