By Kim Smith
The United States has always been known as a giving country – of time, resources and money – lots of it – to those less fortunate. Perhaps it's in our DNA – our Judeo-Christian heritage and our pioneer heritage that demanded innovations, and our fight to the death for liberty.
What, though, would US generosity look like under a socialist government? After all, about 50% of the millennials are receptive to living under socialism – and they are someday in the not-too-distant future going to be a political force and in positions of leadership.
Let's first look at what socialism does to a country:
1) It kills economic growth, gradually slowing economies to the point where not enough tax revenue can be produced to sustain them (see killed Soviet Union, dying Greece, nearly dead Venezuela, and US and Western Europe on a slippery slope). It goes against economic law.
2) It stifles free speech, where conservative speakers are disrupted (US), speech "codes" make conservative arguments illegal (Canada), where speaking against the government brings the risk of imprisonment (China, USSR) because it requires "protection, propaganda, intimidation and darkness to survive". It replaces education with indoctrination.3) It leads to increasingly tyrannical government because it cannot survive if people can choose the government they want. Government becomes increasingly centralized and bureaucratized, distant from the people, more menacing.
4) It creates strife and division, turning people against one another. A "victim" class is created and those who won't be controlled are vilified.
5) The ends justify the means – and the rules are different for different groups. Due process dies, the rule of law (applied equally) dies, and gulags are created.
6) People die: an estimated 100 million in the 20th century. (China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Cuba, North Korea, Venezuela, Angola, etc.)
7) It destroys the inner person. It removes the incentive for hard work. It allows, and perhaps encourages, the "blame game" instead of assuming personal responsibility.
8) Perhaps the biggest, socialism has created war on faith, a linchpin in the creation of our nation. The need to help one's neighbor, to give to those in need, to lend a helping hand.
For non-profits (501(c)(3)s) (as opposed to private charity and the other 19 classifications), the fact is that today, nearly 1 in every 10 jobs is in the non-profit sector and not-for-profits are now equal to manufacturing. (Jobs by percentage: 55% health services; 16% education; 12% social assistance; 7% grants, religious, civic, professional, environmental; 3% arts and recreation; 6% other). They paid $425 billion in wages (2003). – which increased by over 37% between then and 2013 ($634 billion). This does not include the value of volunteer hours – estimated as contributing $167 billion to $184 billion to the economy in 2018.
How does America stack up in comparison to other giving countries? Most, but not all, list the most generous in the following order: the United States, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Singapore, India, Russia (where 50% of the people now identify as Christians) and the Netherlands.
Politicians in the US who are pushing the "democratic socialism" mantra often refer to the Scandinavian countries - Norway (#14), Denmark (20), Finland (24) and Sweden (25), yet their own leaders indicate a different story. Said one : "Denmark is far from a socialist planned economy"; it's a "successful market economy with much freedom to pursue your dreams…" (Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen). Sweden fell into an economic abyss in the 1990's and reversed course by "deregulating, freeing trade, cutting taxes, …issuing school vouchers". All need the "economic engine" of the United States to survive and provide the benefits they do.
The socialist/communist countries are at the bottom of the Charities Aid Foundation list – with China (#140) being dead last and the majority of the former Soviet Union being in the bottom 20 of generosity.
There was one surprise – Myanmar – a known totalitarian state which ranked on that list as #1 (with the US at #2). Wondering if this was a politically motivated list, the conclusion is "no". (Charitable Aid Foundation) What makes Myanmar such a generous country is its FAITH. Instead of the Christianity that motivates so many of the top countries, in this case, it's Buddhism, but again, faith. There is a belief that generosity in this life will lead to profound benefits in the next, that wholesome actions (kusala) is a reward in itself.
Imagine a socialist United States where so much has to be changed by definition – and above all, a world without faith. Feeding the poor, cuddling a kitten, comforting a dying stranger, mentoring a child, serving a wounded veteran and so much more would be lost to our spirits.
As a friend observed after showing military personnel from many different countries how we do things in America, none of the other nations had charitable giving and support that even remotely measured up to ours. And Winston Churchill remarked: While capitalism might share blessings unequally, "the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries".
Several articles worth reading – that provided information for this article – are "These are the most telling failures of Socialism" (Heritage); "Socialism Now, Socialism Tomorrow, Socialism Forever – The Ruin of Nations" (Investors.com); and "How Socialism Rots the Soul, the Culture and the Country" (The Revolutionary Act.com). (None of these focus on private giving – neighbor helping neighbor, family helping family – but other articles do focus on our own governments regulations and restrictions to such actions.)
Posts
