[kjellsbells]

> make more money > stop spending so much fucking money

I'm all in favor of this but part 1 has been made politically toxic for decades, and part 2 only seems to be taken seriously when the Other Guys are in power.

For example, in the US I simply cant take the Republican party's fiscal opinions seriously when they bleat about the debt on the one hand and yet dont blink when asked to fund another foreign war.

[bdangubic]

republicans are much much bigger spenders than democrats by miles. they are “anti socialism” publicly but are 2nd largest socialist party on the planet (behind china).

[danaris]

"Socialism" isn't just "the government spending money".

In order to be socialism, it has to be spending money specifically to help the people, and broadly to reduce inequality.

Republicans do not do that, by any stretch of the imagination.

[bdangubic]

farmers would like a word

[thrance]

"Socialism is when the government gives tax breaks to the rich and destroys public institutions". And calling China "socialist" is rich when it's probably the most ruthlessly capitalistic nation on the planet, where worker unions are straight up illegal.

The West saw its golden age when redistributive taxation was maximum. We have to get back to that, or the country will continue to agonize under crumbling infrastructure and failing institutions.