Is former Gov. Pete Wilson correct: Obama's 'change' is merely socialism?

Question

According to the Sacramento Bee:

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Wilson stood in for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at the California delegation's daily breakfast with a red-meat message that belied his past moderate persona.

"The audacity that Barack Obama is offering to us and our children, the change he is offering, is not new," Wilson said. "The audacity he is offering, quite frankly, is socialism."

http://www.sacbee.com/111/story/1202417.html

Answer 1

From a bumper sticker I saw:

Vote for Barack Obama - make Carl Marx proud!

Edit:  another answer above is right, in THEORY, pure socialism is a government of pure equality.  But it never works out that way.  So when the term SOCIALISM is used, it is often referencing governments such as Cuba, the former USSR, etc that attempted (and failed) with pure Socialism.

If you want a good read, get George Orwell's Animal Farm.  It is fiction, but it parallels the Soviet socialist experiment.

Answer 2

that's what I have been trying to tell you people for months now!! Thank you. Obama is different from socialism. Now. Just give him time. Didn't the DNC look like a Hitler rally? Large photos of the leader draped many feet high to be awe inspiring. Doesn't China do stuff like that? Anyone notice the Olympics opening ceremony. Weren't those 2008 precision drummers about as frightening as Obama's pictures hanging above packed crowds leaning on his every word....scary.

Answer 3

very true that is why i compare Obama to this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgsVNMD9A...

Answer 4

if anyone ever did their homework and studied the different forms of government they would recognize socialism when they see its policies.

Answer 5

as i understand socialism, it is a theory of economics/government/social order...whatever..that advocates community (government) ownership of the means of  production.  it is a term that has come to be used to describe a broad spectrum of beliefs.  i think if jesus walked today people would describe him as a socialist.  he never blamed the poor for their economic status, advocated the belief that we are our "brother's keeper" and have a responsibility to care for others, etc.,etc. such concepts today are frequently described as socialistic. our capitalist society has seemingly adopted the idea that the poor are lazy and deserve to be without and the rich work hard so are good and deserve all the goodies.  i think senator obama is a thoughtful,caring man who is concerned about the welfare of all people. he has certainly demonstrated this in his own life when he has taken jobs to serve the people who are struggling to get by.  this despite the fact his own intelligence and very hard work has allowed him to achieve advanced degrees from prestigious universities that would enable to him to take the highest paid positions.  he advocates income tax cuts for the large middle class and plans to roll back the huge tax breaks given the richest 2% of our society in the bush administration.  it is therefore fair to say, i think, that obama's plans would call for a redistribution of some of the wealth since the richest would be required to pay a larger (than now) share of the taxes that fund the roads, schools, public resources, etc that we all enjoy.  he has noted that people who get rich from oil revenue are using a natural resource belonging to us all, but do not pay us for that oil they take from our land.  he seems to suggest that oil companies pay some sort of rebate to us for that oil that would go into the public coffers for use  by all citizens.  in times of record high oil company profits while the world supply of oil, whether currently in production or not, is diminishing at an ever increasing rate, i don't think this is unfair.  one could consider this as a purely capitalist choice since we are simply trying to sell what we own. but, of course, it has become increasingly unpopular to take any action that may diminish the wealth of the richest.  hence the word socialism,having a negative connotation in our world today, is hurled as an insult at obama because he is advocating a return to the very american value of lending a hand to those in need and providing all citizens with the benefits of living in a country as rich as america is in natural resources. i think it is more legitimate to say he is advocating american values. christian values.  

Answer 6

Pete Wilson was a good governor. I trust what he says.

Answer 7

What does he mean by socialism?  Every time I hear that accusation I automatically assume someone is worried that they're going to have to pay more taxes.  I think people need to go onto wikipedia and look up socialism.  I really don't think Obama fits that accusation.

Answer 8

That is exactly what it is, and that is why I am not voting for him.  We were founded as a capitalist country, and we should remain that way.  Capitalism isn't as horrible as people think it is.  It supports, rather than enables, it's citizens.

Edit for another poster's comment on Communism:  Communism is a form of Socialism (n**i is short for National Socialist, for instance), just as Fascism is a form of Socialism (Mussolini co-created Fascism as an alternative to traditional Italian Socialism.  It is state control.

To Monkey:  No thanks on the offer to look Socialism up on Wiki when you can't trust that site any more than you can trust a n**i.

Answer 9

Absolutely.

Anyone who has even the most basic concept of a socialist state would know this is what Obama, and ultimately, the Democratic party strives to attain.

History has proven that it just doesn't work...can anyone name a thriving socialist country?

Edit: As others have stated pure socialism in its basic form/idea is different from communism, fascism, etc. The basic idea is to eliminate classes and to have a classless society...while it sounds good (everyone wants to be equal, right?) human nature will not allow it to work...this is why the government steps in and attempts to control, giving us communism...

BTW, I don't hate Obama. I truly believe he cares for this country and wants what is best for everyone, but I think the way he's proposing to do that cannot work...

Answer 10

Sure looks like it to me.   LOL>

Answer 11

and if you knew anything about socialism you would know that socialism is a government of common equality that is run by the PEOPLE. Which isn't possible. You're thinking of communism which is government run communism. The only people who fear this is the rich who say it's 'socialism' to scare people who don't know any better.  

Answer 12

He hit the nail squarely on the head.  That's what it is all about.  

Answer 13

Yup