To be sure, there were different degrees of socialism. The totalitarian socialism of Mao and the Soviet Union killed people, ruined economies, and snuffed out freedoms critical to both political and personal life. The democratic socialism common in the West, softer and therefore less destructive, merely specialized in overregulating the private economy and extreme redistribution of wealth.

But even in the West, socialism manifestly failed. The democratic socialism of Great Britain reduced that country from a leading economic power to the “sick man of Europe,” and was firmly rejected by British voters during the Thatcher years.

Unfortunately, socialism has come slouching back onto our college campuses, settling itself comfortably among the students. A 2015 Reason-Rupe poll showed that 58 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds viewed socialism favorably. By contrast, only 28 percent of seniors ages 65 and above were favorable toward socialism. Several other polls say the same thing: A majority of young adults support socialism, and in fact prefer it to capitalism.

To older adults, this fact probably seems disturbing and inexplicable. How could anyone support a philosophy that has spawned evils ranging from economic stagnation to mass killing? Speaking as a 21-year-old college student, I believe that the explanation boils down to two things—discontent and ignorance. Most of today’s college students grew up during the Great Recession. They are graduating with large debts and, for many, bleak prospects for employment. They feel cheated, and believe that something is deeply wrong with our current system. Since that system is capitalist, they see socialism as an alternative.

At the same time, however, most young adults misunderstand socialism. In one study only 16 percent of millennials could define socialism as a government-managed economy. And who can blame them for their ignorance, considering what they’ve learned—or haven’t learned—in the classroom? In my experience, professors may not espouse socialism, but they seldom challenge its tenets. Most of my history classes in college have focused on the many ways America has victimized the poor and downtrodden. Professors equated capitalism with imperialism while failing to even mention the evils committed by totalitarian socialist countries or the economic destructiveness of democratic socialism. One of my professors dismissed the atrocities committed under Mao Zedong’s regime by saying, “While there were certainly many failures with Mao’s reign, during his rule China’s literacy rate went up, as did migration to cities.”

“Failures”—that is how my professor referred to the 45 million who starved to death under Mao.

I believe this same indifference to truth is what turned so many college students into enthusiastic supporters of Bernie Sanders during the last presidential campaign, giving him more youth votes in the primary than Clinton and Trump combined. While Sanders is no totalitarian, he certainly supports the same democratic socialism that emaciated Britain in the postwar years. Students loved the promises he made (free college, free healthcare, and forgiveness of debt) and were perfectly willing to believe that big and benevolent government could make almost anything “free” simply by raising taxes on the very rich.

It should be said that this support for socialism isn’t necessarily permanent. Studies find that support for socialism drops after college and goes down as people earn higher salaries. Young people aren’t stupid; they are just young, and some economic truths cannot be truly appreciated until experienced.

Of course, some college students don’t make it easier for themselves. Many refuse to listen to conservative voices and cannot stand correction—or argument. Nothing strengthens a lie quite like an echo chamber, so the lie of socialism has grown into a powerful force on campus that threatens competing (and worthier) ideas. Yes, most students are just young and will outgrow their revolutionary fervor. But right now, students are being cheated out of the best opportunity most will ever have to test competing political and economic ideas against one another. And until our colleges have the courage to break through the echo chamber, students will get—at best—only half the education they’re paying for.

The post Socialism: The Slouching Beast on our Campuses appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

Reservation Number 4: School choice does not solve the larger problem of concentrated poverty.

The parents in my focus groups recognized that some schools are not doing well. That’s why many of them refused to enroll their children in their local public schools. Yet many wouldn’t support a state-supported private school choice program. To them, that was just a Band-Aid to cover over a problem rather than actually solving it. Instead, the concerned parents thought more needed to be done to address the root cause that led to the poor educational opportunities: poverty.

This line of argument suffers from two shortcomings. First, it sets an almost impossible expectation of school choice programs—that they solve a problem that traditional public schools have failed to solve for centuries. Rarely do we expect public policies to solve this kind of massive societal problem. Even when considering issues related to poverty, we often hope an intervention will move the needle in the right direction by a matter of degrees. When it does, we consider it a success.

Second, this argument absolves public schools of blame for the role that they have played in exacerbating the problems of poverty. Not only have traditional public schools failed to solve the problems of poverty, in some places, they have actually made it worse. Look at the patchwork of school districts in the areas surrounding Kansas City and Saint Louis. Homes in the higher-performing districts cost more because the schools are better; wealthier families segregate themselves from lower-income families by moving to these better districts. This creates virtuous cycles within these districts, where wealthier students attend better schools, get better jobs, move to places with even better schools, and then send their children to them. But it also creates a vicious cycle in poorer-performing districts, where families that are not able to break into the housing market of better districts are shut out of higher-performing schools, are prevented from accessing better opportunities, and stay trapped in poverty.

There is nothing nefarious about a family wanting to be in a good neighborhood with great schools. There is, however, something wrong with a school system that only allows families with financial means to access great educational options.   

Vouchers and charter schools have done nothing to create this situation. But they can help stop it by breaking the connection between where children live to where they go to school.

It is true that school choice does not solve issues of poverty. School choice programs also do not cure cancer, reduce tensions in North Korea, or solve male pattern baldness. In other words, school choice does not solve complicated, thorny issues that are incredibly complex. It does, however, reduce the barriers that stand between low-income families and educational opportunities for their children.    

The post School Choice for Me, but Not for Thee: Part 5 appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

It’s easy to make fun of North Korea’s state television station, but reading about advertising regulations in Russia makes the North Korean ad seem like a paragon of free expression. At least the North Korean ad had people in it — people you can see. The people even pick up glasses of beer during the course of the commercial and move them around. None of that would be permitted on Russian television.

A Russian regulator explains why people speaking or clinking beer glasses off screen is also unacceptable:

“It creates the impression that someone is present,” says Andrei Kashevarov, deputy head of the FAS. “We don’t want this trend to continue.”

You wouldn’t want viewers to get the impression that live people drink the beer being advertised!

In the United States, we enjoy a freedom to communicate and share ideas that people in other countries can only dream of. Clink clink.

The post Beer Ads Around the World appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

Not surprisingly, given Kim Jong Il’s opposition to free markets, the advertisement is vague on details like price:

It was unclear how much the beer cost and how many North Koreans could afford it. The country is among the poorest in the world, with an average per capita income of $1,065 in 2008, according to the South’s central bank.

If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.

The post One Small Step for Capitalism appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

The post For Your Entertainment! appeared first on Show-Me Institute.

No matter what your feelings about capitalism are, no "capitalistic" country has ever been as barbaric as these regimes claiming to be "protectors" of the people.

The post Lest We Forget Where Socialism Ultimately Leads appeared first on Show-Me Institute.